take me on

"That sounds like my father," He mused, upon hearing how the other's mother would handle a situation. Growing up with strict parents hadn't been easy, especially not being the curious person he was. "Would she call it a learning moment, too?" He then wondered out loud, sure that he had heard those words too often any time he managed to get hurt. Mingyu briefly narrowed his eyes at the machine and then very reluctantly stepped away from it. Though he was sad about his coke, it wasn't worth either of them getting badly injured over. "Maybe I'll get better tips if I complain about it at the cafe." He grinned, only half serious. "Do you prefer juice or coffee or something?"

nel worried about their conversation getting a little too real as mingyu spoke about his father, though she didn't show it. "a learning moment would be a good line to use, but no," she didn't mean that it was a good thing that mingyu heard that from his father, she meant that it would be better than what her mother did say to her, saying it in such a way so that she could avoid actually disclosing the details of the tense and strained relationship she had with her mother. nel's mother, instead of throwing the learning opportunity line in her face, expected her daughter to already know everything - even when she had neglected to teach her the important lessons. "no harm in trying," nel laughed. "i think i'll drink just about anything, no exaggeration."

charlie's spirits were high, higher than they had been in a long time. not only were things looking up, with the last of the attacks getting further and further away from them, but summer was finally upon them, and summer was easily charlie's favorite time of the year. charlie was a bright and bubbly person; he loved excitement, adventure, and convincing his friends to agree to his plans of - harmless - mischief; all of those things were more achievable in summer, charlie typically found. the hot and generally fun-filled months finally being upon them was reason for great joy for charlie, though admittedly, one person in shrike heights had helped to pull that joy out of him for even longer than what the summer had lasted for so far.

reina, to charlie, felt like summer if it were a person. she radiated the same bright feelings of excitement, making charlie feel like he was a child once again, a child who was thrilled to be free from the gruelling school work and boring routine that he was subjected to for the rest of the year. her enthusiasm was a breath of fresh summer air, and for them to have connected as beautifully and as naturally as they had made charlie feel lucky, to say the very least. every day that their paths crossed felt like the peak of the most perfect summer, and for it to actually be that time of the year again only made it all the more better.

Danny scoffed at the comment, shaking his head. "That's a depressing suggestion," he replied, unwilling to agree. Maybe he was a pessimist, maybe he thought the universe generally had it out to get you, but he wouldn't stoop so low as to presume capitalism was just guaranteed. Also, he didn't get paid enough to wax poetic and dive into philosophy on his shift. That went beyond the bounds of his boss' expectation of professionalism and customer service.

He shrugged then at her joke, leaning back against the counter. "Sounds like you just need to get back on it. Ride, fuck it up a few times, figure it out." Sage advice there, Shaw. "Isn't that the whole point? Fuck around and find out?" When he started skating at, like, twelve, it was. "If you're gonna wipe out anyway, might as well make sure it's your fault so you can do something about it instead of shelling out for gear you don't actually need." He argued.

TJ laughed as Charlie matched his enthusiasm and placated his shared jumpiness. "Hey, it's always better watchin' with friends anyway, so I might just take you up on that. Where're you parked? I managed to snag a pretty decent spot, if you wanna buddy system it." He remarked, slowly making his way out towards the parking lot.

TJ was glad Charlie met him at the same level. He wasn't a self-conscious person, having spent so much of his childhood trying to be the best at what he did with attention on him only growing as he got better, but he knew that he wasn't the most socially aware person out there. He'd put his foot in his mouth a few too many times over the years, and it was only thanks to some very gentle friends of his and his moms' kindness that he started to figure that out. So having someone not only meet him at his level of enthusiasm but also seem interested as well? It gave him a good feeling.

"That's sick, I'm super impressed. Knowing all those lines, and having to do it over and over again with a bunch of performances? I could never. Very cool. What've you been in? Like, what's your favorite show you've done?" TJ asked, engrossed in their conversation. He loved knowing people's passions, interests, hobbies. He'd spent so long in his own bubble, with his life beginning and ending with swimming, that he was left pretty empty after he had to leave competition. Hearing about what other people loved reminded him that there were countless things he could do instead, even if it wasn't the same. Just because one dream had died didn't mean everything was lost.

"I feel ya on the books. There's just too much on a page, and they all blur together. I feel dumb, but with, like, textbooks and stuff, I just need pictures to break it up. Without 'em, it's just like... I dunno, like a swirling cloud of lines that I can't focus on." He shrugged. It was hard to explain, but he figured Charlie got the gist at least. "But you've got all the lines to memorize, so you've at least got enough ability to do that. That's impressive too."

praise was one of charlie's favorite things to receive - which might have been a good reason for why he went into performing as a career. to hear tj's praise filled him with glee, and the massive smile on his face was proof of just how much he liked the compliments. "thanks, man, yeah, it's not the easiest job in the world, but it's far from the hardest, and i really love it," he smiled. "it's hard to pick favorites because there's so many different kinds of shows to be in, and that i've been in, you know?" he began. "i definitely love the more fun shows, though, nothing too serious. especially now when the energy of a show is upbeat and the audience is laughing - god, it's just great."

