|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Aug 16, 2020 12:46 pm
How had she been persuaded to do this? February had wandered on to the bus with trepidation. Her friends has said it would be fun, but given that each of them were already comfortably ensconced with their significant others, it wasn't them who had been pushed to attend these things. They said it would be healthy for her, good to meet new people and that maybe, just maybe, she'd find the one.
...She hadn't quite had the heart to point out that based on her current circumstances she wasn't overly interested in dedicating any of her time to extra curricular activities like this. After all, she had a business to run and customers to win over, that required a lot of time and having a not-so-casual gentleman in her life was something she personally felt she had no time for.
Nevertheless she was still in attendance.
For speed dating.
On a bus.
The radio show that had come up with it had thought the novelty was a great one and perhaps the odd circumstances that all participants would now find themselves it might help them relax, unwind and bond a little more. Personally, February wasn't entirely convinced that she would be able to walk comfortably or gracefully back and forth in the thin aisle to swap seats as they were often required to do at these things.
Fortunately she was complicit for the time being and took her number, carefully pinning it to the lapel of her browse as she slipped inside and took a seat. She was surprised at just how busy it did look, but whether any of these poor folks was remotely interesting to the socialite remained to be seen!
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 17, 2021 6:04 am
It definitely wasn't what he should be doing, Elias thought to himself as he claimed a spot near the middle of the bus and pulled out his phone. Since he wasn't at work, bringing in income to ensure a stable home for his daughter, he probably should be back at the house with her, instead of leaving her with his mother. These were tumultuous times for a seven-year old (what with the whole divorce and whatnot), and a good father would probably prioritize spending time with his kid to make sure she didn't feel lonely or abandoned...
He was already at "work" hours longer than usual as he dealt with this bizarre magical-knight-city-protector s**t, so Elias definitely, definitely shouldn't be looking for other reasons to stay away from home, no matter how lonely and abandoned he felt, himself.
But what he "should" be doing and what he was actually doing didn't always sync up in the best of ways.
Priorities, he supposed.
He tapped aimlessly through a level of Candy Crush on his phone while he waited, and tried to very inconspicuously side-eye the other people moving around him. Elias had never been one to pass up on weird and novel activities, and even though he'd done his fair share of normal dating, he'd definitely never done anything like this. What was really the harm? It couldn't take more than an hour or two, and if something came of it, great.
If not, then the worst that could happen was a little wasted time.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Mar 20, 2021 8:54 am
"Is this one of those moments where I've met someone dedicated to this game or are you more of a casual player who doesn't care if they're in the top hundred?" she asked curiously. Not generally one to stare over someone's shoulder at what they might be playing, but given the already odd setting, a quick side eye at someone's chosen method of killing time at least afforded her an opportunity to break the ice.
Besides, if he was competitive to that point she might have to skirt around him politely. Not that she minded people's hobbies, but when they got quite so competitive over something so small, it was all a bit lost on her. At the very least she wanted to afford herself an opportunity to understand, and potentially bond, over it if she happened to gain an interest in it. Suffice to say that when it came to mobile games they weren't really her thing even at the best of times...possibly because she wasn't good with them to begin with.
"Or are we just killing time while we wait for the blood bath?" she continued with a warm smile. While she might not have been here with the sole purpose of finding a significant others, she was well aware that there were those who saw it as their one and only chance. Far be it for her to get in the way of that either, so long as they didn't go for her when they set their sights on something!
...She was a slow burner, she didn't need commitment in the first five minutes.
"On the plus side there's clear exits so if it goes south then..." she raised both eyebrows.
Yep, February could fill a room with her own conversation even if the person she was sat beside elected to hold their piece. Poor Elias might have only sought to play his game and she'd just interrupted him!
How rude of her.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Apr 01, 2021 6:41 am
The bus filled up as more people filtered in. Some took up seats surrounded by others, while others situated themselves to be less in the center of the heaviest commotion. He was pretty satisfied with himself for his own spot, able to catch snippets of the conversations from all around, and even more so to have attracted the notice of a cute girl.
Elias snorted out a laugh. "I don't think you can be in the top 100 of Candy Crush. It goes on for just about ever. Not like those- Those gacha type games? You know the ones I'm talking about," he prompted, waving a hand to try and draw the explanation clearer to him. "Where you try to pull the strongest character so you can fight other people? It's not like that, so I don't think there's really a leaderboard, or anything."
He offered her his screen so she could see the array of colorful blobs and candy roads that adorned it. There were a few small icons that showed where other players were in the same area he was, but it wasn't like he could fight them, or anything.
"Anyway." He pocketed his phone. No reason to have it out when he had a conversation right in front of him.
"I don't think it'll be so much of a blood bath," Elias said, notching his head to look back and around at the gathering around him. "I think for most it's more for the experience than the actual courtship. Nobody's thinking about it now, but it wouldn't be a hugely romantic or inspiring story to tell your kids that you met their mother on a bus, y'know?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue May 11, 2021 3:36 pm
She smiled, though it might have been a touch obvious that she wasn't entirely sure what a gacha was. This wasn't his fault by any means, but candy crush was about the peak of her exposure to these things and she relied solely upon the younger staff in her practice to enlighten her to some topics of conversation. It was probably for the best though as knowing her luck she would probably end up addicted to the things and spend far too much money!
