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Post by Deleted on Feb 24, 2018 23:17:41 GMT
Winter was always Jame's favorite time of year, especially in February. He absolutely loved the cool air of the season on his rosy cheeks and nose when he took strolls in the park. He enjoyed wearing rib knit sweaters, drinking hot cocoa, and he especially loved the days off from his shop, since he doesn't grow any plants during this season.
Come to think about it, what would he need a day off from? All he ever really does is sit behind the cash register and play tic-tac-toe by himself. Some of the extra time he had was spent rearranging some flowers on the shelves, cleaning the floor and making it free of dry soil, and watering his dead sprouts that he hoped would suddenly come back to life.
Business wasn't booming for James, but he didn't care.
Well...perhaps he cared a little.
Perhaps maybe if he took the time to shamelessly promote the fact that he had a lame flower shop, then he could have some clients. Perhaps maybe if he had interacted more with people, he would have friends to give flowers to. Perhaps maybe if he just got a different job, he would get more money.
He shook his head. James loved his job. He just wish he had enough dough to pay his bills.
The man sat down on a bench and hunched down at the edge, looking down and staring at nothing. He thought about what he'd do later. He thought about what he'd do tomorrow. He thought about what he'd do next week. Everyday he did the same thing he'd been doing for years.
Thinking about it was meaningless.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2018 11:45:58 GMT
"No way! NO f-ing way!" Paris plopped down on the end of the bench, taking very little notice of the man on the opposite end as she chatted excitedly into her phone.
"I mean, as if Johnny was even considering going out with her. Like, has he even seen her? Her pores are the sizeof my little nail. Ew!" She paused as she listened, and shivered in the cold, wintery air. Paris' leather jacket and designer jeans were not much cop against the wind. Looking around, she noted the man on the end of her bench and wrinkled her nose. Instinctively, she drew a hand about her designer bag and pulled it closer from where she had dumped it on the bench as she sat. With a pointed look at the stranger, she placed her hand on the top of her bag. It wasn't even that James looked particularly rough. He just didn't look exactly with it, either.
"Look, I've gotta go. NO! I'm in the park - not meeting Kevin. Well, not yet, at least." She giggled as she said goodbye and hung up her phone. It buzzed as soon as she had pocketed it. Once she had read it, Paris' face fell and she leaned back against the bench. With a sigh, she closed her eyes, and drew her knees up, so the heels of her boots rested on the bench.
She looked over at the man again. "What do you want?" Because, obviously, he's dying to talk to Paris. Everyone wants to talk to Paris, right? Right?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2018 14:32:55 GMT
James was so lost in thought that all his surroundings was just a blur. Well, only until little miss Regina George came along.
The older man awknowledged the fact that Paris was there, and only took a slight glance at her. Although he had wished for someone to talk to, he didn't expect someone like...her to just come out of the blue. James sort of hoped she'd go away. Alright, alright don't judge a book by it's cover, James, he thought.
He listened to her conversation with whoever. Wow, Johnny needs to set some standards. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips. Hilarious.
When the girl spoke, he was a bit hesitant to respond. Was he supposed to respond? He didn't understand teenagers nowadays. Even something as simple as an answer to a question is tricky.
"Um," he mumbled."I'm-- I'm just sitting here. Don't mind me." James chuckled awkwardly, and impulsively made a remark about Paris' conversation. "You should, uh, get ready to meet that Kevin guy."
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2018 18:59:09 GMT
"You were listening?" Paris' lips turned up in a grimace as she quite openly eyed James up and down. "Like, ew. Privacy is totally a thing, you know?"
She looked down at her phone again, at the mention of Kevin's name. Total loser. She'd only agreed to meet him so that he'd do her maths homework for her - who even needs to know what an isosceles triangle is? - and the stupid nerd had the nerve to stand her up? She was totally going to destroy him on Monday. For now though...
"Isn't it a bit weird for an old man to be sat in a park by himself?" Paris chuckled unkindly. "Some people might get the wrong impression, you know?"
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2018 21:13:47 GMT
James shrugged and smiled meekishly. He wish he hadn't opened his mouth. For some stupid reason though, he kept on blabbering. "It's kind of hard not to listen to someone who's voice is up at max volume." James blurted out, cringing internally.
Stop talking, James, stop talking.
He looked down at the floor again and put his palm on the back of his neck, tilting his head to the side. "Yeah, I guess that's odd..." He shrugged again.
"Isn't it weird for you to be here though? Designer clothes don't match with parks. You know, nature. It's all dirt and insects and stuff." James didn't believe that. He thought nature was much more than that.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2018 21:48:53 GMT
It made her giggle again to think that the weirdo sat on her bench could spot designer clothes. He didn't look as if he had any idea about fashion, judging by his own tastes. Paris' smile was mean; if this man had been a boy at school, she would have called him names, and spread a rumour, perhaps about him and nerdy Kevin behind the bogs. As it was...
"People are totally going to think you're a weirdo if you're sat here without a kid." People would think she was a total loser if they caught her talking to James. But Paris somehow couldn't help herself. She loved to talk, even superficial talk, even if conversation was just snipes.
She sighed. "I like flowers," she admitted. "I thought Kevin might be more willing to listen to reason in the park." In her house, it would have taken too long - in her experience, boys spent far too long goggling at the house and at the photos of her infamous father than actually getting her homework done.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2018 22:06:24 GMT
"Yeah thats..." He sighed. "Now that I think about it, I do look like a total weirdo." He laughed a bit. His clothes sort of boosted the weirdo vibe, as well as his body overall. Some tall, lanky man in his 40s in the middle of a park? Not so great for his reputation.
His eyes lit up when she mentioned flowers. "Oh, really?" James gave a goofy, and slightly excited, smile. "I-- I have a flower shop!" He paused.
"Actually, it'd mostly vegetables, but I have a lovely array of flowers in there too. You can give some to that Kevin guy. Is he your..." James thought for a second, "...bae?" Is that what kids in this day called their significant others?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2018 22:55:54 GMT
"Bae?" Paris snorted with laughter. "How basic are you?" She looked at James once more, silently appraising his clothes. Charity shop rejects if she ever saw them.
"Kevin's not my man, though. He's some loser geek who's desperate to do my homework." Except, he was apparently not that desperate. Now that was off-putting. Maybe Paris needed to step up her intimidation game? She got out her phone, and typed furiously. Kevin was definitely getting a nasty surprise when Jaxon, her boyfriend, showed up on his doorstep with his mates.
"Like, ew. You want me to give my man a bunch of sprouts in fancy paper? Get real."
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