Kyouhei was hiding his barrage of giggles behind one hand, the other tangled up in Izumi’s shirt so that they could walk side by side without thinking too hard about it.
Most of his interactions with the model were a mix of serious and fun - it was just how their personalities mixed - but he was always surprised when he got an honest laugh out of it.
“Hey, hey Sena-chan, slow down a bit!” It was only fitting to give proper thanks, right? He could try to pretend that Izumi wasn’t extremely appealing, that this wasn’t selfish, but honestly….
When he slanted his lips against the model’s, even though it was for a moment, it greatly added to his euphoric state, and he had to pull back quickly so he didn’t outright laugh into the kiss.
Although Kyouhei excelled at giving affection on the fly - a hug here, a back rub there, maybe some hand holding if he felt particularly bold - his power was immediately stripped if he actually thought about doing something before doing it.
Shuffling a little closer to Jyushimatsu before taking a step back again, the brunet wondered for a cold moment if he could just… not do anything. If his affection starved conscious could stand to just hold off on doing anything.
Actually, maybe he should just wing it? With that thought in mind, he leaned down slightly to kiss the yellow-themed Matsu on the forehead, hoping that it would go over well, hands clenched tensely into fists.
“Dongmin, I owe you my life.” Voice intense and eyes almost eerily fixed on his ‘savior’, Kyouhei latched onto the other’s side as soon as he was within grabbing distance, his arms wrapped around Dongmin’s neck in a dramatic pose.
“Do you get me? It’s yours now. My life. Yours.” Tone completely at ease now, he grinned against the other’s cheek before pressing a chaste kiss there, his thankful mentality making an impulsive (brief) appearance. “I really am grateful to you!”
With an almost dreamy sigh, Kyouhei spun in place next to Karamatsu, taking on the appearance of someone fantasizing over a person, place, or thing… when in reality it was more along the lines of him making fun of himself.
“Ah yes, let’s become attracted to every living male in the immediate vicinity, Kyou, great idea Kyou.” He sent the fanciful boy beside him a quirky grin before lifting one hand to his lips and kissing his fingers in an exaggerated manner before blowing the “kiss” at his companion.
“You qualify, Kara! Take one, take many- Ah.” Sheepish at giving into a childish action like that, Kyou pressed his hand to his mouth again. “Sorry, sorry, that was immature of me. Do you want me to take that back?”
Kyouhei had an inkling that the saying “good things never last” went hand in hand with “time flies when you’re having fun” in his life, with only himself to blame with the way his activities were organized.
“Super sorry I have to cut our time together, short, Oso!” Already cutting it close with how soon he needed to be in the lab (especially with his default speed), the brunet cut into his dialogue to buy time.
Assured that he was carrying all he’d brought with him, Kyouhei leaned down to peck the corner of Osomatsu’s mouth before fleeing the scene, face tinged pink.
Traveling really was the best experienced. While Unova was supposedly the region of adventure, it being a relatively new area, to Kyouhei it was the other regions that were a mystery.
Sinnoh, for instance… how to say… the element of the unknown made the brunet giddy with excitement. All the ruins, from the Solaceon ruins to whatever was going on in Celestic Town, he’d never experienced something like that before!
The veteran star exhaled loudly, already looking around Route 209 to determine the best way to avoid all the trainers - not that Kyouhei had anything against battling, but he wanted to get to Hearthrome City so he could meet the resident Gym Leader - it was only polite, after all!
Absentminded, due to his thoughts wandering to the gym leader’s preference - Ghost types, immune to normal type attacks, while Normal types were immune to Ghost types, how strange - he ended up bumping into someone.
“Hey, too bad.” Automatically, Kyouhei reached toward his poke-balls, smiling without restraint. “I suppose you want to battle now, seeing as I technically met your eyes just now? Sorry for bumping into you!”
[Due to some shit, both personal and impersonal, this blog is no longer affiliated with redthreadrp, and I’ll change my info to reflect that.
[To the roleplaying partners that aren’t also leaving, such as Neo, I’m sorry this is so out of the blue, and if you want an in-depth explanation I’m more than willing to provide one.
[Thank you for everything, and feel free to ask me for my skype, twitter, or discord in order to keep in touch with me!]
“Are you stupid?“ izumi retorted, lifting an eyebrow. Was this guy honestly so… blunt?
“Being a quick learner means you understand things easily and are good taking them to practice. How is that not something convenient? You could give other’s study tips or the sort. Having sense of rhythm means you could either try dancing or singing, maybe playin an instrument. And if you don’t feel apt for that you could just play rhythm games. they are rather popular nowadays.” he continued, uncrossing his legs just to cross them once more “You are just not seeing them in the right way because you are fucking blunt”
Yes he was angry at this idiot not realizing all the good things he had on him.
