Coffee Break [Darryl]

[Darryl Bond]

When it came to little children, Darryl had never really...experienced it. He remembered visiting all of his family for Christmas when he was eight and held a baby for the first time, but he hadn't seen that side of the family since then. And since then, he'd only heard other people talk about their baby brothers or sisters, their nieces and nephews. Even in the adult world, Darryl was around people too focused on their careers for families or children. He'd never really experienced the wonder of making a kid laugh, teaching them something new.

Did he want to? Would he even be good at it? He had no way of knowing, and wasn't too keen on it, at the moment. He was going through some sort of almost-thirty crisis and needed to work that out before he somehow got a baby into the world.

Conversation wise, Darryl's comfort zone was on pretty much anything, except religion because that was something he really just didn't want to get into. He liked talking about things he wasn't familiar with, because any knowledge gained is fuel to impress later (amirite), and things he did know about because who didn't like a good conversation, and things he didn't particularly like because there wasn't anything like a good argument to bring people together. But...talking about gardening to someone other than the worker at the store was something he had rarely divulged into. Why? Because it was something rather personal to him, almost like his career in Theater, and he just did not want anyone making fun of that. He was injured too much in that area from his parents and siblings.

Looking down into his cup, he realized he had not but a small pull left. He finished off his coffee and walked over to the sink, after he ran it under the water for a moment and swishing it around he sat it in the drying rack, bottoms up. He smiled back at her when she said she would help him. "Splendid." He said with a small smile, flipping out his phone to check his Calendar (because he really couldn't even remember what day it was) and grinned when he saw that it was in fact, Friday. "How about tomorrow, if that isn't too soon? The weather should be nice." He commented as he looked up from the screen to her. He was about to ask her for her phone number, or if she would feel better if she took his number when the bell filled the room. Crap. Out of time Darryl ole boy.

He reached into a pants pocket and withdrew a pen, and stashed his phone back in his pocket at the same time. He picked up one of the nearby napkins and scrawled out his number quickly, though making sure each number was legible. He signed his name and then placed it on the counter next to you. "I really appreciate the help, but I've got to run. Class." He smiled a little and leaned in quickly. His lips only met her cheek for a moment.

"It was a pleasure to see you, and I hope to see you again. Have a good day." He spoke as he walked to the door and disappeared behind it. He had a rather triumphant gaze on his face to boot.

[Midori Hawkins]

Mii liked kids. She loved her niece. Robyn was sweet and gentle, most of the time. Like all kids, she had her moments, but if Mii was babysitting her, she got her though. By the time a small tantrum was over, she would be all smiles and sunshine again. It was why she liked shifting into small, furry mammals for her niece to play with. It was worth the tail pulling and the attempts to ride her when she was a dog, just to see the smile on the little girl’s face.

Yes. Midori was a sucker for kids. Big time. Her mother had always said she was maternal, that she’d make a good mother one day. She just... hadn’t found the right person to do that with yet. And that was okay with her. Honestly.

Though she was much more comfortable talking about things that lay in her comfort zone, Mii could, and would, participate in conversations of which she knew very little on the subject matter. It was easy to nod and listen quietly, and pick up information. When she was expected to talk, however, it had better be on something she knew about. Her family was one of those topics. She could tell she was a little more relaxed with Darryl’s presence now, all because they’d been able to touch on a subject that she liked and was comfortable with.

When Darryl walked away to rinse out his cup, Mii took the opportunity to finish her cup, and resign herself to the fact that duty called. She still had some work left to do. But she looked back up when he spoke to her again. Okay. So they’d be doing garden-y... things. That was harmless enough, right? It had to be. It wasn’t a date. She was just helping out a colleague. ... And why was she trying to justify this? “Uh, tomorrow?” She thought for a moment. “Sure. That sounds fine.” She had no solid plans – she never did since she’d moved to Pilot Ridge – so it was easy to agree on such short notice.

And then the bell rang. Mii jumped in surprise, then blew out a slow, sighing breath to steady herself. Darryl’s fidgeting caught her attention though. To her surprise, he dropped his number on the counter. “Of course. Um, thank yo –“ She broke off and blushed furiously when she felt the drama teacher’s lips on her cheek.

She watched him leave, still blushing, her fingers lightly on the napkin that he’d written on. Well. She had a... something... with Darryl Bond. On Saturday. She shook her head, dumped her mug in the dishwasher, picked up the napkin, and walked out. She had work to do.