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Author Topic: Tricky Shopping [Draco]  (Read 689 times)

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Offline Zero Undead

Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« on: October 18, 2017, 04:50:56 pm »
Everything was always backwards, upside down, inside out, and wrong in Sashi’s world. A normal person would be more comfortable when in their street clothes and happier when out shopping than when working, but of course she couldn’t just be a normal person. Despite the jeans, sneakers, graphic t-shirt, hoodie, and jacket all being far more layers than her scrubs, somehow Sashi felt more vulnerable and exposed wearing them.

Walking the halls of DoSaM, doing her rounds, attending to her patients, and even saving a life from a potential mortal wound were all situations where Sashi could feel calm and in control.

It was ridiculous for her to be fine in those situations and then to stand there waiting outside a furniture store feeling mildly ill from the levels of anxiety coursing through her as she watched people passing her by as they did their own shopping. There was a burning desire to just leave and go home, to hide in her apartment and forget that she was supposed to meet Cinnamon there to buy her some new furniture for her place.

The standard issue apartments given to Pilot Cardinals already had perfectly serviceable furniture in them, shopping for “more personal” replacements was pointless. She felt no need to go decorating her place to make it feel homier or any such nonsense. Sashi barely even spent time there anyway. As a doctor she picked up as many shifts as they would let her and happily spent as much time at DoSaM as humanly possible. The only time she even saw her apartment was those brief moments between coming home, hopping in the shower, and then passing out.

Those brief moments and her days off, which she hated, because spare time was just wasted time in her head.

No, if not for Cinnamon she would never have come here. Sashi wouldn’t do a lot of things if not for Cinnamon, and even she didn’t know why she did things because of him. Well she did, but also didn’t because of course everything had to be complicated in her stupid brain.

Sashi didn’t make friends. From the moment she’d become a Candidate she had thrown herself at becoming a doctor so she could help people, save lives, and be useful to Aedolis. Like a lot of people she had wanted her life to mean something and for her becoming a doctor had been the thing she’d chosen to bring meaning, fulfillment, and satisfaction to her life.

That was all that had mattered at the time. It wasn’t that she hadn’t wanted friends or hated people, but growing up in poverty meant that she was constantly playing catch-up with Candidates from higher caste backgrounds. She’d had to work harder for everything. Friends could come later, once the real work to get where she wanted was done. Then her world had been completely shattered into a thousand pieces and she never wanted friends again.

Nobody could be trusted because people were fucking terrible.

Until one could be trusted, and wasn’t terrible.

Becoming friends with Cinnamon had just kind of happened. Sashi hadn’t meant to make friends with him. Hell, she hadn’t wanted to make friends with him! He sort of just wouldn’t take no for an answer on it. It wasn’t only him, either, because Grisham had done it too. She wasn’t sure how it had really happened, but somehow people were forcing their way into her life and she didn’t know if she should be annoyed or grateful.

Anxiousness, fear, doubt, and mistrust couldn’t erase the fact that she was just as much a person as any of the other Pilots. Her life was crushingly lonely sometimes, which was just another excuse for her to throw herself harder at work.

The teasing in Pilot chat didn’t help matters at all either. As frequently as she may have commented on their weirdness Sashi knew that deep down it was really her that was different. They could laugh and joke and have fun together in a way that she just couldn’t grasp. It was like peeking into a world she didn’t belong and would never have a real place in.

Hannibal wasn’t wrong about her not ever having a good time, and was probably justified in calling her an old lady on the inside.

That was part of what this shopping trip was all about, though. Sashi knew that she needed to work on her issues and hang-ups. Start slow and work her way up to being more like everyone else, being more normal if such a thing even truly existed. Despite herself, she trusted Cinnamon, and cared about him quite a lot. He was her first real friend since leaving the lower levels and becoming a Candidate. So even though she thought furniture shopping was pointless, here she stood, waiting on him with far more interest in just not being lonely for a little while than actual shopping.

