mysteries | ic; i knew you when our common goal was waiting for the world to end

[She does care. Maybe he's not privy to the entire truth, but from his own bitter experience, saying you don't care about people seeing you or caring at all usually means you do. Even so, he can't imagine his company is on her "I do care about visiting" list.

But he's not going to answer that either, because there is no good answer to that. Well, no good answer that keeps Arakita at this strange distance he's been trying to keep, following her into the house and standing in front of her here while refusing to say why he's here or even do anything proactive to move the situation along instead of just barking back at whatever she's saying.

Which is, incidentally, what he does when she once again gives him an out away from the topic of why he's here by saying something like that.

...What the fuck is that, anyway. His cheeks go red for a second there because he's so angry about hearing that, that's it, that's why. There's no other reason they would do that anyway. Nothing related to anything happening here. Nope. Exactly.]

What the hell?! Who do you think I am- some kind of fucking weirdo who's into shit like that?!

[Great, just great. He pauses, clamps up again, and pockets his hands.

He's not a fucking weirdo, at least- well, he's weird for other reasons- but he's a fucking moron for buying into her weird stories- again- and giving her more material (more open spots) for her to poke and prod and tease at. Any other time, and he could deal with it normally. Now, when he's dancing around a giant pit that falls into the void of Why Are You Here, and he certainly doesn't want to give her a stick to push him into it.

Not only that, but if she didn't want him out before and she isn't going to make up another story about this new material, well, she'll probably want him out now. For some reason, he wants that even less than falling into that stupid, stupid pit. ]

Maybe.

[ It would make about as much sense as anything else at this point, considering just how incapable Ange is of recognizing other people's genuine care for her and accepting it as a normal thing.. the reason he's here to begin with is still a big mystery for her, honestly. She just can't imagine someone coming over just to see her.

But she can't think of him as someone with bad intentions either, so that really begs the question of what's going on here. This can't just be the monthly time when Haven goes all weird, right?

So not addressing it feels weird. Sorry, but she's just going to push him face-first right into that void of Why Are You Here. ]

So.. why are you here then? I don't get it. [ At least she admits that much honestly - almost a little too bluntly again. ]

[Goddamnit.

There's really no way around this one, is there. The question is straight up, with no room to dance around it with complaining, or reacting to some ridiculous statement, or something else. He curls up his lip, opens his mouth, closes it again, looks even more frustrated, and then half forces out-]

I wanted-

["...to see you, that's all", no, he's definitely not saying that because that could open up yet another opportunity for mocking in the form of biting sarcasm- or at least that's what his more defensive side is telling him. Someone like him saying that would produce no other reaction, after all.

Still, she promised him that she wouldn't lie to him, and him making something completely false up would be betraying that. He's an asshole sometimes, but he's not an asshole, you know? And definitely not a liar, either.

He pulls out the can of peaches and holds it out to her, not unlike how an embarrassed third grader would hold out a valentine to a girl who's pigtails he's been pulling for the past two weeks.]

...Here. Just take it, alright. You're gettin' too skinny. [And... peaches... will help?]

[ ...

What.

Ange stares at the peaches as if he's holding out a severed arm to her instead - with complete confusion, with her not getting it at all. Sure, Morgan came to bring her presents all the time and it was always stupid stuff like a rock or a flower, but she could just file that under Morgan being Morgan, aka weird as hell.

What is she supposed to file this under.. Arakita bringing her a can of peaches? Telling her to eat since she's looking skinny?

.. What?

In fact, there's honestly nothing else to say to this. Not even any sarcastic deadpan remarks. There's nothing at all but-- ]

What?

[ She's even frowning, as if he's just committed the most not understandable crime ever. ]

[

Fuck.

...Ok, he's offended her, obviously, first and foremost, because that's what he does to everyone- he thought girls hated being called fat not skinny (at least, that's what his little sisters complained about), but what the hell does he know about what girls like and how to make up offending said girls.

Second, his predictions have been confirmed. Yep, he looks like a complete and utter moron holding out the peaches like this, to her, and she can damn well see it.

