Adam Samuels (adamsammy) wrote in repose, @ 2016-01-12 08:15:00 |
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Entry tags: | *log, adam samuels, eris stockard |
Hookerville: Adam and Eris
Who: Adam and Eris
Where: Hookerville; Eris' Trailer
What: Looking for a job?
When: Just before the train plot
Warnings: N/A
Adam wasn’t at all sure what had him headed towards the outskirts of town, the not so well kept secret about what lay in the caravan of trailers and shacks. He knew he needed money, he knew he was lonely as fuck with Kyle being clearly with Ethan and he knew he...well he didn’t know much of anything. Who else would bother with him?
He asked a question of the first person that propositioned him, a younger girl, closer to his age with dark hair and darker eyes, and Adam almost forgot why he was there, but the way she’d lilted through a little laugh at him made him remember. She’d pointed him to the right trailer and he headed that way, hesitating for a long moment before knocking. He didn’t have the slightest idea of what to say, how to say it, but maybe, just maybe, he wouldn’t have to. Maybe she’d know, whoever she was.
Eris had watched his approach from her Airstream, wondering at him. He didn’t look like he was buying, she could tell that before he’d even walked away from one of her cutest girls. There was something about the way he carried himself. She waited a moment when he knocked before she settled herself at the very small table in there. There was of course a seat set out for ‘guests’ when she held meetings. “Come in,” she called, pushing the chair out a little when the door opened.
She let her gaze settle on him for a long, long moment. “You look lost, my sweet,” she told him, though her tone was warm.
Adam stuck his head in first, then the rest of him and looked around. Somehow, she’d managed to make her trailer look nice, miles more than his was or would ever be, but that wasn’t really the jarring thing. She was the jarring thing. She was gorgeous, yes, but she was also young, probably his age and it was enough to draw him to the chair, eyes wide, mouth partially open. “You’re not really her are you?”
She had to smile at that, a little pinch of wickedness to it, and she batted her thick lashes just a touch, just enough to draw attention to her eyes. “My, you make me sound like someone only to be whispered about in the shadows,” she said, tone amused, but not mocking. “If you mean am I the Madame here, the answer is yes. Eris Stockard,” she said, holding out her hand to him, mostly because she wanted to see how well he'd react to touching her when he was looking at her like that.
“Whose company am I being graced with?” she asked. He still looked lost. Adorably so, really.
“That’s sort of how they talk about you,” Adam said, looking at her hand for a moment before reaching out to take it. He was still learning touch again. That stint in prison hadn’t been fun, but here he was, asking for a job, like he wouldn’t have to be touched to work for her. Desperate times maybe.
“Adam,” he said, with a tone that suggested he didn’t think anyone was graced with his presence. “You’re my age.”
Her smile stayed touched with that little bit of something to it, actually liking that she was viewed that way. It added to the air around herself and meant that people were under the impression she was something special, not just some random bitch who whored it up in the trailer park.
“Pleasure to meet you, Adam,” she said, noting the hesitation. It wasn't too overt, or anything, but it was clear enough to her. “Don't you know it isn't polite to talk about age around a lady?” she said, giving him a little laugh to cut through some of his tension. “But I'm old enough. You aren't here to spend time with anyone here, Adam. So what is it that brings you to my door?” she asked. She paused, and poured herself some green tea from an antique looking china teapot, and she offered him some as well.
Adam flushed and shook his head. “Sorry,” he murmured. He didn’t know that, but he supposed it made sense. “I didn’t say you weren’t, just...I think I expected someone older.” That was what the movies had led him to believe at least. Some older woman with too much makeup, like one of the foster mothers he’d had at one point. “I...no.” He shook his head. He wasn’t there to spend time with someone. “I was...I think I’m looking for a job.” Honestly, he still wasn’t sure, he just knew he was fast approaching broke. He’d sold everything that Jeffrey had of worth when he found out his keys to their shared residence still worked and his friend was in jail for the crime Adam had been accused of, but that was only going to last so long. He wasn’t sure what other marketable skills he had and maybe, just maybe, he could do this long enough to get on his feet. Or maybe he was barking up the wrong tree. She’d pegged him right when she thought he was lost.
He eyed the teapot, an interesting thing for someone who lived in a trailer to have, but still nodded towards the cup, not sure what she was drinking, but feeling like he might need something to steel his nerves.
One brow arched as he said he was looking for work. Surely he wasn't talking about the actual business, because she knew just by being in the same room with him for three minutes that that wasn't in the cards for him. But she let him sit for a moment as she got him his tea.
Setting the teapot down, she took her own cup and held it primly, taking a sip before she spoke. “And what sort of work are you looking for exactly, sweetheart?” she asked. “Please,” she invited. “Regale me with your story.” And she did mean that, she wanted to know what was going on with him. What had really brought him there to her when he so clearly didn't belong here.
Adam frowned, holding his cup between his hands but not drinking out of it. “Um, what you do here,” he said slowly. “Or am I supposed to pick a specific...thing...that I can offer?” He could pick something specific, there were things Kyle said he was good at, but other than that he had a limited knowledge. His heart hurt, thinking about Kyle. “I came here for my boyfriend, but he has a new one,” he said softly. “And I’m running low on money and…” he trailed off, not ready to admit out loud that he was lonely and lost even if he felt it and was sure it was written all over his face.
