Log:Awkward Encounters

Awkward Encounters
Participants Kip, Itsuki, Haruki	2017.03.30 Itsuki and Haruki bump into Kip in the park.
Location Riverside Park
It's a clear spring afternoon, although the air is crisp and the threat of snow hangs heavy in the air. "And this is where he took me!" Haruki says to Itsuki. "He says its his favourite place. Isn't it lovely." He's brimming with energy as they walk through the park, on the verge of taking off into a run, or a jump or something. He's dressed down, super casual in a tshirt, hoodie, tracksuit pants and good trainers. Itsuki has his hood up and hands dug into his pockets, dressed similarly, if in more neutrals. In fact, to some eyes there's a distinct lack of any color on him at all, shades of black and white and silver-grey shifting even in the full sunlight. He peers, a little less brimming. "It's nice," the younger twin concedes, trailing behind Haruki. "Think you'd get hypothermia dipping in there?" He nods to the river, swelling from the Spring melt. Itsuki's clothes are a bit more shabby, though, over-sized and fairly obviously second-hand. The problems of modern technology and such have led to a large portion of the population engaging in electronic device obsession, with faces buried in screens. Kip does not have this obsession as his is far more analog in nature. A messenger bag is slung over him diagonally, sometimes catching at the edges of his jacket and tugging the unzipped jacket open with one step, tugged closed with the next, over and over. His hair is half pushed back from his eyes but still manages to fall back again at times. A book, paperback, is grasped in his hand with one finger used to hold his page as he walks. He seems lost in his own thoughts until voices draw his attention and he pauses to look over. Haruki is given a brief glance, but Itsuki is given a much longer one with a hint of chnage to his expression following suit. Maybe he Sees something. Haruki's clothes fit nicely. He's taller than Itsuki, more colourful, better groomed, better teeth too. He looks alarmed as Itsuki mentions the river. "It's too cold for swimming. Race you!" he suddenly declares, darting off in a direction that's as far from the river as possible, and that sudden running takes him careening directly into Kip's path. Itsuki is, however, faster, almost dropping to all fours as he seems to take off almost faster than Haruki despite that *really obvious cheating*, surprisingly quick for his size. Or maybe not surprising, the rush of wind causing his hood to fall back, lop ears perking as he dashes around the book-reader, "Wherearewerac-" Kip's hand with the book flies upward as if protecting it from, well, everything. Then it is clutched close to his chest, arms wrapped over it. So much for saving that page with his finger, it's been yanked out in the motion. He wavers to the left, then the right, then back to the left before finding himself pretty much directly in the pathway of the taller (and obviously more human) twin. Ack! "Uh, that-- you... careful," he stammers in a quiet yet not entirely meek voice. "You're cheating!" Haruki calls out in protest as Itsuki zooms right past him. Goodness knows how he is cheating but he must be. Haruki's nowhere near as fast as Itsuki is, which is saying a lot, since he is fast. He skids to a stop, staring up at Kip. "Sorry." He blinks, innocently. It's an excuse not to keep running. "What're you reading?" he looks at the cover curiously. It's not losing if he chose to stop. Itsuki tugs his hood hurriedly back up, peering suspiciously at Kip, as if he were some shady character harassing Haruki, rather than an innocent bystander being almost bowled over by the pair. "Come on." He tugs at Haruki's sleeve. Yes. Cheating. Clearly. But Kip, well he knows better. Sort of. This encounter confirms that leaving the sanctuary of Inside for the world Outside is oft a bad idea. The cosmic paperwork that set in motion the events of his life had been written out by someone with a terrible sense of humor. "It's a book," he says softly before turning it to show the cover. It's just some random newer fiction story. But even so, the book is treated like it is a first edition of a classic story, all reverence and appreciation for it. "Didn't mean to get... in the way. Sorry." Itsuki is given a sidelong glance as if there's something equally shady about him. He keeps his eyes slightly lowered, as if that would hide the glow and spark within them that Haruki does not see. Haruki's sleeve is tugged but that book has his curiosity. He looks at the book, with wonder wide in his eyes. Okay maybe there's a touch of sarcasm as he speaks. "Wow. Is that really a book? Are you sure?" he ends up laughing, it's warm and gentle and not at all unkind. "It wasn't your fault." He lets Itsuki drag him a step away. Itsuki relaxes slightly. Just slightly. "It's okay." He declares magnaminously. "Just see that it doesn't happen again." He's still tugging, though, slowly dragging the somewhat larger twin away. "Sorry." Kip repeats the word yet again, his shoulders slighty hunched forward as if he can make himself less tall and less awkward and more invisible by that motion alone. It just makes him look like a bit of an ass. "It-- it's a story. Guy goes looking for his missing girlfriend