Does this count as a date?

Sebastian peered through the doorway that Maria was now holding open. The noise from inside was a bit unnerving. There were so few people, yet the noise had already been audible down the hallway. His sharp senses only made each conversation clearer. As he walked through the door, he swivelled his ears to pick up individual conversations. Some of the girls in the corner were complaining about the amount of homework given. A group of nearby boys chatted about a new bratty student who had recently joined the academy. Realizing that it was probably his younger sister that they were describing, he focused back to Maria who was in search of a seat.

As she set down her belongings she instructed him to remove his valuables from his bag and to place his stuff on a particular seat. There were seats in better locations from what he could tell. This one seemed to be a rather lengthy distance from the service area. He pondered the possibilities for the seat selection to himself. Are we expecting more people? Are the other seats too close to a garbage can? No he senses wouldn't be as sensitive. Perhaps she has a fondness for a specific location in this room. The uncertainty bothered him.

He grabbed his phone from the front pouch and slipped it into the pocket of his pants. Quickly he gave the opposite pocket a pat to ensure his wallet's place. As they moved towards the line he decided to get an answer for her actions. If he wanted to understand the school system, he was better off asking than finding out the hard way. You seem to have chosen a relatively specific area to sit. Why is that? The question seemed impossibly simple minded. Embarrassed he turned his head away to hide the blush that had formed across his cheek. He kept his gaze on the corner where the roof and wall. Sebastian hoped she would think he was merely interested in something across the room despite how clearly his ears displayed his discomfort.


(OOC: I thought I had pressed reply..... I guess I didn't actually finish the process...)

The answer had indeed been obvious. Maria explained the choice thoroughly to him before asking if he was now ready to join the line. Somehow the explanation only seemed to embarrass him more. Sebastian kept his gaze away from maria but his ears flattened in shame and the pace in which his tail swung slowed. Yes, I think I'm prepared. Despite the change of emotion being evident in his ears and tail, his feet continued toward the food at a steady pace.

He sniffed the air to sense what food was available. The academy was quite large and appeared to be of a higher status school. It would only make sense that the food was high quality.

He took in the smell of seasoned vegetables, a variety of soups, pizza and dessert. The desert caught his nose most. The fresh berries and the cream cheese icing on top of a moist vanilla cake beckoned him forward. Sebastian continued to sniff the air to follow the scent to the source. He glanced around the shelving unit to find the desert with the best berries. Although his sense of scent was strong, the selection of a desert required his vision as well. His mother had once told him that a desert must look as good as it tastes. Even though he was uncertain that her words were true, he couldn't help but be reminded of those words. Reaching in, he found the desert that both looked and smelled amazing.

Looking back at maria, he decided that he had best grab a second option as well. It would probably be strange if he only ate dessert. He sniffed the air quickly to help him decide. Many of the meals were of the same calibre of the desert. With so many options he couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. I'll have to come back later and take a look at the menu options.

Not wanting to keep maria waiting any longer he ordered a piece of pizza with a variety of vegetables. The pizza smelled of basil, bell peppers and asparagus.

What are you having for lunch? Sebastian asked as he rejoined Maria. It seemed like the most logical question but still felt rather mechanical.

Sebastian watched as maria made through the crowd. Others pushed past him and briefly blocked his view. Shifting onto his toes he peered over the heads of the other students.

Being the gentleman he was, he waited for the crowd to leave a large enough gap that he could squeeze through without pushing through the others. He eyed each gap between people but realized that since every person was moving at a different speed, he was unlikely to time himself properly.

Mentally, he coached himself. Just push through. It won't be that bad. Everyone else appears to be using some form of muscle to make their way through. Just don't knock anyone over. Try not to hit the food on people. Definitely don't let the food drop or splatter on someone. That would simply be disastrous. As he took the first few steps forward he clutched the food close to himself. His tail was clinging closely to his legs and his ears flicked back and forth anxiously. The large number of people was overwhelming.

As he stepped through in small steps, people seemed to stare at him with puzzled looks. Apparently the awkward side shuffle he was currently using to pas through the crowd was not considered normal. As more people began to stare, the speed of the crowd seemed to slow and the gap between him and other students seemed to widen. He now possessed a large circle of free space around himself.

Taking the opportunity, he quickly passed through the group and made his way to Maria. His heart was pounding and his tail was now standing on end. After placing the food onto the table, he gave his tail a few stokes to law the fur flat once more.