Gabriel found it hard to believe that it was nearly six months since he came to the island. While this new life didn't have the same level of risk or excitement as his old one, Gabriel did find himself feeling much more relaxed, he wasn't looking over his shoulder anymore and could pretty much do what he wanted.
After checking that there wasn't anything that needed to be done around the club, Gabriel wandered around the resort for a bit before deciding on going into the cafe. He had heard good things about their coffee and thought now was as good a time as any to try it out. In his black Hawaiian shirt and the loose jeans he walked into the cafe and took a seat near the corner where he had a good view of the room. Sometimes old habits die hard.
“Is everything okay so far?”
The people at the table nodded, smiling. Preacher had a reputation of running a tight, clean, and friendly establishment. He had been more than welcoming when Skylar asked for a job on the first day, and willing to give him a shot without any prior experience. So far, it had worked out in his favor.
Most of his time was spent behind the scenes on a film set, trying to get the perfect shot while actors played their roles or out in a scene filming something exciting. He’d never waited tables or been any type of a retail or food employee, but the change of pace was oddly nice.
“Yes dear,” the elderly woman said. “Thank you very much.”
Skylar offered her a large, warm smile. “Let me know if I can get you anything else.” And then he moved on. Thankfully it wasn’t busy at this time of the day - he had watched one of the other servers almost drop a tray yesterday because she was overwhelmed.
He saw the man in the Hawaiian shirt slip into the booth, and immediately Skylar approached. “Hi!” His tone was warm and inviting, friendly. “Welcome. I’m Skylar. Can I get you anything to start with?”
Gabriel hadn't been expecting such prompt service, but it was definitely better than having to wait for what seemed like an age, he had experienced plenty of that in several European countries during his time abroad.
He smiled up at the cute younger gent who introduced himself as Skylar. "Hello. I'd like to start with a white coffee." Gabriel started, "is there a cake, pie or pastry of the day? Or something delicious that'll make my mouth water?" His smile turned to a slight grin, he was probably going to make the poor guy blush.
Skylar listened to the order. He didn’t worry about writing anything down, the request was simple enough. “Today we have apple pie and vanilla ice cream,” Skylar explained. “But if you want a good pairing with coffee, I always recommend either danish or chocolate cake.” He didn’t know much about food, not in the way someone like Preacher would, but he was a friend of a friend with Martha Stewart and he’d listened to her wide words a few times. He didn’t pick up right away on any implied words, focused on work and trying to make sure the man in the booth was satisfied. “If you want, I can go get your coffee ready while you decide?”
While Gabriel didn't usually mind apple pie, he did agree that it probably wouldn't go that well with his coffee. Skylar's suggestion of getting the coffee while he decided sounded like a good idea, it'd give him time to decide and also an excuse for the young man to come back to his table.
He gave a nod. "Let's start with the coffee, it might take me a while to make up my mind." It would also give Gabriel some time to just relax and watch others in the building.
“Of course!” Skylar smiled warmly at the man in the booth. “I’ll go get that for you right now. Be back in a minute.” He tapped the edge of the table gently and then turned to wander off toward the station for drinks. After picking up a mug, Skylar prepared the white coffee as requested. He set it on a small tray with some napkins, and utensils.
Before too long he came sweeping back. The mug would be set down in front of the man in the booth, and then he set down the napkins and wrapped utensils. Skylar set the tray on a nearby, empty table. “Did you decide on something to go with your coffee?”
The idea of a danish was sounding more appealing as he watched Skylar walk away and prepare his coffee. Was this guy new, or had the coffee shop held such secrets that he had never realised? If it was later, then he should've been visiting a lot sooner than today.
He smiled when he saw Skylar walking over with his coffee, he couldn't admit that there was something else he might have also been hungry for. "Seeing as what I'd really like is unavailable, I'll settle for the danish, thanks." The playful grin still spread wide across his lips.
Skylar’s eyebrows arched up a bit at the comment. “What do you mean, unavailable?” The danish he could do. It was one of the few sweets he’d allowed himself to indulge in and so he could vouch for its quality and taste. “I’ll warm that up for you.”
He took a step backward, then turned to get the tray and go put the order in for the danish. Skylar set the tray down on the stack and began to prepare the fresh treat from the case. It would go onto a plate and then into the microwave for a few seconds to heat.
