Welcome to Gaia! ::

Devin promptly gave the two interviewees a pat on the back… which seemed more like a well placed strike than a courteous gesture. “Marvelous!,” Devin’s face split into a genial grin which seemed lopsided on his broad features. All of his previous malevolence was replaced by eagerness as he began to trot around the front desk to the pair of youths; his tribal markings made him seem more like a well tanned zebra than an enthusiastic employer. During his gallop he proceeded to rattle off the details of their first task. “Your first assignment, kiddos, is customer service. Me and Natasha will watch and see who can manage our customers the best,” He waved a bulky hand over the glossy countertop of the front desk, “This will be your station. Good luck!” The last words were said with a dash of spitefulness. Of course, it was only Devin’s way of trying to rekindle the teens nerves and reinvigorate the tense mood he had previously slaughtered.

Josh tried to hold back the fit of giggles forming in his chest at the sight of Devin’s jovial prancing. Sadly, the boy did manage to let a small titter slip from his lips. He stood up stiffly and hoped the offending noise went unnoticed by the colossal man. The last thing he wanted was another unwarranted clout from Devin; his back was still stinging uncomfortably from the first hit. On cue, the boy began to walk a steady and unnerving sweep to behind the front desk. Josh’s fevered auburn stare was cooled off by Natasha’s brisk gaze which awaited him there. He barely took notice of the stacks of outdated paperwork or the piles of assorted trash that his limbs threaten to topple over. The boy’s eyes were locked with hers for that moment and it seemed impossible to tear them away. Josh’s mouth fell agape briefly, but he quickly recoiled with a eloquent string of words, “A-aren’t you going to wish me luck too, lovely?”

When Josh’s mind fully grasped onto Natasha’s spiteful advice, his arrogant smile quickly faltered and his slim lips quirked in a mix of dejection and fear; the boy almost looked like a kicked puppy behind the counter. He could feel the pressure of the situation stab and twist in his stomach like a knife, yet he chose to fight back the nagging urge to hurl up his Lucky Charms from earlier that morning. The boy was in utter awe that the girl beside him seemed unfazed by the challenge; either she had nerves of steel or she was totally oblivious to their predicament. Josh gave Namini a bewildered stare as if she had grown a new appendage. He whispered under his breath carefully to make sure that neither Devin or Natasha heard him, “Aren’t you nervous at all?”

‘Creeeaaak’ The door let out a shrill cry as it was forced open by a couple. The two appeared energetic and instantly began jumping around the store as if they already knew the location of every earring, chair, and speck of dust in the facility; obviously they were frequent customers. Josh immediately tensed up as the realization that customers would ACTUALLY come in the store surfaced in his mind. The duo consisted of a spiky blond haired man who had a round, pink cherubim face as well as a satiny purple haired woman whose eyebrows seemed fixed in perpetual shock. Both chattered to one another over a pair of friendship necklaces for what seemed like hours. Josh’s patience steadily grew thinner and thinner until he felt it would snap. Meanwhile, they had entered the third argument of whether the puppy charm was cuter than the kitten charm or if the turtle charm was a prettier color. The boy squinted to try and read their lips and even began to make up conversations they could be having in his head.

“Ah, okay then!” The woman spoke up to the man beside her and Josh’s pretend conversation was broken off at the point where the chubby faced boy had proposed his undying love for the sharp faced woman. The couple appeared too be approaching his side of the counter; it also seems as if they had settled on the pair of turtle necklaces. They set the merchandise on the counter with a smile and Josh seemed frozen in thought… or perhaps panic. “Ahhh….”, his eyes seemed to grow wider at the couple and he shuffled to ring up the items, “That w-will be $5.60.”

The plump featured man was the first to make a remark at Josh. He spoke up in a shrill voice that was nothing like the one that Josh imagined he would have, “Aww, aren’t you so cute with your stuttering!!!” He held the sides of his face in melodramatic surprise. The woman broke into the conversation, “Oh, wow! Skin Tyte got adorable new employees, huh?” The delightful sentiments gave Josh’s ego a gentle coax which served to assuage his nauseating uneasiness. Once again, Josh seemed to rise out of the ashes of his self-consciousness like a prideful phoenix. “Hopefully they will. Right now I’m just in an interview… kinda.”

Purple died eyebrows swiveled to Namini and the woman gasped as if she has just taken notice of the bubbling girl. “Oh, Why hello there! A bag would be awesome.” Josh’s face sunk and his lips puckered sourly; he was loosing HIS customers to Namini! “Don’t worry chickie I have it covered,” the boy sashayed his lithe body in front of the vivacious female and eagerly snatched the couple’s attention back to himself. “So you two come her often?” He stirred up small chat while he snapped open a fresh plastic shopping bag with a few noisy crinkles from here and there. The cherubim boy’s face took on a heated expression and his chubby cheeks tinted with an impassioned hue, “Of course! Skin Tyte is only one of the best stores around! Right?!!” Josh merely snickered a bit at the other’s fevered display and nodded in agreement; he feigned concurrence even though this was his first time setting foot in the in the eccentric store.

‘Creeeaaak’ the door let out another protesting scream as another group of people trotted in. Josh grinned eagerly hoping to check out this upcoming cluster of customers and get one up on Namini; he would have this job in the bag soon enough. However, Josh’s plan would not be so easily achieved. The duo still clung around his portion of the desk like a pair of nagging flies. The boy had already handed them their merchandise and wished them a good afternoon yet… “So are you doing anything tonight?” The plump faced boy cooed with a hint of seduction. Josh’s face contorted into a disgusted frown, yet somehow he managed to upturn the corners of his mouth into some sort of a professional smile; he happened to look more like a jackal than a welcoming shopkeeper.