His first and defensive instinct is to yank his hand back and hide the peaches as soon as humanely possible, followed by pretending that never happened. His second and more forward instinct is the one that he actually acts on, and he- quite literally- shoves the stupid can towards her general person.

You can play this off, Yasutomo. You can-]

It's food, moron! You should eat it, 'cause- 'cause you're probably laying around all day and not eatin' a goddamn thing, are you, ah?! Do you wanna be left weak when the next shitty Yao experiment happens?!

[WAIT NO-]

Tch- it was a pain in the ass to find, so take it already! Haven't you been given anything in your life before?!

[...

You can't play it off, Yasutomo.]

Edited 2015-05-10 08:17 (UTC)

[ It's not like he isn't spot on about his idea that Ange doesn't generally take very good care of himself and skips meals like no tomorrow in a place where it's already hard enough to get food to begin with--

But that still makes his concern foreign to Ange, and she's still just staring at the can for a moment or two more until she feels like he's just going to conk it against her head in his insistence at this rate, so she does take it from his hand (still looking rather mystified about this whole deal though).

It means she stares at the can in her hands for yet another two moments before she finally looks up at his face, trying her damnest to regain some of her composure as she lightly shakes the can. ]

So you see cans nowadays and you instantly think "oh, I should bring this to Ange"?

[ What sort of lapdog does that make you, Arakita.

How is she supposed to deal with that thought to begin with. ]

[One that, when she finally takes the can and then asks a potentially revealing question like that, briefly wants to ~~tuck his tail between his legs and run away~~ growl angrily and storm off because god, she's so wrong, that's so annoying and that isn't what it is at all.

(Correction: He doesn't want to admit that it is exactly that.)

To show how much he Isn't Distressed by this situation, now that the can's out of his hands, he turns to the right and sits his dumb ass down on the other chair near her, with a respectful distance between them.

THAT'LL SHOW HER.

(This is clearly how Arakita shows he Doesn't Care, it seems.)]

Of course that's not it! I just found it when I was looking for food for myself, that's all!

[But that still means you thought of her when you saw it, Arakita.]

Tch- obviously.

[ Exactly, it explains nothing about the fact that he came here running like some dutiful puppy to give it to her instead. And Ange knows it, she's very well aware of it as she glances between the can and him for a few moments. Not that it makes any of this easier to deal with, but still.

So she deals with it in the only way she knows - deflecting, using deadpan. Ange tucks a strand of red hair behind her ear (that's not a nervous tic at all, it was just in the way, okay!! don't misunderstand, etc., etc.) before speaking up, trying to sound as airy as possible. ]

Ah.. that's right, isn't it. A guy like you would never think of a girl like me starving here all by myself.

[ What's that even supposed to mean, Ange... ]

[Even if he was trying to keep his gaze firmly on the empty space in front of him (not out of nervousness or anything), every so often it flits back her way, especially when she starts talking. This time, he actually catches that small, not-nervous-tic.

...Why is she doing that? Not that he particularly cared enough to watch at length, but girls often did that little tic/move/thing when talking to, say, Toudou or Shinkai. The "popular" guys. Like everything else here, it makes him feel more unsure about this.

It meant nothing, he's being a gigantic moron, and there's something more worrisome here anyway.]

Ah? You're starving?

[Hungry and ignoring it out of unwillingness to change it sure, but outright starving was something he could actually, for a brief moment, show more concern about-

until he realizes that once again, he's being played. Jerking his head away from her to focus on the floor, one of his hands shoots out to (surprisingly gently?) land on the top of that red mop of hair before he can even think about it.

It's definitely not a hair ruffle. It's an... aggressive... pet....?]

Don't make jokes about serious shit like that! And don't tell me what I am either!

[Whether or not he's going to admit it to her (or himself, right now), he is exactly the type of guy who'd have invasive thoughts about a stone-faced girl, hungry by herself.]