Carefully he removed it and brought it back to the table. “There you go. Is there anything else I can do?”
There was plenty that Gabe was sure Skylar could do, but this wasn't exactly the time, nor the place for it. He didn't want to get Skylar fired from his job or get a ban on visiting the coffee shop.
"That's all. For the moment at least, I might change my mind depending on how this coffee is." If it was as good as he had heard it was, then he didn't mind just sitting for a while having a few mugs and watching the scenery.
“Okay!” Skylar smiled warmly and nodded. “I’ll come back and check on you in a little bit. If you need anything just let me know.” Another soft tap on the edge of the table with his fingers and Skylar moved away to go check on his other tables. Thankfully there weren’t too many.
The first sip told him that the recommendations were indeed correct, this was a very nice coffee and possibly one of the best he had tried in North America, this place was definitely a hidden gem.
Both the coffee and danish slowly disappeared as Gabriel sat watching the goings-on, including the elderly lady who eat by herself enjoying her drink, as well as Skylar. He didn't know what it was about the cute ones but they were often quite fun. As his coffee dwindled down to nothing he got Skylar's attention again.
There was plenty of time to take care of the tables and get a few chores done around the cafe. Maybe anyone else of his own stature and income bracket would’ve found these menial things beneath them but he wasn’t like that. Everything had a right to be neat and clean, and this wasn’t his place so respect for it was important.
When he saw the Hawaiian shirt guy wave, Skylar nodded and wandered over. “More coffee?”
Gabriel smiled widely when the younger man walked over to him, but he supposed that getting smiled at was all in the job, at least when people were nice towards them. He had seen more than one angry person complaining about coffee over his years.
"Yes please." He replied, holding the empty mug up for Skylar to take, his fingers maybe accidentally brushing the other man's during the hand off. "Could I get this one a little bit stronger?"
He hadn’t missed that brush of fingers, and it made a bit of curiosity bubble up inside of him. “Oh, yeah, sure. Of course!” With the mug in hand, he twisted and wandered back to the coffee station to prepare the new cup. This time he added a bit of espresso for a bit of strength.
On his way back he set the check down at the table of the elderly woman, and then the coffee would be delivered to Gabe. “Here you go,” he said softly.
His gaze shifted from Skylar once the younger man had gone to make a new mug of coffee, scanning the room just like his years of training had instilled in him but there was no threat here, he could let his guard down and relax.
"Thank you." Gabriel said as the fresh coffee was placed in front of him. "And your suggestion about the danish was spot on, it had to be the second sweetest thing in this cafe." A sly smile played on his lips.
It took Sylar a second to process what the man in the shirt was talking about and when it dawned on him, his smile grew a bit humble. “Ah, thanks. I’ll let Preacher know you like the danish.” He would nod. “Can I get you anything else?” Coffee was fine and he didn’t mind the man hanging out for a while he just didn’t want to go start cleaning tables if Hawaiian shirt needed anything else from him.
With not a lot else planned for the day, Gabriel would be quite content to sit there watching the rest of the world pass him by. He had done it more than a few times when he was scoping a place out, getting a feel for the routines of workers so he knew the breast time to break in and gather the intel he needed. Today though was purely about enjoying a few coffees and flirting. "The time when your shift finishes?" Which was quickly followed by, "The coffee will be fine for now."
“Oh,” Skylar replied. His smile turned sheepish and a soft flush of color came to his cheeks. “Um, I think I’m off from work in about an hour.” He wasn’t exactly sure why this man was asking or why he was divulging, but he was curious all the same. He found it oddly endearing that this stranger was willing to wait an hour for someone to finish their work but then, maybe there was just nothing else to do.
He gave a small wave and then went to go bus the table that the elderly woman had been sitting at. Skylar dipped into the back for a cart and a tub, then began to clean up the table from the dishes. He wiped it down meticulously and rest it for the next customer who might need it. When the task was done he wheeled the cart into the back area to get the dishes to the sink for washing.
Gabriel hadn't really expected a reply to his question, they'd see through his ruse and tell him it was none of his business or just tell a lie. But an hour wasn't that far away, it'd be much easier to chat when Skylar wasn't trying to do his job. It would be another story entirely if Skylar actually wanted to be flirted with, one that would have to wait. At least he had good coffee.
