Body Works? I Sure Hope It Does | Jack + Asuka | Segway Car

Roadie 🪶Jack

Asuka Fukuda “You think it could give us luxuries or something.

Jack raised an eyebrow before pausing to gesture at the store with the bottle in his hand.

“This not luxuries? Not just car after car of ’em, but there’s plenty if you’re actually looking.”

“Plenty tryin’ to take it away, too, but. Just means you gotta hang on tighter, yeah?” Because that totally worked in this car. Well, he had been able to fight for some of his supplies back. Counted for something.

Asuka Fukuda The idea that Jack could even hold a grudge over that, or really consider that a problem, flew over Asuka’s head. As far as she was concerned, their dynamic was as follows: Asuka was the normal one who had done nothing wrong, and Jack was… Jack. That thought didn’t fully explain things, and Asuka still couldn’t tell if Jack being himself was a good thing or not. Nor did she really catch any relief or concern from him.

A fair assessment! Jack wouldn’t necessarily call it a grudge or a problem, though—just how life worked. Nothing personnel, kid. Implying life was nothing but problems, but, well. He’d had a couple.

Asuka Fukuda “…Right. ’kay. I can pretend to believe that, if it makes your life easier.”

“Aww, well I appreciate that so much,” he said in a voice so sickly sweet it took on… some kind of accent. Not quite Southern, just… something.

Asuka Fukuda “Oh, it was you in a past life! How else do you think I was able to defeat you in a fight so easily, hm? Haven’t changed a bit.”

“Ohh, of course. I remember now. I ‘s a slug, right? Y’ ever get me off the bottom of your shoes, ’r did I forever ruin ’em?” He’d just ignore the rest of what she’d said.

Asuka Fukuda “You’re not talking “perfectly fine” at all! You’re being vague, and dancing around stuff. That’s, like, def not cool. And! And and and! You’re just…”

…Oh, that’s what she meant by talking. Okay. Made sense.

“Infuriating?” he offered.

“ ’s wrong with dancing, though? Makes things more fun, doesn’t it? ‘r what, you hopin’ I’ll spill my whole tragic backstory here?”

“Certainly not for free.”

Asuka Fukuda “You can recognize that, but not if this convo is real for sure? At least you’re not totally hopeless, I guess. Besides the murder thing, and the fight thing where you lost a lot, you’re pretty okayish. Sort of.” High praise from Asuka, all things considered!

Unfortunately, the high praise only got a brief laugh out of him. What? Saying he wasn’t totally hopeless was just hilarious.

Asuka Fukuda “…What personality do you think you’d give me if I was made up, huh? A pushover? You’re kind of implying it, I think.”

“Imagine so. ’s not like I can come up with that many different angles all by my lonesome.”

“Hate arguin’ with myself, anyway, y’know? I always lose.”

Asuka Fukuda

Roadie 🪶Jack “This not luxuries? Not just car after car of ’em, but there’s plenty if you’re actually looking.”

Asuka glances around the car with disdain. It is very easy to forget, sometimes, that she actually has high standards despite how she acts. She settles for just rolling her eyes.

“Um, no? This stuff is cheap as hell. I doubt it actually would sell for that much if it weren’t for, like, mall priceups. Not that they’re expensive for me, but, y’know~”

Asuka can show pity for those not quite as fortunate and cool as she was. Not everybody can be self-made or whatever, right?

“Besides, why hang on to stuff when you can just get it? Seriously, don’t lower your standards or whatever. …If they can be lowered.” With Jack, she’s honestly not sure if that’s possible. Then again, everybody has their own price. It just can be much weirder for some people than others.

Roadie 🪶Jack A fair assessment! Jack wouldn’t necessarily call it a grudge or a problem, though—just how life worked. Nothing personnel, kid. Implying life was nothing but problems, but, well. He’d had a couple.

At least she wasn’t doing that with somebody who’d genuinely start a fistfight with her, hm? It could always be worse.

Roadie 🪶Jack “Aww, well I appreciate that so much,” he said in a voice so sickly sweet it took on… some kind of accent. Not quite Southern, just… something.

