Café du Monde

[GGJ5]

Café du Monde is downriver from Jackson Square, a famous cafe opened for 24 hours a day (except on Christmas and days when hurricanes get a little to close to home) on Decatur Street. People love it for its famous New Orleans-style (blended with chicory) café au lait and its French-style beignets. The establishment is also over one hundred years old, the architecture reflects the classic look of the times.

[GGJ5]

Erin Spenser

Leaving the counter with her beignets and a cold velvet vanilla ice (it canceled the gross humidity perfectly), Erin found a table close to the front door of the shop and took out a smallish notebook and ink pen. She sat by the door because people-watching was fun, she sat in a coffee shop because it was a nice escape from the everyday stuff lately, with being watched like a hawk and everything.... Erin had to practically beg to go to the coffee shop, and the only reason she finally got to go in the end was that she promised to leave her phone up where she could hear it and call and "check in" every thirty minutes. Well, at least she got to go out...

Erin took out the notebook and flipped to an already well-scribbled on page. It was like all of the sudden a wave of creativity had hit since she and Yukito had fixed everything and could finally be real and together. And so the pages of this little carried notebook were covered in black ink-pen doodles that framed the fragments of lines or rhymes or images that came to her head, and now she tried to at least piece one of them together to make something pretty from it. Maybe something for Yukito. At least, she hoped she could make something for him. But the burst of caffeine from the vanilla ice was not helping her already fragile concentration, and instead she found herself doing anything but focusing on the pages before her.

[hanashyrexchana]

Juliet Echo Eco

The kid at the counter looked a bit surprised to see Juliet again; she had already turned in an application there that morning. " Can I help you again?" He flashed her a smile as she got out her wallet and fumbled with a couple of dollar bills. "Yeah... I'd like to try one of those beignets. I hear they're amazing."She said,raising her voice; it was getting pretty loud in there. He told her the price and in time gave her the order. After thanking him she turned to find a place to sit. "Lovely." All the tables were filled, which explained the loud buzz of chatter she had to order over.

After taking a step outside, the humidity convinced Juliet that she'd have to steal a chair. Most of the tables were completely full. College kids, families, dates.... 'Aha!' Right next to the door sat a girl who looked around her age, sketching. Juliet took a deep breath, deciding if she really wanted to do this. She wont bite... she looks pretty nice. Come on, Kagayaki did it, right? Then again, he was being nice, you just don't want to deal with the heat... She's just a stranger...'
"Hi. Um, it's pretty full in here, and I was wondering if I could sit....."She pointed towards the seat next to the girl. "I'm Juliet, by the way. Um... what're you drawing?"

[GGJ5]

Erin Spenser

Not having anyone to talk to really sucked. Erin liked being out of the house, and she liked being around everybody milling about, but no one was talking to her. She couldn't even take out her non-existent phone to call someone to come hang out with her. She couldn't even call Yukito, who she couldn't help but think about, since the whole reason she was trying to create something now was for him. It kind of sucked her muse.

"Hi."

Erin immediately looked up at the sound of the unfamiliar voice. A person! Yay! "Hi!" She flipped her pencil to bounce it on its eraser repeatedly. She didn't know the girl, but new people were cool, so it was all good.

"Um, it's pretty full in here, and I was wondering if I could sit....." She pointed towards the other seat at the little circle table. The pencil slipped out of Erin's grip and rolled off the table, but Erin ignored it and nodded. "Go for it!"

"I'm Juliet, by the way," the new person to share her talbe said, as Erin scrambled out of her seat to fetch the pencil before it rolled entirely under another customer's table. Quickly she hopped back in her seat, holding the pencil triumphantly. "Ha! Got it! Oh, and my name's Erin."

"Um... what're you drawing?" Juliet asked. Wait, Juliet, like... the Shakespeare chick? Didn't she die at the end of that show?[/b] The connection amused Erin a little, as well as Juliet's assumption that Erin was drawing, and she couldn't help but smile.

