choo choo open log train

[unevoke]

Who: Shinjiro (unevoke & open
When: misc. days after event 9
Where: PLACES
What: THINGS
Rating/Warning: shouldn't be anything crazy!

---

a - mcceres
[By this point, work's become a monotony. It's a way to earn money, and he doesn't bedgrudge it for that purpose, but the forced socialization doesn't suit his tastes and the risk of running into someone he's conversed with - particularly after the events of the previous week - leave him tenser than he usually is.

At least he's an entertaining sight, dressed in his standard uniform of brightly colored apron and hat, sporting one of the flattest looks known to man as he asks:]

What can I get you today?

b - some random thrift store
[Shinji's stay thus far in Cerealia has been unkind to his limited wardrobe. His hat's looking particularly worse for the wear, his pants have small rips in them, and his coat is probably going to disintegrate the moment someone touches it.

Hence, his presence at the local thrift store.

There's not a whole lot on display, most of either not in his size or in atrocious colors and patterns he would never think to wear in public. Like the shirt he pulls out off the rack in sheer disbelief: a lemon yellow, with pink beach balls and blue umbrellas.

Who the hell even thought this was a good idea? And no he's not going to buy it, don't you dare ask.]

c - the cybuddy store
[Out of all the places in Cerealia though, the CYBuddy store is where Shinji's spent the most time of late. His guilt over attempting to sacrifice the things (and in some cases successfully) have led him to return time and again, to offer assistance in the store and give the remaining CYBuddies some proper attention.

It also gives him an excuse not to be social, and to put off thinking about the terrible things he tried to do.

Of course, there's no point in spending time in the CYBuddy store if he's not going to buy anything. There's Mitsuru's CYbuddy to spoil, and since he can't exactly buy gourmet CYBuddy food (does that even exist?) he settles for toys, picking out two and weighing them against each other.

He turns, eyes questioning.]

Hey, you got any idea which of these lasts longer?

[Quality over quantity, yo.]

d - game center
[Shinjiro isn't much for games. Having played only a rare few during his childhood, he'd never developed the fervor for them many of his peers had. That said, the pseudo-game of live action Pac-man he'd played his first day here had been kind of fun. He wanders into the game center one day when it's mostly empty - blame the early hour for that - and spends a good ten minutes just walking down the rows, checking out what there is on offer.

He stops in front of a fighting game and cracks a small smile. Akihiko would probably love this.]

e - choose your own adventure
[ooc: feel free to make your own scenario or pm me for an individualized prompt!]

Comments

[lifelong]

[ Senpai......

He gives him a blank look and some silence before rechecking the menu and locating number twenty. That is definitely not what he wanted to order and he's sure he needs more than two!

Okay, he doesn't, but he thinks he does. ]

Yeah. I'm sure. [ So 20 orders of #2, please. Shinjiro, please stop him. ]

[unevoke]

[He sure is going to try......

No fingers move to punch in that order. Instead, Shinjiro keeps staring at Minato in absolute confusion and slight worry, because there is nothing at all healthy about twenty orders of any chain dining meal.]

You skip breakfast or something?

[More like did he skip eating the last week of his life?]

[lifelong]

[ He doesn't really say anything as Shinjiro stares back at him. Oh, senpai said something? ]

No, I didn't. [ He ate two breakfasts!!!! The slowest blink it might as well be a nap. ]

Is there something wrong, senpai?

[unevoke]

[Should he say that he's worried this place might've started mind-controlling Minato? That he thinks Minato might be getting sick or just plain going crazy? (So many orders of burgers—)

But then again, Minato's their leader and the least Shinjiro can do is trust in his decisions. Even if some of his decisions are weird as hell. He shakes his head.]

It's fine. Did you want anything else with all those orders?

[Dessert, maybe? He thinks they have soft-serve.]

[lifelong]

[ You have too much trust in your kouhai, Shinjiro... Minato is like everyone else--perhaps after all these burgers there will come regrets. The moral of this story is to live in the now and own up later anyway.

At first, Minato never thought about anything extra until Shinjiro mentioned it. He looks back up to the menu. Dessert is a thing, right? ]

Do you think I can finish all the burgers before the soft-serve melts? [ He needs consulting. ]

[unevoke]

[Dessert is usually only a thing after you eat all the peas and carrots on your plate, and Shinji is pretty sure those burger orders don't come with a side of steamed vegetables.

But fine, he'll allow it this once. Even if that question is ridiculous.]

No way. [Said bluntly.] But if you want, I can bring it to you when you only have two or three left.

[Two or three...he can't believe he's saying that.]

[lifelong]

... Thanks. [ He appreciates the sentiment, but he doesn't mention anything about adding soft-serve to his order. Actually give him a minute to check his credits. ]

Can you change my order from twenty to two instead? [ Someone is on a budget!! Sorry for giving senpai such a hard time. ]

[unevoke]

[???????? What a drastic change, especially when he'd been so adamant about it before too....please hold while Shinjiro stares at Minato yet again..

He's really not doing well at this customer service thing, is he.]

