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 Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2012 10:39 pm
He had kept his Friday as clear as he could, though when Michael had called him, he'd told him he had work on Friday and wouldn't be home till four in the evening and that he'd leave a house key under the doormat for the other. He could let himself in as he'd either not be home or if he was he'd be in the shower washing up after a day at work. Answering the question of where he worked the conversation had continued, including the fact he did have a dog who would surely greet him if he let himself in, but not to worry the dog was still a puppy and friendly.
Now today was that day and Alexandre had made good time in getting home. The key was already under the doormat, had been since this morning when he'd left for work, and Cadha was busy eating the food he'd put into the scottie's bowl in the kitchen. The living room had both table lights on and Alexandre had left the kitchen lights on as he headed himself up to the bathroom to wash up from the sweat and dirt which covered himself and his clothing, good thing he really didn't wear his best to work. Sitting non the living room couch was the powder blue Burberry suede bag he'd taken to work. Sunblock, sunglasses, cellphone, and wallet filled the large tote bag.
It had been like every other day t work - boring. The same thing day in and day out with people who got flowers, and plants, simply to decorate their lawn and look pretty. None seemed o actually care or have a real interest. The only one he'd met had been weeks ago, Marley. She knew her plants and enjoyed them, appreciated them. He could see and hear it in her. There had been that one before he'd started working officially though, Paris, who hadn't minded learning some and wasn't just a vapid idiot like some people he dealt with.
Combing his fingers through his hair as it darkened with water, and laid flat and heavy down his shoulders and onto his back, he worked the shampoo into it as he sighed as the hot water washed away the days grime and stench.
He didn't know what the plans were for this date, and in a way that added a level of thrill to this but it also made him nervous. He couldn't help laughing at that. He was nervous, a solider in a war who had been to space and took on people who used magic while using it as well to a lesser extent. Nothing, unknown or known, should really make him nervous at this point, right? He was fairly sure that nothing should make him nervous and yet he felt that knotting in his stomach, it wasn't an uncomfortable feeling but rather a pleasant one. He'd once tried to explain that to his mother only to have her look at him oddly, something about feeling your stomach knotting and twisting should apparently not be pleasant and yet it was, she hadn't said a word though.
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Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2012 11:07 pm
The best thing about being a teacher, was that he had summer off. Yeah, he could probably pick up a job during the down time, but he also liked to just do whatever.
Michael showed up at Alexandre's house as expected, helping himself to the key under the mat and letting himself in. Surely enough, the little dog he was warned about came to greet him. He snorted lightly in amusement at the animal as he carefully shut the door behind him, and then knelt down to offer a fist to the animal to sniff. Although he didn't have a dog of his own at the moment, he used to. Right now he was enjoying life with a little less responsibility than an animal in it.
He could hear the shower running somewhere in the house, but he didn't go exploring. Instead he scooped the friendly little puppy into his arms and made his way over to the living room. There wasn't much that caught his interest at the moment. After all, he didn't know how long this 'relationship' would last. Not that he thought of it as a relationship. It was just dating for now.
There were plants in front of the windows, making Michael grin in amusement, remembering that Alex told him about his job, which had him guessing that he liked plants in general. They seemed rather well kept for. Not anything one would find in his own house, but... he was a man of the sea. Not land. Give him a boat and he would be entirely at home, but even now he was still getting used to being on dry land for such a long period of time.
Michael rubbed behind Cadha's ears, listening to the clink of the silver tag hitting the metal part of the plaid collar. Typical for a Scottie, but not so cliche that it was annoying. More like a bit of irony, which had him grinning again.
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Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2012 11:21 pm
The plaid had been a must for the collar, even if it would seem cliche. It had been in effort to keep from being too cliche, and his dislike for the red plaid pattern, that's he'd gone with the black watch pattern - never mind the fact he had pajama bottoms in the same pattern. Alexandre you could say favored, or at least tended to favor, darker color for clothing.
Over his water running he didn't hear his guest coming in but he did finish his shower soon after there arrival. Shutting off the water and toweling dry he had a towel at his waist and his shoulders, his hair resting on top of the towel, as he padded into this room down the hall from the bathroom.
Organized as ever it wasn't hard to find an outfit, his clothing was organized by color and further categorized by sleeve length. It was a dark colored polo he grabbed along with a pair of dark jeans. Socks and other things were grabbed and yanking on his clothing he hurried back into the bathroom to brush out his hair and grab a hair tie. Sneakers were grabbed as he shuffled into his room, on socked feet, and down the stairs he finally came. His hair still down and damp, in his face, but dressed.
