up in smoke

It’s Dark Inside || Lessa & Josh

#p: lessa #p: it's dark inside

lessacallahan:

The different emotions that seemed to flash over his face insuch a short amount of time left Lessa a little worried. Nibbling her lowerlip, she tried to follow his words as he floundered through them. Okay, so hesaid he wanted to hang out. If she took his answer at face value, she riskedpushing herself on him. If he didn’t mean it. What were the odds he meant it?Rubbing her hands over her face, she blew out a breath. Clearly, he was as nervousas she was. “Uhm…yeah. I mean, I’d like to hang out. I just…I don’t want youto feel like you have to,” her voice trailed off as she blushed a deep red. Wasshe even going about this the right way? “Uh…is there anywhere you prefer to go?” It wasn’t like she couldinvite him back to the rebel base. Somehow, she didn’t think Josh would want togo out for coffee or something like that. With a helpless glance around, sheshrugged before her eyes lit on the far end of the park. The stable she likedto escape to wasn’t too far from here. Glancing down at her phone, she smiled.Perfect. This time of the evening there was hardly anyone there. The horseswould already be fed for the night and the staff would have gone home, save forthe older gentleman who lived on site. She turned back to Josh shyly, the smallsmile still on her face. “I actually know a place. There won’t – uh, won’t beanyone else there. It’s where I like to go, when I need quiet…” she addedsoftly.

The fact that she was just as nervous as he was made him feel a little bit better about the situation, even if he felt guilty for thinking that way. It wasn’t that he wanted her to feel awkward and uncomfortable ( he knew quite well that it was an awful experience ) it felt... nice not to be alone in it, for once. Even if she wasn’t the one who deserved it. “No-- no, of-- of course not, I... I want to, uh... hang out, too,” he tried to reassure her, offering the brightest smile he could -- at least, without showing his teeth. Somehow, he felt a mouth full of razor-sharp fangs might give off a different impression... in any case, it was another source of shame to tack onto his ever-growing list. He scratched a bit more insistently at the back of his neck at her question, wondering just where in the world he could even go while looking like he’d crawled out of Dante’s Inferno. Anything too public was immediately disqualified ( he’d caused enough of a panic for one day, he thought ) and his own apartment was... well, it was less than presentable. “Not... really,” he admitted, biting his lip, though he seemed to grow slightly less apologetic as a smile lit up her face. Had she figured something out? “Oh, perfect! Uh, where... where is it, exactly?” Hopefully it wasn’t too far, but if it was... well, he could always try to teleport. It wasn’t a perfect science but he did ( secretly ) pride himself on being able to gain a smidge of control over the ability.

At Your Service

#p: ian #p: at your service #thats ok!

doctorrylow:

Ian started back into the hospital, but stayed when he spoke again. “Of course,” he said genuinely. “I would never.”After a pause, he added, “I’ll be right back,” and jogged into the hospital again. He grabbed the first kit he found and made sure it was enough before coming back to the alley out the ER doors.“Okay, um-” he realized he still didn’t know his name. “Sorry, I didn’t catch your name. You can give me a fake one if you want.” He had had people balk at the question in the past.

He sighed with relief ( and was rewarded with a sharp pain in his chest ) at the doctor’s answer, even if he wasn’t totally sure he believed him. It was nice to think, even for a moment, that he wouldn’t be so harshly judged for his appearance -- and therefore his mutation. Especially when he was in such dire need of medical attention. When the man returned, he did his best to straighten his back, not wanting to seem impolite in spite of his injuries. “Oh, it’s-- I’m Josh,” he wheezed, before adding as an afterthought, “It’s-- that’s not a fake, uh, name.” He didn’t think he could think of anything too convincing, and either way, he’d accept consequences as they came.

