Stop and Stare.

One would have thought that the Summer Holidays should see more than a steady flow of people, mostly Hogwarts students, visiting Quality Quidditch Supplies, eagerly pointing and especially expressing their desires for the newest broom models, if not enjoying the privilege of actually being able to buy and own one. No, that trend was typically reserved for Christmas. Even then, only the ones with families who were sufficiently wealthy really needed his assistance, despite the fact that he hated serving most of them, what with the haughty looks on most of the faces of Slytherin brats. No, Trent preferred the ones who would stare desperately at anything and everything in the shop, but who were too powerless to purchase. He would watch them intently, himself a boy like one of them. It was how he had ended up working in the shop anyway; better near them if he cannot own them.

But no, there was no one in the shop. It was as if he should not have turned up for the day at all. Trent watched the clock before he gave in and sat down on the chair behind the counter. Thanks to his incredible height, the boy was hardly blocked by the height of the counter. He sighed. Oh, of course, everyone had somewhere to go for the holidays. Somewhere nice and far like Australia, Egypt, Romania, America, Thailand, and even to France. Well, he was going somewhere, wasn't he? Sure, it was not even going to be out of the country, but it might, could, possibly count.

Another sigh. Trent brought his eyes to the clock again and shook his head in pain as what felt like a long time in his thoughts was worth only a minute to the second-hand of the clock. Time was cruel sometimes. Then again, he believed in the cruelty of the universe, in everything. The boy brought his wand out and began to twirl it casually, watching the easy spins that it took with his manipulation. Summer had barely begun, but he was bored of it already. Still, he would have still picked the holidays to the seeming monotony of school. He reminded himself that he had taken all the extra holiday hours for the bit of a trip with Millie. At least he was going to go somewhere with someone. Well, not just anyone. He shrugged and felt as if his soul was evaporating into the still air of the silent shop.

The summer vacation had reached a lull much sooner than Gisele had expected. After the school year had ended she had returned home, happy to be free of exams and grumpy teachers. But after the excitement of sleeping in and doing nothing had worn off Gisele realized what a boring place the Delacour house had become. Her brother had been being uncharacteristically quiet and they had barely seen each other in the last couple of weeks. At least the family had a vacation to Italy that they had been planning for awhile. She looked forward to this break from the house but it was still at least a week away. If Gisele had to watch one more midday soap opera she would go insane.

So to ease her growing boredom Gisele had chosen to leave the house and travel down to Diagon Alley for a bit of recreational shopping. When she arrived she was suprised to see that there were a ton of other people already shopping. Gisele had always figured that people only came and shopped here right before September 1st for school supplies. Greatful for the stimulous, Gisele wandered slowly down the street. She took in the arguing housewifes, exotic animals on sale, and store names as she passed them by. As she passed by Quality Quidditch Supplies something caught her eye. The soft curve of dark wood, coming out in a perfectly pointed bristle of the broom. Quidditch didn't mean that much to Gisele but even she couldn't help but being drawn to the racing broom's clear beauty.

Approaching the window, Gisele found herself pressed up agaist the glass like a child. The gentle slopes of the wood were almost sexy in appearance. It literally was glistening in the sun. As she oggled a tiny bit on movement was caught out of the corner of her eye. Looking up from the broom and back into the shop Gisele was able to make out the form of a young man. Her eyes adjusted quickly and she realized who it was. Trent! Gisele almost laughed. She always forgot that he was a working boy. Trent was the one who had first really introduced Gisele to flying and Quidditch. Or at least the first one to force her to watch it. For a person who's life had been more or less without human connection for the last couple weeks of summer seeing an old friend was a blessing.

With a happy smile Gisele entered the shop. A tiny bell rang to signal of her arrival and Trent looked up at the new customer. Her lips held a playful smile as she approached the counter. "Trenton Thomas" Gisele arrived in front of him. "You've hiding away in here."


ooc: Forgive me. It's terrible. And I can't spell without autocorrect.