How come you're changing it all of a sudden?

[lifelong]

Saving for some stuff. [ He forgot he purchased some other stuff the day before. Giving Shijiro a reassuring nod, he seems confident in his order now. ]

I spent too much on this week already, I think. [ If it soothes your soul, senpai... It wasn't all on food. Probably half of it. There are definitely people behind Minato, so he'll just get his credits ready for his morsel meal. ]

[unevoke]

[Saving is a good goal!! Scrimping on food because of it, not so much. But he'll lecture on that later. Maybe.

Shinji casts one more doubtful look on Minato before dutifully punching in the order.][And he'll add a few extra burgers to it too. Once he helps out the people behind Minato.]

[lifelong]

[ He will be waiting for his order, but not leave after he finishes...

Actually, right after he finishes, he ends up falling asleep while sitting at the table. He's not here to sleep, but it seemed that he waited for a good while before napping. ]

[unevoke]

[It takes Shinji a bit longer than anticipated to pack up Minato's order and get it to his table, so maybe it's a good thing he falls asleep. Or maybe it's not, since the first thing Shinji does after setting the tray of food (plus extra burgers) is to lean over and wave his hand in Minato's face.]

Oi. You awake?

[lifelong]

Five minutes. [ He doesn't open his eyes, but he says that crisp and clear. Wait, wait--there's food, he can smell it.

Opening his eyes, he looks at his order. ]

Are you eating, too? [ He at least remembered the amount of burgers he ordered. ]

[unevoke]

[Truly, Shinji's adopted the role of team mom if his duties now include waking up sixteen year olds from impromptu naps so they can get proper amounts of sustenance.

Now that Minato's awake though, the tray's slid across the table.]

Not hungry. The extra ones are for you.

[Because he said he would.]

[lifelong]

Oh... [ Mother hen is watching out for him. Just the thought kind of makes him chuckle (like once every blue moon). He starts unwrapping his first burger. ]

Thanks, senpai. [ He appreciates the nagging sometimes as long as it isn't annoying. ] I didn't know you work here.

[unevoke]

[He'll try and keep the nagging down to a minimum. It probably helps that Minato seems to have a reasonable head on his shoulders, unlike Akihiko.

And since Shinjiro is still mildly concerned that Minato might fall asleep in the middle of his burger, he stays right where he is standing at the edge of the table.]

It's money. And it was better than bein' some shitty club dancer.

[How is offering a job position of burlesque dancer to a 17 year old even legal.]

[lifelong]

[ Akihiko is in need of a harness to keep him tamed. Perhaps that is a reasonable Christmas gift. He was about to take a bite until he heard that. A bit wide-eyed, he's trying to imagine Shinji as a club dancer. Wait-- ]

... Club dancer? [ There are many questions he would like to ask yet at the same time, he would like to ask none... ]

[unevoke]

[If Minato wants any further explanation out of Shinji, he isn't going to get it. He'd taken one look at the job and promptly noped out, scrolling to the two other (way more reasonable) options.

Why is Minato even asking anyway. Cue a long stare and the incredulous question of:]

Don't tell me you wanna be a club dancer?

[lifelong]

No... But they pick out jobs that suit the person, right? [ He looks at Shinjiro for quite a long time as he repeats the question to himself.

He doesn't mind the look at all, so he assumes there's nothing wrong with returning the favor. After a second, he takes another bite from the burger, but doesn't pull his gaze away from hobo. ]

[unevoke]

[Is that.....seriously how they do things here, he'd never bothered to think about it and now that he's started thinking about it he really wants to stop.

Congrats though, on making your senpai blush.]

What? No way! I'm the last person anyone would wanna see dance on a stage.

[lifelong]

[ Oh... He has never seen this side of Shinjiro before. His eyebrows quirk up for once--one of the rare expressions he adorns once in a blue moon.

This is the guy that headbutts gangsters, but then again he's also soft with girls and Koromaru. He would like to chuckle, but he's sure he would be killed.

He would like to live this time. ]

That's not what I heard... [ He looks off to the side and takes another bite from his burger. ]

[unevoke]

[.....Ah. Commence self-destruct sequence in 3.....2......1.........

Actually no, commence a whole hell of a lot of flustering and pointed questions.]

Who the hell said you that? Was it Aki?

[He'll kill him. From across time and space.]

[lifelong]

I promised not to tell. [ And with that, he stops talking completely and instead indulges in these extra hamburgers.

He'll take note of this for future use, of course. ]

[unevoke]

[He'll get the answer out of you somehow, Minato!!! x( Maybe not today, but one day for sure.

There's an annoyed grunt at the lack of acceptable answer, but the eating reminds him of why Minato had stopped by in the first place and he grudgingly gives the other boy room and time to eat.]

Need anything else?

[lifelong]

That's it. [ Mission accomplished. It is only a trip to a fast food restaurant to him, but Shinjiro in an apron is always a great bonus. Taking a sip from his straw, he tries to remember if there was anything else he wanted to ask his hobo upperclassmen.

That doesn't go to school. ]

Are you free any day this month?