[If only the station would give them Okonomiyaki for real. She thinks she would be happy to have anything besides the garbage that they serve here. But you have to admit that there is almost a fondness for it after a while.
She's not certain why Ryuji wants to meet up with her. But she will go without hesitation. She knows that it will be good to see him, especially after their moment during all of that sickness.
When she steps into the mess hall she goes straight for the table, trying her hardest not to stare at...whatever that is supposed to be on that plate.]
[He states it as a matter of fact, like just saying that shatters any disillusion that this is actually anywhere near the goddamn real thing. Yeah, he notices her trying not to look too intensely at it, but shit, even he can admit when something looks sad and needs a little bit of help
Or, a lot of help?
He'd kill for some Japanese style mayo, but the replicators only seem to think that there's one kind. Like you can just sub out things like this that require a very sensitive dedication to the entire umami of the entire dish.
So, Okonomiyucky.]
'Sup, dude?
[They don't have a secret handshake yet, and Ryuji thinks that they should probably work on that, but he does hold out his hand for a fistbump. That's as good as any, right?]
[She puzzles for a moment on whether she wants ask why he concluded with that name. But she won't. She is just going to leave this one be. It does look pretty yucky. Like she doesn't want to touch it with a ten-foot pole.
But she's hungry, and she gets to spend time with Ryuji... so to her? It's all a plus.]
... sup.
[It probably sounds unnatural coming from her, but! She was just trying to help keep the mood light. She reaches forward with her fist and bumps it against his.]
[Oh fuck yes, they're in the cool kids zone right now, and there's nothing sweeter to his ears than hearing Haru say "sup" like they're both sitting in the back of class like true rebels do.
He might be smiling a lot at that, and as he settles, he tries to cut the food into them like it was slices of pizza.
Also, don't try to order that here either. It's equally yuck.]
So, uh. [He looks up in the middle of his partitioning.] What's your opinion on Hajime?
[She tried her best to replicate him even! In tone and everything. She knew that it would get a smile out of him. It was what she was aiming for after all.
If it was that simple, she would tell him "sup" every single day.
Ah, back to the Okonomiyucky, Ryuji is cutting it, and she would...eat it.]
Hajime-san? [She hums to herself, fork idly poking the offending food.]
[It seems so off the beaten path for Haru, so if that did become a thing, Ryuji would probably smile every single time she did it. He knows that he's got the delinquent thing going on for him, but rubbing off on his friends always makes him bright and dumbly happy over it. Like when Ren accidentally says the Ryuji Catchphrase.
And since this entire discussion calls for subtlety, he's going to take a piece of their lunch and slide it over to a plate for his own. He misses chopsticks. He guesses he has a pair of drumsticks that he could use but... that would be all hells sort of weird.]
[Well, that certainly catches her off guard. Did she think Hinata was good dating material? Haru wonders if she even has any authority to judge good dating material considering the last man she was with she didn't even get to pick.
She gets warm feelings when she think of Hinata though, and maybe if Ryuji were asking for himself? Well, she would think it was cute.]
Aa, I do, actually. Whoever ends up with Hajime-san will be really lucky I think. He's kind, and patient... even if he doesn't believe that about himself sometimes. He's an amazing friend too.
[Her cheeks are tinted pink when she talks about this too, whoops.]
It goes down in his mental journal, cross-examination material for a later trial.
Only, it's probably not going to go down like that. He has to remember he's here to scout, not snipe. He's an effin' little Cupid wearing a Rambo sash and ready to plunge the suction cup of dokis right into the aorta.
(Also not true, he has literally no idea what he's doing, despite him being in a relationship himself, but, shit, he promised Hinata he'd get a sense of what's going on from the other side of this curtain).
And honestly... the time that they had met in the mess hall for the meeting, when Ryuji draped an arm around Hajime to aggressively turn his gaze away from her feels like so long ago. Now that he actually knows Hajime, he kind of loves that dude.]
He is a really good friend, huh. And I dunno about patient, but he puts up with me, so I guess that's a good word to describe 'em.
