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 Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 12:43 am
The last time Kam remembered going to a library was grade school. He'd punched a kid over taking the last copy of Green Eggs and Ham and after that, his teachers hadn't been very keen on sending him unsupervised. As he got older, he realized that reading was for nerds and just stopped going altogether. In fact, Kam didn't even know libraries existed outside of schools.
Even without knowing about Kam's short-lived affair with books, everything about him just screamed that he didn't belong among the tall shelves and old leather binds of the Destiny City Library. He was a tall, dark-skinned man with big muscles and long dreads that had come into the quiet building with a look of complete and total skepticism on his face. He didn't stop to ask for help at the desk but he still didn't look like he quite knew where he was going.
He wandered around the isles for a little while, scuffing his old, dirty Converse sneakers along on the floor and keeping his hands inside the black pullover hoodie that had some faded design across the back. He continued to do that for a long while, peering around corners and opening doors to rooms even if they were labeled 'employees only'.
After what seemed like forever to the impatient Indian, he finally found what he was looking for: the library's print room. His triumph spread a cocky smile over his lips and he was already approaching the copy machine with confidence. He pulled open the top and then pulled out a piece of paper that was half-jutting from one of his hoodie pockets. It was folded over once, which he quickly undid, and slapped it down onto the surface of the scanner.
He shut the lid, and that's when the problems began. One look at the panel of buttons told him he had no idea what in the hell he was supposed to be doing. Why were there so many of them and why weren't they labeled clearly? Were people just supposed to be psychic with these things? He pushed what he thought was the icon for copying, but all the machine did was let out a little series of error beeps. With a groan, he pushed another to the same effect, then another.
In minutes, he was jamming his fingers into an array of buttons that didn't make sense and a snarl was forming on his face. The machine was letting out a distressing song of beeps at this point and, when Kam had finally reached his breaking point, he simply slammed his palm down onto the button panel.
"What in the <********>," he growled out, a little too loudly, but one look at the angry man at war with the copier sent the only woman in his vicinity scuffling away without a word.
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Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 6:35 pm
Anthony Darrow was set for another day at work.
Of course, this was not exactly new or surprising in any way. He was always ready to work. Work was safe, routine, fun, interesting, boring, awful and absolutely mind numbing. It was wonderful and liberating, while at the same time it tied him to responsibilities and a schedule. It was the best place to come to get away from it all, despite the fact that most of 'it all' was the library itself.
His life revolved around it, as much as a man's life can revolve around his work. More so, maybe, than even the most extreme end of normal.
It was likely because he had not invested much time, effort, or thought into a home life. Before Nathan popped up, he didn't have a home life at all. Now he was juggling an angry, rude teenager who didn't want to see him, but was using him for free shelter and food. Tony was never in a hurry to get home, despite having recently moved to a bigger place and no longer having to sleep on the couch of his own home.
Tony had glanced up when Kam came into the library on instinct, thought he tried not to jump to any strange conclusions based on looks alone. The library was not exactly a place that draws trouble. At least not human trouble. He did, however notice the lost look.
After a short while, the patron was forgotten and Tony went back to his routine. Some time passed and he headed out from the desk to do some reshelving, leaving one of the workers to mind the check out. He poked his head into the copy rooms to look for books left away from their shelves, as people tended to use them, copy them, and then abandon them on the counters.
He nearly got run over by a woman scurrying from the room.
"Ah... uhm... is it giving you trouble?" he asked, seeing the young man, who certainly didn't look happy, standing at the copier. Everything electronic in the building seemed to rebel against the innate 'arcaic' nature of the library, from the copiers to the vending machines and everything inbetween.
The copier made an angry beep and a useless whir, spitefully spitting out an 8 by 14 piece of paper with no image on it beyond a smear of ink.
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Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 6:12 pm
As the copier spit out a piece of paper with a giant smear on it, Kam's anger peaked. His dark face was flushed, though it was barely noticeable, and he brought up a balled hand with the single intention of smashing it right down into the middle of the piece of s**t.
Then, he realized he had company.
