I've Got Issues. So Does Everyone (Jael)

[Sam Kramer]

SAM KRAMER

The streets were filled with people none the less. There were civilians of all shapes and sizes, baring the nipping winds and freezing temperatures, to go about their lives. All sorts of bright colors littered the sidewalks, as most people had very interesting and different fashion senses. The most intriguing that could be found was a bright purple ensemble with alternating neon green and pale yellow, square buttons.

The young man couldn't help but enjoy observing the original kinds of people he saw on his way around. Samuel had always been the keen observer, silently watching from a distance and taking mental notes of the quirks and ways that people carried themselves.

Normally, this was a good thing for the kind of work that Samuel was involved in. It helped out in certain situations where you had to figure out if the man standing infront of you was another human that had woken up on the wrong side of the bed, or some type of demon that was intent on tearing you limb from limb and ripping your heart out. Unfortunately, in the world that didn't consist of these nightmare creatures it would be considered a little perverted to stare at somebody for a time that was long enough to tell the type of person that they were. So, Samuel had to do it discretely and briefly. It was his everlong obsession to keep his eyes open and his brain alert. Trying to discover the traits of an individual simply on the way that the person looked, was constantly looked down on... but it gave him something to do.

However, this particular hour of this particular day was not the time to 'people-watch' as he liked to call it. Samuel had been working long hours at the office trying to finish up the paper work on one of the cases the team had solved a few weeks ago. Everything had been settled in the long run, but he needed to mark it up and collect the information is the finishing part of the report. After sixteen executive hours spent in his small and cramped office with trips to the bathroom being the only thing that he permitted himself too, along with the occasional cup of coffee. Food was a different story though, it took too much effort and distraction to eat. So, now that he had a moment of peace, Sam planned on eating a decent meal.

Whoosh!

Once the doors to the Cafè had opened, a large gust of wind blew in from the outside streets. Standing all alone in the doorway, stood the young man known as Samuel Sullivan. While he had dressed warmly enough for the weather, as noted by a incredibly warm looking overcoat on his body. However, forgetting to wear gloves and a hat, his fingers and ears did not receive enough protection from the harsh winds outside. They looked red, chapped and sore. At second glance though, it was easy to notice that they would not have any everlasting damage done to them by the cold.

Unzipping his jacket all the way down, so that he would not get hot now that he was inside of a building with heat and insulation, the young man took a few seconds to look around at his surroundings. Samuel had always been taught to do that before he did anything else, it was for two purposes. The first was too make sure there wasn't someone already in the room that could be dangerous to his safety, the second was that if an accident happened or a creature came into this area... god forbid if that should happen, he would know where all of the exits were and the obstacles or objects he could use to his advantage.

Clarifying that the shop was clear, and making sure that he knew five decent facts about the layout of the area, Samuel took quick strides over to the front counter so that he could look at the menu and get his food as quickly as possible.

It only took a few moments to locate the exact item that he wanted to consume, a large bowl of chicken noodle soup and a few bread rolls. It was simplistic, yet delicious and warming for his body. Follow that up with a cup of coffee... black with two sugars and three milks, and Samuel would have the perfect meal to satisfy his needs. Reaching the front of the line, he smiled at the employee who would be taking his order.

Waiting for his order at the counter, rather than going and sitting down, waiting for them to bring it to him. Samuel couldn't help but rest his head against the wall, a sudden spout of exhaust hit him like a ton of bricks. He hadn't slept a wink for a good thirty-three hours, and the lack of sleep was starting to affect him. Especially since, he barely had any proper sleep for a long time, that going for so many hours without even nodding off, well it hurt like hell.

His attention shortly shifted to the employee and once Sam had taken his order, he went and found a quiet seat at the back of the joint. He wasn't one for mingling, he preferred to keep himself to himself.

[Jael Daugherty]

Waiting, as always, Jael stood against the wall, her gaze taking in all of the scene. Her position near the back of the building gave her a good view of what was happening. It was your standard coffee shop, really, the sort Jael had seen thousands of times. People coming in and out, and spending time together eating food.

Again, for the millionth time or so, Jael wondered whether these people knew how good they had it. They got to talk to each other, eat stuff that satisfied them, build friendships and just enjoy each other's presence, all without the knowledge of the time they would be able to do this no more. They could walk about with no concern for the afterlife, in many cases because they didn't believe in one, in other cases because they believed it to be so far off as to be no concern. But the afterlife was everywhere, watching them, keeping tabs on their actions for when the time came for Judgment.

Jael was an agent of that afterlife, and she had none of the luxuries these creatures that she watched over so diligently enjoyed. She had no need of food, walked around unseen and unable to bond with others. Sure there were some creatures on this plane that could sense her, but the only ones she could really talk to were the ones who were dying. That was never a cheery conversation.

Her gaze settled on a figure coming through the door. Her subject today was a man of forty-five years of age, a brunet, successful in life with a good deal of money and possessions. He was laughing as he walked in, flanked by two of his colleagues. They wore well-tailored business suits, and carried briefcases containing notes from the cases they had coming up. As part of a well-known local law firm, they were recognized easily, and spent quite a bit of time shaking hands with other patrons before finally giving their order to the attendant.

She was so intent on watching this group that she almost did not notice the figure who took a seat in the booth nearest her. He was alone, and seemed quite tired. She sensed that he was not a bog-standard human. That made him more or less the only one in the place, aside from Jael herself.

The man in the suit was giving his order, while making good-humored jokes with his friends. They made a wonderful sight of life at its best, lively and attractive. Too often did Jael find herself attending old men and women whose lives had run course, who had become resigned to their fates and pessimistic about anything. This would be a fun case, Jael decided, at the same time that she felt bad for having to see the end of this man's life.

The group of lawyers got their food and settled into a booth not far from Jael, still heavily and somewhat loudly conversing about old cases and the city and this and that. Uproarious laughter burst out from among them from time to time.

So absorbed in their conversation were they that they did not see the woman near the front of the shop move forward suddenly, pulling something out of her coat. With shaking hands, she raised the pistol in tow hands as she approached, and, without a word, fired one shot, hitting Jael's quarry in the chest. Then she ran, shoving through people crowded around the entrance and high-tailing it back out to the street.

One of the other lawyers jumped up, barked instructions at the other before sprinting out of the shop himself, hoping to catch the shooter. The remaining lawyer yelled, "Call 911! Someone help!" while removing his suit jacket to press against the first lawyer's wound. It would not be enough. Jael pulled herself off the wall and made her way over to the lawyers.

He was not dead, but on the way there, and he began to see her form taking shape as she approached. With a small inward sigh, she reached out her hand to him, even as his friend panicked and tried his best to save him.