Visiting Garrett

Lena Reilly
Garrett has had quite the ordeal over the past several days.  It started, of course, with his near-death and near-hideous grease burn-related scarring at the hands of some monstrous creature at your local McDonald's.  When he was brought into Denver Health Medical Center, he was in a near-comatose state and there were people here who feared that even if he did survive, his quality of life would not be something that anyone would wish upon their worst enemy.
There were others, like Ana Sanchez, who knew better.  Particularly when Dr. Morgan took on the psychologist/professor's case.  Some would call it a miracle; others would say that it simply wasn't as bad as it looked and the doctor simply cleaned Garrett up.  Neither is accurate, but perhaps the first would be more so.  And it was only a matter of time before Garrett was largely whole--still in pain, but no longer on the verge of death and no longer hideously burned.
This is not a risk Luke Morgan takes often in the hospital, but when he must...he must.
Throughout it all, Lena has been in the waiting room.  She did so for Pan and she does so for Garrett.  Luckily she doesn't work during the week if she doesn't want to so she's not missing out on any gigs.  She sits in the waiting room for the third day straight; she was there when Kalen arrived and she had told him what happened.  She remained there after Kalen went in to talk to Garrett.  And she waits there still, still dressed in the same hoody and jeans from when she first came here (the same from the restaurant).  She is a little on edge (even compared to how she's been); she doesn't have Sera's fear of hospitals and in fact is used to them, but this is her first time in a medical facility since Hydra.  And she's finding herself around her fellow Awakened, which has put her on edge as of late.

Grace
[Awareness+Perception!]
Dice: 5 d10 TN6 (3, 3, 5, 6, 8) ( success x 2 )

Lena Reilly
[[Oh yeah, that magedar.  Spec: Uncanny Instincts]]
Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 5) ( fail )

Lena Reilly
[[AHAHAHAHAHA someone's Awareness got turned back off.]]

Grace
Unlike some of the Mages in Denver, Grace has no specific fear of hospitals. She doesn't think them crawling with Technocrats ready to whisk away unconscious people away to secret locales, she doesn't have deeply ingrained phobias. They're not a place to die to her, nor do they weird her out with their static nature.
Doctors, now they can be assholes with God complexes, but that's another story.
So, she's not skittish here. Especially not with her companion in tow. It's good to be somewhat solid when you're bringing a kid to see his dad in the hospital.
"So, yeah, the room should be up here--" she says to Jake, halting a bit as she runs into the wearily pulsing beat. Wow. Must be here for Garrett too?
"Huh," she says, looking around for a sign, for a waiting room. Finding it isn't difficult. And then she leads her charge not to Garrett's room, but to Lena.

Garrett Franklin
It's been a long few days, but in it Garrett's been getting better faster than he has any business doing - there's still pain and stiffness, but the burns and bite are healing at a breakneck pace that leaves the injured man itching as much as anything else.  He still sleeps at least as much as he's awake and drinks insane amounts of water, with his appetite slowly returning to something healthy for him and then more than, keeping up with the rapid caloric burn that goes along with healing from anything that quickly, regardless of the means.
The first couple days, when he was awake, he asked that people make sure his son went about business as usual as much as possible - he didn't want the boy here, upset by the condition in which he found his father.  Better to have him finish out the week before break, and then spend all sorts of time together at home.
Or, you know.  To at least have a couple days without eye rolls and sighs and the like.
In his room now, Garrett is awake.  It's the tail end of dinner time, and so he sits - there's a list of people allowed in, and Lena's probably even on it based on having been there when it all went down.  Kalen is a given.  Grace was grudgingly added by virtue of being the one Kalen sent to take care of Jacob - because of course Garrett wants regular updates.  Obviously, Jacob is allowed, under certain circumstances.
Like now.
[Aware!  I'm not sure if there are mods, so rolling base.]
Dice: 6 d10 TN6 (3, 5, 9, 10, 10, 10) ( success x 4 )

Garrett Franklin
[Minus one, apparently.  Not rolling another, because . . . eh.  Probably shouldn't anyway!]

