smash_logs | BLIND DATES: C TABLES

Entry tags:

BLIND DATES: C TABLES

Who: We shall see.
What: BLIND DATES
Where: Restaurant off-campus.
When: 29th November, 2013.
Warnings: It is a mystery.
TAG YOUR CHARACTERS WHEN YOU REPLY. It's the sexy thing to do.

[This restaurant is the most fanciest, and also doesn't offer food specific to any particular location, but is heralded for the chef that runs it. The decor is sleek and professional, just as the other costumers themselves look for the evening. Some diners may find themselves sitting out, but it's fine; the weather may be usually be cold outside (baby), but the heating from the building and how clear the day has been will keep you cosy enough.

The music is classical, and pianos and violins the main components of the most of the pieces. Diners will have been told to dress their best. They will also want to pick from their menus wisely, as the foods and drink can get expensive. There is a drinks bar available.

The candles here are white. Beside each candle, there's a card. Each card has a different letter-number combination. Find your table!

GordonConnor sandwich.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

What an interesting individual. Ike never thought of going on a date with a man, but he supposed it was alright. A date was just a date, and you could do them with anybody. Even a friend.

"I'm Ike. Sorry, I didn't know you were my date at first." More like he didn't know WHAT Clear was at first. That mask was really throwing him off. "What is that... thing, you're wearing on your face?"

He squinted, like he was trying to see through the lenses or something.

"Eh? This?" Clear lifted a hand to graze his fingers over the side of his mask, making sure that the straps were still firmly closed in the process. "This is my mask! This is but one of them. I have many more, Ike-san!"

He dug into his pocket and lifted out the visage of a woman, holding it up and over his gas mask.

"Ta-da~!"

"So you like masks," he observed, though he wasn't sure if that was true or not. It just seemed like a weird hobby. "Why do you have so many with you? People don't normally go around wearing masks in public."

"Do they not?"

Clear's fingers danced over the plastic of his okame mask, his heart twisting as he knew that this was the answer. Why he was hiding his true feelings, however, was more than obvious enough for him. He was fearful around this man. He didn't want to show him his face and chase him off, not even for one second. He knew that it wouldn't end well. It couldn't.

"I wear them simply because they are comforting for me," he told him, his words vague, but not at all a lie. "That is all." That last part, however, was.

Whether it was a lie or not, Ike was willing to accept that reasoning. People had their own reasons for doing things, and being more comfortable this way was one easily understood. He nodded.

"That's fine. I don't mind if it makes you more comfortable." Perhaps underneath that mask, he was a shy person. If it worked out for him better this way, Ike had no need to judge him based on him wearing a silly mask. "But how do you plan to eat with it on?"

Clear shook his head, as if this wasn't even a problem at all. He might have had confidence issues, but he knew just how to plan ahead. He, like any normal human, had his flaws, but hell if he wasn't resourceful.

"That is not a problem, Ike-san! I am capable of eating this way. Ah, but we should figure out what we must eat!" After commencing that totally smooth subject change, he flipped his menu open, giving it a quick look-see. "Aaah, for a starter, would you mind sharing a bread board with me, Ike-san? It seems like an extensive list."

Well, if Clear was sure about keeping that mask on...

Once he changed the subject, Ike looked at the menu. He hadn't even bothered taking a look yet. While Clear pulled open his menu, Ike did the same and stared at some of the options. ...It was a good thing each item had a description, because all of this stuff seemed too fancy-sounding for Ike to even begin to recognize them. Without even bothering to check what a bread board was, Ike looked up and answered, "Sure, sounds good. I'm not picky."

Did... he even see what the bread bowl was? Clear didn't want to be rude when that thought entered his head. Goodness, no. He couldn't help but wonder if he was going to enjoy it in the end, regardless. Well, the school was paying for it, so... there was only one way to find out, wasn't there?!

"Then... yes, let us get the bread bowl! We can have some drinks, too. Um, excuse me, miss? I would like the bread bowl, and... um..."

He froze. That... sure was a lot of wine. He'd heard such unsavory things about alcohol, too! He tossed the menu this way and that in his hands, finally landing on the alternate beverages and making a decision.

"... and a sweet jasmine tea, please~!"

The waitress looked over at Ike expectantly. "I'll have water," he decided, and the waitress was off with a smile.