“Hah? as if I’d worry about something like that myself. This level of advice is just normal” he replied, shaking his head “Not listening nor trying to come up with anything constructive when someone needs you is terribly rude and childish, don’t you know?”
The insult made Kyouhei flinch but he managed to cut off any protests he had by pressing his knuckles to his lips, the bones pressing against his pouting lips while he listened to Izumi break down his self-criticism.
“Mm, isn’t long term memory more valuable though?” He muttered around his hands, tilting his head into a contemplative pose. As for dancing, singing… he’d never taken a class like that in his life. Creativity wasn’t exactly something his parents pursued in him, after all.
And rhythm games…? What were those? He was tempted to ask, eyes crinkled at his advisor in confusion.
The brunet was almost tempted to warn against sour language - not that he was a prude, it was just first instinct. As pretty as Izumi was, the swearing was… almost unfitting, even though it suited his voice (or not. Kyouhei wasn’t sure).
“You didn’t have to help, though.” He felt like he was in Izumi Sena’s debt now, whether the other acknowledged it or not. “A-anyway, your constructive criticism is greatly appreciated! I’ll try to keep it in mind.”
[I had a kind of artist block due to placement exams but now that the first one is over and I qualified for one of the classes I wanted I’m doing better so. Expect some replies this weekend if I don’t end up crashing, I guess.]
[水] - Yep! Just about anything was good with Mizumachi. He didn’t have any complaints or anything to give with what he’d added to the blender so he kept quiet as he watched Kyouhei preparing the smoothie. With the smaller male almost running into his arm, the athlete lifted his arm up and out of the way so he didn’t run headfirst into his bicep.
“Yeah? Where do they come from then? Are they like potatoes?”
Mizumachi wasn’t allergic to anything himself so he didn’t know firsthand what it was like to suffer an allergic reaction. He could only assume that it seriously sucked. He was going to have to be careful around Kyouhei then if he had peanuts with him. Don’t want to hurt your friend after all.
“Nhaa~ Sounds good! We should set up a trip one day! I can show you around the beach!”
With a big grin, he moved in close to wrap an arm around Kyouhei’s shoulders. A bit of a reach… and a stretch, mind you but that’s okay! He’s flexible enough to pull it off. Okay no, just less than a minute of this was starting to hurt with the awkward posture he had to twist his body into.
“You’re pretty short, huh?”
Sometimes Mizumachi just spoke without thinking much on what he was saying. He didn’t mean anything by it, but it was true that Kyouhei was just ‘short’ in comparison to Mizumachi.
Cheeks puffed out slightly in embarrassment, Kyouhei mumbled a quiet thanks at Mizumachi for moving at the last second and slipped over to his cabinet to snag some large cups, perfect for big drinks.
“I think so…?” They grew out of the ground, right? Or something equally odd. He nearly snorted while putting his answer together. “Yeah, they’re the potato nuts.”
A beach day… that sounded really nice, actually. Kyouhei was already imagining how the sand would feel under his toes, how the salty breeze would hit his face when Mizumachi brought him into a bit of an awkward side hug.
“Ghck!” Kyouhei coughed, nearly dropping the cups but managing to land them both on the counter. “Yeah! I’m short! That’s fine! It’s great, I’m just. I’m not even five and a half feet tall, was there something you were trying to say?”
This was all said with his palms steadily dragging down his cheeks, which not only made some of the words slur together but also steadily stretched his face out so that when he looked up at Mizumachi to confront him, it looked like he was pouting. And he was.
“… you’re really tall, man. What is your secret? Please tell me.”
Minako watched him carefully as he rolled out his shoulders, probably to get all the kinks out of it or maybe to get all his wiggles out so that he wouldn’t disturb her while they were sleeping. It was nice of him to keep that in mind.
Her napping buddy laid down on his back and had his hands folded over his stomach and his head was titled so he could see her. Oh yeah, his introduction reminded her that she should probably do the same, it was kind of rude that she hadn’t done so already.
“You’re welcome, I’m happy to do this. I’m Minako by the way, nice to meet you Kyouhei.” She laid on her side, smiling at him.
“That’s a very pretty name.” Kyouhei offered in return, grinning widely and then righting himself so that he was staring up at the sky. Ah, this was much more comfortable.
“Do you nap here often, Minako?” It was a really good spot. He was surprised a spot like this existed, to be honest. “In this spot, I mean, cuz’ I’m considering visiting again.”
Do I know your muse(s): yes | no | a little | tell me about your muse
Setting:our verse | my verse | your verse | modern | alternate universe | other
Pre-established relationships? yes | no | depends on the relationship
Possible relationships:friends | classmate | co-worker | roommate | family, real or adopted | dating or blind date | married | friends with benefits | unrequited love | lending a hand | teacher - student | rivals | allies | partner-in-crime | enemies | protector - guarded | business partners | spy - infiltrated | manipulator - manipulated | star-crossed | first meeting | other
I’m in the mood for: fluff | angst | horror | romance | humor | crime | hurt / comfort | action | supernatural | slice of life | crack | dark threads | light threads | any genre | multi-para | shorter para | one-line | any length | plotted threads | unplotted threads | other
Feel free to:message me ooc | message me ic | tell me your ideas | write a starter | answer one of my opens | send a meme | reblog this with your preferences - let’s find common interests!
