Under Pressure

[Callum Attar]

It'd been a while since something had gone this well for the Acolyte. Usually, official business either meant that he'd be having a rough go of it, or whichever partner was detached with him would be putting their foot in it left and right. This little escape, however, had gone well. And an otherwise dull week had had an interesting finale.

And it didn't hurt that he seemed to be getting under the poor woman's skin easily enough. From the moment when she all but buried her head in her arms, to the stand she seemed to be making. When she'd risen to her feet, he'd remained seated. He was a little tired, after all.

Still. Her words did make him think for a moment. As far as rhetorical questions went, these were kind of par for the course, but they did provoke some thought. What was he looking to get her to say? A moment of silence elapsed, as the man's eyes rolled to the upper-left corner in thought. Eventually, after a full second or two, he finally figured something out.

"Now..." - he said, his head tilting to the side slightly - "Where'd be the fun in that?"

@Herrith

 

[Astridia Kazaczecho]

Astridia blinked, thinking she'd gotten him to back off before he found yet ANOTHER infuriating thing to say. She stared at him for a full second as her flush remained, then quickly looked away and walked back toward the elevator shaft, leaning an arm against the entranceway and bracing her forehead against it as she muttered something under her breath. She groaned and then spoke up, angling her words at Callum.

"I should just hop back down where we came from..you're insufferable."

Her head turned toward him and leveled her gaze at him, a mix of forced disgust, amusement, and...something else, deep down.

 

[Callum Attar]

"It's part of my charm, really." - the man replied, the same tone as ever, without so much as a hint of hesitation. Evidently this wasn't the first time he'd heard something along those lines. And judging by his response, it wouldn't be the last.

Slowly, the man rose back to his feet, having rested long enough. He dusted himself off, and turned to look at the entrance that was still being cleared. "If you do insist on going back there, though, then personally, I'd take the stairs." - Callum mentioned, placing a hand on his chest upon saying the word personally, as a display of false humility.

"I'm a little hurt that you'd go to such lengths to avoid having a drink with me after you asked me to, but if that is the way it is, then I understand." Towards the end, the Acolyte had put on a look of unfortunate acceptance. As though it pained to see her go, but if that was the way it was, then he'd accept it.

The hint of a smirk at the end of his lips told her it was an act that was easily seen through - which was very much the point - and one put on for no reason other than to continue to poke fun at her.

@Herrith

 

[Astridia Kazaczecho]

Astridia stared at Callum the entire time he continued to torment her with his unclear answers and marvelous attempts at dazzling her with acting. She eyed his falsely expressed dismay, already seeing through it. There was a long pause as her eyes flicked across his expression, which was about a hair away from being an incredibly cocky smirk. The woman pursed her lips and then looked away again, before looking back and standing up straight, her own hint at a slightly positive expression appearing in her eyes.

"Well, I'd only ask you because you seem the type to be quite wealthy. Why not get good drinks from someone with plenty of credits?"

She shrugged matter of factly and then continued to step closer, crossing her arms low in front of herself and looking back at Callum.

"I'm smart like that. Now that you know my grand plan, what are you going to do with it?"

 

[Callum Attar]

A smile blossomed on his lips yet again. Not a minute ago, this woman had blamed those comments on the drink having gotten to her, and that she'd never share one with him, and now the entire story had changed. The grand stand was a nice touch, truly, but it had sadly not done a lot of fooling.

"So we've gone from you never having a drink with me, to only doing it because I have credits? It's not exactly ideal, but progress is progress, I suppose." - a shrug. He sounded hurt, still, but his eyes and smile still seemed able to read her like an open book. Callum hadn't just called the poor woman's bluff, he now stood back and watched her try to leave a corner she'd backed herself into.

"If it gets me the stories I was promised, I'll be more than happy to part with a few credits."

@Herrith

 

[Astridia Kazaczecho]

Astridia shrugged slightly as she looked the guy up and down, then past his shoulder toward the city before them for probably the last time. She brushed her hair over her ears, looking in a nearby mirror and seeing all the grease smears with a wrinkle of her nose. She returned her attention to Callum, smiling.

"I'd have cleaned up, but, I didn't get the chance. You know any good places around here?"

By this time, she'd learned to look past his humorous and mocking tones, instead focusing on his expressions. The man was messing with her all along. And as much as it utterly BOTHERED her, she was getting used to it, very slowly. He was driving her crazy with all his attempts. May as well see how things play out at this point. What could go wrong?