What Do You Think? (Sean)

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It wasn't finished yet. Not quite. The past few weeks had been spent negotiating with contractors, potential employees, training those employees, ordering supplies....there was a lot to think about when opening a business and she only had a limited time to do it in. The business loan would have to be paid back eventually, as soon as they started getting in some revenue, so she was on a time limit with that as well.

While there was still some last minute touches being done on the interior design, Rosella thought it was at least finished enough that she could show it off to a few close friends and business associates. She had a meeting with an investor yesterday, followed by another series of interviews for manager positions and general staff. Today, she had a few more in the morning, but the afternoon she wanted to reserve for simply relaxing. Or whatever Rosella's idea of 'relaxing' happened to be.

She'd called up an old associate. A friend really. They knew each other briefly while attending Hammel - she had just arrived while he was just leaving - but connected again when Rosella's daughter had manifested some ten years ago and was brought out to Pilot Ridge for her powers training. Imagine Rosella's surprise to see that the boy she looked up to in school ended up returning as the school's psychiatrist. It was comforting to Rosella knowing that her daughter would be left in the hands of someone so competent. It gave Rosella one less thing to have to worry about.

Anyway, Rosella called up her old friend Dr. Sean Neville and invited him down to the half-finished establishment for a meal and a drink if he'd take it. While she didn't admit it, the middle aged woman was very nervous about opening day. So maybe the invitation was so she could calm those nerves. It was only a week away, after all.

Rosella stood against the bar counter, her elbow rested upon it and her toe tapping against the floor behind her other foot. She'd worn flats today instead of heels. The lack of a wedge under her heel felt awkward to her, but her toes had taken a beating the past several days. They needed a break too, it seemed. She checked the time on her wristwatch. Sean should be there soon. At least, he hoped he would.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean was one of the last people in the world who had any personal use for a burlesque house. It wasn’t his style of entertainment beginning with the fact that he had no interest in the actual burlesque performances and ending with the fact that he had never particularly enjoyed the live company of people who were interested in that, in the same way he didn’t enjoy watching horror movies with the types of people who liked to watch horror movies. In fact, despite getting along quite well with Cynthia, the only times he had visited her establishment had been when she had hosted the Holiday Bash, or otherwise there was a charity fundraiser taking place.

However, Rosella was a friend, and opening her business was a personal passion. As such, he supported her, and he had been touched that she’d wanted to show him around the work in progress. The telepath had immediately agreed.

Since the business was not yet finished and had yet to open formally, he held off on buying her a warming gift. He had an idea in mind of what to get her, but it would keep.

Instead, he had donned his trench coat for the slowly warming weather and instead arrived with only himself in tow.

Although the building appeared under construction, Rosella had given him permission when inviting him over to simply come inside. So he did, stepping past the sheets for painting and wood work to find her at the bar.

“Everything seems to be coming along,” he offered by way of greeting. “Are you still on schedule?”

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Was she nervous?  Of course. It was all she could do to keep her pheromones from scattering all over the place in response to the butterflies fluttering around in her stomach.  Funny how she’d lived with this power for over 30 years, yet she still had to think about it when she got too emotional.  It’d do no good to douse the people around her unexpectedly with sex pheromones, or sadness, or worse, red-hot fury.  She was normally very good at keeping a hold on those negative emotions, but to say it was easy, ever, would be a lie.  It was simply that she was accustomed to thinking about it, and paying attention. 

The telepath no doubt understood this, to some extent. It must be equally as difficult to deal with his own power on a regular basis. Then again, Sean was likely more disciplined than Rosella was in power control, so she could be wrong about that part.

Either way, Sean was a friend, she trusted him and trusted his opinion. He had an insight that she envied as well.

She was looking out across the upper floor from her spot at the counter. The design of the club was chic. At least she thought so. Very modern, with a typical bar/nightclub atmosphere on the upper level, which was where the entrance led into, and a more relaxed, lounge-like area at the bottom of a short set of stairs on either side of the dance floor angled like a diamond in the center of the whole establishment. Rosella had checked every inch of the floor, and then rechecked it, to ensure that the stage at the back of the club was visible from essentially any location of the club.