Although when he told her his cousin was coming to help carry any purchases Sashi had seriously reconsidered, but had forced herself to come anyway. If it was Cinnamon’s family then he couldn’t be so bad. After all, she liked Deego well enough. Maybe she just got along with Kulshedra better than humans – wouldn’t that be rich.

Offline Draconian

Re: Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« Reply #1 on: October 30, 2017, 12:22:47 am »
The chances of her finding out his ploy were slim to none.

Sashi was a kind sweet girl and Cinnamon knew she'd never been on a date. Which meant that the only way she would go on a date was for things to not seem like a date. It was flawless. Also his cousin, Emerald, would not know he was on a date. Also flawless. Emerald was trailing behind him, like Cinnamon he was also a Kulshedra. His hair was longer and he wasn't quite as broad or as muscular. Smarter though. Older. Cinna's cousin's son was older than him. He glanced at his cousin as they walked, silently stalking through the people to the designated meeting place.

"Aaah, there she is." Cinna said perking up, glancing at his cousin who quickly tied his hair behind his head into a loose ponytail. Looking a little nervous. Emerald wasn't a Pilot like Cinnamon was. He was a doctor though. A surgeon. Applied biomechanical bits to people and a good portion of them were indeed Pilots. He'd seen the girl around before, quiet mousy girl and he glanced at his cousin before he rolled his blue eyes.

"Saaaaaashiiiii," Cinna sing-songed his way over to her, smiling and waving a hand at the few people who stopped to stare at him. He wasn't exactly a subtle creature. Bright red. Giant. Even Emerald got a few looks to which he nodded politely to.

"Sashi," He said grinning softly, "this is Emmy," He said before he paused, "Emerald. He actually works in DoSam sometimes! All sorts of..." Cinna paused and lifted his hands to wiggle his fingers, "...Metal stuff. I don't know - anyway!" He grinned, pushing his cousin forward towards Sashi, "He needs to find some new furniture too. Also super doesn't wanna get new furniture but I think it's been a literal hundred years since he's gotten new stuff. Could probably make another person with all the dead skin cells in them." Cinna grinned wide and nudged Emerald violently who jerked fowards, a flush on his cheeks and glaring at his cousin.

Who was doing a bad job of making a good first impression.

"Yes. Hello," He finally said, his voice was a little lower, a little more gravely and he glanced to his cousin before he sighed and rested his hands on his hips. "I've heard a lot about you. You're a... Doctor? I'm sure you have an idea of minimalist furniture. The less I have to deal with in my apartment the better," He rolled his shoulders and glanced at Cinnamon, "Also I'm big and strong and my cousin has told me I am to help carry anything you need to... Have help carrying."

Offline Zero Undead

Re: Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« Reply #2 on: October 30, 2017, 05:49:08 pm »
Sashi had busied herself with her com while waiting, staring at the screen was a great excuse not to make eye contact with anyone. If they made eye contact with her someone might get the bright idea to try to talk to her. The fewer people she had to talk to the better – she was awkward and boring and never knew what to say.

Thankfully she hadn’t gotten there too early, because she’d have probably lost her nerve and tried to bail out on the whole thing if her name wasn’t suddenly being called out in a familiar sing-song voice. Sashi lifted her head to look at Cinnamon with a slight frown.  She didn’t know why he was so happy to see her or speak with her. It just went back to the whole not understanding why the giant, muscly Kulshedra liked her in the first place.

“Hello Cinnamon.” Was about the most greeting she could really get out.

Her soft lavender eyes slid past Cinnamon to Emerald. It was a good thing she’d become familiar with the species so much while Cinnamon was hospitalized. Between him and Deego seeing a Kulshedra didn’t really shock her anymore. It didn’t keep her eyes from widening slightly as she looked up at the man being shoved towards her while Cinnamon very excitedly introduced him.

