[FIN] Think Fast

[BlackFireKitsune]

In the days following the incident, Abel flip-flopped between periods of listlessness in which he did very little if anything at all, and periods of nervous restlessness in which he couldn't sit still, he had to do something. During these alternating phases, he learned several things: He could still climb out the window and onto his fire escape with broken ribs. Climbing out a window onto a fire escape with broken ribs hurt. Sitting up after laying down was agonizing. Sitting in his makeshift dining room with his arms resting on the table was comfortable. Being restless usually resulted in copious amounts of pain depending on what he was trying to do. And finally, that cleaning the various handguns he'd collected over the years was a good, relatively painless way to work off all the pent-up energy.

It was during one such restless phase that he discovered the last completely by accident, and he happily took full advantage of it. A variety of handguns sat neatly on the table, split into two piles with just a few in each. The pile on the right gleamed in the light, while the left pile didn't shine quite so brightly. At the moment, he turned a mildly dissected gun over in his hands, its missing parts laid neatly on the table near at hand along with a small selection of bottles and a couple oily rags. As he squinted into one end of the gun, he couldn't help but wonder for the umpteenth time when Taavi would be back. He'd given the other man his keys so he could let himself in or out whenever he wanted, but he was restless and bored and at the moment wanted company to talk to to keep his mind off his missing Espeon.  

[TawnyAngel]

In the couple of days before the incident he'd been worrying about having to leave Abel's place, about where he was going to go next. Now he kind of wished he had left, because if he had that would mean that what had happened wouldn't have; Abel wouldn't be hurt and Isaac wouldn't be missing.

When things like this happened you felt... you just felt like life should stop for a while out of respect but it didn't. The world kept turning and you still had to eat, still had to do laundry, and people still laughed and chatted with their friends as they passed you on the street.

It was because of the continuing rhythm of life that Taavi had been out of the apartment despite instructions to keep an eye on Abel; laundry to do, food to buy, it wasn't like they could order in take-out. If he'd told Abel's giant friend about that perhaps they would have been sent pizza or Chinese but it hadn't seemed right to go telling people that Abel was living off instant noodles, if they didn't know then obviously Abel didn't want them to, so he hadn't. Anyway it was only a couple of hours and Abel had been a lot less dazed this morning.

With a small bag of shopping in one hand and a sack of clean laundry over the other Taavi headed down the hall to Abel's apartment and opened the door, finding a faint smile from somewhere as he entered. "Hey, I'm back, I got-"

There were guns all over the table. Lots of guns. Taavi came to an abrupt halt, his smile vanishing as his gaze fixed on the weapons. He knew where Abel worked, he knew that but- but why did he have all of these here?  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Unlike Taavi, Abel couldn't find the will to smile. He did glance up though as Taavi entered. "Hey," he said as he returned his focus to his work, but his friend's abrupt halt drew his attention once more as he aimed a mildly confused expression at him. "You okay? What's wrong?" It didn't immediately occur to him that it was his collection of handguns.  

[TawnyAngel]

Ah, s**t, his hangups were not Abel's problem and especially not right now. "Ah, it's nothing," Taavi replied, looking away awkwardly as he set down the bag of laundry and headed over to the kitchen area to put away the food (for food, read 'cheap noodles'). With his back to Abel and one of the cupboards open Taavi paused, he couldn't just say it was nothing because it had probably been pretty obvious that it had been something.

"I just um, I didn't know you had guns is all." So many guns. What did he need them all for? What could anyone need so many for? One was too many in his opinion let alone however many were spread out in front of Abel.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

A soft, dubious frown formed on his face as he watched Taavi come in and busy himself with putting things away. Obviously it wasn't nothing, but it was just as obvious that he didn't want to talk about it...

And now he did. Duh, he should've realized that. "Ah," Abel said as he looked down once more at the gun in his hands, his elbows resting on the table, "yeah." Now would probably be a bad time to mention the hunting rifle in his closet. Really though, he knew he worked at a gun shop and firing range, surely he would've made the connection that he had firearms...? "I've had firearms for quite a few years now. My dad taught me how to shoot when I was kid." He paused as he squinted into the gun again, debating what else to say. "You're not a big fan of them, are you?"  

[TawnyAngel]

"Oh, well, yea I knew that but um, I didn't know you had any of your own." He'd put the noodles away now, he really couldn't keep just looking into the cupboard. After another moment of hesitation Taavi shut the cupboard, turned, and lent back against the counter with his eyes downcast. "Ah, and, yeah I guess that was obvious? It's ah... Yeah. I mean, I know it's not... well it's not logical, they're just things it's the people using them that...." He wasn't sure where he'd be going with that sentence. He shrugged. "I never had anything to do with them when I was young, guns aren't exactly a ranger thing and... then with- well- just before I left home, part of why I left I guess- I...."

