We're Closed

[Jacob Adams]

He laughed. “It's not exactly part of my job describtion. Although the club itself does put a bit of effort into advertisement, I suppose. I just keep those around cause it makes me feel like a pro.” he smiled from behind his mug, finishing the coffee before setting it down back on the coaster in front of him.

He made a face at being asked where he was from. “Actually, no. I grew up in Mississippi. But I left when I was eighteen, cause... well. Mississippi.” he said, saying the last word slower, as if it explained everything. One day, he would stop blaming an entire state for the backwardness of one small town. One day. “How about you?” Man, he could go on and on about himself, couldn't he?

[Torrence Paige]

Tori had to giggle at his explanation. "You are one amusing guy", she said, matter-of-factly. It was true. She wasn't sure if he was just pulling her leg in all of these things he's said so far, but she wasn't in the habit of disbelieving people. And since she was gonna believe him on these, she felt she needed to tell him just how fascinated she was about his personality, in general.

She nodded in acknowledgment of his reply to her question. "Oh, so you're a, for lack of a better word, migrant. Like me. I came from New York. Well, that's where I was born, but I went to Reseda to study and just...live with my cousin. Then, here", she said, hiding behind her mug. She had almost said 'I went to Reseda to study and just leave everything in New York' but she felt as if that was too much information for a stranger to know about her.

[Jacob Adams]

The compliment made him smile, even if he wasn't sure what he'd said that was amusing. At the mention of New York, his face looked like she'd just turned on a light switch. “New York? That's so cool. I was gonna go there, but... well, my ride wasn't, so.” he shrugged quickly before moving on. “Is it really the capital for the homosexual agenda?” he asked, Mississippi accent breaking through (they were the only ones he'd ever heard use that phrase, after all), but his face looked like the face of a kid who was going to get to meet Santa for the first time. He didn't have time to stop there.

“They said the buildings are tall enough to tickle God in the ass. Actually, I may have added that last part. Man, New York seems cool.” he looked dreamy, and, of course, utterly unaware of the fact that 'New York' seemed to be a trigger word for a more.. enthusiastic side of his personality.

[Torrence Paige]

Jake seemed to get excited by the idea of her living in New York for much of her formative years. Tori had to admit, if she hadn't suffered that traumatic experience, she'd probably still love going to New York for vacations. She didn't think she'd still be living there, though, traumatic experience or not.

She shrugged at his question. "I don't know about it being a capital for anything homosexual, but yeah, the buildings are all pretty high. Sometimes it's a good thing, because it shades you from the scorching heat of the sun on summer days. But most of the time, it just deprives you of fresh air. But yeah, living in New York was pretty cool. It wasn't the best place for me, to be honest. I've always felt like the suburban life is more suited for me than the busy, bustling life of the city", she explained, finishing her coffee and replacing the mug on the table.

"How about you? How was Mississippi like?", she continued.

[Jacob Adams]

He kept smiling cheerfully, looking kind of like she told the coolest story he'd ever heard. ”Hah! Fresh air. Who needs it. But yeah, sounds like it could get overwhelming after a while.” Actually, it sounded pretty much perfect. They again, California was enough for him, at least for now. There was enough people around, but not the constant overload of people that made you feel disconnected from everyone anyway, as he expected New York to be. Then again, what did he have to compare it too...

”Well... I grew up in a small town, one hour busride away from Jackson. And we never had a car.” he said, making a face as he spoke. ”It was... well. Religious. Which meant sleeping with minors behind closed doors and then condemning them to hell for being faggots during Sunday mass.” well, there went that filter he'd been working on. At least he seemed to notice he'd slipped slightly, giving her an appologetic smile. ”That came out worse than it was. Its just... here, people talk about stuff, you know? We don't do that where I'm from. Not openly, at least. We reject the outcasts and the non-believers, and our social security-network seemed to be praying for the weak souls in church and then spitting on them when we saw them on the streets.. Wouldn't recommend it. I didn't come home very much after I started school closer to Jackson. At least there people left each other alone.” He was starting to feel a bit bad for being such a downer. ”Sorry for screwing with your idyllic image of the suburban lifestyle. Although I guess my hometown is beyond suburban... it's more like... farmlife.” Despite trashing his hometown, he still had the same cheery smile as usual, although the excitement from the New York-story seemed to have been muffled slightly. Maybe it was just as well.

