Complete - Liquid Confidence

Previously...
​

And now...​

"Huh? What? Oh! Hi!"

An unfamiliar face face had approached Mist while she was staring at her wine, and she looked up with a surprised little 'o' on her face. How nice, somebody had decided to come up and sit with her. That made figuring out who among all these stranger to dare talking to a whole lot easier! And it was another Yladian! Maybe they had similar taste in fantasy lore, or something. With her lips pulled into a bright grin she nodded twice, then scooted closer to one side of the couch and patted the spot next to her.

"Sure, sure! I was just hoping for some company!"

Mist set her wine goblet between her knees and offered a slight bow to Rivers.

"It's nice to meet you. My name is Mist Lúthes. What's your name?"

@Rivers Asteire

 

The girl smiled broadly at him before nodding and patting the seat next to her. That was a relief. If he'd been shut down so quickly, Rivers probably would've spiraled from there, and that would've made for a bad night. With a spot of care, he down next to her. He didn't want to disturb either of their drinks. She said she'd been hoping for some company and offered him a bow, balancing her wine glass on her knees.

"Me too, actually.

Rivers returned her bow, holding his pint in his hand. As he straightened up, the lady offered her name to him. Mist Luthes. Now that was unusual. Given, Yladian were probably supposed to have odd sounding names, he was no exception that rule.

"Rivers Asteire. It's nice to meet you."

This was going well. She hadn't thrown her wine in his face and left yet, so nothing was on fire yet, metaphorically speaking. Okay, but answering her question was the easy part. Now he had to figure out how to make small talk with someone he'd never met before. Uhhhhhh...what did people talk about? How did you meet new people that weren't being attacked by wolves?

Your friends died.

Was he supposed to talk about the weather? No...that was like the number one thing you weren't supposed to talk about. That was so damn boring. With his free hand, he tapped on his knee nervously. Uhhhh. Maybe he should ask about her drink? No, he didn't know anything about wine and admitting that would make him look so uncultured and lame. Maybe he should just ask about the game. She seemed to be a new enough player, that would probably be a good conversation starter.

"So, have you been playing long? How're you enjoying Terrasphere thus far?"

@Mist Lúthes

 

Mist grinned, picking her wine goblet back up and drinking from it again once Rivers was seated comfortably next to her. Now she had somebody to talk to, and to drink with! Which was good, because otherwise she would have had to stop at one goblet. Drinking alone was considered embarrassing where she was from. Though it shouldn't matter in a fantasy world like TerraSphere. Anywho, onto talking!

"Heheh, we both have water names. Did you come up with yours by yourself, or did you use one of those 'elven name generators' online? I...did the latter. I just wanted to sound authentic!"

Too much talking about herself, maybe? She'd never really spoken to a boy alone like this. Well, not alone-alone, they were still in a bustling tavern surrounded by other people, but in this case, yes, she was still talking only to one person and that person was a boy. What should she ask?

"So, have you been playing long? How're you enjoying Terrasphere thus far?"

Oh, good, he did it for her. Mist tilted her head back for a moment, doing a bit of math, before she shrugged and laughed.

"I've been playing for only a little while, but I spent most of my time getting here instead of, y'know, adventuring. I wanted to see Vintergard! But I stopped here to rest. So a week, week and a half?"

Mist took another drink of wine, leaving her goblet half-full. It still didn't taste great but it meant she wasn't rambling without pause.

"And it's been incredible! All the sights and sounds and people have been amazing, I can't begin to think about it from any sort of critical viewpoint. It's impossible! I mean, sure, I got attacked by wolves in my first three minutes of being in-game, and got chased by this one really angry boar a whole third of the way to Astorea, but still! I couldn't be happier!"

Was she talking too much? He'd asked her a pretty open-ended question, and she had a big answer. Was that bad? Mist decided, quickly, that it didn't matter. If she answered a question in a big way like this, maybe that would encouraged him to do the same. With wide, excited eyes she looked up at Rivers expectantly, choosing what she should ask him in turn carefully.

