seven
“Ok. Amadeus.”
“Why Amadeus?”
“I love the music. I play the violin, and his big symphonic pieces, the big opera music, that’s the kind of thing I learned on. And it’s so much drama - my girlfriend laughs at me all the time, because I hate drama in my own life, but I love it in movies. Besides, the girl who plays Constanze - Mozart’s wife - she’s cute.”
“You know,” Owain says, “when I ask people that question, a lot of the answers are older movies. Not a lot of comfort movies from the last couple of years.”
“So what are yours?”
“The Martian and Army of Darkness. See?” He grins. “Old movies. It will probably change in a couple of weeks.”
“Does that tell you what people are like?” Tristan asks. “I mean, do you learn something or is it just like an icebreaker?”
“Both, I guess. I’m really just curious. I’m a projectionist at the Oriental and I love movies - I love to talk about them - and I always want to know what makes an impression on people.”
“Huh.” Tristan finishes her ginger ale and hoists the empty cup. “I’m going to get more soda. You don’t have to hang out with me all night.”
“Yeah, but this is fun.”
So they go back to the kitchen, Tristan refills her cup, she and Owain talk about movies and what she does for work (accountant for a furniture store, which strikes Owain as incredibly boring but Tristan seems to like it) and what it’s like working at a movie theater and how did Owain and Milena meet, anyway?
“It was a little bit of a movie meet-cute,” he says. “Her dog got loose and ran over to me, and we both grabbed for her harness at the same time and grabbed each other instead.” He chuckles. It’s silly in retrospect and was silly at the time - partly because it really did feel like a meet-cute - and it never gets any less dumb when he tells the story. “If we were straight we’d probably be planning our wedding, after the usual conflicts and obstacles and misunderstandings. But she’s got Teddy” - he waves at the kitchen door, indicating the rest of the house, or wherever Milena and Teddy are right now - “and I eventually met a guy.” He shrugs. “It didn’t last, but it wasn’t awful. But that’s how Milena and I met. Blame the dog.”
They stand in the kitchen a little longer, although it’s not a big kitchen and people coming in and out to refresh their drinks or pour new ones makes it feel crowded. Eventually Owain leads Tristan back out into the house to find people he knows and can introduce her to, so she won’t feel so out of place at the party. He can’t quite tell if she appreciates his efforts or not, but at least she’s friendly enough to these new-to-her people.
Lana is walking through the party with a giant bowl of tortilla chips - and they should really have more snacks at this thing, Owain thinks, because drinking makes him hungry - and Owain and Tristan are now part of a group discussing the best Oregon beaches when someone kind of pats Owain’s shoulder and says “Hey, I thought it was you!”
Owain turns to see a guy who looks vaguely familiar, a little like Joseph Gordon-Levitt, if Joseph Gordon-Levitt was Asian. “Hi,” he says. Clearly this guy knows him but it’s going to take him a minute to place the face.
“Justin,” the guy says. “Carolle’s friend.”
“Right! Sorry, I couldn’t put you in context for a minute. Yeah, it’s been a while. Not since… Labor Day? I think it was Labor Day.”
“Yeah, she had a barbecue. How are you? Who do you know in this house?”
“Teddy. She’s my best friend’s girlfriend. You?”
“Lana. We used to work together.”
Owain can’t for the life of him remember where Justin works or what he does, just that his comfort movie is Elf, or at least it was when they met. They made a few stabs at a friendship, but seemed to get stuck as mostly acquaintances. At her Labor Day barbecue, Carolle suggested to Owain that Justin was flirting with him and he should follow up, but even though Owain was sure he was over the ex - they’d split almost a year ago by that point - he was enjoying being single and not particularly interested in someone new.
He’s still not sure he’s interested in someone new. His free time after the ex left him has given him a chance to really look inside himself and learn some things, and one of those things is that he’s just not that interested in sex. He still likes it, he just doesn’t need it, and at least half the time he doesn’t even want it. And how many boys out there are interested in dating someone who might return the interest in dating but isn’t particularly invested in fucking? He doesn’t think very many.
(He mentioned this to Milena once and she just said “You might be surprised,” but offered no further commentary.)
“Oh, sorry,” Owain says, “this is Tristan.” He gestures to her and then to Justin. “And this is Justin. He actually knows one of the women I work with, which is how I know him. Tristan just knows the missing third housemate,” he tells Justin, “so we’re hanging out together so she doesn’t feel too alone.”
