LOL leon youre making this WORSE not that talking to you is making me FEEL worse i mean i just
[ WELL here she goes again!!
NICE JOB. ]
i'm fine thank you for being understanding
seriously i didn't expect that at all from you based on how we first met i mean LOL (ノ^∇^) i know i was acting fine and everything but i'm actually kind of nervous because you're kind of a nutcase not in a bad way just in that i feel like if you didn't think i was cute you could definitely kill me! (no hard feelings, though. i'd do the same to you for sure ໒( ͡ᵔ ▾ ͡ᵔ )७ )
by which i mean GOOD IDEA LOL let's meet up because that is what i had in mind in the first place
how do you feel about the words "shopping district"
[ This is most certainly how people her age communicate, right? RIGHT?? ]
He actually spends a while staring at all that. Every time he thinks he's picked out something he needs to address, he sees something else that changes his mind. God, this is like having to do literature readings for school and interpret them, except for how he'd never actually done those readings even once and he sure is reading message like fifty times.
Finally:]
You kinda lost me
What dyou mean Im a nutcase and Id kill you
Whatre you trying to say?
[There, that's definitely the most important thing to clear out of his head first.
[ Even she can sense a fuck-up once it's happened. Sighing to herself, Rapuznel spends a minute or two getting HYPE before pressing the "record" button on her CereVice and speaking right into the microphone. ]
I mean...
...Agh. Look. I was raised to be suspicious of people, Leon. When we first met? I thought you would be dangerous! I... I thought you'd want to hurt me.
But...
[ She shuts her eyes, trying desperately to shut out their time in the hall of mirrors, time she doesn't count as belonging to her. ]
...But that isn't how things work. All right? So, I-- I just... I want to say thank you and I'm sorry for everything that happened out there in the dark part of the city!! Okay? I'm--
[He flips his own mic on as soon as she starts talking, listening to all of that quietly.
It definitely takes the wind out of his sails. Here he'd been worried she'd heard something, or—or worse, maybe that he really has turned into something he doesn't recognize but everyone else in the world does. Maybe people can just look and him now and Know about him . . . the thought of that squeezes his chest like a vice.
But the grip on him loosens as she talks, and he can breathe easier again.]
Hey . . . hey, it's fine. You don't have anything to apologize for! You didn't do anything! CERES screwed with your head too, right? But—even if it wasn't like that, you totally helped me out back there. And maybe we'll just have to hang out more so I can prove I'm not ever gonna hurt you, 'kay?
[ People here sure are forgiving. She's found herself at an impasse yet again, stunned by a generosity she feels she can't deserve and longing more than anything to embrace it. After all, she was so cold and uncaring...
But if Leon can summon this sort of kindness after what he's been through...
(Her head is still replaying what she saw in his mirror - has been, even, since her emotions returned. It's become popular nightmare fodder.) ]
Didn't I warn you about flattering me? Now you're just being too nice. This could all be a trap, you know.
But--
I want to make sure you're all right, so... Shopping district? Maybe we can shop for an actual handkerchief that I can give you, heh. [ YES SHE... had conveniently forgotten tearing a piece of her clothing off and giving it to him to use as a handkerchief. Whatev. ]
Oh, right, everyone is probably still settling in...
[ For a moment she almost reconsiders, warring with herself over the desire to be excessively Good and Nice to make up for her behaviour and... the desire to just get out there. ]
Hm. Well. [ The smirk in her own voice is probably no good sign. ] That is no problem at all, Leon. I can come pick you up! [ Though traditionally it sure is supposed to be the other way around!! ] Uh, whhhhen do you think is a good time...? Half an hour? Twenty minutes?
[ Perhaps he ought've been warned about her aggressive aspect. ]
[He's already getting up out of bed to grab clean clothes. Get a head start on this! He can do twenty minutes easy! He's not exactly in a lengthy shower kind of mood anyway, if you know what I mean.]
—So you're gonna come over here?
[Wait a sec. That doesn't mean he has twenty minutes to shower. That means he has twenty minutes to shower and make sure there's nothing embarrassing lying around his apartment.
