Video USA

[GGJ5]

They rent and sell DVDs and video games. And candy and popcorn and stuff, too. That's pretty much it.

It's got a nice selection with a tiny staff, but the tiny staff know what they're doing. Like walking movie encyclopedias, most of them.

[Elda Forever]

Yukito Maki

"Remind me what we're doing here again?" Yukito asked in bored Japanese. Aidousan had been acting weird the last few days, avoiding questions and keeping to himself most of the time. Yukito's mom had urged him to see if Aidousan would spend a week of his 'valuable vacation time' at the Maki apartment, but Yukito knew that if his friend had found someplace to stay, it would be hard to convince him he wasn't intruding or being a bother to ask him to stay at their place. First I have to figure out sleeping arrangements. Can't just keep him sleeping on the floor or anything. Maybe the couch can be set up to be more comfortable...

Before Yukito had figured out a way to ask Aidousan over without making it sound mushy and like he missed his friend, Aidousan had asked him to go with him to the video store. "What? Why?" No answers to this one, either. He just said that he needed Yukito's help, and asked again if he would please come. Well, there was only the blunt responses to give to that question. Either, 'no, get out of my face', or 'fine, whatever'. He had given the latter, and within minutes had been strolling down the streets of New Orleans to the nearest video store. Yukito wandered into the room, taking a quick assessment of the place, and easily found himself in the video game aisle, staring at the range of selection from toddler-aimed time fillers that were meant to educate, and the mature rated MMOs with skimpily dressed females on the cover. He never liked toddler games anyways.

"What kind of stuff are we looking for?" Yukito asked, positive that his friend was not that into MMOs, and sure that Aidousan had never liked horror films or anything of the sort. For one thing, Aidousan was one of those freakish modest types that cringed at the sight of women with low-cut shirts, and for another, Aidousan was afraid of most things, aside from his own shadow. Which he sometimes danced with or talked to, if Yukito remembered right.

[More than Music]

OOC: WARNING, FLUFF AHEAD. Just so you know.
BIC:

Kagayaki Aidou

"Remind me what we're doing here again?" Yukitokun asked him, looking around with little interest.

Okay, so this was a little embarrassing.

So they'd just gotten over being sick and everything, and the thoughts that Saikochan had put into his head hadn't left him alone.

"She likes..... painting and artsy things like that."

"And mushy movies. like sleepless in seattle and stuff."

"Just go to a movie store and ask for a good romantic comedy... she likes those..."

He sighed, shaking his head a little. He had to try and remember those words, but his mind was working against him. 'Romantic' and 'comedy' weren't the easiest things for a dyslexic to remember. Honestly.

"What kind of stuff are we looking for?" Yukitokun questioned, asking another question Kagayaki didn't want to answer.

But he had to, even if he couldn't really remember the words that had JUST been in his head. "Something a girl would like, I guess." he muttered, almost inaudibly, almost trying to make sure his friend didn't hear him. "You know, mushy and funny stuff."

He wandered a little, then sighed, one hand going up to touch a finger on each of the two scars that were side-by-side on his head.

"Yuyukun..." he whined, turning around. "I can't read any of this stuff!" He shook his head, wanting to sink to the floor and crawl into a corner and pretend that he hadn't asked his best friend on this embarrassing outing. "I... I can't wimp out this time, like I always do! I have to find a movie she will like. I... I have to ask her if she'll watch it with me. I just... I have to! I can't stand not being around her. I can't stand being away from her. I... I..." Kagayaki looked away from his friend pointedly. "None of the things I'm feeling make any sense."

[Elda Forever]

Yukito Maki

"What kind of stuff are we looking for?" Yukito asked, turning to Aidousan. He never remembered Aidousan being much into movies before, and he didn't see any reasons why he would start now. The response he received was mumbled so quietly, he could scarcely hear what was said – another good reason to be curious.

"Something a girl would like, I guess." Yukito arched an eyebrow, and slipped out a random video off the shelf. Die Hard? That looked promising enough, if you were into explosions and blood, and the good guy always winning. “You know, mushy and funny stuff."

Last time I checked, you weren't a girl, Aidousan. Why would you want something like that? Yukito felt a chill run through him as he put the movie back in its proper place. He's not trying anything between Erin and I, is he? He knew Aidousan wouldn't do anything intentionally, like try and get too close to Erin. But he also knew that the two of them got along well – two hypers with enormous grins and sparkling personalities that Yukito could never quite be at ease with, could never compete with – and he also knew that his last girlfriend had ended up in Aidousan's willing arms. He better not touch her.

