Grease Trucks [Raphael/Shouhei]

It had been a couple of days since Shouhei had encountered the mysterious and unexpected twin of Gabe Gatsby, Raphael.  Unfortunately he couldn’t get a hold of Gabe and he hoped his brother would have a better lead on that case.  So he texted Raphael to meet him for lunch, exchange information, and possibly to get to know each other a little better.  At least Raphael took to his joking of being an evil twin rather kindly.

He stood amongst a massive crowd of others at Seven Star Academy’s stadium parking lot.  Everyone eagerly awaited the “Grease Trucks,” a set of food trucks that arrived at every lunch hour, serving almost countless combinations of fried foods to the student body.

Shouhei’s text message to Raphael read as such:

“Only true villains show up at the Academy’s stadium parking lot at lunch, especially with no money.  It’ll be my treat.”

Believe it or not, Raphael wasn't expecting to hear from Shouhei again, or anytime soon. He had experiences with people like that before and he managed to get a gauge on his personality. This was Gabriel's friend, not his. He was concerned with Gabe, he wanted to know of his whereabouts, all of the things he was hoping that Raphael would find out to tell him. Raph had nothing to offer, so the idea of getting messaged first made him a little taken back by the act itself.

"Hm...guess I have the time...."

Raphael would mumble to himself as he sent a confirming text message and headed on over.

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At the meeting spot, Raphael took a look at the grease trucks and whistled to himself.

"I guess not all good meals come from fancy restaurants huh? Or, that's what I'm getting from you after looking at this place."

“...Ya damn right,” a firm nod and a wide smile set Shouhei’s features.  “I heard a sayin’, somethin’ like ‘you can fry almost anything and it’s good.’  The Grease Trucks deliver, and the crowd here reinforces that, yeah?”

He almost had to shout over the sounds of the crowd and music playing from the trucks and those gathered.

“...Besides, I wasn’t ‘boutta take ya on a fancy date to wine and dine.  Least not when I’m offerin’.  Maybe you can do that next time,” Shouhei continued with a coy grin.  “So whatcha in the mood for?  Somethin’ nice and greasy I bet.”

"I might look it and play the part, but the simpler things in life are a lot easier for me to get a hold on. The rest of it is apart of the act, except the wine. If I'm drinking that, it's probably pretty serious. For instance, never really been to a place like this before but if the fundamentals are the same, I already know how I'd want them to make my burger. "

At this point, Raphael wanted to tet Shouhei's knowledge.

"Ever heard of a big kahuna burger?"

Shouhei mentally noted Raphael’s preference for wine. He briefly wondered how Raphael felt about boxed wine, but dismissed it- that’d be a topic for another time. As for kahuna burgers, it sounded so… familiar. Was it from a movie?

“...Nah, but it sounds Hawaiian. They make ‘em with pineapples or somethin’?” Shouhei genuinely asked while scanning for a burger truck. Preferably one that also served either corn dogs or cheese steaks, because he had developed an insatiable want for those foods. He gestured for Raphael to follow when he spotted one.

"In some places, it's called the sweet and spicy Hawaiian burger. So you aren't off the mark, it does have pineapples involved in it, but the combination of flavors still make it the best kind of burger that I ever had. One of the things that I like the most is the different varieties that it's made, as well as the places that even bother to make them or try. I've done this a few times, up to the point that I know the crucial ingredients. It really is the best..."

Raphael then followed behind Shouhei.

"You do anything other than go to school?"

“...Damn, you’re makin’ me consider gettin’ that instead,” Shouhei said as he started to salivate.  It didn’t help that all the smells and aromas wafting from the trucks were adding to his hunger, especially after Raphael’s description of the burger.  

“...Yeah, I’m in the Music Club here.” Although I only attended once, I really gotta get my ass back in there.  Nola could really help me out, he mentally added once the pair settled in line for the food truck.

“...I also work a few part time jobs.” Since he’s new here, he probably hasn’t heard about the rumors surroundin’ me and them.  That’s a good thing I guess, again Shouhei thought to himself as he didn’t want to go into the particulars of his work.

“...What about you?  You as high class and high brow as Gabe?  You a gazillionaire mogul?”

"Music club, alright...."

Raphael listened, not really adding his own input until the end.

"A few part-time jobs, no need to be ashamed about being versatile, that's good. Koop your options open...."

But something did stand out to him. It was the fact that Gabriel, a man he never met, lived his life a certain way. It was a fair comparison, but even with nothing to go by, there was a chance that Raphael could have had a regular job. But that wasn't the case, that didn't happen. If one goes by the name of Gatsby, they seemed to be tied to something great, that was what Raphael was picking up on at the time.

