apocalypsehowcomm | [closed] apartment A1 meeting/mingle!

[While Akechi had initially sneered at the idea of roommates, accompanying Ren to Bonnie's Flophouse for investigation had immediately changed his mind. And while it would be far from the worst place he's lived in his life, and certainly the privacy would be preferred, the idea of sharing a bathroom with the other residents... well. It rather does eliminate the privacy of a single room, doesn't it?

Besides, as he'd told Ren, it would be better for them to be split up. Considering they are the only ones they know they can trust at the moment, having eyes both inside and outside ADI can only be to his -- their -- benefit. Considering the time wasted wandering around Gloucester with Ren in search of other options, he'd doubt he's the first one to arrive at the apartment.

Honestly, anyone could be forgiven for thinking he's a wandering salesman with the way he carries a heavy winter jacket over one arm and a silver briefcase emblazoned with the letter A in his other hand. Whatever his current appearance, he cautiously unlocks the door and gently knocks to alert anyone who might be inside.]

Ah... hello?

[He purposely pitches his voice ever-so-slightly higher to seem softer, projecting just a hint of uncertainty, intending to give off the impression of non-threatening politeness.]

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I'm still looking around. [Not that she has a lot with her, as far as settling in goes. It's all things she can carry on her person, anyway.] I don't have a lot of experience with apartments, but this one doesn't seem bad at all.

[And then their third roommate joins then, and Monika finds another recognizable face.] Hello, Mercy! You're living here too?

[Of course she is, or she wouldn't have just walked in, but Monika is amazed at her luck. Two people she's met before and who seem both friendly and competent.]

It's certainly larger than what I'm accustomed to, [he says, instead of the more honest assessment that he's worked hard not to have to share a space with people in recent years.] Apartments in Tokyo tend to be on the smaller side, so...

[He pauses and shifts his grip on his briefcase at the gentle tapping on the door. It seems incredibly odd for someone to be knocking on the door of their own apartment, but then again, he hasn't exactly had roommates like this before. Maybe that's normal? Hm. He'll have to check online for social etiquette on this kind of thing in the United States.

Whatever the case, oddity or custom, he's left momentarily at a loss at her strange greeting, and worse, has to awkwardly shift his briefcase to his left hand as Mercy extends her hand.]

Ah... the same to you, I'm sure.

[He refuses to let how off-balance he feels show on his face, though; he's already been thrown off his usual scripted greetings, so he just gives her his best, most winning smile. He's not going to lose to something like that!]

My name is Akechi. A pleasure to meet you, Sister Mercy. I hope we can get along.

Reckon we will, Mr. Akechi. 'Specially with the three of use living together. [She nods to Monika's question.]

You look like you're ready to walk out the door again, though. [That's said to Akechi.] You go and put your things up. I can see about finding their well to get us some water going for the evening. Thinking tea, if they got it. Someone said there'd be food in here.

Either of you seen any buckets stashed away for fetching, though?

[Monika wonders what Tokyo is like. Her game was ostensibly set in Japan, but considering they all spoke English and things weren't quite right given the little research she could do, she'd love to see the real thing. As for Mercy's offer... Well, her heart squeezes painfully at the idea of drinking tea with a group of people around her age (are all those physical reactions psychosomatic? She doesn't know how to figure it out without giving her status as not exactly human away), but she can push that aside as she's reminded, again, that Mercy's world is very different from the one they're in now.]

Oh, there's plumbing that brings the water right to the apartment. I can show you how to use the sink. It'll only take a second, it's easy. Do you want to help too, Akechi?

[It could be a tea-making apartment bonding experience, or something?]

[He tries not to look incredulous. He really does try. He's only just recovered from a greeting he doesn't quite understand, after all, and now he feels like he's been knocked sideways once again by the revelation that this girl is evidently from a time before indoor plumbing.

Realizing he's paused just a second too long for such a simple question, he coughs lightly into his hand as if embarrassed.]

Ah, well, to tell the truth... I'm afraid anything beyond pouring boiling water over a teabag is beyond me, so I won't be much help in the kitchen. Doing both detective work and school work meant I never had much time to learn, so... [He lowers his hand and offers a smile he hopes comes across as self-deprecating. In truth, he simply never bothered to make time for it; takeout and frozen meals are perfectly nutritious, if not the most cost-effective.]

More importantly, did the two of you already claim your rooms?

[Mercy is in awe of the taps when Monika shows her how it works; though, she's quick to try to grab something to catch the water. You can't waste something like that!]

Oh, I just got over here, sir. You go and pick out the room you want. I can make anything do for me. We're each getting one, though? No sharing? I ain't never had my own room.

[It was sharing with her brother, then Grannie, then the sisters at the temple.]

Our own bedroom and our own bathroom. [Having her own bathroom in an apartment situation was more than she probably could have expected, and she appreciates it.] I've picked the north one, but they all look pretty similar.

[The north room has two windows, though, and that's why Monika chose that one. The others have one larger window, so she thinks it probably evens out overall, but this way her bed and her desk can be by a window.]

There's no need to be so formal, [says the boy who'd intentionally only introduced himself with his last name to prevent people from being too casual with him. The smile he gives Mercy is something close to genuine, though, as he shakes his head.] We're all rather close in age, no?

[Still, though it's not a small kitchen, he feels like he's going to get in their way. A nod of acknowledgement to Monika's choice of room as he recalls the floorplan he'd glanced over with Ren earlier. They're all on the ground floor, so as long as there's a window to potentially climb out of, he's not overly concerned about her taking the one closest to the little enclosed porch. On an upper floor, he'd have been rather put-out to be denied a window close to the balcony.]

Well, I'll leave the two of you to make the tea, then, while I put my things away.

[It'll take him a few minutes to check both rooms before he eventually chooses the middle one. Best chance of hearing anything attempting to come through any of the windows, and the most convenient place for a desk doesn't leave his back to the door. Paranoid, maybe, but there are all sorts of sayings about proper planning, etc, etc.]

Reckon we are, but I got my manners. The shine'll come off them once we get to know each other better. Might even give you a nickname. [She gives the boy a wink as he heads off.]

They told me we each get our own privy, too... inside? [She motions to the sink as she turns her attention back to Monika and her new and exciting indoor plumbing.] Is it like all this?

It is nice we're all around the same age. [Monika gets along fine with adults, but she'd rather feel like she's on the same level with her roommates, and it's hard to do that as a high schooler with people a lot older than you.

Once Akechi heads off to pick a room and put his clothes away, Monika nods in reference to Mercy's question as she searches for the stuff you need for tea. She's not sure if this place has an electric kettle, but boiling water is easy.] It's not something I've thought about a lot, since I'm used to it, but it's pretty convenient. I can show you how the things in your bathroom work later. Well, if you want--but I figure you'd rather have me help out than Akechi.

[Akechi seems very nice and Monika wants to be friends, but he's a boy and it has to be weird enough getting used to everything already without Mercy having to drag a boy into a bathroom with her.]

[closed] apartment A1 meeting/mingle!

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