Meeting Alister (Gabe)

"Your lack of understanding isn't my problem Alister. Having something hidden from you doesn't mean that i'm any less your friend, and it also doesn't mean that it's because it's something I have to hide. You have a social face, a face with intimate relationships, a face for work, probably a different kind of outlook for different people. I can go on and on about it, but its a valid social philosophy I follow. Yes, you don't want to hear it, but long story short... it's not wrong to have a multitude of faces. It's not wrong to hold secrets either, if you give so much of yourself to someone or something, you're in no position to protect it after feeling exposed. Nothing to do with trust, I just don't understand why you think uttering personal grievances is a natural thing to do. You need this information to be my real friend?   You got so far that you understand that we have a problem with each other, other people i have problems with wouldn't even know. It's not false, you think i wan't to willingly expose my flaws? Nobody intentionally does that, that' s not an act of friendship to do so. No, maybe not me, my first instinct was to show the best that I had to offer, but that's not what you want to see. Every single time with this kid.



"Feel free to walk away from me if you want..... but before you condemn me in your head.....just remember who quit first. Because I came, i'm still talking, and i'm still sitting here. If you want some coffee, just ask and i'll get you one, because we are sure as hell aren't done, and if we don't fix this right now.........." Gabe would sit further back into the chair, unmoving.  He was trying to relax with himself, kind of accepting that even though they were friends, they experienced different things and life and wanted different things in life. But Gabe was making it very clear for Alister to not walk away from him, he wasn't having it today,

There was a penalty this time if he did so, he just didn't know it yet. "But ultimately, choice is yours..."

Alister looked over his shoulder at the man "It's not a matter of friendship...you had that from me the same time you had it from my sisters...it's an issue of trust...your lack of it in others to be precise...as for a lack of understanding...there isn't one here anymore...I think I understand you all to well...your selfish....your self-centered...you think you have all the answers when your still just a scared little kid that doesn't want people to see him as weak...you haven't moved on from that one moment in your life that scared you to your core...you are stuck in that moment..you are still trying to recover from that moment...and as someone that has been in a similar situation...I pity that..." he shook his head again.

In the end he knew if he left a lot of things would go unsaid, but at the same time he already knew what would happen if he stayed to talk, Gabe would continue to act as if he had all the answers, he would continue to act as if he was right no matter what, and he would more then likely continue to talk down to him due to his age, it had been happening the whole talk, Gabe verbally posturing as if he was trying to get some advantage that Alister just wasn't attempting to get, even now he was making it sound like he was the only one trying here and trying to force Alister into staying, when Gabe was really the powerless one here, and losing ground fast with the way he acted and the words he said.

"Showing flaws isn't weakness...and trying to pretend like you don't have them...or outright hiding them isn't a strength..." he said simply as he stood there, not rejoining Gabe but not yet leaving. he mentioned he wasn't the one to quit first, Alister only shook his head, Gabe had given up the moment he tried all this verbal posturing, the moment he looked down on Alister due to age, and the moment he had goaded him into trying to strike him back in his shop, it was Nola that had talked Gabe into coming back and trying again, Alister didn't stop it because he wanted Gabe to be more open, yet here he was talking down to him and treating him far worse then he would treat his sisters. If he only remembered that both were listening in and hearing and seeing how he was treating him...maybe he forgot that?

"So then...tell me...if you think you have all the answers...why do you constantly talk down to me...when you talk to my sisters as equals? if you think your so smart, tell me why this whole time you have done nothing but dodge my questions...turned them around on me...or ignored them completely in what seems to be some vain attempt to establish some sort of dominance when I and my sisters set this up so we could talk and understand each other...not establish a pecking order? If your so mature in your thinking...tell my why you felt the need to provoke me back at the shop...and only decided to have a proper talk after you talked to my sister? you say you are not the one giving up? you gave up far longer then I did, you just tried to pick a fight with someone you knew would be held back...and you hurt another two just to do it...and now your here acting all high and mighty like your some saint that's giving a little child a chance to be your friend, when the only reason your here was because you caused a little girl to be punched in the face due to your own arrogance to prove you were better then someone else...someone that already considered you a friend and did his best to control himself..you just kept pushing so you could act like the better man...so tell me...who gave up first? the man that provoked a kid into punching him...only to have his sister stand in the way of the punch to protect you?..or the boy that was, even after that, willing to talk to the man that clearly has no respect for him?" he looked back at Gabe now, having turned fully around.

He wasn't one to bring stuff like this up, but at the same time he was getting sick of Gabe trying to act like he was some high and mighty saint, when he was the one that caused the biggest issue between them all because he thought he knew better.