[ See, if he just fell for it and nothing else this could have played out like usually. She could have disregarded all of this and they could just have had a conversation like they always do, regardless of the can of peaches she's currently clutching with both hands.

But he just had to ruin it. He just had to put his hand on her head like that -- as if it's something normal?! What does he even think he's doing, seriously, she isn't used to that kind of physical contact at all.

After all, the last person who did it, all those years ago.. wasn't it her big brother? That's a totally different sort of thing, and out of sheer tsun instincts she's half tempted to bash in his brain with the can she's holding over this.

She ends up not doing it, sure, but that doesn't mean she doesn't still look just as tsunfrustrated about it. ]

Y-you.. [ Yeah, that definitely breaks any airy tone she was trying to put up just now. ] What do you think you're doing?!

[If anyone's going to recognize an incoming storm of tsunrage, it's Arakita. Then again, all his nerves are pretty much wired at this point (for some reason), so he's looking for any spots that he needs to cover up with defensive aggression.

Like this one, for instant.

He jerks his hand away like Ange's head suddenly burst into flames (it kind of did, actually). Things like ruffling hair, shaking shoulders, punching arms- very normal between friends on a biking team. How could he be that much of a fucking idiot, thinking it'd be normal to do that with her?

He doesn't have a good reason for what he's doing- or what that even was at all]

Nothing! J-- Just eat it, already! [Damn, even if that was half-growled out, that was one hell of a weak response.]

[ Oh no, she's not going to let go of this now. Once the tsun tiger has whipped out its claws, they're not just being retracted again - go big or go home, basically. Or maybe more like once you've blown your deadpan cover, there's no going back to it anymore.

She's even turning to look at him, sitting forward on her chair rather than leaning back, and the can in her hand is definitely clutched there as if it's some sort of weapon rather than a gift. The last defense between her and the invading Concern that she doesn't know how to deal with. ]

Shouldn't you explain yourself first..?! Is this what you've been doing to those five girlfriends of yours?!

[ This is slowly starting to turn into a tsun competition because of it.. ]

[It's surprising, more than surprising, seeing all of this emotion come out of Ange- if this wasn't blowing up in his face and he wasn't necessarily the cause of it, he'd feel something akin to satisfaction- Finally, she's showing some goddamn emotion, demanding something for herself instead of passively taking everything with a deadpan stare.

Unfortunately, it is, in fact, blowing up in his face. His face flushes hot, and it'd be easy to excuse it with acting like it's from anger. It isn't.]

Five girlfriends-?! What the fuck- Where did you get that?! I don't even have one girlfriend, moron! I've never had one!

[Are there even five girls in Haven who would be willing to date him? Fairly easy rhetorical question, that one.

He knows what he just said was embarrassing and lame as all get out, but now that the tsun competition is rolling, the only thing he can do to show that it isn't going to affect him is by plowing forward recklessly. He wishes there was some kind of goal ahead of him that he could barrel towards instead of racing through potential emotional tarpits, but what choice does he have?]

Just-- what the hell were you thinking I was doing anyway, ah?! I told you, I'm not some kind of fucking creepy weirdo like you think I am! I wouldn't- [Shit, no, even if he's this far in the tsun race, he has to stop somewhere, before he reveals just too much.] --goddamnit!

[ It's a good thing she's way too worked up to actually realise he admitted something generally lame that she could easily use against him.. because that "never had one" thing went over her head entirely over here. She's still way too busy metaphorically chucking that can of peaches at his head by now - or at least, they'll be pretty shaken up by the time she actually gets around to eating them. If that will ever happen to begin with at this rate.

And although Arakita is certainly no Amakusa (not even close, and that's a good thing), she can't help but instinctively say-- ]

My father always told me that all men are the same! [ Mostly because he could have known, he is like most other men.. ] S-so.. if you're thinking you can get anything weird by coming to bring me something like this, then put that out of your mind straight away..!

[ Or maybe some people don't just think in terms of gain, Ange, that's also possible... ]

[It's a war of instinct here, because his response comes out just as impulsively and suddenly.]

