A Bumblebee Dipped in Coffee

[Apollyon Black]

Apollyon was drained and it wasn't even 2 in the afternoon. It started off as a good day, with him doing his daily walk with Grimr to work after dropping off Apollo at school. Especially after having a good breakfast, a decent amount of sleep and having finished writing his thesis the night before. He had the beginnings of a good work day at a bookstore that was located downtown and a few blocks away from a library and near a coffee shop. His manager welcomed him in and gave him a list to do with majority stocking and organizing books, something that pleased him greatly.

The manager, Leonardo Rays, was a thin man, with dark wavy hair and grey eyes behind a pair of rectangle glasses. He was a formal man and the owner of the establishment. He was always kind, if not strict, but loved to babble about the book he was writing. Apollyon loved the man as a friend, especially when he seen the man kick out people who are rude for no reason.

Nevertheless, it was only him and Leo, as his manager preferred to be referenced as, in the store. It was a tiny bookstore, only able to fit about 15 people comfortably with all the books and a basket that held a friendly fluffy Turkish Van cat named Charlie. Charlie and Grimr always tend to chat at one point, amusing Leo and leaving Apollyon with a soft smile.

Today was not that day. Today, Charlie and Grimr did have a small chat, but Charlie decided to camp out in one of the nests that rested on top of a bookshelf. It seemed that it was a quiet day for the nearly white cat with mismatched colored eyes. Apollyon did not mind that, as it tend to happen every once in a while, but it did leave him on edge as some new guests bemoan and complain about the lack of a bookstore cat.

Regardless, Grimr laid by his feet, calm and quiet as Apollyon stacked and organized shelves from his cart, dropping misplaced books in the basket that rested at the bottom of the cart. It gave Apollyon a calming 45 minutes of work before a woman with a child barged in loudly, startling him and several other guests with the sudden clang of a door hitting a display piece while the bell rattled and chimed roughly. Leo was not amused by this and made sure to keep an eye on the huffing woman who was dragging her little girl around by her arm. This made Leo frown and Apollyon tense.

It took about 15 minutes before Apollyon heard a clearing of a throat behind him, making him startle. He turned and looked at the woman, who seemed to be red and huffing even more than when she first entered. Apollyon plastered on a smile and signed, asking how he could help her. Unfortunately, she did not like that and started to berate him for flashing gang signs at her precious daughter, who was about 11 and highly embarrassed, given that she was red and backing away from her mother slowly while mouthing 'I'm sorry!' The situation escalated further when Apollyon couldn't verbally respond to the woman and when she saw Grimr with his service vest on, she practically blew up even further, leaving Apollyon panicking and trembling even if he toward over the woman by at least 2 feet.

Leo came by and took the woman off to the side and proceeded to tell her off and kick her out, banning her for harassing his associate and threatening him with violance. Leo then sent him off for the day with full pay, apologizing to the man who was damn near in tears. Leo shoved $10 in his hand and ordered Apollyon to the cafe to get him some tea to calm down, all but pushing the man out of the door with the threat of calling Orion. Apollyon quickly complied, knowing the man is serious and that his older brother will mother him after tucking him in the garden with a cup of tea after being pulled from his own work.

This led Apollyon to be standing in line, waiting for a cup of jasmine tea and a slice of banana nut bread, all while shakily petting Grimr and hoping that nothing bad will happen. He just wanted a few minutes of calm with his tea and comfort food before he walked to his brother's office and dived into the book that he tucked in his satchel. Hopefully that isn't much to ask. Right?

Ivan Stane  

[Ivan Stane]