Send me ✔ and I will bold my preferences for your muse!
My muse(s):
Do I know your muse(s): yes | no | a little | tell me about your muse
Setting: our verse | my verse | your verse | modern | alternate universe | other
Pre-established relationships? yes | no | depends on the relationship
Possible relationships: friends | classmate | co-worker | roommate | family, real or adopted | dating or blind date | married | friends with benefits | unrequited love | lending a hand | teacher - student | rivals | allies | partner-in-crime | enemies | protecter - guarded | business partners | spy - infiltrated | manipulator - manipulated | star-crossed | first meeting | other
I’m in the mood for: fluff | angst | horror | romance | humor | crime | hurt / comfort | action | supernatural | slice of life | crack | dark threads | light threads | any genre | multi-para | shorter para | one-line | any length | plotted threads | unplotted threads | other
Feel free to: message me ooc | message me ic | tell me your ideas | write a starter | answer one of my opens | send a meme | reblog this with your preferences - let’s find common interests!
Dongmin wasn’t too good at this either, but he did have the patience for it, so he was sure that as long as they both remained calm and worked hard at it, they would be able to get this to work for them. With the base being as long as it was, he wondered if they would even have enough cards to even finish off their card castle or not. “I think what we have now should be good. Any longer, we may not have enough cards to finish.”
Just a guess on his part, really. With Kyouhei already starting to try to make his triangles, Dongmin on the other half of the castle was trying to do the very same. Absolute quiet descended down on the two of them as they both were keeping quiet to focus with everything they had to make their triangles. Carefully he was trying to make it so that the very tips of the cards would touch at the top, and to have the cards be spaced evenly apart from the center.
Almost there… he could do this. How about—nope. Okay. Let’s try this again. Maybe if he tries to put the bottom of the cards in between two base cards?
“That’s true.” As many cards as Kyouhei had made, there was no telling how many they’d actually need. He rested his elbows on the table, right next to his own stack of cards, and began to set cards up.
“Ah.” On his second set, it collapsed and took out the one he’d managed to stay up. “Harder than it looks.”
Not that the student was surprised, but sometimes images made it look so easy. Or maybe he was thinking of plastic cup towers, which were, of course, way easier to make.
With a little difficulty, Kyouhei managed to get two triangles up and began to set a card down on top of them, carefully. He felt like if he let go, he’d ruin everything.
Komui had not paid too much attention to the students he had passed as he casually ambled back in the direction of his office. He had been idly wondering whether or not anyone would contact him soon or if he should have a more realistic outlook and temper his already mounting anticipation.
It was rather difficult not to get excited at the thought of having a student assist him with his experiments once more however, a slight grin appearing on his face as he imagined all the things that he and his future assistance could accomplish. Of course, he would have to give the prospective student a probation period to determine whether it would be a good fit for the both of them but those details could be worked out at a later stage.
He would need someone to apply first after all.
Suddenly a voice called out from behind him, a rather breathless sounding voice at that, and assuming that the stranger meant him he came to a abrupt stop. Turning to regard the student that had called out to him with some curiosity, the scientist couldn’t say that he recognised him from anywhere which made him wonder what the student wanted. Maybe something had fallen out of his lap coat?
“How can I help you?”
It had taken a little while to catch up - Kyouhei was no long distance runner either, so he was panting ever-so-slightly, his expression fixed with determination.
“Ah, are you…” the brunet thought back to the poster, trying to remember any contact information before just shrugging and continuing with what he had on hand. “Are you the one who put up the poster looking for an aid? I saw you walking away from one but I don’t want to assume…!”
Now that he thought about it, Kyouhei recognized this person. Wasn’t he a professor in one of the few science classes the student didn’t attend? He stood up a little straighter, just in case.
“I was asking because I’m very interested in - that is, I really want to apply to it, so….”
[水] - Mizumachi continued to watch Kyohei making the smoothies from over his shoulder. He was using good ingredients for the smoothie, so it was bound to be tasty and healthy. Those were the best combinations in his mind. High in protein or calories were also good characteristics to have, but high calorie and greasy were not.
Eating a lot of greasy food wasn’t good for your diet. It wasn’t very nutritious for one thing, but lots of oil and grease made for weaker joints. Lots of junk food made it more likely for you to injure yourself if you weren’t careful on the field. Sports injuries were bad, and could lead to you never being able to play sports ever again if you weren’t careful.
