I was browsing through Tumblr a few weeks ago and came across a complaint that there are only a few jobs ever mentioned in fanfics, and there should be a greater diversity when people write AUs. I agreed, and so I decided to try writing some AU fics with different jobs in. This is the second in this little series – with Gabriel as a hair stylist (because let's face it, we can all see him as the completely camp hairdresser who you only visit if you're family or don't know any better) and Sam as a tree-surgeon (although that's not as important). If anyone has some more suggestions about jobs they think AU characters should have, PM me, because I'd love some inspiration! They don't have to be for this fandom, or this pairing, but bear in mind I may not be part of the fandom you refer to. (Yet...). Please review this so that I know how I did, and I'm sorry if either Sam or Gabriel is too OOC. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural or any of the characters, I only own my overactive imagination.
"There we go, darling, we're all done."
Gabriel stepped back and allowed the fiery, red-haired girl to admire her new bob hairstyle in the mirror.
"It's elegant. Sophisticated. I like it very much. Thank-you." Anna gave a small, polite smile before rising to her feet and picking up her clutch from the table. "How much do I owe you, Mr Speight?"
"That'll be £30.50 in total. Great! I'll see you in 6 weeks for a trim then." Gabriel grinned warmly.
Anna nodded, her face sinking into its usual, fairly expressionless state, before sashaying out the door. Gabriel let out a small chuckle at the way she acted. His second cousin seemed to be determined to remain in a state of professional detachment at all times, even with family – it amused him to compare this new Anna with the Anna he had known growing up, joining in mud-fights and wrestling competitions and going 'bear hunting' in the woods.
Then again, they had all changed. If you had told the 8 year old Gabriel that in 20 years time he would be running an upmarket hair salon, he would have burst out laughing and announced that he wasn't gay. Even the 18 year old college dropout would have claimed that he wasn't that gay. It was only when he had gotten desperate at about 22 when all his friends had gained steady jobs that Gabriel had made the sudden, random decision to train as a hair stylist – and he hadn't looked back since.
Smiling at the memories, Gabriel whistled cheerfully as he tidied away the hair products he had been using on Anna and prepared for his next customer. It was a man – quite unusual in a place such as this – and he had been very vague in explaining what he wanted over the phone, so Gabriel decided to leave everything accessible just in case he needed it. You never knew what a customer was going to ask for next – it was amazing some of the things that people would dare to ask for (and even more amazing seeing the expressions on their faces after he actually carried out their outrageous requests).
Right on time, a taxi pulled up outside the glass salon front and an enormous, shaggy haired man got out. He had a hurried conversation with his driver – during which Gabriel allowed himself to admire the way his tight jeans emphasised his almost certainly just as tight arse – before turning and walking into the salon. Gabriel smiled brightly as he stopped just past the entrance and glanced round awkwardly.
"Hi! You must be Sam! I'm Gabriel Speight, the hairstylist here – it's a real pleasure to meet you." Gabriel took a couple of steps forward and held his hand out invitingly.
Sam's posture relaxed, and he leaned forward and shook Gabriel's hand. "It's nice to meet you too. I'm sorry if the booking was a little last minute."
Gabriel laughed. "Not at all, it's fine! Don't worry about it. Now, you didn't really say when we spoke on the phone, but what exactly was it that you wanted done? Just a trim? Or something a little different?" He ran his eyes appraisingly over Sam's hair.
Sam shrugged. "I just want it trimmed a bit, not too much, just so it's out of my face and doesn't get in the way as much. It's a bit dangerous being a tree surgeon and being unable to see because your hair's in your eyes all the time."
Gabriel's eyes lit up in humour. "I can imagine! You might accidentally start the next Texas Chainsaw Massacre – except not in Texas."
Sam chuckled.
Deciding to get started, Gabriel gestured to the chair in front of him. "Right then, I think I know what to go for then – if you'd like to take a seat, I'll just grab the stuff I need. Do you want it washed as well as cut?"
"Please." Sam smiled, and Gabriel couldn't stop himself from grinning back. Gosh, the guy had a fantastic smile – all dimples and crinkled eyes. He was the sort of person who Gabriel loved to make laugh, just because of how sweet it made them look.