It’s Dark Inside || Lessa & Josh

#p: it's dark inside #p: lessa #them both: *worried about forcing their company*#me: ACCEPT THAT UR LIKED GDI

lessacallahan:

“Oh…yeah, I guess not,” she said, looking at his registration tattoo before realizing he probably meant for more obvious reasons. Lessa smiled softly at his response, glad to get another smile out of him. What did it matter if it was a little white lie? The fact that her week not being terrible hinged on the fact that she hadn’t left the rebel base, hardly even her room, was hardly here nor there. It could have been a hell of a lot worse, and that’s what she needed to focus on. She smirked to herself, thinking she could now add ‘almost being eaten’ to her week. Watching him bite his lip out of the corner of her eye, she wondered if he already regretted inviting her along to…wherever. It wasn’t as though he’d likely set out looking for company for the day. For all she knew, he was desperate to get away from her but felt obligated to her to stick around. At least he seemed genuinely grateful for her help, so there was that. Standing up and brushing her hands off on her thighs, she stepped over to Josh, shyly extending both hands in an offer to help him up. “I don’t,” she said quickly, shaking her head slightly. It was her day off and no one was expecting her anywhere. She hadn’t gone into this day with an expectations or plans other than to get out of the base and hopefully feel slightly less miserable. Thus it was a surprise that she found herself actually a little bit happy to be talking with Josh. Even if the beginning of their encounter had been less than ideal, she had felt useful, and it had felt nice. “I mean, today is my free day…and I didn’t have any plans. But – I don’t want you to feel obligated…you know. To hang out with me. I’ll be fine if you uh, would rather be alone…” The dream had given her more than enough of pushing herself on other people.

Part of him was always painfully aware of how lonely he was in the world, even among people who were mutants like himself. Unlike most, his physical appearance was radically different from the norm, and had made him an instant target throughout his life -- especially since it was far from what could ever be considered beautiful. Some metas could go through life completely undetected, and if there was ever an end to the feud between them and humans, they might even be able to enjoy being seen as desirable. But where did that leave him? There weren’t any benefits to his curse, and being downright hideous to most was only the least of his worries. Maybe that was part of the reason he fought so vehemently for isolation -- not just for others’ sake, but to make sure he’d never be subjected to the pain of being an outcast again.

In the process, he made himself more of one.

Panic flared in his eyes for half a second as she mentioned obligation, and he wondered for a moment if she felt that way herself. Had he been pushing too much? Had he roped her into an interaction she wanted nothing to do with? He couldn’t blame her for not wanting to spend time with someone like him, but all the same... the thought that he could’ve been overstepping his boundaries made him horribly anxious. “No-- no, it’s okay. You’re-- you’re not... I’m not... if you, uh-- if you want to, uh... hang-- hang out, I’m-- I’m okay with that,” he sputtered, trying not to seem as visibly apologetic as he felt. He didn’t want to trap her, but what if she was thinking the same thing he was? He couldn’t have that, either. “We can, uh...” He trailed off, looking around. “Do-- where... I don’t know where we should go....” His tail curled behind him nervously, and he reached back to scratch at the nape of his neck. Admittedly, when it came to indecision he was one of the worst offenders -- he much preferred others to make choices for him.

At Your Service

#p: ian #p: at your service

doctorrylow:

Ian exhaled slowly and lowered the man’s shirt again. He stood up slowly and crossed his arms, thinking. He could get a kit and patch him up out here, but it wasn’t the greatest of ideas. He could but he really didn’t want to. He sighed. “If I ask you to come inside, you’re going to say no, right?”

And then he had an idea. A fantastic idea, if he said so himself. He could patch him up, temporarily, and send him to the clinic! “Wait right here. I need to go get a suture kit. Try not to worry, okay?”

His tail twitched nervously behind him as the doctor confirmed what he’d already known, and for a long moment he didn’t meet his eyes. How could he let himself inside the hospital in a state like this? Regardless of his injuries, he didn’t doubt that he’d cause widespread panic. At least out here, in the shadows, it was a lot less likely that someone less sympathetic would see him. “I...”

Before he could continue, the doctor addressed him again, and he nodded gratefully. “I-- I’ll try,” he said, relaxing back against the wall. Maybe things weren’t quite as hopeless as he thought they were. “Thank-- thanks again. For, uh... for not... you know...” he took a few short, shallow breaths, “turning-- turning me away.” It was far more than he’d expected, at least.

