2022-01-30 06:46:43As he waits for Jonathan to finish up in the bathroom, Lucas scoots forward and refreshes the bank account's website again. Somehow, it is still the same unbelievable amount, the reality of this is finally starting to sink in a little bit into Lucas's mind.
While Lucas continues to openly stare at the screen, Jonathan opens up the bathroom door and comes out dressed in the soft pale blue tee and gray sweatpants with a towel draped over his shoulders. Holding up an end of the towel with one hand, he's still drying his hair. With an expression of hesitant worry across his face, Jonathan looks around a bit before seeing Lucas watching him with a raised eyebrow from the patched-up sofa.
Jonathan flashes a cheerful smile once he makes eye contact with Lucas, practically skipping over towards him. Lucas can't help barking out a short laugh when seeing this distinct change in mood.
"Thank you so much, I feel waaay better now. Ugh, it's been too long, I almost forgot what it feels like to be clean. Oh, um, you mentioned s-something to eat earlier..?" Jonathan starts off in a cheery voice, but falters near the end and trails off with a note of hesitance, not seeming entirely sure how to bring up just how hungry he is.
His stomach, however, has no such qualms about making its desires known. With a loud growl, it clearly declares its existence. In record time, Jonathan's ears turn red with embarrassment. Lucas however, has a round of laughter at his expense.
"Yeah yeah, I wasn't exactly ready to entertain guests so there really isn't much, but I'll make it up to ya at dinner." Lucas says this as he gets up from the sofa to head over towards the kitchenette.
Looking Jonathan over once again, he can't help continuing. "Sheesh, you're even paler than I realized. Seriously, earlier you looked like you got in a fight with a dumpster, and the dumpster won. Anyway, your grand list of options is ramen or leftover sausage pizza, sorry."
With both hands wielding the towel at this point, Jonathan just about finishes with drying his hair. Giving a self-deprecating smile, he lowers his head a bit before answering. "Either is fine, th-thank you. I'll probably eat just about anything and everything at this point. Breakfast today was... Oh. Two energy drinks. Eheheh."
"Good god kid, you're even worse than me! Bah, sit down, I'll just make everything. I'll microwave some of the pizza to tide you over while the water gets going for the ramen, be right back." Lucas shakes his head as he finishes saying this, disappearing out of Jonathan's line of sight into the kitchenette.
Jonathan plops down onto the sofa, sinking back with a contented sigh as he basks in the simple comfort that he hasn't felt in far too long. Eyes wandering, he notices the laptop that hasn't yet switched to screensaver mode. Unable to resist, he takes a look and gasps loudly before covering his mouth with both hands. Before much more time has passed the screensaver starts up, Jonathan decides it is in his best interests to keep quiet.
He holds this 'speak no evil' pose until he hears the beep of the microwave, finally lowering his hands and not entirely sure what to do with them. Lucas comes back out to see that Jonathan is back into full-on fidget mode, quietly staring down at his hands wide-eyed.
'What in the world..?'
Sliding a plate with two slices of pizza in front of Jonathan's face, he gets his attention.
"Oh! Um, I didn't m-mean to look! I'm sorry!" Jonathan jumps slightly as he stammers out his guilty admission, quickly taking the plate lest Lucas changes his mind, starting to stuff his face with its cheesy glory.
"Eh? Oh! Heheh, I can't quite believe it myself. I'm a bit hesitant to spend much until I talk some more with my... Contact. But, we should be safe to go shopping later to get some stuff you'll need and stock up the fridge at least. Oh, you should probably take a nap first though, once yer done eating of course." Lucas grins after speaking, heading back to tend to the ramen and the preheating oven to properly reheat the rest of the pizza.
"Mmph, okay!" Swallowing his latest mouthful of pizza, Jonathan manages a brief response before continuing to demolish the sacrifice before him.
After a bit of time, Lucas ducks back into the living room briefly to throw two water bottles at the sofa next to Jonathan, one chilled and the other room temperature. Afterward, he goes back into the kitchenette without even saying anything, just smiling a bit to himself after seeing the ravenous couch goblin nearly done with his offering.
