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 Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2016 10:22 am
It wasn't often Jamie found lost remnants of his childhood buried deep in the closet. Not because they'd been thrown out with time, no, quite the opposite. From toys to stuffed animals, even if they were packed away, they were stored somewhere easily remembered and accessible. Give him five minutes and he'd have his entire Littlest Pet Shop collection out and ready for another round of imagination.
Jamie was unyieldingly sentimental that way.
So it came as a real surprise when he uncovered something new in the sense that he'd completely forgotten about it. A small, hardcover booklet, mostly empty, but spotted here and there with colorful cards. Jamie never lost touch with Pokemon, at least not the video games. In fact, he always pre-ordered and played them the day they came out. Still, somehow, he'd blanked on the few packs of Pokemon cards he must've gotten from one family member or another when he was much, much younger.
That find sparked something in him. Reliving childhood experiences was never quite the same, but the urge was there and strong regardless. Jamie wanted to open a pack of Pokemon cards and he was old enough now to make it happen.
Biting back the nervousness he felt at going to a shop where the employees might actually care enough about the merchandise to ask him if he needed help finding anything, Jamie stepped into The 4th Wall, clutching the old book of cards and his 3DS tight (never knew when you might get a street pass, after all).
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Posted: Sat Apr 30, 2016 5:27 pm
Jamie would absolutely get a streetpass. It would be Cid, in all his glory, completely with black hair and Harry Potter glasses. No beard anymore though. Today, as it was, he was actually straightening up the tables where the weekly game had been. There were mock decks laid out (Yu-Gi-Oh today) as well as a printed pamphlet on how to play for those that were new to the game. The owner himself was stressed in a dark blue top with a tie and a pair of dark pants. There were round ears on his head, a tail with a four point star on it that moved as he did. He perked up at the sound of victory fanfare playing as someone entering the store and looked towards the door. "Hi ~" Absolutely chipper. "Welcome to the 4th wall!" Enjoy the strange man dressed up as a pokemon ginjinka.
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Posted: Mon May 02, 2016 11:34 am
Considering Jamie had hoped to avoid as much conversation as possible, it felt like a stroke of awful luck to walk in and see one of the employees dressed in an outfit that looked immediately familiar to someone as invested in Pokemon as he was. The sight of it almost completely erased the strong swell of embarrassment he'd felt at the crazy fanfare that had heralded his arrival and replaced it with a new kind of awkwardness altogether. He'd been noticed, there was no avoiding that now, but if this guy saw him beelining for the Pokemon section, would he be interested enough to follow?
Except well, Jamie was getting way too far ahead of himself. He didn't even know where the Pokemon section was.
"T-Thanks..." he finally muttered, stepping away from the door and into the unfamiliar territory. Truth be told, had he not been thrown off his game so quickly (which wasn't hard to do, mind you) he probably would've enjoyed just how much this place had to offer. Instead, he scuttled towards one of the displays, trying not to make eye contact while pretending he was simply browsing until he could find the section he was looking for.
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Posted: Mon May 02, 2016 6:38 pm
Cid was content to let the customer wander on his own. No he wasn't. He slid, very quietly, until he was within Jamie's line of sight - what, no, you can't just not look at this awesome outfit, thanks - and tilted his head towards the pokemon card display. They were even on sell today. He may have been pointing at it. All very quietly.
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Posted: Tue May 03, 2016 3:22 pm
For what felt like the briefest of moments, Jamie had peace. He picked something up from the shelf he'd stopped at, a small figurine from some series he didn't recognize. This was what someone did when they were just browsing, right? This was how you looked natural, right?
When he first saw Cid out of the corner of his eye, he pursed his lips, but otherwise ignored him. When he never moved out of his line of sight, Jamie couldn't help but wonder if he was doing something wrong. Awkwardly, and with more hesitation than was even close to necessary, he turned his head to look at Cid.
The first thing that came to mind was actually a lot of things, a jumble of questions as Jamie tried to figure out what the heck the employee (he sure would lose it when he found out this guy was the owner) was doing. It was almost like he was pointing, trying to be subtle at first, but it grew more dramatic and obvious, like he just couldn't contain himself. Setting the figurine down, Jamie turned and saw the reason why.
Had he been so transparent or was it just some really strange coincidence? It had to be a coincidence...
"U-Um..." he bumbled, turning away from the decoy shelf. "That's, um, j-just what I was looking for." He tried to sound friendly and upbeat as he said it, but it came out stiff instead. Just as stiff as his legs were when he walked over to the Pokemon card display.
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Posted: Thu May 05, 2016 7:24 pm
"I figured," Cid said with a grin. The kid looked like he was really, really uncomfortable and all he wanted to do was, you know, help him loosen up. Look at how he walked! The youth was given a few moments to himself but then ... Cid was there again, in all of his ginjinka cosplay glory, crouched down and looking up at him while he went through the cards. "So," he said conversationally, "when's the last time you played?"
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Posted: Thu May 05, 2016 8:06 pm
Okay so, maybe things weren't as bad as they seemed. Jamie was able to flip through individual packs, glance over shimmery tins, and ogle those impressive booster boxes without incident while he tried to decide what to go with. Maybe the employee had been trying to help. It put him in a better mood to think so, even if he was still a touch on edge.
