01: Reality $ TEXT

[righthandstand]

[Okuyasu opts for a text message rather than a video as 1) it's kind of easy to figure out after some practice - it's like a computer, only the keys don't get stuck and 2) he hopes fewer people will recognize him from the tiny icon.]

you know after the past few days i think im finally getting that this is all real
that im not dreaming that i woke up in outer space and went to a planet where magic is real
does that make sense?

i guess what im trying to say is i suddenly realize that i was sleeping in a real bed in a real house and ate real food
but at the same time i cant completely accept it yet
and its confusing

i know it sounds pretty dumb but thats how I feel

Comments

[righthandstand]

Hey, if I was like everyone else, I wouldn't be much of a delinquent! [A large grin.] Even if I'm a yankii my big brother and I designed our own uniforms to match with each other and no one else!

[chefbayardee]

[ Okuyasu's dabbled in fashion design?! What. A. Character. But coordinated outfits with his brother? That was... kind of adorable, if Okuyasu wasn't a teenager. But as much as he wanted to needle the guy about that... ]

A yankee? [ Blink. Blink. Staring. ] I thought you were from Japan, not New York. [ Did he miss something? Probably. There's a lot going on with this guy... ]

[righthandstand]

[Bonding with his brother was a good memory among all those shitty ones.

He pout.] Not yankee the American, ain't that obvious? Yankii like dressin' like an American. It's real popular with delinquents.

...Do Americans really call themselves Yankees?

[chefbayardee]

I mean, I'm sure some of them do. They're a baseball team, and people are weird enough as it is. [ He rolls his eyes, because in all honesty humans are almost weirder than the aliens he's met. ]

But yankee and yankii sound basically the same, and if yankii is dressing like an American, then what's the difference? And- [ He stifles a laugh. Very poorly. ] What do you think Americans dress like?

[righthandstand]

...I've seen those commercials with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jodi Foster. And I read magazine about America, too!

[chefbayardee]

Okuyasu. [ You know that one meme? Hunk's reenacting it after just a few moments of silence and blinking. ] Arnold Schwarzenegger was German. Or Austrian. European. Whatever.

[ Hunk's from far enough into the future that Austria's just a footnote, but he's one to focus on details, so. Onto the next: ] What kind of magazines did you read?

I'm dying

[righthandstand]

He's an actor in American movies! [He retorts indignantly.] Besides, he's still Western, right?

[Therefore it's not much of a stretch to refer to him as American. God, he feels so proud for figuring that logic puzzle.]

Like, the ones they got at convenience stores. They have a ton of articles about Americans and movies and shit. [They're all celebrities, though.]

S A M E

[chefbayardee]

Those are tabloids, Okuyasu. [ He takes another moment to blink and stare. ] You know those are trash, right?

And if you go west for long enough, you end up where you started! [ And Hunk whines for a moment, before steeling his resolve. ] Have you ever even had a cheeseburger? Apple pie? French fries?!

If you wanna be a Yankee, you gotta eat the food. [ It always comdz back to food. ]

[righthandstand]

They're not! [Tabloids have gossip! And are for older women! He doesn't read tabloids!] I read up on news about real world shit, not just movies!

[He pulls his feet on the chair, wraps himself with his arms defensively.]

I had a cheeseburger when I lived in Tokyo. And I had French frieds. [He shared with Keicho after a tip to McDonald's. They don't have American chain restaurants in Morioh.]

[chefbayardee]

Okay, well, you have the internet here. You can read the news on your iMog Slate. [ He's terse, but compassionate. Okuyasu going through convenience store tabloids was mentally painful to Hunk. ]

One cheeseburger. Was it good, or was it McDonald's-tier? [ He is, of course, thinking of American McDonald's, but still. ] And no apple pie, either?

[ Hunk might be mentally sketching a trip to MogDonald's sometime soon... ]

[righthandstand]

[Ugh, fine. Hunk's being the adult here but Okuyasu doesn't have to act like he obeys him. He's not his brother.]

It was good. [It was dinner.] McDonald's ain't shit. Just didn't have apple pie 'cause you get those in bakeries.