Tadori tsukeru kimi ga shinjiru nara (Orion)

[Leiken Chu]

"Please, just this once, I won't ever contact you again. You don't ever have to send me another gift or even think about me ever again just this last thing.. Please !" he exclaimed into the phone as he sat near a window within the shop. "Please momma... I have to do this or i'm going to crack." he choked out into his phone. He would exhale heavily a moment later.

"I know. I know. You don't understand. Of course i know that.. LOOK" he exclaimed before quieting again as he noticed he was getting looked at. "look mom...Have I ever asked you for anything? Have i ever told you i hate you for not caring enough to let me come home when the other students go home to their parents for the holidays? Did i ever ask you to be my mother ? please. just do this one last thing for me. After that i'll erase you if that's what you want."

"Thank you." he stated softly. "I know it's alot, but It's for two people. " he curled his fist a bit. "No, it's not like that-- i don't care if you don't believe me. Damnit mom will .. FINE " he stated in a huff of breath. "Okay. When I recieve it i'll text you. Then you can erase me okay? goodbye." he stated before hanging up without another word spoken.

Lei would slid his head into his arms as he rested them over that table. Waiting for Orion to arrive. The loose fabric he wore draping over his body like a string of raven tinted water falls. swallowing his slender figure beneath a tidal wave of black that matched the pants he wore.

[ooc: outfit

[Orion Urswick]

Orion strode into the mall with a faint smile on his face, happy for once to actually have plans with someone. He was a person that never planned in advance, and things seldom happened in his life anyway other than creating lesson plans, studying and stargazing. It was a quiet existence, but not an entirely unpleasant one, as he really preferred solitude over large gatherings and exciting things anyway.

But today was different! Today he had plans, and he was looking forward to them. It took him a moment to remember where the shop was, as he didn't go shopping very often at all, but eventually he found the place and, without breaking stride, walked inside.

There were a couple people in the place, but it took him only a moment to hear Lei's familiar voice. His eyes turned in that direction - the boy was facing away from him, talking animatedly on the phone. Orion's sensitive ears couldn't help but pick up part of the conversation - apparently, he was talking to his mother, and it wasn't a pleasant conversation.

He waited until Lei hung up before approaching the table, letting his smile widen as he gave him a quick pat on the back before sitting across from him. "Hey Leiken!" he greeted, settling down with a content sigh. He tried to pretend he hadn't heard any of the previous conversation; if the student wanted to talk to him about it, he was all ears, but he didn't want Lei to know he had heard what could have been something very private.

"I'm glad you came out here today," he continued, folding his arms on the table in front of him. "I thought of somewhere we could go that you would really enjoy. But first!" he exclaimed, quickly making to rise again. "How about some ice cream?" This was asked with a wide, playful grin.

[Leiken Chu]

Lei yelped slightly, aloud to the sudden feel of that pat upon his back, he tensed for a moment. His ability stirring, though he calmed almost immediately as the voice reached his ears, his lips parting with a relieved sigh, his gaze turning toward Orion with an apologetic expression. Laughing softly, "S-sorry ! Hey there Stargazer. How are you doing?" he stated not really explaining why he'd been startled.

Lei gave a bright smile to the other man despite himself, he was feeling alright today, despite his conversation with his mother. He had a wonderful night before and now he was getting the pleasure of having another with one of his favorite teachers. "I'm glad too. I needed this. I'm glad you showed up as well." he stated with a more uplifted tone. His eyes lit up at the mention of ice cream, "Yeah sure! " he stated standing up from the seat.

Moving with Orion to the front.

[Orion Urswick]

Orion let out a chuckle at Lei's reaction. "Sorry, I should have said something," he apologized as he sat. He should have known that Lei would be jumpy after having such a conversation on his phone. At least he seemed to relax once he realized who it was. "Not a problem at all," he grinned. "I'm good! Glad to be getting out of the house. I've been cooped up by myself in there for too many days." Since he didn't have classes to teach, he didn't have any reason to leave the house other than to go to the store. "How about yourself?"

The boy's smile made everything better too; Orion was glad to see he seemed cheered up after their last encounter. "How was your Christmas?" he asked curiously. The teacher hoped he had found someone to spend some time with. "Ah, it's my pleasure," he smiled. At the student's exclamation, Orion nodded and stood, going over to the counter, which was miraculously empty. He ordered a banana split and, after Lei ordered his own, made no hesitation to pay for both of their orders. Once complete, he moved back to sit at the table, slowly digging into the treat.