Yes, it was good. At least she hoped so.

Rosella turned her gaze behind her at the sound of a one Dr. Sean Neville, who had finally arrived. She offered him a greeting of her own in the form of a warm, broad smile. “There you are, Sean. I was beginning to wonder if something had held you up.” Her eyes narrowed as her smile grew even more. “And yes, I believe so. It took longer than I expected, but we should be able to open within the next month or so.” There were still a number of things to finish even after construction was done. Like hiring. And promoting. She released a soft laugh and shook her head self-consciously. “I’m not crazy for doing this, am I?” Her kids had the nerve to say so. Still, it didn’t hurt to check with a professional.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Fortunately for everyone around him, Sean’s level of self-discipline, both emotionally and with his powers, was beyond reproach. That didn’t mean that he failed to understand nervousness or the way that emotions could affect powers; quite the contrary. He simply didn’t have to worry about power slips by this stage in life, given that it had been forty-five years with his powers and nearly forty since graduating.

He greeted her with a smile as he stepped up towards the bar. “It would take more than that to keep me away.”

While Sean disliked the word “crazy” and would redirect students away from using it, or would correct people so that they began using a different word, he didn’t do that with Rosella. He knew what she meant, that she hadn’t used it glibly, and he cared more about tackling her underlying question than getting into a side conversation about semantics.

As he approached, he ran his hand along the top of the bar, feeling the very real wood beneath his fingertips. “If there’s something objectively wrong with chasing a non-harmful dream, then there isn’t much to live for.”

He withdrew his hand but leaned against the bar, facing her. “I’ve chased a dream twice in my life, and both times it worked out better than I could have hoped for.” A soft smile touched his lips at the memory; both of those dreams had allowed him to be where he was in this moment. “I’m not precognitive so I can’t promise you that this will work out, but I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that my life would be worse if I hadn’t chased my dreams.”

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Rosella pulled her smile out even wider. “Good,” she said with some relief. “I’m glad I can depend on you, Sean.” The man was reliable and patient, much more so than some people she’d worked with. Rosella disliked the opposite of either of those qualities. She hoped to hire a staff that possessed those qualities as well. That was going to be a task of trial and error though. And costly, which could be trouble if the business flopped.

Running a large business was an equally large risk. Maybe she was crazy?

She was glad that Sean didn’t think so, and his words even offered her some encouragement. “I’m just hoping this isn’t a mistake,” she admitted with a light shake of her head. “I can’t help worrying about the future and that it may not work out. At the same time, though, it’s very exciting.” The anticipation, the process of planning and executing….what was that saying? ‘Success is a journey, not a destination.’ That was probably what she was most caught up in right now.

Rosella gestured to behind the bar. “Would you like anything? There isn’t much yet, but I’m hoping to change that soon.” The club technically wasn’t open for business yet, and therefore technically wasn’t a club yet. At least, that was Rosella’s rationalization. They had water, at least, if nothing else. “I can show you around in a moment as well. I simply want to get the most basic courtesies out of the way before moving forward.” A little cold of her, yes, but Rosella was a very straightforward woman. She had no plans of beating around the bush, or indicating that that was what she was doing when she did. Her ex-husband had called her ‘intimidating’ for having that habit. Rosella didn’t blame him.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Reliability and patience were two of the qualities for which he prided himself most. They were virtues which could lack in some places, which made them all the more important to uphold in his own life. Coupled with reason, compassion, and empathy.

He maintained that she wasn’t crazy for taking a risk on a business and doing what she wanted with her life. As an atheist, he believed that life was only what one made of it, and afterward, there was nothing but the lack of existence. All the more important to find satisfaction in one’s work and life choices. But they could talk about that at length if she desired further reassurances.

“If you have iced tea, I’ll have a glass of that. Otherwise, water is fine.” He assumed that she had water, with the building up and running, even if the club was not yet ready for business.

