A Day Off in the Park (Private: Roman and Gumi)

Though it felt like just another day, today's weather was much nicer than usual. In fact, one could argue that the weather was perfect. It was warm, but not hot, the sun was shining bright, but not blindingly, and there was a fresh breeze in the air. Of course, nobody ever really took the time to admire these little perfections in a normal day. While some of this was due to modern technology subverting humanities focus from the natural world, it was mostly just because people were too busy with their days. People usually tended to get caught up in their daily activities and even when the weather was so perfect, they seemed too preoccupied with their own problems to let it relax them. Of course, the other races weren't immune to this as well. No matter what, people in general seemed to allow their own problems to overshadow any good things that might be able to help distract them from their own worries. Of course, Roman Sinclare, the One Eyed Quincy, wasn't innocent of this himself. Over the years, Roman had been faced with quite a few hard situations, but he had usually been able to get over them without too many problems. Hell, the fact that he had become such a skilled Quincy with only one eye was probably proof to that.

Today, Roman was taking a break from his job; having actually just fixed some major problems the day earlier. It was funny, despite only being 26, he was already one of the most valued employees at his parents company, and was allowed to take a lot of time off; mainly because his parents knew he was a Quincy, but also because he got any work he needed to do done in no time. So, Roman had decided to go out to Fuma Park to enjoy the unusually good weather. Of course, Roman paid no mind to the odd glances he got because of his eye patch. Then again, this didn't bother Roman much anymore, since he had lost his eye 16 years ago, he was used to it by now. The only time it ever really bothered him was when it drove away girls that he thought were cute; a problem that he really hated. Since he already had bad luck with the ladies, having only one eye never helped. Still, he always kept pushing on, hoping that one day he'd find a girl who would actually like him. granted, this thought wasn't really on his mind today, as he was just trying to relax and take it easy. "Well, at least there are no hollows today" he said to himself, though the chances of a hollow entering the city were slim to none.

As he continued to walk through the park, Roman began to notice that a few birds were beginning to gather up ahead of him. It wasn't like it was an odd sight, people would often feed the birds in this park, but it still caught his eye. Of course, as he got closer to the congregation of birds, something else caught his attention. While he had expected someone to have been feeding the birds, he was not expecting it to have been such a cute girl. While she did look to be younger than himself, Roman got the feeling that she was a bit older than she looked, though this could have just been him hoping. Still, seeing her there, beautiful green hair and sweet smile as she happily fed the birds, Roman could have sworn that this was a dream. Then again, given his luck with women, chances were this "dream" wouldn't last for long. As he got closer, Roman also heard the girl speak, and what a sweet voice she had. Not only that, but the way she spoke was so cute. While he already figured that he had absolutely no chances at success, Roman decided to say "what the fuck" and just go over and talk to her. Hell, the worst that could happen was that she called him a "one eyed freak" and left.

As he approached the girl, Roman was trying to go over what he would say to her. He had a poor track record when it came to girls, so he really didn't know if he'd say the right thing. Of course, he wasn't going to just wimp out and not say anything to her, he just didn't want to sound like an idiot. "Um, hey there" Roman said, really hating that that was the only thing he could think to say. As he said it, he smiled a little and waved his hand to her, a universal greeting. Now, Roman had to think of what to say next that wouldn't make him sound like a creep. "Hey, I was walking by and noticed you and just had to say hi" eh, no, that one sounded too weird to him. Still, he had to find a way to continue the conversation. No matter how intelligent he may be, Roman always felt like an idiot when talking to girls. "So, uh, what's your name if I may ask?" Roman asked, hating even more that this was all he could think to say. "Oh, I'm Roman Sinclare by the way" he said, giving his own name first so as not to be rude. Hopefully, this encounter would turn out different that it always seemed to for him, but he was not over optimistic.

Gwumi, what an interesting n... no, wait, Gumi. Wow, Roman began to find himself thinking in that cute manner that Gumi was talking in. Hell, it was kinda contagious, even though he had never even once talked like that. Still, Gumi was quite the interesting name. Now, this was not a bad thing, in fact, Roman thought that the name was pretty cute, and fit this girl perfectly. "Oh, Gumi, that's a nice name" he said with a small smile. Of course, this then led into the fact that she was still talking to him. While this may have been only a first step, it was still a rather big one for Roman. Still, something about the way this girl talked seemed comforting, though still a little childish and energetic. Of course, the way her big green eyes seemed to shine in the sunlight also added to her allure, seemingly lighting up her entire face. This girl may have been younger than himself, but Roman felt an attraction to her. Of course, this early on, he only had looks and a general personality to go on. That, and if he were to just blurt out "I think I like you" right away, Gumi would probably just run away. So, Roman just had to be calm and see where things would go.