and finds out she was kidnapped by a cult." A pause. "It has high ratings on Booktastic." Which must be some weird book ranking website? Who knows. His attention veers back toward Itsuki and for a moment he straightens up just a touch, head no longer slouched downward. "I just moved here," he states as if that should somehow mean something. "I haven't looked up any... friends yet." "You're not going to throw me in the river, are you?" Haruki asks Itsuki, just to be sure. "I can swim. I won't drown or die of hypothermia." He must be joking. "Which doesn't mean I'd like to get wet." He looks interested as Kip explains the story. "Oh. And then what happens? Is it fiction? Fantasy?" He smiles. "I've just moved here too." He glances between Kip and Itsuki a moment. Itsuki releases Haruki's elbow at all this talking and stalling, twitching a foot in agitation and crouching, tugging his hood up further and looking away. "There's probably a book club somewhere, I bet." Kip's grip on the book tightens it against his chest. "I just got to the cult. I mean he. He just got to the cult and saw her. I -- I like stories where he finds someone he lost and gets them back so I hope he does." Itsuki's general demeanor is noted. Kip might be a bit slow on the uptake sometimes, but he usually gets the point when his presence is less than welcome. "I'll find one. I'm opening a book store. Well my uncle owns it. I'll just... run it. For him. If you like books when it opens come by." "I'm being polite," Haruki says in a hushed whisper to Itsuki. "And he keeps looking at you. I think he /likes/ you." He puts a certain emphasis on that word. He nods at Kip and speaks normal again. "I hope it has a happy ending. Those are the best stories." He smiles. "That's great. What's your store going to be called? My brother's just shy." Itsuki continues to squat, mumbling something in Japanese and trying to tug his hood down further over his face but, oversized or not, that seems to be as far as it will go. <Ugh no he doesn't why are you 'whispering' in English anyway?> "What?" Perhaps Kip heard the exchange that was whispered. Perhaps not. Perhaps he's just asking a general question. "Oh, store. I haven't-- don't know. Yet. Books is as far as I got." A flush tinges his cheeks for a moment and his weight shifts from one side to the other, the hand not holding onto the book for dear life is shoved into a pocket of his jacket and he lets the mop of hair that had been halfway pushed back fall back into his face. "It-- nice meeting you. Both. Both of you," he says a bit awkwardly. "Because speaking Japanese, in front of someone who doesn't is rude," Haruki whispers back to Itsuki. And of course whispering isn't. He's really rather bad about the whole whispering thing. He smiles at Kip. "I like puns. They're the best sort of store names." He smiles. "And nice meeting you too. We're Magicians. You should come see us at the night for the stars." He digs through his pockets until he comes up with a flier, that's all crumpled up. He hands it to Kip. "It's going to be so much fun." Grumble grumble. The grumpy bunny in the hoodie sighs, standing and offering a formal bow. "Sorry for being rude." Now he can't be yelled at later, even if this is all a really obvious and lame attempt to distract from the fact that he was winning. "I'm Itsuki. Nakamura Itsuki. And this is Haruki." He nudges his brother. "You could go with 'New Leaf Books?' Like, turn a new leaf, turn a page..." He brow wrinkles, "Does that scan?" He looks to Haruki for an opinion. Kip does perk up at mention of magic. "Like you make people disappear and cut them in half and do card tricks?" Wait, did Kip just string together a series of words without stammering over them? The paper he took is taken in his hand, though it requires him unstuffing said hand from his pocket. He uses the paperback book to smooth the page against, folding it in half after scanning it, then tucking it inside the back cover. "I like magic." He smiles, briefly but it's there. "I'm Kip," he offers. No further name, just the one. "New Leaf Books sounds possible. I'll write that one down." "You could also sell turnovers, with your books," Haruki flashes a smile as if it's the best idea ever. "I like New Leaf Books." He nods at Kip. "Yes. But we make them reappear and put them back again too. That's the important bit. You have to fix it. Nice to meet you, Kip." Itsuki mmms in thought, "I remember the first time we tried sawing Souta in half, before we knew about the fixing part. Gramps wasn't happy." The grumpbunny sighs wistfully. Maybe joking. Hopefully joking. Kip's expression of interest and rapture about the subject of magic tricks fades a little for a moment at Itsuki's words. Then he realizes it's a joke (hopefully) and laughs softly. "It was nice to meet you both. Thank you for the name idea. I hope I'll see you at the-- thing." He motions his book a little to indicate the tucked away paper with the information on it. "Uh. Bye." With that, he gives a slight wave with the book and turns to shuffle off back on his way, like he can't wait to get away and get back to the sanctuary of being indoors. "I'd never hurt Souta," Haruki says. "That was all you." He then says to Kip. "It was okay. No one got hurt." He smiles. "Goobye." He says to Kip.