Gabriel Engelbert wasn't, strictly speaking, a people person. Decades of living alone had long since eroded any societal niceties that might have endeared him to his fellow man, though it may be said that Gabriel possessed a disposition so naturally dull that it convinced all of his—admittedly small—acquaintance that he wasn't, strictly speaking, a person at all, 'people' or otherwise.
It was therefore with some trepidation that he rose from his seamy armchair to answer the door. The bell had rung twice in the past three days, after a visitor-free stretch of six years and two months. Logically, thought Gabriel—who could think no other way even if he wanted to—it could only be the same man who had called on him earlier. And there wasn't a people person in the world who would have happily invited this visitor in for tea.
"Mr. Hastur," Gabriel said.
The tall man slunk into the flat. Gabriel rather wished he wouldn't, the neighbors were watching, and besides, all that lurking was sure to put him off his supper. "Let me cut to the chase," Gabriel said.
It's not that he was overly fond of using clichés, but rather that he couldn't stretch his brain beyond the limits of the common vernacular. "Did he show up or not?"
Mr. Hastur emitted a short and stocky sort of grunt. "Nah," he admitted.
Gabriel shook his head. Disappointment was a vaguely new emotion. He didn't like it. "Did anyone show up?"
"Some poofter."
So much for specificity, Gabriel thought. "Did you get a name?"
"It wasn't him."
"Why was he there?"
"Wanted to see your bleedin' nephew, didn't he?"
Gabriel found that he was grateful for not having recently ingested any hot beverages, a thought that, unbeknownst to him, was shared by his nephew Anthony several hours prior. "And you didn't get a name? How many times do I have to tell you"—Gabriel had only told him once, but he liked the way it sounded—"if anyone comes to that stupid law firm of yours specifically seeking Anthony, it's going to be him."
Mr. Hastur blinked dully. "That was him? Didn't look like him."
"And you've seen him, I suppose."
"Well…not as such, no. But you shoulda seen what this bugger was wearin'."
Gabriel sighed. "What did he look like?"
Mr. Hastur looked happy to be asked about such an important topic. "He looked…forgive me for saying so, sir, but he looked a bit like you."
"Indeed?"
Mr. Hastur nodded. "Around the eyes."
Gabriel, not forgetting the scorn displayed in Mr. Hastur's voice when describing this particular 'bugger', said, "How so?"
Mr. Hastur suddenly realized the dangerous potential of such a comparison. "He…has eyes," he said.
Sometimes, Gabriel was sorry that he wasn't hard of hearing. "Just make sure he signs it," he said, "we can't start without him, after all."