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Plot Update 10 March 2021

A year has passed since Fire Lord Zuko ascended the throne, and it seems like trouble is brewing between the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom once more. The Fire Lord and the Avatar began the Harmony Restoration Movement to restore the Fire Nation Colonies to their pre-war state by bringing any Fire Nation nationals back home, but for many of the citizens — of mixed Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom … Read more ›

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Story of My Life [tag: Kami]

Anonymous
Oct 1, 2013 17:27:46 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2013 17:27:46 GMT -6

It was a grey morning, the summer sun barely creaking through clouds as Hyuk-jae pulled on his usual now-ivory button-up shirt and left his dingy apartment to hit the streets. The best corners to stand on were always taken early, every newsie knew it. In order to get a prime spot, the young man would have to really book it to pick up his issues and stake his claim. Business people downtown were always a perfect pick. It wouldn't hurt to get his issues sold as early as possible, either, not if it was going to be a hot day.

He slid into the newspaper office, taking a stack of papers and trying to avoid speaking to anyone. Hyuk-jae hated almost everyone at the office; each person only looked out for their own lot, and he was more trouble-prone than the others. Hoping to avoid a speech about how lucky he was to even be allowed to sell the paper, Hyuk-jae beat it for the door and worked on getting to a good street corner downtown.

Hurrying had its disadvantages, of course. Hyuk-jae's stomach was growling miserably due to his lack of breakfast, and as he walked quickly down the sidewalk with his bundle of papers, he pressed a hand to it in a vain effort to quiet the noise. Looking around for a street sign, the young man pursed his lips, thinking. Unfortunately, thinking and not paying attention led him to run smack into a short young man dressed in far nicer clothes than he was.

"Stone of a peach!" Hyuk-jae dropped his papers on impact. He knelt to pick them up. "I'm so sorry, entirely my fault — wasn't looking where I was going —" He hoped that he hadn't damaged the young man's clothes. He could never afford to fix them, even if the guy demanded it. Brushing thick black hair out of his eyes, the newspaper boy reached for an issue that was trying to escape into the wind. "Are you all right?"
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Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 1, 2013 17:55:10 GMT -6

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Yawning ever so slightly, Nagisa slung his "schoolbag" over his shoulder. He made his way down the deserted street, eyeing the sun just starting to peek out over the horizon casting everything in greyish-orange light. Host work called for late nights, and as of late had been spilling over into early morning. It was unsurprising; with the unrest in the city a lot of clients wanted to go to a place to escape the stresses of life, where the biggest concern would be what drink to order next. It was a leisurely life that suited him just fine, and, of course, the pay was nothing to sneeze at.

As he rounded the corner, someone collided into him — hard. "Ow!" Nagisa staggered backward as a flurry of newspaper rained down around him. Rubbing his nose, he dropped to his knees to help pick up the escaping periodicals. 


"I'm so sorry, entirely my fault — wasn't looking where I was going — Are you all right?"

"Oh no, no — I'm fine, I wasn't looking where I was going either it's fine —"  He gathered a small stack of papers together and held them out. "Are you all right?" he asked sweetly, tilting his head to the side and widening his eyes. When all the papers were gathered, he stood up, brushing off his navy blue waistcoat and matching trousers.

"I'm Nagisa," he said brightly, holding out his hand for a handshake.
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Anonymous
Oct 1, 2013 18:13:22 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2013 18:13:22 GMT -6

Taking the papers from the young man, Hyuk-jae sighed. "Of course I'm fine," he said, waving off the boy's concern. "Thank you." What a waste of time! He was such an idiot. He should've been paying attention to where he was going. Even though the young man was insisting on taking some of the blame, Hyuk-jae was sure that if he'd paid more attention he could've just avoided him. Avoiding people was a specialty of his, something he spent a lot of time doing. He was practically a professional.

