Welcome to Hickstead, home to both Seven Oak Stables, and Blue Acre - two rival stables. Both offer opportunities for their clients to reach the highest level of excellence. Each stable differs from the other, so choose wisely and never forget, loyalty is everything... Meanwhile as the stables battle it out, there's trouble brewing at the university. Be careful, if you don't pick a side you may get caught in the cross-fire...
This is an chilled out rpg with a super friendly and relaxed atmosphere! Remember to sign up with your characters full name in all caps and don't forget to do your claims! Thank you and Welcome, we've been established since 10th March 2009 but unfortunately have had to close guest view of our boards due to multiple sites ripping off our hard work, such a shame! Come chat to us in Discord before joining if you like!.
Gideon had an appointment today with someone named Christian. He was excited to hear that there would be a possible new project for him soon. There was something about custom work, and Gideon hoped he made a good enough impression to take the project on.
He made sure the shop was clean and set the appointment up for when they had all the time to chat. His father was handling a few other people, but it wasn’t busy. Gideon nervously stood behind the counter and waited patiently for this person to show up. He hoped his nerves weren’t noticeable.
Christian had booked the afternoon off of work in advance. He was planning on proposing to Ama sometime soon, even though he knew she had an idea that it was happening. After he caught her looking at engagement rings, he knew the idea was already in her head. They had been together for a few years and were even living with each other - so he felt it was time.
He booked himself an appointment with the local jeweler, wanting to see if something custom could be made for the woman he cared for so much.
After working in the morning, he clocked out and headed to his car. It wasn't too far of a drive, so he was parked in front of the jewelry shop in no time. He entered the store and walked towards an employee who seemed to be waiting for someone. "Hi there, I'm looking for Gideon? I made an appointment to discuss getting an engagement ring made?" He couldn't believe it was happening, but Chris couldn't see himself marrying anyone else.
Gideon was met with a large man, someone who screamed blue-collar work. But Gideon knew not to judge anyone about it, since sometimes money could come out of nowhere. It was evident that the giant of a man was Gideon’s client, and he hoped nothing insulting escaped his mouth. Gideon was not in the mood to be pummeled by a client today.
“Good afternoon, that’s me! Christian, correct?” Gideon greeted, offering a firm handshake. “If you wouldn’t mind following me to my office, we can start.” Gideon stepped from behind the counter space and walked over to the hallway that had the separate offices of the artisans. Once the burl of the man was inside, Gideon softly closed the door.
He took a seat at his desk and smiled. “So, let’s start from the beginning, shall we? A love story, maybe even what you want to be presented in the ring?” Sometimes that was a loaded question, but Gideon knew an engagement ring was something that people liked to represent their love for each other. The taste was also important, but it helped Gideon understand a bit more of what was considered important.
Christian smiled when he realized the man he was talking to was Gideon. The other man seemed a bit smaller than him and Christian hoped he didn't look intimidating. It was something he was used to by now - due to the way he looked, but unless he felt threatened there was nothing to worry about.
"Yes, that's me! Nice to meet you, Gideon. Glad that you were able to fit me in. I'm sure with the Holidays coming up you are very busy." He was going to wait until the New Year as it was a little too cliché for him to propose to Ama at Christmas - but the woman already caught on to the idea of the two of them getting married. They had been together long enough! "Of course, lead the way."
Christian nodded and followed behind the other man, making sure to enter the office and sitting down on the chair across the desk from Gideon. "I do feel like we've been dating for a long time now...we've been through quite a lot together." He usually kept his emotions to himself, but when it came to Ama that all went away.
"I'd say as for design ideas...nothing too flashy. She prefers silver in terms of metals." The fact that he was getting the ring custom made would make Ama even happier. She was far more creative than he was.
“So more than a few years, I presume?” It wasn’t something new for Gideon. People often stayed dating for a few years, while some knew after a few months. He never judged and would happily work with anyone. If they wanted something flashier, he sent them to Mina. So far, Christian was matching Gideon’s vibe on design. Granted, he could do flashy – but there was someone else that loved that stuff.
He wrote down silver and simple and thought for a moment. “Okay, great. Do you have an idea of a stone you would like to consider? There’s the obvious choice of diamonds, but there’s also a lot of colors in that spectrum – along with other gems like sapphires, emeralds, and so on.” As he let Christian mull over that question, Gideon grabbed his design book – preparing to show him a few other customs he had done for a few of his clients.
"I'd say at least ten. Though don't tell my girlfriend if I've gotten my numbers mixed up." The triplets were seven years old already and they had been dating long before they were born. He knew that it was a weird series of events, as people typically got married before they moved in together but their relationship was different.
His mind wandered to remember what kinds of ring designs that Ama was looking at. "I did catch her looking online for ring designs recently. It's what got me thinking about actually proposing here soon..." Christian felt the pressure, which wasn't coming from Ama. The fact that she owned the bridal store, meant hers was the wedding that everyone else was looking forward to. 'I do remember her looking at a clear diamond with a triangle shape?" It was the one she showed him that stood out to him the most. He still wanted her to have something that was simple - but the triangle cut diamond did give it a bit of a different vibe to it.
"She was also looking at some rings with colored stones, though please don't ask me to name any of them." He chuckled, knowing he probably should have done his jewelry research before storming into the shop.
Gideon smiled with a small nod. “I won’t tell, I promise.” At least Christian wasn’t someone that was trying to propose to their side piece. Gideon had that happen once, and he often refused – but sent them to another shop. Maybe it was his morals getting in the way of a sale, but he didn’t like the idea of his name being attached to something like that.
