Alone At Last - Or Not Quite?

"Go to the party, they said. It will be fun, they said."

"Fun" could not be more the opposite of what Purity was feeling at that moment.

Winter's darkness had set over the city, and nighttime is quite often the time for parties. This particular party was smaller-scale than several others you might find going on at the time - a small social gathering for performers of all different kinds to come together to meet, socialize and bond over their crafts. Purity had been told about it by someone online, and advised that perhaps he should go - he might have fun!

"Fun."

Purity muttered the word to himself as he sat hunched in his solitary corner, chewing vigorously at his lip and clenching his fists. He had gone to this party thinking that perhaps it really would be fun - a smaller scale gathering like that should be just his type, right? Unfortunately not. He was already about to have a nervous breakdown, just like he'd feared he might. Being around even this many people was just not his forte, and all he wanted was to be out.

And so, out he went. Finally snapping and not caring whether or not anyone noticed, he practically fled the room and headed out a nearby door. All he needed was a quiet room - someplace he could be alone and gather his bearings. The party was being held in a fairly expansive building, and thus he soon found refuge in a solitary room off to the right. Entering fast, he collapsed into a chair and took several deep breaths, slowly calming himself down. At last, he was alone, and could gather his bearings. Or so he thought - until he heard footsteps coming down the hall outside.

Was someone coming?

@Keen

Purity waited with suspense, and with increasing terror, as the sound of someone approaching grew closer, and at last someone entered the room. Exactly what he'd hoped wouldn't happen. A shudder ran through his body as he looked at them, even though there was really nothing about them to shudder at - he was simply afraid of everyone and everything.

It appeared at a glance that the person might be upset? So perhaps they were looking for refuge just like he was. As soon as the person said they didn't mean to disturb, he felt apologetic - he didn't want anyone to feel like they were a disturbance on his behalf. As such, he shook his head and let out a small squeak before finally formulating some words.

"N-No! Oh - Oh dear... It's o-okay. Y-You're no disturbing m-me."

The thought of actually carrying on a conversation with someone was, as usual, terrifying. However, he did feel he owed it to this person to be at least somewhat friendly. As such, he took a deep breath, and then continued.

"I-I'm Purity... Purity Oseiru. And you are?"

Purity nodded slowly, attempting desperately to control his breathing as the other person stayed their name. Ade... it had a rather nice sound to it, and he liked it. He wondered for a moment if he should tell her that, but the thought of speaking up about something like that was terrifying to him. Nevertheless, though, he let it out as a very low-spoken murmur.

"I... I l-like your n-name..."

Nervous laughter escaped him when she asked her question. She was right, of course - he hadn't been able to stand the company at all. It felt strange admitting it, but he did it anyway, staring off to the side and wringing his hands as he did so.

"Y-Yeah... I c-came here h-hoping to socialize a l-little... b-but... I d-don't know. People r-really aren't my s-strong point." A small, sheepish smile came over him as he looked more in Ade's direction. "Y-You too?"