[ there are some doubts as to her skills - he's actually seen far too much of girls who are no good at household tasks. luckily there's not much time to worry about it because customers are still coming; it feels like he must have fed the entire beach at this point.
the stall is small, so shinji keeps a conscious reminder of another body in there with him. it slows him down a little bit just because he's making sure not to make contact, not a huge detriment overall. some time into the day he does get into a zone and perhaps pile more dishes on the washing station than she could wash them. ]
[ her explanation makes sense. still, it's not a good idea to take things off at the beach... wait, wasn't that the point of going to the beach in the first place? then again, shinjiro was never about taking things off in general. at least there's the apron between them, so his eyes don't move to what bare skin she's showing. ]
Put the coat on while you wash it.
[ sighing, he moves to the front of the stall to act as some kind of shield to hide izumo from view. the customers first in line look a little scared because his expression is back to something threatening, just in case some wise ass decides to wolf whistle again. he's handing them food though, so they scurry away quickly. ]
[ this is the weirdest feeling shinji's ever experienced; i mean, other than dying. he doesn't know how to decipher the guy's expression. he doesn't know if he's happy or not. he doesn't even know if he should approach him to ask what's wrong. maybe he swallowed bone or something he didn't like... ]
... Somethin' wrong?
[ THIS IS JUST SO WEIRD. so weird. but also so funny so please don't be sorry at all ]
[Haru hasn't had many opportunities to do a job such as this - it would be an embarrassment to the Okumura name to actually, you know, have her wash dishes at a Big Bang Burger or something. But her own experimenting with her hobbies leaves her rather proficient when it comes to working with her hands.]
Mm... [It's difficult to keep up, but she doesn't complain.]
I've got this.
If she's a little slow, it's just because she isn't used to having this many to do at once. But she has a good head on her shoulders and she doesn't panic, so luckily, none of these dishes are ending up in pieces on the floor. She doesn't think he would tell her to pick up the pace if doing so was impossible - so she tries, at least.
And she's a teeny, tiny bit successful, though by the time she's worked through that pile, she's visibly exhausted. Oh, well.]
[ The almost bashful response goes over his head beyond a puzzled look at Shinji's back as he turns—surely a good meal deserved its just desserts of praise? Maybe he'd phrased it poorly...? In any case, Shinjiro does get a little bit of reprieve and blissful silence as he polishes off more of the food, too enraptured with his meal to pick conversation back up right away.
But alas, the quiet isn't meant to last. He pushes a bit of rice around as he calls back to Shinji to get his attention; he isn't even the chattiest sort most of the time, but this is a fellow artisan, a crafter of fine foods. It's always nice to be around other creative types, especially when it's a happy accident. ]
Ah, chef— [ he gestures with his spoon ] I was so caught up in the flavor that I forgot to ask what these dishes actually are.
[ it's actually rather insensitive of him, which shinji notices only afterward, when he catches a glimpse of her expression. she's doing a great job actually - fuuka would have dropped every single one of those plates. or maybe that's an unfair comparison because there's no way anyone could measure up to fuuka for the sheer destructive ability.
he has the decency to feel a little bad about it, and places a (clean) towel on top of her head. ]
[She's not expecting the question - or the towel, to be perfectly honest. She reaches up to pull it down and looks at it for a moment. Well, that's good timing; she'll need a new one for the next batch of dishes, since the one she was working with before is wet.
(But is it sanitary to use a towel that's been on her head?)]
Oh, no. It was all right... I'm just inexperienced, is all.
[She smiles.]
Thank you. I know I still have a lot to learn, but the more I practice, the better I'll get at it.
[ the fact that he was being prompted if something is wrong should have tipped him off to his own behavior. unfortunately, it doesn't. rai has no inkling of his reaction being ... ill fit for the scenario, and hence, he can't react properly to his inquiry. instead, he continues eating quietly. for several seconds, even.
that is, before he finally speaks up. ] The depth of the broth. The size of the noodles.
[ are perfect. ] The taste of the tools of war the humans once utilized. [ the garlic....
anyway, he probably just sounds crazy in retrospect, but hello shinji, your ramen is delicious. ]
[ they scurry away much like she shuffles in behind him, deftly side-stepping to avoid any accidental brushing despite the narrow space the stall offers. she starts to set her jacket down on the sink when she catches sight of the aforementioned coat...