"God, I love ice cream," he sighed contentedly. "Maybe if I ate it more often, I'd be able to get some meat on my bones." Estelle was always teasing him about his stick-thin figure, and the memory made him laugh as he took a big bite.

[Leiken Chu]

Lei shook his head slightly, "don't even worry about that. I was just not really thinking and didn't expect to be touched. " He stated with light laugh. "I'm really glad to hear that. Oh? Well i'm always willing to hang out if you're ever bored of staying at home." he shrugged a bit. He couldn't really say that he'd been in the same situation lately given that juney had been keeping him pretty busy and his next training session with vincent was still a ways off. "I've been a little better." he noted with a smile.

I actually had a nice christmas.I played the paino for princess and everything." he murmured with a soft blush flooding his cheeks. " oh! that reminds me!" he stated as he dug into his pockets, he'd nearly forgotten, but he pulled out a small box wrapped in foil wrapping paper that flickered holograms that looked similar to stars. "Merry Christmas, Stargazer!" he stated holding it out to him as they walked to the counter. Inside the box was a Silver necklace that was a dragon eating it's own tail. Set in the middle of the circle it created there was a marble that looked as though it had it's own night sky within it's own little world.


Ordering himself a simple strawberry single scoup cone. Lei had started to dig for his wallet but found that Orion had already paid "Ah.. Thanks ~" he stated with that smile upon his lips. He moved back to sit down, beginning to lick his own ice cream away from the cone, though he paused mid-lick upon that ice cream to look to the other man as he spoke of gaining weight. Lei had forgotten about how fatty ice cream could be. Though hearing the other man speak like that made him laugh. he slid his tongue back into his mouth as he spoke, "I love it too. I have a few flavors that i seem to favor though. " he leaned toward the other man looking him over obviously. Then shaking his head. "I think you're just fine the way you are." he grinned.

"I can't gain weight. Working out too much makes me have attacks. Too much of any physical strain does really." he admitted as his tongue poked out at his ice cream once again.

[Orion Urswick]

Orion grinned. "Well, next time I'm bored of lessons planning and researching, I'll have you come over and do it for me!" he teased. He didn't mind the work at all, but it was an amusing thought. Nevertheless, the offer was taken with a nod and a smile. "Oh, I'm glad to hear that," he replied, sincerity in his voice as Lei said he was doing better. "I'd hate for you to be upset, especially during this time of the year."

"Wonderful!" he beamed, but quirked a curious eyebrow. "Princess?" he questioned. "I wasn't aware we had royalty at Hammel," he chuckled quietly. He couldn't help but notice Lei's flush, and wondered just what all was going on with him and said-Princess. It wasn't his business, though, and by then Lei was digging in his pockets, and Orion gaped slightly as he handed him a present with pretty much the coolest wrapping paper he had ever seen. "Wow, Lei!" he exclaimed, examining it as they waited for their order. "You didn't have to get me anything! Thank you!" He would wait until they were sitting again to open it.

"No problem," Orion winked as they went back to the table. He paused in eating to open the gift, immediately marveling at the beauty of the objects within. "These are wonderful, Lei," he told him, a smile lighting up his face. "Thank you so much!" He put on the necklace, examining it as he stuck the marble deep into his front pocket for good luck. "An Ouroboros," he grinned. "That's fantastic." He gazed at it for a moment more before going back to the sundae, his attention once more focusing on Lei. He would have felt bad for not getting the boy a gift, but considering what he had planned, he felt like it might make up for it. "Hah, I know some people would beg to differ," he grinned at Lei's compliment. "Sophie always used to complain to me about being a stick. It was great." He laughed fondly at the memory, but the pain was still in the back of his mind.

"Oh?" he asked curiously, continuing to eat. "That's too bad." He frowned, brows furrowing slightly. "Hopefully that will change with time." The boy was quite thin, Orion thought - he couldn't hurt to gain a couple pounds.

[Leiken Chu]

"Okay! but it'll be your own fault if your plans end up being something silly." he stated with a grin. Teasing the older man right back. "mm. I can't lie and say i feel better about the things that have happened, but... I think I will eventually and for right now I'm happy. " he stated with a thoughtful smile.

"Oh ah.. Juniper i mean. " he rubbed the back of his neck. His cheeks reddening a bit, "I call her princess because she reminds me of the pure image of a disney princess. Lame right?" he stated with an embarrassed laugh. "I know i didn't have to, but i wanted to. " he shrugged a little. "You've done alot for me i guess it's just a small way of showing I appreciate it. " he stated with a glance away from the other man as he rubbed his neck a bit in that same embarrassed manner.

