away, melancholy;

“I seem to have that affect on a lot of people,” Daniel furrowed his brow slightly yet playfully.  “-luckily I’ve trained most of my rabid admirers not to drool while inside the coffee shop.”

“’Rabid admirers’, eh? That’s hot. Where do I sign up for that club?” Gabe grinned wide, amused by this little exchange. He’d come in with a headache so bad he could barely concentrate, but now he was playfully flirting with the guy who owned the coffee shop. “Funny that: I was named after my grandmother. No idea who she was named after, though.”

"No, that’s okay… I want to hear about your life." He said earnestly, truly meaning it. He liked hearing about Gabriel, and he wanted to know everything he was allowed to about his new friend, "I was the same way with my ex… We were really close, and when we had my daughter… Things got hard for her and we split. We don’t keep in touch anymore, but I don’t hold it against her these days either. I guess I still feel something for her. When you have that sort of connection with someone, it doesn’t goa way overnight. Aaand I guess that’s something about me." He laughed a little.

“I’m sorry. Do you not have contact with your daughter anymore either?” Gabriel frowned at the thought; he wasn’t one for kids, personally, but he couldn’t imagine how it would feel to lose one. He traced a finger down his beer, drawing a line through the condensation with a thoughtful hum. “You’re right, it doesn’t. Sometimes, when I’m up in the middle of the night, I still think about De, about us. We split up four years ago, but sometimes it feels like it was yesterday that we were talking about getting married, you know? Oh well. C’est la vie.” Gabe sighed; this was getting depressing. He took a long drink of his beer and turned his head slightly toward the drunken singers.

“Huh, glad to know I’m not hallucinating here.” Rudy replied back, maybe this lettuce was a sign from god that he should eat salad alongside fruits from now on… His attention averted to the other who started poking on the fruits and what the hell… Rudy’s a little weirded out but hey, let the guy do his own business of choosing apples anyways.

“You could be,” Gabe remarks lightly, shrugging one shoulder. “I wouldn’t know; I’m blind as a bat. Let me see that lettuce of yours?”

"Aw man, I’m sorry to hear it didn’t work out. I know how shitty that is." He said honestly, thinking about how few serious dates he’d had in the years following his and his girlfriend’s split, how things just seemed like way too much effort for very little payoff, "But rolling with it sounds like a good idea… No expectations means you don’t get thrown into something that sucks, but you’re still open to the idea if something good does happen. You’re a smart guy."

“Yeah, it was mutual, but a part of me still has feelings for him. Always will, I think; it was just one of those things. But it’s not like I’ve been miserable since the split, either, and he and I are still really close.” Gabriel paused, realizing that he was rambling. “Sorry, didn’t mean to spill out my whole life story. Tell me about you. So far, all I know is that you’re a floral-print-wearing secretary with nice biceps and an intense love of chocolate muffins.”

“Now see, don’t swoon but I do have great arms from all the upper body strength and yoga,” he shrugged.  “It’s actually a requirement in the coffee shop owner’s guide to living.”

“Too late, too late -- I’m swooning,” Gabriel laughed as he pretended to fall from his seat. When he sat up, raking his hair back from his face, he found he was feeling much better: the headache had receded to a dull but manageable ache at the back of his head, nothing a nap wouldn’t fix once he was back at his apartment.

"Yeah? So not much luck in the dating game in your neck of the woods?" He asked, feeling interested in his answer. Gabriel was attractive and sweet, and clever on top of it all. They were able to hold a conversation and that was something that Josh had always appreciated. It was interesting to him that a guy like that was having trouble scoring a date or something, but then he knew that Gabriel was unique. Still… That didn’t seem like something that’d put a damper on his dating pool. If anything, Josh supposed it would open it up. But what did he know?

“Eh, not so much that as a willling abstinence from said game,” Gabe explained with a shrug. He didn’t mind telling Josh about it: it wasn’t as though the circumstances were especially tragic. “I was in a relationship for three years, but we ended up not working out, for a variety of reasons. Now, I’ve tried dating in the years since, but it just hasn’t been especially satisfying for me, so I’ve just decided to embrace the single life. In the meantime, if something happens, if someone good comes along, I’ll roll with it. But I’m not actively looking.”

“So you’re just going to stand there? Just to be annoying.”

“Pretty much, yup. Unless you feel like apologizing and telling me what your beef is.”

