2019-10-07 - Honking Alive and Trying

Six twenty-eight, six twenty-night.. Six-thirty. No more excuses.

He had been staring at the Goofy clock on the wall most of the last two hours while laying on the couch, dreading the time that clock did lock on that hour; in those thirty minutes he had proposed to give himself before dressing and getting ready. What did he do before that? Why, lazy it out on his couch to get the physical expenses of the day's work off of him. And of course, once the hour was hit a bastardization of Stayin' Alive started playing on his phone as alarm, a form of pep talk to himself that commenced with farts and the honking sound of a clown's favorite tool.

He stood up then, taking a melodramatic pose which he struck for the room's mirror right atop his bed. It was small, but not small enough not to show a proper portion of his Zoolander take. "Fuck," he'd murmur, sagging his shoulders; "You look like shit pal," and he did. His intemperance at the time of eating some hours back when dinner came meant he still had a healthy cling of pizzacheese fiber out across the ginger bramble of his beard, and the first thing he did once he walked bare into his incredibly small shower was bring a colossus of a beard trimmer down on it.

Groomed, with a subtle touch of cologne and showered, something at the back of his mind reasoned that Bee Gees probably wouldn't be happy with the music he chose to dress up to - his alarm on repeat - but they'd have to deal with it. It was his jam, after all.

With a towel he dried away, scrubbing the back of his neck and ears before jumping into his attire; A short-sleeved, collared shirt logo'd with a scramble of Japanese kanji he probably had no idea what it meant, but looked cool; black, skin-tight dark jeans rolled up to the ankles and ankle-high boots of the timberland kind that covered what his jeans didn't. Atop of it all, of course, a shearling gabardine of the bomber kind, its collar flared up made of puffing felt that framed around his jaw and neck proudly, almost as if connecting with the rest of his curly hair and stretch of beard. He looked like a delinquent, yes, but straight out of a Star Wars cantina.

Finished, he head out while spinning the ATV's keys on an index finger, having prepared the two helmets at the back prior, as well as washed the tires under a hose's pressured spill. The thing was more than presentable. Or so he hoped. Prior to departing, he worked a quick text for her before heading off.

Sooner rather than later, he'd be at her porch. Not that she wouldn't hear his ATV's disgruntlement from two blocks away.

Kelsey had made her store run, picking up a few things to make lunch and eventually a light dinner. An early dinner. She had found herself pausing at the little makeup aisle the Safeway had and picked up a tube of mascara. Shit. She couldn't remember the last time she wore makeup. Poor Garrett had been subjected to her girl-texting. Trying to figure out how casual or not casual she should dress. The blonde couldn't understand why she was fretting over going to get a damn milkshake. That SHE was paying for.

She was hopeless.

Six-thirty found Kelsey standing in the bathroom, trying - for the third time - to properly apply this mascara. It was harder than it looked. Especially doing it all left-handed. Becoming ambedextrious was definitely on her to-do list. Muttering a soft string of curses under her breath, she finally did manage to get it on and wipe away any remainders of failures without looking like a goddamned raccoon.

Then it was back to the bedroom. Which looked like a tornado ran through it as Kelsey had come to realize she really had come to Gray Harbor with next to nothing for clothing. And no girlfriends to call on to borrow something. So she'd found her nicest pair of jean and her least faded shirt - a Guns N Roses number that was black and just the right size to where it exposed her right shoulder. She was a little self conscious about not wearing something long-sleeved. Exposing that bandage and her hand for the world to see, but pushed the nerves aside. Didn't matter what anyone thought.

Her cellphone dinged. Five minutes. Kelsey didn't respond. It was going to take five minutes just to get a handle on her hair. It took a little finaggling but Kelsey managed to pile the long locks into some form of a messy bun. She could hear the roar of the ATV very vaguely but Wishbone heard it clear as day. Judging by the way he was standing at attention at the open front door - screen door closed - when she came out to put on a pair of black boots that went half up her claves and had buckles going all down the side - though they were only for show.

Then she drew in a breath and moved to stand near Wishbone, keeping her eyes in the direction of the trailer park. Waiting.

It was almost like chasing a moving house fire to get a hold of Nasir's location on that bike of his, for behind him trailed one very visible bloating of smoke that rose up to the air in defiance to would-be conservatives of the weather. Indeed, give him a few more years and he'd probably take care of the ozone cap all by himself at this rate. His massive, yet dingy ATV looked to fumble and rumble like a donkey-tugged cart on the way to her entrance, from that last end of the block.

The more he slowed down, the less smooth the affair was, and as it came to a sudden halt it was all exacerbated in an up and down vibration that made the jalopy seem more like a Disney attraction than an actual bike, just with how much it heaved and moved. Once he reached the light of the street's lamp pole, his figure became the more clear on the vehicle. A tall figure - made taller by the heft of his boots' thick soles - wearing a mostly black, racing helmet with a long, red-tinted visor at the front. There were dents and cuts all across the hard plastic, at some places even showing some of that kevlar fiber peaking through. Written in fiery orange caption, the claim 'Degenerate' was etched on the helmet's back, the last letter - the 'E' - seemingly holding a revolver on its little stick hand, to the right, because reasons.

Blessedly, he turned the ignition and silenced the orchestra of gizmos that was his engine to let peace reign again, and he'd step off the metallic madness to the sound of his chained keys - clipped to a waistline flap, the other end in a pocket - jiggling as boots reached the floor. He pressed each of his palms together then, nervous, and strained the leather he gloved them with on the way to the door. He hadn't bothered to see the helmet off up until he reached the door, and had left his hair a sideways mess by the time he reached that open door, meeting them both. But mostly Wishbone.

"Hey," and then he smiled. An absurdly awkward, somewhat toothy smile, as eyes diverged from dog to woman; woman to dog, half-expectantly. Of what? He had no idea.

Wishbone watched the newcomer approaching. Tail already wagging, stepping around excitedly, make soft sort of 'wuff' sounds.

Kelsey watched with a mild amusement as the ATV came into being. Maybe she should've told him to bring the truck. Even as Nasir dismounted from the ATV and made his way up, she was studying the ATV in the light of the streetlamp. Degenerate indeed. Poor thing looked like it'd been to hell and back. 'Old Faithful'. Finally, she looked back to Nasir as the helmet came off and she gave him a smile. A little relaxed seeing that she wasn't over or under dressed. In her eyes at least. The silence of the ATV turning off finally gave way to the sound of cicadas, or crickets maybe. Those nighttime insects that sing their song. It took her a moment to realize he'd spoken. Greeting her, and Wishbone. She smiled again, snapped out of her reverie. "Hey." Looking down at Wishbone. "I'm gonna open the door so you can say hi. Don't be mean." Even though she knew it was physically impossible for the pup to be mean. Kelsey was strategically placed to where Nasir could't get a good look at the main room - the living room. But he could see into the kitchen a bit, which all looked totally normally.

"You clean up pretty nice." Kelsey teased a bit as the screen door started to open and, immediately, Wishbone jumped at Nasir excitedly. He was not, in fact, heavy enough to knock the man over, but he did come up almost to Nasir's thigh as he jumped up. Barking excitedly. Kelsey opened the door a little wider.. Though it still seemed like she was trying to hide his view of the entirely of her livingroom. Which, in all honestly, he was taller than her by a fair little bit so he might just be able to see it. Bits of it. The display cases, the newspaper clippings. The stacks of books. "Is your ATV gonna make it?"

Living room? Kitchen? Dog.

There was only dog. And Wishbone's back and forth excitement was one Nasir followed eagerly. He even widened his naturally squinty, narrow eyes lightly as to entice him, and once that door opened each of Nasir's legs were ready to see his knees descend, and meet the scruff of love with some of his own scruff. He grimaced almost immediately as that dog tongue got around to licking at his jaw, craving the salty sweat that had begun budding in the heat of that helmet on the road there. The biker caught each palms around the little menace's mane, hugging, scratching and raking at his pelt tenderly beneath soft snickering and the pull-away of his head to try and keep the licking from reaching his mouth, nose or face- a tactic that didn't always work.

"Alright, alright, alright, you won-- you won; I'm defeated!" he quickly announced, scampering up to his feet to move away from those jowls' reach and better engage the reason he came here in the first place, Kelsey.

It was difficult to stick strictly to her face, especially with her choice of attire- a selection that lured his vision away. His brows saw a furl here and there as shirt, leggings and boots he witnessed, and it all echoed a smooth; "Wow," with a brief beat, rise of his eyes and assertion of his darkened face to hers. "You look great," the admittance left him somewhat breathless, but in amusement. He felt more than ashamed at his choice of words, yet luckily his face didn't take to blushing well-- beneath the meagerly tanned skin, beard and wolfish rug, one had to be lucky to see red. Yet, for the perceptive, there it was.

