Chores - tag augustanderson

[howtheydied]

Finally, a real day off. I was supposed to have one last week, but I ended up getting called in to help with a particularly odd case. It seems I'm already the go-to guy when things are difficult. Lucky me

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[augustanderson]

My apartment was supposed to have a washer and dryer. Supposed to, but it didn't. They gave me some song and dance about my cover, and how this place was close enough to Phoenix for me to get to work. It was a bunch of blah, blah, blah, Auggie. If you don't think you can cut it, we can have someone else take your place

[howtheydied]

I looked over as I heard tapping- apparently someone was finding his way around the laundry room. But he certainly didn't seem to need any help, so I didn't offer any.

...and considering his grumbling, he was likely just as impressed with the facilities as me. I smile a bit. "Hello. And if you're referring to the 'laundry room', I've got to agree with you. If I'd known this place didn't have individual units, I would've looked elsewhere." Not that I had many options here in the area.

"My name's Ted, by the way. I'm new to the building." That might be obvious, but we'll see.

[augustanderson]

The first thing they try to train you with at the Farm is to be suspicious. Spies are everywhere. D'uh, I'm one, or I was one. That's kind of up in the air right now. His voice sounds friendly enough, and unlike my Farm hatched brothers I don't do paranoid well. I find it's a hell of a lot better to be friendly. If you don't act like a paranoid nutcase, people will relax and be human around you.

"Hey, yeah," I let out a heavy sigh as I finished forcing the last of my laundry into the machine. "They told me I'd have a washer and dryer in my apartment when I signed the lease. Apparently on the same floor was as good as it gets."

I reached into my pockets for the ziplock bags that I'd filled with detergent in my place and carefully poured it over the clothes before shutting the lid. "I'm new too, obviously. My name's Auggie. I'm in 8B."

[howtheydied]

"12A is mine, so we're not terribly far apart." Makes me wonder just how many open spaces they have here. "It's good to meet you, Auggie." And it is- this breaks up the monotony.

I start up my machine and lean back against it. "Looks like we're stuck here for awhile. I probably should've brought a book, but it's been so long since I've done this." College seems like eons ago. "So I guess we'll just have to commiserate about our lying leases- if you don't mind, of course. My broker got an earful from me, that's for sure." It's possible he'd rather not talk, but he seems friendly enough.

[augustanderson]

"Considering how this conversation started, Ted, might not be a good idea to tell me you think about pretty girls on your job," I add with a chuckle of my own. He doesn't strike me like he's into necrophilia anymore than I am. "I do OK. Where I'm working now I haven't been mingling much, and dating on the job is always messy."

"So unless I start asking questions about your past, we'll have to come up with something else." I pop open the second beer and wash down my last Dorito for the night. "How about one night after work we hit the bar down the street, and see if we can find some pretty girls to keep us busy? I've never chatted up girls with a doctor as wing man before."

[howtheydied]

My washer turns off while he's talking, and I push off of the one I've been leaning on to go get it. I chuckle in response to his joke- definitely not a good idea to think about pretty girl on my job.

He mentions hitting a bar, and that sounds good, except for one thing. And we will be getting into my past here, I can already see it, but...well, it's only fair. "I'd love to. Bet I'd make a decent wing man. I'm not really on the market, at the moment, though. I lost my fiance a couple months ago. It was a mitral valve prolapse- her heart just stopped, basically." I bite my lip as I remember cracking open Jake's rib cage again, then I let out a breath.

I realize I'd been rather quiet, so I speak up again. "So now you know something about me. I'm happy to go out- hell, it'd probably be good for me. But dating is off my to-do list for awhile."

[augustanderson]

When he says he's not on the market, I immediately assume that he's seeing someone. This is New York after all. It's supposed to be full of eligible doctors for the single females to flock after. But when he says his fiance died, I feel like shit.

"I'm sorry, man." I get how he feels. I might not have lost a fiance, but I've lost a lot of people that I've cared about. It hurts, and sometimes I wonder if it every really does go away. "Bar and drinks it is then. We'll use you as bait being the single doctor, and then I'll reel them in with my charms."

I duck my head and hope that I'm looking down at my fingers. It's where I think I'm looking anyway. "I know we just met, but if you ever need to talk, I'm a good listener." I look up with a smile. "I've had to be."

[howtheydied]

When Auggie apologizes, I can hear the sincerity of the emotions in his voice. He knows what it is to lose people. And he doesn't immediately back out- that makes me smile, a little. "I'm sure we'll manage to hook quite a few that way. Sounds like fun."

He says he's a good listener, and makes the joke before I can. I'm lacing my fingers and then pulling them apart again, a habit I haven't had since high school. But it's good to know. "Thanks, man. I might take you up on that sometime, when I'm- processing this more." I know I'm focusing too much on the revenge now, and not enough on...Gwen. I just can't really think about my part in it yet, and that's what I'd be going to right away.

I chuckle a little and take a swig of my beer. "Sorry, I didn't mean to bring the conversation down again. So do you already know the good bars, or are we going to have to hunt them out?" I'm not too concerned either way. I can be comfortable almost anywhere.