Shay blushed. She actually blushed. Unfair. Her eyes narrowed dangerously at him. Like a kitten playing a tiger. "No." She'd have fought his calling her doll, but somehow it freaked her out less than when he called her by name. Was she really about to eat out with Klaus Rosales? She didn't have a choice. That's what he had said. It wasn't the worst thing he could have done to her, certainly.
Shay tucked the gun further back until it was well hidden by her jacket and, despite herself, she glanced up at him to see if that would do. If she had done it correctly or there was something further from keeping anyone realizing she was carrying. Not that she thought the police would be checking many children for hidden guns, but anything could happen.
Shay was both impressed and frustrated with how easily he countered everything she said. She wasn't used to sounding or feeling like an idiot, or was that the feeling of being dominated by a larger predator? Frustration, fear, and acceptance?
"You're in the business of gunning people down, don't you know the best way to stay alive is keep your nose in your own business?" That was her response to his stupid questions. Even now, Shay knew he'd make her sound silly again, but she was agitated. He was agitating.
For a second, she assumed he was going to hit or grab her when he rose his hand and she fell backward, away from him. It took her some time to realize that wasn't his intention, but her heart was still hammering in her chest. Her eyes had widened, and she was looking to the side like a rabbit ready to dart.
She calmed down when he turned his back on her and took to walking. She did follow him, what else would she do? She had no choice. Which was a lie, she did. She had the choice to run, but there was no reason to make this harder than it had to be, and Shay was interested enough in Klaus to sit through a meal with him. What was the harm?
At the first alley, Shay slowed, not trusting to enter it with him, but as he had pointed out earlier, he could have already killed her. What a shady bastard. She quickly followed after him until she'd caught up. Walking through the grime, dank alleys was one of the only times Shay pushed into Klaus' side. She wasn't keen on touching people, but this place was creepy, and Klaus' magic was working overtime on her.
"Your trace?" Her tone was a mixture of disdainful and timid. "That's all your going to say? It sounds disturbing when you put it like that. I don't want to be marked by you. I don't even know you. Not really." It was cold water to her senses. Shay's most deep-rooted and intangible fear coming to life. It was enough to make her twist away from him, as far away as she could. His side was warm and safe, but that only scared her more.
Shay was beginning to feel owned. She didn't like it when he held up his hand to command her. She wasn't one of his people. She wasn't his. Not to mark, not to anything. She wasn't. She didn't have to listen to him. Then move, Shay. Don't listen to him. But the girl didn't. She was too afraid of poking the bear. She just gave him the cold shoulder, crossing her arms and turning her body partially from him.
When she saw he had taken his gloves off, she said, "you'll want to keep those on if you plan on touching me at all." She realized how odd that sounded. It made her sicker. "Trying to touch me, I mean." And she, too, would leave her explanation there. If he weren't willing to shovel out the details of his powers, she wouldn't shovel out the details of hers.
Shay wasn't quite as perturbed by Klaus' eyes as someone not from the island would have been, they did give her pause, but she knew who he was and where he came from, so it was unsurprising. More than anything, it interested her. She liked his scarier outfit better. It made her feel safer, somehow. Maybe she was a freak among freaks.
"Oh, I get a choice now?" she asked defiantly, voice acerbic. She tried to determine where he wouldn't want to eat, but she didn't know Klaus Rosales' diet. "Anywhere you hate."
Klaus snorted and rolled his eyes. "Yes, you have a choice here. You didn't when you were wandering around the underground without adult supervision, but you do now. Like hell I was gonna leave you there. Now I'm simply giving you an alternate way to spend your time, unless you're going home. And you aren't, are you? Nah. Not at all. Take advantage of the free food, kiddo."
He chose, next, to address the touching thing. "I'll put them back on if necessary. I'm not gonna poke you or anythin' if you're that jumpy about it. Makes me look questionable, and we're tryin' to avoid that. Just hanging out together until you get sleepy or whatever, nobody needs to call the cops and overcomplicate it." He scrunched up his nose, then shook his head. "Christ. Not that kind of criminal. I've dealt with 'em, though. When we find the fuckers we-" He stopped. "That might be too graphic for you, nevermind. Just know it ain't pretty."
