[ there's a moment when his hand first enters her peripheral vision that Rudbeckia flinches from him—but he reaches past her, no sudden movements, his voice calm. the fear releases its crushing grip around her airway, and a hiccup escapes her. ]
... Um, like... this... [ although she just watched him do something, as soon as she tries to mimic the action, it's incomprehensible again. her trembling hand hovers at the doorknob, and then she draws it back to herself. ] ... I watched you. I-I don't know why I can't do it...
[ trying to explain any further is impossible. not because she couldn't put it in words, but because the words get stuck in her throat. as always, her instinct is to skip to the end: accept the blame and apologise. if she talks too much, he'll only interrupt her in the middle, and a half-finished explanation makes her look worse, sounds like she's making excuses...
she can try. at least that much. ]
It's like. When I look at the doorknob. I can't wrap my head around how it works. It doesn't make any sense to me.
[ this time, her eyes are burning with real tears, humiliated: god, she fucking hates this. hurriedly, she adds: ] It's okay, I can just stay put, I don't want to trouble anyone.
[ nothing in her voice or the way she cringes away from him, makes herself smaller, suggests that this is a passive aggressive ploy or guilt-trip. if anything, she seems desperately, urgently sincere. ]
[ Even for someone as oblivious as Dokja, the signs are too glaringly apparent to go unnoticed for long. He spots the way she flinches, the waver in her voice, the wet shine to her eyes, and Dokja's heart sinks. This is learned behavior, much of it recognizable from personal experience. He decides to stop pressing the issue, her explanation enough for him, and instead, Dokja smiles softly.
They haven't known each other long, a kept distance that Dokja likes to maintain with others, but they've spoken to each other enough that he thinks a hint of familiarity rests between them. So when he slowly lifts a hand to place it gently atop her head, he hopes he isn't going too far. ]
If I say it enough times, you'll eventually have to believe me, right? You're not troubling anyone, especially not me.
[ His concerned gaze lingers on her for just a moment, questions behind his eyes at seeing her react in this way, but choosing not to voice them out loud. It's not his place to pry, only offer what solutions he can think of. ]
We'll leave this door open, but why don't we hang a blanket over the doorway for privacy?
[ the motion of his hand is slow and telegraphed in a manner that keeps her from flinching again, even if she's startled by the gesture. her expression of shock is softer this time: there's no trace of fear, only a genuine confusion. like she doesn't understand what he's doing. her features slacken, and it changes her whole face somehow, less childish. ]
That's... [ oh, her hiccups are gone. Come on, Ruby, get back in character. ] I-If you don't mind. It's not important if it doesn't work out, but I'd be really grateful...
[ at best, she would have thought—at best, Dokja might treat her with exasperated courtesy, the half-hearted kindness you would grant a child after a tantrum. but his touch is gentle, and his smile certainly seems sincere. he doesn't press the issue, nor does he storm out or dismiss her with callous disregard as Iske always did. though the hair on the back of her neck prickles from the physical contact... his hand on her head doesn't remind her of Cesare at all, either. ]
It's my problem, though, so please let me help you as well.
[ Like this, caught up in a situation that should be absurd, Dokja loses himself in the task at hand. He's been spending more and more of his days away from this makeshift "home" in an effort to avoid the silent questions he can see in the eyes of his companions, and now during this rare occasion where he's back, he's glad to be busying himself with something else.
His hand slips away from the top of Ruby's head as he points a reassuring smile in her direction before turning to open the door. They'll have to prop it open, he thinks. For now, the blanket door. ]
Sure. Can you get me a chair from the kitchen, please?
[ There shouldn't be any doors in the way of that mission. ]
I'll get the blanket and something to hang it with.
[ I'm manifesting a supply closet in the general vicinity so Dokja can go there for these items. ]
[ it gives her a moment to breathe, standing in the kitchen alone; a moment to double over, lean on the counter with her face buried in her arms, inhale, exhale. get her shit together. he'd delegated an easy task that gave her the space to recoup, and she has to wonder how deliberate a decision it was. Dokja must be good with children—not that she particularly wants to be thought of as a child, but. however he sees her, it only matters that she can take advantage of it.
her character is rebuilt in a hurry, and when she returns with a chair, she's smiling as sunnily as ever, like nothing had ever happened. ]
[ At her approach, Dokja looks up from where he'd been readjusting the spare blanket he'd found and smoothly meets her smile with one of his own. She seems better now, the panic from earlier quelled in the time it took to retrieve the chair he'd asked for, and something about his smile becomes knowing before he turns his gaze downward at her question.