Even the boss was gone for a holiday. Boracay was the destination. And as much as Trent didn't need a tan, nor did he fancy a higher temperature than the one he actually prefers in England, he could certainly use some time with the sand and the sea. He wondered about Sam, who had told the boss that he was not available for much of the holiday working timeslots. That meant that the responsibility of manning of the shop fell into Trent's hands. He didn't mind, if only for the extra allowance. That is, before it was even possible that boredom should exist even in the submergence of oneself in the midst of an array of Quidditch paraphernalia. He was Trenton Thomas, after all, Quidditch enthusiast.

It was a good thing he still had something to be really keen about. He bit his lower lip and thought wistfully about the skateboard that went missing a year ago. Has it been a year already? Or was it a term? His mind couldn't deal with the linearity of time. It was just all one awful cloud of shenanigans. Perhaps, with the added allowance from his hours in the shop, he could buy another skateboard that would be as good as the last. It was unlikely, though. The one that was taken away by the tyrants of the new Hogwarts authorities was his baby. He was attached to it. And as with everything that he had gotten attached to, he lost it. Trent sighed.

The mere sounds of the oddly neglected shop were that of his seemingly incessant sighs, the soft buzz of the light in the back room, and the monotonous hum of voices of people out on the street. The tinkle of a bell broke through the gloom of the boy's thoughts. The sound of it, as if a signal for something light to the dull day, was more welcomed than dreaded by him. Trent steadied himself, in his mind at least, to while his time away talking to an eager lad about the technical specifications of each broom in the shop. But upon the quick glance up, his eyes darted back down again. It was a reflex of odd bashfulness. It meant nothing, really. Just the anti-social part of his personality acting up upon seeing a familiar face.

Then, he turned back up again and offered an uncertain smile. "Gisele Delacour," he emulated the fashion of her entrance, then grin fleetingly. "Yep, you found me." Trent raised his hands a little and shrug before he nodded. "Finally gave what I said some consideration? Investing in a broom?" He pointed to a shiny one at the most prominent display in the shop. "Doubt you, of all people, have problems with what is more affordable. So, that one there," he pointed again, "is the latest beauty." He looked at it endearingly. "The speed of it," he clucked his tongue before turning to look at Gisele. "Amazing," he finished. "Now, what can I do for you today?"

OOC: Emmyyyyy, it's fine!

Trent's, because I learnt how to use Polyvore. XD

At the sound of his voice Gisele couldn't help but have her face break into an even larger smile. She didn't like to admit it but she had missed her Gryffindor companion over the last months. In part, Gisele liked to blame Millie for their lack of communication. The closer that she and Trent had become the more that Gisele had been pushed out of the picture by both of the others. When Gisele had seen Millie's giant, scrawling tattoos across her back for the first time she had been hurt to hear that Trent had been the one to accompany her. Gisele couldn't quite figure out their relationship.. was it purely platonic? Or was it something deeper? Whatever it was Millie certainly wasn't offering up the information to her. And Gisele was already hurt. Their last encounter in the Room of Requirement had shaken the brunette make than she could have predicted. Gisele had been blocking it out of her mind, pretending like it was like before and meant nothing. But in sleep she still found herself visiting the smooth curves of the paler girls skin. 

Gisele ran her hand across the scratched countertop, feeling every bump and dent. Still sitting on the counter was a loose broad knut, which she picked up and loosely twirled in her fingers. She leaned down, resting both elbows on the countertop as if considering what he said. "I suppose I would consider it." she said, referring to his suggestion of investing in a broom. "But you'll need to do your job, Thomas." Gisele raised her eyebrows playfully, almost as if she were challenging him. "Sell me on it." She remembered a time so very recently that she had been vaguely interested in Trent. Okay, more than vaguely. She remembered she had tried to kiss him once but he had pulled away like he had been electrocuted with that same old adorable expression of confusion on his face. That memory hurt a little too. If there was one thing Gisele couldn't stand it was rejection. 

