London

[Bloodedge]

Ketchup she liked, so ketchup they would have. Ozzy looked out briefly to confirm there were bottles of said condiment upon some tables, and he did see quite a few. Good; he'd be selecting one of those tables then. Oh, how exciting! It wouldn't be long now. He could see a few prime choices for sitting, a small selection of tables that were decently separated from others, each with only two seats. Ah, what a perfect place this would be to step even further beyond the walls of reality. Speaking of reality, that was something soon to be in question by Nikki. Really? Did she really think this was her question to ask? Ridiculous! "Oi oi, hold the phone─" Ozzy insisted. His face tinted around the cheeks, and his eyes widened just slightly. "Shouldn't I be the one asking that? I said, didn't I? I oughta be dreaming right now, but leave me sleeping if I am! It can't be anything new for you to have lads throwing themselves at your feet. Wait... should I have done that? I should have done. Still could, really. Yeah..."

[Apollymi]

A very strange break in reality was happening here, Nikki was sure of it. She had answered his question and he was attentive, looking around, no doubt picking a place for them to sit and have their chips and speak quietly with one another. That would be fine. She'd already agreed to that, but still she was having trouble processing this situation. He seemed more surprised by her reaction than she could begin to understand. "No, no... I don't think you should, I'm the one surprised here..." she said it was really hard to explain all of this. Perhaps though if she walked him through it, he'd understand her disbelief a bit better. Was she used to lads throwing themselves at her... well, yes. That was simple enough. "Well, you're not wrong no. I get asked out at a pretty reasonable frequency. Flirted with while in queues and that sort of thing... Comments on some of my videos can get a bit aggressive too. I disabled my dms on Twitter a long time ago too, but you... you are something very different," she said giving this for a reason of knowing she was more than reasonably attractive. "And blimey you don't have to do anything more, to be fair... aside from me wondering if you exist outside of my own imagination, I'm madferit." she admitted almost sheepishly. Was there really a proper way to explain all of this to him? Well, that was probably something to think about, but, he was right. If this was simply a dream... she could definitely keep it.

[Bloodedge]

"No way! You're taking the piss, right? I'm starstruck, awestruck, and every other kind of struck right now, you've got no idea," said Ozzy. Sure, he was a bit more than the average obsessive fan, but there was no way he was the first, right? Blue Lotus had an incredible following built over a short time, far surpassing whatever he'd accumulated in his own mind. She was flirted with, asked out, approached aggressively and so-on, so her surprise here and now was completely unheard of. Maybe it was only the ugly ones who built up the nerve to approach her, leaving Ozzy as the only handsome moron doing the same? Yes, that seemed more sensible when considering her reaction.

How strange─ they were two likeminded individuals, neither believing this meeting could be possible in the real world... and yet, it was about as real as anything could be. A basket of chips was on the counter next to them, and Ozzy was reaching out to claim it; this was real. He really was guiding her by the hand, to the table most perfectly shaded while still offering a lovely sunlit view of the world around them. His heartbeat really was a few paces to fast, as it had been since he reached their convention booth, and even before doing so. And, of course, he really was compelled to chivalry by pulling out Nikki's chair. "You're not madferit. You're normal Nikki from Manchester, right? Let's have us a bang-up time, come to terms with the coma I'm definitely in, and all that good stuff~. Or should I pinch you? I can do that too, if you like~"

[Apollymi]

"No, I'm really not, mate. Really... I believe you though. I do have evidence to support your claims, you're still unreal," how did one explain how absolutely outrageous this whole situation was? He was really into her? He was gorgeous and he was seemingly more excited about her being a real person, than she was wondering about his existence as a real person. Moments like this didn't happen in real life right? But here he was, leading her by the hand towards a table, which had a nice little ambiance about it. He was pulling out her chair, he had a basket of chips for them to split. Everything about this was surprising. Yes, they were both alike when having the idea that this couldn't really be happening.

