Caught in a celluloid jam

[number_unlucky]

There was something about Sunday that still felt like a day off. Maybe it was growing up in Puritan country, maybe it was how my dad had liked to go to S&S on Sundays for brunch and talk to me about the Sox, which was so out of his usual MO that every week had seemed like a special event. Even here, where every day was basically the same (except

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[patration]

There are some people who think that a temper is quite an unseemly thing to see in a woman. Back in my time, such an opinion was, in fact, held by the vast majority. After all, a woman who spent such a great deal of time mired in anger would be all the less equipped to cope with the difficulties of raising a family. Even those in the higher echelons, whose families enjoyed the luxury of court and of having maidens to wait on them hand and foot, would still have to look out for the emotional state of those in their family. Or, more often than not, had to quickly learn the nuance of politics, of manipulating those closest to one in a way that would prevent one from slipping out of favor.

Any of these goals were made harder by a temper, a mood that could lick at everything else like fire. Tempers were best saved for wars, the frontlines, and other places where women would never be.

(Or so even I believed, until this island.)

Personally, I found a bit of a temper charming in a woman. Spotting a familiar face, I decided to give things a chance, approaching from the side.

"Seriously," I nodded, my expression somewhat solemn.

[number_unlucky]

I laughed, turning as I recognized the voice, then realized how many books with...undignified...covers were lying in piles around me on the floor. There were way too many to even try to cover them up.

Blushing, I got to my feet, still offering a smile. "Hi Liang. The bookshelf is all about cheesy things, today, I think--wait, do you know what I mean by that? Cheesy?"

I was sure the concept wasn't new, but the word was a fairly recent English idiom.

[patration]

Most of the time, when people pushed forward with a thought, phrase, or other type of word that a person with less than a year's experience with English would be unlikely to encounter, I took it as a compliment. To have others expect more of you than you can return is, after all, nothing but. Proof that others would expect you to be someone greater. That you inspire confidence. But there was also something to be said for the unique type of consideration it took for Remy to double back and ask if I needed the clarification.

I found that I enjoyed that balance.

"No," I answered, frank as I broke into a smile. "I know... easy. Breezy. But cheesy is new." Crouching down next to the books, I glanced up. "May I give you help in picking up the books?"

[number_unlucky]

"Um," I said, looking down at the books, then back up at Liang, who was just as dignified as the last time we'd spoken, and every time that I'd seen him in passing since. It was incredibly attractive, but not entirely suited to stuff like Return to Lesbos. "If you like? They're not exactly the best books, I'm afraid. That's sort of what cheesy means--it means not in good taste, or cliched. Stereotyped, but made for mass consumption. I'm not sure if there was anything like it in your time, maybe like bawdy songs?"

[patration]

I couldn't exactly be sure whether or not I was reading her correctly, but there was something about her expression that seemed sheepish. Embarrassed, even. And, as was wont to happen quite frequently, my curiosity got the better of me as my gaze dropped to the cover of the book, and my brow immediately arched at the sight of it. I had been on the island for more than enough time to see that there were plenty of men who enjoyed one another's company, and it only stood to reason that women would as well, though the latter demographic seemed a little less well-represented, somehow. Brushing my thumb over my lower lip in brief contemplation, I glanced up at Remy, trying to piece together all the bits of the puzzle. Her reaction and the visual alike.

"It is... too much, I think you mean. Not realistic," I considered, still stuck on a couple of her words, and making the mental note to look them up in the dictionary afterwards. "But even silly stories, I like."

[number_unlucky]

"Not realistic...yeah, I think 'too much' probably describes it pretty well, actually," I admitted, and realized Liang had spotted the cover of the book. By now, I'd been embarrassed enough that I couldn't really be any more so, and had to resign myself to blushing as I started to tidy the books away with his help. "I don't know if you'd like these stories if you read them, though I guess they're interesting enough. The ones with the women...are mostly about wild sex in a time and culture where that was inappropriate. The ones with the weird creatures and aliens are...science fiction. About the future, and other planets."

[patration]

"I am maybe not the best person to give... opinion," I said in turn, not trying to be unkind, but certainly feeling a need to be honest. Men could speak of taking women as often as they liked, but the details of it were kept far closer to the chest- beyond that, I had never personally shown much of an interest in the conquests that other men would claim. A woman's relative beauty or the soft touch of her skin honestly meant very little to me; more importantly, I cared about her intelligence, her ability to hold conversation. Briefly, I considered relaying this fact in greater detail.

