[FIN] Too Sweet to Swallow

[Akira Midoriyama]

First thing off his shift, Akira checked his cell. He had left Sera a voicemail about a day ago, but she had yet to respond. He had wanted to apologize for his lack of contact since he'd left the hot springs early, as he'd been especially busy with work lately and had taken up a new job along with his first.

However, he had been wondering for a while if she didn't secretly harbor some ill-will against him for having left her and her friends during their last meeting. Maybe she was busy hanging out with the more club-savvy Nate. Or perhaps she was avoiding him.

He didn't want to jump to conclusions, but as quickly as she had responded to him before, he couldn't help worrying about the delay in her response to his message. He was tempted to call again, just in case she'd missed the first or it hadn't gotten through, but in the case she was ignoring him, he didn't want to seem desperate.

There had also been that thing about that young man who had had some concern about medical complications; the one that Nate had overheard talking with Yuri. Akira hoped nothing bad had happened to him, though that, too, would have explained Sera's failure to respond. Maybe this afternoon, if she still hadn't called back, he'd text her or something just to make sure she and her friend were alright.

Pocketing his phone, the young man took off his work apron, shouldered his bag, and walked out into the streets of Camphoreon.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

While Seraphine had received his voicemail shortly after he'd left it, she had had neither the time nor the desire to return it. Things had been varying degrees of stressful while in Grand Ile, and upon returning the girl had stayed with her best friends to make sure Luke was fine, then when she returned home she promptly passed out on her bed.

It wasn't until the next morning, when she at last felt at least partially relaxed after the events over the past several weeks, that she remembered the voicemail. After grabbing her cell and listening to it once more, her thumb moved effortlessly over a few buttons to return the call.

Akira would not have long to wait after he left work.  

[Akira Midoriyama]

The brown-eyed, brown-haired young man had just paused before a small waffle-house style place when his phone began to go off. He pressed the acceptance button and held it to his ear, too mentally preoccupied to check the caller ID.

"Hello...?" he asked, forcing back a yawn. "...This is the, um...sorry, no, not the department store. This is Akira. Sorry. Who is this?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

The response briefly confused her, thinking maybe Akira's number had been changed or something and now belonged to some random company, but then he replied properly, and the girl couldn't help but smirk as she pushed herself up to sit cross-legged on her bed, "I can't believe you're asking who this is," she teased, but then tried (and largely failed) to stifle a yawn herself. A hand moved up to rest on one cheek before she spoke in more normal tones, "It's Seraphine. I guess I missed your call the other day - I was a little too busy to call you back until this morning. So what's up?"  

[Akira Midoriyama]

There was a minute of silence on the phone before Akira's weary voice came through, an embarrassed smile audible through it. "S-Seraphine?" He quickly remedied his lack of manners. "Miss Seraphine, forgive my nosiness, but...what are you doing up so early? I heard that yawn," he added, half guessing that was, indeed, what he'd heard. "Partying out late last night like the dancing queen you are, I expect."

He beamed fondly against his cell, staring distantly into the glass window before him as a bewildered waitress gave him a bemused look. He made an apologetic motion of sorts before turning to look to the side across the street instead. "No, no, that's fine. I was pretty busy myself, actually. I just wanted to make sure you were alright," he told her sincerely. "You and that red-haired fellow from the hot springs. Luke, right? He didn't look so good when I last saw him. Is he doing okay?"

The stock clerk silently cursed himself once he realized what had been blurted. For all he knew, the guy could have died and he would have been bringing up a sore subject. But no, Seraphine wouldn't have returned his call this quickly and spoken this casually if it had been something like that, surely.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"It's not that early," the girl countered sullenly, although her tones were light. Regardless, she made every attempt to try to not sound as sleepy as she felt. The soft creaking of a bed could be heard from her end as she moved to lean back against the headboard, and hummed a soft laugh into the phone. "No, I wasn't out clubbing last night - I actually just got home yesterday, and I pretty much crashed as soon as I went to bed." The brunette sighed softly as she pushed a hand through her tangled hair.