"Scared..... me...... " Gabe shook his head as he placed his hands in his pocket."'im not talking down to you..you... just...." Gabe finally pushed his glasses up on his face with a defeated look. "You don't understand. I don't think you ever will..and vice versa.. So whatever you say that's scarred me or traumatized me, if anything, your right.... it happened, and it's something i'll deal with myself. Whatever that may be. " When that time came, he wouldn't beg for their help, Gabe would just have to play more carefully and smarter then. "I don't know Alister, it's still a mystery why i get along with 2/3rds of you. How about an examination. If im all that you say i am, how come they don't react in the same way. I'm trying to picture and imagine these conversations, but i don't think i ever had them. "

Gabe actually got up this time. "Maybe this was a mistake then. But since my apologies are empty and don't mean anything.....i won't give you one. But i will say this, the way you reiterate "giving a child a chance to be your friend"? As if im using you? You, lost your temper. Me, i was willing to take the hit of course, i didn't manipulate anything. If i'm honestly speaking, still not seeing in particular why we have this problem with each other. But, maybe we shouldn't. we don't have all the answers right now. If you was any older Alister, it might of even been worse. Who knows... i respect all three of you, but you say i'm biased. Like i go out of my way to torment you, why would i do that? If it comes of like that, then, i don't know why. Gabe shook his head.

"look, i won't hold it against you three if you don't want to associate with me anymore. Of course, it's a group deal, you care about your brother, but we aren't getting through to eachother. Nothings working....even if i went to your store... talking to the others...you would only weigh in with what happened to alister earlier, there is a set perception that you say that might not exist because you are different people, but i think that's half true. I think... in some way... you all three feel this way. If there is one thing i know best, you should always pick family over strangers, so i won't blame you. "

Gabe then waved his hand at Alister. "You got to get going right? Get home safe...sorry for wasting your time Alister. "

Alister listened to Gabe, and then Gabe did something quite insulting, he started to talk to the others instead of him "Your talking to me right now..." he reminded him though Gabe went on to then say they all had the same perception and Alister was quite aware that that wasn't true, true they all considered him a friend, but Alister had his issues with the man and the way he talked to and about them, the others didn't, they ether didn't confront issues like he did, or they simply forgave them, he could have done the latter, but not the former. But then Gabe had gone out of his way to taunt and goad Alister in to taking a punch, a punch that Nola in her already sensitive state had moved in the way of.

"Still don't see us as separate people do you?..." he said as he looked at him, clearly insulted "standing there so sure of yourself that what you said was right, and even giving up on trying to apologize...Do I think your apologies are hollow? to an extent...you offer defense of yourself instead of simply admitting your wrong and acknowledging that fact. That's not an Apology that's you trying to get out of any trouble for wrong doing...your scared of a lot of things...maybe you should examine that about yourself instead of trying to be right all the time?" Alister walked forward slowly towards Gabe as he spoke.

"But your willing to admit to some of it...I hope that's a sign your going to learn..." he smirked not a self satisfied one, he was happy to see Gabe was at least...maybe learning about himself? and as he walked up he held out his hand to shake "Look we have our issues....and I knew coming into this they all wouldn't just be explained away...like I said...the three of us had to go through something similar...but we were lucky we had the other two to help us...so I hope your willing to at least look to us when your willing to work it out" though he did have to answer Gabe's questions, after all he still didn't seem to be able to tell who was who...but that's what this was all about in the end. Teaching someone about them all. At least he seemed to want to learn that much despite his mess ups apparently forgetting they are all different.

"you met Trinity first....then you met Myrna the second time, the third time you met Nola...you only met me after the incident...I was hoping to talk to you after the breakfast and meet you properly, but what happened got in the way of a more...peaceful meeting.." he looked to the taller male, "As for the hit...wouldn't you jump to the defense of your own sister? when it looked like the man talking to her only wanted to do harm? the incident from before was still fresh...how else would you expect a brother to react considering you left after it with barely a word about anything?" he still offered the hand he was willing to learn more about Gabe, but he hoped Gabe wasn't going to continue acting like he was better then all of them. He might not trust him as a leader, but he still trusted him as a friend, and he hoped Gabe would work out his issues.

"As for associating with you...what kind of friend would just bale on a friend that still has things to work out? things that are similar to what they themselves had to work out? as for weighting in on the others...We are trying to let you meet us...we all already met you..our minds about you are made up...your the one learning what to think of us...remember? But if your worried that any of us hate you...I can say now you can stop worrying..." he smiled up to him, he was rough on Gabe sure, but he wanted to make sure he was honest "I have to be a bit abrasive...after all..your going to go meet my sisters later...what kind of brother would I be if I didn't at least see what a guy like you would react like when pushed...believe me..I didn't enjoy it..". Still he stood there offering his hand for the man to shake.

Gabe was a bit surprised at that reaction. From that point on, he was expecting everything to fall in line in the sense of being a crappy morning into a lukewarm afternoon. It was probably too late for a few lines that Gabe held back on. However, that was only because he didn’t come here to argue, on top of the fact that it was still a child. “…..” Believe it or not, Gaben over here decided to opt out for more of a listening approach. “I know you both are all different people. ”He would at least interject there, the confusion about that was over. “Alright….. I guess were both spent for a while…..lets make peace.” Gabe would say as he shook Alister’s hand. After that, he would but his hands back in a folded position before pushing his glasses up slightly.

“So, I’ll be meeting Myra later, correct?”

Yeah...here" he said as he handed the address to their shop to Gabe, just to make sure he didn't forget it "She will be running the shop today, so you can meet her there, it was set up earlier this morning by Nola, with some help of course" he nodded a bit before turning to leave, though he did look back once more "don't be late" he said as he shot a smile and then turned back around and headed for home, he needed to rest a bit now, and let Myrna get ready for some time in the shop for later, the girl did have a certain way of dressing after all