"Blimey, at this point it is less likely you're in a coma and more likely I'm dreaming..." she said as she took her seat. "Great looking guy, only interested in video games, archaeology, fashion and me, is my biggest fan... supportive of my dreams even before I noticed, charming... really great looking, did I mention that? Doesn't even notice anyone else paying attention to him, seems like I'm the center of his world?" she asked looking at him most quizzically. "It seems about guaranteed I made you up. I remember making a list like that when I was young, with my mates... you know the kind of guy you want to marry. But things like that are just dreams right? Those sorts of people don't actually exist, so really, this is just as shocking for me as it is for you, Ozzy from Blackpool..." she said. A lot of guys asked her out. Not all of them were hideous or anything, but most weren't all things she was looking for. It was as if the universe had plucked this man from her dreams and made him real and then set her up to run into him. And that was about as outlandish as one thing could be. "Still I'm not sure about that pinch. Might ask later. If I'm actually dreaming I'd be mad not to enjoy it first."

[Bloodedge]

"That's the crazy part! I've barely even said a thing as of yet. Seriously, you should see my internet history; I've been hoping for..." Oh, perhaps honesty and saying too much were not necessarily one and the same. Midway through his next admission, Ozzy decided to... tactfully shut his stupid mouth before saying something far too outrageous for a first meeting with anyone. "Right, not important. Anyway, that all pretty much sums me up. How'd you know I was into archaeology? Rare that I even open my mouth about that," he said to alter the subject as quickly as possible. Truthfully enough, Ozzy wasn't totally verbal about his interests outside of games, fashion and Blue Lotus. He did like a fair number of archaeological tweets here and there, and even follow a few accounts related to them, but that was about it outside of university. "You did mention, by the way. Glad you think I'm charming and good-looking and all, but if I think too much about you saying that, I might go mental."

Talking about going mental, the description Nikki had for him was about as ridiculous a claim as things could get. Thus far, it seemed she was claiming him to be as close to perfect as he viewed her. The way she said it, as well... did he hear that properly? Well, that was certainly something worth poking at while he seated himself, reaching into the basket for the first of many chips. "Easy now. I do exist, but you're already talking about marriage material? I think it might be a good idea to make a pit stop at snogging first, and I thought that was supposed to be a skip. You really are havin' a go," he joked just after ripping that first slice of incredibly-seasoned potato in half with his chompers.

[Apollymi]

Oh? She should see his internet history? Hm, she wondered what a man's internet history looked like... well not really. But based on their topics of conversation there were always more than a few ideas floating around. Strangely, he was rather quick to change the subject, and Nikki couldn't help but laugh about it. Oh, how did she know about his interest in archaeology? Well, she supposed it was now her turn to look a bit like a stalker. "I might have been coming to the end of my deep dive into your social media presence when you crept up on me earlier..." she said with the grace to look embarrassed. "In my defense, I was a bit curious and I'm a girl so I went a little mental when I started looking. I had to be prepared for anything..." she said knowing that it was only partially an excuse. Of course, there was also the fact that eventually she'd just become interested and after figuring out that she didn't dislike anything she'd seen, she went looking for the catch, she still hadn't found it yet.

Aww, he even managed to seem a bit surprised by what she had to say about him. By his own words, he did notice compliments, but only paid special attention when they came from her? He was becoming more perfect by the second. What was wrong? What was missing? "Oops, well... blimey, I go from having a stalker to sounding like I've Stockholm syndrome..." she tilted her head left and reached for a chip, she'd stuff her face and forget for at least a few seconds that she was beyond embarrassed. "Woah, these are brilliant..." she said after her first bite. The next one would be dipped in ketchup, but she always liked to try things first. These really might have been the best chips in London. She would definitely be taking note of this place for a couple of other meals while she was in the city. As for the snogging, she was beginning to wonder when that would actually pop up. She wasn't at all against it as an idea... and after looking though his catalogue of thirst trap pictures she was almost certain he wasn't lacking in any department. That is what made the situation so very shocking. "Oh please, I'm not having a go... also I only postponed the snogging and skipped on the slapping. There's an order to respect and all~" she teased in return. Yep, she was still flirting with this man, but now she was eating and chatting. Oh, and sitting across from him stealing glances at those golden eyes of his. This was madness and she was going to fall right into it, without question.