She was silent a few moments as she mulled his words over, vaguely amused at how he singled out Luke, of all people. "He's why I was so busy, actually, but that's a long story. He's alright now though, and yeah, I'm fine. What about you? You weren't too good at the springs either - you were sneezing up a storm."  

[Akira Midoriyama]

"Isn't it? Heh. Sorry, this job sort of makes me lose track of time. It throws off my internal clock," he explained, rubbing an eye with the back of his hand. "I wonder if you didn't sleep as much as you probably should have. I'd ask you where you just got home from, but I'm guessing right now isn't an ideal time for long stories. And I wouldn't want to sound nosy," he added with humorous sarcasm, knowing full well it was too late for that.

His humor disappeared once he'd heard the red-haired young man from before really had been the cause for Sera's having been occupied the past few days. "Arceus, I hope it was nothing too serious," he said, his mind drawn from his pondering of breakfast. His shoulders tensed before relaxing. "Oh. That's good to hear, at least. Ha, I've been fine, if a little lonesome," he admitted shyly. "My allergies don't last for too long if I'm not around the source. That's kind of you to ask, though."

He glanced at his watch, noting the hour. "Say, Miss Seraphine, would you perhaps consider another outing with me this afternoon? At the ice cream parlor near the park, perhaps. We can catch up then and experiment with floats like we had talked about."  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Working nights? I'm not surprised it throws you off," the girl replied, and it would be quite easy to tell that she was smiling as she added, "though it is kind of a little early."

Seraphine practically snorted. "Serious?" It had been nothing but serious, with every morbid thing that happened or was said, though she refrained from elaborating on the situation. "You could say that."

Her tones changed into lighter, more teasing ones as she giggled lightly, "Aww, lonely? Well we'll just have to fix that, hmm?" The bed creaked quietly again as she rolled over onto her stomach and supported herself with one arm. "I'd love to go to the ice cream parlor with you, Akira," she replied in coquettish tones, complete with a similar smile on her face and in her voice. "What time were you thinking?"  

[Akira Midoriyama]

At the way the girl on the other end of the line had reacted to his mention of the situation being serious, Akira blinked, startled. He couldn't tell if she had found the term too strong to describe whatever had occured or not strong enough. Either way, it seemed clear enough that it was one of those extremes. Oh well, he would probably find out soon enough.

There was another minute or two of silence on the other line as the young man tugged on his shirt collar. Her first comment was flirtatious enough to make him uneasy, but the second remark had him positively flustered. No girl outside of family had ever used the term 'love' in the same sentence with his name before, regardless of the context. It was more than a little unsettling for the usually formal-to-a-fault fellow. He grabbed the hair at the back of his head, grasping at it anxiously as he gaped like a fish, trying to think of words to reply.

"W-wh-whatever's good for you," he stammered, his attempt at a casual tone undermined by the butchering of the words themselves. "We can...meet there after lunch, maybe, so we can have dessert. That way no one's appetite will be ruined." What a stupid thing to say. He sounded like he was trying to be her mother. An uneasy chuckle followed. "Sorry, I didn't mean - how's 1 o'clock?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

A grin slowly spread across the girl's face at his obvious floundering, and a soft giggle escaped her. "1 o'clock sounds perfect," she replied languidly as she pushed herself up into a sitting position. "See you then."

The remainder of the morning was spent mostly napping before she roused herself again to shower and get ready. It usually took quite a while for her to accomplish, mostly because she refused to go outside looking less than perfect, so it was a few minutes after the designated time when Seraphine arrived outside the ice cream parlor. The brunette had opted for a loose, long-sleeved top that hung off her shoulders, coupled with a short skirt and of course a pair of matching heels, both to look good and to make herself feel taller. Thoughts of the hot spring still filtered through her mind now and then, when absolutely none of them had worn shoes and she had felt so short. Ugh, she hated being short.

Regardless, as soon as her mother's car stopped outside the ice cream parlor and the brunette stepped out, her pale gaze had already begun to search for Akira.  