It’s Dark Inside || Lessa & Josh

#p: lessa #p: it's dark inside

lessacallahan:

Poor thing almost looked like no one had ever been nice to him before. Which, given the state he had just been in, was not overly surprising, sad though it made her. Her heart rate had finally slowed to where it didn’t feel like it was trying to win a race and Lessa actually felt calmer. While she was no longer trying to reach his mind (after he had started talking, it felt rude and invasive), she continued to at least try to project the feeling of calm that she had now achieved. While it might not actually do any good for Josh, it made her feel better to think she might be helping. She gave him a bright smile while waving off his gratitude. “No, really. I uhm – I don’t have many friends. I’m not…very social, I guess.” Especially not lately. Half beast or not, he was at least someone she hadn’t slept with in the dream world, so she could look him in the eye. She almost wished she could tell him that, and how much she appreciated him for it. But then she’d be back in the same boat of wondering if he was judging her the same way she felt everyone else was. “So really, it is nice to meet you…like I said…” she finished lamely. Lessa almost, almost, questioned why he would spend the whole week to himself before flushing and realizing what a terrible question that would be. “I can sort of relate, to trying to be alone, that is…” She gave him another small smile and shrugged, almost apologetically. “This is uh, one of the first days in a while that I’ve left the – left home,” Lessa said ruefully. She cocked her head curiously at his question before her eyes widened slightly in surprise. “Oh! Uhm…yeah. Did you – did you want me to come with you?” In retrospect, she should have realized he wouldn’t want to hang around here too long, but she was surprisingly pleased when it sounded like he wanted her continued company.

Unbeknownst to him, his relative calmness wasn’t entirely of his own doing. While she’d ceased projecting into his mind, the calm she exuded did him some good -- at the very least, it allowed him to rest out in the open without worrying that threats were honing in at every moment. So long as he was in public, that was a good thing; the instant he became seriously threatened the monster stole the reigns and the incident he’d been found in was back far, far too soon. For the moment, however, it was easy to forget that just minutes before he’d been trying to rip her ( and everyone else’s, for that matter ) face off, an idea that very rarely left his mind. “Oh, I--” He broke off, wondering briefly if he’d accidentally overstepped his boundaries, but continued on all the same -- at least in the hopes that he could redeem himself. How? He wasn’t sure. “I... I don’t see... uh, too many people either,” he admitted, though he felt that fact was obvious. How many people wanted to stop and have a conversation with someone who might try and kill them? Even while human, his registration made his closely guarded secret less easily kept. “I’m... well, I’m glad it’s-- I’m glad it hasn’t, you know... been terrible,” he said, smiling gratefully. Things could’ve been a lot worse, he knew ( as did she, in all likelihood ) but it felt nice to talk to someone he didn’t feel was caught up in his fearsome appearance -- another thing that felt all too rare in his life. He bit his lip, again worried he’d become burdensome somehow, but he finally managed to swallow down the worst of his anxiety and nod. “I--I mean... if you want. I... I won’t keep you, if you’ve got, uh... you know,” he paused, taking a breath, “you know... other things to, uh-- to do.”

At Your Service

#p: ian #p: at your service

doctorrylow:

Ian could tell he was handling this well because he could practically feel the nervous energy and adrenaline radiating off of him. Part of it was probably the actual getting shot, but part of it was fear. Ian had seen this before. He turned around and Ian blinked in surprise. He gave himself four seconds, and then back to what was important.

“Just like that,” Ian said with a nod. He breathed a little easier. “Okay, good news: there’s an exit wound.” The bad news was his difficulty breathing made Ian want to bring him inside to patch him up, and he could almost guarantee this guy would run for the hills if he suggested it.

He cast his glowing, snake-like eyes downward as the doctor examined him, trying to keep himself from getting too anxious. The downward spiral his anxiety caused was what had unfortunately gotten him into this mess in the first place, and a repeat of the situation at this point would’ve been disastrous... especially when he was so near a hospital. It was bad to lose control in an environment of innocent people; vulnerable innocents was much, much worse.