Her mothers veela blood made her beautiful but it also made her fear the day she would never be longed after again. 

The brunette glanced around the shop. All of the brooms here had to be worth a ton of money. But like Trent had mentioned, that wasn't exactly a problem for her. As she took in the shelves and shelves of racing brooms she had an insane desire to fly right now. Maybe that was wrong with Trents quidditch wired brain. Mr. Thomas must have surrounded him with this type of influence from a very young age. The obsession with flying was endearing, especially standing here in the middle of Trents little world. Gisele continued to twirl the coin, watching it glint in the sun that came threw the storefront windows. 

OOC: You reminded me of clothes. Opps. So here's one for you too.

As the boy alternated between eyeing Gisele and looking back at the counter-table, he began to scratch the skin of his left thumb with the index finger next to it. Trent didn't have many friends. He didn't bother with them. His acquaintances were made up mostly of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and almost solely of the Gryffindor population. These were simple evidence that he simply didn't step out of his comfort zone. He was possibly too lazy, and perhaps just a tad awkward around strangers. More significantly was how most of his friends were really Millie's friends first. He warmed easily as long as he was approached with some conversation, and if they were Millie's choice of people. It was as if he trusted the girl for some sort of friend assessment task.

Whatever it is, Gisele had become a friend in that same manner as the few others too. She was, however, far more friendly to him. There was, too, something odd about the girl; possibly in a good way. But as much as Trent had come to accept Gisele as more than the casual acquaintance, he was also curiously nervous about her. And then there was that one time of sheer confusion. She had gotten too close, and Trent, he almost ...

The boy shook his head. He was almost certain it was some sort of desire that couldn't be associated with love. He didn't understand it. Then again, no one talked to him about those sort of things. No one really would look at Trent and think to talk to him about such intimate shenanigans of life. Well, no one besides Millie. After all, she had become a sort of best friend to him, didn't she? That is, besides being more than that, of course.

Still, ever since that close encounter with Gisele in school, the boy had become a little more skittish about her. He tried to avert his eyes as soon as he realised that she didn't take her eyes off him. What a turn of events. Sort of. His mind was almost blank and bored to death a moment ago. Now, it was filled with too many thoughts for him to handle again.

"Well," he started, and swallowed, before tearing his eyes off Gisele to look at the brooms. "Like I always tell everyone, the Nimbus, in my opinion, is the most trustworthy of brooms. If you're looking for one that's properly done well, overall, then I'll say you still have to go for the Nimbus." Trent stole a look at the girl, found his eyes stray to her legs, before returning to the broom in one swift guilty look. "And, urm, but." He scratched harder against the skin of his thumb, then walked out from behind the counter to stand closer to the girl.

"If you like them fast, though ..." He paused. "Then the Thunderbolt is unbeatable in picking up the speed, especially in the initial moments of acceleration." He nodded. "Usually, I'd tell people that the Firebolt is sufficient in doing that. It's still the best in that area, after the Thunderbolt. I mean, the Thunderbolt is almost impossible to afford. Well, for most ..." People like me, he thought. "But you might be interested in it if you enjoy really fast speeds, even in turns. The reaction time is seconds faster than the Nimbus and the Firebolt even." He pointed to the shiny, sleek boy of the Thunderbolt. "Personally, if I had all the galleons in the world, I'd have already owned that amazing thing. I like the speed of it, even if the Nimbuses always outshine this line of brooms in terms of safety features."

Then a long pause. Trent swallowed again as he fought to keep his nerves calm against the quiet buzz of the back light and the presence of the girl. It was funny how she had such a strange effect on him. There was certainly word going around, especially talked about among other boys of the same year, about Gisele Delacour. It was almost always about her desirability. No doubt, there was the Veela blood in her that was to be blamed for all the buzz around her. But her looks helped, too. There was, too, no doubt that Trent loved Millie, with all his heart. It was precisely because of that, that he was confuddled by the presence of her friend. He looked at her now, uncertain and waiting.

