itsaliensalexâ:
Liam didnât stop himself from looking skeptical at the blokeâs statement that a haunting suited a bookshop. He got it from a business perspective, only because his boss at the pizza shop really leaned into the haunting rumors over Halloween. But ghosts were nothing to mess with. He also didât hide the slight smile that formed when Alex started to remind him that there was no such thing as ghosts. Something he hadnât realized heâd missed till now. Only it was short lived as Alex cut himself off and Liam frowned. Liam cleared his throat to try and pull attention away from Alex. âDoesnât hurt to be prepared.â He left the conversation on hauntings there. Which seemed to be a good thing because Alex was speaking up again and this time it felt like a good thing. Liam kept the conversation going, asking about what the bloke sold, hoping to give Alex some time to decide if he wanted to say anything about the job. Weird though that asking about what the bloke sold seemed to make him go paler. Was he sick? That would explain how bloody pale he was. If he was dressed like that couple had been, the aliens, heâd have wondered if this bloke wasnât aâŚbut no, it was day time and he was all pale because he was goth. Probably wished he was a vampire. Weird but most people had some peculiar habit or other. Besides heâd walked right into the shop instead of having to be invited so definitely not a vampire. He listened to what the bloke said, nodding along, resisting to urge to meet Alexâs eyes because he knew heâd give away that he thought Alex should take it. It wasât a library but it was books. Liam smiled and nodded when Alex introduced him to Elias. As Alex kept talking Liamâs smile grew larger. He was going to go for it! Perfect! He still had some concerns about the haunting but this was great. Liam had no clue that his reaction to Alexâs interest in the job was being shared by the ghost that was responsible for the haunting. Liam mouthed the words, âYes, Alexio!â excitedly at Alex with a fist pump before worrying that Elias might see something in the corner of his eye and forced himself to calm down. âHeâs really good with books. And very responsible,â Liam chimed in. He wanted Alex to get this job so much he very nearly offered the bloke free pizza. But Liam was sure if this bloke just interviewed Alex heâd see that he was perfect, no bribery needed.Â
âYes exactly a haunting is perfect for a bookshop. Who else to give good advice on books but someone who knew the authors intimately. Sometimes quite intimately,â Tybalt added with a naughty grin. Though even his enthusiasm waned seeing poor Alexio looking so scared and uncertain. Tybalt had wanted to provide proof of ghosts himself. Had imagined Alex wanting to do scientific studies on him and winning over Liam with his pleasant personality. Nothing scary at all about him. Those blasted wand happy wizards had ruined it. Now Tybalt wasnât sure how it was going to go. But he would, naturally, win them over. They were family. He was part of the gang. The Fred to their Scooby gang, or Daphne, heâd look like the beeâs knees in those boots of hers. And now Elias could be their Fred! Yes it would all work out. Tybalt was delighted when his words made Elias blush. Oh he loved doing that. His mischievous side wanted very much to continue on. But he didnât want to ruin Eliasâs first impression. Reluctantly, and with great difficulty, he didnât give in to the temptation. âTheyâre going to love your shop, tis so grand. Such a shame theyâll only see one side.â The last bit was more of a comment to himself than Elias. While both parts of the shop were wonderful separately, the two, or three actually counting Tybaltâs favorite part, the naughty books, were even grander as a whole. A perfect coming together of muggle and wizard and sex. Just brilliant. Also brilliant was the fact that Alex was interested. âYessssss!,â Tybalt shouted and floated around the room. âOh I knew heâd be interested. Look at that spark in his eyes! Canât resist a mysterious, sexy, stranger. Ha!â Tybalt was thrilled.
