float like a butterfly, sting like a bee

Thomas H. Zhu "The Ghost" 28, Father, Junior Middleweight Boxer.

[thzhu]

diazisabel:

Isabel wasn’t judging, at all, and wouldn’t have thought it strange that he was eating a salad if he hadn’t offered an explanation as to why he was doing it. Now that her attention was turned to  a different direction, she didn’t know which question to ask first. “That’s a disgusting combination. Why would you ever eat those two close together?”

“Well, there is a perfectly good explanation for that,” he began, though there actually wasn’t. “I was eating the Doritos, going to town pretty hard on a bag. And then my flavor pallet was like, we need something other than the taste of cool ranch. So, I grabbed the Oreo’s and just...well, went to town on those...” He trailed off, staying quiet for a moment. “Mistakes were made. I understand that now.” 

[thzhu]

maddie-york:

Glancing up, Maddie shot the man a quizzical look before smiling, her hands letting go of him as she steadied herself. “I got that, just took a little longer than necessary… Actually, that’s a lie, I’m usually pretty slow with sarcasm unless it’s my own.” Brushing her hair back from her face, she nodded her head gently before glancing back down at her dress, the light catching on some of the some sparkles. “Thank you, so do you, your outfit is awesome.” Looking up from her dress to look over his attire, the girl nodded. “Honestly, it’s so cool, what made you want to go with something like that?” Moving a hand to stop a waiter as he glided past with a tray of champagne, Maddie grabbed two glasses before handing one to her company, a small smile on her face. “I’m Maddie, by the way.”

“That actually makes two of us. Generally I ask whether or not someone is being sarcastic to be sure before I react to it,” he admitted, figuring he owed it to her since she was admitting the same thing to him. “Oh, uh, thanks,” he breathed out, glancing down at his own choice in clothing for the evening,. “Oh, well...I guess because when I think of like...masquerade balls, I generally think of like Casanova and like Romeo and Juliet so a simple suit or tux just cant cut it, you know?” He explained his reasoning, though he wasn’t so sure others would agree with him on that. He took the glass of champagne from her, giving her a polite smile as he did so. “Maddie, it’s very nice to meet you. I’m Thomas.” 

[thzhu]

pjbogden:

“Think what you must, I’m an unreliable narrator. A weigh-in? Oh snap. Boxing? That’s sick. I mean it sucks - I couldn’t survive if my diet didn’t consist of sixty percent Hot Cheetos, but still.“

“Aren’t we all unreliable when telling our own stories? Yep, boxing. The career I chose. Yea, that’s the only part that really sucks to me. I’ve always had a sweet tooth and love just snacking but not really allowed to anymore.” 

[thzhu]

talanzaretti:

“No, I’m judging you for telling me all this now after I got steak. Leaving me hanging, man, I see how it is.” Talan mock scolded Osric, shaking his head. “So that’s why I didn’t see you around at the gym yesterday?” Which having usually always seen the guy around there, he figured something weird was up. “Can’t lie, I’m proud though.”

“How am I leaving you hanging? Can you not eat a steak unless the person you’re with also gets steak?” Thomas asked, almost in a teasing way. “Yea. Well, that and Maya’s class did this fourth grade graduation thing. Couldn’t miss that or I’d never hear the end of it form her mother. But then after that, I went home and went on the snack binge and...you know the rest. Don’t worry though, I’ll be there tomorrow so you won’t feel lonely while lifting weights.” 

[thzhu]

maddie-york:

It had been a rocky evening to say the least. The masquerade ball was everything Maddie should’ve loved, but with an argument with her brother hanging over her, she hadn’t been able to enjoy it. She’d sat at the bar with a couple of friends for what felt like hours, sinking a few shots and cocktails before they’d found themselves on the dance floor. There was something in the air that for a few minutes made Maddie forget everything she had going on. It wasn’t often that the city held events like this and the room was busting at the seems for the amount of people, especially as the night went on.

Stepping away, desperate for another drink, Maddie glanced out at the crowd, a sigh escaping her lips. The alcohol was helping, but there was still something not quite right with her. Spinning on her heel to move back towards the bar, she fell off balance, quickly reaching out for the person closest to her. Clutching onto their arm, she steadied herself, keeping her head down as she staid still for a moment. “I am so sorry, the lesson oft the day can be to not heel spin after a few cosmos.” Reaching down to pick up her fallen bag from the floor, Maddie smoothed her hand over the front of her dress. “At least I didn’t ruin my dress, right?”