"Yuyukun..." Aidousan complained, turning around to look at him with a pathetically 'I'm SO lost!' look on his face. "I can't read any of this stuff!" Yukito made himself stop and clear his head for a moment. No, Aidousan wasn't getting a movie to watch with Erin...he wouldn't do that... Yukito fingered some DVDs and looked up at the sign near them, indicating the immediate genre, as Aidousan burst suddenly like a dam that had just broken, shooting out water full-force.

"I... I can't wimp out this time, like I always do! I have to find a movie she will like. I... I have to ask her if she'll watch it with me. I just... I have to! I can't stand not being around her. I can't stand being away from her. I... I...None of the things I'm feeling make any sense."

Yukito looked up at his friend. "Watch with who?" he halted, then let the information sink in. Oh...

"Cassie-chan?" After the initial dumb-founded expression, Yukito found himself starting to chuckle, then laugh. "You like Cassie-chan?" He felt relieved that Erin was safe from Aidousan's thoughts, but he couldn't help but feel a little protective of Cassie, as well as Aidousan. The two of them, together? It was kind of odd, picturing it. True, Aidousan had probably gotten really close to her, since he was staying at her house and all...but even Aidousan didn't risk embarrassment by going out and picking out romantic films to watch with just any girl. He was trying to make her feel better, which was Aidousan's way of showing affection.

He froze, then pointed at Aidousan, "Don't mess with her, you got it? Be serious about this, and don't smother her. Cassie-chan should be taken care of and loved, not eaten alive." After a moment, he grinned, "I'll help you."

Then Yukito, still smiling to himself, slipped over to the next aisle, and started actively searching the titles there, "She's probably seen a bunch of these, already. The Wrights have a pretty good-sized DVD collection...But the easy thing about girl movies are that they don't mind watching them again and again."

He saw Love Actually and almost handed it to Aidousan, just for kicks. Man, it would be hilarious to see Aidousan try and sit through that one! True, the story was pretty cool, all mingling and stuff - he'd seen it a few times in fractions while his mom went through a Love Actually phase - but he knew there was a certain set of scenes that would have his best friend, legal adult or not, diving for pillows to cover his red-hot face.

He tapped the titles as he went, as if touching them sent a message to his brain on whether it would win or lose points with Cassie. "Mom likes Sandra Bullock films, and those are pretty okay to sit through, if you have to. I bet Cassie saw While You Were Sleeping a million times, but you could try that one." he pulled it off and handed it to Aidousan.

" Gahh..." he stared down at The Notebook, hesitant to even touch the case. With one finger he pointed down at it, "That," he said with a touch of drama, momentarily a little, obnoxious kid again as he pointed out something scary to his best friend on the playground. "Is The Notebook. You watch that with a girl, and you're through. Either high-tail it out of there or just get married to her then, because otherwise you're in trouble. " He arched an eyebrow at his friend, “Got it?”

[More than Music]

Kagayaki Aidou

"Yuyukun... I can't read any of this stuff!"

Yukitokun didn't seem fazed, and Kagayaki found himself spilling out all that he'd tried not to when his friend had first asked him why they were here.

"I... I can't wimp out this time, like I always do! I have to find a movie she will like. I... I have to ask her if she'll watch it with me. I just... I have to! I can't stand not being around her. I can't stand being away from her. I... I..." he said, exasperatedly. Then he calmed a bit, his hands falling to his sides. "None of the things I'm feeling make any sense."

Yuktiokun finally looked up. Kagayaki waited. "Watch with who?"

Kagayaki's mouth fell open. "I..."

"Cassie-chan?" Yukitokun asked, looking a bit shocked. Kagayaki felt that nervous feeling in his stomach, and wasn't really comforted when his friend started to laugh. That knowing laugh. That 'I-understand-you-more-than-you-do' laugh. Kagayaki sighed and was about to speak when his friend continued. "You like Cassie-chan?" Kagayaki's eyes seemed stuck to the floor, but he slowly nodded. When he looked up, he hoped for some sign of approval. He didn't get it. At first, he only got an accusing finger stuck out in his direction. "Don't mess with her, you got it? Be serious about this, and don't smother her. Cassie-chan should be taken care of and loved, not eaten alive." Kagayaki felt suffocated. 'You don't get it, do you? That's exactly what I'm afraid of doing! Figuring out that this was all just some stupid feeling in my head, that I'll just screw it up like I have every other relationship before! You... You're not helping me at all.'

