Akimi Suzuki
New Member
Talent: Ikebana Artist
Year: 2
Age: 17
Posts: 36 
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Post by Akimi Suzuki on Nov 16, 2016 15:59:17 GMT 1
 The today I chose is ordinary,
and it's about to crumble. Akimi liked salad. They were pleasing to eat - not too heavy on the taste, yet refreshingly crisp - and the 8th floor's kitchen provided her just that. Honestly, it was probably one of her favorite rooms in this entire building. There's nothing else here other than salad, which isn't normally a fan favorite, thus leading to there being a less-than-populous amount of people here.
Mind you, it wasn't that she disliked everyone else around her. It was just that... she had a reason to behave in the way she is. And it wasn't like she would simply brush off anybody who actually takes the time of day to talk to her, because a genuine conversation was something she appreciates very much.
She just wasn't naturally a people person. Prolonged exposure to others, as enjoyable as they could be, tired her out. And what with her physical state being as it was, it added an extra barrier to go along with her existing introverted nature.
Picking up a bowl, the ponytailed girl walked up to where fresh looking ingredients for salad were displayed. She selected thinly-sliced cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, croutons, diced onion, squeezed some lemon juice and sprinkled a pinch of salt.
Carrying it to one of the many empty tables, she gently placed it down and took her seat. A second later, having realized that her back was to the entrance, Akimi repositioned herself so that she was able to keep an eye to the door as she ate.
As upsetting a thought as it was, she thought back to the sight that the helmet had forced her to see. Her dress, bloodsoaked. A growing pool of pink. Indiscernible figures standing, towering. The feeling of life ebbing away, gentle like the lapping of a calm sea's waves against sandy shores.
Placing her left elbow on the table, she rested the side of her head against her palm. 'Did everyone see the same thing?' she wondered, pressing the tip of her fork into a slice of cucumber. Raising it, she nibbled on it halfheartedly. Small, passive bites.
'What's going to happen to us?'
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Post by Abraham Oppenheimer on Nov 16, 2016 19:28:27 GMT 1
As a vegan, Oppenheimer did not have much choice when he learned that the entire kitchen on the eighth floor was dedicated to ingredients to make a fine salad. As his hunger took over his mind, he walked into the room and took selected his various vegetables to make the salad of Oppenheimer's choosing. After he was satisfied by the contents of his bowl, he looked around to see one of the participants to the dreadful game that they were stuck in. He managed to bring his bowl to the table where the girl seated.
"Mine if I sit here?"
He continued to speak while remained standing as he was not granted permission to sit at the table.
"I am quite sure that we haven't had any slight conversation between the two of us. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Oppenheimer. I am the Ultimate Instrumental Artist, though I am sure that your talent was more hard work than myself."
He took his fork and plunged it into his meal and took a bite of it. He slowly chewed and swallowed, making sure his mouth was cleared of any remnants of the bite he partaken in not seconds before.
"I was wondering how you were in such a high stress situation. I, myself, did not do so well. I was never good under pressure."
He looked as Akimi took out her notebook and appeared writing something down on it. It seemed that she was busy with some sort of work that Oppenheimer was rudely distracting her from.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I did not mean to interrupt you in your work. I'll partake my meal elsewhere."
Oppenheimer turned around before starting to walk off...
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Akimi Suzuki
New Member
Talent: Ikebana Artist
Year: 2
Age: 17
Posts: 36
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Post by Akimi Suzuki on Nov 17, 2016 6:41:24 GMT 1
The today I chose is ordinary,
and it's about to crumble. The dark-haired guy's bowl was half-filled before Akimi finally noticed him, her attention having been directed inwards at her own thoughts rather than out into the world. She stayed silent, looking up at him as she blindly stabbed her fork into her bowl, eating whatever ended up sticking onto it.
'Wasn't he the guy who talked a lot?' she wondered, thinking back to the moment when all of them woke up. While she didn't exactly hear him speak (because her earpieces were muted), she did notice his... expressive actions. At one point, she remembered him even getting down on one knee.
Placing a cherry tomato into her mouth (with her fingers, because the fork couldn't stab into them at all), she bit into it and savored its juice. The guy was still picking at the salad bar, and remembering it a little rude to stare for this long, she turned her gaze away from him.