His poised hand slowly uncurled, one finger at a time, as Kam turned to look at who was intruding. He expected some young punk (or maybe he was just hoping) but instead he saw a rather official looking older guy. Was this a librarian? Weren't librarians supposed to be bust middle aged women in glasses and tight sweaters? Kam frowned and shook his head at his own thought - that was probably only in movies. He actually had no idea what a librarian was like.
"Yes, I have no idea what I did wrong." His words were clipped in his irritation but he had at least lowered his hand and stuffed it in one of his hoodie pockets. If he wanted to be honest though, Kam had no idea how to work it in general and he actually couldn't have told Tony what he'd pressed.
"Technology and I don't get along real well."
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Posted: Thu Apr 14, 2011 8:10 pm
Tony looked in horror at the threat against the copier's safety. True enough, the obstinate machine was definitely asking for it, but it also had no chance of defending itself. And something told the librarian that if he hadn't have conveniently been in that doorway at that moment, he would've had to buy a new copy machine.
Which would probably have been a good thing. It was a double edged sword, really, and Tony wasn't quite sure if he had made the right decision, saving that machine from the death it deserved.
"Well, punching it was definitely not going to fix the problem. Admittedly, it would have been interesting to see. Ah, here," he scooted closer, trying not to look too intimidated. Of course, he had already proven that just about any one could intimidate him while he was trying to be polite and official. There were a couple girls from the local schools he had 'met' through their need of project material, and had subsequently developed a fear of.
Teenagers could be mean.
Tony moved to the copy machine cavalierly, though, poking at it at first like he knew what he was doing. It whirred as a result, then sputtered and fell silent. A brief look of panic flashed across Tony's face.
"Uhh... what are you trying to copy?" he asked, not opening the machine to look because he didn't want to be rude and look at something that was embarrassing or private without asking first. Plus, he didn't want to get punched. Would this guy punch a librarian? "Maybe we'll have to use a different one... the one behind the front desk isn't this temperamental..."
He pressed a few more buttons, though, not likely doing much better than Kam had been, despite having a longer relationship with the copier. He didn't get along with technology very well, either. Despite his best efforts. He felt it was really on technology's end: he offered peace treaties, but they were never returned.
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Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 4:06 am
Kam backed out of the way, grudgingly, to let the librarian step up and try a go at the machine. He only raised a brow as Tony tried to belittle his plan of attack (punching solved everything, he'd have him know) because as far as he could see, the man wasn't doing much better with the calm approach.
"I'm just trying to make a copy of this poster I made." He didn't have any issues stepping up right behind Tony and reaching across to flip open the lid. Tony seemed to be timid and unsure around him, and like all great beasts of the wild, Kam could smell fear. Well, he was at least very good at figuring out when someone was intimidated - and then he wallowed in his success.
He picked up the piece of paper and flipped it over for Tony to see. He had nothing to hide, even if it was somewhat personal. Other people were going to see it eventually anyway! That was the whole point.
There was a picture of a kid with short dreads, similar to Kam's but much, much shorter and not dyed. He looked like a tiny, mousy version of Kam too - probably not much older than twelve or thirteen. Across the top of the picture in bold letters was 'HAVE YOU SEEN THIS KID' and then a number across the bottom. It looked a little like a home made missing pet poster, but Kam was proud of it all the same.
"I just need to get the damn thing copied, that's all, so I can hang them up. Whatever is faster is fine, dude." Yes, dude. That seemed like an appropriate title in his mind. At least he wasn't punching him!
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Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2011 1:43 pm
Tony poked at the machine without much success, bristling when Kam moved to reach around him. He had asked, however, what the younger man was trying to copy, and he looked at the poster as he opened the machine.
There was no reason for him to know, of course, what was on the paper beyond his own curiosity. Whether it was advertising a free puppy or expounding on the evils of not reading the bible, the copier had no real bias against content and that was clearly not the source of their trouble. Still, Tony frowned thoughtfully at the image and the words.
Fighting the urge to ask if there was a reward, he let his natural instincts overcome his fear driven desire to make a joke (which was probably a good thing, as he imagined his jokes would, and should, always end in getting him punched). He frowned thoughtfully.