After she was gone, Ike wasn't sure what to do. What to talk about. Pit told him that playing along was a good idea - you could meet new people this way, and that wasn't such a bad thing. The commander caught himself staring at Clear's mask as he thought (it was hard to remember that it probably just looked like he was staring at him from under that mask), and he blinked and shook himself out of it.

"Where do you come from?" he found himself asking, completely on reflex. That was usually a good way to start talking about something, and he asked that kind of question a lot anyway. People came from all sorts of backgrounds, especially here.

It was a bit of a random inquiry, perhaps awkward, to boot. Clear, thankfully, was a master at not recognizing that something was off. He simply rolled with it, anxiety being the last thing to ever cross his mind.

"I come from Midorijima! Have you heard of Midorijima, Ike-san?" He swung his head to the side, his hair falling over his mask a little gracelessly. "It is an island just southwest of the mainland of Japan. Many people here have not heard of it, it seems..." His tone took the slightest dip as he trailed off, the loneliness that settled in his heart feeling a little... strange. It's weird, being in such a different culture where so many people had no idea about his own.

Well, that just meant he'd have to familiarize himself more! Time to take advantage of this date and do just that.

"Ike-san? Where is it that you come from?"

Ike shook his head when asked about Midorijima. He hadn't heard of it or Japan, and somehow, it was so weird to him to hear of all of these faraway places. He'd never heard of any of them before, but there were just so many.

"I'm from Crimea, a country of Tellius," he replied. "I think I can sympathize. I haven't met many people here who know where Crimea is. I wasn't aware of lands outside my own, but now I'm learning that there are a lot of places I didn't know existed."

"Tellius..." Clear let the name roll off of his tongue carefully, experimentally, as if testing the pronunciation in his own voice. "Nnnooo... I do not think I've heard of Tellius before, Ike-san... It doesn't sound very familiar. Unless... ah!"

He lifted his eyes, hands releasing the napkin that he'd been subconsciously clutching to all this time, nestled safely in his lap.

"I think I have heard the name 'Crimea' in my studies before. Yes... I think that is an important part of history, now that I recall," he spoke, tapping his fingers along his knee. "Mad... King's... War?"

It was all very vague.

Ike lit up, surprised that Clear knew not only the name of his homeland (even though he didn't know Tellius), but some of its recent history. He nodded once.

"That's right," he responded with a smile. It was weird to hear that he called it an important part of history. Ike never had the chance to consider it as something to be remembered as an important event, but that was exactly what it was. "You do know something of where I'm from."

He was glad to hear that the victory was recorded as one gained by Crimea. He remembered that as one of the many concerns the Crimean Army had to think about once Begnion reinforcements joined their cause.

"Yes! It is still not very much," Clear admitted, giving a nod of thanks and an added word of gratitude as the waitress dropped their drinks off. "But I do think it is interesting. There are very many worlds and different universes! It is fascinating, though it can also be... a little overwhelming."

He paused, a gloved hand reaching for his cup of jasmine tea and holding it carefully. This was glass, for sure. It had to be super fragile.

"Uwaahh... Do you ever think about that, Ike-san? How there are so many places and people we have not seen or heard of. It's a little scary..."

Edited 2013-12-01 20:45 (UTC)

Ike took a sip of water from his glass, thinking about what Clear said. "I guess so," he said, shrugging one shoulder. "I didn't think about it so much before. I knew about my own universe, but that's it. I didn't know there were more until I got here. Now I don't know what to think of it all."

Curiosity was his main feeling. There were limitless options out there, all places waiting to be explored by new eyes.

"I think it is a lovely thing, Ike-san! Intimidating, yes, but that also means there are many more beautiful things for us to see!" Clear's voice was perhaps a little higher than it should have been in an upscale restaurant, but he really didn't think about it. So many things excited him so easily, and this was but one of them.

"I think we should see some of the world together," he suggested, unwrapping a given straw and placing it into his glass. Carefully, he adjusted it and...

Doink.

Into the mouthpiece of his gas mask it went.

Wow.

How...

Weird. Ike tilted his head, his mouth slightly agape while he just tried to understand this puzzle of a person. There wasn't anything wrong with it, but he just hadn't experienced somebody acting like this before. Wearing a mask and opting to drink his tea through a straw rather than just taking off the mask...

