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Post by zuyuri on Mar 20, 2024 3:59:51 GMT
Even though Zuko preferred to keep to himself, he was curious about the beach carnival. After mustering enough of a social battery, he made his way to the pier down by the coast. Immediately, he was unsure what to think when he saw the crowds milling around. Many of them he recognized as several students from Hero High. Of course, seeing them in swimwear was a bit weird. Zuko, of course, had gotten that memo with red and gold swim trunks and a loose red T-shirt; no way was he getting sunburned. Were any of his friends in the crowd? He owed Ruby an apology after all. After scanning the sea of people and failing to recognize any of them, Zuko went to one of the small food tents and ordered a hot dog and soda. Food was better than standing by hungry, after all.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Mar 21, 2024 1:55:20 GMT
It had been ages since Bella had been to a carnival. It tended to stop by the beach area once a year, but she hadn't been to it since she was younger. As she approached the entrance, it felt more crowded than she remembered. Or maybe it was because she'd come alone. The beach had been her family's prime vacation spot back in the day, but they didn't come nearly as often after her dad had left. Bella had stopped wondering about him a long time ago, unlike Utena, who still had a little bit of hope that he'd show up out of the blue, ready to be in their lives again. She pushed any thoughts about her dad out of her head though. She wanted to enjoy herself today, maybe go for a dip in the ocean if she had the time. If not, well, at least her cover up dress still fit the beachy atmosphere.
Most people were flocking to the game stands or the rides, but a decent chunk of the crowd was stocking up on carnival food that was definitely not low on calories. Bella couldn't help getting a snow cone, flavored with a deep red cherry syrup. She'd spotted a few kids from school since getting here, but nobody she was friends with. Until a certain tall boy with a scar on his face came into her vision. Zuko probably couldn't help standing out, or maybe Bella was just noticing him more. Was he waiting for someone? Or did he come alone too? Bella figured it couldn't hurt to chat either way. Making her way over to the hotdog stand though was a bit of a chore and took very careful bobbing and weaving between the crowd, saying all the while "Excuse me," or "Sorry!" if she happened to bump into someone.
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Post by zuyuri on Mar 21, 2024 3:50:42 GMT
The hot dog he got was just okay. The color of it was nice, but the temperature? Basic. He brought it close and exhaled softly and carefully. The fire was brief, but hot enough to blister the casing, creating the black lines usually associated with backyard grills. Much better. He chewed thoughtfully as he walked away to scan the crowds. Well, nobody familiar yet. No sign of Bella, or Ruby, or even Utena. He’s think that someone as outgoing as her would be out here. But just as Zuko wove through the crowds away from the hot dog stand, a passerby, unaware of the surroundings, swung their arm and knocked the hot dog perfectly out of his hand, where it landed in the sand.
“Hey, watch it!” Zuko snapped loudly. The passerby winced under his glare before scooting away, muttering something that he couldn’t quite hear. Zuko scowled as they walked further away. He spent a good chunk of money on that, and now it was seagull food.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Mar 21, 2024 23:22:34 GMT
Bella looked up just in time to see the crowd getting the best of Zuko too as someone knocked his hotdog out of his hand. Bella frowned, although it seemed like the guy mumbled some kind of apology before hurrying away. It probably wasn't worth chasing after him, although Utena might if she was here. Instead, Bella made her way to Zuko. "Man, that's a bummer," she commented, looking at the hotdog that would probably be gone in a short time thanks to seagulls. "Hope that didn't ruin your day."
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Post by zuyuri on Mar 22, 2024 0:35:27 GMT
A tiny voice piped up behind Zuko. He stiffened. His fists clenched tightly. He looked over his shoulder to the source, ready to tell the person to mind their own business. But as he saw Bella, the anger softened. Not so much an inferno but a weak flame on a candle. “At least I still have this,” Zuko said, shaking the lemonade.in his hand. Bella was his best friend. Snapping at her when she didn’t deserve it would be awful. He already had Ruby mad at him.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Mar 24, 2024 15:58:03 GMT
At least Zuko was looking on the bright side. And carnival lemonade was pretty good. Bella wasn't sure what made it taste better from regular lemonade, but she always swore there was a difference. "Um, I can always get you another one later, if you want," she offered. "My treat." Or if not a hot dog, there were some other good stands around. Bella's snow cone was pretty good and she'd seen a couple of other places that stuff like deep fried oreos or pretzels.
