05. bang bang

[worthy]

violinist • insomniac • paper aeroplane • dandelion seed • feather • she sings • a stolen ring • fairytale gone wrong • cliche • ribbon • cadence • 3:28am • icarus • hallucination • letters to the moon • silhouette • breathless • start running • astronomer • comet in a bottle • reincarnation • mirage • filigree • everyone was dancing but me • nameless • exhale • fortuna major • vices and virtues • gunpowder and gunshots • china teacups • pinkie promises • chrysalis • piercing • north star • kerosene • dark horse • vanilla • the cat meowed • blink • text message • smirking • firefly • daisy chain • doe eyes • "where are you?" • typo • no shoes in the rain • heterochromia • swallowing silver spoons • a spoonful of sugar • mistaken identity • twisted ankle • touching the clouds • i told you so • lump in the throat • shoulders • sunburn • ambulance • talking nonsense • perfect • bare branches • pale • everyone found out • not enough • i owe you • she won't say it • russian roulette • dried flowers • actress • tattered notebook • smell the roses • justice • all that glitters • the cat and the king • grudge • apathy • all dolled up • decadence • blush • too easy • healing • then, i changed • write to me • caffeine • rumpled sheets • close your eyes • message in a bottle • morphine • fahrenheit • fighter • i lit a candle for you • after all this time • newspaper • pendulum • soundproof • skeletons in the closet • nightingale • arms crossed • prologue • epilogue • bully • i dare you • arms outstretched • woken up early • we're all made of stardust • dancers • hero • blurry • aftermath • even you • whatever you want to believe • a dance with the devil • roses are red violets are blue • lantern • they kept their promises • live fast and die young • interlaced fingers • i wish i tried harder • don't blink • envelope • congratulations • just look down • wayward • when you say nothing • as you wish • runs in the family • fight like a girl • the bright side • skyscraper • sunshine • bye, beautiful • don't mess with me • fire at will • fire and water • peek-a-boo • don't die before i do • wanderlust

pick a character + prompt (or tell me what you want &or bring your own) and get words.

Comments

[strataspheric]

[ Rowen pointedly doesn't think about Sage's grip or his hands or anything else besides ordering drinks. Because he knows himself– if he's going to get into that spiral of thought it was going to be hours before he came out of it. Hours. He's been there before. Not quite with this topic, but something close to it. Sage has been simultaneously closest to him and furthest away. It's in the way the blonde sort of holds himself aloof. All that old time samurai upbringing, he thinks.

Still, that background is something that makes him interesting. Even moreso when he can be easier to prank because of it. Drink orders are filled and Rowen scoops both of the cups up, finding the profile Sage cuts without much effort. And naturally, he's sitting in a sunny spot. Naturally. ]

Here.

[ Rowen slides the drink over to the other man– it's a ridiculous concoction that the barista had dubbed "dead raiser" for how much caffeine and sugar was in it. He keeps the correct drink to himself as he slides into the chair, elbows set on the table top without regard for manners. ]

[enhalo]

[ None the wiser, Sage accepts the cup. It's all polite reflex, as it takes him a moment or two to actually look away from the window and the thrum of normalcy that lies beyond it. He lifts it at an angle with a nod - a silent thanks. If Rowen's lack of manners bothers him, he probably wouldn't be here at all. Over time, habits become nuanced. Appreciated, even. There's something comforting in knowing that to expect.

Well, in most cases. Instead of taking a sip right away, Sage squares the cup on the table, both palms against it to warm his hands. True to Rowen's word, the foot traffic outside is picking up. ]

How much time do you have to spend here before memorizing the class schedules?

[ Briefly, Sage wonders how often he actually goes home. ]

[strataspheric]

[ True to form, Rowen accepts the thanks with a small gesture of his own. This is how they communicate. Or rather, how they've learned to communicate. Cye and Kento make fun of them for being mentally linked, but Rowen just figures it's more just understanding the blonde as well as he does. Neither of them have need for words, anyway. ]

Er, well, when I was taking an astrophysics class I spent about a week in here off and on trying to crunch for a paper.

[ That was last term. He's not going to mention that he slept maybe two or three of those days. Time not spent here found him in the library, surrounded by reference books that weren't allowed to be checked out. ]

In my breaks, I started mapping traffic patterns for fun. Or guessing what drinks people would order.

[enhalo]

I should have known.

[ And maybe he did. Maybe he can figure more from what goes unsaid, but voicing it would just diminish the ability to tell all together. Rowen's life had always carried this hectic quality with it, this comfortable unrest. Sage's life must seem so meticulous in comparison. His thumbs tap the paper cup pointedly, but he still doesn't lift it just yet. His gaze is horrendously steady and lacks pretense. ]

Since you must've passed, I wonder if your guessing success rate influenced how you ordered for me.

[strataspheric]

[ In all honesty, he wouldn't be surprised if Sage could. Past experience has taught him that his friend was good at reading between the lines. Somehow, though, he doesn't feel like the blonde is just picking apart his sleeping habits or his weird studying. Rowen keeps the contact, even if his heart seems to be doing tiny little flips over on itself.

The sunlight filtering in through the window really does Sage favors. Mouth dry and pulse higher than usual, he pours his effort into a cheeky smirk, leaning back in his chair. ]

Maybe it did, maybe it didn't. I had more data to go off of there.