It still hurt to talk about, it hurt so much, and this year he hadn't even been able to go visit his grave and he felt awful about that but there was no way he could have afforded a flight or a ferry ticket. He didn't know if he should tell Abel all that though, it was kind of.... Yeah. Heavy. It wasn't what Abel needed right now.

Aware that he had been silent for several long moments Taavi cleared his throat and looked back up at Abel, he tried to smile but the slight upturn of his lips completely failed to mask his unhappy discomfort. "Ah, I'm sorry, it's just... Yeah. Sorry. I'm not trying to be cryptic, I just don't want to.... Yeah. I'm not a big fan." Well he'd managed to make this really awkward hadn't he?  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Waiting patiently while Taavi worked through his halting sentences, Abel picked up a rag and idly ran it over the gun's surface. "Something happened that you don't want to talk about," the blond suggested rather than asked, because what else would it be? He didn't know what had happened, but in all likelihood something bad that had involved firearms. "Don't worry about it, everyone's got stuff they'd rather not talk about." Now a smile found its way into his expression, but it was nothing but bitter. "It definitely is the person carrying it, and I could go on about how it could just as easily be anything else instead of a gun, but I'm sure you know that already. They're just noisier and you hear about them more often than other weapons. If it makes you feel any better, none of these are loaded," he added; it wasn't like he could just hastily put them all away immediately, not when the box for them was in his bedroom. "Worst that'll happen is one gets dropped on your foot and you'll have a bruised toe, or maybe a broken toe if you're really unlucky."  

[TawnyAngel]

"Yeah, that's about the shape of it," Taavi agreed, more than a little relieved that Abel didn't seem to be insulted and also that he wasn't trying to get him to Talk About It. Today was not the day for talking about it, definitely.

"And, yeah, that does make me feel a bit better," he continued, glancing back at the weapons on the table. They weren't so bad really, it was just... Yeah. "They're pretty heavy then I guess? Well, they are made of metal so they would be right?... What's it like, working at the firing range?" Also when was Abel going to be able to go back? Not getting hours meant not getting paid and that was not good at all. He still hadn't worked out why Abel seemed to be so short of money, the rent here couldn't be that high and cigarettes were expensive but not that expensive. What was he spending it on? It still didn't seem like a good idea to ask, how would you even start phrasing that? No, it was what it was and better left that way.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

The blond nodded in agreement - nodding didn't give him a split headache anymore like it had immediately after the incident, thankfully, though he wished the black eye would go away along with the pain in his ribs - and let the matter drop at that. If Taavi wanted to talk about it, he could do so when - or if - he felt comfortable.

"That's good," Abel said sincerely. In all honesty he hadn't been sure if it actually would make Taavi feel better, but it was good to hear that it did. Now would still probably be a bad time to mention the loaded ones he had, or the rifle. Maybe some other time, if Taavi got more comfortable with the idea. "They can be, yeah. It depends on the make and model, but generally handguns aren't really too heavy. You could easily hold it in just one hand if you wanted, but you really should hold it in both for stability," he said as he removed the rag, inspected the dissected gun, and started wiping it again. While he had to strain a bit to talk and it did hurt, he was far too restless to not talk. It was nice to talk to his friend, plus if absolutely nothing else it kept his mind off of Isaac. "Adding ammunition doesn't really add a ton of weight to them. You can pick one up if you want to. Only if you want to, though."

Hmm, working at the firing range... "It's... a lot of different things, honestly. At the firing range specifically, there's cleaning supplies - like this - or giving lessons or instructions, monitoring people at the range, carrying supplies back and forth, checking people in or out... That sort of thing. I think the same general 'help customers, make sure they don't do anything stupid, make sure your work station and tools are clean' sort of stuff that applies to every other job, honestly, it's just the specifics are different."  

[TawnyAngel]

Pick one up? Taavi gave the guns on the table a deeply sceptical look, picking one up did not sound like something he wanted to do. After a few moments of hesitation however he padded across the apartment to the table and reached out to brush his fingers over the grip - was it called a grip? - of one of the smaller guns. It was just a thing but touching it still gave him an unpleasant feeling that he couldn't describe even to himself, it just felt... not right, that was the best he could do to frame it in thoughts.

"That... doesn't sound like it's too bad," Taavi said after a short pause, withdrawing his hand and looking at Abel again. "Are people usually... polite to you?" Not crazy? Likely to shoot people? "Um, and it's got to be more interesting than working in a grocery store or a diner or whatever." Actually what Abel described, giving lessons and all, sounded kind of specialised so he would have thought the pay would be- well maybe not amazing but not awful. There had to be something else Abel's money went on; debts? Looking after family? Those seemed most likely to him but he really couldn't ask.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Absolutely nothing happened when Taavi touched the grip, except that a mildly surprised look passed through Abel's expression momentarily before it disappeared again. He didn't think he actually would, but he found himself a little glad he did. The best way to get over your fears - or discomforts, maybe that was a better term? - was to face them directly.

