video | merriment 15

[jingyeets]

( Jingyi anchored, and thus he's still tired. Very tired. Flopping between areas and people to nap with kind of tired. It hasn't resolved yet, and he hates that, but he can't let him not get around to important questions.

Which is why he's on camera as crossed legs only, laying down on the bench with the ICP swiveled his direction. It's almost like he's shy... but no, he's not, he's just exhausted. )

Everything was a mess and all of us there had strange illusion things to deal with before things went really bad, but I have a question. About my friend.

( A pause. He does, in fact, literally mean this about a friend. )

Say he was in a situation where... certain boundaries were willingly crossed, but what it meant in the illusion was different from what it means outside of the illusion. And explaining what that means and how it's different is kind of important to the one they were crossed with.

( For both sides, but he's more worried about his friend than he is the other guy, for various biased reasons he has no regrets over. )

How do you handle when people here do casual things with 'dating,' but I'm from—he's from—a place where you definitely don't?

Comments

voice

[almukhtar]

( The voice sounds... very tired. But he has a lot of passion for the topic, and so. ) An honest conversation is always the first point of action, I find.

[blitzcheer]

[ hahahaha he's saying this is for a friend!!! CLASSIC.

Tidus has the decency to wait for the chuckles to leave him, and then he comes onto the ICP, smiiiling, but very normal, thank you!! ]

Sooo, your friend - or friends. They know you're talking about this? 'Caaaause, [ eheh, ] you're kinda talking to the entire train right now.

[ Just.

You know.

Pointing it out!!! ]

[jingyeets]

Right, right... what if it starts with "I'm going to punch you for being a jackass about this if you're a jackass about this?"

( Key word here, Atem, is: honest. )

[jingyeets]

( Dennis is not a friend so SUCK IT DENNIS, YOU GET NO JINGYI RIGHTS as of yet, to be determined for future reference, file under option b. A tired scoff, and a hand appears to wave over the area of his knee. )

My friend knows. Talking to the whole train is kind of the point.

( The hand disappears again, while those cargo pant crossed over legs bounce a little. This is why he is asking, this is why my friend is not named. )

[almukhtar]

( This reminds him of someone and it gets a lazy chuckle. ) While I assume this is indeed honest your concern I imagine is something a little more vulnerable in nature, am I correct?

[blitzcheer]

Okay! [ One hand flies up on his end. ] Making sure, you never know.

[ Doesn't make Tidus smile any less at this love advice hour. ]

Well, I'm with the guy who spoke up before me. You just talk about it, right? You or...your friend. [ Whatever it is. ] And if they don't like it, then - [ now he waves a dismissive hand. ] That's that, right? End of relationship.

[ Pretty simple, right? ]

[jingyeets]

Well, yeah, punching's just... an end result. That might happen. Gently, because half the people here would be broken by a regular hit.

( This is all said grumblingly, because Jingyi will not actually cause undue harm to anyone, even if he really, really wishes he could sometimes. Tired wouldn't be his best control. Better to wait... lurking... justice incoming...

But he sighs. )

It is, that's what I was saying. 'Cause enough people here, they think, oh! Here's a person I enjoy! I think I'll love them for a short while! Then it stops working, so goodbye. Which, whatever, I won't tell them they're wrong, but that's not right for everyone. We don't all do that.

[flatteries]

...

[ There's a small pause even after Inigo starts the feed on his end, like he's hesitating. Then he leans closer to the screen - you know, as if the whole train can't see or hear this regardless of his proximity to it - and lowers his voice to say: ]

Were you.. thinking of doing the whole dating thing after all? [ Guess who's misunderstanding.

Because no one actually ever asks that for a friend!! (Hello, Jingyi, it's your single-braincelled friend..) ]

With who?

[jingyeets]

... Talking to the jackass I kind of want to punch?

( Meriting this jackass because of what Dennis had said in illusion, which, well, has been similar to what people of a certain timeframe that is not-ancient-fantasy-China on train seemed to echo: dating's about trial runs, not a dedicated courtship. Things are expected to have wiggle room to not work out, that people fall in and out of love like they're tripping over puddles. Whoops! Fell in again! Guess I love you until I wade out! So sad, next puddle's incoming.

(Jingyi. Really.) )

[blitzcheer]

Okay, that passed I missed. [ Where did that come from? Poor whoever the jackass is. ] Why do you want to punch this guy for? I thought you just said they had different dating...boundaries?

[ Don't show too much ankle?? Who knows. ]

[jingyeets]

( Mostly because he recognises Inigo's voice, and can't figure out why he's asking that, he makes one of those sad grunting noises of someone laboriously sitting up so tousle haired, he can squint dubiously at the ICP. )

Inigo?

( Which may sound like an answer, but he's really just what? How is this a question? That's not even my question! Where's the friends with more braincells, pls )

[jingyeets]

Because I have issues about people messing with the people I care about?

( This is why the clarification needs to happen, is what it comes back around to. He does manage to haul himself upward, to look at Tidus on ICP with his hair mussed to all heck and back, ribbon across his forehead. )

I'm not saying I will, but I don't know, how is someone going to react when you go, "Hey, by the way, figure out if you plan to get married, or back off and stop now."