Hah?! You actually believe bullshit like that? You think I gave you that stupid can because I wanted you to fucking sleep with me or something?!

[A particular trait of Arakita is he's always saying what hasn't been said, and in pretty much the most direct, blunt form possible... when what isn't being said isn't about him or, god forbid, his feelings.

Mixing this in with a firey blaze of mutually assured tsun destruction, when everything is suddenly being revealed, is a recipe for disaster, and even he can see that.

Now there's no hiding with anger or frustration the way his cheeks burn ugly hot and red, he looks so fucking stupid, he is so fucking stupid, she's stupid, this is stupid, everything is stupid.]

What the hell, Ushiromiya. A can of peaches for that? Seriously? [More forcibly, from the grumble the rest of that was.] Like I'd pull a shitty move like that!

[And back to the half growl, half grumble.]

That's not why I gave you it, moron.

[ To be fair, she has totally met guys that would do stuff like this just for that purpose.

But to be fair, she technically knows better than to think Arakita is like that as well for many reasons - but all rationality disappears the moment the tsun starts, so she's not really thinking too much of it. It's only when he repeatedly points out that it's a stupid idea that it gets through her mind that okay, maybe accusing him of that really was a stupid idea.

It doesn't change anything about the fact that the color of her cheeks matches the color of her hair though as she glances away from him with a frown, though. ]

Then why did you give me it?

[ She's not too sure if she should expect a straight answer or not, but it would sure make this whole situation a lot easier.

(Or a lot harder, actually, but it doesn't really feel yet like it could get harder at this point.) ]

[Could she really think of no other reason? Even Arakita's guarded, bitter heart could see that was sort of-- sad. Thinking that's the only reason he'd give it to her. He's more than insulted, being the reactionary person that he is, but considering the context of her fucked up past that he's heard so far, it's.. something.]

I already told you, it's 'cause you're looking too damn skinny! Just believe that already!

[But he knows that's not what she's asking for. She's asking for his intentions, his feelings behind it, and thinking about telling the actual truth behind those is enough for him to change his tone from "aggressive growl" to "attempted aside mutter".]

I... Forget it. It's stupid. [He's stupid for considering these feelings that could lead absolutely nowhere but trouble, and she'd think he's more stupid than he actually is if she heard them.] But I'm not tryin' for that, alright. Obviously.

[If- IF he was, theoretically, wanting something from her even remotely related to that area (what the fuck are romantic feelings, he doesn't know), he'd make that clear if the situation presented itself. Theoretically. He totally wouldn't dance around it, trying to get a read on her with second-long glances through an embarrassed, narrowed gaze, and fidgeting with his hands.

...It should really be obvious that he's never had a girlfriend.]

[ This is just awkward on all fronts. This is what happens when socially challenged people try to actually go beyond their usual ridiculous interactions - it's just something that shouldn't happen for anyone involved in the whole mess.

In fact, Ange isn't even sure what to say back to that. The truth is that she thinks better of Arakita (when she's not reacting with tsun instinct, anyway) than to think he would just do something like that, yeah.

But saying that? No man, that's way too hard. Especially when she's already embarrassed on top of it, no need to make it worse. So her gaze wanders (to anything but him) for a moment, trying to settle on something to distract herself with. But.. well, there's only the can. Which is a stupid option, but it's better than nothing, so she manages to peel it open with her nails due to the shitty shape most of the cans around are in anyway, let alone cans shaken all around by Arakita as he tried to tsun-offer it to her, and after getting part of the cover off she shoves a peach into her mouth. It's a good excuse to not say anything in return right away, okay, shut up.

(It's pretty good, the peach. Especially to someone whose eating habits suck.)

Instead she just wordlessly holds out the can to him, as if she's telling him to take one as well. ]

Then don't make yourself look so stupid.

[It's not like he's been continuously swiping glances at her, and it's not like he's actually somewhat happy to see her open and eat the fucking peaches, so it's not like he's taken aback by the sudden, wordless offer.]

It's for you, moron.

