1134/Konbini Meetcute

Konbini Meetcute
Date of Scene:	18 February 2024
Location:	FaM-Mart
Synopsis:	Chiyo and Kukai meet at a konbini, and get to know eachother a bit. Daichi makes things awkward, but the little dude is trying to help in his own way.
Cast of Characters:	Kukai Soma, Chiyo Sakai

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Kukai Soma has posed:
"Hm. Pickled plum or tuna mayo?"

Kukai stands in front of the display case for the store-made onigiri, his hands in the pockets of his baggy jacket. The boy is a new face at school, but his good looks and easy smile have already made him some friends. Today, the kid is alone, though. He's wearing a pair of jeans with worn knees, along with yellow and green athletic shoes, a t-shirt, and a pink and black unzipped hoody under a baggy jacket. A beanie over his shaggy, auburn hair finishes the look. It's a very good look for him.

He already has a box of milk tea in one hand, and is clearly trying to decide what food to get to go with it.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
The often-quite Chiyo slips into the konbini intending to grab a snack for herself. Today was one of the few rare days she actually took off from working at the shop after school if only for the fact that Valentines Day was *over* thank goodness. Today she just wanted to hang at the manga club, catch up on reading the latest issue of Prince of Highschool, and snack on something not as sweet as her usual fare.

The shorter purple haired girl with half her hair pulled into a top bun and the left rest to fall in curls steps up beside Kukai so she can look over the offerings as well. Curious, her gaze sweeps over to him at his indecisive mumbling. "The plum flavor would probably go better with the milk tea," comes her quiet suggestion along with a friendly smile. Flavors? Those she knew. "Regular tea is better for tuna, I think."

Looking back to the case she reaches out to snag one of the tenmusu for herself. Fried shrimp with rice and sweet sauce was right up her alley.

Kukai Soma has posed:
The boy blinks at the voice and glances over at the girl. He takes her in for a surprised moment before smiling. "-Excellent- call. I was kinda leaning that way. Great minds, right?" Kukai reaches in to snag the pickled plum. "Tenmusu's on me, since you were so helpful." He pauses to snag a box of Pocky from a shelf.

"Do you go to Radiant Heart?," he asks her. His accent isn't local. Seems a little more rural Japanese, but his style is one hundred percent urban. "Well, I mean...there must be a ton of schools nearby, so that's probably a stretch. I just started there, though."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"Ah? But it's so much more expensive," Chiyo protests with a glance down to the Tenmusu in her hands at the offer of paying for it. The questions keep coming though, distracting her from the protest at the offer of buying.

"Yes, I'm grade ten there." It was a bit backwards explaining where she attended and her grade before her name. Something she realizes with a little chuckle as she stretches her hand out to snag herself a roasted green tea. "I'm Chiyo Sakai. My ojiisan runs Nounamu Sweets down the road," she explains preparing to do the usual pitch for the shop out of sheer habit. Except instead she explains, "So I come here when I want something savory."

Turning her attention back to Kukai another smile is offered. "How are you liking it so far? It's such a big school."

Kukai Soma has posed:
The boy waves off the protest for paying as he smiles at her. "Were you gonna grab a drink, too?," he asks. "Go for it." He sets his own stuff on the counter and waits for her. He nods as she takes the roasted green tea, and he fishes out his card to pay for it all. "Oh, I'm Grade 11. I just transfered in, though. I'm from just south of the northern coast, not too far from Hokkaido." Quite the trip!

"Well, it's a pleasure, Sakai-san. I'm Kukai Soma." He cocks his head to the side, tucking auburn hair behind one of his pierced ears. "A shop? That's so cool! I grew up at a mountain temple. Worlds apart. I wish I'd grown up in the city."

He considers her question about the school as he gestures over to one of the little counter dining areas with stools. "It's kinda mind-blowing. My last school was fairly small. But...it seems nice! You're a local, then?"

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai grins a bit at the friendliness of this particular fellow. She met lots of people at the shop but couldn't always stop to chat with them for awhile. A quick glance is snuck of her watch, but... Well, manga club was mostly sitting around reading anyway. It could wait a bit. The items she'd picked out are placed on the counter. "Thank you then, Soma-san."

"Mmhm! Lived here all my life with my grandparents. There's some temples around here, too, and a few students I know live there... but nothing like a mountain temple I'm sure."

Without really thinking about it she follows along toward the stools pointed out picking up her own items, and snagging a few napkins on the way. "There's a lot to do around here. I don't get out as often as many due to working too but I'm getting better at it. If you have any questions about the area, I can probably answer them for you."

Kukai Soma has posed:
"Oh, wow. I grew up with my gransparents, too. That's crazy."

