Anni glances up as the generous tipper left. Well, that was the biggest tip she'd ever get. She scurries off to serve someone else. Her good mood hasn't entirely evaporated, it's just dissipated. She reverts back to acting mechanically, taking orders while her mind wanders.

Is there anything interesting to do tonight? No. There never is. You could go somewhere? Pfft, it's too cold. Not necessarily...

Her internal monologue drains everything out, even her own spoken words.

Sammie sighed as the girl moved to the side. "God, Sorry." Sammie shrugged. "It's alright." She grabbed the honey, and quickly made Olivia's tea, and glanced up, to see her enjoying the muffin. Sammie cracked a small smile, and let out a sigh of relief.

With the honey tea, Sammie set it down carefully in front of Olivia, smiling as she did. "Here ya go, hun. I hope you enjoy. Did you need anything else? Napkins? " Sammie tilted her head, and then turned as she heard the door open, seeing the man from earlier leave.

"I wonder what tip she got.." Sammie mentally wondered, as she awaited Olivia's response. God, she just got more beautiful every time she looked at her..

Sammie was then brought back into reality from her daydream, and nodded, blushing. "Right! Napkins!" She scurried off and came back quickly with a few in her hands. After setting down the napkins, she tucked some of her bangs behind her ear, and scribbled down information on Olivia's ticket.

"Alright, well, when you're finished, or if you need anything else, I'll be around. " Sammie smiled, placing the receipt for her on the table, and smiled.

After she set her apron and things in her little cubby behind the counter, she found Annika. "Hey, 10 minutes!" She looked to her before exiting out the front door, signaling she was taking a smoke break.

Taking the pack of cigarettes out of her pocket, she took out a lighter, carefully lighting her smoke then placing the lighter in her pocket, with the pack. Sammie crossed her arms in front of her, and breathed in the puff of smoke, before exhaling it.

She liked to sometimes pretend she was like a dragon, puffing away the worries in her life.

Sammie smiled flirtatiously at Olivia as she basically asked Sammie out.

"Liv, I get off at... about noon, alright? I'll see you then, okay?" She smiled, and inhaled a puff of smoke, before blowing it out away from the girl.

Sammie's heart rate sped up, and she had to take another puff just to calm her nerves. She hadn't felt like that towards someone else... since her last girlfriend. And that was a wild story all it's own, the bitch. Sammie shook her head, and smiled at Olivia.

"I'll catch you around, later, alright?" She smiled sweetly before placing her hand on the knob to the door, to go back inside.

Sammie felt chills as Liv touched her wrist, and kissed her cheek. It felt.. Good.

Sammie went back inside, continuing to work her shift until she got off, at 12. Tired but happy, she left, with nearly $300 in tips. Her apartment only a few blocks away, she decided to go home and freshen up before meeting Liv.

When she opened front door, she sucked in the fresh air, and sighed, throwing her money on her bed, and started the water in her shower. Sammie got in carefully, the hot water resulting in steam on the mirrors. After humming about 5 songs, she hopped out. Throwing on jeans and and a button down purple shirt, she felt good, leaving her hair down as it was really wavy.

Celeste Xifeng Liu held her 3-year-old brother’s hand. It was a crisp fall day, and Dante Longwei Liu was having a ball with all the crunchy (or damp) leaves fallen into the New York City sidewalks, giggling in his high, sweet voice and exclaiming things in a mixture of Mandarin and English.

“Jaijai!” he exclaimed, holding up a particularly brilliant red leaf. Jaijai meant big sister in Mandarin. “Jaijai! Look! Pretty!” Xifeng broke into a wide smile.

“It is a pretty leaf, Xiaolong,” she said, admiring it briefly. Xiaolong meant little dragon, a nickname of sorts for Longwei, which meant great dragon. Xiaolong still had plenty of growing up to do, before he could grow into his name.

“Take Mr. Leaf with us?” he asked, spinning it by rubbing his fingers on the stem. Xifeng sighed through her nose. On one hand, the leaf was probably filthy from all the exposure it had since it fell off the tree. On the other hand, Xiaolong was giving her the best puppy eyes she’d seen since he told her that he wanted a scooter for his birthday, and it was pretty educational to learn about leaves, anyway. And it was free, which was a big plus to her corset-tight budget.

“Alright,” she said, smiling. “Make sure you don’t lose it, okay?” Xiaolong nodded eagerly, chattering animatedly to the leaf, who seemed pretty pleased with the attention it was getting. In a leaf-y sort of way.

Xifeng hummed. They were walking back to their little apartment from the subway station, where they’d gone to a few daycare centers. Although there was one on the college campus where she was going, she figured that she shouldn’t just settle on any old place for Xiaolong. Luckily for her, though, the college center was better equipped and overall safer than the other centers she had gone to, and best of all they were hiring students to help out.

She snapped out of her musings when she felt Xiaolong tugging a little on her arm. His head was down, and he was dragging his feet a bit. With another, fonder sigh, she grasped him under his arms and hauled him up with a grunt. He was getting pretty heavy, to the point where it was hard to walk long distances holding him. She could remember when he was just as big as a loaf of bread…

And today’s award for sentimental old women goes to Xifeng Liu, she thought sarcastically.

