River tried his best to use his platform to only talk about he things he thought were important, but even when he did, he felt like an idiot and was never really confident, even if it was something he passionately believed in- and, when he was asked to talk about himself, his personal life, he clammed up completely, not out of a disdain for celebrity culture or whatever, but because he was shy. And didn’t know why, for the life of him, people would be interested in his life- nothing ever happened, apart from when, you know, he was dragged along to these ridiculous events and just went along with it because he wasn’t exactly the confrontational type. His father had asked him to pick out a new suit for the occasion and he did so. He’d ignored the suggestion of a haircut.

He wasn’t [i]camera[/i] shy, per say- though to be honest River had never felt fully at ease in his whole life- and when spoken to, he responded plainly and honestly. He was even willing to gratify photographers, who thought he was some kind of cryptic, dreamy woodland creature, with a few pretentious photoshoots, and that’s why, for some reason, he was so popular among his own generation- his family, his muted and gentle brand of activism, and the fact he looked at all times like he was a melancholy poet or artist lost in the wilderness. It was ridiculous. River didn’t know what all the fuss was about- he barely paid any attention to his own reflection and allowed photographers to pick whatever they thought looked good. He was nothing special, and for some reason, people wouldn’t leave him alone.

Even amongst the more rich and even more famous, people recognised River before he them, and it was startling. It had been a while since he’d attended an event like this and he was already anticipating being cornered by someone until an opportunity to escape in the form of some kid beckoning him over caught his eye, and, after hesitating for mere moments, he followed, running a hand apprehensively through his long hair that perhaps was, in fact, due for a cut.  He pushed open the doors and stepped out into the dim light, reaching up to straighten his tie subconsciously as he strolled forwards, bearing witness to what seemed to be a small argument. At first he thought nothing of it, but. The two men looked guilty once he announced himself. River raised his eyebrows, his expression otherwise neutral. [i]That’s the plan. Avoiding the idiots.[/i]  River grinned. [b]”Sorry, I’ll go back inside.”[/b]

It hit him then that he hadn’t even introduced himself and he had no idea who these two men were- the shorter one, with lighter hair, had an unfairly, androgynously pretty face, and River felt like he should recognise it. The taller of the two had dark hair and dark eyes and he was handsome enough that River felt unnerved looking at him for too long, so he flicked his eyes from one to the other to avoid lingering eye contact. The latter was completely unfamiliar, but apparently he was right in his guess that he should know who the former was- when he asked, bracing himself to apologise for forgetting someone, the taller one looked on the verge of laughter. Shit. His only company for the shitty evening and he’d already offended the prettiest one.

[i]I’m Ari Livingston.[/i] Ari... Oh, Livingston. Right, made sense. River shifted a little, suddenly uncomfortable, wondering whether this guy hated him and it had been a mistake coming out here. People were so volatile and unpredictable. [i]Our fathers have hated eachother for about a decade and a half.[/i] River smiled, earnest- at least he was upfront- and shook his hand. [b]”River.”[/b] [i]Scott Whitaker, he’s one of my dad’s investor’s kids. You can ignore him. He’s a dipshit.[/i] He nodded at Scott with a smile, and took his hand again- his handshake was stronger than Ari’s, he noted, looking up at him briefly. [i]Nice to meet you.[/i] [b]”You too.”[/b]

[i]Glad we can both agree this feud is ridiculous.[/i] River nodded, running a hand through his hair and exhaling, looking back towards the building. [b]”This party is ridiculous, I’d rather be doing- anything else. I feel stupid, look at this suit.”[/b] He gestured to himself, exasperated. He paused and looked between the two again. [b]“You, uh, look like you belong here.”[/b] He murmured, nodding towards Scott, smiling only a little, then directed another comment towards Ari. [b]“Whereas I feel like you and I are maybe on the same page.”[/b]