notfaking_it | (no subject)

Lily isn't exactly the welcome wagon type, although that doesn't mean she hasn't made an effort to get to know her neighbours. Even in New York, it was always helpful to know who might be living across the hall and whether or not they were the type of person who might be useful at some point down the line.

Someone new has moved onto her floor recently and although she hasn't met him yet, she's seen him coming and going a few times. He's young, well dressed and looks like he has a hell of a lot more money than anyone else in the building which means, in at least one way, he's probably exactly the type of person she'd like to know. Even so, she isn't going to go knock on his door to introduce herself and it's only a coincidence one evening when she's coming home from the studio that she finds herself waiting for the elevator with him.

"Hi," she says, turning slightly to look at him. "I think you live on my floor. Third, right?" She knows he lives on her floor, but she's not about to say as much.

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I never made a point to know my neighbors. In fact, I avoided them at all costs. That seemed to be the common courtesy in the building. You know your doorman, and that's all that's required of you, as a tenant.

But I've seen her before. She's alluring in an undeniable way, even if I usually prefer blondes. I've wondered, at least once, what it might take to break her confidence. Would a pair of pliers be enough?

"That's right," I say, extending my hand, "Pat Bateman. Patrick."

"I'm Lily," she answers, shaking the hand he's offered and giving him a grin. He's cute, definitely, though a little more clean cut than her usual taste. Still, it doesn't hurt to know who's living around her and what they might be like.

"You're new to the building, aren't you?" she asks. "Which probably means new to the city." The way this place works, though, she's never completely sure.

It's the same tedious line of questioning I've been subjected to countless times, but I take it with a smile, even sticking out an arm to hold the elevator door for her when it slides open.

"You're observant, Lily. I've been in the building a little over a month," I say, and I would rather she minded her own fucking business -- having anyone notice when I come and go from the building is... inconvenient. "I live in New York City."

Not anymore, is what she wants to say but doesn't as she steps into the elevator and gives him a smile. "I did, too," she says instead, figuring she can leave out the time she spent on the island. The only people she's talked to about it are the ones she knows were there with her and while Lily doesn't particularly care one way or the other what other people think of her, she doesn't feel the need to go out of her way to make them think she's crazy.

"And California before that," she says. "Now... this place." Whatever it is or isn't, it's not quite New York.

"What is it you do?" I ask, wondering if she's some kind of actress. Maybe a model. There were plenty of models in the city, Manhattan by way of LA, that I come to expect it. She has the face for it.

"I'm a dancer," she tells him. "Ballet." It helps to specify, she knows what most people think when she says dancer and although she has no problem with it, it's not quite the same thing that she does. "What about you?"

"I work on Wall Street. Mergers and Acquisitions," I say, knowing that the fewer details I provide, the more impressive it sounds.

"Or I used to. I've gotten a job at a local investment firm. It's a bit of a step down from what I'm used to."

"I think there are a lot of things that are a step down from what people were used to," Lily admits. It's not like she was making a lot of money in New York, but it had been enough and the company had pulled in plenty of money. "The apartments, for one."

"You don't think they're... charming?" I settle on, the curve of my lips making it clear that I think they're anything but. I've been looking around at other apartments, but it's not a decision I'm willing to take lightly.

Where I end up living could have a huge impact on how well I fit in, here.

"I think they're... good for college students," she says, then laughs. The apartment isn't the worst place in the world -- she's lived in smaller and dirtier before -- but Lily likes to move up over time, not back down. The hut was different, if only because everyone was in the same boat. The only good thing about the apartment is that she has so many of her friends nearby.

It's the only real reason she hasn't seriously looked into moving just yet.

"You should look into a place somewhere else. I've found some nice buildings near the park," I tell her, knowing that the income of a dancer might not allow for anything too upscale, but I want her to know that's where I've been looking for myself.

That's not exactly within her price range, but she's seen the buildings. They're nice and she lifts her eyebrows, looking at Patrick. "Good taste," she says, which she's sure he already knows. "I'm probably stuck with something a little less impressive than that, but you should definitely go for it. Upgrade."

"I plan to," I admit, stepping off the elevator and sticking out an arm to hold open the doors.

"I haven't gone to the ballet here. The company you're with-- does it... align with your expectations?" It, of course, wouldn't be on par with the NYCB, but she hadn't specified what company she'd been with.

"Well, it's not quite the New York City Ballet, but it's not bad," she says. "If I have to be stuck here, it's better than nothing." It's the thing she liked least about the island and at this point she's completely willing to take what she can get.

"I'll have to buy tickets," I say, and I mean it, because the ballet is the sort of place you're expected to go, in my social bracket, even though I mostly hate it.

Ballerinas, though. I can see how they might have their... uses.

"When's your next performance?"

Lily isn't expecting that response and her eyebrows lift in surprise. "Giselle starts next week," she tells him, wondering if he'll actually be there. "And we're doing Romeo and Juliet after that."

"I'll have my secretary pencil it in," I say, and in this moment, it's sincere, but it's just as likely that I'll find something more useful of my time.

My secretary, who's not Jean, but probably still in love with me.

"Well, then I hope to see you there," Lily says with a smile. It's still a bit of a surprise, but the more people who come to the ballet, the more money they have for next season and she can't find a single thing wrong with that. It might not amount to much of a pay raise for her, but it will mean the productions are of slightly better quality and that's important.

"You will," I say absently, lifting my wrist and glancing at my watch without really even bothering to check the time. "Oh, look at that, I've to run. I've got a meeting over cocktails at Blue in twenty minutes."