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Do A Little Turn On The Catwalk (Asher)
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Post by Elliot and Isaac Sunderland on Dec 17, 2016 3:57:03 GMT
Elliot's eyes widened as he looked at the check. Wait, that wasn't even close to right! How many things did Asher just completely waive for him out of nowhere? "Wait, you-!" Elliot called, but Asher had dashed away long before Elliot could even begin to protested. He sighed as he looked at the check. One one hand, it was awfully unfair! On the other hand, it probably would've been rude to spurn the gift. He'd accept it this time, but he made a mental note to fight it super hard if Asher tried pulling that again.
. . . Or maybe he'd indulge, if given the chance. Those were some really good croissants, after all.
Instinctively, Isaac caught the collar, although he didn't look too happy upon realizing what it was. Still, what was he supposed to do? Just drop company property like that? There was being unhappy about a situation and there was just being petulant, and Isaac liked to think he was above the latter. "I really have no idea how people do this all the time," he admitted, still tugging somewhat uncomfortably at the dress. "But it wasn't . . . so bad once the whole first shock of it all worse off. And hey, I'm surprised you didn't sneak any blackmail pictures." Was that what show business was like too? Just taking that first step and going for it? And usually, that wouldn't even need him to wear a dress!
Just go up on stage, where everyone was watching him.
In a company where he still wasn't the most fluent in the native language.
That said, upon Asher broaching the topic of taking Isaac's dress off for him, Isaac quickly said "No thanks. I think it'll be way easier getting off than on, at least." However, after a second's thought, he added "Could you give me a hand with the extensions later, though? I get the feeling they're gonna be a huge pain."
At the comment of street clothes, he realized it must have been time to clock out. The day felt both weirdly fast, but also weirdly slow. Isaac didn't mind, though. It meant he had survived the first day. In fact, not only did he survive, but he did really well for himself! He was gonna miss getting the chance to hang around the establishment, though. It had a nice atmosphere to it, and his practice time did end up falling on probably three of the worst targets for it. Then again, Isaac was sure his due would come another day. He headed into the changing room, grabbing his street clothes, but as he opened the door he turned to Asher.
"Oh, and, uh . . . sorry." With that awkward apology made he closed the door, relieved to finally be heading back into comfy clothes.
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Post by Asher on Dec 17, 2016 4:39:28 GMT
"It's usually pretty easygoing," Asher tried to reassure. For instance, he hadn't been forced to wear anything stupid today! "But, I think the curveballs are fun. So, maybe that's just something you need to get used to!" Or, maybe it was something Isaac would never get used to. Ah well. Every job had it's ups and downs.
The teen clicked his tongue to the roof of his mouth, making a soft, "tch." Him? Be like an awful member of the paparazzi? The ex-actor wasn't okay with that kind of thing! "Hey, I've been there. Unsolicited photos aren't my thing!" Despite that being mildly offending, Asher managed to still sound upbeat about the subject. "You underestimate me, anyway! The whole thing's on camera." Oof. Okay, that made it worse. "But, that's just security footage, anyway. Nobody even looks at it unless there's been a problem during the shift." Well, that last bit was probably relieving. But, hey, the manager had to try to keep Isaac on his toes!
"I'll help with the extensions and the makeup removal, if you want. We'll punch out after you look like a normal guy again." Or, as normal as he could look! But, that last comment had him confused. "Sorry? For what?"
That didn't make any sense! Had he done something wrong? Today had gone better than it could have, after all! With Isaac busy changing, Asher figured he may as well, also. Or, at least put on normal pants. The teen disappeared to his office for a short while, to change into jeans, but returned to the changing area with his dress shirt still on, while he placed his actual shirt on a chair off to the side. If he was going to help get makeup and extensions off of someone, he didn't want to risk any of it getting stuck to his regular shirt! At least the work shirts got cleaned by professionals!
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Post by Elliot and Isaac Sunderland on Dec 17, 2016 4:58:54 GMT
"Oh, no, the job itself's great!" Isaac clarified, curious at Asher's mention of curveballs until he realized how his earlier sentence could've been misinterpreted. "I was talking about the dress. Seriously amazed people can move so quickly in this thing." And with the sound of cloth sliding off of his body, now the problem was solved anyway. "But yeah, you're right. There sure were a lot of curveballs in the way today, huh? Not that I mind. It's just gonna make tomorrow so much easier by comparison." Also, who the heck went out to a maid cafe on a Sunday morning? If today was quiet, tomorrow was gonna be downright silent!