Ivan usually hung out at the cyber café when he wasn't holed up in his apartment or out on patrol. But he was already trying new things - well okay not things, but he was dating, he had a boyfriend and that was definitely new. His usual routine, his usual anti-socialness, was already being thrown out the window to accommodate Cyrus. It wasn't that Cyrus was asking for him to change anything about himself - quite the opposite in fact. Ivan had simply discovered that he wanted to be around Cyrus always. Even when he was socially drained, Cyrus' presence wasn't draining. He'd never wanted to be around someone so much, without any breaks, before. So it wasn't that Cyrus was asking him to change anything. It was simply that Ivan, himself, had wanted - and thus had done so - to change his schedule, his habits, enough that he'd have more and more time to spend with his new boyfriend. So he'd decided to get his coffee from a different place - Lisa had often recommended this place so it couldn't have been that bad. He and his siblings didn't always get alone but they had similar taste in some things - coffee being one of those. His dogs were at home napping - he'd taken them out for a walk earlier that day. He absentmindedly grabbed the iced coffee he'd paid for when the barista handed it to him, his other hand and mind occupied with his phone as he flipped through photos he and Cyrus had taken together. Was this how Tim felt when he was away from his girlfriend? Or was he being far too clingy? He had a habit of being clingy with his siblings and best friend so he couldn't help wondering - and worrying - that he was being that way with Cyrus as well. He should have been paying attention - he really should've been - as he turned around and started to walk, quickly colliding with the person in line behind him. He let out a curse as he dropped his phone and his drink's lid got knocked off, spilling the contents onto the main he'd just collided with. Eyes wide, face hot with embarrassment, stomach twisting with anxiety, Ivan stared at the man's now coffee covered shirt. Shit. Shit. Shit. "Fuck, I'm so sorry!" he said. Despite the fact that he wanted to crawl into a hole and forget this ever happened - He wasn't great or even good at handling embarrassment - he was fairly certain that would simply make the situation worse. Shit.

... I AM NOT A STRANGER TO THE DARK. HIDE AWAY, THEY SAY 'CAUSE WE DON'T WANT YOUR BROKEN PARTS ... sparrow Apollyon Black outfit 422 words Let me know if you need more!

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[Apollyon Black]

As Apollyon waited, he zoned out, following the instructions that his therapist and brother have both told him. So he was blissfully unaware of the incoming collide that was about to happen, even with Grimr tugging him away. Unfortunately, Grimr tugged him too late for Apollyon's eyes snapped open when he felt someone run into him and spilled cold, cold coffee onto his favorite yellow shirt. He flinched when Grimr yelped at something falling on him, but he didn't see what as his hands were too busy keeping the shorter man from stumbling over his giant dog. Once the man was steady, he looked down and saw a fallen phone, one he snagged up while he comforted his canine friend. Apollyon was tired, drained and done with today and if it was a different person or a different reaction, he might've cried. As is, he took a shaky breath to calm himself and push the rising tears away, not wanting to break down in this cafe. As is, Grimr stood between his legs and demanded attention, one that he was glad to give as it gave him something to focus on.

He looked at the shorter man and noticed the rising anxiety in him. His throat clicked when he swallowed, knowing that his voice won't come back after what happened earlier, yet wanting to reassure the apologetic man before him. He held out the other's phone and tried to give him a smile, even if it turned more of a grimace, and signed 'It is okay. Accidents happened'

'Breathe, lest you work yourself into a panic. It is just a shirt, I can buy a new one. Are you okay, sir?' He asked, hoping the man can understand sign. He didn't want to have to type everything and wait for the man to read it or get yelled at again. Honestly, he will cry if he gets yelled at. As is, he waved the baristas away and let them that everything is okay. He really didn't want them to call Leo and have him wage war on the poor fellow in front of him. Honestly, Leo might put the man into tears instead and he rather not deal with the mother-hening that Leo is known for. He can be worse than his own brother and they're awful.

[Ivan Stane]

Ivan was trying to take everything in while also being highly aware that his powers would appear if he didn't calm down. The man had kept him from falling flat on his face which would have been even more embarrassing. There was a dog too, he became aware of and quickly realized he didn't know how the dog was trained and if it'd even like the scent of his dogs on him. He didn't know what was going to happen, including whether or not the man would be so upset he'd yell or throw a punch. Socializing wasn't in his skillset. People were unpredictable and that made him nervous. He quickly pulled the hood of his t-shirt up in hopes that if his eyes started to glow, it'd help hide it a bit better until he could get out of there. He was just starting to wonder where his phone had gone, wanting to see if Cyrus was available because walking home by himself during an anxiety attack did not sound fun, when his phone was offered back to him by the man. Was that a grimace? Oh he was probably upset with him. Ivan couldn't meet the man's eyes as he hurriedly took his phone back and clutched it tightly. A faint white glow was starting to appear on his hands, barely visible except potentially noticeable by the man right in front of him. The smallest of breezes swept through the café as if a window had been opened. He noticed movement out of the corner of his eye and realized the man was signing, his eyes moving to catch the words, the glow fading as he focused on understanding. "I-I can pay for that," he said, referring to the shirt. "I'm fine," he added despite the fact that he wasn't and his face was still quite hot with embarrassment. "I'm - I'm really sorry."