[He smiles, happily shoveling this garbage into his mouth. He could probably talk about Hajime a ton, all good things, but that would look really obvious, right?
Wait, does this look obvious?
Man, teenage boys are dumb.]
So like, when you say whoever ends up with him would be lucky...
I think that Hajime-san is a really nice guy, you know...and if he were to find a girlfriend or a boyfriend! Well! They would be really lucky! That person wouldn't have to worry about whether Hajime-san cared for them or not.
[Oh my god she is so much redder now, Ryuji what have you done? Ryuji, what have you started? She knows that perhaps she has a little more than a friendship version of fondness for Hinata. Not that she is ready to admit that to the world or anything.]
[He nods, listening along as she starts off, taking note of how excited she seems to be talking about HMMM THIS SORT OF THING, and not really paying attention to the words she was actually saying, until it sort of hits him in the face what she just said.]
Wait, boyfriend? Is this like, a gaydar thing? Can you tell that about a person?
I mean, sometimes their preferences can be rather easy to figure out! I don't really know about Hajime though.
[She's still blushing even now. Ugh, what does that even mean? Why is she blushing so hard? Hajime is a good guy, he's good to her. She can't trust these feelings though.]
Regardless, whomever ends up being the person who catches his eyes and gains his affection. They will be lucky. I know it.
[He pretends he's not sweating at this really fucking scary revelation, and tries to just... brush it off? But anyway, Hajime's way more of a player than he'll ever be, which probably says something about... the both... of them. God, this is awful.]
Huh...
[No, he's still stuck on the gay thing.]
Like, you can tell a person's preferences by, what... talkin' to them? Lookin' at them? Do you just kinda look at a dude and be like "yeah, I think he likes kissin' other man lips and grindin' up on the dance floor with other dudes" and--- oh. Shit. Sorry, what was I gonna say?
[Haru didn't mean to get him stuck on the gay thing? She knows that she personally doesn't care if she ended up with a boy or a girl... but like, how can one tell? She has think about it for a while.]
Well, for one. You could just ask. Some people just tell you. Some people... you can just tell by the way they look at the one they love!
[Haru Okumura for Purest Answer Ever.]
... me? Be the lucky person Hajime-san likes?
[She pokes at her food, which she... hasn't eaten yet.]
I'm not sure he could ever feel that way about me.
Ryuji has to cover his mouth to hide his embarrassment over all of this, at least, for a moment. Oh god, Haru is so open and honest, and that's supposed to be his gig, but it's also super effin' effective against him.]
U...uh...
[Maybe this was a mistake? He's such a newborn when it comes to this sort of shit, despite all the machismo behind Operation Maid Watch and Operation Baywatch... his inexperience shines through.
BUT! He's trying. He wants to understand his own feelings more and there's no other way than putting himself out there and figuring this shit out.
And it's a double suckage fest here, because he knows Hajime likes her, but that's not his story to tell.]
Wait, huh? Why not? You're like... I dunno, I mean I could say that you're really high up there on the hot scale and everything, but I honestly kinda think anyone would be outta their mind not to... in that way, yanno?
[Wait, does this sound like a personal confession?]
Not me! I mean. Dude, I love you to death and shit, but we're, like. Family. I dunno, I don't think I could ever date someone from our friends' group.
[Ryuji is such a mess sometimes. It is a good portion of the reason Haru adores him so much. She really really adores him as a friend. What would she do without him around?
So she just ends up giggling at this whole awkward moment that she doesn't really find all that awkward.]
If Hajime could have the patience with me, I would want to be the person he likes. You know how touchy dating is for me right now since the whole Sugimura thing.
[Ryuji could write an entire book on that topic, but it wouldn't sell a single copy... since it, too, would be a mess. He takes her cue of giggling as a light hearted moment, and stops being such a spaz about this entire thing for a moment.]
Yeah... I mean. Screw that guy. Sugimura was a total dickwad.
[That's... the understatement of the freaking year, but it's filled with a reticence in going into what he did to Haru. Ryuji gets angry just thinking about it, and he tries to find a different angle from all of this to approach.]
