A Little Addiction { open }

[Victoria Kalo]

Victoria quietly stepped into Starbucks, greeted by the friendly jingle of the bell attached to the door and the alluring scent of freshly brewed coffe. She removed the red scarf that had been stylishly wrapped around her neck and the black peacoat that was previously keeping her body warm. She headed straight for the counter, the sound of her black leather boots clicking on the floor. She smiled at the cashier, telling her sweetly "I'd like a Caffè Verona, please." She then handed her the correct amount of money, grabbed her order, and sat down at a table near the window. She took a slow sip of her coffe, smiling as it warmed her up instantly. Oh how she loved her Starbucks.

[amarantheyes]

Starbucks. One place in the world that people depended on, lived their life in, and for a reason that escaped Tashiro. But the human race was like that. Personally, he couldn't stand the place, though he'd never put it that way. The coffee was always burnt to him, the food always tasted of plastic. Yet it was pleasing to humanity to partake of these food objects, never complaining unless the spill it on themselves or someone else.

He was, however, willing to put his dislike of the place behind him, setting aside his pride for a small minute or two, for one purpose and that one only: It was warm.

Yes, plenty of other stores were warm. But nowhere near as warm as Starbucks with brewing dirt and swarms of people crowding to keep their place in line. Plus, nowhere else would he feel comfortable buying the cheapest thing possible, and then staying for hours to digest while he typed up his work, or composed another set of lyrics.

And so entering the shop, he slid easily through the crowd, giving anyone who tried to appose him a cold, unemotional stare. Bundled up in a dark wool trench coat, he had powdered his face white, painting his lips a deep purple, and rubbing black and blue makeup around his eyes before letting his hair fall around his chest, streaks of bright, yet dark blue gleaming among the strands of black, with the tips colored moonlight white. Within his gloves was a pair of cold, numbing hands, which he rubbed together while waited for someone to arrive and take his order.

Only a few minutes, he had told himself. Suppressing an annoyed sigh, he endured the flirtatious girl at the counter, selecting the smallest bakery good he could find, accompanied by the cheapest (and probably the nastiest) non-coffee product that they had. And when his order had been given him, he set straight for the closest thing to an empty table that he could find.

There was one with a single person sitting there. A girl. Pretty at that. At least, pretty by the standards that people set. He wasn't too interested. The seat across from her was more appealing than the girl herself. But with a slight smile at her, for smiling was one way to get something (he had found out long ago), he rested his still covered hand on the back of the chair asking in hardly more than a whisper, "Is this seat taken?"

[Victoria Kalo]

Victoria glanced up, setting her eyes upon the voice that had just spoken so softly to her. The man's face had been powdered white, his hair was black with blue highlights and white tips, and he had on purple, black, and blue makeup. Interesting, Victoria thought to herself, before smiling and saying "Yes, of course." and mentioning to the empty seat in front of her. "I'm Victoria, by the way." she added sweetly.

[amarantheyes]

He lowered his head slightly, leaning his upper body forward in an introductory bow, "Tashiro," he replied, taking the seat in question before falling silent once more. Anyone who was acquainted with him knew that he was not a social butterfly. Large events were not his sort of entertainment (concerts excluded, of course, seeing that everyone is there to listen and watch...not to socialize). Rather, he would spend his time alone, perfecting techniques for instruments or songs. Also choreographing songs.

But here he was, sitting in the middle of an imitation cafe, delicately nibbling at what appeared to be a coffee cake of some type. With how crumbly and messy it was, he made sure to eat over the table, for removing the debris would be an insane task to do.

Glancing once more at this Victoria, he set upon dwelling on her tone. Her expression had been a normal smile towards a stranger, but her voice indicated otherwise. While it was coated in sugar, he could detect a hint of curiosity. It was masked in her sweetness, so translating it was difficult. He could not tell if it was natural curiosity, the social outgoings of people who enjoyed meeting others, or the sly curiousness that accompanied the desire to use people for one's own good. Sneakiness. Seductive. He would never put it beyond a stranger to be this sort of person. Humans were humans.

Taking a small sip of his drink, he realized the full extent of how revolting the tea-based liquid was. A grimace twisted at the corners of his lips before he regained the usual composure he wore. Now that he knew how disgusting the drinks could be, he was prepared for anything. It even smells bad, he thought as the faint aroma filled his nostrils.

Best not to dwell on it and down it all as quickly as possible.

[Victoria Kalo]

Victoria quietly observed Tashiro, watching him slowly sipping his drink, swallowing it with an expression that gave away the fact that Starbucks was definitely not his favorite place in the whole world. She smiled, taking another sip of her coffe, a delicious blend that she personally adored.

