The Litterbug Jiive (Cecil)

Another day, another bunch of unfun activities to get on with. Mostly consisting of the beloved world of work. At this point, he was truly baffled by how quickly rubbish seemed to pile up in Little Tokyo. So, equipped with the attire that he usually held when picking litter, and with his usual litter picker and collection of bags, he stepped out into the streets, rolling his eyes unenthusiastically. Still, at least today he wasn’t stuck with Little Tokyo again. The alleys had recently given him bad thoughts and memories, and so it just seemed like a better idea to not try to get a position working there today, even if it did save a bit of a walk.

So, lugging his stuff around in the heat and through the day crowd of city dwellers, a rough few hours that he didn’t know how long it lasted later, and Tomomi made it to his destination for the day: Sunlake Palms. Carefully pulling his hygiene latex gloves taut to his hands, the boy rolled his shoulders, putting a medical mask over his mouth to avoid any pollutants, and then… Stared at a nearby map for those new to Sunlake Palms, planning his route around the place for the litter route he would take, hoping to be as efficient and timely as he could.

God his job sucked.

Sometimes, you found things you weren't expecting.
Finding himself wanting of certain trappings he'd only find outdoors, Cecil had called out his plans to his father and sister and set off outside, letting the music play as it always did whilst he walked his favoured route to the Garden Path.
Normally, he didn't pay much attention to people around him whenever he went wandering, giving as much attention to his surroundings as needed to avoid anything unfortunate and little more. Had it just been someone else standing before the map, therefore, he'd likely have continued on his way.
But this time, it was Tomomi - somebody he recognised, and...who didn't seem to view him as some kind of psychopath, as he'd seen so far.

...even without Ankou's proddings, he would have found himself approaching him as he was now anyway. The rumour mill of Seven Stars had already severed so many ties before they could be made.
He didn't want that happening with Tomomi. To be a monster to one of the few people he wasn't one to already.
"Uh...Tomomi?" He spoke in a somewhat nervous tone as he set his headphones around his neck. "Is...that you? What brings you here?"

The familiar voice, as always, caught Tomomi off guard, jumping visibly as he spun around on his heel. Still, despite the initial panic response, it wasn’t a negative impulse beyond that, as he pulled down his mask to offer a friendly smile to Cecil in return at the greeting, waving the hand that held the bin bags. “Ah! H-hi Cecil!”

Ceasing to wave his hand and gesturing to the map, he began to answer the question in a relatively matter of fact way. “Ah, I’m here for work… Just… As convenient as knowing Little Tokyo well is for getting it over with quickly, it’s… Not a nice place to work, so, I’m considering myself lucky to have been assigned working here today. So, I’m looking at this map to determine which way I want to go. What about you? It’s nice to see you, although I’m surprised. First an alley, then the school, now here. You’re not following me, right?”

After a second’s pause and a serious gaze at that final question, the boy burst into childish giggling, pulling his mask back up. “I kid, I kid. But truly, no matter the reason for you being here, it is good to see you friend.”

Cecil can't help but look worried for a moment as Tomomi seems to startle as he makes himself known, though it fades at the cheery response.
For a moment, he'd thought they had him believing too.

Cecil listens along attentively to the response, though as Tomomi asks him if he's been following him, he looks alarmed...and a little upset as well. It clears up as he continues on, but the fact remains that got to him a little more than it should have.
A relaxed smile settles on Cecil's face. "Nothing like that. I just live here. I was going to visit the Garden Path until I saw you." Something flashes across his face as he realises what Tomomi just called him, but he shakes his head and brushes it off. He...probably didn't mean it like that. "Good to see you as well."

Cecil finds his gaze drifting around and away from Tomomi as he tries to get out what he wants to say next, swallowing as the words stick. "Say, uh...Tomomi...? You, ah, want some company while you're working? Maybe?"
Jesus, that was hard to say. Why was it this hard to say?

As Cecil made the offer, Tomomi’s eyes lit up. He’d been doing this job for ages, but this was the first time someone had offered to keep him company. While the mask obscured it, the smile returned to his face and Tomomi found himself giving a quick nod. “Hey, that’d be great! In fact, if you’re okay with helping, could you give me tips for what a quick route around would be, so I don’t have to double back too often? That way this job isn’t too time consuming due to me not knowing this place super very well.”