He shook himself off, moving back to the brighter side of his personality. "It's adorable that you're trying to be rebellious. There isn't much to rebel against. And the only place I'd not be a fan of isn't open at this hour, sadly enough." Fucking new age health food places, what a menace to modern society, threatening the open appreciation of overindulgence. Give him a greasy burger, fries, a milkshake, and leave him alone. Wow, he really wanted a milkshake now. "Let's go to a diner, I'm sure we can both find things we like."
"I'll tell you anything you want to hear, once we settle down. You're spooked and skittish right now." He softened, trying to appeal to her through bribes and temptation, rather than intimidation. "Come on, you'll feel a whole lot better once you sit down and have warm food in front of you. You know you will."
Rather than going ahead and taking the lead, he stayed beside her, more equal than before. And if she continued to accept his offer, he'd continue along that way, only gently guiding her in a certain direction through the downtown city streets.
He chose, next, to address the touching thing. "I'll put them back on if necessary. I'm not gonna poke you or anythin' if you're that jumpy about it. Makes me look questionable, and we're tryin' to avoid that. Just hanging out together until you get sleepy or whatever, nobody needs to call the cops and overcomplicate it." He scrunched up his nose, then shook his head. "Christ. Not that kind of criminal. I've dealt with 'em, though. When we find the fuckers we-" He stopped. "That might be too graphic for you, nevermind. Just know it ain't pretty."
He shook himself off, moving back to the brighter side of his personality. "It's adorable that you're trying to be rebellious. There isn't much to rebel against. And the only place I'd not be a fan of isn't open at this hour, sadly enough." Fucking new age health food places, what a menace to modern society, threatening the open appreciation of overindulgence. Give him a greasy burger, fries, a milkshake, and leave him alone. Wow, he really wanted a milkshake now. "Let's go to a diner, I'm sure we can both find things we like."
"I'll tell you anything you want to hear, once we settle down. You're spooked and skittish right now." He softened, trying to appeal to her through bribes and temptation, rather than intimidation. "Come on, you'll feel a whole lot better once you sit down and have warm food in front of you. You know you will."
Rather than going ahead and taking the lead, he stayed beside her, more equal than before. And if she continued to accept his offer, he'd continue along that way, only gently guiding her in a certain direction through the downtown city streets.
Now Shay was utterly confused. She looked over her shoulder, eyeing him warily and trying to figure him out. She was reading him no better than before, even without his glasses on. Shay was watching him like he was some strange three-headed creature, but one she was growing fond of.
Then her brows furrowed. Up until this point, she hadn't said anything in return to him, but now her silent act was up. "What's the youngest person you've murdered?" What dictated the terrible levels of crime? Why were children so precious to people who took life from others every day? Logically, Shay couldn't make sense of those things. Emotionally, she was just glad Klaus wasn't a child molester.
"You get a lot of stories told about you, but I've never heard one where you touch children." The girl paused, squinted, then said, "Though, there was this girl in my class who said you gave her a kiss on the cheek, right there," Shay pointed to the corner of her mouth. "I think she was lying. Did you ever meet a squealing little girl and kiss her on the cheek?"
The girl was having trouble disliking this man, or even feeling on edge around him, which surprised her. This was Klaus Rosales, shouldn't he have been twiddling his handlebar mustache and laughing like a cartoon villain as he tied her to some train tracks? That's what the stories would have her believe.
"A diner is fine," Shay said, voice calmer. He was all coaxing and tender; it made her two parts worried and two parts amused. "Anything? Your funeral. Never promise someone you'll tell them anything. Too late now, no backsies!"
Walking with Klaus was both a frightening and exhilarating thing to Shay. She kept glancing at him, then at anyone nearby, then at any possible sight. In the end, her eyes never stopped darting. She didn't look startled anymore. Instead, she was inquisitive.
And when they got to the diner, Shay immediately chose a booth in the back and slid in, putting her back to the wall so she could keep the full room in view. There was barely anyone here, which wasn't surprising. It was way late. Shay wasn't all that hungry, but she wasn't about to pass up this opportunity.