“Yeah? Peanut butter? Is it just peanut butter? What about just peanuts or any other kind of nut? Sucks that you’re allergic to peanut butter.”
Lots of really tasty treats were made with peanut butter, like chocolates and cookies. Though, it was good that he wasn’t allergic to chlorine, because then that meant he could invite his friend to the pool!
“If you aren’t allergic to chlorine, then we should go swimming one day! Do you know how to swim? If not, I can teach you!”
Don’t feel bad if you don’t know, he only learned how to swim himself a few years ago, so it wasn’t like he could judge you if you couldn’t.
After mixing in fruit to his liking (if Mizumachi hadn’t requested anything than anything should be fine, right?) Kyouhei set the blender on low and turned back to his guest, nearly hitting his face into his bicep while doing so.
“Dunno, I haven’t risked eating peanuts but I assume that it’d get me the same results.” The student folded his hands together before continuing. “And peanuts are actually different from any other kind of nut - they aren’t tree nuts so I think I can safely eat other kinds of… but I haven’t risked it and I don’t think I’m going to, you know? Allergic reactions are not fun, no matter how quickly you use an EpiPen.”
He was well aware he was missing out on a lot of things but at least there was now the knowledge that if he wanted an easy out of a class he could just give himself an allergic reaction and be hospitalized for a few days.
“I know how to swim!” Kyouhei laughed, delighted by the invitation. It wasn’t too often that he was invited out, so he accepted immediately. “Sounds like fun, so as long as I’m not busy, sure!”
ಥoಥ: How are they like when they cry? Do they just stream tears nonstop? Does their nose get clogged to the point that it’s hard to breathe? Is it easy for them to speak when they are sobbing? Do they hiccup when they cry?
Kyouhei isn’t ticklish at all… except for (oddly enough) around his hips. If you snag him by his hips (either in a romantic or playful gesture) he might startle or, if you’re lucky, he might giggle/snort.
Tender spots:
Very, very sensitive back and neck. I don’t think I can safely say more without breaking one of the rules of the redthread community.
If the ambiance/atmosphere is right then Kyouhei will be verbal with his fear - either swearing (only done when scared/surprised), making various cliche noises (“gah!” and “wah!”), or will even scream girlishly.
Be warned, though, he has a “fight” instinct… which means his surprised expression will be followed closely by a punch or a kick or another kind of attack….
Kyouhei is a physical kind of guy when it comes to showing his affection - hugs, throwing an arm around someone else’s shoulder, giving out appreciative nudges or pokes, hair-ruffling, and pinching is all acceptable in his book, and he’s okay with receiving most things…
If you throw a punch at him (as in, curl your fist and aim it at him) he’ll interpret it as an attack and will block it. Same goes with kicking and/or reaching out to playfully smack him. Even if he knows it’s probably friendly he’s driven by instinct.
If Kyouhei is nervous in front of someone he’ll try to laugh it off - for his own peace of mind as well, but if he’s nervous all on his lonesome he’ll hug his knees to his chest and take on a thousand yard stare - especially if it’s a situation or a future event that’s making him nervous.
ಠ-ಠ: Do they like it when people touch their hair?
Oh god yes. Kyouhei will melt if you give him a scalp massage but even patting his head or playing with his hair will put him in a better mood. It’s a type of positive physical contact no one has had the opportunity to ruin for him yet.
(〇o〇;): What is their body language like when they are stressed? Do they try and hide the fact that they are stressed? How do they recover from said stress?
When stressed:
Kyouhei will get stereotypical sweaty palms when stressed and he becomes very tense - to the point where he looks like someone who just barely got away with a crime. He finds it hard to concentrate on anything - especially the thing stressing him out, but will hardly ever remove himself from whatever’s making him feel bad.
While he isn’t good at hiding he’s stressed he’ll usually brush off any questions with superficial answers and insist he’ll get over whatever it is soon. Often laughs it off, even going as far as to say that he thinks he’s overreacting.
Recovering from stress:
While he won’t remove himself from whatever’s causing the stress he’ll collapse as soon as he’s deemed it “safe”. This means curling up on the nearest soft surface (preferably with another person) and distracting himself either by sleeping or by talking about something completely different.
On occasion, he’ll want to vent but this is an urge he’s learned to suppress and would only happen if he felt an enormous amount of trust towards his cuddle-buddy.
Kyouhei is rather attached to sleeping, and it doesn’t help that his dreams are usually pleasant. If you play some loud music it disturbs his dreams and he’ll wake up in a panic, or you can just pinch his cheeks softly.
Getting out of bed:
Even after waking up, he’s rather attached to wherever he’s sleeping (it takes a while for him to get comfortable so he’s reluctant to move) but if you remind him of the numerous responsibilities he has under his belt Kyouhei’ll get a move on with his life.
