Aramis is an alcoholic. Sorry. (amongthebravest) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2014-05-06 20:23:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | !complete, aramis, d'artagnan |
Who: D'Artagnan and Aramis.
What: Talking about partying.
When: April 18.
Where: San Francisco.
Rating: Family friendly.
Status: Complete.
They were apparently to go partying. D’Artagnan hadn’t really ever been the partying sort. But he was the ‘get ready quickly’ sort. Athos was not. Athos was taking his time and again D’Artagnan got restless. He’d paced the room a few times waiting for Athos, so much so that the older man had told him to go explore if he was that bored and he’d be ready by the time he got back. And so D’Artagnan took advantage of that.
The hotel was nice, but the room only had so many things he could poke at when he got into those restless moods. Unfortunately for him, they were often. He had a ridiculous amount of energy and so he used it to roam the large halls. He peered into the penthouse suites and nearly got caught by a drunken rich person, so he ducked and ran. Amused at the situation, he poked his head into the pool area. It was nice, but he was an awful swimmer. And within a few minutes he’d already run out of places to look on their floor, so he sent Athos a text that he needed air and headed to the ground floor, and out the front door. Looking up at the sky he shivered and pulled his jacket around his shoulders. He’d underestimated just how cold the city would be. Others had told him, but he didn’t really believe it. It was nearing summer time, and he was used to the warmer weathers of Orange County.
So far, Aramis was enjoying San Francisco. The day had been filled with just general touristy stuff, walking around, seeing what there was. He was glad that Athos and D’Artagnan didn’t bring up anything they might have possibly heard from the night before, too, because he wasn’t sure how to diffuse that sort of awkward. But now came some real fun.
For his part, he took his time getting ready, too, and so did Porthos, so Aramis figured he had some time before finishing up to go grab a cigarette. He threw on his jacket and headed down to the lobby, grinning as he saw D’Artagnan just a bit in front of him.
“Well, how do you like it so far?” he asked, nudging the younger man with his shoulder.
D’Artagnan could only take so many noises from the next room, and was glad he brought his headphones along for the trip. They came in quite handy at night. Especially being so close to Aramis and Porthos. He didn’t know how to feel about that, so he chose not to feel. It was vacation, he could not feel if he didn’t want to. He focused instead on the fun, and sometimes incredibly dorky tourist things Aramis managed to find. It was like the man was a tourist item and trap magnet. It only amused him though. They were on vacation, so why the hell not act like a silly tourist. It didn’t take him long before he was joining in the tourist things anyway.
He looked over at the nudge, dark bangs practically covering his eyes in the crazy wind. “It’s kind of fantastic. I can breathe and my lungs don’t feel like they’re catching on fire here.”
It was much cleaner air wise than orange county and L.A. were. He even seemed to finally be relaxing a little despite some initial awkwardness with Aramis in the beginning. He wasn’t nearly as embarrassed as he’d been before. He turned to face him even with a grin.
Aramis had a knack for being completely ridiculous when he wanted to. And why shouldn’t they be a bit tacky? It was the first time in San Francisco for all of them, it would be a waste. And he was glad that the awkwardness between himself and D’Artagnan seemed to be gone.
“Ah. If you think you can breathe better, I’ll try not to stand up wind from you, then.” Aramis gave the other man a bit of a smile and moved, so when he lit his cigarette the smoke went away from them. “It is a pretty fantastic city, though, isn’t it.”
At first he'd had a bit of a hard time being around Aramis after everything that'd gone weird. But now his nerves seemed to have settled some a few days into the trip. Aramis wasn't making a big deal of it, and that helped D'Artagnan focus on other things.
He shrugged a bit. "After living in O.C. I don't think the one is going to bother me much. It's more like dozens combine. L.A. was hell before. Orange was actually the better option believe it or not. But yeah. Thanks." It was still hard to get the image of a very mostly naked Aramis out of his head when he moved near by, so Dart looked away for a moment. Back up at the sky and the fast moving clouds above them. "I could almost get used to it. A place like this. Even if it is freezing." He admitted with a small frown and casually folded his arms in attempt to block some of the chill. "I probably should have brought more than one jacket."
Aramis just laughed. “I could, too, I think. It’s just got something about it. Besides the sights and the food and the fun.” He glanced over at D’Artagnan. “Most likely. I’ve got a cardigan you can borrow if you want to layer. Or possibly another jacket. Also, you’re not wearing that out, are you?” He raised his eyebrows, but there was good humour in his look.
“You’re young, you’re in San Francisco, you should dress to impress and break some hearts. We’ll fix that before we go out.”
