You walk into the supermarket and make your way over to the counter. From the moment you walked into the store you feel a little awkward; the man behind the counter has not looked away from you for even a second. He looks like he’s about to accuse you of something, before you stammer out that you’re the new hire.
???
“Oh, I forgot about that. You’re late.” You look at the clock behind him. It’s one minute past the time you were supposed to arrive.
“Julian was supposed to train you but he called in sick, so I guess I have to. I’m a busy man so let’s get this over with as fast as possible.”
“Here’s your uniform, you can change in the back. I mean, it’s just a shirt, so it’s not like you really need privacy. Oh, there are rules about how you dress though, you gotta represent the store properly.”
He then goes into a long winded speech about appropriate clothing for wearing at the supermarket. It occurs to you he hasn’t told you his name, or asked you yours.
Gabriel
“My name is Gabriel.” He taps on his chest. “Like the nametag says. I figured we didn’t really need to go over that.” He narrows his eyes. “Since you can read, right…?”
If Gabriel is your manager and is going to keep acting this way, you don’t foresee yourself working here very long.
He looks at your nametag.
Gabriel
“Yon? That’s a weird name.” (Note: he would say this for any name. Except if you’re also named Gabriel. Then he’d call it a good name without acknowledging it’s his own name.)
“Anyway, follow me. I’ll show you where everything goes, and the storage room, since you’ll mostly be stocking shelves.”
He takes you through the store and introduces you to every aisle, ignoring the signs above each aisle which show you exactly which product goes where. He takes longer than you find necessary for each aisle. The most impressive thing about it all is that he knows where each product goes without even looking first, which is not impressive in the slightest.
The last place he shows you is the broom closet. It’s about as interesting as the rest of the store.
Gabriel
“This is where we keep the cleaning products. And also Julian when inspection comes by, which is about once a month. That reminds me, how old are you?”
Your age was part of your application, so he should know, but Gabriel has been acting like you’re less than dirt to him so you’re not surprised he pretends not to know. You tell him you’re the same age as Julian.
Gabriel
“Ah, that means you’ll be going into the closet once a month too. We sell alcohol here and you guys are underage, so I could be in trouble if they find out I’m employing you here.”
You’re pretty sure this isn’t true, but you don’t know enough to really rebuke him. The closet looks rather cramped, but you already think if it means you get some reprieve from being around your manager it might not be so bad.
The tour has ended. The evening is pretty quiet; not many customers come in. Gabriel takes the opportunity to show you how the cash register works and how to talk to customers as he takes care of their groceries. The last half our or so you two spend some time talking, and you find out that when he’s not talking about work Gabriel is actually pretty nice.
Despite your initial reservations, you feel a faint bond form between the two of you.
Gabriel Social Link - The Hermit 2
You’re working a shift at the supermarket, this time Julian is with you. It makes the monotonous work a lot less boring when he’s with you and the two of you can talk while youre working. As usual Gabriel is at the cash register, ringing up customers and doing something unknown to you whenever he is not. You’ve learned he’s quite good at looking very busy, but Julian has told you he isn’t really doing anything.
He does seem to like the both of you, even if he tends to act pretty high and mighty whenever he talks to you. You’ve learned Gabriel is only five years older than you, and ever since learning that it’s been hard to put that out of your mind. With the way he talks to you you’d expected him to be much older, not barely out of his teens himself.
He seems excited whenever he has an interest in common with you or Julian, but then shortly after becomes flustered, as if he’s too old to share interests with his juniors. You hope that maybe with time he will become a little less uptight.
A girl has been inside the store for a little while now, you can tell from the glimpses you’ve gotten of her she’s in the same school as you as you recognise her uniform, but she moves so fast you never quite get a good look at her. It’s as if she doesn’t want to be seen.
After a moment you hear a commotion at the cash register; it sounds like Gabriel is in a heated discussion with the girl. Julian rolls his eyes.
Julian
“It’s Lezniki.” He explains when you give him a puzzled look. “Alice Lezniki, from our year? She’s Gabriel’s sister. They get into a fight every time she comes in.”
You move to an aisle closer to the register so you can eavesdrop.
Alice
“Mom said to tell you to try and get home early today, she’s making your favourite dinner.” She sounds miserable saying this.
Gabriel
“Ugh, mom. I can cook for myself.” He pretends to be annoyed but you’re pretty sure you can hear some fondness in his voice.
Alice
“About that, when are you moving out? You’ve had that apartment across town for months now, but you’re still home like, every day.”
Gabriel
“Oh you’d like that, wouldn’t you. Mom and Dad like me to be home because at least then there’s a child there that’s not absolute misery to be around.”