Lei gave the other man a happy smile, genuininely smiling, he had been alot the last few days. It wasn't that it was a bad thing, it just made him feel odd, but in a good way. "Yeah, thought you might like it, it has alot of meaning behind it. All that stuff." he stated fidgetting a bit. He was never really good at expressing himself in innocent ways that was for sure. He laughed softly to the other man saying that his wife used to tease him about it, "That's cute, but honestly I think you're just fine. I mean it wouldn't hurt either way. Whether you do or not. I personally just say do what you want with it." he noted with a nod. Flicking his tongue against his ice cream.

"Hopefully. I want to be able to have some definition." he state lifting his shirt a little to show off his not-so toned abdomen. He wasn't fat, but he wasn't really defined either. He didn't have a firm lined stomach or six pack or anything sexy like that. He prodded slightly at his own stomach a bit self consciously before lowering his shirt again. He shrugged a bit, "It's okay for now. I barely eat much of anything so i don't really gain weight." he added as he slid his tongue over that ice cream cone. Working it down to the cone rather quickly.

[Orion Urswick]

"I'm sure my students would appreciate a little silliness," Orion retorted, although really, he thought he was probably quite silly enough on his own. He liked to make it fun for the students. He nodded understandingly. "It takes time. But it's good to allow yourself to be happy for at least a while. I know it can be hard." Guilt really ate away at a person, no matter how much one tried to stop it.

"Ahhhh," Orion sighed with a knowing smile. "That's wonderful. And I'm sure she appreciates being called that." He laughed lightly. "Not lame at all." Knowing Juniper, she probably adored the nickname. He shook his head, still smiling faintly at the gift. "Still, I appreciate it very much. It was very thoughtful of you." Other than Estelle and a few other coworkers, his Christmas had been pretty present- and friend-free. But that was alright. He was used to it.

Orion definitely liked it when his students smiled, especially in the case of ones that generally didn't. "I love it," he assured him, fingering the necklace once more. "And it definitely has a lot of meaning," he added in a low murmur. He grinned at Lei's laugh, taking a couple more bites of his sundae. "Well, thank you," he chuckled. "She was always getting after me about such things." He missed that playful banter. But at least he and Estelle had something sort of similar going on. Hm.

Orion began to finish up the dish, nodding at Lei as he did so. "Definition is always nice," he agreed, as though he could really say anything; he had never had definition. "Makes all the ladies go starry-eyed," he added with a laugh. Men too, he supposed, although since he had never wished to attract men, he wouldn't really know. Still, it was obvious the boy was self-conscious about it, so he gave him a wave of the hand. "You're fine. I'm sure princesses don't mind the lanky type either." He felt pretty clever as he took the last bite of his sundae, unable to hide his playful smirk.

[Leiken Chu]

"Oh would they? Even if i made one of their assignments to dress up like one of consellations and act out something related to it ?" he questioned with a grin. "yeah.. it's really hard to honestly. Before yesterday i wasn't even sure I would make it until tomorrow. " He stated as he trailed his tongue over his own lips cleaning the ice cream from them.

"She seems to like it. " he noted with a smile. "If it ever upset her i'd stop calling her that." he added with a nod. "I would have given it to you yesterday, but ah. yeah.." he stated with a laugh. "I'm glad you like it still. I just wanted you to know that you're important to someone." he added with a nod.

"Well, you know she was probably worried you weren't taking good enough care of yourself, I think that's normal to worry about. " he stated with a smile. Lei's face flushed at the thought, "And some guys too." he noted with a grin. Sucking that last bit of ice cream in the cone out before biting into the cone. eating away at it until it was gone as well. Though he made a small sound as Orion said his weight was fine. "I-i'm lanky?" he questioned as if the thought hadn't really occurred to him. He looked own at his own body. He gave a slight smirk, "I don't know about that.Lei ran his hand through his shorter hair giving a soft sigh past those lips.

[Orion Urswick]

Orion gaped, then pointed at Lei with an ecstatic grin on his face. "THAT - is an excellent idea!" he told him, already thinking of ways he could plan in out. "Maybe I really should have you help with the lessons!" He chuckled, shaking his head with amusement. Although he went quiet again at Lei's words. "Well, I'm very glad that you found something that helped you pull through," he murmured, although his voice was laced with concern.

He let a smile cross his face again as Lei spoke about his 'princess'. "I don't think it will," he said knowingly, wiping at his mouth with a napkin. The fact that Lei said Orion was important to him made his cheeks flush slightly, and his heart ached with gratitude. "Thank you," he murmured again, hiding his emotions with a flash of a grin. Lei didn't need to know just how much that had touched him.

