[Oh! Look at that, a text in return. Sampo hadn't expected to get one so quickly, if he even got one at all. It's a nice surprise, though.]
A little bit! Don't people give you gifts very often?
[Honestly, with a face like that? Gepard should be getting gifts left, right, and center. He's the kind of good-looking who should never have to pay for his own drinks because someone else will buy them for him. Should never have to buy his own dinners because he's too pretty to pay.]
[Sampo has enough cash to pay for dinners, for drinks, but he's also too old for sugar babies. Though Gepard is gainfully employed, so he wouldn't quite be a sugar baby, right? Even if Sampo did decide to buy him things just because he's pretty?]
[He could definitely get him a lot of flowers. Maybe he should get him more flowers? Drop them off at his parlor as a surprise? No, no, that's getting way ahead of himself, he can't just start dropping presents off at Gepard's doorstep before they've even gone on the first date. That's definitely a second date kind of thing.]
[...he knows he should be getting ready for his next client, but Gepard settles in a couch. He can allow himself a few minutes of whatever-this-is. (He knows what this is, but denial makes things easier.)
So, there he is, snuggling on his couch, acting like he's a boy who has nothing better to do than to text a florist he only met once. (Had it been only once?)]
Food, if anything. Sometimes my clients like to bring me snacks?
Ah, so I have competition! How do my bouquets stack up to snacks? You can't eat them, but they're pretty, and that has to count for something.
[It's only been a few days, so Gepard probably doesn't need any more bouquets, but that doesn't mean that Sampo couldn't give him one... a tattoo parlor could have more than one bouquet in it. Or Gepard could take it home and liven up his apartment with it.]
I got some gladiolus in. They're pretty spectacular!
[There's maybe a minute or so of a break while Sampo goes and gathers up some of the new gladiolus flowers, gathering up a bunch of them in his arms of various colors. Then he takes a selfie with them and sends that over, because if he's going to send a picture to Cute Blond, he might as well include his face in it. The flowers and leaves frame his face out pretty nice, too.]
[His response is to send a screenshot of Sampo's contact info, now with that selfie for a photo, still with the ridiculous number of emotes attached to it.]
Excuse you I used just the right amount of emotes!! It's not my fault that you aren't hip with current trends.
[That was probably the least cool thing that he's ever typed, but he did it ironically so it comes back around to being cool again. That's how things work, trust him.]
You know, you need to send me a picture now, so I can have one for your contact info. It's not fair otherwise.
[After an appropriate amount of time, Gepard sends two things.
First, a Gepard da Vinci, a work of art done in a few minutes. And the second is a selfie.
The selfie is of him looking faintly embarrassed, unconsciously so, because- well. He's not good at taking selfies of himself. But it's fine. He can send a selfie of himself to his...
Buddy. His eager buddy.]
If the drawing isn't enough, here's a selfie.
My client is here so I won't be responding for a while. Sorry.
[He doesn't have a client (yet) this is a lie, but it's a white lie so it's okay.]
[How's he supposed to choose which one to use as Gepard's picture in his phone? The little Gepard da Vinci is adorable, a cute little caricature of Gepard himself, but the selfie is equally cute. He looks faintly sheepish in the picture, as though he isn't aware of the fact that he's handsome in any light.]
[Is he not aware of the fact that he's handsome? No, no, that would be ridiculous. Hot people know that they're hot.]
[Sampo's left on read for about a half hour, and during that time Gepard draws and sketches, and doodles, and draws a bunch of eyes not for any reason - it's to give his fingers something to do as he ignores the fact he sent Sampo a selfie, and then he very determinedly tries to ignore that. Trying really hard to ignore it!
...he ends up with a page full of eyes, which looks either unfortunately creepy or fortunately artistic depending on one's perspective.]
[Sampo replies about ten minutes after Gepard sends his text— he does sometimes have to do work, even when he has pretty blonds texting him.]
that’s a lot of eyes
[If he didn’t know that Gepard’s an artist and thus would draw random body parts as part of the general practice of his craft, he might think that was pretty weird.]
Have you been doing the same kind of tattoos lately? Oh have you been getting a bunch of those cybersigilism tattoos??? It’s been blowing up on TikTok lately. Kids these days!
Personally, I don't like them very much, but that's just me! I think they look like those tribal tattoos that people got thirty years ago but with the middle not filled in.
[Trends go in cycles, they say. So maybe even in the world of tattoos, if you wait long enough, tribal will be back in style in one form or another.]
Not that you shouldn't give the customer what they want, but, well. We all know how well tribal tattoos aged! [Horribly.] You sound like you need some inspiration.