Well, not too carefully.

"What about yourself? You look like you have better gear than I do, have you been playing a while? Have you done any crazy stuff so far?"

 

"Yeah, I guess we do. And no, I made my name up on my own. I hoped it'd sound elf-y enough."

Rivers listened as she talked about how much fun she'd had thus far and the hardships she'd faced coming to Vintergard. Honestly, since the first couple wolf encounters, he hadn't had much trouble out of them. Having some mastery points helped for sure, but maybe he'd just learned not to seek out those furry devils. God, he hated wolves.

Mist asked about his gear and how far along he was. She mentioned that he'd probably been playing for a while and asked if he'd done anything crazy. Well, aside from meeting a murder loli, and accomplishing mission impossible, it had mostly been the standard MMORPG fare.

You lead your friends to their death.

Rivers blinked hard before taking a long swig from his drink.

"Oh you know, I've had a couple of encounters with wolves myself. It's uh...well I hate wolves now. So there's that. Other than that I did a quest that had me uncover the truth about some tea leaves and met a little girl who tried to kill me. So...y'know. Some pretty wild times."

Rivers looked down at his drink. What else should he talk about? Maybe about her masteries? Yeah that's a good idea. It was easy to get someone talking about themselves using that as a bridge. He could ask a ton of questions about her playstyle and what she was shooting for with that kind of build. And, he had some good answers if it was asked of him in turn. He shot another glance at his ale before turning to her.

"Y'know, this ale is a lot like liquid bread, but not. It's got a weird aftertaste... So, what masteries did you choose? What kind of playstyle are you going for? You play many MMOs before?"[/color]

 

"I guess that's one of the downsides of starting areas, hm? All those damn level one mobs. I'm sure I'll be able to handle them next time!"

Mist took notice of Rivers' deep drinking, a curious brow raising as he spoke of his own experiences. Was something bothering him? His body language was definitely not all happy. Maybe his experiences hadn't been as nice as her own had been? Or...maybe he'd died already? She hid her grimace with her goblet and took another gulp. Mist hadn't really considered what dying would feel like in this game. If everything else felt so amazing and real and fantastic...didn't that mean pain would be just as real and terrible and scarring? No, no, no. Even real life had its dangers. This was no different! She couldn't think of TerraSphere as any more frightening than reality. All one had to do was play safely.

While he asked her his own question, Mist flagged down the nice tavern-keep from before, who came over with a cheerfully exhausted smile.

"Need a refill, Cotton Candy?"

"Yes, please! And one for my friend, if you don't mind!"

The tavern-keep nodded and headed back to the bar, leaving Mist and Rivers once more. She met his eyes again and nodded along with her own answer, still smiling brightly.

"Oh yeah, I love video games! MMO's are kind of a new experience, but I've played tons of western RPG's before, so it's not all new ground! I went with beast taming, white magic, and aeromancy. I like to play supports, but I don't want to be entirely defenseless, you know? Plus once I get my aeromancy all the way up I'll be able to do some really cool stuff!"

The tavern-keep returned with two more full cups of wine and wheat ale respectively, setting them on a tray on a nearby stool. Mist took in a breath, downed the remainder of her wine in one shot, and then switched it with the full goblet while tavern-keep returned to business elsewhere.

"PHAAH! I've never had wine before! It tastes kind of lame, but it's not too bad once the burning stops. So what are your masteries? You look pretty buff!"

Mist giggled, holding out the new pint of ale for Rivers to take, should he choose to take it.

 

The bartender came around and asked Mist if she wanted another drink. He went to ask for another drink himself, but Mist beat him to the punch. She asked for another drink on his behalf. He smiled slightly. That was very kind of her, but he hated to be a bother. Drinks weren't free, and she seemed to not have been around quite as long as he had. Should she really be spending money on his drinks? Given, maybe Rivers was only thinking this because she was the woman here. He couldn't disregard his own bias, so he figured it was probably fine. He wouldn't say anything but thank her.