“And-- and the bad?” he wheezed, craning his neck to look back at the doctor. While he was glad there wasn’t a bullet lodged in his chest, each breath he took seemed to come with worse and worse pain, and he wasn’t optimistic enough to believe there was only good news. Whatever the case, he really hoped he didn’t have to be seen like this by anyone else -- it was risky enough to expose himself to a doctor, and what would they do once they saw he was registered?

It’s Dark Inside || Lessa & Josh

#p: lessa #p: it's dark inside

lessacallahan:

Ugh, that had been such a terrible joke. She shook her head again, groaning slightly. “No…it really, really was. It was…it was awful.” Lessa smiled up at him. “But…thank you for, you know…pretending it was.” She listened to the words tumbling out of his mouth, wishing there was something she could do to help. The poor guy looked so distraught and it hit on all her protective instincts. Steeling her nerves, she actually gave Josh’s clawed hand a squeeze. “R-really. It really is.” Pulling her hand back slowly, she gave him another smile, this one slightly wider. She leaned back on her hands and tilted her head to study Josh again. He was a peculiar mix of human and…something. The thought crossed her mind that maybe he was stuck in some sort of half and half state, whatever his meta powers may be. Lessa was racking her brains for ways to ask what was going on exactly, but it didn’t quite seem the time to broach the subject. First and foremost in her mind was trying to keep him relatively calm and also showing that she wasn’t afraid to be near to him. “So uh, how has you week been? Besides, you know…besides today?”

Josh offered the barest hints of a reassuring smile, making sure not to show his teeth -- the last thing he needed was to make his already intimidating appearance any worse. Even if she hadn’t shown any fear outright, the stench was still more than noticeable ( whether it was from right then or from before he’d calmed down made no difference to him ) and it almost made him feel sick. “Well, that’s-- thanks,” he said, grateful that she was making an effort to be kind to him, even if he didn’t feel he deserved it. He thought that most people would be more prone to setting the authorities on him than making friendly conversation ( let alone touch him ), especially when his first impression had likely started with him trying to kill her. “I, uh... I ap-appreciate that.” More than she knew, with everything that’d happened recently. “It’s-- it’s been alright. I’ve... mostly just, uh... been keeping to my-myself, really,” he admitted, a slightly awkward smile stretching across his lips. “Has yours, uh, been... been good?” Part of him was tempted to find a way to ( discreetly ) disguise himself again, but given how much energy he’d wasted on being thrown into a rage, he wasn’t sure he could manage it -- even so, being out in the open and looking like he did was far from safe. “Do... you, uh... want to get out of here? Before--” he glanced around, “--you know?”

metafinnwinchester

Training Time || Finn & Josh

#p: training time #p: finn

metafinnwinchester:

“No, no, don’t be sorry,” Finn said, his tone reassuring while he waved a hand dismissively. “Trust me, I’ve taken worse hits before. And bullets. That was nothing.” He put on a genuinely brave face for Josh, not wanting him to feel any guilt for that pretty sweet move with his tail. This was what they were here for––fight training. Obviously there would be a little bit of pain and injury on both sides. No pain, no gain.

He let out another exhale, bouncing on the balls of his feet in anticipation to move on. “That’s good though, not thinking,” he commented. “In a real fight, you typically don’t have much time for thought. Stopping to think about how to counter or block someone coming at you, especially with a weapon, could end up getting you killed. It’s more like acting and reacting instinctively, y’know? You good to move on?”

He felt slightly better about his attack as Finn reassured him, but his guilt wasn’t assuaged completely -- as long as he was fighting, it was unlikely it would be. Every bit of pain he inflicted, however willing the other participant, was a source of distress. Even so, he’d agreed that training was something of a necessity at this point, and as long as Finn wasn’t hurt terribly, he thought he could live with the feeling. Things had worked out relatively well so far, hadn’t they? “If-- if you’re sure...” he replied, his tail curling nervously behind him.