He cringed a little as he realized how the photo joke could've come off. Shit, right, Asher was probably dealing with them for way longer than Isaac would have. The sound of him facepalming was audible from behind the doors. "Well, I mean, ya did root through Elliot's wallet without permission. But nah, I get you. My bad," he said.
A bit more finagling, and soon Isaac was back in his normal clothes. He breathed a sigh of relief as he stepped back into the common room, sitting back down and waiting for Asher. The older teen had seemed confused by Isaac's earlier apology, and briefly Isaac turned it over in his head to try and frame how he wanted to say it. Eventually, however, inspiration hit. When Asher returned Isaac turned to him. "You know, for being kinda prickly and all that earlier," he clarified. Sure, Asher could be annoying. And exhausting. And did not have a great sense of boundaries. But he was clearly trying, and that was something Isaac didn't want to hold against him.
" 'Sides, I owe you big time for all the help today. Couldn't have pulled, like, any of this off without you," he added. It seemed when Isaac swallowed his pride, it stayed swallowed. But then again, when you've worn a dress in public for your little brother's amusement, you've kind of crossed any lines of dignity you had in the first place anyway.
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Post by Asher on Dec 17, 2016 5:11:02 GMT
Oh, come on. The wallet thing was coming up again? "In my defense! It's a lot more appropriate to look in someone's wallet, than to take pictures of them without their consent! That's just borderline creepy!" Only borderline? "I mean, first they get your picture, then they find some hair that looks kinda like yours, and next thing you know, you're getting weird boxes in the mail full of dolls with the picture of your face and some hair glued on them." That thought process escalated quickly!
Either way, it felt way better to put on some jeans, and discard those snug dress pants. Still, the apology seemed to be throwing him off. "Yeah, no idea what you're talking about!" Asher flashed his usual smile, while walking to a table to get some makeup remover cloths. Did he seriously have no clue? Or, was he just downplaying the entire day? Really, it had to be the latter, but he wasn't going to make it that obvious! Conversations like this just weren't his kind of thing!
"Well, it's kind of my job to help you," the redhead pointed out, lifting the cloth with makeup remover on it. "Want me to get that off for you? Face-touching and whatnot." Ugh. Not doing these things on his own accord really was a pain, though. Why couldn't society find physical contact more acceptable? "And, I'm sure you would have been fine if you had a different trainer!" It was just a matter of the lack of people capable of training the kid! Especially on this shift!
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Post by Elliot and Isaac Sunderland on Dec 17, 2016 5:21:57 GMT
Isaac blinked as he heard Asher describe his thought process. Wow, that really did escalate quickly, didn't it? And with how easily Asher rattled that all off, Isaac had the feeling he was talking from experience. A lot of experience. Way more experience than anyone really should've had to speak from, for sure. He shuddered slightly as the mental image washed over him, saying, "Yikes. Moving at least make that easier on you?" Somehow, he already knew it didn't dissuade Asher's admirers for a second, but sometimes the universe was nicer to people than Isaac worried it was.
Isaac was amazed that Asher was still downplaying, well, basically everything. He knew Asher was really bad with these conversations, but Isaac figured he at least owed Asher this much kindness. Then again, he did his part. He got the matter off of his chest, and now it was up to Asher if he was going to reciprocate or not. And hell, even if Asher wasn't gonna acknowledge it in public, maybe he'd at least feel a little bit better back at home. "And I'd appreciate that, please," Isaac said as Asher offered the cloth, closing his eyes to try and make it a bit easier for Asher. Sit still and don't twitch, and hopefully that would mean less irritation for all parties involved.
At Asher's comment, Isaac shrugged. "I mean, maybe," he said. The other staff was surely competent, after all, even if way less friendly than Asher. And to a degree, a bit less friendly would've been helpful for Isaac. "But you're pretty good at this. And really hard to shake, too. I mean, hell, if the one lady didn't get my trainer stressed out, I'm pretty sure Elliot being so ridiculous would've done the trick." He was usually pretty well-behaved, but today he had really decided to lapse into being a ballbuster. Then again, it was all for Isaac's sake, so he couldn't really complain.
"Y'know, that makes me kinda curious. What was your first day like?" Isaac asked. He had a feeling Asher was kind of a natural at this, but at the same time who knows? Things were rarely exactly what they seemed, and Asher especially seemed like he was full of surprises. Then again, his hiring seemed fairly easy too!