A few minutes slowly went by, and Tashiro simply sat silently in his seat. Victoria decided she would be the one to start a conversation, hating the silence that was taking over the table. She said sweetly "Do you go to school at Crescent Hill University?"

[amarantheyes]

It was a soothing, saddening sound that filled his thoughts, the images of his gloved fingers pressing down on the ivory keys, the tempo speeding slightly as the intensity grew with each passing beat. He felt it pulsing within him, his latest creation forming slowly in the depths of his mind. So when this Victoria girl spoke again, he jumped slightly at the sound of her voice contrasting against the sweet sound of the piano he had been imagining himself at. And the notes flew away, the sound just a memory that echoed against his skull as it faded into nothing.

A flicker of annoyance crossed his face, though it was gone as quickly as it had appeared, and he stored away whatever remnants of the memory he still had in order to remember what question she had asked.

It was one that could be taken in many ways: "Do you go to school at Crescent Hill University?" He studied the different possibilities that arose to him. Possibly it was, "If you go there (a) I'm thinking of going there and you could show me around, (b) I'd better not go there and be around people like you, or (c) I go there too, imagine that." Of course, there was the possibility that she just was making friendly conversation.

But the fact that she had asked a specific school was a hint enough to suggest that she went to that school and was curious to see if he attended there as well.

Setting his drink down, he kept his fingers around the warm paper cup, "Yes," he replied simply, "I'm supposing you do as well?"

[Victoria Kalo]

"You guessed it." Victoria smiled, laughing a little. It's funny how many people go to CHU that I don't know, Victoria thought silently to herself. Back in highschool she had been the queen of the castle; she knew everyone and everyone knew her. Freshman year had been somewhat hard here at CHU, but everything was good now. She was glad she had lots of friends now, that's how she liked it.

Then she added curiously, "I mean, I've never seen you around campus. What year are you?"

[amarantheyes]

"Third year," he replied softly, "Junior." He hadn't seen her around campus either. But the explanation was simple: he didn't walk around campus much. Just enough to get to classes or to hide away from people and their selfishness. Sometimes he walked around during the late nights, early mornings. Somewhere between midnight and three am. Hardly anyone was out in those hours. And if they were, they never took notice of him as he blended with the shadows.

Just because his attire drew attention, didn't mean he was seeking it.

Even now, the discomfort he felt in talking with the person was swelling within his veins, though his face remained passive towards her.

"I focus on my studies," he explained, "remaining in quiet places so as not to be disturbed." University wasn't for social gatherings. It was a place for learning, whether that be education or life lessons. Some people didn't see it that way. Not that he'd condemn them for that. But that was the reason he was there. A degree. Then, most likely, he'd return home and find work. Unless he could get a visa over here...

But that was still another year and more off. No need to think of it quite yet. Though it was good to be prepared. For anything.

Downing another searing sip of his rancid drink, he covered the taste over quickly with the bland pastry, thinking it must have been the oldest one in the showcase. Oh well. It wasn't like he had been expecting much from this place anyways. Artless and tasteless, there was no beauty that he could find at all in that place. The people that worked there wore fake smiles, had only greed in their eyes. Decorations on the wall had no emotion in them. It was the same, no matter which joint he went into. Yes. He couldn't stand such a worthless place.

[Victoria Kalo]

"That's very nice." Victoria smiled, nodding her head with admiration for Tashiro. It would be hard to only focus on your studies, constantly studying all of the time. She couldn't possibly get through that sort of thing, she needed to have some fun in her life to reamain sane. Though staying in quiet places to study wasn't such a bad idea, especially if she wanted to prove everyone wrong about her. She truly wasn't just another dumb model...if only they would take a look at her surprisingly amazing report cards...

The feeling of hot coffe on her jeans brought Victoria crashing back to reality. She jumped a little as the coffe burned her, cursing under her breath. She quickly set her drink on the table, coffe still streaming down the sides of the cup. She took a handfull of napkins, then began dabbing her jeans. "I'm so stupid sometimes...." she laughed, shaking her head, then smiling at Tashiro. She then laughed again. He probably thought she was an idiot.

[amarantheyes]

It wasn't so much "nice" as it was "necessity." His contemplations took him to childhood, where even at the youngest of ages, he was told that he needed to do his best, be at the top. So he strove for that. Getting full credit on all his work, doing all the extra assignments. not for himself. For them. Everything he had done during his school years had been for his parents. The languages he had mastered, the instruments that he had learned. All for them. His life had never been his own.

Except for his clothing. There had come the day when he had left for school without even saying goodbye. But they were soon called in, for he had attended class in the girls' uniform, blending right in with the crowd until his name had been called in role. Even as they threatened him, taking his outfits away, he continued designing and sewing his own clothing. Rebellion, they had called it.

