genessia | movie night movie fright

Entry tags:

movie night movie fright

Who: David & Emerald Sustrai
What: Ghost movie night with a literal happy camper and... well, Emerald.
When: August 27
Where: Emerald/Mercury's apartment
Warnings: Blinding beacons of friendship from David?

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[ Other than camping and the great outdoors, there's nothing David loves more than making new friends and bonding with them. As someone who always likes to see the sunny side of things and hope for the best it means the world to him to have entered such a questionable situation yet made friends all the same, so when Emerald suggested hanging out for a night, watching some scary movies, eating some popcorn...

What could go wrong?

He's nothing if not punctual - at the precise minute of the precise hour that they ~~apparently~~ agreed on he's knocking at her door with the tip of his boot. Under one arm is a big bag with an assortment of different treats, ranging from candy to chips to a bag of popcorn kernels just waiting to be microwaved. Under his other arm is a shopping bag with a few bottles of soda - cola, something lemon-lime, and root beer, because he had forgotten to ask what she liked and figured she would probably be okay with one of those three. ]

Helloooooooo, Emerald! I'm ready to be spooked!

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[ Even Emerald can mash potatoes, that's not that impressive... ]

I don't think pizza needs the bonus.

[ She's making grabby hands for the root beer. Give it to her, David. This movie is not going to remotely bother her, she's sure. ]

It's still nice to have!

[ He sees her reaching for the root beer and doesn't hesitate to hand it over, silently pleased that he managed to pick out something she likes. ]

So, Emerald, what sort of hobbies do you do outside of work?

[ Apparently he's also more interested in the bonding than in the movie, at least for now. ]

[ "Emerald, what sort of hobbies do you do outside of work?"
A.) Stealing
B.) Murder if the mood strikes, but she's trying to break that bad habit
C.) Trolling on the internet
D.) Talking shit.
E.) All of the above.
>F.) Lie about it. ]

I don't know, I just hang around. I'm pretty familiar with the outdoors, and I was a fighter back home, so I'll train a lot. I like to keep in shape, you don't eat pizza and look like this [ She gestures from her shoulders to her bare midriff ] without it even if there aren't people-eating monsters around outside of Everglade. I was thinking of trying to learn fishing or something that's supposed to be relaxing... [ Otherwise she's definitely going to murder someone between talking to David for more than 5 minutes at a time and other people pissing her off. ] Sports aren't too bad.

[ He looks her over briefly as she gestures, nodding once in agreement. It's true! Junk food can do a real number on the body if it's not mitigated with exercise and... well, some non-junk food. ]

It's great that you take your health so seriously! And might I say, it looks like you're doing a terrific job of it.

...

Not that I would think any less of you depending on what shape you were in!

...

Or that I was objectifying you in any way!

...

Fishing is fun!

[ As a camp counselor he's supposed to keep himself as PC as possible okay ]

David, if I point it out to you, you can say I'm hot. A person can be hot without being treated like an object, take a deep breath.

[ and that's when she first really gets the idea, being the movie. There was clearly at least some attraction. That was going to be easy to build on. She reaches over and taps his nose with her finger playfully. ]

If you don't I'm going to feel guilty for thinking you're cute.

O-oh, I. Um.

[ It may shock one to learn that David doesn't get flirted with a lot, so he's caught a little of guard by her comparatively forward nature. His eyes widen just a bit, cheeks pink when she boops his nose. ]

I guess you have a point. We're all more than just our appearances, but that doesn't mean we need to deny them either. So...

You look very nice, Emerald. And thank you for saying as much about me.

[ "Hot" may take some time to get out of him. ]

[ She's pretty sure this is going to be easier than she thought. Which is kind of unfortunate, because now there's no excuse not to do it. For justice, and all that, because no one should be as happy as David is. It's just not cool. ]

Any time. [ And look, there's the doorbell, it's pizza time. Em gets up to go get it, actually using her own wallet.

Or, well, a wallet she took and liked so she keeps her stuff in it now, but it's "hers" in a manner of speaking.

Either way, she comes back with some nice gooey pizza, gooey in the way that only fictional pizza can actually be. The kind that would turn anyone's heart but Emerald's three sizes that day. ]

[ What? David, easy to goad along and manipulate with kind words and gestures? Nooooooo, never.

While she's getting the pizza he lets his eyes turn to the movie they were supposed to be watching. It... it looks scary, so he just lets his attention wander right back to Emerald and the pizza. ]

Do you want me to help pay for that? I can at least cover the tip. It's the least I can do, really!

You sure? I tipped him 200.

[ She says it with such a straight face, it's hard to tell if she's joking or not. She is, of course, but she's going to wait until David responds to crack a smile. ]

You did wh--

[ A beat.

OH, YOU ]

I don't think delivery guys take sass for tips, Emerald. Not even two hundred dollars worth of it.

[ Dollars, bills, whatever same diff ]

I almost had you.

[ She sets the pizza on the little table, carefully rearranging things so that they've got room, though she ends up just setting the sodas on the floor. It's fine, just don't knock them over. ]

Almost! But you'll have to do a little better than that to pull one over on me!

