Logs:Sugar High

Sugar High
Dramatis Personae Cyan, Remi
In Absentia	2024-12-31 Remi's eye twitches for a moment now that he realises he's helping a drug dealer sell...himself????
Location <NYC> Tompkins Square Park - East Village
<NYC> Tompkins Square Park - East Village Small but popular, this tree-lined park is a perfect centerpiece to the eclectic neighborhood it resides in. Home to a number of playgrounds and courts from handball to basketball, it also houses a dog park and chess tables, providing excellent space for people watching -- especially during its frequent and often eccentric festivals, from Wigstock to its yearly Allen Ginsberg tribute Howl festival. Remi was going to be spending the evening with his mother but the day was his and his alone. He took it upon himself to come to the park with nothing but himself and his trusty snack pouch slung around his shoulder. It was kind of cloudy today so in case it rained he'd donned a puffy coat with a fur lined hood and just a comfortable tee and sweatpants. There was no one to impress today, comfort was the goal. Walking through the park, he smiled at a couple of dogs that were happily chasing each other around the field, waved at a couple of adorable babies, only one of which waved back, Remi fought the urge to pick up the adorable baby and tell it that it was loved. Eventually he found an empty park bench that he could perch on and just watch people pass by. It was nice to see what people were up to at this time of the year. Sitting down, he crossed one leg over the other and made himself comfortable. Very pointedly on the other end of the bench Cyan sinks down, as far away from its other occupant as possible. He's dressed in all black, his hands pushed into the front pocket of his oversized hoodie, stretching out legs clad in a pair of black jeans, with combat boots on his feet. Under his many facemasks he yawns, then shakes as if he's trying to get something heavy off his shoulders. He needs to mentally prepare, it's going to be a long night. Turning his head slightly to glance at who had just sat down. "Oh, Happy New Years!" he smiled genuinely. Shuffling ever so slightly in his seat he thought about whether or not to continue. "I hope you have a great 2025 stranger!" The response he gets is a lot less enthusiastic as Cyan simply groans, before muttering a half-hearted "happy new year", giving Remi a side-eyed look. Remi takes his snack pouch off of his shoulder and places it on the bench between them, opening the flap to expose the variety of goodies he had. "Help yourself, sharing is caring!" he said as he picked up a cookie. A sudden realisation occured to him and then he piped up once again, "Oh! If you have any dietary restrictions then i would advise against it!" he nodded, good to make sure. "You ok? Ya seem a bit down dude" he spoke to the stranger on the bench as he looked out at the others in the park. “Hmm?” Cyan eyes the punch of assorted goods first as if Remi has just revealed a bag full of explosives, before very gingerly reaching out a gloved hand to snap up a cookie. “Just getting ready for a long night of work.” He eyes the cookie suspiciously, studying it as if it’s an alien concept. "I promise it's just a regular cookie. I always have way more than i need just in case, i like to share." he smiled and nodded, biting half of the cookie with a content chuckle. "Hmm? You're working on New Years? I'm sorry to hear that but i really hope it's nothing too hard!" He pushed the bag towards the stranger. "You can take some for later if you'd like. Sugar's great for giving ya that little boost when ya need it!" If anything Remi’s assurance only makes Cyan more suspicious of this sudden offer of sweet goods, but he does carefully unhook his masks still -- all four layers of them -- and gives the cookie a taste. “You’re just handing out cookies like that to strangers? All willy nilly? For free?” as he chews down he has to admit it tastes good, if a bit heavy on the sweet side. Then he adds; “yeah, New Year’s really the best day for the work I do, lots of people looking for-” again he gives Remi a discerning look, how old is this dude anyway? “-what I have to offer, and happy to not have to wait for it.” Remi shakes his head. "I only ever offer. People are free to turn them down, i know a lot of people have dietary restrictions or like don't have a sweet tooth or even don't wanna take sugary goodness from a stranger." he nodded. "That's really nice though, it's really nice to see people giving back at the holidays!" “And there’s no like...added ingredients in them?” Cyan still sounds skeptical, but is reaching out for a second cookie. “That’s very kind of you, I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone quite so...” He gives Remi another Certified Look, “...enthusiastic about sharing before, you’re not one of them religious types are you? Got a pamphlet or something to hand out?” There's a brief flicker of a green-blue shimmer across his otherwise greyish skin as he again unhooks his masks to eat the second sweet. Taking another cookie for himself and throwing it in his mouth all in one. "nop-oo, sorry!" he covered his mouth and swallowed before resuming his thought. "Nope, they're just store bought cookies! I just need a bunch of sugar and shit so i always have a lot on hand, and sweets taste great so....sharing seems like the obvious option really." he said digging around in his little pouch to pull out the little box of cookies that still had the price on. Showing it to the stranger with a smile, "See? Oh...well i guess that wouldn't prove that i haven't tampered with them... like i said, feel free to not eat any!" a little flashback of the past entered his brain that he shook off quickly. "Oh and no to the religious