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 Posted: Mon Nov 02, 2020 7:19 pm
Nelson laughed, but nodded, looking at Jace with a grateful smile before glancing back to Xander. “Ramen sounds really good...but your sandwich...if...if we cut it into thirds, it can be our starter?” That way the food wouldn’t be wasted and their mom would have no reason to yell or get upset. It made sense to him at least...he knew that food was sometimes something touchy in anyone’s house.
“But, yes! Presents. I got you both some things, and Jace, Q sent you quite a few charms for luck--for your exams. She wants you to do your best. We both do!” He hesitated, glancing over at Xander and watching him for a moment. “...Do you need a hug? Your voice sounds...kinda. Just kinda.”
Besides. He wanted another hug. Badly. There had been far too few hugs while he had been away. “I also do like the idea of not being thrown out of the window. That...seems like it is the best of the safety of us all…but especially me. Can you imagine what my sister would do if she found out?”
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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2020 5:07 am
“I’ll go get the straw!” Xander said with possibly more enthusiasm than anyone who had ‘hay’ tp present should have shown. “Also, umm…let’s just…not tell Q that was ever on the table, ok?” “Aw…. I’ll never say no to hugs from you!” He threw open his arms, pausing in his other task of fetching the ‘gift’ from the farm. “Hugs, then I’ll get your gift, and then Ramen! We can even grab a Boba to raise in a toast to Q; how’s that sound? Maybe she’ll forgive us for plotting that kind of escape route?” He glanced between Jace and Nelson.
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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2020 7:40 am
Another squint, but Jace quickly directed it to the sandwich. That he didn't want to eat. That he could easily pawn off on Nelson, who couldn't say no. "Go do your gift exchange," he huffed. "I'll make this a respectable sandwich and cut it into thirds for when you get back. And then you can bring me whatever Q thought I needed."
He couldn't admit to being interested, or grateful, because that was too sappy, and he wasn't going to bounce around like a kid before his birthday.
He went to the fridge and pulled out a few better ingredients, because his pride wouldn't let him make a bad sandwich when Nelson could just spread good-hearted, well-intended concern to Q that Jace couldn't even make a sandwich.
"--And the plan was to never tell her anyway, so." He looked between the two of you. "...You'd better keep your mouths shut or I'll never hear the end of it. Do your weird hugging quicker so we can get out of here. If we're not gone by the time mom gets back, she'll find a million things for you to do instead, Xander, and I'll be banished to my room until I finish this project."
...And she'd probably scare Nelson witless if she caught him here, not because there was anything wrong with Nelson except that, despite being Q's brother, he did not have the spine he needed to stand up to very strong, very bold women. Jace was scared of her, and he wasn't really scared of anything, so Nelson absolutely didn't stand a chance.
...And if he wanted to make sure Xander had somewhere safe to go, he needed Nelson to not have a heart attack.
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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2020 10:35 am
Nelson moved into Xander’s arms and hugged him tightly for a long moment, before pulling away and nodding. “I got you a few things too, Jace. You’re my friend too, you know!” Not as good of a friend as Xander was but...he was still Nelson’s friend too.
He let go of Xander and nodded. “I’ll be right back! Or, we’ll be right back!”
Making his way back to the living room, Nelson rummaged through his backpack, drawing out the gifts for both Xander and Jace. Q had sent Jace two charms for luck, one for luck with studying and one that was a small keychain that he could put on his bag or just carry with him. It was cute. He had gotten Jace a beautiful pair of chopsticks, purple with gold accents, as well as a purple and gold bento box set. He had a matching set for Xander too, but Xanders was in black and red with accents of silver, and Nelson had been very pleased with both finds. They were perfect.
He had gotten Xander a beautiful blanket with a pattern of higanbana and made with such a soft fabric that Nelson couldn’t help but smooth his hand over it. A cute, fat Shaymin plush was the last gift he had gotten.
It had taken some maneuvering, but Nelson managed to bring all of the things to the kitchen, putting them on the table, grinning. “Here you are, Jace! These are from Q, and these are from me! Xander, this whole pile is yours...I hope you like everything. Both of you!”
