Realistic or Modern ☕☕.:Kaffeeklatsch:. ☕☕

[PoppySeed]

This is a one x one between PoppySeed and AvianJen. You may read, but please do NOT post!!!

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma Gandhi

Logan was puzzled. Perplexed. Confounded. Bewildered. He stared at the numbers in his manila folder and inwardly groaned. The figures just weren't adding up. He grasped the short brown hair atop his head and tugged, glaring at his calculator for what seemed like an eternity--as if he could physically will the numbers to turn around and say what he'd wanted them to say in the first place. But alas, his spirit animal today was not Gandalf nor was it Luke Skywalker.
He grimaced and leaned back in his chair, letting the environment come back to him slowly, in fragments. The soft acoustic music over loud speakers came first, as if the subtext of a dream. Then came the conversation, a lull of social interaction that Logan generally craved. Then came the sounds and smells of coffee grounds, bittersweet aromas filling his mind. He took a sip from his mug, smacking his lips tastefully. He was slowly going darker from the light coffee he was used to back in his college days. But now that he was a full-researcher, a professor no less, he figured he should start some semblance of adulthood in his coffee habits.

Less nerdy.
Girls like that.
Right?
​

Maybe it didn't particularly matter what girls liked. He was often told he had the looks, just... well... not the personality to fit them. From a young age, he was always looking up at the sky. Head in the clouds, his father used to scold. He closed the folder and scraped the eraser fragments from the table, tugging at the open flaps of his sweater.
He peeked outside the window to the greens beginning to shift to yellows. September. School starts next week. He rubbed the bridge of his nose between two fingers, wondering briefly if he had what it took to be a professor.

 

[AvianJen]

Sophie Alton - 20

Sophie didn't go to coffee shops often; she wasn't the kind of girl who enjoyed spending five bucks on a coffee that she could make for herself at home. But today was her first day off work in a week, and she'd decided to treat herself to a chai tea latte, something she hadn't quite mastered at home. She also liked the warm, inviting environment of this particular cafe. With school starting soon, Sophie knew that soon the amount of time she got to spend relaxing would be limited, so she was going to take advantage of today.

Stepping inside the shop, she stepped up to the counter to order her tea and a warm chocolate croissant. When she received her order everything seemed to be perfect, until she turned around and realized that there were literally no open tables. Great. Sophie sighed and looked around, hoping that someone was leaving....oh, there. She caught sight of a man cleaning up his table and putting his stuff away, and before anyone else got the same idea, Sophie dashed over to him.

"Mind if I steal your table?" she asked, flashing her most charming smile at him. "I mean...if you're leaving, that is." Shoot, she probably should have asked that first. Now he was going to think he had to leave. What if he wasn't really leaving? Sophie was always ending up in awkward situations. "Or, could I join you?"

Why did she say that? Sophie mentally cursed herself and felt her face turn red. He was cute, too. She'd just invited herself to sit with a cute guy in a coffee shop. What? This was why she didn't go to coffee shops.

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma Gandhi
Logan was startled. He had just been fitting his folder into his laptop case after his calculator when a girl stopped by his table. She seemed uncomfortable, holding her to-go coffee cup nervously as she stood above him. She was a bit younger than himself, but not so young that she wasn't approachable, with long blonde hair that flitted about her neck. He stared at her blankly for a moment as the meaning of her words sunk in. "Ah! Yeah! Please, be my guest!" He ran a hand over his ruffled brown hair, gesturing with his other hand to the seat, indicating that she sit.
He glanced around the cafe, noticing that all of the tables were taken. People were lined along the wall to get their coffee--even the tables outside were claimed by couples chatting over coffees and laughing. He must have lost track of the world more than he'd realized. He chuckled, "I didn't realize how busy it got," he admitted, zipping up his laptop case and cupped his own not-carry-out mug in his hands. "Would you mind some brief company?" he offered, a little nervously, "I've actually barely touched my own."

 

[AvianJen]

For a moment, he just stared at her and Sophie prepared to bolt. The last thing she wanted to do today was embarrass herself in front of a cute guy...but he said yes! Maybe she hadn't screwed up so bad, although this did mean she would be forced to continue socializing with him. That was fine. She sat down across from him and placed her tea and her croissant on the table, crossing her legs. "Thank you," she smiled. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you feel like you had to leave."

