Gaara let him ramble. The thought of setting another foot in any grade school made him want to dissolve directly into his seat, but the sheer passion from his seatmate caught his attention more than twenty pages on the projected chemical waste of industrialized versus rural counties in the tristate area, and by the time the bus fell silent again, he realized he had already slid the book back into his bag without a thought.
“ I work for Suna laboratories in their Konoha satellite office. It’s the new research center downtown, by the hospital.” All chrome and glass, a multi-million dollar investment by the big wigs at headquarters. He had moved up north less than a year ago, but his work and general introversion precluded him from immersing himself in city life, and he had barely stepped away from office grounds save for his morning walks and lunch breaks.
“On most days I take the earlier bus. But there is a project deadline coming up next week, and the work needs to get done.” The early evening bus was the one they most often shared: Just late enough to miss the surge of nine-to-five commuters, but not late enough to draw the attention of the wrong sort of people as they waited at their stops in the dark.
“I enjoy it, though. Discovering parts of the world we have never known before, because nobody has thought to look.”
this man doesn’t look at him funny like a lot of other people do. even his fellow staff-mates, his friends, tend to give him the ‘you’re going on too long’ or ‘you’re getting too loud’ looks. the redhead merely watches and let him finish his rambles, and goes on to respond in kind. it’s hard to tell exactly what he’s thinking, and he thinks that’s half the allure...
the word ‘laboratories’ means he works for something in the science field, or so he’s guessing. it sounds important, if he were brought to konoha specifically to do his research. lee is impressed, and doesn’t even quite know what the man does yet.
“that sounds very important, indeed! do you make discoveries often in your field?” lee would never trade his job for anything in the world, but that didn’t mean he didn’t enjoy hearing about other people’s careers. especially ones that they were passionate in.
“though i hope they do not work you too hard. i understand the importance of hard work and dedication, i try to instill that in the little ones, but it is also very important to rest and relax your brain like your muscles, or else it will not grow.” he doesn’t need to be preaching to this man and yet there he goes. lee feels his cheeks grow hot again, and he wonders if all this blushing is going to increase his calorie burning. after a moment, he realizes he’s been referring to his seat mate as ‘stranger’ in his head this entire time. he would very much like to know his name.
“i have yet to introduce myself, my apologies. my name is lee,” and he’s reaching out a hand to shake.
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