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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2020 11:18 am
Xander was delighted; of course, he loved the spindly petals of higanbana flowers despite their more morbid associations culturally. The Shayman, of course, a fat little hedgehog, was squished hard enough to make Nelson jealous potentially. The Chopsticks he promised to bring with them for Ramen to break them in ‘the best way’ with spicy ramen and chicken. “I'm sorry I didn’t get you anything awesome at the farm. If I’d won the fight with the horse, maybe I could have brought you a hoof.” He teased and then offered up a braid of straw. “God… I really missed you, man.” He sighed. “I’m also sorry, I already gave Jace the coolest thing from the Farm; it's a rock that looks -just- like me.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2020 3:48 pm
Jace blinked, because he hadn't really been expecting anything--nor was he particularly sure how to receive them. He wasn't as open as Xander about all of it, but there was no denying that he was interested--and grateful, with everything he had been presented with.
He examined the charms and knew he'd have to message Q for an explanation, but that wasn't even an inconvenience because it meant he had another excuse to check in on her.
The chopsticks and bento box were equally appreciated, and he had to admire them both for their craftsmanship and colors. He was a little predictable in what he liked, and he was grateful that Nelson was so attentive to details. He could imagine him worrying about what to get, spending an hour pacing every aisle.
"He gave me a rock that 'looks like a butt'," Jace reported when he was done examining the gifts. He looked to Nelson and offered a small smile that almost didn't look like some spectral forces were tugging his cheeks to help him out. "These are much nicer. Thank you, Nelson. I like these a lot."
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2020 5:32 pm
Nelson was utterly and completely delighted by their reactions to their gifts, feeling warm and happy. He took the braided straw and held it against his chest for a moment, his grin widening at Xander’s thoughtfulness, and then laughed when Jace said what Xander’s gift had been for him. “But...you don’t look like a butt, Xander, at least, I don’t think you look like a butt.”
He had never really found butts attractive, but...that was utterly besides the point. “Thank you for my hay, I love it. I’m...ah...going to ignore the thought of you wrestling with a horse in favor of my own sanity, but ah.” Nelson rubbed at the back of his head and shook it slightly. “I’m ready to go when you two are? I mean, if you two are...or, is it sandwich time?”
The way Xander was holding his new plush, and still the persisting idea of the male being trampled beneath hooves was rather disorientating and so Nelson looked over to Jace hopefully. “...I’m good with whatever you two are ready for...aha.”
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2020 5:50 pm
“I appreciate the vote that I do not look like butt rock, at least.” Grinned Xander. “I am so down for some good Ramen; you ready, Jace?” He slung an arm around Nelson’s neck, somewhere between a hug and a headlock. “Even if Jace here doesn’t appreciate my precious butt-rock, we’ll all appreciate some good ‘noods,’ man; I can even get it with the chili oil… an egg…maybe some chicken…” He looked almost dreamy for a moment. “That’ll be like the perfect topper to movie night last night!”
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2020 7:51 pm
Jace squinted as Xander. "Don't say we're going to appreciate good 'noods', do you know what that sounds like? Do you have any idea? Say noodles."
He was putting away the rest of the condiments he'd drawn out to make a better sandwich, and he sliced it into three pieces. It wasn't flavored with any sort of spiciness; he might have gotten creative with the sandwich if Nelson wasn't involved, but he wasn't going to burn off his testbeds.
He kept one crusty side for himself and handed Xander another crusty side; Nelson got the soft middle, because he was soft, and seemed like the sort of little brother who needed his crust cut off his sandwiches. It didn't matter if he was the least likely to complain about it, it was simply how things must be.
He did not tell Nelson that the only reason he didn't think Xander looked like a butt was probably because he had never seen a butt, but they'd already had enough conversation about 'n***s' for him to be done with this one.
Sandwiches passed over, he quickly cleaned and picked up his own, devouring it.
The kitchen was spotless, so no one could complain. "I'm dropping these off in my room and I'm ready, don't spill any crumbs or we have to clean those up. If you drop even one, you know mom'll find it," he muttered.
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Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2020 8:27 am
There was no way for Nelson to keep the grin off of his face as he was given the third of the sandwich and he ate it quickly and carefully, making sure to not spill a crumb, just as Jace said. The very last thing he wanted was to cause trouble for his friends, and so when he was done he looked around the floor, making sure he hadn’t dropped a single one, and then wiped his hands off at the sink. “I’m...ready for ah.” He looked to Xander and flashed an embarrassed smile, before swallowing. “I’m ready for ‘noods’ too, If...ah...oh. No that...Noodles. Ramen.”