"Mike," of course, the ATV's named Mike; "Michael," or Michael, and he looked; he saw over shoulder in direction of it, using his helmet to point its way confidently. "You're kidding? I've had him driving me around since I was eight. Ol' Michael's used to falling apart and getting put back together basically anywhere."

Wishbone happily licked and jumped, barking those greetings excitedly. Finally though, between Nasir and Kelsey, Wishbone was disengaged from him and ran over to the couch to jump up on it and settle. Kelsey was quietly extremely pleased with Nasir's reaction to Wishbone and vice versa. Wishbone was really her only family nowadays and so, even though he liked everyone, it was nice to see that he didn't have any objections to Nasir. A giggle escaped and she leaned in the doorway again, giving Nasir a brief look over. He may not be able to blush easily, but there was a flush on pink on Kelsey's pale white skin as he complimented her. It wasn't something that happened, well, ever lately. Especially when she was dressed in like, street clothes. "Thanks." Absently tugging at her shirt a little, averting her gaze briefly. Focusing on that ATV again. Mike. Michael.

Kelsey chuckled. Of course the ATV had a name. "Mike, huh? That's a good name. I'll trust Mike then." Her gaze drug back over to Nasir. Just staring for a moment. Then her throat cleared again. "Anyway. Milkshakes...Grizzly Den Diner and Sweet Retreat are the two prime options for them." She stepped out now on to the stoop, closing the front door behind her. Leaning up against his as she tried to catch his eye. She couldn't help it. She liked the color, besides - eyes were the windows to the soul or something like that. She wanted to know more. "Either one. I'm happy with. If you want more than just a milkshake, then the Diner. Obviously. Just a milkshake. Sweet Retreat. It's on the boardwalk too. So we can walk around there too after. If you wanted."

A subtle, yet intense grip seized his jawline as she leaned closer, product perhaps of his own closeness to the door he hadn't expected her to close right away. That Adam's apple so pronounced on his neck did an up and down of a swallow and that smile of his fell to an awkward, semi-puckered reaction, almost as if he hadn't made up his mind on smiling or running away.

His gaze wasn't exactly expressive, no- it was the opposite. A mostly brown, mossy spread full of amber - almost honey - freckles with a mostly glassy texture to them, reflecting back some of her own blue. Blue that was exceedingly close. Too close.

And so he took a step back, yet did so smoothly- he transitioned it into walking towards the ATV, to better hide that his gonads hadn't dropped far enough in matters of her, and spoke only with his face strictly looking towards Michael. She had seen enough, probably- and she didn't need to sweat the new lines of sweat that had begun glistening across the stress lines now cutting through his forehead.

"I'm not hungry so, how about the Sweet Retreat? Walking sounds nice, we can try the Diner next time. That way you can get a look at my awful eating habits-- pancakes, sandwiches and ribs? Yes please, all day every day, any hour, any time," as he made away with his response, an idle left palm reached into his waist-long gabardine, procuring the keys again. "If you ever want to drive Michael, by the way, don't be afraid to ask. He hasn't had a girl stir him around for years, weird old man that he is," with a furiously teasing smirk, he jabbed the keys into the ignition lip, spreading out a leg over the pad to settle down smoothly soon after.

With an outstretched left arm he slapped a palm on the other helmet, one infinitely contrasted to his own. White, with a grey, tinted visor and a padding of wool inside colored pink. It wasn't exactly made for a woman, but by design came clearly in a bundle when he purchased his, it just hadn't had any use until then.

"The truck's not much either. I've got it put for sale right now, trying to buy a car instead. You know... it just isn't very fitting to go around on a dingy wagoneer in a town with little streets," as he elaborated, his right hand adjusted the helmet on his head and slipped it down. Both were racing helmets, with tilted visors and hard padding, the kind that'd save one from a low caliber bullet. Probably.

Kelsey felt about as awkward as he looked. The last date she'd been on had ended in the worst night of her life and had changed her entire everything. Even though that had only been a few years ago, she wasn't even really sure she remembered the hows and the whats. But, was it really even a date? It was totally a date. On some level at least? Maybe. Kelsey was trying really hard not to dwell on it. No purse or anything so presumably all she needed was in the pocket of her jeans. A pair that nearly seemed painted on with how well they fit and not a tear in sight. "Sweet Retreat is good." She agreed, following after him. Thankful that he started walking.

She exhaled slowly and followed after him. "Drive him? I dunno. I've never ATV'd before. Might be scary. We'll see how this goes." Kelsey mused, looking over the helmet. Also. In that moment she seemed to realize something. This was an ATV. She was going to have to hold on to him while they rode. Right? It nearly caused her to start blushing again - which was answered by her quickly pulling on the helmet. "Eh, there's plenty of dingy wagoneers in this town. But I get it. " Kelsey agreed.

One more soft inhale and she settled in behind him. Trying to ignore the uptick of her heartbeat as those slender arms wrapped around his middle, instead of holding each other one was above and one was below. Leaning in to relax against him. Chin hovering just above his shoulder. Ready when he was.

It was a ritual, kickstarting this ATV; a ritual she'd be made privy to then, sitting behind him; anchoring into him. Naturally, he had to work off the buttons and zipper of his jacket's front to free it aside, and sprawl away to let his midriff breath. His was a long torso, and the little fat it had by the navel all resulted in an almost malnourished detailing of hard, muscular thew; of veins that bumped an outline on his shirt and scars, yet those were the hardest to discern beneath the touch of a fingertip, especially over a shirt.

"Try to keep your hands under my jacket once we go and speed picks up. The Autumn chill's insane when you're going at seventy miles an hour without something to cover you.

He moved around while somewhat restrained by her appendages, necessary to reach into the skeleton of the bike and loosen some valves, work a few pipes and even smack the base of the exhaust pipe with his foot. Steam spilled here and there, and he re-adjusted yet another bibb until being seemingly done, for now.

A pull of the keys and the panel lit up; gasoline full, battery half-way, and red lights that outlined mileage and all such jumble. He rubbed his fingers across each screen, clearing some of the building dust, and patted the excess on the gloves off on his right thigh before he rose, along with her, to sink his foot into the kickstart. The ATV's crankshaft bemoaned the deed in loud rattle, and the engine began sweating viciously as it started with one hoarse, suffocated roar.

"There it is," his muffled voice commented, deep in the helmet, and he reached back with an endearing hand to pat the gas tank gently. Curiously, some wiring looked attached around said tank, for it had come off the base recently. With a test of the breaks, a checking of the engine's start-up acceleration, they took off.

Nasir took to the center of the road mostly, did change of lights just about anywhere- made stops at every 'Stop' sign even if everything was black and lonely, with nary a car nor soul on sight. It was in one of such stops that he piped up again, pulling up his helmet's visor as to unmuffle his voice some.

"So, you don't have a boyfriend right?"

Kelsey couldn't help but explore a little. Taking advantage when he moved around to try and get an idea of what was underneath the shirt. And immediately felt guilty for it. But she couldn't help it. Just like she couldn't help a lot of what her mind had spiraled to in the last 24 hours. No matter how much she chided herself. "Gotcha." To his warning about keeping her hands under his jacket. She'd probably be freezing by the time they got to the boardwalk, but that was okay. She'd live.

Kelsey waited patiently, watching with perhaps a mild fascination at how he got Mike started. A muffled chuckle and she settled in for the ride. Focusing on the road ahead. He'd feel the light pressure of her grip tightening when they road and loosening when they came to a stop. She was glad the helmet was on when he piped up again.

She lifted her own visor, chuckling. "I'd be a pretty shit girlfriend if I did." Her chin finally resting on his shoulder instead of hovering. "No. I don't have a boyfriend. Do I have to be worried about some chick coming to give me shit for getting a milkshake with out?"

It was a silent, eery stop, strangely enough. Not all lights from the posts worked, and some even flickered- the ones closest to them. And Nasir could swear those lights hadn't quite flickered before, so it must've been an entirely new change to their corporeal state.

Broad of shoulder, there was plenty of space there for a chin, and he'd even knock the mouth of his helmet with hers lightly once he turned to try and look over in her direction, which reactively made him snicker in deep, somewhat hoarse amusement. "Would I take you out on a date if that was the case?" was his inquire in turn, yet he didn't sit on it- the thought had crossed him that, in truth, she just didn't know him that well to know it to be true. After a beat, he followed with; "No, there's-- there is no one. And there hasn't been one for a while, so, don't give me too much shit if I fumble a bit, or do some stupid shit, you know? Haha," strangely, the openness of the statement felt almost fitting with the dark, bug-chirped atmosphere of the dilapidated road, and while he was awkward for the most part in explanation there was quite a weight off his shoulders lifted at the shared admission, and important things out of the way.