"I'm not drawin' anything," she corrected gently, then glanced down at the notebook paper. Well, there were doodles on the sides... She laughed a little. "Well, those weren't on purpose," she amended, feeling a little ridiculous for the stereotypical stars and hearts and flowers and subconsciously moved her hand over them. "I was actually trying to fix up a song, but it's taking me forever, 'cause I can't think on it long enough to do anything more to it. I'm blaming coffee for that one!" Erin added, absentmindedly beating out a rhythm with the pencil and the index finger of her free hand.

[hanashyrexchana]

Juliet Echo Eco

Approaching the girl wasn’t as hard as Juliet had expected. Sure, she talked to strangers all the time, but she didn’t usually have to ask things of them. Not to mention they were also usually boys. Still she managed to make her way over and pull out a hello. Almost immediately the girl whipped her head around, grinning and bouncing her pencil up and down on the table. ‘Whoa, down girl. Too much coffee, eh?’ Juliet smiled as Miss Caffeine returned her greeting then motioned towards the other tables. “Um, it’s pretty full in here, and I was wondering if I could sit….”

The girls face lit up at the request. ”Go for it!” She completely ignored her pencil as it dropped to the floor ’WAY too much coffee.’ But she took the seat anyways… it would be rude to just run away now.

“I’m Juliet, by the way.” She introduced as the girl ducked under the table to get her pencil.

”Ha! Got it! Oh, and my name’s Erin.”
Leaning in towards the paper Erin had been concentrating on, Juliet asked “Um… what’re you drawing?”

”I’m not drawin’ anything,” Both looked down the paper, and Juliet realized that it was covered by words, not pictures with the exception of a few basic doodles that Erin quickly covered. ”Well, those weren’t on purpose. I was actually trying to fix up a song, but it's taking me forever, 'cause I can't think on it long enough to do anything more to it. I'm blaming coffee for that one!"

Juliet giggled a little. “How much have you even had?” She said while Erin tapped the pencil excitedly. “You write songs? Do you play any instruments, too?” Nothing really new. She was probably in a band, and she wrote all their songs, and for all Juliet knew they played out of a garage. Or they were really good and were having a show soon. Either way and anywhere in between, it didn’t matter; Juliet had seen it before. "I tried that once. It was pretty fun, but since I don't play anything..." She shook her head sadly. "It didn't last."

[GGJ5]

Erin Spenser

"Um... what're you drawing?"

"I'm not drawin' anything," Erin corrected, feeling a little bit weird about the doodles in the margins of the lyrics. Seriously, hearts and stars and flowers? When did I get that lame? ”Well, those weren’t on purpose. I was actually trying to fix up a song, but it's taking me forever, 'cause I can't think on it long enough to do anything more to it. I'm blaming coffee for that one!" Oh, yeah... I guess I can blame Yukito for the lame doodles, she thought with a growing smile.

Her new companion giggled a little as she asked, "How much have you even had?"

"Just that one there," Erin gestured with a nod, busying herself with a rhythm on the table. It was her turn to giggle a little. "Sad, isn't it? But it's the sugar, too, I guess-- I didn't think about that, I should've thought about that, huh? Everything at home's fake sugar and, like, no caffeine, and I know it kinda defeats the purpose of trying to focus on anything, but it just smells so good, you know?" She laughed a little to cover the fact that she felt stupid for rambling so much to random-coffee-shop-chick, AKA Juliet, and making herself look like some kind of spazzoid. So Erin tried to keep her attention on the scribbled words on the paper before her. It was really not happening.

“You write songs? Do you play any instruments, too?”

Erin nodded excitedly. "Yeah, I try, anyway, but the actual writing music part is kind of new to me, 'cause I kind of improv everything and stuff, so I'll play something I really like but then an hour later I can't play the same thing again-- oh, yeah, I play piano and guitar and I'll eventually get my boyfriend to teach me bass and drums, too." She was about to shamelessly plug her band again, but needed to breath, and thereby gave the other girl a chance to put in a word.

"I tried that once. It was pretty fun, but since I don't play anything..." She shook her head sadly. "It didn't last."