He wanted to show Xander that he wasn’t alone in calling them that, but it was just too embarrassing.
After a moment, Nelson let out a sound that was almost a squeak and cleared his throat, shaking his head and dashing out of the room. They were about to leave anyway. He could just. Go wait by the door.
And pretend he didn’t have strange thoughts about Xander. And ‘noods’. Yes. This was fine. This was all fine.
Hopefully when the other two joined him, his face would no longer be so red.
...ah, it was good to be home, though.
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Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2020 8:52 am
“I know exactly what it sounds like; that’s why it’s so funny!” Xander grinned. “It’s like a play on people who send or ask for pictures from people out of the blue! They even have a shirt at one of the stores, it has a cat with a bowl of ramen, and it’s even got little naruto fish cakes in it, but it says ‘send Noods! it’s funny!” He might have slightly over-explained it, which didn’t help the humor of it at all, and ended up making him maybe a little embarrassed. “I mean, it’s kinda funny…it’s also extra great when Nelson says it…” he grinned again wider, though his cheeks might have been a touch flushed now. He ate his piece of sandwich and stooped to sweep up a scrap of crust that made a break for ‘freedom’ only to end up in the trash and then followed behind Nelson to wait by the door chuckling softly. “You alright there?” he grinned.
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Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2020 9:53 am
Jace sighed, exasperated beyond measure, and shoved his portion of the sandwich into his mouth. He chewed and swallowed while he dropped everything off in his room, and gave one last sweep of the kitchen to make sure it was spotless.
He had keys, his phone, his wallet, and at least a small bit of patience left, which was probably everything he could need if he was going out in the world. He followed after Nelson and Xander, opening the door and ushering them out before he stepped out last and locked it behind him.
"Nelson, you pick the place since you've just come back to town."
...Unless that was too much pressure, so he eyed Xander, already expecting him to have some sort of suggestion if Nelson clammed up now that he was on the spot.
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Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2020 10:11 am
Nelson tried not to react when Xander came into the room after him, but he gave a small yelp, and nodded frantically. “I’m fine! Fine! Are you all right there?” He wished the words back the moment he said them and it took all of his willpower not to just hide his face and run away, returning to Japan to simply undo the last minute and a half.
Thankfully, Jace returned then and even more thankfully asked him for advice. Nelson breathed a heady sigh of relief and drew out his phone, quickly googling ramen shops in the area and looking over their reviews on yelp. “There’s one that just opened last month over on Sidewinder Road, it has really great reviews if we want to try there?”
He looked hopefully between the two and managed a shy smile. “Or, if that doesn't sound good, There are plenty of others.” Finding food. Finding the best places...that was what Nelson was the best at...and now that he was once more in his comfort zone...everything seemed better. He shot Jace a look that he hoped could be interpreted as one of gratitude, but knowing Jace...well. He simply hoped he caught the look at all.
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Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2020 10:30 am
“Oh yeah, I’m great! Look, my bestie is home; he just googled a fabulous place to get ‘noods,’ “ and he grinned, repeating it. “Besides, if you say it sounds good, it’s going to be amazing!” He patted Nelson on the shoulder enthusiastically. “We’re just gonna have to see if it stands up to all the good stuff you had while you were in Japan, hmm?” he grinned. “Whatcha think, Jace? Shall we trust Nelson again? We might even find Q a new place to get boba!”
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Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2020 12:20 pm
Jace was already taking a few steps away from the house, looking in both directions instinctively, like he was some sort of criminal breaking out of jail and trying hard not to be caught.
It wasn't just that he didn't want his mother to round the corner and see them, just seconds before their escape; it's because he was attaching the Q's charm to his keychain and didn't need them making fun of him for not wasting any time in doing so.
"What? Yeah," he answered. "--Xander, stop saying 'noods' or I'll hit you. Nelson, that sounds good. I haven't heard anything about it, but if it's new, we should try it. Especially if it has good reviews."
Somewhere new was somewhere unexpected, and the idea of disappearing from the world and everything he knew sounded good. They could go out, live a different life, and they he could come home and get back to work.
"I'd be surprised if anything here stood up to the food out there, but I'm sure you'll give us an honest review for how it compares. Q's mentioned like, a million things we 'have to try'. She keeps saying we have to go out there with them sometime. I'm not picky, so yeah--let's go there. Seriously, if it's warm, and if I can get caffeine before we come back, I'm happy."
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