"Are you cold? Getting colder-- do you want my jacket?" Nasir asked in addition, yet it felt more as idle talk for his eyes peaked out from within the helmet up and towards the red light that had gone yellow, soon green. And with its change, their hopeful departure.

Kelsey felt just a touch of uneasiness at the stop. The way the lights flickered, and just how quiet it was. She was totally happy to run head first in the Veil and fuck up shit but, this scene that was like the pre-amble in a horror movie? Fuck that noise. Kelsey would do Veil stuff all day. Kelsey did not do Horror Movies.

Thankfully, his answer to her question was distraction enough. "I dunno, some guys are assholes like that." He could here the amusement in her tone though. "I didn't peg ya for one of them though." She relaxed even, at his admission. "It's been a while...for me too. So, I won't judge you s'long as you don't judge me." Kelsey assured him, gaze drifting up towards the stoplight.

"Nah, I'm good for now. Thanks though." Tightening her grip again as the light turned green. A sure signal she was ready to get out of here.

Luckily, Nasir himself wasn't bothered at all. He kept his composure, it certainly wasn't the first time he was out in the dark in the middle of nowhere sitting on top of a glorified bike feeling like you're exposed to the world and surrounded by a coppice of treacherous trees.

No, he was doing just fine. Especially knowing he had quite a charge hanging onto him, one he occasionally looked at over shoulder as if to ensure she was real, and wouldn't disappear at any given time. The feeling of palms around his midsection, however, eased some of that negative wonder.

With a soft wheeze, the bike kicked on, this time with hard acceleration- a little trick, perhaps to panic her enough into holding tighter. Regardless, they'd drive for a while to head deeper into town, and soon the night lit up with urban housing and businesses' lights. The roads were humid from an afternoon rain, and every other time they turned a corner a kick-up of water spilled from the turns of the ATV, until that "Sweet Retreat" spot manifested in the distance. Traffic was at a bit of a jam, but the four by four nature of his vehicle meant he was able to hop-skip around some of the traffic until they pushed into the relatively small parking lot, each car section segmented and differentiated by one big, marble planter with puff-tuffed tops.

Michael's width meant it fit perfectly for a car's slot, and she'd feel a certain calm smooth the stiffness of his abdominals strain where she clung once that engine came to a stop. "Here it is. It's real pretty around here," Nasir eagerly commented, proving his mood upbeat with how chirpy his tone was. Chirpiness didn't take to him well, specially with the baritone gruffness that cursed his voice, so it came off rather strange indeed.

He'd wait until she herself stood and moved off before doing so himself, as to hang his helmet on a handle and place the ignition lock on the turnwheel's base.

Trick or not, it worked. Those arms tightened instinctively as the ATV roared off. She clung to him like that for just a moment or two longer. Loosening slowly as their speed evened out- but he could still feel the gentle pressure around his mid section. Feeling a little better when they started making their way towards the boardwalk.

Being that Sweet Retreat was nestled right on the Boardwalk, pulling into the close -yet small- parking lot meant they still had a short walk to get to the building itself. Even though they stopped and Mike was turned off, Kelsey lingered against him a minute longer than necessary. Maybe she was lost in thought, maybe she just wanted an excuse to stay against his warm frame. Nevertheless, Kelsey finally let go.

Getting off the ATV, Kelsey carefully removed the helmet- her bun nearly falling out as she did. Nearly. Kelsey gave Nasir a bright grin. So what if that chiperness sounded a little strange with the rough baritone that was his voice. Kelsey was glad that he was in a good mood. Glad she was here. With him. Kelsey mentally kicked herself for being so...sappy. For getting ahead of herself.

Kelsey followed suit, setting her helmet with his. "It is really nice out tonight. It's a good night for a milkshake." Kelsey curled her fingers against her thigh. Suppressing a random urge to offer her hand out to him for their walk. Nope. No. Nope. She drew in a breath and then lifted her hand to point to a building a short ways off. "There it is. So, not too bad a walk." And since tourist season was over- the Boardwalk wasn't too terribly crowded.

And how he appreciated that, the lack of crowds. There were certain things learned in life as lessons, especially when one was thrown around in military conditioning to keep a sense of awareness at all times, and aware he was; warily he looked over one shoulder and then the other, while inside the slightly ajar spread of his lips his tongue swayed and clicked lightly while making calculations in the back of his mind, as if searching for something. Information, perhaps; the addresses on the road, and whatnot. Satisfied, and turning back on what couldn't have taken longer than a few seconds, it was in perfect tandem to see her hand awkwardly writhe into her leggings before soaring out to point at the building.

Nasir smiled wryly, replying in a patronizing, yet playful tone but after; "Is that it? Are you right? Phew-- I thought we were lost," and after a beat; after walking around the ATV and working on the buttons of his punkish gabardine before zipping it up to the neck he stood beside her, looking once over her head before finally staring down at her face, yet again.

"So, how're you feeling? Good? When was the last time you popped by here? Friends-- other dates, or something?" once the question was out, he begun walking. A slow, incredibly leisure pace- a pace that wouldn't get in the way of looking at her, or the conversation. Naturally, he looked in front here and there, to clinch they didn't crash into people.

"It's easier to get lost in this town than you'd think." Kelsey mused, without even thinking about it. "Anywho." Staring right back at him before pulling her eyes away when he started walking and asking his question. Kelsey, on the other hand - had naturally started to walk at a quicker pace. Such the opposites that they were. Then realized what she was doing and slowwwwwed down. Looking a touch sheepish. "I'm fine. Not as cold as I thought I'd be." She started to work on fixing her bun a bit ultimately would give up. It was a messy bun after all, let it stay messy or whatever.

"Last time I was here was a week or so ago actually. Got myself a cone to celebrate getting my sling off." Kelsey motioned to her arm. "I, uh, don't really got friends around here. I mean, I have a couple newer ones but I've mostly been a hermit for the last year or so that I've lived here." She admitted. "Let alone gone out on any dates. That's been even longer. " Which might be a little odd for some people to hear. A relatively pretty young woman with a decent personality and not a single date in over a year? Hopefully Nasir didn't think it was odd, considering he said he'd been out of the game for a while too.

"You haven't been here before right? They have the best ice cream. And you can pick whatever one you want for the milkshake. I haven't had a milkshake from here in a while. Now that I think about it."

Indeed. Nasir did say he had been out of the game for a while, but that's because he had served in the reserve, then the army, for ten years.

Red flags have been risen, and skepticism spread thorough his form like a plague. All such possibilities and considerations went through his head; relatively pretty young woman, great personality, put together, owns a dog, and no dates? A part of him wanted to run for the hills, and perhaps he should have, but instead he looked subtly over his shoulder at the ATV and focused to see Mike straight in the eye. Or, well, his taillights. It was re-assurance, is what it was; some things never changed, and Michael had a history of looking equally shitty for all of those fourteen years.

And so he looked back; he saw her again, and the casual smile on her face so contagious it soon had him smiling again. Much more subtly, but a smile was a smile, and this one she made. "How do you not have a cadre of friends waiting outside of your door just yet-- really, no real long friends at all? Shit... well, why don't we share some friends? I'll introduce you to Marion, they're a good friend of mine. They're also smart-- very smart."

His hands slowly dug into the pockets of his jacket once it became obvious there'd be no need of him to hold anyone's hands. Perhaps a good thing, as his palms were sweating horribly. Perhaps obvious, with how he started rubbing the palms against the inner side of the jacket to dry them.

"How about I pick whatever you pick?"

All kinds of red flags that Kelsey was fully aware of. Maybe she half expected him to come up with some excuse to ditch her with every step closer to the ice cream shop. But, he didn't. She should just relax a little. Just enjoy this for...whatever it was. The hands getting put away in the pocket was noted absently.

Yes. Likely for the best, and not just for the sweating palms. "I've had a rough couple of years. Didn't leave much time for friends." Kelsey offered up. Sounded like there might be a whole, long story behind that. One she wasn't going to be telling any time soon.A sidelong glance towards the man at the mention of sharing friends. It earned a little chuckle.

"Sure. We can share friends. That'd probably be good. You introduce me to them, and I'll introduce you to my friend Garrett. Maybe Dante too. You'd probably like both of them." Maybe. As drawn to him as Kelsey felt, she still didn't really know a damn thing about him.