Erin's face fell-- how sad! It must have been so devastating to watch her attempt at music go down the drain. "That sucks, didn't you have anyone to play with you? Do you do vocals? 'Cause loads of bands have members specifically for vocals-- actually some people think a band's more elite if it has a member specifically devoted to vocals. But I think having every member being able to do more than just one part of the music is better. That's what we're trying to keep happenin' in our band, anyway. Beignet?" she finished, offering the last one to her companion.

[GGJ5]

OOC: For Mascii! I am assuming that yes, they know each other pretty well, and yes, Chance is already there with her.. we can say they'd planned to hang out today anyway, right? If not, lemme know and I can change it. (: BIC:

Silhouette St. James

Even though Silhouette had never been a fan of coffee, she always found the atmosphere of a coffee house to be warm and positive, and it was often her preferred "hang out" spot. She didn't even get any of the super-sweet desserts they offered-- just an herbal tea and maybe a sandwich. Only today, it was just a white tea that Silhouette ordered and that she took to sit in her favorite little table in the far corner.

Maybe it wasn't a big deal to anyone who didn't get her, but to Silhouette, Clarence had stolen from her, and she was still angry about it. He had also managed to successfully confuse her emotionally, so she was unable to be completely angry at him, and couldn't figure out just why he'd done what he did. Normally, after one confesses of witnessing domestic violence, one does not spring a kiss on the listening ear. At least, she didn't think that was normal. It certainly didn't sound normal. And that bothered her.

She sat across from Chance, her short fingernails tugging at the rim of her warm cup as she thought. Silence didn't feel awkward with her. It was good to be silent sometimes, to just think and let things set in before... Before just randomly kissing me... that would have been nice. She took a thoughtful sip of the tea, the hot liquid burning the tip of her tongue. "Chance, do you know Clarence Morgan?"

It didn't really matter if he knew him or not, really. "He kissed me." Her tone betrayed just how unhappy the action had made her. "I don't even know why... and I didn't even want it. I still don't want it. I thought my first so-called kiss was going to be special..."

[Elda Forever]

Chance Savege

As a rarity, Chance was actually sitting quite calmly at the Cafe. Silhouette was good at getting him to sit still - he called it a tutor factor in his head - and pay attention to something semi-seriously. But acting as a sort of anchor to his normal behavior, he had quietly pulled out a soft beige nail polish and was busy - quietly - repainting his fingernails, a look of concentration written on his face. Because it was Silhouette, and because she was the serious, thoughtful type, he liked to relax when he was around her. He'd actually opted to get only one caffeinated drink today, too. Chance began blowing his nails dry as Silhouette took a pensive sip. He smiled quietly to himself. You even think when you drink. Haha...

"Chance, do you know Clarence Morgan?"

He thought about that for a second, "Hmmmm.... I don't think so..."

"He kissed me." Chance froze, a look of surprise on his face that asked if she was serious. And she sounded like it was such a bad thing! He must be a bad kisser. He mentally chalked that tidbit up. "I don't even know why... and I didn't even want it. I still don't want it. I thought my first so-called kiss was going to be special..."

"He didn't!" came the dismayed gasp, "Aww...Si!" He disregarded the still-drying polish and reached over to hug her. Chance tilted his head down to hers in a sympathetic smile. "Poor Si! I'm so sorry!" He paused for a second, then couldn't resist. "I kind of promised myself I'd steal your first kiss if you didn't find anybody. At least you could've kissed someone you know... So now he's a jerk in my book, too. You want me to scare him off for ya? Huh? What's he look like? Cringe, or Yummy?" His posture teased, as though he were about to leap up and find the guy that instant, but his eyes sparkled with sincerity. He knew that her first kiss meant a lot to Silhouette, and though he wasn't really shocked that someone would kiss her eventually - whether she liked it or not - he was still saddened that it hadn't been what she expected.

[GGJ5]

Silhouette St. James

"Chance, do you know Clarence Morgan?"

He thought about that for a second before answering her. Not that it mattered, really, she was just curious. "Hmmmm.... I don't think so..."

"He kissed me." Chance looked about as surprised as she felt. "I don't even know why... and I didn't even want it. I still don't want it. I thought my first so-called kiss was going to be special..."