Σ(゚Д゚;): Have they ever sprained or broken their leg before? How about their arm? What was the story behind it?
╰(*´︶`*)╯: Do they appreciate hugs? Would they prefer to give hugs or receive hugs? What kind of hugs do they like to receive and/or give?
ಠಿ_ಠ: Do they look up or down when they are trying to recollect something?
ヽ( ´O`): What is their body language like when sleepy?
(Д゚≡゚Д゚): When they are surprised by somebody do they physically jump? Scream?
(⸝⸝⸝ ̑ ̑⸝⸝⸝): Does their face get red after they drink?
(„ᵕᴗᵕ„): Does their face turn red when embarrassed? If so, how else do they react when embarrassed? (I.E. Shifting of weight upon foot, etc.)
( ๑‾̀◡‾́)σ»: Do they have a sensitive spot/s?
(〇o〇;): What is their body language like when they are stressed? Do they try and hide the fact that they are stressed? How do they recover from said stress?
ಠ-ಠ: Do they like it when people touch their hair?
(ノ≧ڡ≦): Do they like to show affection by physically teasing? (I.E: Shoulder punches, etc.)
♪⁽⁽٩( ᐖ )۶⁾⁾ ₍₍٩( ᐛ )۶₎₎♪: How are they like when they dance? Are they stiff? Fluid? A good dancer? Do they prefer to dance with a lot of others, with one other person, or alone?
ง ( ⌓̈ )ง: Are they physically strong when it comes to fights?
(´∀`): Do they laugh when they get nervous?
ಥoಥ: How are they like when they cry? Do they just stream tears nonstop? Does their nose get clogged to the point that it’s hard to breathe? Is it easy for them to speak when they are sobbing? Do they hiccup when they cry?
ಸヮಸ: Do they lean back or forward when they laugh hard? Do they snort? Slap their knee? Do that seal-esque clap? Do they often laugh to the point that you can’t hear their laugh anymore?
「(°ヘ°): How does one calm them down when they are freaking out? Do they prefer physical comfort, or would they rather be left alone?
⊙.☉: Does their voice get an octave higher when they lie? Does it crack?
( ˘͈ ᵕ ˘͈♡): Does having somebody stroke their head make them feel relaxed?
(ꈍᴗꈍ)ε`*): Do they prefer kisses on the cheek? Forehead? What about neck kisses?
(-.-): How should one wake them up? Do they get out of bed easily?
(ó﹏ò。): Are there any foods that make their stomach upset?
Everyone has their moments and that’s okay. As long as you didn’t hurt anyone (or yourself) it was fine. It was shocking to see him throw up all the notecards, but he could certainly understand the notion. Sometimes he just wanted to give up as well and just stare up at the sky absentmindedly.
“Yeah, let’s see how well this will work out for us.” He followed Kyohei’s actions curiously, moving some chairs on his end of the table and set them aside. He accepted the one pile of the cards and he stared down at them, wondering how well this was going to go.
“Guess we can start with setting up the base?” He was guessing that laying down some cards to use as a base would serve them well so they wouldn’t have to worry about the cards sliding around on the table. Though they would have to worry about the cards that were laid down on the base would end up sliding. “Then we can work on setting up the triangles of the castle.” That is how it works, isn’t it?
Kyouhei wasn’t too good at this on his own, but once he’d managed to make a base for his pile and it was easier from there. Still, only time would tell of their success or failure.
“How far across should we make it?” He had roughly fifty cards altogether, which meant Dongmin and he each had about twenty-five, even if he hadn’t counted them all individually, and that meant that if they wanted they could make a pretty big tower….
“Uhm, yeah, probably.” The table would be too slippery otherwise. He began to set a few down, then took two in his hands and made a test triangle, quickly becoming tense with concentration.
“Oh, of course I can. I’m an expert at opening locked doors. It’s a specialty of mine you could say.” He crouched down for a moment to inspect the lock and hummed to himself. After a few seconds he nodded his head and stood up. “Well lucky for you this doesn’t take much effort. They really should change the locks around here, I mean really.”
With that he took a step back and slammed his heel into the door right about the knob. The door made a cracking noise as it swung open; the top hinge broke off and it hung precariously from the middle and bottom hinges. “Ooops, that was some overkill there.” Yoichi walked inside to inspect the broken hinge. “Ah, that’s an easy fix. We really could’ve been in some trouble for a second there.”
He looked around the immediate area until he located the two small nails that had popped out of place. Picking them up, he stuck them back into their holes and used his flashlight to bang them into place. “There we go. Good as new. Er, actually I’d call maintenance to fix that, I’m not entirely sure the door is going to be straight.” He turned to face the younger boy with his hands on his hips; his watch beeped as a self satisfied smile crossed his face.
“Hah, and just in time. Now, do you need any help with something that doesn’t involve doing illegal things?”
Kyouhei…… didn’t know what to say.