"I hope you like everything but the kitchen sink." Kelsey said, a smirk tugging at her lips when Nasir suggested he just get what she gets. As they came upon the building, she tugged the door open and motioned to him. "Time Traveler's first." Offering up a wink as well.

His curiosity was more than piqued at the implication, but the bright lights coming through the glassy, see-through door reminded him that this here was a quest for happy times, and happy thoughts, and so he lengthened his smile; he moved in smoothly with her arm as it opened way for him to enter, and his own hands both left their respective compartments to hold it open, motioning her inside theatrically.

"And Milkshakes second? Here I thought it was Milkshakes first all the way," he reasoned on the way in, assuming she did indeed go in, and if her eyes lingered, there was a wink from him in return. Playful, and subtle- perhaps how they were meant to be, all in all. The first thing Nasir eyed once they neared the counter were those prices, and each; every type of ice cream blend and the amounting, extra costs all made his neck tense and squeeze at the prospective damage to his wallet. Keep it smooth, keep it smooth, keep it smooth, and smoothly indeed did he reach back for a back pocket, fetching his wallet. A worn, black leathery strap that belonged better in the hands of the elderly than someone his generation, and so it's safe to say he must've inherited it.

As he splayed it open into his palm, a million ID's, cards and pamphlets appeared tucked into the hundred little pockets and chinks in its inner works. More visible was his actual ID, license, concealed carry permit and the veteran's pass for taking the bus for free. One he didn't use.

"We should all get together some time, actually. I've been meaning to introduce Marion to more people, and I feel like it'd help me accomplish my mission of coming back here, to the past, to ask you out in a way you wouldn't deny me and make merry. You won't believe how many times I had to rewind because of the few hundred failures I had at actually trying to get me to take you out, you even murderated me once," as he explained, his tone remained modulated and serious; as he elaborated and went into dark detail, not a change on his expression took change. In a way, he pretended to be more inclined to getting those ten bucks out to pay for his pair in the milkshake he'd get from her choice.

"Depends on the situation." Kelsey gave Nasir a fleeting grin as she followed him in. Catching that wink before her gaze drifted to the menu. Luckily for Nasir's wallet - all in all, this place wasn't actually tooooo expensive. Though. There was a sign boasting 2.50 Milkshakes after 8PM on Saturdays, but even the normal prices weren't too bank-breaking. "We'll have to come back on a Saturday nigt." Kelsey motioned over to the poster before walking up to the counter.

Mercifully, she was either joking about 'everything but the kitchen sink' or just taking in to acount his monetary situation. Not that her's was much better at the moment - having been out of commission for a bit. Flashing an easy smile to the person behind the counter. "Can I get a strawberry cheesecake milkshake please? With hot fudge mixed in. And he's going to have the same." Motioning to Nasir.

Then Kelsey leaned against the counter a bit as she focused on him. His impossibly maze-like wallet. And the story he was spinning. It honestly tickled her that he was playing along with the whole time travel thing. "Shit really?" A glimmer of amusement in her eyes once more when Nasir said that she had murdered him once. "How'd I do it? In the living room with a candlestick?"

"But, I agree. Since your mission in getting me out on a date after so many failed attempts has - thus far - been a success...a group venture seems like the logical next mission."

A double-take of the price and he pulled a thin stack of one dollar bills out the cut of the wallet. He counted them quickly- for someone with so little paper at the time, those that he did have went with calculative speed between his fingers before handing them to Kelsey. She ordered, after all- so she'd pay, simple as that.

"Next logical mission? Ah, eeeeh, I don't know about that," he'd shake his head some, tilting his head left, then right, almost as if his head was the balance and to the sides he judged their options, settling for; "Lets not get ahead of ourselves with this 'friends' stuff. I like being this way, like; I mean-..." caught off-guard by the speed of his own train of thought, surpassing that of his yapping mouth, some shame clung to his face at the revelation's implication and his toes shuffled in his boots.

He couldn't just leave it unfinished, however- that'd truly warrant him eating a bullet. And Allah knows he's not that far from falling into those considerations all by himself. "-... I enjoy your company, like this, alone. It's good-- you're easy to talk to, right? And I feel like I'd have that chance 'yoinked' if I invite a gaggle of my own little turd friends to orbit around you as of now," his tone changed to a more playful edge, to better elaborate on his explanation away from the intimate touch, and he quickly looked aside to glance at the scarce puzzle of tables presented as options.

"Lets go sit down. They'll take our stuff there, right? And I'll tell you all about how you 'murderated' the shit out of me," he held out his left palm for her at the end, as silent offering.

Kelsey accepted the bills easily enough, pulling out a few of her own and combining them all to form a neat little stack to hand to the cashier. The coins of change were pocketed and her skin flushed again as Nasir stumbled along. Turning back towards him, Kelsey drew in a soft breath. Not saying a word until he finished.

"Uhm. Right yeah. No. I get it." Kelsey nodded, pushing a hand through her hair a bit. That bun was definitely just going to end up coming undone by the time this night was over. If not sooner. "More people make it difficult to talk. And do more difficult to learn about each other." That sounded right.

Her gaze flitted down to his offered hand and there was some hesitation in her eyes. Because if she took it, it somehow cemented that this was a date. That this might end up as more than milkshake. Fuck. She steeled her resolve and slipped her hand into his. "Yeah let's find a table. I need to hear about this. Always good to have ideas if you piss me off." Kelsey smirked towards him.

Even though he had offered the hand, Kelsey led him over to a little booth. Sliding in to one side. Though she wouldn't release his hand right away. Only when he started to sit. But her hand did stay on the table. If he felt so inclined to take it again.

No sweat, thank God. Because that's what it was all about- it was all one long, drawn-out process of ensuring all layer of sweat and glistening had been entirely peeled off his hand before making the treacherous claim that came with finally seizing hers.

And how fucked it felt, to hold it out to her, in offering; to see it hang there, and wait until she did seize it. She didn't take long at all, no, but in moments of vulnerability and prostration time had a way to linger, and manifest slower, with him halfway into imagining ways to act like he hadn't just offered his hand; like he was about to reach for something, to touch something, to--nope, nope, nope, nope,--and it was taken.

And immediate regret, for it often went over his head just how gritty his hand was; how somewhat 'bloated', and perpetually sore it'd feel from callouses he had been stacking since a tender age, like someone came with a cleaver and lopped his actual hand right off the wrist, inserting a lego clamp instead.

Her hand, even if it necessarily wasn't, felt small and delicate under his grip, and the desire to show that same delicateness he didn't have in grip made for the opposite effect, turning his arm into a robot's hard limb so it wouldn't move, as to not risk being too forceful. Their fingers laced nicely, he made sure, and palms cupped - more-so hers into his than the other way around - and he didn't when she chose to go for a booth further away, to prolong the mundane hand-holding experience that had not so mundanely begun to summon the hibby jibbies deep in his stomach.

He sat, carefully so- he did it under the direction of her own sitting, waiting for her to get comfortable, and laid his own palm upwards by hers as to have only the barest grazing of fingertips sustain the hold that once was, just as his back adjusted to the opposite side of the booth.

His head peaked far past the couchframe's top from his torso's height, and he kept to a pleasant smirk as imagination soared, to imaginarily answer her; "Well," a beat, and a hand - his free, right hand - that moved subtly down to hook a thumb into a slip of his jeans to pull them up, as they had begun slipping down. He was losing weight; "It turned out you weren't just a sweet girl particular to wood chippers in one of such realities. You were some kickass assassin, so when I tried to 'funnily' steal your cellphone to catch your number you strangled me with a shoelace. Ah, the woes of the multiverse. Schrödinger you bastard, you couldn't keep your mouth shut."

Nasir's hands were all that much bigger than Kelsey's, but in this moment - they felt bigger to the woman. Her hand nestled easily into his. Her hand was cooler to the touch against that warm, calloused skin. How foreign it felt, to hold someone's hand. How funny, that you never realized how good something so trivial as handholding could feel until you'd gone so long without it, only to be introduced to it again. Kelsey was certain that some how, some way, she was going to fuck this up. Whatever this was. Whatever it may potentially turn in to. There's no way she could keep it right?

Kelsey pushed the thoughts out of her hand, taking the long way around to the booth so they could keep that contact a little longer. Once they were settled, her fingers moved a little more. Boldly resting her finger tips on to his as she listened to his story. She tried to keep a straight face but failed, laughing at the idea of her being an assassin at all.