"Oh... uhm. Well, let's try the front desk, then," he nodded, taking the paper from the machine carefully, like it was still wet with ink or something. He didn't seem to mind being called dude, as it happened a lot, smiling in a friendly way before leading Kam to the front desk and away from the protesting copier. Which spat out ten or so copies of the picture the moment they were out of the room.
Things at the front desk went much easier, at least. Tony motioned for Kam to stay on the other side of the counter while he went behind it.
"How many copies did you want?" he asked, once everything was set.
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Posted: Sun Apr 17, 2011 3:15 pm
Kam just shrugged as Tony suggested going to the front desk instead of bothering anymore with the devil's machine in the copier room. He had no real preference over what machine did the job, he just needed it done - preferably soon. He could feel the nerdiness of the library already closing in on him.
He followed after Tony mostly in silence, apart from the occasional scuff of his baggy jeans against the floor. He rounded the other side of the desk as Tony walked behind it - at least he had the decency to know where his place was. That was a step up for him usually and it was no doubt comforting for Tony to have a desk between the two of them.
"Oh, a couple of dozen, I need to hang them up all over the city." He leaned against the desk as he said this, propping his upper body on the edge of it and watching Tony with his dark eyes. Then he quickly grew bored of watching the librarian fiddle with the copier and turned his gaze out to the few people littering the random isles and tables closest to the front desk.
No hot chicks in sight. He knew these libraries were good for nothing.
"Is it always so boring in here?" No, he wasn't ashamed to express his opinion as fact, or to do so to Tony.
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Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 8:19 pm
Tony always felt more at home behind the counter. It wasn't like he spent any less time around the library, shelving books or picking up books left behind in random places by patrons who couldn't figure out how to put something back where they found it or, even better, put it on the shelf brightly colored and labeled for removed books. Even so, the counter was his territory, even more so than his actual desk not too far away.
A small corgi puppy came toddling over to him when she heard the voices, yawning as she waddled out from the work room. She yipped softly and Tony looked down at her, smiling but not bending to pet her because he was busy with the machine.
"Ah, a couple dozen, okay," Tony nodded, putting in for thirty, as the copier liked to work in tens more than anything else. And he thought rounding up wouldn't hurt, if the young man was going to be putting them up all over the place.
"You can hang one in here, if you like," he offered, as Dogby toddled away from him and his lack of pats to her head. She paused at the entry to the counter, like there was some kind of invisible barrier keeping her from crossing, peering out at Kam hopefully. Maybe he wouldn't be as cheap with his petting hand. Though, he didn't seem to see her yet. She yipped at him to get his attention, panting hopefully.
"Boring...?" Tony asked, as if he had never heard that word before. Defensively reflex, as he heard it too often. "Well... I... I guess because people are reading and doing work? Not really... the place for hanging out or... uh. Fun." He limped back to the counter, a stack of papers, with the original on top, in his arm. "Though, I don't think it's so bad. When your mind is occupied you don't notice the... boringness."
He didn't sound quite like he believed that.
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Posted: Wed Apr 20, 2011 4:46 am
Kam just leaned on the counter lazily, his head propped in one hand and his eyes following Tony. He was pretty much the only interesting thing that Kam saw in the entire library - at least until the puppy waddled it's way to yip at him.
He pushed himself back up straight and walked around to the entrance of the counter. He wasn't sure why there was a puppy in the library (he didn't know much about them, but he was pretty sure most places had a no animal policy) but he wasn't going to argue if it meant even a brief reprieve from utter boreville.
He squatted down even as he was listening to Tony press buttons on the copier and then the subtle sound of the paper shooting out in a chugging rhythm. "You don't mind that? Most places aren't really fond of bums hanging s**t up on their walls." His hand reached out and gave the puppy a few careful strokes across the top of her head, smirking at her in a way reserved only for the most adorable things on Earth (not that he would have let anyone see).
Then he just stood, with one last glance at her, and held his hand out for the papers Tony was bringing back to the counter. "Yeah, well, I'm sure this place is.. fun for nerds and stuff." He shrugged his shoulders lazily - that was the closest thing to a compliment that Tony was going to get out of him. "I just don't read."
