“Good.” Osora said, her hold on his hand tightening reflexively, like hoping it would keep him from letting go. “I don’t want your blood on my hands too.” She looked off to the side, something for once flickering in her expression, though it wasn’t the best thing to see. A sort of haunted look. “Anyway, it may not be bad, and you may have done it before, but if I’m around, I’ll just pay. By all means, do what you want on your own time, but on mine, I’ll take care of it.”
He suddenly leaned over to press a gentle kiss to her temple, sighing softly. “Toki, you won’t have my blood on your hands. If you do kill me, it will be at the fault of me. Please do not hold my death against you.” He told her softly, bringing her closer so he could hug her awkwardly, the bags of food getting in the way. “And you won’t have to kill me. Because I will be a friend.”
When she continued to speak he released her, tugging her gently towards the store her family owned. He smiled softly at her, shaking his head. “Oh no, I’ll help pay whenever I can. I will be good about it too. I’ll use the money I’ve earned and not flirt for discounts either.”
The kiss to her temple startled her, bringing that light color back to her cheeks. The hug took her by surprise too, obvious in the way she froze up for a moment before managing to return it, if awkwardly. “Gods, I hope so.” She whispered, closing her eyes briefly. Moving on from things like that was never easy, and she wasn’t sure she could handle having to-Don’t do that to yourself.
Once he had released her and they were moving toward her family’s store again, she stuck a bit closer to him than she had been before. “Flirting is fine, I’d just prefer you letting me pay over you offering other things to get things for free.”
She would never have to kill him… he would make sure of that.
As they continued walking, Tali noticed how much closer she was, biting his lip awkwardly and smiling like a dork. “Are you worried about me, Toki?” He asked teasingly. “I promise I won’t. I want to flirt with only you for a little while longer.”
"Only me?" Osora raised an eyebrow, fully pretending that didn't make her a bit happier. "That seems like quite the promise, considering flirting is something you enjoy doing." And yet, he had stuck to flirting with just her so far. So that matched up.
He chuckled good-heartedly, gently squeezing her hand. “I do enjoy doing it. But it’s more fun when I do it with you. And maybe I’m just a little… little bit interested in you.” He admitted, flustering a little at his own words and thoughts. It wasn’t just a little. It was a lot.
She tilted her head, looking up at him in slight confusion. "Interested in me? How do you mean?" She blinked once, making a small 'o' with her mouth. "The flirting. Right." Some part of her had assumed that's all it was, flirting, empty words and smiles.
He hid his red face in the shoulder of his jacket, growing suddenly shy. He nodded gently and laughed nervously, as if to play it off. “Y-yeah… you’re pretty and confident and wonderful and I just find it all interesting.” He replied honestly. “I guess I could say I’m attracted to you.”
She was quiet, mulling that over for a moment, before nudging his shoulder with her own. "I guess you could say I'm attracted to you, too." She said, giving his hand a squeeze as if proving that she did. "You're sweet, fun, and haven't given me shit about…this." She lifted their hands to gesture at her face, referring to her inability to express emotion normally.
Tali’s head shot up. He looked at her incredulously before a grin slowly split across his face. “R-really?! You really are?” He asked, refraining from jumping for joy. As soon as he would get his own room he would celebrate. “I wouldn’t give you shit about something you have a hard time with. It’s just a part of your life. There’s nothing wrong with it or with the fact you struggle with it.”
"Of course I really am. I don't lie." Osora said simply, the corner of her mouth twitching up a bit. "You know, it wasn't always something I had issues with. It just kind of happened, thanks to outside factors and inside decisions." She shook her head. "Either way, it's always nice to find someone who doesn't treat it negatively."
He was so happy he could have exploded right there… but he didn’t. He held it in, grinning so wide his face hurt. “Hey, that’s ok too. I say you may do as you’d like. If it’s too hard or mentally challenging, you don’t have to do it.” He replied simply, bumping their shoulders together. “And you know what? I think you express your emotions well, even without expressions.”
She raised an eyebrow, half at his grin and half at his comment. "I wasn't aware that was something you could do. Aren't the expression of emotions and, well, expressions, pretty tied together?" She asked, dropping her eyebrow to instead furrow both of them just slightly.
He laughed softly and shook his head. “Although they are the main way we communicate emotion, you don’t need to have facial expressions to express emotions. Sometimes you are able to do so through words and tones, other times through actions and body movements. Say, one person gets nervous. They might not show it on their face but they’ll fidget and move about. Thus expressed in another way. The best part about those type of expressions is the fact that many times you can’t control them. Like when you get the urge to hug someone or kiss them, sometimes that urge is uncontrollable.”
"I've always seen body language as more of an…unintentional truth. Most of the people I've ever tried to read that way are hiding something." She said, her eyes in his direction, but looking almost like they were focused on something else as she thought about that. "I've seen the hugging urges in action." People love to hug after almost dying. "But I've never seen anyone kiss anyone else over an urge. Possibly on television, but that doesn't really count."
“Not all people hide stuff.” Tali laughed nervously the more he listened to Toki speak. He played with her fingers, biting his lip. “I’ve kissed on an urge before. It’s… strange. And yet jittery and exciting.”
"Not all people, no, but most. It's usually inconsequential things." Osora said, glancing down at her hand as he played with her fingers, before looking back up at him. "Jittery and exciting?" She questioned, tilting her head curiously.
“Mm I get that.” He muttered in reply, sighing. “Most people do only show emotion that way if they’re guilty or hiding something.” He sighed and watched their hands, a smile making its way to his lips. “Very jittery and exciting. I usually feel like my heart is going to explode and I can also sometimes feel my blood run cold.”
"Everyone's hiding something, it just usually isn't something too important." She mused, adjusting her grip on the suitcase's handle. "That sounds…interesting. Almost like consuming too much caffeine, but emotional instead of being due to a substance."
He nodded gently, laughing softly. His smile returned to his face, seemingly determined to remain there. Tali loved to smile. “It kind of is, in a way. It’s like you get drunk off their scent and you need more… like their lips are the only cure for a disease you’ve been struggling with for years… god it’s one of the best feelings in the world~”
Osora hummed thoughtfully, watching him as he talked. Her eyes had regained that soft look, the one saved for people and thing she cared about. "That sounds…amazing." She said, pressing her lips together for a moment before speaking again. "And sort of fantastical."
He nodded gently and slowed his walk slightly. “It really is. I hope one day you get to feel it too.” He murmured, giving her hand another squeeze. “But that happened quite a long time ago for me. With a woman who, if I’m being honest, was far too toxic for even me.”
"I'd like that." She said thoughtfully, her thumb rubbing circles into his hand subconsciously. "Not every amazing and life changing moment is with someone good for you. You just have to hope the good people will be more and more frequent the longer you go on."
He shivered slightly, delighted to be feeling her thumb against his hand. He smiled, biting his lip. “You’re right in that aspect too. It’s always good to wait for the right person but you also have to take a shot in the dark at times.”
“You can’t ever know if someone’s the right person without taking a shot in the dark.” She said, turning her head slightly as the shop cane into view, before looking back at him. “Leap of faith.”