"It's sort of alive or something." He didn't know how else to describe it, but after working with so much death in Orange County, it seemed to fit. "I'm pretty sure I'd have to be crazy to say no at this point." Though he almost had. And then Aramis was commenting on his clothing, he really hadn't given it much thought. He raised an eyebrow right back and then looked down at himself.
"No good?..To be fair I think my brain focused on not freezing to death." He shrugged. "That, and well I really have no idea what people wear to parties..so." He shifted awkwardly and made a face.
He was dressed far too casually for even a house party with his jeans and thin hoodie. He found himself looking over Aramis and frowning thoughtfully. "Guess thats why Athos is taking forever..."
Though there was still a bit of humor in his expression, he wondered what sort of clothes a man like Athos would pick. He sincerely doubted he did much partying either.
Aramis snorted. “Athos is probably saying he’s getting ready, but I bet he’s just pre-drinking from the mini bar. He’ll probably spend the whole time sitting at the bar and trying to keep an eye on us. Don’t let him be a role model for your sort of fun.” He puffed out some smoke and gave a stretch. “Don’t worry, we’ll make sure it’s a good night for you.”
D'Artagnan raised an eyebrow at him curiously. "Pre-drinking? There's a lot more to this partying thing than just showing up isn't there?" He found he was enjoying spending time with Athos, but maybe as far as partying went he'd take tonights cues from Aramis instead. The man seemed to know what he was talking about, or so it seemed anyway. "I'm sure it will be. I'll just watch what you do." He said with a shrug.
“Partying,” Aramis said, turning his head to look at D’Artagnan, “and I mean proper partying, is an art form. Don’t get me wrong, there’s certainly nothing wrong with just showing up, having some drinks, and enjoying your time with friends. But in my experience, if you want to really milk it for all it’s worth, there are some crucial steps. Step one, pre-drinking. Drinks at clubs are expensive and if you can show up a bit tipsy, that’s less money you have to spend. Step two, looking good. Nothing wrong with taking the time to look amazing. Even if you’re just there to have fun, always, always look like you want someone to take you home. This also means less money you have to spend, because people will buy you drinks.”
Aramis took a drag of his cigarette, exhaling away from his friend. “Step three, be nice, but not over friendly. Don’t just stick to your little clique. Try to dance with other people, buy someone a shot if they’re waiting at the bar with you, be inclusive. But don’t let just anyone into your circle. Someone buys you a drink, you thank them, smile a bit, leave. People like thinking you’re hard to get. And it’s fun playing coy, and some people are just strange, so if you let them hang around you it could really ruin the night.”
He crushes the cigarette out on the pavement and puts his arm around D’Artagnan’s shoulders, grinning. “Of course, it takes practice, but there’s no better time to start than the present.”
He watched Aramis talk about partying like it was some sort of true life style and raised an eyebrow. "That's a lot to remmember." He shook his head with a bit of a sigh and rubbed at his neck. "Last time I got dropped off at a club I was attacked. " He shrugged some as though it were ordinary. "Suppose at least we're far enough away not to be recognized.."
D'Artagnan attempted to make a note of all the things Aramis was saying, and then he paused. "Wait, I want someone to take me home?" And then looked down at the hoodie he was wearing. "This doesn't say that does it?" He wasn't entirely sure he wanted to go home with anyone, but maybe he'd give Aramis's techniques a try at least.
"I don't know about this." He was awkward, but he wasn't shooting down the ideas all together at least, so that was something. "What am I supposed to do if they actually do want to take me home as you say?"
Aramis rolled his eyes. It was a fond gesture, but he heaved a sigh anyway. “That’s not what I said. I said you want someone to think you want them to take you home. As if any of us are going to let you leave with a complete stranger in San Francisco.” He snorts. “You say no, of course. And if no doesn’t work then you come get any one of us and we’ll deal with the situation properly. Have no fear. It’ll be fun. I promise.”
He smirked at that. "I'd hope not." And nudged Aramis playfully with an elbow as he also couldn't help but eye roll at the situation. "People actually go to these parties to do that don't they?" He questioned as he watched him a bit worriedly. "I'll take your word for it.." He gave him a little smile then and looked down at his hoodie with a wince. "Thats why Athos looked confused when I told him I was done already. This doesn't exactly say party does it?”
“No, it definitely does not say party.” Aramis looked amused and he turned D’Artagnan around, pushing him back inside the hotel. “Come on, Porthos and I will get you all sorted out. But you owe us,” he teased, heading to the elevator.