Lena Reilly
While she's been waiting outside keeping vigil over Garrett, Lena hasn't actually been in to see him while he's been awake.  She's checked on him when he's sleeping, just to make sure that he's okay.  But like with all mages as of late, she's kept her distance.  She doesn't know Garrett well and feels out of place here right now.  But she's still here.
After the Hydra incident, Lena's sixth sense shut down.  It's hard to say (and she herself couldn't honestly say) whether it was an voluntary if subconscious on her own part, or if it had just burned out after she experienced what it meant to die.  In the last week or so it had come back, but this whole incident has buried it again.  And thus, she doesn't know that Grace is coming until she comes into view.
Lena's already read all of the magazines, or at least the ones she cares about.  So she has her headphones in with a laptop in front of her, doodling with a remix.  It isn't any serious work...more something to pass the time.  She looks up when she sees someone approaching and her eyes widen a little, back straightens.  She yanks the earbuds out and shuts the laptop, standing up.
"Oh, hey."  There's a brief flicker of something that might have been an attempt on a smile.  It's gone quickly though.  "Uh...come on, I know where he is.  It's right around the corner."
She picks up the laptop, moves to take Grace to where Garrett's room is.

Garrett Franklin
Jacob, for the record, doesn't look much like Garrett other than around the eyes, where blue irises peer out from a biracial face.  (He doesn't look all that much like his mother, either, but the only person currently in Denver other than his father who knows that is Kalen.)  What he looks like, right now, is a scared teenage boy - not because of the hospital, no.  His father is a doctor, after all, and not just the PhD-ed kind.
"I'm Jake.  Jacob," he offers for Lena, who he's never seen before.  And for Grace, now that he's saying something, "I looked at the map online before we came.  Didn't show the exact room, but did show where the wing is, anyway."

Grace
So, introductions are in order, but it seems Lena's a bit... off. Grace is happy to see her, but not happy to see that she still can't smile.
Not that Grace can blame her at all. Off is sometimes the only appropriate state to be in. She gives Jacob a reassuring if awkward smile, and says, "That's Lena, she's a friend."
And, following behind the Ecstatic, she tries to introduce Jake to the back of Lena's head. "Jake's family. He's cool," she says, mimicking Sera's usual statement indicating the nature of an unawakened person.
It's only when they get to the room that Grace picks up a bit of actual nervousness. Garrett's not actually on a list of people she thinks it would be fun to see. Especially not in a hospital. Maybe... hopefully... he's asleep?

Lena Reilly
Jacob gets a look over Lena's shoulder and also a brief attempt at a smile.  "Hey, nice to meet you."  It isn't much more than that though.  It may well come off as standoff-ish or dismissive, even if it isn't the intent.
They pass by a nurse's station and Lena nods a little to one of the nurses on duty, a hispanic woman.  She gets a suspicious narrowing of the eyes in return.  Grace and Jacob get the same.  Ana Sanchez lets them pass on and a few doors down, Lena knocks and then opens the door to Garrett's room for the other two.

Garrett Franklin
When they come in, Garrett's awake and sitting up; his eyes skim right over Lena to the taller boy behind her not out of rudeness (at least not intentional), but out of parental concern.  "Hey," comes light, easy, comforting - Garrett the doctor first, almost always.  "How'd you do on that chemistry test?"
Jacob, going from scared teenager to petulant son in seconds flat, snorts.  "Kalen made me go, if that's what you're asking.  You gonna make it out of here, old man?"
Garrett rolls his eyes, sighs.  "Glad to see a few days of minimal supervision hasn't changed your attitude any.  Thank you, Grace, for bringing him."  Nurse gossip means he knows that Lena's been sitting vigil, but for now all she gets is a look that says the Hermetic knows, and appreciates.  "Is everyone alright?"

Grace
Grace raises a brow at Ana. Weird. (pot meet kettle). Much to her dismay, Garrett is awake. Talking. To her. And then, her eyes just dart elsewhere.
"Don't listen to him. He asked to come," she says, to the ceiling. Hell, Garrett probably knows that. Jacob is his son. And it's not like this act isn't something that Grace herself has been dealing with over the few days she's had to watch and make sure he's kept fed and at least isn't off sleeping in a tree somewhere, or whatever it is that teenage boys do.
"Everyone's..." she looks to Lena, with a little pause, like... fuck, is anyone alright? "Good, we're good. No more attacks since or anything."