The moment he took a seat, she said, "Melony Kalven's stories won't have anything on this."
Klaus just blinked for a moment, a little caught off guard by that question being so bluntly asked. Only for a moment, of course, since the topic didn't truly bother him. He didn't even have to think about it for that long. "As far as I know? A fifteen year old," he answered, shrugging lightly. "And it was when I was thirteen, myself. The guy thought he could push me around, just 'cause he was bigger, older. He was wrong."
He deflated a bit. "I have a lot of younger siblings, actually. There's no sport in hurting kids. They aren't fully developed yet, it's way over the line of unfair- don't take that as an insult, it's just the truth."
He went on, talkative. "I don't really have a thing for pointless cruelty in general, either. It's boring. You don't gain anything, aside from a cheap little thrill. It just makes people dislike and distrust you. The game is fun, being a part of something dangerous and interesting makes life bolder, especially when the other players are challenging and willing, it's-" The words died in his throat, he was getting too loud out in the open.
The fire in his eyes mellowed out a bit, watered down, the burning just hidden under the surface now. "I'm rambling." He grinned. "Your classmate's a dirty little liar, by the way. You'll have quite a lot of real stories to tell her now, y'know, and that'll shut her up fast."
"I don't have anythin' to hide, at least, nothin' you could ask the right questions for," Klaus replied, unconcerned, resisting the urge to laugh. He failed, because he never resisted anything. "No backsies? Oh, god, I'm in for it now. Truly, a criminal of my stature couldn't possibly go against no backsies."
They made their little journey, and nobody called them out, noticed anything off, not even a weird glance. Shay was getting used to Klaus fast, which he was smug about. He was good at this, as usual.
He followed her at a leisurely pace to the out of the way booth, sitting then waving over a pretty waitress. He managed to only eye her up a little bit, smiling and ordering that milkshake first- chocolate, lots of whipped cream, a cherry, and an absurd straw. He shooed her away again, giving Shay time to look over the menu for a while before ordering. He'd just wanted to deal with his cravings. Patience wasn't his strong point.
Klaus returned his attention to the small girl across from him again, resting his chin in his palm, shoulder on the table. "Damn right. So? What first, how will you be using me to entertain yourself? Go wild, take advantage, why not? Q and A with the local kingpin."
He deflated a bit. "I have a lot of younger siblings, actually. There's no sport in hurting kids. They aren't fully developed yet, it's way over the line of unfair- don't take that as an insult, it's just the truth."
He went on, talkative. "I don't really have a thing for pointless cruelty in general, either. It's boring. You don't gain anything, aside from a cheap little thrill. It just makes people dislike and distrust you. The game is fun, being a part of something dangerous and interesting makes life bolder, especially when the other players are challenging and willing, it's-" The words died in his throat, he was getting too loud out in the open.
The fire in his eyes mellowed out a bit, watered down, the burning just hidden under the surface now. "I'm rambling." He grinned. "Your classmate's a dirty little liar, by the way. You'll have quite a lot of real stories to tell her now, y'know, and that'll shut her up fast."
"I don't have anythin' to hide, at least, nothin' you could ask the right questions for," Klaus replied, unconcerned, resisting the urge to laugh. He failed, because he never resisted anything. "No backsies? Oh, god, I'm in for it now. Truly, a criminal of my stature couldn't possibly go against no backsies."
They made their little journey, and nobody called them out, noticed anything off, not even a weird glance. Shay was getting used to Klaus fast, which he was smug about. He was good at this, as usual.
He followed her at a leisurely pace to the out of the way booth, sitting then waving over a pretty waitress. He managed to only eye her up a little bit, smiling and ordering that milkshake first- chocolate, lots of whipped cream, a cherry, and an absurd straw. He shooed her away again, giving Shay time to look over the menu for a while before ordering. He'd just wanted to deal with his cravings. Patience wasn't his strong point.
Klaus returned his attention to the small girl across from him again, resting his chin in his palm, shoulder on the table. "Damn right. So? What first, how will you be using me to entertain yourself? Go wild, take advantage, why not? Q and A with the local kingpin."