Gisele liked the way that Trent's eyes drifted off into unknown worlds when he talked about Quidditch. As he talked she watched the lines of his face move and change, varying from excitement to nervous to almost shy. These expressions were all very familiar to Gisele, although for the life of her she could never figure out why he was always so nervous around her. In all the time she had known him she had never been less than a friend but he still treated her like a bomb that was about to go off. By now this strange behavior was so common to her she barely payed any mind at all. It was all so confusing if you actually thought about it. So Gisele just chose not to think at all. She watched the ways his lips formed words that he held such passion for. It was hard not too get excited when he started talking. Trent's love rubbed off on Gisele and she found herself getting into what he said. The idea of owning a broom of her own suddenly seemed like such a good idea.. But who better to show her how to use it than the man who knew absolutely everything about Quidditch and the supplies it required? 

"Speed." she mumbled to herself, imagining souring through the air, flying faster than any plane, train, or car, could carry her. She looked up at Trent with a playful smile on her lips. "Speed is very good." Standing up strait, she hit her hand on the counter it made the matter official. "The Thunderbolt it is!" Her eyes danced with excitement as she thought of the new, very expensive, toy that she had just purchased on a whim. But then she thought back to Trent's comment that she would be able to buy anything she wanted with her money. While it was true, she still felt a little bad about the fact that she would be owning this broom just because, when Trent, who would appreciate it worlds more than she did had to go without. Not wanting to offend him with any misspoken words, Gisele glanced at the floor and shuffled her feet. "You know.." she started, glancing up at Trent's face to try and gage his expression "When you get off work maybe you could take it for a spin with me." She smiled. Her unintentionally veela smile. "I need someone to teach me how to appreciate her. You know how useless I am." 

Gisele had a hard time picturing what spending time with just Trent would be like. The last time they had been alone together they had almost.. Well that was behind them now. Trent had made it more or less clear(ish) that he wasn't interested in her that way. And even though the whole affair had been awhile ago the memory of it was a slight blow to Gisele's admittedly overinflated sense of self esteem. No man had ever before rejected her in any way or form. Even though she had less veela blood in her than her infamous aunt her natural genetic beauty made her even more impossible to resist. Everything about her soft skin and gentle facial features led people to believe she was entirely innocent.. Until she opened her mouth. Gisele liked to let herself believe it was her natural charm that held the boys attention, but even she had to double take on the amount of buzz she had gotten in the last year. She had been asked to the ball six times (well, seven if you count Robbie Millar, who was stuttering so bad you couldn't really tell what he wanted). Girls had started to hate her and she had been grateful for Millie's lasting friendship to comfort her. 

If Millie didn't break out of her funk and stop acting so weird about everything, who was Gisele going to be able to rely on? 

This brought another question to mind: why were things suddenly so different between them? They had been getting together in.. that way.. for a long time. Gisele remembered their first time like it was yesterday. She had been sitting up in the Divination tower to finish some extra homework that she had been assigned, trying to break away from the noise and constant bothering that was to be found in Ravenclaw tower. Then Millie had stumbled in, happily drunk, and happily plopped herself next to her best friend. Millie had always been extra affectionate when intoxicated, but her first kiss still surprised Gisele. Swimming in the smoke of incense, they had explored each other. The next day Gisele had been relieved to find that nothing had changed between them. Still best friends, no awkward moments. It had been perfectly normal. So what was different now?

Gisele pulled herself out of the memory, eyes focusing back on her companion. He was handsome, no doubt about it. Dark hair and strong cheekbones, not yet hollowed out with age. It was possible he was as lovely as Millie.. But they were so different there was just no realistic way to compare the two. And in that moment Gisele felt like she was standing on the borderline between two worlds. The thought confused her. It was always better not to think at all.