Once everything is ready, Lucas brings it out to the coffee table in batches, reserving 2 slices of pizza and the last garlic knot for himself, and yielding everything else to the black hole contained within Jonathan's stomach.
Eventually shooing Jonathan all the way to one side of the sofa, he claims the other half, glaring at Jonathan when his gaze lingers on the can of beer he brought out for himself. Startling briefly from the gaze, Jonathan devotes his entire being towards his research into the maximum capacity of his stomach.
Lucas shifts his attention towards the quietly resting television, attempting to pull over the remote on the coffee table towards himself with his left foot. Failing to reach, he simply gives up and eats his lunch, resting his foot on the table as if that was his intention all along.
The final results of Jonathan's research prove to be inconclusive, additional data required.
-----
Lucas kills this chapter: 0
Lucas total kills: 4
Lucas deaths this chapter: 0
Lucas total deaths: 4
Lucas current GDV: 4.2 (+.01 +.01 = +.02 net change)
Jonathan current GDV: .63
-----
Little character theater:
Jonathan, destroyer of all things consumable: Ooh ooh what are we going shopping for!? How much do I get to spend!?
Lucas, unsure as to whether he wants to laugh or cry more: How are you coping with my bank account better than I am? Is this what it's like to be a parent?
427, still furious: [Hmph. I'm not gonna announce the little bit of GDV you earned in this chapter.]
Author, snickering a few times first: I'm pretty sure Jonathan is just assuming Lucas is casually spoiling him at this point and is embracing it? You should probably work on establishing yourself as something other than a concerned tsundere Lucas >.>;
Previous Chapter
Related Chapters
I'd Like to Change My Reincarnation Subscription, Please Ch16 - Planning
After they've finished cleaning up post-meal, Jonathan sheepishly admits he'd prefer for Lucas to stay home while he naps and wait for him to go out shopping. He expresses how it would be too awkward for him to wake up alone in someone else's apartment, in far too many nervous words. Consenting to his request, Lucas ends up lounging on the sofa, doing some research on his laptop computer while Jonathan burrows into his bed and immediately passes out like the sleep-deprived child he is.Leaving a few tabs open with a couple of different recipes for dishes he's considering making for dinner tonight, Lucas ends up sifting through 2-3 bedroom apartment listings in the general vicinity.'I know I try to be easygoing when I can get away with it, but getting this comfortable with the idea of living with a complete stranger so qu
I'd Like to Change My Reincarnation Subscription, Please Ch17 - Oh, Okay.
Once they've both settled in on the patched-up sofa, Lucas goes over the mess of tabs he left open in his web browser with Jonathan while talking about his thoughts for their itinerary planned for today and tomorrow. Jonathan provides aggressive support for all recipes displayed, with the roast pork even earning active drool.However, when going over apartments, Jonathan starts expressing reluctance when Lucas indicates he should pick a place out for himself."Oh, it's just. Um, could we, um, for at least a little while… I mean, I should at least learn to cook first? I know not forever, but, um, c-could you at least help me get my bearings a bit b-before I'm on my own?" As Jonathan manages to somehow vaguely hint at his request, he reverts into fidget mode. He turns his head away to the side, not looking at Lucas nor t
I'd Like to Change My Reincarnation Subscription, Please Ch18 - Vandalism
"Oho, what do we have here?" As Lucas approaches, both the hooligan and Jonathan have expressions mixed with both confusion and surprise. The older teen starts to straighten up, however, before he has a chance to start acting like a tough guy Lucas has already reached out for the duffel bag. "Good good, I was just thinking I could use some fun. Thanks."Without any pomp and circumstance, Lucas simply grabs the straps of the duffel bag and turns back around to leave the way he came. Both teens are shocked at this brazen behavior, frozen in place for a few moments. Once the would-be-vandal fully realizes the situation, he goes to catch up to Lucas."Fuck you, give that back." Spitting this out, he gets cut off by Lucas suddenly spinning around and swinging the duffel bag at him. His eyes widen as far as they can in the brief mo