"Well, I guess now's a bad time to tell you that I'm definitely a secret agent, and you're vitally important to my most current mission." Waggling her eyebrows a bit at him.

Unknowing at first in how she'd take his tease, he had taken to form a serious expression to better convey - indeed - the seriousness he originally intended for it until her face crunched, and that laughter was soon joined by his, yet much deeper; much strained, as if he had a bad case of snot festering in his chest. It wasn't the case, however- his vocal cords just needed recalibrating. He was a cyborg from the future, turns out.

He made use of every word to excuse staring so intently into her visage; into her eyes, something he did in entertained silence. There were shifts, here and there, on his face- a subtle raise of a brow, an amused twitch of his upper lip, and the briefest baring of his teeth in amusement, mostly at those waggling brows; brows that coerced his into waggling just the same. Why? Who the fuck knows- it must've felt funny at the time, but it only did make him feel silly right after. A good kind of silly.

"Yeah? Well, hold on-- before you start giving me any information, Captain my Captain, I can't go into any missions until I clear my schedule, and I feel like once you disclose my first assignment there's no going back. How am I supposed to take you out again, then?"

He kept to throws of amusement in his response, and did a playful tap-wiggle of fingertips with her own soon after, for reasons he couldn't name; "So, secret agent, what do you do for a living to preserve your 'façade'? -- How does Kelsey make ends meet?" at the frisky question he leaned slightly in, letting an elbow set on the table and his usually stiff form submerge smoothly into a calm, carefree stance- free of burden, he'd come to learn she had such effect sometime later, probably.

Kelsey was really having a hard time getting over how surreal this situation was for her. Sitting, laughing about time-traveling missions and secret agents, just waiting for milkshakes. No ulterior motives tonight at least. Just...having fun. She wasn't totally convinced this wasn't all some cruel Dream. Trick of the Dark Men.

"Clear you schedule? And here I thought that this, your most important mission, is just about completed." Kelsey mused and, about that same moment the milkshakes arrived. Even topped with some graham cracker crumble and whipped cream. Cherry on top. Kelsey, almost reluctantly, slipped her hand away from his in order to draw the sweet treat closer.

"Whose to say the mission doesn't involve you taking me places?" Kelsey asked lifting her spoon from the cup to take a bite. Eyes closing with a sigh of satisfaction. What does Kelsey do for work? "Mm...a little of everything. Odd jobs. Writing. That sort of thing. How about you? Just contract work when you aren't time traveling?"

He didn't appear at all bothered to see that hand move away- it made sense, once that milkshake came before him he too got his hand around it. The acopa fit perfectly in his grip, no bigger than five to five ounces in length, and the cold oozing off of it that made the outer, humid surface glassy didn't ward away his fingers from staying either. The opposite, in fact- little cracks of sweet excess sharded under his warm touch, and by the time he pulled the sweet treat to his lips it was already spooling humidity on its tray bottom. He wrangled the straw with his mouth and took one drawn-out sip that immediately made him groggy with brain freeze, and it wasn't even summer. Shame.

He shook his head, the length of his jowls shuddering along with closed eyes. "Ooof," Nasir complained, baring his mouth to exhume one cold, visibly misty breath with his usually dark tongue colored a strawberry white due to his milky intake. The spoon, the fucking spoon; he'd take the spoon, or fumble around for it as his eyes remained closed, making a cut across the ice cream before bringing it up on a messy stockpile of red and cheese, peppered with brown crumble. He stuffed it all in, and bit with surprise - surprise at how well it tasted - which prompted his eyes to open away despite the current numbness in his brain. "Forrfdd jorbs? Fark, flafs just hike me." With a mouthful, he replied- he didn't even hesitate either, and continued on after an easy swallow of the cream.

"What, you thought my life ended after we got our milkshakes? Fuck no dude-- I've got, too, things to do. I've been trying to find time to visit the Pawnshop, get a steady job, but haven't had the time. The owner's often busy herself too I hear, so I'm just-- I'm meandering on, picking what I can, you know?" his was a suave explanation, and the 'dude' was comically emphasized as if to inflict a level of obviousness that was clearly not put into consideration before. "Honestly, I mostly drink, smoke and fix things. Sometimes I hit the range, so I don't lose edge- that's the extent of my available hobbies in Gray Harbour. Saving up for a PC though, so I can play DotA, the only good moba out there."

"I can't do steady work anymore. I'd get too bored." Kelsey admitted. "If you can believe it, I used to be a kindergarten teacher." It felt like a lifetime ago. She took another spoonful as she let him continue on. "But the pawn shop? I mean I guess that's not a bad place to work. I go there a lot myself just to see what crazy things end up there that I can add to my collections." Of crazy things. Cursed things. Haunted things.

Kelsey gasped, laying a hand over her heart when he said DOTA was the best moba. Like he had physically wounded her. "DOTA? Really? It's okay but I mean. There are better. League is fun but the people are trash. I mostly play Overwatch. Sometimes Smite. Call of duty. Different things like that." Kelsey relaxed against the table. Stealing a few moments to take in the twitch of his lips, curve of his brow.

"But once you get stuff up and running, I'll play some DOTA with ya if you want." A few strands of hair slipped free , causing her to shove them back behind her ear. "I smoke occasionally. Usually only when my nerves are shot. Which . Thankfully. Doesn't happen too much anymore."

It could've sounded like admittance from her, but to Nasir it was a new brand of bullshit. Kindergarten teacher, and he took a deep breath; and he let go a deep, thinking 'hum' that he overtly dramatized just as to leave no space for thought on whether or not he believed her. He didn't. And he'd let her know,

"Wait, wow, wow-- hohoho, ho; wow, ho," almost, just almost, he found an excuse not to milkshake his life up right away, but the excuse just wasn't good enough. After his exaggerated expressions, she'd be kept away from an answer to his upheaval while he suckled in a 'strawful' of sweet, milky goodness. Again, the freezing temperatures made him bare his tongue some and he'd huff; he'd exhale the cold out his throat before continuing. "You're telling me, right here, right now, that you were a sexy kindergarten teacher? No way. No, shit, you're tryin'a-- you're trying to weave, is what you're doing; you're trying weave me a little story here. I've seen this movie though, I've 'got'chu' though; you're not convincing me though," and with that, his gaze remained sharp; his vision sunk to hers awaiting of a response, but he'd pay for that.

Little did she know what she did to him once she asserted DotA wasn't the best; little could she understand what part of him died, when rotten names such as Overwatch, League, and Smite were calibrated with the likes of Defense of the Ancients. He, too, laid a hand against his chest; he, too, had been wounded, but gravely so. He leaned back like an elderly, niggardly man who had just been given the invoice to that granddaughter's wedding he had promised to pay all expenses for, remanded not just to the comfort but the support of the couch not to fall on the floor and seizure to death.

"I knew there had to be something, something, other than your particularity to sticking your limbs into wood chippers, that I'd disagree with tonight. But we'll play,"

He took a brief break right after, letting his strong opinions sink in with her while his head turned, looking momentarily for a no-smoke-allowed sign he did indeed find, thus frowning lightly. He made to sweep his lower lip with his tongue and turned, eyeing her once again; "I smoke, man; I smoke a lot. It's like my nerves, you know? My nerves get all over the place. Picked it up in Iraq and I just haven't been able to let go. I haven't let go of a lot of things, and sometimes it feels like nicotine's the healthiest thing I hold onto. It's good to hear you're having a better time though- moved out, new life, puppy to take care of;" as he explained, his chin rose; as he neared the end, where he took it upon himself to file her life as it was within his understanding, he came to an easy, smiling conclusion.

"You're cute."

Kelsey wasn't surprised that Nasir didn't believe her. She hardly looked like she was the type that enjoyed having kids running around. Hardly looked like she had the patience for it. So she wasn't going to challenge him too much on it. Instead, she was going to tease him terribly. The urge sort of creeping up on her and before she even really realized what she was doing...

She leaned forward just a little, that right side of her shirt slipping a fraction of an inch, exposing more shoulder. The expression on her features going a little more...sulty? Mischevious? Devious? All of the above? A hint of playfulness. A few more strands of hair escaped the failing bun. "I was the sexiest teacher in the whole damn school you know? I wore the pretty fitted dresses. Showed just enough cleavage to make the dads and the moms take another look. Hotter than a sexy librarian." One blue eye winked and then she pulled back with a little giggle. "I'm not bullshitting you, for the record. Even if you don't believe me. I really was. A teacher of tiny children."

"I know, I know. It's dreadfully awful that I can't be as perfect as you dreamed. But I'm pretty damn close." More teasing, giving him an easy grin. "We'll play. And we'll have to make it interesting. Have to place some decent stakes on it."

