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 Posted: Mon May 02, 2016 8:26 pm
Okay, were Jamie less of a wuss, and had he known what Shiloh was thinking, he would've certainly defended himself on the whole a**-kicking front. Yeah he'd accidentally kicked some rubble at him, but he'd hardly gone straight for the a** himself. It had been an accident. An accident. As it were, though, he was back to making googly eyes at his straw.
To be fair, the eye contact probably could've lasted longer if Jamie wasn't one of the most socially awkward high schoolers alive. Still, for the moment it lasted, it actually felt kinda nice. Maybe a little less awkward than usual.
"It... wasn't really that much further," he countered, but non-confrontationally so, then took a sip. "But, um, I appreciate it. It's back this way." For a while they walked the same stretch of sidewalk they already had, but soon rounded the corner where they'd met. If there was any reason to look fondly on a random street corner, Jamie supposed this was one of them. He took another sip.
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Posted: Mon May 02, 2016 8:38 pm
"It's nothing..." he said again, quietly into his own straw so it made a distorted, hollow sort of sound. It almost made him laugh.
Somewhere along the lines, his music had actually stopped playing. Fishing around for his iPod, Shiloh found that the decrepit thing had lost its charged, and it made him frown. Then again, it wasn't as if he had even noticed it from the start; had he been that preoccupied? It didn't seem like it. Following Jamie down the sidewalk, he looked to his feet as the device was pocketed again, subconsciously dodging all the cracks in the sidewalk like he was playing a little mental game with himself.
"I don't think anything would have happened to you, though." he was trying to be reassuring, even if it did contradict what he was aiming at earlier with the minor threats. His mind immediately began to over analyze it; Jamie would think he was bluffing then, or maybe that he was trying to reassure him... well, that was what he was trying to do, wasn't it? He was chewing on the edge of his straw.
"But... I guess it's better safe than sorry." he wanted to let it lapse into silence again, just walk Jamie home and part and maybe see him at school or maybe not. It wouldn't really matter. There was a small part of him that actually... enjoyed their conversation, though. Jamie was awkward—it was almost awkward for Shiloh just on the basis of second hand embarrassment—but he was quiet. Quiet was good. Shiloh liked quiet. Not to mention Jamie didn't pry. Also he liked icees. They'd been making small talk up to this point, so maybe it would be okay?
"So, um." even though his iPod was no longer on, his thumb was still meticulously swirling around the circle pad. He could almost hear the clicking sound in his head from tabbing through the menus. "Your uh... 3DS. That you brought." slurp ".....what'cha play?"
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Posted: Tue May 03, 2016 12:14 pm
"Better safe than sorry, you're right," Jamie agreed. There was a small smile on his face, but he kept it to himself as his eyes remained fixated on what was left of his icee. Despite the reassurance, he was the type to continue fretting, so it honestly was better this way. Still, the attempt at soothing his fears—off-handed, accidental, or otherwise—was a lot more appreciated than Shiloh probably knew.
After all, his feelings about Shiloh had been up and down since they met a short time ago, but he was starting to accept that he really wasn't so bad. It might've been too early to judge, but even with as rough and intimidating as he had been one moment, he'd also been kind the next.
As they walked on in silence, Jamie found himself thinking about what he would say when he saw Shiloh at school. If he saw Shiloh at school. Hi was a good starting point, but that would only get him so far.
He'd have to think about it later.
"Hm?" he hummed, this time actually glancing up at Shiloh, his expression shifting from curiosity to surprise. "M-Me? Oh, um..." A short silence followed. It wasn't that Jamie didn't have games he liked to play, that much should've been obvious, he just wasn't used to someone asking. Even earlier, when all he'd mentioned was that he liked 'peach stuff,' he'd been almost unsure how to talk about himself.
"Well... I like, um, games with animals a lot," he mumbled, hoping that didn't sound stupid. "I really, really like Pokemon... a-and Harvest Moon. Oh, and I got Animal Crossing recently, but I haven't really, um, gotten too far into it yet."