[ He helps to make sure nothing's going to fall over while she gets the pizza in place - he's eager to grab a slice, but he was taught a little something called manners. ]

[ Good, he thinks she's a bad fibber. That's important. ]

Is that a challenge? Now I've got to play a real good prank on you.

[ Haha in progress already. ]

Want me to go see if we have some plates?

[ They probably have paper plates somewhere... easier than doing dishes later. She's kind of okay with just eating out of the box, but she's supposed to be being a good host so... Plates. Maybe. ]

You could, orrrrr we could just leave it as a moot point and move on!

[ Seriously, one Max type is enough. ]

Oh, I don't think you need to waste any plates on pizza. We have hands, don't we?

[ He works at a summer camp, Emerald. Finger foods happen. ]

[ She is not the type of person whose parents were present and/or alive enough or gave a shit enough to know what the fuck summer camp even is beyond 'middle class parents give their money to strangers to take care of their kids for a few months'? As far as she's concerned it's just another reason people suck. ]

In that case- [ She takes a slice in each hand, then holds one out to David. ]

For my new friend. [ :D ]

[ FRIENDSHIP PIZZA YES ]

I'll eat to that!

[ He reaches out to take the slice from her, taking a moment to appreciate that fresh pizza smell before taking his first bite.

It's good, which is generally a given. Pizza is almost universally good. ]

... You know, I haven't actually absorbed a single bit of plot from this movie yet.

Me neither.

[ she takes a bite of her pizza and licks her lips, eyes finally feeling in the movie for a few seconds while she eats, but then she grins at him. ]

I was right though, having someone I like around made it way less scary.

[ she wouldn't be scared anyway, but she can definitely pretend like it's all his presence. ]

Well, that's good! But... I don't think it'll be as comforting if there are actual ghosts involved later. I mean, if I was actually paying attention to the movie right now I'd probably be terrified!

[ A pause, eyes darting to the screen - then right back to his pizza to take a hurried bite, distracting himself. ]

I don't know if I'm the right man to help you with what you have to do.

One way to find out. At least will be terrified together.

[ she takes another bite of her pizza, pulling one of the throw blankets into her lap and deciding to let the movie take the conversation. She can pretend to be scared and grab onto him later. it'll be good, he'll feel all protective or whatever men like to do. ]

[ He doesn't push the issue for now - he's of the opinion that it would be best if they worked on finding someone better suited to the task. He's never been one for pointless machismo, and any pride he might have is nowhere near as important as ensuring her safety when she's walking into a potentially dangerous situation.

But! That's a talk for after the movie.

...

He's visibly creeped out. He's not going to be much on the "protective" front right about now. ]

[ Emerald is, in subtle was, passing more attention to David than the movie. Not that it's a boring movie or she's particularly fascinated by David beyond wanting to end him, but it's important to study your prey when preparing for three long haul.

She's probably not going to get him into Everglade without duress, which could jeopardise an emotional connection. She doubted it would their friendship (she's pretty sure she locked that in at hello), but part of her wants to try for more. Just bring her fun, sweet "self" would probably do it, plus some light gag-worthy flirting and a couple of sob stories here and there to turn at his heart strings and show vulnerability down the line... That would do it. She could go way overboard and make it an outright betrayal, she'd think about it, but she was sure just learning who she really was would drive him to dark places. Max was a kid- whatever his problem was, David could have hope for him and try to help him. Emerald was a grown woman who just wanted to hurt him for no reason other than that she can't stand to see him smile.

If he catches her looking him over, be it locating every pocket on his outfit or simply thinking, she'll smile and look back to the movie shyly, a faint smile still gracing her lips like a girl with a playground crush. Then during a particularly intense moment, she reaches over to grab his hand. Whether it scares the hell out of him or gets her bonus points doesn't matter, it's a win either way. ]

[ Look all this plotting and scheming is great and all but now that they're focusing on the movie he's getting fucking terrified, okay.

Like, it's bad.

It's really bad.

So the moment she grabs his hand he shrieks and clings to her like some kind of terrified koala, bawling out: ]

DON'T LET IT GET ME!

[ this is the biggest personal space invasion she's ever experienced, to the point that his reaction actually startles her. Her arms are up trying to avoid him locking her hands down.

One eyeroll later once her brain catches up to the grabbing and she lowers her hands, one of them patting his back. ]

It's a movie, it's not gonna get you.

[ He's shaking for a moment, nodding his head slowly as he registers her words. ]

I... I know that. It was just really scary and really sudden, and I...

[ ... need to let go.

He sits up straight quickly, hands in his lap as he clears his throat. ]

I'll try to compose myself better. Sorry, Emerald.

[ She looks at him for a moment, then looks away with a blush on her face. It took her a moment to make herself do it since she doesn't exactly have experience flirting. ]

I didn't mind. It was kind of nice, once the surprise wore off.

... Oh! Were, um. You scared too?

[ That would be a relief because BOY is this a scary gosh darn movie ]

Not really. It was still nice.

