They didn't spend too much time in the gift shop, Reina getting a crab plushie for Dorian saying that it was for the orca he got her so long ago. He got her, somehow, to leave him be as he got his sister a turtle and something that he thought she might've noticed. Given that he had no idea how this night was going to go, he had no idea when he was going to give it to her. She didn't ask what he'd gotten, but he was certain that she'd seen him. He was thankful that she probably knew better than to try to press him for it even if there was a chance, under the right circumstances, she could get him to answer her.
"So, for my next question," Reina began, holding herself closer to him on his arm as a chill wind blew. "Do you miss home?" He chuckled and absentmindedly twirled his umbrella.
"From innocent curiosity, to getting deeper," he noted. "Yeah, there's a lot I miss. But I try to make an effort to keep in touch and see what's going on. A little surprised that it took people that long to say that Cass had followed me...wonder if anyone would believe her if she tells them about my outburst...." Reina left Dorian to his thoughts for a moment, recognizing the look of concentration on his face. She did note, however, that he didn't seem to be worried but genuinely curious about the people who he grew up around.
After a minute or two, he seemed to remember that they were out on a date and broke himself out of his trance. "Ah, sorry about that...."
"No problem," she shrugged. "You're actually kinda cute when you're lost in thought...." He looked away but not before she caught a glimpse of the sheepish little smile on his face. It was so easy to get him like this, and she knew how much he liked it...but now was not the time for teasing. She'd made a promise and had no intention of worming out of it. "You asked about my dad, earlier...."
He made a noise that she wasn't sure if she could describe at her words.
"I'm not gonna hold you to that," he assured her. "I've got other questions...."
"No, no it's fine," she sighed, taking a deep breath. "My dad died when I was really little. Drunk driver hit him while he was on his way home. Mom was devastated...we both were, but I thought that I had to be there for her and not lose it. After a few days of me being like this, she pulled me aside and told me how proud she was of me being a little trooper, but that it was okay to let it out. According to her, I cried for a solid forty-five minutes...." Dorian's sheepish smile had turned to just him being sheepish at her answer.
They usually tried to avoid about delving into each other's deeper personal lives, but Dorian had set the rules and she'd played right.
"I'm sorry," he replied after some time.
"Don't be," she said. "You know what I'm like. I miss him, but I'm not going to let that control my life, right?" He returned her smile and led her towards the park he'd promised her a walk through. There still weren't many people out until about a bit into the park. A crowd had gathered around a large circle of plywood that had been set on the ground with a set of speakers placed off to one side. "What do you think that's for, then?"
"Riverdance," Dorian answered immediately. He could feel the look she was giving him and knew what was coming next so he cut her off. "A few years ago, some friends and I got into a bit of a competition. We were always the nerdy kids and we'd gotten into a bit of an argument with the football team who said that it wasn't harder to perform than to play a sport. After a quick wager, we took our time and got ready for our little showdown...."
"You can riverdance?" Reina asked, only slightly confused. "Anything else you can do that you haven't told me about?" His chuckle was enough of an answer.
"There's plenty you still don't know about me," he chuckled. "You know enough of my secrets any...." His voice tailed away and his eyes were fixed on something on the other end of the circle. Reina followed his gaze which landed on an older gentleman with slate grey hair wearing half-moon glasses. "That's Mr. Muschnik...."
"Who's that?" Reina asked. Dorian didn't say anything but instead tried to move before a familiar voice called out to them.
"Hey there, bro." A hefty groan escaped Dorian and Reina chuckled as he closed his eyes. Liz had suddenly appeared, followed by a group of others who were all smiling at Dorian. Didn't take long for Reina to figure out these were some of his friends from back home.
"Hey, guys," he offered, knowing he wasn't going to get out of this. "Would've been nice to know you all were going to be here...."
"So you could avoid us on your date?" a tanned, muscular girl teased. "You really know how to pick 'em...."
"And you seem to have gotten back up pretty quick," a blond boy chuckled. "Thought you said it'd be a couple years before you tried dating again...."
"Oh, shove it, Ian," Dorian smiled. "You all know I'm full of shit ninety percent of the time...." They all laughed before Dorian turned to Reina. "Anyways, I suppose I should be polite and introduce everyone. Everyone this is Reina. Reina...everyone."
"Hello," she offered.
"And, we're not actually on a date date," Dorian corrected. "She just kinda...."
"We know about the auction," a really tall boy said. "If we didn't know you, we'd be surprised you did it." Dorian shrugged. They fell into conversation, Reina just hanging on and listening. It was a little weird to her to watch Dorian.
It wasn't unfamiliar to her watching him with their friends, but she'd never seen him with friends he'd grown up around. She'd never really seen him like this before....
"Well," Dorian announced. "I guess we'd better leave you all. We're trying to make it before the rain hits...."
"Nope," Liz stated, firmly. "You're dancing with us...." Reina chuckled at Dorian's expression at the demanding tone of his little sister, not to mention her posture.
"Sorry, but I can't," he explained. They could all see the gears in his head turning to try and get an excuse. "But I left my uniform at home...."
"You're wearing it, mate...." He looked down at the black pants and turtleneck he was wearing and back at them who were dressed similarly save for the girls who had skirts and leggings. "Nice try, bud, but you'll have to do better than that." His eyes started to flit between all of them, looking for a way out since it was already established that being on a date wasn't going to work.