She glanced around the cafe, nodding. "Yeah, I guess I came at the rush hour," she sighed. "I don't usually...I guess I don't usually come here, actually. But it's my day off, so." She shrugged, looking around. It was pretty busy, but not so hectic that it was claustrophobic or anything. It was still a pleasant environment. When he asked if she would mind some company, it was Sophie's turn to stare. "Oh, no," she said finally, once she'd stopped staring at his beautiful green eyes and actually processed what he said. "Of course not, it's your table. I don't mind company if you don't." Sophie probably needed to work on her social skills if she wanted to have any friends this year at school, anyways. She'd been working so much she'd hardly talked to anyone all summer. Maybe this was a good opportunity.

"What were you working on?" she asked, referring to his laptop as he put it away. "Are you a writer?" He could be working on any number of things, she supposed, but he almost looked like he could be a writer.

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma Gandhi
Logan smiled, "I guess I don't really come here much either." He admitted. He took a sip of his coffee and wished he'd gotten darker. He nudged the laptop case under the chair more with his leg, hoping to somehow hide the geek.
He entwined his fingers, checking the watch on his wrist with a flick of his gaze, not wanting to appear unapproachable. He shook his head with a smile, "No wonder my coffee's cold," he murmured mostly to himself. "I've been here for a few hours." He knew she was pretty, from his brief glances, so he kept his eyes leveled at her shoulder, or hands, or at the table. He knew he was prone to stare.
He should have gotten himself a croissant.
Her question made him nervous. He smiled weakly, meeting her eyes. "Actually, it's paperwork. I'm a researcher at the local school. Grad student stuff, sorta." He shrugged, "Never been good with words. Are you a writer?" He asked, straying from the precarious number talk.

OOC: writing on my tablet, excuse any spelling or grammar errors.

 

[AvianJen]

Sophie's eyes widened slightly. "A few hours?" she repeated with a laugh. "Wow, that's dedication. I think the most I've ever spent here is...I don't know, twenty minutes?" Sophie was bored easily, and she didn't like to sit still for long. Usually once she got tired of the cafe she would take her coffee and wander around the area until she was ready to go, unless she got distracted by a shop. As a college student Sophie didn't have any money, though, so shopping usually wasn't an issue.

He wasn't looking at her. He kept looking down, and Sophie tilted her head to try and make eye contact again. "Oh, really?" she asked, intrigued. "What do you research?" She was about to tell him she was getting ready to start studying at the university herself, but then he asked her if she was a writer and she laughed, shaking her head. "No, I'm not," she said. "I'm a terrible writer. I'm more into science...psychology, actually. I'm studying psychology." That was what she was planning to get her degree in, assuming all went according to plan and she didn't end up hating it. Sophie was a little bit worried about changing her mind and getting behind...she definitely wanted to graduate in four years. She'd already taken a gap year to save up some money, and she didn't want to put her future off any longer.

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma GandhiLogan laughed, running a hand over his scruff, feeling more comfortable looking at her. He leaned forward, twining his fingers together on the table, "Psychology, eh?" he asked, eyebrows raised in interest. "What year are you, if you don't mind my asking?" he smiled warmly. He had taken some psychology classes early in his college career, and remembered enjoying them very much. He looked her over again briefly, not prying, just curious. He realized she was younger than he originally thought, but she had a maturity about her that threw off the discomfort he would have normally felt conversing with someone her age group.
There wasn't any surprise that he'd missed her youth. Her eyes held some sparkle of intelligence that drew him in.
"What brought you to psychology?" he asked with a warm smile, drawing up his elbows to prop on the table, tucking his chin over his still-twined fingers.

 

[AvianJen]

Sophie regarded him carefully. He looked a little older- did she want to tell him that she was just going to be a freshman in college? After a moment of contemplation she realized she was being ridiculous. He was cute, but they were just chatting until he finished his cold coffee. She didn't need to impress him. "Well, I'll be starting my first year," she replied. "But I put college off for a little bit, so I could save up some money. It's not cheap." If he was a grad student, she was sure he understood. "You didn't tell me what you're studying," she reminded him with a smile.

