Bad Habits - (Shouto x OC)

Our Thing

The top picture is an official picture of Lani & Shouto. It was commissioned, and it is not allowed to be reused, reposted, edited, etc. it's also the book cover.

Votes and comments are appreciated!

Lani POV:

"Alright, Shouto. Pick your poison."

Those dual colored eyes twisted in confusion, looking at me like I was a psycho.

"I'll pick the option with no poison, please." He said completely serious.

I rolled my eyes lightly, leaning back in my chair before looking around the crowded bar.

"Let me rephrase—pick the first person you'd like to talk to in this bar." I explained, nodding my head around the crowded premise.

We've been sitting here for about twenty minutes and all Shouto and I have done is talk to each other. He needs to start socializing.

Seeming to realize this, too, his shoulders slumped slightly as he looked around the area

"I'm talking to you. Isn't that enough?"

I let out a small tut, realizing he was already getting too comfortable being around me.

He sticks to the people he knows. Not a bad thing in many areas of life, but sometimes he needs to branch out. How else will he learn to be charming?

"There's much more interesting people here than me." I waved off, spotting a good friend candidate across the bar. "What about that guy over there?"

Shouto looked in the direction of my eyes, settling on the college aged guy.

"The one throwing darts?"

"Yeah. There's a dartboard open next to him. Why not head over there and introduce yourself?" I suggested.

He rubbed the back of his neck, seeming as if the idea was completely foreign to him.

"I...don't really know what to talk about..." He murmured, furrowing his brows in focus as he overthought the simple encounter.

Telling him exactly what to say will defeat the purpose of taking him here. He needs to learn his own experience. Otherwise, how will he ever know what kind of person he is during these situations?

"Well, if I give you too much direction, I think you'll take it literally and not learn anything." I grumbled knowingly, deciding to give him one idea only. "Start by asking if anyone was using the dartboard."

I could see the hesitation on his face as he looked towards the dart area, causing me to reach my hand over the table and place it on his shoulder. 

"Hey, I'll be right over here, okay?" I reassured, causing him to peer over at me. "If it gets that weird, just come back to me."

Surprisingly, those words seemed to give him enough convincing, causing him to pull himself out of his chair with a sigh and start walking over.

I uttered an encouraging good luck as he went, absentmindedly bringing my thumbnail between my teeth.

My heart rate suddenly spiked a bit as well, making my brows furrow.

Jeez. Why am I nervous? Him possibly embarrassing himself doesn't really affect me.

Stiffly and unsure, Shouto approached the dart area.

Shouto POV:

The guy throwing darts looked over, giving me a small nod before going back to his activity.