However, Reina beat him to the punch.
"It's okay, guys," she assured them. "I'm sure he wasn't really that good at it anyway." She could feel the heat of Dorian's gaze on her. It was so easy to wind him up.
"I think this one, Dorian," another girl said.
They all watched him as his jaw moved, the gears turning as he weighed his options. He was well aware that she was trying to goad him into it but challenging him, but he didn't want to walk away since it wasn't always in his nature. On the other hand, going along with his friends meant that they'd won, and he knew they would lord it over him for a long time. There really was no good option for him to get out of this situation and they all relished in that fact.
"Y'know something, Reina," he began, all but through clenched teeth.
"Yea?" She asked, sweetly.
"I might suggest you shut that pretty little mouth of yours...."
"Aw, before you shut it for me?" She finished, giggling. Don't threaten me with a good time, Dorian...." They saw his jaw move again, realizing that he wasn't going to get a better situation by this point.
Without a word, one of the girls handed him a pair of shoes as he dropped his coat and handed both it and the umbrella to Reina. The others left, presumably to set up while Liz stood almost triumphantly beside her brother, a smug smile on her face. Mr. Muschnik was smiling at Dorian from across the way and was ready by the speakers when Liz gave him a signal.
"Ladies and gentlemen," he announced, getting the attention of the people milling about. "I'm sure all of you have been waiting for quite a while to see what's going to be going on here, and I'm happy to say that we're finally ready. A member of our group's decided to join us." He pushed a button next to the speakers and music started to swell from them. Dorian took a deep breath, an almost exasperated smirk on his face as he put his hands behind his back.
Reina watched as Dorian moved with quick, light steps that resounded off of the plywood, watching how careful and practiced the motions were even as he did this weird little turning spin. She watched as he made his way to the center before turning around at his full height and offering an outstretched hand towards his sister, who moved to join him. Then two more came from the sides, and eventually the others in what looked like just random positions around the middle four. She couldn't help but be impressed with the uniformity of them all, obviously seeing the amount of practice they put into this, and wondering how much practice Dorian did on his own. Despite having moved hours away from them, if she didn't know she would never have guessed.
"Everyone, our teacher forgot to mention something," Dorian called to the crowd. "We are the Blue Opal Step Troupe!" With that, him, Liz and the other two in the middle grabbed hands in the middle and started to spin. The others around them, latched on to their other outstretched hands to make a sort of pinwheel effect, breaking off into their own separate lines to turn before coming together as a circle. Reina couldn't help but watch in surprised amazement at how all of them were so in sync with each other, even though she knew it was from an unholy amount of practice.
Dorian moved forward as their routine seemed to near its end, the rest of them curling the sides of the circle to fall in line behind him. Those lines soon fanned out behind him, Dorian being made the point of a V before, with a resounding step on the plywood, he threw his hands to the side and they were finished. The crowd applauded and cheered as they all took a bow, Dorian seeming to almost revel in the appreciation. She couldn't help but notice that it was almost the same as when he got a lot of attention cosplaying.
152Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVnYd4yz7zE
"So, when were you planning on telling me about that?" Reina asked. They'd gotten away from his friends who wished him good luck on the rest of their evening. More dark clouds had rolled in to the point where rain wasn't too far behind, the smell of it in the air.
"Eh, who knows?" he admitted, shrugging. "Not really something you just bring up to someone, is it?" She returned the shrug since he had a good point. It wasn't really a hobby, but it was a talent that might not be typical to bring up. "I'm surprised you haven't used any more of your questions...."152Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGiU2I0BAKk
"Why don't we just do them now?" she suggested. "Rain's not too far away...." Dorian nodded and gestured for her to go ahead. "What was your worst fear of being found as a cosplayer?"
"Honestly?" he began. "Being labeled as a creep or a weirdo. Can't imagine how many people probably think I'm just there to perv a little. I thought I'd already told you that?" He didn't give much time for her to agree before giving his. "What honestly made you want to try cosplaying?"
"It seemed like fun and a way to really show appreciation for things I love," she replied, instantly. "And I thought you already knew that...." He stuck his tongue out at her. "When you were going off on Cass, you said that you were in love with someone. Is that true?" She could almost see the nervousness in his face, but he kept it cool and decided that this might be his chance.
"Yes, it was," he admitted. "Do you think I should go after her?"
"Hard to say," she began. "Who is it?"
"I'm looking at her." Reina gave him a knowing smile before wrapping her arms around his neck. "I know that I might not be the best option at Sacred Heart but...do you think we could give it a try?" She answered but stepping up onto her tip toes and gently kissing him. His arms moved to her waist to pull her in closer to him as the rain began to fall. It was light at first but quickly picked up which didn't really seem to bother them. 152Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt02kC8WdPP
After a moment or two that felt like it dragged on forever, they broke apart, Dorian opening the umbrella and Reina clinging to his side again. "Did that really just happen?"
"In all its clichéd glory," she assured. "A date between friends, deep and personal question game, a kiss in the rain.... Feel like we're in some crappy, cringy romance anime or something." Dorian laughed. She'd taken the words right out of his mouth.152Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTJqIF3khWy
ns 15.158.61.51da2