I just... I mean. I hope that you can like, feel comfortable again one day to open yourself up to dating. And I don't even blame ya for feelin' that way. But it sucks. 'Cause I really think you and Hajime would be kinda cute together? And you deserve to have a good person love you for who you are.
Oh, more than that. He was such a terrible person, even after we defeated my Father's shadow. Even after my Father passed away. He was so terrible, disgusting, nasty.
[And then there was the added rejection from Ren, which didn't really help at all at the time. But she is seeing now that perhaps that was for the best. She wouldn't be able to open her heart to Hinata otherwise.]
I don't think it would be a shot in the dark. Hajime-san is a great guy. He's patient and gentle, and he tries to always listen. Maybe at some point I could allow him to hold my heart.
[So, if the blushing and the comments about whoever dating him would be lucky weren't enough, this absolutely cements it for Ryuji. The only thing that would take this a step further would be if she came out and straight up said that she liked him. Which, not really necessary, but Ryuji leans back in his chair.]
No matter what that asshole did... you are like, the most beautiful person I've ever met. No, seriously- like, inside and out! Seriously serious.
I'm rootin' for you guys. Hajime's... Hajime's become like. I guess... my best bro here? [And with Joker gone...]
And yeah, I think he's patient and gentle enough to hold your heart flower in his hands and see that bloom to its fullest potential. Or some corny shit like that. Despite the fact that... y'know he's kinda got muscles for days. You ever notice that? It still kinda freaks me out.
[Focus, Ryuji...]
And that guy? Yeah, he never saw you for who you are or... all of that... stuff that really makes you, well, uh, you. We got our masks for a reason, right? To shield us and give us power beneath our identities that we know are ourselves. It's tough to let people in like that, but it's... it's so effin' worth it sometimes.
[At least the intent of her words is clear enough. She does like Hajime, and she would like to try opening her heart again. But these things... they take time. They take patience. Haru is a patient kind of girl, but she hopes that Hajime might be just as patient as she is.]
Thank you, Ryuji. Sometimes hearing it helps. Back then... I couldn't help but feel like I was a little worthless. Just a rag doll. Nothing to be proud of.
Hajime-san is a good guy though. Muscles and all.
[Don't think she hasn't noticed herself, okay...]
That guy, Sugimura. He will never know who I really am. All I really was...I was a toy for him to play with. A toy given to him by his Father and my own Father. We already know Milady accepted me because I refused to continue being used like I was.
[Please, it was practically the second thing he noticed about Hajime right after he was looking at Haru, and both of those things were incredibly unsettling at the time. But with enough repeated exposure and the weight of his intentions pretty clear, Ryuji's become chill with it.
And as this conversation takes a turn for Sugimura, there's a nasty taste on his tongue. That rat bastard was no better than Kamoshida for how he viewed women. And Ryuji himself might not have had the best moments in the world trying to pick up girls, he always stopped when the rejection hit and didn't take anything the wrong way. Women aren't toys. People aren't toys. It pisses Ryuji off to see the scars that this asshole left on her.]
Fuck him.
[She gets an f bomb out of him for that. Considering the way Hajime and Dave say it so often around him, he feels less awkward when he says it, which is #progress?]
Like, seriously. If that guy was on fire on the other side of the road I wouldn't cross to piss on him.
He doesn't matter anymore, I think... I do think it is finally time for me to move on and be happy. Don't you think?
[She hides her smile just a little. She likes the thought of having someon she can rely on in that manner, someone she can support too. But she hasn't been so trusting recently. She knows it. She knows also that it is really no ones fault but her own for being so afraid to be open.]
Thank you, Ryuji-kun. You're a really great friend. You do know that right?
[If you're ever looking for someone who will protect you fiercely and is also totally open to graphically describe corrupted assholes burning alive, Ryuji's definitely your guy.]
I dunno the answer to that.
[Really, because it's not his call to make in the matter.]
But I'm thinkin' that you do.
[There's a bright smile that meets her back. Being called a great friend is definitely a title he can live with. Way better than "vulgar boy," too.]
Sometimes I might be kinda hard on myself and not remember that. But little by little I'm gettin' used to that idea.