"I know you said the mask is for comfort, but that definitely looks uncomfortable," he commented.

Well, that's the last thing that Clear ever wanted to talk about. He flinched, carefully swallowing the jasmine tea in his mouth so he wouldn't choke on it. That... really would not have made anything much better at all. Seriously.

"It isn't. Please do not worry," he added with a shake of his head, the straw swishing around in the glass as he did so. "I am fine, Ike-san."

Okay, maybe he wasn't, but... he could bear it.

He wasn't sure about that. It didn't look fine at all.

"Alright, if you're sure," he responded. He wasn't going to let himself get too hung up on this over all else. If this was just drinking, then how would he do with eating? Ike wasn't sure he wanted to ask. He'd have to find out instead.

Speaking of which, the waitress quickly returned with their appetizer and promised she'd be back soon to get their orders. Ike thanked her and realized now that he had food in front of him that he was hungrier than he thought. He grabbed some of the bread and ate it without bothering with the fancy tapenades or butters they supplied with it - he hardly noticed they were there. "It's good."

"Eh? Thank you, miss!"

Clear nodded happily, accepting the bread bowl in terms of taking one from the stack, carefully placing it on the default, small plate before him. He lifted his eyes to Ike's, and, just when he thought he wasn't looking...

Pop. Off went the bottom half of his mask, just long enough for him to swipe a bite of the bread.

"Mmm~! It is very good!" Oh my god, he forgot his manners. Talking with his mouth full really wasn't very becoming.

Edited 2013-12-02 04:41 (UTC)

Ike didn't realize he'd done that. That's why it struck him as so strange, that he was able to say it's good without him noticeably eating it at all. But the evidence was right there. He took a bite, and that much was obvious.

"You must be fast," he observed. "I didn't even notice you move."

"Ike-saaaan," Clear began with a laugh, lifting a forefinger to the mouthpiece of his gas mask. "A man does not reveal his secrets~!"

He leaned over, getting yet more bread, not at all realizing that the straw was still embedded into his filter. He let a soft breath in excitement, his stomach gurgling for more, and that little bit was enough to send droplets of tea all over a fine loaf of ciabatta.

Welp.

"A-Ah! I'm sorry, Ike-san!" He swiped the bread and looked over it, noticing wet spots all over its usually savory, slightly crunchy top. "Uuu... maybe the straw wasn't such a good idea..."

Maybe all of this wasn't. He was already trailing so slowly through the appetizer, and the straw lodged in his mouthpiece just felt a little silly. Maybe...

... No.

He shook his head, sitting back down on the chair and carelessly dropping the loaf of bread onto his own platter.

"Um... Ike-san?"

Edited 2013-12-02 17:47 (UTC)

Ike stared at Clear and the mess he got himself in, perplexed. None of that mask business made sense to Ike, but he didn't expect it to make any sense. All he could figure was that it made Clear comfortable, but the reason for that was unknown to him.

And he told himself to just deal with that. It was weird, but it wasn't hurting anybody.

He looked at those round, glassy lenses like he was making eye contact with somebody under there. "What is it, Clear?"

"Now that I have been eating without this more and more, it... is beginning to feel strange," he explained, talking so casually as if he knew every bit of him, at first. Clear realized this and dove straight into detail, trying to make some better sense to the man who knew so little about him. "I wear this mask all the time because I used to believe my face was strange, Ike-san. I... still do fear that it is, but..."

He curled his hands nervously into the napkin on his lap. "More people have been telling me that it is not. Therefore, I have been wanting to show my face more often. It is still very difficult, but... you have been kind to me through the entire evening, Ike-san, and while I still am not sure if it is good to take this mask off in public..."

He paused, still very indecisive.

"I... want to take it off. Is this okay? Will- Will you promise not to be scared...?" It was a large demand, but he'd been so considerate up until now that he hoped it wasn't as extensive as he believed.

The way he said it made it seem like there was so much weight with that request, that he expected everyone to fear him. It made him wonder what he hid under that gas mask of his.

Still, Ike's response was practically automatic. He had no reason to be scared of Clear.

"I promise," he replied. "I'm not here to judge your appearance. Your character matters to me more."

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