Workout [Open log]

[not_good_not_wicked]

Who: Marisa Kirisame, Ryou Bakura, anyone else who goes to the Gym
What: General interactions (open), creepy Vermini encounter (closed)
Where: Bob's Lift to Win Gym
When: Late enough that it's dark out
Warning: Sweat. Bugs.

Marisa emerged from the women's locker room in her street clothes, feeling tired, sore, and healthy. Ever since she had realized that this whole numbers business was potentially seriously dangerous, she had been coming here twice a week to take a self-defense class. She liked to imagine that she was a bit more capable now than she had been a few months ago, but realistically still placed her own skill level at Rank Amateur.

She stopped as she was walking by the snack bar by the exit, lured by the thought of smoothies. After a moment's thought, she decided that the grilled cheese sandwich she'd made for dinner wasn't cutting it, and stopped to get a snack. Nothing like a delicious apple/peach smoothie after a long workout on a hot night. She leaned back in one of the leather chairs by the snack bar and took her time enjoying it. Anyone from the network who goes to the gym can probably recognize her.

[Later, closed]

Marisa finally left the building and immediately noticed that the sun had finished going down while she had been drinking her smoothie, and that the lights in the parking lot were on the fritz, leaving it almost pitch black out. Combined with the total lack of people around for the moment, she was more than a little bit creeped out.

Fortunately her truck wasn't far. She could make out its silhouette from here.

Comments

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura, for contrast, had been a regular at the gym for three and a half years, using the good ole fashioned "beat the shit out of a huge bag of sand until you can barely stand" school of anger management and spent a few hours every day in the gym just for a safe place to burn off steam. Not even bothering to change or even ditch the sweaty towel around his shoulders (since he was just going back in after he'd gotten something to cool his throat) he simply waved at the attendant behind the counter to order his usual before he gave a long exhale, leaning back against the counter and rotating his shoulder a few times before pausing, finally spotting Marisa.

"...Hey."

[not_good_not_wicked]

Oh hey it's Bakura again. Marisa waved him over. "Yo! Come here often?"

[shiromadoushi]

"Only almost every day of the damned week," Bakura returned with a grin, pausing just long enough to grab his smoothy and drop a 5 on the counter before heading over. "You?"

[not_good_not_wicked]

"Just twice a week. I started taking self-defense classes, since...you know..."

Since their lives have become really scary.

"Anyways. I just finished and I'm cooling off."

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura nodded. "Not the type to just carry a knife to gut someone, eh?" he teased lightly before taking a long drink of his smoothy. "Probably better that way."

[not_good_not_wicked]

"I'll pass on knives, thanks. Last thing I want to do is actually kill someone."

After a moment, she added on an "Oh yeah!" and started digging through her purse.

"Wanted to show you something."

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura blinked a few times, watching her as he slurped through his straw, rotating his shoulder again.

[notquiteanobody]

For the better or worse of things, Marisa was just one of those network posts that Ciel had not managed to get around to looking through. Of course, that wasn't to say he hadn't seen her around town -or the gym, in more recent days. So when he happens to notice her lounging over in the snack back, he pauses on his way in and seems to contemplate things for a moment before making his way over.

"You're gonna have to excuse me if I sound like a creeper, but aren't you the girl from the arcade? Ya know, pretty much the only one that plays any of the bullet-hell-type shooters?" His curiosity seems to be written on his face to the extent that only a flashing neon sign would have made it obvious. But curiosity not withstanding, his particular demeanor seemed harmless enough at the moment.

Of course, if Marisa had been listening to some of the audio posts on the network, his voice would probably sound familiar.

[not_good_not_wicked]

She generally didn't pay much attention to newbie posts, as most of them were pretty similar and boring in the "Who are you? What are you doing here!?" sort of way.

She DID have first place on most of the bullet hell shooters, though. Dodging skill echo was good for something after all. She glanced up at Ciel, slightly warily. "Yeah that's me. You following me around or something?"

[notquiteanobody]

"Nah, just thought you looked familiar." He remarks as he approaches the spot where Marisa is seated, "Former first place on most of those, current second place now." There's a look of amusement on his face and a complete lack of malice in his voice; rather a strong undertone of amusement with this development.