“I, uh-- my-- my instincts... they’re not-- they’re not very, uh... reliable,” he admitted, grimacing. Truth be told, when it came to fighting they were too reliable. Everything was a threat and he had a nasty habit of dealing with them in the quickest and most violent way possible. In a real battle, it might’ve served him well. In normal life, it was a menacing curse he couldn't rid himself of. “But, uh-- I’m-- yeah, I can.... I can continue.” He paused. “I’ll... if you, uh... if you want,” he added hastily, not wanting to seem too eager -- or too hesitant.

At Your Service

#p: at your service #p: ian

doctorrylow:

Ian listened carefully to his breathing, seeing the bullet past his skin and bone and muscle. “Well, you may be anxious, but that’s not why you’re having trouble breathing.” Something about this guy told Ian he could handle the news. “I need to see if there’s an exit wound, which means I need to see your back, okay?”

Another spike of anxiety shot through as the doctor spoke, though he really only confirmed what he already knew -- he’d been shot, after all. There were bound to be injuries, even if he was more durable than humans were. “O-okay,” he mumbled, coiling his tail to rest against his feet as he turned to face away from the doctor, hoping he didn’t look too terrible. It was bad enough he was forced to rely on medical help at all, and being unable to disguise himself while doing so was just another horrible stroke of bad luck -- something he was used to. “Like, uh... like this?”

Going Ghost || Josh & Teddy

#p: going ghost #p: teddy #*shades teddy but also myself*#josh height is a social construct im smh

irlclairvoyant:

After months without Josh, they were just glad to have their best friend back in their life. They didn’t even care that he had been gone for so long. What mattered was that he was back. When he gave them permission to hug, they went in and held him tightly, even though it must not have seemed too tight to him since they were small and their strength was limited. “Try not to just disappear again? Or at least, try to say good-bye next time, alright?” They asked softly, looking up at Josh with a pleading gaze. “I’m not going to make you promise anything, but I’d like knowing if you weren’t like… Going to completely disappear.”

Even after agreeing to the hug, he was still slightly surprised that they followed through -- and tightly, at that. At least, as tightly as someone their size could accomplish. Even so, what surprised him more was that he hugged back ( almost ) as tightly as they did, holding back just enough so that he didn’t accidentally hurt them. They, unfortunately, were just as fragile as any human on the planet, albeit much smaller than average. “I’ll-- I won’t,” he promised, squeezing them a bit tighter. It was difficult being away from them, which for someone who depended on isolation, was strange for him -- strange, but not unwanted. “I-- I promise. I... I didn’t...” He trailed off, stepping back so that he could look down at them, holding them gently by the shoulders. “I didn’t... want to leave. I-- it’s-- it was... complicated.” More complicated than even he knew.

It’s Dark Inside || Lessa & Josh

#p: it's dark inside #p: lessa

lessacallahan:

She watched him as he spoke, noting that he seemed to finally be relaxing a little. The thought made her smile widen. “I don’t know…I wouldn’t say, uhm…obvious. You could be like a uh, a super awesome cosplayer?” she tried to joke with him. A really poor attempt at humor. She realized in retrospect that bad jokes were not likely to help matters. Grimacing, she shook her head. “S-sorry, that was… a really awful joke.” She hung her head for a few moments of awkward silence before looking back up at him. “But…you didn’t. Hurt anyone, I mean…Even after I got here…you could have. You could have hurt me, but…but you didn’t.” Lessa glanced down, fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. The way she had charged in had given him ample opportunity to hurt her. Kill her even. She looked back up at him with a slight smile. “More importantly…you, you obviously don’t want to…” The more she focused on his distress, the more she forgot about her own. She scooted a little closer, until she was within arms reach, close enough to touch. “I think… I think that’s the part that matters.” Maybe that was the part that she hadn’t been able to reach behind that wall in his mind. After he introduced himself, she reached her hand out slowly with a small but sweet smile on her face. “Well Josh..I will say it. It’s…it’s really nice to meet you.”