Spying a happy dog, short little stump of a tail wagging, in a certain dark haired males arms he felt a smile blossom on his face. "You weren't waiting long, were you?" Approaching slowly, already his arms were up and working to pull his hair back into a pony tail. This motion lifted his shirt just enough to show some skin and a scar, faded to an extent, on his side. A reminder not to get into a fight near large glass windows...you could go through said window.
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Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2012 10:38 pm
Michael turned around when he heard Alexandre's voice, still petting the dog in his arms as he flashed him a half-grin. "I just got here," he assured him. He wasn't wearing anything fancy. "School clothes" is what he referred to his outfit as. Dark slacks and a dark green button down that his mom liked to say made his and his father's bright blue eyes stand out more. He didn't even bother buttoning it all the way. It was more for breathing room, as he only wore ties when he was at work. Off duty, as he liked to call it, found him in a more casual version of his attire. His sleeves were rolled up as well, but as of that moment, the shirt was still tucked into his pants. He had to show some kind of dignity.
"Just let me know when you're ready and we can go," he said after glancing over what Alex was wearing before flashing another grin. "Take your time. The reservation is in thirty minutes, but I'm sure it won't take us that long to get downtown," he explained, shifting the dog in his arms. It also helped that the place they were going to had valet parking, so he wouldn't have to worry about nabbing a spot in the city. That could be just so obnoxious at times.
"So... What should I know about you?" he asked suddenly, figuring there was no point in waiting until they got to the restaurant before getting to know the other a little better. "You like animals, or at least dogs. You work with plants, you've got good fashion sense..." Michael didn't consider himself to have a very diverse closet, but he could at least match colors and knew not to use repeating patterns if it would be overbearing.
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Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2012 10:53 pm
"You look good." And he did, the green worked well with his eyes, and he was casually dressed. It wasn't anything fancy but it also, thankfully, wasn't beaten up sneakers and worn jeans and a t-shirt either. He hadn't expected that though, and was glad he didn't get such a shock.
"I'd say you have a good start." With his hair tied back he went to get his phone from his tote bag and slipped it into a back pocket, the most common place to find it on his person. "The dogs thing is fairly new. I never had a pet growing up. I'd say it's really all to blame on my friend, who moved out a few weeks ago, she had a shelter dog who I came to like and I decided upon another dog. I just went a different route." He'd gone with one from a breeder. He didn't want to deal with any surprise illnesses or behavior issues. With Cadha he knew the parents health records and knew they were healthy, so Cadha should be as well.
"I do like plants, have since I was little. I also paint though, water colors, and I do like to read.I don't care much for sports, at least not participating in them." He didn't watch them either but that was due to a lack of reason. He really didn't know people very well who played on any spots teams and most things like that just didn't hold his interest long enough, blame that on not knowing the rules.
"We can get going, Cadha's been fed. My father will be dropping by to let him out in case I'm out late. He's still young so still is prone to making a mess if he's left alone too long." Whether it be Cadha going to the bathroom in the house or getting into things he didn't clarify.
"What about you? I'm sure there are more things I need to know about you as well." And he watched Cadha wriggle and try to lick the others face. It seemed Cadha had a new friend, or was trying to make a friend. He really was good with people, all the walks to the park had helped. Alexandre had worked hard to get him socialized with dogs and people. He didn't want Cadha to somehow embarrass him by acting up while on a walk.
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2012 11:09 pm
"You're not so bad yourself," Michael grinned, a small nod in Alexandre's direction. It wasn't every day that he asked a guy out on a date, but he figured it wouldn't hurt anything. He could easily swing both ways, and if he happened to find a guy who was willing to indulge him, then he'd take it.
"He's cute," he said, although it was pretty much stating the obvious as he indicated the dog by lifting him up a little and allowing him to lick his face for a moment, and then giving him another scratch behind his ears. He smiled lightly at the thought of Alex painting, although whether he thought it was interesting to know an artist, or because his mother painted from time to time and she was rather flighty and therefore most thoughts of her had him either grinning in amusement or shaking his head in shame... he would never tell. It was nice to know an artist, though. They tended to be different than other 'types'. An interesting kind of different, which was fine with him.
Michael knelt down to set the dog on his feet since they weren't going to be taking him, giving him one more pet before standing. "Sounds good to me," he said with another nod, making his way over to the door. He waited to make sure Alexandre was on his way out as well before turning towards his car. It was a shiny, dark imperial blue sedan with "BMW" on the front. It was nothing like his motorcycle, of course. And as amusing as it would have been to take Alexandre out on a date on his motorcycle, he didn't think he'd appreciate the surprise very much.