[Bloodedge]

There was a reason Nikki knew of his less obvious interest, and it was directly connected to what she'd been doing when they met earlier this day. She hadn't simply been looking at his pictures─ she went through much more information than that. Her reason for doing so was incredibly sound; he couldn't fault her for it at all. "That's proper careful of you. Careful who you work with, and all that. Makes sense of how I managed to not run you off with that terrible intro." Another chip, another extensive glance in Nikki's direction, and an ear constantly opened. These were constants while he sat at this small table, across from Nikki herself. Until recently, there was hardly a thing he offered so much of his attention to outside of her videos and updates. Now, though, he had the real thing sitting right in front of him. Incredible!

Apparently, Nikki thought she'd gone from being staled to having Stockholm's Syndrome. If he was the one involved, Ozzy didn't think such a thing was negative at all. Actually, it was an absolute win for him! "Oi, you telling me I Stockholmed you? Lucky me~" he said, only to hesitate in the very next moment. "I should probably say outright, that I'm not trying to force myself on you in any way. Well... not in any physical way. Well... not like that, you know?" His spirits seemed to be rather high as he crunched one chip after another, some with ketchup, some without. Nikki seemed to enjoy them as well, which was good. "Aren't they? I came here first day, and I swore this place existed just to fat me. Anyway, if there's an order, I need informing. I'm not about to lie and say I have any idea what I'm doing; I'm going mad just thinking we're sitting at the same table!"

[Apollymi]

Apparently, Ozzy didn't take personal offense to her deep dive into his internet life. A chuckle escaped the lass at that, it was such an uncommon reaction. He really didn't get it, he was the nice guy, 'nice guys' claimed they were being. "Ah, well... I am not super easy to run off anyways. But mostly it wasn't even about the work part. I found out how much you appeared on my YouTube and then with the analytics noticed that we'd never interacted. We are on this panel together, so I was mostly trying not to be potentially blind-sided. Then I started peeking around and noted some of our shared interests so, I got curious. And down the proverbial rabbit hole I went," she explained of her early search and her lack of distrust at their initial meeting. Though she had been a bit shocked that she'd been caught she was definitely harboring a small bit of curiosity as it stood. "Oh, and your intro was great. Very different from the norm... and pretty spot on considering you're actually a huge fan," she said with a smile. All the while she ate more chips and found herself stealing a glance or two. This man really was gorgeous. She could sit across from him all day.

He seemed really excited by the idea that she might like him back. It was kind of adorable really. It was a bit surprising still that a man this gorgeous was interested in her specifically. It was also pretty sweet that he was going out of his way to not sound like a total creeper the entire time, even realizing how badly somethings could be taken, whether she saw them that way herself or not. "Teheahahahaha~ It's fine Ozzy. I definitely wouldn't have agreed to tea if you came off as a proper creeper. Besides I am considering myself pretty lucky today~" she mused. Had another few chips and heard out this man about this shop and how great the chips were. "Hm, if this place is how I get fatted, I don't think I'd mind too much," she started. At this point, he was admitting he was just happy to be in her presence. Like a kid at Christmas, and he just got to meet real Santa. "Blimey, you're doing wonders for my self-esteem. I'll keep track of the order of things, it's only fair~" she teased gently. Oh this man was going to be the death of her... his level of infatuation was infectious.

[Bloodedge]

"Yeah, that's pretty obvious. I remember that one sponsor you had, what was it... that pick-me-up drink company? Those lot were kinda sus, but you always seem pretty good about seeing just past the surface everybody else is looking at. Probably why you're such a great designer, innit?" Ozzy nearly went on a bit of a tangent when he started addressing factoids about Nikoleta. Luckily, he managed to once again shut up before talking too much. He wished he could have done the same when introducing himself, but according to Nikki, his introduction was fine, even unique. Of course, there was also the brief mention of their shared interests, which he knew fashion to be one of, but... there was always the wonder. "I wonder if the list goes on," he mused at random.

