perfectmatch | week two

[Rom is going to give Yi Sang diabetes. He will no longer be able to have his fill of white rice, and he will lose the rest of his will to live. What an ideal ending.

In all seriousness, Yi Sang nods at the somewhat reasonable proposal.]

Sharing under these conditions would be ideal.

[ NOOOOOO don't worry Yi Sang, Rom will protect you both from the ghosts but also from your blood sugar spiking too high!!! ]

Excellent! Let's go with that, then.

[ The producer on set sure is grimacing from the sidelines at having to shell out so much for ice cream ... but at least when Rom leans over the counter to place his order for one of every flavor, he specifies that the scoops can be half-sized. Even smaller would be okay.

It's still going to be a lot of ice cream ... ]

[Rom is such a hero.

Yi Sang closes his eyes at the frankly massive order. Even half-sized is too much for the sheer quantity of what they're ordering. At this rate, he'll develop a pattern as an exceedingly expensive date.]

Even a quarter of the scoop would have sufficed. Can you truly finish half, if not more?

[ Shamelessly: ] Hahaha, absolutely not!

[ Which earns a Look from the poor employee arranging like two dozen half-scoops of ice cream into big ol' sundae boats. ]

But it's good television to go a little over the top with these sorts of things, Mr. Yi Sang! We can also give some of it to the staff members so it doesn't go to waste, once they've captured some footage of the order. [ Also: he's not paying for it. ] So it'll be a win-win for everyone involved.

[This is terrible, but Rom presents a sound alternative in the event they become stuffed too soon.]

Mm . . . I suppose naught will go to waste, then.

[In fact, it sheds a certain light on Rom to think of the staff members with them. Yi Sang therefore can't claim this to be a fruitless endeavor.]

Precisely!

[ Said with a flourish, before Rom abruptly pulls out one of the chair at the nearby table. Specifically, the one closer to the door, away from the backside of the establishment. -- not for any particular reason! Just because. :) ]

How about you take a seat while they're putting together our order? I'll bring it over once it's done.

[Yi Sang has no reason to question why Rom would want to sit closer to the door where there's more natural lighting. Nodding slowly, he claims his seat by the nearby table and watches the employee at work with a vacant stare. Such a riveting date this is.]

[ Natural lighting's nice, certainly. But more importantly, he wants the vantage point so he can keep an eye on that ghost in the back in a natural way. This way, when he brings over the first enormously-piled bowl of ice cream and places it before Yi Sang, then takes his own seat, it mostly looks like he's just staring intensely at his date partner over their delicious ice cream treat. ]

Well. Let's dig in?

[Yi Sang, who remains blissfully unaware of what lies a mere stone's throw behind him, states at the towering bowl of ice cream. No matter which way they divide it, this is excessive.

Time, however, is a merciless mistress. Knowing that the ice cream will melt before long, he picks up a spoon and scoops out a small mouthful for himself from the top of the sugary mound. He closes his mouth over the spoon and savors the new flavor for some time before reaching out again, slowly. This will take a while.]

[ Oh, it's definitely excessive. But at least the camera crew seem to be having a ball with it. Rom shoots them a glance, pointedly waiting for a few moments so they can get some good footage of Yi Sang bravely forging into the horrific ice cream mines alone, before starting to pick at the topmost scoop himself.

It's good! But it's also a lot. ]

How are you finding it so far, Mr. Yi Sang? Do you think you'll find a new favorite?

[It is a lot.]

Though I do not have a favorite, it is not as sweet as I was expecting. That is not to say it isn't; however, there is a certain combination of mild qualities that provides an altogether light flavor.

[He samples another scoop near the top.]

Is it to your taste?

[ After another bite of ice cream: ]

It's alright. It's good ice cream, I think, but I don't like sweets that much.

[ A pause as he hums in thought. Two gloomy men with a mountain of ice cream that neither of them are fanatical over ... Riveting television, he's sure. Even the sheer amount of ice cream can't make up for the atrocious vibes, probably. ]

... is this date so far panning out like you'd hoped, Mr. Yi Sang?

[As they speak, the ice cream is slowly and surely melting. Pretty soon it'll make for a sorry sight.]

I had no particular expectations for it. I was simply informed that it had been arranged, and attended accordingly.

Yes, of course.

[ What did he expect, honestly.

Though after taking another bite of ice cream, he decides to just go for a question that's been on his mind. No need for subtleties since they'd probably a waste of breath. ]

Mr. Yi Sang. Do you have any interest in this game at all?

[For the sake of making the purchase halfway reasonable, he continues to partake of the ice cream.]

If you refer to my reason for joining the set, I had little interest in the game itself.

Haha. I could guess as much.

[ He is also still taking a stab at the ice cream, though he's frankly already kind of sick of it. Definitely starting to push it around the bowl a little instead of eating it efficiently ... ]

But since you did join the set, presumably you'd want to stay on the set. Don't you think there's a risk of being removed from the game if you continue to show no interest at all in the game? Our dear overseer reprimanded me for seeming uninterested as well, you know.

The game can ill afford to lose a player without jeopardizing a match; however, should production seek to remove me in light of what they deem a dissatisfactory performance, I shall leave in silence.

[He lowers his spoon. It'll soon resume scooping through the mound of ice cream, but for now his attention is on Rom.]

Do you find your position here to be precarious?

[ Hm. So he doesn't even care about his wish that much, to be willing to leave so easily upon request? He can't help wondering what his wish might have been, then. Why bother even participating this far for something he's so ambivalent about?

Rom blinks when Yi Sang actually looks to him, before giving one of his usual opaque smiles. ]

It's hard to tell. What if I did?

[He watches the smile out of his periphery, the center of his gaze focused on the space behind Rom.]

For what reason did you join the game?

Does it matter?

[ His own gaze remains fixed on Yi Sang for the moment, staring him down in his usual vaguely unsettling fashion. ]

I'd like to know first -- what if I did find my position here to be precarious, Mr. Yi Sang? Why do you wish to know?

[On this, Yi Sang is far from cowed. Instead of reacting to the stare, he lowers his head to resume chipping away at the ice cream with another spoonful of the stuff.]

Should your alleged disinterest jeopardize your place in the game . . . then the trajectory of a date could change to revise that perception.

[ And here, he's used to being told he's hard to read. Rom feigns a thoughtful hum as he fishes up another half-hearted spoon of ice cream. ]

Correct. But a date is not a one-man affair. This trajectory could be difficult to change on my own.

[Yi Sang, if nothing else, is self-aware enough of his passivity to where he'll take (almost) any course presented.]

Whatever you do, I shall follow.

But follow only?

[ He points at Yi Sang across the table with his spoon. ]

I don't know if that would constitute a good date, Mr. Yi Sang! After all, an employee can follow their boss' command, too, perhaps while wishing death upon them the whole time. To follow only might indicate a level of disinterest, don't you think?

[Pointing is rude . . . ]

Then what do you propose?

week two | dates

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