But, slowly, Yukitokun smiled at him. "I'll help you."

This lifted a huge weight from his shoulders, and Kagayaki relaxed, a smile overtaking his face. "Arigatou gozaimasu." he whispered, bowing a bit. "I don't think you understand how much this means to me, Yuyukun."

"She's probably seen a bunch of these, already. The Wrights have a pretty good-sized DVD collection...But the easy thing about girl movies are that they don't mind watching them again and again."

Kagayaki nodded, listening very intently, even though he knew he would probably forget all of this later. 'No I won't,' he argued with himself. 'These are things I need to remember to take care of Cassiechan right. Like knowing she's allergic to nuts and stuff. It's important to remember, so I have to remember it.'

"Mom likes Sandra Bullock films, and those are pretty okay to sit through, if you have to. I bet Cassie saw While You Were Sleeping a million times, but you could try that one." Yukitokun handed this movie to Kagayaki, who looked at it curiously.

"Come to think of it, Saikochan mentioned that Cassiechan liked a certain movie that involved 'Sleeping' or 'Sleep' or... or 'Sleepless' or something like that." he muttered, not sure if he was on the right track or not. "But, I want to pick out something for her that would be... I don't know... kind of special. At least something she hasn't seen lots. Just something we could sort of, I don't know, walk through together."

"Gahh..."

This weird sound from Yukitokun made him interested. Kagayaki looked over at his friend, curious. "Nani?"

"That," he said, dramatically, pointing at it like it was a wild animal you shouldn't touch. "Is 'The Notebook'. You watch that with a girl, and you're through. Either high-tail it out of there or just get married to her then, because otherwise you're in trouble. "

Kagayaki looked at Yukitokun with a bit of wonder. "Wow... That sounds like some movie, if it gets girls like that!" he whispered, picking it up and looking at it.

“Got it?”

"Yeah, sure," Kagayaki said, half-mindedly answering as he looked at the picture of a girl and a guy kissing - quite passionately - on the front cover. "Maybe some other time." This comment was mostly to himself, and he sort of hoped Yukitokun didn't hear him.

Then his eyes fell onto a picture of a girl wearing words for a dress, a flower in her hair and an interesting expression on her face. She was very pretty, and this made him interested. He held it up. "Yukitokun, what's this?" he asked, then looked at it. "This says '27', right?"

[Elda Forever]

OOC: I'm tired of doing the italics. You guys know they're speaking in Japanese. BIC:

Yukito Maki

"Mom likes Sandra Bullock films, and those are pretty okay to sit through, if you have to. I bet Cassie saw While You Were Sleeping a million times, but you could try that one." Yukitokun handed this movie to Kagayaki, who looked at it curiously.

"Come to think of it, Saikochan mentioned that Cassiechan liked a certain movie that involved 'Sleeping' or 'Sleep' or... or 'Sleepless' or something like that. But, I want to pick out something for her that would be... I don't know... kind of special. At least something she hasn't seen lots. Just something we could sort of, I don't know, walk through together."

"Gahh..." Yukito had barely been listening to Aidousan, and now was distracted by the sight of a familiar title - The Notebook. He warned his friend off of the film, but only succeeded in intriguing him.

"Wow... That sounds like some movie, if it gets girls like that!" Aidousan whispered, picking it up to take a look. After a long look at the cover of two people kissing in the rain, Aidousan breathed the words, "Maybe some other time." Yukito sent his friend a disgusted and dismayed look, but didn't even honor it with a response. Sometimes, Aidousan was a complete, complex mystery to him.

"Yukitokun, what's this?" He looked up to see Aidousan holding out a DVD for inspection, "This says '27', right?"

"Yeah, 27 Dresses." Yukito said, now totally disenchanted by the idea of picking out a romantic film. He took the DVD from Aidousan and inspected the back cover quickly for a rating, then checked for the genre. "Romantic comedy. That's probably a good choice. We done now?"