Ah, yeah? [ Hear that squeaking sound? That is the sound of either a chair or a door closing/opening and Rapunzel already making her way to the area of the residential district she's gonna want to be in. ]
G-Great! So, um. I'll... see you there? --Oh, shoot.
[ Duh. Maybe she shouldn't walk and talk at the same time if it means she's going to get ahead of herself. ]
Sorry! Almost forgot, heh. You should give me the directions! You know. [ AUGH, he's going to think she's a complete moron. ] To... your place?
[He was getting to it! But rather than be judgey, he's equal parts excited and nervous, dashing around to pick things up while he can—he can't get into the shower while he's on his CereVice anyway. (Probably he can. There's probably a feature for that. But he's going to refrain.)
He gives her the directions to the specific building, on the third floor.]
[ He should be able to hear the smile in her voice, a hesitant creeping of happiness that's also a bit wary, a bit hostile, but not unfriendly. She's already working out the fastest way to get there, proud of herself for at the very least successfully asking him to do this with her.
And now it's time to start the 400m dash to get himself together and get his apartment together. Zoom!
Luckily, it's not like his place is a sty. He's not dirty, just disorganized, and all he's got to do is make sure there's nothing weird lying around the place, like this pair of boxers he took off in the living room for some reason on his way to the shower a few days ago and never grabbed off the floor again. Stuff like that. That's going in the hamper.
But there are only so many pairs of boxers lying around his apartment a guy can have, and soon he's finally free to jump into the shower.]
Yeah. Since she was kicked out of her apartment she's been holing up in the school gym and hasn't, in fact, left the residential district for much aside from work lately; it was a roughly five minute walk from where she was. Hopefully he's almost done...
Pascal, a pouty purple shadow on her shoulder, growls, or as close as a chameleon can come to growling. ]
Shh. He's nice, I told you... Everyone said nice things about my picture! Well. Almost, but...
[He is rushing through this shower! But no, he's not done yet; when he hears the doorbell he jumps and swears under his breath and rushes even more through the rest. Where the hell does she live?!
He jumps out of the shower as soon as he can and opens the bathroom door to yell into the living room:]
One seeeec! Unless you wanna see me naked! . . . That was a joke!
[It was, but it's not like he wouldn't really open the door if she said she did.
But he's already dashing back into his room to grab clothes. Clothes clothes clothes clothes. Underwear, shirt, clothes—]
HA HA VERY FUNNY! [ Yes, she just shouted the word "haha" rather than actually laughing at him through the door. This is apparently her way of papering over the fact that now, suddenly and for no concrete reason whatsoever, she feels something a little like nervousness, which is big stuff after being numb for so long. ]
IIIII mean... Ha! H – Ha. That - That was a real laugh. Really! I-It was....
[ KILL HER NOW ]
–oh! Shoot, I forgot. I hope I'm not too early! I can leave and come back if you need more time!
[He swings the door open. Whew. He managed to get fully dressed, and his place is not a travesty! It's a CERES miracle! (He didn't have time to fix his hair, though, so it looks a little more like this than his usual gelled-up style.)]
Heeeey . . . you know I was just kiddin', right? You don't gotta be like that about it . . .
[Was she offended by the joke? He can't tell. That would suck, but it wouldn't be the first time he's put his foot in his mouth that way around a girl. Leon rubs the back of his neck, sheepishly.]
[ It's... a new look for him! Not better or worse, but - different. Interesting. Even though she's only seen him twice before this and the second time is one she'd rather hadn't happened.
Rapunzel is so distracted she misses his reassurance entirely. ] Ah – [ ...and instead of replying normally does what she does best by smiling like sun, as though she knows exactly what is happening, and throwing out something completely unrelated. ]
I'm happy to see you, Leon. You look good. Happier, I mean. ...You look happier.
[Well. It works. He'd been paranoid he'd offended her, but here she is smiling at him like that; slowly, he smiles back, lifting a hand to brush his bangs back from his face. It's so annoying and uncool when his hair's down . . .
But that doesn't feel that important right now.]