Sitting across from him, Shay took the chance to inspect Klaus. His eyes, his smile, his facial structure, the manner with which he sat or gestured to things. He was a dominate personality for sure, unsurprising. What Shay couldn't figure out was whether or not the kindness he was showing to her was genuine or not. He didn't seem like a bad man, not really, but weren't the ones who looked friendly always the worst? He had no reason to act nice to her; she had nothing to offer him.
"I was warned not to hang out with you," she said slowly, testing something, eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "But you seem nice enough. Fun, even. But I don't think you are, not really. You wouldn't be where you are if you were nice. I think you're just acting because it makes things easier." Her eyes shifted off toward the open bar and kitchen, but she still watched him from the corner of her eye, "would you even care if you had traumatized me? What if I had shot you? Would you have hurt me, then? Would you have cared if you hurt me? I think you would have been lively either way."
She met his stare, hers even. His eyes were the last part of him that would creep Shay out. She had seen so many strange things, living on this island her entire life, that physical oddities rarely bothered her. "There are all these stories about the horrible things you do and how terrifying you are, how people wouldn't want to meet you at night, but you know what? That's looking at it all wrong. You're not scary when you're holding a gun; you're scary when you're sitting across from someone smiling and asking them how their day went."
When the waitress returned, Shay didn't even look at the pretty girl when she ordered a sundae with extra fudge.
Klaus listened to Shay intently, head slightly tilted, face unreadable. He didn't flinch. His milkshake arrived, and he didn't break their locked gaze. He dipped his finger into the whipped cream, shameless, then licking it off while he thought things over. Or, at least, appeared to be doing so. He could've also just been taking his sweet time, not particularly urgent, despite the heavy subject.
"You're naive," he said, simply, after he popped the cherry into his mouth. "The world isn't black and white. Anything goes. I can be nice, and I'm always fun. I'm a three dimensional, living, breathing person- not a cartoon supervillain. Men who enjoy slaughtering others, using their corpses as toys, can then go home for the weekend to, I don't know, pet puppies with their loving grandmother- and be just as genuine in both of those activities. Morality isn't linear, always settled, or predictable. Even the most pure of goody two shoes are going to have something worth questioning about 'em, because some shit literally comes down to difference of opinion."
He sipped his milkshake. "Does that scare you, Shay? It shouldn't. It just means you gotta think on your feet, live life in the moment, and feel things out properly. Treat individuals like individuals, too. There's a lotta rules and a lot of exceptions to the rules, for those who can get away with it."
"I'm not nice all the time, nah, but this ain't fake, either. Caring for others gets you loyalty and gratitude, and that's priceless. I wouldn't have kept such a huge, useful following for this long if I was just some abusive piece of garbage. Anyway, I love people! I enjoy interacting with them, and I enjoy what I do, else, why would I be doing it at all? A lot of my work is leadership based, too."
His smile widened into a grin. "…You know what? You're right. This part, it is scary. Being likable is fucking terrifying. People will do anything for you when you're likable, not with shaking hands, but with a special kind of passion and lack of remorse. You should see it in action." His eyes lit up like fireworks, too expressive, unsettlingly intense. "It's beautiful."
Shay's sundae arrived. Klaus slipped extra cash in the waitress' apron, along with a contact card, and she flushed before hurrying off again. He turned back to Shay, mild again, any sign of mania gone as quickly as it'd shown up. "I wouldn't have hurt you. I'm the one who turned off the safety, so it would be my own fault if I got used for target practice. Except, I already have a few bullets in me I have to dig out later, just changed my shirt. I'm not worried. Whatever could that mean?" He winked. "Think about it, the hints have all been thrown out. Even without that, though, I wouldn't have hurt you."
"And I'm not going to hurt you." He played with his straw, looking at her from under long lashes.
"You're naive," he said, simply, after he popped the cherry into his mouth. "The world isn't black and white. Anything goes. I can be nice, and I'm always fun. I'm a three dimensional, living, breathing person- not a cartoon supervillain. Men who enjoy slaughtering others, using their corpses as toys, can then go home for the weekend to, I don't know, pet puppies with their loving grandmother- and be just as genuine in both of those activities. Morality isn't linear, always settled, or predictable. Even the most pure of goody two shoes are going to have something worth questioning about 'em, because some shit literally comes down to difference of opinion."
