uncurtained | pc catchall for junpei (crashout)

It’s a little bit personal, actually.

...fair enough. [And he goes silent, kicking the water still. He's still trying to think of what to say, but sometimes that means getting stuck in his own head. His mouth twists like he's going to say something, but ultimately he stares at his feet.]

...at least the week's almost over. We can figure out where to go from here.

You think we’ll be able to get rid of it tomorrow...?

["No."]

We'll be able to separate it from her, I think. It's going to be a problem figuring out what to do it once we have it trapped.

Well... Tomorrow, it won’t really be “we”, will it?

No. It won't, but we'll still have to deal with it. So it's kind of "we" anyway isn't it?

It's only we if it doesn't get killed, then.

[And she's still hoping, even if it's apprehensive.]

...Beck, I'll be honest. I don't really know what to say. [And that bothers him. He spent the whole day knowing beat for beat where to go, but now that they're here and now that they're dealing with a new situation, he's lost again.]

[After a moment passes:]

Sorry, did I say something wrong...?

Sorry, no. [Ahhh...] I just...I'm not really good at knowing what to say in situations like this even though I want to be.

You don't have to say anything. I mean... I don't think there are any guidelines or requirements, you know? It's tough.

Yeah. I know there's not but...[He rubs the back of his head.] Carlos kinda set me straight the other day. I owe you an apology for a lot of things, but I want to be better.

[She, in turn, isn't quite sure how to respond to that, but after a few moments pass:]

What do you think you owe me an apology for?

Uh, everything from Tuesday? [He turns his head just slightly, giving her a half-grin.] Still kind of an asshole move to leave a hot girl alone in bed after sleeping with her.

[He means the Akane stuff, too, and the AB Game explanation.]

You wouldn't be the first.

[It's said lightly, but she grows more somber as she continues.]

I get that you've... gone through a lot. And this place is a lot, too, so I understand being all over the place, believe me. I guess it can just be hard to know exactly where we stand...? Not that I'm, like, demanding you tell me how you feel at every second. Just - okay, this is definitely coming out wrong.

[...he just reaches into his pocket and wordlessly holds up a diamond ring. He doesn't explain anything, just waiting to see if Beck understands.]

[Realization dawns on her face fairly quickly, even as she looks between the ring and him several times.]

How did you get that...? I thought the item you came with was different, and I didn't see anything like that in the gift shop.

Showed up in a box with my name on it? I woke up on Wednesday and found it. No idea where it came from. I'm trying to find out. [But it's been a wild experience.]

[She bites her lip.]

It seems really weird that it was just you. Did you ask Carlos, Chuuya or Nathan? Maybe they could tell you more about how it got to you.

Carlos is the one who convinced me to give it to Akane in the first place. He told me to ask around which means he knows but can't tell me. That's why I'm thinking it might've been someone here.

[She tilts her head.]

If that's what he told you... Who do you think it might be?

That's what I'm trying to find out. I kind of have to wonder if they can't tell me directly and that's why the handwriting's different. And maybe they didn't know what it'd be. There're only two people who know I'm engaged. And you're one of them.

What do you mean by the handwriting being different...?

[But, hm.]

Who's the other person who knows? Unless you mean Carlos.

It was handwriting I didn't recognize, but...I guess maybe that doesn't mean too much.

[Hm.] Tamamo knows. Carlos told her and she confronted me about it after he disappeared.

[She pauses for a moment.]

So... You think it was one of the two of us, then, since we're the only people who know about Akane?

pc catchall for junpei (crashout)

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