Don't worry about it! It'll be fun, and you can get some creative juices flowing or whatever your process is. Meet me here at like, I dunno, five-ish?
[Beep boop an address gets sent over to Gepard's phone. Now you are presented with a choice, Cute Blonde-- do you actually show up? Mull that one over for the next few hours or so.]
[If he does decide to show, the address that Sampo sent him is actually for a little coffee shop that's right across the street from the Belobog Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. Surely that's just a coincidence.]
[He mulls it over and, almost at the last minute, he gets on a bus and heads on over.
The bus gets stuck in traffic, the bus is slow, the bus takes so much time that Gepard nearly gets off and walks back home no matter how long it might take - almost, but he's so far and the address so close. He tries to ignore the people on the bus. He tries to ignore the smell, or the fact he has no idea what it is he's doing.
He arrives at the address at 5:17, a bit out of breath because he didn't quite run, but he definitely hurried, fishing out his phone because he's sure that he left Sampo hanging for a moment too long and Sampo left, probably pissed off at him for wasting his time.]
[When the clock hits five and Gepard isn't there, Sampo doesn't think much of it. Who ever arrives exactly on time, right? Especially with bus schedules how they are, showing up five minutes late is basically the same as being on time. Besides, he'd said five-ish, not exactly at five. Five after, that's nothing to worry about. Ten after, maybe Gepard's just running a bit late. Fifteen and no text, and he's starting to wonder if he's really been stood up.]
[He'd decided to give Gepard until twenty after-- maybe half-past if he's really feeling a little pathetic-- before calling it. Any later than that and it's just sad, you're just that guy who won't admit that he'd been stood up. Thankfully, Sampo is spared this sad fate when Gepard does, in fact, show up, seventeen minutes late.]
Hey, there you are! [Gepard looks a little harried, like he'd been rushing to get here. Slightly out of breath, a little color on his cheeks, it's not a bad look for him.] Want to get some coffee or something real quick? I already got tickets.
[Another reason why he really hoped Gepard wouldn't stand him up. He was able to get the tickets for the conservatory half off through various... means, some of which he's fairly certain Gepard wouldn't approve of. So what Gepard doesn't know about won't make him side-eye his new acquaintance-slash-friend! Easiest way to do it.]
[...the fact that Sampo was still waiting for him, for him, is one of the most unintentionally seductive things anyone could do for him, and he just has to take a moment to, well, take in the fact that Sampo's there. Still there. And the blush on Gepard's cheeks is from the exertion in getting there on time, and the fact his brain needs to reboot is because of how he hurried.
...a breath passes, and his brain reboots.]
I'm sorry I'm late. [Yes, he's thinking again.] By the time I thought I should text you, I was crowded on a bus and could hardly reach for my phone. Coffee sounds nice. If you already got tickets, let me treat you? As an apology for being late.
[There's more questions he has, like...tickets for what, how did Sampo get them, when, what, wha, but one step at a time. They can take things one step at a time.]
Don't worry about it! You made it, right? That's all that matters!
[Gepard didn't stand him up, so he doesn't have to go home in defeat like a sadsack with two wasted tickets for the price of one. And he even graciously offers to pay for coffee, like a gentleman. What a nice guy! Sampo really has great taste in men, except that most good men don't have taste that includes Sampo.]
If you pay, consider your apology accepted! [Sampo will never turn down a free coffee. He pulls the door to the coffee shop open, holding for his generous coffee buyer.] After you! We have plenty of time until it closes, but I want to make sure you have all the time in the world to look around.
[It's for his art block, after all. It might take a little while to get over it.]
[That's so nice. Sampo is being so nice. In a slightly different lifetime, he'd be bracing himself, wondering what the catch was. Or he might be doing the smart thing and walk away again.
But there is what could be, and there is the life which Gepard is living right now. He just flashes Sampo a smile - small and relieved and happy - and walks right in.]
How did you find this place? [It's...nice. He likes it.]
[Gepard's cute when he smiles, sort of shy and sweet, and boy is Sampo weak to a cute blond.]
[Since this shop is so close to the conservatory, it's leaned in to the theme and turned its interior into a little conservatory of its own-- shelves full of potted plants of all kinds, big and small. From common jade plants to delicate orchids and everything in-between, there's a plant in nearly every spot that could reasonably accommodate one.]
I really only noticed it because of what's across the street! Which is where we're going, if you haven't seen it.
[Maybe Gepard never noticed that Belobog has a botanical garden, maybe he already realized that they're right by it and cottoned on to Sampo's plan already. He goes up to the counter to order, and the barista seems to already know him and his order, and rattles it off to him.]
Aha, that's right! You've got a good memory. [She turns to Gepard and asks what he wants-- what kind of coffee do cute blond tattoo artists drink?]