He sipped his milkshake. "Does that scare you, Shay? It shouldn't. It just means you gotta think on your feet, live life in the moment, and feel things out properly. Treat individuals like individuals, too. There's a lotta rules and a lot of exceptions to the rules, for those who can get away with it."
"I'm not nice all the time, nah, but this ain't fake, either. Caring for others gets you loyalty and gratitude, and that's priceless. I wouldn't have kept such a huge, useful following for this long if I was just some abusive piece of garbage. Anyway, I love people! I enjoy interacting with them, and I enjoy what I do, else, why would I be doing it at all? A lot of my work is leadership based, too."
His smile widened into a grin. "…You know what? You're right. This part, it is scary. Being likable is fucking terrifying. People will do anything for you when you're likable, not with shaking hands, but with a special kind of passion and lack of remorse. You should see it in action." His eyes lit up like fireworks, too expressive, unsettlingly intense. "It's beautiful."
Shay's sundae arrived. Klaus slipped extra cash in the waitress' apron, along with a contact card, and she flushed before hurrying off again. He turned back to Shay, mild again, any sign of mania gone as quickly as it'd shown up. "I wouldn't have hurt you. I'm the one who turned off the safety, so it would be my own fault if I got used for target practice. Except, I already have a few bullets in me I have to dig out later, just changed my shirt. I'm not worried. Whatever could that mean?" He winked. "Think about it, the hints have all been thrown out. Even without that, though, I wouldn't have hurt you."
"And I'm not going to hurt you." He played with his straw, looking at her from under long lashes.
Shay couldn't hold his stare by the time he had deemed her naive. It was too intense for her; she was too young, and that kind of fire in a person's eyes scared her. She could feel the fervent beating of her heart in the tips of her fingers and heat at her ears. The feeling of bugs crawling right under her skin was back, and every instinct in her told her just to get away, pull back from him, but she stayed still, perhaps too still.
She figured he must have known how weird it made her feel when he said her name. There it was again, that edge -- she wanted to call it a hardness -- behind the way he spoke it. It was sharper than the rest of the words, cutting right through her defenses, right to her core. When he said her name, he was talking to her. Full attention; reading her like a book.
Shay looked up just in time to catch that wild enthusiasm in his eye. It almost made her jerk, because he looked like an animal. She'd never seen someone appear so feral as she saw him at that moment. She was catching a glimpse of one of his many faces; this one reminded her of the monster everyone whispered about.
More surprising to her, though, was her lack of terror. Shay wasn't afraid right then; she was furious. She wasn't wholly sure what at, but the feeling was there. It wasn't heated like anger was so often described. It was a cold, weighted thing that settled in her stomach. She pulled her feet up on the booth and held her knees close to her chest.
"I should have hurt you," she said sharply as the sundae was set in front of her. Shay's lip quivered as she suppressed a sneer.
At that moment, she hated him. She hated him with every fiber of her being. He was a monster; he was the worst kind of monster because he was the type of monster who got people to love him. That struck a cord Shay didn't even know she had. It was as if all the intrigue she had for him -- that was turned to betrayal. She knew -- it had to be true -- that if she did let him in, let him close, he'd pull her down. He'd make a sinner of her. All he wanted was someone to do shitty things for him and enjoy it.
She didn't even touch her sundae; she was finding her appetite was gone. She felt like some experiment of his. What the hell was his angle?
"You're fucking with me," she said without bothering to cover up any of the ice in her voice. "I don't know what the hell you want from me, or out of this, but I'm not giving you anything. Or doing anything for you."
Klaus' fingers trembled, just a bit, near unnoticeably. He listened again, as always, politely waiting for her to say her piece in their discussion. He inhaled, then exhaled. He didn't smile this time, but there was something very earnest in his voice now, instead. "I certainly would've deserved it. Good on you, standing up to my bullying, doll. That's some nice, powerful anger in you. Seems like you have a lot of pent up unpleasantness that you can't quite vent properly, huh? Probably doesn't feel too great, living with that. But it is strong. You're gonna be alright, even with a little naivety. That won't hold you back, and you won't have it for long. You're growing."