Grabbing a pair of scissors and a spray bottle of water, Gabriel made his way over and stood behind Sam. Lifting a plastic cover over his shoulders so that the hair wouldn't get stuck to his clothes (he had nice broad shoulders, didn't he?) he ran his fingers through Sam's hair to gauge how short he should cut it.
"So, are you an independent tree surgeon or do you work for a company?" Gabriel always liked to make light conversation with his clients while he cut.
"I work for Oak and Ash – the local company. I've considered going independent, but my co-workers keep persuading me to stay."
"Oh, really? One of my cousins or something works there – Joshua. Do you know him?"
Sam's expression turned confused. "I know a Joshua – elderly, black, like a grandfather to everyone. He can't possibly be your cousin, you're far too young for that."
Gabriel laughed. "I don't know – he's some distant relation of mine. Well, technically I think he was adopted, but details, right? I have far too many family members around here to remember how I'm related to each one. He's nice guy, Joshua, although very set in his ways."
"You're right about that! He tells Dean and I – that's my brother, by the way – that we're doing things wrong all the time, because we were taught differently. But he's great to have around when something goes wrong."
Gabriel nodded, a memory surfacing as he started snipping at Sam's hair. "I can remember one Christmas, my brother Castiel got a load of new books – as he always did from about the age of 6, the little nerd. Anyway, my cousin Balthazar was messing around and he decided it would be funny to balance Castiel's books on top of the climbing frame, because Castiel was too small to get to the top. Except he didn't balance them properly, and he managed to knock one of them into the pond. Castiel was all upset, bawling his eyes out, but Joshua knew this way to treat a book to minimise water damage, and he somehow managed to make it almost as good as new. He was definitely Castiel's' favourite after that, and Balthazar was relieved, because it meant he didn't have to spend his Christmas money buying a replacement book."
Sam laughed. "I can see how Castiel would be miffed about losing a book – Dean always used to steal my books off me, saying something about how I should get a life. I can sympathise." There was a pause. "Was it nice, having all your family in one place?" Sam's tone was almost longing.
Gabriel would have shrugged if he hadn't been busy cutting hair. "It's not bad. Christmases and birthdays are manic, there are so many people running around, and none of us are that rich so we all have to cram into a tiny house each year. Plus, barely a year goes by when there isn't at least one wedding or funeral that all the family have to attend. I think that's one of the reasons they were so glad when I came out as gay - one less wedding to attend, seeing as it's illegal."
"You're gay?" Sam blurted out.
Gabriel chuckled. "I work in a hair salon. How much more gay can you get?"
"I would have out kissing another guy at more gay." Sam's response was perfectly frank.
Finishing one part of Sam's hair, Gabriel paused, setting down the scissors and crouching down to Sam's eye level.
"Are you offering?" He teased, giving Sam a wink.
To his surprise, Sam winked right back. "Maybe if you do a good enough job with my hair, I might," He replied.
Gabriel covered his shock with a smirk. Waggling his eyebrows, he responded. "Well, that's an incentive right there. I'd better get back to work!"
Most of the rest of the timer passed in silence, with the occasional exchange of a few random comments about nothing in particular. Gabriel could feel the anticipation building. Sam was certainly a very attractive looking man, and from the brief conversation he had had with him, he also seemed to be a very nice one. Gabriel didn't date much – this town wasn't exactly a hotspot for homosexual activity, plus half the population was related to him in some way – but Sam made him sorely tempted.
Finally, Gabriel set down the scissors for a final time and grinned.
"Right, that's all the cutting done! I'll just give your hair a quick wash and blow dry, and then you can see if my work is up to standard." He licked his lips, meeting Sam's gaze in the mirror.
"I can't wait." Sam replied, his tone slightly husky.
Impatient to be done, but also wanting to do the best job possible, Gabriel grabbed his favourite scented men's shampoo – a husky, woody scent but with a hint of sweetness as well, a little like candy but much less feminine – and set it down next to Sam. Filling the basin with warm water, he proceeded to gently lather Sam's hair up, massaging his scalp at the same time. Sam leant back into his touch and let out a sigh, and Gabriel grinned at the fact that his efforts were getting a reaction.