"I'm Nagisa," the boy said brightly, holding out his hand for a handshake. He looked awfully young, and was terribly short. Hyuk-jae was a decent height, and this kid stood well shorter than he did. He had a boyish, school-student look to him. Surely a kid that young wouldn't be out so early?

Not, he reminded himself, that it was any of his business. He very much appreciated people staying out of his business, and was quite careful to do the same.

"Ah — Hyuk-jae," the newsie said, looking down at his hands, already dark with newsprint. He didn't want to get ink on the boy. Orange eyes flicked back up to the boy, and he shifted the papers a little. "My hands are kind of dirty…"
That waistcoat was surely new. Hyuk-jae couldn't imagine what it cost, but it was likely quite a lot. He knew the look of a clothes-horse when he saw one. "I really am sorry," he said. It was just so early. "I hope I didn't ruin anything of yours." He looked back to the papers, juggling them a bit as he attempted to put the issues back together the way they were meant to be sold. If he was lucky, they'd all still be in good condition.
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Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 1, 2013 18:30:34 GMT -6

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Nagisa waved his unshaken hand. "No worries!" he said, all smiles. "I understand." He reached into his waistcoat pocket and pulled out a handkerchief with Ryugazaki Nagisa embroidered in script in one corner. "Do you ah, want to wipe your hands...?"

"I hope I didn't ruin anything of yours."

"Everything's fine!" Nagisa stepped back and gestured to his clothes. "No harm done, nothing ruined." Even if they had been, it wouldn't have been a big deal — a new excuse to go shopping and buy new stuff was always welcome. It's not like he was particularly attached to this outfit anyway, it was one of his plainer combinations. Not even any pattern or embroidery! He grinned, then stood on his tip-toes to peep at the newspapers. There were a few that were wrinkled, a few with a wet spot here and there from early morning dew. "Yikes, some of those aren't looking so good," he said good-naturedly. "Are you going to be okay?"  He paused.

"Aren't you ah... a little too... mature, to be in the newsie business?" He hooked his thumbs into his belt loops as he looked up at the dark-haired young man. He was... what, late teens, early twenties? Most newspaper boys were prepubescent or just into puberty and seeing someone much older than that was unheard of.

Maybe not such a great question to ask, said a small voice in the back in Nagisa's head. He ignored it. 
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Last edit: Oct 1, 2013 18:30:59 GMT -6
Anonymous
Oct 1, 2013 18:38:29 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2013 18:38:29 GMT -6

"No, I'm probably going to have ink on them all day. Don't worry about it." Hyuk-jae declined the handkerchief. Nagisa was right about the papers, though, and Hyuk-jae sighed. If he couldn't get anything for them, it would come out of his pay. He really couldn't afford to lose that money. It would mean making it up one way or another, and he never felt like making it up.

He could feel the boy's eyes on him, judging as they looked him up and down. It was only a matter of time before the inevitable questions came. Hyuk-jae knew he was poor and it showed. His clothes were carefully mended, but mended just the same. His boots were fine, but obviously worn. Vest had a patch in the back. Shirt? Not white any more, though he did his best. Even his thick hair was a bit too long, in need of a trim.

"Aren't you ah... a little too... mature, to be in the newsie business?"

Wow. Well, at least this kid could get points for honesty. Hyuk-jae scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Aren't you a little young to be going home this early in the morning? What are you, like, twelve?" He shifted the papers. "I guess nineteen probably seems ancient to a kid like you, but everybody has circumstances and these are mine. Sorry for bumping into you." Jeez. This kid.

Hyuk-jae moved to step around him, but had to pause to wait for an automobile to pass. He chewed his lower lip as he did so, tapping the foot of one stompy, knee-high boot in impatience.
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Last edit by Deleted: Oct 1, 2013 18:42:03 GMT -6

Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 1, 2013 19:37:20 GMT -6

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"Aren't you a little young to be going home this early in the morning? What are you, like, twelve? I guess nineteen probably seems ancient to a kid like you, but everybody has circumstances and these are mine. Sorry for bumping into you."