She shrugged in response to his question. "I don't know, it's always interested me," she said. "I took a class in high school that I loved, and then I started doing my own research into it. I'm not sure what I want to do within the field, but...I'm sure it'll come to me." Sophie wasn't a hundred percent sure what her future held, but she tried not to let it worry her too much. Whether she knew what it was or not, she did have a future, and she was going to do her best to make sure it was a good one.

"I'm sorry," she said, just realizing something. "I never introduced myself. My name is Sophie."

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma GandhiLogan grimaced, "Astrophysics," he admitted with a shy grin. He smiled warmly, "Yeah, it keeps getting more expensive too. What matters is you go." He tilted his head slightly, "what kind of work did you do?"
He smiled, "Psychology will always have a warm place in my heart." He told her. "Especially in regards to how the brain lights up in certain interactions." He grimaced and ran a hand over his chin again self-consciously.
He didn't really want to talk about school anymore; perhaps it was blind faith after hearing how young she actually was, he didn't want to pursue the thought-process that she was probably only a year or two out of high school. Strange concept that was to the 28 year old.

He extended his hand to shake,"Logan," he countered. "So today's a treat day? What else do you do to treat yourself? Any other plans on your day off?" He took a sip of his lukewarm coffee.

 

[AvianJen]

"Wow, astrophysics," Sophie repeated, raising her eyebrows. "I can barely even pronounce that word." He must be smart, much smarter than she was. She was almost embarrassed to talk about her work after he'd revealed that- she was impressed, not thinking that he was nerdy or anything like that. Far from it. "My work isn't anything interesting," she told him. And it really wasn't. "I work at a local daycare in the mornings, and then in the afternoons and evenings I work at a boutique downtown. Between those two things I never really get a day off, so..." She shrugged, gesturing to her tea. It was delicious. "I hate both of the jobs, but they pay better than most and I get a lot of hours, so it's helping me pay for school." That was all that counted.

She tilted her head, giggling at his psychology talk. Was that supposed to be flirting? "Yes, it's interesting," she agreed. "The human mind is a mysterious place. How did you get into astrophysics?"

Sophie extended her hand as well, shaking his. "It's nice to meet you," she smiled. "I didn't have any plans, no...just relaxing today. Maybe I'll order a pizza for dinner and watch some Netflix." Sophie had gotten good at working almost every day, but it did become exhausting after a while.

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma Gandhi
Logan's eyes widened, "But kids are super cool," he said, "so is small business. You must be super busy." He liked the feel of Sophie's grip. It assured him of a strong, intelligent young woman. Though she may be just starting university, perhaps she was older than he thought. At least mentally. That made him feel more comfortable.
"Well, there's not much to it," he shrugged, "I like numbers and I'm a bit of a nerd for space." He smiled helplessly, "The pieces just came together, I guess."
He grimaced slightly, "Honestly, that sounds a little dull," he smiled warmly. "Don't you have any friends around here to hang out with?"

 

[AvianJen]

Kids and a small business. It sounded even lamer coming from him, but Sophie didn't mind her jobs. She liked kids, and she liked clothes and working in retail. But it was exhausting when she never got a day off. "Yes, very busy," she told him with a little bit of a laugh. "But I'll stop working at the daycare once school starts, so it'll be better. Just won't make as much money." She laughed again when he described himself as a "nerd for space," trying to picture what that would be, exactly.

"So, are you like, obsessed with Star Wars and Star Trek and Martians?" she asked him, partially teasing. He probably was into all of that stuff, but Sophie wasn't going to fault him for it. She had always thought that nerdy guys were kind of cute. "I'm better with numbers than I am with words, but I wasn't very good at physics." Biology was more up Sophie's alley, though she didn't claim to be a genius at all, or an expert in any subject. If she was, she probably wouldn't work in retail or at a daycare.

Sophie pretended to look offended when he accused her afternoon plans of being dull. "Well, what if I'm tired?" she countered playfully. "There's nothing wrong with pizza and Netflix." Nothing, except the fact that it did make her seem rather pathetic. Sophie couldn't help it that she had no life outside of work. Or maybe she could. But she wasn't the type to hang around a bar every night until some guy picked her up, and she would make friends when school started. "No, not really," she admitted. "My boyfriend dumped me a couple months ago, and we had all the same friends so now it's just weird. I'm hoping to make new friends in school."

