boobytrapped | IC Mailbox

[All the Y. 'Why' does the landlord do these things, and Y, he should be stopped.]

Seriously. Let's never do that again.

[All the negativity. There's a reason why Masaomi avoids it if he can.]

So how about it? Time for take 2?

To think that his idea of utopia has people fight in such a way and. . . do other things, of course. You can just tell that he isn't human at all. You're brave! Maybe I'm worried about something like this happening again?

( he isn't really shocked, if anything, he can go back to a blank slate easily enough, but this place certainly doesn't easy his paranoia down. Also, playing around a bit is always fun, right~ )

Don't know about that. Humans can do plenty of nasty things too, yanno?

[It's anyone's guess why he's even taking her statement (mostly) seriously. Just playing along, probably.]

It'll be fine! No roses, no trouble, right?

[If the landlord cheated him out of a date, Masaomi may go homicidal on the guy yet.]

( and, Oh, he agrees with this sentiment, he does, but it's not like he can tell you that humans, at least, aren't usually around long enough to get too dangerous. Maybe something like it? )

Humans are more limited at least. they can only do so many things for so long and they usually feel something. I don't know if that guy feels anything at all. Will you take care of the drinks then? Or we could get ice cream...

[If the landlord doesn't feel anything, even with everything he does -... Well, there are people like that, too. People who feel, maybe, but enjoy the hell they put others through. Masaomi is intimately acquainted with one such person.

Which is why it takes him long enough to reply that he decides to just drop that part of the conversation. This is about happy, fun things, dammit! The rest can go to hell.]

Ice cream sounds great! Sure, I can pay for that.

[He really hopes he's going to get that job at Hiruma's. Last. Money. EVER! He overdid White Day a little...]

When will it be convenient, fair maiden~?

( so many unpleasant memories thanks to supurbia; Tokage might be considering sueing the PR-dpt. except that this totally isn't his style. Maybe he can make up for it, though? )

You need to be careful, one day a pretty girl will turn your head and make use of that. I'm in the middle of making lunch, but we could meet in an hour? Does this work for you?

Every pretty girl can turn my head and keep it spinning for all eternity! That's what being a man is all about!

[Fact of life: exclamation points make everything 50% more true.]

I'll clear my busy schedule. Meet at Honeybee or someplace?

[Roses or no roses, he's oddly reluctant to meet up at the gate again. Clearly even he has the need for a fresh start of sorts.]

( exclamation points are inferior to emotes though )

Oh? I guess I wouldn't know anything about that wwww it sounds dangerous though. you should take good care of yourself, okay? Would it be too weird to ask to meet you some place a bit more private? Honeybee would only be okay if it happened to be mostly empty.

[Masaomi doesn't use emotes all that often. He's probably just too lazy. But, if it helps, he thinks they're really cute when Tokage uses them.]

Life is nothing without a little risk! And there's nothing wrong with a few battle scars.

[At which point mun's heart went ouch once again.

Oh, private? She wants to meet him in private~? Well! He's hardly going to object to that.]

Your place, then? Mine's kind of busy at the moment.

[OK, not really. But Izaya lives there, so Masaomi is not going to receive anyone there if he can help it.]

( it's okay Masaomi; the sole reason Tokage uses emotes is that he believes it to be part of his school-girl act. He might be getting way too much fun out of them anyway )

We're a bit young for scars. They look better if there is grey hair at the same time wwww! Sure, my place is empty, actually. Looks like I'm the only one left here.I'll cook something for you, but dessert will be your job.

( which...can sound like that kind of invitation, but is actually just your regular lamentation. Looks like someone is lonely )

[Is that what she thinks about scars? Well, in that case, he'll make sure to not accidentally-on-purpose show her any of his. Fortunately, most of them are well hidden anyway. There's just the one on his forehead - and his hair tends to cover that.]

All alone? That's kind of sad! I'll be glad to keep you company.

[Hell, if it wasn't for his 'little' sister, he wouldn't mind moving in with Tokage. He doesn't feel comfortable leaving Hiyori in a house with Izaya, though, even if they lived there together for months before Masaomi showed up.]

Alright! I'll bring something good. See you then!

[Surprisingly, he doesn't take it the wrong way, nor is he even thinking along those lines. He's such a strange mix of pushy and innocent.

