closed || laughter during an evening rendezvous

[complementing]

WHO: Minako Arisato and David Song
WHERE: Peach Beach
WHEN: September 22nd, evening
WHAT: First date!
WARNINGS: Tooth rotting fluff, maybe.

[Given that they'd decided to do this later in the day, it's already starting to get chilly at the beach, the sun dipping down towards the horizon and turning the sky into a brilliant backdrop of reds, pinks, and golds. It's calming...which is a good thing for her, because it helps her from fidgeting even more than she is now, arms around her knees and waiting on the blanket she'd spread out for them, picnic basket at her side. Her sandals have been kicked off to the side in her haste to set everything up, and the longer she stares out at the ocean, the more she starts wringing the hem of her sundress between her fingers.

"Please, please, please let everything go well," says the thought bubble above her head.

Hearing a sound behind her, she sits up properly and turns, heart skipping a beat as she smiles.]

Hi! You didn't get lost on the way, did you?

Comments

[negativism]

[ Well, at least Minako wouldn't be the only one being visibly nervous. How he was able to get away without rousing too much suspicion from Yoon-sung was nothing short of a miracle, really. Though he's sure he'll have to face the music sooner or later.

But for now, he's already parked the car and is making his way there, taking a deep breath. Once he reaches the clearing, his expression relaxes considerably, even though his own thought bubble is slightly frantic - "oh thank god I didn't actually get lost. That would've been a hell of a first date impression. Ugh." ]

Nah, got here just fine. You weren't waiting too long, were you?

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[One look at his thought bubble and she relaxes too, tempted to burst out into laughter. Instead, it shows up as a o(〃＾▽＾〃)o kaomoji in her thought bubble. They're both nervous, which means they both want it to work out, which she's going to take as a hopeful sign that it will. Instead of laughing, she ducks her head for a moment to get a handle on her wide smile.] No, not at all! Come here and get comfortable? [And she pats the seat beside her.]

[negativism]

[ David ends up ducking his head, but that's more or less to hide the blush threatening to cover his face. It takes a moment for it to subside, but once it does, he immediately goes to sit down next to her, shifting slightly to make sure he was comfortable. ]

You seemed pretty excited about putting this dinner together. Any hints on what we're having?

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[She has to try really hard to not to think anything about how cute his embarrassment is, and busies herself from it with pulling out their dinner for them.] No guesses necessary. We're having my specialty chicken pesto sandwiches! I also made cucumber and avocado salad with lime and mint and feta, zucchini fries, watermelon sorbet for dessert and pina colada punch to drink. [She also has to try really hard not to let her thought bubble show any of the worry she had making the dinner, wondering if this was appropriate for a late night beach date or not. She knows it tastes good, at least?]

[negativism]

[ Well, if it helps, there's definitely no thoughts on the appropriateness of it, moreso just how stunned he is that she went all-out, and he's still grinning despite himself. He lets out a low whistle before running a hand through his hair. ]

Honestly I think this beats the five-star meal option from before. [ He's impressed, and his thoughts do seem to reflect that pretty clearly. ]

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Don't say that before you try it, [she warns, as she hands him the aluminum wrapped sandwich, but her pleased smile is hard to miss, even when she ducks her head to carefully pour their drinks.] Go on, eat it while it's still warm.

[negativism]

If you insist.

[ He takes the sandwich easily enough, unwrapping it from the foil and taking a quick bite - and his face immediately lights up. Once he chews and swallows, he grins again. ]

Dunno, think it still holds up. This is amazing, Minako.

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["♪♪♪!"] Thank you! I'm really glad you like it. [She sets the rest of his dinner within his reach and starts on her own, happily biting into her food.] Now you know who to call if you get tired of take out. Though the right thing to do would be to just help you with your cooking skills in the first place. I could be the teacher for once!

[negativism]

I think I'd like that, actually.

[ He laughs a little before digging in more properly, his thoughts drifting between how good the food is, the nice weather, and a brief flash of just how lucky he is right now. With the nature of his job being what it was, having a social life wasn't exactly a high priority, let alone dating. ]

Definitely beats getting takeout every few days.

[complementing]

Every few days? Oh yeah, definitely going to teach you, then. And then next time you can cook for us. ["Next time...aahh, was that too forward?"] Anything you can think of that you'd like to learn how to make?

[negativism]

Yeah, bachelor life isn't exactly kind to us a lot of the time.

[ Shit, probably shouldn't have mentioned that. Now I sound like a slob. ]

Honestly just about anything, really. I can do some of the basics, but that's about it.

