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Aphismet blushed slightly at the compliment. He enjoyed praise about his work, since he was normally so self-conscious about it. But now that he had finally gotten the apprenticeship, he was quite glad to talk about it. It wasn't the same as when he was just a pizzamaker.

"Thanks," he said. "I love to cook, so I'm really happy to have found that job. I would be happy to make a picnic sometime," he added without stammering, quite a feat! His cheeks were feeling quite warm, but at least he wasn't letting it show in his words anymore. "ERm, when it's warmer."

He wondered if he should mention the phone number, and why he hadn't called... He would say he'd been busy, but it would easily be seen as a lie. He had just been too cowardly to call. He decided it would be best not to mention it at all, although now he was blushing quite profusely. "S-so, erm... How did your painting come out, after all?"


Rivener felt the tug on his sleeve, and Roux's squeeze on his hand... Oh. This could be dangerous. Eiry was an emotional sort, and was likely to start bawling if Riv didn't pay attention to him. On the other hand, Roux was a jealous type, and might lash out at Little Brother if Riv turned his attention to the green Frei.

Rivener smiled. He enjoyed tense moments like these, a mental puzzle to solve... it makes for good TV. And it's fun in real life too!

Maybe he could come to an understanding, a middle ground? Hm. Giving it a shot, Rivener glanced over at Eiry for a second and reached out with the hand that was petting Roux's hair. "It's alright," he said to Eiry.

Riv then turned his eyes back to Roux and kept them there with a soft smile, trying to quell the cold fires that were no doubt flickering to life within the Ice Frei. "Roux, this is Eiry. He's my little brother." He hoped that the connection between himself and Eiry, now cleared up, might upset Roux less than it normally would. Or perhaps the icy Raevan wouldn't like Riv having a connection to anyone, in any manner... It was a risk, but Eiry would always be around, and Riv couldn't help that.

Rivener smiled at Roux's fingers on his hair. He enjoyed his hair being played with, it was long and silky, and he was quite proud of it. When others felt the urge to touch the silken strands, Rivener felt proud of himself. Roux's touch in particular felt special, since the icy Frei so rarely touched anyone.

Riv nodded, reaching out to run a hand along Roux's arm gently. "Of course," he said in reply to Roux's words. "I'll be looking forward to it." He leaned forward and gave Roux another kiss on the cheek, for good measure.

Riv was so glad Roux hadn't lashed out at Eiry. For a moment there, he'd seen the disdain in the other's eyes, and thought... But it seems Roux had come to a decision about it, and it didn't involve turning poor Eiry into an icicle.

Alex cleared her throat, trying to brush off her comment, but was pleasantly surprised when Aphismet agreed to it. Did we just make a date? she wondered, quite amused. Best not to ask. She remembered talking about the painting that day in the store, but the truth was, she hadn't had time to start.

"We-e-ell," she licked her lips, cuddling the plushie again, "being in the aforementioned apartment hasn't allowed me to start. I...I remember you saying it needed to be in a ventilated area, and, er, it's not ideal where I am now. I'll have to wait until I go home." Her smile was almost apologetic; she sincerely wanted to give it a try and apply Aphismet's methods, but the stuffy little hole she was staying in had proved to be an issue.

"I think I'll be returning to my home soon," she commented, sidestepping someone before they bumped into her, "I'm not so good with crowds. I don't know if I could live in the city again after being by the beach." Her eyes briefly searched for an unoccupied area, since the Kissing Booths were becoming somewhat popular. The only place she could spy was...the Love Tunnel? Alex coughed, her own cheeks burning, catching Chloe's gaze and giving her a sheepish grin and a little wave. She hoped Aphismet wasn't following her strange glances.

"Seventy-four." By far not a winning number, she took up the dice again and shook them absently in her hand.

She remembered calling Aphismet to ask him to make the prizes, she'd tried to do one of her own but it had saddly looked mishapen and unappealing. He'd kindly agreed and had created so many wonderful plushies.

They looked exactly like their counterparts. She let the dice roll into the pan again, looking eagerly down at the numbers.

Aphismet hadn't caught onto the silliness at all. As a matter of fact, he was smiling happily while remembering the many times he had gone out to the park with his easel and paints, back when his apartments didn't allow for good ventilation at all.

"That's a great idea," he said. "I used to paint outdoors all the time. It's so calming, just standing there looking at trees and grass, trying to capture it all on canvas..." He tilted his head, and took the last sip of his hot chocolate. It had gone cold by now. He turned and threw the cup out into the trash.

"We could do that sometime! In the spring," he added. By now he was too excited about the painting outdoors idea, to realize that he was actually agreeing to what could be considered a date.

Aph smiled at the invitation. The true meaning of the whole conversation was now slowly sinking in, and he suddenly found himself not knowing what to say next. He could just smile and nod, smile and nod. "Erm," he began, attempting to think of something to talk about, and failing miserably. "Welllll..." Aph looked around for a way out. He suddenly felt trapped.

"Oh, erm, I think I hear Rivener calling," he lied, trying to extricate himself before he mucked things up. He blushed and ran a hand through his hair. "P-please enjoy the fair, a-and it was nice to see you again! I, uh... I still have your card, so I'll c-call you! O-or, well, you can probably track me down if you come to the lab and ask for me..."

For some reason, Aph was suddenly aware that Chloe was also around. The thought of Alex going into the lab and asking for Aphismet's home number REALLY embarrassed Aph for some reason. Why would he feel so odd? Why shouldn't the two meet? They probably had already...

Now thoroughly confused, Aph smiled one last time at Alex and ducked away, towards Rivener's booth.

Alex watched the man backpedal, wondering if it was something she'd said. She smiled and shook her head, giving a wave of her hand as he fled towards his Raevan. I didn't get to ask about Rivener, or tell him about Lorenzo, she sighed. Hm. Maybe I'm just doomed? She chuckled to herself, giving a faint shrug. "What can you do?" she murmured to herself, crossing her arms over the plushie again. She was starting to get more uncomfortable as more people piled into the festival, and she'd done all she could, short of the Love Tunnel...

Maybe now was the time to try and speak with Doctor Kyou. With little left to do before she would be forced to depart, Alex moved towards the Kissing Booths for what she hoped was the last time.