Heh . . . I dunno if I would've said that before you texted me, but I definitely feel better now. —You wanna come in, or are you ready to go? Do I have time to fix my hair?
[He is happier. The dead-inside feeling he's been struggling with since getting back "home" is beginning its slow ebb out of his system. Thank god. That was beginning to get really fucked up.]
[ Having spent eighteen years looking at the same set of walls, smelling the same smells, and waking up every morning to a view identical to the last, there's something fascinating and miraculous to Rapunzel about other people's homes. It's definitely her weirdest fetish interest, but as soon as Leon offers, she's nodding with vigour. ]
YEAH! I mean. ...Yes. Heh. Absolutely. I'd love to come in. If... you want me, that is.
[ Not the best phrasing, but she's thinking about what she saw in the mirrors at around the same time he's thinking about that fucked up feeling and it reminds her to feel guilty. Her own numbness is like a dream to look back on. Feeling so much now is more acutely painful than that had been, by far, but she's embracing it nevertheless. She acted like a sociopath and now she's making up for it. Simple. ]
...Your hair looks fine, by the way. Good. It looks good. You do. H-Heh.
[He opens the door and steps back to let her in. Enjoy your fetish, Rapunzel. It is, thankfully, pretty clean; he's not organized, but he'd put away the worst of things, and he's not gross, either. Acceptable from a teenage boy.]
You like it? I mean . . . you're like, the hair queen, so comin' from you that means a lot! Ha ha . . . I always feel kinda like a dork when it's down in my face like this, though.
[Still, a vast improvement over the shaved head of years past. He pushes his bangs back from his face, closing the door behind them with a light push and heading for the bathroom door, eyes still on her. It's not that he doesn't trust her—it's just pleasantly fascinating seeing a girl like her in his place, even for totally innocent reasons.]
You're looking good too, but I could say that every time I see you!
omg you are my HERO this apartment layout is great lmfao
[ And because she's Rapunzel, it's the word "queen" she latches onto, encouraged by what she decides to interpret as a term of highest regard and the ever-compelling idea of telling someone else what to do.
Driven by power and her mad, mad lust for it, she turns to Leon halfway into the space and grins. ]
Then you have just as good taste in women as you do in flats. I like your apartment. Is your queen free to make herself comfortable?
[His queen? She probably doesn't mean that how it sounds, right? But hey, he's not going to argue. He does have good taste in women . . .
Kind of. Maybe not that one time. But this isn't like that!
He lingers outside the bathroom, waving his hand at the apartment at large.]
's all yours, Queen Zel! I'm not gonna be too long! If you get too comfortable, I'll just come get comfortable with you for a while . . . nothing wrong with that.
[CereVice and chill?]
And thanks! My place is pretty great, right? I've got good taste in everything, including women, ha ha!
[ And because she's Rapunzel, she's immediately distracted from everything she was in the middle of, including that Thing where she flirts with people without knowing what she's doing or why, by Leon's turn of phrase.
Her eyes narrow. She squints, lifts an eyebrow, and chuckles under her breath as half her mouth twitches towards a grin. ]
How can you taste women. I've heard that -- "I have good taste." I've heard that before, you know, with... with food and everything. Buuuut...
[ Congratulations! Leon is now Mr. Professor and Rapunzel is right in front of him, green eyes wide, and eager to learn as usual. She's a student of the world! Or something. ]
What do you mean? [ Full-on snickering now. ] Am I good taste?
[ Because come on it's just a funny concept! Tasting people. HAHAHA. HILARIOUS.
[Whoa okay there's more than one question going on here, in two different directions, and he has to figure out how to address both because this girl certainly is a student of the world. At least she doesn't seem offended, which was the other option here. Though possibly still forthcoming, Leon thinks. Not in so many words. Leon doesn't think words like "forthcoming."
But the thought is there.
He holds up his hands a little, laughing, still a little pink in the cheeks. Even moreso now, really.]