“Are you tired already?” she asked even though she already knew the answer, looking around to see if there were any cafes or fast food restaurants around where they could rest for a bit. She was pretty thirsty anyway, and a cup of hot chocolate that didn’t originate from a Swiss Miss or Nesquik powder was a nice treat after a long day.

Spotting a cafe, she walked faster, as Xiaolong blew wet raspberries in an attempt to make helicopter noises, which the leaf now was. She clumsily opened the door and walked in. There were several couples chatting sappily over mugs of overpriced coffee, but also several empty tables. Xifeng walked over to one with two chairs, setting Xiaolong into one and taking the other. A pretty blonde waitress went around taking orders and generally looked pretty busy, so she decided to wait for a while, talking quietly to Xiaolong (partially about what Mr. Leaf was doing and partially telling him about the information she found about the leaf from her phone) and Mr. Leaf (who had become either a Pokemon or a Pokemon Trainer) in turns.

Sammie suddenly squeaked as she felt the familiar vibration of her phone in her pocket, and sighed, seeing an unknown number. She thought about not answering, then remembered her.

"Hello?" She asked peppy-ish, and smiled, awaiting an answer.

Sammie hopped up on her kitchen counter, and watched her legs dangle, listening to the silence.

AJ walked about the people on New York's streets. He had planed on heading to a secluded spot and doodle on some wall, but the felling had escaped him. He walked around NYC and eventually found him self at a night club that was just opening up for the night. He walked in a sat down at one of the booths, ordered a drink, (no alcohol) and chilled.

“H-hey Sammie, this is Olive. I was wondering, are you ready to meet up?”

"Hey hun, why don't we meet right now at the night club? I hear it's a big party spot. Besides, who doesn't love dancing?" She smiled, as if she was talking to Olive in person. "See you there?"

Annika sees someone sit down and bustles over, wishing her shift would just speed up. She darts over to the young woman with a little boy and shoots them both bright smiles.
"Can I get anything for either of you?"
She flicks a strand of hair behind her ear, her other hand feeling in her pocket for her notepad. Hopefully the order wouldn't be too difficult to write down. Her hands and head have started to feel weak, her thoughts a little foggy.

AJ opened his eyes long enough to see a familiar face. It was one of the people from the café, "Huh, small world after all" he murmured to himself as he took another sip of his drink. It was a virgin drink, meaning no booze, he sighed at the though of waiting till next July, his birthday, to be able to enjoy a good drink. He looked up again to see the waitress enter the club as well.

"So, I was right after all" he thought as the two met each other, in the corner of the club. He smiled and got up, stretching his legs as we walked around the club, heading in their general direction.

Sammie walked in the club, and following Olivia's directions, she soon found the girl.

"Hey!" Sammie spoke a little louder, over some of the music. "Wanna dance, or get some drinks? I don't have a preference.. in case you were wondering." She winked, and smiled. Sammie checked out the crowd, and thought she saw the guy that Annika took from her earlier.

Shrugging, she turned back to Olivia.

Xifeng looked up at the tired-looking waitress.
“Just one hot chocolate for us,” she said. No need to make the poor girl’s life any more difficult, and she had never developed any interest in coffee, anyway. Xiaolong smiled at the blonde girl, waving at her.
“Hi!” he said cheerfully, Mr. Leaf flapping with him. Xiaolong was starting to lose his fear of strangers, which had lead to less awkward conversations but more lessons on how to act around people they didn’t know.

Annika smiles back, jotting it down on her pad of paper.
"Brilliant."
As Xiaolong calls up to her, she glances down, and her tired, forced smile instantly becomes completely genuine.
"Hello!"
She waggles her fingers at the little boy. He was a sweet little kid - and he reminded her painfully of her brother in his manner. There was barely anyone around. Annika glances round before crouching down, grinning. She gestures to his leaf.
"What've you got there, then?"
She beams at him, her head cocked to one side.

Xiaolong absolutely beamed at being asked a question by the pretty waitress, like he was a grown up, and Xifeng smiled with him.
“It’s Mr. Leaf! He can fly! And he likes chocolate too!” he said enthusiastically, holding the leaf up for further inspection. He nattered on for a few more minutes about Mr. Leaf and looked ready to talk for hours, so Xifeng intervened.
“I’m sure Miss...Annika has things to do, Xiaolong,” she said gently, sneaking a look at the waitress’s nametag. “Besides, you want your hot cocoa, right?” After a minute of consideration, the little boy nodded solemnly and smiled at the waitress.
“Can we talk later?” he asked curiously, and Xifeng paused, unsure. Part of her was excited that Xiaolong seemed to be adapting well to New York, even if his first acquaintance was a waitress easily 5 or 6 times his age, whereas her jealousy was starting to rear its ugly head. She squashed it down.
“That depends on what Miss Annika says,” she answered, looking at the waitress with a neutral face.

Annika beams at the young boy, tucking her little notepad into her apron.
"I'd love to. You can tell me all about Mr Leaf."
She glances down at the young women, swapping her smile for an expression more serious.
"If that's alright with you, I mean."
She lowers her voice slightly to talk to Xifeng. She's not sure whether she's the boy's mother, sister, or just a friend, but whatever their relationship, she doesn't want to come across as predatory or domineering. She's just a waitress, after all. In all honesty, she's really craving human company, and while talking to her back in England is lovely, it's just not the same as talking to someone who's actually there.