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Post by Asher on Dec 17, 2016 5:47:40 GMT
With a shrug, Asher thought about the answer. "For now. Moving only does good for so long." It was surprising that it had taken so long for fans to really find him, now that he was in Japan. The largest matter was his mother, really. And, as luck would have it, she hadn't figured out his new address yet. "When I moved to Oakland, it only took about a month for people to start up the 'gifts' again." After all, once one person got the address, it would end up on the internet or something. How did people find out where he lived, anyway? It was just creepy!
With permission granted, the redhead began to wipe the makeup off of his trainee. Surely, some of the glitter would remain, but that was inevitable. If someone so much as stared at glitter from across the room, they would find it in their shoes later on. "There's a reason I'm a manager, even though I haven't even worked here a year," the young man was quick to point out. If he startled easily, and visibly, he wouldn't be a good suit for any sort of stressful place! "And, I'm just good at blocking things out!" No shock there! Asher was great at acting insanely dense, all the time!
"My first day?" He echoed, pausing for a second to remember. "It was a train-wreck!" So much for downplaying that one! "My trainer quit, ten minutes into my shift, and nobody else would train me." Surely, this was unsurprising, since Asher was the only one even on this shift capable of training. It was likely the same across most shifts! "So! I just guessed my way through my entire first shift. No idea if I was even doing anything right. But, must not've been awful! I'm still here." How could someone sound so happy about such a stressful situation? Then again, maybe this place was just an overall odd one to work at, and nobody had a particularly great first day.
With makeup removed, the teen hummed and handed out a damp cloth. "You should probably wipe your face off with this, too. Makeup remover can burn after a while, if you have sensitive skin." Aww, he cared if Isaac was physically uncomfortable! Though, surely a spirit user wasn't too worried about sensitive skin. Moving onto the hair, he began working to gently unclip each of the extensions without any pain involved.
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Post by Elliot and Isaac Sunderland on Dec 17, 2016 6:07:13 GMT
Isaac nodded as he listened to Asher's predicament, a slightly mischievous smile starting to come across his face. "You ever try leaking a fake address? Like, to the middle of nowhere or a dump or something? Or would that just get them even more determined to hunt you down?" Isaac asked. What could he say? A bit of mischief was always fun to suggest! Besides, god knows Asher needed the break, if he was literally getting hairfacedolls. Those were, like, the worst kinds of dolls to wake up to in the morning. And if all those Asherdolls were going to the trash anyway, they might as well directly go to the source.
Wait, Asher was seriously a train wreck starting out? Isaac had expected him to be a prodigy, so having his trainer quit on him in the first ten minutes ran incredibly contrary to those expectations. Sure, it only made it all the more impressive how he rose the ranks to manager in less than a year, but it was still a big shock to Isaac's system. Then again, that could've been far less due to any lack of skill and far more due to his Asherness. He could only imagine a maid just gritting her teeth as she tried to endure being flirted with through an entire shift on training day.
His wording was kind of ambiguous, though. Did the maid quit training Asher, or quit her job entirely? The second was equal parts hilarious and terrifying to think of.
Nevertheless, Isaac found himself grinning a little. "Well, hey. Maybe if you bounced back from a first day like that, I've got a chance here too," he said. "I mean, as far as you've seen you've done everything right, so that must've been some really good intuition under your belt." But when your former job was literally appeasing people on the big screen, the maid cafe was quite the step.
Briefly, Isaac thought on his credentials. "Had a nightmare about being Peter Pan once." "Turned into a giant snake and put on a puppet show for baby blobs." And now he could add "Wore a dress just to appease his little brother at a maid cafe." These sure weren't the most resume-friendly bullet points! And yet, through it all, he was already feeling more comfortable in his own skin bit by bit. Maybe once all of this was over, he'd finally face the drama club head-on. Until then, though, he'd take things day by day.
Like this makeup remover remover. Isaac did have a sensitive face, something he learned the hard way the first time he tried shaving. Not that there was much to shave, really. His face could be annoyingly unstacheable sometimes. He graciously wiped himself down with the cloth, and in a few seconds was back to looking fully like himself again. "See? Its like night and day, isn't it?" he asked, almost amazed at how much he'd been transformed earlier. However, he quickly remembered one dangling loose end. "Oh! Still have any of those fondant flowers with you? It'd be pretty neat getting to check those out before we go."
