Harrison laughs a bit— they agreed perhaps a little too quickly that he was a little wishy-washy, but he supposes it's because Zora knew him so well. He was a little wishy-washy! Harrison would cry easily over a kind enough word or genuine gesture.

"Maybe I'll retire and become a teacher." That seemed like a backwards way of having a career, but he would still like to do it. I could teach acting. I think it's the only thing I'm qualified for." Or social work, seeing as that's what he had a degree in to be a guidance counselor in the first place.

He's got plenty of time to sort that out though.

"Yup, it's a classic!" And maybe it was made with a boxed mix but that also didn't matter. Time and effort were put into it, so it's appreciated. "Then tea you shall have—" True to form, he's even got a proper kettle. The public school system didn't pay very much across the board so he does attempt to be frugal.

Unless kitchenware is involved. Then all bets are off. A fresh mug is grabbed for Zora, hot, steeped black tea being poured in. "It's got a bit of vanilla in it— it pairs really well with the cake."

Z genuinely meant no harm in agreeing, it was just something they noticed and still found quite endearing about Harrison. They stand by him potentially being a really good teacher to have for students to take the pressure off though.

"I think you would be really great at that. Acting would be wonderful.. and I could see you supporting the kids really bringing out more of themself in the process." At least, that's what they heard a truly supportive teacher could do in the right situation.

Best to leave him to the decisions he wants to make though.

"Can't go wrong with a good classic really. " Boxed or otherwise, Zora wasn't going to refuse a good cake, especially knowing that time and effort went into it. And before Zora knows it they are slowly starting to dig into the cake as the black tea is poured into a fresh mug.

"Oh that should be wonderful. I do hope you plan on having some cake for yourself too. It is your birthday, after all. "

“Yeah, waking up from your tent, making sure snakes didn’t decide to make home overnight, chasing monkeys out of the camp, finding your spoil pile was washed out with the rain…”

Oh, it was terrible then, but looking back now at a twenty-something stuck in the jungles of South Asia, only able to check emails when they were finally in a large city, the occasional message going through the satellite system.

“Walking through places people haven’t inhabited in millennia, uncovering something someone once touched, hoping maybe there’s a story to be found…”

There was a tinge to her voice, a bit of nostalgia. Missing mom, missing her field work. The life she wanted and life she ended up with two vastly different things.

Listening to Kar's description, Zora nodded along - clearly getting an image of how much that whole experience must have been.

"Yeah, that sounds like quite the time - to be really, fully immersed with the work, the project and just navigating the environment you're in. I can get why that would make such a powerful impression on you."

The tinge of nostalgia to her voice doesn't go unnoticed but Z figures that it's best to just let her have the feeling she's experiencing without comment.

Esme smiles back at Zora when they say you're welcome. She does appreciate it. But doesn't want to be annoying about it or anything. So she's fine moving on as well. When Zora tells her what they've been up to, Esme listens attentively and nods along to their words. "Oh wow, sounds like a lot. Hope it was enjoyable. And ooh, where did you go?"

Farryn was always telling her to travel more. She does travel, of course she does, but not enough for her adventurous relative's liking. Then again, who could except for Farryn themself? When asked what she's been up to, Esme shrugs. "Not much going on with me. Just working on my advice column and my calling. Oh, and I'm considering moving to California to be closer to my relative Hope and just...get somewhere else." She likes the weather in Florida, and other aspects of it too, of course. But she does feel she'll be more comfortable in California and Hope likes it there, too. Being closer to her relative will be nice. And she'll be somewhere that comes highly recommended to her by Hope. So all in all, it seems like the best move. She does still have to check if her job will let her work remotely, though. Her human job, that is. She can do her calling from anywhere.

"It was enjoyable.. when I was done with some of the projects. Sometimes the work can be a little stressful trying to get everything done in a good pace." Even when they were trying to give themself more room, there's always a lot for them to do.

"I ended up taking a few days to go to the desert near my hometown for a while. It was a pretty refreshing change of pace honestly. "

Having said that, it was good to know that Esme was mostly up to the usual. "Moving to California huh? That should be really interesting. And sounds like you needed to room to see some other places as well. I totally get it. If you end up moving, I hope it works out well for you. "

"Definitely! Other perspectives can be helpful, for sure." Esme says with a smile.

She's glad Zora feels appreciative of her too. "Aaw, thanks. Glad the feeling is mutual." A pause, a chuckle. "So what have you been up to since we last saw each other? All good, I hope." She says, hoping that her friend is doing well. She wants them to be happy, of course. Esme wants that for everyone, but especially those she knows and cares about.

"Yeah.. yeah you're welcome, Esme." Definitely time to move on from there. Asked about what they had been up to, Zora gives a shrug.

"I've been busy more than anything else. Keeping up with commissions, did an opening for an exhibition as well. Had to take some time to just go elsewhere for a while." When they had to plan their trips, that's how one knew they had been in the work mode for quite some time.

"So that's mostly what's been up for me? What do you have going on?"

"Aaw, thanks." Esme says with a bright smile.

"I've never thought of it that way, but now that you mention it, it might be true." A pause, a chuckle. "I appreciate you, friend."

Zora chuckles a little bit. "I guess that's why it's always nice to get another's perspective. You never know what you might miss as a result of being way too used to yourself. " At least, that was something Zora .. thought was a relevant enough observation.

Still, they offered her a warm smile - glad that their comments were well-received.

"And I appreciate you quite a bit."

people are like “i am fine” and then stare into the void all night.

its me, i am people.

Send "👉👈" for my muse to awkwardly flirt with you.

Supernatural & Paranormal Sentences, Vol. 6

"You're welcome!" Esme says with a bright smile.

Esme can't help but let out a giggle at the compliment. "Thanks so much! Glad you like it. I agree, bright colors just work for me for whatever reason."

"You're very welcome. Yeah.. I think you have a presence that really emboldens the colors that you wear. It seems like they are playing off of each other in some ways. "

send a ‘👄 + character name’ and my muse will talk about that character

Esme smiles brightly at Zora. She hopes they like the flower. It's something Esme would do for herself. So she had hoped her friend would like it as well. "Yes, it is. You're welcome."

When Zora asks how it looks on them, Esme's smile widens. "You look great, my friend, don't worry." A pause, Esme puts a similar-looking flower in her own hair, hoping it suits her as well. "How about me? How do I look?"

Zora smiles easily when they hear that the flower looks good on them. "Thank you so much." Their gaze focuses back on Esme as she puts a flower in her own hair.

Zora nods in approval. "Oh wonderful. You look great. I think the color of the flower contrasts quite lovely with you. A bright color really works so well for you. "

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