Josh’s auburn eyes grew more frantic as the mob approached Namini’s side of the desk rather than his own. “Hey aren’t you going to answer us cutey?” The boy was already beginning to grow annoyed at the pair's determination. He replied tersely with a hint of exasperation lacing his voice, “I think I may be busy.” Of course, the couple wouldn’t be that easy to shake off. They continued their little “interrogation”. “Awe, so will you be free this weekend? We know a great café nearby!” Josh could have shot himself…

The purple haired woman’s advances slowed to a halt when she noticed Josh‘s disinterest. However, that was not the case for her spirited cherubim companion. Josh had already managed to shrug off the FOURTH pick-up line that the chubby and flushed nuisance had shot at him. The last strand of the boy’s patience was beginning to wear thin. “Hmm, so you won’t be free for a while then. Perhaps, I can get your number sweety?” A plump palm was splayed gingerly upon Josh’s own hand, which was resting on the counter. Josh’s auburn eyes swirled with frustration and shock when he felt a foreign touch slither upon his slim fingers. Something snapped in the boy and he viciously ripped his hands away from his assailant. “I said that I’m NOT interes-”

‘SLAM!’ The door chose to forgo the mundane creak it usually issued when it was opened. Instead, it opted for a harsh crash as it was torn open by a familiar form. Devin stalked into the store with his usual hulking motion and approached the counter. His face split into a amused smirk when he took notice of the two shop frequents; especially when he saw that the “new kid” was getting trouble from the spiky blond. Devin wrapped a bulkily muscled arm around the man’s hefty shoulders and pulled him away from the front desk. “How many times do I have to tell you Cameron? You shouldn’t antagonize the new employees,” Devin rolled his eyes and feigned concern for Josh, “After all, you want to make a good impression. Remember, being needy is a turn off.” Devin’s mouth upturned into a toothy grin.

Cameron’s face flushed to glowing red hue when he realized his blunder. Once again, he was in an ardent fervor. “R-right!,” He turned to Josh in a rush of embarrassment and fortitude, “Don’t worry sweety. I’ll do better job of alluring you next time we meet!” Josh internally blanched at this proposal and recomposed himself when he saw the duo take their leave from the store.

Devin’s scarlet gaze scanned from Namini, to Josh, and back to the cheeky girl, “Well-well, it seems like the winner for this round would be Namini. Tsk, I’m shocked that you would be flirting all this time Josh.” Devin burst out in a guttural laugh. Meanwhile, Josh felt as though he wouldn’t mind crawling in a hole and hiding out for a while; to be honest, he could go a lifetime without seeing Cameron again. The ink adorned man was still shaking from his merriment when Natasha had arrived.

Josh’s cheeks puffed out babyishly when they were pinched by Natasha. He forced a smile on his face and huffed. He was still emotionally wound up from the whole disaster and would prefer to forget the incident happened. However, the boy’s head did perk up towards Natasha when she seized two small plush bears from a plastic shopping bag. The bear's lifeless, beady eyes stared blankly at Josh when it was thrust into his face. He took the cuddly pink creature into his hands and squished it curiously. ‘squish’ Why did it remind him of the insidious Cameron? ‘squish’ Maybe it was the color? ‘squish’ Or maybe the way its eyes gleamed wickedly? ‘squish’ Josh was beginning to think that he would enjoy thrusting metal rings and needles into this particular bear. He peeped up inquisitively at Natasha, “So… when do we get to pierce them?” There was a trace of mischievousness in the boy’s features.

While Namini was having second thoughts on plunging assorted miniature pikes into the delightfully adorable teddy, Josh eagerly awaiting Natasha’s cruel demonstration. He was so enthralled with the notion of piercing that the rush of Natasha’s form past him did little except blow a few brown locks of hair in front of his eager eyes. Of course, the stray strands were immediately tucked and smoothed back into their proper places. Again, an object was thrust into the boy’s face, but this time the object sent delightful chills down Josh’s spine. He couldn’t help but admire the slick white gun clutched in Natasha’s wiry grip. One word escaped from his lips that seemed to sum up the whole situation for him, “Coooool….” Now, even the abrupt bop to his head had no effect in deterring his enthusiasm. Josh bounded behind the all but manically cackling woman into the backroom.

Meanwhile, during Natasha’s “little show”, Devin had set his burly arms on the counter and his eyes apathetically traced and followed the paths of dust particles waywardly floating in the air. He wasn’t the person who pierced in this store, that was reserved for the wicked harpy beside him. Devin had to admit that he much preferred the whirring of a tattoo needle to the snap of a piercing gun; the customer’s pain was more drawn out that way. The brawny man’s scorching eyes gave a blasé glance as the small party formed and shuffled to the storeroom. Of course, he followed aloofly after them.

Josh’s thin nose scrunched as the spicy tang of cinnamon incense created a harsh smoldering sensation at the edges of his nostrils. It was as if they were trekking deep into the inner workings of a gingerbread man rather than a store. The deeper they went into the chasm of the backroom, the more light head Josh began to feel at the severe aroma. When Natasha spoke, the sultry keys of her voice seemed to meld together and pound in the boy’s head like a course, grating symphony.

“Who’s ready?”

Those simple two words were a magical incantation which awoke Josh from his smell induced stupor. His eyes squinted and uncomfortably gave a few tired blinks; trying to shake off the last remnants of his entrancement. Then realization hit, this was the moment the boy had been waiting for. A chance to plunge the spire of atonement through Cameron… err, well, the bear. He was the first to step forward and offer himself up to the “piercing gods”. He approached Natasha with a heroic gait and stood before the stormy eyed fiend valiantly, or at least as valiantly as a teen holding a pink plush could. “I guess I’ll do it then,” he replied nonchalantly trying to hide the zeal he had hidden away in his willowy frame.