I thought better of it.

"Sometimes, the big... space between my time and your time, it is very clear to me," I said instead, holding up one of the science fiction volumes and tilting my head at the image. "This island is like my science fiction, maybe I can say."

[number_unlucky]

"I can definitely understand how that would be true," I said, trying not to worry too much about how Liang'd not felt able to give an opinion on racy books (literature was really not the word here), and considering that I could have offended him.

Still, he was still here talking to me, so it couldn't have been that bad. "Though some of the stuff here is pretty strange even to people from my time. Was it hard for you at first? I mean, is it still hard, to understand all of the changes?"

[patration]

I nodded. There was no way that I could pass myself off as a person who'd adjusted to the unique burdens of the island, because I hadn't. I hadn't even begun to truly breach the thousands of years that were between myself and the majority of the island, the ocean itself that barred my place and time from making it into the history books that most of the islanders studied from. It was a fact which occasionally was daunting, no doubt. (Among other things, the simple facts, such as the utensils people used to eat, the way that they took their tea, still made me feel like quite the odd one in the basket.)

But it had never been upsetting, precisely, and so I found it rather easy to discuss.

"It is hard, because I do not have too much time," I began, hoping that I could convey my thoughts easily enough. "If I have years to learn, maybe it is easier, but I need to learn quickly if I want to be part of this island."

[number_unlucky]

For a second when Liang said do not have too much time, I thought that he was sick, like me--but then when he carried on, I figured out what he meant. "I can see what you mean," I said, feeling a little relieved. "You don't want to be behind for the rest of your time here, you want to be a part of the community. But I don't see it as right that you have to adjust to the culture here that has defaulted to something so far away from yours, just because more people are from that time. It seems like an unfair burden. But I wouldn't know how to change that."

[patration]

"No one is... pushing me to change," I replied, not wanting to make the burden seem greater than it was, nor wanting to put too much weight on the shoulders of others for whatever distance did indeed exist. To emphasize my point, I held both arms out, glancing down at the robes that I was sure were highly unusual for the island. As the box had seen fit to provide me with set after set of robes, I didn't see a reason to argue, or to try and pick out clothes that were more modern. Ultimately, so long as I could communicate, and learn the customs well enough that none would leave me scandalized, then that was an accomplishment enough in of itself.

"It surprise me. Many people on island know how to speak Chinese. It makes the change... smaller. They tell me, in Chinese, what I do not understand in English. But it is good that I like to learn. If I did not, this would be difficult."

[number_unlucky]

"That's good," I said, though I wondered about the pressure there might be that was more subtle. Even so, Liang's robes were gorgeous, and I smiled as I watched him--he cut one hell of a figure even if it wasn't what I was used to.

"I'm glad there are some people who can provide decent translation," I said. "I know sometimes dictionaries don't really work as well as you would like them to. Would you like to get some tea?" I added, as the floor was now cleaner than it had been. Tidier, at any rate.

[patration]

The invitation was, honestly, unexpected. And so it took me a second to gather myself, carefully balancing the books under one arm as I held the other in front of myself, lightly fisted, and bowed to show my respect. (It was not a gesture usually afforded to women, but the island was more accepting of the abilities of the fairer sex, in a way that I earnestly wished that my world would as well. Besides which, I could hardly think of a woman more deserving.)

"It would be an honor," I replied with a nod, my smile widening, although the expression dampened a touch as I was struck by a thought. "Is getting tea a date? I am not very familiar with kinds of date from your time."

[number_unlucky]

Something about the ceremonial nature of the bow caught me and I was a bit taken aback by it--in the best possible way. I smiled, then blushed a little at his question and request for clarification. "It doesn't have to be a date," I said, clearing my throat. "It can be between friends as well. But I know I would like to be your friend, Liang--if it goes further we can take as it comes. That's sort of the best way of getting to know people, I find."

Oh god, I was stumbling big time.

[patration]

While I thought the question had been innocent enough, given all that I had discussed with Eden some time ago on the nature of dates, it seemed that Remy was the much more easily embarrassed of the two. At least, that was how I interpreted her slight stammer and the flush of her cheeks. Still, I found it endearing, as the behavior didn't seem to try to appeal to me as a man. It wasn't coquettish. And so I merely smiled again, wide, as I raised a finger to rest by my own cheek, tapping there.

"It is a very beautiful color," I remarked, before deciding to lead the way to the kitchen. It was often said that I could be charming, when I made the effort. I wondered how well that still held true on this island.