Unaware that he did a bit too much embellishment at the end, Tomomi nodded, before looking back to the map and trying to figure out where they were, before tracing his finger around the general area of where he was assigned. “So, this is where I need to pick up stuff from today. Not the largest route, but, it’s one I’ve not done before, so it may take as long as my usual long ones, or maybe longer since I otherwise will need to get my bearings. Hard to get on with a job revolving around movement when you… You know, don’t know where you’re moving.”

At that, as if he’d said something funny, Tomomi began laughing again before shaking his head. “But yeah! If you’re willing to put up with me for a walk like that… Then, I would happily welcome the company and a chance to talk!”

Cecil cheers at the enthusiastic reaction. "No, no, it's fine, it's more than fine." He looks at the map. "Won't say I know the place inside out or anything, but if you know where you're going I'll see what I can do."

After Tomomi points out where he's working, Cecil starts looking the map over to figure out where exactly that actually was, let alone relative to where they were now. As the other boy speaks up again, he stops tracing his finger through the air and turns back to him, grinning. "Believe it or not, this is much better than what I'd end up doing most of the time. Trust me, you're doing me the favour. Now..." He looks back to the map and starts tracing through the air again. "I...think I know where we're looking at. Kind of a weird area. Can't say I've been all around it but I think I know a couple of places you can cut through to another path where it says there's a dead end...?" He pulls his phone out and starts taking pictures of the map.
You know, for reference.

As Cecil traced through the air in front of the map, Tomomi watched and made mental notes of the route. At that, Tomomi smiled, waiting for him to finish speaking and taking pictures before nodding. “Thanks! That’ll be a great help! Although, I’m afraid outside of being a guide, there won’t be a lot for you to do… It’s dangerous to do the picking without the proper equipment and training, if you get injured then I’ll be in deep trouble with my bosses, and even if you were trained, I only have the one set of equipment, since, well… It’s generally a single person job.”

Grinning, he gestured in two different directions with his picker, clearly unsure of where to start as he spoke. “So mister tour guide, lead on! I’ll hopefully be able to keep up, although if there’s any… Rubbishy places, I will need to slow down I’m afraid to, you know, do my job…”

“So… Lead on! And, while we’re at it… Um… How has your day been going?” He started, interested in starting some conversation with the first person to really be kind to him in Endymion after all these years.

Cecil looks curiously to Tomomi, an eyebrow raised in question. "It's...dangerous to do this? I mean equipment is one thing, but you need special training to do this safely?" He wouldn't have exactly thought it was that bad. Though then again, he wouldn't have suspected demons were attacking people a couple days ago.
...a thought strikes him, and he can't help the wry smile that creeps onto his lips. "I guess demonic crisp packets are more of an issue than I thought."

Gesturing for Tomomi to follow, Cecil starts to walk. "It's fine. I mean...I don't think you need to apologise that I don't get to pick up litter. I'd think most people consider that a perk of their day." He shrugs. "Speaking of which, uh...it's been fine? I guess? I ah..." He chuckles awkwardly. "Guess I don't really do much worth talking about. Not exactly a lot that happened either, so...yeah."

Cecil’s question was a fair one, and just when Tomomi was about to start providing a legitimate answer… The joke came.

And with it, a giggle from Tomomi. “Ahaha, yeah… The salt and vinegar ones are the most fearsome to be sure…” he replied, with exaggerated emphasis, picking litter up along the way as he listened to Cecil’s response on how his day was going. It sounded like a relatively normal day, and it was nice to hear it wasn’t a flat out bad day. So, after giving a light nod, he went back to the previous topic.

“On a serious note about the training, it’s a weird thing. None of it is particularly difficult, the course usually takes a day to run through… But, basically, it’s a health and safety thing… For example, how to properly get at rubbish if you think it may contain dangerous chemicals, how to get trash that is stuck among glass shards… And also, mild enough first aid to be able to act in the case of an emergency… This usually has to do with just basic cuts and stopping bleeding from, well, usually glass bottles, but also heart attacks and CPR…”

With a slight cough, he stopped himself there, walking to the side to shove an aforementioned empty crisp packet into his bin bag. “So, yeah… Massively… Exciting?”