I'd Like to Change My Reincarnation Subscription, Please Ch19 - Subway Tracks
Having made it to the subway station in a trip that could largely be considered uneventful by local standards, Lucas and Jonathan are waiting a bit behind the big yellow line indicating a safe waiting distance. Lucas had certainly gotten some odd looks on the way here, but a bright smile was consistently sufficient to have them turn away.Starting from the top of the stairs, all the way through the turnstiles and down to the tracks themselves, every available surface is so densely covered in layered graffiti that the original tile color is unknown. Not even the ceiling was spared, somehow, which is now holding Lucas's undivided attention. Well, not quite undivided, it's too much of a challenge to ignore the smell.'Seriously though, how did they get up there? Some supe did it right? I'd say it's a waste, but I can't reall
I'd Like to Change My Reincarnation Subscription, Please Ch20 - Sidekick
With one final loud screeching of protestation from its brakes, the subway train comes to a complete stop. Once the doors slowly open, a few scattered groups of people enter and exit the various train cars. The door that Lucas and Jonathan are waiting near has a trio of people walk out, one of them elbowing Lucas on the way past.Not even acknowledging them, he takes a deep breath to calm himself. Instead of achieving nirvana, he ends up further tied to the plights of mortality by the pungent bouquet emanating from the foul remnants of human selfishness and indifference.Recovering from his existential-crisis-triggered coughing fit, Lucas turns towards Jonathan, who seems to have a final exam's worth of questions written on his face while staring at him."Ahem. Ah yes,
I'd Like to Change My Reincarnation Subscription, Please Ch21 - Art Critic
The rest of their journey through the subway system is largely uneventful. Jonathan merrily amuses himself, Lucas is awkwardly trying to make heads and tails of recent events, and the physical manifestation of chemically enhanced depression continues his noisy slumber.Disembarking at the station that Lucas is pretty sure is closest to MF Fashion Boutique, the adventures of unemployment man continues on the journey alone. Someone that was going to enter that particular train car heard him from outside the door and simply went elsewhere.As Lucas looks around the area he can't help but comment."Oh, by comparison, this platform is lacking in both art and aroma. Truly a pity.""R-rather than lacking, I'd
I'd Like to Change My Reincarnation Subscription, Please Ch22 - Bubble Gum
Eventually, Lucas manages to compose himself. Before exiting the alley, however, he turns to face Jonathan with a grin."Hey, wanna find out if you're faster than an explosion?" As he says this, Lucas shakes the two cans of spray paint in front of Jonathan.Initially, Jonathan's expression is faintly confused. Before long though, he ends up with an even larger grin."Oh! Oh! What do you have in mind?" As he asks this, Jonathan initiates overly-energetic mode, his desire for mischief self-evident. He's nearly prancing in place, distinctly reminiscent of a dog that just got asked if it wants to go out for a walk.Stifling a laugh at Jonathan's enthusiasm, Lucas goes back into the alley and holds both spray cans ou
I'd Like to Change My Reincarnation Subscription, Please Ch23 - That's What She Said
Having recently arrived at a major four-way intersection, Lucas and Jonathan stare up at the massive building diagonally across from them. Multi-tiered stone steps lead up to a corner entrance, its double-wide glass doors are held open with large free-standing signs with the store's current promotional information on them. Above the broad entryway is a sign with "MF Fashion Boutique" written in a large and elegant font.The outer walls are completely transparent, the floor-to-ceiling windows showing that every floor has a double-height ceiling. The first six floors display a mix of tables and myriad racks on racks of merchandise, with the occasional male mannequin or other such promotional displays. Beyond these six floors, the remaining ones still have a few promotional displays, however, there are walls covered in posters and tapestries blocking off further sight inside behind the
Latest Chapter
Vol 2 Ch 11 - System Updates