“I’m fine,” Tristan says. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” Justin says, knocking the neck of his beer against her cup. “To new friends.”
The rest of the group has moved slightly away and closed around themselves, leaving Owain and Justin and Tristan on their own. Owain doesn’t quite mind - the beach discussion wasn’t that interesting to him because he isn’t really a beach person, and he’s pleased on her behalf that Tristan now knows someone else besides him. Besides, Justin is chatty and entertaining and wants to know about the terrible movies Owain shows at midnight, and if there’s one thing Owain likes, it’s sharing his opinion on movies.
At one point Milena glides by, catches his eye, and nods at him. She has a pleased, knowing kind of look on her face and Owain wonders what she’s thinking. But then Tristan says that she’s pretty sure Liquid Sky is a book and he turns back to the conversation.
Eventually Tristan excuses herself to go upstairs and go to bed - she’s been put in Gala’s room, since Gala couldn’t be bothered to stick around to keep her company - she’s stayed with Owain most of the night, while Justin and other people Owain knows have drifted in and out of conversations, but now that she’s gone, Justin comes back from somewhere and asks Owain out for coffee.
It could be an overture of friendship - maybe they’ll actually make it past the acquaintance stage this time - and it could be Justin tentatively asking Owain out. Owain can’t generally tell if someone is flirting with him or just being friendly, but based on past performance it seems reasonable to consider that Justin is flirting because Justin is interested.
Did Lana tell him Owain was still single? Did Carolle? Labor Day was long enough ago that Owain could have found a boyfriend in the intervening months. He hasn’t, but he could have.
He says yes, sure, he’d like to meet for coffee, and only realizes what it means when he’s about to leave and Teddy says “I saw you talking to Justin. He’s cute, isn’t he.” She and Milena exchange a look and Milena’s earlier expression makes sense now.
“It was Lana’s idea,” Teddy goes on. “She thinks he needs a boyfriend. Me and Milena think you need a boyfriend. Justin’s a photographer - he practically makes movies. You’re perfect for each other.” She grins brightly, clearly pleased with her and Milena’s and Lana’s group effort to get him and Justin together.
Now Owain remembers that Justin is a graphic designer and freelance photographer. He always has to comment on the film strip tattooed on Owain’s inner arm and how camera film and movie film can look so similar.
words: 1302
total words: 10,262
“Why Amadeus?”
“I love the music. I play the violin, and his big symphonic pieces, the big opera music, that’s the kind of thing I learned on. And it’s so much drama - my girlfriend laughs at me all the time, because I hate drama in my own life, but I love it in movies. Besides, the girl who plays Constanze - Mozart’s wife - she’s cute.”
“You know,” Owain says, “when I ask people that question, a lot of the answers are older movies. Not a lot of comfort movies from the last couple of years.”
“So what are yours?”
“The Martian and Army of Darkness. See?” He grins. “Old movies. It will probably change in a couple of weeks.”
“Does that tell you what people are like?” Tristan asks. “I mean, do you learn something or is it just like an icebreaker?”
“Both, I guess. I’m really just curious. I’m a projectionist at the Oriental and I love movies - I love to talk about them - and I always want to know what makes an impression on people.”
“Huh.” Tristan finishes her ginger ale and hoists the empty cup. “I’m going to get more soda. You don’t have to hang out with me all night.”
“Yeah, but this is fun.”
So they go back to the kitchen, Tristan refills her cup, she and Owain talk about movies and what she does for work (accountant for a furniture store, which strikes Owain as incredibly boring but Tristan seems to like it) and what it’s like working at a movie theater and how did Owain and Milena meet, anyway?
“It was a little bit of a movie meet-cute,” he says. “Her dog got loose and ran over to me, and we both grabbed for her harness at the same time and grabbed each other instead.” He chuckles. It’s silly in retrospect and was silly at the time - partly because it really did feel like a meet-cute - and it never gets any less dumb when he tells the story. “If we were straight we’d probably be planning our wedding, after the usual conflicts and obstacles and misunderstandings. But she’s got Teddy” - he waves at the kitchen door, indicating the rest of the house, or wherever Milena and Teddy are right now - “and I eventually met a guy.” He shrugs. “It didn’t last, but it wasn’t awful. But that’s how Milena and I met. Blame the dog.”
They stand in the kitchen a little longer, although it’s not a big kitchen and people coming in and out to refresh their drinks or pour new ones makes it feel crowded. Eventually Owain leads Tristan back out into the house to find people he knows and can introduce her to, so she won’t feel so out of place at the party. He can’t quite tell if she appreciates his efforts or not, but at least she’s friendly enough to these new-to-her people.