He'll just be dropping by the supermarket for some dessert - ice cream, fruit, and chocolate sauce, maybe - and showing up at her door at about the right time.]

( the question is if Tokage has any opinion about scars at all. For someone who can regrow - could regrow - limbs, scars have to be an abstract concept. What would he think about Kida's? Maybe not much at all, just now, but oh-so much more later )

Isn't it?! I've had people over and visited a few others, but it just isn't the same. Try to cheer me up, yes? I'll make it worth your while ♡＾▽＾♡

( and he'll leave the door ajar for you, because he might be paranoid but he's also not, sometimes. Could be a test, but it could also be nothing more than Tokage not wanting to abandon his dishes.

You'll find him in the kitchen Kida, the one place clearly lived in and personalised, with an apron tied around his waist and bending over a pot. )

Cheering you up will be its own reward!

[Open doors are wonderful, but he's going to knock as he arrives, anyway, before pushing the door fully open.]

Hello~? Your dessert has arrived!

And the ice cream, too!

[He kills himself, really. ~~If only someone else did, too.~~ Removing his shoes and jacket at the door, he'll walk into the house. The kitchen is a safe bet, if only to put the ice cream in the freezer.]

( Oh Kida, your jokes are so bad for everyone's health. There probably aren't that many pots that have ever been looked at quite this dubiously and it's all your doing. ) Really, I wonder who set you loose...

( but he'll turn around, or at least crane his neck and widen his eyes ) You make it sound like you're trying to tempt me! How is a girl supposed to say no to that?

( now let's just hope that empathy-tango won't suck too much )

She isn't, of course!

[He'll just make himself at home; puts the fruit on the counter, the ice cream in the freezer, the chocolate sauce in the fridge.]

She's supposed to fall madly in love with me. And laugh at my jokes.

[Silent hint is not very silent. Not that he really minds her not laughing at his jokes, as long as she tolerates them - and she's been doing that pretty well.]

That's the basis of any good relationship, don'tcha think?

[Grinning at her now. He may not be all that serious, but he's not really joking, either. Nothing here but a lot of positive feelings, something like daydreams. Sure, you could state the obvious and point out the practical issues with them - but why would you? There's nothing wrong with enjoying them while they last. That's what they're for!]

You have to up your game for that to become reality.

( but he's grinning more fully now, even if he feels a bit - itchy? He really has no ideas how to tag down any of the emotions of the people he meets. Masaomi feels prickly, but not sharp, and while Tokage feels a bit pressured, he thinks it nice in a way.

maybe those are the fruit and the chocolate talking though )

You think I have any experience in that regard? Laughing is probably good, but don't force yourself.

You're up for nabeyaki udon, yes?

You've never been in a relationship before?

[It's not that he thinks less of her for it, but holy crap, how?! Guys must have been throwing themselves at her for years. And - wait a minute - she's living here alone! So she's definitely an adult.

This? Could be a wonderful challenge.]

Mmm, sounds great!

[He'll be smelling at your cooking, now. In yo' kitchen, touchin' yo' pans~! He's so happy and eager, without so much as a scratch on his amazing act of awesomeness.]

Not like that, no. ( and hey, he's being helpful, right? That's not even remotely vague or anything..!!

but maybe someone is just trying not to be a 800-year old virgin, who knows. Tokage doesn't feel embarrassed though, and that shows. The curl to his mouth is easy and playful. What would the kid make of this? )

Don't get yourself burnt! ( and that's vehement, more so than one would expect. One of his hands reaches for yours, quick as anything, and holds it in place.

and oooo physical contacts only makes it worse - Tokage begins to laugh, all soft and helpless )

Not like what? Not in a relationship where you can laugh together?

[Giving her an easy out? Maybe. Who knows? In the end, it's just a set-up to his next line, the same way everything will be.]

You have been missing out... Lucky for you, I'm here now!

[Serious. Not serious. Either; both. Whatever he was expecting in reply, it wasn't the quick grab for his hand - but then, maybe she didn't even hear him over her own warning. Anyone with half a brain will learn to tune him out, to a fair degree, pretty quickly.

Either way, now she's grabbing onto him, and laughing, and he really doesn't mind either of those things. It's silly, but for a moment there, with his guard down, he actually feels -...

