[PRP] Take Two (Chel/Jamie)

[chiickadee]

Chel was ready for another boring day and a boring shift at her boring job where she occasionally handled cash and restocked shelves.

It was going to be boring.

saedusk

THE START OF THE CENTURY

 

[saedusk]

The best way to make a boring day less boring? An icee, obviously. Not that Jamie had the same problem as Chel; his day had been going alright, far from dull when he had fish and video games to occupy his time. In fact, he might not have left the house at all if Shiloh had been home, too, but in his friend's absence he easily gave in when the idea of a quick walk wiggled into his head.

For whatever reason, he'd ended up here at the 7-Eleven and thought, "might as well take advantage of it."

When he first walked in the space behind the counter was empty and he assumed the clerk was on the floor somewhere, but that was alright. Jamie knew exactly what to do on his own. He made a beeline for the icee machine.

chiickadee

sparkles

 

[chiickadee]

Chel had been busy restocking a shelf of candies when he came in. It was part of the store's policy that when a customer came in, clerks had to be behind the counter to prevent thefts and other mishaps. So she scooted along and made her way back there before actually getting a good look at the person.

But when she did- "Hey," Chel said. Not in her normal customer service voice, but in her normal normal voice. Which was a slur of consonants and a southern drawl to boot.

"Ain't I know you? Like ... you look real familiar."

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

His hand was practically on the stack of cups when she spoke, making him jump. So intent on his goal, he'd managed to miss her return to the counter. When he wheeled around, he realized right away what she meant when she said you look real familiar.

It was probably the hair that made her easier to recognize. Even with the way the court decked everyone out in clothes they might not usually wear, Jamie remembered the hair. More importantly, he remembered the way she'd offered him a hug when he felt like absolute s**t.

At least, he hoped it was her and not some lookalike.

Looking around to make sure they were alone and hoping he wasn't about to make a complete fool of himself, he held two fingers on each side of his head like bunny ears. Would that even be enough?

chiickadee

 

[chiickadee]

Chel tilted her head, unsure of what he was doing.

"Two?" At least she could count.

saedusk

slowly facepalms

 

[saedusk]

Oh. Jamie's heart fell a little at that. How foolish had he looked? That's what he got for trying to be cryptic and cool, though. Couldn't really blame Chel for failing to understand.

"N-No, um..." Or maybe, worse yet, this wasn't who he thought it was. So sure, Jamie was so sure, but what if he was wrong? "Last t-time we saw each other..." he looked around again, just to be sure, "... it was at the ball. And I had-" He stopped, only vaguely raising his ear-fingers again, but not making it all the way to his head.

If this wasn't the right person, well, he supposed he could try and live without icees for the rest of his life.

chiickadee

c-chel....

 

[chiickadee]

It took a moment of squinting a little bit as he talked but eventually she put (pun intended) two and two together. She snapped a finger and pointed at him. "Ah you're from the- ohhh." It all clicked together. "An' a while back you got a icee here before too."

She leaned over the counter now looking at him with an appreciative smile. "Well s**t man, how you been?"

saedusk

gomen

 

[saedusk]

After that, there was a notable relaxation to Jamie's posture. He didn't look so uptight, so nervous, at least not any more than he usually did. "Yeah! I, um, come here a lot for icees, but... I've only see you here once before."

For now he chose to leave his prize where it stood, though. Hands clasped in front of him, fingers playing together, he took a few steps closer to the counter. "I've been... okay. Things have been kinda weird since, well, the ball and stuff. Oh-! And, um, about before... thanks for," he gestured vaguely, "helping me calm down a little... back then..."

chiickadee

 

[chiickadee]

Chel was glad to see the relaxation. She never wanted anyone feeling unease around her. Unfortunately with her appearance and demeanor, that usually wasn't the case.

"Eh?" She blinked once or twice. "I didn't do nothin', naw," she said, waving a hand at him. "That ball was all kinds of ********. Everyone needed a good hug." Including her. "The bunny thing though- can you turn that s**t on an' off?" She could turn her eyes on and off so to speak; she didn't really know many werecreatures and was curious how they worked.

saedusk

sorry didnt see you tagged!

 

[saedusk]

Jamie smiled at that. Though he didn't always get one, he often needed a hug, a pat on the back, a ruffle through his hair, something. Physical affection was the best medicine and it was nice when he found someone who didn't shy away from it.

"I, um, I can turn it on and off on the other side. Most of the time. Sometimes I gotta stay that way, liiike on the full moon and stuff." It still felt weird explaining mystical, magical things to people, even those he knew had experienced it themselves. "Over here I can only look like that on certain days. A-And I can't be, y'know, a full animal unless I'm in Other Ashdown..."

Now he looked kinda sheepish. Equating himself to an animal... that was still pretty weird, too, even if it was true.

chiickadee

np!

 

[chiickadee]

"Weird," Chel concluded. Magic was weird and worked in weird ways that she would never understand.

"Only thing I can do is this," she said. Her eyes shifted away from their striking blue color to a strange mutation of iris. Large yellow orbs that didn't seem to quite fit in her eyes sockets with a pink ring centered around a deep black iris. "An' I don't even get a tail~"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

"Too weird," Jamie agreed. It was far beyond him to pretend like he understood why any of this happened the way it did. All he could do was make an attempt to keep up with it and that alone was difficult.

He was closer to the counter now with one, two, three more steps. He was close enough that when her eyes changed, he could see them, loud and clear and bright in their newfound coloration. It made Jamie's own eyes widen. "W-Whoa... That's kinda... c-cooler than a tail, though," he mumbled absently, leaning in for a closer look. Then his eyes darted up and he added, "They... kinda match your hair..."

chiickadee

 

[chiickadee]

"They do, right!!" Chel was glad that someone else had finally seen why these eyes were cool: because they looked cool.

"S'not as cute as turnin' into a bunny though." Chel sighed and the color faded from her eyes, back into the balmy blue color. "So d'you just like ... hide durin' the full moon? S'gotta be sad bein' all cooped up an' s**t."

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

"I guess I gotta admit... if I have to be an animal, at least I got a cute one." Only then did he look away, not quite used to holding eye contact with someone for so long. To any normal, outgoing person, it probably wasn't long at all.

"My, um, my parents know about it, so I don't have to hide from them, at least. I don't really... show myself around if I don't have to, 'c-cause I don't want people to see if they don't, y'know, know anything about the Otherworld already."

chiickadee

 

[chiickadee]

"Yeah 'course. We already got enough freaky s**t goin' on in this town." She winced because she realized that might have been an insult. "F'you ever need a place t'crash you can always come t'my place."

She pulled out her phone and held it up. "Why don't you give me yer digits an' I'll give you mine?" Some sort of animal rescue hotline?

saedusk