Etiquette
Eduard heard the door open and once more he considered what he would say. The footfalls told him (thankfully) that it was not Natalia. It was (thankfully?) Sadiq. Having already told himself he would not be paranoid about this, Eduard felt himself already reneging on that self-promise. Doing so was less difficult. Was he the type of person to take the simple way out?
...sometimes.
"Welcome back," he responded as he at the very least usually did. It was beyond that point that was difficult for him.
"Thanks." Sadiq sounded rather defeated, surprisingly. Eduard did not think he had ever heard him not sounding certain about one thing or another. With a frown, he walked into the setting room where he had heard the footsteps go. Sadiq was sitting in one of the armchairs, a bag set in front of him on the table.
"Did... the rehearsal go badly?" It seemed like a really stupid question, but Eduard had to ask. Sadiq looked up at him (or Eduard assumed so, as he could never see Sadiq's eyes from under his hat) with a rather wry grin.
"Well, we lost both grooms eventually. I've been to better." With that he shrugged, rummaging through his bag and pulling out a bouquet of carnations. "Here you go."
"Ah... thank you," Eduard managed, surprised as he took the flowers. What came to mind was that there were a few too many at the hall and Sadiq had cleared it out. Which was sensible and therefore Eduard appreciated it. However, the action did knock something else into Eduard's head. That he had done so many online and phone interactions lately that he had lost his manners in dealing with personal meetings.
The paranoia had only little to do with it. He was better than this.
That was definitely embarrassing.
"Will the wedding even run through?" Eduard asked, sitting on the couch, looking left at Sadiq. Saying smoothly also seemed stupid, so he left it out of the sentence.
"I knew there was a reason Lovino insisted that the rehearsal be today instead of Friday," Sadiq nodded, leaning back in his seat. "I'm not too worried about them, they're likely to figure it out. The wedding'll happen. I'm not so certain about afterward, but that is not any of our business."
Eduard considered him critically. "If that does not bother you so much, why are you in such low spirits?"
Exhaling a sigh, Sadiq chuckled. "Ya got me. Nah... it's not the rehearsal that bothers me. I just saw Heracles today. Again he made me want to... ah, there's no helping it."
"You both almost jump at the opportunity to insult each other," Eduard commented. Strange, it was really easy to talk with Sadiq, now that he let himself try. "Am I mistaken in thinking you have made this a habit? After so long, most people would be forcing themselves to keep this up. It does not seem natural."
"Habit?" Sadiq questioned, rubbing his chin with his right hand. "I suppose so. Probably doesn't help that I usually yell at a cardboard standup I have o' him ta alleviate my stress. Makes me feel better, but probably makes it habit to do to the real thing."
Eduard stared. Cardboard... standup? He yelled at a cardboard standup. Of Heracles.
"...what's wrong? Eduard?"
He could not help it. Eduard burst out into laughter, bent over his knees and face practically shoved into the flowers he was still holding.
"Oi! What are ya..." Sadiq stopped, still (seemingly) staring at him.
"But that's stupid!" Eduard snickered, trying so hard to stop laughing. That was not something real people did! That was something silly that someone would write in a book, or for a show or movie. Who actually went through the trouble to get a cardboard standup of someone just to yell at them? Was a picture on the wall not good enough?
Managing to stifle his laughter, he glanced back at Sadiq, who was now grinning. "Yeah. I suppose that's absolutely ridiculous huh? I figured he started it, but..." Sadiq started chuckling again. "Oh, yes! That is about one of the stupidest things I have ever said!"
Both of them collapsed into laughter and later Eduard would consider how easily it had been to become friends with the salesman.
Notes:
Turkish gift giving: flowers are an a-okay. Estonian gift giving: it is okay to give an odd number of flowers, but not an even number. On another note which does not even matter here, it Estonia you open the gift immediately while in Turkey you wait. I never know what to do anymore when I am given something, I spend too much time learning all of these things to remember what I used to do without thinking.
And the reason it is easy to talk with him, Eduard, is because both Estonians and Turks pride their business relationships on personal relationships. The more you trust and like someone, the better the business deal goes. Go figure.
I think I am understanding Eduard's character a bit more. It has taken me a while, for some reason. I would appreciate any tips, if someone thinks I am messing something up terribly. After all, this is a portrayal of him for Hearth, but when I try and writing the actual Estonia... I want to be on the right track.
Dear Veronique Sarisandeul: Yes, that line of questioning with Toris was one of the smaller things, something I probably should have shoved into a chapter to tie up, but it was not a big deal. Just Toris being paranoid. I probably should have mapped things out better so as to not leave you all hanging about that. Still, Toris did ask Feliks (though it was after that deal with Natalia, so it was days later before he focused in on it again), Feliks was confused, and Toris realized that Matthew was asking him just to ask him and that he should not expect someone to ask Feliks just because Feliks is likely to talk about it. What he really should have gotten out of that was gladness that someone would rather ask him first, but Toris probably missed it. Sorry about missing that, everyone. As for the second question... read on and see, that is all I can say.