#x saffron

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Closed starter: Saffron ( @softlysaffron ) Location: Ocean's house

Why had he agreed to this? While Ocean was glad to have Saffron as a new friend, and while she had been very kind, he wasn't quite sure what had possessed him to offer to show her his work. That wasn't something Ocean normally did. In fact, he even kept his studio in the basement locked, not even wanting his brother to go down there and see it. Ocean used to be so good, and he hated the idea of Forest seeing how terrible he'd become. But maybe that was why he was more comfortable showing Saffron? She didn't know what his work was like before he'd lost his touch, so she would have nothing to compare it to. That was a bit of a comfort as Ocean paced in his living room waiitng for Saffron to arrive.

All too quickly, the doorbell rang, and Ocean hurried to answer it. "Hey Saffron," he greeted his friend, his heart pounding. "Come in." He stepped aside for her to enter, and then he asked, "Should we order food first or something? Ocean knew what he was doing: he was stalling.

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Closed starter: Saffron ( @softlysaffron ) Location: Reynolds Ranch

Ocean didn't even know why he was doing this. Sure, he didn't have much of a social life, and no, teaching didn't pay as much as it should, especially for things like art. But Ocean was a simple man, raised to be the opposite of materialistic, and he didn't need much. So why had he decided to take a second job as a ranch hand? It wasn't that Ocean was regretting it per se, and he wasn't anxious now because he didn't want to work. On the contrary, the ranch reminded him of the commune, and Ocean had taken the job because he thought it might make him feel less homesick. Likewise, it was work he was used to; he'd been in this kind of environment since birth and had done this kind of work since he was a teenager. But what had Ocean nervous was the fact that he was going to be meeting a lot of new people, and he would have to try and be a normal person. Good luck with that, the voice whispered in his head. You're not normal, and they're going to see it. That was enough to almost make Ocean turn around and go home.

But he didn't. No, Ocean stayed, determined to see this through - he'd made a commitment after all, and that meant something to him. So here he was, waiting at the front desk for Saffron, who was supposed to be getting him oriented. Just relax, Ocean urged himself desperately, which of course made it impossible to relax. He sat in a chair near the desk, picking nervously at his fingernails until one of them started to bleed. Great, he thought. This was just the way he wanted to start.