[That tiny bit of caring implied in that statement, however, is enough to make him fall back on tsun defense- quick, Arakita, cover it up before she reads too much into the meaning behind it. Making himself look stupid indeed. So he clicks his tongue, and swipes a peach from the can like a cat suddenly extending a paw to grab at a piece of string. He pops it into his mouth, chews, and crinkles his nose.]

Geh- too sweet.

[Not that it's objectively bad, but he's never liked sweet things all that much anyway.

...

...What the actual hell is he doing?

He's chewing on something way too sweet, avoiding being caught stealing glances and dancing around something that's obvious (to him, at least, as much as he hates to admit it) but unsaid. Theoretically nothing, he's in a situation where he's acting like a coward unwilling to look at himself and what he's doing here. There are walls, walls that have been holding him back (like, say, the inevitable and obvious rejection he's going to face, because it's him- of course), but since when did he let walls in front of him tell him what he was going to do when faced with a challenge?

Fuck it. He'll say it (something about it) and then deal with the consequences instead of floundering around it like an idiot 16 year old again.]

...Oi, Ushiromiya.

[ See, this is the exact problem. As obvious as it might be to Arakita what's going unsaid here - and honestly, it would be obvious to anyone who has half a clue about how social situations work - Ange has no idea. At all. Sure, she gets that the mood is a little awkward, but she doesn't get why it's awkward.

It's why she's still just eating the peaches (in a way where she's trying to make it seem like she's not even!! enjoying!! it!! that much!!) after Arakita's swiped one from the can, only just shoving a peach into her mouth with her fingers when he speaks up again.

Ange glances in his direction as she slowly chews, raising an eyebrow. It's a little more unsure than she would like it to be. ]

Hm? [ That's a "what" with her mouth closed.. ]

Look, it's-

[--Is she really still chewing? Is he really going to say this when she's chewing and now staring at him like everything's casual and fine and nothing of interest is going on- has gone on?

He actually waits for her to stop eating, despite having basically shoved the stupid thing into her face just minutes before. And that's all he does- wait, silently, except for the slowly growing scowl that sneaks across his face, the frustration at which is 95% directly entirely at himself. The more he waits, the dumber he looks, the more the tight and agitated feeling in his chest grows. Where did all that fuck-all determination go? Lost because the girl he's avoiding confronting feelings over is chewing.]

I'm tryin' to say that I... Alright, it's really stupid but I'm gonna say- Shit, it's just that- you- God, will you fucking stop?!

[If he had an idea of how to go about saying this (he never did, he'll realize a while from now), it was lost to the wait and the frustration. But he knows he's lost it regardless and is left with nothing but... action, really.

you know what you should do again, arakita? say "fuck it". that worked well last time. completely. go on, do it.

At least he does wait until he sees her completely stop chewing, swallow and look at him before he lets out one half hiss, half strangled noise of pure internal tsundere combustion, and lurches his face suddenly forward across the small space between them to press his lips up against her closed ones in probably the most uncoordinated kiss he's ever given a girl before.

(...the only kiss he's given a girl before, and probably the last- less than half a second into it he realizes that, given how she reacted to the headpat, she's probably going to outright murder him for this. he's fucked up and now he's fucked.)

It'd help if he was thinking more instead of just acting on urge, but at least it's not as forceful as one would expect from him. If anything, it's more of a pushy "see, brain, I can do this" mash of lips rather than an aggressive kiss.

...Then again, once thought comes to his suddenly completely and utterly blank headspace, he's going to be regretting a lot more than the specifics of how he kissed her.]

[ Getting angry all over again would be an easy reaction.

But easy reactions aren't allowed for Ange right now, apparently. Because surprise takes over for anything else when she spots him lunging at her like that, too late to move aside or even realise what he's doing before his lips are already on top of her own (on top of is the only description, really, even Ange with her complete lack of romantic experience would be hard-pressed to call this a kiss).

Not to mention that she's just sitting there, wide-eyed, letting it happen because she hardly even realises what is happening here. Arakita is kissing her. Sort of. Trying to kiss her. Arakita.