He watched as tables were cleaned down and made ready for the next customers, as a few people got their coffees to go and just sat and enjoyed his drink.
The hour went by fairly quickly. He caught a few more tables and eventually brought by the check for the man in the shirt, before wandering off again. By the time his shift was over and he hung up his apron he was ready to get out of the cafe and do some more exploring or even just something else entirely. He ran his hands through his hair for a minute and then wandered slowly back toward the guy in the shirt. “Coffee still good?”
The check wasn't as much as he expected it to be, even though the last little bit in the mug was completely cold by the time Skylar came over to him after hanging up his apron. "Best that I've tasted on the island." Gabriel said with a smile as he finished that last mouthful. "Would you like some company now that you've finished work? See some of the sights of the resort." He offered.
“Really?” A tour sounded like a good idea. “Sure! That would be really cool. I’ve been meaning to get out and explore but between getting settled and working I just haven’t had a lot of time.” He really didn’t know a lot of people at all, either, outside of the cafe and the few he’d met either while working or just visiting places like the surf shack and the tiki bar. “Do you have a particular place that you like to go?” Maybe they could start there or really whatever that sounded good that didn’t leave him stuck in his room, bored.
Gabriel had been the opposite, he didn't get a job until he was well and truly settled on the island, while it wasn't always exciting he was quite enjoying his role at Poseidon. "I quite enjoy exploring the beaches, although the Atrium is quite nice too." Especially when the weather was less than tropical outside. Getting up from his chair he smiled at Skylar. "Let me go pay this and I'll meet you out the front." A hand brushed Skylar's as he walked past.
“Okay!” It didn’t matter where they started, he just wanted to see everything. It was kind of this man to take him around and show him the best places to go. He didn’t even know his name yet. With a nod, Skylar turned and wandered to the front of the cafe, just beyond the doors, to wait. As he did, he looked around at the things within his range of sight, curious.
With the check settled and after running a hand through his hair and beard Gabriel walked out the front to meet Skylar. " I realise I've been quite rude and haven't introduced myself. Name's Gabriel but I'll answer to pretty much anything." A playful grin. "So… where have you seen so we don't double up on places?" He asked, not wanting to bore his new companion.
With a name to put with the face, Skylar’s grin broadened. “Nice to meet you, Gabriel.” Then he took a moment to think. “Really just the beach, and a couple of places over there like the surf shack and the tiki bar. I’ve seen the lobby of the hotel, the cafe….that’s really it so far.” He hoped that wasn’t too boring.
It really had been just the basics that had been his own first places to explore, well the exploring that had occurred on his second day at least. "There's something here for pretty much everyone. A couple of night clubs, a gym, the Atrium, plenty of places to eat out and of course the beaches and nature trails. The gym's not far away, how about we start there?" It seemed like Skylar liked to keep himself pretty fit, a gym might come in useful.
A gym was a good thing to have, for sure. “Yeah! That sounds great.” He tucked some of his hair back, even though it fell forward again, and followed Gabriel in the direction of the facility. He couldn’t believe all of this was just here. He’d been in hotels before, lavish ones, but this was different. The amenities amounted to about the same.
Gabriel would agree, it was quite the resort. Though he knew it had to be because once people arrived there they were not able to leave, though sometimes he wondered who would want to go back to their old lives when they had pretty much everything one wanted on this small island. "It's not the biggest of gyms that I've been to, but has everything you'd need to stay in shape. There's even a few personal trainers if you want some guidance." Not to mention they were both quite nice to look at, another bonus to working out. Arriving there Gabriel opened the door and stood back to let Skylar into the gym.
A nod would come at the description. It was good to know that the gym was fully equipped and available to everyone. “Nice,” he remarked. As the door opened, Skylar slipped through it and he observed the gym. He noted the equipment, many of the things he was used to seeing. “This will be great!” He didn’t need a personal trainer but the idea was one he would hold onto for a time he could change his mind.
"There's even a sauna, if the tropical heat doesn't get you sweaty enough." He said with a smirk, giving Skylar time to look around before walking back to the door. "You've passed the pool on your way to work, I don't think I need to show you that." While he did enjoy lazing beside the pool Gabriel preferred swimming out in the ocean, he couldn't really explain why. "There is also a pharmacy in the same building as our rooms if you're ever in need of medicine or supplies or band-aids." He started leading Skylar in the direction of Club Mirage.