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma GandhiLogan held up his hands on the busy-busy end of the work conversation, smiling warmly at her, "Hey, kids are really cool. What kind of boutique?" To be honest, he was a little lost on the idea of a boutique, he just figured they were small shops that were run by local folks. Even some bookstores seemed to be boutiques to him, little knick-knack stores. "That sounds like a lot of fun, honestly. But it's good to focus on school."
Logan was knocked off guard about her teasing on Star Wars and Star Trek, and blushed slightly, "N-Not particularly," he laughed, running a hand over his hair again nervously, "I mean, I know about those, and not to wiggle out of being a nerd, but I haven't kept up with those," he puffed up his chest a little, "I'm a different level kind of nerd," he announced quietly between the two of them, trying to be silly. He nodded and laughed at her talk about numbers and physics, "Believe me," he told her, voice filled with the remnants of laughter, "Physics isn't anything like the first two years they put you through. A lot of the general classes teach things that generally work in the real world, but once you get up, you realize that they're not exactly... realistic, I guess." He laughed to himself, "In my first general physics class, my professor told the auditorium not to hang onto what we learned that year if we were progressing, we'd have to forget it all anyways."
He was taken aback by her counter and suddenly felt very ashamed of what he had said. He mentally kicked himself in the shins over and over, "I... Sorry, I didn't mean..." He smiled weakly. He cleared his throat, "I guess just seeing a girl like you, I'm surprised you're not hanging out with people." He raised his eyebrow when she elaborated, feeling even more stupid than before. "That's... rough. I'm sorry to hear that, Sophie." He gestured around at the cafe, "I... uhh.. I don't really have many friends in town either, so you're welcome to sit with me here. I mean, if we run into each other again." He realized how weird that sounded. He smiled and tried to push through the awkward proposition. "I could really use the company."

 

[AvianJen]

Sophie smiled. "How many kinds of boutiques are there?" she asked him. "It's just...overpriced clothes and candles, really. But I get a discount." Sophie liked to consider herself more of an intellectual, but she did have a weakness for beautiful clothes. Any extra money she ended up with usually went towards that. "It's nice, I like it better than the kids. They just kind of wear me out," she admitted. Sophie liked kids, and she definitely wanted to have some of her own someday, but she was ready to leave them behind for the summer. "Are you working?" she asked him. "Or, do you get paid to do your research?" Maybe that was an awkward question; you generally weren't supposed to ask people about money.

She giggled when he seemed so defensive about being a nerd, shaking her head. "Oh, I see," she said, suspicious that he was downplaying it. "That's a shame, I like Star Wars." She smiled at him, not realizing that she was probably coming across as flirtatious, but she did like him. He was cute. "What level of nerd are you?"

As far as physics went, she was pretty baffled by his explanation. That seemed ridiculous; why would you pay to go to a class to learn things that you would have to intentionally forget years later? But such was then nature of science, she supposed. Things were always changing. "Wow," she commented. "I've never taken anything past introductory. In high school, so...I doubt it was even real physics."

She raised her eyebrow at his comment, suddenly becoming aware of how their conversation had taken a more flirtatious turn. "What kind of girl do you think I am?" she asked him, leaning forward onto her elbows. She waved dismissively when he sounded apologetic. "No worries, I'm over it. But...I'm surprised. A guy like you doesn't have anyone to hang out with either?" She wrinkled her nose playfully. "Is it the nerd stuff?"

