Endless Bantering [Orion]

[Orion Urswick]

Estelle was a fantastic teacher as well. She had somewhat of a strict personality, but was also quite protective of her students, and her dry sense of humor won many of them over in the long run. He would never tell her this, of course. But it was how Orion felt.

He grinned once more. "Ladies' man? Why yes, I am!" Lies. The last time he had gone out on a date was... Well, how long ago now? Over ten years? True, he had spent some time with female coworkers outside of work, but that was mostly to compare notes or share teaching strategies. Romance had not been a part of his life for almost a decade. And by the way he acted around women his age, like now, it was no surprise that he was alone - most people thought he was weird, loony, and a bit psychotic. He took those words as a compliment.

Estelle asking him out for dinner was the absolute last thing he would have ever expected. Because... It was Estelle. So why did it send a giddy feeling in his chest? "Hey, making microwave dinners is an art!" he told her, nodding wisely. "You have to learn how to time them juuust right, or else you'll either end up with a frozen middle, or way too hot." Hmm, maybe malnutrition WAS why he was so thin... Maybe he would have to bug Estelle into making him dinner more often. "We'll see, darling!" he replied, standing with a flourish and going to set his mug on the counter. It was almost time for his next class. "I have to run, dear, but I will meet you here after school, yes?" With a cheery wave, he left the room, beaming from head to toe. He had a dinner date! Well, not really a date, just... Dinner. With a coworker. Yeaaah.

[Estelle Knight]

Estelle shook her head in disbelief when Orion claimed he was a ladies man. “Of course you are.” She teased. For all she knew, he could have been, but she had a gut feeling that it wasn’t exactly Orion’s style. Even after all these years, he was still clearly dedicated to Sophie. It made him admirable, but certainly not a ladies man. Not to mention, his quirky personality probably didn’t help. Then again, Estelle liked that stupid, weird personality of his.

“An… art?” She sighed, “Oh, dear Orion. You need a real meal. Another week of what you’ve been eating and you’ll disappear into thin air.” Was that suggesting that she’d cook for him again after tonight? She wasn’t quite sure. She’d have to see how tonight went before even considering it. As for now, she was feeling rather excited about their dinner date. Not that it was a date. She was just doing it to save his life, really.

As Orion stood, Estelle glanced at her watch and stood as well. She also had a class to teach soon, and luckily the class as a whole tended to behave better than her previous one, so hopefully it wouldn’t be too stressful. “As do I.” She was sort of thankful that they both had to leave, for the conversation was becoming a bit too nice for her taste. “Alright, and don’t be late.” She warned him, waving a finger accusingly before grabbing her things and watching him leave.