Lucas and Jonathan—dressed decently but nowhere near as fancy as yesterday—are most of the way to Cat’s Paw Cafe, pointedly not utilizing the stinky subway station to get there.‘Ya know, it’s been surprisingly peaceful, yeah? Though, not havin’ people gawk as much as yesterday is kinda nice. All that attention was gettin’ old fast.’[Ahem, well, fortunately, Boss System approved my long-term task priority filtering proposal.]‘Oh? Whassat?’[Compared to before, now it requires an opt-in before being bombarded with every single task in range. Before receiving alerts—and therefore penalties for ignoring them—we’ll run the calculations of the tasks’ estimated impact vs. potential unwanted attention. This effectively weeds out a majority of minor tasks—plus some moderate ones—by accounting for how suspicious it would be for you to know the event was taking place, let alone be believably compelled to interfere. I knew there was no need to ask if you were interested in activating it immedi
Vol 2 Ch 10 - Chosen Chores
Once the allotted thirty minutes have passed—precisely down to the second—427 tentatively undeafens Lucas. At first, all he can hear is a booklet’s pages being flipped through, followed by Lucas grumbling.Hesitantly removing the remaining sensory suppressions one at a time, 427 nearly sighs with relief upon discovering that Lucas is standing in the kitchenette by the new automatic drip coffee maker—thankfully dressed—in the midst of poorly attempting to demystify its instruction manual.‘How the hell is this so complicated?’[Ah, making good on your promise to Jonathan?]‘Oh, thank fuck; yer back. Took ya long enough.’[…Hello, again, to you, too.]‘Yeah, yeah, yeah. Welcome back. So, anywho, can ya scan through this or somethin’ and tell me how to use it?’[…I already looked up the instructions from everything’s model numbers earlier. First, measure out—]427 guides Lucas through measuring and grinding a serving’s worth of coffee beans and setting it up in the machine with such in-d
Vol 2 Ch 9 - Solitary Request
For a few peaceful minutes, Lucas delights in demolishing the delicious delicatessen delivery. As Jonathan reaches for his coffee cup to gauge if it’s cool enough for a sane person to drink, he ends up cutting himself off with a yawn, earning a side-eye from Lucas.“Hey, ya barely got any sleep, yeah? Instead of havin’ caffeine, shouldn’t ya go take a nap?” Upon Lucas’s question, Jonathan pauses, looking at the contents of his mug with an obvious longing. “I’ll make ya a fresh one in like half an hour; I’m sure 427 can figure out howta use whatever newfangled machine ya got,” Lucas continues, his eyes also fixed on the beverage.[…I suppose I appreciate your vote of confidence.]Jonathan’s gaze lingers on the coveted coffee for a moment before he sets it back on the table. As soon as he lets go of it, Lucas lays his claim upon it.“Um, o-okay, yeah. I just, um, sh-should take a shower first,” Jonathan stammers as he stands.Lucas hums an agreement around a mouthful of coffee.[Did y
Vol 2 Ch 8 - Good Un-Morning
Thankfully, there are no further interruptions during the rest of this round of deliveries. Or even during the next one, either.Once Jonathan finally has the fourth and final load of freight, he makes a detour to a delicatessen. More specifically, the one where he previously purchased yesterday’s breakfast.After equally uneventfully acquiring milk, third breakfast for himself, and first breakfast for Lucas—since he’d totally only eat sugary baked goods if real food wasn’t conveniently available—he makes his way home.With his back to the recently re-locked front door, Jonathan reclaims the last armload of supplies as he looks at Lucas’s still-shut bedroom door.‘…Our food will still be too hot to eat for a little while; I’ll make some coffee first.’Jonathan may or may not be making up excuses to keep putting off waking up Lucas in the hopes that he’ll do so on his own, knowing full well that he probably won’t.While taking longer than necessary to decide which appliance to christen
Vol 2 Ch 7 - Ongoing Onerous Obligations
“Ah! Um…” Jonathan’s face scrunches up a bit as he looks over his pending purchases.‘Can we at least turn off tasks while my hands are full? I really don’t want to drop everything and have it get broken or stolen by the time I get back to it… It will be annoying enough having to run back and forth a bunch.’[Requesting temporary task suppression… Permission granted; disregarding minor tasks for one hour at no penalty, effective immediately.]Jonathan barely represses his urge to sigh with relief.Before Ji Soo works up the nerve to express concern over Jonathan’s vacant stare at the wall behind the service bot, Jonathan’s attention returns to reality and redirects to said bot.“Um, c-could you hold some of it for a few minutes once I’m done paying? I-I won’t take long… Like, five minutes?” Before fidgety Jonathan even finishes asking his question, the bot is already nodding.“Certainly. Do you wish to use a private scanning kiosk to complete your order?”‘I’m surprised it’s even an