“Oh, so there was a bit of a clear hint then?” he laughed. “Well, at least it makes things a bit easier then?” Gideon opened the lookbook and nodded as Christian continued to mention taste and options. He took everything in before finding a few options.
It was a bit of a mixture of random, but so far Gideon only knew the metal type. Which was better than nothing! But he wanted to help weed out a few other things, to mainly see if it was a solitaire or something different like a halo. Also cut. Baguette versus pear.
“Out of these options, what screams out more to you?” Gideon asked, placing the four options in front of Christian.
"Thanks, I appreciate it. I don't think she'd cut my head off but, she would be a bit mad if I didn't remember how long we've been together down to the second." He laughed, knowing Ama wouldn't care as long as he didn't say they had only been together for a few months. Christian was usually good at telling time but time had seemed to stop ever since he started dating Ama, which was a good thing.
Christian nodded, it was a huge hint. Like a sign standing right in front of him. With his previous relationship - which resulted in him proposing and her cheating on him - he was hesitant to propose again. Though he knew Ama better than that. "I think it was more than just a hint. Should have seen it a mile away." Though proposing to her at Christmas was a little too cliché. "I was hoping to surprise her though. She knows it's coming but I can always randomly choose a date right?"
As Gideon pulled out the options, he started tapping his left foot against the carpeted floor. This was the first sign of nerves that he got - it was becoming real. He glanced at all four options, all of them stunning in their own way - but only two of them spoke to him. "The triangle one and the one with the smaller stones around it. Those two would fit her taste the best."
“I think that’s fair. I mean, people can agree that it is something they both want. I mean, it makes sure you’re both on the same page, right?” People often always say that women and men would act surprised – but Gideon was often sure that some type of hint, or conversation was had. “Well, you were thankfully smart enough to see the blinking sign. There are some people that need a verbal saying…”
He nodded when Christian mentioned the ones that he liked. “Great! Did you like the original stones, or did you want something different? We can make it more customizable to whatever you would like. We would need a few weeks to make it that, or can just the stone.” He would happily do whatever since a sale was a sale. Granted, being custom would add a lot more cost versus ready-to-buy.
"It would be a little awkward if we weren't on the same page. Have you heard stories like that working here?" As Ama was in the wedding industry, he had heard about the crazy brides and their dress needs. He didn't understand why people could act like that - it was part of preparing for the happiest day of their life. "Yikes, those people exist? I like to think I'm an observant person. Granted, I know her pretty well." Not paying attention to him meant that the relationship wasn't working - or someone wasn't interested enough in their partner.
He took another glance at the rings that had stood out to him after the question was asked. "The iridescent one I like the original stones. Though for the triangle one, I'd change the color of the center stone. What would my options be for that one?" Even though Ama wanted something that wasn't flashy, he still wanted something unique. A triangle stone wasn't something he had seen before and it seemed like a ring he could see Ama wearing. "Preferably something lighter in color."
“Sure, sure.” Gideon grabbed another book out and found a few examples in the same setting. “Here are two options. One is just a grey moissanite and then there’s the standard diamond. We can customize it to anything, really. We have a few champagne diamonds and lighter strains of salt and pepper. We do have some turquoise and opal, too – but those aren’t as strong. Especially for everyday wear. If there isn’t anything in stock, we can work with our supplies to find something as well.”
He turned the book towards Christian showing the two examples, before grabbing a book from one of his suppliers to show possible options.
Christian should have known that there were several options when it came to choosing rings. He had bought an engagement ring before, but this time was different. It sounded cheesy, but he had a feeling Ama was the one. "Wow, I really appreciate this. I do think the turquoise stone would be more her style. Did you have a sample of it?" He didn't mind if it wasn't the exact ring, just one with the turquoise stone was perfect.
It made the ring feel more special that it would be custom made. He also knew it would be unique, also always happy to support local businesses when he could. "I do think I'll have my decision made soon. How would the process go after this?" He assumed it was a matter of ordering, paying and waiting for it to come in - but everyone had their own steps to go through. "Her ring size is 7." Christian was glad it was something he memorized - her family had told him once he knew he was ready to start ring shopping.
“I don’t have a sample of it in the ring, but I can show you some turquoise stone options. You can flip through this book since I don’t have any that are cut to that size specifically yet.” Gideon handed off the book grabbed a small notepad and began taking a few notes, things he remembered from the top of the conversation. He quickly jotted size 7.
“The process is quite easy. Pretty much, once we find the style and parts and pieces you want, you just need to let me know what your timelines look like. We have a minimum four-week turnaround but can be longer if things need to be sourced or cut. Fifty percent downpayment which will be deducted from the overall final cost. The final product can be shipped or picked up, whatever is the most convenient for you.”
Christian nodded, he knew that the store wouldn't have everything available to look at. "Thanks, I'll have a peek." He opened the book and was slightly overwhelmed with the tones of turquoise available. After a few moments of looking at the page, his eyes spent a bit more time on one stone option over the others. "I'll go with this one. I know she did say she didn't want anything flashy, but this is her style." He kept his finger on the one he had chosen. The blue was cooler in tone and looked nice with the crackles of silver.
As the process was explained to him, he nodded again. It seemed like the standard protocol for ordering something. "Sounds perfect. We can go with the turquoise stone with the triangle cut and silver for the ring metal. I'm fine with coming and picking it up too." A smile came to his face, realizing that he was actually going to propose to Ama. Their relationship had been a wild rollercoaster ride, but it was time for him to put a ring on it. "A month is fine, though if you need more time I'm flexible."