I'm gonna say the corny thing here, but it's pretty obvious. If our hearts can't get stolen, that means that they have to be pretty goddamn strong to begin with.
[They're all a lot stronger than they give each other credit for. Sure, there are some weak spots to work on, but Haru looks like she's working it out. Ryuji, too, with his own set of unique problems that are somewhat similar in nature, but brought about by very different reasons.]
Annnd.... I think I'm about to give up on this okonomiyaki. You?
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2018-08-18 07:40 am (UTC)She's not certain why Ryuji wants to meet up with her. But she will go without hesitation. She knows that it will be good to see him, especially after their moment during all of that sickness.
When she steps into the mess hall she goes straight for the table, trying her hardest not to stare at...whatever that is supposed to be on that plate.]
Ryuji-kun! [Her greeting is as warm as ever.]
no subject
Date: 2018-08-18 03:46 pm (UTC)[He states it as a matter of fact, like just saying that shatters any disillusion that this is actually anywhere near the goddamn real thing. Yeah, he notices her trying not to look too intensely at it, but shit, even he can admit when something looks sad and needs a little bit of help
Or, a lot of help?
He'd kill for some Japanese style mayo, but the replicators only seem to think that there's one kind. Like you can just sub out things like this that require a very sensitive dedication to the entire umami of the entire dish.
So, Okonomiyucky.]
'Sup, dude?
[They don't have a secret handshake yet, and Ryuji thinks that they should probably work on that, but he does hold out his hand for a fistbump. That's as good as any, right?]
no subject
Date: 2018-08-19 02:43 am (UTC)[She puzzles for a moment on whether she wants ask why he concluded with that name. But she won't. She is just going to leave this one be. It does look pretty yucky. Like she doesn't want to touch it with a ten-foot pole.
But she's hungry, and she gets to spend time with Ryuji... so to her? It's all a plus.]
... sup.
[It probably sounds unnatural coming from her, but! She was just trying to help keep the mood light. She reaches forward with her fist and bumps it against his.]
no subject
Date: 2018-08-19 10:39 pm (UTC)He might be smiling a lot at that, and as he settles, he tries to cut the food into them like it was slices of pizza.
Also, don't try to order that here either. It's equally yuck.]
So, uh. [He looks up in the middle of his partitioning.] What's your opinion on Hajime?
no subject
Date: 2018-08-20 04:11 am (UTC)If it was that simple, she would tell him "sup" every single day.
Ah, back to the Okonomiyucky, Ryuji is cutting it, and she would...eat it.]
Hajime-san? [She hums to herself, fork idly poking the offending food.]
I consider him a really close friend, why?
no subject
Date: 2018-08-20 03:07 pm (UTC)And since this entire discussion calls for subtlety, he's going to take a piece of their lunch and slide it over to a plate for his own. He misses chopsticks. He guesses he has a pair of drumsticks that he could use but... that would be all hells sort of weird.]
You think he's like.. good dating material?
[GOD.]
no subject
Date: 2018-08-20 05:24 pm (UTC)She gets warm feelings when she think of Hinata though, and maybe if Ryuji were asking for himself? Well, she would think it was cute.]
Aa, I do, actually. Whoever ends up with Hajime-san will be really lucky I think. He's kind, and patient... even if he doesn't believe that about himself sometimes. He's an amazing friend too.
[Her cheeks are tinted pink when she talks about this too, whoops.]
no subject
Date: 2018-08-21 12:45 am (UTC)It goes down in his mental journal, cross-examination material for a later trial.
Only, it's probably not going to go down like that. He has to remember he's here to scout, not snipe. He's an effin' little Cupid wearing a Rambo sash and ready to plunge the suction cup of dokis right into the aorta.
(Also not true, he has literally no idea what he's doing, despite him being in a relationship himself, but, shit, he promised Hinata he'd get a sense of what's going on from the other side of this curtain).
And honestly... the time that they had met in the mess hall for the meeting, when Ryuji draped an arm around Hajime to aggressively turn his gaze away from her feels like so long ago. Now that he actually knows Hajime, he kind of loves that dude.]