"Thank you! I appreciate your hospitality."

Rivers listened with a smile as she talked about her experience with MMOs. She mentioned "western" MMOs, which made him think of her nationality. Was she Asian then? Of course, she was speaking English. Or maybe, he was just understanding it as English. Did Terrasphere translate? If so, that was damn impressive.

"I noticed you mentioned Western MMOs. If you don't mind my asking, where are you from?"

He nodded along as she spoke about the masteries she took. Beast taming seemed interesting, but he didn't know much about aeromancy. Was it supportive magic like White Magic? On that note, he'd recently switched to take White Magic himself.

Too little, too late.

Rivers pushed the thoughts from his mind and replied to her answer.

"Beast taming's interesting. I imagine you get to do some rather unique things with that. I don't know much about Aeromancy, what sorts of things do you get to do with that."

As she commented that he looked buff, Rivers's face turned scarlet. Sure it was an Avatar he'd made to look cool, but it still felt nice to be complimented on your appearance. Even if it wasn't really your appearance. He couldn't hide his grin. Rivers also accepted the pint she held out to him and took a small sip before answering her question.

"O-oh. Thank you. I took Pierce, Heroic Might, and Parry. I wanted to do some heavy melee offense, cuz I'm used to playing a lot of ranged characters. I wanted a bit of a change of pace. But I did recently switch Parry to White Magic to give myself some options."

 

"Japan. Ah, so you didn't--see, in Japan, it's customary for you to not buy or pour your own drink, you do it for somebody else, and they do it back for you. But I guess that's not super clear. Where are you from? Your Japanese is really good!"

It didn't occur to her that TerraSphere could be translating their speech into a language they could both understand. That would be insane. No, rather, it would be impossible. Wouldn't it? There would have been some noticeable grammatical error by now, wouldn't there be? Still it was a bit strange that everyone she'd met so far spoke her language so fluently, when it definitely wasn't a game where the majority of players were Japanese. Besides, why would a random stranger of clearly different nationality approach her and assume speaking Japanese was correct? That sort of translation technology would be...unreal! There were so many things that it could be used for! And it would be one more reason why TerraSphere was just so goddamn incredible!

She had to slow her brain down. This was all completely hypothetical, of course.

But still. Holy shit.

Mist downed another good mouthful of wine and yet kept her attention entirely focused on Rivers. So she was right; he was a primarily combat-focused character, though he'd recently taken on healing magic as well. Nice diversity! She nodded in understanding.

"I get it, that's why I went with Aeromancy. When you master it you get the ability to turn part of yourself into air, or even your full self. Crazy for dodging, right? But you can also do huge gusts of wind to knock people over or throw them into walls for damage. So it's got a lot of versatility! Honestly, I haven't gotten a lot of use out of Beast Taming yet. I want to wait to find a creature that isn't kind of generic before I tame it, since right now, I can only get one at a time."

She held up her finger and went for another drink, then took notice of River's change in pigment. Oh-ho? She almost laughed into her goblet. Her skin-tone wasn't great for blushing so clearly, but her cheeks definitely turned just a shade darker, if not as vibrant as Rivers was.

"Is the ale getting to you, or have you never been complimented before? Sorry. I don't get the chance to talk to guys a lot. Girls-only school and...a really, really strict father. You're actually the first guy I've spoken to one-on-one. Or with alcohol. So. Heheh. Made you blush."

You made yourself blush, too, genius.

Hush brain. You're distracting me from the cute, easily embarrassed guy.

She downed the entire goblet this time, whether out of her own bluntness or on a whim, she wasn't sure.

"BUT ANYWAY! What's the last cool thing you did, huh?! And, uh, do you want another drink? I think I'm bored with wine. Can I drink your bread? Uh, that sounded weird! Sorry! I swear, I am still entirely sober!"

The worst thing was that she was. Fuck. Did you not get drunk in this game or did she have tolerance?!

