[ prp ] a stitch in time (nathaniel & dawson)

[kuropeco]

The bakery smelled, Nathaniel thought, wonderful.

It was a combination of freshly made bread and sweetness and a hint of butter and the scent wafted out onto the street so that it was strong even sitting outside - which was where Nathaniel currently was. He'd stopped about two minutes prior, and was now sitting on a bench, trying - unsuccessfully - to see if he could do anything about the hole he'd just ripped in the arm of his shirt.

It was kind of hard to concentrate on his shirt when there was - well, bread. But Nathaniel's strict budget disallowed him from going too far from it, and he had to somewhat reluctantly admit that he probably shouldn't be buying anything extraneous.

A shirt, on the other hand...he only had so many of those, and the rip was blatant and large, Nathaniel frowning at it, twisting his arm so he could look at it more easily.

It was a problem. He let out a long breath.

Maybe he'd splurge and get a loaf of banana bread.

medigel

 

[medigel]

Lunch break was special: today Dawson was going to splurge and get himself something from a Japanese place not too far away. It had been too long since he had gotten something nice for himself (and truly fried rice and tempura were practically exotic to his diet at this point), and his budget would allow him to take advantage of the lunch special every once in a while. The bell rang as he exited The Sweet Spot, dusting his hands of powdered sugar; the urge to lick them clean was great, but now he was in Public after all.

As he turned the corner, he couldn't help but note that some poor guy was dealing with a huge hole in his shirt. Most people would probably look or avert their gaze and walk on. Dawson, however, was both gregarious and nosy, bless his heart.

"You get yerself mauled by somethin', dude?"

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

Nathaniel, who was still attempting to figure out whether or not he could sew up the shirt on his own, didn't hear the little bell as someone exited the shop behind him. He did, however, hear the footsteps drawing nearer, and then hear the voice that talked to him, his gaze flickering up to find the speaker.

"Not nearly that excitin'," said Nathaniel with a small laugh. The man was unfamiliar, but his voice carried with it the same sort of southern drawl that Nathaniel himself had - though sometimes he tried to swallow it back in an attempt not to sound like a complete hick.

"I was walkin' by a post nearby, one of those ones that has a bunch of staples and papers and notices on it," Nathaniel said, smiling. "My shirt got stuck on it, and, well..."

He gestured to his arm, wincing slightly.

"I don't suppose you've got a needle and thread somewhere, do you?"

medigel

 

[medigel]

He caught the little drawl but, well, one thing at a time. "Aw, s**t, dude, that sucks," Dawson said with a sympathetic wince. "Lucky fer you, I know a bit 'bout sewin'. C'mon back."

Lunch was an hour, he certainly had time. Not to mention, as Dawson had come to learn, he literally had gained the magic touch for this sort of thing. What was it with Ashdown magic and his hands??

"All I ask is you buy a lil' somethin' in return," he added, motioning for the young man to follow him back inside The Sweet Spot.

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

He was slightly startled by the offer to help, but stood up and followed the man back towards the shop he'd been sitting outside of, Nathaniel glancing around curiously. He'd never been inside before, but it smelled heavenly enough; he wanted to bask in the scent of fresh bread and cinnamon rolls.

"Sure, I can do that," said Nathaniel with a smile, though he was already mentally counting pennies. "It's the least I can do if you can fix my shirt. I'm sorry to bother you - I'm Nathaniel, by the way."

They were still walking, but he stuck out his hand anyway, because it was the polite thing to do.

"Do you work here, then?"

medigel

 

[medigel]

"Dawson," he answered in turn, in case the label on his apron was missed, half turning to give Nathaniel a firm shake without stopping. "N' what made ya think that, heh? S'a great business model, barterin'."

The place wasn't particularly big, but it felt cozy in the slowly dropping temperatures. Dawson inhaled the smell of fresh bread from the back and exhaled in a pleased sigh. "Since ya got a big hole there, uh, I'ma ask if ya mind takin' yer shirt off. Bathroom's off t'the right, follow the hall." He pointed it out just in case. "F'yer uncomf'terble, uhhh, guess I could letcha borrow a uniform shirt fer a mo."

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

A pleasure, Dawson," said Nathaniel, and meant it. He did enjoy meeting new people a great deal, even if the actual meeting part was somewhat nervewracking. And while he would have rather met the other in a much less ridiculous scenario than needing to have his shirt mended, it was at least better than several other meetings had gone so far.

Like Corr, but that was beside the point.

"You're right," said Nathaniel with a laugh. "Barterin's a tool that's been used for centuries, after all."

He grinned, the warmth of the bakery expanding around him. Green eyes flicked around the place, taking in the sights before they moved back to Dawson, eyebrows raising.

"Oh, I reckon that's the easiest course of action," he said, Nathaniel glancing at the bathroom. "I don't mind, but I'd like a uniform shirt for a few minutes, maybe?"

He padded down towards the bathroom, peering around, and disappeared into the bathroom. A few seconds later, Nathaniel's head poked out again, the shirt hanging from his fingertips.

"Here y'are," he said mildly.

medigel

 

[medigel]

"Thaaaank ya." Dawson gestured at the empty booths. "Jus' have a seat n' order somethin' if ya like. I'll be right back."

His co-worker gave them both strange looks as Dawson passed. The large man merely hummed to himself as he slipped through the double doors to the back of the bakery, namely to the employee bathroom. There he locked the door and eyed the hole in the shirt.

It wasn't so bad, but it still mildly freaked Dawson out that he had a particularly useful trick up his sleeve. Or, well, at his fingertips would be more accurate. With a small frown, he pinched the edges of the hole together as best he could and held it there. Once let go, the hole was no more, and the fabric was as smooth as it had been before.

"Jesus," he whispered to himself, shaking his head.

Exiting the bathroom, he hung about, killing time while trying to figure out how to explain away the perfect fix. He just happened to have some needles and thread on hand? s**t, maybe he shouldn't have said anything.

He stood about for another five minutes before finally making his way back to the front, smile back up for the public. "Think this oughta do it," he told Nathaniel as he approached.

kuropeco