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2024-09-19 04:14 am (UTC)A little bit! Don't people give you gifts very often?
[Honestly, with a face like that? Gepard should be getting gifts left, right, and center. He's the kind of good-looking who should never have to pay for his own drinks because someone else will buy them for him. Should never have to buy his own dinners because he's too pretty to pay.]
[Sampo has enough cash to pay for dinners, for drinks, but he's also too old for sugar babies. Though Gepard is gainfully employed, so he wouldn't quite be a sugar baby, right? Even if Sampo did decide to buy him things just because he's pretty?]
[He could definitely get him a lot of flowers. Maybe he should get him more flowers? Drop them off at his parlor as a surprise? No, no, that's getting way ahead of himself, he can't just start dropping presents off at Gepard's doorstep before they've even gone on the first date. That's definitely a second date kind of thing.]
no subject
Date: 2024-09-20 02:30 am (UTC)[...he knows he should be getting ready for his next client, but Gepard settles in a couch. He can allow himself a few minutes of whatever-this-is. (He knows what this is, but denial makes things easier.)
So, there he is, snuggling on his couch, acting like he's a boy who has nothing better to do than to text a florist he only met once. (Had it been only once?)]
Food, if anything. Sometimes my clients like to bring me snacks?
[Does that count?]
no subject
Date: 2024-09-24 02:00 am (UTC)[It's only been a few days, so Gepard probably doesn't need any more bouquets, but that doesn't mean that Sampo couldn't give him one... a tattoo parlor could have more than one bouquet in it. Or Gepard could take it home and liven up his apartment with it.]
I got some gladiolus in. They're pretty spectacular!
no subject
Date: 2024-09-24 02:42 am (UTC)[He...thinks. At least.]
Can I see them?
no subject
Date: 2024-09-24 02:48 am (UTC)[There's maybe a minute or so of a break while Sampo goes and gathers up some of the new gladiolus flowers, gathering up a bunch of them in his arms of various colors. Then he takes a selfie with them and sends that over, because if he's going to send a picture to Cute Blond, he might as well include his face in it. The flowers and leaves frame his face out pretty nice, too.]
What do you think?
no subject
Date: 2024-09-24 02:56 am (UTC)Did you really have to use that many emotes?
no subject
Date: 2024-09-24 03:03 am (UTC)[That was probably the least cool thing that he's ever typed, but he did it ironically so it comes back around to being cool again. That's how things work, trust him.]
You know, you need to send me a picture now, so I can have one for your contact info. It's not fair otherwise.
no subject
Date: 2024-09-24 03:21 am (UTC)[Also, very camera shy, so.]
no subject
Date: 2024-09-26 02:40 am (UTC)[You're an artist, Gepard, surely you can whip up a cute little doodle of yourself to send to your new friend, right?]
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Date: 2024-09-26 02:55 am (UTC)First, a Gepard da Vinci, a work of art done in a few minutes. And the second is a selfie.
The selfie is of him looking faintly embarrassed, unconsciously so, because- well. He's not good at taking selfies of himself. But it's fine. He can send a selfie of himself to his...
Buddy. His eager buddy.]
If the drawing isn't enough, here's a selfie.
My client is here so I won't be responding for a while. Sorry.
[He doesn't have a client (yet) this is a lie, but it's a white lie so it's okay.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-01 04:45 am (UTC)[How's he supposed to choose which one to use as Gepard's picture in his phone? The little Gepard da Vinci is adorable, a cute little caricature of Gepard himself, but the selfie is equally cute. He looks faintly sheepish in the picture, as though he isn't aware of the fact that he's handsome in any light.]
[Is he not aware of the fact that he's handsome? No, no, that would be ridiculous. Hot people know that they're hot.]
Don't worry about it! Go make that bread.
no subject
Date: 2024-10-04 03:15 am (UTC)...he ends up with a page full of eyes, which looks either unfortunately creepy or fortunately artistic depending on one's perspective.]
I think I'm in a rut.
[And sure, Sampo can see the page of eyes.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-07 03:24 am (UTC)that’s a lot of eyes
[If he didn’t know that Gepard’s an artist and thus would draw random body parts as part of the general practice of his craft, he might think that was pretty weird.]
Have you been doing the same kind of tattoos lately? Oh have you been getting a bunch of those cybersigilism tattoos??? It’s been blowing up on TikTok lately. Kids these days!
no subject
Date: 2024-10-10 03:11 am (UTC)[And he can take that as he will.]
I thought I'd add to my flash sheets, but, as it turns out, I don't have any ideas of what to draw.
