THE WORLD: PSL LIFE

[insinning]

[Here be all the psl threads]

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[dissimulative]

[ Ah.

It's the hug that he really missed even though his situation on hugs hasn't changed. In fact, real world circumstances make him much more aware, but if it's Sinclair, it's okay. It'll be okay. ]

... I missed you too.

[ He gives a little squeeze in his hug. ]

A lot, actually.

[insinning]

[ He presses his face into the crook of Oria's neck, returning that squeeze. It's one of those comforting things, knowing Oria was still okay with this, that things hadn't changed that much in their time spent apart. His scent is so familiar now, warm and good]

Mm. I'm glad you're here now.

[ He had been worried about a lot of things, Oria's situation near the top but...]

[dissimulative]

It'd be a big problem if the host wasn't here himself.

[ Oria laughs a little and gives Sinclair a kiss to the side of the head. ]

Are things going well for you?

[insinning]

It's been quiet. [Which...might be a good or a bad thing, Sinclair isn't sure yet. He relaxes against Oria, rubbing his palms over his back]

I don't like being on the bench for this long, but it helped me keep up with my language studies.

[ He kisses Oria's jaw]

And you? How have things worked out?

[dissimulative]

[ He wonders how much Sinclair learned during the break, but then he's asked a question about what he's been doing. ]

Well, the guy they found who's supposed to be my brother... he didn't want to return to a family who gave him away in the first place. It was just dad who did it, but mom wanted him back, so I guess by "family", he just meant my dad. Sora, the guy, had no intention of taking the Severine name or be connected with any of the riches. He also broke up with Iria and it's been rough for her too.

[ Though he knows that she's the kind of person who'll just go forward when needed and take things in when she's alone. Oria sighs. ]

But mom still wants him, so it's not completely over, I guess.

[insinning]

[ Sinclair lifts his head a little to study Oria's expression. He lifts one hand to cup Oria's cheek, his expression a little pensive. It's the latter he knows that would bother Oria. Even though...]

Did you ever get to talk through anything with your family?

[dissimulative]

We talked about a lot of things... Mom still thinks that way in the end. Dad is definitely taking up some sort of penance away from the public eye. Iri is...

[ His voice trails off. Maybe it's not best to get to that yet. ]

Anyway, Aria is fine. She was the least affected out of all of us.

[ He closes his eyes for a moment with the hand on his cheek. ]

[insinning]

[Sinclair frowns a little, stroking his thumb over Oria's cheek. Of course. It was painful for all of them.]

...and you?

[ The things Oria had been worried about, the things he had been scared about...sure, Sora hadn't wanted anything to do with the Severines. But with Oria's mother...]

[dissimulative]

I was too busy with strict deadlines. Time wouldn't be so kind to wait for me in the midst of all this. When I can rest alone... I'll let it catch up to me.

[ The last part is said with great hesitancy. He doesn't want it to catch up with him, but he knows he still needs to learn how to process and deal with things. ]

[insinning]

[Kicking the can down the road. Sinclair knows the method very well now. But he nods, drawing Oria down a little in the hug so Oria can rest against him. If the bean bag chairs are in each and aren't too low, they're sinking down into them]

You can rest a bit here. Everyone else is pretty self-sufficient when it comes to partying.

[dissimulative]

You know me—I'd rather not let people see me being down. There's too many people here.

[ Oria feels himself sinking into the beanbag chair with Sinclair. ]

And I'd rather be alone with you right now. It's too bad you can't stay tomorrow for too long...

[insinning]

I know. That's why it's a micro rest here. Or back in your room.

[ Just sit with him and cuddle. Sinclair presses a kiss to Oria's cheek.]

...mm. I have to make a trip interstate the day after first thing in the morning, so...

[He has to get back sooner]

[dissimulative]

It's a shame... I don't know when I can see you again like this.

[ There's a small, wistful sigh that comes out of him. He already did enough to bring Sinclair here, so he knows that he can't extend the break. As Sinclair knows, he's missed too many days already. ]

My uni scheduling moved to the fall, but I won't have free time like I did before while I was gaming. I still need to make up for the lost time by fixing what failed when I wasn't around.

[insinning]

[ Truth be told, as much as Sinclair had suppressed it, his longing to see Oria again had been intense. So he's thankful for this much, that they had this much. Even if knowing it'll be another long stretch after this makes him wistful too.

He nods, and doesn't ask what failed. Instead]

You're always pushing yourself go the limit. [ A soft fond sigh; he presses a kiss to Oria's cheek again. He'll hold back his worry for Oria.
It's fine, he's happy to worry for Oria for as long as he needs to ]

...you know, I might be staying near the valley for awhile. Work has some contracts drawn up with Kayser Corp - the one at that CES tech event - but it'll be more long term than our others...

[ Sinclair knows he'll be used as their secret language specialist now; and...for other things but...

It wont be a lot of time, but they could make something work]

[dissimulative]

[ To that, Oria perks up immediately. ]

Really? I think my dad has something involving Kayser Corp, but I'll see...

[ He knows that even though they could run into each other, it won't mean much. Just look at how CES panned out. ]

Maybe I'm gonna be a shut-in for a different reason now... the curse of being busy.

[insinning]

[CES...that was for sure a missed moment. He nods, pressing closer. He has to laugh a little]

You keep adding to your own workload. Are you sure you're not a workaholic?

[dissimulative]

If I can do something about it, you bet I will.

[ It's a matter of pride and warding off helplessness whenever possible. He's still control-heavy... ]

I hate taking blame for someone else's failures.

[insinning]

[Sinclair has to wonder a little. That control-heaviness...]

Why would you be blamed?

[dissimulative]

Because I'm the face of the project and whatever else.

[ He still doesn't trust a lot of people to do the work for him, which leads to overwhelming work and Oria being busy... a vicious cycle. ]

It will matter to me.

[insinning]

[ Sinclair frowns a little, leaning into Oria]

Mm... there's no one you trust to manage their part?

[dissimulative]

Not really.

[ Brutally honest. ]

I just hire people who do menial work, but thoroughly. Motivated people apart from financial reasons. I can pick those out too.

[insinning]

[Oria, please. Well, Sinclair expected that after the now distant memory of Uta's funeral preparations]

...then I hope you do find people you can trust soon. So you don't have to take on as much on your own.

[dissimulative]

... Should I do like an interview for my personal assistant? I think it could help keep Iri busy and she's a much better bullshit detector than I am.

[ Thoughts for another time. Anyway, he can do this later, so he gets closer to Sinclair if that's even possible with how close they already are and gives him a quick kiss. ]

I'm not on vacation to talk about work, so let's enjoy ourselves instead. Do you wanna stay indoors or go outside?

[insinning]

[ Sinclair makes a noise of agreement and kisses Oria in turn. ]

Lets go outside for a bit.

[dissimulative]

Did you wanna go to the beach?

[ Oria still chose the beach, because he thought the majority would have liked it. A pool would have been too small for a group this size, he thinks. ]

The breeze is nice there.