Lana is walking through the party with a giant bowl of tortilla chips - and they should really have more snacks at this thing, Owain thinks, because drinking makes him hungry - and Owain and Tristan are now part of a group discussing the best Oregon beaches when someone kind of pats Owain’s shoulder and says “Hey, I thought it was you!”
Owain turns to see a guy who looks vaguely familiar, a little like Joseph Gordon-Levitt, if Joseph Gordon-Levitt was Asian. “Hi,” he says. Clearly this guy knows him but it’s going to take him a minute to place the face.
“Justin,” the guy says. “Carolle’s friend.”
“Right! Sorry, I couldn’t put you in context for a minute. Yeah, it’s been a while. Not since… Labor Day? I think it was Labor Day.”
“Yeah, she had a barbecue. How are you? Who do you know in this house?”
“Teddy. She’s my best friend’s girlfriend. You?”
“Lana. We used to work together.”
Owain can’t for the life of him remember where Justin works or what he does, just that his comfort movie is Elf, or at least it was when they met. They made a few stabs at a friendship, but seemed to get stuck as mostly acquaintances. At her Labor Day barbecue, Carolle suggested to Owain that Justin was flirting with him and he should follow up, but even though Owain was sure he was over the ex - they’d split almost a year ago by that point - he was enjoying being single and not particularly interested in someone new.
He’s still not sure he’s interested in someone new. His free time after the ex left him has given him a chance to really look inside himself and learn some things, and one of those things is that he’s just not that interested in sex. He still likes it, he just doesn’t need it, and at least half the time he doesn’t even want it. And how many boys out there are interested in dating someone who might return the interest in dating but isn’t particularly invested in fucking? He doesn’t think very many.
(He mentioned this to Milena once and she just said “You might be surprised,” but offered no further commentary.)
“Oh, sorry,” Owain says, “this is Tristan.” He gestures to her and then to Justin. “And this is Justin. He actually knows one of the women I work with, which is how I know him. Tristan just knows the missing third housemate,” he tells Justin, “so we’re hanging out together so she doesn’t feel too alone.”
“I’m fine,” Tristan says. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” Justin says, knocking the neck of his beer against her cup. “To new friends.”
The rest of the group has moved slightly away and closed around themselves, leaving Owain and Justin and Tristan on their own. Owain doesn’t quite mind - the beach discussion wasn’t that interesting to him because he isn’t really a beach person, and he’s pleased on her behalf that Tristan now knows someone else besides him. Besides, Justin is chatty and entertaining and wants to know about the terrible movies Owain shows at midnight, and if there’s one thing Owain likes, it’s sharing his opinion on movies.
At one point Milena glides by, catches his eye, and nods at him. She has a pleased, knowing kind of look on her face and Owain wonders what she’s thinking. But then Tristan says that she’s pretty sure Liquid Sky is a book and he turns back to the conversation.
Eventually Tristan excuses herself to go upstairs and go to bed - she’s been put in Gala’s room, since Gala couldn’t be bothered to stick around to keep her company - she’s stayed with Owain most of the night, while Justin and other people Owain knows have drifted in and out of conversations, but now that she’s gone, Justin comes back from somewhere and asks Owain out for coffee.
It could be an overture of friendship - maybe they’ll actually make it past the acquaintance stage this time - and it could be Justin tentatively asking Owain out. Owain can’t generally tell if someone is flirting with him or just being friendly, but based on past performance it seems reasonable to consider that Justin is flirting because Justin is interested.
Did Lana tell him Owain was still single? Did Carolle? Labor Day was long enough ago that Owain could have found a boyfriend in the intervening months. He hasn’t, but he could have.
He says yes, sure, he’d like to meet for coffee, and only realizes what it means when he’s about to leave and Teddy says “I saw you talking to Justin. He’s cute, isn’t he.” She and Milena exchange a look and Milena’s earlier expression makes sense now.
“It was Lana’s idea,” Teddy goes on. “She thinks he needs a boyfriend. Me and Milena think you need a boyfriend. Justin’s a photographer - he practically makes movies. You’re perfect for each other.” She grins brightly, clearly pleased with her and Milena’s and Lana’s group effort to get him and Justin together.
Now Owain remembers that Justin is a graphic designer and freelance photographer. He always has to comment on the film strip tattooed on Owain’s inner arm and how camera film and movie film can look so similar.
words: 1302
total words: 10,262