A Common Interest [Gabe/Isabella]

Due to the fact that the whole entire coffee presentation was taken well into account for Isabella, Gabe thought about what would be a nice thing to do for her once he got around to it. With a few talks with some members of DaVinci Gourmet Naturals that he was particularly close with, he got a chance to get a little tour of their patch section and take a sample of some coffee beans to take home themselves.

Of course, Gabe asked Isabella to meet him here when she had the time without letting her know why.

"Hm.."

Gabe stayed outside of the sunlake palms garden patch as he anticipated her arrival, if she even showed up.

"I already said, I'll have it done tomorrow." Her words carried quite far along the less densely built area that was sunlake palms. "As I said, I-" Whoever was on the other end of the phone call seemed to cut her off. The look on her face grew gradually more irritated as her silence grew to first one minute, then two. "Look, I let you know about this yesterday, and you said it was okay then. I called Meg, who also had to ask you to okay this before she could put it forward, and you did. I'm already late from a personal meeting as i-" Again, something cut her off.

Isabella lifted hte phone from her ear, still just about able to hear the noise from the other end. After a while, the noise blaring ou of the speaker died down. She would wait for a few more seconds before raising the device to her ear again. "Look, you can complain all you want, that's not gonna change my answer. One. I went through the proper channels, had all the appropriate documentation made. Of which I have a personal copy being sent to me, I might add, so don't try to pull that stupid crap from last month again. And two. It's not my responsibility to bail you out when you double-book one of us. Now I'm going to turn off my phone for the rest of the day after I hang up and enjoy my APPROVED vacation day undisturbed. If you've something meaningful for me, then send it to me via email. And if there's something you aboslutely, positively need me to do, you can come find me personally at Sunlake palms. Good day." There was a strange catharsis in unleashign that verbal onslaught. There was something she could hear, probably in protest to what she'd said, through the speaker, but she would remove the phone from her ear and hang up.

Then, as she went to turn off the phone, Isabella would realize that she was already basically where she'd needed to be. And she oculd see Gabrielle, not that far off. The woman went a little red in the face, as much as the synthetic skin allowed. She tucked the now turned-off phone back into her pocket. "I'm sorry, I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long. And... Sory you had to hear all of that, just now."

Gabe saw Isabella in the distance, but it seemed like she was pretty occupied on the phone. He waved a bit, but the stern businesswoman seemed preoccupied with what was going on with the phone. But as she continued to walk even further, he started to hear a little bit more about what was going on with her. Apparently, there seemed to be a bit of trouble at work, which made him wonder if he played a role in it by inviting her here without it being a fully developed plan. It was a bit spontaneous, but that was the way that Gabe was at times.

But as soon as she got here, the first thing that Gabe did was inquire about your well being.

"Hey, sorry for calling you out here at such short notice. I had prepared a bit of a surprise for you, but from what I heard, it looks like you are having a bit of trouble back at the job. If this is because you are out today, I sincerely apologize. I do take a bit of the blame if it comes down to it, but I figured this would be something you would like. "

She would approach, not saying a thing as the male spoke. Waiting for Gabriel to finish, Isabella would then shake her head. "Apologies not needed. You're correct in your assumption of there being... Issues where I work, but those issues stem neither from you asking me here or from  myself being here. To give you the short of it, my editor messed up, and is calling everyone who has their day off to try and get them to come in and fix the what his incompetence caused. And well, you might have heard what I had to say to that."

She would sigh, before taking a deep breath. "Buuuut... I took a day off to get away from all that. So what say you forget my screeching just now, and show me... Whatever it is you had in mind to show me?" There was still some fleeting annoyance in her tone, but she was trying to shake it off. Would just be rude to take her frustration out on him.

"Ahh...but..editor? Do you write for a publishing company or something of the sort? In all honesty, I'm not too sure that I asked you about your line of work. However, that didn't concern me too muc, but not in a bad way! To be honest, you could do any job in the world and we would have still found ourselves here. So even with my curiosity about what you do, it has no bearing about what I'm going to do now So let's use this little time to chat and get your mind off of the stressful work rate. "

Gabe proceeded to lead the way inside of the private floral patch as he revealed why he led her there.

"So today is all about coffee. Believe it or not, it was one of the few things i had to go on, but i ended up telling one of my partners about the resounding opinion of a valued guest i had in regards to the DaVinci Gourmet coffee. Feedback is a very powerful thing, and a showing of thanks was a small tour of the coffee plants they are growing.  You can take your pick of  a bag you can take home to brew yourself, free of charge, so you won't have to waste any money or trips besides the comfort of your home. But the trick here is finding something you like, right?"

