The Perk | Friday Morning

[knife_bender]

There was a boy in schoolboy uniform and knee socks at the Perk this morning. Diego didn't get to leave the house alone often--he didn't sneak out nearly as much as Klaus did--but he knew how to order a black coffee without people thinking he had been in a cave for the last fourteen years.

He took seat by the window so he could people watch. Okay maybe he was a little bit sheltered compared to the average person.

[Open!]

Comments

[okteiviakom]

Octavia had landed on the island this morning, after a very interesting Thursday involving a boat she hadn't managed to figure out how to operate.

And now she was here, and endlessly curious, and -- okay, starving. And she saw people come out of this place carrying food and drinks, and so in she came.

She'd never seen a school uniform before, so, sorry about the long look before the pastries in the display at the counter drew her attention away.

[knife_bender]

Diego was used to the looks. Mostly because when he went out it was usually him and six other kids dressed exactly the same.

He saw the looks towards the pastries and walked over to Octavia, coffee in hand. "Do you want me to get you something?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia had gained a vague understanding of how places like this worked. Enough of one that she knew she didn't actually have what you needed to have in order to get any of the things on offer.

So.

"Sure," she said brightly, turning towards Diego with a smile.

[knife_bender]

Well she was lucky she ran into Diego, who had a habit of giving girls whatever they wanted and happened to be the son of a billionaire.

"Pick whatever you want."

[betterthanaplan]

Hellooooo hottie. Duke went up to stand next to her, not too close, hands in his pockets, and made a show of looking over the case as well.

"Bearclaw or danish?" he mused. "I can't decide. Which one looks good to you?"

[okteiviakom]

Oh, this one was cuuuuute.

Octavia's smirky smile was instant, and absolutely covered up all evidence of how she had no idea what either of those things actually were.

"I don't know," she said, "which one do you like better?"

[betterthanaplan]

Oh man, she had a great smile. Duke grinned back. "Well, that depends. Do I want something a little rough? Maybe that reminds me of home? Gotta go with bearclaw then. But if I'm feeling a little fancy? Totally the danish."

He couldn't afford to get either. And they weren't sitting out on plates, so stealing one was going to be a little iffy.

[defenderofdesmoines]

So, yes, Annie was back at the coffee shop she'd been to yesterday. Was it because she just loved it here? No, it was more that she wasn't allowed to use the stove when no one else was home.

So, she'd pulled on one of the several hoodies she'd found in the closet (whoever's apartment this was had really boring fashion sense, wow) and headed out. And okay, Super Cool Older Girl Rey wasn't here, nor was New Cheerleader Friend Summer, but instead there was a boy who was wearing a school uniform.

So, once she'd gotten her tea (again: she really wanted to be tall, so no coffee), she offered a shy little wave to the kid in the uniform. (Because he was probably like, rich and snobby and a wave would let him ignore her if he wanted, without her being embarrassed.)

[knife_bender]

Diego was rich, yes. Snobby? Not so much. He also wasn't used to people waving at him when he didn't have the domino mask on.

He gave a wave back, figuring that was the polite thing to do.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Is that - um, do you go to school near here?" Annie asked, wandering a little closer to his table since okay, that didn't seem like a snobby wave. She didn't recognize his uniform (Annie didn't attend private school herself just due to a sheer lack of funds, but she was pretty familiar with her theoretical uniform options) but maybe that just meant he went to an even fancier school, like, boarding school, like in Barry Plodder or something.

[knife_bender]

"I'm homeschooled," Diego said. "This is just how my dad makes us dress."

[betterthanaplan]

There were so many pretty people in this weirdass town. Duke gave Shy Schoolgirl Hot a nod and an absent smile as he looked over the menu, pretending he could afford . . . literally anything on it.

[defenderofdesmoines]

Oh, gosh, a boy with long hair. Huge improvement over Broody Rattail Guy yesterday and his nodding move, Annie thought.

"Hi," she offered, feeling brave for it. "How's it going?"

Oh, wow. That was like, bold for Annie.

[betterthanaplan]

"Not bad," Duke said, giving her a sidelong glance and another smile, playing up 'shy' just a little to make her feel like she was the brave one of the two of them. "You?"

[betterthanaplan]

So the diner was offering free food. But it was free diner food, and while Duke wasn't picky, that didn't mean he didn't sometimes crave, you know, variety. And besides, he had to keep his skills sharp! Or, you know, develop them, since he was finally in a place where not everyone recognized him on sight.

"Well now. There's a look." Duke snorted as he took in this kid's outfit. "How's it going, Shortpants?"

[knife_bender]

Diego glared at Duke. "You wish you could pull this look off."

[betterthanaplan]

"You got me," Duke said, pressing his hand dramatically to his chest. "It's my secret wish to look like a pedo's wet dream."

[knife_bender]

Diego's hand went into his pocket where one of his many knives was. He just gripped it tight, remembering how disappointed Mom would be if she knew he had been fighting a civilian.

"You obviously have some personal issues you need to work out if you feel the need to just walk around being an asshole for no reason." Diego was speaking from experience.

[special_rabbit]

Yesterday had been very...interesting for Amaya, as she'd woken up somewhere with a lot of books and plants to distract her, although what she was doing in a blacksmith shop (with two anvils!) was beyond her. The weapons were all pretty fascinating, too, weapons that were very easy to place in the hands of imaginary warriors and knights, and so she'd kept herself entertained and occupied pretty easily.

And then she started to get a little curious about the town itself, and the curiosity was enough for her to overcome her shyness about venturing out a little.

Something she was regretting when she found her way through the cafe door.

"Oh."

Eyes wide behind her glasses, she clung a little to the big, heavy volume she'd brought with her.

There were...a lot of people in here, weren't there? Maybe this was a mistake...

[knife_bender]

"Are you okay?" Diego asked. The girl looked to be on the verge of a panic attack or something.

[special_rabbit]

That was...pretty accurate, and those wide, bespectacled eyes turning toward the boy who seemed to be speaking to her showed that the question wasn't helping much!

"Uhm," she said, eloquently.

"I..."

She...was wondering why she thought she could do this! Amaya swallowed the lump of nervousness in her throat.

"S'busy in here," she managed to get out.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"That's a really big book," Annie said in greeting. It was a lot easier to just talk to strangers when they had props.

[special_rabbit]

It was also easier to talk to strangers when you had props to cling to, and Amaya was definitely doing plenty of that as she eyed the other girl a little warily.

"Thanks," she said, as if she had anything to do with the length of the book. "It's, um, about the entire lineage of the royal houses of Kolyma, both east and west."

And it was fascinating.

No! Really! It was!

[betterthanaplan]

Adorable nerd alert.

"Whatcha reading?"

[special_rabbit]

"Technically nothing at the moment."

Nerd? Where? Not here, clearly.

Amaya's shoulders hunched a little awkwardly, though, and she attempted to swallow down her nervousness again as she gave a more helpful answer.

"But this," she lifted the book slightly, "is a history of the royal lineage of the houses of Kolyma, both east and west. I've just gotten up to King Frezzlebaum the Hopeless."

Which was honestly very bleak and silly, and she couldn't wait to just get to Genevieve the Prickly.