spider-man pointing meme

[catarou]

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[partymagician]

I do! But I’m sure you have plenty of interesting stories of your own as well.

[ In other words, please don’t make him talk about himself. ]

[catarou]

Oho, do you think so? I am but a humble office worker, you see....

[ Big mood, Fai. Gentaro has a lot of baggage, and he has no plans to unpack it. ]

[partymagician]

Really? I thought you were an author.

[ He grins, crossing his legs to get more comfortable. ]

Or is that a side job for you?

[catarou]

Oh my, you remembered? I must have had an effect on you.

[ He laughs softly. ]

You're correct. I shudder to think of myself as a stuffy office worker.

[ full offense to kannonzaka doppo ]

[partymagician]

You're much more interesting than that, I'm sure.

[ Fai grins, leaning on the table. ]

What are your hobbies other than writing?

[catarou]

[ With absolutely no hesitation: ] Fighting crime at night, of course.

[ He makes it sound convincing, too. ]

I'm joking, of course. I do enjoy reading and frequenting cafes. I'm quite fond of traveling, too, even if it's just within Tokyo.

[partymagician]

[ Ah, a good liar. Interesting. Fai tries not to let his interest show on his face. ]

What a coincidence. I like all of those things myself. Of course, I'm traveling through worlds, but it's similar enough.

[catarou]

[ If he were a cat, his ears would have pricked right up. He at least shows that interest and curiosity. ]

Oh? Now you've gone and piqued my interest. You must have no shortage of exciting stories.

[partymagician]

[ Ah, that interest is cute. Fai laughs softly. ]

You're right, I've got plenty! But I can't tell you all of them, otherwise I'm afraid you would no longer see me as interesting and mysterious.

[ But truthfully, he's worried Gentaro might as questions about why he's done certain things or his reasoning for traveling at all. ]

[catarou]

[ He's picking up what you're putting down, Fai. Gentaro knows when to drop a subject, when someone is deflecting. ]

Hmm, quite true. That would be terribly tragic, would it not? I shall simply keep guessing, then. [ A quiet chuckle. ] Let's get to know each other as we are in the present.

[partymagician]

I like that idea.

[ And while he's normally relaxed, he truly relaxes now, sitting back against his seat. ]

So, feel free to ask me whatever you want, and I'll answer.

[ You know, as long as it's not too personal. But he trusts Gentaro to keep it from being so, much in the same way he dropped that subject just a few moments ago. ]

[catarou]

[ There we go. Gentaro relaxes as well, fixing him with a quiet smile. ]

And I'll extend the same to you.

[ He considers for a moment. Then-- ]

Between tea and coffee, which do you prefer?

[partymagician]

[ Putting both elbows on the table so he can pillow his chin in both hands, Fai leans forward. ]

Coffee, especially if it's got a plenty of milk and sugar in it~

[ His sweet tooth really shines through, even with beverages. ]

What about you? You seem to be more of a tea sort of guy to me.

[catarou]

Ah, you've seen right through me....

[ He'll file this information away. You know, for no reason at all. ]

I do prefer tea, but my preferences change depending on the situation. I very much enjoy coffee as well. I've been rather spoiled by excellent coffee, after all.

[partymagician]

So... if I brought coffee to your room one morning, you'd be more than happy to drink it?

[ You know, hypothetically. ]

[catarou]

[ Oh. Huh.

Gentaro leans forward a bit, amused (and touched that Fai's brought up this totally hypothetical situation). ]

I certainly would. I don't squander what has been given to me.

[partymagician]

Ah, what a grateful young man you are.

[ So sweet, so kind! ]

I make pretty good coffee, you know. It might worth be surprising you with it, just to see the look on your face.

[ He laughs softly. While he can't imagine Gentaro would look particularly surprised, the fantasy of it is cute. ]

[catarou]

[ Ahhh, this place--Fai especially--is going to be much more than he'd expected. Gentaro hums, and oddly enough, his chest feels a little warmer. ]

In that case, would you like to test that hypothesis? In return, perhaps I could return the favor in some way.

[partymagician]

What time to do you get up in the mornings, Gentaro?

[ In a place like this, Fai would normally joke about spending the night to find that out, but... as they discussed before, he's not going to push and prod at Gentaro's boundaries.

Gentaro is going to have to do that himself, for better or worse. ]

[catarou]

Around 7, though I do sometimes wake earlier.

[ "Sometimes," sure. Gentaro's finding he really would like to spend more time with Fai. Hm. ]

And you? Were I to come calling, what time would I expect you to be awake?

[partymagician]

Six or so. Although, I do wake up at five from time to time.

[ And he wouldn't mind if Gentaro came knocking at five in the morning, honestly. ]

I'm an early riser, even now when I don't have a whole lot I need to do.

[catarou]

It seems we have that in common.

[ Sometimes you have a deadline and you wake up before the sun is even up, nbd. Besides that, seeing someone first thing in the morning sounds surprisingly nice. ]

I may even bring breakfast, should the mood strike.

[partymagician]

Ah... now you'll have me waking every morning hoping you'll stop by my door~

[ He smirks, but honestly the sentiment is sincere. Someone else thinking of you enough to get up early and make breakfast is a nice sentiment. One that Fai is admittedly not used to. ]

[catarou]

[ Briefly, he feels a stab of guilt. Even--or especially--now, his mask is firmly fixed in place. He's realized that he'll be giving everyone the wrong impression of who he is.

It's fine, though. It has to be. Besides, he's here for nothing but the prize. Anything else is unnecessary, because he won't see anyone here ever again once this is over. ]

Hmm, I would hate to disappoint you... Perhaps arriving to ensure you're awake will become a habit.

[partymagician]

Being awakened by a handsome man every morning sounds great. You'll really be spoiling me if you commit to it. I might even start expecting it.

[ And he hopes he doesn't become used to it, even in just a few weeks. After all, he'll have his wish granted and finally be able to move on completely. It's much harder to move on if he's become reliant on other people here.

But he won't allow that to happen. He can't. ]