Vol 2 Ch 6 - Whole Latte Shopping
Jonathan, however, doesn’t hear the utterance of recognition. Unaware, he continues his quest for a coffee maker.A short time later, Jonathan stands--while quietly grumbling--before a row of two-in-one coffee/espresso machines.Behind him is a sea of drip coffee machines, with cold press equipment further off to the side. Alongside the arrangement of two-in-ones sits a selection of espresso machines, both automatic and semi-automatic.‘How are there so many!? What even are the differences? Wait, no, don’t answer that. The technical details will probably just be even more confusing.’[Understood.]Although Jonathan notices movement in his peripheral vision, he doesn’t outwardly react to the recent arrival at the end of the aisle. Instead, he pulls out one of the two-in-one machines set at eye level, rotating it so he can read the back of the box.“Ah! Don’t get one of those! That entire line is overpriced trash,” the newcomer blurts out, muffled by the layers of carbon-filter fabric f
Vol 2 Ch 5 - The Worst Part of Waking Up Is Almost Endless Tasks
After the harrowing--see also; totally normal--experience of getting his hair professionally cut, Jonathan blinks a few times as he looks himself over in the mirror. ‘Oh, wow. That’s way better.’ He’s now sporting a long-top, backswept, tapered hairstyle with a rounded back. Given how clearly tense he was throughout the entire cutting process, a trendy skin fade would have fairly obviously been too much for his liking. After giving Jonathan a few moments to make his mental evaluations, one of the hairdresser’s dreadlocks uses a soft-bristle brush to clear away the loose hair clippings around the collar of the barber cape. A few other coils of his hair organize the various tools he used, setting them aside for cleaning. Meanwhile, he quickly sweeps aside the bulk of the rogue tufts of hair on the ground in a much more conventional hands-on-broom method as he uses the mirror to make eye contact with Jonathan again. “Lookin’ good, mon. Well? Whaddya tink?” His question pulls Jonath
Vol 2 Ch 4 - Coiffure Conundrum
Once Jonathan is finally en route to the hairdresser...[Safe distance from Mikah’s power detected. Alert; you have exceeded 10 GDV. You have one enhancement available.]‘Oh! Um, you said before that rank three vision should be good enough to see through Maria’s powers, right?’[Correct, rank three should be sufficient as long as her target is in motion. Rank four would be necessary to see anything stationary, given the current strength of her powers. Please be aware that going beyond rank three for any individual enhancement has additional requirements.]‘Three should be good enough to avoid most of her pranks... Use my upgrade on vision.’[Please confirm that you would like rank two vision.]‘Yeah.’[Understood. Please close your eyes during calibrations to avoid nausea.]Jonathan slows from running at enhanced speed into a normal-paced jog for a few steps, then stops and shuts his eyes.[Bzzt... Calibrations complete.]He opens his eyes and looks around, blinking several times.‘Wo
Vol 2 Ch 3 - Chaos in the Streets, Asleep in the Sheets
The duo’s fiery funnel further forces the growing multi-car pile-up towards the middle of the street for a few seconds longer. Finally, the flames falter and fade. After a short delay, the wind wanes as well.‘Oh, I shouldn’t give them any extra reasons to think I’m a threat.’Jonathan swiftly shuts and pockets his switchblade as he follows the sidewalk. While doing so, his attention flicks between the ongoing chaos in the street and the front door of Howling Cartographer’s HQ lobby.Ashley steps through the door with Jason right behind her. They both take a moment to appreciate their destructive handiwork with smug expressions. Considering that Jonathan is conspicuously the only person still in the immediate vicinity, they quickly focus on him.Before either of them manage anything beyond a glare, Jonathan raises both hands in a submissive gesture, showing that he isn't wielding a weapon. "I-I just wanted his gun!"Ashley's exposed eye squints with amusement, the not hair-hidden cor