He probably should’ve expected this, knowing his luck, that the officer (Yoichi, he meant) would go about it destructively, and not have a master key or a lock-picking set - although having a lock-picking set would be a pretty weird thing to see on a police officer, right?
The student couldn’t find it in him to care anymore. It was late, he was exhausted, and honestly. Honestly. The fact that he’d seen Yoichi lift his leg and didn’t even bother to try stopping him said something about his mental state.
“I’d offer you some food as thanks,” but I don’t know if I should thank you, “but I don’t know if they’ll charge for repairs and I’ll need all the food I can get if so.”
Still, the nice boy inside him wouldn’t let this go without… without something. He reached into his pocket for his notepad and pencil, scribbled down a number, and ripped it out, presenting it with little ceremony to his “savior”. “If you ever need something a college student can provide, text me… or something.”
Humming through the halls of the university with taiyaki in his mouth, Leo was on his way to class. Or, at least he thought it was the way to his class. Wandering through the long empty corridors, his exceptional hearing picked up someone’s voice and he followed it.
Poking his head into what seemed like an empty classroom, the composer noticed another person standing in front of some… lab equipment? Were they a scientist? How interesting! What was more interesting was their voice. It seemed like they could sing and it wasn’t bad at all. Somehow, this train of thought seemed familiar to him, but he couldn’t recall where he had it. Oh well.
“Hey~!” Leo called out to them loudly after swallowing the rest of his snack. “Whatcha humming!? Ah, and what’re you doing? Is it science? A science guy!? Or, maybe you work with the aliens~”
Not expecting anyone to find him (or interrupt), Kyouhei startled, dropped his tongs while trying to look over his shoulder at whoever was spying in on him, catching a glimpse of orange/red hair before the panic set in.
He’d dropped a potassium cube. He’d dropped a potassium cube into a dish of cleaning water, and it was already starting to react.
With an urgency he didn’t know he had, the student scrambled away, hitting the floor in front of the door as the cube popped due to the transfer of electrons, causing a loud, smoky explosion.
Or was he giving it too much credit, seeing as there was no fire, only a reaction that created a violent noise and a screen of smoke…? In the end, all that mattered was that it was harmless from a distance.
A little stunned, Kyouhei stared up at the person still standing in the door, a little irritated but mostly just indifferent to everything. That had been his last potassium cube, too….
Kyouhei cheered when it was announced they were done for the day, immediately moving to his tote bag and peeling off his surgical gloves to snag his phone out of its front pocket, adjusting quickly to the change in perception his glasses caused.
It was a little too late for him to stop by a fast food joint or a restaurant without feeling a bit guilty towards the workers, so he’d probably make curry or heat up some leftovers at home.
“Hey, boss,” he smiled over his shoulder, still a little energized by their unexpected - and borderline dangerous - experiments. “Do you want to join me for dinner? I promise I’m not a terrible cook.”
Kyouhei let out a half-sigh, half-yawn and stretched his arms over his head, not satisfied until he heard the popping of his shoulder joints, the tension from sitting upright in his uncomfortable desk chair.
Ignoring the papers and dog-eared science theory books littering his desk, he turned to check on his study buddy, Mizumachi, ready to offer the other student a bed or at least a pillow when he found he’d been beaten to the punch.
The sight of his friend just totally knocked out with his study materials made Kyouhei feel warm, and even if it wasn’t that deep it was a sign of trust that he would now treasure.
Fighting another yawn, he crept off to his bed and removed his blankets and a few pillows from it, resisting the urge to hum so late at night - strike that, it was nearly two AM.
Carefully, he spread the blanket over the resting Mizumachi and dropped a pillow beside his head (just in case he woke up and needed one) before stumbling over to his love seat and collapsing, pillow and blanket bunched up in his arms.
Kyouhei only baked once in a blue moon, despite making sure to cook something every other day. It was usually easier to make something filling that would last a long time (like meatloaf or spaghetti) as opposed to something sweet he’d be tempted to eat in one go.
The obvious solution was to share the Peach Cobbler with someone, of course!
“Be sure to tell me what you think! This is my first time trying this recipe, so I’m a little nervous…” The student found himself chattering nervously while cutting out a portion, which was still warm, and holding it out to the photographer. “Eat up!”
The boy was being more obedient now, eating the chocolate and drinking the water as he had been told. He also answered to izumi’s suggestions.
he didn’t minded the reservation he took at some points; no one wants to talk about personal stuff with a stranger. It was understandable, and expected. Izumi himself didn’t knew much about this stranger, so he was just throwing ideas at the air.
“Well, I believe building up confidence in yourself is what helps against negative critique. That and not caring too much about what others might think. But you can only do that yourself. You can’t ask for help when it comes to that kind of thing” he concluded “Things like gaining lots of confidence in something most people aren’t too good at, is a good way of getting that”
He sighed, trying to think of more ideas. he was already getting invested in helping this boy.
