Like a Distorted Mirror

The moment Quie started pushing against his hand, the young dragon's eyes widened for a moment as he tried to better adjust his arm a little. He couldn't particularly move it much, but it did help a little.

His hand would've been pushed quite a bit from this moment of disorientation. But not willing to back down from a challenge, and wanting to prove himself, the clone pushed his hand back with all that he could.

The dragon's eyes were no longer focused on Quie's, since they were instead focused on watching the arm wrestling. An enthusiastic smile was on his face though, which would then drop a bit as he would try to focus on stopping his hand getting pushed down.

But despite his efforts, and the back and forth there could have been, the clone's hand would eventually be the one that hits the table. Once that happened, he growled in frustration. It wasn't directed at Quie, more of a general irritation. In a way, he felt more annoyed at himself for failing. "I wasn't trying my best, let's do it again." The copy quickly looked back up at Quie, a competitive and determined look in his eyes.

The young dragon stared at his hand for a second as he flexed his fingers. It wouldn't really be a surprise to say that was the first time he used a bit more of his strength in a more focused way. Only after he'd let go of Quie's hand did he realise that, and it felt a bit strange for a moment. But, not in a bad way. But since he still burned with competitiveness, this pause only lasted a moment before he placed his arm on the table once more.

But he almost let his arm drop limp as Quie said they could only do one more. He hadn't realised he'd been enjoying the company, only when the disappointment hit him did it sink in. "You're leaving??? But..." The copy huffed, not finishing his sentence. He didn't want to admit that he had been enjoying this. The dragon still felt too prideful to admit such things. But, he clenched his jaw and looked Quie right in the eyes with a determined look. "Well, you better come back then!" He growled.

With that, he'd grip Quie's hand much firmer than he had before. The look he had in his eyes just said 'I won't be going easy this time'. His position meant he'd be a lot better, but he didn't anticipate Quie's tactic. The copy would fall right for it. As soon as they began, he would've started to push Quie's hand with all his strength. Quite predictably, he would tire much faster than Quie. As soon as he did, and Quie gradually increased her strength, he realised too late. By then, his hand would already be closer to the table. Struggled as he could, it would not be enough and he would lose the second round. "WHAT?! But... but I was using all I had!" His hand was now completely limp, his eyes wide. Shocked and irritated was the tone he carried. But once more, it wasn't particularly directed at Quie. It was just he was extraordinarily confused by how he could have possibly lost.

The dragon growled in frustration one more time before he listened to Quie's explanation begrudgingly. His goal for the foreseeable future had just become to beat Quie in an arm wrestling match, his pride dictated so. But he listened intently, as it would give him clues on what he should try next time. "Well, I'll definitely beat you next time for sure." He grumbled as he crossed his arms again. The young dragon had that sulking look again, so similar to Liun.

He quickly turned to look back at Quie to listen to what else she had to say. "I'm not lonely." He very quickly snapped. The copy would never admit that, not even to himself since he didn't believe he was lonely. But, in a way he was. Eventually he grumbled again. "Fine, could you come back?" His voice was quieter, as a part of him felt he shouldn't need to ask. He could just tell her to. But unconsciously, he didn't really want to get on Quie's bad side, and being stubborn with how he usually acted felt like it could get on her bad side.

The younger dragon would stand from where he had been seated, to look Quie in the eyes. Before he had a reaction of only vague interest as he looked at Quie, but now he looked at her with some respect.

He stared at her hand for only a moment before he took it in his own to shake her hand. “It was nice to meet you, I guess.” The copy looked a little off to the side, and almost sounded a little embarrassed. The stubborn teenager hadn’t existed long, and to admit he liked someone was not something he did often. “Maybe I’ll have a name you can call me by, by then.” He rubbed the back of his neck a little awkwardly.