Nagisa laughed as Hyuk-jae stepped past him. He turned, following. "I'm eighteen," he said, still giggling. "But that's okay, everyone thinks I'm younger all the time."  He clasped his hands behind his back, still holding his "schoolbag", as they waited for the satomobile to pass. He bobbed up and down, shifting his weight from his heels to his toes and back again.

"So are you going to be okay with those papers?" he pressed, eyeing the stack again. "Can you get new ones maybe?"  The satomobile rumbled passed and Nagisa fell into step next to Hyuk-jae. "And hey, I didn't mean to pry, I was just surprised, I mean, most newsies are like... well they have a face like mine, really." He laughed again, tossing his head to flip his hair out of his eyes.

The shorter boy looked around the street and stifled a yawn. "Do you need any help, maybe? It's kind of my fault too that your papers got ruined."
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Anonymous
Oct 1, 2013 19:47:29 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2013 19:47:29 GMT -6

He meant to ignore him. He seriously, seriously did. But — eighteen? Hyuk-jae turned, raising an eyebrow. "Do you really expect me to believe you're eighteen?" he asked, almost laughing. Wasn't it obvious he'd spent plenty of time on the street? Jeez, this kid. Who was he fooling?

As Nagisa asked if he was going to be 'be okay' with the papers and whether or not he could get new ones, Hyuk-jae shrugged. "If I can't sell 'em they'll come out of my pay," he said, "so I'm going to have to make it work." He could not, absolutely could not afford to pay for all the papers that were damaged. He could at least cut the price and take the hit for that, but not full-price. No way.

The boy fell into step beside him and Hyuk-jae swallowed a biting comment about puppies. "Are you following me?" he asked after a beat passed. As the boy rambled about how he hadn't meant to pry and most newspaper boys were just so young and — Hyuk-jae wondered where his energy came from. "It's fine," he said. "Everyone notices. I've heard worse. Forget it." Surely Nagisa had to go home. Right?

Instead the short young man yawned and asked if he needed help, citing their spill as being partly his fault. "I — don't you have to go to bed or something?" Hyuk-jae sighed and adjusted his cap. "I appreciate the offer but I don't see how you could be of much help to me." Unless the kid wanted to buy literally every paper in his hands and give him a place to sleep for the day, Hyuk-jae was really better off just trying to hawk the damaged papers near the law offices.
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Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 1, 2013 20:06:45 GMT -6

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"No, I really don't have to go to bed!" Nagisa laughed again. It was always funny to meet someone new who didn't believe he really was as old as he said he was. If the looks of disbelief weren't so funny, he'd probably get annoyed, but everyone always had some sort of unique expression to give.

Nagisa fished out his wallet from his trouser pockets. "Here, look, look." He held out his ID card; all prospective employees for the Host Club were obligated to prove their age. Ryugazaki Nagisa, it read, next to a picture of him. Nagisa pointed to his date of birth. "See? Eighteen."

He took another glance at the messed up papers. "Here, tell you what. Why don't I buy your papers from you? Whatever's messed up, or the whole lot of them, whatever you want. And maybe I can buy you some breakfast or something, to make up for calling you old." He fished out a hundred-yuan bill and held it out to Hyuk-jae. "Would this be enough?"
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Anonymous
Oct 1, 2013 20:23:46 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2013 20:23:46 GMT -6

"Really? 'Cause your yawn is pretty cavernous…" The boy handed over his ID card and Hyuk-jae gave it a passing glance. He knew from fake, and it looked legitimate. "All right, all right. I'm sorry I called you twelve." The boy seemed nice enough. Reminding himself that Nagisa was obviously eighteen, Hyuk-jae corrected his thoughts. The young man seemed nice enough. Though he had serious questions about what he did for a living.