Yeah, so. What Dokja had wanted was a bit along the lines of a rod to hang across the top of the doorway so that he could drape a blanket over it, but what he has in his hands is a hammer and some nails.
[ while she was in the kitchen, she did start to wonder what Dokja was planning, and he must be smarter than her so surely he would have a decent idea... but no, he's just holding a hammer. well. that is the easy way. ]
It will definitely work, but... Are you sure? [ what she's actually asking is: ] W-Will the others be angry with us?
[ she cannot even conceive of having the confidence to just casually nail a fucking blanket to a doorframe. ]
[ Sometimes simple is best. Why work harder when you can work smarter? And this is kind of a step up from using duct tape?
... It's 1/3 his building. If he wants to put holes in the walls, then he will put holes in the walls. ]
Don't worry about them. They won't mind.
[ Spoken like a man who does not care what the others might think. He'll go ahead and grab that chair so he can climb up on it, positioning one corner of the blanket against the frame so he can bash a nail through it. ]
But if they do say something, just tell them it was my idea.
... You and Signora Sooyoung are both really brave.
[ actually she thinks they're just crazy, but. the end result is the same: they are definitely not as scared of Yoo Joonghyuk as she's sure they should be. ]
Ah, please be careful! [ there's nothing she can do to help, here, so she just has to hover nearby and put on a show of fretting for his safety. she doesn't really have that little faith in him; it's just good for her image. ] You mustn't hurt yourself!
[ Imagine asking Kim Dokja not to hurt himself. Laughable. ]
I'll be fine.
[ Waves away her concern with his hand which is grasping a hammer. Thankfully, he maintains his hold on the tool and it does not go flying into heads or glass. He just returns to hammering a second nail into the door frame. ]
In the meantime, I'll have to let the others know to keep some of the doors open. We have the suite door, and the main entrance. Oh, we can't forget the communal laundry room either.
[ she trails off, but her furrowed brow speaks for itself: she still thought it would be enough to give her free rein of the building, and that his obligation would end there.
this is... not suspicious, exactly. of course kind people exist in the world; it's just that world doesn't usually intersect with hers. never mind how strange it is simply to have someone around who chatters freely, without any pressure or barbs cloaked in his words. she almost wants to tell him not to, anxious that the other tenants will hate her for the inconvenience. particularly those who already find her mere presence irritating. cough felix cough but if she insists too much, that will become annoying, too...
ugh. kindness is so much more complicated than cruelty. ]
If that's really okay... Do you think we should just prop it open with a brick? Would that be enough?
[ And with a third nail hammered through the center of the door frame, Dokja's work is complete. He didn't even have to lose a finger along the way, which is miraculous for who he is.
He steps down from the chair and sets aside the hammer before dusting off his hands of imaginary dust, then takes a moment to admire his handiwork. It's atrocious, completely makeshift in appearance, but it'll get the job done until this curse removes itself from Ruby. ]
A brick's a great idea.
[ They'll probably have some spare bricks laying around, too, what with the remodeling they've had to do with this place. ]
I'll go do that now, and if you need anything else, just let me know, okay?
[ He stands there, expression expectant, as he waits for her answer because he's starting to put together the pieces that make up Ruby and he's slowly learning that there's more to her than he'd initially read. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
... Um, like... this... [ although she just watched him do something, as soon as she tries to mimic the action, it's incomprehensible again. her trembling hand hovers at the doorknob, and then she draws it back to herself. ] ... I watched you. I-I don't know why I can't do it...
[ trying to explain any further is impossible. not because she couldn't put it in words, but because the words get stuck in her throat. as always, her instinct is to skip to the end: accept the blame and apologise. if she talks too much, he'll only interrupt her in the middle, and a half-finished explanation makes her look worse, sounds like she's making excuses...
she can try. at least that much. ]
It's like. When I look at the doorknob. I can't wrap my head around how it works. It doesn't make any sense to me.
[ this time, her eyes are burning with real tears, humiliated: god, she fucking hates this. hurriedly, she adds: ] It's okay, I can just stay put, I don't want to trouble anyone.
[ nothing in her voice or the way she cringes away from him, makes herself smaller, suggests that this is a passive aggressive ploy or guilt-trip. if anything, she seems desperately, urgently sincere. ]
no subject
They haven't known each other long, a kept distance that Dokja likes to maintain with others, but they've spoken to each other enough that he thinks a hint of familiarity rests between them. So when he slowly lifts a hand to place it gently atop her head, he hopes he isn't going too far. ]
If I say it enough times, you'll eventually have to believe me, right? You're not troubling anyone, especially not me.
