12-12-2019, 12:36 AM
Asa cocked his head as Jules's guest exited the water closet, hands behind his back and all bundled up. Didn't much look like the man had planned on staying all that long; so why, then, had he followed his brother up those squawking steps? Quite the mystery, Asa thought, but he had the good sense enough to not mention it out loud.
"Jules, you're not planning on letting your guest leave so quickly, are you?" he asked, sweeping across the floor to pluck a teacup from the setting. "Aye, friend, my brother went through the monumental effort of preparing this... " he paused, leaned over to the catch a whiff of the tea leaves. "Bohea? Bohea." Not Asa's favorite, but he wasn't about to complain. Not now, anyway.
"Come, come, it's a mess outside. At least warm your bones before popping off."
Asa approached, placing a heavy, calloused hand atop Gavin's shoulder. An insistent nudge directed the guest to a small table where the three could sit; an even more persuasive push encouraged him to take a seat. Jules's tense, forced smile could be see out of the corner of Asa's eye, but that was just Jules, wasn't it? Always worried, always thinking, always fretting about any old thing. Asa smirked at the concern woven through the creases at the corners of his older brother's eyes. This man, whomever he was, had left his brother feeling cautious, but what was the small man going to do? A seemingly unnatural twenty-three centimeters and a couple of stone surely separated Asa and this stranger. What could he possibly do?
"Jules, you introduce, I'll pour." And so he did. Asa put down a cup and saucer for his brother and the stranger before gathering the kettle. "Milk? Sugar?" he asked, grinning wide.
"Asa, this is Mr Gavin Ireland," Jules replied, slowly pulling out a chair of his own. "Mr Ireland, this is my brother, Asa. He helps me here at the shop. May very well assist me with your order." He paused as Asa deposited a single sugar cube into his cup. "Mr. Ireland... I'm sorry, sir, I don't believe you ever said what you do?"
"Do? Oh, a man is surely defined by what he does," Asa added, nodding enthusiastically. "What do you do, sir?"
"Jules, you're not planning on letting your guest leave so quickly, are you?" he asked, sweeping across the floor to pluck a teacup from the setting. "Aye, friend, my brother went through the monumental effort of preparing this... " he paused, leaned over to the catch a whiff of the tea leaves. "Bohea? Bohea." Not Asa's favorite, but he wasn't about to complain. Not now, anyway.
"Come, come, it's a mess outside. At least warm your bones before popping off."
Asa approached, placing a heavy, calloused hand atop Gavin's shoulder. An insistent nudge directed the guest to a small table where the three could sit; an even more persuasive push encouraged him to take a seat. Jules's tense, forced smile could be see out of the corner of Asa's eye, but that was just Jules, wasn't it? Always worried, always thinking, always fretting about any old thing. Asa smirked at the concern woven through the creases at the corners of his older brother's eyes. This man, whomever he was, had left his brother feeling cautious, but what was the small man going to do? A seemingly unnatural twenty-three centimeters and a couple of stone surely separated Asa and this stranger. What could he possibly do?
"Jules, you introduce, I'll pour." And so he did. Asa put down a cup and saucer for his brother and the stranger before gathering the kettle. "Milk? Sugar?" he asked, grinning wide.
"Asa, this is Mr Gavin Ireland," Jules replied, slowly pulling out a chair of his own. "Mr Ireland, this is my brother, Asa. He helps me here at the shop. May very well assist me with your order." He paused as Asa deposited a single sugar cube into his cup. "Mr. Ireland... I'm sorry, sir, I don't believe you ever said what you do?"
"Do? Oh, a man is surely defined by what he does," Asa added, nodding enthusiastically. "What do you do, sir?"