Josh smiled, wishing for a moment that Gabriel could see his face but feeling like maybe his words carried his tone well enough that he didn’t need to, “It’s been a long time since I’ve tried any sort of courtship ritual on anyone… I’m probably so out of practice that you wouldn’t know what I was doing.” He was joking, but he was also sort of serious. He was so often surrounded by beautiful men, some that he had quite a bit of interest in, but he had absolutely no idea what to do about it or how to tell if they returned any of his interest at all, “Thanks… Never sure what the right answer is sometimes, but I’m glad I’m not bothering you. I’ll make sure we don’t get separated in the crowds.”

Gabe laughed and reached out to pat Josh’s shoulder. “I know that feeling, man,” he replied, shaking his head. It had been four years since his last relationship, and he hadn’t felt like he really wanted another one. Not yet, anyway; he was fine with friends and casual flings, taking each as they came. There were times when he missed the peaceful, loving idyll of the early days with Deon: they were perfect opposites, but complimented each other so well. Until they didn’t.

…Oh! Oh, shit. My bad. Like legally? Gucci’s this wicked rapper, haven’t you heard Lemonade? Or Everybody Lookin? Fuck Da World?? I’ve never been better, dude. You sure you’re okay?

Yeah, legally. Unless it’s somehow become a crime. Do I look like I listen to rap? I’m the pastiest white beanpole ever to walk the planet. I’m fine, you just sound like you’re tripping balls on speed or something.

“It doesn’t help that my butt’s flat as a pancake,” Daniel joked.  What was the point in being gay if you couldn’t joke inappropriately about your flaws with new friends?

“Well, you’re in luck, since I’m not really a butts guy,” Gabriel quipped back, completely unfazed by the remark. “Now, if you have a nice chest and good arms, then we’re in business.” He was half-finished the drink Daniel had given him, and he was already starting to feel his headache recede to a more manageable state. He definitely owed this guy.

“I don’t like to pry or assume.  I already make enough of an ass out of myself,” Daniel nodded.  “Alright then, crisis averted I suppose.”

“Well, there’s no asses here, except the ones we’re sitting on. Unless you’re standing. Then my joke is a lot less funny.” Gabe shrugged and offered a cheeky grin. “Wasn’t it, though? I admit, I get a bit of a perverse joy out of cracking sight jokes and making people squirm.”

…You clownin’? Should I TALK LOUDER? OR WHAT. Yeah, shit skressful; Gucci Mane taught me. 

Take it down, kid! I’m blind, not deaf. And I haven’t the foggiest fucking idea who or what that is. Are you okay?

Grinning, Josh shrugged, touching Gabriel’s elbow lightly and hoping that he’d be able to follow him easily enough. He wasn’t sure just how much help Gabriel needed, understanding that the guy had made it this far so he clearly wasn’t suffering going about his day to day like, “Maybe I like your company a little,” He teased, “But hey, I don’t want to figuratively step on your toes or anything… If I lead, will you be able to follow?” He asked carefully, hoping it wasn’t an unintentionally offensive question. He didn’t want Gabe to think he was talking down to him.

When Josh touched his elbow, Gabriel unfolded his cane, taking it as a sign that the other man was ready to go. “Be careful: with words like that, I might start to think you’re planning a courtship ritual,” he joked back, fluttering his eyelashes in a coquettish manner. The question, though, caused him to pull back on his playfulness just a fraction. “That’s a perfectly valid question. I’m not easy to offend; if you want to know something, go ahead and ask, even if you think it might be dumb. I’d rather people ask than assume, you know? But yeah, I should be fine, especially if you keep talking. If I feel like I might lose track of you, I’ll just put my hand on your shoulder or hold onto your upper arm.”

Josh chuckled at Gabriel’s words, finding himself nodding before remembering that Gabriel wasn’t going to be able to see that. It was an interesting dynamic, shifting his body language into something more verbal to include Gabriel in the more subtle nuances of conversation. But he didn’t mind doing it. If anything, it made him more aware of just how much he spoke without words and just how important it was to sometimes vocalize those things.

“You’re so good to me,” Gabriel replied with a wide grin and a hand over his heart. Josh was definitely a sweetheart, and easy to talk to: their senses of humor were similar, and he hadn’t seemed at all judgmental with regards to Gabe’s religious convictions. Ironic, considering his initial assumption based on Josh’s voice was of a man who could, in his own words, “snap him like a twig”. At the other man’s question on his drinking habits, Gabe pulled a face.

…Wait, which part was confusing? Man, if we’re bein’ honest here, same. Life would be so much less skressful if it was on the menu all the time. Crime rates would go way down too, bet.

All of it. Everything about that thing you said was confusing. Wait -- did you just say "skressful"?