Lena Reilly
The banter between Garrett, Jacob and Grace goes on while Lena stays at the door, curls her hair behind her ears.  This is a group of people who know each other, and she's entirely peripheral to that.  (And that's on top of the usual reasons that she's sketchy lately, whatever they are).  It's the awkwardness of not belonging compiled with the damage of...well.  That other thing.  It's a potent mix.
She holds the laptop to her chest, letting the three talk before Garrett asks if everyone's okay and Grace looks at her.  She nods a little bit and puts up a smile.  It's a false one, but it's still a smile.  "Everyone from the restaurant is okay, except the the shift manager and the guy who was cleaning the grease trap.  And we couldn't have done anything for them anyway."

Garrett Franklin
[Oh, let's go with Awarepathy.  It's Garrett's second nature.  Emotional states specialty, right number of dice this time, I think.]
Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 3, 3, 4, 8, 9) ( success x 2 )

Grace
Grace is afraid she's going to do again whatever it was she did at his place the last time they met, and this meeting will end up going sideways for reasons she can't fathom. She's also concerned for Lena.

Garrett Franklin
No, no one's fine.  Some are better than acting it than others.  Ninety-nine percent of the time, Garrett seems - maybe is - the picture of stability, of well-being, at least on a mental and emotional front.  When he's not . . . well.  There are buttons one can push, but they're few and far between - and now, he's a tired forty-something in a hospital bed, surrounded by his son and mages he only barely knows.
Lena's assessment of the McDonald's situation gets an understanding nod - he'd thought he knew that, but it's always good to have confirmation.  And Jacob's assertion that 'Kalen made him go' gets amusement flickering across his face, so elastic and clearly accustomed to smiling and pulling ridiculous faces.  "Before or after teaching you how to steal a car?"
".....he said he promised you he wouldn't do that," Jacob replies with exaggerated irritation, even as he goes to stand nearer his father - not touching, no, but at a casual near parade rest sort of stance, with his hands linked behind his back.  Now, situated behind his father as he is, it's easier to see a resemblance than it had been in the hall, or in the car, or any other place.
To Lena and Grace, Garrett smiles reassuringly - he knows both are wary and uncomfortable, and it's natural for him to do his best to put them both at ease.  "I owe you both more than thanks, from what I hear.  If there's anything I can do when I'm out of here, I hope you'll let me know."

Grace
As nervous as she is, it's hard for Grace to keep hold back a huffle of laughter at the idea of Kalen teaching Jacob how to steal a car. Stealing cars is easy. If they have OnStar or something like that, you can steal them from a distance. Not that she'd do that or anything, oh no. But it would be fun.
"Oh, uh... you don't owe me anything, really," she says. Now Kalen, on the other hand...
There's just not much that she can think of that would make her want to brave Garrett to ask him for a favor in return. Dire. Need. It would have to be that.

Lena Reilly
Lena continues to watch at the door, and she even gets a look in her eye that approaches envy at the interplay between Jacob and Garrett.  The dynamic of family...she appreciates it.  She knows what it's like, and she envies that they are able to have it.  That in itself is enough to bring just the minutest bit of legitimacy to the faked smile.
"It's fine," she says when Garrett expresses her appreciation.  "I'm just glad you're going to be okay."  And that's all true.  She doesn't know him, or his son.  She barely knows Kalen.  And (if you ask her), no one here really knows her.  But she is glad that she could help, and she would do it again in a heartbeat.
And then comes a beat, and she nods to them.  "Well, you guys have stuff to talk about, I'm sure.  If you need me, I'm gonna be in the waiting room."

Garrett Franklin
"Actually, if you don't mind . . ." the look for Grace is almost apologetic, as is the nod towards the door and Lena's retreating back - it's to be expected, perhaps, that father and son might want some time alone.  Perhaps the Grace and Lena will talk or perhaps not - but as it is, visiting hours are limited and especially so for minors, even family.  "I'll see you again soon, I'm sure,  If you'd like, anyway."
"Pffft, like she wants to be around you, Dad.  You creep her out like whoa."
".....not helping, Jacob."  Or maybe he is - the younger Franklin man humanizes the elder, in a way, even as he makes the impression of 'authority figure' all the more obvious.

Grace
"Yeah, It's no problem, I'll ah... catch up with Lena," Grace says, biting her lip at Jake, like seriously? She's going to tell him off for that later. Something like, Do not tell your dad that I creep him out! Wait... no.. that he creeps me out!
But yeah, Lena, right. "Hey, Lena, wait up... they want some bonding time or something," she calls out to the other woman, and falls away from the hospital room.