Or y'know, maybe he spoke too soon.
"U-Um-" came the startled response, one he accidentally let out before he had time to properly process what happened. Then he noticed Cid again, looking at him. His gaze felt almost expectant to Jamie. This all felt so surreal—the employee dressed as a gijinka on the one day he happened to get the itch to show up looking for Pokemon cards.
"I uh..." It would be rude not to answer, wouldn't it? Even though he was sweating bullets. "I don't, um, play the card game," he admitted. "S-so... never. I only play the video games..."
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Posted: Sat May 07, 2016 2:52 pm
"Really?" Cid visibly perked up, hopping to his feet with a stretch and a smile. "Well ... would you like to try before you buy?" His hands rested as fists on his hips. He would absolutely get this kid to relax. Absolutely. "I was cleaning up the Yu-Gi-Oh cards since that is over and I can easily set out the decks I've got for you to have a look at if you want?"
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Posted: Sun May 08, 2016 8:46 am
Try before you buy? Jamie wondered if that was really necessary; he wasn't in it for the card game, after all. He didn't know how to play, he didn't even know the most basic rules! All he'd really wanted was a few packs of cards to open and admire. The art was what he was after, not the gameplay.
"Um..." he began as eloquently as usual. It should've been obvious by now that Jamie wasn't all that good at being social. "Y-Yeah, sure..." Soon it would become equally obvious that Jamie was awful at saying no.
The idea of playing cards with Cid made him so much more nervous than the thought of simply buying things from him and walking out of his life forever. Still... maybe it would be fun. Maybe.
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Posted: Wed May 11, 2016 3:38 pm
"You don't have to," Cid offered. Nervous kid was nervous and he was not gonna pressure someone into something. His fake tail seemed to sway and swish on it's own (it wasn't magic, he just spent too much money on his cosplay stuff). "You can just look at the artwork. I've got a few pocket monster artbooks as well." He stepped away a moment and was back with two books. "One of these is just the cards another is concept art and illustrations for the game." Both books were held out for Jamie to look at.
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Posted: Thu May 12, 2016 7:20 am
Jamie was in the middle of stuttering out "i-i-it's okay" when Cid left to grab his books. Bad at saying no, immediately guilty at the thought of disappointing people... He was a bit of a mess, honestly, locked in a constant struggle between his anxiety, indecisiveness, and a deep down urge to let loose and have fun that he couldn't quite bring himself to listen to.
"I... can play," he muttered to no one, toeing at the ground until Cid came back with the books. To be fair, this was a bit more up his alley, and despite the small droop to his shoulders, he looked interested.
"Oh, um, thanks." Maybe he'd actually ask to play after he was done looking at the illustrations, but for now he took them both, moving towards the empty tables Cid had pointed out earlier. "Is it okay if I sit here?"
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Posted: Tue May 17, 2016 10:59 pm
"Go for it," Cid was still all easy, reassuring smiles. He just wanted what would make his customers relax and enjoy themselves. Jamie looked so high strung and so young ... !! "I'll clean the Yu-Gi-Oh cards up and bring out the Pokemon decks and you can have a look at those too." With another smile, a swish of that tail, he was moving towards the table himself to clean up the cards and put them away. He tilted his head a moment at Jamie, studying him before he finally asked ... "Have you been getting the awesome pokemon they've been giving out for the anniversary this year?"
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Posted: Thu May 26, 2016 6:14 pm
It was with a very gentle hand that Jamie set the borrowed books down on the table and took a seat, too, mumbling a small thanks in Cid's direction. The shopkeep would likely be happy to hear it, though Jamie wasn't the type to blurt it out, but the books were something really damn neat to him, something he was already excited about despite his always-awkward expression.
In fact, he was already nose deep in one of them when Cid asked him about the anniversary giveaways and for once the way his eyes widened and he looked over wasn't full of nervousness.
"I-I..." he started, one hand clenching into a fist on the table. "I almost missed mew. T-That would've been so bad... but I've gotten all of them, um, so far."
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Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2016 5:45 pm
"Oh that would have sucked," Cid replied, taking a seat on the other side of the table. Mostly because he was going to set up a mock game that someone could come into and just start playing. Perhaps just treating it like a casual conversation would be the best? Maybe. "I've got some extra cards for the ones you're only supposed to be able to get at GameStop," his eyes glinted with mischief, "mostly because I've got an old buddy that runs the local store. Just let me know if you missed out, alright? No need to go without a legendary if you can avoid it."
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Posted: Mon Jun 20, 2016 7:08 pm
The idea was definitely a solid one. Keeping Jamie distracted from his anxiety with casual conversation was a much safer option than leaping head first into whatever had spiked the nervousness in the first place. Honestly, as much of a spaz as he was, Jamie could calm down and act normally given enough time to adjust. Talking about the Pokemon games didn't hurt, either. Jamie really did love them.
"Wow, really...? I'm gonna try to, um, keep up with it myself, but... that's really nice of you. T-Thanks."
There was an obvious interest in his eyes as they followed Cid's hands around the table, watching him set up the cards. Did this mean they were going to play, after all? "Oh, um... I'm Jamie, by the way...
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