He is a really good friend, huh. And I dunno about patient, but he puts up with me, so I guess that's a good word to describe 'em.
[He smiles, happily shoveling this garbage into his mouth. He could probably talk about Hajime a ton, all good things, but that would look really obvious, right?
Wait, does this look obvious?
Man, teenage boys are dumb.]
So like, when you say whoever ends up with him would be lucky...
no subject
Date: 2018-08-21 05:59 pm (UTC)[Oh my god she is so much redder now, Ryuji what have you done? Ryuji, what have you started? She knows that perhaps she has a little more than a friendship version of fondness for Hinata. Not that she is ready to admit that to the world or anything.]
So why are you asking?
no subject
Date: 2018-08-21 06:33 pm (UTC)Wait, boyfriend? Is this like, a gaydar thing? Can you tell that about a person?
no subject
Date: 2018-08-22 03:44 am (UTC)[She's still blushing even now. Ugh, what does that even mean? Why is she blushing so hard? Hajime is a good guy, he's good to her. She can't trust these feelings though.]
Regardless, whomever ends up being the person who catches his eyes and gains his affection. They will be lucky. I know it.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-22 04:01 am (UTC)Huh...
[No, he's still stuck on the gay thing.]
Like, you can tell a person's preferences by, what... talkin' to them? Lookin' at them? Do you just kinda look at a dude and be like "yeah, I think he likes kissin' other man lips and grindin' up on the dance floor with other dudes" and--- oh. Shit. Sorry, what was I gonna say?
[Ryuji.
Goddamnit, they're both blushing.]
Ever think, uh. I mean.
Uh.......
That.
You could be the lucky person?
no subject
Date: 2018-08-22 04:42 am (UTC)Well, for one. You could just ask. Some people just tell you. Some people... you can just tell by the way they look at the one they love!
[Haru Okumura for Purest Answer Ever.]
... me? Be the lucky person Hajime-san likes?
[She pokes at her food, which she... hasn't eaten yet.]
I'm not sure he could ever feel that way about me.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-22 02:01 pm (UTC)WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT, GOT TO DO WITH IT?
Ryuji has to cover his mouth to hide his embarrassment over all of this, at least, for a moment. Oh god, Haru is so open and honest, and that's supposed to be his gig, but it's also super effin' effective against him.]
U...uh...
[Maybe this was a mistake? He's such a newborn when it comes to this sort of shit, despite all the machismo behind Operation Maid Watch and Operation Baywatch... his inexperience shines through.
BUT! He's trying. He wants to understand his own feelings more and there's no other way than putting himself out there and figuring this shit out.
And it's a double suckage fest here, because he knows Hajime likes her, but that's not his story to tell.]
Wait, huh? Why not? You're like... I dunno, I mean I could say that you're really high up there on the hot scale and everything, but I honestly kinda think anyone would be outta their mind not to... in that way, yanno?
[Wait, does this sound like a personal confession?]
Not me! I mean. Dude, I love you to death and shit, but we're, like. Family. I dunno, I don't think I could ever date someone from our friends' group.
This sure is effin' awkward. Buh...
Do you.
Do you want him to feel that way about you?
no subject
Date: 2018-08-24 06:08 am (UTC)So she just ends up giggling at this whole awkward moment that she doesn't really find all that awkward.]
If Hajime could have the patience with me, I would want to be the person he likes. You know how touchy dating is for me right now since the whole Sugimura thing.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-26 09:20 pm (UTC)Yeah... I mean. Screw that guy. Sugimura was a total dickwad.
[That's... the understatement of the freaking year, but it's filled with a reticence in going into what he did to Haru. Ryuji gets angry just thinking about it, and he tries to find a different angle from all of this to approach.]
I just... I mean. I hope that you can like, feel comfortable again one day to open yourself up to dating. And I don't even blame ya for feelin' that way. But it sucks. 'Cause I really think you and Hajime would be kinda cute together? And you deserve to have a good person love you for who you are.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-28 08:57 pm (UTC)[And then there was the added rejection from Ren, which didn't really help at all at the time. But she is seeing now that perhaps that was for the best. She wouldn't be able to open her heart to Hinata otherwise.]