 

Wow. Japan?! Like the place where all anime was made? That was incredibly exciting. Again, Rivers thought about how things must be translated. She didn't even have an accent! Surely some sort of translation was being done so he could understand her. That begged the question, was he even hearing her real voice? How was her voice being "calculated" if everything was being translated? That was really mind-boggling. Was this just a really realistic computer-generated voice? Oh lord. He was spiraling. Rivers quickly shook himself out of it. Mist had complimented him on his Japanese. That settled it. There was definitely translation at work.

"I uh, I actually don't speak Japanese. I think that we're actually being translated in real time. Which is really impressive. Actually, uh, what does my voice sound like? Like it translates then it has to do something to my voice to remove an accent."

Rivers nodded to her talk about Masteries. So aeromancy let you do all sorts of things. Turning part of yourself into air seemed incredibly useful. That would let you dodge all sorts of attacks...even if they came at your neck.

You watched your body hit the ground.

That was so useful in combat, though he did wonder what exactly she was looking for if she hadn't tried taming anything yet. Was she waiting for something that wasn't just wolves and bears? She should probably try to tame something soon just as a starter. But, that wasn't his business. He was sure she'd already weighed her options.

She teased him about his blush. Of course his face turned red. It wasn't everyday that you got up the courage to just talk to a girl and she actually talked back! Rivers didn't know what to expect. But, she seemed to be enjoying herself. So, everything was well thus far, but he still didn't know how to respond. His tongue felt fifteen pounds heavy, easily.

"The ale's uh...I don't know if it's stronger or n-not. And I n-not really used to uhh...You're...you're really pretty."

NO! Rivers! Stupid! STUPID! At least he could feasibly mend this. In the worst case, he never had to see her again after doing something so embarrassing. That was terrible too. This had been great up until now, and he was ruining it. Luckily, she changed the subject and asked what he'd done recently, and also asked if she could have some of his ale.

"I uh, had to cross a large area to get here. That had some beautiful sights. That's uh, that's the most recent thing I've been up to."

He failed to mention why he'd left the Brisshal area. Rivers...he didn't want to think too much about why he'd left Brisshal. Oh! The ale she'd asked about. He extended his pint to her.

"Yeah, by all means, take a sip, or more than a sip."

Wait a second. To share a drink would be like an indirect kiss. Would...would that really be alright? Was it rude of him to offer the drink to her? Hopefully she wouldn't think much of it.

 

Mist's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. So then it really was being translated! That was incredible!! She couldn't begin to imagine the kind of work that sort of software would take, let alone how it functioned so perfectly! She let out a small squeak of delight and clapped her hands together a couple times, bubbling with so much excitement she could hardly stand it. Luckily her goblet was already empty because all that wiggling made it tip off of her knees and onto the floor.

"Oh my God that's amazing! So I'm, what, speaking English to you then? Wow! That's flipping fantastic! You sound, I don't know, like you're from Osaka? Rural-sounding or perhaps rustic is the better term...? But it's not a bad accent! What about me? Do I sound like...I don't know, I suppose I'd sound like I'm from the city? Or maybe I sound snooty. Pompous schooling, you know?"

What a wild discovery this had been. She'd just been here to have a good time, but suddenly she had a billion questions! No other game that she'd played before was so complex, so fascinating, so lifelike. This was just another amazing thing on the list.

She burst into a fit of giggles as Rivers complimented her. Oh, gosh, oh no, he was so forward. And she was so...inexperienced. Good thing it seemed to be mutual. Mist took the mug from his hands before he could contemplate her request further, picked up the empty goblet (well, now the first empty goblet) still sitting on the stool besides them, and poured some into there to taste test it. She then handed the tankard back to Rivers. She might have been inexperienced, but she had played enough dating simulators to know a pitfall when she saw one! Rivers was cute, but cute enough for an indirect kiss? Yet to be seen. She needed to know more about him. Learn his other stats.

...geeze, now she sounded like she was playing a dating sim.