"He didn't!" Silhouette offered a little shrug. "Aww...Si!" Quickly he punctuated his exclamation with an acetone-scented hug, and Silhouette couldn't help but smile a bit. She hated that smell, but she couldn't find in herself to really care when he was so readily sympathetic. "Poor Si! I'm so sorry!"

"It's okay, I just... wish he hadn't, you know? He didn't even bother to ask if he could."

"I kind of promised myself I'd steal your first kiss if you didn't find anybody." The comment won a laugh from Silhouette, and some of her anxiety over the whole thing melted a little-- getting to talk to a sympathetic ear was nice. Too many of her friends would think her reaction was weird-- after all, it wasn't like Clarence was ugly or stupid.. in fact, he was the opposite of both, and she knew it. Not that she wanted to admit that right now. "At least you could've kissed someone you know... So now he's a jerk in my book, too. You want me to scare him off for ya? Huh? What's he look like? Cringe, or Yummy?"

He'd made her laugh again, seemingly so quick to come to her defense. "Chance... your adjectives. Thank you for being the only person I know that can say that and mean it." She stopped for a moment to ponder his question, and then had to admit aloud, albeit muttered softly, "He's definitely not ugly..." She sighed, suddenly feeling frustrated with herself. "See, I babysit his little brother, and it's not like he and I ever really talked much anyway, and whenever I did say anything it always felt like he was irritated with what I said, so I thought he couldn't really stand me much. His brother likes me, so he tolerates me, you know? And then the other night he came by my house, in the middle of the night, and told me he had to talk-- All right, I can do that. It was weird, but I listened, and he did need someone to talk to. But then out of nowhere it was like..." She gestured to her face, then curled her hand back around the warm tea cup. "Whatever happened to asking? I don't even know what that-- that so-called kiss even meant. I don't know what I'm supposed to say when I see him again. 'Thanks for breaking the ice'? I..." she trailed off, occupying her confused state of mind with the now drinkable tea.

[Elda Forever]

Chance Savege

"I kind of promised myself I'd steal your first kiss if you didn't find anybody." Silhouette laughed at that, which he was glad for. Laughter was a good sign. "At least you could've kissed someone you know... So now he's a jerk in my book, too. You want me to scare him off for ya? Huh? What's he look like? Cringe, or Yummy?"

That ringing laughter came again, and Chance beamed at the positive reaction. But he was sort of serious... she should at least be able to say her first kiss had been good-looking. Chance believed she deserved a lot more than that, but... at least good-looking. "Chance... your adjectives. Thank you for being the only person I know that can say that and mean it." She stopped and he gave a nod.

"That's what I'm here for, babe," he told her flippantly.

"He's definitely not ugly..." She added more quietly, and Chance leaned in towards her, his chin in his hands and an eager expression on his face. He could hear a good 'how-we-met' story coming a mile away. "See, I babysit his little brother, and it's not like he and I ever really talked much anyway, and whenever I did say anything it always felt like he was irritated with what I said, so I thought he couldn't really stand me much. His brother likes me, so he tolerates me, you know? And then the other night he came by my house, in the middle of the night, and told me he had to talk-- All right, I can do that. It was weird, but I listened, and he did need someone to talk to. But then out of nowhere it was like..."

By this time Chance was practically bursting with giddiness over the story. It was like something from a book or a movie, and he wished he could predict accurately how it was going to turn out. But this Clarence guy was real. And Silhouette was real. So how was he supposed to say with any confidence that 'he really, really likes you and you can get together with him in the end but first you have to go through a whole bunch of cute and endearing relationship trials and errors and it's just. so. cute!' ? He held his tongue, waiting for her to finish. He took the small straw-thing he'd grabbed for his coffee (he never actually used them, but he liked how tiny the straw was) and started chewing on it.

"Whatever happened to asking? I don't even know what that-- that so-called kiss even meant. I don't know what I'm supposed to say when I see him again. 'Thanks for breaking the ice'? I..."