"It isn't bad at all," he said with a slight shake of his head as he trade the rag for a couple bottles of different liquids. After applying a bit of one or the other to various spots, he picked up the pieces on the table one by one to reassemble the firearm with practiced ease as he spoke all the while, "it's actually pretty enjoyable most days. I like my boss and my coworkers and it's something I've had plenty of experience in, so it's pretty nice. I mean yeah, we get some a*****e customers sometimes, but those are usually few and far between and like hell we sell anything to them. Some aren't exactly great, but generally most of the customers are fine," he finished with a slight shrug, an action which elicited a small, pained grimace. "It's a lot better and more interesting than working in a store or diner, that's for sure."  

[TawnyAngel]

"Heh, right?" Taavi agreed, stepping away from the table of weapons in favour of perching comfortably on the arm of the couch. "I kinda miss my coworkers, most of them anyway. Obviously not my boss though!... Ah, have you talked to your boss? About being off for a while?" He kind of assumed Abel had but what he was actually trying to get at without saying it aloud was 'how long are you going to take off?'. He could tell Abel was restless, seriously restless, and having something to do might help his mental state but much though that was true it was also true that he really ought to rest a good while longer before returning to work.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Once he reassembled the firearm, Abel grabbed one of the rags again to polish its surface with. "Yeah, good coworkers are hard to come by. Good bosses are even harder to come by, it seems. Mmh," he hummed a little as he paused to inspect the firearm in his hands and, displeased with its current status, resumed polishing it. "I did talk to him a bit the day after it happened," he didn't bother to clarify what 'it' was, "but I need to go talk to him in person. I was thinking of it today, but maybe tomorrow'd be better..." The blond trailed off, wearing a light frown in his features. Maybe he'd let him start working again right off..? No, he'd probably want to ascertain whether or not he should be back at work yet, which meant he had some convincing to do... What was he going to do if he couldn't go back to work yet? He'd already paid his bills for the month, sure, but the next month was fast approaching and he wasn't sure...

Shoving the thought aside rather forcefully for the moment before he made himself into an anxious mess, Abel focused more intently on his work.  

[TawnyAngel]

"Ah, tomorrow sounds like a good idea," Taavi agreed with a brief glance out of the window though the time of day wasn't actually important, what was important was... well, not today. Tomorrow was probably a bit soon too but he doubted trying to put Abel off would work and he honestly didn't know if he could bring himself to try, just in case it led to confrontation... Doormat.

Taavi sighed and stood up again, heading over to the kitchen area. "Um, you want coffee? And... I could come with you tomorrow if you like? Just to make sure you get there okay. I mean I'm sure you'll be fine but... uh...." He shrugged and turned to face his friend again with a sheepish smile. "Uh, humour me?" Abel probably shouldn't be driving at all really so if he was going to he ought to be supervised, not that he knew how to drive or anything but... Well it just seemed like a good idea, that was all.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Mm, yeah, probably," he ceded as he glanced out the window briefly before returning to his polishing, though his mind had already started wandering. He just had to hope he could convince his boss to let him start work again as soon as possible; sure it'd hurt for a while, especially with how long it took ribs to heal, but he really couldn't afford to just not work for weeks. As it was he could barely afford to not work this long. What was he going to do?

Suddenly aware that Taavi had said words and he had yet to respond to those words, Abel quickly switched tracks and scrambled to try and figure out what words he'd said. Something about coffee, and getting there okay.. humoring him? "No thanks, I'm not really in the mood for anything," he said with a slight shake of his head; at the moment he didn't think his stomach could handle much if anything, "and..." Much as he wanted to say no thanks, he could handle himself; no, he didn't need a babysitter; nope, he'd be just fine on his own... He really wasn't sure if any of those would be true anymore. "Yeah, I think that'd be a good idea. Thanks."

Aware that his mood was rapidly slipping from restlessness into despondence - trying to avoid thinking about things only worked for so long, after all - the blond finished polishing the handgun before he set it down and began cleaning up his supplies with a quiet sigh. With the supplies put away and his handguns safely returned to their place in his room, he quietly conveyed his intent to sleep early to his friend before following through and retreating into his room. Even if it wasn't that late and was in fact far too early to go to bed, he just.. couldn't do it anymore.

Sometime the following morning, Abel struggled through the stiffness and pain that still plagued him - made worse by the fact his pain killers had worn off hours ago - to rise and slowly, carefully ready himself for the day. While part of him was trying to stay positive, he mostly just felt sick with dread and anxiety that had only worsened since the night before. What if his boss refused? What if he couldn't work for weeks? What if Alyssa demanded money he didn't have? How would he pay rent? What would he do?

All he could do for the time being was try his best to push such thoughts out his mind, and he attempted to do so as he headed out into the living room to see how his friend was doing and see when he'd feel up for accompanying him.