Alice
“I’m sure that’s why, and not so you can keep relying on mom to do everything for you. Aren’t you wasting money on rent? You’re soooo grown up.”
Gabriel
“That is not why I still come home!” He sounds flustered; it’s a little hard to listen to. Julian chuckles. “I just… haven’t found the time to move yet. I’m gonna need some help with moving the bigger items. Not like you’d get that.”
Alice
“Yes, heaven forbid someone in high school hasn’t thought about the logistics of moving out of their parent’s place.”
Julian
“We can help you move!”
You shoot Julian an alarmed look; you thought you were trying to hide. He grins back at you. Gabriel turns around, he’s caught off guard. Alice looks like it takes effort not to try and hide from you.
Gabriel
“I didn’t know you were- …um, anyway. S-sure, thanks.”
Julian
“What about after the next shift? Me ‘n Yon got time.”
You don’t know why Julian is roping you into this, but you suppose he’s right.
Alice
“Finally.” She picks up her groceries and heads for the door. “When you’re out I’m taking your room!”
Gabriel
“No you’re not!” He yells after her, but his sister has already disappeared from view.
Julian
“He’ll have to pay us for helping him, it’ll be a nice bit of extra cash.”
Oh, so that’s why Julian offered to help. You’re not sure Gabriel is aware Julian’s expecting payment, though.
Gabriel Social Link - The Hermit 3
It’s after work hours and you and Julian have just finished moving the final piece of furniture into Gabriel’s apartment. It didn’t take as long as you would’ve thought; it turns out Gabriel doesn’t own much. The apartment is empty outside of a sofa, a chair, a small desk and a bed. There’s a small kitchen in the corner with a box of Gabriel’s smaller belongings on it, and two more boxes in the bedroom, but that was it.
Julian
“I almost feel bad asking him to pay us for this… That was like, nothing.” He looks around, pausing on the empty walls. “Maybe we should get him a housewarming gift, actually. This is kinda sad.”
Gabriel walks back into the room and sits on the sofa. He hands you a can of soda.
Gabriel
“Thanks for your help guys. I thought it’d take longer. If I knew it’d be this easy I would’ve moved out sooner!” Something tells you this isn’t entirely the truth.
He takes a sip of his drink. “Now I have my own place. To be on my own. To be alone in.” With every sentence his voice grows a little quieter. “What more could you want?” He says so loudly it startles you a little.
Julian
“Are you gonna decorate it?”
Gabriel
“Maybe a little, but I’m not gonna paint anything. I mean, I’m just renting, I’d have to cover it all up again if I ever moved out. Plus I don’t know how much I’ll really be here, anyway…”
Julian
“You think you’re still gonna be mostly at your parent’s place?” Theres a smirk tugging at his lips.
Gabriel
“No! I’ll just be at other places.” You can tell from his response Gabriel isn’t sure what ‘other places’ he’s talking about.
Julian
“Right. Because you’re such a busy guy.”
Gabriel
He tuts. “You’ll get it when you get older, Jude.”
Julian
“I dunno man, I don’t think I’ll ever rent an apartment in Grey Springs. I’d want to move to a bigger place. There’s nothing here.”
Gabriel
“You only think that because you’re still in school. Grey Springs is a lovely town actually, and I’m glad I’ve got my own place here now.”
Julian
“No offense, but how would you know? You’ve never left town. You didn’t go to college, or university, or get a job outside town-”
Gabriel
“Everything I could want is right here! And because I started working right outta high school I actually have a nice amount of money saved up.” He puffs out his chest. “All I need now is find a nice girl to marry, and I’ll basically be done at life.”
Julian
“Life isn’t a checklist!”
Gabriel
“Um, actually, at its core, it is.” He holds out his hands and taps each finger as he starts listing things. “You finish school, you get a job, you get your own place, you get married and then you have kids. Like, maybe have kids, I’m not sure on that yet. But life is totally a checklist at the end of things.”
Julian messes with the lip of his soda can as he thinks over his answer. You think you can tell Julian doesn’t want to say anything to offend Gabriel. He is your boss after all, or maybe it’s because of something else.
Julian
“I don’t think I’d be happy thinking about it like that.”
Gabriel
“Sounds like a you problem,” he scoffs. Julian looks annoyed. You wonder if he regrets not speaking his mind more honestly. Gabriel turns to you. “What about you, Yon? What’s your plan for your life?”
Julian: "Yeah, me too! And I think that’s pretty normal. We’ll see where life takes us, right?" Gabriel: "That is so irresponsible."
Gabriel: "I’m glad you see some sense." Julian: Don’t agree with him, he gets so annoying when someone agrees with him...
