abel, come on, give me the keys, man.

[ruffrabbits]

[ one of his few requests that had been honored is off-campus housing. probably, his parents thought it was for the better. keep the sick away from the well and all that. noiz is just pleased that he can make some space his own, rather than deal with a roommate he'd probably have to either tolerate or drive away.

the apartment's floorspace isn't impressive on paper, especially not compared to the family "home", but that's fine. all he needs is room to set up his computers and lie down to sleep. his luggage supports that: one duffel bag with his clothes, personal items, and the few things he keeps in hard copy, and five large boxes of computers, monitors, and cables. he's having his largest monitor delivered separately.

he pulls the emergency stop on the elevator so he can carry all of his boxes in from the car up to the third floor in one trip. his current driver helps, probably on orders from the head of staff. don't let the eldest son fuck himself up any more than he already has, he probably said. something like that. noiz rides the elevator up alone, tonguing a cut on the inside of his mouth.

apartment number 304. after he gets to the door, he just unlocks and opens it, then turns back. he'd left the elevator on emergency stop again so he can haul his boxes in. though he can't feel most of the strain, there's a twinge of a stretch in his elbow joints when he moves too quickly, so he only brings one at a time. this means leaving the door to his new apartment ajar for about fifteen minutes, at this pace, but any risk is less important than the convenience. ]

Comments

sorry for the delay!

[hairdressing]

[ koujaku suspects that the off-campus housing has a lot to do with assuming that noiz will cause less trouble if he's not shoved into a tiny dormitory or university-assigned apartment with strangers. he understands that, thinks it's a good idea, but he's also already aware that putting him in the apartment without telling noiz about it at all won't go well. he knows it, he's expecting it, and he's been hanging around in the smaller of the two bedrooms for a couple of hours now, waiting for the inevitable confrontation.

when the door opens, koujaku's gaze shifts from the screen of his phone to the bedroom door as he listens. and when he hears nothing, he gives in and pushes himself up to see if noiz needs help with anything.

he finds the door open and nothing but a box inside so far. a peek into the hallway provides the rest of the picture - koujaku sees noiz heading back toward the stopped elevator to retrieve more. the process earns a shake of his head as he steps out into the hallway, watching noiz for a few seconds before he speaks up. ]

You should let me do that while you start unpacking things. [ the box moving will likely be enough of a distraction to keep any exchanges they're bound to have at bay until they're back inside the apartment together. ]

[ruffrabbits]

[ first, he just figures it's some other occupant of the apartment building waiting for the elevator (or here to yell at him about the elevator). the offer the stranger gives earns a second look, and then a third of increased intensity. ]

I didn't hire moving help.

[ there's someone who may have, however. or multiple people. ]

How much did my parents pay you?

[ noiz is still holding a box in his arms, but makes no move to put it down, just stands in place and gives the man a blatant once-over, trying to pick up details of who he is. noiz himself is wearing his old battered beanie, a thick jacket despite the warm weather, and equally worn sweats over leggings and sneakers—layers that are making him sweat slightly, but of course it's a discomfort he can't feel. ]

[hairdressing]

[ the looks he gets make it clear that noiz really has no idea what he's there for, which is proven by the statement he makes. koujaku sighs, more to himself than at what he's asked, and moves toward noiz to offer a hand.

he's dressed casually - something requested by noiz's parents since it seems his kimono and the sword he prefers to keep stand out a little too much - enough that he could pass for another student, possibly someone working on a later degree. so perhaps it's understandable that noiz's mind doesn't immediately jump to security. ]

I'm not moving help. I'm here to keep an eye on you.

[ may as well get it out of the way now. koujaku reaches for the box noiz is holding. ]

But I'll help if you need it.

[ruffrabbits]

[ noiz still refuses to pass the box over at first, still looking the man over. he's not even surprised that his parents hired someone to watch him. of course they don't trust him. of course they still think they can control him. ]

You didn't look like you'd be very good moving help.

[ he hands the box over after that, nearly shoving it at the man. it's heavy for its size, packed full of metal. noiz turns back to get his other things without another word, but he's already thinking about how he can get this man's identity and get him to leave—or at least leave him alone. ]

[hairdressing]

[ the retort makes koujaku roll his eyes, but it's not enough to rile him up yet. he's hot-headed, he has his moments, but he's not willing to let one comment get him to a point of arguing just yet. not when he's supposed to be keeping an eye on noiz.

he accepts the box with no fuss and it's heavier than he's expecting, but not heavy enough to make koujaku stumble with it. he heads back to the apartment to deposit the box inside then exits once more to help noiz with the rest of it, not planning to leave him to do things on his own. ]

[ruffrabbits]

[ noiz heads back to get his remaining boxes. the other ones he can stack up and carry two at once, bring them back toward his room. they're certainly heavy, but he can't tell. finally he lets the elevator go from its "emergency" stop and takes the final trek back toward his new room, ignoring koujaku if he comes forward. ]

[hairdressing]

[ he moves to help, tries to help, but noiz ignores him and he's left watching him walk by with the last of the boxes. he hasn't been hired to help him move, no. but it seems stupid to leave him to do everything on his own when the boxes are heavy enough that he should get help.

with a sigh, he follows noiz back to the apartment to close the door behind the two of them. ]

Do you want some help unpacking all of these?

[ruffrabbits]

[ noiz would rather not have anyone going through his things that isn't him. he narrows his eyes briefly at his new "bodyguard". ]

No. Get out of my way.

[ he needs to set up his computers, and perhaps take over the room that he guesses his guard is supposed to sleep in. ]

[hairdressing]

[ the refusal is hardly surprising, but koujaku doesn't feel like it's something worth arguing about. it's not like he knows how to deal with any of the equipment brought in anyway.

so he rolls his eyes and steps away from noiz to leave him to what he's doing. ]

if you need me for anything, just say so.

[ruffrabbits]

[ noiz says nothing. figures, that his family doesn't trust him. he knew that already. but he didn't think they'd actually hire someone to live with him. surveillance from a distance, he could've accepted (and twisted to his own use).

but no way is he going to spend all his waking and sleeping hours with this guy. noiz hauls his personal boxes into one bedroom, then moves his computer boxes to the other. any personal items he sees are swiftly picked up and tossed out into the hallway. ]