"Me? I love the water, I like teaching kids, I like building things. I'm kind of a jerk, think mostly about myself, and have a sense of humor most people don't appreciate because they don't understand it unless they know me," he listed off as he turned to walk backwards a couple steps, a small grin on his face as he unlocked the car and pulled open the passenger side door for his date. "So don't say you never knew later tonight, or whenever."
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2012 11:37 pm
"He is cute, and I think he knows it. Everyone seems to think so when I'm walking him." It was common for people to approach him, which was all well in good. It served to help socialize him, and that was one thing he wanted for Cadha. But god if a dog could get an ego he was sure Cadha would get one, if he didn't already have one at this point.
Such a surprise would have been...interesting for the normally very proper teen. But it would have been acceptable in the end, he might have even turned out to like it. Motorcycles were something he'd never been on, never knew someone who owned one either. Seeing the sedan he nodded his head. "Nice color, nice car. Good taste." Slate eyes looked it over once more while making his way to the passenger side, all the while listening to the answer from the other.
Shaking his head as he stepped in, smiling at the other as he did so. It was a sort of odd smile, one he never flashed other people. "I'm certain I can handle anything you can dish. I'm not exactly known to be the nicest of people myself, I honestly don't care what people think of me or what I say. It tends to upset people" And as for humor, well his was iffy. But so long as Michael wasn't lame, immature, and childish with his jokes he'd be fine.
"Building things though, anything in particular or just anything which strikes your fancy at the moment?" Seated in the car his eyes keeping hold of the other as he watched him, that smile having only softened on his features, it was still there.
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Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2012 9:01 pm
"Of course," he laughed lightly in amusement at the compliments towards his choice in car, moving around the front to get in and push the engine start button. There was some Classic Rock playing on the radio, but he turned it down so it was just a hum in the background. Maybe if Alex requested the volume be turned up, then he would, but for now, he was fine with talking.
"Just about anything," he said with a shrug, pulling out of the drive to head down the street. "Motors, electronics... plumbing... I used to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity when I was in high school, before the whole Navy thing," he shared, not minding telling Alex more about himself. "I have an engineering degree and a teaching license. I wouldn't mind working as a contractor, but that would be a full time job and I kind of like teaching at the moment."
Sure, some of the kids were obnoxious, but he liked the idea of molding impressionable young minds.
"You work with plants, right? Any degree?" he asked, keeping his eyes on the road ahead as the made their way into the city.
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Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2012 9:43 pm
A engine start button? Interesting, he didn't have one of those in his car, suv, It hadn't been a feature he'd been looking for though, or honestly even thought of. To be honest it wasn't even a feature that he'd remembered at the time when he had been car shopping.
"Good with your hands, and a mind for all kinds of things. A good trade and talent." Instructions were Alexandre's best friend, and even than that was a tentative friendship, instructions were not always the most clear of things. It was the reason things were bought and delivered already put together.
"Habitat for Humanity, a good cause. Not one I joined." Here he watched what he said and how he said it. Yes it was being deceitful but Michael couldn't be that much older than he was, and he didn't want him knowing he was still in high school. "I'd likely nail my hand to something. Building things isn't a talent I posses I'm afraid." Shopping, painting, plants, those were things he was good at. For a moment he wondered just how feminine that short list sounded, and than promptly shoved the thought away. "So why not something during the summer? Some project for fun?" He questioned, wondering, you could find and do something like that right? Find some people to work with on building something.
"I do, my mother brought me up learning to care for them." A smile, soft and gentle, he was close to his mother; perhaps closer to her than his father. She was the reason for most of his loves and hobbies. He had spent most of his time with his mother, his father was odd when he was a child or at least odd to him. Talking about the people he saw and different this and different that. "I don't even think there is a degree you can get. And if there is I'd think a degree says what you know from a book not what you know from experience with tending to various plants. it can be a trial and error sort of thing." He hoped he didn't sound too clueless or give himself away.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 10:54 pm
"Oh, I'm definitely good with my hands," Michael said with a wink and a smirk in Alexandre's direction. And then he shrugged lightly at the mention of the charity. "My dad made me. Thought it would build character or something." He didn't have anything against do gooders, as long as they weren't annoying him, but he was perfectly fine with living his life on his own terms.
Yeah, he was born into a good family and was well off with little to worry about. He could pick whatever profession he wanted to try his hand at, he could live wherever he wanted, he could do whatever he wanted. It was the life of a spoiled kid who'd always had everything. Now, he didn't think he was a horrible guy, but he also didn't think he needed to go out and sacrifice his own time and energy on something that... wouldn't really matter if there was one more or one less person.
