Opposites, but not quite enemies (Shun/Alex)

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

Oh boy, this is getting more humorous as time passes by. Alex's reactions were just too amusing to let it pass, mainly the reddening painting gradually his face of embarrassment. What is it, did he think Shunnosuke would be interested in him? Really? Poor boy, indeed. He would let a chuckle of mockery slip out as he gently touched the book Alex was holding, trying to make him put it down.

— Stop this, Alex. I told you I won't bite you...unless you want me to. — He lowered the tone of his voice, aiming to sound rather...voluptuous. He shouldn't, right? Make fun of another person, let alone a strange with apparent social problems. But well, who cares. It's not like he's commiting a crime.

Posts : 183 Join date : 2014-09-16 Age : 32

Alex's response to that was a very cliche anime response, but... Lets be honest? It was all he knew. He would let out a suprising noise, before lightly tapping the top of Shunny' head with the book. His face growing even redder just out of pure embarrassment. Sliding the book back into his lap as he stared away from Shun, replying to him in Japanese almost immediatly. "Ii kagen ni shiro! Baka!"

Keeping his eyes locked on the ground now as he let the redness die away. He didn't know what about the other's words was actually serious, but he wasn't about to sit there and maintain his clam when such... Lewd things were being said. No, not at all.

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

...okay, that was too much already. He was okay with the fake flirting game to receive some funny laughable reactions in response, which he did, but...that? A tap on his head and japanese cursing? Sure, he was half-japanese, but he didn't know how to speak it fluently, apart from a few sentences and isolate words. "Baka" was one of them, he got pretty much that.

— ... — The teenager stared at Alex with a dumbfounded expression, remaining motionless for quite some time before clearing his throat and fixing his bangs. — ...that was rather uncalled for, wasn't it? You're lucky I'm an easygoing person who won't call the police for this physical abuse. — In all outside seriousness, Shunnosuke wasn't serious at all. Well, it didn't hurt him, so why bother? Should that be the case, however, he wouldn't hesitate to make a scene and boy, he was good at that. The student simply took his mirror out of his bag again and used it to fix the occasional untidy hair (very few were out of place, after all, the strike wasn't even enough to cause physical pain, let alone mussing his hair entirely).

Posts : 183 Join date : 2014-09-16 Age : 32

Alex huffed and looked to a different area for a few as he sat the book back in his lap. He hadn't felt ths weird since that moment with Hitomi... Well, this wasn't anywhere NEAR as awkward as that had been.. No, not even close. HE spoke again in more of an adorable offended tone this time. "You deserved it for staring too hard... I'm not a piece of art you know?..."

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

When he finished fixing his hair, Shunnosuke would only glance to his companion through the corner of his almond eyes. Judging from his staggered countenance, it was obvious he didn't like being challenged in that manner...until he quirked an ironic smile.

— Indeed you are nowhere close to a piece of art. What else is new? — He sighed, closing his eyes to a brief second before putting his mirror back to his bag. — I knew using that line twice wouldn't work, don't know why I even tried... In any event, Alex, that was a mere joke, it wasn't supposed to be hurtful in any shape or form...at least, not as hurtful as being assaulted by a thick book. Seemingly you don't like being the center of attention, am I right?

Posts : 183 Join date : 2014-09-16 Age : 32

His eyes narrowed as he replied, "Books could hurt worse... And no, I don't... Its not where I belong..." Huffing a bit in protest, because it was true. He DIDN'T belong in the center of attention. People like him only belonged in one spot, the sidelines.. Or shadows.... Or equivalent to these things. He called himself Hiki for a reason, and not just to sound like he knew a thing or two about the japanese language. "...Plus, then I'd have to actually care what I look like... And thats boring."

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

The moment he talked about how "books could hurt worse", Shunnosuke would glance fully to his face. Was that a threat or...? Probably not. The student decided to give the other the benefit of doubt, otherwise he wouldn't take it very well and he'd be forced to act really unpleased. Rather, what triggered his attention more was his second statement.