Gabriel: I don’t need Yon’s approval, I know I’m right! You just feel bad because I’ve proven you’re a little immature.
Julian: I’m not taking that from a guy who doesn’t even own a TV.
Julian: He laughs. “I think that’s a little extreme, but it’s a sound philosophy.” Gabriel: “As long as you keep showing up for work, that’s okay with me.”
Julian
“It kinda looks like all you can do here is eat and sleep. You don’t have a TV, or a computer… How are you gonna spend your free time here?”
Gabriel
“I do have a computer actually, I have a laptop. And I already told you I don’t plan on spending much time here.”
Julian thinks for a moment as he takes a sip from his soda. His eyes narrow.
Julian
“Wait, if your next step is getting a girlfriend, how are you gonna take her back here?”
Gabriel
He eyes Julian suspiciously. “What do you mean?”
Julian
He gestures at the room. “You have nothing and the whole house is white walls with grey carpet! If anyone took me back here I’d run like a bat outta hell. You gotta give it some personality or you’re never gonna get a girlfriend.”
Gabriel
“...And you’re the expert on dating.”
Julian
“I didn’t say that. But fine, if you don’t believe me, ask an actual girl. I bet she’d say the same thing.”
Gabriel
“Fine, I will.” He averts his eyes from Julian, his cheeks a little flushed. You wonder if he’s thinking of a specific girl.
You and Julian hang around a little longer until you finish your drinks, after which you bid Gabriel farewell and go home. As you tell him goodbye you can tell he’s still thinking about what Julian said about his decor.
Gabriel Social Link - The Hermit 4
You’re about half an hour into your shift when Gabriel suddenly comes bustling towards you.
Gabriel
“Hey Yon! I’m gonna need you to get into the cleaning closet.”
Julian
“What? Inspection’s not due for another two weeks.”
Gabriel grabs you and Julian by the shoulders and starts leading you towards the closet.
Gabriel
“It’s an emergency. Sudden inspection. You gotta listen to me, I’m the manager.”
He’s pushed you in and closed the door before you can protest. You try to open the door but Julian stops you.
Julian
“Don’t bother, he’ll just push you back in. At least in here we don’t have to work. And it’s not a surprise inspection, by the way.”
It’s hard to tell in the small slit of light coming through the rectangular window in the door, but you can see a glint in Julian’s eyes.
Julian
“It’s Celeste Walton.”
You awkwardly crowd around the small window to get a look at the front counter.
Celeste
“Hey! Are you manning the shop alone today?”
Gabriel
“Uh no, the others are out back. You know, in the stocking area.”
Julian
“Listen to him. As if she’s not suspicious why there’s no one there every time she visits.”
Celeste does her shopping as she and Gabriel occasionally chat about nothing in particular. You can tell Gabriel is trying really hard to look casual, but he’s not doing a very good job.
Celeste
“I heard you moved into a new place.”
Gabriel
“Oh, uh, yeah I did. Where did you hear that…?”
Celeste
“Vince told me.”
Gabriel
“Of course he did…” You wonder why he’s annoyed.
Celeste
“So when’s the housewarming party? I already have a gift in mind.”
Gabriel
“Uh, I wasn’t planning on… Um, the place isn’t ready yet. So I don’t know.”
Julian
“He was totally going to keep it the way it is.”
Celeste
“Not finished in what way? Like there’s still construction going on?”
Gabriel
“No, it’s not that, but it’s a little empty right now.”
Celeste
“Aw, that’s not a problem! You’re never really done decorating your house.”
Gabriel
“It’s a little more than just decoration…”
Celeste
“Do you have chairs? Or a sofa?”
Gabriel
“Yes.”
Celeste
“What about a table to put food and drinks on? Or some cardboard boxes?”
Gabriel
“Yes, but-”
Celeste
“Then you can have a housewarming party! Let’s plan a day next time you’re at Luna.”
Gabriel
“Fine, if you want to come over that badly.”
Julian suppresses a laugh.
Julian
“He’s so bad at this.”
Celeste pays for her groceries and leaves the store. Gabriel hurries over to the closet he locked you and Julian in and unlocks the door.
Julian
“You locked the door? Are you serious?”
Gabriel
“I had a feeling you were gonna walk out and try to embarrass me.”
Julian
“I wasn’t!” He looks offended. “You don’t need my help to do that.”
Gabriel
“Yeah yeah, whatever.”
Julian
“So, you gonna have her over at your place?”
Gabriel
“Don’t say it like that. I’ll think of some excuse. I can’t have a party at my house.”