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Post by Asher on Dec 17, 2016 6:27:24 GMT
"Fake addresses don't work. Piper tried it," Asher hummed, thinking about it. Of course his sister would be the one to think up that idea. Asher's idea was just, "burn it and hope it's not actually a voodoo doll.' But, hey, to each their own! Then again, Piper also hadn't been too thrilled that the internet had gotten hold of her lifelong address, just because her big brother moved in. That was just obnoxious!
Then again, the media had been equally obnoxious about the teen having a 'secret' sister.
The young man thought about his first day further, only cringing slightly about the entire ordeal. "You just need to be able to understand your audience. Once you've got that, you're set!" Of course, there were some people, such as the crazy lady, that didn't necessarily fit that mold. But, she might have been more pleasant if she hadn't made it awkward for either of them. After all, who asks an employee out on a date, while they're working? That doesn't mean they're being nice because they have a thing for the customer! They're being nice because it's their job! Jeez! Some people!
Finally removing the last clip from Isaac's hair, there was a small chuckle. "Yeah, you're not a girl now," he teased, placing the extensions where they belonged within the room. But, oh, he had forgotten about the flowers! "Are you sure you want to see them now?" After all, didn't Isaac want to bolt the second that he could? "I mean, I can show you them next time we work together, if you'd prefer." He didn't want to keep the boy over something as silly as flowers!
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Post by Elliot and Isaac Sunderland on Dec 17, 2016 6:39:01 GMT
"Had a feeling she would've covered that one," Isaac said, shrugging. That sounded like Piper alright; terrifyingly thorough. He was still amazed Elliot didn't come home one day strapped to some sort of Clockwork Orange styled studying machine, with how seriously Piper seemed to take literally everything. "Still, guess it was worth a try, huh? Lets hope moving to an entirely different country helps keep your profile lower." It probably helped that Shibuya was the fashion capital of Japan. Everyone dressed like a wannabe celebrity here, so it was totally understandable if someone missed out on the actual celebrity in the room.
Asher's advice was repeated from before, but it was still advice that made plenty of sense. Even if some customers just couldn't be helped, and some were complete enigmas. Then again, others, like Elliot, were if anything too helpful. Isaac had the feeling he'd be a perfect angel for anyone that wasn't him. But that was just siblings in a nutshell, wasn't it? "So long as they don't ask for anything ridiculous. Like a latte made of gold. Or a date." He grinned teasingly, glad he at least had some goofy stories to laugh about on shift now.
He was curious that Asher seemed almost in a rush to get out of here. Then again, he also framed it as whether Isaac wanted to bail early or not, so it could've just been politeness at work. "Yeah. That's true. I've got plenty of chances to check them out down the line," Isaac admitted, shrugging. "I just figure it'd be neat to check out as many new tricks as I can. I mean, heck, all this decorating stuff could really help me spice up Maia's Christmas, right?" He couldn't bake worth a damn on his own, but with Elliot doing the legwork and him doing the presentation the two could probably whip up a really tasty looking cake. Just another Christmas surprise to add onto the pile, like yule logs stoking the flames of Isaac's mind.
Damnit, he was getting poetic just thinking about her! Maybe this plan was working too well.
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Post by Asher on Dec 17, 2016 7:00:13 GMT
"Yellow food dye in a vanilla latte. Boom. Gold Latte," Asher was quick to quip. Sure, it wasn't real gold. And, the teen wouldn't know why anyone would want to drink something that was, but hey. If it got the customer to shut up, he'd tell them there were "melting crystals" in their drink and add some chunks of ice. Sure, it wasn't really the request, but anyone that wanted it would surely just be entertained by the fact that someone had found a way to cope with their stupid requests. "Dates are for crazies, though. If you need to ask someone that's waiting on you for a date, it's a red flag, right there!" After all, how desperate could someone get?
Checking the time, the manager hummed. "I guess I still have to wait for my relief, anyway," he caved, looking to his shirt. "I'm changing my shirt, though. You can turn away, or not." Asher didn't care, but at least he put out a warning! Having done this so many times, it didn't take very long to unbutton the shirt, and reach out for his actual clothing. Pulling it over his head, the teen threw a glance to Isaac, before fully pulling the item down. Ugh. He left his hoodie in the office. Oh well. He'd have to grab it later. At least this was more comfortable.
"Okay, back to the kitchen, then," he hummed, to notify Isaac that it was safe to follow him again. Once there, he pulled on a pair of sanitary gloves, "since these don't involve any cooking, you should wear gloves when you touch them, unless they're for yourself." After all, nobody wanted someone else's hand-germs! Slipping to cooler, the boy brought out a small tray of different kinds of flowers. Some were colored, some still white as the fondant came. "And, if you use food dye, always use gloves anyway. Your skin will be pink for a week, otherwise." With advice, the boy pulled out a tub with fondant inside of it, and popped it open.