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Posted: Tue May 03, 2016 1:37 pm
Shiloh could honestly tell Jamie had issues talking about his hobbies. Then again, maybe he was just reading into it, but he couldn't help but noticed how he'd relax one second and then clam up and stutter the next again. It was always in regards to him. Shiloh tried not to sigh; it wasn't a frustration at Jamie, but more so at himself for always getting caught up in his overthinking. Most people didn't need to know the reasons behind every little detail. For Shiloh, it just made him feel safer, even when there wasn't anything to fear.
I mean, just look at Jamie.
Who was actually looking up at Shiloh again, bumbling like usual (he thinks, having known the guy for maybe forty minutes now). It was all he had to go off of at this point anyway. Jamie, the nervous, shy, tiny, animal crossing...
Animal crossing?
Shiloh may have come close to actually laughing, or brightening, or perking up, but the twinkle in his eyes was completely ******** impossible to miss. He liked Pokemon well enough, but Animal Crossing? God, his new leaf down was his absolute pride and joy; the only game he's ever gotten on its release date (Wild World was so trash in comparison, how did he even play that game?).
He might not have had a concrete interpretation of Jamie, but anyone who liked games solely for animals couldn't be terrible.
"It makes me so ******** pissed that the turtles can't be villagers." is the first intelligent thing that he manages to say.
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Posted: Tue May 03, 2016 6:41 pm
The way Shiloh's expression lightened definitely caught Jamie's attention. After all, the twinkle in his eye had been impossible to miss. It was a blessing, as small as it was. It's not as if he could read Shiloh's mind, but he thought for a second that maybe it was safe to like the things he liked enough to tell someone about them.
"I can't believe there aren't any fish or something," he returned, then stopped to correct himself. "Okay, I guess there are octopi, but only what... three?" It was almost laughable how mellow he sounded now in comparison to the entirety of their time together. His voice always held an edge of hesitation, but he wasn't stumbling over his words and hiding behind his self-loathing anymore. At least for the moment.
"It really doesn't make any sense, though, does it...? They kinda, um, tease you with Kapp'n." Swiveling the liquidy remnants of his icee around in his cup, he huffed.
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Posted: Tue May 03, 2016 6:57 pm
"Right? Right???" his tone was so exasperated, "Like, why can you catch fish? And bugs? But live with animals? That's so ******** up."
"Which by the way, Kapp'n is a kappa he isn't a turtle." Shiloh was very adamant about this. "The English version is just ******** stupid with localization." not that Shiloh knew anything about all the nuances of localization and just how ******** up the game could actually be.
"Anyway, the octopi are cute. Zucker's the best. I got all the food themed villagers." he nodded decisively "That was the one good thing about Wild World. At least Tortimer was still the mayor. Like, I'm happy he's off having a permanent vacation on the island and s**t because he works really, really hard and he totally deserves it, but like, the world misses him so much."
He slurped his icee furiously to make up for lost slurps. He was getting really heated about this. "Like, why do I have to be the mayor? Why couldn't I have just been the second-in-command turtle secretary guy? That would'a been great." saedusk i've lost control of my life
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Posted: Tue May 03, 2016 7:10 pm
To be fair, neither one of them had said a whole heck of a lot since they met, so when the words kept coming and coming, Jamie's surprise was 100% genuine. It wasn't a bad thing, not at all, but it still caught him off guard. He couldn't even be all that upset when Shiloh corrected him about Kapp'n's species. All he did was mutter a quick, "Wow I can't believe they changed it..." under his breath.
"I never played Wild World," he admitted, scuffing the toe of his shoe at the sidewalk. "Actually, I um, never played any Animal Crossing games before New Leaf." It was a silly thing to be grateful for, but Jamie was glad he'd decided to pick it up at all. He had no way to predict this unexpected late night rendezvous, but the game gave him something to really talk to Shiloh about, and it was undeniably nice. "I just started, but I already have a list of villagers I want. Zucker's one of them, you're so lucky!" He laughed.
"Gosh, though... You really like Tortimer, huh? Wish I could've had him as my mayor before..." Letting out a small sigh, he took a slow slurp of the last of his icee before something finally seemed to dawn on him. "Are turtles your favorite, Shiloh?"
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Posted: Tue May 03, 2016 7:20 pm
Honestly, Shiloh would have been content to blabber about animal crossing all damn night at this rate. He wasn't terribly into gaming, but it was his favorite game, and he had an opinion on just about everything it had to do with. Like yeah, Zucker was great. Who else was great? ******** Tia. What a goddamn princess. Don't even get him started on Merengue. She was also a princess... s**t, were they princesses together? He could get behind that.
