Like Seeing an Old Friend..

[Aureus]

"Cheese or pepperoni is fine with me." Aureus said, reaching the parking lot and brushing the dust from his pants before slipping on his socks and shoes. "So, how long have you lived in Long Beach, Emily?" the boy asked, starting off towards the pizza parlor.

[chihiro]

Reaching the parlour, Chi grabbed the door and held it for Aureus and Emily. She nodded in agreement at Aureus' question, her thoughts similar. How long had Emily been here? Chi knew Aureus already for quite a long time but this girl was a bit of a newer face.

Sitting down at the booth, Chi picked up a menu to contemplate the pizza options, thoughtfully placing a finger to her chin.

"What is everyone's favorite topping? We'll get three toppings."

It seemed the easiest way to settle it and unless someone voiced an option someone thought was gross, it seemed like the best compromise available. Chi scanned over the list of toppings (wow, there were a ton...) trying to figure out what she wanted.

[seishounohana]

"So, how long have you lived in Long Beach, Emily?"

Emily thought for a moment; a year or so? Probably over if she had counted the moment she went on Hiatus to Japan. "Um, more or less about a year.... I think."

"What is everyone's favorite topping? We'll get three toppings."

She sat down on a chair next to Chihiro and scanned her own menu. Wow, she's never seen such a list of toppings.

o___o

Then again, Emily rarely eats Pizza, if any. "Mushrooms are good."

Yup, good ol' mushrooms.

[Aureus]

Sitting across from the girls, Aureus couldn't help but crack a smile at Chi's thoughtful expression. All her little mannerisms reminded him of how much she had meant to him. Seeing her again...it felt like things were finally getting back to normal. Even so, he knew it wasn't that simple and Aureus shook the clouds out of his head. "That's all? How do you like it so far? As for the toppings, plain cheese sounds good."

[chihiro]

Only about a year or so? Chi had been gone for almost that long, so that would explain her not recognizing her at all. But she turned her thoughts back to the task at hand as her stomach growled...Mmm mushrooms were good, Chi nodded and smiled at Emily's suggestion, her expression turned inquisitive when Aureus mentioned that he'd like to have plain cheese. She pressed her lips together, thinking for a moment, as she still had to decide on her own topping of choice.

"We could get half plain cheese and half with mushrooms and...olives?"

Brown eyes turned to Emily as she posed the question, seeing if she was opposed to olives. If she was, Chi would suggest pepperoni because in all honesty her favorite sort of pizza was known as garbage pizza. Mushrooms, olives, pepperoni, onions, sausage, peppers, pretty much everything good just piled onto the pizza crust to the point where you would almost have to use a fork to eat it but it was too damn good to suffer utensils.

[seishounohana]

"That's all? How do you like it so far?" Emily ran a hand through her hair, thinking about it... Well, she never really bothered to think if she liked living in Long beach. "Ah, I find this place... interesting. Nice views, friendly people... I guess it's good, well... for me, that is."

"We could get half plain cheese and half with mushrooms and...olives?"

Emily blinked, Mushrooms with... olives? That a bit new. "That's good, though I'm quite in for for some pepperoni. Then again, mmm... well sure, Olives. If you want."

Yeah, it was hard to decide when you want to have a bit of everything.

Oh, the horror.

[Aureus]

"Well that's good. Some people have problems with the weather and the...above average number of superficial people around. You take the good with the bad though, and it's nice enough for me. I haven't been many other places, so I dunno what else there is really. The Senior responded with a warm smile and an adjustment of his glasses. Thus far Emily had made a good impression on him, but she was a tad quiet, so who knew what kind of personality she could have tucked away.

"Whatever you want, love." Aureus said to Chi. He was fine with pretty much whatever as long as he was able to get some pizza in his stomach. The only things he wouldn't stand for were anchovies and pineapple. Emily's indecision made him chuckle. Good times.