"Well..." Chance's straw-thing was, by now, a crooked version of its former self. He twisted it around his teeth a few times, trying in vain to suppress his smile. "Let me just say that, if a 'definitely not ugly' guy came to my house at night, told me about his personal life asking me to help him through it, then ended up kissing me, I would...." He paused, thinking. "Okay, yeah, the whole therapist-turned-friends-with-benefits thing is pretty creepy... but girl, I think this guy seriously likes you!" He reached over and took her hand, let out a laugh, and tilted his head to the side, "Now, I will admit, he needs to work on his communication skills and all... but, you know... we're all a little weirdish and can be trained."

He pulled the straw out of his mouth and started poking the thick syrup-like substance on the bottom of his cup with the end of the straw. "But maybe you should just play cool on this one. That fits you better. Like..." he gestured with his hand and started mimicking Silhouette's confident and in-control tone she used when she was trying to express her authority with minions. "I don't know who you think you are, but you cannot just take advantage of a girl like me that way. You need to earn my respect, not demand it like...like..." he burst out laughing. "I dunno. But you seem like you need a strong, sensitive guy or something...right? Someone who isn't afraid of his own shadow but knows when to back off?" He leaned one shoulder towards her, offering her a playfully sultry look, "Or maybe.... you like the dark, twisted, ominous type? Haha!"

[GGJ5]

Silhouette St. James

"Whatever happened to asking? I don't even know what that-- that so-called kiss even meant. I don't know what I'm supposed to say when I see him again. 'Thanks for breaking the ice'? I..." She trailed off, wordless.

"Well..." Chance almost looked like he was trying to hide his amusement about eh whole thing. Trying, and kind of failing-- Silhouette imagined it could sound pretty amusing to someone on the other end, and in spite of herself she smiled a little at it, too. "Let me just say that, if a 'definitely not ugly' guy came to my house at night, told me about his personal life asking me to help him through it, then ended up kissing me, I would...."

He paused, and Silhouette wanted to raise her eyebrow -- that particular talent had escaped her-- and said, unable to really keep back a smile now, "Really?"

"Okay, yeah, the whole therapist-turned-friends-with-benefits thing is pretty creepy... but girl, I think this guy seriously likes you!"

"Doesn't matter if he likes or not, now he's not gonna get any liking back for all what he did," Silhouette argued back decisively.

He reached over and took her hand, let out a laugh, and tilted his head to the side. "Now, I will admit, he needs to work on his communication skills and all... but, you know... we're all a little weirdish and can be trained."

Silhouette got the mental image of a puppy version of Clarence, with her standing over him ordering, "Sit!" ...It was weird. She blinked the image away.

Chance occupied himself with the remains at the bottom of his cup, and Silhouette continued to quietly sip on her tea. "But maybe you should just play cool on this one. That fits you better. Like..." He assumed a character voice and started dramatically, "I don't know who you think you are, but you cannot just take advantage of a girl like me that way. You need to earn my respect, not demand it like...like..."He broke off, having successfully drawn both of them into laughter.

"I do not sound like that!" Silhouette protested laughingly, realizing she had just partially incriminated herself.

"I dunno. But you seem like you need a strong, sensitive guy or something...right? Someone who isn't afraid of his own shadow but knows when to back off?"

Silhouette wasn't sure if he was expecting an answer or not... if he was, she didn't have one to give him. How was she to know the kind of guy she 'needed' or whatever? She knew the kind she wanted, and Clarence didn't fit that at the moment. So what if he kissed her? So what if he liked it? Liked her? So what?

He leaned one shoulder towards her, offering her a playfully sultry look. He wasn't making it very easy for her to think about this seriously, and for that Silhouette actually was grateful. She'd been seriousl.y thinking about it too much. Oh, fine... you win... "Or maybe.... you like the dark, twisted, ominous type? Haha!"

"Twisted, ominous type?" Silhouette leaned back, like Chance had just set her up with a blind date ex-convict. "You want me to date Jafar? Chance, you've done lost it, friend!" Again, she fell into laughter, still giggling as she sipped on the tea, using the cup to hide her smile.

[Elda Forever]

Chance Savege

"Okay, yeah, the whole therapist-turned-friends-with-benefits thing is pretty creepy... but girl, I think this guy seriously likes you!" He exclaimed, while Silhouette continued being semi-serious about the whole thing.