"Hah, probably," he agreed, folding his hands in front of them as he sat the bowl aside. Who was supposed to be getting after him now about things? Ah well... "And some guys," he agreed with a dip of his head. He had thought Lei might be attracted to both, he just hadn't been sure until then. "We're both lanky," he nodded, going to stand once again as Lei finished his ice cream. "Sometimes being lanky suits a person better than being built anyway," he mused, disposing of his trash before turning around to Lei with a flourish. "So!" he clapped his hands together. "How would you feel about going to an astronomy and telescope museum?" There was one nearby, and Orion had a feeling the boy would enjoy it immensely, if he was as into astronomy as he seemed to be.

[Leiken Chu]

Lei shouldn't have been surprised, but he was regardless. "What.. seriously? You think that's a good idea?" he stated a little flattered that the man thought his silly thought was so worth doing. Lei grinned slightly, "Well, i'd be more than happy to throw ideas at you sometimes if you ask for them." He noted with a happy tone. Though lei's expression saddened once again rather quickly, "yeah. For now anyway. " He murmured not really thinking it would last. Good things never seemed to in his life.

"hopefully not." he stated with a gentle laugh. Though he smiled at the sight of the teacher's cheeks gaining that color, so he did blush after all, Lei smirked faintly to himself. "You don't have to thank me for finding you to be important in my life. To be honest, I feel like you're more of a parent to me than my own parents, sad huh?" he stated witha shake of his head. "Anyway, No need to put a weight on the mood. Today's about relaxing and having fun." he noted with a grin.

Lei smiled toward Orion, part of him wanted to hug the man everytime he mentioned his wife, remembering his tears nights past. "Yeah, ah, was that awkward of me to say? " he stated not sure if the other man was someone who was made uncomfortable about male to male relationships. Lei scratched the side of his nose a bit as he spoke, "I honestly think that the guys i've been with would have stuck around more if i weren't so lanky." he added with a shake of his head. "yeah? In what cases?" he questioned with a smile grinning up to the man. "I feel excited and feel that if we don't leave immediately my legs might just go without me. " he stated as he stood up from his seat.

The idea of going to an astronomy museum made Lei happy. He loved the stars and the universe they housed within. It was fascinating to him, he wanted to know everything, yet there was far too much for him to actually do so.

[Orion Urswick]

Orion let out a laugh that was almost a child-like giggle. "Yeah I do!" he replied. He couldn't wait to put it into action. "I'll keep that in mind, especially if you have more ideas like that," he nodded, his fingers drumming against the table. As Lei looked sad once more, though, Orion rested his hand on his chin. "Keep your head up, Lei - you never know when good things might stick around." He offered a supportive wink.

Although, what Lei said next made him surprised once again, and he looked down at the table, unsure of what to say. "Well, if that's the case, I'll try to be the best parent I can," he finally said, looking up once more with a half-grin. "I've never been a father, though, so don't expect me to really know what I'm doing." Though he had never been against having children, he and his late wife had been so busy with their occupations that they just didn't think it would be good for them to try to raise a kid. "Relaxing and fun, absolutely," he agreed, his smile widening once more.

Orion waved his hand, shaking his head. "Nahh, not at all. Sorry if I made you think so." While Orion was strictly straight, he had absolutely nothing against those that weren't. He had just made an assumption that had turned out to be off. He shrugged, saying,"Well, then, they didn't deserve you." Plain and simple. If someone didn't appreciate your body, then they didn't deserve to be in a relationship with you. "Ahhh... Well, we're not intimidating, at least, which can be a blessing or a curse," he chuckled. He grinned at the student's enthusiasm. "Then let's not waste time! Allons-y!" With that, he led Lei outside to his car, which he unlocked and got into without hesitation. "Buckle up!" Once that was done, they were off to the museum. "It's not a very big place, but they have some really neat old telescopes and such," he explained cheerily.

[Leiken Chu]

Lei laughed along with Orion, "Well, i will deffinitely have to come to that class for sure!" he stated with a laugh. Though he smiled toward Orion's encourangement, it made him feel slightly better about it all, and it made him think about asking Orion to do something very important with him. "I will, Stargazer." he stated with a smile.

Lei's cheeks warmed a bit at the other man's words, he gave a small sound, laughing a bit. "I think you would make a wonderful parent, Stargazer, but I will keep that in mind." He noted with a grin. "Yeah, definitely. " he stated grinning slightly.