Lena Reilly
She doesn't give an answer to Garrett's comment about seeing them again soon, just gives a shrug that is non-committal.  And then she's out of the room.  And then there's Grace following her out of the room, and calling for Lena to wait up.  She tenses a little bit but does slow down, so as to let the other woman catch up.
"Yeah, I figured," she says in response to Grace.  "It's generally best to have family around when you have to stay in a place like this.  Doctors say that it helps in your recovery."  She shrugs.  "I'd say it's bullshit, but you and I both know that the power of having a certain mindset is nothing to scoff at, right?"
It's her attempt at a joke, even if it does fall flat.

Grace
"I'd say it also depends on the family in question, but they look like they..." she purses her lips. 'Get along' really isn't right, is it? "Well, they're close."
She walks down the hallways for a while, silent. Maybe the unstated bit in that last comment says something about her own family.
"So, have you been here since the... thing?" she asks. Yeah, the thing. The horrible McDonald's Monster. "I didn't know you knew Garrett that well..."

Garrett Franklin
[Thanks for the scene!]

Lena Reilly
[[Thank you too!]]

Lena Reilly
Depends on the family in question.  That brings a sardonic twist to Lena's lips, and she nods.  Grace is absolutely right in that respect.  Still, the fact that...
She shakes it off.  Never mind.  Her attention turns back to Grace when she asks if Lena's been here the whole time, and she nods.  "Yeah.  And I don't.  That exchange right there that you witnessed is literally the first time that we've said words directly to each other.  I don't really know him at all, except that Kalen cares a lot about him and Sid is distinctly wary of him."

Grace
"He's like, Kalen's adopted father," she explains. "I don't really know him that well either. I've only met him once."
And it's a bit of a lie that. She knows a lot about him. Too much, actually. Knows things she wishes she didn't know about Garrett Franklin. But actually figuring him out, knowing him as a person? Not so much really.
Grace gives Lena  a bit of a respectful glance, that she's the kind of person to stay in the hospital with someone she doesn't know at all. "Why, though? I mean... why are you still here? I mean, Kalen watches over him like nobody's business. He's not alone."

Lena Reilly
Lena opens her mouth to answer and...nothing comes out.  Which is not to say that she doesn't have anything to say.  She does.  She could probably give far more detail into her thought processes behind it and her emotional response that makes her stay here than most people would be able to.  But she doesn't...she holds back.  Lena was once close to being able to share this stuff and now...
No.
So instead her mouth is open for a couple of moments, and then she just shakes her head.  She has to say something after that.  "Because I just...it's the right thing to do.  Kalen needs to sleep sometime.  And there are other people who need him...the whole film thing.  I just...think someone should be here."
She shrugs it off and begins walking again, toward the waiting room.  "I have to work tomorrow night anyway, and Saturday as well.  From what I understand he's being let out on Sunday.  I don't really have anything else to do until tomorrow so I might as well, you know?"

Grace
"You need to sleep sometime too," she says. "Honestly, it really does help a body heal to sleep."
So, you know... get some, Lena? Please? And there are other people who need you too... But she doesn't say that.
"You're working tomorrow? Maybe I'll come see. Where at?" she asks, because it's an utter crime in her opinion that she has never been out to see either Sera or Lena perform. And she could brave the public, the crowd, for something like that.

Lena Reilly
Grace's admonishment that Lena needs sleep too gets a little shrug from the Cultist, a shake of her head.  "Not as much as you'd think."  And that's actually the truth; sleep is a rarer thing for her and she's learned to be just as fine on less hours than most.  "It's a thing.  Too much caffeine over my life, I guess.  But whatever it is, I can do just fine on a few hours a night."
She nods a little bit in response to Grace's question, looking away from the hacker to a spot on the wall.  "Yeah...at the Beta Nightclub.  It's off Blake Street between 19th and 20th near Coors Field.  Lemme know if you stop by, I'll get you into the booth.  Less trouble dealing with the crowd there."

Grace
"I'd like that, the booth I mean. It's a date," she says, gives Lena a little smile.
It's not that she doesn't notice the glances away, or the awkward pausing or what have you from Lena. But Grace is a creature of awkwardness. Her mind and eyes often drift away even if she's not uncomfortable in the least. And she'd never draw attention or even care if someone did the same to her.
So, she remains friendly and oblivious to whatever might be bothering Lena. If she stopped to think about it, well... Lena's change in behavior would have to be that. And she'd still be friendly and open anyway in response. This place is too public, too lacking in privacy to really talk about such things. But she can be here, for a while at least.