"Thank you for the meal!"

With a little nod of her head she drank up the oddly grainy ale from the goblet. Huh, Rivers was right, it tasted like bread. She smacked her lips a few times, unsure if she liked it more or less than wine. If anything, the two combined would be interesting. Jelly sandwich beer. Ew.

"I am...not sure if I like that or not. Needs more scientific testing."

Setting the goblet back down Mist scanned the floor for the barkeep again, but couldn't find her among the others on their floor. While she looked around she let her thoughts form words without thinking.

"The last person I ran into said they'd fought some kind of World Boss? Was that a big event I missed? I wish I'd gotten the client sooner, but beggars can't be choosers. Did you take part in it, Rivers?"

 

Rivers nodded that she was indeed, speaking English to him. He smiled as she told him about his accent. So it carried a rustic accent ever across the language barrier. Impressive. As Mist spoke about what she must sound like, Rivers thought about it. It was actually hard to place. She didn't sound snooty, but certainly city-esque. She mentioned her pompous schooling. Interesting. Rivers didn't have much of a choice in where he could go to school because there was only one. So, the idea of pompous schooling was more than a little foreign to him.

"I wouldn't say snooty. But definitely from the city. It's kind of weird. The accent's...hard to place. Not one I know of, but my experience is a bit...limited."

She poured some of his ale into her cup. Ah, he hadn't thought of that. That avoided the indirect kiss scenario. Which was good, because that stopped his heart from racing in his chest. She gave thanks for the meal. Rivers couldn't quite stifle his giggle at this. He'd seen enough anime to know that translation.

"Itadakimasu? Well, how'd that sound? Same accent?"

He gave another giggle. Rivers was incredibly interested in how this was coded and executed. What if he'd spoken Japanese already? Would it bother to change his accent to make him sound more fluent? How many licks did it take to get to the Tootsie-Roll center of Tootsie-Pop? Rivers was bursting full of questions.

"From what I've heard in the real world, it's uhhh...more of an acquired taste. How does it compare to your wine?"

This was going fantastic! Everything was light and bubbly and actually fun. This was what he'd come to Terrasphere for: meeting new people online. It didn't hurt that her avatar was a cute girl. It really didn't hurt.

Then she asked about the world boss. Rivers eyes widened.

"Please don't."

Rivers didn't speak in time. She finished asking her question. The glass shook in his hands. He looked down at his arms...that was a mistake. In a flash, his arms was covered in sores again. Each sore broke open to reveal a living tentacle. At least, that's what Rivers saw. He dropped the glass.

He shot up, and without saying a word, walked towards the stairs. He had to flee. He had to get away. He had to run.

You can never run fast enough.

 

"See, to me, it just sounded like you said the same thing I said back to me! I take it you watch anime? That's probably how most people get exposed to Japanese culture these days. Or at least claim to be exposed."

Mist turned to look back at Rivers with as bright a smile as before, but then she froze, confusion filling her features and she smile dropping to a blank look of worry. What was it he'd said? She'd missed it while talking. But whatever it had been, his eyes were large and there was something wrong. Why did he look so...scared? That was what it was. He looked absolutely terrified, like she had brought up the most frightening memory in one single question. Her chest went tight. Oh. Oh no, what had she done? What did she do? All she had asked was if he'd participated in that boss event she heard about, nothing more. So why did he look so scared?

Oh.

This game was so realistic. Everything felt exactly like how it felt in the real world. It might have been just another boss event to an outsider, but in a game like this...where every little thing was so lifelike, so incredible? What must fighting such a dangerous monster feel like?

Or worse.

"Wait!"

Before she could continue thinking Rivers jolted up from the couch, discarded mug falling to the floor where it made a loud thunk, but rolled away without shattering, and began moving towards the stairs. Mist immediately followed him. Her bright eyes stayed trained to him through the crowd, full of worry.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't think--I didn't know! Please don't run away! Please! We just started to get to know each other and--WAIT!!"