"Doesn't matter if he likes or not, now he's not gonna get any liking back for all what he did," Silhouette argued back decisively.

He reached over and took her hand, let out a laugh, and tilted his head to the side. "Now, I will admit, he needs to work on his communication skills and all... but, you know... we're all a little weirdish and can be trained." Silhouette blinked hard. Chance started playing with his straw. "But maybe you should just play cool on this one. That fits you better. Like...'I don't know who you think you are, but you cannot just take advantage of a girl like me that way. You need to earn my respect, not demand it like...like..." He broke off, having successfully drawn both of them into laughter.

"I do not sound like that!" Silhouette protested with a laugh, and Chance sent her a challenging look, still giggling.

"I dunno. But you seem like you need a strong, sensitive guy or something...right? Someone who isn't afraid of his own shadow but knows when to back off?" He tried to demonstrate a sultry look. "Or maybe.... you like the dark, twisted, ominous type? Haha!"

"Twisted, ominous type?" Silhouette leaned back, like Chance had just set her up with a blind date ex-convict. "You want me to date Jafar? Chance, you've done lost it, friend!"

At that, Chance found himself doubled up in laughter, "Jafar? Eeeew!" After a few moments caught up in their teasing, Chance sat up. "Okay, okay..." he gasped through continuing chuckles, "So...first order of business... what does this guy mean to you, hm?"

[GGJ5]

Silhouette St. James

"Twisted, ominous type?" Silhouette leaned back away from him, jokingly dubious. "You want me to date Jafar? Chance, you've done lost it, friend!"

She successfully sent Chance into a long and strong laugh. Not that that was a terribly difficult thing to do, and it made it easier for her to laugh with him. "Jafar? Eeeew!"

"You started it, I just said the kind of person you were describing!" Silhouette said, still laughing a little herself. Though Chance's laughter trumped hers by far.

"Okay, okay..." he gasped through continuing chuckles, "So...first order of business... what does this guy mean to you, hm?"

Silhouette let out a slow breath, allowing the question to rest between them for a few moments. What does he mean to me? He means that I am someone he trusts, though only God knows why. He means that I feel like I am walking on eggshells around him. He means that there are people I know that are hurting in ways no one should ever be allowed to hurt. He means someone likes me. He means I've no longer "never been kissed." He means I don't have a place to put him in my head that quite makes sense, because I don't know what he means to me...

"Confusion," Silhouette finally decided, letting the word drop flatly onto the table. She placed one hand over her other, letting them sit on the edge of the table. "I wish he wouldn't've done that. I wish I didn't care so much-- other people are like, 'oh, it's just a kiss, whatever', right? But I don't feel like that, and I feel like I should feel like that." She sipped at her tea again, pulling at the rim lightly with her teeth. "I don't want to like him. At all. In any way, shape, or form."

[Elda Forever]

Chance Savege

"Twisted, ominous type?" Silhouette leaned back away from him, jokingly dubious. "You want me to date Jafar? Chance, you've done lost it, friend!"

Chance exploded into laughter at that, and he could hear Silhouette joining in. Just the mental image of the tall, scrawny, ugly Jafar hanging on Silhouette's arm was enough to make anybody see the comical light, and it wasn't long until tears were starting to play at the corners of Chance's eyes. "Jafar? Eeeew!"

"You started it, I just said the kind of person you were describing!" Silhouette said, still laughing a little herself. Chance shook his head at her, and just cried out again, "Eeeeeew!" It took them a little longer than necessary to get back to a semi-serious conversation about love and first-kisses and boys here. And Chance liked discussions like that, so he sat up and tried to calm himself.

"Okay, okay..." he gasped through continuing chuckles, "So...first order of business... what does this guy mean to you, hm?"

He watched her with eagerness as Silhouette let out a slow breath. He waited for her to collected her thoughts together. "Confusion," Silhouette finally decided, letting the word drop flatly onto the table. She placed one hand over her other, letting them sit on the edge of the table. Chance leaned back a little, crossing one leg over the other and tapping his foot slowly. "I wish he wouldn't've done that. I wish I didn't care so much-- other people are like, 'oh, it's just a kiss, whatever', right? But I don't feel like that, and I feel like I should feel like that."