"I'm an archeologist, I double as an appraiser of the priceless artifacts of the world that I get my hands on. I also negotiate.... but since coming here, the first bit is on hold.... so I'm now a museum owner that appraises the pieces that come, and negotiates the standard and placement of how they are presented at the vault. I feel as if endymion lost something important while being locked up in their own city, "

“...Holy shit, you’re like a real life Indianapolis Jones, ain’tcha?  Ya raid tombs and shit?  That’s pretty fuckin’ sweet,” excitedly replied Shouhei, as the pair moved up in line. “I bet you got lotsa fun stories.”

OOC: I can at least get one paragraph to work with next time around.


"Really depends on the amount of time that you have and the type of stories that you would want to hear. Some of these stories are dangerous and tragic, others are fun and exciting. To be honest, you'll never know the true worth and value of something until you see how badly someone else wants it. With all of this demon stuff popping about, it's like everyone is looking into the treasure of the old as some kind of magical semblance to them appearing. Mummies, Greek gods... everything of the sort. It's made them crazy...so to speak.. the things I've heard. So yeah... interesting..."

As they continued to the grease truck, Raphael's tummy started to rumble.

"Can you ask if they have a Hawaiian burger?"

OOC: ...u coulda just messaged me abt it but ok

“...Dope, if ya ever got the time I’d like to hear about it- stories are stories to me,” an appreciative nod accompanied a welcoming smile from Shouhei.  Just like he said, he’d enjoy hearing about Raphael’s journeys across the world.  And with that said, the two arrived at the front of the truck’s window, ready to order.

“...I’ll have uhh… the number five combo, and a beer please,” Shouhei said while procuring a fake identification card for the vendor to look at.

“...Also, my buddy here is wonderin’ if ya can make him a uhh… Kahuna burger?  Seems he’s shy to ask. I think maybe it's 'cause he told me you were lookin' kinda cute and like a snack,” cheekily Shouhei added that comment on the end with a smirk, fishing for Raphael’s reaction.  Who knew, perhaps Raphael was into middle aged and balding grease truck vendors.  Besides, Raphael didn't tell him how to ask, and Shouhei didn't particularly like taking orders from someone for no good reason.

"Did you know that there are excavations that are done underwater as well? With the amount of oxygen that you have,  it's basically the pre-prepping of picking the right spots in regards to what you can find, in addition to the mystery and wonder of what you can discover. I didn't find Atlantis or anything.. but I'll tell you what I did find... something a little more realistic.... bones....... something big..... "

Raphael left it at that for the time being as he rolled his eyes on the idea of him being shy.


"Even though I like getting my hands in the mix of things, in the presence of an expert, it's better that they do it while I'll observe and watch. This is the case of a person who knows the area and knows ow to order things takes the stage. I thought you would be happy about it. And beer? You must have not had a good glass of wine in your entire life if you are drinking that.  On the bright side...beer is vegan...allegedly... "

Shouhei almost ignored Raphael’s complete deflection of him passing off Raphael as having the hots for the vendor- almost. The vendor on the other hand seemed to ignore the joke completely as he took Shouhei’s order and money. Vigorously Shouhei scratched his head while thinking deeply about whether or not booze was vegan, and finally found the answer his boss at “All Night Long” told him.

“...It all depends on if there’s preservatives, or cream, or other things in beer and wine. If it’s hard liquor it’s definitely vegan. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good glass of wine here and there, but beer,” Shouhei said as he took his bottle from the vendor, “Beer’s always been there for me. I usually don’t get sloppy with it, haha.”

He stood off to the side and sparked a clove cigarette while waiting for his food; its own sweet aroma didn’t detract too much from the smell of food in the air.

“...How were ya gonna blow off me tryin’ to hook you up with the vendor there anyway? That’s kinda rude,” a sheen of smoke wouldn’t conceal the joking grin he had. “I’m just tryin’ to be your wingman.”

"To fly a plane, you need to be licensed as a pilot. I have yet to acknowledge your credentials or see you in action, let alone co-pilot the floor. Mingling is a science to it, something that people lack, which is why I started a club at the seven stars academy to teach them.  I have so much free time and my education was abroad, nothing at this school interests me but my own interests, so having something to micromanage might inspire me to show up instead of dropping out and focusing on my business full time. "

Raphael sat at a nearby table as he waited for his food as well.

"What are your thoughts about this city? I've only been here for 72 hours myself..."

Shouhei snubbed out his smoke in a tin he carried specifically for that purpose, once the pair received their food.  He then slowly blinked several times at Raphael’s response; he looked at his food, then at Raphael, then his food, back to Raph, and finally at his meal before he dug in.  So Raphael was one of those literal no-nonsense types, way different from Gabe.  It kind of made sense though, since he braved the outside demon world on a daily basis.

“...My thoughts?  Helluvalot safer’n out there, like the shit you had to deal with.  Sure there might be demons roamin’ around at night, but at least it’s safe durin’ the day, like right now,” Shouhei paused to take a long sip of his beer.

“...And yours?  Don’tcha feel safe?  What’s it like compared to the rest of the world?”