... I AM NOT A STRANGER TO THE DARK. HIDE AWAY, THEY SAY 'CAUSE WE DON'T WANT YOUR BROKEN PARTS ... sparrow Apollyon Black outfit 315 words notes

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[Apollyon Black]

Apollyon gave the man a small smile and signed again, a bit more forcefully. 'Breathe, sir. Please, it is okay. It is just a shirt. I have plenty others like this' He lied, as he only had this one, but he can fix it. 'Do you wish to breathe together? I find that it helps me focus better.' 

Grimr continued to be the steady presence for Apollyon, not caring at all about the scents of other dogs on this human. He's more focused on how this human is upset and wants to help comfort him, but knowns he must wait until told to do so. Some humans are finicky about other's dogs, his human told him one day. He does hope he can help, though. This one seems nice, perfect for his bumbling human if he says so himself.

Apollon gave Grimr a scratch behind the ear, which lead to him laying down on the ground as Apollyon was calm enough to stumble through this social interaction, even without a voice. 'My name is Apollyon. Apollyon Black. What is your name?'

[Ivan Stane]

The man started signing again and he focused on reading, remembering what each sign meant because it meant they could talk but it was also something he could focus on in an attempt to distract himself from his anxiety. Of course such distractions didn't really work but it was better than not trying at all. In the back of his mind, he couldn't stop thinking about how this was happening in public, how he was humiliating himself in public by having an attack. He needed to leave. He wanted to crawl in a hole and just stay there until he died. Yeah... He didn't handle embarrassment well. Ivan followed the man's instructions and tried to breathe normally, to breathe against the anxiety constricting his lungs. Breathing became easier the longer he tried to do it, like it always did once he got through the initial panic. He could feel, like a subtle thought in the back of his head, that he still had control over his powers. People were staring, sure, but not like they would've been if he was glowing white and creating a windstorm. He tried not to focus on their eyes on him, knowing it would only make him more anxious, but it was hard - it was so hard. Apollyon Black came the name and Ivan mentally filed that away in case that information would be needed later. "I-Ivan," he fumbled out, "St-Stane - Ivan Stane." He normally didn't like giving strangers his name but thinking wasn't the easiest right now. "God, I'm sorry." He'd already apologized but he felt like he hadn't apologized nearly enough. "I can pay for that!" he insisted then grimaced because he'd already said that and Apollyon had already insisted it was okay even if it didn't feel okay to Ivan. "I'm sorry."

... I AM NOT A STRANGER TO THE DARK. HIDE AWAY, THEY SAY 'CAUSE WE DON'T WANT YOUR BROKEN PARTS ... sparrow Apollyon Black outfit 300 words n/a

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[Apollyon Black]

Apollyon smiled when Ivan breathed with him and started to calm down enough to not fall into an attack. 'Good job, you are doing great. Just keep on breathing. Focus on me, not on them. And it is okay, Ivan. You are okay. I promise that everything is okay.' He signed.

His name was called and he snapped his fingers to get Grimr's attention, then signed to him to stay with Ivan and comfort him. 'I will be right back. Grimr, here, will be your buddy. He can help.' He hoped Ivan didn't mind but he did not want to leave Ivan alone. He smiled at the barista, who handed him his and Ivan's order, thanking him and dropping a tip in the jar as he turned around and head back to Ivan.

He smiled when Grimr pressed himself against Ivan's leg and pressed his head into Ivan's hand, demanding attention. It wasn't hard for his large dog to do that while sitting, but it was a lovely sight to see with his friend helping a man that seems really familiar. At least description-wise, now that he had a bit to focus on Ivan. Maybe this was who Cyrus was talking about?

He walked over and indicated Ivan's coffee, handing it over to him. 'Barista made a new one. Come, let us head to the park. It is quieter than here. It will help calm us both more.' He signed awkwardly with one hand. He hoped Ivan understood what he was saying. If not, then that's okay, he can sign it again with his items down. He can do that for Ivan. He trusts the man enough at this moment to not snap and harm him. He hoped the man will tell him that he needed it repeated, though. Ivan seemed like the sort of guy who'd rather suffer than ask for help if it might inconvenience others or lead to ridicule or awkwardness.

'Do you want to go to the park with me?' He asked, now feeling a bit shy.