[blitzcheer]

Whoooa, okay, that's some strong feelings. [ To comment on the obvious. But really, he wants to put a spray bottle to the steam starting to show here! ]

Did he mess around with them knowing about the different dating thing? Or- you said it happened in that illusion, right? So now they've gotta talk about it. [ A beat. ] They have.

[ For necessary emphasis!!! ]

But let's see if the guy deserves a punch in the face before you get ready for one, you know?

[jingyeets]

( Tiredly, dryly: )

Am I punching anyone right now?

[blitzcheer]

[ He raises his brows. ]

This question include in your head?

[ Maybe in the past more than right now, but. ]

[flatteries]

[ Please, Jingyi should know better than to say anything that sounds like it could even remotely be interpreted as an answer - especially since Inigo's brain is waiting for an answer, so of course it's going to take the first thing it comes across as one. Even if it makes no logical sense.

.. aka, even when it's this. It makes Inigo stare for a moment, stunned, but then his entire face starts to grow just about as red as a tomato. ]

H.. Huh?! M-Me?!

[ P-PAL? ]

[jingyeets]

( He rolls his eyes. Big full on eye roll. )

I have restraint. Even in my head I'd wait for confirmation, but, ugh. Do you have friends who avoid things? Things they need to face, but need help with it?

[jingyeets]

( Ah, yes. Communication at its finest. Why is Inigo flustered, is it just this topic, is it the d-word, it's gotta be the d-word. )

Yes?

( Yes, he's talking to you, and he's talked! About this! So the dragon is a bit confused over why Inigo seems confused, because he said he's asking for a friend, so how's this... weird... is it weird to ask for a friend.

Oh come on, is it?! )

Why, is this weird?

[blitzcheer]

[ Tidus's mouth quirks to one side. ]

Give them time? This all happened on the mission, didn't it? [ Though, he does think: ] This guy knows he's gotta talk to the other guy, and you're worried about them putting it off. And this other guy not getting how important your people's...relationship boundaries are.

Right? That's what this is about.

[jingyeets]

Yes. And I know the one, my friend, and what he's struggling with, and he'll... When it's about him, he doesn't put himself forward, even when he needs to, you know? It's not about rushing into anything or because things happened, there's no blame or anything wrong. It's in not clearing things up, and thinking it's okay to avoid because it's awkward.

( Though that was a lot of words and energy, so he ends up groaning and flopping back down, off screen. Tired. )

[flatteries]

W-Well, no..

[ Even though it is weird. Why would his handsome dragon friend be crushing on him all of a sudden, huh?! Especially when he started the big deal about not doing casual dating in the first place! What changed? A-Also, why Inigo of all people?!

But he doesn't want to hurt Jingyi's feelings - the feelings Inigo is entirely imagining inside of his head, anyway - so of course he's saying it's not weird.

He's sweating though. Panicked gay disaster over here. ]

I.. I just.. um.. What made you change your mind..?

[blitzcheer]

[ Tidus is sorta leaning to the side of the ICP, putting his weight on the wall next to it. Humming first in thought. ]

So. [ sooo. ] The other guy - you know who it is. You seen him walking around any today? 'Cause this is a pretty good way of letting the guy know what's happening - if you're out here hearing all this, mysterious...guy.

[ He'd give a nickname, but he's not feeling 'jackass' or 'potential punched face'.

But oh, yeah: ] Sorry about your relationship drama.

[ He'll give them that, at least. Sorry your love life is train popcorn!! ]

[jingyeets]

( Pause. He's visibly confused, because the conversation he thought they were having doesn't make sense for... changing minds? Unless he's supposed to change his mind. Is he? He grimaces, sinking down to the bottom of the screen as he rests his arms on the table, and his chin on top. )

I'm not sure I did.

( Change his mind on how to handle this, at least, or that he should, because Inigo's not saying it's weird, but he's acting like it's a little weird. )

Does that make sense?

( No. No, it does not make sense, for the two conversations they're independently having. )

[calmness]

While I know that this is an attempt to support a certain friend, Jingyi, you have also just turned a personal situation which is likely uncomfortable for both parties into the gossip of the train.

[calm but stern, the next words are followed by a soft, tired but amused sigh.]

Be mindful.

[jingyeets]

( Jingyi could help with the less rude nicknames, but he's not inclined to, and he also doesn't know what's true about Dennis here versus in the illusive lives they all lived. So he sighs, then snorts: )

You're not the only one.

( Because the last thing anyone needs is that, but it's also just... close enough to being silly Jingyi didn't think it'd be an unnecessary weight to a network that gets random pick-up broadcasts. A concept he now understands 1% better. )

But yeah, you've got it. This is a heads up, for certain interested parties.

( Hint hint, Sizhui, though he's mentioned this already to his friend; and hint hint, Dennis, because he might not be Sizhui's legitimate elder brother, but he is his elder friend, and he will make sure they state themselves clearly, to understand what boundaries they each have. It's the only thing he can see being fair to both of them. )

Haven't seen him though. Been too... dragging.

( Tired. Exhausted. Blearily bopping between showers, kitchen, and bed again, in an unending cycle of mostly napping. )