I don't think it would be a shot in the dark. Hajime-san is a great guy. He's patient and gentle, and he tries to always listen. Maybe at some point I could allow him to hold my heart.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-29 01:24 am (UTC)No matter what that asshole did... you are like, the most beautiful person I've ever met. No, seriously- like, inside and out! Seriously serious.
I'm rootin' for you guys. Hajime's... Hajime's become like. I guess... my best bro here? [And with Joker gone...]
And yeah, I think he's patient and gentle enough to hold your heart flower in his hands and see that bloom to its fullest potential. Or some corny shit like that. Despite the fact that... y'know he's kinda got muscles for days. You ever notice that? It still kinda freaks me out.
[Focus, Ryuji...]
And that guy? Yeah, he never saw you for who you are or... all of that... stuff that really makes you, well, uh, you. We got our masks for a reason, right? To shield us and give us power beneath our identities that we know are ourselves. It's tough to let people in like that, but it's... it's so effin' worth it sometimes.
no subject
Date: 2018-09-01 06:17 pm (UTC)Thank you, Ryuji. Sometimes hearing it helps. Back then... I couldn't help but feel like I was a little worthless. Just a rag doll. Nothing to be proud of.
Hajime-san is a good guy though. Muscles and all.
[Don't think she hasn't noticed herself, okay...]
That guy, Sugimura. He will never know who I really am. All I really was...I was a toy for him to play with. A toy given to him by his Father and my own Father. We already know Milady accepted me because I refused to continue being used like I was.
no subject
Date: 2018-09-03 06:51 pm (UTC)And as this conversation takes a turn for Sugimura, there's a nasty taste on his tongue. That rat bastard was no better than Kamoshida for how he viewed women. And Ryuji himself might not have had the best moments in the world trying to pick up girls, he always stopped when the rejection hit and didn't take anything the wrong way. Women aren't toys. People aren't toys. It pisses Ryuji off to see the scars that this asshole left on her.]
Fuck him.
[She gets an f bomb out of him for that. Considering the way Hajime and Dave say it so often around him, he feels less awkward when he says it, which is #progress?]
Like, seriously. If that guy was on fire on the other side of the road I wouldn't cross to piss on him.
no subject
Date: 2018-09-05 03:57 am (UTC)[She hides her smile just a little. She likes the thought of having someon she can rely on in that manner, someone she can support too. But she hasn't been so trusting recently. She knows it. She knows also that it is really no ones fault but her own for being so afraid to be open.]
Thank you, Ryuji-kun. You're a really great friend. You do know that right?
half of the time writing this reply was just spent staring at your inbox gif
Date: 2018-09-05 04:04 am (UTC)I dunno the answer to that.
[Really, because it's not his call to make in the matter.]
But I'm thinkin' that you do.
[There's a bright smile that meets her back. Being called a great friend is definitely a title he can live with. Way better than "vulgar boy," too.]
Sometimes I might be kinda hard on myself and not remember that. But little by little I'm gettin' used to that idea.
its spicy af
Date: 2018-09-05 04:07 am (UTC)Of course I know the answer, I just have to convince myself that it is okay. That my heart isn't as fragile as I think it is.
[She smiles again, happy.]
Continue getting used to it, because I will keep reminding you until you remember it!
i rate it 10 chilis out of 10
Date: 2018-09-05 04:12 am (UTC)[They're all a lot stronger than they give each other credit for. Sure, there are some weak spots to work on, but Haru looks like she's working it out. Ryuji, too, with his own set of unique problems that are somewhat similar in nature, but brought about by very different reasons.]
Annnd.... I think I'm about to give up on this okonomiyaki. You?
[ANOTHER SACRIFICE FOR THE TOILET GODS.]
thank you thank you, she's here all month, or for the rest of her life
Date: 2018-09-05 04:15 am (UTC)[They may be strong, but their stomachs...are not.]
I think I am done with it as well. Can we please dispose of this post-haste?
god that is the saddest thing i've ever read
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