How I Disappear

Chapter 7: Simple Man

And be a simple kind of man.

Be something you love and understand.

Baby, be a simple kind of man.

Oh won't you do this for me son if you can.

"You from out of town?" asked the girl at the checkout desk as Abaddon handed her the clothes he'd picked out. It was the first time he'd had a chance to get some new clothes since his arrival. He just picked out an extra pair of pants, some new shirts, and a hoodie, all of which were black.

"Where you from?" she asked smiling over at him. Abaddon glanced up at her. She had bleached hair, falling down to her shoulders. She was wearing a white crop top and a pair of jeans, and was almost bending over the desk. At her closest she was a foot and a half from him.

"Way out in the middle of nowhere." said Abaddon, "You wouldn't know it."

She smirked as he handed her some crumpled bills. As she stuck them into the register, she glanced alluringly back at him.

"Anything else i can..help you with?"

Abaddon replied, "No thank you..." he glanced at her name tag, pinned to the strap of her crop top. "Kara."

She smirked at him again, handing him his bag. He could still feel he eyes on him as he walked out. It impressed Abaddon how much clothing stores had grown since the 1940's (and how much clothing had decreased in size).

Checking his watch, he slipped into a nearby outdoor supply store. Walking past rows of camouflage and sports balls. he stopped when he reached a formidable array of knives.

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Hunter's mother had told her that Megan would be visiting, and that she shoukd try to have some fun with her cousin before they were both off to college, but if this was what Megan considered fun, then she and Hunter must be complete opposites, because Hunter had been dragged from one end of the mall to the other, been in ten different stores, and the process had only been slowed by the fact that Megan seemed to be stopping every ten minutes to flirt with every remotely good looking college guy within eyeshot, and Hunter was still awaiting the "fun" to begin.

At a certain point, Megan got into a particularly long conversation with a tall blonde guy, and Hunter gave up waiting for her cousin as soon as there was an exchange of numbers, and went over to sit by the fountain under the center skylight, reading Supernatural fanfiction off her phone.

"Hey, there you are. You kinda disappeared."

Really?! Thought Hunter as she looked up from her phone at her daintily smiling cousin.

"Nah." replied Hunter, "You were just too busy cruisin' for a hookup to notice."

"Oh come on," said Megan, tilting her head slightly, gesturing to the blondie standing by the Aeropostale, "Tristin's nice, and he's got a friend, his name's Nick, I could set you guys up."

Hunter glanced past her cousin at Tristin, and standing beside him as an equally tall college guy, his brown hair down to his ears.

"Thanks," said Hunter, "But I can get my own dates."

"But you never do." said Megan, insisting.

"Sorry, I gotta go one last place before we go." said Hunter, darting her eyes around for somewhere to escape to.

"You sure?" said Megan, and before even waiting, she was back almost superhumanly fast to Tristin, her cheeks getting redder.

Pocketing her phone, Hunter quickly stepped into the nearest store to her, befre Megan could ask Nick to try and flirt with her, and almost as if Fate wanted to rub it in, she bumped into someone walking out. Losing her footing, she felt herself falling back, and just as suddenly she stopped, the impact didn't come, and she realized she had closed her eyes.

"We really must stop meeting like this." said Abaddon, "Its not fair for me not to be able to greet you formally."

Hunter opened her eyes and found herself looking up at an unnecessarily grave-faced Abaddon, clutching a bag in one hand and holding her up by her waist with the opposite arm.

"Thanks." she finally said after a tense five seconds.

"You know," said Abaddon, after Hunter was standing straight up again, "The way I was raised, when you see a person so often, its courtesy to get to know them...that way you have something to say next time you see them."

Hunter looked up at him quizzically.

"Well...you wanna exchange phone numbers?" she blurted out suddenly. Abaddon raised his brow, smiling softly, and when what she had just said sank in, she flushed deep red again.

"If you want........maybe I should leave." she added, looking away.

"I'd like that." said Abaddon, smiling, "Would you like to give me yours and I'll call you or......?"

"Hey Hunter!"

Hunter jumped as Megan suddenly appeared in front of her, smiling widely.

"You done?" she asked, "Tristin and Nick just invited us to lunch................there's something behind me isn't there?" she said after Hunter regarded her with an annoyed look and glanced past her at Abaddon.

Megan turned around and her eyes widened as she took in the tall, pale, and darkly charming figure of Abaddon. Megan was half a head shorter than Hunter, so she had to crane her neck to look up at Abaddon's face.

"Can I help you miss?" he asked, looking down at her quizzically.

When Megan could finally speak, she turned back to Hunter and breathed out a, "wow."

With a glance down at the stupefied Megan, Abaddon pulled out a receipt and a pen and handed it to Hunter. Smiling, she scribbled her phone number on it and handed it back to him.

"I'm hoping to hear from you." she said. Abaddon smiled in response, some color appearing on his pale face as he stepped through the door.

A full second later, Megan tore her face away from the door and said, "Where do i get one of those?"

Hunter stared blankly down at her cousin, "Try a bookstore."

The expression on her cousin's face that followed her response was hysterical.