Without missing a beat, he offers his hand to shake in greeting along with that smile he usually wore when he was trying to be cool. Or possibly impress. "Sorry, I suck with my manners sometimes. I'm Ciel."

[not_good_not_wicked]

Marisa laughed, "What can I say? I'm just that damn awesome."

She returned the handshake, "Marisa. Manners are overrated."

[notquiteanobody]

"Marisa, huh? Nice to have a name to go with a pretty face."

A remark like that admittedly makes the expression Ciel's wearing seem more like he's aiming to impress... or perhaps fail at flirting a little. At the very least, it seems like he's just over-doing it on being friendly. A few people would probably find his particular mannerisms at least modestly amusing.

"So you new in town? You have you just been holding that awesome back until recently?"

[not_good_not_wicked]

Ciel couldn't tell if she was flattered or annoyed by the comment about her face. For all he could tell, she just hadn't processed it.

"I'm new. I moved here from Texas in late June."

[depolarized]

[Riku rarely drops by at the snack bar, preferring water or tea, but with this kind of weather, what he really wants is some nice frozen yogurt. Ice cream would be better, of course, but he doubts the snack bar had it. He places his order and leans against the pick-up counter, surveying the guests. There is one girl he vaguely recognizes from the beginner class before his and a couple of girls sharing a salad.]

[not_good_not_wicked]

Marisa kept glancing at the girls sharing a salad with disdain. You need some protein if you're gonna be working out, not grass. Granted, the smoothie wasn't much better of an alternative, but at least it was tasty.

She actually blinked, looking over at Riku. Why were there so many white haired pretty boys in her life? It was like they were following her around.

[depolarized]

Don't look now, but this white haired pretty boy is going to take the only available seat left at the table next to you. Riku leaned back against the chair with a large cup of frozen yogurt with berries and looks at her curiously when he notices the glances towards the girls.

"Friends of yours?"

[not_good_not_wicked]

"Heck no. Pretty sure they mainly came here to stare at hot boys lifting weights. No way anyone can be expected to have a salad after a proper workout, much less share it between three people."

This wisdom dispensed, she actually turned to Riku. "Who're you?"

[depolarized]

That was a bit more than he'd expected. "It's polite to introduce yourself if you're taking names."

[not_good_not_wicked]

She noisily slurped her smoothie, then fixed him with a beatific smile. "You're the one who walked up to me."

Later~

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura hadn't actually taken too long for his 2nd round. An annoying group of girls had spotted him and started tittering over his work out, much to his aggravation. Totally ruined what he had come there to do, damnit!

So he had hit the showers and gotten changed into his normal clothes, toweling his hair dry best he could before grabbing his bag and heading for the parking lot.

"...You still here?" he blinked, spotting a familiar figure.

[not_good_not_wicked]

"I ended up getting more stuff at the snack bar." She made a face and added, "Vegan tofu burritos shouldn't be classified as food, for the record."

Marisa set off across the dark parking lot, leaves crunching under her feet noisily, can called over her shoulder "Sure about that ride?"

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura couldn't help but let out a small laugh. "Most vegan food shouldn't be," he agreed, walking over to unlock his bike. "And I'm sure! Nothing against your driving or anything, I just hate cars," he explained.

He He did feel a touch bad for blanching at her offer before. Hopefully the explanation would help.

[not_good_not_wicked]

"Your loss."

Crunch crunch crunch cr-

Marisa paused midstep in front of her car. She looked down, but it was too dark to make anything out. She felt something whispering over her ankles that didn't feel QUITE like wind.

"...There shouldn't be any dead leaves out here. It's the middle of summer."

[shiromadoushi]

He paused, looking up, lock in hand before jangling his keys around to the small flashlight on the chain, aiming the thin beam of light at her feet.

[not_good_not_wicked]

Mirroring the flashlight, Marisa slowly looked down. The ground was covered in about an inch of squirming black cockroaches, all skittering over her feet and across the parking lot in the same direction.

She gave a painfully loud scream and actually leaped off the ground and onto the hood of her truck, frantically beating at her own feet.