Just on the cusp of the staircase she managed to catch him, her hand grabbing hold of his elbow and giving her the pull to get in front of him, both hands now on his shoulders and her body between him and the exit. Now with a better vantage point she met his eyes, digging as deep into them as she dared. He looked so scared. He looked so lost. Why had she brought up the stupid World Boss? This was her fault.

So she had to do something.

"I...I..."

Slowly her hands moved from River's shoulders to his sides, and then her arms slid between his and wrapped gently around his torso. She stepped into him and placed her head against his chest, giving him a soft, tender embrace. It was all she could do. Not just to keep him from running away, but...to apologize. To comfort. She'd never done something like this before. It was the only thing she could think of, though.

"...I'm so sorry...I brought up something that hurt you. I'm sorry you feel like you have to run away. But please...please don't go. I don't understand. But I want to. If you're afraid, please let me help. I want to help. I want to be your friend. So...please...please don't leave. I'm sorry."

 

Rivers didn't hear her call to him as he walked towards the stairs. He didn't hear her apologize and try to convince him to stay. All he could picture was the inside of Titanius. Pitch-black where you couldn't see your hand in front of you. But, he'd been able to see enough to watch Futaba and Aristides be killed by Titanius. He'd been able to see enough to watch his own body hit the ground. Why had his vision been clear then of all times? Why couldn't his vision have faded then?

Rivers felt Mist grab his elbow. She held him back from moving to the ground floor. She held him back from leaving. Why did she hold him back? Mist pulled herself in front of him and placed her hands on his shoulders. She was really barring his exit. He took a tentative step forward but didn't push any of his weight forward.

Mist's hands slid down to his sides and she pushed herself into him. She'd wrapped him in an embrace. She was so warm. She pressed her head against his chest and spoke to him in a tender voice. The soft heat of her body brought light to his eyes. He wasn't in Titanius anymore. He hadn't been whisked back into the belly of that monster. Rivers was here, and he was safe. Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around her back. You didn't just get hugs in day to day life. At least, Rivers didn't. This...this felt really nice.

Rivers tried to tell her he was sorry. He tried to tell her that he was sorry for freaking out. Or that he was freaking out because his friends had died. Or that he was freaking out because he'd died and it was seriously fucking with him. Getting decapitated and watching your own body fall to the ground fucked with you. But, he couldn't form the words. He just shook in her arms as his mind turned to the things he'd come here to avoid. After shaky breaths, he spoke in a hushed voice.

"I...I died. I watched my body hit the floor. I can't look at my arm without imagining it covered in tentacles and sores. I watched my friends die. I lead them to their deaths, and now I can't even look at them without seeing how they died. And just thinking about it makes me want to vomit. And I can't tell them what's wrong because I don't want them to worry, and I'm regretting even telling you because I don't want you to worry. And I just came here to try to forget everything. Because being back in Brisshal reminds me of my friends and that reminds me of Titanius."

Rivers turned so they no longer barred the exit, but didn't let go of Mist. He'd mostly finished shaking, but he wasn't quite ready to let go. He didn't know what'd happen when he let go. It was cliche, to be against the doorway, but Rivers wasn't concerned with appearances or even romance at the moment.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to lay all that on you. I understand if you want to leave or never see me again. Just tell me to let go and I will, but I really hope you don't."

 

Maybe two goblets of wine was affecting Mist after all. She'd never, ever embraced a boy before--had she even done so with a girl? No, not once. She just couldn't think of a way to stop Rivers from running away and to comfort him at the same time. For a moment she worried it had been too much. Then slowly his arms wrapped around her lithe body and pulled himself and her to the door-frame, and they just stood there, holding one another, as he trembled in her arms. She let out a soft breath. So her assumption had been right; poor Rivers had been killed in that event, and the feeling--not to mention the sight of his friends experiencing the same pain--had left a terrible scar on his heart. Mist closed her eyes and shook her head against his chest.

"Don't apologize. I can't even begin to imagine what that must have been like. How much it hurt, inside and out. There's no way I could be upset at you for sharing that with me."