“A, uh... a-- a what?” he asked, shaking his head after the question fled his lips. Obviously it was meant to be a joke, and even if he didn’t understand it, he offered a quick chuckle just to be nice. Besides, he’d always known that explaining jokes often ruined them, and the last thing he wanted to do was appear stupid or out of touch, even if he was. “No, no, it wasn’t-- it wasn’t that bad, I just-- it wasn’t that bad,” he tried to reassure her, though whether reassurances were needed ( especially from a proper monster ) was debatable. “I’m... that’s, uh... a good thing. I-- I don’t know what-- how--” He broke off, a deep sigh escaping him. He certainly didn’t want to hurt anyone ( while in a human mindset, that was ) but it seemed to be getting more and more difficult to keep himself from doing so. In fact, how he’d managed to refrain this time was a mystery all its own, whether or not it had anything to do with the stranger’s abilities. “I... hope so,” he mumbled, more to himself than to his opposite, glancing up ( in surprise ) only when she’d scooted closer to him. Few people were daring enough to look past his fearsome exterior; fewer still could do so without disastrous consequences. “I just... I don’t-- I don’t know.” All his life he’d been told the opposite. Surprise stayed rooted in his expression as she held a hand out to him, and ( carefully ) he reached to take it in a gentle shake. “I-- really? I mean-- it’s... same-- same to you.”

It’s Dark Inside || Lessa & Josh

#p: it's dark inside #p: lessa

lessacallahan:

Finally starting to feel slightly more calm, but no less out of her depth, Lessa took multiple deep breaths. Trying to follow his stuttering, she half grinned, realizing with a start just how flustered they both were. “Uhm…how did I stop you?” Or did he mean how did she communicate with him? Did it really matter in the end, since they tied together? His nature…powers…whatever, obviously weren’t under control, so he couldn’t be CARMA, right? She took a leap of faith, basing her gut feeling solely on the situation, and scooted closer to him slowly. “I’m…I’m a meta. So uhm, my powers maybe?” She wasn’t really sure how to explain she could communicate with animals in a way that wouldn’t come across as insulting. Lessa stopped moving closer when she was a few feet away, trying to look him in the eyes. “It’s really okay…I mean,” she paused. “You don’t… you don’t have to apologize.” Not when he so clearly hadn’t wanted to do what he had done. Deciding her best bet was to get him thinking about other things, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled. “I’m Lessa…what’s uh, what’s your name?”

Her smile made him feel better about the situation, of only a little. It was better than the fear and hostility he was used to when encountered looking like he was straight out of Dante’s Inferno, and at this point he’d take what he could get. “I, uh... yeah-- yeah,” he confirmed, watching curiously as she scooted a bit closer to where he was sitting. It wasn’t usual for anyone to be left unharmed after he lost control, and the fact that she had was both of interest and relief. “Me-- me too,” he chirped as soon as she admitted to being a meta, but realized right after it was a rather stupid thing to say. “I mean... obviously,” he finished, reaching to scratch awkwardly at the back of his neck with a clawed hand. Anyone who looked at him for more than half a second could see that he certainly wasn’t human, let alone one of the lucky metahumans who’s appearance didn’t chance. The lucky ones that had more invisible abilities. “Still... I-- I could’ve hurt some-someone and...” He trailed off, grimacing -- why couldn’t things be easy, just once? Regardless of whether he should’ve continued to apologize or not, he was grateful for the change in subject. “Josh. My... my name’s Josh,” he answered, trying for a smile. “I, uh... I’d say it’s nice to meet you, but...” But the feeling probably wasn’t mutual, given the circumstances.

At Your Service

#p: ian #p: at your service

doctorrylow:

He lifted his shirt and Ian moved it aside to try to get a better look. Right between the ribs, so at least it hadn’t broken bone, but it could have hit his lung. He couldn’t quite see.He asked if it was bad and Ian tilted his head, deciding he needed to pry a little. He switched his vision on while he tried to talk the man down. “Well, it doesn’t seem to have hit your ribs. You’re still standing, talking, breathing- How much trouble are you having? Breathing, I mean.”

He suppressed a hiss as the doctor moved his shirt, the tip of his tail smacking lightly against the wall behind him. “Uh-- some-- some, I think,” he managed, still trying to hide the wheeze in his tone, “thought-- thought I was maybe... just-- just anxious.” Except anxiety didn’t generally make it burn every time he drew in a breath ( a pitiful excuse for one, at that ) and rarely impeded his breathing to such a degree. Even panic attacks often failed to be so difficult, and they could make him feel like he was dying. “May-maybe...”