He settles onto his own stool beside her, and pops the straw into his milk tea carton. He takes a sip and nods in approval. "Well, it was kinda secluded, which wasn't great. Just me, my grandparents and my older siblings. Long bus trip to and from school, everyday. Living in a dorm is a totally insane experience to me." He glances over, watching her settle in. "I need to snag a part-time job soon. I'd love having a bit more spending cash. Right now I just have a small allowance my grandpa sends me for necessities." He eyes the convenience store food in front of him at that, and he holds up the box of pocky.

"...Like this -clear- necessity." Kukai grins at her. "Oh, awesome. I'm sure I'll have plenty of questions."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai twists the cap off of her tea having chosen the bottled variety and not the stick-a-straw in sort. Resting on the stool, legs dangling off the edge, she crosses her feet at the ankles to keep them from swaying much.

A sip is taken of her drink only to pause and give him a horrified look at mention of the money. He'd just bought her snack! With little money! "You really didn't need to buy my snack then, Soma-san!" A little laughing sigh of exasperation comes at the Pocky being shown off with her head shaking a bit. "All right, at least stop by sometime and I'll treat you to some wagashi. We give discounts to Radiant Heart students so it's cheaper to get sweets from us usually."

Her attention shifts to unwrap the tenmusu carefully so as to not tear the plastic. "I'm a only child. It was just me and my grandparents, until recently. We reconnected with some relatives and my cousin. We're the same age which is nice. I think we're full on part-timers right now but I could point you to some other shops that might need help."

Kukai Soma has posed:
"Well, how can I turn down an offer like that? I'll be sure to swing by. Which days do you work?," he asks. He could swing by on whatever days, but he makes a point of asking what days SHE will be there. "I can't imagine being an only child. I'm the youngest of five boys. Chaos. Pure chaos."

The boy unwraps his own food, being a little less careful then her. He then lifts the plastic and nibbles off the tiny smatterings of rice that ended up stuck to it before setting it aside. The offer about pointing him to places that are hiring makes him smile. "I'd appreciate that."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"It's a quiet life, mostly. Up early, work a bit, school, back to work a bit or go to clubs." No chaos there, not at all. Nevermind the whole magical girl angle that had come into her life half a year ago now. More? She'd have to check her calendar. A light nibble of her snack is taken.

"Most days usually. We live upstairs so I just jump in if it's busy, otherwise I work on my homework. Valentine's Day is usually really busy for us so Ojiisan insisted I take a day or two off." Plus... There was a small issue with that last fight she was in. When the resident healer tells you to take time off, it seemed prudent to listen.

"I'll probably start back up in a couple of days. Ojiisan insists I at least take Sundays off to spend with friends, though."

Kukai Soma has posed:
"Friends. I need to make some of those now that I'm settling in," he replies with a lopsided grin. He takes a bite of his onigiri and makes a pleased sound.

"Hey! What about me? Also, it's way too stuffy in here! I'm going crazy having to sit still!" The voice is small and squeaky...and coming from a pocket on his coat. The normal people totally ignore it, unable to hear it, and for a moment Kukai is assuming Chiyo is the same. Then, suddenly, a little guy comes flying out of his pocket, and lands on the counter between them. He's very small, and has spiky green hair. He's wearing a yellow sports jersey and a sweatband around his hair, adding to his sporty little look.

Kukai glances at him and clears his throat. "Well, a quiet life can be rewarding, right? Just not my thing, as much. I like excitement and competition. I LOVE sports, for instance. But a chill little moment like this makes the other moments even better."

"Whoa, who's she?? You get a girlfriend and not tell me, Kukai? No way! Finally! I'm so proud!," pipes up the fairy, and Kukai winces. You can pracitcally see a vein pop out on his forehead as he tries to ignore the little guy, so the assumingly normal girl doesn't see him talking to nothing.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Squeaky voice. Chiyo's reminded rather suddenly of Tadase and Kiseki whom she'd met recently. There were others she'd seen during her time here, but at the time she hadn't really gotten a chance to properly speak with them. It's unexpected, but... She somehow manages to keep a very straight face the entire time, not even looking toward the fairy as she places her tenmusu down on a napkin in favor of taking a sip of her tea.

"It can be hard to make new friends, but there's a surprising amount of really nice people at the school. Also clubs you can join if you're interested. I know there's a baseball club. They were trying to recruit me once for some reason." Like accidentally pitching a ball INTO the fence with a bit more strength than she'd intended.

As she speaks she reaches down to pluck up a bit of rice, seaweed, and a little bit of the shrimp. It's rolled between thumb and forefinger into a little ball about the size of her thumbnail.

"I think you'll probably find a lot of people that you have things in common with here though, Soma-san," she assures looking back to him with a reassuring smile. Only to then lift her hand and *poke* the little riceball into the fairy's mouth.