As Gabe spoke, he went over to the first patch.

"The first batch is called "High Voltage".  You'll get twice the caffeine content of your average joe without sacrificing any flavor. That's right, you can finally get the kick-start you deserve from your morning coffee AND enjoy it. This glorious blend promises a full, rich & smooth experience that's never bitter. Would you like to sample a cup? There is actually a sampler room near here where people try out the beans before deciding if they process the batch of plants for shipping."

"Just so your curiosity doesn't keep bugging you for the rest of the day, the short and sweet of the matter is I work for SMILE News. Interview people, write articles." She would speak in a terse manner. And that's all Isabella said on that matter. She came here in part to get away from work, and she could certainly appreciate that Gabriel was willing to respect that. She would follow him, Opening the topmost button of her coat as her curiosity was roused. She would recall him having said something about a private patch in Sunlake Palms. So this could be it?

She wouldn't need to wait long though, as the other began to explain. Her face took on a wry grin, and she picked up the pace for a few steps so she was just behind his right shoulder. She then leaned in slightly, tilting her head so she was looking at his face more or less straight from the side. "Are you perhaps referring to me at this mention of a valued guest, or is that bit and me being here just a coincidence?" She then straightened herself out, and restored her expression to a small smile. "But it's certainly nice to have something to take home with me, so let's see what you've to offer."

The blonde then went on to listen what the other had to say, her right hand rising up to her chin. "Certainly sounds intriguing. Though I assume the "never bitter" part doesn't account for the possibility of messing up the brewing process? I'd like to think I've drank enough coffee in my time to see that no matter how exquisite a type of bean you may have, someone will find some way to ruin it, intentionally or not." She'd chuckle a bit. "But I certainly would love to try some. But only a little. I don't think either of us would want me jumping on the walls."

"Oh, alright then.  Fair is fair, let' leave work out the front door whenever we are about. Right now I'm just Gabe, and you, the lovely Isabella. "

They didn't need to talk about work, it could be a lot more stressful for some people. However, Gabe did keep it in mind that having a good ally in a reporter is something that was valuable for the playhouse needs. If it meant that she could act like a liaison in order to spread rumors or other things of the sort, it could save them some money from using the detective agency all the time if they could help it.

"Let's brew ourselves a little bit  and give it a try."

There was a small table next to the plants that had a small sample package to make two small cups. The cups were basically, so it was basiclally used for taste testing and really figuring out if the beans were ready for sale.   The machine was also on the table for each batch, quite the setup that was rather quick for someone who seemed to be tasting all time.




"Alright.... so how about..."

Gabe stared at the coffee maker a bit, but he managed to get it started as it brew enough for two tiny cups of high voltage.  He gave one to Isabella and tasted it first, immediately feeling a jolt as the coffee made his tongue tingle a bit.

"W-wow, definitely packs a punch.  What do you think?"

She was more than happy to leave work at the front door, and isntead focused on what Gabriel had to show. She would offer a nod as he offered to brew some coffee up, her eyes watching with a curious glint at the most unusual machine he was using to do so.

"I don't think I've ever seen something quite like this to make coffee. Is it custom-made, or perhaps an antique?" She asked Gabriel as she leaned in closer to watch the strange device in action. But that was just pleasantries. Small talk that made for what she assumed was the real meat of the visit... Okay, maybe that was a poor analogy.

But it was ready, the test cups of this "high voltage". She accepted the cup offered with a nod and a smile, before taking a careful sip. "That's certainly different. That little tingle causes is... Quite unique." She took another sip. "But this taste is quite nice, I was not expecting that nutty hint in there. She'd chuckle a bit, before emptying what little remained in the small cup. "Although I hope there's a restroom available if this batch is truly as high in caffeine content as you claimed it to be." She'd finish, a clear hint of humor in her voice.

"Antique? Well, maybe it's a custom made antique? These sort of devices from how they brew the coffee can take the finest essence from the beans itself and condense them to the enjoyable hot liquid that we all care to ingest every mornings. This particular coffee machine is called a Belgian siphon coffee maker, or a remake of what the coffee machines look like in Belgium. I'm glad that you took a liking to it, the time for full cups is longer with other machines, but small shots for tasting purposes are perfect for it."

Looking around the back, Gabe chuckled along with Isabella at the bathroom jest.

"Of course,  and don't worry, I heard that the plumbing in this full-facility is quite functional, so you have no reason to worry."