[More than Music]

OOC: Well, I've got to use it here, so we know when it switches to English.
BIC:

Kagayaki Aidou

He felt stupid but, then again, when didn't he feel stupid?

"Wow... That sounds like some movie, if it gets girls like that!" he replied to his friend's warning him about the movie 'The Notebook'. "Maybe some other time." Yukitokun didn't seem pleased. 'Aw, come on, you'd never consider watching a movie that made Saikochan crazy? You silly Yuyukun you!'

Then he found an interesting looking movie.

"Yukitokun, what's this? This says '27', right?"

"Yeah, 27 Dresses." Yukitokun told him, and Kagayaki smiled gently. '27 Dresses... Sounds pretty interesting.' His friend looked at the movie sceptically. "Romantic comedy. That's probably a good choice. We done now?"

Kagayaki laughed, setting the other movies down and taking '27 Dresses' from his friend. "Yeah, that one looks like what I'm looking for." he said, patting Yukitokun on the head. "Thank you so much for coming, Yukitokun."

They were just about to leave when someone tapped Kagayaki on the shoulder. "Hey there," a voice said, in English. Recognizing the voice, Kagayaki whirled around with an expression of pure shock.

"Tanakasan!" he gasped, looking at his friend. Then he switched gears, seeing a small baby in a carrier on Tanakasan. He paused, looking at his older friend with suspicion. This made Karyu laugh.

"He's not mine, chill out Kagakun." he said ruffling Kagayaki's hair.

"Ah!" he said in whisper-scream, moving backwards and bumping into Yukitokun as he laughed. "Ah, sory." He turned back to Tanakasan. "Then where'd the baby come from?"

A tiny sneeze was all it took to ensnare him. Kagayaki's face showed that he was melting on the inside as he leaned slowly towards the baby. "You so kawaii!" he whispered, touching one of the baby's tiny hands. A very adorable smile came across the tiny pudgy face, almond-shaped eyes crinkling and almost disappearing. Kagayaki made a face that said 'that's so cute it should be illegal' as he looked back at Yukitokun. "Yuyukun... Mite.. Look. Cute baby."

Tanakasan laughed. "Yeah, his parents are out shopping so I have to watch the little monster." he explained, reaching down and poking the baby in the belly, which made the infant laugh in such a way as made Kagayaki smile, overwhelmed with cuteness.

"He's so cute!" Kagayaki moaned, tickling the little baby under the chin. He looked at Yukitokun again. "Isn't he?"

[Elda Forever]

Yukito Maki

"Romantic comedy. That's probably a good choice. We done now?" He said with little enthusiasm, thrusting his hands in his pockets and sending Aidousan a bored look.

Kagayaki laughed as he abandoned their previous choices for 27 Dresses. "Yeah, that one looks like what I'm looking for." He patted Yukito on the head like he was some little kid, and Yukito snarled, threatening with his eyes that he might bite. "Thank you so much for coming, Yukitokun."

“Whatever,” he said simply. He looked past Aidousan then, to see an all-too-familiar face. With an all-too-familiar grin on it. Tanaka Karyu. What was he doing here? Yukito arched an eyebrow at the baby strapped to his waist by one a baby sling. Huh? The last time he'd seen Tanakasan, he had not had a kid.

"Hey there," He said, tapping Aidousan on the shoulder. Aidousan whirled around and did a momentary sum-up in his head. Yukito could imagine it...Know this face....seen this face...this face is Tanakasan!.

"Tanakasan!" Aidousan gasped, looking delighted. Then, everyone looked down at the pudgy bundle drooling on Tanakasan's shirt. Aidousan gave Tanakasan a pointed look.

"He's not mine, chill out Kagakun." he said ruffling Kagayaki's hair. Yukito took a little step back, and was careful to keep his own head out of Tanakasan's reach.

"Then where'd the baby come from?" Now relieved on that respect, Aidousan turned to Pudge. Yukito wasn't positive, but he thought it had let out a sneeze-like sound. It sounded more like the way Chica sneezed than any human he'd heard. Aidousan loved it. "You so kawaii!" he whispered, leaning down to enjoy the little grin at a better alititude. "Yuyukun... Mite.. Look. Cute baby."

Yeah, cute.