[chihiro]

Chi fixedly studied the menu intently when Aureus spoke, trying to push the L word from her head. It had been a casual thing, no big, Chihiro, its no reason to flip out.

"Mushrooms and pepperoni is fine with me."

She said with a smile, closing her menu with a snap and stepping up from her booth. She reached in her pocket, withdrawing her wallet. She still had ample money left in her accounts scattered from here to the east coast, so she figured she could spot for the pizza.

"What do you two want to drink? My treat."

She said with a warm smile, her mind spinning through her thoughts and Emily's and Aureus conversation. Long Beach was a pretty nice place. Sure, it had its faults but overall the environment was calmer, the people were more friendly, and it gave her a fuller feeling of peace than did Philadelphia. Maybe it was because she grew up here, and though she no longer saw her family (for all she knew they could think she was dead or joined a circus) but she still felt at home, like at the beach. The beach and surrounding city had been more home to her than her own house had been.

[seishounohana]

"Well that's good. Some people have problems with the weather and the...above average number of superficial people around. You take the good with the bad though, and it's nice enough for me. I haven't been many other places, so I dunno what else there is really."

Emily laughed nervously. "Aye, every place has it's flaws."

Well, how does one continue a conversation? Emily had no idea. Seriously, she needs to take up lessons on this one way or another... or just talk and talk and talk until she gets the hang of it.

"What do you two want to drink? My treat."

Emily began feeling uncomfortable. Interestingly, both of them offered something for free and she hadn't yet. "Mmm, I think just some Iced tea is alright."

Yeah, something a little cheap despite the fact that the Mango fruitshake had somewhat poked her interest. Well, it was alright though.

Just what can she give to them in return...?

[Aureus]

"If you insist. Hmm...I'll have a Dr. Pepper. Been too long since my last one. Thanks, Chi." Aureus said with a smirk. He wouldn't question Chihiro's offer to pay. He knew that she wouldn't be if she didn't want to. It was just what friends did. They help you, you help them, no questions asked. "We'll at least we've got that settled. Can't wait, I'm starving." the boy said, fiddling with the dark brown fedora on his head. "So, Emily, what do you do for fun? Have any specific talents?"

[chihiro]

Nodding with a mild smile, Chi went up to place their order. One large pizza, half cheese half mushrooms and pepperoni, please, and then get their drinks from the cooler. She came back to the table, setting an iced tea in front of Emily, a dr pepper in front of Aureus before sitting down with a cherry cola for herself.

Having left the conversation for a minute, she simply listened with interest for a bit, rubbing her sleeve on the top of her can before cracking it open with a small 'pppssfft' and taking a sip. It had been a while since she'd had a soda as well. Working for the shadow knights had put her on a strict healthy diet to maximize energy and performance, and it worked incredibly well, but there was nothing like the familiar comforts of an unhealthy soda.

[seishounohana]

"So, Emily, what do you do for fun? Have any specific talents?"

Specific talents? She had quite a few. Most of them are in the arts, but... well, she had no interest of using any of them in the far future. A normal job would be good.

"Ah, I dunno if this is fun but... I kinda draw... maybe sing from time to time."

Ack, singing. Emily was very good at it. But she hated to sing in public. The girl just went and sipped on her iced tea. Usually how restaurant's blend their iced tea varies... some are too sweet, some are not really anything different from water besides the water colour, but this one was just right -- the people maybe were in a good mood when making it?

High staff morale does a lot of good things on the customer side.

[Aureus]

"Cool. I wish I could draw. Way too many ideas for comics trapped inside my head." Aureus responded with a chuckle before opening his Dr. Pepper and taking a few gulps. And wasn't it true. It seemed like every day a great idea would pop into the teen's head only to meet a tragic demise when it couldn't be brought to life on paper. "And since we're sharing talents I guess it's only fair to mention I play guitar. I'm kinda music obsessed. I started listening to a few rock bands in middle school and it just kinda snow balled from there. Well, looks like you're up, Chi." the Pillar finished, sticking his tongue out at his ex.