Whoa, whoa! First of all, you can definitely taste a woman,
["if you know what I mean," except clearly she wouldn't,]
but that wasn't what I meant by that! People use that for stuff not food, y'know? Not just people either! Like, if I said someone had good taste in fashion, that'd mean I thought they looked good in whatever they've got on. Or if they've got good taste in music, it means we like the same bands! So when I say I've got good taste in women,
[which, again, is debatable, after certain events in his past, and this time when he says that he's more uncomfortably aware of it; it's edging into his thoughts enough that he can't quite keep it back]
I mean that I'm into the kind of girl who's good for me! Heh . . . ah, you can have bad taste in people too, though. Like if you're the kinda person who always ends up chasing after people who're bad for you, that kinda thing. It happens . . .
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
leon youre making this WORSE
not that talking to you is making me FEEL worse i mean i just
[ WELL here she goes again!!
NICE JOB. ]
i'm fine
thank you for being understanding
seriously i didn't expect that at all from you based on how we first met
i mean
LOL (ノ^∇^)
i know i was acting fine and everything but i'm actually kind of nervous because you're kind of a nutcase
not in a bad way just in that
i feel like if you didn't think i was cute you could definitely kill me!
(no hard feelings, though. i'd do the same to you for sure ໒( ͡ᵔ ▾ ͡ᵔ )७ )
by which i mean
GOOD IDEA LOL
let's meet up because that
is what i had in mind in the first place
how do you feel about the words "shopping district"
[ This is most certainly how people her age communicate, right? RIGHT?? ]
no subject
He actually spends a while staring at all that. Every time he thinks he's picked out something he needs to address, he sees something else that changes his mind. God, this is like having to do literature readings for school and interpret them, except for how he'd never actually done those readings even once and he sure is reading message like fifty times.
Finally:]
You kinda lost me
What dyou mean Im a nutcase and Id kill you
Whatre you trying to say?
[There, that's definitely the most important thing to clear out of his head first.
(The mirrors hadn't even shown that, right?!)]
voice.
I mean...
...Agh. Look. I was raised to be suspicious of people, Leon. When we first met? I thought you would be dangerous! I... I thought you'd want to hurt me.
But...
[ She shuts her eyes, trying desperately to shut out their time in the hall of mirrors, time she doesn't count as belonging to her. ]
...But that isn't how things work. All right? So, I-- I just... I want to say thank you and I'm sorry for everything that happened out there in the dark part of the city!! Okay? I'm--
I'm glad you're okay. Or whatever. O...Okay?
voice
It definitely takes the wind out of his sails. Here he'd been worried she'd heard something, or—or worse, maybe that he really has turned into something he doesn't recognize but everyone else in the world does. Maybe people can just look and him now and Know about him . . . the thought of that squeezes his chest like a vice.
But the grip on him loosens as she talks, and he can breathe easier again.]
Hey . . . hey, it's fine. You don't have anything to apologize for! You didn't do anything! CERES screwed with your head too, right? But—even if it wasn't like that, you totally helped me out back there. And maybe we'll just have to hang out more so I can prove I'm not ever gonna hurt you, 'kay?
voice.
[ People here sure are forgiving. She's found herself at an impasse yet again, stunned by a generosity she feels she can't deserve and longing more than anything to embrace it. After all, she was so cold and uncaring...
But if Leon can summon this sort of kindness after what he's been through...
(Her head is still replaying what she saw in his mirror - has been, even, since her emotions returned. It's become popular nightmare fodder.) ]
Didn't I warn you about flattering me? Now you're just being too nice. This could all be a trap, you know.
But--
I want to make sure you're all right, so... Shopping district? Maybe we can shop for an actual handkerchief that I can give you, heh. [ YES SHE... had conveniently forgotten tearing a piece of her clothing off and giving it to him to use as a handkerchief. Whatev. ]
no subject
He laughs a little, more quietly than usual, into the mic.]
You know no one uses handkerchiefs anymore, right . . .
But, like, if it was from you, I'd carry it everywhere!
[She can't see his grin through the radio, but there it is, touching his voice anyway.]