Tanakasan laughed. "Yeah, his parents are out shopping so I have to watch the little monster." he explained, reaching down and poking the baby in the belly, which was something Yukito was sorely tempted to do until the kid let out a little giggle. He wouldn't admit it out loud, but that was pretty adorable. Outwardly, he vowed to keep his distance. He didn't want to reach over and expect a giggle and just end up making the kid scream.

Yukito instead focused on Tanakasan, while Aidousan gushed over the pile of tiny human parts and made the kid giggle, “So are you visiting the family or something?” he asked, knowing Tanakasan had some old geezer of an uncle or something of the sort he came to visit every once in awhile, “I never knew they were in New Orleans...”

"He's so cute!” Aidousan sounded like his mom. "Isn't he?"

“Sure, Aidousan...” he turned to Tanakasan and felt his lips twitching into a smile, “We're here picking out a movie for Aidousan to watch with a friend of his.”

[More than Music]

Kagayaki Aidou

"Hey there," Tanakasan said, taking Kagayaki by surprise.

"Tanakasan!" he cried, thrilled to see his friend but not sure of what to think of Tanakasan being in a movie store.

Tanakasan didn't exactly share Kagayaki's moral views.

On that subject, Kagayaki's eyes were drawn down to a little baby that was in a carrier hanging from Tanakasan's chest. Kagayaki sent him a look.

"He's not mine, chill out Kagakun." Tanakasan said, and Kagayaki laughed as his friend ruffled his hair.

"Good." he muttered, looking at the little baby. "Then where'd the baby come from?" The baby sneezed. "Cute! You so kawaii!" He leaned closer to the baby, supporting himself on his knees so him and the little cuteness could meet eyes. Then he looked at Yukitokun. "Yuyukun... Mite.. Look. Cute baby."

Yukitokun didn't look too impressed.

Tanakasan let out a dark laugh peculiar to him. "Yeah, his parents are out shopping so I have to watch the little monster." he explained, and poked the little thing, making it laugh. Kagayaki let out a giggle of his own - which sounded strangely similar, he realized - watching the baby with keen interest. He found himself making those cute baby sounds most adults - or at least people his age - were completely embarrassed to be made in their presence, much less make themselves. But it made the kid laugh, and that was the point.

“So are you visiting the family or something?” Yukitokun asked Tanakasan.

"Un," Tanakasan replied, smiling down at Kagayaki. "Mom was getting tired of me, and I'm on break for the Summer from college, so I came here to see them. Heard Kagakun was out here too, so that kinda helped." He winked at Yukitokun. "He's a goofball, and I missed him."

“I never knew they were in New Orleans...”

Tanakasan shrugged. "Weird coincidence we came down here. Actually, they live a bit north of here, but we came here for a while. Not sure why, but I came along for the ride." He let out a laugh. "Kagakun, you know you look ridiculous, right?"

Kagayaki sent him a bit of a look, then turned his attentions to Yukitokun. "He's so cute! Isn't he?"

“Sure, Aidousan...” Yukitokun replied, not sounding very interested. Then he looked over at Tanakasan, and Kagayaki looked up at the strange smile twitching on Yukitokun's face as he looked at the older boy. “We're here picking out a movie for Aidousan to watch with a friend of his.”

Kagayaki's jaw dropped. "Yukitokun!" he cried, standing up to shove him a little. 'You're not suppose to tell!' he wanted to say, but didn't. He looked at Tanakasan.

"Oh are you?"

He felt his face turn beet red, and he tried to slip the movie behind his back but Tanakasan snatched it from him. As soon as the older boy's eyes caught sight of the cover, he burst into laughter that made Kagayaki look down with embarrassment.

"Oh, so cute!" he said, ruffling Kagayaki's hair again. Kagayaki looked at Yukitokun with a look that actually contained a little anger.

'I shouldn't have told you, he thought. 'I found the movie myself. Maybe I didn't need you to come. This really matters to me, can't you see that? Can't you understand I don't want people to think this is just me being ridiculous? I actually care about her! Really! And I want people to actually take me seriously sometimes. People take YOU seriously. Can't they just leave ME alone?'

But he kept these thoughts to himself, a bit ashamed of them actually.

"Aw, I'm sorry, Kagakun." Tanakasan said, patting his friend on the head. "But I still think it's cute."

'Cute or not, I really love her and I wish you could see that!' He put on a smile. "It's okay," he lied, too ashamed of his thoughts to voice his hurt.

