Re: Outside Music Store: Mathias & Claire
A moment of confusion passed over Mathias' face as he caught the mismatch between Claire's beaming smile and then her dismissal of any suggestion of a return to that part of the middle east. His look cleared in a moment though, barely having time to get settled. It was clear that he had touched some kind of a nerve and he wasn't going to delve if it was uncomfortable for her - as he assumed it was. The subject could be well and truly dropped.
He hitched a laugh at being called 'jellybean', but he didn't try and stop her. He could roll with a nickname - even such a ridiculous one. In a way, he actually preferred it. The more people who thought of him as a persona, rather than concentrating on who he actually was, the better. He picked the stone up between thumb and forefinger and considered it, whilst he listened to her comments about the carnival. "Rides are momentary pleasures - designed to bring on an adrenaline rush. It's all an illusion. I prefer to see what's real," he told her. "Even if that's not particularly interesting." He held the rock up before her face. "Like this - it's just a stone. Once part of a bigger rock. Maybe even a mountain. Possibly nature ground it down. Maybe it was quarried and brought here by man, but it's still just a fragment."