Kelsey relaxed back in her seat, listening quietly as he explained about his smoking. "All trauma takes time. It's taken me...two and half years. For my nerves to calm down." She shrugged, pulling her glass for a sip. "So, I'm sure you already know. It don't happen over night. But...it's worth it." A touch of a smile, and another hint of pink when he called her cute. "Thanks. So're you. In that rugged sorta way."

Truth was, Nasir had indeed been taken into a side of things he just wasn't ready for. He wasn't a purveyor of those looks; he didn't have it in him to even understand them at first, until that fatal slip.

And he looked, straight at her shoulder- strictly at that shoulder bone AND collar bone both, each making their own respective appearance as if saluting him for the first time in the night. Hold up, what was that- was it sultriness in her voice? Why yes; why, what the fuck. His face squinted so hard when it reeled back to her it was no different to the aftermath of a kleenex tissue when pulled out of a jean's tight pocket, a mess of hard, oriental wrinkles. Hold up, and she leaned in, which in turn prompted him to lean back, not in disgust; not in discontent, but with the same reaction a sentient ice cube would have from an equally sentient fire, no one wants to melt into putty, right?

"Heeey, shit, look," he looked away, sexy librarian, with his gaze in brief panic as it glanced down to the little plastic the server had placed below the milkshake. He picked it up, hands somewhat shakey as he changed it around; "Damn, see-- see, look, shit," Nasir added, buying time to find interest into what facet of the plastic he studied, pretty fitted dresses, and he'd finally show her, dads and moms be damned, there; there at the of his index finger, a torn publicity from some old newspaper about coupons no longer eligible for the purchase of propane. Truth was, he didn't need it- he already had more than three different carbon-based gases suffusing way towards hindquarter-related matters. "Man, these coupons. I swear, you just look for them, you know? Get to live, like. cheaper--..." a beat, one forced by the addition of his supposed cuteness, and somehow his afflicted shiness eased as confusion set in, with his head tilting lightly. "-... Cute? I don't know about that. Cute like the underside of a truck's chassis, maybe; cute like how crows crack the bones with their beaks and suck the marrow clean off kind of cute, I guess."

A soft chuckle, a necessary look-away from her to take air that didn't coalesce with her own breathing, and finally he looked back. This was turning out to be a lot harder than he imagined. Sexy librarian, jesus christ.

It was hard to keep his eyes on hers, but he managed- of all things, he couldn't let shallowness be the one who brought down his little dinghy of a life. "So hey, uhm-... What really happened with your arm, man? Because I don't want to believe you stuck it into a woodchipper. It hurts my feelings just like it hurt your arm."

Kelsey felt just a little bit guilty, putting Nasir in a spot like that. Making him squirm and maybe just a touch uncomfortable. And yet, another part of her enjoyed his reaction entirely too much. There's another giggle that escapes her and she gives him an apologetic look as he frantically searches that coupon book. "Oh yeah, coupons are fantastic." And Kelsey did sound a little sincere about it at least. Hey, a discount was a discount! She behaved herself and resisted the urge to reach out and touch his beard. She really had a thing for beards. "There are different kinds of cute. I really don't think I'm cute. But hey, I'll take a compliment where I can get it." She gave him another smile.

A smile that faltered when he asked about her arm. "The truth, Nasir...the truth is that you wouldn't believe me if I told it to you." Those intense blue eyes settling on to his brown and amber flecked ones. "And, I really don't want to ruin the night. So, how about - I'll tell you the truth. Some day. Just...not today. Not tonight. Okay?" Lowering her gaze and busying herself with a long sip of milkshake that was bound to give her some brain freeze. She wanted to tell him, but he wasn't ready to hear it. She wanted to warn him about how fucking weird she was and how she was pretty sure once all the cards were laid on the table that he'd get up and run.

She wanted to. But she didn't. Instead, she let the icy freeze creep over her brain, making her grimace just a smidge. "So do you play anything besides DOTA?" Trying to transition to a different topic. A safe one. A normal one.

It wouldn't be close to the last time he heard that statement that month. It wasn't even the first time he heard it that very day, and so Nasir only did look on askance at the news. Now, it was almost like a challenge; now, it was almost as if he wasn't good enough for the truth and curiosity gnawed at him like an addict looking for that last hit. I swear, the last one.

He 'hummed' aloud, to let her know he was in not-so-deep thinking. The hard jawline below that scraggly beard clicked into spot, and it was true that he had quite the prodigious beard. Of all his traits, genetically speaking, such was a thing he got from the Irish side of his family, peppered in a million little ginger hairs that ran curly and outward begging to be scratched. It tapered into the same alignment of his chin, and remained as an entirely soft, somewhat scratchy blanket on his face, one he himself raked with his fingers in the absence of her own, thoughtfully. "Alright, I... you'd be surprised, but yours is the right to underestimate me, and later to regret it," he cautioned, tilting his head lightly with a warning of a look.

One that he had absolutely zero hope to sustain, looking this long at her face; at her eyes, and into them. It stole some of his breath, and made every intake more shallow than the last. It hadn't dawned upon him until that moment that the perennial need of looking away from her countenance time and time again wasn't just his gaze wandering, but a need to relieve that pressure, one he couldn't explain, but he sure damn felt at that moment.

He reached up, breaking out a whole palm across his worn looks to ease some burden, clearing them under a stroke for a quick, later smile, and a late response to her question; "Yeah. Mario Kart, all the Zeldas-... Mostly single player games. After DotA I discovered I didn't need any other many games in my life. Oh, and counter strike. I've been saving up a PC to play that new-not-so-new one on Steam, but that's ways away."

Kelsey studied his features, the tick of his jaw and the way he scratched at it. "It's not that I'm underestimating you. I just..Can you blame a girl for wanting to preserve the good vibes on the first date she's had in three years?" Kelsey asked. She tried to sound nonchalant about it, but it was there, just under the surface. A twinge of her own uncertainty. She was a little bit. Not really underestimating him but, doubting that his mind was open enough. And maybe she shouldn't, because he so willfully played along with her time travelling notions and even after the red flags she'd revealed he didn't run. Still, Kelsey didn't want to risk it. Not until she knew more. A little more.

Caught up in his eyes again, Kelsey found herself searching. For what, she didn't quite know, but she wanted to keep looking. Milkshake all but forgotten, this place all but forgotten. Thankfully he broke their gaze by that movement of his palm. She took the opportunity to busy herself with another couple spoonfuls. This was too much. She should just cut her losses. Come up with an excuse to leave. He couldn't see it, but her injured hand curled into itself. As if trying to steel herself and tell herself to not be stupid and stay put.

Thankfully, he answered her question and it gave her something new to focus on. "Couterstrike's alright, I love all the Mario games pretty much. Pokemon too. We'll have to link up on Steam and all once you're squared up. Her left hand found it's way into her hair again. It must be a nervous habit or something. Running those fingers through her hair. And this time, the bun just completely fell loose. Long, blonde locks cascading down like a waterfall. "Ah, fuck." She groaned , looking askance at her hair as if trying to decide if the trouble was really worth it. Then decided it wasn't. Fuck it. That's what she got for not just putting it in a normal pony tail. "Anyway...Did you grow up here?"

Unlike her, it was a matter of necessity for that milkshake to be the sole focus of his life. If she squeezed in hands to deal with her reservations, his method was taking as much of that ice cream excess as he could into the spoon to bring it in for mouthfuls he'd slowly peel away from the cup, scoop by scoop, until the only thing left of his own shake was the creamy mix at the bottom he'd most likely have to attend later with the straw.

Right now, though, he attended her with his gaze. Without putting too much thought into it, his right hand slowly stretched out towards her; out and in direction of her right cheek, where he'd press his thumb. With the nail's end, he stroked her face outwardly towards the messy drop of hair, to help some locks stack behind an ear rather than her face; face he had grown quite fond of looking at, such as it was. That same finger curved smoothly to her chin, and he'd boop it gently, meeting her visage with an effortlessly twitched, almost re-assuring smirk;

"Hey, cheer up. You're starting to look tormented, am I that awful of a date?" his hand slowly descended on the table but a moment after, and he wouldn't let that sole question be the lingering question mark between the two, instead answering her own, long-standing doubt with a simple; "Yes," and a slow, furrowing set of brows.

"I did. My whole life I lived in the same house, seeing the same people; seeing the same faces. I know almost everyone's face-- of the ones born here, at least. The ones in my generation. I don't forget too easily... that's how I know you're not from here. Maybe that's why I needed this milkshake with you-- I need you to get me the fuck out of this town."