The world sucked. It was just how you decided to live your life.
"Building things is okay. I like fixing things more. Sounds kinda of lame for a high school teacher, but whatever. I think it's nice that you know how to take care of plants, though. Not everyone knows things like that. I'm pretty sure I'd kill any plant I had, just because I don't know what to do with them. Not exactly something we could carry around on a ship." Especially with no sunlight.
"Of course there are degrees for stuff like that. Plant pathology, horticulture, agriculture. Ornamental horticulture... I think that's like... breeding and growing decorative plants," he suggested, having read about the different degrees... or more likely heard about them... somewhere.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 11:21 pm
Raising a brow to counter the wink, despite feeling his cheeks warm, he smiled. "Something I hope to find out first hand..." He could see where something like that would build character. He could think of other things which would do the same, such as what he did at night. Oh yes, it was like having two jobs where the one at night was more important, and more prone to injuries being gained. He used to not care much for helping people, looking down on the majority of people, but something had changed that night.
The idea his freedom was at risk and someone else, or several someone elses, were fighting for it. He had joined simply because of that and then it had changed. From fighting for his own freedom and those unable to, whether due to age or physical inability, to fighting for everyone elses freedom. It wasn't something he thought on but it really had been character building, not to mention life altering.
"It's not lame. You happen to like fixing things rather than building from scratch. It's just as good as building something from the ground up." Laughing he shook his head at the same time he shook with laughter, a hand up and covering his smiling and laughing lips. "It's not hard to care for a plant. Some are easier than others and need little tending, a cactus perhaps..." He said finally, lowering his hand once his laughter had subsided.
"Yes, and I haven't the space nor time and knowledge to start some breeding program. I wouldn't even know what plant to tinker with, though a lot of people like to play with orchids. I'll stick with collecting some of the results of other peoples tinkerings. I know how to make some salves with plants and make tea blends, though I dislike tea. I do know a lot of uses for them but I could also use a plant to cause harm to a person." Breeding plants was an interesting idea but not one he had much interest in, on top of the lack of space.
"Although...ornamental horticulture does deal with using plants in an artistic way. Their used to be the art of decorating with plants based on their meaning in order to convey a message..." Trailing off as he felt his cheeks warm more as he wondered if he was talking too much, or maybe with a little too much passion to his words. This was a situation he'd never found himself in and so for the first time he was second guessing himself. He still said what he wanted and what was on his mind but he questioned it all mentally. "So umm..yeah I guess I know about that field, or half of it."
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Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2012 4:36 pm
"Could be good for self defense. Hopefully that's not something I should be worried about, is it?" Michael wondered in response to Alexandre's comment about knowing how to cause harm to people with plants, although he was still grinning at the young man's laughter. A cactus... he wasn't going to tell him, but he was pretty sure he'd tried one... The fact that he couldn't remember what happened to it probably spoke of its fate rather clearly.
"You're not going to turn sociopathic on me, are you?" he teased, glancing over to his dinner guest as he drove through the city towards their destination. As for Alexandre's passion... he didn't mind it at all. People liked to talk about themselves. It was human nature. Well, as long as they felt comfortable around their company.
"Like bouquets and things like that?" Michael wasn't going to claim he knew anything about plants. Other than various studies or degrees Alexandre could pick from, he had very little knowledge on the subject. He and plants didn't really get along, after all. "You don't have to know everything about the field to get a degree in it," he pointed out. "What are you studying now...?"
It didn't take too long to get through the traffic and pull up under the awning of some upscale restaurant. Their conversation was momentarily put on hold as they got out and Michael handed the sensor in place of a key to the valet. Reservations were under Gallo, of course, and he followed his date to their booth near the back of the establishment.
The place itself wasn't too huge, or at least it didn't seem that way without realizing there was a basement with seating as well. But what did one expect with city sized restaurants? The name "Le Petit Cochon" probably gave away that it was French inspired, although a glance at the menu confirmed that it was a mix between French and typical American foods. Hell, there was even some pasta dishes thrown in.
"Get what you want, I'm buying," he told Alexandre, not wanting him to think he was trying to gyp him out of a meal.
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Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2012 6:16 pm
"It could indeed, and no. It's not something you should worry over." If anything Michael should likely worry over Alexandre being injured, to some degree, but he didn't say as much. He wasn't going to open that can of worms needlessly. He knew better than to bring that half of his life into his half, he tried to keep them as separate as possible.