And then this question gets thrown at him.
Were turtles his favorite?
First, there was silence. Then, there was slurping, and after that was more slurping and hollow sounds as his straw hit the empty bottom. For once, Shiloh was not upset that his icee was seemingly diminished, because he realized life had far better things to offer him. Not that there was much that was better than an icee, but if there had to be anything, it was definitely turtles.
"Holy ********> he said, probably a little too loud, "Are turtles my ******** favorite?" he asked back, empty cup slowly crackling as it was crushed in his grimy, scuffed up hand.
"Jamie, let me tell you." oh god, here it comes, "Turtles are just— they just— they're so pure Jamie. They just have these shells, and these lives, and they can do the whole— y'know, peep peep," he was pulling his hood up again, not quite enough to cover his head, poking his head out with each word, "And they just— they love a good time. And I love them. They're so great."
Nothing he said was probably making any sense, but Shiloh wouldn't be the one to notice. saedusk congratulations. he's actually a nerd.
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Posted: Wed May 04, 2016 7:48 am
Jamie was fully expecting Shiloh to like turtles. I mean sure, he'd asked about it, but the disappointment over a lack of turtle villagers and the near reverence in his affection for Tortimer were big red flags by themselves. After learning the truth with no room for doubt, Jamie planned on revealing his own great love for fish and they could use it as something else to talk about and find common ground over. Yeah, he was proud of himself for that plan.
Jamie had no idea how much Shiloh liked turtles.
Or rather, while he thought their loves might be on a similar level, he wasn't expecting Shiloh to react with this much passion. In the wake of his answer, Jamie was left momentarily speechless.
"Um..." he muttered, hardly even able to get that out at first. "Wow... that's really cool." Anyone else might've meant that mockingly, but Jamie was speaking from the heart. Just look at him: his eyes had widened a little more with each peep and they hadn't lost their sparkle yet. Half of the things Shiloh said didn't make any sense—did turtles really love a good time, was that an actual fact?—but Jamie was too distracted by the way he'd said it to really care. Never in a million years would he have pegged Shiloh the type to get so worked up, at least from what he'd experienced of him so far, and it both confused him and energized him at the same time.
"T-They are great!" he agreed, small hands crushing his own empty cup a bit (though not nearly as much). "I like sea turtles! I mean... I like fish even more, but..." Yep, his eyes were still huge.
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Posted: Wed May 04, 2016 2:11 pm
Shiloh just. Really liked turtles.
It was a problem, probably, except not really because turtles were never a problem. He took a deep breath after his spiel, gaze turning on Jamie as he did that wow... thing again. For a second, Shiloh "everything is personal" Beaumont was going to take that statement mockingly, but seeing the twinkle in Jamie's eyes and energy in his tired features made him relax. Was he... being genuine?
Because honestly he hadn't caught himself before spilling into that tirade. It was something he liked, and that made it really personal to his heart, and he could kick himself for blustering out like that, but then there's Jamie looking innocent and sparkling and it's... maybe nice.
He felt a little content.
"Snapping turtles are my favorite. They just go all AHHHHHHHH" he gaped his mouth open wide, emulating the majestic jowls of the beast itself. "—but, sea turtles are really nice too. They're so sleek an' they got these cute little flippers..." oh god now he was pulling his arms into his jacket to emulate that too.
"...but, I mean, I guess fish are kinda neat too. I like whales." he said, arms recoiling back out of his jacket. "Um, I mean, whales aren't fish, but..." he trailed off with a shrug, feeling a little awkward. It was nice talking like this, but entirely foreign. Okay maybe not unheard of, but he only ever opened up to Ollie, not random kids he incidentally happened to go to school with.
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Posted: Wed May 04, 2016 5:04 pm
Luckily for Jamie, he never caught on to any momentary displeasure on Shiloh's part. If he had, he might've recoiled into his shell all over again and the conversation about turtles would've been even more appropriate. As it were, things stayed peaceful between them and Jamie was actually holding onto a small smile. It was impossible to say he was completely over his awkwardness, he was far too ingrained in his nervous nature for that, but he at least looked like he was having a pleasant time.