thing too, i ain't trying to recruit you or get anything in return, i just like to share is all" “Huh...” Now Cyan openly stares, a little dumbfounded, trying to figure out what to make of the situation. “You...give out cookies...that you paid money for....for free...because you like to share?” He speaks slowly and clearly, as if he’s trying to make himself understood to someone with only a tenuous grasp of English. “I-wh-ho-why?” He starts, before deciding it’s not worth it, shaking it off as if he’s having a fever dream. “Never mind, I don’t think I’d understand even if you explained in tiny words.” He sits up, pulling his legs up beneath him so he can sit cross-legged on the bench, facing Remi. “You know people warn their kids against taking sweets from strangers, right? You don’t ever get into trouble over this habit of yours?” He nodded, rolling his eyes as if he has experienced this problem more than a few times. "Yeh, it used to happen a lot. Now i have rules for it i guess. I would never offer them to a child unless their parents were there and i offered them a treat too. I also make sure to make a show of trying something from my stash in front of them. But i also always make sure now that everyone knows very clearly they are more than able to decline and it'd never be a problem." he sighed as if reciting a little list of rules he stored in his head. "There's some horrible shit in this world. Horrible, awful, fucked up, god forsaken shit that goes on in the world. If me doing something sooooo simple as showing kindness by offering someone a cookie could even put a dent in that? I'll buy every box of cookies that exists." he laughes wholeheartedly. "Not everyone gets it, but that's fine. But you're giving back too by working on New Years. So to that, i tip my..." he looks up, he is very much not wearing a cap. "...well i tip my non-existent cap to you stranger." “Hmm...” Cyan considers Remi’s words with utmost gravity, crossing his hands across his chest for several seconds before reaching for another sweet. “See, when I try to offer people something-” he does not need to know what I offer exactly, “-quite a lot of the time they look at me as if I’m insane, or they find me creepy.” Admittedly I do often offer to breathe on people so that might be a bit different. “It’s not like I don’t respect a no, or that I’ll force anything on anyone if they don’t want it, I guess I just come off as off-putting for some reason.” He nods back at Remi’s non-existent cap-tip, “you wouldn’t have any tips as to how to seem...” he takes a moment to find the right words, “...more harmless?” He takes a moment to think. "Mmmmm, well, you're kinda creepy. You know....or maybe...standoffish i guess is a better word. You don't necessarily seem approachable. Which is no problem for me because you're the type of person i approach the most when i'm out and about. On your own, you sighed as if you had the weight of the world on your shoulder....you just don't scream, hey i'm a happy guy and i'm fun to talk to. Nothing wrong with that of course, i just thought i'd share since you asked." Smiling, he shuffled a little bit closer to the stranger, making sure to leave plenty enough distance in case the thing happened again where he was just trying to be friendly and then immediately people jumped to ooooooo you wanna kiss meeeeee. "My name's Remi by the way. It's a pleasure to meet you, Stranger." “Oh right, Cyan, I’m Cyan.” He’s been listening intently to every word Remi has offered, only slightly twitching away as Remi moves closer. “So, you’re saying I should try to be more positive? Like, bubbly?” He’s re-hooked his face masks, and is, between words, chewing thoughtfully on the latest sweet. “Is that a body language thing or should I be dressing differently? Or is it a bit of both?" Turning to face Cyan a little more, Remi is beaming with excitement. Who knew? A walk in the palk turns into a new friend that for some reason is wearing 4 face masks...maybe he shouldn't be sitting so close to him? Oh well! "Well, colour could help, just a lil' splash here and there. Black is a very good colour if you wanna blend in...which i guess depending on what ya wanna offer could be good, i guess? Oh!" getting an idea he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his own face mask that had a smiling anime-styled mouth on it. "You wear.... a lot of these. Why not take this one? At least it has a smile on it!" he chuckled. "But yeh, i suppose maybe try....not slouching so much, it makes you look closed off. So stand up tall with those strong shoulders of yours and let people know you're available to talk to! Are you selling something or just wanting to offer something? Well, if it's work i guess you're sellin somethin'. So, ya gotta make it sound like something they wouldn't wanna miss right? Nothin' too pushy or again....creepy." Cyan regards the smiley-faced face mask with curiosity, he’s got some styled up ones, but nothing on this level. “Right, so colour, and-” As Remi talks about slouching he immediately pushes his shoulders back, sitting up into a far more proper posture. “Well, I try to sell things, but I’ll let people have a free test first, to see if it’s for them. I want people to have an informed choice, right?” Underneath his mask he’s put on a smile, mimicking Remi’s expression. “What if what I’m offering is inherently a little off-putting, is there something I can do to like, warn people in advance without it seeming weird?” Remi claps a little as Cyan straightens up his posture, "Nice! Those are some dependable looking shoulders my friend" he laughs. "Ok, well, let's use this as a hypothetical i guess." he lowers the tone of his voice. "Say you're selling something that's a little taboo, right? Which im guessing