Room 502, Tuesday Night

[withoutverona]

Romeo was done putting together his bag for his trip to Verona, and now he was sitting on his bed, frowning at the rest of his room a bit.

He was seeing it clearly, now; the room was all but brimming with sixteen months worth of books and papers and clothes and the odd bit of rubbish that had never quite made it into a bin. When Teyla lived there, he'd been neater about his things, but now that she didn't he only had to be tidy enough that Dojima wouldn't flee screaming when she visited.

And, soon enough, it would all need to be boxed up and discarded, sent home to Verona, or shipped off to Tokyo.

He thought about doing some of the organizing tonight, but, ultimately, settled in with his journal. There were things on his mind.

[OOC: Open door -- I just felt like posting him]

Comments

[withoutverona]

"I'm trying to convince myself to pack some things to carry back to Verona with me as luggage, but I'm failing at it," Romeo admitted. "How did I get so many things in sixteen months?"

[the_merriest]

"I've got an extra twelve on you," Rikku laughed. "I might have to set some things on fire. Oooh, maybe we could auction off some of the junk we'd rather get rid of than take home with us?"

[withoutverona]

"We should do that some morning during graduation weekend," Romeo said, perking up. "Like a garage sale, for the seniors."

[the_merriest]

"The Friday before, or the Sunday after?" Rikku grinned. "You know, I bet we could take over one of the common rooms. Put signs up. Invite other people to drop off their stuff. I mean, we can't be the only ones needing to unload, right?"

[withoutverona]

"Definitely not," Romeo said firmly. "We've all been here a year, at least. Things accumulate, and I like thinking of them going to a good home."

[the_merriest]

"Any home is fine with me, so long as it's not mine," she said easily, claiming a seat on the nearest chair. "So, what are the odds that one of you is gonna call me for bail in the next few days?"

[withoutverona]

"Low, I think," Romeo said, flashing a smile. "Though I understand Yurika's decided we're my cousin's responsibility, if the worst does happen. I'll do my best to get your Turk back to you in one piece."

[the_merriest]

Rikku laughed. "I trust you, on that one. And if you did end up in jail or worse, it'd probably be his fault anyway."

[withoutverona]

"I already told him not to say anything if he didn't know what it meant," Romeo said. "He has some manners, when he bothers, and he's a guest. Do you think I should worry more?"

He was getting genuinely concerned.

[the_merriest]

"Not really," Rikku said. "He's with you on a mission, right? I mean, if he was just going to goof off, I'd be worried, but if he's in Turk Mode -- he'll behave."

It was a Thing.

[withoutverona]

"Midway between a mission and a pleasure trip," Romeo said. "My father is trying to convince me not to go to Tokyo, and I owe it to him to listen in person."

[the_merriest]

"Ooooh." Rikku tilted her head, considering that one. "Why doesn't he want you to go? I mean, he has something against Tokyo, or he's just wishing you'd come home again?"

[withoutverona]

"The latter, really," Romeo explained. "I'm his only son, and I'm a Montague, and all of that means something. I can't restore the family to the heights from across the world in another universe."

He wished he could be as sarcastic about that as he was trying to sound; the truth was, it all meant something to Romeo, too.

"There's a job for me, in Mantua. He wants to see me about it."

[the_merriest]

Her father was the leader of the Al Bhed; in a way, she understood, too. She nodded.

"I thought he ... I mean, I thought he was handing things to your cousin," she said, thoughtfully. "Did he realize that was a bad idea? And hey, couldn't you do stuff for your dad's business while in Tokyo?"

Surely the company had an international division, right?

[withoutverona]

"He's had another year to reconsider," Romeo said, with a little shrug. "I'm not in jail, I only got married once, and I think he realized I was serious about Tokyo. He's like me, wanting what he cannot have."

He sighed. "And Ben ... I adore him, but he's scarcely better suited than I am. He's my elder by less than a year, you know. But I'll ask about if I could work for my father from Tokyo; I don't know how that will work with the different worlds, but I can try."

[the_merriest]

"That's right, there's dimensional stuff." Rikku sighed. "This summer is going to be so hard. Reno's going home, and I'm going home, and ... and I don't know how I'm supposed to just not ... see everybody."

[withoutverona]

"Yurika and I will be here for a bit, anyhow," Romeo volunteered. "You won't stay even for the first part of the summer?"

He looked troubled; he hadn't known she would go so very soon.

[the_merriest]

"I can't," Rikku sighed. "It's ... Lulu left, back in February. Things are getting bad. So Yunie's running herself to bits trying to hold it all together. I almost left then, but ... I wanted to stay, and graduate. I just ... now that I am, it feels weird to wait any longer. Like I'm being unfair. Except I ... this place feels like home and I don't want to leave, either."

[withoutverona]

Romeo didn't have a good answer for that.

He did have a hug. (And some anger at the universe for doing this to his friends, but that was another thing.) He reached for Rikku.

[the_merriest]

Hugs were so great, right now. She was going to squeeze for dear life and not let go.

She might be sniffling on his shirt. A little. She was trying not to.

"Gonna miss you so much," she said. "We'll visit, right? That's -- that's why they have portals?"

[withoutverona]

"As if you;'d get rid of me so easily," Romeo told her. "You have work to do. I have to respect it."

Not like it, but respect it.

"Let me know if I can do anything?"

[the_merriest]

"Absolutely," she said, not letting go just yet. "I'll be okay. My world isn't ... it's not as wrecked as Reno's, right now. We just need to rebuild, yeah?"

[withoutverona]

"You'll rebuild, and you'll get it as lovely as it could ever be, and then ... I don't know the and then. But you'll tell me."

[the_merriest]

"I don't, either," she admitted. "Maybe ... maybe it'll become a place where it's okay for the Al Bhed to be Al Bhed, and people all work together. Or maybe I'm just too much of an optimist."

[withoutverona]

"You know you can always come to Tokyo," Romeo offered. "... and I know you'll say no to that, so don't even answer. I just don't like or understand any of this."