week two | dates

[marriagebroker]

Kiss the girl~!

Or guy.

Or person.

Or Messmer's snake.

Comments

[gamboler]

[ Okay, he believes you, Yi Sang.......

The smell of leather inside the store is absolutely overwhelming. This might not be the type of store where Aventurine would pick up some footwear for himself, and maybe he can convince Yi Sang to pick up a nice pair of loafers later...but for comfortable everyday wear, it should do. ]

Oh? Then you wouldn't happen to know you shoe size, would you?

[poans]

It is 270 mm.

[What now.]

[gamboler]

[ ...Oh. He chuckles, bewildered. ]

...You really are so full of surprises, Yi Sang.

[ And here come the shoe salesmen with a fleet of kicks for him to try on!!! ]

[poans]

[Is it truly so difficult to believe that he's worn shoes before today? He gives Aventurine a halfway inquisitive glance when the salesman arrives with an impressive array of designs and styles.]

Ah, no . . . I do not require anything extravagant. Something simple will do.

[All that to say, the consultation is a brief one that concludes with a pair of black kicks. Once they've been stored away in a box, Yi Sang turns his attention back to more important present company.]

Does aught here interest you, Aventurine?

[gamboler]

[ A pretty tasteful choice, and Aventurine nods his approval. So far so good! ]

This kind of footwear isn't really my style. In my line of work, appearance is everything.

[poans]

What line might that be?

[As he asks, the transaction to officialize the purchase takes place in the background between staff members. Once cleared, he switches the slippers out for a pair of complementary socks before putting on the shoes.]

[gamboler]

You haven't guessed? I'm a businessman. An investor, of a sort.

[poans]

I see. You must have quite the experience in your field.

[gamboler]

[ Giving a quick survey of Yi Sang's new kicks before they start on the way to their next destination. A marked improvement, if he says so himself! ]

Oh? What makes you say that?

[poans]

[Fare thee well, locker of foot. Yi Sang leaves with the shoe box in tow, because he refuses to leave the slippers behind.]

I believe this date is proof of the qualities that make you suitable for the role.

[gamboler]

[ A tilt of his head. ]

Why's that? Because I'm selling you on how good you'd look if you put a little more effort into your wardrobe?

[poans]

[Is that how he's been selling it?]

You discerned where there was a lack, and swiftly sought to fill it with the means available to you while conducting yourself with confidence. The state of my wardrobe should have meant little to you, yet you have invested yourself insofar as to accompany me on this outing. I have not once held an interest in business; however, it is plain to see your commitment to that which you might consider an investment.

[gamboler]

[ ...Oh.

Once again, Yi Sang manages to surprise him, but when hasn't he? This is a surprisingly on-point breakdown, and it says a lot about him, doesn't it? Both of them, really. ]

...Well put, bravo. With those sharp observations of yours, have you deduced why I'm making this investment in you, then?

[poans]

I have not, as I have yet to give it thought. [Nor does he intend to do so. The subject of Aventurine is separate from matters concerning himself.]

[gamboler]

And why not, hm? Surely, you must be curious.

[poans]

That is untrue. Even if you were to tell me the reason, naught would change for me.

[gamboler]

Are you so averse to giving yourself any kind of regard?

[poans]

No, not quite. It simply does not matter what happens to me.

[gamboler]

That doesn't sound different to my ears, friend.

[poans]

An aversion would require that I feel a disinclination toward a given matter. I do not believe there is aught you can do for me to find myself averse to it.

[gamboler]

So you...really don't feel anything about yourself? One way or another?

[ He isn't sure which is worse. Self-loathing, or self-indifference. At least his opinion on himself has ways been very clear to Aventurine. ]

[poans]

No, I do not.

[Perhaps he does, and it's that he's unable to hold onto those feelings, in which case: Is there a difference?]

[gamboler]

[ It doesn't hit him until now, so suddenly, how much Yi Sang reminds him of that Emanator of Nihility, the utter nothingness of of her blade powerful enough to pierce the veil in the Dreamscape and send his soul right to the edge of existence itself. Such utter apathy aligned her with one of the most unknowable of Aeons, had been her ultimate tool. And yet...she was more than that.

Upon that same horizon, she had reminded him what to live for. Like her, Yi Sang has so much more to him than meets the eye. Aventurine only wishes he could make him see that. Outfits are such a small thing, but if it helps his sense of self, at least a little, it will be worthwhile. ]

What do you make of what other people see in you, then?

[poans]

[He knows what people in recent memory have seen in him: a thing. By that point, he wouldn't have been able to hold anything else. It's a wonder, as he glances at the stores along the mall's wall, what he can.]

What might that be?

[gamboler]

[ Without missing a beat: ]

Someone worth knowing, with a lot more underlying sweetness and gentility than most show in their lifetime.