His touch was enough to startle her out of her own spiraling thoughts, and Kelsey did look startled. Staring at him again, and if his touch had lasted a second longer her head would have tilted into it. Savoring the feel of his finger - slightly cooled from the cup - against her warmed skin. Looking a little sheepish again, Kelsey chuckled and straightened. "No, you're not awful. Not at all. I'm having a good time. I'm just..." A mess. "It's a little surreal to be out on a date? I'm trying to stay out of my head and it's failing pretty miserably." She laughed and then another sip of milkshake was snagged. Her own was almost gone.

Kelsey leaned her head in her hand and gave a wry smile. "I wish I could leave this town sometimes. I'm actually from North Carolina...then Nebraska...now I'm here." She shrugged. "But I dunno. I've learned that this town has a way of keeping you here. I think even if I left I'd find myself coming back eventually." Catching his eyes again briefly before finishing off her milkshake.

"Maybe some day we'll take a drive though? Drives are good to clear the head sometimes? Or a hike through the woods...though the weather's turning bad for that."

A soft little huff ensued and he pulled in the milkshake by its thin, glassy waistline. His mouth went in ajar to get that straw in, and for him to comically and loudly 'slurp' the contents dry within the lesser part of three seconds. In the end, there was only the glistening strawberry in the glassy cup and he pushed it away; aside and to the left, one less obstacle on the way to her. Sadly, there lingered still her own cup. "I know what you're talking about-- surreal or not, I didn't think dating was for me either, but like; like, here, let me ease you into how I feel, maybe it'll help you feel better," as he spoke, each of his hands moved down to the wristbands of his jacket's sleeves, pulling them up to the elbows. It was about to get messy, or serious, after all;

"See it my way, I didn't think I'd meet someone I felt particular towards fixing Joey's farting mess of a gym. Shit... I'm very dismissive with women, you wouldn't believe it-- I mean, I'm sure you've noticed, call them 'dude' and stuff. I don't bother, I couldn't- it's not a natural drive for me," a beat, and a very necessary break, to let his thoughts sink in. He tried to think, but not for a lack of things to say; to think of how to better convey them and in the end, perhaps, that's what was the most important.

"But nothing about you felt natural from the start. Nothing-- it's a bit fucking weird to go into detail since it was pretty spooky stuff, but I didn't want you to go to away. Dude, you wouldn't believe how weird it felt to have to imply FOUR times with milkshake if you'd like to go on a date--.. That is not me. But here we are, right? Fuck it," his shoulders rose, and on his face, there beneath the mess of facial hairiness, a little glisten of sweat had begun budding; a hint of nervousness, but he shouldered on with stoicism, even if he felt his feet on a constant stagger in the attempt to dissuade her own doubts;

"I love hiking, regardless of the weather. Got a pretty bomb tent we could use, too!" there, a cheering notion and a glance that sneaked towards the black outside. It was odd, how fast time had passed, but at the same time it wasn't. Time didn't matter right now, and by how his head looked back at her, sneaking a glance set for her eyes, it was obvious his own time was hers, then.

"It might. Help." Kelsey decided, watching him push his sleeves up and a little less than halfway through him talking, she just pushed her milkshake glass out of the way. There was hardly anything left anyway. This conversation was more important. That glimpse into his mind, far far more important to the woman than any sugary substance. Her eyes stayed on him, intent and curious.
weir
"I mean, yeah. It's not hard to see but like. Also - I like that. I mean. That you just, treated me like. I dunno. A normal ass person and I like to think we'd have had a similar conversation even if I'd been a dude." Kelsey offered. "It was the time travel line, wasn't it?" A wry smile. "I wasn't expecting you to engage me on it either. I thought maybe you'd tell me to buzz off or whatever." A hint of pink crawling back up her skin. "Shit I didn't even know what to think. The last date I went on ended up being the worst fucking night of my life. And not because of the date. Just what happened...after, during? Something like that." Kelsey drew in a breath. "And I dunno. Talking with you felt...different. I haven't really talked to a lot of people. Even though I've been here almost over a year. i just kind of watch. I wait. I take note of the weird shit that goes on in this town."

So much for keeping it all hands off. "And I think that you know there's weird shit that goes on. Maybe you can feel it. I don't know. But you just haven't gotten to properly experience it. And maybe you don't want to. And I normally love just, ripping off the band-aid as I call it. Showing people. Proving it to them but with you I-" Her face was flushed and she was trying hard to not ramble. "...I just wanted to see what happened. I didn't want to expose you to my weirdness. That kinda failed I guess." She gave a shallow laugh.

"Sorry. Shit. Right. We'll go hiking. That'd be fun." And hopefully this time wouldn't end in a horrible, blooding Dream like the last time.

At a careful, open-palmed warning, Nasir's right hand outstretched towards her, and he made one pained, difficult expression. "For the love of God," he'd beg, slowly 'bouncing' those buttcheeks towards the edge of the booth's puffy couch in order to stand, bent on that walk - especially with how warm the air was getting on their little corner - before finishing his demand; "Don't pull my band-aids off. God knows I've gotten plucked enough in the gut."

Warily, he looked towards the counter- a little part of him reconsidered that there might be something extra to pay, but he remembered not too late that they had already seen to payment. Still, the service had been great, wasn't it? He had a wonderful time, and despite it being attributed to Kelsey he felt the place deserved some recognition. Did people still tip? Why fuck it, he would. By reaching into his wallet he matched the quarter of the service's price, specifically, for the server. He tucked the bills neatly under his little splay of plastic on the table while folding them, smiling contently at the deed but after.

"How about we go take that walk? It's not going to be like a hike but, it's kind of the closest thing we've got going right now," if she did stand, when she did, there his hand. Held gently to the side, and open- he figured he'd need to start offering it, and offer it he would. Creased and leathery as it was.

"I'm not going to. But. Well. If you hang around me enough, some things can't be helped. I'm not gonna actively try to though." Kelsey murmured, watching him stand. Yes. A walk. Air. Air sounded delightful. She took his hand without thinking about it too much, rising to her feet. Yes, he would have to offer it. At least in these beginning stages. A day may come where she would offer her own or she would take his hand unprompted, but that was for later. It stirred memories. Long locked away, a little painful even though they'd been good ones when they were happening. But, she continued to try and press those memories down. They weren't important right now.

Nasir was important right now. This date. This...whatever it was they seemed to have. Some kind of connection? Two damaged people just drifting through life? Kelsey summoned up a smile. "A walk is good. We can even go out on the pier maybe. The ocean always looks to nice at night."

Once they were out in the blissfully cool autumn air, Kelsey drew in another breath to clear her head. A beat of pause, and then, "Did you really drop the milkshake thing four times?" Looking up at him and then laughed. "Guess you got a glimpse of how oblivious I can be then." Looking up towards the sky, the few stars peeking out behind the clouds.Then back to their surroundings. There were a variety of shops and little carts and stalls still open to browse around at on either side of Sweet Retreat. She figured she'd let him pick which direction they went in.

There must've been, indeed, a kind of connection, for when she mentioned the pier it felt almost as if she had rummaged the idea right out of her mind. A smile, that's what he could afford to give at the time; as they walked, and comfort grew within him enough so that his arm was a loose stretch of sleeved skin beside him that simply hung her way, anchored by her grip. His sleeves were still up to the elbows, with the hairy outline of his forearms sticking out. That one arm; that which stuck out towards her and lend her his hand looked to be coiled by a string of vein that pushed against his skin stiffly.

As they wandered, that thinking silence sunk in. He found himself unable to talk, unable to muster the imagination to foster conversation once the salty breeze of the shoreline hit his face, and instinctually made him turn; turn to see her and witness the effects of the gale on her hair. The pressure made one eye squint harder than the other, and he smiled playfully while leading her towards said pier.

As they neared it, its wooden foundations creaked and groaned their arrival, but it wouldn't matter. Nasir wasn't afraid, and he'd pace her all the way to the end; all the way out to that black, ocean-deep end that stuck out like a sore thumb into the water, so far away from the rats; so far away from the Retreat, that the sounds of civilization died, and the natural neon light of the Boardwalk drowned away to leave them only in the mute dark of their distance, and the sounds of murderous gulls hunting for shallow sea life. It was here he finally released her hand, having reached their destination, but he wouldn't have it hang, no- he'd see its palm rise up to reach behind her and have it rest into the center of her lower back, tugging her subtly closer and no more.

