[Grappl] Air Yoga & Chill

[Dubski]

The rest of the class had went well, with Aarna Mehta having no issue keeping up. The Indian girl had a great time of it, and as Aarna began to take a sip of water as she gathered her things, Ema expressed how much she liked it too, which made Aarna smile warmly. "I'm glad! I thought you might like it!" she replied cheerfully. As Aarna pulled her things from the locker, she gave her a nod. "Looking forward to it! I'll see you tonight!" chirped the Indian girl, walking past Ema and letting a hand briefly rest on her cheek as she went by.

It was time to take a warm shower and get ready for the dinner, putting on make up to make herself more presentable than she had been before. Making sure her hair was on point too, Aarna took her time preparing for the second part of their date after having such a good time with the first part! She would add on earrings, a few rings, and bracelets to tidy up her appearance with accessories, and then she added on a stylish, orange summer dress to her attire for a warm sort of attire. Nothing too revealing, but definitely enough to show off her toned, slim body.

And at the agreed upon time, Mehta would arrive at Ema's apartment, knocking on her door with a smile on her face, ready to continue their date as a camera person awaited to enter behind her as well, per the rules of Grappl.

[PurpleMage]

Even if at first Ema had been pretty scared about that air yoga class, she was now feeling sad the session was over because that meant parting ways with Aarna, but it couldn’t be helped. “Yes! See you tonight...” Ema remained there for some instants, looking how Aarna left while pressing her hand against her cheek, just where Aarna had caressed her an instant ago before coming back to reality and heading back home. She had to get some groceries for that night if she really wanted to be a proper host.

Time flew by for Ema who was so excited about that night that couldn’t think of anything else for all that time. Thankfully she was able to focus on everything she needed and ran her groceries before arriving home and then she could organize her flat a little, not like it was a mess or anything like that. Her home was humbly decorated with bright rooms and simple furniture. When it was the proper time Ema started getting ready for her night date. First a shower was in order and after that she would apply just a small amount of makeup so she didn’t look like she was trying too hard but not looking like she didn’t try at all either. Then she chose a simple but pretty effective mix of black skirt and a grey blouse, nothing too formal but in her style.

Spoiler

When she made it to the kitchen Ema double-checked everything. First the udon noodles were just getting ready in boiling water. She took them out and let them rest in a bowl as she checked the other pot in which carefully minced vegetables danced while making a broth. Meanwhile, the dessert was perfectly displayed on a plate far from the fire so it wouldn’t catch any smell or temperature. In her thoughtful manner, Ema had made enough food to share with the Grappl camera crew, they needed to eat after all. The convened time was up and everything looked ready, so Ema let out a sigh of relief.

Almost as if thinking about her summoned Aarna, the door knocked and Ema got startled despite the softness of the calling. Getting to her front door she slowly opened it. “Hello! You made it in time!”, she said without thinking that wasn't something impressive. “Y-you look gorgeous Aarna.”, said Ema while blushing a little. “Why don’t you come in? You can sit here while the dinner is ready, not long now.”, she said while signaling to the dinner table. “May I offer you something to drink?”

[Dubski]

Aarna looked happy to see Ema when she opened the door; her face brightening once she saw her. "Hey! Thank you!" exclaimed Aarna, appreciating the compliment. She would then step forward and give Ema a big hug, squeezing her tight. "You look beautiful too! Love that top!" said Mehta, returning the compliment in kind.

She then released the hug and stepped inside, taking a big whiff of the cooking. "Mmm! This smells delicious! What are we having?" asked Aarna as she set her purse aside and then took off her shoes before stepping further in, looking around at Ema's abode. "I'll have... I don't know, what alcohol do you have?" asked the Indian girl, offering Ema a brief smile. "Unless you don't want to drink, which is fine too! It's just nice to loosen up, you know?" explained Aarna, shrugging.

[PurpleMage]

Ema heavily blushed when taking Aarna’s hug, but luckily her date wouldn’t notice. “T-thank you...”, she said while letting Aarna join her inside. When the Indian woman complimented the smell of the food Ema’s face lighted with enthusiasm. Cooking was one of those things that made her genuinely happy and she couldn’t share it with people that often. “Oh, this? It’s just a pretty simple veggie yaki udon, but I hope it’s of your taste!”

As she let Aarna in her house and accomodated, Ema started browsing for something to drink, running her fingers across different wine bottles in search for one in particular. “Well, I think I have the perfect match for that udon and that’s… where was it? Oh, here!” As she said this she took one bottle and showed it to Aarna as if presenting it before opening it. “This wine comes from Koshu Valley and it goes perfectly with all the ingredients and flavors present in the broth… Let me serve you a cup.” As the purple-haired served two cups of the white wine, letting it rest a little before handing Aarna hers. “So, a toast to our nice date?”

[Dubski]

Aarna flashed a smile at Ema as she suggested a wine, it seemed like her host had a perfect one in mind, making her even more happy she had suggested it. A little alcohol would allow them to wind down more too. "Ooooh... I'm excited to try it!" said Mehta, walking to meet Ema halfway as she got handed a glass of wine.

