Forums » General Roleplay » New Place, New Face ((Open))

The concrete was cold and sharp as Esther's palms pressed onto the pavement, peeling the rest of her body off of it. She groaned, massaging her palms as she sat on her knees, assessing the damage. The skin was lightly shredded like someone had tried to make that loose parmesan cheese you can buy out of it. But it wasn't too bad; nothing a little divine power couldn't fix, she thought, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She imagined the golden magic of time seeping out of her palms and healing them, concentrating on the relief she felt. However, when she opened her eyes, her palms were just as scratched up as before.

"Fu—."

Esther coughed. Aside from the cough, she knew what this meant: another soul to guide, and the rules were: if you're on assignment, you can't have any magic. Well, nearly no magic. Esther huffed as she pushed herself off the ground, careful with the urge to use her hands to push her up. Around her, she noticed, the air was filled with the scent of cold metal, crumbling bricks, smog, and garbage. So much garbage. The culprit was clear, though; there was a heaping dumpster 10 feet away from where she stood. Great. Esther loved the smell of garbage. So. Very. Much.

But, sighing, she half-limped out of the alley, taking the time to shake out her limbs. For some reason, the world seemed a lot bigger. Buildings seemed taller, and people seemed like giants. Instantly bringing her palms up to her face for another look, Esther realized they weren't the same color as they had been that morning. She had nearly forgotten! New assignment meant a new face! She'd have to check what she looked like later, as a search of her jeans showed that she had neither a wallet nor a phone.

Guess the only course of action now was to find her assignment, she decided, walking out of the alley to look around at the street it hid from. Maybe it would give her a clue where she landed. She never knew exactly who her assignments were, but she could usually tell. They happened to be the downtrodden, the dismayed, or the desperate, but she just hoped it was someone a little more exciting this time. Hopefully, not another old man who's cheated on anyone he's ever been with. (That time was not fun.)

Yet another day of skipping classes, and he was already dreading his decision to do so.

Aku yawned, keeping his head down as he slipped past nearby people on the sidewalk. It didn’t happen to be too crowded, luckily, but he was still on the edge. His anxiety was at its peak, casted over him like a shadow. He sent a glimpse over his shoulder. No shadow. No lingering anxiety.

He let out a small sigh of relief.

To his surprise, it wasn’t as bright as he expected it to be. Well, his sunglasses were more than likely doing their job, but he ignored the fact and shoved his hands into the pockets of his torn jeans. His hair bounced up and down from his vision, and it caused him to flick his head back every now and then. His eyes scanned the signs overhead.

Until his eyes met the familiar sign of the cafe, Aku was debating if he should go through with this or not. Of course, it wasn’t as if he were going to perform thievery or break into the poor place. He was simply anxious over the fact he might stutter or fall or-

Or run into the door.

Aku blinked. The door laughed as it stayed put when the foolish boy collided with it. The male’s brows furrowed in irritation as he tried pushing open the door once again. Confused, he attempted to pull open the door, and, to his stunned shock, it allowed him to enter. Despite walking into the same cafe a million times, he still didn’t know how to open the door. Great. Doubt washed over him like a tidal wave, and, instead of heading towards the counter, he swerved to his right and towards an empty table, as if someone had pushed him that way. The male sighed, running his hands through his hair as he looked around. Hoping he hadn’t drawn possibly too much attention, Aku picked up a magazine, shoving his focus into it and praying he would blend in.

Esther pressed her back against the brick wall of the alley in an attempt (keyword: attempt) to remain as inconspicuous as possible as she leaned out into the street, keen not to simply stand in the middle of the sidewalk like some idiot who’d maybe had a little too much of something. No one caught her eye, though, as she searched around.

Esther was just about to try the other end of the alley when a figure brushed past her, a piece of fabric licking her cheek as she turned her head. Reflexively, she looked to the figure, a confused frown instantly forming on her face. But right as she opened her mouth to give him a piece of her mind, he (as she saw his face) turned around with an expression that did not read as calm, and Esther (under “guidance of the universe”) leapt back into the alley before he could see her. Was that who she was supposed to meet?

Sliding into the crowd, Esther began to follow the guy down the street, walking just behind a couple of folks, using her newfound shortness to mask herself. Where was he going? She thought to herself. Who was he? Why him? She thought some more. He looked young, shouldn’t he be in school or something? That was what was still expected of children these days, right? Esther was so occupied with her questions, that she nearly slammed into a street-post, catching herself with her already ripped up hands. Not moments later, as her eyes locked back onto the guy, she saw him slam into the door of a café. Esther rolled her tongue over her teeth as she chuckled ruefully to herself. So this was some cute joke by the universe, huh?

No, that wasn’t fair. The Universe hadn’t played a joke on her yet, why would it now? Esther followed him into the café with her hands in her pockets, walking up to the counter with too much confidence for someone who was about to remember they had no money.

After that very embarrassing exchange of eye contact with the barista on duty, she instead opted to take a seat in the back corner, where she could easily watch the guy, face now stuck in a magazine, no coffee in sight. Disaster really attracts disaster.

The magazine was upside down.

Why did he have to be so foolish, sometimes?

Aku flipped it rightside up, furrowing his brows as he straightened his posture. He dared to send a glance around the cafe. When he supposedly calmed down to the slightest, he folded the magazine and set it down, rising to his feet. His confidence must’ve walked out the door before him this morning, for it was long gone. He exhaled.

It was simply ordering coffee. He came here everyday, either if he was going to school or not. He approached the counter, attempting to swallow his anxiousness. He smiled, yet it was more of a scowl than anything. Take your time. It’s simple. He opened his mouth to speak. He stopped. Actually, scratch that. Why would someone want to wait so long for someone like you to order a drink? It’s simple. It was as if he had ahold of two ropes, each daring to pull him in different directions. Only, his fear

As he raised his hand to run it through his hair, his fingers brushed against one of the mini foldable chalkboards, knocking it off the counter. It spun before clattering on the floor, managing to bring a cup full of sugar packets with it.

Aku looked back at the barista, nearly wincing as her eyes drifted to him in return, wide with slight shock. They smiled with pity. His cheeks turned a shade of pink. He was utterly defenseless. The male immediately knelt down on his knees, whispering in between his short breaths. “I’m.. I’m so sorry- I didn’t mean to..” He inhaled, shaking his head once as he clamped his mouth shut. He swept some of the sugar packets into his hand, standing the cup up and sliding them into it.

After he set the cup of ruffled packets back onto the counter again, he unfolded and propped the chalkboard beside it, flinching at the sight of the smeared cursive writing. He exhaled, taking a step back. “Are you alright?” The barista looked over at him with a cocked brow.

He simply nodded, and fled.