Moving on to the next plant,  Gabe had a small smile on his face as he introduced it.

"This one is called coconut rum, I think the name explains one of the most interesting qualities about this plant.  These grew to create the perfect brew of bootleg rum and fresh coconuts, all into a cup of coffee. But I must warn you, this is legally 12% proof. "

She'd nod "It certainly seems well suited for the task, for these kinds of taste tests. And probably a good way to convince people of the quality of your product when the test batch is at its very best." She'd lean over to one side and then the other as she inspected the device.

It was good to know that there was reliable plumbing. She wouldn't be surprised if one or both of them might need it from all the caffeine they'd both be consuming. But she said nothing more on that.

Coconut rum was what Gabiel called this one. Good god, when was the last time she'd had rum? "I do like me some coconut, but I can't even recall when I last had some rum. I'm sure you're just speaking in jest about it being 12% proof, but I want to ask just to be sure that there isn't any alcohol involved?" Her tone shifted from casual to more serious as she brought up the subject of alcohol. As much as it no doubt make her look like a fool, Isabella would rather make a fool of herself then get another reason to be put in the hospital.

"Honestly speaking, just a pinch. I might have over exaggerated a little bit, but I was in a playful mood. However, if we are talking about the seriousness of how much proof is in the beans if brewed and distilled in a certain way, naturally... it would be something like 4%. It's almost something unnoticeable while still maintaining the essence of rum, just not enough to get drunk off of. I have seen in some countries that would give it a bit of a kick with a little rum from an actual liquor bottle stored, but only in those saloons like establishments, you would see in the backlight district. "

He wanted to make that clear for her, I would be bad if he gave himself or DaVinci government a bad name. But if there was no protest, Gabe would start to brew the coffee in order to prepare it. After a little while, he had two cups readily available.

"I'll taste it first, alright?"

Gabe took a small sip, swashing it a bit in order to really see if he was right about the drink. He was, to a degree. It was definitely a taste that someone had to grow accustomed to, but the mixture of flavors complimented each other and even alcoholics could appreciate it.

"Pretty decent."

So there was actual alcohol involved. Which means she had a decision to make. Either turn it down, or drink it, and... "Well, both the concentration and volume are low, so it should be fine." The blonde reasoned with herself. She'd give the man a nod, and after he offered to taste it first, she would let him do so.

After Gabriel had finished his taste, Isabella would grab her own cup, and take a sip, and her face twisted to a slight grimace. She would lower he cup, still containing some of the coffee to the table. "Quite nice, though admittedly I'd forgotten how I never did care for the taste of rum." She would reply, forcing her expression back to normal.

"Haha....At first, I thought you was quite fond of the taste, which is why i brought it up in such a way. But maybe that turned into a little bit of a misunderstanding. So with that being said, I do apologize if the taste was not up to your liking. There are a little more plants that i'm "allowed" to show you, would you still like to take a look at those two?"


Gabe was hoping that she was enjoying herself, but sometimes he made mistakes or misread the situation.

"Are you fond of sweets? Maybe a taste of some small pasteries could help you get rid of the bitter taste of the last coffee?"

"There's no need to apologize, Gabriel, it was a fair assumption to make. It's been a really long time since I had a taste of rum so I had more or less forgotten my own." She smiled, fearing she might have sent the wrong message there.

"But I'd love to try what else you might have to offer, this pastry-flavor in particular has me quite intrigued." She mentally nodded to this. The rum-taste wasn't that bad, but her reaction might have been somewhat exaggerated due to her forgetting of her own preferences.

"If you'll let me pry, I'm curious how you came to work with the owners of these fields in the production of coffee?"

Moving on to the next plant, Gabe would have a particularly silly grin on his face as he gave himself a drum roll.

"Now, I'd like to present one of my favorites. The mocha tropics! This one is blended with blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. Believe it or not, having a fruity taste in relation to coffee is very difficult to obtain, it reminds you of pie at times. Well, it reminds me of pie when you taste it. "

Gabe was going to say more, but Isabella brought up a unique question.

"How did I meet the shareholders of DaVinci gourmet? They were smaller before and were lacking any funding for a good head start. Around the time my father was still in Endymion and quite tired, after slipping him some of their coffee and being the buzzing bee of positive influence, they entered somewhat of a partnership with the funds that they needed. My reason for helping them is because I wanted to believe in what they had, i wanted to believe in the product and the values they obtained in regards to doing business. I try to make my reasonings a bit selfless at times in order to truly see the point of view of others. "