Right! The pool. Skylar had seen the pool. “Yeah, I saw that.” He turned and headed toward the door, following Gabe out of the gym. “Oh that’s good to know.” A place to get quick supplies, especially for first aid, was not a bad thing to know the location of. As they walked together, he looked around to make sure to spot any landmarks to memorize so he didn’t get lost on the way back.
He had also heard that the pharmacy got in regular deliveries of medication from the mainland for residents who needed them, but as he didn't take anything other than the odd Advil he wasn't sure how it worked. "You'll probably take a wrong turn and end up getting lost, I know I did. But you'll find most people are happy to point you in the right direction." His hand occasionally brushing Skylar's as they walked side by side. "This is Club Mirage, one of the two night clubs on the island. If you're in the mood for enjoying some of the nightlife. The other's Poseidon, that's where I work."
Nightclubs could be fun. They weren’t really his scene but once in a while he got a wild hair and wanted some karaoke tunes. “That’s good to know,” he said, responding to just about everything Gabe told him using that same reply. “What’s the difference between Mirage and Poseidon?” Could you have two of the same night club? It was possible.
"Poseidon's more of a live music venue, think bands or touring artists rather than a DJ spinning tracks all night." Gabriel also knew he was biased towards his own place of employment even though he had gone to Mirage a few times before Matteo offered him a job at Poseidon. Leaning in a bit closer he said softly, "let me know if you ever want to come to Poseidon, I might be able to show you around."
Poseidon definitely sounded more like his type of a place but he only nodded. When that soft whisper came, Skylar grinned. “Oh, sure. Yeah, that would be great.” He wasn’t sure a whole tour was necessary but seeing the inside of the place would be cool. Maybe that place would be good to have a small party for his upcoming birthday if he made a few more friends. “Thanks,” he added. “What else is there to see around here?”
Sometimes his job had its perks, though it was rare that he actually snuck anyone in or let them behind the scenes, he didn't want to get fired and took his role as seriously as he could. One did have to have some fun now and then. "Hmm. There's the Atrium, if you don't mind a bit of nature and something other than palm trees." Gabriel said. "It's a nice place to relax when it's raining, or you just need some space." Fingers reached out and brushed Skylar's arm gently, his voice had a flirtatious tone. "It all depends on what you want to see."
“Oh yeah, Simon was telling me about that place,” Skylar replied. The place full of trees from all over the place that sounded delightful and charming. “Maybe I’ll check that out on my own, another time.” Going through that experience with Simon was more than likely ideal since he would know about all of the plants and could really dive down deep into them. That little brush on his arm sent a wave of chills up his body and he smiled a little.
He didn't know a lot about plants, so a tour would probably be best left to Simon who'd know much more than Gabriel did. They had pretty much covered all the main areas and Gabriel wasn't exactly sure where to take Skylar next, though part of him wanted to take him back upstairs. "I think that's the main part of the tour. I'm not really dressed for going down near the beach, unless you'd like to come up to my room while I change into something more comfortable." His touches not too subtle this time.
Going upstairs wasn’t a terrible thing but those touches told him that if they decided to head that direction, the probability was high that they wouldn’t hit the beach at all. Skylar swallowed a bit and then took a breath. “Um, why don’t we pass on the beach this time.” He didn’t know Gabriel very well and while the man was very nice, very charming, and very good looking, Skylar wasn’t exactly sure that he was looking for that kind of friendly right now. That wasn’t to say they couldn’t get to know each other better, but he knew staying downstairs was a safer option for both of them. “Thanks for showing me around. Hopefully I won’t get lost.”
He could take the hint, Skylar wasn't interested in that kind of tour, he tried not to let the disappointment show, rejection was always a risk and this time he struck out. He just smiled. "It was my pleasure. If you ever feel like another tour let me know, otherwise I'll probably see you again in the cafe."
“Of course!” With that, Skylar offered Gabriel a small wave and then turned to wander off in the direction of the pharmacy to see what the selection looked like. It wouldn’t hurt to stock up on the essentials, anyway, regardless of whether or not he would actually need them. Most of all, though, he was glad to have made a new friend.