Mist tilted her head up, eyes still closed, so Rivers might see the small smile she offered him.

"Something so scary will no doubt take time to heal. That doesn't mean you have to heal it all by yourself. If it hurts too much to talk to your friends in person...maybe, you could let them know with a message. They're your friends. I'm sure they love you very much, and are more worried that you're distancing yourself from them than feeling any anger or regret for what happened. They cared enough about you to fight at your side no matter the risk. That takes so much. So even if it hurts, don't cut them out. Friends are just too precious for that. And until you feel ready to do that..."

She opened her eyes, gazing up at Rivers still with concerned, but also with a tender kindness that shined in her colorful gaze. They may have only met a little bit ago but she still wanted to do something to help. That's what friends did. She wanted to be friends with him.

"...you have me as a soundboard, and a hug buddy...if you want it?"

 

Mist nuzzled into his chest before telling him not to apologize for what he'd been through. She had listened and didn't want to run away at the first sight of trouble or emotional baggage. Rivers wanted to smile, but he couldn't. He just...couldn't bring himself to. Rivers took some stead breaths and felt her head rise and fall on his chest as he breathed. This was...this was closer than he'd ever been with someone in a long time. Maybe ever. And certainly, this was the longest he'd held a hug with someone else. She tilted up her head and offered him a smile. That was so sweet of her.

She told him that his friends were probably worried about him for disappearing even if they weren't seeing him freak out or break down. Shit, that's exactly what he was trying to avoid by leaving. Was leaving like that actually just selfish of him? Was he just sparing his own feeling and not actually sparing his friends from anything by doing this? Damn. Mist was right. He should contact them, and let him know he was alright. Rivers would do that right after he let go of her. He wasn't in a rush. The thought of messaging them made his heart rise up in his throat, which only brought his attention to the heat in his face. He was sure his face was scarlet by now.

And then Mist offered herself as a hug buddy, and there was no hiding the redness of his face anymore.

"Of course."

He spoke quickly and quietly. Rivers was actually impressed that he was able to spit that out without stuttering or otherwise tripping over his words. Good job. His hands slid from her back to her elbows and he slowly but some distance between them. For a moment Rivers looked into her eyes and gave his best attempt at a smile, but that turned out to be much to embarrassing. Averting his gaze, he took a step back. He would follow Mist's advice and contact his friends.

"I-uh. I think I'll send a message to my friends now. W-would you want to maybe take a look around tomorrow...with me?"

 

Oh dear, he was blushing furiously again. That was better than having a breakdown, though, wasn't it? Mist only smiled brighter as he agreed with her to message his friends and let them know he was okay, like she had suggested. As he stepped back she did as well, only when his hands slid to her elbows, she slid her hands from around his back, to his wrists, and then held both of his hands in her own. Wow, holding hands with a boy. And hugging a boy! Her cheeks felt hot, though they didn't flush nearly so red as Rivers'. Then again that might have been the wine. Still. Did this count as flirting? Could you flirt with somebody who just confessed something so personal and saddening to you? Or was that strange?

Well, it happened in dating sims all the time. Maybe once in a while in real life it wasn't so weird.

"Absolutely! Let's add each other as friends!"

Releasing one of his hands she opened up her palm-menu to swipe to the friends list. A couple quick taps later she'd sent Rivers a friend request. Then she paused, flipped through her menus again, and snickered at something before she turned her hand for Rivers to look at, though she read it aloud as well just in case text wasn't translated like their voices were. They probably were, but hey, can't be entirely sure.

"'Intoxication Debuff: mental facilities and physical reactions are slightly slower than usual. Please drink responsibly.' I guess the game knows my tolerance more than I do...oops!"

With that she closed her menu and released Rivers' hands with care.

"...so, um, when you're done messaging your friends, if you feel up for it, I'll still be here. Just so you know. But I would really love to look around Vinterguard with you, too! So. Yeah!"