[Open/Incomplete] The parties don't start 'til I walk in

[taminglore]

Characters: Aiba Masaki, Sawajiri Erika

Comments

[sawaeri]

Erika was trying to get ash off her hat when her purse made a twinkling noise. She paused, momentarily torn between the problem with her hat and what sounded like a phone message, before the phone won out (the hat was supposed to get dirty, after all -- she'd rather it be the hat than her hair). When she read the message, she pursed her lips, though the annoyance was more habit than an actual reaction. In reply she wrote,

Somehow I'm always late when we meet.
I'm starting to think that maybe you're just early!Closing the cellphone with an audible click, Erika made her way through the crowds filtering out of the train station, still feeling mildly annoyed about her hat. Stupid weather with this stupid ash, she thought. And on the train of that, stupid mystical, otherworldly portal

[taminglore]

Erika's reply came late, though it was probably no fault of hers. Ever since his experiment months ago with the magnets and toothpaste. It always took a couple extra seconds before his phone acknowledged any new message or phone call. If his luck was bad that day, it could take up to five minutes.

Aiba had a feeling that today, with its poor weather and respiratory difficulties, might be one of those days where his luck runs a bit thin.

But he'd just finished his reply to her when a muffled pick-up line struck out amidst the scrap of shoes and the sudden brush of wind. Forgetting about his mask, he grinned and looked up, sending his text as he spoke.

"Hey there, Beautiful!" He greeted, failing to stifle a laugh as he did. "You look dressed to impress."

[sawaeri]

Erika straightened, pulling her scarf down to be able to speak clearer. She could stand inhaling ash for a minute or two. "It's for you," she admitted, smoothing ash off her coat with gloved hands. "I usually don't even bother if it's someone else." Which was true, in a sense. Erika always took some time out to think of what to wear whenever she would meet Aiba. That was probably because with Aiba, there was always a chance they would end up in some situation where Erika's clothes would meet water, lemonade, mud, or even ramen. (Although that last time had been because of a clumsy waiter and not Aiba at all.)

The ash tasted disgusting, and made her cough to boot. Erika made a face, putting her muffler over her mouth again. "Let's get indoors," she urged. "It's filthy out here." She squinted through the haze of the ash, pursing her lips again. Stupid portal.

[taminglore]

Aiba couldn't stop the goofy grin that spread over his face when he heard that she dressed special to meet him. He could feel his eyes start to crinkle and his mask curve around his nose. Sure, it didn't necessarily mean looking sexy in a gown or cute in a miniskirt, but it did mean that she was ready for nearly anything that he could pull out of his Idea Dump. He'd always loved how she always encouraged him to keep playing with explosive materials.

The coughs brought him back to the weather, to the irritating burn that was starting to slip through his mask. "It's one of the usual bars," he said to himself more than for her as he squinted into the distance. "Um. Left? To the left? I can't see it in this."