“…You clearly aren’t actually appreciating my amazing advice. At all. Or me being nice. Seriously, people get so nasty about me being mean, but the moment I try it, I get this.” Some people would be jealous you get a whole Jack to talk to, Asuka. “What kind of accent was that anyways?” She wants answers.

Roadie 🪶Jack “ ’s wrong with dancing, though? Makes things more fun, doesn’t it? ‘r what, you hopin’ I’ll spill my whole tragic backstory here?”

The sad thing is, anybody else would instantly recognize the layer of sarcasm/deflection here. Asuka isn’t that person though, and so she just gives Jack a pitying look. Either way, it’s kind of sad, isn’t it?

“Not really. Just say what you mean instead of being a bitch about it -even if that means dissing the hell out of a person. What do you lose from it, hm? Nobody’s really going to care. Or, if they do, it’s their problem, y’know?”

There’s a slight pause.

Roadie 🪶Jack “Certainly not for free.”

“How much are you charging?” Simple teenage curiosity, it’d appear, wins in the end.

Roadie 🪶Jack “Imagine so. ’s not like I can come up with that many different angles all by my lonesome.”

Roadie 🪶Jack “Hate arguin’ with myself, anyway, y’know? I always lose.”

“…I think you owe me money or like… damage money or something. I feel sad just listening to that. It is sad overall. You’re making a teenager listen to your problems and self-esteem issues.” It’s clearly just talk, judging by the little smirk on Asuka’s face.

“Glad to know I’m so memorable and unique that you have to admit I’m real 100%-o. I’m pretty sure you’re real too. I wouldn’t make somebody like you up. You’re too…you? I guess?”

Roadie 🪶Jack

Asuka Fukuda “Um, no? This stuff is cheap as [heck]. I doubt it actually would sell for that much if it weren’t for, like, mall priceups. Not that they’re expensive for me, but, y’know~ […] Besides, why hang on to stuff when you can just get it? Seriously, don’t lower your standards or whatever. …If they can be lowered.”

Wow, go off. Jack didn’t look terribly impressed with Asuka’s attitude in this particular context, but it’s not like he ever looked that approving, anyway.

“What, ya got some special service that’ll ship to any car on the train? Not somethin’ money can buy, not here. Think it’s your standards that need adjustin’ if you’re gonna survive.”

“Or are ya planning to get back home ’fore you really gotta worry ‘bout it? Ready t’ kill somebody for some better hand soap?”

Asuka Fukuda “…You clearly aren’t actually appreciating my amazing advice. At all. Or me being nice. Seriously, people get so nasty about me being mean, but the moment I try it, I get this.”

“No worries, I just don’t appreciate anybody! Not worth the trouble, y’know? Be gone again soon enough.”

Asuka Fukuda “What kind of accent was that anyways?”

He froze briefly but resumed the whatever-product-he-was-flipping without too much pause. Still more likely to be noticed than if he’d had all cylinders firing.

But surely he hadn’t slipped up that much. He had a very finely maintained regionless American accent, thank you very much. Never had anything else. Ever.

“Whatever felt right? Iunno. Been a lotta places, heard a lotta voices.”

Asuka Fukuda “Not really. Just say what you mean instead of being a [bench] about it -even if that means dissing the [heck] out of a person. What do you lose from it, hm? Nobody’s really going to care. Or, if they do, it’s their problem, y’know?”

He attempted to parse that fully, failed, then lost track of the fact he’d failed. It was enough of a grip to go on, everything’s fine.

“So, I should be a b-tch either way, just don’t lie? That’s a new one! Refreshing! Still not my thing.”

Asuka Fukuda “How much are you charging?”

He whistled. Best to play the situation to the specific audience.

“Oh, I doubt ya could afford that. ’r how much you got?”

Asuka Fukuda You’re making a teenager listen to your problems and self-esteem issues.”

“Issues?” Excuse you, his self-esteem was exactly where it was supposed to be.

“No, see, th’ joke’s that I also always win. Sorry, may’a overestimated my audience there.”

Asuka Fukuda “Glad to know I’m so memorable and unique that you have to admit I’m real 100%-o. I’m pretty sure you’re real too. I wouldn’t make somebody like you up. You’re too…you? I guess?”

“Oh, I’d be real concerned if y’ managed to make me up!”

“But yeah, sure, that works. Careful, ’r I might actually remember your name in another month ’r two.”