"Really? I'd have just thought the plain salted ones were the ones to watch for. So unassuming...you let your guard down." He nods, making 'hmm'ing noises as if to say 'yes, that sounds right'.

"Hmm...I...guess that makes sense. People leave all sorts around. Though...dangerous...chemicals? I'd...assume it's stuff like dodgy batteries, and there isn't some madman in a labcoat tossing acid filled coke cans everywhere."
...how bad was it that the idea seemed at least somewhat possible now? That was an utterly serious statement.
What even was his life?
"...wait, heart attacks? Alright, that one's an unexpected work hazard."

Cecil shakes his head, a relaxed smile on his face. "Don't worry about it. Might not be that exciting, but at least you're getting stuff done. Probably not exactly what you wanted to do, but...well, it's more than I can say." As they come to the end of a path, he looks around and checks his phone, before nodding and stowing it away. "Right...dirt path...there. Should let you get this done in one loop...probably some stuff abandoned there too." He sets off to a spot where the grass seems to part a little.

“Ah, the heart attacks aren’t so much an occupational hazard… As a public service job, if I witness someone having a heart attack, I have responsibility to drop what I’m doing and provide first aid until the professionals arrive… Nothing super major, and it’s never actually been something I’ve had to do… Thankfully…”

As Cecil provided the direction on where to turn off, Tomomi nodded and followed the instruction and instructor down the dirt path, into an area where the grass parted. He couldn’t help but find himself looking around – higher than the rubbish would be, but simply looking around and taking in the sights. “You know, this place may be the same city, but it’s truly… Different, here, compared to Little Tokyo… It’s crazy…” He muttered, almost to himself, nodding slightly before picking up a crushed can and shoving it in his bag, trying to think of a conversation topic so as to not have the rest of the route be awkward.

"Hmm." Cecil's eyes drift as he sinks into his thoughts. "Wouldn't have thought so, but...I don't know. As good as it is to have people to know these things, they're not things I would have expected that you'd have to learn like that." He shrugs. "I'd love to think it's with mind for people's health, but I can't help but think they're just trying to avoid problems for themselves. Though the exact details, I have no idea..."

He shakes it off, and looks around, taking in the little details of the area. "You have no idea. If you take some time wondering around, and just look at stuff, you'd be surprised what you notice. There's all sorts of little details to even places you've gone before that you'll only see the first time then." He smiles. "And that's without comparing districts. Wouldn't find greenery like this there...and there certainly and nigh constant festivals over here. God, hell if I know what I'd do with that constant noise."

At Cecil’s mention of the constant festivals, Tomomi found himself laughing more. He certainly wasn’t a fan of them either. “Oh they are definitely the most frustrating part of Little Tokyo for sure! Back in Japan, those festivals were only ever on major occasions, but here? Hope you like the sound of excessive gunpowder use and music going on perpetually. I swear, I’m not sure what’s louder… The fireworks, the music, or the drunks!”

Smiling beneath his mask, Tomomi continued to go about his work, before deciding to continue conversation, hoping to get to know his new friend a bit better. “So, say, do you do anything for like work? Or, have anything like an aspiration that you want to become?”

Cecil snickers as they turn off to start the loop back. "Definitely the drunks. Not like I've been much subjected to it, but it doesn't matter what it is - never underestimate the ability of the human race to overcome in the most stupid fashions possible."

Cecil...freezes, a little, at the question of his aspirations. Minor, but noticeable. "Can't say I do either way. Not got a job I need to work on, and...well, there's no particular goal I'm actually shooting for I find. Just trying to pull things together, really." He shrugs, and clears his throat. "And...you? I doubt picking up trash off the streets was your life's greatest aspiration."

As Cecil posed the question back at him, Tomomi fell silent, thinking. What did he want to be? In his mind, a part of him wanted to be like his parents. But, to explain that would be a whole story of its own, and he didn't want to mention anything like that just yet. But, he definitely was right - picking litter was not his idea of where he'd be in the future. Yet, outside being like his family, he didn't know. Translating? Exploring? Helping others?

Sighing, he did up a now full bag, slumping it next to the nearest bin before opening a new bag. "I... Don't really know. I don't want to pick up rubbish, you're right, but... I don't really know... Just... Something I guess?..." At the end, his words fell quiet. Awkwardly so.