[Elda Forever]

Yukito Maki

“So are you visiting the family or something?” Yukitokun asked Tanakasan, not so eager to make a fool of himself in front of a baby like Aidousan.

"Un," Tanakasan's half-grunted ascent was accompanied by an amused smile sent down to their giddy companion, who was getting along with the infant swimmingly. If Yukito had been in a bit nastier of a mood, he might have teased Aidousan that they spoke in the same key and had the same priorities. Be cute and be active, let momma do the work. "Mom was getting tired of me, and I'm on break for the Summer from college, so I came here to see them. Heard Kagakun was out here too, so that kinda helped." He winked at Yukitokun. "He's a goofball, and I missed him."

"What, you didn't want to come see me or something?" he snarled sarcastically. Of course he wouldn't, only Aidousan would come this far away and come see me. He thought of this bitterly as fact, turning the conversation quickly to comment, “I never knew they were in New Orleans...”

Tanakasan shrugged. "Weird coincidence we came down here. Actually, they live a bit north of here, but we came here for a while. Not sure why, but I came along for the ride." He let out a laugh. "Kagakun, you know you look ridiculous, right?"

Kagayaki sent Tanakasan a 'oh don't you even' sort of look, and then ignored the older boy, turning to Yukito again to reassess the kid's adorableness. "He's so cute! Isn't he?"

“Sure, Aidousan...” Yukito muttered, feeling the disappointed look on Aidousan's face rather than seeing it, turning to Tanakasan with a quiet smile, “We're here picking out a movie for Aidousan to watch with a friend of his.”

"Yukitokun!" came the dismayed cry. Yukito looked down in surprise at Aidousan's face. What?

"Oh are you?" Tanakasan said. Aidousan blushed, trying to hide the film. It was pretty much useless to try, even though Tanakasan had a munchkin strapped to his stomach. Immediately, the boy started to laugh at the cover of 27 Dresses.

"Oh, so cute!" he ruffled Aidousan's hair. Yukito stood, looking unmoved. But inside he wondered at the glare his friend sent to him, looking betrayed.

"Aw, I'm sorry, Kagakun." Tanakasan said, patting his friend on the head. "But I still think it's cute."

A smile from Kagayaki. "It's okay,"

"Well..." Yukito took the film away from Tanakasan, ready to lie and get the focus off his best friend. "Now I know my answer."

"What?"

Yukito waited a suitable amount of time, focusing on picking at a sticker on the DVD case, "I knew you'd tease if you knew, you're so predictable," he gave a snort, then looked up at Tanakasan, "Come on, seriously? I'm the one with a girlfriend, man. Put two-and-two together." Let Tanakasan wonder if it was Yukito that was suddenly watching love movies with his girl. He just hoped he wasn't called on the outright lie. From their previous outings, Yukito had decided Erin was not the mushy chick flick type, and for that he was grateful beyond words. He took the case and started to walk away with it, calling over his shoulder, "You coming, Aidousan? I want to get home. There's pink in this room." He walked up to the lady behind the counter, setting the DVD down without a word. He wasn't sure why Aidousan acted so weird to Tanakasan's teasing - after all, wasn't Yukito their favorite thing to gang up on and tease? - but he was willing to at least try and soften the blow. Or whatever. Meh. The problem is I suck at lying.

[More than Music]

Kagayaki Aidou

"What, you didn't want to come see me or something?" Yukitokun asked Tanakasan. Kagayaki looked up a little, concerned by his friend's voice as he said this. 'What the matter, Yuyukun?' But the subject moved on. “I never knew they were in New Orleans...”

"Weird coincidence we came down here. Actually, they live a bit north of here, but we came here for a while. Not sure why, but I came along for the ride." Tanakasan said with a shrug. Then he laughed, and Kagayaki had a feeling it was his fault; he was playing with the baby, doing all he could to make the small child laugh. "Kagakun, you know you look ridiculous, right?"

Kagayaki looked up at the young man, just older than him, who had been his friend for as long as he could remember. 'Just having fun.' Then he looked to Yukitokun. "He's so cute! Isn't he?"

“Sure, Aidousan...” was the reply he earned, and Kagayaki felt his smile twitching at the edges. Instead of reacting, though, he decided to distract himself with the baby. 'At least I don't have to worry about this cute little baby making me look bad. That's all my choice.' “We're here picking out a movie for Aidousan to watch with a friend of his.”

