Working on things for the rest of the day passes time quickly enough, though he does often find himself glancing wistfully out the window, watching as the sun gets lower and lower. When it's finally evening again, he closes up shop and wanders back to where his house is, this time being able to remember the route fully. Instead of heading inside, though, he walks across the street toward Dahlia's, knocking on the door. When it opens, he finds that the other Players are already inside. The atmosphere is more tense than the last time he was there. Some people were shifting uncomfortably, while others were standing stock still. They were all looking at him, so he stiffly walked over to the same chair from last time.
"Let's cut to the chase. What we found when asking around about the illness was that everyone had seemed fine the day before, but the next morning, they were found pale with blotchy splotches on their bodies, and their arms and legs had turned blue and purple." Maria steps forward, taking charge of the situation.
"Katherine's body looked like that as well," Dahlia confirmed.
"Most of the victims have been older men and women, but recently, there have been a few younger people. And with Katherine and Charles…well, it's clear something else is going on. This is no normal illness." Maria finished.
"W-what are we going to do? It's only been a day, and people are already dead!" Cassidy is shaking, her arms hug around her for comfort, but it doesn't seem to be doing much.
"Maybe we should just stay inside. If we don't do anything, then nothing should happen to us." Joseph suggests.
"That isn't recommended," Stephen states.
"Exactly, the System said it was here to make sure things were 'fair'. If we simply holed up, I'm sure something would happen. It could potentially even make everything harder for us as some sort of 'punishment'." Maria stated.
"That's horrible…" Marcella sighs.
"What happened with you guys? Do you know what happened to Katherine and Charles?" Cassidy is biting her lip, but the shaking has subsided slightly.
"We split into three groups. Katherine and Charles went to speak with the Night Merchant. Stephen and I didn't get much information. The only thing they talked about was how handsome the Night Merchant was, or how much they hated his guts. Useless drivel." Joseph spits, his face morphing into one of annoyance.
"I got told to look around the tables, the assistant came over to talk to me, and we spoke for a bit. I was going to purchase a statue, but at the last second, he grabbed it away from me, telling me not to purchase anything and running off." Gabriel tells the story for the second time, pausing for a second before continuing.
"We can say with certainty that the Night Merchant is the most suspicious, but I'm willing to hazard a guess that buying an item is what caused Katherine and Charles to die. The Night Merchant must have weaseled them into purchasing something."
"Then…all we have to do is not buy anything, and we're safe, right?" Cassidy says nervously.
"No, it's just like hiding in our houses. It may work for the time being, but something will eventually change. It's better to get more information." Maria shuts her down with a shake of her head.
"If we want information…the best way to do it is to buy something." Gabriel's proposition is met with silence. Everyone in the room shifts awkwardly; not a single person will meet his eyes.
"Fine, I'll do it myself then." He sighs.
"Ah! Wait, no, I-I'll do it too. It's not fair to make you do it by yourself." Dahlia recovers from her earlier stillness, jumping in to try and make up for her previous failure.
"No, it's fine. It was my theory, so it's only right that I confirm it." He says matter-of-factly, though inside he's a bit annoyed. Was he really going to be the only one risking his life here? Cowards. The room had fallen silent as he thought, and in that silence, the growling of a stomach was made explicitly clear. Cheeks reddening, he flushes as the room turns its attention toward him.
"Pft…hahahaha!" Marcella laughs, wiping a stray tear from her eye, "Did you have any lunch today?" She asks sympathetically.
"Just some jerky…" Gabriel mumbles.
"Why don't we all have some dinner then?" Marcella suggests. Remembering the dismal state of his pantry when he left, he aborted the silent nod he was about to give.
"Uhm…can anyone here teach me how to cook?" He asks, his face somehow even redder than before.
"Oh, no wonder you only ate jerky. Come over to my place, and I'll whip you up something. I'm a better baker than a cook, but I can handle it just fine." Marcella invites. Graciously accepting her offer, he waits until the place clears out and follows behind Marcella as she heads toward her house.
Her house was shaped like Dahlia's circular and welcoming, if a bit smaller. There was a rug in front of the fireplace as well as two plump chairs. Marcella offered him a seat, which he gratefully took. There was an awkward tension in his body; intruding on someone else's house wasn't his idea of comfort. But she had offered to cook for him, so he waved those thoughts away.
"You said you bake, is it a hobby or…?" He decides that casual conversation is better than the awkward silence they're in right now.
"It's just a hobby for now, but I do want to open my own baking business one day, just for the fun of it," She responds.
"That sounds nice." He hums.
"Is there a reason you don't know how to cook or…I'm sorry, that was rude of me. I shouldn't pry. My mom always told me I was a terrible gossip." She chuckles.
"I just…never really had time," He says wistfully, looking out the window toward the darkening sky. Though he often cites laziness as a reason, in reality, he was just too busy, never having the time to sit down and learn, always having to rush to a job so he could keep the apartment.
"Aw, that's a shame." She pouts. The conversation cuts off as Marcella gets focused on cooking, the smell causing his mouth to water as it gets closer to being done. Eventually, she appears before him and places a plate with potatoes, meat, and vegetables on his lap, then she plops down in the seat beside him and sits cross-legged with her own plate.
"Thanks for the meal." He tells her, and she gives him a grin. It was one of the best meals he's ever had. It was the taste of a home-cooked meal, one that he hadn't had in a long time. Years spent eating convenience store meals, take-out, and whatever he could find in trash cans behind restaurants and stores. Unbidden, a few tears stream their way down his face, and he hurriedly wipes them off, but it wasn't fast enough to avoid the notice of Marcella.
"Aw, what's wrong, dear, missing home?" She asks gently.
"No, nothing like that. I just haven't had a meal like this in a while." He replies, voice soft. When the meal is done and over with, he helps her with the dishes before taking his leave. With a full belly and a cleared mind, he makes his way over to the Night Market, which is just as lively as the night before.
It doesn't take long for him to find what he's looking for. The statue has been returned to the same table it was on yesterday, completely neglected in favor of jewelry or more practical items. He stalks up to it, snatching it into his hands and marching over to the Night Merchant.
"I'd like to buy this." He says, grabbing out his coin pouch.
"Wai-!" The Night Merchant claps a hand onto Jens' mouth, stopping him from speaking.
"Of course, of course. That'll be one silver coin, please." The Night Merchant announces with a sweep of his hand, holding it open to receive the money. It takes him a moment of digging through the pouch to find it. The currency wasn't one he was familiar with, but he luckily managed to find the right one before too long.
Dropping it in the Night Merchant's hand, the man let out a low whistle and shook Gabriel's hand in thanks. An uncomfortable feeling spread through his body, and when he met the Night Merchant's eyes, all he could see was a hunger, so he tightened his grip on the statue and turned around to leave. Walking as fast as he could, he didn't get very far before he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.
"Wait, you should throw that out." It was Jens; he wore an anxious expression, and when Gabriel tried to meet his eyes, they shifted out of the way.
"Why? Give me one good reason. I bought this with my own money, and you're suggesting I throw it out? Nobody in their right mind would comply unless given a good reason." He spits.
"I…I can't…tell you." Jens mumbles.
"Alright, then I'm leaving." He promptly turns around and ignores the other man's attempts to persuade him further. When he arrives home, he places the statue on the mantel above the fireplace. It's an ugly thing, and it unsettles him to look at it, but that in and of itself does provide a certain amount of familiarity and comfort. Nodding in satisfaction, he changes into the nightclothes and slips into bed. Getting ready for another sleepless night.