Not long after, he approached her with his own bowl in hand. Once again, she looked up to him, her expression neutral with a tinge of curiosity.
She listened to him introduce himself, nodding her head along as a sign that she was paying attention. Oppenheimer then proceeded to ask her a question, one that couldn't be answered through nonverbal gestures. Akimi took out her notebook and begun to write, but she barely managed to finish a reply when she saw Oppenheimer turn to leave.
Now, this would've been an awful prank and she would've have hated him for it - engaging in conversation only to leave after seeing her needing to take her time to write - but he saved himself from that by explaining that he thought she was working.
'But it could always be an excuse to get away from me,' she thought, though she quickly dismissed it after the fact. He seemed like a kind person, and she wanted to give him a chance. Just in case he was genuine.
Getting up from her seat, she made her way towards him to tug at the back of his shirt. Holding her opened notebook, she waited for him to turn around before showing him the half-written message inside.
"Hello. I don't mind at all, please sit down. I'm Akimi Suz-"
After making sure and giving him enough time to read her message, she turned the notebook around and quickly added a small note at the bottom of that page.
"I'm mute, so this is my way of talking. I wasn't doing any work." |
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Post by Abraham Oppenheimer on Nov 17, 2016 8:49:26 GMT 1
"Are you....I am so very sorry. Please forgive my apparent rudeness. I was not under the impression that you were mute. It is my fault and I so much wish that you could forgive me."
He led her back to her table and pulled out her chair, allowing her to sit properly before pushing her in. He then proceeded to sit in the chair opposite of her.
"Like I said, I was being ignorant. I will make the effort to not assume something of you again."
He began to eat his salad when he starred at her bowl with a quizzical look upon his face.
"Red tomatoes?", he asked primarily to himself, "I must have missed them when I was making my salad. Same with the croutons. I need to be better at observations, apparently."
He gave a slight chuckle at his own self-depreciation while continuing to eat his salad without his favorite ingredients, as he was in middle with conversing with Akimi.
"So Madame Suz, if I may inquire about your talent, I am interested in learning about how you were accepted into the school in the first place. I also am curious if you had any questions regarding myself. I do not wish for this to become a formal interview, but rather a friendly exchange of information about our personal lives. I do want us to become friends."
He sat down his fork and folded his hands onto his lap as he kindly waited for Akimi to finish writing as not to disrupt her again while writing.
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Akimi Suzuki
New Member
Talent: Ikebana Artist
Year: 2
Age: 17
Posts: 36
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Post by Akimi Suzuki on Nov 24, 2016 12:08:23 GMT 1
The today I chose is ordinary,
and it's about to crumble. When her new acquaintance started to apologize, Akimi shook her head and gave him a small smile. She wanted to tell him not to worry, but before she could start writing, he motioned for her to take her seat at the table. What's more, Oppenheimer even pushed in her chair for her.
While it may be hidden from Oppenheimer's view, his kind gesture brought out of the ponytailed girl a soft, immensely happy smile. To be shown such a sincere, genuine amount of kindness and respect - it was a true delight.
After the kind man took his seat, Akimi bit into a slice of cucumber as she listened to him speak. She nodded when he talked about wanting a friendly conversation, picking up her pen afterwards to start writing her reply.
"My earlier message was cut off, which I think has led you to mistaken my actual name. It is Akimi Suzuki.
As for your questions, Hope's Peak invited me into their school after I've made myself known within the scene of Ikebana Artists."
Glancing up to him, she realized that he might have been unfamiliar with that terminology. Because while Oppenherimer speaks fluent Japanese, based on his appearance, she guessed that he was first and foremost a foreigner.
"Ikebana means the art of Flower Arrangement. I was placed first for many competitions, which combined with the followers I've had on my blog, probably contributed to attracting Hope's Peak's attention."
She looked up to him again, trying to gauge his expression. People normally get bored of waiting, though they still put on a pleasant mask so as to not be offensive. A mask that dropped the longer their conversations with her went on. Because of this, she chose to start her next sentence with an apology.
"Apologies if this is a troublesome means of conversing. Please, if you ever feel the need to leave, don't worry and go right ahead. And as for any questions I have for you, I in fact have two.
1: What your talent is.
2: Are you always this kind to strangers?"
The third, she added a little hesitantly.