...
loud internal groaning because this is so dumb, she honestly doesn't know why she's even bothering, but here she is, tugging it over and on anyway. the sleeves are too long, and the hem nearly reaches the floor on her, and she can already feel the heat of the beach cling around her body under the added layer like some kind of incubator. truthfully it encourages her to wash and scrub her jacket that much faster just to get out of it—
except while she manages to get the stain out, doing so left half of her jacket completely soaked... which means in order to keep from offending shinjiro's delicate sensibilities, she has to...
no NO she refuses to wear this heavy coat a moment longer. she whips around, starting to poke at drawers, her cheeks pink and puffed. ]
If they've got aprons, then they have to have some spare shirts, right?
[ shinji doesn't even look up from the stove when he hears the question. it's kind of his fault; chefs always describe what they're serving, but he didn't even think to do that. maybe he was just banking on the fact that the dishes are rather simple all things considered. ]
Oh, that's seafood paella. And that [ should be obvious, he thought ] is butter poached lobster.
[ seems to be the trend with teenage girls these days? he can't even fault her; it's not like his friends are any better. haru is doing a much better job, so he has little ground for complaints.
the sun is starting to set by now. beachgoers are beginning to disperse. it gives shinji a little break, and he pours a glass of watermelon juice, thrusting it in haru's direction. ]
[It's sort of a terrible explanation, but it's an explanation nonetheless. And honestly, her dad can just sort of deal with it. For one thing, he would have approved of marrying her off to an asshole; for another, he's super dead.]
But there's no time like the present to learn something new, isn't that right?
[She smiles and accepts the glass of juice gratefully, taking a few dainty sips. That hits the spot.]
He looks like he's been dealt a blow, which is way more dramatic than the situation calls for, but—such is the cost of his treason. When he finds them, his words are weaker than before. ]
Never... in this state. [ That is to say, dead. So very dead. Tragically: ] I had no idea they would be so delicious...
[ And yet, letting such a good meal go to waste was its own sort of sacrilege. After another moment of respectful mourning, Yusuke collects himself, nodding resolutely, largely to convince himself. ]
I should respect their sacrifice. You have prepared them most respectfully— [ Another realization strikes. ] I never did catch your name.
[ everything that was said is so weird that shinji doesn't even know where to start. never in this state? did he have lobster grilled? raw? live? never eaten lobster before? sacrifice? did he somehow feed a vegetarian?
but yusuke never indicated that he was a vegetarian, so it wouldn't have been his fault anyway. still, he can't help a look of confusion on his face. ultimately he decides not to ask. ]
It's Aragaki.
[ ... but, damn. the guy looks so tortured right now. ]
[ so she's a rich girl. it's alright. shinji doesn't look surprised, if only because he already knows another rich girl in his life. at least haru seems to be a little more in tune with the common folk, which is a far cry from how mitsuru is. ]
[She's trying her best! It's somewhat gratifying to hear that Shinjiro approves, especially considering how gruff he was earlier on. She takes a few more sips of the watermelon juice as she thinks things over.]
...there are a lot of things I never learned to do for myself when I was younger. But, I'm trying to learn them now.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
HARU
[ there are some doubts as to her skills - he's actually seen far too much of girls who are no good at household tasks. luckily there's not much time to worry about it because customers are still coming; it feels like he must have fed the entire beach at this point.
the stall is small, so shinji keeps a conscious reminder of another body in there with him. it slows him down a little bit just because he's making sure not to make contact, not a huge detriment overall. some time into the day he does get into a zone and perhaps pile more dishes on the washing station than she could wash them. ]
Hey, faster.
IZUMO
[ her explanation makes sense. still, it's not a good idea to take things off at the beach... wait, wasn't that the point of going to the beach in the first place? then again, shinjiro was never about taking things off in general. at least there's the apron between them, so his eyes don't move to what bare skin she's showing. ]
Put the coat on while you wash it.
[ sighing, he moves to the front of the stall to act as some kind of shield to hide izumo from view. the customers first in line look a little scared because his expression is back to something threatening, just in case some wise ass decides to wolf whistle again. he's handing them food though, so they scurry away quickly. ]
RAI
[ this is the weirdest feeling shinji's ever experienced; i mean, other than dying. he doesn't know how to decipher the guy's expression. he doesn't know if he's happy or not. he doesn't even know if he should approach him to ask what's wrong. maybe he swallowed bone or something he didn't like... ]
... Somethin' wrong?
[ THIS IS JUST SO WEIRD. so weird. but also so funny so please don't be sorry at all ]
YUSUKE
[ is that guy describing the food under his breath or is he just hearing things.
either way, shinji's pretty happy with the reaction he got, albeit plenty embarrassing. ]
... S-shut up. Don't talk with food in your mouth.