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[Aaah she can't help but read that, and she can't just ignore it, but she doesn't want to say anything out loud at the same time to embarrass him?! Wait, maybe these thought bubbles might actually be a good thing right now.

"I don't think you are at all!!" which then kind of devolves into a quick flash of a lot of half-formed thoughts meant to be reassuring, like "three girls in one apartment", "Koromaru and Fang shed everywhere", "all of my cooking things in the kitchen, all the time", and "a huge pile of stuff for ReVA in my room".

And she still somehow has to continue their actual conversation, as well, not quite able to look him in the eye as she replies.]

How about I show you how to make Japanese fried chicken? Or maybe tempura. Or ramen.

[negativism]

[ His eyes flick upward to the running stream of consciousness that's coming from Minako's own thought bubble - god what the hell did Retrospec do to pull this shit anyway - before focusing on Minako herself. ]

Ramen would be good. It's been a while since I've had it proper, actually.

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[She perks up, and all her thoughts are wiped from the thought bubble again.]

You mentioned before that you used to move around with your dad a lot. Could it be that you've visited Japan before?

[Because clearly only Japan has quality ramen.]

[negativism]

If we did, it's before I can remember. We've been out of the country while he was on tour, but I don't think Japan was in the list of bases we stayed at. Pretty sure I'd remember.

[ He thinks about it for a few moments, continuing to eat quietly. ]

I mean I've tried Japanese food on and off, don't get me wrong - but not directly from the source, no.

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This is as close to the source you can get, so leave it to me!

[Minako...is halfway through her sandwich at this point, not realizing how hungry she'd gotten while setting up their picnic, and is also quietly hoping that her watermelon sorbet isn't melting.]

Where have you been instead, then? [A bright smile.] And where was your favorite place to go out of all of them?

[Ticking off 'sharing travel experiences' from their would you rather list!]

[negativism]

Let's see. I was born while Dad was stationed in South Korea, we've been to England and Australia, then a base or two around the US. Finally settled on the East Coast when I was in high school.

[ There's a small fond smile as he remembered a few of the adventures he would get into on base when he was given the opportunity, letting out a snort. ]

Favorite place? [ He puffs out his cheeks in thought now that there isn't food in his mouth, brows furrowing slightly in thought. ]

Tough question. I liked most of the places we stayed, but it's hard to narrow it down.

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[A little hum of understanding.]

No wonder, with so many stamps in your passport.

I've only ever been in Japan and America myself-- and then, only in Recollé. [She stirs the straw in her thermos cup, looking thoughtful.] Even when I had the chance to, I decided against traveling. Too many things to do, and I wanted to make a home for myself where I could.

[negativism]

Makes sense. I liked traveling, but I get what you mean. Moving around a lot didn't exactly help me figure anything like that out until high school, and even then I didn't end up actually, legitimately settling down until I came here for college.

[ He gets back to eating again, letting that settle in. ]

But I don't regret any of it. I had fun. But it's nice to finally stop and take things in, even if I really can't much these days with work.

[complementing]

I'm sure you'll be able to manage it soon! You were able to come out for this, after all.

[The trio of happy yellow music notes pop up over her head again. Because she's happy about that, too! That he wanted this enough to make time for it.]

[negativism]

True. I'd like to not be a hermit at the tender young age of 25.

[ David gives a self-deprecating laugh. ]

It's just a matter of finding a balance, I guess.

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[She gives him a tiny smile as she scrapes watermelon sherbet from its tupperware into a ramekin for him.]

If you ever need help with that, I'm just a phone call away.

Or I could get you a day planner.

[negativism]

God no, I have to plan Yoon-sung's day half the time, think I've had enough of planners for a while.

[ He slumps his shoulders, slightly defeated - complete with a bit of a gloomy cloud - but he quickly perks back up when he's handed the sherbet. Right. Dessert. ]

I'll be more than happy with the phone call.

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[Even though he recovers quickly, her heart sinks to the bottom of her stomach, seeing that gloomy cloud. That was a bad thing to say, she shouldn't be reminding him of work on a first date. Minako hurriedly sticks an extra scoop of sherbet on the top of the rest of it to try and make up for the blunder.]

Then I'd be very happy to oblige. Playing "would you rather" would be a lot easier if we talked it out, right?

[negativism]

Probably. Though texting isn't bad either. Don't be afraid to do that - honestly it might be a bit more convenient depending on the time of day.

[ He does appreciate the extra sherbet, though - and it shows both in his expression and thought bubble. ]