The Indian girl took it, taking a moment to sniff it before smiling even more. "Mmm... A toast to a nice date, then!" affirmed Aarna, moving her glass to tap Ema's before taking a sip, looking pleased. "Oh, this is good!" Preening happily, she would then sit down at the table. "Thank you so much for all of this though, Ema. Really. This is great." She had a more grateful expression on her face as she looked at her, smiling warmly.

[PurpleMage]

Ema happily tapped her glass against Aarna’s and had a sip of wine, tasting it for some instants before smiling at the woman’s remark about the wine and about the dinner. “Glad you like it! And well, this isn’t anything special. Just wanted to thank you for all your patience in the air-yoga class with some homemade cooking. I really enjoy doing this so it should be me the one thanking you for coming. Oh, our food should be ready. If you excuse me...”

Elegantly darting towards the kitchen, Ema checked one last time the udon for salt and tasted it. It looked good enough for a date but in some way the purple-haired would have loved having more time to get better ingredients and more time to cook. Returning to the dining table, she set a bowl of veggie yaki udon in front of Aarna before sitting in front of here. “Here it is! I hope you like it. Try it with the wine, they make a good combination of flavors!” She tasted her udon and let her date do the same, a little nervous about Aarna’s reaction but trying her best to hide her fidgeting.

[Dubski]

Aarna sat, patiently waiting for Ema to set out the meal ad finding a seat as well. She took a big whiff of it, looking satisfied. "Mmm...! It smells good, at least!" The Indian girl preened happily at her host and then took out her utensils, starting to dig into the udon. She instantly looked satisfied, closing her eyes briefly as she chewed it, nodding with a smile. And then she went to wash it down with the wine.

And she looked delighted. "This is good Ema! I'm really impressed by your cooking and your choice of wine!" complimented Mehta as she took another sip of wine. "How did you get so good at cooking? Especially such specialized dishes?" asked Aarna, offering another bright smile before she began eating again, ready to listen for her date's answer.

[PurpleMage]

Ema took a sip of the wine, letting the drink freely release its flavour and mix with the food’s to improve the sensations, basking in the aroma of the plate in front of her and in the atmosphere of the company. Coming out from her daydreaming, she blushed as she realized Aarna had just asked her about how she became that good at cooking. First of all, the purple-haired didn’t even think that she was good at all, she just enjoyed it, and the reasons were a little bit personal. She didn’t know how she felt about opening like that in front of a camera, but Aarna had helped her coming out of her shell so far, so without noticing she started her story.

“Well, my job before L.A.W. was a pretty different one. Not going into much details because it isn’t worth it, but typical desk job. The working conditions weren’t good at all and soon enough it became overly stressing. I was anxious and overstressed all day to the point it was seriously affecting my mental health. Besides therapy, the kitchen was my refuge. I started learning how to make dishes I would like, and with time I got the hang of it.” Ema made a pause for another bite of udon. “Each time I made a decent dish and I took it to my workplace for lunch break it felt like a small victory over that terrible job, like my small refuge, so I kept cooking from there on making muy kitchen the small place I am really comfortable in. But sorry for the gloomy atmosphere, what do you do on a stressful day to feel better? I already know you like air yoga but there must be something else!”

[Dubski]

Aarna Mehta continued to eat as she listened to Ema explain herself. A lot of it was relatable--perhaps that's why they had hit it off on the Grappl app. Matching them enough to connect over collective stressors, along with their other compatible traits. Still, the Indian girl smiled between bites and sips of wine, nodding along every so often.

"You're not gloomy at all!" protested Aarna, shaking her head. "I know what you mean with stressful jobs that keep you way too busy... I don't think I ever developed this as a hobby though. Or... really any other hobbies."

Mehta's lips purses as she thought on that, idly twirling her fork on her plate as she thought. "I just... do yoga, I guess. Or just go on a date on a silly Grappl app," explained the darker-skinned girl, shrugging with a half-smile on her face. "I guess I never gave it a ton of thought..." She truly hadn't developed a lot of coping activities. Or at least, none that came to mind as being just that. She mostly just dealt with her stress as it came.

[PurpleMage]

Listening to Aarna reassuring Ema about her not being gloomy at all felt refreshing, given the fact that back at her old job she always had a reputation of always ruining the mood, but she was pretty frustrated at that point in her life. Seeing someone she could relate and talk to in that way meant a lot for her and in a way she was feeling really good about posting that Grappl profile.

“Come on, I’m sure lots of people are going to be finding good dates thanks to Grappl, so it’s not a silly app!”, said Ema while taking another sip of wine, letting its taste mix with the udon’s and enjoying her food while listening to Aarna mentioning that she didn’t have a particular coping method. “Oh, we definitely have to change that.”, she said in an enthusiastic tone that gave away how into the situation she was at the moment. “What do you think of books? You can have a look at my library later and borrow any one you like!” Ema instantly blushed at that statement, not wanting to look like a bragging one, but she was actually proud of her book collection.