" 3: What do you think will happen to us?"
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Post by Abraham Oppenheimer on Nov 24, 2016 23:15:13 GMT 1
"Oh. I am so sorry to get your name wrong. I should have not assumed your name after knowing you were cut off. My apologies."
He took another bite of his salad, slightly eyeing her red tomatoes. He wanted to go up and try to claim some of them for his own, but Akimi was busy writing and trying to converse with him. It would be rude to suddenly get up for some tomatoes. As he patiently waited for Akimi to finish writing, his mind started to drift back to his youth classes where they offered sign language, but Oppenheimer instead took ceramics after feeling bad that the teacher never has a lot of students in his class. He felt the strong need to apologize for not picking up the language for easier conversation, but decided against it as she, rightfully, would agree that Oppenheimer could have no knowledge that he would be faced with a situation of this sorts.
"Flower arranging? Like bouquets? That's amazing. You can brighten up every room with correct placement of flowers. It's one of the most beautiful forms of art and I thank you for your services. If I could find some flowers, we can perhaps bring up the spirits of everyone here. Only, of course, you will indulge me in this. I'm sorry if I put you on the spot or anything. You are under no obligation to do so and I will not judge you either way."
Oppenheimer desperately tried to correct his social err with some degree of success, considering there was no social err to begin with.
"As for my talent, I am the Ultimate Instrumental Artist. In other words, I can play any instrument with ease. Even instruments that I have never seen before. I am able to play wonderful music with anything I can get my hands onto. If only this place had some sort of instrument I could use. I have yet to see one around this place, but I'll keep looking."
He read the second question once again, as he missed a word when reading over it the first time.
"Absolutely. My mother was a terrific woman who was the pinnacle of public politeness. I strive to make sure I honor her memory the best I can."
He looked at the third question and immediately realized why Akimi decided to hesitate about writing it down. He looked blankly at her again and went silent for a minute before answering.
"I...I am sure Allah will protect us from evil."
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Akimi Suzuki
New Member
Talent: Ikebana Artist
Year: 2
Age: 17
Posts: 36
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Post by Akimi Suzuki on Nov 30, 2016 13:50:12 GMT 1
The today I chose is ordinary,
and it's about to crumble. One of the strongest opinions that Akimi had of Oppenheimer right now was that he apologizes way too much.
The second was that he was very kind. Like, she had inklings about how big hearted he was even before this exchange, but now she was certain without a doubt.
She's also of the opinion that in situations like these, people that wear their hearts on their sleeves were the first to go. It made them look weak. Easily manipulated. But despite herself, she couldn't help but show her delight when Oppenheimer praised her for her work.
But immediately after, an important thought ran through her mind.
'With how nice he is as a person, wouldn't he spout phrases of praise towards any and all talents? Doesn't that then diminish what he has to say about me?'
Her lit-up eyes and sweet smile faded away. And as a result, Akimi only gave him a few short nods (without even looking at him) when asked if she would showcase her talent if there were any flowers to be found.
She was interested in hearing about his talent though, and so she listened somewhat intently when Oppenheimer begun to talk about himself. His response to her first and second question were satisfactory, ones that could easily lead to another round of conversation. And his third one gave her a brief glimpse of hesitation. Of worry.
"It sounds like you have an amazing talent. To be able to play anything you pick up... it's almost magical. I had to put in many hours of practice before I even became barely adequate in piano, though I am decently good at it nowadays. It's a pity there aren't any instruments here - I would have loved to listen to you play."
She then addressed her cynical concern over his polite nature, though a part of her worried that this would anger this gentle giant.
"Your mother sounds like a wonderful women. Though please allow me to indulge myself by asking this question, and I ask of you to try and take no offense, but how true were your earlier words of praise for my talent if you would have came up with something equally as good for anyone else you meet?
And who is this... Allah?"
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Post by Abraham Oppenheimer on Dec 3, 2016 22:58:38 GMT 1
As Oppenheimer continued to answer her questions, he noticed that she seemed a bit more distant than in previously in the conversation, and he would have easily questioned this if she wasn't already writing down her response.
He took the notepad he was handed to and read through it all. He looked to her with a sad expression.
"I am sorry you feel that way. I only mean that your talent is something magnificent and unique to only you. Your personality, your muteness, and everything that makes you the individual you are is amazing to me."