— ...really? — It wasn't a surprise to see the boy didn't bother with his looks too much, Shunnosuke could see that clearly. It's just... To care about yourself is "boring"? That was a new — and bizarre — philosophy to him. What a way of thinking! — I beg to differ? I am the only person that truly matters to myself and knows me very well. Of course, the only person who'll follow myself and stay with me all times. Obviously, I have to care about my well-being, it's not an option. That should be the same for you too.

Posts : 183 Join date : 2014-09-16 Age : 32

He crossed his arms before starting his counter-spiel, "Taking care of your looks takes too long for very little payout, for you to have to keep up with your own looks for several hours over the day, just to lose all the progress you did at the slightest gust, or fall, or incident, let alone eating and sleeping. My time is better spent doing other things.. So long as my hair isn't in my eyes, and my clothes aren't wrinkled, I'm happy..." A rather lengthy and calm talk coming from the previously shy boy, for once.

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

— I see. So you're the type of person who thinks caring about your looks is futile and "inner beauty is better than your looks", no? Perhaps it takes long for you because you obviously have no proficiency in such tasks? — Shunnosuke chuckled belittlingly, narrowing his gaze fixedly to Alex's face. His voice tone was nowhere aggressive and there wasn't any hint of anger past his facial expression but it wouldn't be hard to deduce the boy was largely bothered by that counter-argument. Still, he decided to not be too abrasive in his response. Unless Alex pushed his buttons, that is. — As much as content is important, which I won't deny, so is appearance. It's our calling card, to what people will feel interested and attracted at first or not, therefore it's important and, should I say, it matters in every aspect of our lives, specially the professional sphere. Say, can you picture the company of your dreams hiring you as their employee if you present and introduce yourself just like that? — He wanted to listen to what Alex had to say first before jumping to the guy's jugular. Not that he would literally do it, it's just he finds the moralist "content is better than package" speech rather...amusing. In a negative way.

(( Cyma, dear, can you describe Alex's clothes? It might be important for my next reply. ))

Posts : 183 Join date : 2014-09-16 Age : 32

Alex would turn and stare at Shun directly, before replying."I don't want people to care about my looks. If thats part of what they care about... Then they don't really care about who I am as a person... Also I don't... Think Fromsoft would... Really care if I looked like this.. Not that his attire, in itself, was terrible. He wore khakies with a pair of Velcro shoes, Dr. Shoals of all things, and a green jacket with a fluffy/furry hood over a white dress shirt. He didn't have a tie on, so it was more just his scholastic look. In addition to a pair of thing, but square frame glasses. Hair is a mess though.

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

— ...really? — Shunnosuke said unimpressed, turning his complete attention to Alex. He resisted his urge to laugh deridingly, lowering his gaze enough to check on the boy's pants, a particular part of his attire to which the boy paid special attention, before looking back to his face. — Hm... I see it all. You think fashion has nothing to do with you. I believe you just go to your closet and select, I don't know, these khaki pants of yours with a green jacket because you take yourself too seriously to care about what you put on your back, and that's the image you wanna sell the world. But what you don't know is that these khaki pants of yours were not just "khaki" not too long ago. They weren't even "khaki" to begin with. You're, for sure, blithely unaware of the fact that in 1846, Sir Harry Lumsden, commander of the British Army troop of Indian recruits, ordered their colored and distinguished trousers dyed to better blend with the local terrain, thanks to mulberry and mazari, a native Indian plant used to achieve the range of color shades we know nowadays as "khaki", which was quickly adopted as standard issue military garb worldwide, and from there became part of menswear history. Do you know why, my dear? Because khakis were a simple yet elegant response to surveillance technologies and tactics of dispersal, turning a disadvantage into an advantage. On the battlefield, armies strategically employed inconspicuous colors for camouflage, otherwise the outcome of warfare would be completely different. England for sure was the precursor, but it wouldn't be long until other corporations and armies, such as United States, adopted the color themselves so it could then, uh, filter down through the department stores and then trickled on down into some tragic casual corner where you, no doubt, fished it out of some clearance bin. While we're at it, for a long time, the mere mention of "khaki" was enough to make young boys like you shiver, simply because at that time "khaki" meant the imminence of war. Meanwhile, there you are, wearing this exemplar comfortably, which represents millions of dollars, countless saved lives and it's sort of comical how you think that you've made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry when, in fact, you're wearing the pair of pants that was selected for you by the people who cared enough to give you and me a chance for a future. — The student finished his rather long and acid speech with a somewhat wry smile.