“What do you feel the most confident about? Studies, games, whatever. If you have one thing you can start from there. it’s also helpful when making friends”
Wow, this Izumi was… pretty smart. Good at giving advice, in any sense. Kyouhei made sure to listen intently while finishing off the chocolate and washing it down with some more water.
He then had to pause. Because… he’d never really thought about what he was good at. Whenever the student had to make decisions, it wasn’t usually based on “well, I’m good at this” but rather “this would be better for me”.
Well, there was obviously talent involved, so maybe it was something that went along with having hobbies? So….
“I guess… I’m a quick learner? And I have a good sense of rhythm, and I’m fast - but none of those are really practical skills, right?” Especially not in biochemistry, where it was a good memory that was needed. It was very matter-of-fact.
As for the friends front, Kyouhei’d just moved and the whole ‘socializing’ business was fairly strange to him, but there were already a few people who probably didn’t mind hanging around him?
“You’re very sensible, aren’t you Sena? Or maybe you have experience in stuff like this…?”
Akira doesn’t move at all, he doesn’t really care too much if he gets wet since he knows he’s going to at some point, but he does appreciate Kyouhei’s efforts not to splash any water on him.
“It could be useful, especially if you’re new to this area.” He wasn’t sure if Kyouhei was new to Bellevue but there was no harm in mentioning the update of a weather app, it did turn out to be helpful after all.
“Um…I think I’ll wait out a bit. I was only heading home, so it’s not like I’m in a rush.” Morgana could wait, maybe he’ll even bring his cat back some sushi as a treat. Rubbing the back of his neck, he turned his head to the other.
“I forgot to introduce myself– I think? My name is Akira Kurusu.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” Feeling a little foolish for putting off the act for so long (because of what it meant, really) Kyouhei took out his phone and turned on the automatic location setting on his phone before putting it away, not risking any water damage on that front.
“There, problem solved! Well, as long as you only make a mistake once I’m sure it’s fine.” Not including fatal mistakes, of course.
The brunet nodded, acknowledging the decision Akira had made - and what a nice, simple name! He hoped he wouldn’t forget it on accident. “Kyouhei, a pleasure to meet you Akira - though I’m sure the conditions could’ve been better.”
“Same, same~” he chuckled a bit himself, quickly getting three boxes of pizza, each one of a different type , while listening to the boy speaking.
“Heh, you think so? TYVM~ wanna join my party lol?” he said, turning towards the boy again “Well, don’t despair. Even working adults like me give up on normal groceries~ Lack of time, lack of skill. And junk food is great~”
This guy talked like he mentally read some people’s texts. All jumbled up with acronyms and… actually pretty funny to hear out loud, although not funny enough to elicit a laugh from Kyouhei.
“I’m not sure, ah - what game is it?” He wasn’t a HUGE gamer but there were a few MMO’s he indulged in, and he was very partial to 3DS titles. Some Nintendo games had a multiplayer feature, right? Not that he had many people to play with.
“As much as I love junk food, sometimes I need… tacos. Or spaghetti. And those don’t come in boxed meals.”
[水] - Mizumachi only laughed in response. Of course he gets it! He is always up for something interesting and fun! That’s indirectly how he got wrapped up in this mess to begin with! He wanted to try training in another country, messed up and somehow found himself in Bellevue on some exchange program or whatever it was. He should have followed the rest who went to train in the Americas. Where else can you train to become a great American Football Athlete than America? Well, he wanted to be different.
Needless to say, he sure messed that up, but alas! That’s okay! He’s been having fun here, and he’s met all kinds of interesting people, you know?
“Haha! Yeah, investigating curious things is always fun! I like to travel to the beach a lot. Meet new people, gather shells, swim, check people out, beach volley, or tan!”
One of those things was not quite like the others. Who goes to the beach to play ‘Beach volley,’ right? It was all about Beach football! Everything else was common sense for when you go to the beach. It was just like how it was a duty of a guy to try to peep at the girl’s baths at least once in their life timeon a field trip. Yep. That’s what youth is about.
Sometimes Mizumachi would be piling up stools in the bathhouse so he can make a platform to dive off of so he could start swimming in the bathhouse. Then he’d get scolded by his friend Kakei. Be made to apologize, and then have to settle down and sit in the warm bath like a ‘good boy’.
“Nhaa~ I do! I got a loud voice! I’ll be a dynamic announcer! Yeah! I also competitive swim and play American football. It’s tough to balance everything, but it’s all worth it.”
He did love swimming and playing American football, so he was willing to put forth the effort.
“Ah! So you wanna follow me back to the dorms, or something? I’m headed there myself and we can keep talking.”
All is good to stand around and talk, but they should get going before it gets too dark, right?