And when everything was denied him, he fell into nothingness. An existence without meaning. He knew nothing else to do. Study, perform, and design were what came natural to him. But how could this stranger understand that?

As he watched her, he could see the cup as it tipped. The dark liquid flowing freely as she herself was in thoughtful manner. He made no move to prevent it from happening. Selfishness on his part, perhaps, for wanting to see how she dealt with the situation.

She just smiled. Laughed. Commented on her clumsiness while mopping up the mess.

A smile flickered, breaking his cold expression for once. He slid of the chair, striding across the room to grab her some more, not dirtied, napkins.

[Victoria Kalo]

Victoria smiled at Tashiro as he smiled for the very first time during their whole encounter. His smiled seemed genuine, and he really did seem like a nice guy. She then continued soaking the coffee out of her jeans with the flimsy napkins, watching as Tashiro got out of his chair without a sound, going to get her some more napkins. "Thank you!" she called to him as he walked away, laughing to herself as she continued to attempt to wipe her jeans. She did dumb things like this a lot, be it tripping on the stairs, spilling water all over the table, and so on and so forth. For being such a graceful model she really was quite clumsy.

[amarantheyes]

There was something about the material that the napkins were made from. As he made to set them on the table, the fuzzy threads of his gloves intertwined with the fabric of the paper cloths, and it remained hovering beneath his hand for a few seconds until he pried it away, letting it fall to the table top soundlessly. Only one. The uppermost one which had come in closest contact with the article of clothing.

Poetic in a way, as he was reminded of feathers floating to the ground. It was, however, a rather large feather when he thought about it. And a shade of brown which he particularly disliked. Whatever form of poetry he had envisioned, it disappeared quickly as he sat again, pushing the cloths to her side of the table.

Looking her over again, he decided that she would fit the role of the model. She had the looks to be, appeared to be the appropriate height. Weight he wasn't so sure about, but only because he never bothered in estimating the width of people. There was nothing important about it. Height was a different matter. He liked to know who was going to try and size him up.

If she was, in fact, a model, he wondered if she was a walkway one. If so, did she ever fall? Likely. She also appeared to be a klutz.

[Victoria Kalo]

Victoria watched, very intrigued, as the napkin hovered below Tashiro's hand for a few seconds before he took it away and pushed it toward her. She grabbed it with smiled, laughing a little. When she was little she had always tried to get napkins to do that at restaurants while the grown-ups talked about boring things, but never really ever succeeded. When she was little it was like magic, and now that she was older it was just an annoyance. How things changed with age.

Victoria decided it was time to break the silence that once again seemed to be looming over the table. "So...what are your hobbies?" she asked with a smile, a few seconds later realizing how dumb it sounded.

[amarantheyes]

Hobbies? What were his hobbies? Hadn't he just told her that he spent his entire time focusing on education? Sure, there were things that he did to get away from reality, a reminder of what once was or of what could be. But there must be something.

"I play instruments," he said after thinking about his answer. It was the best he could come up with. Reading wasn't a hobby. Finger painting was childish. Singing and acting were considered talents. But he didn't collect anything, nor go places. He was merely there. Just another person existing in the world. No purpose. Not reason. Only there temporarily until someone came to take his place.

What room was there for fun and love? Very little. So there was no point in bothering with it at all. He learned and worked to live. Nothing more. Nothing less. But how could he say that to her.

"I write music," he admitted, "I play music. I act it, I sing it, I choreograph it." There was nothing else to say. His life revolved around learning and music.

[Victoria Kalo]

"Oh, how wonderful!" she exclaimed. "I love music...probably couldn't live without it." she smiled sweetly, laughing a little. "I wish I could play an instrument, though. That really would be cool..." she added, drifting off into deep thought. She had always wanted to play the piano or guitar and be a part of a band, she just never really got around to it. Modeling took up a lot in her life, and she was okay with that. Modeling was what she did, what she loved.

[amarantheyes]

Sipping at his drink, he suppressed the wrinkle forming in his nose at the bitter taste. Tashiro had, somehow, forgotten the horribleness of the concoction. "It's good to have a wish, I suppose," he said, the words coming out in a sigh.

Wishes were those dreams that kept people going. Faintly hidden and always out of sight. Something impossible to grab hold of. But the desire to achieve these accomplishments latched onto a person's heart, dragging them forward, only to be disappointed with the way it had turned out. There was no success. A lie. Sometimes there were those few people who managed to make something of it. Rarely, but they were able to appreciate their victory while others were sadly thrown down, giving up or being told that they would never reach it.

As for him...there was only that one dream. One thing that kept him going.