Finishing lathering up, Gabriel started the process of rinsing Sam's hair out, teasing the individual strands until they were clean and smelling divine. He resisted the temptation to lean forward and take a sniff – he didn't want to creep Sam out when the possibility of a kiss was on the table. Plus, if he was restrained and impressed Sam enough, he might be able to get a date out of it – and having his first date in three years with Sam was a very tempting thought indeed.
It wasn't long before all the shampoo was rinsed out, and Gabriel moved onto the process of blow drying, lowering the fancy contraption over Sam's head with a smile and setting it to a nice, gentle setting. He didn't want to mess up Sam's hair, but at the same time, he wished that he could just blow-dry normally so that he could still see Sam's face.
Eventually, Sam's hair was dry and Gabriel could move the contraption out of the way. Grinning, he leant forward next to Sam and brushed an errant piece of hair back towards his ears, before gesturing into the mirror.
"So," he breathed, "What do you think? Does it pass the test?"
Sam pretended to think for a second, admiring his reflection, before turning his head sideways and capturing Gabriel's lips in a sweet kiss.
Gabriel melted into the sensation, moving his hands out to wrap around Sam's neck and pull him closer. He tried to deepen the kiss, but Sam pulled away with a chuckle before he got the chance.
Taking a leap of faith, Gabriel asked, "How would you feel about a date? Maybe tomorrow, dinner at The Fox? I'd love to see you again."
Sam's mouth fell open, before he hurriedly closed it, a grin spreading over his face. "You're serious? I'd love to go on a date with you! How did you know what my favourite pub was?"
Laughing, Gabriel pressed a quick kiss to his cheek in thanks before straightening up – his back was killing him. "There's only six pubs in town, and only three of those serve much other than the dreadful local excuse for a beer. Of those three, one is always full of underage college kids with fake IDs and zero alcohol tolerance, and one if run by my brother Luke, so I'd be terrified to step inside. It's not hard to guess what everyone's favourite is."
Standing up and pulling the plastic cover off himself, Sam wandered over to Gabriel looking amused.
"Luke is your brother? As in, Luke who is actually called Lucifer, who runs what I'm fairly certain is a drug dealership pretending to be a pub?"
Gabriel burst out laughing, collapsing forwards and having to reach out and grab Sam's waist to steady himself.
"Oh, you have an excellent way of putting things, don't you? Yes, that Luke is my brother. Like I've said, I'm related at least distantly to about half of the population of this town. And not all of us are as awesome as me. The one thing I can say for Luke though is that he sticks up for his own. He did a great job of keeping the bullies away when I came out as gay – in fact, he probably still does – and despite the fact that basically everyone who's ever worked for him is doing something illegal, he's always kept every single one of them out of trouble."
"That's always a good thing?" Sam queried.
Gabriel shrugged. "In my book, loyalty is always a good thing."
Smiling at that comment, Sam stepped forward again and gave Gabriel another quick kiss. This time, Gabriel full-on pouted when Sam pulled away, and Sam had to laugh.
"I have to go, I'm meeting my brother and he'll bitch all night if I'm late. You've already got my number, so just call me later and we can sort out tomorrow. Alright?"
Gabriel continued mock-pouting, stretching out his (much shorter) arms towards Sam. "I don't count that as a proper goodbye kiss." He complained.
A glint came into Sam's eyes, and he winked. "Well, I'll just have to make it up to you tomorrow then, won't I?"
"Tease," Gabriel shot at him.
Sam just laughed, before turning with a wave and wandering out of the salon. Gabriel watched him as he left (or rather, blatantly stared at his arse now that he was more-or-less fully entitled to) before chuckling and beginning the familiar process of tidying up ready for the next customer. That had been a very unexpected bonus.
Not that he was complaining.
So was this good? Bad? Awful? Please leave your comments in a review, good or bad – constructive criticism is very welcome, I always love suggestions on how I can improve my writing! And as I said earlier, if you have any suggestions of jobs that you want characters to have in an AU, either for Supernatural or something else, please do tell me in a PM or a review and I'll give it a go!