"Oh good. I just didn't want to make you uncomfortable given that I asked you for a hug before. " he murmured in an embarrassed tone. Though to Orion's next words his face reddened further. he gave a silly and slightly awkawrd grin, "that's nice of you to say but i'm really not that great or deserving." He added. "Great! I can't wait !" he stated as he followed the other man along closely.Though he seemed to grow more nervous as the approached the vehicle.

Lei didn't really mention that he was slightly terrified of riding in vehicles. He hesitated at first, but he got in anyway. Buckling his seat belt then grasping onto the seat beneath him so tightly that his knuckles had grown white. Just as he had when cam had driven them around. "Don't have to tell me twice." he mentioned to him shouting buckle up. He grinned slightly despite the knot in his stomach. "I don't need a big place to have alot of fun. Will we get to use the telescopes? " He questioned hopefully.

[Orion Urswick]

"You should!" Orion agreed with a laugh. "It's a pretty small class, you could actually join after the break if you'd really like to." He wouldn't be upset if Lei didn't, but the offer was out there. He dipped his head at Lei's words, smiling faintly about the fact that he still used that nickname.

"Hah, you say that now," Orion replied with a chuckle, leaning back in his seat. If only Lei knew how he could hardly take care of himself sometimes, of the messy state of his house and his own occasional mental instability. He really wasn't sure if he was parental material, at least on his own. But who knew?

"Oh, no, not at all," Orion assured him, smiling gently. "I don't mind hugs at all." He didn't get all that many anyway, so he always appreciated the few that he was given. "Noo, everyone is deserving of love," he replied with another wave of his hand. No matter what the boy had done, that didn't mean he didn't deserve to feel that from someone. Orion just hoped Lei could find that person.

Orion was a very safe driver, so Lei wouldn't have to endure the terror of a bad driver. He did, however, notice the tension in Lei's hands, and offered him a supportive smile. "Don't worry, I've never been in an accident or had any speeding tickets before," he assured him. At his question, he tilted his head before giving a small nod. "There are some that you can use, but those are the more modern ones - the older ones are just for display. They're still very fascinating to look at." It was getting slightly darker outside, as late afternoon was approaching, so hopefully the stars would be coming out soon.

It took about fifteen minutes to get to the place, and Orion put the car in park and hopped out of the vehicle, gazing fondly at the building. It wasn't very large, but it hid the museum and telescopes underneath the ground. The building itself was an inn, but of course, that's not what he and Lei were here for. There was a sign that read "The Harness House" and, next to it, another that read "The Hartness-Porter Astronomy and Telescope Museum" with an arrow pointing to the side of the building.

"Usually only guests of the inn can go to the underground museum and workshop, but I've been here so often they let me get in anytime," Orion told Lei with a wink. "There was a guy that used to live here, James Hartness, that built this underground complex to work on his projects. It's pretty fantastic." He motioned for Lei to follow him inside.

[Leiken Chu]

"I'll definitely have to then." he stated with a smile. He wouldn't usually volunteer for any classes that weren't immediately assigned to him, but he liked astronomy and orion was pretty awesome. So why not?

"I'm serious! You already help me feel better alot. " he stated with a soft laugh. Shaking his head somewhat at the thought."I don't think you give yourself enough credit." he added with a smile.

Lei smiled slightly to the older man, giving a soft laugh, "Alright then. Many more hugs shall be had. " He warned with a cheesy grin. The thought of the other man not minding his hugs made it easier for him to feel okay about giving them. They were shockingly innocent when it came to Orion.

Lei made a sound, not even realizing how tight he'd been grasping the seat, his face reddening a bit. "Ah.. I.. i trust you it's just.. I've always had this fear about accidents. If i were ever in one, i would be terrified, not for me though. I would be terrified because i would likely be injured and having no control.. i fear that i would end up accidentally killing or hurting the people around me or those trying to help and in the end the person who was injured with me would end up dying because they couldn't get the help because of me." he stated as he fidgeted.

He stopped grasping the seat with a death grip for now. Though his fingers twisted his shirt between them. "I want to see them all." he stated trying to distract himself. "especiailly the older ones. I want to see how they looked at the stars int he past." he added witha grin.

When they stopped Lei seemed more than happy to hop out of the vehicle, he hurried from the vehicle closing the door behind himself, looking ahead to the building before them. "ah! wow ! The Hartness-porter museum! I've always wanted to check this place out! " he declared excitedly.

Though at the mention of 'guests of the inn' his face flushed a bit though he did not really say aloud anything of it. Especially as the other man continued. "Oh you've come here before? " he questioned with a smile.Though he knew little about the place he had heard of it being nearby. "Really? What sort of projects? Was he trying to discover something?" he questioned as he followed the older man inside.