InsaneJournal

Don't block the aisle
Who: Annette and Hap
When: 7:00 p.m.ish
Where: Grocery store

It had been another long day at the department, longer than normal really because the Fourth of July was coming up and that meant working with the community to make sure all of the proper procedures were followed. Now that was really just a pain in his neck, even if the displays were completely worth it. He knew how much the kids liked seeing the display and that was the main reason he did it. Well, that and the fact that it was part of his job so he really lacked a choice in the matter. And he did not really trust anyone else to do it right... yeah, so it was just going to be a really long week. The Fourth itself would doubtlessly give him a migraine.

All of that activity meant that it was strangely soothing to go to the grocery store and shop for the weeks necessities. Denise had offered to do it that morning but Hap had said no, he was the dad and he could handle something like this. Though as he was pushing his cart down the cereal aisle he came to a sudden stop, the whisper of voices that seemed to be right next to him catching his attention. Something about how no, Tracey did not like that cereal, she only liked Cheerios... and then it was gone, voices from the past flitting right by and pulling him out of the present so that he did not even realize he was blocking the aisle.

Annette was completely absorbed in her list as she strode along, muttering under her breath about tea and seafood as she pushed a half-filled cart along. Half of the damned house's expenses went into fancy flavored water. And what, exactly, did one feed a raccoon? Like the big guy needed anything more to pad his middle with, anyhow. It would do him good to actually rely on catching things now and then, but they lived in a suburb, and people got nervous when they saw a large raccoon wandering about at odd hours. With a sigh, she paused to look around for Fay's favorite cereal - there. Good grief, did Jasmin actually let her eat that stuff? No wonder she was unmanageable some mornings! But horrid sugared stuff or not, it was rather out of reach, solidly blocked by some guy with his head in the clouds.

"Pardon. Pardon. Hey!" As tired and generally irritable as she was feeling (she'd hardly slept since they moved in), Annette immediately regretted the harshness in her voice. The man was clearly upset about something. "Uh, sorry, but you're in the middle of the aisle there. You wanna move aside a bit, please? Don't mind me, just a bit frazzled." Worrying over whether she was going to get that job, and the general moving-in stress mostly. It didn't excuse her from being an ass to a complete stranger.

The sound of someone talking did not necessarily snap Hap out of his haze, he had just been listening to people talk after all, but the tone did. He blinked and turned his head to find a dark-haired woman trying to get past him. "Oh, my bad," Hap apologized and moved aside quickly. It bothered him when people took up the aisle and he wasn't all that happy with himself for having gone and done it. "Just dazed off for a minute there." And then, because it had been bred into him by Tanya and also because he was supposed to be some sort of community figure (if he listened to other people), Hap tried to recognize this woman. But nope, nothing was clicking. Which meant she was either very reclusive, slim chance judging off her attitude right there, or new. Probably new.

"My name's Hap Sanderson and I've never seen you before, which is unusual for me... you new to town?"

"It happens." Annette shrugged and maneuvered her cart by, lifting down a box of the sugared hyper-bombs or whatever they were called and glowering disapprovingly at the ingredient list. Oh, she was going to have a talk with that man when she got home. "Just a long day, I expect." She was trying to convince herself that just because she was good with people didn't mean she had to be their personal therapist/sounding board all the time. Whatever was bothering the man was none of her business.

She'd expected that to be the end of that, but then he'd introduced himself, and asked if she were new. Well now. "Is the town really that small? Yeah, Annette Reynolds. We just moved in this weekend. Already did the big shopping, but I guess we forgot some... uh... essentials." She gave the offending cereal another scowl. "I take it you know a lot of people then, huh?"

Seeing the way that the woman, Annette, glared at the cereal made Hap wonder if maybe she was out shopping for a child. Because those were the only people who ate cereal like that. Except him sometimes, but he had been accused of being nothing more than a big kid sometimes. "Oh, town's not really that small," Hap said with a shrug of his shoulders. "I just know a lot of people, yeah. Tends to happen in my line of work." Whether it was knowing kids through the field trips and then meeting their parents or other events it just happened. He still blamed more of it on Tanya than his job. "Got kids? See the cereal you're buying and well, that's the sort of thing kids down like no one's business. Then bounce all around the place." Yeah, he definitely had two kids and had witnessed them doing that. Hell, Deangelo still did it and he was eighteen!

His line of work? Public service, she imagined. Or something more sinister, but he honestly didn't seem the type, and that was probably just her imagination acting up on her. It did that a lot, unfortunately, and especially on her lack of sleep. "That's handy. Guess I know who to go to if I need to get in touch with someone. And yeah. I think I just found out where she gets all her mid-morning energy. The words I'm going to have with that man..." Annette didn't even bother to explain her rather... unorthodox relation to Fay and her father. She found that people got the wrong impression about her and Jas either way, and some folk thought she had no business being in Fay's life if she wasn't a mother, a blood relative, or in a relationship with the father. "The stuff can't be good for her, but she does get rather spoiled sometimes."

