Harvey's Hardware, for all your pipe bomb needs [OPEN]

[eyeforaneye]

Harvey's Hardware seems like a perfectly innocuous establishment in the southwest corner of Ealing. Old, not terribly well taken care of, but stocked to the brim with a huge assortment of tools and supplies of varying quality (and age). When was the last time anyone came to inspect this place?

Regardless, upon stepping inside you'll find no one named Harvey on the property at all. Instead there's a surly young man behind the counter, someone who looks both tired and wholly too alert at the same time, armed with a thermos of coffee, a stack of manuals on fixing god knows what, and a book of Gaelic poetry.

[A]

Maybe you're just perusing the shelves, minding your own business, when you hear a voice from the till: "Loitering's prohibited. There's a sign outside that says so. If you need something specific, ask." Rude tactic but you'd be amazed at how much product Sasuke can move out of this place by being pushy.

[B]

Maybe instead you were lured in by the sign in the window that advertises a 'buy one get one free' deal on all items of equivalent value in the store. Maybe you even went so far as to ask about the promotion. The answer?

"That sign is from 2009. The guy that worked here before me glued it on instead of affixing it normally. The boss found out last year when he tried to remove it, and that's why he isn't here anymore." All that to say... "That deal's invalid. No discounts."

[C]

Or maybe you're just here to ask for recommendations or buy some hardware. Up to you! Feel free to message me if you have something specific in mind that you want set up.

Comments

[mensrea]

Okay, well, now this is awkward. Way too close for his own personal comfort, Stiles glares hard at the sales clerk for a moment before hurriedly retreating back into his own personal space. If that had been a game of gay chicken, he would have lost so hard. His consolation prize is the fact that at least he has friends. Except that feels less and less like something to boast about by the minute.

"No, I don't want the—are you being serious, here?" Genuinely concerned in spite of himself, he fixes Sasuke with a look that is 100% pity. "No friends? None at all?"

[eyeforaneye]

Well, allow him to take the time to tuck that piece of plastic away again, one of approximately six cards that he still has left due to how underfunded and understocked this particular store is. Oh sure, stocked in dangerous items that are nearly a decade old, not a problem, but in actual retail equipment? Less so.

And when he's re-tallied the total for the final time -- without the spanner; it'd been an idle threat only -- he looks up to catch that expression. It's one that he's very familiar with, and one that he loathes with equal passion.

"Don't act surprised. Now whenever you're ready with your identification I can finish the order."

[mensrea]

Honestly Sasuke, your perseverance in trying to wrap up the transaction should be awarded. But it is instead continued to be tested; Stiles clearly has no intention of letting the friend issue drop. Folding his arms over his chest, he falls silent for a moment to appraise the other boy. Prickly though he may be, he’s at least not on Jackson levels of douchebaggery. That’s probably a good sign. And hey, maybe the kid is just lonely.

“How come?”

Stiles doesn’t know where he’d be in life without his friends—or friend, more accurately. After his mother’s death, he would have withered without the support of Scott.

“Doesn’t that bother you? Not having friends?”

[eyeforaneye]

He chides himself for not having expected this from even just what little he's learned about Stiles throughout this entire ordeal. Easily distracted and far too willing to devote his time to incredibly worthless pursuits.

"How I feel about it is irrelevant. I'm unwilling to compromise who I am and what my priorities are in order to make myself attractive as a friend." Translation: I'm crabby and busy and those are not popular traits. "I've had a friend before and it ended up becoming too complicated." Please do not get him started talking about Naruto.

"Identification. Now."

[mensrea]

That's undeniably Stiles in a nutshell.

"Fine, take a chill pill."

With a roll of his eyes, he finally digs out his ID and hands it over as opposed to verbally giving his details. That doesn't mean that they're done with the conversation, however.

"Y'know, you sound like you're a fifty-something-year-old Corporate America business tycoon. It's kinda ridiculous. What priorities could you have that would make having friends so difficult? Even assholes can manage it."

There's an implication there that Sasuke isn't being qualified as an asshole, since Stiles has decided the guy is just weird.

[eyeforaneye]

He wonders if he should be offended; he's definitely earned 'asshole' by now, surely. Or arsehole.

"You really want to talk about this? Fine. I don't have a lot of free time, I'm severe, I have anger issues, I'm unpleasant, I'm not a good conversationalist, and I have no skill for maintaining relationships in a healthy way. Are we done?" A snap of that self-diagnosed temper finally, a show of genuine emotion.

"... I'm fine as I am, and your information's clear." He hands the card back without incident, at least.

[mensrea]

Somewhat taken aback that the tiger has finally snarled at him after being relentlessly poked, he stands on the opposite side of the counter awkwardly. He’s not really sure what to make of Sasuke, except that it definitely sounds like the guy has Issues with a capital I. But while Stiles may be chatty and annoyingly persistent, he isn’t exactly a charitable person; he isn’t the type to try and make friends with someone simply because that someone has no one else.

“Dude, those tend to be the personality flaws that come from not having friends or, really, anyone.”

Taking the ID back, he slides it into his wallet and reflects that, at the very least, the clerk was cool enough not to mock his real name. That’s got to count for something.

[eyeforaneye]

When the clerk's name is Uchiha Sasuke he doesn't have a lot of room to judge freely.

"Does it matter where they came from?" It's a genuine inquiry; he's the way he is now and it's sufficient for keeping people at a considerable distance. "Maybe you aren't good at being alone but I am. I've had a lot of practice. Now if that's all I need the rest of your payment." Preferably not in single coins.

[mensrea]

The steady finality to the clerk’s response only serves to ratchet up Stiles’ pity for the other boy, but he’s not a charity case—nor does he believe for even a second that his meddling would be welcome. With a quiet, disbelieving kind of exhale, he digs out enough quid to cover the rest of the purchase. There’s a sour taste in the back of his throat, because while he may not be the buddy-buddy sort that Scott is, he can’t help but project this sense of aching loneliness onto the kid. So he reaches over, grabs a spare pen, and quickly jots down his cell number on a scrap of paper.

“Here. If you’re ever through being Batman or whatever, text me. I can do enough talking for the both of us, and you can sit there and glare people away.”

[eyeforaneye]

He's slow to take the note, reading the number written on it... and realizes exactly what it is. Pity for his current state of being. It's enough to spark his anger again and almost enough to make him crush the paper but the conflict shows in his expression, both agitated and confused when he pockets it.

"... I'm not going to be 'through' being what I am, but I'll keep it. I have some things I have to do on most week nights anyway." Things he's not about to talk about with some ordinary human. How little he knows.

[mensrea]

"Sure thing, Bats."

Welcome to your new nickname, Sasuke. This is what happens when you don't introduce yourself.

"I'll just..." And then Stiles is scraping everything off the counter into his backpack, without a care for the clanging and crunching that ensues. "There we go. Alright then. See you around, dude."

[eyeforaneye]

Well. That backpack is larger than it looks on the outside, apparently. AND HE'S WEARING A NAME TAG.

"Later." What a flat tone.

[mensrea]

You do not want Stiles trying to pronounce that name. It would only end in humiliation for all parties involved. Hesitating a moment, he squints at Sasuke, trying in vain to detect any underlying emotions beneath that tone. Then he shrugs, grins tightly, and is on his merry way.

His overstuffed bag knocks over a row of merchandise on his way out.

[eyeforaneye]

I hope your mattress is stuffed with legos.