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma GandhiLogan paled and grimaced, laughing uneasily, "I honestly don't really know anything about boutiques," he admitted shyly, then perked up, "I do like candles," he said. "And clothing is pretty handy." He nodded along with her explanation of kids-exhaustion and smiled warmly, "Yeah, I can't imagine dealing with more than... well, maybe one at a time," he chuckled. "Sounds pretty exhausting."
He shrugged and smiled a little hesitantly when she asked about his job. He didn't really want to tell her he was teaching a lower-level course class. It sounded cooler than it actually was, and he didn't want to lead her astray. "I get paid for some research, and a... uhh.. another project pays me alright too." He shrugged again slightly, smiling lopsidedly. "Lots of numbers, really. That's what I was working on before you sat down."
He felt a little more emboldened as she expanded the nerd talk, but was still reluctant to be completely honest, "Ah, you know. Anime, video games. Dungeons and dragons," he gestured vaguely, "Pretty standard geek stuff. Some superheroes. I was honestly more into Star Trek," he cocked an eyebrow at her playfully, "Guess we can't be friends if you're a Star Wars fan," he teased. "Isn't that some sort of... age-old rivalry?"
"It's a shame, really. A lot of the papers I'll write today will be null and void twenty years from now, if not less," his hazel eyes danced, "But I guess that's what makes science so exciting."
He backpedaled a tad with her sudden flirtatious move, panicking slightly when she leaned forward. He couldn't help but take note of her beautiful, big, blue eyes. He swallowed, clearing his throat nervously, "You're just..." he gestured vaguely, feeling his ears warm. "Beautiful, I guess. A lot of beautiful girls I've met are always going out on the town with girl friends." He ran a hand through his hair again, biting his lip, "That's just my presumptions, I suppose."
He raised his eyebrows at her return, "A guy like me?" He laughed, feeling less uncomfortable with the flirtatious route. Damn, he told himself, I really shouldn't be flirting with a stranger, kicking himself in the knees even as he bent forward on his own elbows, "Now it's your turn, I guess. What kind of guy do you think I am?" he chuckled. "I just moved here a few years ago, haven't really been able to establish a DnD circle," he joked, eyes dancing again.

 

[AvianJen]

Sophie laughed when he said that he liked candles. "Most people do," she said. "I like them, too." Candles were fun, and the ones at her boutique came in lots of pretty jars that she liked to have sitting around her apartment. She sighed, nodding. The children were exhausting, but she did enjoy working with them. It was nice to have a day off after so many days working straight, though.

"Getting paid to do what you like sounds nice," she said with a smile, looking forward to the day she could do that herself. For now it was just part time jobs for her, but once she finally got her degree she could do something more important with her life, something that made her feel like she was making a difference. That was all people wanted, right? "I bet all your numbers would make me feel stupid," she smirked.

Her smile widened. Anime and Dungeons and Dragons were never things she had gotten into, but it was cute. She'd never met a grown man who was into all that stuff. There was nothing wrong with it, though. "I've seen some Studio Ghibli movies," she offered. "Um...Totoro? Oh and Ponyo, some of the kids at the daycare like to watch that. Is that anime? I like superheroes. Thor, mostly." Chris Hemsworth was the most attractive human being in the world as far as Sophie was concerned, but she did enjoy most of the Marvel films. Her ex had always wanted to go see them, and they had usually made a date night out of it. She laughed at his question about Star Wars, shrugging. "I don't know, is it?" she asked. "Can't say I've ever gotten into Star Trek. I don't like their outfits."

The last thing Sophie had expected was for him to call her beautiful. She flushed slightly, but didn't move. "Well, thank you," she said with a smile. Then he got to turn it around on her. What kind of guy was he? "Handsome," she replied without missing a beat, suddenly aware of how close they were. "I usually see the handsome guys at bars or at the gym. But you're here with your numbers." Sophie was very intrigued by him. "I can't help you with your dragon circle, though," she said with a laugh. "Mario Kart is more my speed."

 

[PoppySeed]

Logan Lecher
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."-Mahatma GandhiLogan cocked an eyebrow at her numbers comment, "Well, it is really nice to get paid to do things you love doing. It takes a lot of time to get there." He grimaced, "I'm not sure if you'll believe me or not, but I used to be really bad with math." He shrugged, "I liked numbers, and I loved what you could do, but all the formulas..." he shook his head, "It really wasn't until calculus that things started fitting into place for me." He raised his hands, "Algebra? Trigonometry?" he shook his heads, weighing both his hands like scales. "I sucked. Majorly." He smiled weakly. "The first two years of general physics, I could barely keep my GPA above a 3.0." He rested his hands on the table again and shrugged, "It's when the numbers start to make more sense in a realistic setting that they work." He fought the urge to wink as he smiled largely, "Besides, I really only use a few different equations now. Once you get used to those, you never use any other math... ever. And if you do, that's what Google is for."

