[Location: Queens, New York]
Thud!
"Make yourself comfortable, while I prepare something 'special' for you." Tom flung the door shut with his leg and guided dazed Gabriel onto the couch with practised ease.
As if done many times over...
Gabriel sat down gently, folding her hands on her lap like a polite guest. "This place… It's very quiet," she said, glancing around the dimly lit apartment. The air smelled of cheap liquor and old smoke. "Do you live here alone, Tom?"
Tom grinned as he tossed his jacket onto a chair. "Yeah, just me. Kinda peaceful, right?"
Gabriel nodded slowly. "Peaceful… yes. But it feels… heavy. Like the air is tired."
He laughed. "You say the weirdest things, you know that?"
She blinked, tilting her head. "Do I?"
"Yeah," he said, pulling two glasses from a small shelf. "You talk like someone outta a storybook."
"I… like stories," Gabriel said softly. "They always have meaning. Even sad ones."