[Torrence Paige]

Tori listened as Jake described how his life had been in his hometown. She was a bit surprised about how hostile he seemed to be towards how society was like in Mississippi. Though, if she was to be honest, she kind of expected it from him. It wasn't that she was being judgmental or anything, but he seemed to be the type of person who would thrive more in a place that have more liberated ideas than limited ideals. The way he'd become excited about New York, his not-so-usual job, his overall demeanor screamed someone who was free-spirited, someone who didn't want to be tied down by fake, naive morals such as the one he described his hometown to be.

"Wow. That's...that's a lot to take in about someone's hometown", she said with a slight bite to her lip. "So you hated it there...that's why you left?", she asked. She didn't really know how to continue the conversation. It felt like it was about to peter out into silence.

[Jacob Adams]

His face turned right back to his appologetic smile, one he seemed to get to practice a lot in these kinds of situations. “Yeah, sorry about that.. I've been told I tend to... overshare slightly. Working on it, but sugarcoating isn't one of my strong sides.” he explained, shrugging slightly, while fighting the returning feeling of being awfully out of place. He wasn't used to feeling like he couldn't handle social situations, after all, but in the end, that might be more because he only ever met a certain kind of people, than due to actual social skill. Man, what a bummer of a realisation to get so early in the morning. “Yeah, I guess. The short version, anyway.” he winked, at least having the common curtesy of not going into explicit detail. Although that could have been fun, too. After all, the stalker had probably lost track of him by now anyway. It wouldn't kill him to get thrown out. Still, he didn't have company out there. Too bad for Tori.

“Uhm, I dunno if this is a weird question..” he started, feigning self-awareness as a way of rightening his past wrong-doings. If there was a look he could pull off, it was the one of an insecure little kid, after all. Although that train might have sailed long ago in this case, considering he'd been shamelessly blurting out personal details mere seconds ago. Still, worth a shot. “... but can I help you out? I mean, I just... barge in, steal your coffee.. I dunno nothing about books or anything, but I'm good with taking ord.. instructions. I can clean the shelves or something.” Yes, he would rather work for free than go home alone. Maybe he should have just invited the goddamn stalker home. Although he did feel a certain need to redeem himself. “You know, this place is kinda.. cool. I'm not used to it, I guess. I dunno, maybe I expect the smart to rub off if I stick around long enough, or something.” he shrugged, smiling cheerfully again.

[Torrence Paige]

Tori nodded. She understood too well the feeling of just wanting to get out of a certain place. Exactly how she'd felt when she left New York. "Don't worry. If anything, I should take a page from your book and be more open about myself to new people. Or just to people, in general. I tend to be...reserved. For a lot of reasons, though sometimes I feel like I just don't open up because I don't want to be seen a certain way. I just want people to see me for how I am at the moment. Not sure if that makes sense", she replied.

When he offered to help out, she shook her head. "No no, it's fine. You can stay here as long as you want to, or need to. I don't like having visitors do stuff for me, unless absolutely necessary", she said with a smile.

"If you don't mind me asking...what were you hiding from, anyway? It seemed like your were ducking when you came in here?", she asked.

[Jacob Adams]

He nodded, seemingly considering what she said for a while. Sure, it made sense. It was a pretty common trait, one he took advantage of in his job a lot. ”It does. Besides, being all mysterious has its advantages, too. Makes people wonder. Me, I'd rather blurt out every uncomfortable detail as soon as possible. Better to be rejected by a stranger than a friend. I mean.. it's easy to control how people see you, but... if in the end they don't see the real you, what's the point?” he mused, ending his ramblings with a laugh. ”Maybe we should learn from each other. I've probably scared off a few potential friends by oversharing too soon. I just keep thinking if they can't handle it now, what would be different in a week, or a month? Life is short, so forth so on.” he shrugged.

He nodded, thinking at least now he'd offered to do something in return. Maybe he'd get another chance some other day. Maybe, one day, she'd get a stalker he could hide her from. Bookstore owners got those too, right?

”Ugh, we've had a nasty wave of creeps lately. This guy followed me from work and I guess I just.. couldn't be bothered to deal with it right now. And letting him follow me home wouldn't have been the smartest idea ever, either. I figured he probably wouldn't look for me in a book store. Apparently, I was right.” Considering this was one of the friendly, albeit not very socially aware, customers they had, it didn't really bother him much, except for a slight hint of frustration in his voice.