Forget Me Not

To the world

Crowley's money really only goes to rent and alcohol. He's bought a few suits that took him back a couple grand but he makes that in a good week. He decided watches would be a cool hobby. That's why Rory needed him to go shopping with him. The lads meet at a watch and jewelry store in Knightsbridge earlier than Crowley would've liked to.

I've never bought a watch before," Rory says while walking into the shop. "This one," he holds up his wrist to show a simple fossil watch, "is my only one and it was a gift."

Crowley squints at the watch. He thinks it looks nice. "It's not hard," Crowley tells his friend, "just find something you think Conrad would wear."

Rory is clearly stressed by that criteria. "But you know he's a brand purest. And he has been such a good best-man." He looks around, as if they aren't the only people in the store, other than the jeweler. "He did save the groomsmen suits. The ones I picked were terrible."

Crowley laughs, "yes, they were." He walks up to a display case and starts to browse. The jeweler, an old gentleman with a Van Dyke goatee, asks if they need any help. Crowley explains that they're looking for a best-man gift and tells him the budget.

"Well, these Casios start at £100," he leads them to a case at the edge of the counter. Crowley can't help but pull a face, looking at them.

"Definitely not." Crowley only needed a glance to know Conrad would hate any of those. Rory asks why not and Crowley bestows his wisdom, "they're clunky. Look at how thick and crowded they are. Also the quality will be lacking. You could pay a few more pound and get something way better." Rory nods his head.

The pair take a bit just browsing the shop. Crowley is looking for Conrad but also for himself. He's had his eye on a Breitling Blackbird for a few weeks but it's more than he's willing to spend now. He happens upon a display case of rings. One ring in particular catches his eye. It's a sterling silver snake coiling around a black stone.

Rory breaks the silence, "so what should I be looking for?" Crowley abandons his ring to look at the case Rory is near. "He's always going on about your watches, so what would you buy."

Crowley takes a second to think about his collection, "I've got a few Tissots and a Bermont Boeing. Personally I'm not a big fan of the metal bands." He gestures to his friends wrist, "I like the fossil. It's tasteful."

Rory looks at Crowley's wrist, "I've never really noticed your watches before. What are you wearing today?"

Crowley feels a bit uneasy as he brings his wrist up. "It's an old one," is all he says. His watch has a black leather band with a cream face and black case. It's simple but very nice. The hours are roman numerals and the hands of the watch are red.

Rory is a few inches taller than Crowley and has to bend way down to get a better look at the watch. "Woah, that's nice. I feel like I've seen you wear that most days. Where'd you get it?"

Crowley takes his wrist back and pulls his sleeve over the timepiece. "Not sure, but yeah it's a favorite," he answers quietly, "I've had it, well, as long as I can remember. It was a gift." This isn't story. He isn't sure how he knows. It's just a feeling but he knows it came from someone important to him. Crowley wants to change the subject. "What about these," he points to a display case he was looking at earlier.

They ask to see a Citizen watch. The jeweler takes a tray out of the case so they can look better. Rory points out a Garrison that's actually really clean. Feel and weight are big selling points for Crowley so of course he's going to try it on before approving it.

As he takes his own watch off, Rory says something that seems so random. "Tony, are you Scottish?" He sees the look of complete confusion and points to the watch in his hand, "that's tartan." The back side of the band has a plaid design on it. It's a tan/cream base with black stripes and red lines. Crowley is still giving his friend a questioning look so he goes on, "it's a design that represents a clan. It's a Scottish thing."

The gears in Crowley's head turn. He clicks his tongue. "I- I don't know. I guess it's possible."

"If it was a gift- like from your father or something- it might be a lead on who your parents were," Rory says excitedly. He remembers the conversation they had the night before and adds, "if you wanted to know."

"Looks custom," the clerk can't help but be curious. He goes on when Crowley looks at him with a quizzical expression, "it looks like a custom watch. I've seen a lot of pieces in my time. I might be able to tell you something about it." Not completely sure about all this, Crowley hands over his most prized possession.

The jeweler handles the watch gently and gives his assessment as he takes it. "The craftsmanship is amazing. It doesn't look that old but it could use a polish." He turns the watch over in his hand, "I don't see any brand so it must be an independent maker." He rubs his thumb over the back of the case, "there's something engraved on the back but I can't quite make it out."

Both Crowley and Rory hang on every word. The jeweler squints, trying to make it out, "uhhh, it's too fine. Maybe with a proper cleaning." He looks back to the watch's owner, "I could do a quick one," he's curious about this family mystery himself. He adds, "on the house. It would take 10ish minutes"

Crowley looks to his friend for support, which he gives with an eager head nod. "Y- yeah, sure," Crowley agrees.

As the jeweler is in the back working Rory and Crowley decide on a Citizen Avion with a brown leather band and green face. Crowley also decides that he'll buy the snake ring.

"So are you Scottish?" Crowley asks as they look at the jewelry section.

Rory gives a little huff, "yeah, Iverson. Rory Iverson." Crowley simply makes a noise in response so Rory goes on, "yeah, my dad- he left when he was a teenager. Him and my gramps didn't get along too well. They got into it bad one night and his dad said to leave and they never spoke again." Rory is looking intently into a display case. For some reason Crowley feels sympathy for Rory's dad. The tall blonde takes a deep breath and says, "I never met him. My granddad died a few years back. Him and dad never mended things."

Crowley takes slow, exaggerated steps towards his pal. He looks down at the same case of necklaces. "That sounds awful. I couldn't imagine if the last thing I did with someone was fight." The mood had come way down.

The store-owner comes out just in time to break the heavy silence. "I was able to revive it," he says cheerfully. All eyes turn to him. He tells them that the inscription reads "to the world." It provides no real lead. Crowley's heart sinks a little and he'd like to go home. He hurries along the purchases, reminding Rory about picking his in-laws up from the airport.

While driving home Crowley thinks that maybe it's a cruel joke, like, "we don't want you so we're tossing you out to the world." That's so sick, he thinks, why would they do that to me? Give me an expensive watch and pay to make it a constant reminder that they don't love me?

He decides he wants nothing to do with whoever brought him into this world. The anger takes control and he rolls down his window. He wants to throw the watch out but his body won't let him. The window comes back up and Crowley drives home in silence.

***
Okay dang, that was a lot longer than I thought it'd be. Sorry for all the brand names and boring watch descriptions but Crowley is a tasteful bitch. I hope you're enjoying, as always, thanks for reading!