Yeah, shopping district? Maybe lunch? I've gotta shower and stuff first, but I promise I won't take long!
no subject
[ For a moment she almost reconsiders, warring with herself over the desire to be excessively Good and Nice to make up for her behaviour and... the desire to just get out there. ]
Hm. Well. [ The smirk in her own voice is probably no good sign. ] That is no problem at all, Leon. I can come pick you up! [ Though traditionally it sure is supposed to be the other way around!! ] Uh, whhhhen do you think is a good time...? Half an hour? Twenty minutes?
[ Perhaps he ought've been warned about her aggressive aspect. ]
no subject
[He's already getting up out of bed to grab clean clothes. Get a head start on this! He can do twenty minutes easy! He's not exactly in a lengthy shower kind of mood anyway, if you know what I mean.]
—So you're gonna come over here?
[Wait a sec. That doesn't mean he has twenty minutes to shower. That means he has twenty minutes to shower and make sure there's nothing embarrassing lying around his apartment.
He picks up the pace a little.]
Yeah, yeah, that's cool . . . !
no subject
G-Great! So, um. I'll... see you there? --Oh, shoot.
[ Duh. Maybe she shouldn't walk and talk at the same time if it means she's going to get ahead of herself. ]
Sorry! Almost forgot, heh. You should give me the directions! You know. [ AUGH, he's going to think she's a complete moron. ] To... your place?
no subject
[He was getting to it! But rather than be judgey, he's equal parts excited and nervous, dashing around to pick things up while he can—he can't get into the shower while he's on his CereVice anyway. (Probably he can. There's probably a feature for that. But he's going to refrain.)
He gives her the directions to the specific building, on the third floor.]
See ya soon?
no subject
Yes.
[ He should be able to hear the smile in her voice, a hesitant creeping of happiness that's also a bit wary, a bit hostile, but not unfriendly. She's already working out the fastest way to get there, proud of herself for at the very least successfully asking him to do this with her.
WAY TO NOT FUCK UP! ]
See you very soon.
no subject
And now it's time to start the 400m dash to get himself together and get his apartment together. Zoom!
Luckily, it's not like his place is a sty. He's not dirty, just disorganized, and all he's got to do is make sure there's nothing weird lying around the place, like this pair of boxers he took off in the living room for some reason on his way to the shower a few days ago and never grabbed off the floor again. Stuff like that. That's going in the hamper.
But there are only so many pairs of boxers lying around his apartment a guy can have, and soon he's finally free to jump into the shower.]
no subject
Yeah. Since she was kicked out of her apartment she's been holing up in the school gym and hasn't, in fact, left the residential district for much aside from work lately; it was a roughly five minute walk from where she was. Hopefully he's almost done...
Pascal, a pouty purple shadow on her shoulder, growls, or as close as a chameleon can come to growling. ]
Shh. He's nice, I told you... Everyone said nice things about my picture! Well. Almost, but...
no subject
He jumps out of the shower as soon as he can and opens the bathroom door to yell into the living room:]
One seeeec! Unless you wanna see me naked! . . . That was a joke!
[It was, but it's not like he wouldn't really open the door if she said she did.
But he's already dashing back into his room to grab clothes. Clothes clothes clothes clothes. Underwear, shirt, clothes—]
no subject
IIIII mean... Ha! H – Ha. That - That was a real laugh. Really! I-It was....
[ KILL HER NOW ]
–oh! Shoot, I forgot. I hope I'm not too early! I can leave and come back if you need more time!
no subject
[He swings the door open. Whew. He managed to get fully dressed, and his place is not a travesty! It's a CERES miracle! (He didn't have time to fix his hair, though, so it looks a little more like this than his usual gelled-up style.)]
Heeeey . . . you know I was just kiddin', right? You don't gotta be like that about it . . .
[Was she offended by the joke? He can't tell. That would suck, but it wouldn't be the first time he's put his foot in his mouth that way around a girl. Leon rubs the back of his neck, sheepishly.]
no subject
[ It's... a new look for him! Not better or worse, but - different. Interesting. Even though she's only seen him twice before this and the second time is one she'd rather hadn't happened.