Lucky for him, Nikki believing he was a creep would have been a deterrent to her joining him on this little outing. She even referred to herself as 'lucky' today, for whatever reason. Did that have something to do with him? He could, and would, certainly hope so. "You're lucky? Come off it; I can't hear a thing about anybody else's luck today. I've hit one jackpot after another since having a wash, and I've not had a proper breakfast until just now." They would agree that a bit of gained weight from chips like these would be nothing to rage over. Ozzy himself could put on several kilos without a single complaint, so long as he could keep eating at this place. "You can say that twice. I heard the burgers are great here too! Fancy coming along to try a pair later? I mean, we've got a whole week being here in London. If you wouldn't mind, we both know I'm all for it. One more excuse to sit across from you for twenty minutes~"

[Apollymi]

Ozzy was full of random information, a great deal of it about Nikki's career. What was this, he was referencing her dealings with a kind of sketchy drink company? Her eyes widened and she paused right after finishing a chip. "Whoa?! People actually remember that... it was so long ago..." she said seemingly shocked. She knew the lad was on board all the way back at the beginning of her watchlist but most of her own fans wouldn't have remembered that event. "I still have boxes of that stuff shipped to me on an off. It was pretty good though. Got me through finals at the time~" she mused finding that whole thing so surreal. As for seeing past such an initial thing and making a deal being one of the things to make her a good designer she found herself being bashful. "Oh? Well... I think I'm pretty decent. Not taking everything at face value is pretty reasonable. You can't develop your eye or even your own style brushing over things," she said seeming to feel pretty firmly about it. "At least that's how I think about it," she mentioned. She wondered how much effort this man put in to look at her work that he knew about something so random as a drink deal. Whatever the case, there was also their shared interests. "Oh, yeah... I am also into archaeology, mostly from a standpoint of ancient design but still it's part of my favorite things to look at. And video games. Though I am pretty sure I'd be bloody boring to watch in a stream or something like that I do actually enjoy playing anything with creative options, building character, houses, that sort of thing... my Sims Custom Content folder is ridiculous," she said of her own personal interests.

Apparently she wasn't believed when she mentioned being lucky. She supposed it'd be a bit harder to understand from a girl's perspective, but this whole meeting could have been much more uncomfortable and it could have ruined her whole week. Right just now, she was feeling pretty hopeful for future encounters between them and felt pretty comfortable with the idea of him being her number one fan. "I don't know, I've been just as lucky since my video went live, it's pretty fair. Met my number one fan, he isn't a psycho... and he bought me breakfast. I was running late today... almost missed the car," she mentioned. She'd been editing her video to make sure it would go live on-time. Such activities were always draining and rewarding at once. As they talked and ate, Ozzy claimed this place seemed to have good burgers and asked if she wanted along some other time to try them. A grin spread across her face in this moment, his words were utterly flattering. "Oh? Well, I wouldn't mind having another bite. I do enjoy your company... but you're quite right. We've got a whole week here, you're sure after spending multiple full work days sitting side by side you're not gonna drain your social battery with overexposure?" she teased him gently. Knowing how excited he'd been to meet her, she almost couldn't question his desire to spend time with her, and that was refreshing.

[Bloodedge]

"It wasn't that long ago. Not as far as your video sponsors go, at least," Ozzy mentioned, having a decent memory of her advertisements over the online portion of her blossoming career. Speaking of that particular sponsor, he'd given it a try several months ago. It was actually a decent product, and now that he thought about it, there wasn't a bad sponsor associated with Blue Lotus that he could recall. "Actually, you're pretty good at picking stuff in general, not just fashion-related. You never seem to take any random sponsor either, which is pretty rare for people trying to make a name for themselves. It's honestly hard to see someone respectable enough to avoid the easy route."