[ She doesn't pursue trying to hold his hand or anything. She'll let him take the lead on that, but imply that it's definitely okay. He seems like he might scare off if she's too forward. This was a long con anyway. She smiles at him softly. ]

[ He loses his focus on the movie again for a moment, turning a bit in his seat to face her. ]

Emerald, are you...

[ he looks very excited at the possibility of what he's about to ask ]

... a cuddlebug?

[ Max probably didn't want him dead. Emerald was considering it. Suggesting that at all was just about killing her inside, so it was only fair to kill him outside.

Later. For now, she looks away with an embarrassed expression. ]

I don't know, people don't usually touch me. [ At least that part wasn't a lie. ] I just said it was nice.

Oh.

[ A soft sound, something hesitant. That's a little strange, isn't it? She's been so friendly and approachable, people like that are usually prone to hugs and the like. So it kind of begs the question... ]

Why don't they?

[ That's a good question. Moreso because a normal person would get caught in a lie about it. Emerald is a little better at this than that, and the couple of seconds she's taking to answer could be viewed as hesitation, something that she didn't want to admit. Emerald was using it to decide whether she wanted to go for the sympathy route or pretend like she didn't want to talk about it yet. The hesitation should work in her favor though, and she decides to flavor it with a little more of that 'truth.' She's developing a backstory here, and the best lies are based in truth. Plus, Jaune has been blowing everything out of the water for her lately, lying to captain same-voice here was probably more of a risk than necessary. ]

Remember when I told you I stole things? That's because I grew up on the streets. People don't touch dirty street rats.

[ At least not if they don't want to get bit. The people who did want to were the kind of scum even the regular criminals wanted behind bars, anyway. ]

I've.. never even had a real boyfriend.

[ Focus the conversation on something else before he starts asking questions she doesn't feel comfortable answering for real. ]

[ That's COUNSELOR same-voice thank you very much. His eyes blink a bit wider at her explanation, shoulders sagging at the weight of her reality. ]

You... oh my gosh, I had no idea, I didn't mean to pry or anything, that's...

[ His eyes flick down and away as he tries to find the right words, and it's clear his sense of empathy is in overdrive. ]

That's awful that people judged you just based on that. I know it isn't worth much coming from me, and I can't apologize on their behalf, but... I'm so sorry you were treated like that. No one deserves to feel alone and unloved.

[ If David were a fiddle, Emerald would be that asshole who went down to Georgia and screwed the devil out of one. It's not hard to keep a story straight when it's not a lie either, and it wasn't like it was something to hide anymore. It was who she was. If there was anything she learned from Mercury, it was not to be ashamed of that. In fact, hate anyone who says otherwise.

On the other side of this, David was talking like he actually knew what anyone deserved. Emerald thought anyone who was happy while she couldn't be deserved to feel alone and unloved just to know what it felt like, or if not that, to suffer in another way so that she wasn't the only one. But that was part of her story that Emerald wouldn't be sharing with David. She didn't need him to cut his empathy trip short. ]

I don't feel alone right now. I just.. I feel like I can trust you, David. It's not something I feel a lot. Please don't tell everyone what I just told you, I don't want everyone feeling sorry for me or treating me differently.

[ She holds her hand out to him, if he wants to hold it, the saddest little smile gracing her lips. If he doesn't take it after a few seconds she'll withdraw again, though. ]

[ A lot of the vibe he's getting from her reminds him of someone else who was abandoned, uncared for, shoved aside to be ignored or rejected. Someone else he refused to give up on, someone else who he would do his very best for, someone else who he wanted to see grow happier with time.

It makes a little more sense to him, now, how Max and Emerald clicked so easily.

He looks down at her hand for a moment, and this time there's no second-guessing himself when he reaches out to hold it comfortingly, offering a gentle squeeze of encouragement. ]

I won't tell. It's not my story to share.

[ He looks back up at her, and there's a warm smile on his lips and in his eyes. ]

I won't do anything to betray your trust, and that's a promise.

Thank you, David.

[ Her voice was quiet, hushed as if she'd just spoken words she didn't want anyone but David to hear.

It felt weird. She was good at acting, but it felt weird to have someone act like they genuinely cared about her well-being and with David, it wasn't wholly a lie. It wouldn't stay if he knew who she actually was, and one day he would. She wasn't going to trust that it was real though. She'd made that mistake with Cassian- he'd pretended that he cared, but lied to her about something she considered core to their understanding of each other. And that was just an attempt at friendship. This felt.. empty. Emerald honestly felt a coldness as he held her hand, smiling at her, but she didn't let it reach her eyes and simply smiled back, scooting a little bit closer so that she could lean against his shoulder just slightly as she went back to watching the movie, as if they had reached an understanding of some kind. The motions were there at least, even if she didn't really feel much about it. ]

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movie night movie fright

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how did I lose track of this thread OOPS

you got sick, it happens!! WB

sneezes all over you

GROSS DO NOT

COUGHS EVERYWHERE

SMOTHERS YOU. YOU DONT HAVE TO COUGH ANYMORE...

ah, death. the final sickness.

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