As Nagisa offered to buy every one of his papers, Hyuk-jae stopped walking. What was this kid, a mind reader? He turned to ask a question, but found himself speechless in the face of a fist of money. Hyuk-jae stared at the money, then flicked his eyes up towards Nagisa's face. One hundred yuan? The ways in which an eighteen year old kid could get that kind of money were relatively limited. Was his… side job… that obvious? "Um," he said. "I… really just need sleep." He never took younger clients, anyway.

Dang, the cute and tiny ones were always twisted, weren't they? "It's really okay," he said. Hoping his face didn't betray how badly he needed that money, he smiled. "Thank you for the offer, though." Surely it had been that kind of offer. Right? Why else would the kid offer so much money? There was no way he needed that many newspapers, and Hyuk-jae hadn't been nice enough to be considered good company.

Right?
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Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 1, 2013 22:24:41 GMT -6

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"Well, maybe I can call you a cab home then, yeah?" Nagisa still held out the hundred yuan bill. "Or..." he paused. Maybe he didn't have a home. Maybe that was the 'circumstances' Hyuk-jae had meant. Awkward.

Smiling brightly to cover up the gaffe, Nagisa notice that Hyuk-jae was staring at the proffered money dubiously. "Don't worry about it!" he said, mistaking the reasoning behind the look. "I don't mind, I can easily make it back tomorrow night. I feel bad for putting you out, I mean, if I hadn't been there there'd be no one to have run into, right? So please, just take it, if you won't let me take you to breakfast." The smile faltered a little as the money sat in his hand, unaccepted.

"Come on," he urged again, widening his eyes. "I promise it's okay. Let me apologise." He stood awkwardly on the sidewalk, hoping that Hyuk-jae would accept. Whatever the irritations he occasionally experienced as a host, it was good money and he was lucky to be a part of it. Hyuk-jae could probably make good money himself, Nagisa noted to himself, eyeing the other young man's good — albeit poor — looks.
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Anonymous
Oct 1, 2013 22:56:26 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2013 22:56:26 GMT -6

As Nagisa offered a cab, Hyuk-jae immediately shook his head. "I have to work today," he said, "but thank you." As the young man seemed to misunderstand him and tried to assure him he'd be able to make the money back, the newspaper boy rubbed the back of his neck.

"I really don't feel right taking money I didn't earn," he said gently, looking carefully at Nagisa's face and reaching out, placing one finger on his hand and pushing it away. Seems Nagisa hadn't realized what Hyuk-jae had assumed he was asking for, which was probably for the best. "But it's really nice of you to offer. Thank you. I mean it." Nagisa urged him to let him apologize, and Hyuk-jae finally laughed, showing even, clean teeth. He was actually quite pretty, eyes bright in his face. If he cleaned up he would probably be striking. He took care of the things he did have.

"I accept your apology," he said. "Seriously. It's okay. I just — I need to sell these, and you look like you need sleep. You can always see if I'm still here when you wake up." He seemed to stare into space for just a moment, a few seconds only, and then he blinked and it was gone. Hyuk-jae waved a hand. "Go on. It's fine. I'll get them sold somehow. I always do." One way or another, he managed to sell them. In his own neighborhood, notoriously slum-like, he could sell the damaged ones for a reduced price near the butcher shop. He knew he could. It would all work out, and besides, he wasn't sure he liked how Nagisa was eyeing him up and down just then.
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Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 1, 2013 23:17:56 GMT -6

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Nagisa frowned as Hyuk-jae pushed away his money, but brightened up again when he laughed and accepted his apology. "All right, all right. Maybe I'll come back around after I get some sleep." He stifled another yawn as he put the money back in his billfold. "You know," he said, completely missing Hyuk-jae's wary look, "I think you'd probably make a killing doing what I do, you're good-looking enough for it. Easy money, if you like people, but late nights."

He fished around and pulled out one of Madame's business cards; flipping it over, Nagisa took a pen from his schoolbag prop (after all, the best props were the most practical) and scribbled his name and phone number on the back. "If you want to do something other than sell papers."