Logan grinned, "Well, who doesn't like Studio Ghibli? My favorite is probably..." he paused, considering, "Princess Mononoke, have you seen that one?" He laughed at her superhero preference, "Ahh, is it the hair? Tell me it's his hair," his eyes glittered, dancing. He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, feigning offense, "It's not all about the clothes, Sophie," he grinned and clutched at his chest, "It's about heart. And personality," he smiled warmly.

Logan startled at her response, surprised at her swift delivery. His mouth went a little dry, and he fought the urge to sputter in disbelief. He leaned back from his close proximity to take a long drag of his coffee, listening to her continue. And then he did sputter. He coughed and wiped his hands and mouth with a napkin, setting down his mug and laughing heartily at her comment about a dragon circle, shaking his head. "That's alright, I guess I'll forgive you on that front," his eyes glistened. He ran a hand over his head.
She was really cool.
And that being said, he knew that they didn't have so many interests in common, but the way that she responded to him made it seem that she was legitimately curious about him. How many girls had he dated that they weren't interested at all in compromise? There was only one way to tell if she was interested in meeting somewhere halfway with him. He coughed, "There's an arcade bar nearby, if you'd like to demonstrate your kick-ass abilities at Mario Kart," he offered, checking his watch, trying to hide his nervousness. "They open in a few hours." He smiled, "I'll let you in on a little secret, though," he told her, leaning forward. "I really suck at Mario Kart."

 

[AvianJen]

Sophie almost got a little bit lost in all his talk about numbers. She wasn't bad at math, but she certainly wasn't as talented as he appeared to be. It was almost intimidating, but at the same time he still seemed like a normal guy and she loved how passionate he was about it. "Well, I love Google," she chimed in with a smirk. That was one thing they had in common, at least. "I look up everything." If Sophie ever had a random question or didn't understand something, she Googled it without a moment's hesitation.

She shook her head, smiling sheepishly. "No, I haven't seen that one," she admitted. "That's quite a mouthful though, isn't it? You'll have to show it to me sometime." She stopped herself, realizing what she just said. Did she actually make a suggestion for them to get together at another time? They were having a nice conversation, but she had no idea if that was even something that he was interested in. She felt her ears grow warm, but hopefully he hadn't picked up on it.

"It's the hair," she confirmed with a nod, laughing. "And the deep voice." She tried to imitate the deep sound of Thor's voice, but it obviously didn't work out very well and she was left laughing again. She continued to laugh at his words, shaking her head. "You're talking to a girl who works at a boutique," she reminded him playfully. "It's all about the clothes. I mean, really. They couldn't come up with anything better than those silly colored t-shirts?" She was teasing, of course; Sophie didn't actually have a problem with it. But she didn't know anything about it, really.

Her eyes sparkled at him. He was too cute, and very friendly. Usually the most handsome guys were the jerks, at least in Sophie's experience. But Logan was full of fun and quirky surprises. She took a sip of her drink, nearly choking when he actually asked her...out? Was that what he'd just done? "An arcade?" she repeated. Then a slow smile spread across her face. "I'd love that," she told him. "As long as you don't mind losing to a girl."

 

[PoppySeed]

OOC: excuse different formatting, and slow response. School started. Am tired. xP

Logan watched her carefully after he asked her out on what even he could only guess was a noncommittal date, and watched her pause half-way in a sip of her coffee, her blue eyes widening a bit. Did she catch the hint? he wondered, unsure if he really wanted her to. Maybe he did prefer her to not take the hint. They could sort that out if it worked out okay. God, what am I doing? he chastised himself, but he shoved the voice down into his stomach. She was a psychology student, what was the risk? She was pretty, she sounded intelligent, she was really nice... He would be stupid to not try... Right? He coughed, "Yeah, it's a bar arcade. Like those old kid places but for adults. Games and alcohol," he shrugged helplessly. "It's a lot of fun, but not if you go alone." He was sort of rambling, not really sure if she'd accept his offer, but then he watched the slow smile spread across her cheeks when he mentioned that he really sucked at Mario Kart. He sputtered, laughing. He wasn't sure that she'd take his offer. His eyes narrowed slightly at the challenge, smile still large. He hadn't moved from his close proximity. "Then I challenge you to a game of Mario Kart in two hours." He cocked an eyebrow, straightening for a second to dig his phone out of his bag and passing it across the table to her, "Which means, of course, that I'm going to need your phone number."