"Aren't snapping turtles super strong?" he questioned in response, crushing his cup just a smidgen more. The whole Shiloh acting out the animals thing was undeniably fun to him, but he was far too shy to attempt representing his fishy favorites that way. Even if he kinda sorta wanted to...
"Whales are suuuper cool, too, they're so big but so elegant." With a small sigh, he wavered back and forth a tiny bit. Man, he really wanted to play along. He could feel a warmth to his cheeks as he fought between fun and embarrassment. "K-Kinda like..." The hesitation was significant, but- "Kinda like... this."
Taking a few steps ahead, Jamie stretched out his arms and swayed back and forth, waving them up and down as he went, all in underwater-like slow motion.
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Posted: Wed May 04, 2016 6:30 pm
"They're so strong." Shiloh was nodding furiously and, finally tired of clinging to the cup in his hands, he threw it (or rather dropped it) absentmindedly to the ground. It just wasn't necessary in this equation anymore, not when it was void of the sweet ambrosia once held inside.
"And yeah, they really are, they like—" but Shiloh never did finish his thought before Jamie, in all of his awkwardness, mustered the courage to also do a display. He was being genuine? He was being genuine.
He cracked the tiniest, lopsided grin.
"Yeah! They totally do!" he got Jamie 100%. "And sometimes they're like, bwhaaaaaaaaaaa" okay; his whale call wasn't the most accurate thing in the world, but he was goddamn trying. God, now he was clamping his arms up and down like a massive jaw.
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Posted: Wed May 04, 2016 6:46 pm
Even in the middle of his whale performance, Jamie heard the hollow clip of the cup against the sidewalk. To be fair, not everyone knew about or understood the environmental impact of littering. Jamie knew, though, he knew because it just wasn't possible to be as devoted to fish as he was without having read about the awful pollution in the oceans. There was still no way he'd lecture Shiloh about it, but that didn't stop him from circling back to scoop up the cup. With both empty icees safely in hand, he caught back up, continuing the conversation as if nothing had changed.
"Oh my gosh, they make the best sounds." Unfortunately, while he could get himself to act out the swimming, he definitely had to draw the line at making noises. Way, way too shy for that one (then again, that had been his excuse the first time and he'd still ended up doing it). At least Shiloh was up for it, though.
"I heard some people listen to whale songs to help them sleep at night." Wow, there was a thought. For a moment he was brought back to reality and it was ungodly-o-clock and he was out roaming the streets with some guy he'd just met. Honestly... he didn't regret it at all.
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Posted: Wed May 04, 2016 6:56 pm
They were lollygagging pretty hard, huh? Not that Shiloh cared. He was actually... having fun. He stopped walking completely when Jamie backtracked to pick up his cup.
"Why do you keep doing that?" he huffed, wondering if Jamie was trying to make a statement. "Look, if littering bugs you that ********' bad, then just tell me to pick up my s**t."
Not that he knew Jamie was nearly incapable of that, but Shiloh spoke the truth. He at least didn't seem all that deterred when Jamie caught back up, the two of them walking again. Did people actually listen to whale songs? That just sounded headache inducing as all hell. Like, he thought the sounds they made were kind of funny, but not the most soothing things by a long shot.
"Maybe you oughta try it out instead of wandering around like this." there was that dumb smile again; Shiloh was joking pretty casually, kicking tiny pebbles at his feet when they came upon him.
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Posted: Wed May 04, 2016 7:19 pm
"W-Well, I don't mind picking it up," he assured, trying to soothe. He really didn't, after all. It wasn't a big deal. "Litter's just, um..." You can do it Jamie, he tried to tell himself, you can do it, "... really bad for the, um, environment... is all..." Not a lecture, just a tidbit of information. An important one at that, he decided. Even if it still made him a little nervous mentioning it, he'd done something and that was what mattered. Right?
In the end, at least he had whale songs.
"Y'know I... was just thinking the same thing, actually. That's kinda funny," he bubbled out with a small laugh. "I have a little CD player back home I could use..." Was it silly that he was actually considering this? If it helped him sleep at night when he was supposed to be snoozing, Jamie didn't really care.
"I wonder where you even go to download something like that..."
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