Mme. Suchin Jainukul, Republic City Host Club, proclaimed the card in small, blocky, evenly spaced script printed. He held out the card. "It's not shady, I promise. You get at least a 10% cut of any business you bring in; if you get really good it can even go up to 30%. If you call Madame, just say I gave you the card okay?" Without waiting for a response, Nagisa tucked the card between the top two sheets of newsprint and took a step back.

"Maybe you'll be here when I get up," he said with a hopeful smile. "And — here." He brought out a single yuan. "Let me at least buy one newspaper."
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Anonymous
Oct 1, 2013 23:26:32 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2013 23:26:32 GMT -6

Hyuk-jae raised an eyebrow. He'd be good at doing what Nagisa did, huh? Well, if the young man did what Hyuk-jae thought he did, then yes, yes he was quite good at it. Not that he'd admit it on a street corner like this one in the early hours of morning. He managed to look aghast as Nagisa handed him a business card, though.

That was unexpected. A businesss card? For a madam? Yeah, Hyuk-jae knew what that meant. His eyes skimmed over the business name, his brain already having checked out after the identifying "Mme." at the beginning. As the short young man tried to convince him that it wasn't shady, Hyuk-jae was sure his eyes were quite wide. He was shocked! How could he not be? Jeez, this kid. So brazen.

"At least ten percent?" the newsie scoffed. "Thanks, but I don't need someone to procure for me." Obviously Nagisa had figured his night job out. Rather quickly, too, but if the card was any indication, he had practice. As he pushed it into the papers, Hyuk-jae stepped back. "I prefer to keep one hundred percent of profits I make that way, sorry." He laughed. "You're a quick study, I guess. You could probably do better, though." Surely this guy could manage a day job, something less… personal.
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Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 1, 2013 23:42:42 GMT -6

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"Procure...?" Nagisa tilted his head to the side, his hair falling a little past his eyes. "I don't —" 

A switch clicked in his brain.

"OH!" His golden eyes widened. "OH! NO — no, no, no, no. It's not that." Nagisa blushed, his ears reddening. What a mistake! No, not that sort of thing. He could've slapped himself. "It's a host club, not a... not that. Customers pay to spend time with us, and we tell them nice things and then they leave. Sometimes we throw little parties, with costumes. You don't ... ah, have to take your work home with you, unless you want to. Though it's not really encouraged." His words tumbled out in a rush. What an awful mistake to make!

Nagisa pointed to himself. "We take on persona as befitting our looks and personalities. Like me, you know how you thought I was a kid? Some clients like the boy-lolita thing, so they pay to spend time with me and baby me and buy me presents." He pointed to his school bag. "I play on that, so my character — Shouta, haha — is a schoolboy. There's another guy there who used to be a thug, for example, so now his character is the wild-boy type with a heart of gold. You know, anything to get the clients' hearts going doki-doki."

He shifted awkwardly, rubbing the back of his right leg with the top of his left foot. "Um... Did that make sense?"
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Anonymous
Oct 1, 2013 23:50:14 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2013 23:50:14 GMT -6

At least Nagisa wasn't blushing alone. As soon as the young man began profusely denying that the Host Club was a fancy name for a brothel, Hyuk-jae realized he had truly been mistaken. The newspaper boy's skin was so pale that even the barest blush was bright on his cheek, nevermind the full tilt red of total humiliation. Not only that, but the more Nagisa insisted that he didn't do that, the more mortified Hyuk-jae felt about having admitted, even in a roundabout way, that he did.

The young man was basically falling over himself trying to explain. They were basically just actors, paid to make patrons feel good about themselves. It made sense — plenty of people would spend good money for a night of self-esteem. Hyuk-jae knew loads of people like that. And if sometimes it included a happy ending, well. Then he definitely knew people like that. Nagisa explained the persona idea, while Hyuk-jae tried to will the blood to drain from his face and wished desperately that he were capable of sinking into the sidewalk.