Kagayaki froze. "Yukitokun!" 'Not again!'

"Oh are you?"

Kagayaki tried to hide his face as Tanakasan ruffled his hair and called it 'cute'. Yes, he knew that Tanakasan didn't mean any harm by it, but still... He didn't like being teased about being in love with Cassie, and had hoped that he wouldn't have to defend his affections. Of course, he hadn't openly claimed it yet, but still... Kagayaki looked at Yukitokun, feeling like he'd just been sold to the slaughter. Finally, Tanakasan saw the look and backed off. Tanakasan apologized, and though Kagayaki wasn't convinced, he played that he was.

"It's okay," he lied, turning away so his friend couldn't see his dishonesty on his face.

"Well... Now I know my answer." Yukitokun said, and Kagayaki looked up with a bit of shock as Yukitokun took the movie from Tanakasan. 'What you doing?'

"What?" was all Tanakasan said at first, clearly confused.

Silence for a while. Even the baby just looked up in wonder, not sure of what to make of these three strange boys, arguing and making themselves look stupid. "I knew you'd tease if you knew, you're so predictable. Come on, seriously? I'm the one with a girlfriend, man. Put two-and-two together." Giving them both time to wonder what the hell he was doing, Yukitokun moved away. "You coming, Aidousan? I want to get home. There's pink in this room."

Kagayaki managed to catch on. "Hai!" he finally managed, turning back to the baby once more to tickle its little belly. He moved over to Yukitokun standing next to him with wonder still in his eyes. "Thanks..." he whispered, sighing. "I guess it's that I haven't been the same about them teasing me since they teased us that one time... you know, about..." He gestured between the two of them, with a bit of disgust on his face. "Yeah, it just makes me think of how upset you were, and how embarrassing it was. Sorry I freaked out on you."

They checked out and Kagayaki looked over at where Tanakasan was still wandering the store. He wasn't paying attention. So Kagayaki extended a hand and placed it on Yukitokun's shoulder. "Thank you. For coming here with me. It means more than you know."

'Because I'm scared to fall in love again. And you coming here gives me strength. If you believe I can be better, I believe I can be better. Thank you.'


EDIT: I guess Kagayaki is done here now.

[Elda Forever]

Yukito Maki

When people made wishes as they threw their lint-covered change into a fountain, they wished for interesting things. Sometimes, even things that would be useful and would always be. If Yukito had been near a fountain, and if happened to have some change that he could dig from his less-than-sparkly pocket, he would've made a very simple, strange wish. I wish I was a better liar.

"What?" Tanakasan said, as Yukito snatched the now irritating DVD from his friend and tried to pretend like he had been fooling him this whole time, like it had been planned for Yukito to frame Aidousan and take the fall. I wish I was a better liar.

"I knew you'd tease if you knew, you're so predictable. Come on, seriously? I'm the one with a girlfriend, man. Put two-and-two together." he turned on his heel and sauntered over towards the front desk. "You coming, Aidousan? I want to get home. There's pink in this room."

"Hai!" Aidousan chirruped, giving the baby another dorky tickle for a goodbye before trailing behind Yukito like the puppy he was.

"Thanks..." Yukito looked up with a bored expression to see the gratitude and relief in Aidousan's eyes. "I guess it's that I haven't been the same about them teasing me since they teased us that one time... you know, about.." Aidousan made a face, and Yukito felt himself beginning to stiffen involuntarily. Don't ever talk about that again. Ever. "Yeah, it just makes me think of how upset you were, and how embarrassing it was. Sorry I freaked out on you."

"Don't mention it," he muttered meaningfully. Don't mention any of it.

Aidousan, who was still so naive to the whole thing - because Yukito wanted him to be - laid a hand on Yukito's shoulder. Yukito tried not to react with a shudder. "Thank you. For coming here with me. It means more than you know."

Yukito didn't say anything, only shrugging, slipping the DVD off the counter and walking with purpose out of the video store. "Whatever. Let's go." He didn't want the video store trip to mean more than it did. A friend going with a friend and giving him advice. That was all it should be. A couple of guys going to pick out a film. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Don't ever mention it again. Please.

Yukito is done here.