Strength:

Posts : 183 Join date : 2014-09-16 Age : 32

Alex's response was a very, very long stare followed by another light tap of the book to Shun's forehead. "I wear Khakis because they breath with ease. I don't like sitting in class and dealing with chafing... And they are easy to slide out of when I get home." Though the fashion talk was very educational, Alex kept the unamused stare at the other primarily because his lack of fashion was being called into question. He didn't dress to look good, he dressed in what was cheap, comfortable, and plentiful. "I'd rather go to class naked than in a pair of pants costing like fifty bucks."

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

. . .
Alex was just begging for it, wasn't he? For a moment, Shunnosuke had no reaction, simply returning Alex's stares, however more fiercely than the guy. If the younger teenager had lasers in his eyes, the male would have been powdered by now. One thing Shunnosuke couldn't stand is being ignored in one way or another, and that's exactly what Alex, from the top of is fashion ignorance, did. What a jerk.
— ...don't you dare do it the third time. — "Or else I'll sit my hand in your face". This time, again, he'd let it pass, although he truly meant it, even if Shunnosuke wasn't the type to resort to physical violence and abuse. As for the naked comment...Shunnosuke knew better than respond to that and tried his best to not form a mental image of that scene. Please. All he did was stare at his companion for a not too long moment before rolling his eyes, shaking that subject away. Some things are better not be told, in first place. — Anyway, sorry that I'm not really sorry to rain on your parade, but if Fromsoft or whatever that company is called is a serious enterprise, they absolutely would NOT accept anyone with that...messy hair of yours. Is that how you go to our school, hm?

Posts : 183 Join date : 2014-09-16 Age : 32

His eyes narrowed for a moment, "No one in the gaming industry cares about looks... I remind you that one of NASA's top scientists goes to work coated in tattoos and with hairstyle you only see in punk bands... But yeah, this is how I go to school, happily so." Not to mention he was one of the top students, and he felt pride in that fact given he did it with proper hard work, not... Fasion. Head cocking a little bit with his eyebrow arched as he waited to see what Shunnosuke's response was going to be. Though it was obvious Alex was growing more annoyed than anything with this, as fasion was the least of his concerns. Especially when it never did anything for him besides make sure he WASN'T the aforementioned naked.

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

— Weeeell...I remind you that I did say serious enterprise. By default, I'm obviously not talking about "gaming industry". — Shunnosuke rolled his eyes and snickered contemptuously at Alex's statement, clearly underestimating gaming industry. So, Alex was indeed a nerd, no wonder the young man held such views and ambitions for his future. As for NASA...okay, that was a serious company, yes, and the boy had a point. Then again, what are the odds you'll be hired by NASA? — And I remind you again that your credentials and curriculum vitae must be pretty distinct in order to attract NASA's attention, of course. Until that time comes, you have a loooong road ahead and would obviously stumble upon a company that would require a little bit of a formality and dress code you're not used to. — He finished his thought process checking his own nails like that conversation wasn't important. And in all honesty, it wasn't, nothing but a clash of opposite ideals that Shunnosuke had fun by trying to enforce this point, which he considered to be the correct one without giving Alex too much credit. — Anything else? — Once he was done staring at the brightness of his hands, he gave Alex a pretty arrogant smile.

» Polar Opposites, perhaps. Fate? Definitely. (Shunnosuke/Bocross and 1 other person)
» Allies or Enemies?[Kazuya]
» Trade between would-be enemies (Jackie/Nadia)
» Sharades (Sharaku, Shun)
» Peace? [Shun]