"I think it may depend on how often people have tried to find love and how desperate they are for that connection now?" February wasn't much for commitment, if anything she was entirely useless for it, but as an outsider looking in she could recognise when someone was genuinely intent on finding something meaningful even if it was in a less than glamorous place.
"Although you're right it might not necessarily be romantic but it would certainly be different and sometimes there's nothing wrong with that," she offered her hand and a warm smile. "I'm February by the way, I know we're generally supposed to say hello and introduce ourselves first but I've always found breaking the ice in the beginning so much more effective."
"What brought you here anyway, curiosity, boredom, a lost bet?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu May 22, 2025 7:41 am
Epine de Rose Exit for Eli. Sorry, Epine! gonk
With a lopsided little smile of his own, he caught February’s hand in his. “Elias,” he introduced himself. “And not to sound like everyone else you’ve ever met, but February? That’s a pretty uncommon name.” Of all the months someone could be named after, that one was surely in the bottom half of the list of ‘most common.’ He had to wonder where it had come from- besides what must be disastrously uncreative parents. “What inspired that? Birth month? …Conceived month?”
He glanced around at the people chattering around them, and from just that precursory look, he couldn’t immediately identify anyone he would label as ‘desperate.’ “Ah, come on, you’re giving everyone too little credit, aren’t ya? I don’t think anyone is banking on a soiree like this to get them out of any deep slumps.” Though it did make him wonder if he was here on this bus for the right reasons…
There was a small chance that he couldn’t pick out the most desperate among them because it was himself, Elias.
How many of them had had sweet success just yanked out from under them? Most people wouldn’t be enthused to hear that he was still reeling from the loss of the relationship he’d been in previously. It wasn’t romantic that he was finding it uncommonly difficult to live by himself after his marriage. There was no soft and fuzzy way to admit that he’d had a good life- one he didn’t understand how he lost. Elias was doing everything he could to keep it from his mind- he wasn’t going to be the event’s sob-story.
So he decided to leave all that out.
“Hm, yeah, I guess. Somewhere between curiosity and boredom. I had some time to kill-” A lie. He really should be home with his daughter. “-and I figured: what could it hurt? Heh. And… you? I’m not sure I woulda pegged a beautiful woman like you to have an interest in these sorta things? Oh, damn, hang on-”
It was terribly rude, Elias knew, but when his phone buzzed from inside his pocket, he had to check it. It could be work: some correspondences needed to be immediate. Or it could be something else…
Well, Elias wasn’t fond of that introductory message from his mother, but it went on quick enough to not keep him waiting.
Quote: But we’re at the hospital. Teyla smashed her chin climbing up the slide at the playground. She needs stitches.
And if that wasn’t something that could bring the ‘date’ to a close, Eli surely would’ve been counted among the ranks of ‘bad fathers.’ For a single, fluttery second, he wondered what the harm would be in staying… But he had a daughter. A daughter at the hospital, who was probably hurt and scared. He couldn’t abandon her.
Elias stood. “February, I’m so sorry. It was fantastic to meet you- no matter how brief it was. I gotta run. Got Grandma looking after my kid, and, well you can imagine how that’s going. But I’m just starting to believe in fate, so if it’s meant to be, I’ll see you around. And uh-” A chuckle, soft and rumbling. “Good luck with the ‘blood bath.’” As much as he hated to dip when they’d just started talking, he still had those damn priorities. A brisk stride to the front of the bus, a quick conversation that he needed to leave, and Eli was dropped off at the next corner.
He’d have to Uber back to his car from here, but there was nothing to be done for it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu May 22, 2025 2:45 pm
EchosSweet No problem! xD I'll close this out. <3
...That was something she did need to consider looking into at some point, if only to make sure that the youngest were all right.
Nevertheless while things had been going reasonably well for her in this meeting and she had found Eli's company enjoyable, all good things must come to an end and while that would traditionally have been determined by the bell to switch places...this came in the form of a phone instead. If she was inclined to read too much in to it she might very well have assumed that he had a friend hidden across the way who was acting as his 'out'!
His reaction was otherwise genuine though, something that resembled that of some of the pet owners who came into her practice. One part alarm, one part concerned, one part anxious and then a hint of adrenaline. He'd already said his farewells and was hopping into his taxi before she had the opportunity to provide an appropriate response. However, as he'd implied, if there was such a thing as fate then perhaps they would meet again. For the time being all she could do was hope that his daughter was all right and that she, personally, would find at least some reasonable company when the bell rang.
Speaking of -
As the taxi disappeared from view she heard the high pitched clang of the bell and kicked out her legs. Off to speak to the next hopeful soul, the night was still young and she was still feeling relatively optimistic. So off she went, a few short steps to the next set of seats to meet her next partner until it was her time to make a subtle exit as well.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
