kyriff | 001. every story is a song // open post.

That's good. I think it kind of suits you, though.

[Then, after a furtive glance and a shy look.]

And you look nice like that. You must get a lot of looks in the office.

[ Aaaand, he is just going to pour himself a glass of that drink he bought and not even going to ask for a coke because -- how bad can it be, right? ]

Actually, [ a bit of hesitation, and then: bottom's up. ] Some.

[ He's not quite sure how he feels about the attention at the office, but at least it wasn't as nerve-wracking as wandering through Shin Yamatai's "entertainment district". ]

Oh?

[Somehow not surprised. Josh really IS good-looking, and he only looks more handsome now that he's making more of an effort to be presentable.]

And has anybody... you know...

[Ehehehe.]

[ He laughs helplessly and pours himself another drink because wow, who knew this stuff tasted so good.

To Rethe's question, he just shrugs. ] A lot of talking mostly. I'm-- [ he hesitates, just a little ] --I'm Gabriel's PA. [ Glorified secretary, he might have said glibly, except that it wasn't that. Gabriel Marlowe was a good teacher and every single day there was something new to learn. ] I'm surrounded by people who're committed to Rhiannon for as long as they pretty much still breathe and... I guess... [ shrug ] I'm sort of "fresh meat".

[ He actually does air quotes for that.

And then lights a cigarette. ]

[Chuckling at that, and giving Josh a sympathetic look.]

That is the way it seems to work down there, from what Arisato-san has told me. I hope it's not making you too uncomfortable, though.

It's not so much that, [ hedging now, because the last thing he wants is to give the impression that he's complaining about a great opportunity. He'd lingered, after all, after his run with Gabriel was done; had elected to join some of the people and get to know them -- because it made sense. He was a Sin-Eater whose sum total of experience with his abilities hadn't even started the moment he stepped into Falner, but much, much later, after Hikaru, of all people, had given him the nudge that maybe you could use your Boneyard.

He'd done a lot of reading and studying, but not the whole lot of application until that day at the Regardi estate when he'd been told, point-blank, by his current mentor that you know how -- you just don't want to do it.

And Gabriel had been right. ]

I'm just not used to so much attention. [ He leans against the bar, finishes the rest of his drink and sets the glass aside. And then amends that statement. ] At least not where it concerns... [ he gestures awkwardly to the full length of him: head, shoulders, feet.

He looks over and keeps talking: ] I was a quarterback but I had my eye on going pro. Figured it was... oh, I dunno... trips to other states to compete by getting the better of the opposite team.

[ A smile tugs at the corner of his mouth and he sends Rethe a look. ] Corporate was hardly going to factor in there, unless it was signing contracts and switching teams and dealing with managers.

Edited 2014-02-11 05:49 (UTC)

[Some of those statements surprise Rethe a little. He had always seen Josh as somebody who was used to being in the spotlight, and carried himself around other people with ridiculous ease.]

Well, I don't know, but...

[Should he? Yeah, okay. Reaching out to put a hand on Josh's arm. A reassuring gesture, he hopes.]

I think you kind of deserve it? I mean, you're a really nice guy. It's only natural that people would want to get to know you, or even pay attention to you.

Edited 2014-02-11 06:11 (UTC)

Thanks, Rethe. [ It's reassuring, it is.

He feels sheepish though. ] It's just so awkward. [ Welp. Opening up about Shin Yamatai looks like a walk in the park? After all, Rethe wasn't a part of his Blade, wasn't Hikaru who was as merciless with teasing as he was on the battlefront -- wasn't... all the other awkward things.

Maybe I shouldn't have killed my fetch. Really, Bri? :c Why. ]

Maybe I'm still, I dunno. Freaked. [ Josh is looking a tad bit uncomfortable, as if the topic he's about to broach isn't something he'd like to talk about -- but he barrels on nevertheless. ]

We uh, [ slides a looks over and leans in to murmur, because even if the music is loud and the people are occupied elsewhere... he still feels ridiculously exposed talking about this. ] We took Riley to Shin Yamatai.

[ And the tone on those last four syllables drags a bit. ]

[Josh's blade, Hikaru Shinta, and Shin Yamatai. Plus the trajectory of their conversation.

Things do not look good.]

...Dare I ask what happened?

[Of course he's concerned. Josh is his friend.]

[ At the question he's remembering what it was like to walk own the entertainment district fully aware that so many eyes were on him. He would have tuned them out, except that the women -- and the men -- had called out to him, had approached, had approached Hikaru, asking things that had made him nearly blush.

It's not that he knows zilch -- at least, when it comes to understanding things like that. But there was never time or circumstance for anyone in his life even before his Awakening. Mom had left and Dad had gotten sick and Cindy was just a kid who needed him as much as he'd needed her.

It was probably the one time that he'd wondered if he should have changed into something else before they'd ventured to Vampire City; but he'd worn his suit to Seigi as a way to act as a sort-of representative for the Rhiannon Group, new as he was and mostly there because Gabriel thought it fitting that he learn the way most interns did: through hands-on experience.

Well, note for future trips: crimson? Not a good thing to wear head-to-toe unless you want vampires wondering if you swing this way or that coming onto you. ]

It was, [ a beat, and then: ] it was okay at the end of it. But, we uh. We went to the entertainment district.

[ He can leave it at that for now. ]

[Oh.