Then again.. sure, it's surprising since it's Arakita and he's always scowling and yelling, but.. on the other hand, it's not like it's a bad thing that it's him. He's been kind in his own way, he apparently is looking out for her with how often he stops by, with him randomly bringing her food like this.. he's not a bad guy, even if he's a little rough around the edges. Not like she isn't that way as well, anyway.

So she doesn't pull away. She doesn't protest, she doesn't get angry.

Instead she shifts a little. It's awkward on her part too, since she doesn't know how this is supposed to go at all half of the time, but at least thanks to her own lack of tsun rage going on here she's able to kiss him in return a little more naturally rather than just shoving her own lips against his in turn, not making any other sort of noise. ]

[Well, he's not dead.

That's really all he could be thankful for in the moment, because inevitably she's going to freak out again, yell, probably sock him in the face with that stupid can and press back into the kiss while not making a single noise.

...Wait. She isn't getting angry or yelling or even pulling away. She's sitting there, and maybe even pushing back a little.

Arakita briefly racks his racing mind for reasons for this- maybe she's scared he'll do something if she doesn't kiss back; It's not like she didn't freak out before and maybe now she's finally become scared of his face like despite never showing it before. Maybe she's making fun of him and this is going to be used as fodder against him. Maybe he's letting himself do some wishful thinking and he's actually kissing an unmoving wall and just making stuff up in his head.

The thought of her actually liking him back, or being at least willing to kiss him back, doesn't come to him just yet. It's him, so why would she. Every other option says that pulling away as soon as possible is his best bet, and so he does just as suddenly as he began the kiss, turning away to hopefully conceal some of the redness in his face. It doesn't work.]

You- Tch, I-I'm not tryin' for anything still, ok? I just-

[He didn't plan to talk (had nothing planned to say) and the fact that he is comes to a surprise to him as well. Having no idea what to say, he cuts the sentence off in a mumble and goes quiet.

A painful pause while obviously fixing his stare at a wall yields no better results. Fuck it. Fuck him. He's dumb.]

...I like you. That's all.

[ At least he isn't the only one looking like some sort of awkward goldfish with the reddest face possible. Despite Ange's usual stone wall-like exterior, that's precisely what she's looking like right now - her cheeks matching her hair color, her mouth still hanging open a little, the gaze in her eyes surprisingly open and honest for once.

She can't even believe what just happened. What is still happening. Because he kissed her, because he said he liked her.. Ange can't understand it at all. Sure, Amakusa tried to do those things, but he was just messing around with her and kept getting swift kicks to the nads for it - but Arakita isn't like Amakusa. Despite what she said about all men being the same, she knows that to be a fact. (Or maybe really, really desperately is hoping so.)

In the small pause between the two of them she touches her lips with some of her fingers, like she's trying to physically feel the sensation left behind there, trying to confirm this really just happened.

Her look aimed at him is half-shy, half-confused. ]

What kind of weird Haven thing is influencing you today..

[ It's half-mumbled, reluctant, because she doesn't want that to be the truth, but it's the most likely answer to all of this. Why would Arakita otherwise like her? Why would anyone? ]

[The thing about waiting for an inevitable rejection is that you tend to take many things as one when they aren't intended to be. If he was coming at this with a completely clear head that was removed from the situation, he'd see her blushing cheeks, the lip touching.

These things would be caught by him more obviously were it not for him falling back on familiar mechanisms to cover up pretty much every emotion he's feeling right now- screw everything, charge straight ahead, don't dance around or mince words.]

Nothing, idiot! I wouldn't say this shit if I didn't mean it, even if they forced me to! And I don't kiss people I don't like, obviously!

[See, saying it outright might be his modus operandi, but that doesn't mean he's left immune to embarrassment- especially once he actually finishes talking and actually looks at her. It leaves him actually quiet for once and he's left staring at her, bright red as she is (albeit with much more of an attempt at a scowl).

fuck, she's cute like this.]

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