Hot Dog Hot Dog Hot Diggity Dog (Open)

[Jeff McIntosh]

The guy who made the lunches was, really, quite an excellent cook, but there was only so much he could do when producing meals in mass quantities. But after six years of eating cafeteria lunches for every meal of the day Jeff had decided that they really weren't so bad. After all, you could doctor them up yourself. There was a counter on one side of the room full of all the condiments one might want: salt, pepper, ketchup, mustard (both yellow and Dijon), mayonnaise, relish, garlic...they even had hot sauce. 

They even had the right hot sauce. 

Usually. 

Today, as it turned out, was not usually. 

Jeff frowned as he turned the bottle upside down over his hot dog and nothing came out. He smacked the bottom of the bottle. 

Nothing came out. 

With a snarl and some choice curse words he threw the empty bottle, without much thought for direction. 

[Ruby Parker]

Ruby Parker was the kind of girl who thought putting hamburger in top ramen was fancy. After all, her parents were rarely home and most of her home meals were microwavable or a five minute stove top meal. The prospect of a cafeteria was a fantastic one she immediately dove into and never looked back on. (Which may have contributed to he recent weight gain, but Ruby wasn't about to blame innocent food on that and it added more curves.) The best part about a cafeteria was the variety of sweets they offered. Pudding, cake, chips, candy, all at the tips of her fingers any time she wanted (within the hours of operation).

Today, Ruby was inspired and was hoarding up on one of everything sweet she could find. Calliope herself had flown down and struck her with the best story idea she had ever had. It was going to be about a farm girl who was really destined to be the queen of the land and an evil fairy had taken her birth right when she was little. her little farm village was going to be burned down and she was going to have to rely on the help of a royal werewolf to get her throne back and there was going to be this awesome love triangle between the hunky werewolf and the elegant fairy prince and-

Thunk.

No one could really say that getting hit in the head with a bottle can hurt, but it can throw you out of your fantasy world pretty quickly. Ruby turned to look at the source, confusion clear on her face. "Bad day?" She asked, trying to keep her cheery spirits up.

[Jeff McIntosh]

Jeff blanched when he heard his bottle make contact with someone. He turned slowly until he was looking down on another student. Bright red hair, short, girl. Somehow, despite the fact that he'd just smacked her with an empty bottle of hot sauce she was smiling at him. 

Oh, no. What was he supposed to do now?! He didn't want to engage with her more than necessary, and yet he had hit her. Hitting girls (even on accident) was bad. The appropriate response was probably apologizing, which he really, really didn't want to do. He hadn't wanted to hit her, and he even felt bad about it. A little. But apologies were so hard. They required admitting to wrong doing, and who really enjoyed that? 

He fixed his face into what was intended as a smile (but ended up more as a pained grimace) and mumbled hurriedly, "DidIhityouwiththat?Sorry." 

He hoped that was heartfelt enough to pass as a sincere apology.

[Ruby Parker]

Ruby just stared, her face twisting into an increasingly puzzled expression while she tried to translate the verbal equivalent of leftover soup.

"What?"

[Jeff McIntosh]

Apparently it was not, in fact, a good enough apology. Eugh. Why did girls have to be so demanding? That, at least, was how he interpreted her question: a demand that he give a better apology.

"I uhh...I didn't mean...to hit you. Sorry."

There, that was better.

He hoped.

[Ruby Parker]

Ruby's face lit up with the second apology, a small smile spreading across her features. In a sudden burst of extrovert she moved to approach the counter. "Oh, I thought I did something wrong."

She had assumed that the apology was an invitation into a conversation. Granted, she'd assume a general hello was an invitation into a conversation but an apology worked as well. With all of the grace of a wet gerbil, Ruby set her tower of sweets down on the counter and smiled up at the boy. "Apology accepted. Do you like bear claws? I think I can part with one if it'll clear the air in the room."

[Jeff McIntosh]

Jeff stared down at the girl with the quiet alarm of someone who didn't quite know what to do. Fleeing from her presence had some appeal, but girls were supposed to be treated delicately.

Fleeing was most decidedly not treating her with the delicacy she deserved.

"Ummm....that's...that's okay. I can't take your food. I'm just gonna go....eat now. So uhhh. You should....eat, too."

He pointed at a random table and began to move awkwardly in that direction. Maybe he couldn't resist fleeing after all.