[ he's just going to. retreat back to the stall. it feels like if he was going to be complimented any more than this he might combust. ]
banishes captcha tbh
[Haru hasn't had many opportunities to do a job such as this - it would be an embarrassment to the Okumura name to actually, you know, have her wash dishes at a Big Bang Burger or something. But her own experimenting with her hobbies leaves her rather proficient when it comes to working with her hands.]
Mm... [It's difficult to keep up, but she doesn't complain.]
I've got this.
If she's a little slow, it's just because she isn't used to having this many to do at once. But she has a good head on her shoulders and she doesn't panic, so luckily, none of these dishes are ending up in pieces on the floor. She doesn't think he would tell her to pick up the pace if doing so was impossible - so she tries, at least.
And she's a teeny, tiny bit successful, though by the time she's worked through that pile, she's visibly exhausted. Oh, well.]
no subject
But alas, the quiet isn't meant to last. He pushes a bit of rice around as he calls back to Shinji to get his attention; he isn't even the chattiest sort most of the time, but this is a fellow artisan, a crafter of fine foods. It's always nice to be around other creative types, especially when it's a happy accident. ]
Ah, chef— [ he gestures with his spoon ] I was so caught up in the flavor that I forgot to ask what these dishes actually are.
no subject
he has the decency to feel a little bad about it, and places a (clean) towel on top of her head. ]
Was it too much?
You did great.
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[She's not expecting the question - or the towel, to be perfectly honest. She reaches up to pull it down and looks at it for a moment. Well, that's good timing; she'll need a new one for the next batch of dishes, since the one she was working with before is wet.
(But is it sanitary to use a towel that's been on her head?)]
Oh, no. It was all right... I'm just inexperienced, is all.
[She smiles.]
Thank you. I know I still have a lot to learn, but the more I practice, the better I'll get at it.
no subject
that is, before he finally speaks up. ] The depth of the broth. The size of the noodles.
[ are perfect. ] The taste of the tools of war the humans once utilized. [ the garlic....
anyway, he probably just sounds crazy in retrospect, but hello shinji, your ramen is delicious. ]
no subject
...
loud internal groaning because this is so dumb, she honestly doesn't know why she's even bothering, but here she is, tugging it over and on anyway. the sleeves are too long, and the hem nearly reaches the floor on her, and she can already feel the heat of the beach cling around her body under the added layer like some kind of incubator. truthfully it encourages her to wash and scrub her jacket that much faster just to get out of it—
except while she manages to get the stain out, doing so left half of her jacket completely soaked... which means in order to keep from offending shinjiro's delicate sensibilities, she has to...
no NO she refuses to wear this heavy coat a moment longer. she whips around, starting to poke at drawers, her cheeks pink and puffed. ]
If they've got aprons, then they have to have some spare shirts, right?
[ r...ight... ]
no subject
Oh, that's seafood paella. And that [ should be obvious, he thought ] is butter poached lobster.
What, you've never seen one?
no subject
[ seems to be the trend with teenage girls these days? he can't even fault her; it's not like his friends are any better. haru is doing a much better job, so he has little ground for complaints.
the sun is starting to set by now. beachgoers are beginning to disperse. it gives shinji a little break, and he pours a glass of watermelon juice, thrusting it in haru's direction. ]
Here.
no subject
[It's sort of a terrible explanation, but it's an explanation nonetheless. And honestly, her dad can just sort of deal with it. For one thing, he would have approved of marrying her off to an asshole; for another, he's super dead.]
But there's no time like the present to learn something new, isn't that right?
[She smiles and accepts the glass of juice gratefully, taking a few dainty sips. That hits the spot.]
...that's very refreshing! Thank you.
no subject
He looks like he's been dealt a blow, which is way more dramatic than the situation calls for, but—such is the cost of his treason. When he finds them, his words are weaker than before. ]
Never... in this state. [ That is to say, dead. So very dead. Tragically: ] I had no idea they would be so delicious...
[ And yet, letting such a good meal go to waste was its own sort of sacrilege. After another moment of respectful mourning, Yusuke collects himself, nodding resolutely, largely to convince himself. ]
I should respect their sacrifice. You have prepared them most respectfully— [ Another realization strikes. ] I never did catch your name.
no subject
but yusuke never indicated that he was a vegetarian, so it wouldn't have been his fault anyway. still, he can't help a look of confusion on his face. ultimately he decides not to ask. ]
It's Aragaki.
[ ... but, damn. the guy looks so tortured right now. ]
Do you have a problem with seafood or somethin'?
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That's a good attitude.
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[She's trying her best! It's somewhat gratifying to hear that Shinjiro approves, especially considering how gruff he was earlier on. She takes a few more sips of the watermelon juice as she thinks things over.]
...there are a lot of things I never learned to do for myself when I was younger. But, I'm trying to learn them now.