She had no idea that Cinnamon’s cousin worked at DoSaM – even if he said ‘sometimes’ and that he worked with ‘metal stuff’. Either way, Sashi was vaguely aware that Emerald was someone she’d seen at the hospital before. Not that she’d bothered to actually notice him before now.

Wait, what? Sashi crinkled her nose at the thought of dead skin cells in a mass capable of creating an entire new person. That was just gross. Apparently it was also embarrassing, if the flush and way Emerald was glaring at Cinnamon was any indication. Honestly she felt a little intimidated as he was nudged even closer to her. Sashi unconsciously leaned back as Emerald put his hands on his hips.

Great, Cinnamon had forced his cousin to come and the guy didn’t want to be there. Well, she hadn’t wanted him to come along, had she?

Sashi cringed slightly when he mentioned that he’d heard a lot about her. She shot Cinnamon an accusatory look, wondering just what Emerald had heard about her. And why did he say doctor all questioning like that? Did he not think she could be a doctor? Admittedly she probably didn’t much look like a medical professional. Maybe a nurse. Was it her age?

Ugh.

“Oh, uh…it’s nice to meet you Emerald? Yes, a Doctor at DoSaM and a Pilot Cardinal. I’m sorry Cinnamon dragged you along. I didn’t want to go furniture shopping, but people keep insisting that I should buy my own things instead of what came with the apartment.” There was something about his wording that made her frown. “Cinnamon is big and strong too and supposedly here for the same reason, so why does it sound like he left you babysitting instructions?”

Offline Draconian

Re: Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« Reply #3 on: November 17, 2017, 08:58:25 am »
The accusing look was met with a shrug and a hesitant smile. Cinnamon blinked his big gold eyes and glanced away before he moved to stand in front of Sashi. She wasn't family, not technically, but she's taken care of him better than just some random doctor could have.

Also Cinnamon was annoying like that. Once you were his there was no being unhis. He looked to his cousin and wiggled his eyebrows who returned the gesture with a roll of his brilliant blue eyes.

"Did you want coffee first? Here, Sashi,"  Cinna grabbed her wrist and pressed his to hers, a quick seemless deposit of credits, "I have to run to the washroom, So you and Emmy - Emerald - can go grab something and head on without me." A flick of his tail and he smiled widely before heading off, glancing over his shoulder at Emerald who looked a little shocked.

"Well, come on," Emerald offered his arm for a moment, making it look subtle if she didnt want to hold his arm. "What kind of coffee do you like?" That was easy right?

Offline Zero Undead

Re: Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« Reply #4 on: November 17, 2017, 09:53:58 am »
If Sashi’s expression was accusatory before, that little eyebrow wiggle to his cousin earned Cinnamon a death glare for his trouble – and made her all the more suspicious of any intentions knocking around in that thick skull of his. The time spent taking care of him at DoSaM, and his single-minded persistence in befriending her, had endeared the Kulshedra to Sashi, but she also thought he was a bit of a moron.

A well-meaning, good-intentioned idiot.

A fact which was made all the clearer when he thrust some credits onto her and bailed so fast it could have made a person’s head spin. Sashi stared after Cinnamon with wide, owlish eyes as he abandoned her with his cousin, a stranger she had barely been introduced to – and one that seemed not exactly thrilled to be there in the first place.

Was he even coming back?!

Just thinking about it made her heart clench a little in panic. Sashi did her best to swallow that anxiety and focus on the situation at hand. She was left alone with Cinnamon’s cousin, and since Cinnamon was her friend it would be wrong to be rude to him. So how did you entertain someone you just met?

Sashi hated being put on the spot in social situations.

“Oh, um, I usually just drink coffee from the DoSaM cafeteria or one of the staff rooms. I think they have a little café in the store.” It felt awkward, but she took Emerald’s arm and started heading into the shopping center. They’d introduced her to Manolins with its impressive roster of specialty drinks, and it was admittedly delicious, but also stupidly overpriced in her opinion. Also getting it meant going to Manolins which was unbearably crowded most of the time anyway. “Do you like coffee? I’m pretty sure Cinnamon doesn’t like coffee at all.”