Asuka Fukuda

Roadie 🪶Jack “What, ya got some special service that’ll ship to any car on the train? Not somethin’ money can buy, not here. Think it’s your standards that need adjustin’ if you’re gonna survive.”

Please. Those were clearly the words of a quitter who’d given up on self-care. If self-care somehow meant forcing the murder game train to give you what you want? Asuka would do it. Just watch her! If Jack couldn’t comprehend such, acts of self-love, then too bad for him!

“Uh, no? But I can take stuff because I’m super persuasive and I can promise money. People do that all the time, and then they never deliver. I would be able to deliver - so y’know what? I’m gonna be fine, and you aren’t.” The thought that Jack could be delivering a threat lingers in her mind, but she refuses to acknowledge it. She doesn’t want to go back to fearing him.

Roadie 🪶Jack “Or are ya planning to get back home ’fore you really gotta worry ‘bout it? Ready t’ kill somebody for some better hand soap?”

“I wouldn’t kill somebody for soap anyways. Maybe for like…. A whole spa kit or something, but not for soap.” Wow. Okay. The roll of Asuka’s eyes seems to indicate that she’s being sarcastic at least.

Roadie 🪶Jack “No worries, I just don’t appreciate anybody! Not worth the trouble, y’know? Be gone again soon enough.”

Wow. Depressing! Asuka didn’t want to think about that today.

“I think I deserve better than that, but sure. Fine. Whatever. Your life just keeps sounding very sad.”

Roadie 🪶Jack He froze briefly but resumed the whatever-product-he-was-flipping without too much pause. Still more likely to be noticed than if he’d had all cylinders firing.

But surely he hadn’t slipped up that much. He had a very finely maintained regionless American accent, thank you very much. Never had anything else. Ever.

The funny thing was that Asuka was vaguely impressed by the fact that Jack was keeping the flipping motion up consistently. Maybe it was something small and basic, but it would take just a bit of concentration. Would it be funny if he dropped it? Yes, but Asuka kind of wanted to see if he’d keep it up the entire time. That’s all she was taking from this.

Roadie 🪶Jack “Whatever felt right? Iunno. Been a lotta places, heard a lotta voices.”

“Bullshit, but I don’t care enough to pry.” She did. She’d just do it later. “Keep your secrets, secret man.”

Roadie 🪶Jack “So, I should be a b-tch either way, just don’t lie? That’s a new one! Refreshing! Still not my thing.”

See! This is what she meant about him being a secret man. Although by that standard, everybody was being a secret person. Whatever.

“It should be. Just say what you think whenever. At least people know what you’re about then. …Then again, that’d mean less attention for me, so… Actually! Don’t!”

Roadie 🪶Jack “Oh, I doubt ya could afford that. ’r how much you got?”

Oh. Oh, he was good at this.

“More than you’ve probably had in your entire life. I made my whole family rich. So, y’know.” There’s a slight pause as Asuka examines her nails. “…Betcha I could do it again too. So you wouldn’t have to worry.”

Roadie 🪶Jack “Issues?” Excuse you, his self-esteem was exactly where it was supposed to be.

“Yes.” Asuka can’t comprehend having low self-esteem like that. Shamefully displaying it like that? No thanks.

Roadie 🪶Jack “No, see, th’ joke’s that I also always win. Sorry, may’a overestimated my audience there.”

That’s more like it! “That can’t be the joke either, by the way. I’m preeetttty sure you lost. Everybody knows that too, by the way.” What’s a little more snarky talk?

Roadie 🪶Jack “Oh, I’d be real concerned if y’ managed to make me up!”

“Wow, self-telling?” There’s a small “tsk” sound as Asuka shakes her head. "At least try to hide the red flags a bit more. Trust me - it’s waaaay more fun to act like that. People get so weird when you “may have problems”, so just let them deal with it as it comes." Asuka has never once tried to hide her issues in her life, has she?

Roadie 🪶Jack “But yeah, sure, that works. Careful, ’r I might actually remember your name in another month ’r two.”

“Good. I’m always going to remember yours, whether I want to or not, so you should get stuck with mine too. Besides, Asuka Fukuda is a name worth remembering, unlike a lot of others.”

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