Did he hear that properly? She said she was into archaeology and video games as well; now that was news to him. "Bloody hell," he said in shock. Mention of The Sims was almost laughable. From just that, he imagined they could have a single conversation drag on all day, and never see the end of it due to how many things there were to address. "Don't even start! You could be a gamer on stream, and you'd do a bang-up job of it too! Lots of people love to watch build videos, whether it's Sims or Minecraft. I had to stop playing Sims on my channel a while back, all because the stream would go on until I passed out in front of my chat. Same thing happened last year when No Man's Sky got popular again..." Ah, the memories. More importantly, there was conjecture. Ozzy was mentally checked-out, already living out a fantastical future in which Nikki and himself could enjoy each other's company playing video games, streaming cooperatively, shopping and showcasing new would-be trendy outfits, and so on. If he was dreaming up this date, then he was also presently suffering inception. Oh well; maybe doing so would lock him in properly, so he could never go back to that terrible, Nikoletaless life. Oh. Damn. She was talking about her luck just now, huh? He heard her, but... he was a bit late on the response, despite the fact that he was unabashedly staring a hole in her face while that stupid, absent smile remained plastered on his own. "... Sorry. Went a bit silent for a bit there, didn't I? I was... sort of... daydreaming. I heard everything you said, I just sorta skipped ahead mentally to the part of this dream where we're married and like... well, you know. Life. The short of it is, if I could be overexposed when it comes to you... trust me luv, I'd have done that to myself ages ago."

[Apollymi]

"Considering the contingency on staying relevant, it was ages ago~" she mused. This was quite true, one could go from the most important and highest streamed and watched to almost no one in a matter of a week with the wrong step. As such having any fans from earlier times in her work was rare, even for someone like Nikki. What was more, Ozzy went on to compliment her ability to pick things, she couldn't help but chuckle. "I didn't know being picky could be counted as a favorable personality trait. To be honest, I just don't back anything I don't try and like. I also don't really want anything backing me if I don't like it either, I can tell a lot about the company by the sorts of reps they send to talk to me, so that is where it usually starts. Well, that and some deep dives on the internet. If I'm going to build my name the way I want... I don't want to regret anything or anyone attached to it. That's all," she mentioned. Her own form of branding went this way.

As they moved beyond that point in their conversation, it seemed that her mention of their other shared interests was enough to spark some extra conversation. Apparently Ozzy also enjoyed the kinds of games she did, and claimed that she'd be good at making them as content. "Blimey that's a lot of faith. I can't imagine falling asleep on a stream though, must have been an all day event~" she mused. Whatever this game called No Man's Sky was, she'd never heard of it, but if it had build potential she might look into it a bit. After all, she had basically a week with pre-recorded content up, she might as well have a pretty good time in her hotel room. Hm, soon after she'd said several things but Ozzy had been pretty quiet, by the time she looked up from her fries she found him staring at her face with an expression most vacant. But he soon recovered enough to speak... He made the claim that he'd been daydreaming about the future of the pair of them. Her eyes widened. He'd taking a bit of a jab earlier and now he was admitting to being just as outlandishly focused as she had been in the moments before. "Blimey, I thought I lost you for a second there..." she said with a bit of a smirk. He imagined them married and enjoying a life together? Did he have any idea how outlandish that was as a thing to hear from an attractive man without associated psychotic tendencies? "Well, as long as you won't be overexposed, I wouldn't mind spending the rest of this time getting to know you... and who knows," she said as she picked up her last chip. "Maybe we can walk you out of this daydreaming phase and into the living one. This really isn't a dream you know?~" she gently teased. Actually, she could see herself liking this man far beyond their 'working' relationship. Beyond all of that, his interest in her was refreshing and after chatting with him quite a bit, she could see that he was quite beyond the first few levels of her scrutiny anyway.