Offline Draconian

Re: Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« Reply #5 on: December 05, 2017, 11:47:28 pm »
Emerald watched Sashi curiously, ears flicking ever so slightly before he rubbed his forehead and cursed his cousin. How could he just... Leave them? He'd been listening. Half.  The other half was annoyed with Cinnamon and his just leaving to... Pee? Liar. He smiled at Sashi gently and pat her hand before giving a gentle shrug.

Did he like coffee?

Memories of mornings and warm coffee. The scent of a good day to come.

"Yes, I like coffee." A small shrug and he looked up and around, steering them aside, "I know a cute little cafe tucked into a corner somewhere around here." He smiled down at the tiny human and guided her to a smaller less populated coffee shop. No fancy coffee. Just... Coffee. Something good to sip while  looking at furniture. "I'll take you some day," He smiled, giving a little nod, "For now." He guided her along leisurely to the plain coffee place.

"Two coffee's please," He said when they finally got there, taking as long as he could to make sure Cinnamon got back or at least had a strong enough trail to track them. Sure enough, after the coffee's were handed to them and Emerald went to the little condiment stand to load his with sugar and cream a redscaled red haired Kulshedra walked into the coffee shop looking pleased with himself.

"What did I miss beside hot bean water?" He asked pleasantly, grin wide.

Offline Zero Undead

Re: Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« Reply #6 on: December 08, 2017, 03:25:34 am »
When the giant beside her took the lead Sashi was relieved to follow along with her hand tucked against his arm. She was going to kill Cinnamon. Honestly, what was he thinking just leaving like that? The claim of going to the restroom was bullshit and even she wasn’t naïve enough not to know that, but she couldn’t fathom what he was actually up to with it.

Ah, right. Emerald was talking and she dragged her mind away from being angry at her friend to pay attention to him. Being mad at Cinnamon was no excuse to be rude to him, who had seemed just as annoyed by the hasty exit as she was.

“Oh, that sounds nice.” What else did you even say to that without sounding rude? Sashi smiled politely, but inside she was all panic. Did Emerald really mean he wanted to take her to a cute café sometime or was he also just being polite? Odds were they would both forget about such an invitation before the end of the day and this was just an attempt to fill up the time with idle, civil chatter until their mutual party returned.

That was a relieving thought. She could work with that kind of thought.

They reached the coffee place and Sashi paid wordlessly with the credits Cinnamon had given her as Emerald ordered two plain coffees. She joined him at the condiment stand and added a small amount of cream and sugar to hers, stirring it and trying to come up with something else to say. Companionable silence was nice to her, but some people preferred to actually talk – she had no idea which type of person Emerald was.

Thankfully she didn’t have to come up with anything as Cinnamon finally reappeared. Sashi arched a brow at his question, his grin only making her frown suspiciously. “What did you expect to miss? You were gone ten minutes. We got coffee like you told us to.”

Offline Draconian

Re: Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« Reply #7 on: December 28, 2017, 02:48:09 pm »
Cinnamon grinned.

"Right."

He nudged along his cousin and Sashi. Emerald looked through furniture. Mentally made notes on what he wanted to get at a later date. Mentally made up his son's home because the last time he'd been there it had been a chair and nothing else. While they shopped, he stole glances at the little human. Enjoyed the way his cousin was so casual with her.

There was clearly no ulterior motives on Cinnamon's part aside from the obvious attempt to get them to meet and, as a gentleman, Emerald gave Sashi his number at the end of the evening. A gentle request to contact him if she needed help from him. Just an extra set of lifting arms. There was silence as he expected. According to his cousin the girl worked herself ragged and went home. There was the odd seeing he at DoSaM but no time to say hello.

