"No, I don't know what." 

That was the first, most reasonable response Asher could manage to issue as the man spoke, but it was as condemning as anything else Asher had said or done that made him suspicious. Just the sheer speed and certainty he replied with only would likely prove to confirm Jacob's creeping suspicions - if they weren't already concrete enough for him to say, beyond a doubt, that the other man in front of him in the parking lot was anything but human. To Asher however, his denial was adamant and he was fearful to get involved much further, let alone seemingly agree with the "rambling, crazed man" as he would later mull over. The worst part was, as mad and irrational as the other man sounded, Asher knew he wasn't wrong, and that alone? That... well, it struck him harder than much of anything else, and the fact another individual could sense it added only more pressure.

[i]"I'm going to be late for work. So...uh. I'm just going to go."[/i]

"You should see a doctor, or -"

Was all he managed to reply as the man carried on, his attention anchored to the ground as he set his hands on his hips, adding after;

[i]"I'm going to go to work. I guess we can pretend we never met, if you wanna keep this up."[/i]

Doing his best to listen, and for the moment hold his tongue, lest he either prove challenging to the man - who Asher could sense anxiety from, just as Jacob could from Asher - or prove too meek. Either way, both options were equally bad; either the man in the suit trying to talk to the other who had been so hurriedly speaking was going to instigate an incident, or he was going to let one transpire later on down the road... both were bad choices, and both he readily feared.

Asher's eyes fixated on one of the man's hands as he reached into a pocket; it was in that moment his heart skipped a beat, as just a few hours prior it seemed another man had taken a very similar action, and found himself meeting a violent demise. One that was bad enough that not only did the crime scene investigators have little to understand, they had little solid proof - at least for the time being. All in all, they'd could to believe a tiger was on the loose, and to some extent that was entirely true, just not the kind they imagined, let alone could fathom.

But now?

Now Asher Tybalt's heart started again as the man drew out a pair of car keys and issued his parting remarks before departing as swiftly as he had appeared, leaving Asher - and the woman in purple - where they were. Or so Asher believed...

Turning about to see the woman's reaction, he realized, startlingly so, that she had seemingly vanished into thin air, which was a tremendous oddity all it's own; people didn't just disappear, but then again, could she? Perhaps that was the feeling he got from her, but it didn't seem to match or align well, as she had an almost animal tempo; an underlying presence. Yet she was gone without a trace, and as Asher's shoes ground against the asphalt, he looked around in confusion and found himself alone again on that early morning - the world around him kept going, as if no one had noticed or cared about the events that transpired. Sighing with relief, he too reached into his pocket and withdrew his car keys, running the grooved edge between his fingers and examining the metal before walking slowly toward his car.

Approaching the door, he laid a hand upon the handle and inserted the key. With a gentle rotation the door opened and he proved to sit down in his small car only to look back into the rear view mirror. His eyes narrowing, he noticed he was already slightly disheveled - strange, as no real altercation took place. Adjusting his tie, running the knot back closer to his neck and throwing his coat in the seat beside him, he turned the ignition and prepared to leave this strange event behind him.

Or so he wished he did.

----

[b][i]Asher Tybalt[/i][/b]
[i]Approximately Ten Hours Later[/i]

Attentive eyes fixated on faintly illuminated blue digits, they seemed not to blink for an eternity - or at least what felt like it. It was one of those rare moments where staring at the clock one didn't feel all that purposeful; it was all just a blur of numbers that never seemed to increase. Hanging there as they were, the driver of the vehicle remained just as tense in body as he did in stare with a blank, perhaps expressionless manner to his face - his mind far, far away. 

It was one of those times he was remembering a lot more than he cared to, and trying to rationalize it all. He had to, at least for his sake right now.

This other man, whoever he was, broke a lot of that rationalization and false confidence he had given himself - it was as if he couldn't pretend anymore; that the world he knew was alright, and that everyone but him in it was as well. Previously it was only him - that one individual with a problem - but now, now someone else not only knew but was so casually confident and concerned? Right now, these few hours he sat here in his idling car, he needed to steady his response and consciousness on the matter. It was of such great concern that it hovered about him the entire day; for the first day in many he had hardly accomplished any work. His "condition" was what concerned him, but what concerned him even more, to the point of distraction, was that someone else [i]knew[/i].

It was now he relaxed, with a deep breath and closing of his eyes, hands now resting on the steering wheel rather than tightly grasped; the time rolled around to a quarter to six. Removing them from the wheel, car parked in the back of the lot, he rubbed his eyes slowly before adjusting his tie. Ceasing after a few prolonged moments, he glanced to his left, blinking and sighing; the familiar car of the man from earlier remained there.

Asher wasn't about to walk into a crowded store in this scenario - that was the last thing he needed.