[Akira Midoriyama]

Sera wasn't the only one who spent a good deal of the morning catching some shut-eye. When Akira woke, it was half past noon and he scrambled to get ready. Appearances were more mandatory for him than most. After tidying up his hair and throwing on some casual clothes suited for the weather, the young man hurried out the door with a quick farewell to his roommate and went on his way, checking his wallet for cash as he sped-walked.

He reached the entrance to the parlor just as a car had pulled up in front of it. Much to his surprise, a familiar face appeared when the car door opened and Akira hastened to help her out. "...Looking chic," he told her, smiling as he glanced to the driver's window and waved. "And who might that be?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Sera accepted his help with a smile despite not needing it, and offered a brief wave as well, to which her mother reciprocated with a wave and a bright smile before the car departed. "That was my mother," Seraphine replied simply as she quickly smoothed out her skirt, then straightened and turned her head to offer Akira a smile. At least he hadn't been standing there waiting for her forever, seeing as he just arrived as well. "So have you been here before?"  

[Akira Midoriyama]

Akira's brows shot up. "Really?" He glanced in the direction the car had driven off. "I wish I had a mother that would've done that. She must really care about you." He smiled. "Mine couldn't have been bothered."

Going to open the door, he stood beside it to allow her to enter first, considering her question. "I passed by it a few times, so I knew it was here," he explained. "But I've never dared come in. The temptations are dangerous."  

[BlackFireKitsune]

It was Sera's turn to turn a surprised glance at him. "Really? Mother always offers to drive me everywhere," she said, her tone curious as she explained her own situation. "I usually ride Luna though."

The brunette flashed Akira an amused smile as she slipped through the door he held open for her, "Dangerous? Ice cream? You'll have to explain that one. Don't tell me you're on a diet or something," she added wryly. That was hardly a reason to call ice cream of all things dangerous.  

[Akira Midoriyama]

"No chauffeur?" he asked, half-joking, though that had been how he'd gotten around before. His parents had certainly been too busy and important to serve as his personal transportation. While he respected this, he had offered to do his own driving once he had come of age, but they hadn't allowed him to get more than a driver's permit because they hadn't wanted him driving himself anywhere.

In their opinion, it had been too 'undignified'; pokemon were barred from him for the same reason, aside from the one he had been given. But half the reason their son believed they had forbidden it was to keep him from running off and never being seen again. Which was, needless to say, what he had ended up doing regardless.

"I can only assume Luna to be a pokemon," he continued with a laugh. "Must be fun, riding one. I'd imagine it gives somebody a strong sense of freedom. Is this Luna a steed worthy of its rider?" He glanced over his shoulder, as if checking around for an unseen creature. "I hope she isn't another invisible ghost-type; I wouldn't want to have unintentionally insulted her."

Yeeees, he knew small-talk wasn't his strong point, but he tried. He didn't want to seem too nosy about Sera's other pokemon, but he was genuinely curious. Though it seemed to stand to reason that her parents would want to make sure their precious little girl was well-protected when out on the town.

"A diet? Oh no, not me," he clarified, putting up his hands and beaming. "But you'll have to admit there's a danger in extremes, wouldn't you agree?" When he followed in after, his gaze drifted across the flavors of ice cream on display. "...When it comes to sugar, I was...denied a lot of sweets as a child, so I didn't discover a lot of desserts until much later in life."

"Unfortunately, unlike children who have had years of experience to learn their limits, I have yet to establish mine." Akira gave her an abashed look. "Every time I indulge myself in something like this, I end up eatting until I make myself sick. Ice cream floats are the worst. Something about the caffine in the soda, perhaps." He was staring at the different textures and colors of cream as well as assessing the carbonated drinks accessible to them. "And I can't seem to stop myself until I'm...until my body rejects the copious amounts I've taken in, to put it mildly."

"Eatting around others doesn't seem to help, either. I've come to learn it isn't all that different than getting 'wasted' at an alcohol party with all one's friends to watch. They're not likey to stop you from making a fool of yourself if there's some entertainment in it for them." Brown, smiling eyes searched Sera's peridot ones. "I'd like to think I'm in better company now, however, so I'm not as concerned with my consumption of sugar as usual. If I haven't put you off your appetite, of course."