[ His concerned gaze lingers on her for just a moment, questions behind his eyes at seeing her react in this way, but choosing not to voice them out loud. It's not his place to pry, only offer what solutions he can think of. ]
We'll leave this door open, but why don't we hang a blanket over the doorway for privacy?
no subject
That's... [ oh, her hiccups are gone. Come on, Ruby, get back in character. ] I-If you don't mind. It's not important if it doesn't work out, but I'd be really grateful...
[ at best, she would have thought—at best, Dokja might treat her with exasperated courtesy, the half-hearted kindness you would grant a child after a tantrum. but his touch is gentle, and his smile certainly seems sincere. he doesn't press the issue, nor does he storm out or dismiss her with callous disregard as Iske always did. though the hair on the back of her neck prickles from the physical contact... his hand on her head doesn't remind her of Cesare at all, either. ]
It's my problem, though, so please let me help you as well.
no subject
His hand slips away from the top of Ruby's head as he points a reassuring smile in her direction before turning to open the door. They'll have to prop it open, he thinks. For now, the blanket door. ]
Sure. Can you get me a chair from the kitchen, please?
[ There shouldn't be any doors in the way of that mission. ]
I'll get the blanket and something to hang it with.
[ I'm manifesting a supply closet in the general vicinity so Dokja can go there for these items. ]
no subject
[ it gives her a moment to breathe, standing in the kitchen alone; a moment to double over, lean on the counter with her face buried in her arms, inhale, exhale. get her shit together. he'd delegated an easy task that gave her the space to recoup, and she has to wonder how deliberate a decision it was. Dokja must be good with children—not that she particularly wants to be thought of as a child, but. however he sees her, it only matters that she can take advantage of it.
her character is rebuilt in a hurry, and when she returns with a chair, she's smiling as sunnily as ever, like nothing had ever happened. ]
Here we go! Did you find something to use?
no subject
Yeah, so. What Dokja had wanted was a bit along the lines of a rod to hang across the top of the doorway so that he could drape a blanket over it, but what he has in his hands is a hammer and some nails.
... It'll at least get the job done? ]
This should do it, don't you think so?
no subject
It will definitely work, but... Are you sure? [ what she's actually asking is: ] W-Will the others be angry with us?
[ she cannot even conceive of having the confidence to just casually nail a fucking blanket to a doorframe. ]
no subject
... It's 1/3 his building. If he wants to put holes in the walls, then he will put holes in the walls. ]
Don't worry about them. They won't mind.
[ Spoken like a man who does not care what the others might think. He'll go ahead and grab that chair so he can climb up on it, positioning one corner of the blanket against the frame so he can bash a nail through it. ]
But if they do say something, just tell them it was my idea.
no subject
[ actually she thinks they're just crazy, but. the end result is the same: they are definitely not as scared of Yoo Joonghyuk as she's sure they should be. ]
Ah, please be careful! [ there's nothing she can do to help, here, so she just has to hover nearby and put on a show of fretting for his safety. she doesn't really have that little faith in him; it's just good for her image. ] You mustn't hurt yourself!
no subject
I'll be fine.
[ Waves away her concern with his hand which is grasping a hammer. Thankfully, he maintains his hold on the tool and it does not go flying into heads or glass. He just returns to hammering a second nail into the door frame. ]
In the meantime, I'll have to let the others know to keep some of the doors open. We have the suite door, and the main entrance. Oh, we can't forget the communal laundry room either.
[ Just continues blabbering on while he works. ]
no subject
Wait, even the main entrance? I thought...
[ she trails off, but her furrowed brow speaks for itself: she still thought it would be enough to give her free rein of the building, and that his obligation would end there.
this is... not suspicious, exactly. of course kind people exist in the world; it's just that world doesn't usually intersect with hers. never mind how strange it is simply to have someone around who chatters freely, without any pressure or barbs cloaked in his words. she almost wants to tell him not to, anxious that the other tenants will hate her for the inconvenience. particularly those who already find her mere presence irritating.
cough felix coughbut if she insists too much, that will become annoying, too...ugh. kindness is so much more complicated than cruelty. ]
If that's really okay... Do you think we should just prop it open with a brick? Would that be enough?
no subject
He steps down from the chair and sets aside the hammer before dusting off his hands of imaginary dust, then takes a moment to admire his handiwork. It's atrocious, completely makeshift in appearance, but it'll get the job done until this curse removes itself from Ruby. ]
A brick's a great idea.
[ They'll probably have some spare bricks laying around, too, what with the remodeling they've had to do with this place. ]
I'll go do that now, and if you need anything else, just let me know, okay?
[ He stands there, expression expectant, as he waits for her answer because he's starting to put together the pieces that make up Ruby and he's slowly learning that there's more to her than he'd initially read. ]