Quicklog: mal r/hugh m
[Find out if he's trustworthy, Hannah had asked, which was a lot, really. Hugh didn't like the level of responsibility that it gave him. But as he brewed up coffee, a strong roast in his coffee maker, he reminded himself that his problems usually came not when he listened to his gut instinct, but when he ignored them in favor of what he wanted them to be. In this particular instance, he had no set outcome. Whatever his gut feeling was on the guy, is what he'd pass on to Hannah and that would be that. In the meantime, he'd have a new sound system which would make entertaining - real parties with dancing and people - a lot easier to do, and as that was a step back to the Hugh he liked being, it was a step in the right direction either way. Two birds, one stone, probably.
When he came to the door he was dressed in a typical pair of light chinos and a short sleeve shirt, sans tie or vest, because it was unnecessary at this hour of the morning, and anyway he wasn't trying to impress anyone. The house would do that in and of itself, and among the shifts in his life he was beginning to get used to this was one of them: He didn't have to try as hard: maybe he'd never needed to try that hard in the first place.
He answered the doorbell promptly, Heart skidding after him as if she was going to meet her new best friend, and he reached for her collar automatically as he opened the door.] Down, Heart. [And to the young man on the other side of the door.] You must be Mal - I'm Hugh, come on in. This is Heart, she's friendly, but if you don't like dogs, I'll put her in my room for a bit here.