Kukai Soma has posed:
"Baseball is great. I need to join the soccer team, though. Heck, I'll join both." He works steadily on his onigiri and washes it down with his milk tea, casting annoyed glances at the little fairy.

The fairy turns to watch her rolling the food curiously. "She IS cute, though! Don't you think, Kukai? Kukai? Kukaaaaaaaaaaaaai~-," and then the tiny onigiri is shoved in his mouth! She grabs at it and chews, looking up at her with surprise.

He blinks and glances over at her, Kukai's jaw dropping a bit. "You see him," he says softly. "You -see- him. Wait. Wait, that means you heard him, too..." He blushes.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai tries her best not to but with all that the little fairy was going on about, she's begun to turn red-faced. Still staring ahead, guiltily now that he realizes she CAN see and hear his mascot she takes another quick gulp of her tea.

Dipping her head with a single nod she risks an embarassed glance back toward him. "Yeah. Sorry, I have a friend who has a similar... friend." Well, what else was she going to call him while speaking softly at the counter of a kobini? "His has a real sweet tooth though." Awkardly she mumbles, "Thanks for the compliment."

Kukai Soma has posed:
"A friend who has a fairy?," he asks softly, clearly curious. He blinks, then, as he glances between her and the little guy. The fairy is working on the food, his mouth blissfully full. "This is Daichi. He's a good little guy. Just excitable." He hesitates when she mentions the compliment, and the boy rubs the back of his neck.

"I mean, he's not wrong, but...sorry. He shouldn't made you uncomfortable like that. I'll make him apologise."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"Yeah. There's a few like you around that I've run into," Chiyo explains as she leans her elbows on the tabletop indulging in another quick bite or two of her riceball. Better to get it down now while she could. It also gave her a few moments to recover from the embarassment.

"Most of them seem pretty exciteable, too," she adds with a chuckle of amusement over it all. "I guess it's easy to say what you want to when you think no one can hear." Leaning her chin in one hand she regards the pair with a more confident grin, only to add, "Mine's a cat. Most of the time. He shapeshifts, but he likes being a cat because people feed cats a lot."

Kukai Soma has posed:
"Wow, that's awesome." He polishes off his food, just as the little guy is finishing his, too. "Wait, so you AREN'T his girlfriend? Aw, man. Well, at least being forever-alone means he can focus on sports! Right, bro?" Kukai rubs his eyes and glances over at the girl.

"Oh, a cat. Smart. Daichi can't really transform like that."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"We only just met!" Chiyo protests to Daichi in exasperation, though she does look amused still over the whole situation. It was in a way, just a bit.

"I don't know that I would call Bonito smart. He is, he's just really lazy too." There's a moment of consideration as she debates what to tell him, and what not to. If he was new to the school then she wasn't entirely sure what was good to pass along.

"You should check out the 'self defense' classes that Kyouka-senpai runs after school. I've not gone often but a lot of us attend for..." A little gesture is given toward Daichi. "Us magical sorts."

Kukai Soma has posed:
"As annoying as this little guy is, he's like a best friend," Kukai explains, and Daichi puffs his chest out at that. "He's just excitable, like I am...but with less filter." He grins softly. He plucks his beanie off and brushes his fingers back through his auburn hair as he glances over at her.

"Well, I could totally swing by and check it out. That sounds fun!"

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"It's a good way to practice working with others, and meet some others, too. Some care about their identity being kept secret. Some... Not so much. Or they just can't keep it secret very long for some reason or another." Chiyo grins again trying not to point out the obvious part of his little fiary friend being part of those reasons.

"I've only just gotten a little more confident in sharing my own lately." With a little sigh she looks out the window of the konbini considering the time. "I probably should go. I was going to drop into manga club and catch up with people, maybe."

Kukai Soma has posed:
"Okay. Wait, before you go."

He fishes out his phone and holds it out, as if to do the tap-to-share-info thing. "...Is it cool if we share contact info? Y'know...so I know when to swing by your shop or so you can tell me when the club is or...whatever..."

Daichi is smirking, and Kukai reaches out to poke him in the tummy, knocking him over.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai pauses at the offer of phone sharing. A familiar enough gesture around here. "Sure." Her own phone is pulled out, a little boa charm hanging off of it as she holds it up to his to send the number over.

"If you ever need help with anything, too, let me know. I'm supposed to be taking it easy for a few days but I can always reach out to others too. If you need help with anything."

Kukai Soma has posed:
"That's sweet of you. I appreciate it." The boy climbs to his feet, and Daichi waves to the girl before flying back down into the pocket. "It was really cool to meet you," he says, putting his beanie back into place. "I'm looking forward to trying out your family shop! Be careful on your way home, okay? I mean...not that you can't take care of yourself..." He fumbles over his words a bit and stuffs his hands into his pockets.

"...Bye!" After getting her deets he is suddenly flustered, and the kid flees the scene!