alpha dog
@kkotdaun
late oct, ???? / ansong fall carnival
what callum pictured to be the perfect ending to his night — no last minute calls on the radio, no spur of the moment dumpster fires to put out (garbage fires are the most common fires! callum always feels the need to remind anybody and everybody willing to listen) and being able to go home to his cozy shoebox that callum was beginning to enjoy more and more as the daylight of the fall days grew shorter and nights longer. on days he could actually spend at home he found solace in his own presence, how he could spend as long as humanly possible saturated in his own stillness. october was almost over, which meant the season of hibernation was quickly approaching; he didn't know why winter was his favorite season, but there was just something about the slowness and ease of the season that calmed him, smoothed out the wrinkles of his occasional anxieties.
often, the only sounds that came from his apartment would be the sounds of his cooking or a frustrated grunt playing video games. except these days with how often he was working, there wasn't much time for callum to play at home, really — and on the days even when he really wanted to, there was always showering and eating dinner that took precedence. by the time he could find time to unwind, he was already on the verge of nodding off.
he has nari to thank for this. he knows he's slightly anti-social — trying to hit her with a small smile and tell her that he was too tired and just going to head home when they bumped into each other. but there's that push and the second wind that follows when she starts talking up big game to him — two traits that callum doesn't know where he got them from — that keep him at the carnival rather than going home. he tells her just one game. and then that game turns into another. and another. and one more.
"okay," he breathes as they both purposely lose the water gun shooting game to a group of elementary aged kids next to them. he watches them for a moment and laughs before he turns to look at her, finding her gaze. "i do need to start thinking about heading home after this. i'll play one more round with you."
nari is pretty good. she's got a good handle on throwing darts and popping balloons, but shooting water at a target is literally his job. "how about best 3 out of 5?" he gestures a head shrug and eyes pointed upward in front of them to an oversized stuffed prize. he doesn't plan to keep it even if he wins their little tournament, but plays himself up like he will anyway. his smile turns from soft to something a little more cunning. "are you sure you want to play me at the water guns out of all your options here?"
