[b]Toma Tanaka - April 26th, Afternoon | Amusement Park[/b]

Toma hummed and hawed, desperately wanting to leave, but not wanting to be rude. It had been a while since the group got in line, so they'd probably be off the ride and looking for him soon, not leaving him with much time to make a choice.

As he deliberated over the decision, he finished off his ice-cream sandwich with one last bite, and a shot of disappointment ran through him. That had been way tastier than it had any business being, and he kind of wanted another one.

And that was exactly the motivation he needed to head off on his own. He picked up his jacket off the railing and tied it around his waist, being careful with his wrist, before pushing himself off to head back to the ice-cream stand. As he let his craving take him over, he picked up his walking pace, eventually reaching his destination and getting into the short line.

The red-haired boy looked around as he waited, taking in more of the colorful sights that the park offered. Everyone looked so happy and excited here, with the exception of a crying child and exasperated parent or two. And no wonder -- they were all in an amusement park. It was in the name; this was supposed to be a fun place. So why was he not happy too? He was here with friends -- well, maybe not 'friends,' but schoolmates -- so he had no reason to be so... miserable? Maybe; he wasn't sure what he was. Not happy, though.

Toma's thoughts were put to a stop as he saw a group of four kids near a bench in the distance, three boys and one girl from the looks of it. With a flicker of recognition, his eyes widened a bit.

[i]"Hello sir, how can I help you?"[/i]

Toma shifted, taking a step back and craning his neck to get a better view. As he confirmed that it was Kotori, a soft smile broke out on his face. 

[i]"Excuse me, sir! It's your turn to be served."[/i]

He had to stop himself from going over to greet her -- it seemed she was here with friends. Ignoring the slightest pang of petty jealousy he felt, he couldn't help but be happy for her. It didn't seem like she hung out with friends like this often, so it was a nice sight to see.

[i]"Um, sir, you're holding up the line..." [/i]

But something was off. One of the boys sat next to her, and she didn't seem too pleased about it. The three weren't letting off even as her discomfort became more apparent. Toma's brow furrowed as he felt himself getting angered again, the emotion only growing as he continued watching. Clearly, they weren't her friends. Toma began to walk towards them, wanting badly to hit all three of them.

[i]"I-- uh, sir? O-okay then... I can help whoever's next."[/i]

As he made his way over, he fought to calm himself down. Starting a fight would be dumb, considering the condition of his wrist and the fact that he was outnumbered. No, more importantly than that, a fight wouldn't help the situation in any way. All he had to do was help Kotori get out of her uncomfortable spot, and there were better ways to do that.

Taking a breath to calm and steel himself, he decided on how he'd go about it -- pretend they had come to the park together as part of a group, and that she had gotten separated from them, giving her an out. Hopefully this wouldn't embarrass her too much.

[color=f26522]"Hey, there you are, Kotori-chan!"[/color] he said cheerfully with a wave, a bright smile on his face -- ironically the most genuine one he'd worn all day despite the fact that this was basically an act. 

He'd barely gotten the words out when another, tough-looking girl showed up. She grabbed the kid on the bench and tossed him to the ground roughly, eliciting a dumbfounded stare from Toma as he processed what was happening. Shaking off his stupor, he decided to make his presence known, too. The three boys seemed thoroughly intimidated by the girl, but she [i]was[/i] sort of taunting them into a fight. The pathetic mob didn't seem likely to take her up on it, but Toma figured it'd be better to be safe -- they'd be even less likely to accept her offer if they saw they'd have to deal with one extra person.

He stepped forward so that he was standing above the boy squirming on the ground. With raised eyebrows and a bright, mocking smile, he spoke. [color=f26522]"Hey bud, how's the view down there?"[/color] Toma leaned down and offered to help him up, but his hand was quickly smacked away, drawing a controlled smile to his face. [color=f26522]"Alright then, no need to be rude." [/color]

He stepped purposely over the boy and stopped next to the bench, leaning against it. He pulled out his phone and pretended to busy himself, letting the other girl do her thing -- going by her words, she had dealt with this lot before, so he had no reason to doubt she could do it again.

He glanced over down at Kotori, offering her a sympathetic, understanding smile.