"Oh no, I don't know how to get ahold of people... just know them all," Hap said quickly as he grabbed his own box of cereal. "More like they know how to get hold of me. All the time." He was still waiting for the next time he woke up to someone next to his bed, waiting for him to wake up. Downright creepy when they pulled things like that. It was better to wake up to a call about a fire. "And kids will be kids, at least they eat the stuff. So did you move to town on for a job?" Tanya's influence yet again, and his natural habit of putting off that friendly air so that people remembered him. No one wanted a fire chief who was standoffish. Tended to be the butt of gossip if that happened and there were few things Hap disliked more than hearing his name passed around the circle.

"I'll keep that in mind." Annette gave him a wry smile and peered at her list. Half of it was Jasmin rambling on about what his favorite brands and flavors of tea were. "Yeah, but Fay's only picky if she knows she can get something out of it. Clever kid, but good grief." She folded the paper in half and slipped it back into her pocket. "To be honest, it was less about moving here than it was moving out back in Maine. Just a lot of personal problems, y'know? And Jasmin never liked it there anyway. Puts me in a bit of a bind when it comes to work, but Jas's shop keeps us comfortable. I'm just a workaholic." And she really was. It was driving her crazy to sit around all day, wondering what Fox was planning to do about her. Hopefully she'd know one way or another soon. Her tone stayed even but firm - whoever he was, he really didn't need to know about why they had to leave.

Hap was not the sort to pry if there was no opening. Plenty of people in the fire department had backgrounds they did not want spread around. He knew more about them than they thought he did, had to if they expected to stay hired by him. "Personal problems are plenty of reason to move," Hap agreed, trying to find the cereal that Denise liked. He could never remember the name. Especially not when he was trying to remember the names of any new shops that had popped up in town. "What is it you do? If you've got a good resume I could probably drop your name in a few places. Like I said, lot of people know me." And if she was good then everyone won.

The shop was going to open eventually, but they had yet to find a place. For now, Jasmin was running the whole thing online - they'd left in a bit of a hurry, and that was the best they could manage in a pinch. It was working well enough for the moment, though it meant they were all cooped up in the duplex together, which tended to lead to some quite intense arguments. Annette chuckled a bit at his question. "Actually, I'm a private detective. And I've already talked to Mr. Fox Benton, and I believe he's the only one in the town. I'll have to look into working in Ann Arbor or something if it turns out he doesn't need the help." She hoped he would. It would be damned convenient, considering his office was practically across the street from her house. "But if you know anyone, I wouldn't mind the tip."

A private detective? Well that was definitely something new. Sure Hap had known about Fox but he had never really had much of a conversation with the man. Or any detectives. Denise thought that was ridiculous because his daughter was that certain her mother was not really dead, but as far as Hap knew she had not gone and talked to the man. "I don't know any other private investigators myself... but I know someone who might like to talk to you." Maybe it would put his daughter's mind at ease. Hap was all about doing that when he could. Deangelo was way easier to handle. "When you have some time and of course you'd be paid, probably wouldn't really have to do anything. Putting a kid's mind at ease is all." Even if Denise was not exactly a 'kid' anymore he still thought of her as one.

"Well, I've never done much freelancing, to be honest, and I'd have to brush up on Michigan's laws about working outside an agency. But damn, you went and pulled the kid card, how could I say no? Um, I'll get back to you when I know how to do this legally, alright?" Annette tilted her head and pondered for a long moment. "Like I said, I only just got here. Want to at least make sure my license is all in order." She'd already applied to get the proper state ID, but she hadn't gotten the new one back yet. "Got some way I can find you once I know what the situation is?"

"Of course, I've got no idea how all that works so... when you figure it out just swing by the fire station. I'd always there. And if I'm not they know how to get me on the line. I'll make sure to tell them that it's okay to call me at home if Annette comes looking." Hap offered one of his best smiles and inclined his head. "Nice meeting you, Annette. Hope to see you again soon." And with that he turned his cart to go and looked for something for dinner. Knowing his kids they were going to be frothing at the mouth by the time he got back to the house and started cooking it. Pizza would work.

A fireman, then. That made sense, and judging from the way he talked, she figured he was either in a fairly high-up position, or he'd been one for a long time. Or possibly both. "Sure, I'll look you up once I know what's going on, all right? Though if the case is urgent you might want to go right to Fox with it, since he'll be able to start right a way. He's a good man too, from what I saw." Annette nodded and looked around, noticing a sign for coffee an aisle over. The tea'd be there, she expected. "Pleasure to meet you, too, and I'm sure I'll see you again soon enough." She flashed him a small smile.