After a stark moment of silence, he cleared his throat. "Wow," said Hyuk-jae, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, "this is… possibly one of the most embarrassing situations I've ever been in. I'm… going to go pick another street to stand on and pretend that this conversation never happened." He turned to walk away but then turned around, obviously with great apprehension.

"Please don't tell the police." His voice was hushed. It was a big deal, and he couldn't afford being in trouble. At all. "I'm really sorry. It's not that I — nevermind. Just, please." He didn't have to explain to Nagisa why he did what he did, or whether or not he enjoyed it. But he did need to have his secret well-kept.
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Last edit by Deleted: Oct 1, 2013 23:53:57 GMT -6

Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 2, 2013 0:00:28 GMT -6

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Nagisa was genuinely shocked. "I would never tell!" he said, making an x over the left side of his chest, where his heart was. "I promise."

It was really embarrassing, especially considering that he had just spent the last minute emphasising that, acting like it was a horrible thing. It was really none of his business why or how Hyuk-jae got into the world's oldest profession, and he wasn't about to ask. Even if he was dying to know.

"Well, um..." he shifted uncomfortably. "If you need a little extra money, or get tired of ... one of your other jobs, or both of them, try the host club, okay? Ten percent isn't as bad as it sounds, these guys tend to have a lot of money. Or break the bank trying to act like it. Say you take on two clients a night, ten percent could be a hundred yuans, easy. The clients pay an entrance fee, a bottle fee, pay for any snacks, extra merchandise, stuff like that, and the managers are really good about paying you what you earn."

He pointed to the business card. "I put my number on the back. If you want to come along with me to work tonight as my guest, I'll let Madame know. I'm sure it'll be fine."
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Last edit: Oct 2, 2013 0:14:55 GMT -6
Anonymous
Oct 2, 2013 0:13:44 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 2, 2013 0:13:44 GMT -6

"Thank you." Hyuk-jae was about to turn around and walk, very quickly, away, but Nagisa's speech caught his attention. Like it or not, the thought of being able to earn well over what he was making now by doing much, much less was incredibly appealing.

"I'm alive," he said, simply. "Of course I need the money. But — I don't have a telephone." He supposed he could use the one at the shop, but… he always got into trouble when he tried it. Hyuk-jae was awful on the telephone, truly. He always felt stiff and strange speaking into a device. So there was that, but there was also the matter of his clothes. Nagisa looked, to Hyuk-jae's eyes, really nice. His clothes were new and neat and clean and stylish.

Hyuk-jae was wearing one of the only shirts he had, and he had no other pairs of either trousers or shoes. "And I'd probably really stick out." A room full of rich people? He'd be so painfully obvious it would be unreal. That would put him in not just one but two heinously embarrassing situations in one day, Nagisa at the helm of both. The only way it could get worse would be if he were to have a fit in the middle of the Host Club.

The thought drew him up short. What was he even considering? There was no way he could take such a job. He had no guarantees of his condition's stability, and he had to be honest about it when job-seeking. He'd just be found out anyway, if he wasn't. It complicated everything even without the Firebending. No self-respecting entertainment place would take someone on who had seizures, often brought on by loud noises or flashing lights. It went against the business, made no sense. Biting his lower lip, he pushed his hat down a little further to hide his eyes and headed for the next street over.
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Last edit by Deleted: Oct 2, 2013 0:14:16 GMT -6

Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 2, 2013 0:24:42 GMT -6

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"Hey, wait up!" Nagisa jogged a little to catch up with Hyuk-jae. "It's okay if you don't have a phone, you can always come by my house, or I can pick you up from wherever in a cab. And it's okay if you don't have anything to wear, we can stop by a suit shop and a tailor and, and, if you want to get your hair done we could stop to do that too!" He caught up and gently hooked his arm around Hyuk-jae's, warming up to his topic. "We could even buy you some really neat hair ribbons, there's this place just off Main that sells these silk gentleman's hair ribbons, they're fantastic!"