“The beach?” Kyouhei hadn’t been to a beach in forever. He could only faintly remember going as a little kid, seeing the water go on without an end, touching the sky (in his mind, that’s what it was doing) on the horizon.
“Are you a beach-y person, Mizumachi? Is there a beach in Bellevue?” If so, the brunet definitely wanted to go there. Would the sand be as hot as he remembered? The sea as salty? No doubt it’d be more intense, now.
He totally glazed over the majority of what the larger man said, due to overthinking, but he could’ve sworn… well, it wasn’t really any of his business, right? Right.
Still, it was amazing that Mizumachi had so much on his plate and seemed to have energy to spare (if the current conversation was telling). It made Kyouhei a bit envious.
“I’m sure with your enthusiasm, you can get whatever announcing job you want - and at least you’re doing what you want to do, so that has to make it a little easier?” Not that he was the expert in following dreams, but it always seemed to be easier to do something when you enjoyed it.
Kyouhei took out his phone and peered at the time, noting that it was, in fact, much later than he should be pushing his free time to be, and made a long ‘eh’ noise.
“I would really appreciate that, thanks!” With a soft grin, Kyouhei pocketed his phone and turned to his now-guide and mock-saluted. “After you!”
In the dim lighting and with low voices, Kyouhei couldn’t help but shudder when presented with the adjuring. Akira wasn’t one to pry often, so the biochemistry student couldn’t find it in him to refuse.
“I…” he swallowed, trying to decide what to reveal. It was a tough decision but he wouldn’t back down. “I’m avoiding my family. I haven’t talked to them since I moved. Part of me hopes I’ll never have to talk to them again.”
Kyouhei blinked, a little surprised by the request, and then rested his chin onto his palms, considering his options. There were two kinds of dreams, and since he wasn’t really a sleep-dreamer….
“A lo-o-ong time ago, when I was still young and hopeful,” so not too long ago, if he wasn’t honest. But it sounded better if he started out like that. “I wanted to be a Geoscientist. I still kinda do, but that’s no longer an option for me, really.”
Kyouhei spluttered and waved his hands back and forth in front of him as if warding off an unsavory question or offer. It really wasn’t his fault he could only hear one-half of the conversation (which he now knew was because it was a phone call), and that he assumed the worst.
Really.
“Nothing big! I mean,” he clasped his hands together, nervously, looking back over his shoulder in an effort not to meet Kyouya’s eyes. “It kinda sounded like you were… extorting someone? Maybe?”
What a strangely serious way of phrasing that. Kyouhei almost felt like answering in a semi-serious way.
That didn’t last long though.
“Yesss.” He grinned, holding the metal tray awkwardly against his torso, positioned like a breastplate. It was no legit armor but with the right amount of tape, it’d do. “Duct me up, ‘Yori.”
Kyouhei hesitated. There was so much that Izumi’s question entailed, so much was included in that category of his life. It was difficult imagining how he could’ve turned out, and part of him wanted to cop out of answering, but his friend probably wouldn’t accept that.
“I guess so.” At his center, he’d always been a bit shy and not very rebellious, he’d probably end up right where he was - how depressing. “It isn’t all bad, though, don’t worry about it.”
Kyouhei let out a groan instead of properly replying, his belly aching from the amount of food now stored in it. He could really feel the regrets weighing on him now that there was no food left to distract him from it.
“If I could go back in time…” wait, he actually probably wouldn’t stop himself. No self-control and all that. “I’d probably just encourage myself to eat more, now that I think about it….”
“There’s something I really need to tell you.” “I honestly thought that things would be very different.” “Do you wish you could have done it differently?” “What exactly did you think was happening here?” “How do you decide when it’s enough?” “I would die for this cause.” “There are only a few things in this world that are truly important to me.” “Ideals have to count for something.” “Why should I be a nice person?” “This was meant to be easier.” “I have an idea that I need to share.” “Look, you might not like me but we’re stuck in this.” “You remind me of someone I once knew.” “How long does it take people to change, I wonder?” “There are no good choices here.” “There are days I think we’re just in over our heads here.” “How do you keep going when things get hard?” “Are you genuinely interested in me as a person, or is this a game too?” “I care what I look like because I care what people think of me.” “Why did you decide to do it?” “You know what I really regret?” “I’m still struggling to believe any of this is real.” “Are you certain this is what you really want.” “Tell me a dream? Or a secret?” “Do you think you would still be the same person if things had turned out differently?” “What I really meant to say was very different.” “I don’t know if you’ll like what I have to say to you, but I have to tell you anyway.” “You were never supposed to know.” “Why can’t you just follow instructions?” “Why can’t you just ignore instructions?” “What chains you to this life? What keeps you here?”
[Just got a new laptop and it’s different than what I usually use so I’m going to take a day to work out how everything works and to transfer all my stuff, then replies will be back on~.]