Oh.

Oh dear.

Have a sympathetic look, and a pat to your arm, Josh.]

I'm kind of happy that you got out of that one in one piece.

[Not that he did not trust Josh's company at the time to have protected him (hello, Daywalker-san), but... yeah.]

[ Oh, Rethe. You have no idea how you've made him feel so much better. ]

Glad someone thinks so. Everyone else was ribbing on me like I had a bulls-eye stamped to my forehead.

[ He hadn't had the heart to tell them all that he hadn't really appreciated being put on the spot like that. A bunch of the comments had ventured into incredibly personal territory -- and where he would gladly excuse Gabriel for asking the questions that led to them, Gabriel was asking out of purely professional reasons. And within a given context.

Huh. So maybe he was upset about the whole thing.

Owning up to Brianna being his type had been embarrassing. And he doesn't even want to go down the road to all the talk that happened later, at the bar.

He takes another drag of his cigarette. ]

[Reaching over to rub Josh on the back, and tilting his head to smile and catch his gaze.]

I'm sure they meant well. Really.

[ He lifts a hand and absently rubs at his brow. ] That's the thing.

I know they did. [ He looks over and smiles wanly. ] I guess, I'm just not used to being put on the spot like that.

[ He tries for a lopsided smile. ]

I can relate to that. Maybe we can try to get better with it together?

[Smiling back, of course. He wants to help Josh in any way that he can.]

[ A huge part of him smiles because it feels like he and Rethe are finally on the level. And it makes him glad. Josh loves his blade mates and he'd take a hit for any of them out on the field, but talking to Rethe like this reminds him of home and just chilling out with his boys.

He's about to tell Rethe that as well, and maybe lead into sharing the things he'd learned afterwards at the bar, when Hikaru had decided that talking was better done over booze. But the music picks up again and he can barely hear himself, so he winces a little -- not because of the music, but because the timing is off. ]

[Rethe catches that, and chuckles a little. Haven's not exactly conducive to conversations like this, but it IS fun in its own way...

Shifting a little closer, then, just so that they can hear each other better. And turning to his companion for the moment with a smile.

It's nice to have Josh here.]

I was going to say-- [ he leans in, his mouth to Rethe's ear as he tries to continue their conversation. ] See, there was this thing that came up when we ended up-- [ but the music's too loud and he ends up laughing mid-way, because they're likely better off waiting for the music the cycle back to something a little more conducive to talking.

Josh starts to pull back. It's a good song, and they probably should be giving Selene's mix it's due; anyway, the night is still young. ]

[It takes him aback, at first, how close he is all of a sudden. It's easy to chalk it up to the alcohol, though, and Selene's sets are always intense...

Besides, they're friends. This is what friends do, right? So he's smiling, chuckling a little again when Josh pulls back to wait. Then:]

You were saying?

[ The music's a little less overwhelming now, so he turns back to Rethe... and. A part of him kind of... stalls? Because it's never occured to him how disarming Rethe's smile actually is.

He chuckles at the prompting, clears his throat and tries to remember what it was he wanted to say -- and settles for: ] Thanks, for letting me talk to you about this. [ It's not what he originally meant, but that feels weirdly out of place right now. He can come back to it another time. ]

It's nothing that you need to thank me for. In fact, I should be thanking you.

[Leaning in, because he wants to show Josh that he means it. Besides, that allows him to say such a thing without having to shout it out, and it IS rather dark in Haven right now beyond all the flashing lights.]

This is really fun.

It is. [ The smile he sends Rethe is boyish. It's just that easy to relax in his company, to kick back and be himself.

Maybe it's the song that's currently playing, maybe it's the booze or the way, even in the dim light of the club, there's just something about Rethe that... shines. He'd watched him up there, lost in the rhythm and ebb of music, has been around Haven enough times before to see the way Rethe just sort of... gives over. It leaves a body speechless, and there had never been an evening when Josh had left to head back to the dorms that he hadn't felt how Rethe's music had made him feel a little less lost.

He's leaning in before he knows it, mouth pressing a kiss to the corner of Rethe's. ]

[Ah --

Okay. That was completely unexpected, and definitely changed the way things were going. Rethe pulls back almost immediately, smile disappearing, eyes looking at Josh with surprise, confusion and concern.]

Um.

[What does one say when something like this happens? It's easy when he gets it from the random, bold stranger or the admiring fan, but...]

[ In hindsight, the moment he'd leaned in, he'd known that this was a HUGE mistake.

Joshua Lee Brennan, what the hell are you doing?!??

He's as stunned over his own behavior as he is sobered up by the way Rethe pulls back, and it is something Josh can hardly miss -- the smile gone, concern in his eyes and a look he can only peg down as what just happened.

He steps away as if to give them both a little more room, the back of his neck incredibly warm. ] Rethe, I-- [ what could he possibly say? ]

[And of course Rethe's first instinct is to make sure that Josh is okay.

Smiling now, a little tentatively. Let's set everything else aside first, especially since he can more than handle himself. This was all a mistake, for sure. Josh is drunk, maybe confused, maybe lonely. No need to make it worse.]

It's okay. Maybe you should go home, though.

[Get some rest? Sleep it off? Recalibrate?]

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larue - 2014-02-11 16:39 (UTC) - Expand

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kyriff - 2014-02-11 16:43 (UTC) - Expand