At Your Service

#p: ian #p: at your service #its all good lol

doctorrylow:

Ian thought he saw movement, but in the dark he couldn’t quite tell. As he stepped closer, he kept the warning in mind and his eyes widened. Right. This was fine.

“Okay,” he said after a second. Only a tiny hesitation. Doctors were good at taking action. “Where were you shot? Can you show me?”

As nice as it was that the doctor had managed to keep his promise, he assumed the brunt of it was due to the shadows he still insisted on hiding in -- the better to mask just how horrifying he truly looked. “I... here,” he rasped, lifting his tattered shirt just enough to reveal the seeping wound at his side, right between two of his ribs. “Is-- is it bad?” he asked, clearly out of breath -- not exactly a good sign, given the site of entry. “It... feels bad.”

areumhaneul:

“Really, really. That was being my fault, and I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that; you’re really too kind to try and take the blame.” Hans assured, keeping the friendly smile in place; but desperately trying to move this all along. The sooner he was able to actually manipulate Josh, the better. And he didn’t exactly have patience to spare, if at all; to keep this charade up for very long.

As they were finally moving towards the agreed location, it took just about everything in Ha-neul to keep composure; to play nice. “Yep. And I’m glad, I mean really, it’s like being the least I could do. Considering I was sort of an asshole back there, I’m just glad that you’re so forgiving. I’m pretty sure anyone else would have argued back with me, and called me all sorts of insults. Not let me take them for coffee.” The shorter male joked back, trying to lighten the mood between them a bit. Then nodding along, as Josh explained why he was out in the first place. “I see..what uhm…sort of errands to you run at the mall?” Hans asked with genuine curiosity. Typically errands took place at markets, or other types of stores; not really the mall. Or at least in his book, maybe the guy was looking for something specifically found at the mall, for some odd reason. “Well, I was trying to get some of those flyers out to people. Self promotion for an event I’m holding this weekend, I DJ, you know…make music. I only go to select locations though, whenever I do these sort of things. Usually people around our age you know, and with…taste. Music wise, fashion wise, etc.” Hans explained, as the finally reached the cafe.

“If you want to find us somewhere to sit, I’ll go place our orders and bring it back. Just tell me what you like.”

“It’s--it’s fine, really. I-- I should’ve... I should watch where I’m-- where I’m walking,” he replied, not wanting to argue but not necessarily content to let anyone else take the blame. He’d always been taught to put himself beneath humans ( or those with a human appearance ) and taking the blame for any and all faults was part of that process. They, after all, were rarely at fault for anything -- he was the abomination worthy of nothing but the worst of their mistreatment. If that meant letting them drag him along to get drinks after he’d messed up, so be it -- he couldn’t argue without feeling severely uncomfortable, even if accepting something like that made him feel the same. “No-- no you’re-- you were fine. I-- I didn’t, uh... I didn’t think you-- you were that bad,” he said, continuing to walk beside Ha-neul as he led him to the cafe in question. Even if he had felt he’d been harsher than necessary, it wasn’t his place to admit that.

“Oh, it-- it’s noth-nothing, really,” he answered, shrugging slightly. “Just some, uh... rep-repair stuff.” No need to mention what they were for, of course -- that wasn’t information he wanted to divulge to anyone, least of all a perfect stranger. There was no telling who would be out for meta blood these days, with everything that’d happened in Pansaw that year. It seemed like every day there was something to raise the tensions between their species. “That’s-- that’s cool,” he said as the other man explained his own presence at the mall, though truthfully he had little interest in events like those. Music wasn’t a large aspect of his life, and neither was fashion for that matter -- his clothing, tattered and worn down, were obvious signs of that. Even if he had any interest in either, his financial situation would’ve stopped him, anyway.

As they finally reached the cafe, he chose a spot that he thought was relatively secluded. “I’ll, uh... you can just-- just order me, uh, what-whatever you’re having.”

#c: ha-neul

It’s Dark Inside || Lessa & Josh