Jiro, Glard and Sitara are sitting along main street. They have bubble tea. Glard is all dressed up fancy in a frilly dress and a bonnet.



Sitara
* ...

  Glard Gorpnan
...

—Jiro—
...
Nice weather.
Do we have some kind of plan for the rest of today?
→...





Sitara's phone chirps.

Sitara
* ...Ah!
* I just got a text from Sunny.
* She says she's working things out with Moon-Soo, so she might be a while...

  Glard Gorpnan
Oh, okay...

—Jiro—
...
Working what out?
Did she say what was so important she had to leave right away?
→Got it
I trust her. If she thinks this is important to take care of, it probably is.
Whatever. Doesn't matter either way.









  Glard Gorpnan
I am enjoying the air pressure here.

Sitara
* Ah! I'm glad.








Jiro stiffly pushes himself up from the bench.


—Jiro—
...
It's quiet
I'm screwing up this social outing
→We should do something

Sitara
* Like what...?

—Jiro—
...
I don't know. Something. Anything.
→What do you want to do?
Perhaps you could share a list of activities available in this town?
Go... fishing...?

Sitara
* Ah, well...
* It's nice to just sit sometimes??

  Glard Gorpnan
I'm not sure I can handle much more, uh, "earth culture", today...

—Jiro—
...
Sure, if you want
Don't pretend like you're fine to make me feel better
→Come on, you must be bored.

Sitara
* No...?

—Jiro—
...

Sitara
* Are you?

—Jiro—
...
Am I?
→I feel awkward just... sitting here
I don't mind the quiet, but...

Sitara
* We can, ah, talk, then??












They don't talk.













Sitara
* Okay admittedly this is a lot harder without Sunny here to keep the conversation going

—Jiro—
...
→So we're just going to talk about Sunny, are we??
Is that it, like I need her? Like I can't function without her?

Sitara
* Ahh--!! S-- sorry.
* I didn't realise things were, ah, not okay between you two...

—Jiro—
...
Things are fine
Better than fine...
→It's not that.
I can't let myself be like that. It's pathetic.
I can be a miserable worthless piece of shit but I don't want to be pathetic about it

Sitara
* Okay.
* Then, what do you want to talk about?

—Jiro—
...
Anything
Nothing
I don't know
→I just don't want us to sit here stewing in this awful silence

Sitara
* ...
* Is it, ah, "awful"?
* I love our friends, Sunny and Jasper and Moon-Soo, but, ah, they can be a lot...
* Sometimes I like a break from having to think about the right thing to say all the time.

  Glard Gorpnan
Ohhhh, oh Helix I know exactly what you mean...

  Glard Gorpnan
I think maybe grunts are not meant to think as much as I've been thinking, lately?
I was... also... enjoying not having to do that. For a little while.

Sitara
* Do you want to maybe join us, Jiro?
* In, just, not worrying?

—Jiro—
...
Is that an option?
You make... a lot of sense
Maybe I used to know how to do that
→...




Jiro lets himself back down onto the bench.




—Jiro—
...




He sits in the moment. It's a quiet midday with not a lot of walkers. A gentle breeze brushes against his face. Leaves flitter down from the overhanging tree beside the benches and settle against the tiled footpath.




Sitara
* ...




  Glard Gorpnan
...




—Jiro—
...















The Bastard CRASH LANDS right in front of them!!! Fucking damn it!!!