Emerald decided he admired Sashi and a good number of times drafted up a small message to her. To ask her to dinner. He wanted to get to know the little doctor better. It was scary though. It was a quiet evening. A weekend day. The sun was still up and out and slowly sinking but...

Deep breath. He looked down at his com and cycled through the numbers. There had been a second dinner, Emerald had suggesting inviting Sashi along and Cinnamon was more than happy to extend the invitation - nothing of interest had happened but... Maybe she would be a little more comfortable with him... Maybe. Emerald chewed on his lips and took a deep breath. She was sweet from what he'd seen. The interest was there for him. Maybe she wasn't interested in him but...

Worst case scenario they'd get to be friends. Sashi was a Pilot like Cinnamon and his son and... Deep breaths.

"Hi, Sashi. It's Emerald, Cinnamons cousin. I was wondering if you'd like to get some coffee with me?"

aaaand send.

Emerald got ready to go out - he was headed out for coffee anyway. Pulled his coat on. Tied his long green hair back and tried not to anxiously look at his com for a reply. Because he was absolutely going out anyway. He just... Wanted a wait a few minutes. To warm up his coat before he went outside. Not to wait for a reply or anything.

Offline Zero Undead

Re: Tricky Shopping [Draco]
« Reply #8 on: December 28, 2017, 04:51:43 pm »
Sashi had an exceptional talent for putting things out of her mind when they were not requiring her focus and attention. Shopping had seemed mostly uneventful aside from the slight panic Cinnamon had given her leaving her alone so suddenly with a stranger. At least he’d come back, and things had seemed to go pretty smoothly from there. Emerald seemed polite, quiet, and efficient – all fine qualities –  and having him along hadn’t been nearly as painful as she’d feared.

Except that surprise at the end where he’d given her his number. She had no clue how to really respond to it, so hadn’t said much of anything at all. Hopefully she hadn’t come off as too rude; he was her friend’s cousin and seemed a nice enough guy.

After that she hadn’t thought on it further until being invited to dinner with Cinnamon and Emerald. It had been a lonely night where she’d not felt like eating alone yet again, so had been fairly happy to accept the invitation. The meal was fairly quiet, but from the very casual conversation they’d managed to carry on, Emerald seemed intelligent and thoughtful. It was nice, and she really enjoyed talking about work with him as a fellow medical professional.

Maybe she needed to try harder at making friends with her co-workers.

Of course she never did. Work was busy; there was always so much to do at DoSaM. The chat supplemented her social needs for the most part. She saw Emerald out of the corner of her eye on occasion at the hospital, but never did get around to greeting him. He was a busy surgeon, after all and she had her own patients to worry about.

Not to mention Sashi doubted he much cared to entertain a novice doctor’s curiosity while he was trying to work. Just because she was friends with his cousin didn’t mean he actually had any interest in being friends with her. She’d simply been a third wheel tag along of Cinnamon’s doing.

That’s why she was pretty shocked to get a text out of the blue from him asking her to join him for coffee. Shocked and panicked, because why did he want to get coffee with her? Sashi really didn’t think she had left much of an impression. For a moment she even considered turning the invite down, but only for a moment.

Making friends was not her strong suit, not at all, but it was something she definitely needed to work on. This was kind of a perfect opportunity. Emerald was her friend’s cousin, he was a surgeon, and he was interesting; a perfectly safe option to practice the whole making friends thing on.

“Hello again, Emerald. I wasn’t expecting to hear from you. Coffee sounds nice, where and when did you want to meet? I’m about to leave DoSaM, actually.”

It was a little nerve-wracking to hit send, but she made herself do it even as her heart rattled against her ribcage. At least it gave her a reason to rush to change from her scrubs to her street clothes, but as she looked at herself in the mirror hanging off the door of her locker she thought the scrubs might have been better. The jacket over the loose hoodie, the jeans, the sneakers, none of it really looked like “going out with people” clothes. At least she didn’t think they did? Hell, how would she even know?

 

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