PERHAPS IT’S BECAUSE HE’S NOT QUITE USED to the idea of being open about what he is, who he is, while everyone in forks seems … oblivious to remaining secretive. he’s lived his whole life in the shadows, having been deemed too weak by his father to live with other vampires, all while reminding the man too much of johnny’s dead mother to be raised as a human. he can smell more supernatural beings in forks than he’s ever met in his life — and his heart’s racing almost constantly, but especially in front of the bookstore worker, he notes, his eyes still wide.
❝ TH - THOSE ARE VERY WISE WORDS. ❞ he had previously held the notion that the other man held knowledge johnny did not possess, though now he can see something else in the man’s eyes — FEAR. johnny has seen it ( felt it ) in so many people, in the eyes of dying friends and terrified strangers who johnny hadn’t been able to calm down before they passed — no matter how hard he had tried. he feels the tug of grief in his chest, the familiar heaviness of failure, and tries to smile to rid himself of it. but when has that ever worked, really? his smile disappears when he hears of the animal attacks, however. ❝ if … if the animal wasn’t found, how did they know it was attacked? ❞ he feels foolish, and grimaces slightly. ❝ i’m sorry, i - i don’t much keep up with he news. ❞ his features soften once again, this time apologetically, as the other says he’s sorry. ❝ oh, no! don’t be sorry! i was the one stumbling in with no real questions to ask, ❞ he admits, and quickly adds, ❝ i - i’m … i’m johnny, by the way. thank you, for — for being so kind. ❞
THERE IS A CERTAIN DEGREE OF CONTROL he still has over his transformation and that’s what keeps him sane. as someone who craves control, to be in a position where he’s lost all of it is a compromising one. his scent his different and he’s sure there are things about him that will never be the same, yet in the daylight, he can pass as nothing more than a simple human. one day he will find himself the same age when he should be visibly older, aging with his twin sister. at least he’s more confident in his body, as it will never change again.
❝ I SUPPOSE SO. ❞ he shrugs, not thinking too much into his response. this man is certainly giving him more credit than he deserves. regardless, everything he’s seen has led him to believe the stranger is genuinely kind and not putting up a front. yet, that’s what he usually believes and isn’t he usually incorrect? maybe it’s safe to give the other the benefit of the doubt. if percy was to be murdered in cold blood, he’d be dead already. that’s the most comforting thing he can think of at the moment. ❝ oh, i think you misunderstood... people were attacked by an unknown animal... killed, even. ❞ if not for his own paranoia, percy would have kept his nose out of business that wasn’t his. he gives a grin, opening up at the apology and extending a hand across the counter. ❝ oh, of course. i’m percy. well, percival, but my friends call me percy. ❞