Too much. Too much, too fast, surely? He can't -... Not that he doesn't want to! But he has Saki, at home. Doesn't he owe her? Of course, Saki herself would probably tell him to go right ahead, but that's really not helping him right now.]

I'll be fine. Really.

[A soft smile - and yet, he doesn't try to remove her hand, or move his own towards the pot again. Much as he should, he can't bring himself to ruin the moment, yet.]

That was never in the cards. Sometimes you have more important things to think of than that.

( but the words and the look on his face, they don't seem to work out. It's disaster and fun, and for the smile he could be quoting something from a book. )

Are you telling me that I should appreciate you before you look around for someone prettier? How cruel!

( and nobody will ever say that Tokage takes enough care of himself, heid indeed listening to everything, even if he doesn't try to make sense of some of the words. It's not always easy to follow conversations when everyone's worries differ so greatly from his own.

Thing is, he doesn't feel worried now. Tokage is getting the feedback of Kida's too much but it's been that from the start, feeling what everyone else does, around him. )

That's a good look for you, right there.

[His smile widens a bit at that, turns crooked, but there's still nothing sharp in his eyes. He doesn't get complimented, ever. And that's cool, because he's a guy, and guys don't need that kind of thing, right?

He still kind of likes it, though... And he has no idea how to respond to it, so he'll just take it and treasure it and leave it as it is, so he can't ruin it.]

I could look years for someone prettier than you, and I would never find her!

[Looking around is really not what he was talking about, but at the same time, it would be a lie to say he wouldn't. More to the point: he already has a girlfriend, sorta kinda, back in his own world, so...

He really, really wants to forget about that, though, if only for a moment.

Lifting his hand with Tokage's, he places a quick kiss on it, grinning, before pulling his own hand back and trying to get to the pot again to smell the food. Priorities.]

( it's a surprise, really, that Kida doesn't start preening. It's what Tokage had expected, the reaction that, by all means, should have followed the compliment. Should he mention that--? Normally he might refrain, but he feels good in a way, bubbly and that has him more open, too )

You aren't going to talk about this? Looks like you're used to getting all kinds of girls to compliment you.

( this would probably across as more convincing if he'd actually sulk and not, you now, tilt his head and quirk his eyebrow. ) I'm satisfied with this body as well. Now it just has to get warmer to better enjoy it.

( Tokage is going to. stand there for a moment, after than courtly gesture of dork. What is he meant to do with you? He curls his fingers into his palm, expression a bit lost, before he goes to collect two bowls. )

Of course I'm used to it!

[He says it complete with a dismissive wave of his hand, and everything. As if... There have been enough girls, over the years, who were willing to be his girlfriend, but that's not really the same, is it? Whether it's a question of getting older (sure, 16 is so old!) or something else, Saki was the first girl who really seemed to like him, genuinely, and in spite of all his faults. Someone has very fragile self-esteem, especially after Certain Events about two years prior...]

Warmer?

[Did she... really just say that? Don't give a perverted teenager ideas!]

If this is about sharing body heat, I approve.

[Or do give a perverted teenager ideas, apparently. It just seems so unlikely that that's what she means that he feels safe enough to joke about it.]

Are you trying to tell me that you don't need me to compliment you, too? I should not risk it with all these competitors.

( Could be that they found their kettle-pot story here, the thing that draws them in beside their sense of humour. The cockiness with the weak self-esteem, it does sound like it could work as glue )

Sure. For one, warm enough to make use of the pools. It is such a waste not to make use of them, don't you think?

Has anyone ever told you that you should spoon someone to warm them up? You'd have to be the little spoon, too. You generate the most amount of heat in your back.

Ah! Yeah, it's about time it got warm enough to use the pools.

[Not thinking of Tokage in a bathing suit, not thinking of Tokage in a bathing suit... Totally thinking of Tokage in a bathing suit.]

If it's always this cold here, the landlord should have gotten us a jacuzzi instead!

[Still thinking about Tokage in a bikini. Bathing suit! No, definitely a bikini by now. The idea of her touching his back is really -... Well, with her practically offering to press against him, he can't say no. He's hardly going to drag her on top of him, however.]

Is that so? Well, my back is currently uninhabited, so if you're feeling chilly...

[He'll just be looking over his shoulder at her. And resisting the urge to wink.]

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> action!

action!

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