This definitely wasn’t Thomas’ scene, not by a long shot. He wasn’t a party person, mostly because he didn’t like drinking alcohol and because he could be a had socially awkward at times. But he had a ticket, Maya was with her mother this week and with the masquerade theme, he kind of felt like he was reliving his college, Halloween parties where he got to dress up and pretend not to be nervous around girls. Plus, the idea of going to a legitimate masquerade party seemed pretty cool to him. His frat had even hosted a couple but no one ever seemed to actually keep their masks on long enough. He hoped that, as adults, the party goers would actually do so tonight. 

He only been there for a little whole before he became someone’s crutch. And out of instincts, he quickly grabbed hold of the woman before him, trying to keep her on balance. “Oh, ha...been there,” he joked, trying to make light of the situation. Though the moment it left his mouth, he realized he was essentially saying he’s worn heels before. “Right, no, I’m kidding,” he nervously added, letting her go. “Yea, that’s...definitely a good thing. You look very nice, by the way...” 

[thzhu]

pjbogden:

“It’s not frat house bad, but… no need to ask questions. I couldn’t do that to your salad - or you rather. So what’s the deal? Are you trying to get lean? Do you get a carboload day? What is said training doing to your life?“

“See, you saying it’s not that bad and then immediately agreeing I shouldn’t ask questions makes me think that is is that bad. Maybe even worse. Uh, no. I’m supposed to be maintaining my current weight. The only time I carboload is if I have a weigh in coming up and I’m under the requirements. But my daily diet consists of about fifty percent carbs already. I’m not supposed to eat junk food. That’s like, the only thing that’s really off limits. Which sucks because that’s the best stuff!” 

[thzhu]

avaselenesawyer:

       “What makes you think I’d give a crap about what you’re ordering?!” Truth was, she was a little moody. Okay, hella moody. She’d been out of work for a month or so now, just having been released from rehab, and she couldn’t return to work and was basically on ‘bedrest’. That didn’t stop the brunette from getting out and about to ease the frustration pent up inside over feeling utterly useless. She would’ve felt really bad for her harsh reply o the person beside her if it wasn’t for her mood, but she added a little something further in attempt of being kinder as opposed to her initial response. “There’s your problem, though. Doritos and oreos.. gross combination, by the way.” Okay, she tried. “If you’re gonna train, stick to your diet. No excuses.” 

His eyes widened at the woman’s response. He wasn’t the most social person to begin with and whenever something like this happened, it made him want to retreat from the public. “Right, but...you see...Doritos, delicious and Oreo’s, also delicious. And the whole salty/sweet combination usually works but...not with those,” he defended. He let out a long, dramatic sigh when she seemed to lecture him, much like his trainer did. “I’ve been training since I was eighteen. I feel like I should be allowed to cheat here and there. Plus, I buy the stuff for someone else and then it just sits there and it’s very tempting when no one else is eating them...” 

[thzhu]

maggiegarrison:

“More for me.” Mags laughed with a shrug of her shoulder. She had full intentions of ordering the biggest, medium-rare streak the place offered in celebration of herself and the past few months. “And next time you’re trainer pops in, tell him everyone is entitled to a cheat day. Or blame your cat… if you have a cat, or even if you don’t.”

Thomas sighed to himself, feeling a little jealous of all the food that was being ordered around him. He was trying to be good though so he was really trying to convince himself that this was the most amazing salad in the world. “That’s...great advise,” he lied, giving her a quick smile in an attempt to sell it. 

[thzhu]

chloewxlsh:

“You’re only a bit older than me, Thomas,” Chloe joked, making a mental note to call him Thomas if he so desired. When he mentioned the way that Maya’s mom was about her grades, it was as though Chloe was having both a flashback and a vision of the future. In her flashback, she saw herself as a little girl, thinking that anything less than an A was bad. In the future, she saw herself as a mother, being exactly like Maya’s mom was. “I’m sure that she just wants to best for Maya, is all. Sometimes, kids need a little push,” she added. “Work hard, play hard, or so they say.”

“Good point,” he said with a small laugh as she mentioned the closeness in their ages. However, she as went on and defended his ex, he couldn’t help but make a face. Not that he was against the woman or anything, he just had a different parenting style than her. “I guess but sometimes too much of a push can be a bad thing. Plus, I don’t know...I think all kids should get to discover who they are and what they like for themselves. My parents had me in an after school activities every day of a week when I was younger and it was crazy stressful.” 