He then smiled and nodded affirmatively. “I’d like a tour.” He knew that she still had work ahead of her to bring her vision of the club to life, but he desired to see what she had done so far and had a strong imagination to help fill in the gaps between the present and the grand opening.

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Rosella gave the doctor a shallow nod at his request. “I have water,” she offered, rounding about the bar counter to retrieve said refreshment. “I’ll ensure that there is iced-tea next time you come in. You’re not the only one who will want it, I’m sure.” This sort of feedback was good. It gave Rosella insight into what areas she needed to give more attention to, what she may have overlooked, etc., and Sean had good eyes for that, so to speak. She filled Sean’s request and slid it across the counter for him, a smooth smile slightly rounding her cheeks.

As she wasn’t getting anything for herself, Rosella immediately removed herself from behind the counter and returned to the main floor, clasping her hands together in front of her in her delight. “Well, then…” she started, taking a few tentative steps out towards the rest of the club(or what would soon be a club). Rosella glanced back over her shoulder to the psychiatrist and sent him a warm, inviting smile, though not without a touch of pride glinting in her eyes. “Follow me, if you please.” Rosella would wait for Sean to coordinate himself and his drink how he wished, and approach her before continuing onward.

“I decided it would be best to separate the main floor into two levels. Up here is the main floor. I expect most people to be here, since the dance floor is up here as well.” She spread her arms within the large space between the two bar counters which lined opposite walls from each other, turning around to face her friend. “But then…” Rosella smartly held up a finger, as if to enhance the anticipation, then walked to the railing on the side furthest from the entrance. “We’ll have the lounge down there, a place where people can sit and enjoy the atmosphere more peacefully. You’ll get a better view of the stage from there, of course, but there will be a wait service as well. Nothing fancy, but I think offering a few grill items would be appropriate.” Rosella looked back to Sean, searching for any sign of approval in his expressions.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

“I’m sure that I’m not, although there’s no reason to do it just on my account,” Sean assured her. Iced tea wasn’t a particularly exotic beverage, but he was also sure that the alcoholic offerings would matter more than the non-alcoholic beverages she offered as chasers, and to teetotalers, designated drivers, and those too young to drink and honest enough not to try to use a fake ID. Still, iced tea, like water, sparkling water, lemonade, soda, and certain types of juices were standard for clubs.

With that, he took the proffered water glass and had a sip. “Refreshing,” he said with a smile.

Glass still in hand, he followed as she beckoned, moving from the bar to the large space between the counters. He looked around appreciatively, seeing what she had already done through renovation and imagining the rest of what she described. “I think that should work for the clientele,” he remarked with a nod. It would attract more clientele from different groups, in fact, since those who wanted to dance and those who preferred to drink and watch quietly often didn’t overlap, even if they might comprise couples or groups belonging to both categories (he and Josh were an example of that phenomenon).

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“Oh, believe me, I’m not. You simply reminded me, that’s all.” And that was a good thing. There were always going to be things she didn’t think of right away. Surely, there will still be things she didn’t think of right away that she wouldn’t find out until opening night, or even after. “You never know what you’re going to need until you need it,” Rosella stated, as if to further confirm this fact.

Even so, Rosella so disliked being ‘wrong’, as it were, and so would like to avoid missing as many things as possible before opening. Hence why she was offering these pre-opening tours to her friends and a number of others. The staff she finally hired would also be able to make suggestions should they notice something that was overlooked. Sean’s opinion was just one of many, though it was one that Rosella appreciated. She smiled broadly at his comment. “I think so too,” she said with a nod. “I was worried I might be trying to appeal to too broad of an audience, though, rather than specializing in one single thing.” But that was the point of a large club, wasn’t it? It was an idea that would certainly work well in a larger city, though she had some reservations about trying it out of a small town. But Pilot Ridge wasn’t far from Burlington or other larger cities, it wouldn’t be unusual for them to get clientele from outside of the immediate area, if she advertised well. “I’m considering an underage night,” she mentioned as she fiddled with her fingernails. “That might be taking it too far.” And if it was a flop, she could end up losing money instead, and that just wouldn’t do.