theattic | THE SANDBOX

THE DOGS.

WHY DID HE SAY DOGS.

NOW KREM WAS SAYING DOGS.

He was in hell.

i know a place at the end of the block that does old style fish and chips. they use newsprint and everything i think the ink is supposed to make it taste better???

He has a place, he has a time, he has a date. Krem smiles like he's more drunk than he is and sets his bottle down, sighing. Well. Maybe he shouldn't have punched Bull after all. "You're horrible at helping, but it kind of worked out," He murmurs to him more privately because as much as Bull was an ass, the rest of the chargers loved to give him shit more than the Qunari did.

I'm not so sure about ink making it taste better, but fish sounds good. Meet you there at seven?

the sign is bright green you cant miss it!

Just Wonderful had a date. He sagged down in his chair so that he was nearly upside down in his weird anxiety cubby hole, phone flat on his chest. He had a date. Whoo boy it had. Been a while. He rubbed his face as his nerves flipped and flopped until a broad, dopey grin surfaced.

Just Wonderful had a very nervous date who was now trying to finish off his bottle even if he had a sort of self imposed rule of not drinking when he was upset or anxious. It was a reward, and since most of his life was accomplishment in his line of work, rewards came often. He shoots off another text, just to be sure he won't accidentally drunk text him later, a simple good night, and powers his phone off just for safety precautions.

He's half sitting, half kneeling in his chair, and it's a bad habit of his to sit strangely when he's thinking too much, but Bull is there, encouraging him in the most inappropriate ways, and that's okay. He'll be fine tomorrow he's sure, and Just Wonderful will be ultimately charmed. Or at least, that's what the chief said.

Seven-o-clock.

JW leaned against the outside of Something's Fishy, exhausted and anxious. He had one hand tucked away in his coat pocket, the other clutching his phone in a death grip. He cleaned up nice as he could without going overboard and becoming a cartoon of himself--a dark baggy jacket to better hide his shape, his logo-bearing work tee beneath that and jeans. He felt naked without his apron.

He'd polished his antlers but forgot to comb his hair.

Thankfully clearing out a nest of giant spiders took less time than they had all estimated. Especially when one particularly large spider had encroached on the territory and started cannibalizing the others. And, fighting a spider that was nearly fifteen feet wide with all legs out, while difficult, didn't take as long as fifty with half the radius. This did mean though, that showering when he got home took a little longer, getting sticky web out of his hair, but thankfully he had the time for it.

Styling his hair was never difficult, blow drying took less than five minutes and running a brush through it once was good enough for it to lay like it should. Getting dressed was a much more difficult affair though. Adjusting himself in his binder, and even the time it took to get it on took longer than his hair did. Afterwards was thankfully smooth sailing though, and he with his essentials in his pocket, he left his apartment with a few minutes to spare.

He waves when he spots the other man standing just outside, thankful that it isn't raining. He's got a simple T-shirt and button up on, jeans to match, but it's a nice look even if it's far more different than his usual armor that JW see's. "Didn't keep you waiting did I?" He'll ask even if he knows he's right on time.

JW actually gave Krem a short confused stare when he approached. Without his armor, it was actually a little hard for him to read him as the mysterious soldier boy who'd suddenly become An Interest. He had to give himself a little shake when he finally spoke. It was Krem! Huh.

"Not your fault, I was early." He pushed away from the wall and shoved his other hand in his pocket, doing his best to assume the usual almost bored slouch he wore while at work. He wasn't very successful. JW was too nervous so he wound up looking like a guy who was walking through a house with a very low ceiling. Even though they were outside. "Almost didn't recognize you."

Krem keeps his hands to himself, but part of him wants to touch, maybe reassure him that he shouldn't be nervous because he can practically see it. Krem might be nervous himself but in the face of all things, he stood tall, because his pride wouldn't let him do any less. He laughs at his comment though, looking down at himself and knowing that without the bulk, he does look a bit different.

"Can't wear full plate all the time. Besides, it's not in the best shape right now. I actually had to leave it on my balcony when I took it off instead of hanging it up proper." Truth be told when he got home that night he'd have to spend a good hour or two cleaning it before he went to bed. Spider venom, traces of web, and poisonous blood wasn't something he should leave on it for too long. "It's bulky, and uncomfortable, but it does it's job. Can't go fighting in this or I'd be a dead man."

"I was just starting to assume it was part of you. Like a crab shell."

JW finally found his grin again which still had half its stories left. He waved for the soldier to go in ahead of him. Krem had been nice enough to offer, might as well let him pick where he wanted to sit.

He covers his mouth on a snort, shaking his head. "No, though I do have to admit it feels like home wearing it. Even if it is an acquired taste." He pushed the door open for the both of them, holding it open for JW to slip inside and glances around. Self seating was convenient, just because, as a Vint, being too close to the door or windows always made him feel cold when he wasn't warmed by the weight of his armor.

The spot he picks in a compromise between the windows and the kitchen, and he'll sit like he usually does, relaxed and sprawled, though without the bulk of his armor, he doesn't take up as much space. "Sorry about Bull by the way. The big ass...He likes to...help." He swallows, knowing that if he says any more he'll be admitting that yes this is a date and yes, he is very much interested, but with them both sitting there, it's a little obvious already. "Though I don't think his help is much help at all. He skips a step or twenty in the process."

JW snorted as he sat down, having to fold himself even more awkwardly than he did in his bakery. Nowhere was made to fit a scarecrow like him. He wondered how this chief of Krem's managed. He did note the way the man was sitting with a tilt of his head. Habit probably.

"I don't think he's so bad. I got a free meal out of it, didn't I?"

Didn't he, said a very significant look.