She eyed him for a long moment. Yes, he was a rabbit in the headlights, and apparently nursing a broken heart. That wasn't exactly the place to start from. People got into this business for all sorts of reasons, and if he was working on his own, he'd be able to start up. She didn't think he'd last a day, but that was besides the point. He was asking to take up with her, however, and that made all the difference.
She took another sip of her tea then set the cup down, squaring herself toward him. “Can you cook?” she asked.
“Um, no,” Adam said, drawing the words out. “How is that necessary for,” he gestured around them to finish his sentence.
“It isn't. But I'm going to be frank with you, sweetheart. No one wants to fuck the sad boy with the broken heart. It’s unattractive. And if they do, it's not the type of person I wish to cater to. Running low on money means you should be going door to door down town to see who'll hire you, not winding up on my doorstep, ready to throw yourself to the wolves – which is exactly what you look like you think you're doing. That to me says you have serious issues right now, and I don't especially want more of those in my house than I already have. So. Just because some guy moved on and you didn't doesn't mean that this,” she gestured around them, “Should be your next step. I'm not especially interested in helping anyone out with their dramatic self annihilation over a heartbreak.”
She drummed her red nails against the table top. “Here's what I am interested in. If you're willing to learn to cook, that would be great. Everyone needs to eat, and having home cooked meals for the men and women here would be lovely. Until you can work that out, you can deliver food, and go shopping for them should they require anything. I'd provide the funds for whatever you get, and would pay you to provide the service.” She was making this up as she went, really. She'd never had a runner before. But apparently she was in the business of taking in strays these days, so she may as well commit to that. Starting with this little lost puppy.
“I’m not…” Okay he was sad. He was really sad, but he was still good in bed. At least he hoped. “I know it doesn’t mean this, I just don’t know what else I’m good at.” He perked up a little bit though when she half offered him a job. “I could do that,” he said. “I can’t cook, but I can do that.” He could. He wanted to.
“I'm going to tell you a secret. What happens here has nothing to do with how 'good' you are. It's about power and control, and varying degrees of other things mixed in. How good a lay you are is farther down the list than you would think.” She nodded when he agreed to take things on. “You're going to learn to cook. Get some books. You'll at least then have a skill you can work with later in life, if you've gotten this far without thinking you've got anything else but holes and a cock.”
“I know I’m more,” Adam protested, but bit it off before sighing. He ran his hands over his face before looking at her. “There’s always been someone telling me what to do, even before Kyle and before that there was no one.” Wasn’t this the kind of place orphans wound up when they ran out of options? He nodded though, taking her advice to heart. He needed to figure out what he was, what he wanted. “What else is on the list?” he asked, mostly out of curiosity.
“If you really believed that, you wouldn't be here,” Eris told him. She kept her gaze on his eyes as he added more detail, but she didn't answer him right away. “Sounds like you need to learn how to stand on your own two feet,” she told him. “What you'll get from me is I'm not going to bullshit you. I take good care of the people that I employ, and if you need something, ask me. If you want a straight opinion, ask me. If you fuck with me, leave town before I find out.”
She smirked when he asked the last part. “Everything, of course. But mainly, whatever issues the client carries in with them, and they vary just as much as the clients themselves. Some people just want something easy because their life is too complicated, some people can't admit they're into their own gender and so they get it on the side. Some people want to talk. Some people want to dress up like fuzzy unicorns and watch cartoons all night every other weekend. It's about a million things.”
“Cartoons sounds nice,” Adam said with a wry little smirk. He shook his head. “I wouldn’t fuck with you, but yeah, I need to learn to stand. I need to find out...what’s next.” Since he was sure what he wanted wasn’t what he needed. “I know I’m not like that though.” He wanted to help, but she had a better way he could didn’t she? It was more appealing at least.
“I recommend some serious self examination, dear. But either way, if you want this position, it's yours. Our peak hours are at night but that doesn't mean that people won't need anything during the day, either. I'll need your phone number, and I'll give it to them, so when they need something, they can get ahold of you,” she told him. “I'm sure we'll cross paths frequently. Don't hesitate to come to me with anything, and I do mean anything.” She made sure she made eye contact with the last statement, so he understood the seriousness there. The fastest way to get betrayed was to not know where your people were at. So, she wanted to be certain to impress upon people that her door was wide open for anything.
Adam nodded, fishing out his phone to give her his details. “Whatever they need,” he said. “You too.” Not that she struck him as someone that ‘needed’ often, but he could help her out as well. He wanted to help her out.
Eris took the number and would be getting it out to her and hers as soon as she could. “Thank you,” she told him. She got a locked box out, and opened it up, handing over a hundred dollars. “Here's to get you started,” she said. “I look forward to this being a positive relationship for everyone.”
Adam pocketed the money and nodded. “I hope so too. And thanks.” Because he was grateful. He needed a job and this one, while unconventional, might actually work.