Quiet Company: A TGSC Short

Headquarters
Tokyo, Japan
August 2015

“Are you and A mad at each other or something?”

“What?” Mack looked up at Peters, who was holding two mugs. “What – no, no. We’re not mad. Why? Is she mad?”

“Nah, man.” The American set down the first mug on Mack’s coaster, “Touta and I just noticed after passing by the office yesterday. Or was it the coffee shop?”

“Coffee shop,” Mack replied. He glanced into the microscope and scribbled something on the paper to his left, “A and I were in the coffee shop and we were just hanging out while we could. It was the only time we were free. You and Touta were out rounding someone up, I think.”

“Yeah. And then we got there,” Peters took a drink from his mug of coffee, “Well. We passed there. But we saw you and A doing your own shit. A was busy on her laptop while you were reading your biochemistry books while also reading the shit for the investigation. You were ignoring each other. Touta was about to come in and ask if you two were arguing.”

Mack blinked and thought to the previous day; upon remembering, he merely laughed and shook his head slowly. “Okay. I think I know what you’re talking about. See,” he closed the notebook and set down the pen, “A and I just need…time off sometimes. And we understand each other’s mutual need for peace. So every week or two, we go out and do our shit while not minding the other. It’s something we agreed on doing,” he explained.

At that, Peters looked relieved. “Shit, okay. That makes sense.”

“You and Touta thought we were mad at each other?” he sounded nearly accusatory; Peters lifted his hands in surrender as if to shield himself.

“I fucking swear that’s how it felt.”

“We’re not,” Mack insisted. “If we were, she wouldn’t have given this.” He gestured towards a box and Peters picked it up with a free hand. Based on the information, it was a box of English teas. “She picked it up after seeing it this morning. Perfect really, it’s the brand I missed,” he murmured, taking the box from Peters and fishing out a new packet.

“I’m still surprised that A isn’t into tea despite her Englishness.”

“Half,” Mack reminded. He dropped the packet into his mug of hot water and let it rest, “Half-English.”

“So just for the record–”

“A and I are good friends who enjoy each other’s quiet company. We get each other snacks sometimes and use the other’s introversion to charge back to a hundred percent,” Mack explained. “We have a system that works very well. We are not fighting.”

* * * * *

The first time it happened, Mack had just ordered his tea and was sitting in a secluded booth, reading his notes about the case intensely while sketching possibilities into a spare notebook. He applied each detail into the sketch, eliminating improbable ones and trying his best to help the Squad decode what exactly had happened on that case.

As he was about to finish, someone had bust in with a laptop and charger. Mack had barely looked up when the space across was taken, he blinking and looking up to see a flustered A setting up and trying to fix the rest of the things she had brought.

“A?”

“Shit, I’m so sorry – but is it okay? The rest of the stalls are full and this is the only one that has a proper fucking outlet nearby,” she explained while plugging her laptop at the same time. “It’s the fucking case, I need to get myself in check before I end up mixing details.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Mack nudged away his other belongings and she threw him a grateful look before sitting and immersing herself into her work completely. “Er – you want something to drink?”

“The largest café mocha they have and a slice of cake, you pick for me,” she replied instantly. Mack blinked yet shrugged it off, calling over a waitress and ordering her coffee as well as a large slice of cheesecake. Upon looking at A and seeing the badge on her attire, the waitress nodded sympathetically and sped off to prepare her food. Mack glanced at A.

“Do you need me to stay quiet?”

“Keep doing what you’re doing,” she answered shortly. Mack merely nodded and turned back to his work, taking the earphones from his pockets, plugging it into his phone, and playing some music for himself before going back to the task at hand.

He didn’t know how long they were there. A kept ordering drinks and Mack had his tea replenished; before they knew it, A slumped back into her seat looking utterly exhausted yet satisfied at the same time. Mack bit the cover of his pen.

“Alright?”

“I think I can relax,” the Englishwoman admitted. “I…I think. Christ.” She looked back at the laptop and made a face, “Shit. Whoever the fuck invented this many poison needs to be stopped.”

“They might be dead,” Mack wisecracked. A rolled her eyes.

“Thank you for the information, Captain Obvious.”

Half an hour passed until Mack set his pen down, rubbing his fingers and slowly rotating his wrist. A looked at him, “How’s it?”

“Bloody amazing. I can feel my wrist on the verge of splitting apart.”

“Try a compress,” A suggested. “Or a pain killer. I have the latter in my bag.”

“No need, no need. I’ll try the compress when I get home,” the other sighed. He rotated his wrist counterclockwise this time, “I’m nearly done with the sketch.”

“So we can finish it hopefully by tomorrow?” he nodded and she exhaled, running her hands through her hair. “Best news I’ve heard today. Thank you.”

“It’s not a problem.” He was about to wave it off yet kept his wrist in place. “Hey, A?”

“Yeah?” she had just finished her water and pushed her glass away. “Hm?”

“This kind of arrangement seems to help us,” he stated truthfully. She blinked. “Both of us working on our own solo thing. We don’t talk much but at the same time, we don’t ignore the other completely.”

“Right…”

“It’s like our introvert charging period.”

“Our introvert charging period,” she repeated. He nodded yet again.

“We’re introverts. We draw energy from ourselves. We do that, but at the same time the other is like some kind of nice reminder that we aren’t going through this shit by ourselves.” Mack shrugged, “It’s a nice, comforting way of being there for each other without actually distracting them from work.”

A pursed her lips. “…I like it, actually.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” She nodded. “Can you do once a week or twice every two weeks?”

“First is preferable but second is more likely.”

“True,” she sighed. Despite that, she gave him a smile. “Guess we have our own arrangement then, Thomas.”

* * * * *

“And all of that started when?”

“We’ve been doing it for six months and counting.” Mack stretched and soon took out the tea bag, “It’s a nice way to bond without the need for alcohol or the world’s shittiest small talk.” This made Peters snort with laughter.

“Right, right. That actually sounds interesting.”

“It’s a nice way of bonding,” he smirked at Peters, “Without actually having the desire to kill. Unlike you and A.”

“Hey, now. We’re trying to be more civil.”

“If you say so.” Mack’s eyes saw A from a corner. “Try it. It actually does work wonders.” He waved and she waved back before entering somewhere else and Peters couldn’t help but laugh.

“I’m taking your word for it.” Peters caught her leave and he exhaled, “If we actually do get along even more, I’m ready to eat my sock.”

“Please don’t.”