Julian
“Not the way it is now, but you can make it look nicer. Just hang up some paintings and get some plants or something. Girls love plants.”
Gabriel
“I appreciate the expert advice,” he says, giving Julian a tired look. I don’t wanna put up stuff I don’t actually like.”
Julian
“When did I say you have to do that? Of course you’d only put up stuff you actually like, it’s supposed to reflect your personality.”
Gabriel
“Seriously, you’re a kid, why are you schooling me on how to keep my house? You live with your parents, I bet your decor is still baby blue walls and whatever furniture your parents put in it.”
Julian
“Hey! My walls are dark blue, actually. Also we helped you move your furniture from your parents place, like they didn’t buy that stuff for you.”
Gabriel doesn’t have a response to that. He walks back to the cash register, so he’s facing away from you. You wonder if he’s embarrassed.
Julian
“Hey, if you do throw a housewarming party, do we get to come?”
Gabriel
“Shut up and get back to work, Weaver.”
Julian smirks at you before you resume stocking the shelves, like you were before Gabriel shoved you into the cleaning closet. Gabriel is grumpy for the rest of your shift. Even though you didn’t say anything, it seems he’s upset with both of you. You hope his mood is a little better on your next shift.
[The Hermit 5]
[Grey Springs - ReLife Secondhand Shop]
You’re browsing the shop for some new clothes. You’re specifically trying to find a new jacket, but you’ve had no luck so far, everything you’ve found is either a little too old-fashioned or outside of your budget. You’re about to leave when you notice a familiar face in the decor section of the shop.
Gabriel Lezniki is staring at a wall covered in mirrors with ornate frames. He looks distressed. When he notices you, he waves you over.
Gabriel
“Do you think a mirror is a good thing to put on your living room wall? My parents have one, but I’m worried it might be kind of an old people thing. Or is it really feminine to have a mirror on your wall? Or is it cool?”
He sounds more panicked with every question. You tell him you don’t know, but that you think he should just buy things he likes.
Gabriel
“Thanks, that’s very helpful,” he says flatly. “The problem is that I don’t know what I like.”
You ask him if he doesn’t have any hobbies. Does he like any movies or books? Has he taken care of plants before?
Gabriel
“What’s with you guys and plants? Is this some kinda trend at school or something? No, I haven’t. And I don’t see how my hobbies tie into home decor.”
You explain if he likes certain movies he could perhaps decorate his house with film posters.
Gabriel
“I mean, I guess there’s some movies I like… My sister actually has a lot of movie posters cos she’s obsessed with them, I could ask her if I can have a few. Though she’s probably gonna make me pay for them.” He looks over to the mirrors again. Then his eye falls on the side tables that are stacked underneath the mirrors. There’s a lot of little knick knacks on display on top of them. “I should probably get more stuff than just things to put on the wall, right?”
You ask if he likes any of the decorations on the tables. You think they look like they’d only fit in an old lady’s home, but you decide not to say that.
Gabriel
“I’m not geriatric, so no.”
Seems like Gabriel thought the same thing.
His gaze wanders to another isle that’s mostly stocked with old kitchenware.
Gabriel
“Oh my god, I only have one set of tableware. I need to get some plates and glasses. And bowls, and cutlery…”
He quickly walks away from you. When he notices you’re not following him, he waves you over again.
Gabriel
“I’m gonna need you to help me carry this stuff. This is gonna be heavy.” He waves at the clothing section you were browsing earlier. “I’ll buy you whatever you were gonna buy from there.”
You hate it when he talks like this, but if it means you can get that cool but expensive jacket you saw you’re willing to put up with it.
As conflicted as he seemed about the mirrors, he seems to not care about what any of the tableware on display looks like. He piles plates and bowls into your arms, and drops a handful of cutlery in the topmost bowl.
You follow him to the cash register. Your arms hurt from how heavy everything is. Gabriel suddenly stops and you almost bump into him.
Gabriel
“...What do you think of that rug?”
You look at it. It’s a persian rug. The middle looks a little worn down. You don’t know what you think of it. You just want to put down all the tableware as soon as possible as you feel your arms become shaky.
Gabriel
“Never mind, I’m getting it.”
He rolls it up and to your relief he doesn’t get distracted again, so you can finally put down everything at the register. It takes a long time for the lady behind the register to pack everything, as she needs to individually wrap each plate and bowl. As you wait you remind Gabriel he was going to buy you that jacket.
Gabriel
“Oh yeah, I said that, didn’t I. Well, go on then.” He nods at the clothing section. “Go grab it.”
You do. When the lady rings it up Gabriel gives you a look when he sees the price, but he doesn’t say anything and pays.