You learn things when you're best friend and boss is a Qunari, and power posing is a good technique to make you feel good about yourself. It was entirely engraved in his routine since meeting him.

"Hopefully you're here for more than just the free food," He manages, though the words are softer, he doesn't want to truly admit that he's worried that it's all he's wanting to get out of it.

JW had felt that exact worry days ago. A sudden stab of guilt shot through his chest for paying a little more attention to the dinner part of dinner. He was starving. And still hanging onto those few threads of 'this isn't going to work' that made him feel wise and safe and less likely to get hurt. The antlered man leaned forward, elbows on the table, chin in his hands.

"You know, I've been thinking, and as a carpenter, I think it just could be a good idea to give being a table a shot." He lifted his brows and tipped his antlers downward just a hair so that he could look up at Krem for once.

It's the look that completes the statement, and he laughs, some of that worry bleeding away. "If you say so, Wonderful. I could sew you a table cloth if you wanted it."

Before he can say anything else stupid, their server comes over, offering water and what ever else they might have with their dinner, and Krem gets iced tea because they don't have wine. What ever JW wants to order, it's up to him, but he's the first to admit he hasn't looked at the menu yet.

JW chose a soda because darn it, he'd earned it after working that ridiculous party and having to stare at rich people all afternoon. He also pointed out the place's signature fish and fries in a basket meal and encouraged Krem to do the same. They were to die for--every batch came out screaming hot and greasy enough to turn your napkins clear.

"Yeah, floral print and everything. Now ,what I wanna know is how you got your phone back from a big guy like that!"

On JW's insistence, he does order it, and is hoping that the tartar brought with it isn't the sweet kind that some places serve but more vinegar than anything. He likes it that way, goes well with the fish and doesn't add any unnecessary sweetness to the already sweet meat of the fish. In any case, he'll grin back at him, leaning forward on the table a little with both arms crossed in front of him. "Oh, he took pity on me. Chief's practically eight feet tall with those horns of his, I socked him in the gut but he just laughed at me and gave it back once he'd done his part. He said I could 'take it from there'."

He smiles fondly though, knowing that even if Bull was an ass, he meant well. "Chief's methods are sloppy but if it had really put you off he'd be the first to admit it was him and not me. He's a good man that way."

"Oh, I wasn't--put off exactly. Just surprised!" The grin crept back onto his face. "I mean, that's somethin' you'd say to somebody who's more-- I mean you're so--"

JW started to gesture but his eyes fell on the soldier's arms. His smile quirked nearly sideways in surprise as he tried to contain a noise. Oh, lord have mercy. He'd seen photos of Krem holding that menacing weapon but the armor had helped with the image some how. He wouldn't call it an illusion exactly, but now seeing the arms that were doing all the hard work under the armor made it so much more impressive.

Admittedly if Krem ate anything off of JW it probably wouldn't be cake. He'd get sick after too long. Body shots he could do, though he isn't going to suggest it. He isn't so sure what the other man is getting at though when he stops, eyebrow raised. He's staring at him, and it makes him self conscious, and for a moment he half glances down, trying to figure out if he's uneven, if something isn't falling right, but it's perfect, he'd done a very thorough job.

"I'm what?" What are you staring at, JW?

His hand moved over his mouth and--yup. He was still doing that stupid grin. May as well come clean. JW brought his own twig arms up as an example and furiously tried to ignore the heat in his ears. When he spoke, his words came out rapidly as if he were trying to contain more dumb-sounding excited noises.

"How heavy is that hammer thing? You just--haul it up over your shoulder!"

"O-oh." Well. It had been a while since he'd walked around with his arms mostly bare, he can admit. It's nice to know that JW was admiring rather than just staring, and he can't help his boastful grin, patting his own arm. "It's about sixty pounds, and I can do more than just lift it over my head." He leans a little further across the table, that smile not leaving his face.

"I do it all with a smile."

JW unfurled his hands--thought better of it--and curled them back into fists. He wants to squeeze one of them. It all comes crashing down on him that this walking tank just might like him. How is that a thing? He doesn't know! He's going to stop questioning it. Shut up, Doubt!

"THAT'S--" He stammers. "NEAT."

Neat!?!?! His brain screams in anguish. NEAT? You can't tell a man who kills giant spiders with a hammer he's just neat!

Krem can't help but laugh. Not at him, but his phrasing, the stutter. "Your cute." He takes a sip of his tea as he sits back up, pulling those arms back out of range for squeezing, though, smiling into his glass his hand moves to fix his hair, flexing as a result. He almost snorts his water because he knows he's being obvious, and it's fun to.

JW's brain continues to scream as he tries to fight the fluster off his face. He folds his bony arms tight against his chest and hunches over.

"I'm not cute, I'm mysterious and ruggedly handsome."

He can't even squint properly because when Krem brings his arm up to adjust his 'do, they widen again. He could feel his Unapproachable and Grouchy cred crumbling all around him.

"Oh, come on!"

"You could be both. You don't have to take my opinion for it, but it's not going away either." His reaction gets him to laugh more and he sets his water down, straightening out his sleeve that had gotten caught on his bicep.

"You can take a picture if you want, but I don't mind you staring either." Well, it does fluster him a little, but he's having too much fun to let it affect him right now. Teasing and sassy is what he's used to with the chargers, and it's fun to be around someone new. "M'glad you like it."

JW hesitates for a moment, tugs his phone out of his coat pocket and snaps a picture right there, while looking Krem dead in the eye. NO SHAME.

"Do I get to see more sometime?"

The guy had to have monster calves to carry all that armor and the weapon. And to do all that running and walking. JW swallows when he feels his heart speed up. This was not going the way he'd planned at all.

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AND SO IT CAME TO PASS

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