[semi-open] how many hugs will be in this log? place your bets

[thesettingsun]

WHO: Shuji Tsushima and all his friends who were out of the city and are back.
WHERE: Recolle, which is 100x safer than wherever everyone else was.
WHEN: February 15th.
WHAT: Shuji has one day to check on everyone he knows and he's not going to waste it.
WARNINGS: Nothing as of yet!

[A: text]
[As soon as Shuji learns that people who had volunteered to leave the city are back for a brief period, he wastes absolutely no time. Everyone he's friends who's back is getting a text, something to the tune of:]

Where are you? Can I come see you today?

[B: somewhere in Recolle]
[But if you don't want to thread that part, and just skip to the inevitability of Shuji getting his friend to agree to meet up - and it is inevitable, he has to make sure they're okay with his own eyes - this is the prompt where Shuji spots your character after arranging a meeting and rushes up to them.]

Welcome back!

[He looks like he could hug them at any second. This is probably only a little due to his heartstone's influence.]

[closed to Oda]
[Of course, he'd promised Oda curry, so his lunch date is Odasaku for sure. He's all smiles when he meets Oda outside a really, really nice curry place.]

Welcome home, Odasaku. I hope this place is okay?

[It's probably one of the more expensive places to get curry in Recolle, but sure, ask if it's 'okay'.]

[wildcard]
[You know me, I'm easy. Hit me at Misheard for anything else.]

Comments

[thesettingsun]

[I'm sorry, what bag of things? Because once John gets close enough-]

Happy Valentine's Day, I missed you so much!

[Shuji's going to practically tackle him in a hug. Sorry if your bag gets squished, it wasn't as important as Hugging John Right This Instant.]

[vitis]

[ oof

and there's a shuji flying right for him. thankfully, john has the two seconds of realizing what's going to happen here that he can catch him easily enough, laughing as he stumbles back a bit. ]

Missed you, too. [ admittedly. he resists ruffling shuji's hair. ] That's supposed to be yours, by the way.

[ you know, the bag of stuff he barely just managed to hold out of the way. ]

[thesettingsun]

You're so generous, getting me something even when you're busy.

[Shuji manages to unwrap one arm from John long enough to take that bag and set it on the ground. Then it's back to Full Hug.

Generous John may be, but his presents will wait a minute.]

Did you get what I sent you yesterday?

[vitis]

[ okok hugging for now it is then. this isn't going "unpunished," though— the hug tightens as john lifts shuji into the air a few seconds and then plops him back down. suffer. ]

Sure did! Somethin' to make the whole camp jealous, no doubt. [ a grin. ] Thanks, for that.

[thesettingsun]

[Rude! ...Except Shuji's giggling for those few seconds, so he doesn't seem to be suffering that much.]

You're welcome. I'm glad it reached you intact, it'd be hard to find another card that matched my feelings as exactly as that one did.

[You know, the one that said 'platonic soulmate'.]

Should I open your gift in front of you or do you want me to wait?

[vitis]

[ ... nevermind that being a platonic soulmate to someone who shares a soul with steinbeck sounds like. one of the more terrible fates imaginable— ]

[ he nods, inclining his head. ]

Go for it. Hopefully you won't have to fake too much of a cute reaction.

[thesettingsun]

[It's fine!!

Shuji finally unhugs John and picks up the bag! He pulls out the pictures of peach blossoms first, probably on top since they're most squishable.]

You remembered my favorites!

[None of this cute reaction is fake.]

[vitis]

'Course I did!

[ almost a huff. almost ]

'Least I could do, right? [ nevermind that shuji called him 'generous' for this, okay... ]

[thesettingsun]

[There's still more stuff inside, so Shuji pulls out the cherries.]

These look delicious, thank you! I'm pretty sure the 'least you could do' would be not getting me anything, Johnq.

[vitis]

That wasn't even an option, you know.

[ if he's frank; it makes sense to him, okay. he lifts his shoulders in a light shrug. ... god, there are still the actual flowers, aren't there. apparently, he went full ham. ]

But you're welcome.

[thesettingsun]

[There are indeed still the actual flowers. Shuji pulls them out next, pauses for a second like he's not sure what he's looking at, and then hugs them to his chest, smiling wide enough that it actually kind of hurts.]

Have I told you I love you lately?

[Yes, yes he has.]

[vitis]

[ gosh ]

[ john raises a hand to touch somewhat self-consciously at the back of his neck. "i love you" isn't something he hears often, even if shuji has told him-- while different from familial love, it's been a while since he's spoken with his family, after all.

mm. his own smile becomes more subdued, but more sincere through that. ]

[ he's grateful, too. ]

Well... It's not a bad thing to hear from time-to-time, so.

[thesettingsun]

Now you've heard it again.

[And could hear it at any point when Shuji even suspects he's feeling lonely or unloved. He's never safe from affection.]

...Atsushi thought we were dating, for some reason.

[Can't imagine why.]

[vitis]

[ fOR sOME REASON ]

[ that does garner a brief look of confusion — dating?? — before he. has to suppress something of a laugh.but for the fact that he very nearly smacks his hand against his face, too. ]

Ahh, you know-- without context or anythin', I wouldn't say I blame the guy much.

[ he gestures vaguely: hugging, exchanging flowers, i love yous. ]

[thesettingsun]

[All of that does sound a little suspect.]

Well, it does make more sense than a lot of things. He could've thought you were dating Chuuya, or something.

[vitis]

[...]

If he thought I was datin' Chuuya, I'd worry 'bout him instead.

[thesettingsun]

You two aren't getting along very well, are you...?

[He doesn't want to say he knows about the deal, but he also doesn't want anybody to attempt murder.]

[vitis]

[ ... john's eyes narrow minutely at that, just for half a second. he's, yeah, wondering how much shuji might know if he'd surmise something like that. but perhaps it's an innocent conclusion: the last time he'd spoken of the man, after all, john had been only empathetic.

funny how retrospec changes things. ]

Nothin' worth rehashin'; I've got it handled.

[thesettingsun]

If you say so, then I believe you.

[Or at least he believes it isn't going to come to the point of violence.]

I'm sort of glad I still haven't remembered the only other person from past me's world.

[vitis]

Yeah?

[ --shoot, hold on. he thinks he has a name on the tip of his tongue for who shuji might be referring to; it's just been a while. ]

Why's that?

[thesettingsun]

Because I don't want my opinion of them to be colored by remembering things their past self did. Like with you - I'm best friends with you. It doesn't matter what that guy got up to.

[So that kind of memory is worse than pointless.]

[vitis]

[ ah. ]

[ john's smile slips, just a moment. it's hard to immediately articulate how feels about that. -- "guilt" wouldn't be a far cry, maybe. ]

... You say that so easily.

[ but, despite that, not said without a pinch of fondness. ]

[thesettingsun]

That's because it's easy for me.

[John is his best friend - that's just how it is. What Steinbeck did isn't important, at least not when it comes to what he thinks of John.]

I'll say that as many times as you need to hear it.

[vitis]

Thanks.

[ and he does mean it, even if it isn't expressed in as heartfelt a manner as he wishes. but if john were more prone to fidgeting, perhaps he'd be anxiously picking a thumb, wringing his hands together, or suddenly finding some mark on the ground infinitely more interesting to fixate upon.

but he's not, so. his hands remain settled in his pockets. ]

—I've been wonderin', though. [ he voice halts before it picks back up. ] What if I did become more like my past self?

[thesettingsun]

...There's lots of ways somebody can be like somebody else.

[Maybe Steinbeck had different fashion sense, or something.]

But you mean 'what if I became a worse person'?