Rapunzel is so distracted she misses his reassurance entirely. ] Ah – [ ...and instead of replying normally does what she does best by smiling like sun, as though she knows exactly what is happening, and throwing out something completely unrelated. ]
I'm happy to see you, Leon. You look good. Happier, I mean. ...You look happier.
no subject
But that doesn't feel that important right now.]
Heh . . . I dunno if I would've said that before you texted me, but I definitely feel better now. —You wanna come in, or are you ready to go? Do I have time to fix my hair?
[He is happier. The dead-inside feeling he's been struggling with since getting back "home" is beginning its slow ebb out of his system. Thank god. That was beginning to get really fucked up.]
no subject
fetishinterest, but as soon as Leon offers, she's nodding with vigour. ]YEAH! I mean. ...Yes. Heh. Absolutely. I'd love to come in. If... you want me, that is.
[ Not the best phrasing, but she's thinking about what she saw in the mirrors at around the same time he's thinking about that fucked up feeling and it reminds her to feel guilty. Her own numbness is like a dream to look back on. Feeling so much now is more acutely painful than that had been, by far, but she's embracing it nevertheless. She acted like a sociopath and now she's making up for it. Simple. ]
...Your hair looks fine, by the way. Good. It looks good. You do. H-Heh.
no subject
You like it? I mean . . . you're like, the hair queen, so comin' from you that means a lot! Ha ha . . . I always feel kinda like a dork when it's down in my face like this, though.
[Still, a vast improvement over the shaved head of years past. He pushes his bangs back from his face, closing the door behind them with a light push and heading for the bathroom door, eyes still on her. It's not that he doesn't trust her—it's just pleasantly fascinating seeing a girl like her in his place, even for totally innocent reasons.]
You're looking good too, but I could say that every time I see you!
omg you are my HERO this apartment layout is great lmfao
[ And because she's Rapunzel, it's the word "queen" she latches onto, encouraged by what she decides to interpret as a term of highest regard and the ever-compelling idea of telling someone else what to do.
Driven by power and her mad, mad lust for it, she turns to Leon halfway into the space and grins. ]
Then you have just as good taste in women as you do in flats. I like your apartment. Is your queen free to make herself comfortable?
I HAVE TOO MUCH TIME ON MY HANDS
Kind of. Maybe not that one time. But this isn't like that!
He lingers outside the bathroom, waving his hand at the apartment at large.]
's all yours, Queen Zel! I'm not gonna be too long! If you get too comfortable, I'll just come get comfortable with you for a while . . . nothing wrong with that.
[CereVice and chill?]
And thanks! My place is pretty great, right? I've got good taste in everything, including women, ha ha!
(1/2) and what i was GONNA say to that was
Her eyes narrow. She squints, lifts an eyebrow, and chuckles under her breath as half her mouth twitches towards a grin. ]
How can you taste women. I've heard that -- "I have good taste." I've heard that before, you know, with... with food and everything. Buuuut...
it's perfect lmfao i love doing this stuff aaah
What do you mean? [ Full-on snickering now. ] Am I good taste?
[ Because come on it's just a funny concept! Tasting people. HAHAHA. HILARIOUS.
8| ]
WHAT A GOOD
But the thought is there.
He holds up his hands a little, laughing, still a little pink in the cheeks. Even moreso now, really.]
Whoa, whoa! First of all, you can definitely taste a woman,
["if you know what I mean," except clearly she wouldn't,]
but that wasn't what I meant by that! People use that for stuff not food, y'know? Not just people either! Like, if I said someone had good taste in fashion, that'd mean I thought they looked good in whatever they've got on. Or if they've got good taste in music, it means we like the same bands! So when I say I've got good taste in women,
[which, again, is debatable, after certain events in his past, and this time when he says that he's more uncomfortably aware of it; it's edging into his thoughts enough that he can't quite keep it back]
I mean that I'm into the kind of girl who's good for me! Heh . . . ah, you can have bad taste in people too, though. Like if you're the kinda person who always ends up chasing after people who're bad for you, that kinda thing. It happens . . .