Katie

[nola_maddie]

There was a big mural outside the Phoenix Effect coffeehouse that caught Xara's eye. If someone asked her, she'd say it was the colors, or the shapes, or the general energy of the piece, or the novelty of seeing public art that hadn't been immediately tagged (this was a very different world than L.A.).

But it wasn't any of that.

Xara understood it on a deep, inborn sort of level. The imagery, the references, the intent, she knew them. Knew these people.

She hated it.

None of that was on her face as she stood looking at the mural, though, looking calm and thoughtful as she sipped an iced latte, and waited.

Comments

[nola_jeangrey]

Katie had finished work for the day, and she didn't have any important plans for the evening, so with the rare gift of free time, what else should she do but enjoy it?

She set out on a walk just to walk -- like Andy would suggest -- and of course ended up at Phoenix Effect, the place that had become part of her daily routine, had given her work, and had given her, in an indirect way, a new life.

So of course Katie was going to pass by her own mural on her way to sweet sweet coffee. Every time she looked at it, she saw more of Jean, and people Jean had known, in it.

It made her feel bigger than herself.

She passed a critical, loving eye over it, and when she saw another woman looking at the mural, she offered her a smile, just acknowledgement of presence from one stranger to another.

[nola_maddie]

"Don't you love the energy?" Xara murmured to the stranger, seemingly absently. But from the corner of her eye, she noted the red hair and the warmth in her smile. She had a feeling who this was.

[nola_jeangrey]

"I do," Katie answered, surprised. She gave the woman a real look, another smile. "And thank you. I painted this."

The woman felt familiar, maybe in the way Dani felt familiar, but also... maybe... not?

[nola_maddie]

"You?" Xara exclaimed, eyes widening. Then she gave a self-conscious little laugh. "I must look so silly, going on about your own art..."

[nola_jeangrey]

"No, no!" Katie rushed to reassure her. "No way. It was really nice to hear. I'm Katie -- you look familiar," she added, because hey, she did! And not in the way that Sam looked familiar, but in the 'I've seen your face before', way more normal, kind of way. No matter what the feeling was, this was a face she knew.

[nola_maddie]

"I'm Xara. You've probably seen me on TV." Sometimes she played coy about why she looked so familiar to people, but this didn't seem like the right time.

[nola_jeangrey]

"Oh, right! Yeah, wow." Katie relaxed a little. She was just famous, and beautiful, it was fine.

Right?

"Nice to meet you, Xara."

[nola_maddie]

"Nice to meet you, Katie the Artist." Xara studied her over the rim over her coffee cup as she took a sip. Red hair, practically oozing friendliness and poise right out her pores. Younger too, of course. "Do you specialize in coffeehouse installations?"

[nola_jeangrey]

"Only if one counts as a specialty," Katie replied cheerfully. "I've worked on a few murals across town, and I'm in the middle of working on one for a cool kid's bedroom, so maybe murals are my thing now. But I'm just a painter trying to make a living out of art. Obviously it's going great." She grinned. Art was a stupid idea for a career, and Katie loved every second of it.

"How about you? What brings you to this coffeehouse?"

[nola_maddie]

Xara held up her cup in silent answer before adding, "But taking in the local art is also nice."

[nola_jeangrey]

Katie laughed, easily. "I guess I meant in the grander scheme of things. You don't find a celebrity here every day, you know? But your answer is a good one. The coffee here is great."

[nola_maddie]

"Well, what's a reality star without her coffee?" Xara asked wryly. A cup of something was practically requisite for pap shots. "I'm getting to know my dealer."

[nola_jeangrey]

"You're in luck," Katie chirped, because this was a topic she felt strongly about. "Everyone I've met who works here is really nice, and really good at making coffee. I wouldn't go anywhere else in the city."

[nola_maddie]

"And their artists seem really nice too," Xara said with a smile. God, did all Jeans have to be so sweet and perfect? And how? Not even Sinister could recreate that in a lab. "Are you looking for more commissions?"

[nola_jeangrey]

"Thank you so much!" Whatever unease Katie was feeling, she had to let go of it, because this woman was a sweetheart. "I'm always looking for more commissions. Do you need some art?" Katie was available for art!

[nola_maddie]

"I think I might! Something big and eye-catching for my office. It'll be filmed, though—would you be okay with that?" Who wouldn't be okay with that?

[nola_jeangrey]

Katie considered it for a second. Filming was a lot, but hey, being called an artist on insanely popular reality show wouldn't suck. "I think I could be okay with that. But what kind of piece would you want? I don't want you to recruit me for it unless I can really deliver on what you want." That was fair, right?

[nola_maddie]

"Something big, dynamic. Colorful." Xara was making this up on the fly and thought she could do better. "Do you have pics of any of your other work? That might help make sure we're on the same page."

[nola_jeangrey]

Big, dynamic, colorful was pretty vague, but also, not the worst direction. “Sure I do.” Katie took our her phone, navigated to an album of artwork — her murals, particular paintings she was proud of — and handed her phone to Xara. “You can scroll through this album, see what you think?”

[nola_maddie]

"Why don't we sit?" Xara suggested, gesturing to the metal cafe tables set up outside the coffeehouse.

[nola_jeangrey]

"Why not?" Katie smiled, sliding into the nearest chair without worry. She had nowhere to be, and a famous person was looking at her art. She could spare all the time in the world.

[nola_maddie]

Xara sat across from her, which was perfect, because it'd be less obvious when she swiped away from the art and into the photos. "I can't get over how great these are. What's your inspiration?"

[nola_jeangrey]

"Thank you so much. I'm still starting out, so I'm still finding my art, really. But I guess mostly I just want people to look deeper at the things they look at every day." That seemed like an easy way to describe it.

[nola_maddie]

"I definitely looked deeper at the mural in the alley," Xara said. The photos weren't telling her much—no one looked familiar like Katie had—so she went back to the art. "Is it symbolic?"

[nola_jeangrey]

"In a way," Katie admitted. "I mean, the phoenix imagery was obvious with the coffee shop name? But it really resonated with me, and after I painted it, I realized that I had put in more references than I thought I had, to people I know." That was the safest, non-insane way of describing what had happened. "Like, for example," Katie's one non-weird example, "my favorite barista and friend Andy makes this certain latte art, so I built that art's motif into the phoenix feathers, in a certain place. But I also really wanted it to represent the possibility of change and growth and how starting over can be a blessing."