I know the tattoos you're talking about and I thought I'd start there, but as you can see I didn't really go anywhere with this.
no subject
Date: 2024-10-10 08:37 pm (UTC)[Trends go in cycles, they say. So maybe even in the world of tattoos, if you wait long enough, tribal will be back in style in one form or another.]
Not that you shouldn't give the customer what they want, but, well. We all know how well tribal tattoos aged! [Horribly.] You sound like you need some inspiration.
no subject
Date: 2024-10-11 02:06 am (UTC)I could use some inspiration.
no subject
Date: 2024-10-13 01:53 am (UTC)[It's not a date. Really! It's just a friendly dude helping out another dude with his problem. Totally dudebro things. Nothing to see here.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-14 02:16 am (UTC)[Wow, it sounds like Sampo's doing a lot for him. Wow. He's going to give Sampo an out.]
I wouldn't want you to to go out of your way if it's too much trouble.
no subject
Date: 2024-10-14 02:28 am (UTC)[Beep boop an address gets sent over to Gepard's phone. Now you are presented with a choice, Cute Blonde-- do you actually show up? Mull that one over for the next few hours or so.]
[If he does decide to show, the address that Sampo sent him is actually for a little coffee shop that's right across the street from the Belobog Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. Surely that's just a coincidence.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-14 03:15 am (UTC)The bus gets stuck in traffic, the bus is slow, the bus takes so much time that Gepard nearly gets off and walks back home no matter how long it might take - almost, but he's so far and the address so close. He tries to ignore the people on the bus. He tries to ignore the smell, or the fact he has no idea what it is he's doing.
He arrives at the address at 5:17, a bit out of breath because he didn't quite run, but he definitely hurried, fishing out his phone because he's sure that he left Sampo hanging for a moment too long and Sampo left, probably pissed off at him for wasting his time.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-18 05:25 pm (UTC)[He'd decided to give Gepard until twenty after-- maybe half-past if he's really feeling a little pathetic-- before calling it. Any later than that and it's just sad, you're just that guy who won't admit that he'd been stood up. Thankfully, Sampo is spared this sad fate when Gepard does, in fact, show up, seventeen minutes late.]
Hey, there you are! [Gepard looks a little harried, like he'd been rushing to get here. Slightly out of breath, a little color on his cheeks, it's not a bad look for him.] Want to get some coffee or something real quick? I already got tickets.
[Another reason why he really hoped Gepard wouldn't stand him up. He was able to get the tickets for the conservatory half off through various... means, some of which he's fairly certain Gepard wouldn't approve of. So what Gepard doesn't know about won't make him side-eye his new acquaintance-slash-friend! Easiest way to do it.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-19 01:28 am (UTC)...a breath passes, and his brain reboots.]
I'm sorry I'm late. [Yes, he's thinking again.] By the time I thought I should text you, I was crowded on a bus and could hardly reach for my phone. Coffee sounds nice. If you already got tickets, let me treat you? As an apology for being late.
[There's more questions he has, like...tickets for what, how did Sampo get them, when, what, wha, but one step at a time. They can take things one step at a time.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-19 02:10 am (UTC)[Gepard didn't stand him up, so he doesn't have to go home in defeat like a sadsack with two wasted tickets for the price of one. And he even graciously offers to pay for coffee, like a gentleman. What a nice guy! Sampo really has great taste in men, except that most good men don't have taste that includes Sampo.]
If you pay, consider your apology accepted! [Sampo will never turn down a free coffee. He pulls the door to the coffee shop open, holding for his generous coffee buyer.] After you! We have plenty of time until it closes, but I want to make sure you have all the time in the world to look around.
[It's for his art block, after all. It might take a little while to get over it.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-20 02:33 am (UTC)But there is what could be, and there is the life which Gepard is living right now. He just flashes Sampo a smile - small and relieved and happy - and walks right in.]
How did you find this place? [It's...nice. He likes it.]
no subject
Date: 2024-10-20 02:52 am (UTC)[Since this shop is so close to the conservatory, it's leaned in to the theme and turned its interior into a little conservatory of its own-- shelves full of potted plants of all kinds, big and small. From common jade plants to delicate orchids and everything in-between, there's a plant in nearly every spot that could reasonably accommodate one.]
I really only noticed it because of what's across the street! Which is where we're going, if you haven't seen it.
[Maybe Gepard never noticed that Belobog has a botanical garden, maybe he already realized that they're right by it and cottoned on to Sampo's plan already. He goes up to the counter to order, and the barista seems to already know him and his order, and rattles it off to him.]
Aha, that's right! You've got a good memory. [She turns to Gepard and asks what he wants-- what kind of coffee do cute blond tattoo artists drink?]
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