He reached and grabbed her hand.
"Believe me when I say that I do not wish to insult you or speak empty words of praise to anyone. I mean everything I say. You have a lovely talent, beautiful calligraphy and you are, what I believe to be the most important aspect of you, an incredibly kind woman. One who would do anything for others for the satisfaction of knowing you helped someone that day. And for that, I am incredibly sorry I made you feel any less special than how you are. You are special. Everything about you is special. You are one in billions. I hope that some day we can find a piano. A piano that we can both play together on so I can give you something more meaningful than a simple apology to right this wrong."
He looked into her eyes and looked back his hand holding hers and pulled his hand back.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to do that. I have a girlfriend, so I'm sorry if I sent mixed messages to you. I didn't mean, to..."
He blushed incredibly and looked around the room to find anything to get his mind out of this awkwardness he had placed himself with. He rested his eyes on the notebook and realized there was another question underneath it.
"Ah. Allah. Yes. He is the one who I worship as all Muslims do. He is our God. I would go into greater detail, but there's a stigma against talking about religion for 45 minutes."
Great. Bad idea. Oppenheimer just blushed a lot more than he already was and looking incredibly embarrassed that his tanned skin just became more red than anything else.
"So, uh, chairs. Do you, uh, like to sit on, er, them?"
Smooth.
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Akimi Suzuki
New Member
Talent: Ikebana Artist
Year: 2
Age: 17
Posts: 36
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Post by Akimi Suzuki on Dec 12, 2016 6:35:16 GMT 1
The today I chose is ordinary,
and it's about to crumble. Oppenheimer's sad expression hurt her a little, but Akimi chose to think of it as a necessary sacrifice. It's better to sort out right now how much truth and fluff there is exactly to this guy's words.
She listened to him speak, trying to push away any cynical thoughts that came to her. And then he reached out to grab her hand, something that she wasn't expecting in the least. Because nobody's done that before. Not in this way.
Akimi wanted to pull her hand away from him, but her instinct to recoil were put on hold when she heard what he had to say. When she heard all that he had to say, because Oppenheimer really did have a lot.
What's more, they felt... genuine.
By the end of it, he finally took his hand away from hers. She brought her hand back and rested it on her lap, holding it with her other. The ponytailed girl stayed silent, her eyes crestfallen. But then the topic of conversation changed, with Oppenheimer answering one of the question she had asked him earlier.
And then he moved on to talk about... chairs.
Akimi wasn't embarrassed to begin with, but seeing Oppenheimer behave this way, she's close to becoming embarassed for him.
Taking her notebook back, she begun to write out a response. One that would hopefully make things normal once more.
"Don't worry about it. And... thank you for what you've said. They mean a lot.
Could you tell me more about your girlfriend? What kind of a person is she like? I imagine she plays some sort of instrument too?"
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Post by Abraham Oppenheimer on Dec 17, 2016 19:13:42 GMT 1
Oppenheimer felt better now that Akimi forgave him. He didn't want their first interaction to be plagued by a sour start. It was important for the first impression to be the lasting.
Then Akimi mention the one thing Oppenheimer cares about the most almost as much as Allah: Ahuva.
"Well, Ahuva and I met back in middle school. I accidentally ran into her one day after class. Despite the bump on our heads, we fell in love. We've been together ever since. She's a lot like you actually. She's smart, tough, long flowing beautiful hair, and got my entire trust. I am completely compelled by her. Whenever I'm near her, I get clumsy and constantly trip over myself."
Oppenheimer's huge grin went solemn for a second.
"I never want to hurt her. I never want to upset her. I want to be with her again. I want to see her in her flower shop. I want to play the flute to charm her under to big moonlight. I....I just want to be able to see her again. She'll gauge my eyes out if I don't return to her soon..."
Oppenheimer looked down at Akimi one last time.
"We'll make it out of here together. I promise you."
He wasn't sure that everything will be okay in the future, but he couldn't bring himself to admit that they will be trapped here forever.
"I swear on the Oppenheimer name, my girlfriend, and Allah that we will escape together."
With that he gave one more reasurring smile.
"Now, I think we should go back to eat this delicious meal."
They continued to chat while eating salad for another hour or so before they both went off to explore some more.
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