"No, I doubt it. If I had such a tendency I'm sure my father would have noticed it by now. My father was a therapist, high school mostly, before he changed jobs." Though again he did keep his two lives separate. If his father ever encountered Benitoite it wasn't likely the man would see his son inside the Negaverse General. But would his father now, if enough time were spent together, see the darkness which now tainted him? See the murderer his son had become? It was a path he wished to keep his thoughts from straying down and thus pushed the thoughts away, quickly, before they could continue their wander down the dark path.
"Like bouquets but also in gardens. It was applied to flowers in in general, cut and growing. People would plant certain plants in order to convey a message to those visiting. Such as ones meaning safety, protection and other things. Most people, at least back then, would have known the meanings and understood the messages." Again he felt his cheeks warm as he spoke, it seemed ok to go off on a bit of a tangent but it was still odd to do so. It was especially odd to do so with another male and not be teased over it, it was something to be expected really. How many males knew something considered girly and feminine? He doubted many, unless you were talking to some male who needed to buy a scorned girlfriend flowers in order to apologize. As the topic went to what he was studying he had to thick and come up with something, anything, to tell and not give himself away. He didn't want to out right lie, he didn't lie as a general habit, if someone asked him something they wanted an answer and he was always happy to give the right, truthful, answer.
"General studies." That would work, right? That did mean he was taking all the basic subjects, which he was, so he wasn't lying just...not pointing out that his general studies were still going on in high school. "Though I'm leaning toward art." And he was, he did take as many art classes as he could fit in, giving up study halls which would have been a nice time to get homework done.
Watching Michael hand over what was the equivalent to his key to the valet he lead the way into the place, stopping at the host stand for Michael to give him the name the reservation was under. The whole time the blond was taking in the sights and sounds of the place, not to mention the smells. "It's nice from what I can see." The name outside had indeed given way that this was a French restaurant, although as he sat and looked over the menu he did notice American food as well as pasta.
"Anything on the menu that you'd suggest I try?" He knew he'd be going for water tonight, soda wasn't his thing and he not only wasn't legal age to drink but also didn't like wine or beer. So water would be the drink of the evening, he just hoped he didn't have to wave off wine or anything like that.
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Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 5:55 pm
"Art could be... interesting," he indulged as he turned the one page menu over to see if there was extra options on the back, and when there was only the logo of the restaurant, he set it down so he could check out the wine list... A much more extensive collection than the menu.
For him, art wasn't really an interest. It was too... abstract, too conceptually driven, and many time the concepts were pulled from the artists' a**. "It's a rough field, art. You've gotta be really good and really lucky if you want to make it," he tossed out. It sounded a little cautionary and concerned, but part of it was also filled with doubt.
And that wasn't from lack of experience with art. His mother dealt with that kind of thing all the time. Only artists who knew fancy pants rich people got their work into galas... Granted, it helped if said artist was fancy pants rich. From the way Alexandre dressed, he doubted he was from the lower end of the street.
Michael shrugged when asked for a suggestion. "I was gonna get the steak and red wine. You can pick an appetizer if you want."
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Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 7:25 pm
"It could be..." Though it didn't sound it was something the other was in to, which was fine as far as he was concerned. Art was just his thing, something he was good at, and as time went on it also served as something calming when he over worked himself or stressed out. He was an organized person and when his time, like last year, couldn't be organized and he couldn't find the time to do things he could try and calm himself with taking the time, take a night off of duties, and paint. Something he should do soon, he had at least one unfinished canvas at home.
"I know, especially considering the tripe that some put out now. Though most of what's put out now I don't think should even be considered art, let alone hung up and displayed on a wall." Glancing up from where he'd been looking over the menu again. The dislike in his voice sending a clear message of his opinion on some art, what art though? Point was he had a strong opinion and a good amount of dislike for some forms of 'art' Now though that look of dislike, which he'd worn while speaking of the tripe people created, vanished and was replaced by a small smile and a light coloring of his cheeks. "Are you concerned for me, if I try to make it in the field?" He asked lightly, curiously even.
"I think...I'd try and teach it. Just to avoid failure." He didn't care what people would think of his art but he also didn't think his work had the depth he'd want it to have if he were to present it to people, to try and sell it. But also he wouldn't chance his livelihood on his art and peoples ever swaying opinion on it. No, to do so would make no sense, it would be risky and dangerous.
"I'll get the same, skip on the wine for me though - bad experience with alcohol and I'll go with something else, and alright." As he glanced over the appropriate section of the menu he wondered if he'd be answering questions about his bad experience. He could easily cover up the part of being under age, which was good since he wanted to keep the other from knowing. He knew it was deceptive of him, and oh how he didn't feel bad about that at all, but he wasn't out right lying or selling himself to the other as something he was not.
"How about the classic french mussels? They look good." Pointing to it on his own open menu.
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