Cyprus rolled his eyes. "I'm going to relentlessly mock you when you turn 300 or whatever and start getting your own grey hairs, I hope you know that." He knocked their shoulders together, unable to wipe the smile off his face. Changing up his hair had never really been a concern of his. Cutting it would make it harder to hide the brand, and he sort of liked the contrast of brown and grey. It was a mark of his experience, everything he'd survived. "And I happen to like my hair just the way it is too. There's no need to improve on perfection."
Bryce poked Cyprus in the side with a laugh, "That's still three hundred years away so I don't have to worry about the mocking until then." He grinned. Bryce didn't think he could ever grow his hair. He'd always liked his somewhat short and messy in a I'm-still-trying why. Everyone had their own preferences, and he respected that, "If you say so man. It was just a suggestion. Maybe you could use one of those hair changer apps just to see what it would look like blond even though you aren't gonna change it."
Cyprus wrinkled up his nose a little, reaching up instinctively to fiddle with the ends of his hair. He'd always sort of liked the way he looked, bland and brunette with a single striking feature. It was nice, to catch attention without attracting too much. "I know blonds have more fun, obviously." His eyes flicked up to Bryce's ruffled blonde hair pointedly. "But I don't think I could work it the way you do. I'm much more comfortable on the fringes than in the center of attention."
"Well it looks great as it is." Bryce nudged the other softly with a small shrug, "Like you said, no need to improve perfection." At the look at his own hair Bryce ruffled his own, feeling the soft strands and messing it up a little more, "Not all blonds have fun. Seriously, I've met some stuck up asses who have never touched a drink or been to a party in their life." He sighed, "Must be so boring."
Cyprus laughed quietly and leaned into the playful nudging. The compliment left him feeling warmer somehow, lighter. "Well sure, but this blonde does and that's good enough for me." This time when he bumped their shoulders together he stayed put, their shoulders pressed together companionably as he continued. "And anyways, I'm sure you do enough to make up for all the stick up their ass blondes."
Bryce went a very light red but made an effort to ignore the heat that went along with it, "I'm sure I could do much better at partying. I still haven't got drunk drunk yet with his stupid vampire body. That's my end goal, I will get smashed one day. Or at least close to it." It was a really dumb goal and Bryce knew it but it gave him something to focus on and distract himself when he wasn't painting.
Cyprus laughed quietly. "Yeah, the whole being dead thing does have a way of making your tolerance higher. Honestly, I'm not sure if full blood even can get drunk." Thin bloods could, but that didn't mean much when it came to vampire biology. He could walk around in sunlight, that kind of guaranteed that what was true for him wouldn't be true for Bryce. "I'd stop trying if I were you. Drinking all that alcohol isn't worth it if all you have to appreciate is the taste."
"Well maybe I should be the one to put that theory to the test." He was half joking, but given the chance Bryce would actually try and get drunk. When he was first turned he'd tried, maybe because he didn't want to be a vamp but found the results disappointing when he was still sober by the end of the night, "Maybe I like the taste of alcohol. Sometimes of you don't want water or juice but something with a little extra kick alcohol is the way to go."
Bryce wrinkled up his nose playfully, but to be fair he'd always done his best to steer clear. When he was brought up, the only thing you could drink easily was the moonshine people brewed in closet apartments, and that shit was closer to poison than whiskey. He'd long since learned to steer clear of anything stronger than a beer. "I don't, but to each their own. I'll admit, some of those cocktails look pretty enticing, but I figure I'll just drink a juice if I want a juice, y'know?"
"Borringgggg," Bryce whined playfully, "Where's the fun? You've gotta have at least one cocktail in your life with me. I promise you won't regret it." He grinned at Cyprus. Of course, he knew that if the other said no he wouldn't pressure him to go out with him for a drink. He wasn't an asshole. Well, he wasn't an asshole all the time. Cyprus seemed pretty intent on not drinking, but it was worth a shot in his eyes.
Cyprus heaved a dramatic sigh but he couldn't wipe the small smile off his face. "Fine, fine. You're not coming back to the bar, though." He turned to look Bryce in the eye, mock serious. In all honesty, it would be nice to get out of the house with Bryce, even if it was to do an activity he didn't particularly care for. "If you want me to drink one of those things, you're going to have to find us some neutral ground. And you're paying for it."
"Done deal!" Bryce was quick to get up from the couch. He ran his hands through his hair a couple times, a grin plastered all over his face before he held his hand out for the taller male, "Come on then! No time like the present is what I always say." He was excited, that much was obvious. But Bryce couldn't help it. He'd made a new friend and Cyrpus had agreed to one drink with him. An win in his eyes.
Cyprus laughed quietly as he took it, giving Bryce's hand a firm shake before he let go. It was sort of cute, how excited he got. It was just a simple drink, nothing fancy, and yet Bryce got so much joy out of it. "Well I'm glad you're looking forward to it, kid. Take me out this weekend okay? Do you have a car?" Everyone knew all the best bars were in the inner city, and unfortunately for Cyprus that was pretty far from his house. "Or am I catchign the subway to meet up with you?"
Bryce rolled his eyes at the handshake, however there was still a grin on his face as he did so, "Fine fine, Saturday is in. I'll pick you up at nine?" Prime time for getting good drinks at a great price without it being overcrowded in the clubs. He'd been out enough to know and honestly? He was excited to go out with Cyprus. To get to know him and show him around the city.