"Now, I made this stuff. If you want, I can give you a recipe card. Or, you can buy some at the store, in a box." Well, at least the cooking-incapable Isaac had an alternative, with store-bought being an option! Pulling a ball of the substance out, he offered it to Isaac, before pressing another one flat onto the counter, and began rolling it, trying to demonstrate. "Roses and daisies, I think are the easiest. But, if you find out her favorite flower, I'll try to help you learn how to make it, sometime." After all, it seemed the workers had plenty of downtime to do whatever they wanted. "You can make other things, too, if you're crafty. Cats, snowmen, whatever. It's essentially clay that's edible."
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Post by Elliot and Isaac Sunderland on Dec 17, 2016 7:17:03 GMT
Wow. Asher had improv'd his way out of Isaac's silliest example with relative ease. "Y'see, that's why you're the pro here," Isaac repeated, the impressed tone to his voice quite obvious. He'd try suggesting more stupid ideas, but he had a feeling Asher was excited enough to be getting off of shift without Isaac hounding him about more inane ideas. He simply waited for Asher to be ready, not really caring enough to- wow, Asher was shredded- bother making a big show of looking away as he changed. It was just a shirt, after all. It wasn't like Asher coming into the dressing room and helping him out of his dress!
He made sure to slap on the gloves as Asher instructed once he made his way to the kitchen, just in case this step ended up touching anything. Especially once Asher mentioned food die. He remembered the time he and Elliot made "mystery potions" by taking milk and then putting in a ton of random additives, such as dish soap, food coloring, and at one point a bag of gummy bears. Ah, that was a fun day. Isaac was grounded for nearly a whole month after that little bit of shenanigans.
Elliot wasn't, of course. Because somebody loved playing favorites way too much. But Isaac was trying to be less bitter here, damnit. Not more bitter!
"Recipe card, huh? That'd be neat. Thank you," he said, smiling a little at the offer. Sure, it'd likely fall on Elliot's shoulders to make, but if push came to shove Isaac could try as well. What's the worst that could happen? He'd burn the house down? Which, admittedly, was a pretty bad thing. He curiously rolled the fondant between his hands, testing its moldability and elasticity. It was almost like some kind of edible clay. Neat! Then again, Asher just confirmed that statement, so could Isaac really take credit for that?
At the mention of cats, Isaac considered jokingly stopping Asher right there. After all, when Maia was the subject, the answer always boiled down to cats sooner or later. However, it would be interesting to finally get an idea of her flower preferences. Did she even have one? She didn't usually bring up flowers much, but he wouldn't be surprised if they made easy drawing material for her. He made a mental note to check with her, find some nice flowers to decorate the inevitable cat sculpture with. "I'll be sure to check in and get back to you. Think me asking about it will get her on my trail, though?" The Christmas surprise couldn't be jeopardized!
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Post by Asher on Dec 17, 2016 7:32:10 GMT
Setting down a half-made rose, the young man chimed a, "let me get you one," before disappearing for a few seconds. Returning, he placed a small, laminated cue card on the counter, with the ingredients and steps to making fondant. It really wasn't that hard! But, still, if Isaac wanted to be sure his girlfriend would like it, he would probably want to practice making it in advance. Or leave it to someone more capable.
"Asking about flowers?" Man, this kid was definitely trying to keep everything as secret as possible! What if his girlfriend wasn't even planning on doing Christmas presents? After all, it wasn't unheard of for people to not even celebrate the holiday! Again, like Asher, aside from with his sister. "It'll make her expect flowers. Which, shouldn't be bad, unless you're only going to buy her some flowers for Christmas. Then, yeah, you've spoiled what the gift is." Aside from that, though, was there really a need for this much caution?
It still didn't make much sense to him, keeping all of this a secret. "Why's it so important to keep all of this under wraps, anyway? Women love presents, and, uh, whatever makes 'em think you're thinking of them." Way to be descriptive, Asher!
Pulling at the petals of the fondant rose, to work on it's definition, the teen shrugged. "I just don't get it."
