support group one: no one left behind

[hearnospeakno]

When: Friday 6:00 p.m.
Where: Attic Observatory
What: Community Support Group

As Nick promised on his open advertisements, there are chairs and coffee in the Attic Observatory. There's even a table laden with what food products Nick and co could round up.

The process of setting up for a group meeting felt enough like Boulder that Nick took a short break to lean, palms first, against a wall. It was a short, easily displaced moment, and he has no intention of lingering on it.

This is about everyone, one way or another. For all the people stuck here, and everyone new, and all those in-between. Nick left the purpose of the group intentionally vague. In the future, he assumes it'll have to be narrowed down and split up for the sake of different needs, but for this first coming together of the displaced in any non-official capacity he wants it to be open for everyone. It wouldn't be right, otherwise.

So all newcomers will find Nick by the attic observatory door, nursing a cup of black coffee next to a clearly printed sign:

Hi, I'm Nick. Welcome to the first Nexus Hotel Support Group. Whatever your problem, we'll listen. Help yourself to coffee and food.

Underneath the words, Nick has drawn and crossed out a mouth and ear, leaving an arrow pointed at himself. His pad of paper and pen are obvious on his lap.

Comments

[legendthatwas]

It had taken Martha a little bit of adjustment to converse with Nick, but he made it seem straightforward and the process was therefore relatively easy, like translation. She grinned a little, wryly, at his gesture indicating his approval of the coffee, and rolled her eyes in a friendly way, because he was the kind of guy who'd know what she meant. "It's not that good, I definitely couldn't work at Starbucks," she said, turning to face him head on as she talks, trying to minimise her accent as much as possible, go all RP.

"Actually, yeah, he is," she continued in response to Nick's second point. "He looks different now then when I last saw him, that was all." People could look different, that was easily explainable. Regeneration, not so much.

[hearnospeakno]

Nick can tell how Martha is considering her words before she speaks. Not making a thing out of it, not expecting Nick to notice, just doing it because it's a kind, respectful thing to do. It shouldn't stick up between his ribs the way it does, really.

But the world is generally not a nice place, and Martha makes it better, so Nick smiles into his coffee a shade broader than simple courtesy dictates and then shines it on Martha like a lantern.

It's great. Nick thinks he'd laugh, if he knew how, for a lot of reasons. Is everything OK? I'd protect your honor.

Nick just...lets that joke stand, because look at him, he couldn't fight a particularly stiff breeze.

[legendthatwas]

Nick's smile made Martha smile back, because there was nothing like a real smile, in her book. It reminded her a bit of the Doctor's, though without quite the overwhelming history behind it.

Martha licked her lips, reading his response, then laughed, gently, because the joke was at his expense even if he'd made it. She was overwhelmed with a curiosity about his story, wondering how he'd made it so far and kept a sense of humour, but figured that could wait; besides, the process was the actual fun.

"Thank you, but everything's okay," she said, "though we...we have a lot of past, him and me, so things could maybe end up being weird. Not unsafe, but weird. Stuff changes quickly, in his world."