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Posted: Wed Apr 20, 2011 6:39 pm
"Oh, no, I don't mind. I've had worse posters being put up without permission, honestly, and that's what the public library is here for. I mean, one of the many uses. But uh... generally, disseminating information is, ah... you know."
He was babbling a bit, and he knew it, so he tried to shut himself up. He was sure the young man understood his point. He didn't mind hanging up posters like this for people.
Dogby wagged her tail, or the stump that passed for one, when Kam stooped. That meant she was going to get pets! And that she was very excited about. She shook her tail so hard her whole backside was waggling, and it even made her stumble on her feet a little as she excitedly waited for her to pet him.
She licked at his hand when he reached for her, then let him pet her on the head. She decided he was now one of her many best friends, and that she loved him.
Tony watched Dogby, smirking at her in a slightly admonishing way. She was not supposed to be on the other side of the counter, but she just couldn't help herself when there was someone to meet. He would continue to try and train her, but he doubted it would ever change. He smiled.
"I don't read either, so, believe me, I understand. And this place is not fun for everyone. Anyway, I hope you have good luck in your search." He smiled as he handed the stack over.
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Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2011 1:17 am
Kam was honestly a little surprised by the way the man just.. admitted those things to him. Wasn't that some kind of treason or something? Not that Kam was going to rat him out, though - a librarian that didn't read seemed like something straight out of an awful TV sitcom and Kam happened to like awful TV sitcoms.
"Well, thanks for that then." He took the stack of papers from Tony and turned them until he could look at them straight up and down. He held them out in front of him and tilted his head as if he were inspecting them, checking for any faults that could have happened during the copying process, then simply shrugged his shoulders and curled them under an arm.
"And thanks for helping me with that damn machine. You should maybe talk to the uh.. I don't know, whoever owns this place about getting a replacement for it." He leaned over the counter then and reached out with one burly arm to slide the tape dispenser closer to him. He pulled and snapped off two lengthy portions of tape, sticking them awkwardly to his thumb and forefinger.
He saluted Tony with his half-taped hand and was just about to turn and walk out when he saw the pup still wiggling excitedly next to the counter. That same half-smirk cracked his face and he stopped short to lean down and give her one last awkward scratch behind the ears with the fingers that weren't covered in tape.
"See you squirt," he mumbled as he stood up. He turned and was almost all the way to the front entrance when he called back to Tony. "Thanks dude!" It was way too loud for the serene environment, but he was already through the other side and not looking back.
He was definitely not a good candidate for Silent Library.
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Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2011 10:21 am
Tony smiled and nodded, making sure not to drop the stack of papers at the last moment or something. It wouldn't be surprising, if he had, but he was trying to avoid embarrassing himself completely at least once today, if he could manage that. And he did, this time, sighing very slightly with relief once Kam had the papers tucked safely under his arm.
"You're definitely right. That's not even the worst behaved machine of them all," he sighed, "one on the second floor grinds its gears so loudly it's like screeching owls."
He would at least put in another request for maintenance, at the very least, to come and look at them. Then tell him they need to be replaced, then help him sign a form to request new equipment, then have it declined by the higher ups who didn't actually know anything about the daily life of the library, or how useful fully operational copiers would be.
Dogby almost jumped up to meet him, her short little legs wiggling in the air as she reared up to meet his hand while it was coming down to scratch her ears. She yipped happily and licked at him, though she sniffed the tape and didn't know what it was. Giving him a cautious look, she soon forgot her worry and whimpered sadly as he stood up. He had that same tone of voice all her new best friends had, when they were going to go away.
Depressing for a little puppy.
Tony winced at the loud thank you, but smiled and laughed as he nodded his head and waved pointlessly to the younger man's back. "Ah, you're welcome!" He called, then remembered he was the librarian and really shouldn't be following a loud patron's example. He blushed, looked around at the people staring at him, then retreated to his desk. His forlorn corgi followed him, missing Kam already as she sat at her masters feet and pouted.
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