Landon Kirby (notfrodobaggins) wrote in madisonvalley, @ 2024-01-25 10:18:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log, !match-up, justin taylor (dramaprincess), landon kirby (notfrodobaggins), ~2024 january |
WHO: Justin and Landon (Match-up)
WHAT: A meeting at Hinkles
WHEN: Today
WHERE: Hinkles
WARNINGS: Low
STATUS: Closed/Match-up
He’d gone in looking to get a milkshake not a job. He was going to be working at the art store, but he missed the energy of the diner. After he saw the ‘help wanted’ sign and had a brief but intense interview about his work experience he had not one but two jobs. Apparently working at the Liberty Diner since he was seventeen more than qualified him to work at Hinkles.
He finally got to order his milkshake, and a burger and onion rings since he was there, and was waiting for them while filling out some employment paperwork at the counter.
***
Landon already had a job, serving at Hope’s restaurant when his classes and assignments gave him any downtime. It was okay though, he liked being busy and he liked what he was studying, so that was something. Still, that didn’t mean that he wasn’t in Hinkles a bunch. It was good, it was local, and it was affordable - three things that when put together made it irresistible.
He got his food and looked around, noticing the guy filling out an application.
“Huh,” he said with a smile. “I wonder if working here means you get free food?”
Because that would be awesome.
***
“I didn’t ask,” Justin looked up from his paperwork and over at the person who’d spoken, he was good looking and his quick up down perusal wasn’t blatant but he didn’t try to hide it either.
“But the place I worked at home, if you worked more than four hours they fed you and there’s always overage at the end of the day. Usually they’d let us graze from leftovers in the walkin.” He figured it was the same or similar here, it was a perk but not why he’d decided to apply with another job already lined up.
“I’m Justin.” He said by way of introduction.
***
Landon was straight, but it wasn’t like he was offended. At all. After all, he was from the ‘future’, as it was, and thankfully they’d stopped getting so bent out of shape about that. So he just pretty much ignored it. Hope was his soulmate, and he wouldn’t have been interested even if he was gay or bi.
“Yeah, same. The place I worked had great milkshakes and I used to seriously pig out on them. Well, on the days I didn’t get them thrown at me.” He was a nerd, and the ‘cool’ kids had liked to do that to him on a somewhat regular basis.
“Landon. You been here long? In Madison Valley, I mean.”
***
“No one ever threw a milkshake at me, and my ass got me good tips. Doubt that’ll be as true here.” Easily 90% of the clientele of the Liberty Diner was gay, and at least half of that would have wanted him just because they knew Brian had come back more than once.
Sort of made his ass seem magical. It was, but you know, that was beside the point.
“Not long, about a month. Was getting bored and my roommate basically threatened to defenestrate me if I didn’t find something to do.” Mickey had actually used that word, which was only funny (and a surprise that he knew it) if you knew Mickey. “You?”
***
“You’re lucky. I got used to taking another shirt to work, it happened so often.” It wasn’t something he really wanted to admit, but it hadn’t been his fault. He’d done the best job he could and some people were just jerks.
“I’ve been here almost two years. Hard to believe, huh? Me too. But I’ve been here only like a fraction of the time of a bunch of other people. I saw someone post on the network just recently that he’d been here over a decade. How crazy is that?”
Landon kind of hoped he’d be here that long. It would be time with Hope that he wouldn’t get back home, at least not in the same way.
***
“I saw that,” it had blown his mind a little. He’d only just started to consider that he might be here forever. In ten years he’d be the same age Brian had been when they met, that was almost as much or a mind fuck as the thought of never going home.
“Sort of made me realize that this might be… it. You know? I’m not going to wake up tomorrow in the Pitts. So I should start getting a life together.” Whatever that looked like, today it looked like getting a job.
Maybe tomorrow he’d look at taking a class or two, or finding a doctor and getting his meds.
***
“A lot of people do that,” Landon nodded. “A lot of people just assume this is home and try to make their lives here. It’s kind of hard for others, especially those with people they care about back home. My girlfriend is here, so it’s easier for me.” If Hope wasn’t here, his life would be different, he knew that for sure. “I think if you’re alone here, it’s hard to really accept it. The people who are alone have problems settling in.”
For once in his life, he wasn’t one of those. It was a bit of a strange feeling.
“Getting a job is a good start, though. I mean, you’ll have to buy food and stuff anyway, and life’s a lot easier when you’ve got some money in your pocket.”
***
“Yeah,” he was definitely alone. Or at least he didn’t have anyone from home here and while a part of him would obviously love to have Brian here, another part missed Daphne, and his mom and Debbie more. “Might take a while to call Madison home.”
He peeled the fried bit off of an onion ring and ate it while he considered.
“Guess I can thank my dad for kicking me out so I have some work experience to lean into here.” He’d never quite supported himself completely, even after they’d split Brian had been paying his tuition, there was something about the idea of standing on his own that he liked. Madison had given him that chance anyway, to be a man.
***
“It’s easier when there are people you know. I know that. A lot of people on their own here end up getting sent back…I don’t know if the dome realizes that they’re miserable or what.” He shrugged. There was really no understanding how the dome worked. Even the best and brightest of the scientists here were at a complete loss to understand it.
“I grew up in foster care,” he admitted. “I never knew either of my parents.” With his dad, at least, this was a good thing. And his mom…well, she’d done what she thought was best when she abandoned him.
“It was nice to have a job because it got me out and I had money of my own to buy things with. They weren’t going to buy anything for me, outside of basic necessities.”
***
It was going to give him a headache trying to decide if he was miserable, or at least miserable enough to end up getting sent home. But generally he was a, well, sunshiney person - for lack of a better word. Even if he sometimes hated the nickname Debbie had bestowed on him.
“I was lucky,” and he knew it. Even with Craig kicking him out his mom had done what she could. And he’d had Debbie and Vic. And Brian. “I got my first job bussing tables because I stole a credit card from the guy I was sleeping with and ran away to New York. He dragged me back, found me a place to live that wasn’t with him, and a job so I could pay him back. Then I started a comic book.”
***
“A comic book, huh?” Landon was a fan of comic books. He and Rafe had enjoyed them together, one of the few fun things he was allowed to do. He wasn’t an artist, so he couldn’t do them himself, but he enjoyed them and appreciated those who could.
“You’ll have to tell me about that later. I’ve gotta get to class, but it was nice meeting you.”
He had theory in about fifteen minutes, so he had to hurry.
***
“Rage, gay superhero. Fight homophobes with mind control powers.” He grinned, because he knew it was the niche-est of niche genre comics. “You know where to find me.”
He gestured at the application and the restaurant at large, he’d be here at least a couple days a week.
“Nice meeting you.”
***