He chugged half of his milkshake down, rather childish, and slumped in his seat. "I admit, I am a bit of an asshole, but I'm also just tryin' to teach you some things… and you seem to be learning already. You should still be cautious, 'cause you're small and lack experience, but this is great. Don't be afraid of big men who're too fuckin' full of themselves and like to go on forever."
He sighed. "I don't have, like… a scheme or anything, y'know. I just make this stuff up on the spot. Like with any normal conversation. You say something, I react, vice versa. You're a sharp kid, and I like to talk. I'm just off work and tired, lazily impulsive, really. I guess you could twist that around to 'fucking with you' but that's not the intent. I don't have any intent, besides makin' sure you get home safe at some point."
He gave her a few sleepy blinks. "I'm a greed demon. I always want something, but it doesn't have to be outlandish. You're bright, very cute. You deserve to be talked honestly to, right? Except, my honesty is, well… not overly family friendly, sorry about that. All I wanted was to interact with you a little and give you something practical from it. Because you can handle that, use it."
His smile returned. It was pretty goofy. "You're gonna do better than alright in life, kiddo. I can tell."
He chugged half of his milkshake down, rather childish, and slumped in his seat. "I admit, I am a bit of an asshole, but I'm also just tryin' to teach you some things… and you seem to be learning already. You should still be cautious, 'cause you're small and lack experience, but this is great. Don't be afraid of big men who're too fuckin' full of themselves and like to go on forever."
He sighed. "I don't have, like… a scheme or anything, y'know. I just make this stuff up on the spot. Like with any normal conversation. You say something, I react, vice versa. You're a sharp kid, and I like to talk. I'm just off work and tired, lazily impulsive, really. I guess you could twist that around to 'fucking with you' but that's not the intent. I don't have any intent, besides makin' sure you get home safe at some point."
He gave her a few sleepy blinks. "I'm a greed demon. I always want something, but it doesn't have to be outlandish. You're bright, very cute. You deserve to be talked honestly to, right? Except, my honesty is, well… not overly family friendly, sorry about that. All I wanted was to interact with you a little and give you something practical from it. Because you can handle that, use it."
His smile returned. It was pretty goofy. "You're gonna do better than alright in life, kiddo. I can tell."
Damn him! He was giving her mental whiplash, jumping between these two things. She breathed in slowly through her nose and released it. She stuffed all her bitterness somewhere deep; a crevasse she had never lived without.
Shay pulled the sundae close and took a small bite, mostly of fudge. When she had swallowed it down, she said, "it must have taken a long time to learn how to read people like that, or hide all your emotions." Her small spoon clinked against the glass, drawing her attention downward by habit.
She wanted to steer the conversation elsewhere, something more focused on him than her. She was giving him too much. It was like she'd cut open her torso and held it apart, letting him see right to her bloody, beating heart.
With a slight smile, one that didn't reach her eyes, Shay took another bite of ice cream, this one larger. "Could you teach me how to shoot the gun? What is it like being a gang leader?" another bite of the sundae gone and another bit of her adult-like acidity was snuffed. "I mean, I don't know if you're actually like a gang. The gangs I've read about didn't seem to have as many rules. The Bloods cut children for initiation. But, anyway, Officer Angelo said you're more like a gang leader when I said you were kind of like the Manta Carlos Mafia. So, which of us is right?"
Klaus grinned, more mildly, at Shay's clear frustration. He'd like to give her a break, he really would. He was making an attempt, at the very least, but it didn't change the reality. He had a very larger than life, hard to swallow personality.
He shrugged. "It's a talent that comes naturally. However, being obsessed with people also helps. Just gotta have fun and be yourself! That sounds about right."
He narrowed his eyes a bit. "Hiding… isn't quite accurate. More a mix of feeling ordinary flashes of things more passionately than most, even if it only lasts for a moment, and biding your time to express the deeper things properly. There's a time and place for everything, yeah? Point being, I don't repress, not fully and not for long."
She was distracting him now, wasn't she? That was fine, he didn't mind, he wasn't painfully fixated on analyzing her, not out loud and at her expense at least. He'd much rather she be comfortable. He could only hope that fake smile would eventually turn into a real one.