Cyprus considered for a few moments before he nodded, face splitting into a grin. Most of the time going out wasn't something he enjoyed, but he got the feeling that Bryce would make it entertaining and anyways, he relished the opportunity to spend more time with him. "I think I can swing that, you'll come and pick me up here?"
"I'll be here at exactly nine o'clock, not a second late." He nearly giggled. It had been a while since Bryce had been out with someone who was actually interesting, wasn't a prick and made him genuinely smile. People like that were hard to find these days and for that he was going to make the most of being able to go out with Cyrpus.
"I'm holding you to that," he warned, unable to keep the smile off his face or out of his voice. It would be interesting, to make the company of a full blood, especially such a young one. "Get here at 9:01 and you're buying me the most extravagant shit the bar keeps in stock, now… ah…" Cyprus scooted away slightly, suddenly very aware of how close they'd been sitting. "… we should probably get you home, yeah? Sunset's come and gone, you've probably got someone waiting for you."
"Is this your way of saying you're tired of my company for the evening?" Bryce teased, running a hand through his hair causally. Not that he had anyone waiting for him back home, but he supposed he had stayed longer than he should, and he needed a shower as well. Long with a good change of clothes, "I'm surprised it's taken you this long to kick me out."
Cyprus laughed quietly, knocking their shoulders together with a playful smile as he made his way to his feet. He offered Bryce a hand after. There was a certain excitement in his eyes, bright and sparkling as he glanced down at the man before him. "No, no, nothing like that. Trust me, if I wanted you out of here you'd know." He chuckled quietly, tugging Bryce to his feet. "I'm just saying that you probably want to get home. After all, the first step to picking me up is leaving so that you can come back."
Bryce took the others hand gladly, brushing himself down when he was standing. He chuckled softly, "Suppose you're right there," He said, slipping his hands into his pockets, "You gonna walk home with me?" He asked, his tone holding a joking nature even though a part of him hoped the older male would. he headed to the door, glancing over his shoulder at Cyprus for a moment.
Cyprus considered for a few moments before, with a small smile on his face, he nodded. "Sure, may as well squeeze out a few more minutes of company." Like Bryce, he kept a playful tone to his voice and an undercurrent of sincerity underneath. "How far is it?" He had work in half an hour or so, and he wouldn't go, obviously, but he'd like to know just how late he was going to be.
The young vampire shrugged a shoulder, "Maybe twenty minutes walk from here? A little longer possibly? You don't have to come if you don't want to or you're working or anything." He scratched at the back of his neck, maybe a little awkwardly as he smiled at the other male.
"No, no, I'm coming." He gave Bryce a crooked smile, "You've already seen my house, it's only fair that I figure out where yours is. Especially since we're going to be friends." He swung the door open as he spoke, waving the younger vamp through.
Friends. He liked the word, and Cyprus made it sound even better when he said it, "Alright then, prepare to enjoy a walk in the woods." Bryce headed out the door and glanced around for a moment to get his bearings, figuring out which way he needed to head to get home. He waited until Cyprus was out the door and had it shut before headed off towards the tree line.
Cyprus laughed quietly and followed him into the forests. Normally he wandered through in the daylight—he liked hiking, but in the dark he was more likely to break an ankle than find something cool—but it was something else at night. Moonlight filtered in through the leaves, turning the normally straightforward paths into a maze of silver and ethereal curtains of light. "Isn't it a little… I don't know, inconvenient to live somewhere so secluded?"
Bryce shrugged a shoulder, "I mean… I suppose so. I've never really thought of it like that." Solitude was something that he liked. It was peaceful, quiet, gave him time to think after a night of partying, "I think the scenery and the drive into town outweighs the inconvenience of driving all or walking all that way." He shrugged, "Sure, maybe it's a little lonely but nothing that would want to make me move away from all these beautiful views."
"I forgot, you're a painter." He gave Bryce a playful little smile, though in reality he really couldn't fault him. It was secluded, but full vamps didn't need people the way humans did. They were made for solitude, made for darkness and pretty views and all the beauty of the night. "You thrive on scenery, right? Gotta get something new to be inspired by every night or you'll die of shame like the dramatic Toreador you are."
Bryce snorted, shaking his head with a light chuckle, "Ah yes, because all of us are so dramatic that if we don't fulfill our aesthetic needs we'll just drop dead from the embarrassment." He nudged Cyprus, "But it is part of the reason I live out here, there's enough walks around that I could travel half an hour from home and have completely different views then the one from my window. It's perfect."
Cyprus nudged him back with a quiet laugh. "I know you're type, you can't tell me that you didn't move here because you loved the views. It's perfect for an artist." He scanned around for a few moments, taking in the view. "Especially perfect for someone who does watercolor. All these trees, all this sky." He sighed quietly, and when his gaze finally landed on Bryce it was soft and wonder struck, unchanging. Bryce was beautiful too, with his bright eyes and his long lashes. "You must be living the dream."
The younger vamp smiled, breathing in deeply before releasing it softly, "Yeah, I guess so." He was, though, he knew it and was forever grateful for the opportunities he had, "There's this little outlook not too far from my house that over looks the valley when the moon rises and coats everything in silver it's just fantastic. Couldn't imagine what the sunrises are like from that spot." He glanced over at Cyprus with a soft blush, "You should check it out sometime."
