seasonsrpg | Dec-Jan catch-all

A hard enough time...?

[ Like, Lark isn't really all that surprised that the answer is "no", but is there something more to it? ]

I don't...

[ Hrnghhhhhhhh. He makes a frustrated noise, burying his face in his hand. ]

I don't...like girls?

Oh.

[ A beat. ]

As in, you're only into guys?

[ A nod, still covering his face. He grew up initially in the 1920s, it wasn't well thought of or anything... ]

[ If nothing else, for all of Creation's -isms and various atrocities, homophobia generally isn't one of them. Lark isn't sure if this makes the current situation easier or harder, though... ]

Then, uh...sorry that I'll probably have to take your first kiss so we can both unstuck ourselves.

[ Which is a dumb thing to apologise for, he realises, but this is rapidly becoming a very dumb situation. ]

[ Yeah, that's more...well. People KNOW back home now. They do. Nico had to come out with it on a Quest...

But he still feels awkward about it, even knowing there's lots of same-sex couples here.

Maybe because it's about himself. ]

You don't...have to apologize. I mean - you, uh. Have you -

If you mean "kissed someone", the answer's no.

[ Which is to say, Lark has no business sounding like he has any idea what he's doing, but he'd say he sort of has an idea because of his family's line of work. ]

Oh.

[ Oh! Well then. ]

Then...I'm sorry about your first kiss, too...?

If you say I don't have to apologise for it, then you don't either.

[ Like, on some level Lark thinks that as nice (romantic even, he guesses) it'd be for him to have his first kiss be with he likes and have it reciprocated, he's still a courtesan's child. If it doesn't happen, then it's not surprising. But he thinks Nico deserves at least that much, especially with how self-conscious he seemed about liking guys. ]

Besides, it's not like there's anyone else in this city I want to kiss—

[ And almost immediately after saying that Lark realises what it actually implies, and his face turns bright red as it sinks in that oh shit, oh fuck, he may as well have said he like likes his roommate in the stupidest way possible. ]

[ It's fine, everything about this is very stupid and they're both struggling a lot. ]

You - want to kiss me? [ And they're both equally as stupid about the other person here... ]

[ A+ emotional intelligence right here, folks. ]

I mean— [ What does he mean? ] If I have to kiss someone here then yeah, I'd rather it be you? [ He just figured it was going to happen, so he kind of just kept putting the idea in a box and pushing it aside. ]

[ What DOES he mean is a great question! Nico's never been faced with the prospect of a boy Actually Liking Him Back before? Percy was his first big crush and was very obviously and clearly into Annabeth and basically no one else (except Rachel briefly maybe?) and so that was, you know.

It didn't work out and also Percy never even figured it out until his girlfriend spelled it out for him basically??? so??? ]

I [ AM DYING no he can't say that ] um. I wouldn't...mind?

[ Huh? HUH?

Well, he guesses it's not out of character for Nico to say he wouldn't mind, but... ]

I... Are you sure? You only get one first and... I think it should be with someone you like.

[ NGH.

He does tend to kind of let Lark decide a lot of things around their place...his opinion on decorations tends to be "I do not care" though when he picks things out it's like. BLACK. EMO. GOTH. and he's never that particular about what they eat or rules around the place...

So he does say he's okay with a lot of things because, well. He is? He acts a bit like a wary cat most times.

But, well - ]

Didn't you just say that?

[ Their apartment decor probably looks pretty interesting, given Lark's tastes. ]

I did, but just because I like you doesn't mean you'll feel the same way...

[ His voice trails off as the rest of his brain is catching up and trying to do the relationship math here with what's being implied. It's also being complicated by one part of his brain wondering if he isn't reading too much into this, because, well, what would Nico find attractive about him, anyway? (Lark you're being ridiculous) ]

Edited 2024-02-23 04:07 (UTC)

[ Clearly this needs an aesthetic post - ]

I... [ He never even considered trying to tell any other guy he liked how he felt. For starters, they were all straight. And very into their girlfriends. It was a horrible type to have. Nico runs a hand through his hair, frustrated more at himself than anything else.

It's scary to be honest with people, even now. ]

I wouldn't be here if I didn't like you.

[ It's perhaps good that Nico hasn't heard a whole lot about Lark's best friend, or it may have given the impression that he's already into her instead (which, true, but also not quite).

But once he hears it from Nico, his face flushes and he inwardly scrambles to respond, because he really wasn't expecting this! What do you do when someone likes you back? He suddenly finds himself wanting to hide his face again. He is doing just that, in fact. ]

...For real? [ It's not so much that he doesn't believe Nico as it feels kind of surreal that this conversation is happening. Someone is saying they like him that way? ]

Edited 2024-02-24 16:33 (UTC)

[ If he'd heard more about it he definitely never would have said anything...he knows how that goes, considering Percy and Annabeth. Besides, he'd never, well. Make a move on someone taken? That just seems like something the gods would do and Nico tries to stay away from doing that sort of thing. ]

You - said you did too, so why's it so... [ Surprising? ]

[ It would have been reasonable, even if whatever's going on between Lark and the bestie is Weird, to put it one way. ]

I wasn't expecting it? I mean... [ This is the first time he's had to try and put this into words that someone else is going to hear. Lark sort of gestures with his hands, though it's unclear if it's meant for emphasis or just nervous energy he isn't sure what to do with. ] I'm not astoundingly handsome or beautiful, and... [ He gestures at himself. ] If you asked me what there is about me that'd make someone go, "This is the one," I wouldn't know what to answer.

[ And there are a couple of other things too: the vague, anxious reminder in the back of his head that if he wasn't in this city right now, he wouldn't know if he'd survive the next year or two (or however long it'd take for his life to not feel like it's on some wild ride), and the other part of him that felt he would just be setting himself up for disappointment. But they're such anxious, negative thoughts that he isn't sure he ought to share right now. ]

So...I guess I just didn't think I'd hear anyone say it, let alone you.

[ Let alone you...Nico isn't sure if that's a compliment or not. He's not sure what to think, but honestly, he's kind of gets it, too. He doesn't know if there's anything about him that he'd say was a winning trait. He could name them about Bianca or any of his friends but when it comes to himself...? He sees only his flaws and worst traits. ]

I...never really figured I'd find someone either. I know there's - I know there's a lot of guys with guys here. I just. It was...different back home.

[ It is a compliment; even if Lark would say Nico is awkward, in his eyes he's also someone powerful in many respects, and he ought to be cherished.

Sometimes, Lark has to wonder exactly what kind of place Nico came from that this was something people considered a Problem Worth Taking Issue With, even knowing that he himself comes from a place that could rightfully be called terrible in many aspects. Or most even, depending on who you asked.

Then again, people's capacity for ignorance, stupidity and cruelty seems to be some kind of universal truth, so maybe he shouldn't be so surprised either. ]

So we're in the same boat, sorta. And, uh, it's both our firsts. Let me try this confession thing again, so I can do this properly here and now? [The window to try and be smooth and charismatic has LONG passed, but he also refuses to let his first confession just be some dumb slip of the tongue. ]

...You mean you want a redo?

[ He might be starting to smirk just a little bit. But. If Lark wants to start from scratch... ]

[ Lark stands corrected, he didn't think he'd see Nico make that sort of face, but now that he is it's both charming and mildly infuriating (affectionate). ]

Basically, yeah.

[ Please let him try to make this romantic....... ]

Go for it.

[ He has no idea what romance looks like ANYWAY but... ]

Dec-Jan catch-all

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

1/2

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

1/2

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)