[ The initial stretch of silence fills Keita with enough apprehension that he's almost afraid to look up from his tea. He's been intentional about not trying to look closely at the possible futures that arise from this encounter, not wanting to prejudice himself one way or another, but as he waits for Oushi to say something he can't help it—he casts his mind into his future-memories to take a glimpse at what Oushi might say, the ways in which he might respond.
They're—all right, for the most part. Most of them are positive enough that Keita is able to summon the will to look up at Oushi, just in time for him to comment on how cool it is, solidifying one of the possible futures into fact and letting the others melt away from Keita's awareness.
He smiles, still a little nervous but a bit more relaxed. ]
Until you decided what to say, I knew every one of your possible responses, [ he says with a slight nod. ] But once you said it, I forgot all the other outcomes. I can only remember the future for as long as it is the future—once it becomes the present I'm no different from anyone else.
[ Keita pauses, his fingers tapping lightly against his teacup, and then he asks, hesitant, ]
[ that small little question does well to stamp down the little bundle of excitement that had been bubbling up in oushi's gut — it's a good douse of the reality of the situation, pulling him from what might have otherwise been a rather boyish outlook on something far, far more serious.
he forces himself to step back a little, and look inward again. trying to give keita's question the care and consideration it deserves. ]
...It does. But probably not in the way you're thinking.
[ he quiets again, watching the older man closely. can keita sense it now, the different ways in which he tries to formulate his explanation? does each possibility stretch out before the other man, as dizzying as they are to the very one trying to articulate them? ]
It probably wouldn't surprise you, but I live a pretty boring life back home. There's nothing extraordinary, or special, or supernatural about my world. [ about him. ] Every day I wake up, I go to school, I go to work, I go home and go to sleep.
[ now it's oushi's turn to look down at the glass in his hand. a slight shift, and the ice within moves and clinks, but the sound is soft, barely there, and there is hardly even a ripple as a result. ]
Before all of this, the most significant thing to ever happen to me was a broken heart.
[ he shrugs, words pushed out through a half, embittered smile. he has long since come to accept his utter nothingness, though it is still, in many ways, a rough pill to swallow. ]
I've just started to assume that everyone I meet here will always be so much more, and just out of my reach in that way.
[ it's helped, a little. ultimately he still feels that same sense of helplessness, but at least the blow isn't quite so harsh anymore. ]
So... I should be asking you that instead, shouldn't I? Does it bother you, Mori-san?
[ that his world has always been so small. that he might never fully understand the scope and depth and breadth of keita's life, and all its particulars. that he can never fully relate, despite how desperately he might want to. ]
[ Having once been the recipient of a broken heart himself, Keita can't help but feel as though that's quite a significant hurt indeed—but he understands, at least, what Oushi means. It must be just as difficult to be mundane in a sea of the extraordinary as it is to be supernatural in a world that has no context for it. In this resort, there are many who are astonishingly powerful, much more so than Keita—has Oushi spent this entire time worrying where his place might be among them?
Keita leans forward, his warm hands leaving his own cup so they can wrap around Oushi's instead, where he's holding onto his glass. It doesn't take even a second's thought for Keita to say, ] Not even a little.
[ After all, it hasn't been a secret to him that Oushi doesn't have any particular superpowers, at least not beyond what Keita considers a superpowered ability to make Keita blush across the network. Even so, he finds Oushi compelling, interesting, enjoyable to be around. Having powers doesn't do anything to fix fundamental flaws in one's personality, after all—ask Keita how he knows. ]
It's almost unbearably trite for me to say that even someone ordinary has the potential to change the world, [ Keita adds after a moment, with a wry smile, ] but at least in my case I'm in the unique position of knowing that it's true. But even if you don't change the world, I meant every word I said about—caring for you, and feeling at ease in your presence, and enjoying the time we spend together.
[ It isn't necessary for Oushi to intimately understand the intricacies of Keita's power and the responsibility he shoulders because of it. Indeed, he would rather Oushi not—it's been a heavy weight all Keita's life, and he wouldn't wish it upon anyone else. It's enough just to know that his powers don't frighten Oushi, and that he might want to continue being friends despite them. ]
I don't care in the slightest whether you've got supernatural abilities, [ Keita adds firmly, hoping to drive the point home. ] I find you wonderful regardless, Oushi-kun.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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They're—all right, for the most part. Most of them are positive enough that Keita is able to summon the will to look up at Oushi, just in time for him to comment on how cool it is, solidifying one of the possible futures into fact and letting the others melt away from Keita's awareness.
He smiles, still a little nervous but a bit more relaxed. ]
Until you decided what to say, I knew every one of your possible responses, [ he says with a slight nod. ] But once you said it, I forgot all the other outcomes. I can only remember the future for as long as it is the future—once it becomes the present I'm no different from anyone else.
[ Keita pauses, his fingers tapping lightly against his teacup, and then he asks, hesitant, ]
...It doesn't bother you?
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he forces himself to step back a little, and look inward again. trying to give keita's question the care and consideration it deserves. ]
...It does. But probably not in the way you're thinking.
[ he quiets again, watching the older man closely. can keita sense it now, the different ways in which he tries to formulate his explanation? does each possibility stretch out before the other man, as dizzying as they are to the very one trying to articulate them? ]
It probably wouldn't surprise you, but I live a pretty boring life back home. There's nothing extraordinary, or special, or supernatural about my world. [ about him. ] Every day I wake up, I go to school, I go to work, I go home and go to sleep.
[ now it's oushi's turn to look down at the glass in his hand. a slight shift, and the ice within moves and clinks, but the sound is soft, barely there, and there is hardly even a ripple as a result. ]
Before all of this, the most significant thing to ever happen to me was a broken heart.
[ he shrugs, words pushed out through a half, embittered smile. he has long since come to accept his utter nothingness, though it is still, in many ways, a rough pill to swallow. ]
I've just started to assume that everyone I meet here will always be so much more, and just out of my reach in that way.
[ it's helped, a little. ultimately he still feels that same sense of helplessness, but at least the blow isn't quite so harsh anymore. ]
So... I should be asking you that instead, shouldn't I? Does it bother you, Mori-san?
[ that his world has always been so small. that he might never fully understand the scope and depth and breadth of keita's life, and all its particulars. that he can never fully relate, despite how desperately he might want to. ]
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Keita leans forward, his warm hands leaving his own cup so they can wrap around Oushi's instead, where he's holding onto his glass. It doesn't take even a second's thought for Keita to say, ] Not even a little.
[ After all, it hasn't been a secret to him that Oushi doesn't have any particular superpowers, at least not beyond what Keita considers a superpowered ability to make Keita blush across the network. Even so, he finds Oushi compelling, interesting, enjoyable to be around. Having powers doesn't do anything to fix fundamental flaws in one's personality, after all—ask Keita how he knows. ]
It's almost unbearably trite for me to say that even someone ordinary has the potential to change the world, [ Keita adds after a moment, with a wry smile, ] but at least in my case I'm in the unique position of knowing that it's true. But even if you don't change the world, I meant every word I said about—caring for you, and feeling at ease in your presence, and enjoying the time we spend together.
[ It isn't necessary for Oushi to intimately understand the intricacies of Keita's power and the responsibility he shoulders because of it. Indeed, he would rather Oushi not—it's been a heavy weight all Keita's life, and he wouldn't wish it upon anyone else. It's enough just to know that his powers don't frighten Oushi, and that he might want to continue being friends despite them. ]
I don't care in the slightest whether you've got supernatural abilities, [ Keita adds firmly, hoping to drive the point home. ] I find you wonderful regardless, Oushi-kun.