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Post by Elliot and Isaac Sunderland on Dec 17, 2016 7:41:09 GMT
"Yeah. I guess I am worrying a bit over nothing, huh?" Isaac asked, dialing things back down a bit. Sure, someone perceptive like Maia would probably realize he had a little something up his sleeves, but was that necessarily such a bad thing? Besides, she wasn't much for digging into his business. Worst case scenario, she finds it a weird question, shrugs, and moves on. It wasn't like her knowing a little detail would cause his whole plan to come crumbling down.
Then again, Asher didn't even see the need to have such a plan in the first place. He plucked at his ball of fondant in a similar way to Asher, trying to mold it into a (far less even) rose of his own. How exactly was he supposed to articulate his thought process, anyway? A lot of it was really private. At the same time, this was a chance to see if he was being a little too silly or not. Maybe it'd be valuable to take it. He sighed as he kept working at the rose, occasionally grumbling when one side ended up a bit too smudged. "I dunno. It just feels right, I guess," he said. "I mean, she's had a lot of stresses lately. And surprises." Even the good surprises, like Kuu, were certainly stressful ones. All one would have to do is how sleepless she was at school to get an idea of how much was on her shoulders.
He couldn't tell Asher about the Digital World, but he could certainly imply things. "I guess after all of those changes, I want her swept off her feet in the best possible way. Like a day where suddenly she doesn't have to worry about anything, and she can just sit back, relax, and enjoy herself without a care in the world. Surprised, but in a good way." He was blushing slightly as he said it, hoping that the idea would sound as good to Asher as it did to him.
"She's just really important to me, you know? Even if its a bunch of effort on my shoulders, I just really want to go the extra mile for her."
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Post by Asher on Dec 17, 2016 7:56:59 GMT
Seeing that Isaac was having a problem with how uneven his rose was, the teen tried to think of decent advice for it. "Try curving the outer petals some," he demonstrated, lightly pressing back the petals to look like the flower was trying to open more. "It might make it a little less obviously, uh, awkward." Yes. Poor, awkward rose.
"Stress, huh?" Didn't everyone have stress? That really didn't feel too peculiar to the teen. But, whatever worked, he guessed. He didn't want to pry too deeply into a stranger's life.
But, Asher didn't seem quite as enthused as Isaac was about the whole thing. He still really didn't grasp the concept! The redhead didn't want to be a downer, either, though. For once, his trainee actually seemed to care about something! Or, er, someone. "I'm sure she doesn't want you to tire yourself out over her, either," he tried to lightly suggest. And, frankly, if Isaac's girlfriend didn't care about that, then he didn't need her! Don't vocalize that part, though, Asher! It wasn't something people took kindly to!
"I just hope she doesn't come here and find out about your new job," the teen hummed, in his sing-song tone. Not that he even knew who Maia was, to begin with! Nor would he ruin something like this for someone!
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Post by Elliot and Isaac Sunderland on Dec 17, 2016 8:08:34 GMT
Isaac followed Asher's lead, curving the petals ever-so-slightly. It covered up some of the lopsidedness, but it was clear he still had some work to do in mastering how to structure them. Nevertheless, at least it actually looked like a rose now and not a sad little bud. "See? Good thing I started learning early," Isaac commented, eventually sighing in displeasure before squishing the rose back into a ball. It was time to try again, but this time a little bit better. Even if it wouldn't be perfect, it'd at least be progress, and that's all Isaac could ask for right now.
In a way, it was almost like a metaphor.
At Asher's light suggestion, Isaac nodded. "Nah, no need to worry," he assured Asher. "I'm not gonna let this plan get to that bad of a point. And even if I did, I'm pretty sure Elliot'd slap the sense right back into me. 'Sides, I have to go for a job at some point, don't I? I might as well get started sooner rather than later, especially now that I've actually got the right motivation." Come to think of it, there were plenty of other reasons to work, weren't there? Like making sure the family was getting enough money to scrape by in Japan. And making sure their mom didn't faint from exhaustion. And having a reason to not keep diving into the Digital World. Maybe he'd be sticking around at this cafe for longer than he thought, after all.
"Yeah. These things always fall apart in the most ironic ways, don't they?" Isaac mused. "And you just know it'd be on Christmas Eve or something, too, right when I think I'm in the clear. But hey, maybe now that I've called my bad luck out it'll back off for a change." Unfortunately for Isaac, jinxes didn't quite work that way. But with him actually sounding hopeful for once, who could say no to that face?
"Still, thanks for the concern. With how nuts life can get sometimes, it's nice knowing there's a place where people have my back," he said. Okay, so that place was the Digital World, but this was shaping up to be a far less deadly second option.
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