For Reeve

[emovampboy]

When it came to use of his phone, Vincent was very much like Cloud. He left it on, received messages and listened to or read them, but quite rarely responded. The few times he did respond tended to be if he deemed an actual answer to be required, or when from time to time Marlene got hold of Cloud or Tifa's phone and contacted him. Since it was so rare for her to do so, he always took it as a good thing to answer.

Which meant he had answered when she called him a few days after a message from Tifa asking him to come to a party for the girl, which he had ignored; his first mistake. Once answered, the girl had spent several minutes speaking to him, until suddenly springing the question of if he were coming to her party and making it quite impossible for him to really say no without seeming like a total heel, and so he agreed to go; his second mistake. And then he had made his third mistake - actually going.

At first, it really wouldn't have seemed to have been a bad idea. He knew everyone who was invited, how they acted around one another, and that Tifa would keep the whole group from going completely crazy over the course of the night, but he had not expected having to assist in breaking up one of Cloud and Barrett's squabbles when the woman had to leave for a short time to fetch something, and honestly he was glad that Reeve was invited and could help diffuse the situation with; especially when Yuffie and a very unhelpful Cid decided it would be a great idea to bet on who would win if they actually took to fistacuffs over whatever stupid thing it was this time which set them off.

All of this had left him rather done with company, and as soon as Tifa was back to be the adult in the situation, he'd snuck outside for some relative peace and quiet.

Comments

[plate_builder]

“I am sure you have,” Reeve agrees and smiles as he lays out his three of a kind. “And I learn to value small victories.”

[emovampboy]

"Now if you can just keep your luck." Vincent remarks, sitting back a little. "You don't have much left to gamble with, even winning that hand."

[plate_builder]

“I could throw my watch in the pot,” Reeve counters with a smirk. “Or an IOU.”

[emovampboy]

"And I'd still pay for dinner." He tilts his head, and holds up his good arm. "Just with a watch instead of nothing."

[plate_builder]

“Well I can spot you the gil to pay for dinner,” Reeve laughs as he takes the cards and shuffles them. “I suppose I should ask what kind of food you like.”

[emovampboy]

"I do carry some Gil on me, Reeve." Vincent watches Reeve shuffle quietly, listing off a few types of food he enjoys.

[plate_builder]

"Oh, so you won't be paying with my watch then? How kind of you. I would still try to ransom it back of course. I need it to tell time," Reeve teases before holding the deck out to Vincent. "Deal should change to your for a while."

Which may just be an excuse to see Vincent's fingers working. So sue him.

[emovampboy]

"No, i just would keep the watch for a time." Vincent takes the cards, beginning to shuffle them. "Are you hoping you'll have better luck if I deal?"

[plate_builder]

"Traditionally the role of dealer switches throughout play. Or Reno lies to me," Reeve counters. "And yes. Clearly I need something if I am to win. Not that losing is that much of a loss as it were. The company would still be mine, and I do find it to my taste."

[emovampboy]

"No, I think that's right, I'm just wondering if there's some other reason." Shuffling done, in a very succinct matter befitting Vincent, the man deals out the cards.

[plate_builder]

"There is," Reeve admits. Why be dishonest? "You have lovely, long fingers. I'm appreciating them."

He is content to consider his cards for now. Outside chance of a flush. Otherwise he's got nothing. Going to go for it. Bet big and hope he wins.

[emovampboy]

"Hm... Are they really so nice?" Vincent will give Reeve whatever cards he wants, taking two of his own.

[plate_builder]

"Absolutely," Reeve smiles, asking for one card. "Long and nimble. Look pretty strong too."

[emovampboy]

Vincent considers his cards a moment, or seems to, while actually considering something else. Or more, many something elses. His hand isn't good enough to really pay much attention to it, after all.

So as he decides to bluff, he raises the bet and asks a question. "You are highly interested in the human physique, aren't you?"

[plate_builder]

Really? Reeve raises an eyebrow. His hand has amounted to nothing. He's going to try and bet Vincent to folding. But the question has him otherwise distracted.

"I didn't always want to be an architect," Reeve says as he considers his hand and raises.

[emovampboy]

Vincent will take the bet, looking at Reeve for a moment of consideration. Art is obviously what he means, but is it just that? Reeve wouldn't be happy with just simple art, he thinks...

"Sculpting perhaps?"

[plate_builder]

"Hardly," Reeve laughs to himself as he puts down his cards and reveals that he lacks anything to speak of. Vincent now has just about all of his screws. "Drawing. I focused on the human form. Hands are rather... complicated to make."

[emovampboy]

"You seem like you wouldn't like to just draw, though. Like you'd need something to do with your hands beyond sketching." Vincent lays down a pair. Better than Reeve's nothing. "Seems I'll be paying for dinner."

[plate_builder]

"So it seems," Reeve acknowledges with a sigh. Oh well, he bought breakfast. Not that much of it was eaten, and he doesn't mind that. He leans back to look at Vincent, a pensive look on his face. "I was a visual artist. Specialized in pencils and pens, usually black and what or gray-scale. I wasn't very hands on, as it were."

[emovampboy]

"Hard to believe." He gathers the cards, shuffling them and then neatly packing them. "But then, I suppose looks can be deceiving."

[plate_builder]

"Have I disappointed you?" Reeve asks. "Perhaps some of my interest comes from art. You have a wonderful form to study. And part of the interest is inherent to my interest in you, Vincent. I have been admiring you from afar for a while. It's nice to see you with my own eyes."

[emovampboy]

"It doesn't disappoint me. I'm just a little surprised." Cards put away, Vincent starts to pick up the screws. "I'm also still a little surprised you focused in on me out of that whole group. I may stand out, but I also don't always have much presence."

[plate_builder]

"You're mistaken," Reeve says, and the words come not only immediately but with an absolute firm belief. "You have presence, Vincent. A lot of it. A quiet intensity that, while you hadn't noticed it, left Cait watching you closely. Sure there were some people that things orbited around, but that doesn't change what presence you have. Yours is a quieter one."

[emovampboy]

Quieter? With Chaos involved? That seems a little hard to believe in its own right. He's more morose than anything, isn't he? But, Cait?

"Weren't you controlling Cait Sith the whole time? Or do you mesn the you behind him when you say he was watching?"

[plate_builder]

"The me behind him," Reeve agrees easily. "Was a lot easier to do when one considers Cait wasn't trusted for a while. Of course it would have been more reasonable not to put someone untrusted at your back but..."

Well, theirs wasn't the most tactically sound group, now were they?