heartsplintered | Second Splinter ♡ Text|Action ♡ Backdate▶Dec01

[To anyone so inclined to come looking for him, Dirk's been out of the house most of the day just wandering, climbing shit, hanging out in trees, exploring. He's had Diva with him most of the day as well, and is currently sitting out on the lawn of Casa de Eglonde with him, leaning against the Ponyta's side because he's either an idiot or entirely dead set on getting frostbite, since he left his louder-than-a-traffic-cone jacket inside. His Wingull, as per usual, is perched in his hair, still wearing his silly little scarf. He stays there for a long handful of minutes before he pulls out his gear.]

I don't guess either of the pertinent birthday kids are here today, are they?
Well shit.
Happy Birthday to them anyway. Jake would have fuckin' loved it here.

[He fidgets for a while, and then presses a few keys to filter some messages.]

[Private to Kirigiri Kyouko]

Yo. Sorry to bug you, but while you're around, you got a minute?

[Private to Dave Strider]

I think we need a hot chocolate date or something. Or I at least need to be taught this culinary masterpiece so I can make some for my frozen-ass self.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

freshprints

[Eh, it's not that weird, it's not like she has that many, either.

...Not that she really remembers many people's birthdays in the first place, but.]

You miss him, and you're lonely.

From:

heartsplintered

[Why did he think talking to the Deduction Princess was a good idea.]

I didn't say that.

[He hunches his shoulders, frowning.]

But, yeah. Sort of. It's-- okay Jake is really complicated. [There's a huge part of their friendship he neglected to mention.]

From:

freshprints

And you want to talk to me because I don't know Jake, so I can't bring in any preconceived notions about him, you, or the complicated relationship.

[Which is fine, it's not like she's saying it judgmentally or anything. Just an observation from someone who doesn't always feelings that well.]

...

Is it a romantic relationship?

From:

heartsplintered

[He pushes his glasses up onto the crown of his head and drops his face into his hands for a moment, defeated.]

Am I that obvious.

From:

freshprints

It's the natural conclusion.

[She at least has the decency to tip her eyes down to her bare knees, sparing him the implicit scrutiny of being looked at for the time being.]

You can talk about him if you want.

[A semi-awkward beat passes, and then.]

If it's the way it sounds, there's someone like that for me, too.

From:

heartsplintered

[He groans softly and pulls his own knees up to his chest, setting his head on them and turning sideways to look at her, leaving his glasses in his hair for the moment.]

We broke up. I broke up with him, to be specific. The approximation of less than an hour before I showed up here, whilst we were under the influence of some crazy psycho-candy from an alien.

From:

freshprints

[...Okay, so maybe it's not like her circumstances. On the other hand, she threw the object of her affections under a bus and nearly got him killed, so...]

And you're regretting it?

From:

heartsplintered

[.... W E L P.]

I don't know, that's the thing. We were awful together, but I-- [He stops, huffing gently.]

From:

freshprints

...

[...]

But that doesn't mean anything when there are feelings attached.

From:

heartsplintered

[He hugs onto his knees and draws them closer to himself.]

...I figured I was over him. He was an asshole. I was an asshole. I'm still an asshole.

From:

freshprints

[...]

If that's the case, is it really him you're missing?

From:

heartsplintered

[Squint.]

What?

From:

freshprints

You said he was one of your closest friends, but rationally speaking you're aware that you were awful together because you're both assholes.

[She delivers that in a sort of deadpan that probably makes the fleeting obscenity sound really odd in her voice.]

Meaning that by breaking up, you've lost both a close friend and a romantic partner. It's possible that missing him is really just a proxy for the underlying problem of missing a sense of intimacy with someone you feel close to.

[WHICH MIGHT EXPLAIN WHY YOU WERE SO EAGER TO TALK TO HER, DESPITE BARELY BEING ACQUAINTANCES, UM.]

From:

heartsplintered

[His mouth opens.]

[And then shuts again.]

...I. Guess that sounds pretty pathetic, doesn't it. [He scratches at the back of his neck and stares blankly at his shoes. Nothing like being Told by someone you barely know to shut you up.]

From:

freshprints

[Oops, did she just do that SHSL Detective thing again.

APPARENTLY SO.]

Not really. Craving intimacy is a natural human response. If today is his birthday, you're thinking, "if we were together, and things hadn't gone wrong, we'd be happily spending the day with each other", aren't you? Moreover, you're torturing yourself by envisioning fantasies of what might have been, despite the underlying knowledge of what was.

[She sinks down a little lower, letting her legs stretch out a bit more so that her body is in wider contact with the warmth of the Ponyta, and crosses her legs at the ankles so her legs will stay a little warmer while she's soaking in the heat elsewhere.]

That could also be a way of punishing yourself for some implicit perceived inability to make the relationship work. Rationally, you're aware that this is upsetting and counterproductive, but you assume you deserve that as punishment for whatever ended the relationship, or for being the one who ultimately ended it.

From:

heartsplintered

[He's quiet while she speaks and continues to stare at his shoes while she does.]

[When she's finished, he frowns in silence for a long moment before looking over at her.]

Were you a marriage counselor in a past life or something?

From:

freshprints

It's just an understanding of human nature.

[She keeps her eyes on the horizon, even though she knows he's looking.]

To recognize why people do things...establishing a motive is a fundamental part of any crime, isn't it?

From:

heartsplintered

[Another blink.]

...Right, detective things. You have a real boner for that kind of stuff, don't you? Ever read Sherlock Holmes?

From:

freshprints

[Oh, please. Isn't that what everyone always asks?]

Of course I have.

From:

heartsplintered

[He puts his hands up submissively.]

Making sure! You're Japanese, aren't you? They may not have been as easily accessible.

From:

freshprints

I lived overseas for awhile.

[But it does get a faint smile out of her anyway — one of the "so slight it's barely there" variety.]

Even so, my spoken English still isn't very good, but I can read it.

From:

heartsplintered

Oh? Where at?

[Shrugs.]

Understandable. The pronunciation is... completely different. And verbs. Oh God, how do the Japanese even verbs. [Dirk you are being a huge fucking loser right now.]

From:

freshprints

It's not as though we're an alien species.

[There's something like an implied tsk in her tone as she chides him, but it's gentle — it's not hard to pick up on the fact that he's fanboying a little bit, and she's mostly going to allow it.]

We moved around. I think we spent time in England for a while, and maybe some parts of mainland Europe? I...

[She almost says "remember", but catches herself.]

I know that's where I learned English.

From:

heartsplintered

Oh, shit-- no I didn't mean that. I'm-- [A slight huff, and he smooths a hand over the back of his neck.] I spent a frankly preposterous amount of time alone as a kid and sorta got into a lot of Japanese stuff. Culture, language, music, anime, you know. The typical weeaboo bullshit.

[He squints a little at her, not sure what to make of her trailing off, but he gently bumps his shoulder into hers.] Well you're pretty fuckin' rad at it.

From:

freshprints

...Ah. You haven't been told about the translator yet.

[She cocks her head slightly, not quite motioning.]

I'm speaking Japanese. That you can understand it...that's a consequence of the world, not my effort.