"Aw, but honey, it does mean something to you! If you feel angry, just feel angry about it!" He arched an eyebrow at her, "Unless there's more to it than some jerk stealing your first kiss?" Chance held up his hands defensively, "Not that it doesn't mean something big! I'm just sayin'...is there more to it?"

She sipped at her tea again, "I don't want to like him. At all. In any way, shape, or form."

Chance just nodded at that one, his eyes on his freshly-painted fingernails. He frowned as he spotted a rough-looking smudge, and another with a weird crosshatch pattern molded into it. He must have bumped something while the polish was still wet. Dully he tried to smooth out the polish with his finger before it dried too hard completely. "Do you really mean that?" he asked flippantly. "You don't sound so sure. 'Cause, see..." he flicked his wrist until one palm was held up, "On one hand, you've gotten your first kiss stolen by a guy you barely know." He held up the other palm, "On the other hand, you've gotten your first kiss stolen by a guy you barely know, which, in a lot of books, is kinda romantic." Chance paused, then made a disgusted face, "Unless he tried tongue or something weird like that. Tongue on a first kiss is a dead no-no." He sighed, then uncrossed his legs to lean on the table to grin at her, "What I'm saying is I think you're over-thinking this. You said you don't want to like him. You never said you didn't like him. And you're smart and choose your words all careful and stuff, Si. So I think that means something." He shrugged and flopped back into his chair again, showing off horrible posture in his seat as he continued trying to smooth his nail polish out. "But then again, I may just be a sucker for romance."

[GGJ5]

Silhouette St. James

"I wish he wouldn't've done that. I wish I didn't care so much-- other people are like, 'oh, it's just a kiss, whatever', right? But I don't feel like that, and I feel like I should feel like that."

"Aw, but honey, it does mean something to you! If you feel angry, just feel angry about it!" She shifted a little uncomfortably. It wasn't her goal to be really angry about it... she didn't like feeling angry about it. He arched an eyebrow at her, then continued, "Unless there's more to it than some jerk stealing your first kiss?" Silhouette's eyes rose to meet Chance's dubiously.

"Not that it doesn't mean something big! I'm just sayin'...is there more to it?"

She sipped at her tea again, weighing her words. "I don't want to like him. At all. In any way, shape, or form."

Chance just nodded at that one, quiet for a minute before he answered. "Do you really mean that?"

She looked at him hard, as if to say, Well, yeah, o f course I do! Chance wasn't phased. "You don't sound so sure. 'Cause, see..." He held out a palm upward. "On one hand, you've gotten your first kiss stolen by a guy you barely know." He held up the other palm as Silhouette nodded in agreement. "On the other hand, you've gotten your first kiss stolen by a guy you barely know, which, in a lot of books, is kinda romantic." Silhouette looked wary-- Yeah, so romantic to be aggressive and adamant. Terribly romantic.

Chance paused, then made a disgusted face that made Silhouette worried about what he'd just thought. "Unless he tried tongue or something weird like that. Tongue on a first kiss is a dead no-no."

Silhouette's eyes widened, a silent sign of her wholehearted agreement.

Chance leaned farther onto the table, grinning like a Cheshire cat. "What I'm saying is I think you're over-thinking this. You said you don't want to like him. You never said you didn't like him. And you're smart and choose your words all careful and stuff, Si. So I think that means something."

Silhouette frowned, eying him disgruntled. She didn't like where he was going-- the logic made her uncomfortable. Because, despite his exuberance and giggles and mirth, he was being too good at using logic. She said nothing.

Chance slouched back, picking at his fingernails that still smelt of acetone. "But then again, I may just be a sucker for romance."

"This isn't romance, Chance!" she half-whispered, trying to make him understand, her eyebrows coming close together in her eagerness for him to understand her meaning. "It isn't romantic for me! It's just really... confusing..." she finished weakly, sitting back and feeling defeated. Not by Clarence, or by Chance, but by herself.

"Other girls want to be in this kind of situation, don't they... And I don't want to be like other girls..." Life is one huge catch 22 sometimes, isn't it?