Soft Hearts Hold Secrets

Is It a Date?

"I only have one job today," Muriel said into the phone tucked between his ear and his shoulder. "But... I should be done long before six. Don't worry."

Three days had passed, and in those three days talking to Asra over the phone had become a rather regular thing. It came to the point where Muriel would wait for the text asking to call, laying upon his new bed with his phone on the pillow beside his head, eyes flicking to the old screen whenever it would light up or buzz. When he would get the text, and then the awaited call in its wake, they would just... talk. Asra, mostly, with Muriel to listen. He'd come home tired from a hard, profit filled day at the shop, and simply sit cross legged on the bed or at the table with his head in his hand, listening to Asra's quiet voice through the little speaker.

It was their first time really talking on the phone in the morning, but still it was... natural. Like routine. As if Muriel had spent every morning of his life prior speaking to Asra over the phone. It felt normal.

It felt nice.

Muriel had just gotten himself dressed for the day, his hair still damp from the shower. He poured Inanna's food into her bowl, the phone balanced on his shoulder. She waited patiently at his side, her tail wagging gently as he stepped back and set the food bowl down.

"It's easy. One of my regulars got a new car -- she wants me to look at it. I would have pushed it to Monday but..." Muriel trailed off as he stood up, watching as Inanna happily began to eat her breakfast. "I don't know. I like her, I guess. She's nice to me."

"It must be nice," came Asra's voice a moment later, crackled slightly with the poor speaker quality of Muriel's old phone. "And it's not a problem, Muri, trust me. You've got all day to do what you want, and if you want to get this job done then you can. Besides, I should probably check in at work too. My boss has something for me for the overnight thing I did? Apparently I'm getting a huge bonus for it."

Asra liked talking to Muriel. Of course, he'd always liked talking to Muriel, but getting to hear his voice first thing in the morning was special. It made him feel special. It gave him a new reason to wake up early- hearing Muriel's gruff voice through the phone and getting to talk to him and update him on everything that had gone on in the few hours they'd been apart.

"I'm looking forward to seeing you again, though. Are you going to wear that shirt I got for you? I should start getting you more, you've only been wearing the shirt I gave you every time we've met up, and I'd like to see you in something different. Maybe treat yourself to a nice shirt? If you need to save money, I can pay you back for it tonight."

Muriel made a face, flicking his eyes down to look at himself. "What other shirt would I want to wear?" he asked dully, cocking his head.

Going shopping for clothes hadn't exactly been his forte. The stores were pricey and crowded -- most times he picked out what fit and he left without another thought. It was how he ended up with so many shirts for bands he didn't even listen to.

"I guess I could try... you don't need to pay me, though." Muriel nodded his head a little, his lips beginning to quirk at their corners. "This week has been... okay."

Better than okay, actually. Three days of booked appointments had done rather nicely in terms of his tip jar and his wallet. Most was paid by card, of course -- Muriel had an old machine in his shop just for that -- but a trip to an ATM would transfer it all into the cash he needed. Already, he exceeded a thousand. In fact, he was nearing two thousand. That was more than enough to pay off his payment in the coming week or so -- Muriel, for the first time in awhile, had money to spare. Most would go towards food, of course, as usual. But if Asra asked specifically for Muriel to treat himself...