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"Uh. Pass," Kirin said, weakly waving a hand. Fair enough for people who liked tea, but he wasn't one of them. And even if he did, that sounded like the strangest tea ever. Though maybe to tea drinkers it was like a coffee addict's triple espresso?

He couldn't take offensive at Zac's thoughts on coffee. Kirin explained, "That's my thoughts on tea."

An opening appeared at the counter, and Kirin gave Zac a tiny bump forward. Zac had offered to buy Kirin caffeine and Kirin wasn't about to turn that down.

"So what's it like trying to get tea in a dorm?" he asked, aware that Hillworth was live-in like BP had been. "Coffee in dorms was the worst swill in the world. Never stopped me from drinking it, though," he added after a thoughtful pause.

That was true, Kirin considered. Tea was easier to make in your own room. The only kind of coffee you could do that for, was the powered kind. Ugh... Kirin shuddered. He didn't considered himself a coffee snob (since he'd drink just about anything as long as it had caffeine in it), but instant generally just didn't turn out well.

"Being stuck on campus sucks," he commiserated with Zac. Not being able to leave and buy a decent hot drink... Or to go to karaoke! Stupid boarding schools and their rules. At least Kirin was back to normal public school now.

"Should we sit while we wait?"

No one had ever pulled a chair out for Kirin before. He hadn't seen it done outside of fancy restaurants. There was a few moments where Kirin froze, trying to search for an appropriate response. Eventually he settled into the offered chair, his expression somewhere between bewildered and ... faint blushing? Nah, must be the warmth in the building.

"Ah... thank you," he offered, unsure what the expected response for something like that was. He was more than happy to seize on Zac's awful conversation starter. "Years, I guess. Nothing serious until junior high, but I used to play my grandfather when I was young." You know, when they could stand to look at each other for more than ten minutes. No chance of a game these days.

"How about you?"

Kirin sensed father issues. He was a little more attuned to these things than your average person, due to all his own family issues. Because Zac had left Kirin's mention of family alone, Kirin would do the same for Zac.

He could totally picture a tiny (tinier) Zac buried in books, though. He seemed the type.

"I never had the patience for it as a kid," Kirin offered. "Rushed my moves, tried to rush others, couldn't stand to leave a game unfinished I had to know same-day who had won. So it was never me."

Kirin had more patience now, though he still felt the need to burn energy while playing. Sitting still and thinking deeply was too boring for him. But he could finally take his time, plan his strategies, and could wait a long time for his plans to come to fruition. He didn't mention this to Zac, though - no one gave too much away right before a game.

There was a tightening of lips and eyes at the mention of chorus. Kirin gave a smirk that was more of a grimace. "Groups and I don't do so well together," he said loftily. "It's just a hobby for me. I don't want to get tied to practices, to silly competitions where they pick your song choice apart and tell you that you would have scored higher if you'd been a boy singing that song, and little divas who think screeching Whitney Houston makes them the next big star."

Why, yes, Kirin may have tried this before.

Kirin was grateful for the distraction of their drinks arriving. It was too easy to get into ranting mode with Zac, and then more spilled out that Kirin usually revealed - especially considering this was only their second meeting. (Not a date, not a date.)

He sipped his coffee experimentally. Licking his lips, Kirin decided the caramel was a nice addition. A little extra sweetness without turning it into a sugary dessert drink. He began plotting which other syrup additions he'd have to try next visit.

"How's your chai?" Kirin asked. "I'm thinking this place deserves a repeat visit sometime."

"Really?" Kirin swung a look over his shoulder at the counter. He'd been so fixated on getting his caffeine fix that he hadn't even noticed the pastries and desserts available. Yet there they were, a large glass counter full of treats. "Huh. We'll have to come back again."

Abruptly, Kirin's face flushed red. He didn't want Zac to think Kirin was jumping to conclusions, that Kirin was one of those crazies who assumed everything was a date. "I mean, separately. Not together. Or..." Kirin realised he was possibly going too far in the other direction. "Or together, but not together together. Not like a date."

Words ran together as Kirin spoke softly but quickly, a kind of calm babbling that came from trying to over-explain things.

"Not that I don't like you. You're one of the least sucktacular people I know. And... I'm just... going to stop talking now." Kirin trailed off, not used to making such an a** of himself in public. He dropped his attention to his coffee, wondering the earth would be kind enough to swallow up everyone else in the room.

Zac's response made it a little easier to look up again. Kirin attempted a small smile - he was unsure if it worked, but it was kind of flattering to hear that someone who seemed to agree that the rest of the world was filled with douchebags similarly found Kirin to be an exception. To be 'non sucky' to people like Kirin and Zac was the equivalent of... being 'liked' by normal people.

"Yeah, exactly," Kirin said. That was it. He was desperate, or assuming than any interaction meant liking or dating. He turned and looked out the window, unable to look at Zac as he said, "It's... it's not so bad, spending time with you, though. It's surprisingly... nice."