[GGJ5]

OOC: Silhouette/Liv/Chance? : DDDDD BIC:

Silhouette St. James

A few girls were coming over for the night to stay, and they'd decided after a few games of phone tag that it would be a movie night-- one was out getting the snacks, another two were already at her house working on some kind of artsy-crafty-jewelry things that Silhouette had never been able to take much interest in, and now she was picking up the movie. There was a division between the girls who wanted a normal chick-flick romantic comedy type, and the ones that wanted a new blockbuster type movie. Normally, Silhouette wouldn't care, but she was in a mood particularly for a romantic comedy, though she wouldn't really give a reason-- even to herself.

She didn't watch a lot of movies in the theater, so Silhouette automatically drifted to the new releases, picking up a case, examining the back synopsis and the actors, and putting them back after a moment of meditation. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past looked pretty good to her; she held on to it and kept browsing. The Proposal sounded good except the character Sandra Bullock was playing kind of bothered her in the trailers she'd seen on TV. Silhouette didn't bother touching The Ugly Truth. Now Silhouette stopped, hovering over a copy of Bandslam. Silhouette bit her lip absently, thinking. Would it be worth getting both? She was pretty curious about the Bandslam movie... and maybe if she was getting two of those, she should get a regular action-type movie... Silhouette looked up and glanced to the other shelves. But that would be more money.... hmmm...

[issie]

OOC: I'm just winging this so if you guys had something different in mind that you wanted me to do, I'd be happy to edit this post. ^.^ BIC:

Liv Aldis

Liv had entered the building slowly, being careful to not jar her aching shoulder. This was the first time she had been in here since she had moved to this place. Chance had given her the directions and told her that he'd meet up with her. Liv, not being one to ask too many questions, just went along with it. So far, she felt like Chance was the only one she could really trust here. Mainly because she actually knew very few people.

Moving through the rows of movies, she attempted to pronounce them all in her mind. It was like a personal challenge she had set up for herself. Some looking familiar while others she had no idea existed. Suddenly, her eyes wandered to a familiar girl. Liv knew that she had seen her in school, her name was something that was extremely difficult for her to pronounce, she remembered that much. She seemed to be deep in thought about something, staring down at a movie that Liv couldn't read from where she was standing.

Tilting her head to the side slightly, she wondered if she should go up and say 'hello.' Her parents had always told her that she needed to be more social around people, both males and females. Not that she cared too much about what her parents had to say, but it seemed to be the only useful piece of information that ever came out of their mouths. Mostly they just spoke nonsense in their drunken slur.

Looking around one last time, she secretly wished that Chance had walked through those doors rather than some person she didn't know. Liv inhaled slowly and walked towards her. "Hi," she managed to say softly, but with a bright smile. She felt so awkward and out of place for a moment, second guessing her earlier thoughts about being social... "I'm Liv... from school." She tacked on the last bit as a side-note. She didn't bother to add that she knew her name, because she didn't want to insult her by mispronouncing it.

[Elda Forever]

Chance Savege

The walk to the video rental store was just long enough for him to wipe off the sour look off his face. Things weren't going so well at home, and he knew spending some time with Liv with an insane movie was just the thing he needed. Not only was it interesting to watch some mindless film - or half-watch it, since he'd be goofing off most of the time anyway - but watching with Liv was extra-fun, since she still had some trouble understanding English. Sure, she was getting pretty good at it, even if Chance had to explain 'cool' again every once in awhile. He tried to make it fun and not a big deal for her. Inwardly, he found it endearing, and he liked the idea of knowing something someone else didn't quite get, and being able to explain it. So Liv could make him laugh,and she was also a big confidence-booster.

Hooking his thumbs into the pockets of his jeans and whistling a tune of some rock song he'd heard on the way to school but couldn't remember a word of, he crossed the street to Video USA. Reaching up for the door handle, the dozen or so bracelets and watched he'd acquired and accumulated for 'the jingly effect' did their intended sound, and he smiled as he entered. Immediately, he spotted not one, but two familiar faces. "Heeeeey!" he crooned, waving his arms and making the arm-gear jingle and ring with the fast movement. "I spy with my little eye two gorgeous gals!" He sped over to plant a kiss on both of their cheeks, keeping Liv gently captive with her shirt sleeve pinched between two fingers. "How're you both doing, huh? I'm feeling kind of lucky to find you both here. Saves me time from checking up on you two. You find anything good yet, Livvy? I forgot to ask if you had anything in mind earlier."