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Post by zuyuri on Mar 24, 2024 16:30:15 GMT
Zuko blinked once at Bella’s offer. Never in his life had any offered to replace something that had been lost or simply thrown away. She was too good. But he couldn’t say no if she was the one offering. “I’ll pay you back for something else,” he promised. It sounded like a fair trade.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Mar 25, 2024 23:49:53 GMT
Zuko almost seemed...surprised? Bella wasn't sure how to describe it. But he accepted her offer nevertheless, which made her smile. "Deal," she replied, looking for the hot dog before spotting it not too far away. "You like mustard or ketchup?" she asked as she made her way over, taking a quick lick of her snow cone as she did. She needed to finish it up or it was going to melt and she didn't need syrup all over her hands.
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Post by zuyuri on Mar 26, 2024 1:56:56 GMT
Red syrup was starting to stain Bella’s hands. That snow cone was about to become a puddle if she hadn’t finished. Zuko suddenly felt guilty. And was rushing for him, but she didn’t need to. “We…don’t have to get it right away. Go ahead and finish yours. I can wait.” Snow cone syrup was different from coffee syrup in that the colors made it impossible to wash out or overpowered the drink with artificial flavoring.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Mar 27, 2024 23:40:42 GMT
"Huh?" Bella looked down and muttered "Oh crap." The snow cone faster than she had expected. She finished it in a hurry, but her hands still came out a little red and sticky. Flinging her hands a few times did get most of it off, but she'd have to find a good hand soap to take care of the rest. Talk about embarrassing. "Oh jeez, I look like a crime scene," she complained. If the same thing had happened to Utena, she'd probably play it cool or laugh it off. Bella had never been that quick witted though.
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Post by zuyuri on Mar 28, 2024 2:39:52 GMT
Zuko looked around for anything to help Bella. He didn’t have any wipes in his pocket. However, a napkin fluttered past his ankles, and he picked it up with ease. “Just be glad you’re not wearing white,” he said, handing it over. “It could have been a lot worse.”
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Mar 28, 2024 23:43:27 GMT
"Ugh, thank God for that," Bella agreed as Zuko handed her a napkin. Her hands looked a lot better after she vigorously rubbed off most of the syrup. She didn't need to spend the rest of the day looking like Carrie from the horror movie. Now that that was finally out of the way though, maybe she could just act like it hadn't happened. "So, uh, how have you been? How's work?" she asked, the words tumbling out a little fast. She knew she was probably blushing pretty hard right now and it'd take her a minute or two to relax. But until then, she just hoped that her face burning wasn't super obvious.
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Post by zuyuri on Mar 28, 2024 23:53:03 GMT
“It’s the same old,” Zuko answered casually. There really was nothing big in terms of changes to his routine. He went to school, worked a shift, and then simply went back to his dorm. Unless he wanted to work on his poetry in a quiet place or hang out somewhere that was quiet if Kyo was playing guitar. Gosh, he was bad at socializing. Sure, it was easier around Bella because of his non judgmental and shy she was, but it still felt strange.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Mar 30, 2024 20:27:53 GMT
Well, at least Zuko's job wasn't terrible. She knew popular times like the holidays made the place a mad house. How he dealt with unruly customers was a mystery, but they were probably less of a handful than a giant hydra or bank robbers. Although the pier was starting to feel like a mad house too, people were starting to crowd in to get a bite. "How about we walk along the boardwalk?" she suggested. "Might be good to get away from the crowds."
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Post by zuyuri on Mar 30, 2024 20:45:25 GMT
Bella suggested the two of them head out to the boardwalk, and given the large crowd of people - way more than he had seen even on busy rush hours - it was probably for the best. "Okay." As the swarm of people got closer, he instinctively grabbed her hand to keep her close. The last thing he wanted was for them to get separated. Zuko wove through the people, still aware of Bella's hand in his. If he started to slip, he readjusted his grip. Finally, they were out of the group and staring out at the partial abandoned boardwalk. Like she said, there were stragglers, but not giant groups.
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