It felt like a good sign when Alex introduced himself and Liam to Elias, and it was also a relief that Elias no longer had to worry about accidentally saying one of their names before he was supposed to know them. A surprised smile pulled at his lips when Alex went on to ask about the job. Oh, how splendid! That didnât even take as long as Elias had prepared for it to take! Elias didnât worry about the surprise on his face, it was reasonable to be pleasantly surprised there was a well-qualified job candidate sitting right in the shop heâd walked into to ask about putting up a help wanted sign. As if heâd had no idea. He did have to work not to smile too wide at Tybaltâs clear enthusiasm, as well as Liamâs excited response that Elias pretended not to see out of the corner of his eyes. Instead he focused on Alex. âOh? Is that so? Library experience is certainly a plus. How about I interview you right now, Alex? That is, if thatâs alright. If youâd like some time to prepare you can pop back over to my shop whenever you like.âÂ
The corners of Alexâs lips twitched up into a smile at Liamâs clearly enthusiastic response when he finally decided to say fuck it and try to see if he couldnât get this job that was apparently open at this blokeâs bookshop. Alex still wasnât sure about it all, but the fact was he needed a job, and this was a job with books which meant it was a job he could actually do well, and it was next door to Liamâs work. Honestly that last part was what really put him over the edge. And maybe whatever was weird about this bloke had a perfectly normal explanation. One that Alex could figure out while getting paid so he and Liam and Bilbo could keep a roof over their heads. He just had to hope this bloke went for it, but heâd come into a pizza shop to hang a flyer and Alex was a bloke in that pizza shop so he was pretty sure he fit the bill even before you factored in the fact he read a lot of books. Though it was a surprise when he offered to interview Alex right now. âEr--â He resisted the urge to glance over at Liam, because that didnât look very professional, and nodded. âUm, yeah, alright. I donât mind that.â He shifted slightly as Elias came and sat across from him at the booth, giving him a pleasant smile that still made Alex feel just a little unnerved. Or maybe it was just because now this was a job interview and those stressed him out. Most normal interactions stressed him out, always a game of how long could he pretend to be normal for until this new person figured out he was a nutcase. Hopefully Elias wouldnât figure it out until after he offered Alex a job. Alex could do this. He tried to sit up straight and awkwardly ran a hand through his hair. âEr--sorry, Iâm not really dressed for an interview.â
Elias smiled at Alex, wishing he could help the boy calm down a bit. But nerves were expected. He almost wanted to just give Alex the job and spare him any worry, but from what Tybs had told him that would just make them more suspicious and therefore less likely to take the job. So an interview it was. âThatâs quite alright, itâs not as if you expected to have a job interview today. Anyhow, I wouldnât ask you to dress any differently at the shop than how youâre dressed now, I like to keep things casual.â Which Eliasâs clothes gave away most likely. âI just have a few questions. First, have you ever worked a register before?â Elias smiled as Alex nodded and explained heâd worked at a shop in his hometown. âBrilliant! Are you comfortable working unsupervised?â He listened as Alex nodded again and talked about how he was often the only person monitoring the libraryâs circulation desk. âSplendid! Now, for the more important questions. Do you have a favorite author?â Alex looked surprised, then gathered himself and quickly answered, âTolkien.â Elias smiled again, not surprised by the answer. âAh! A good choice indeed. Do you have a favorite book of his?â âThe Hobbit,â Alex answered without hesitation this time, and kept going. âI mean, I know that oneâs more for kids than Lord of the Rings, which is also incredible, but I grew up on the Hobbit, itâs what started it all off, isnât it? My dogâs even named Bilbo.â Elias smiled, charmed, as if heâd never known about Bilbo before now--it didnât matter that he did, because it was charming simply to get to hear Tybsâs muggle as Tybs had described him. âAnother excellent choice. If you had said Thoreau I would have had to turn you away,â he added with amusement, the comment partly for Tybaltâs sake, but it was also true; Elias was not fond of that one. âBut Iâm so pleased you didnât,â he said undeterred by Alexâs look of polite confusion. âI think youâre just the help I need at the bookshop, and youâve spared me having to hope someone might notice a flyer.â Elias told Alex the times he needed someone to help out, which he already knew just so happened to be the days and times that Liam was most frequently at the pizza shop, and he was gratified at the excited look that got from Alex. Alex seemed pleased when Elias told him the pay as well, which was also good. A fair wage for a bloke at a bookshop, Elias thought. âSplendid. Then youâll start Monday.âÂ