The clerk has divided everything into two bags, but with the rug it looks like it’s still too much for one person to carry. You offer to help Gabriel carry it home.
Gabriel
“Oh, thank you. If you carry one bag, I’ll carry the rest and it shouldn’t be too bad.”
Thankfully it’s not a long walk to Gabriel’s apartment. When you get to his place you see he’s already tried his hand at making the place look a little homier. There’s some magnets on his fridge and you notice three small cacti in the window sill. There’s also a glass reed diffuser sitting on the living room table. It’s small, but it’s something, you think.
He notices you looking at the diffuser.
Gabriel
“That was a gift from Vincent. He’s in school with you, do you know him?” He doesn’t wait for you to answer. “It does look kind of nice, doesn't it?”
You say the place has a little more character already.
Gabriel
“Thanks, I think. I thought having your own place would be easy but this whole decorating thing is such a pain.”
You say that if he really doesn’t like it he shouldn’t do it just because other people told him to.
Gabriel
“Oh I wouldn’t be doing this if it was just because people complained. I got kinda stir crazy sitting in an empty house. So I’m doing it as much for myself. And it would be good if the place makes people want to come over, also,” he adds more quietly. “Anyway, thanks again for helping me out today. I’d probably still be staring at those mirrors if you hadn’t shown up.”
You tell him you were happy to help (though him buying you the jacket certainly made it easier) before saying goodbye and heading home.
[The Hermit 6]
You and Julian are on your way to Gabriel’s place. He invited you both over on your last shift. Well, it wasn’t so much an invite as it was a demand you be there. You got him a book you think he might like based on some things you heard him talk about in the store, Julian got him a small cactus even though you told him Gabriel already has three.
Julian
“I don’t understand why he wants us there. I thought it was pretty obvious he could just have Celeste over and it’d be like a date.”
Answers:
Julian: Normally yes, but to me it sounded like she would’ve been fine with it. Hell she said she’d be fine with it if he used a cardboard box as a table, remember?
Julian: That’s true. So because she said housewarming, he invites a bunch of people cos that’s what you’re supposed to do. I wonder if he just invited us cos we helped him move.
Julian: “That’d be crazy! You don’t think he’s really that dumb, do you?”
You shrug. Julian: “I really hope it’s not just us and her. That’d be awkward as hell.”
You ring the doorbell. Gabriel almost immediately opens the door. He looks a little feverish, his eyes are wide and his cheeks slightly flushed, until he notices its the two of you. His expression settles to his usual haughty expression.
Gabriel
“Oh, it’s just you two. Come in.”
Julian
“I regret buying you a gift.”
Gabriel
“You bought me a gift? I didn’t expect that.”
He leads you to the living room. You find there’s already two people there. A young man is slouched in an armchair that wasn’t there last time you were over at Gabriel’s, and Alice, Gabriel’s sister, is hunched over, pressed against the corner of the sofa, looking gloomy as ever. The wall behind her has multiple framed movie posters on it. When she sees Julian, horror briefly flashes across her face.
You and Julian take a seat. You study the movie posters.
Alice
“H…Have you seen any of them?”
You say you have; they’re pretty famous movies.
Alice
“...They’re all pretty generic, but the posters are cool.” She does not look at you while she says this.
Julian
“Hey, I’ve seen you at the store before, but I never caught your name.”
???
“It’s Vincent. Gabriel’s a friend of mine.”
Julian
“Oh, he’s talked about you before! Says you’re in school with us but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you there… What year are you in?”
Vincent
“Eh, don’t worry about it. I kinda try to be there as little as possible without flunking out.”
Alice
“He’s in year three. He’s also the guy in the mascot suit during games.”
Vincent
He sinks a little deeper into the chair. “Thanks, Alice.”
Gabriel comes back and gives both you and Julian a can of soda.
Gabriel
“I figured that’s what you guys wanted, but there’s water if you don’t.”
Alice
“It’s so weird you don’t have a tea kettle. You can’t even offer people hot drinks.”
Gabriel
“Did you want a hot drink, Alice?” He sounds more sardonic than you’ve ever heard him before; you didn’t know that was possible.
Alice
“...No.”
Gabriel
“Then there’s no problem, is there.”
The doorbell rings. The feverish expression returns to Gabriel’s face as he hurries to the door.
Alice
“I didn’t know he knew this many people.”
Vincent
“I imagine this is the last person,” he says with a smirk.
You hear the door open, followed by a familiar voice. Celeste cheerfully congratulates Gabriel on his new home, followed by the sound of rustling; you figure it’s her handing him a present. She walks in and waves at you all. It looks like she recognises both Vincent and Julian, but not Alice or you.
