Esper Story: David

David, what's going on? Didn't sleep well last night?

No, I slept pretty soundly.

But gosh, I wish I'd stayed in bed this morning. Have a look at this.

Beg your pardon?

Look. On my face!

A pimple!

A big, red, shiny pimple!

So? It's fine. It'll be gone before you know it.

Did you say, "It's fine"?! No, it's not just "fine"!

It is an intolerable, disgusting blemish in my otherwise perfect appearance!

Um... Okay. Right. Well, we did drink a load of soda and eat greasy fried chicken last night...

Haven't noticed anything on myself though. Nor on Lucas.

Gods... Beauty demands dedication like nothing else...

I wouldn't have touched that fried chicken with a ten foot pole if I'd known... If only I'd known...

But we had a great party last night, hey? In honor of our amazing Union Ops Chief, David!

We've worked so hard for so long. Surely a great night out with some great food is the least we deserve.

...My face deserves far more.

I've made a decision. From this day on, I declare myself to be on an extremely strict diet!

Um, alright... if you say so.

Good luck!

David! Look! The soda and fried chicken combo is half price today!

What do you think? You called it the best darned meal you'd ever had.

You really went for it at that party, huh?

Don't remind me. My Achilles heel. Where it all went downhill...

You guys realize I'm still on a diet, right?

See this shocking pimple? It was a shot across the bow. A warning.

Really? Is that how it works? Pimples go away. This deal is here today and gone tomorrow.

It's just one meal.

I'm resolute, Lucas.

I think I can make a few small sacrifices for the ideal of perfect beauty.

Wow! Check out the new burger: "Double Meat Super Sauce"? And the cheese fries with it look positively fantastic!

Are you sure you don't want any?

I am resolute. No matter what you do. No matter what you say. I will not be tempted.

I have decided on a... a... salad for dinner!

From this day forth, discipline is my middle name!

Dude, if you can resist "taste bud heaven", your pimple's as good as gone. I can tell.

I hope so...

Hey! David, how about a meal after work?

I saw there's a new vegan restaurant nearby. Reviews seem pretty good.

Hold on... your pimple's gone?!

Uh-huh. That's right!

You see this perfect face? A legacy of my iron discipline.

Wow. Congrats!

So. How about that vegan restaurant?

Not today, sorry. If I'm going to celebrate, I'd rather go all-out. I'm talking sodas, double burgers, and cheese fries galore!

My goodness... how much I've missed them!

Really? But what if, I mean... what if...

We have absolutely nothing to worry about!

I'm gonna celebrate today. Hard.

If you say so. Then let's go! I just hope that tomorrow...

...History won't repeat itself.

Why? Oh no... No... It can't be... Another pimple?!

Alright! All our missions are done and dusted! Good work, David.

Next up, an old tradition...

The 'ol group photo...

Exactly. For our Union Daily Vlog episode number... number whatever. Now get over here.

Our field mission location should be in the background. Okay. One, two...

Let me check it... Hey. I think it's a great one.

I'm looking pretty confident in this photo. Very suave. Totally fits today's theme.

Seriously?! I blurred it. Shaky hands again. One more just to be sure!

Alright. Fine by me.

One, two...

Took quite a few, huh?

Must be a good one here...

Oh no... Great. This one is the best except for the weird angle.

You think? I don't think it's too bad.

That's because you're looking at yourself! I look like I'm being pushed into the ground by the buildings on either side from this angle!

How about this one? Seems pretty good too.

Bright smile, matching white teeth on a blue sky backdrop. Perfect.

Nope. Shadow got me on the side, see? Patch of dark right in the frame.

Darnit. Not one good photo.

Really? They're fine.

Honestly, I'm happy with every single photo. Somehow I just photograph great, even when it's blurry.

I'm just photogenic, I guess.

Alright, alright. Enough, David. Let's get back.

Cheer up! It happens. Some people photo well, some people don't. Remember to send me the photos later!

David, I just saw your profile page! What the heck have you done?!

What's going on?

How could you post all our photos without consulting me?!

Those are originals! Without any filters!

Oh. Right.

Why else did you think I wanted them? If not to post on social media?

Did you even think about how I would feel?!

What's with the aggro? Did you even read the comments?

Why? I'm not subjecting myself to that.

The only reason I haven't unfollowed you... is because of our long friendship and time together on the battlefield.

That explains it. So just read the comments, okay? And you'll see the photos are fine.

Come on. Have a look.

...Are you serious? There are so many likes?!

Feels good man, right?

I don't get it. What's wrong with them?!

Just read the comments.

Nice blur. Really softened the contrast. Artistic. Props, dudes!

Great colors! Awesome smile. Thanks for paying it forward with the work you do.

They... they like it?! They think they're good photos?!

Maybe it's me. Maybe I just don't get art.

I can give you a few tips for farming likes if you want.

Woah. Okay then. Don't keep me waiting.

Easy. Look good for the camera and project confidence! Lots of confidence.

Just believe you've got whatever it takes. And project it.

Yeah? Try it now!

So basically what you're saying just boils down to: be David!

David, David! What are you watching? You didn't hear me?

Oh. Lucas!

I was just watching some videos... of my pop star glory days.

Wow. Okay. Let's have a look!

You haven't aged a day, huh?

My looks have weathered the test of time?!

High praise, Lucas! Thank you.

Maybe... But, then again, no one can beat you for presentation.

Let's have a look at the comments... Nothing but good things to say.

Check this one out: "Hottest dancer I've ever seen. Take me out on a date sometime, David!"

Fame, huh? There's something about it.

Look at this one: "Oh my goodness. I'm literally in tears. First time I've ever felt so connected to someone through dance."

Oh gosh. I don't mind if you want to read them. But please don't read them out loud.

There's this video... plus the next one, I think... they're my last two performances before the Union.

I've never seen you dance live now that I think about it. Only in videos.

...That's easily solved!

I was born to dance, you know. Choreography just comes naturally to me. I don't know why.

Tell you what... next time I come up with something really original, I'll do a routine here for you and a few other friends. How about it?

Okay. Deal!

David! You should have texted if you were going to be this late.

What are we doing here? And what's with the enormous stage?

You don't remember?

Dancing! Come on! My show!

Oh. Right! So you've choreographed something cool?

Oh yeah. Took a couple of days, but I'm finally satisfied with it. I'm more than satisfied.

You said you'd never seen me live. Well, now's your chance!

Okay. Cool! I'm looking forward to it!

Eyes on me. It's showtime!

Ouch! Ow! Ow! Ow!

David! Are you okay?

I'm fine. Good thing I caught myself. Or it could've broken my nose...

Uhh...

It got a bit difficult with the continuous knee drops... Gotta watch out for that one.

Sorry about that. Thought it'd be perfect.

Just pretend you didn't see anything! Heh. I'll do the whole thing again.

No problem, buddy. We all make mistakes.

But...

It's okay. I can tell you put in a lot of work.

It looked good but it was different from the videos.

Ah. You noticed! You know I prefer this style of dance to those.

This style?

Yeah. It's street.

I used to pretty much exclusively do jazz and hip-hop. This is called "locking".

Oh. Right.

Looks good though! Thought it was great.

Anything else? I'd love to hear any other comments and, of course, compliments.

Well, you were, uh, really engrossed in it. And it felt very, uh, powerful!

Yeah. That's right! I was focused, like, 110%!

Hey, you know what, David? Let's do a duo performance at the next big Union party.

I think we'd be great together.

Sounds awesome! They won't know what hit 'em. We'll be the "stars of the show"!