[thzhu]

THOMAS ZHU // MASQUERADE BALL

[thzhu]

chloewxlsh:

Chloe turned a shade of red when the man introduced himself. Of course he was Maya’s father, she could see the resemblance. “Mr. Zhu, I’m very sorry for my assumption,” she apologized, smoothing out her skirt. Maya was the elementary school student that she tutored. “I am Chloe, that’s correct. Maya’s lovely, I actually saw her earlier. We were reviewing fractions,” she explained, taking a sip of her coffee. “She’s been making serious progress since I first started working with her two months ago. You’ve got a fast learner on your hands.”

Thomas let out an awkward, breathy laugh as she apologize, quickly raising his hand to wave her off. “No, no...my fault, shouldn’t stare,” he insisted. “And please, Thomas. Mr. Zhu makes me feel my age and I don’t know how I feel about that just yet,” he added, accompanied with another awkward laugh. “Oh? Well, that’s good to hear. I’m sure Maya’s mom will be happy to hear it too. I told her she shouldn’t worry about her grades, that she was still in elementary and would catch up with her class but, well...you’ve met her, I’m sure you’ve witnessed first hand how insane she gets over perfection.”  

[thzhu]

pjbogden:

“Honestly, I wasn’t even going to comment. But since you said it – I feel like I need to say how thankful I am that no one comes to my place. Ever. I’d say a lot more change would be required besides just the diet. So good on ya’.” 

“You know, I used to be in a frat so I know better to not ask any questions about what it is that you’re doing that others would suggest you stop doing. So, yea...not going to go there...don’t need any images burned into my brain. Not while I’m trying to enjoy this...bowl of leaves. God, this is awful. I want fries, man.” 

[thzhu]

holden-pritchett:

         Holden laughed at the sight of the stranger, knowing that it was just the dramatics of it all. With amusement written on over his features, he nudged the guy, taking a longer gulp of his own coffee. “Hey, think about it though. Imagine how much good karma you would bank up if you did though? That’s gotta last you a couple of months, right?”

Thomas pursed his lips slightly, still trying to decide. The taller man next to him was like the angel on his shoulder, or possibly the devil, he hadn’t quite decided yet. “I’ll just...” He began, reaching into his pocket to pull out a ten and shoving it into the tip jar. “There, the lovely staff can have the money I would have paid for my own drink and then some,” he stated, taking a swig of the coffee and then immediately trying to be manly and not show that a. he hated the taste and b. it burned his mouth. “Thanks,” he breathed out, patting his chest lightly. “Really hits the spot...”

[thzhu]

“Please do not judge me for ordering just a salad. I would usually be all over a steak but my trainer has been all over me ever since he made a surprise visit to my place and saw that I had downed a whole bag of Doritos and carton of Oreo's all by myself. Which, by the way, not a good combination. Don’t recommend it.” 

[all-movie-stuff]

[thzhu]

chloewxlsh:

Too engrossed in her work to really pay attention to her surroundings, Chloe tapped her pencil against the blank page of her notebook, with her laptop and chai latte strategically placed within reach on the table. She had already scribbled down a few equations and calculations onto her notepad when she felt someone’s presence nearby. Looking up from her work to address the other person, the young researcher spoke. “Musculoskeletal mechanobiology and tissue mechanics. Not exactly the most interesting thing to observe while looking over someone else’s shoulder as they work, unfortunately,” she joked lightly.

Thomas spotted her out of the corner of his eye, the familiar face of Maya’s math tutor. He was pretty sure that this was the first time he ever saw her outside of the designated time slot for Maya’s tutoring and the first time without his daughter actually present. He was also pretty sure he had been awkwardly staring too long, which was confirmed when the woman turned around and spoke up. “Uh, uh...” He began to sputter. “I wasn’t...that...you’re uh, you’re Chloe, right? Maya’s tutor. I’m Thomas, her dad. Sorry. I wasn’t like, lurking or reading over your shoulder...I...hi...” 

[thzhu]

holden-pritchett:

          Holden nodded his head toward the opposing stranger when he thanked him, taking a sip of his own drink. “No problem, man. Feeling generous today.” He said after taking a long drink once more and swallowing, “Uh, I mean? I guess so? Doesn’t have to be, just figured… hey, what the hell. Careful though, you might get stuck with a family of five all ordering tall fancy ass frappucinos.” 

Thomas’s eyes widened slightly at the stranger when he mentioned the bill he might get stuck with. He was now beginning to panic because he believed in karma and if he didn’t pay it forward, that could be bad. But he didn’t want to pay a crazy amount of money on someone’s coffee just because someone in front of him bought him one. “This isn’t a gift. It’s a curse,” he breathed out, looking at the coffee in his hand, being way too dramatic for his own good.