[As much as she wants to never look at another human being ever again, his answer surprises her enough that her head jerks back up, leaving her to stare dumbly for several seconds. Here she goes, struggling to speak for a different reason. It sounds...too blunt and unprofessional to be fake. That means -- it must be genuine? But that's stupid. He must be stupid. Ryder realizes her mouth is hanging open and promptly shuts it, teeth clicking. She might as well not look like a total dumbass while she's trying to come up with words that fit her feelings, but didn't shove him away entirely.
She glances away, starting to chew her lip. Think, think. What...do you possibly say to someone that doesn't have a problem talking to you? She wants to dig out her pen, but the napkins here are cloth. She wonders if it's for money reasons, or for the environment. It also looks fancier, even though it means they're reusable, so really it's a win-win-win... One has to wonder about the water bill, though. How much does laundry add to that sort of thing? ...Does she have any quarters left? This isn't a top she wears, obviously, so she hadn't been pressed about getting her laundry done before all this, but she should probably do it when she got back. Not have that stress hanging over her anymore. Find a way to relax from this disaster as soon as possible.
Oh. Oh, fuck. She's still in the middle of the disaster.]
-- Um! Um.
[Stupid, stupid, stupid.]
Give -- m-me a -- um.
[Oh god, the employee is coming back again. Ryder nearly chokes on her tongue in the wave of panic, and while she recovers from coughing, she shoots Teo a desperate look to take care of it. That is the thing he has to fix, because the rest is all on her end, she's pretty sure. Might as well, uh, nudge her glass in the waiter's direction, as well. Earn a third or fourth reason to be red in the face, why not?
It would suck if they didn't talk? ...Just for her, because it was her night? Or for him, too? He was willing to continue in silence. Flexible. Of course they'd want to be flexible -- but he only suggested it after reassuring her. He could have taken the easy out she gave him, shrugging it off as something she asked for in the first place. He kept doing...all these little things to try and get her to feel more comfortable, even though she should be driving him nuts. Why isn't she driving him nuts? If...nothing else, it's worth trying to figure that out, right?
Once she's sure it's just the two of them again, Ryder drags herself out kicking and screaming in an attempt to harness that shrieking for good.]
...I'm nnnot. Good at this. I thought -- maybe. Um. [Wow, there's no good way to put "I found a way to hold someone hostage just for conversation". She falls into a weak mumble, not daring to look up.] You -- y-you don't...mind? Really? Or --
no subject
She glances away, starting to chew her lip. Think, think. What...do you possibly say to someone that doesn't have a problem talking to you? She wants to dig out her pen, but the napkins here are cloth. She wonders if it's for money reasons, or for the environment. It also looks fancier, even though it means they're reusable, so really it's a win-win-win... One has to wonder about the water bill, though. How much does laundry add to that sort of thing? ...Does she have any quarters left? This isn't a top she wears, obviously, so she hadn't been pressed about getting her laundry done before all this, but she should probably do it when she got back. Not have that stress hanging over her anymore. Find a way to relax from this disaster as soon as possible.
Oh. Oh, fuck. She's still in the middle of the disaster.]
-- Um! Um.
[Stupid, stupid, stupid.]
Give -- m-me a -- um.
[Oh god, the employee is coming back again. Ryder nearly chokes on her tongue in the wave of panic, and while she recovers from coughing, she shoots Teo a desperate look to take care of it. That is the thing he has to fix, because the rest is all on her end, she's pretty sure. Might as well, uh, nudge her glass in the waiter's direction, as well. Earn a third or fourth reason to be red in the face, why not?
It would suck if they didn't talk? ...Just for her, because it was her night? Or for him, too? He was willing to continue in silence. Flexible. Of course they'd want to be flexible -- but he only suggested it after reassuring her. He could have taken the easy out she gave him, shrugging it off as something she asked for in the first place. He kept doing...all these little things to try and get her to feel more comfortable, even though she should be driving him nuts. Why isn't she driving him nuts? If...nothing else, it's worth trying to figure that out, right?
Once she's sure it's just the two of them again, Ryder drags herself out kicking and screaming in an attempt to harness that shrieking for good.]
...I'm nnnot. Good at this. I thought -- maybe. Um. [Wow, there's no good way to put "I found a way to hold someone hostage just for conversation". She falls into a weak mumble, not daring to look up.] You -- y-you don't...mind? Really? Or --
[No, okay, let him answer.]