you are because if it wasn't you would've said 'oh hey im a carpet salesman' or some shit. If you know it's safe enough to sell, then sell the experience it gives them. Like don't focus on the off-putting thing first. Tell them about how awesome it is, sell what could happen if they buy it, and once they're already interested, you tell them the off-putting thing. That way, they can way up how much they actually want the amazing thing you sold them against how off-putting it actually is." Cyan nods, taking mental notes as he listens to Remi, completely enthralled. “So, like I’ve been trying to do that. I’ve been like-" for a moment Cyan takes on a slightly different voice "-hey I’ve got this awesome drug that’s real easy to take, won’t show up on drug tests, can get you both high as a kite or mellowed the shit out depending on dosage and it can also help you with that chronic pain and headaches." He takes a deep breath, continuing in his normal pitch, "but as soon as I bring up that I need to breathe, or touch people, for it to kick in folks tend to freak out a bit. Should I be putting more emphasis on how great it is? Or do you think it is just the way I look that makes people hesitant?” Remi's eye twitches for a moment now that he realises he's helping a drug dealer sell...himself???? He physically shakes it off and takes in a deep breath. "No, i think it's your wording that off." Why is he continuing to help? He has no idea, just feels right! They're friends now godsdammit! "How about you say....it's best administered locally via contact with the skin? Sounds more scientific, making you sound more professional and...not gonna lie but skip the breathing thing entirely. Also... nice to meet you fellow mutant i guess?" Cyan takes a moment to point at his temple, “I thought the skin colour gave it away, “ he’s still utterly focused on the advice he’s getting, “wouldn’t have taken you for one of us too tho, you look pretty...normal, I guess?” Carefully he mouths out the words “best administered locally, right, so sounding scientific is good? I thought people these days are like, scared of medical jargon? Or is that just a Kansas-thing?” Unwrapping a lollipop from his stash and shoving in his mouth he kind of flicked his hair out of his face so he could focus on the conversation. "I mean, sure if you're gonna be saying things like pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis then YEH..." he said effortlessly like it was practiced. It was practiced. A lot. "...people are gonna get scared. But a base level of scientific jargon also shows people that you're clued up on the drug you're selling. Even pharmaceutical sales reps do that kind of thing. What kind of drug...is it? Are you? eh..umm...what kind of drug. You know are we talkin' depressant, stimulant, opiate, hallucinogen?" "Depends on dosage, " Cyan is by now completely chill with Remi's presence, his elbows on his knees and his hands under his chin so he can lean his head on them. "Small dosage and it just chills people out, higher dosage and it's a hallucinogen, kind of like psilocybin, err magic mushrooms, but more potent. And extreme, well-" he hesitates a bit, "-let's just say it's best if people let me control the dosage, I have a pretty good idea of when it starts to get dangerous." He shrugs, "I mean I'm happy to watch people when they err, partake, in me if it makes people feel more safe. I just don't know how to make that too not come off as creepy." Nerd mode GO. Remi gets a little closer to Cyan now, he desperately want to grab him by the arm and shake him with excitement, but he thinks that may not be the right thing to do so instead he pretends to grab him by the arm and shake him when in actuality, his hands are simply hovering over Cyan's arm as he stifles an excited squeel. "Dude, dude, WAIT. You're a depressant AND a hallucinogen? That's insane im obsessed. Oh that's so cool. So what, like, poking someone on the forehead is weed and a makeout is magic mushrooms on rocket fuel?" his eyes lit up as he asked his question with glee. "I'm sorry, i'm sorry...." he took a deep breath in to try to calm himself. "I'm a future med student, i love science, i'm so excited, this is...no...you are awesome!" By now Cyan’s smile has turned into a genuine one, it’s not often they run into someone who thinks they’re cool. “Yeah, pretty much, only it’s more potent than that. I breathe on people, they feel relaxed and chill, I touch people, they start seeing things but are still aware of what is real, I make-out with someone...” he squirms a little before deciding to continue, “let’s just say the first girl I ever kissed threw herself off a roof.” He looks a little apologetic, “I haven’t tested exposure after that myself, don’t really want to risk it.” It’s not really a lie, he didn’t test it himself. “And no need to apologize, as long as you don’t decide to dissect me or anything I don’t mind a little medical interest. I’m a bit of a nerd myself.” Remi's face turned a little more serious at the mention of dissection. "I will never, do anything like to a person..." his smile returning rapidly, this time a kinder, sincere smile. "Don't go blaming yourself for that, it's good to feel bad, but we didn't get a guide book. Hell, when mine first surfaced i got pissed off at a guy and he went into a hypoglycaemic coma for 6 months." he sighed heavily. His phone buzzed in his pocket, "Oh shit, mom! Totally forgot!" he fished in his snack pouch and wripped off a piece of a paper wrapper from one of his treats. Pulling out a pen from his coat pocket, never leaves home without one, he scribbled down his number on the wrapper and hands it to Cyan. "Stay in touch, HallucinoCyan." he smiled. "See ya round!" and began jogging back in the direction of his home.