As Gumi placed the slice of bread in his hand, Roman was pretty sure that she was inviting him to help her feed the birds; confirmed only seconds later by her words. "Oh, sure, I'll join you feeding the birds" Roman said, admittedly happy that Gumi was inviting him to spend time with her. Of course, he was a little caught off guard when she grabbed his hand and pulled him over to the pond. While he was usually a calmer guy, stuff like this was still unfamiliar to to him, and he was always shy around cute girls. Once he was in the place Gumi wanted him, Roman began to tear the bread into small pieces and toss it to the birds. While he never really did this on his own, it was kinda relaxing to watch the birds go after the little pieces of bread. Of course, he was enjoying being with this girl a bit more. "So, do you come here often Gumi?"Roman asked continuing the conversation. Once again, he really wished that he could think of something better to say. Then again, since he had just met this girl, starting off with these smaller questions wasn't really a bad thing; Roman just felt that he was saying the wrong things.

Roman couldn't help but smile at Gumi's energetic reactions. The way her face seemed to light up as she smiled was so cute, and he actually found himself glad that he had helped bring it on. By now, things were going much differently than usual. For starters, he was actually holding a conversation with Gumi, and she hadn't been put off by his eye patch. Not only that, but this girl also seemed to actually enjoy his presence. Of course, just being around Gumi, the cheerful girl, was also making him happy; her joy seemingly contagious. Something about her sweet innocence also seemed to help calm his nerves, making it easier for him to talk to her. Judging from what he had seen so far, Roman knew that he wanted to be more than friends with this girl, but she probably didn't have the same thoughts. Of course, he wasn't going to out and say "I wanna go out with you". No, he would have to get to know Gumi better, and then one day, she would accept him. Shaking his head quickly, Roman tried to get these thoughts of the future out of his head. Was he really thinking about asking out a girl he had just met? While the answer was yes, there was something special about this girl that seemed to get to him right off the bat. Trying to shake all the thought like this from his head, Roman heard Gumi singing, using her own name instead of any actual lyrics. Not only was this really cute, but she was also very good at singing. "Wow Gumi, you're really good at singing" he complimented, meaning what he said.

As the both fed the birds, Roman couldn't hold back a small chuckle at Gumi's jump for joy. The laugh wasn't meant as an insult at all though, more a positive reaction to her obvious joy. When he had finished with his own slice of bread, he looked over to see Gumi reaching for another slice herself before answering his question. "Well, this is a good place to go if you like birds" he said in response to Gumi's answer. Now, of course, Roman had to think of what to say next. While he was feeling more comfortable around Gumi, he was still unsure of what exactly to say. Right now, he was trying to decide whether or not to compliment her looks; the problem being trying to find a way to say it without being creepy. To be honest, he just wanted to say that she looked both cute and beautiful, but that seemed a little too forward and creepy to him. "So, Gumi, do you mind if I ask what you do?" he asked, a little but of the nervous returning. "Because, I mean, with looks like yours, I'd think that you were a super model or something" he added, cursing himself afterwords. What he had said still sounded a little creepy to him, but he had already said it, so he couldn't really do anything about it. He was hoping that she didn't take it the wrong way, and actually appreciated the compliment he had intended.

Everything was seemingly going good until Roman asked Gumi about what she did. It was obvious by the dramatic change in her facial expression and body language that this was a sour topic. In his head, Roman was cursing his choice of words, and was really wishing that he hadn't asked that question. Then again, how was he supposed to have know he would get this reaction? All he had wanted to compliment her looks and continue the conversation, but it really looked like he had messed up. Without thinking about it, Roman gently placed his hand on Gumi's shoulder; an unconscious response to try and cheer her up. Sure, he had only met the girl a little while ago, but he felt bad for making her apparently feel bad. That, and he was really getting to like her. "I'm sorry Gumi, I didn't mean to bring up any bad memories or anything" he said, trying to comfort her. "I was just trying to say that I think you look good" he added, before really thinking about what he was going to say. Of course, he immediately regretted what he had said, thinking it was way too forward, but he was trying to cheer her up.

By now, Roman realized that he still had his hand on Gumi's shoulder, and nervously took it away. It wasn't that he didn't like having his hand on her shoulder in a comforting manner, he just thought that, with his luck, it would be interpreted the wrong way. That, and after he realized it, touching Gumi made him slightly more shy. Of course, he now wanted to try and find a way to cheer Gumi up, as well as get the conversation back on track. Then again, this was a little difficult, as he didn't really know what to say in the first place. "S-so, um, you do have a really beautiful voice Gumi" he said, hoping that compliments would help the situation. Of course, in his own mind, he thought he was being creepy, but no matter how much he thought, he couldn't think of anything better to say. "Er, you wanna know anything about me?" he asked, trying to steer the conversation back to where it was earlier. Despite all his pride and intelligence, Roman still sucked at talking to cute girls.