"I don't know if it was four times, I may have been exaggerating. Not the point- the point is that you made me walk out of my introverted ways, without even thinking twice. But hey, why are you so surprised? You're gorgeous and cool-- if anything, man, I'm lucky I crashed your party before someone prettier, richer and cooler than I dropped their mind games on you. It's not too late for you yet though."

Kelsey didn't mind the silence as they made their way towards the pier. She had reassembled some form of her cool, and was doing a lovely job of suppressing her irritation at her hair that was too damn long and being all blown in the wind like plastic bags. Yet, she wouldn't cut it, because her hair was also, in a sense, a sort of security blanket for her. Something to hide behind or busy herself with when she couldn't cope, or didn't want to. She was sure she looked a mess, but on the other hand, it didn't matter. Kelsey knew it didn't matter. And if she could see herself through Nasir's eyes, maybe she'd be thinking a little differently.

It was better out here on the pier. Away from the crowd - small as it was. Just them and the sounds of the ocean, the gulls, nature weaving its course. It eased her anxieties, and she didn't even protest his hand on her back. Sliding those few steps closer to him, glancing up out of the corner of her eye. Then decided to take a bit of a chance and took a couple more side steps closer, so her shoulder was touching his side. Her attention back on the ocean. "I told you before - I'm kinda weird. Not in a fun way. It's not something people can really handle." The wind threatened to drown out their conversation so she was turned a bit towards him to try and help that.

"Hey. Some nice, normal girl might waltz along too and sweep you off your feet. So feel like you have to go settling." There's a teasing nudge at that, and by the smile on her lips - she is joking with him. "I'm glad you crashed my party. Seems like it's working out so far."

It was nice, that; wholesome. Having her there, feeling her physique lean close, however strange it felt in truth; however rare a feeling to him, for a while now. She moved in close enough so that his hand needed to move further into her; into her back, to avoid risking tilting his torso heinously, and instead chose to reach for her arm opposite to his side and take a hold of her bicep, using it as an angle to tuck her tightly against his body.

He was warm, strangely so- the surface of his jacket's shearling was smooth and comfortable, bar the few nicks, scratches and cuts that did run across some of it. They weren't artificial, either; they didn't come with the jacket. Each was too specific, too strangely deep, some even bullet-like to come out of any internet shopping list.

His head too turned towards her, yet not his torso, she had already done that well enough. His chin lowered some, and with such little tilt were their faces finally aligned. His own reservations seemed to whisk away with the smell of salt, when caught in her gaze at such short distance; short enough so that every breath was a tangible breeze against her features.

"I'm kind weird in a not fun way myself. I think that's why you seem so genuine to me- like I see a part of me through you. Like I want to bite the bullet, crunch down, and just hear you out, you know? I want to know why you fidget around me. I want to know what makes you skip a breath, and fumble with your hair so much. I want to know. It gnaws at my head," Gray Harbour hadn't known a force in its little world yet that could convey his head to move, forward or back, but his features did dwindle to a more serene, austere stare- a serious one. Going against his nature, the games were over-- his tone remained stalwart, and his confession was a firm step towards sharing his intentions towards her, however hard it was on his gut. Because shit man, it was.

Staring up at him, pressed so close, at such an angle that it would be so easy to kiss him, Kelsey felt herself hesitating again. That little voice needling in the back of her mind. The way he was talking to her, the way he looked at her. It was too much. It felt like too much, too fast. None of it made sense. "It doesn't make sense." Kelsey said finally. Earnestly. "I barely know you. You barely know me. And at the same time, I feel like I've known you my entire life? I didn't know your face from a hole in the ground until yesterday afternoon. I haven't gone on or felt compelled to go on any kind of dates. Or even try to put myself in a situation where it was a possibility. I spent three hours. Three. Hours. trying to figure out what I was going to wear tonight? And why? For what? To go for a milkshake? Who does that? What possesses someone to do that?" Kelsey had started and there was no stopping it now.

"Maybe I see some of me in you too. You've gone to hell and back, Multiple times. Once was enough for me. I just want to keep looking at you. And holding your hand. And drinking more milkshakes and it doesn't. Make. Sense. I don't even know how to describe what I'm feeling. All I know is that-" And Kelsey abruptly stops. Good thing it was so dark. Maybe he wouldn't see her blushing again. She swallowed hard. and shifted gears. "All I know is that I have this fear that I'm going to say the wrong thing. Or put too much out, and scare you off. And I...I don't want that." And yet - Kelsey seems to be waiting for it as she watches him.

Waiting for him to tell her she's taken a trip to crazy town and that he doesn't need to be dealing with any of this.

A revolution of changes manifested on his face as she spoke; he was conflicted, majorly so. Following the trail of her train of thought was a lot harder than he had bargained for, but he tried. Nasir's mind worked like the gears of a clockwork machine; a shift, a turn, a click. It was methodical; it was a one, a two, and a three, but she kept throwing him into twenty, and forty, and then reeling him back down to a grounding five with how she looked into his eyes, waking him up with every beat of her explanation, and shifting him back to a taciturn, groggy touch to his stomach with the palpable feeling she assailed him with.

Words wouldn't be enough, he knew- and he, too, had considered her lips. They were, after all, quite kissable, he had come to realize it the more she danced them for him, but no such thing; not now, now it was a time to hear her out, even if it threatened to bring the briefest hints of migraine into the back of his head with how complicated it all felt.

It all begun with his fingers squeezing deeper into that bicep, almost as if to silence her. It wasn't her wind-pipe, but the message was the same. He needed silence from her now, after all was said and shared; he needed to hear the water sway, while his eyes closed, and he hovered over her silently for those three short, easing seconds before replying. "I've heard some crazy shit in my lifetime, Kelsey, so don't think about that. Let's think about more milkshakes in the future, some more hand-holding; some more going out, together. You know, like couples do-- I don't know if you're into that crazy shit people call 'couples' but, I want to give it a try. Give us a try, like that."

A brief, breathless inhale; a longer, drawn out exhale, and he formulated the pin on the addressing of his response; "Would you care to try with me?"

There was a shallow breath, feeling that tightening on her bicep and she remained quiet. Only the sound of the ocean and their breathing. Kelsey's own mind was still twisting and turning with more. But it wasn't in a state that was suitable for sharing with others. Just her jumbled messy way of thinking. Three seconds that felt like a hundred years. Waiting for him to walk away. But he didn't. Again, Nasir defied her expectations. Refused to give in to them.

Couples. Kelsey drew in another breath. She didn't even know if she knew how to be in a relationship anymore, but the proposal sounded nice. Milkshakes and hand holding and spending more time with him. If anything...no matter how it ended up, this was good right? It was good to start opening up more. Trying to build those closer ties with people. His question hung in the air. She knew her answer. Her answer was yes. Yes. She would love to try that. It wouldn't be perfect, because nothing was, but it would be something good. And yet, Kelsey couldn't bring herself to actually speak these things.

So instead, she did what Nasir had been entertaining. She closed that distance between their lips, pressing him into that kiss. There was a floodgate of emotions that she was holding at bay but he'd feel the desire, the heat, mixed with a touch of uncertainty because it was like riding a bike. After so long - you were a little rusty. It might take a try or two before your confidence was back.

Scruffy. Very scruffy. That's what a kiss with Nasir was; a bramble of hair that framed his entire lips and eased down against hers as his mouth, reactively, sunk along to kiss her right back. He hadn't bothered with technique since, frankly, he had none- he knew not the logical pacing of such kind of embraces, but he knew to let go; to let instinct take over, and instinctually let his mouth sink and fold with hers in that singularly hard, needy embrace of mouths, his being particularly cracked and chewy from the cold.

Every nerve end in his body wanted to coerce his mouth into more movement; into sharing her breath space more, but the kiss was just that; a softened, relatively chaste push that came the better half of a minute he finally leaned back, heralded by a wet little 'pop' product of their once airlocked tangle, come undone. There was a certain strain to his neck, then; a hard claw that grabbed it. A pressure, that he didn't want to bother with. It was that sweet taste on his mouth he focused on, and the more thorough embrace of his arm that moved around her body; that wound down to her waist, and finally layered her whole into an embrace against him. His other arm followed, and he hugged her.

They'd share that embrace for quite some time, until the night grew even more chilly and even the lights of the Boardwalk began to dwindle. Silence had been the perfect thing they needed, for there was much to think about, and once the last neon flash died at the base of the pier they returned, with Nasir seeing his way back home after leaving her back in Wishbone's crib.

Because you know it was his house, not hers.

For now, Michael worked them to their respective homes without a hitch. Still, one could feel the impending doom coming for the engines of the old machine; of that old, rusty ATV. The day of the rope came for him.