"you shouldn't feel dumb, but i totally get ya," charlie nodded in agreeance, having experienced the same feelings before, especially when trying to study or when reading through textbooks for any other reason. "some people are just visual learners, too, it's not about their smarts, but about how they learn, you know what i mean?" he offered. tj was a great guy, and even if he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, charlie thought highly of him. "memorizing lines is way different to reading textbooks and stuff," he explained. "even just the way scripts are written, they're all broken up nice and easy, and i use so much highlighter and pen in my scripts to make it even easier."

"no, no they make em my size, your size though? they gotta put two of those cups together," he said through his laughter, the riffing between them a constant. "uh anywhere that has fries? which is like everywhere but it's my only ask for this meal. really good french fries," he determined with a decisive nod as if he had given it some deep thought. "tuck it in?!" zeke's eyebrows raised but he trusted dustin so he did just that, tilting his head back and forth as he looked at it. "i feel like i still look like a square but i'll take your word for it. if i get bullied it's your fault," he teased and gave dustin a nudge as he looked at the two of them in the mirror. they were getting older, and that always blew zeke's mind. he couldn't believe he had a friend like dustin who was such a constant and he tried not to dwell on the idea of losing him but these days made it hard. he pulled dustin in for another hug without a word before ushering them out of his room. "we're heading out, love you!" zeke yelled out as they went out the front door, sure his grandmother would appreciate not having her show watching interrupted so he grabbed his keys and led dustin to his car which he had only gotten recently. it was a nice change from riding his bike everywhere. "hey what time is it? i wanna know who's spinning at shrike radio right now before i turn it on."

“yeah, that’s true,” dustin began, leaning into zeke’s joke. “it’s super hard to accommodate my massive brain, you know? you should see me in winter, i’m always absolutely floundering, trying to find a good winter hat that won’t rip putting it on. it’s super hard work, being as smart and as knowledgeable as i am,” he grinned. “good fries? hm, i’ll have to think on it,” having lived in shrike heights for so long, dustin knew pretty much all of the best places to eat - even despite the fact that he never had the money to do so, growing up - but it was still a hard decision to make. “no, trust me,” dustin said as he laughed. “it’s a good look, nowadays. like an effortless tuck, it makes all the difference, makes you look put together without looking square - trust me. plus, it’ll better show off your ass…ets. your assets,” he joked, laughing more. the hug was reciprocated easily, as affection always was between the two of them. he pulled away with a large smile on his face. when asked for the time, dustin brought his watch up closer to his face, only to feel his stomach drop. “oh man,” the disappointment was thick in his voice. “it’s busted,” he told zeke. “i don’t even know how this happened. man,” dustin’s watch was old, and more expensive than any he could afford on his own. it was one of his first nice things, a hand-me-down gift from his sponsor on an anniversary of sobriety, but now it had a crack in the glass, and the hands weren’t ticking along at all. “dude,” he had nothing else to say, disappointed.

Drew thought Aera was giving Cooper far too much credit. He was supremely food-driven, unapologetic in his affection, and unaware that not everyone loved him immediately. It was a recipe for quite the interesting experience training him, even now a few years on. "He can be both a good boy, and a pain in the ass sometimes," he joked, winking as he nudged the dog he loved so much. He wouldn't change the nuisance for anything.

He was grateful for the friendship he found in Aera, punctuating his hug with a brief squeeze before pulling back. "Glad to hear you're weathering the chaos well. I'm sure it's not ideal." He sympathized. "Even if the busyness is cute at the same time." He laughed.

Drew settled into his stance, Cooper getting the message and laying down at his feet. "Oh, don't worry. I wouldn't have made it through vet school if I didn't love it." He replied honestly. He found so much joy in his work, genuine passion and drive, that work-life balance wasn't nearly as much of a concern as it would be in another profession. "Plus, I was a vet for the Army. That's being overworked." He added. You couldn't help but bring your work home with you when you lived on base or were deployed.

"thankfully it's all work that i love to be good at, my heart is in it enough to not mind the chaos," she felt the same way about the chaos happening in her family, though she didn't feel the need to bring up such heaviness so soon. she loved her family more than anything, which was exactly why she didn't mind putting her all into helping them handle everything that they were going through in the aftermath of the attacks. it was comforting to know that drew felt the same about his work, that he loved it through the the busyness and intensity. "i bet," she nodded as he spoke of his experience being a vet in the army. aera didn't have any personal connection to the army, but she had heard enough from those who did to believe undoubtedly that it was intense. "so, what do you two have planned for the rest of the day?"

Since the person seemed so nice and accommodating, Neptune hadn't wanted to mislead them into thinking anything was seriously wrong. Though he had not been in Shrike very long, there were rumours of danger that had come to his attention. "I would get stuff from where I work but I don't want my coworkers to see this thing until it's healed enough for me to cover it up. Wee bit embarrassing now that I'm hearing myself say it out loud though."

he wrinkled his face at the news of the tattoo, though a small smile was still on his face - it wasn't the end of the world, and he didn't want to make the other feel like it was, especially not when they were clearly having a hard time at the moment. "i'm sorry to hear it," even while the predicament wasn't one more sinister, dustin still wanted to do what he could to help. a crisis was still a crisis, no matter if it was an unfortunate tattoo or a dangerous killer in their presence. "hey, don't be embarrassed," dustin smiled wider, wanting to reassure them. "we've all made mistakes, and at least you've already planned your way out with a cover up," he suggested. "it's also good that you're wanting to take care of it, even if it didn't turn out so great," dustin continued with the encouragement. "how about i lead the way?" to perkin's, he meant.