[Bloodedge]

"Sure, guess I can't really disagree with that. Just trying to make it less awkward, but I'm guessing that's not so necessary~" Ozzy said while waving a chip about in the air, prior to throwing it into his mouth. He had another victory to count today. As of these last few moments, he'd learned more about Nikki, whom he could be called the leading expert on as things were already. This wasn't the same, though; this was a more personal conversation than he could have ever imagined himself having. It was such a good feeling though, going beyond existing knowledge and any would-be scripted speeches based on prior information. Behind it all, they were two people just having a conversation... though Ozzy remained the likes of a lovestruck teen regardless of how the picture was painted.

"It wasn't much of an event, really. I just get that into building stuff, so the stream went on too long. That's why I went to doing it in my free time; nobody needs to see me passed out and drooling all over myself on camera. Not good for appearances, that," he said in a lighthearted manner. Ozzy was back in the realm of the living now, though just slightly lost to the world still. It would take some doing to convince him this was all completely real, but that didn't matter, considering how much he wanted to believe it. "Dream or real, I ain't backing down. Besides, there's no way I've gone mad now; that's the second or third time marriage popped up, and you've not said a thing against it. If nothing else, that says I've got a pretty good chance of not just being some bloke. Heading back then?"

[Apollymi]

Just trying to keep the conversation from being awkward. He had no idea how very comfortable Nikki was in the current moment. She'd been sitting, eating and even chatting about her personal interests for quite a long while without real fear of backlash. That was a level of comfort young women in her position didn't normally get. He had no idea, how many points were in his favor at present that he hadn't pressed her about the sorts of video games she liked. Claimed the ones she played took no skills nor accused her of being a 'gamer girl' all things which had happened with the last few blokes who'd made it to a simple date stage. "Hm, compared to how my last say 10 dates have gone. I'd say you are the least awkward person I've shared a bite with in a while... Not to mention being surprisingly easy to talk to. No need to worry so much~" she mused, willing to share that much about his current abilities as far as general conversation were concerned.

"Really?! Just so distracted by building things you fell asleep? Wicked!" she seemed amused and she was. She thought she was the only person who did stuff like that. "I'm sure the look was fine..." she mentioned not seeming to think of a way in which the man wouldn't look gorgeous. Besides all of that he claimed he wouldn't be backing down anytime soon. A happy chuckle came from Nikki in this moment as he truly had no real idea. "Definitely not just some bloke, but I knew that by the time I finished scanning your Twitter... talking to you just confirmed it," she mentioned fairly honestly. She still wasn't sure if there was some sort of catch, but over the surrealness of this meal, she was almost certain this man was just really normal and basically custom made to her liking. Even she wasn't one to turn down a gift from the universe, especially not after scrutinizing him the way she had. "Yeah, it's about that time... and I still have to get changed. Apparently, I'm doing a live character reveal... that's why the ears are Limited Edition by the way, the custom for the character," she said playfully. Tea had been fun, but it was time to get to the show at hand.

[Bloodedge]

As it seemed, things were much more in Ozzy's favor than he could have realized. The previous ten or so dates Nikki had been on, were all allegedly more awkward than he was managing to be. To this, he had only one thing to say. "Wow. Those guys must've been rubbish," he stated with an unusual amount of seriousness in the claim. Surely those ten or so others had to be morons of some sort, or... maybe they weren't; maybe they were just worse than Ozzy when it came to being nervous wrecks in this woman's presence. Whatever the case, he was winning, and that was the important thing! Eyes on the prey, not the horizon! Something along those lines was what Ozzy had to keep telling himself, lest he become too engrossed in the fantasy of Nikoleta, and lose his grasp on the potential reality in his immediate future.

Speaking of the immediate future, there was a convention ahead of them. They had at least the whole week to talk about their similar gaming habits, life experiences, the incredible life they could have together, and so on. Yes, all of those things were worth addressing! First though, Nikki had to be back in time to redress as her character from the upcoming manga. "Live reveal, huh? I had one of those on release day last year. We've got to get you sorted right away then!" he said, knowing the appearance of Nikki's character was unknown even to him, despite there being some sort of connection between the two. Rising from his chair and extending his hand once more, he gave consideration to something particular. "I've got my costume here again as well. Am I meant to put that on? Do you have an idea how our characters are related?"