If Hyuk-jae was uncomfortable with the sudden physical contact, Nagisa didn't notice.

He grinned up at his new friend, his eyes shining. "It'll be fun, really. Good food, literally whatever you want to eat and no one cares. Even if it has to be special ordered. There's a girl in the hostess club who can't eat peanuts, for example, so everything she eats has to be made specially and away from any possible peanut touching. I don't have any allergies like that but I love sweets so I can have as many of them as I like! Come on, I'm sure you'll fit right in. The customers love a new face and will treat you amazingly!"
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Anonymous
Oct 2, 2013 0:35:45 GMT -6

Post by Deleted on Oct 2, 2013 0:35:45 GMT -6

Nagisa just never quit did he? Jeez, this kid. Hyuk-jae flinched when the other boy touched him, a reflexive and instantaneous reaction. He pulled away a little, but didn't make any remark. It was obvious, however, that Nagisa had no concept of what kind of life Hyuk-jae was leading — he didn't think he'd ever even set foot in a suit shop before, much less a tailor. The best he could do would be to put on a black sweater and eyeliner. Those he had.

He scoffed at the suggestion of ribbons and shopping. What was he, a girl? No. He didn't have any money for new clothes, and wouldn't even hear the suggestion of having someone else buy them. Having his hair 'done'? What did that even mean? It was all very… surreal. "You're not going to stop, are you?" Hyuk-jae asked, pausing again on the sidewalk. "Until I say I'll come with you, you're just going to follow me around and keep me from selling the paper, right?" That was definitely the impression he had. Nagisa was just so… persistent. Full of energy.

Annoying?

Maybe.

Sighing, the newsie supposed he could endure one night of humiliation. At least he'd be able to eat something, enough to where he could go to bed with a full stomach. That alone might be worth it. He wasn't sure he had any acting abilities to speak of, but he'd largely be observing… he assumed. "All right," Hyuk-jae said, pulling his arm away. "All right. I'll just meet you there, okay?" He tucked his papers under his arm and held his hands up. "C'mon. I really gotta sell these. It's the address on the card, right? I'll meet you."
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Post by A Long Display Name Here on Oct 2, 2013 0:58:36 GMT -6

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Grinning hugely, Nagisa nodded. "I'll stick to you like glue," he giggled.

Hyuk-jae pulled his arm away and Nagisa clasped his hands behind his back, rocking excitedly back and forth on his feet. He clapped when Hyuk-jae agreed to meet him. "All right! I'll meet you there." He took one last look at Hyuk-jae, committing the other man's build to memory. They had some extra clothes at the club that Hyuk-jae could change into, if he didn't have something the club would let him in with; Nagisa was starting to suspect that Hyuk-jae was embarrassed about going shopping for stuff he couldn't afford.

Slinging his bag over his shoulder again, Nagisa waved. "I'll see you tonight! The club opens at seven." He grinned and practically skipped down the street in the direction of his flat.

~*~*~

Seven o'clock rolled around, and Nagisa found himself pacing outside the entrance to the Host Club. He was dressed in a deep red, almost maroon kimono and a deeper red half-coat with muted gold designs. He wasn't expecting there to be a theme party tonight, but a high roller had apparently made a last-minute appointment with his host and demanded some festivities. He already had a similar outfit in blues picked out for Hyuk-jae, to compliment the other man's gold eyes. Kimono were expensive at the best of times, and he doubted Hyuk-jae had one; even if he did, it had been impossible to let him know of the change in wardrobe since he had no phone.

A few minutes after the hour, Nagisa finally saw Hyuk-jae walking toward the building. "Hey, over here!" Nagisa stood on tiptoe and waved his arm, kimono sleeve flapping around.
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