"I could, if you've decided you're not going to be running and screaming as soon as you finish that ice cream," he said, sunny at the concept. "I've been helpin' one of my little sisters learn, an' of course have personally directed a lotta green recruits over the years."
Kids were so adorably predictable, in some ways. Sweets fixed everything. Then again, some adults he knew were just as weak to this kind of bribery. He watched her, amused and endeared, for a moment before responding.
"Fulfilling. I get to deal with interesting people, places, and things, and there's never a lack of movement. Keeps you on your toes and at your best, 'cause someone will tear you down otherwise, and the taste of power isn't somethin' you want to give up once you have it. It's not always pleasant, but it ain't all a miserable, cursed life, either- despite what your teachers or parents might say, right after 'don't do drugs'. Especially not in Manta Carlos, where flashy is almost the norm."
The kingpin eyed her, brows raising. "Were you gossiping about me with a cop, Shay? Cute. The differences and definitions of those things depend on who you're asking, and you can only be sure of how individual groups work. With my people, the main 'rule' is to listen to me. Gangs are pretty fucking diverse, so I don't mind the label. I also don't mind Manta Carlos mafia, pretty flattering actually, but there are some pretentious jackasses that would kick up a fuss over--" He cut himself off, squinting. "Waaaitasecond."
"Angelo, feel like I recognize that." He tapped his fingers on the table, restless. "I mean, I definitely know a few guys by the name, but why, with this context…" He snapped his fingers. "Oh! Shit! Officer Angelo Genovese? Is that who you had this disagreement with? Damn." His grin grew again, giddy. "I know that one. Real novelty! No wonder, then. Those with mafia background tend to think they're a little above the rest of us. And I think that's hilarious."
He shrugged. "It's a talent that comes naturally. However, being obsessed with people also helps. Just gotta have fun and be yourself! That sounds about right."
He narrowed his eyes a bit. "Hiding… isn't quite accurate. More a mix of feeling ordinary flashes of things more passionately than most, even if it only lasts for a moment, and biding your time to express the deeper things properly. There's a time and place for everything, yeah? Point being, I don't repress, not fully and not for long."
She was distracting him now, wasn't she? That was fine, he didn't mind, he wasn't painfully fixated on analyzing her, not out loud and at her expense at least. He'd much rather she be comfortable. He could only hope that fake smile would eventually turn into a real one.
"I could, if you've decided you're not going to be running and screaming as soon as you finish that ice cream," he said, sunny at the concept. "I've been helpin' one of my little sisters learn, an' of course have personally directed a lotta green recruits over the years."
Kids were so adorably predictable, in some ways. Sweets fixed everything. Then again, some adults he knew were just as weak to this kind of bribery. He watched her, amused and endeared, for a moment before responding.
"Fulfilling. I get to deal with interesting people, places, and things, and there's never a lack of movement. Keeps you on your toes and at your best, 'cause someone will tear you down otherwise, and the taste of power isn't somethin' you want to give up once you have it. It's not always pleasant, but it ain't all a miserable, cursed life, either- despite what your teachers or parents might say, right after 'don't do drugs'. Especially not in Manta Carlos, where flashy is almost the norm."
The kingpin eyed her, brows raising. "Were you gossiping about me with a cop, Shay? Cute. The differences and definitions of those things depend on who you're asking, and you can only be sure of how individual groups work. With my people, the main 'rule' is to listen to me. Gangs are pretty fucking diverse, so I don't mind the label. I also don't mind Manta Carlos mafia, pretty flattering actually, but there are some pretentious jackasses that would kick up a fuss over--" He cut himself off, squinting. "Waaaitasecond."
"Angelo, feel like I recognize that." He tapped his fingers on the table, restless. "I mean, I definitely know a few guys by the name, but why, with this context…" He snapped his fingers. "Oh! Shit! Officer Angelo Genovese? Is that who you had this disagreement with? Damn." His grin grew again, giddy. "I know that one. Real novelty! No wonder, then. Those with mafia background tend to think they're a little above the rest of us. And I think that's hilarious."