"I'm used to, you do that if somebody's old enough to be your mom, maybe. I'm only 27."

"Ah.  I'm, er, 18.  Sorry.  I think it was a way to help me, er, fit in, be unthreatening.  Small towns, you know?  We just moved in when I was a little kid."

"I'm from Atlanta but I have heard of small towns," she nods. Poke poke poke all the pillows. "Is this a good time to test out ways to sit, see what works for guiding?"

"Yes' - " aacckk recover "- it is.  Er.  Usually I wear shorts, but I can roll these up if you like?"  Tim glances at his phone.  "Dinner should be here in about ten or fifteen, though."

"If I'm going to sit on you that long, probably with any backlash of my own to suck up yours, I will definitely also need a position where I can eat. Does your power make that complicated at all, am I going to bite through my tongue or squeeze a sandwich to goo?"

Okay, you are deliberately going to not ma'am her.  "Not for hurting yourself!  Durability's included with the package, unless you're trying to hurt yourself, you probably won't.  Honestly, almost all of the safety protocols are so that nobody comes in, puts a finger through their phone, and can't get a ride home without hassle."  Or flashes me.  Again.  It was kind of exciting the first time, in a guilty way, but after the fourth I was kind of over it.  "I...suppose your sandwich might be at some risk?  I've never had it happen to me, but I guess I might just be a neat eater."  Tim takes out his phone and asks his agent to set up a quick survey for Comestic Accidents amongst people who've undergone Tim Recuperative Therapy.

"I am usually also a neat eater, but awakening never gave me a problem with being stronger suddenly so it sounds like this might be heavier duty."

"I don't think you actually want to take the superstrength cert, but if you want to try it out I do have a corner dedicated to people who want to learn not to destroy everything around them.  Er.  Maybe after you change, though.  Or I could demo if, if you want?"

"Sure, let's see the demo - why don't I want the cert?"

"Er.  Most of the people who want it are planning on doing dungeons.  If you want it, I'm happy to help you get it, it's not like it's hard.  You, er.  Don't give off the vibe of a dungeoneer."  This is where I find out she's actually been smashing cores for the past nine years as a DRT op, isn't it.  Guide towards the Pseudo Physical Therapy corner?

"Oh, yeah, I'm not, I don't think cores try to spring back after somebody squashes them even a little - I thought you meant for like, how you have it on all the time for people who are in here in case of elbows."

"Well, there's levels and levels, right?  My power is shareable, but I control how much of it I share out.  And in general, the more it spreads out the less backlash-efficient it gets to share."  He picks up his standard example in the hand that isn't being held.  "This...is a pebble.  There's nothing special about it, I think it's granite?  Got 'em at the hardware store."  He holds it palm-up over a conveniently-placed wastebasket and closes his hand.  Then grinds it to dust in his fingers.  Summer can feel his backlash ticking up noticeably as he does.  "This is at the high end of what I can give out, and the one you need the cert for."

"Oh, but just a little for elbows, that makes sense. Okay, I get why I don't need the cert."

"Exactly.  And even at high levels, accidents are pretty rare!  Just - sometimes you stub your toe on a doorframe and it gets knocked out of the wall."  Tim goes through a few examples of superstrength at various levels, including a bench press which would suffice to lift a truck, his favorite Copper Rod trick, a mild steel variant which is notably harder to perform, slicing a grain of rice in half with fingernails(careful to backstop, lest Flying Grains of Rice find Vulnerable Eyeballs), and most popular of all: Et Cetera! 

Summer claps and then offers her hands to guide that off.

Handsqueeze!  Except he winds up with a wristhold on her left side, but that's fine.  Everyone in the room is an adult and this is not something that someone should be embarrassed about.  If she squiggles in the slightest he'll transition to a normal handhold though.

Unorthodox but it works and it's not like he's squishing her too hard. "So you do dungeons and this? Kind of a workaholic, huh?"

His partner sometimes likes to use her phone!  It's normal!!!  Just a COMPLETELY NORMAL habit to be in.  "Yeah, it's not like it's hard to be in here, right?  I watch a movie, play videogames, cuddle and relax.  And sometimes you have a DRT op or a dungeon esper who recently broke their leg or something, and you can see how happy they are.  Most times, it takes a week or two for an injury to really recover, but if it's recent enough you can be looking at a month in a cast and three of rehab in the morning, then going for a jog in the afternoon.  And there's just - something really special about being able to be that person, even if it's not glamorous.  And dungeons, well.  Fuck dungeons."  Shrug.  "They really, really have it coming."

"They sure do. One breached near the pool I used to take swim lessons in and wrecked the whole place and they never did rebuild it, it's an office building now."

Little bit of a wistful look.  "I'm sorry."  He looks like he's searching for words, but gets distracted by his phone.  "Er, one second, let me - " disentangle the right hand, glance at his phone.  "Oh, that's dinner.  You think you could have a bite to eat?"  Little grin?

"I super could!" she grins back.

Yessssss this is great!  "Well, let's go get some, then."

There is Variety!  His last order for his primary partner was big on handheld food.  In this case, it's three burgers(medium-well) with neatly-packed toppings sealed and set aside.  Some kind of Genuine Imitation Fried Chicken which is reportedly vegan, along with five different sauces.  And finally, there's an Enormous Yet Bougie Build-Your-Own-Salad kit.

"Feel free to pick whatever you want, I'll have whatever you don't.  I'm not a picky eater, and we've got plenty of variety."  The last sentence is said in the manner of an oft-repeated phrase.

"Yeah we do, amazing, I guess you know all the good restaurants in the area." She is sus of the vegan fried chicken but will taste a nibble of it with the green sauce.

Actually pretty good!  The breading is basically standard, and the vegan fried chicken tastes...almost like chicken.  Maybe an oddly-spiced variant, it tastes like they might be cheating the imitation meat by slightly overspicing it.  Definitely edible, though!

"Yeah, my usual partner can be a picky eater sometimes."  She's picky, alright.  "So I just order three or four cuisines and if she rejects all of it, I just give up for the day."  Tim is happy to assemble and consume a Moderate Yet Bougie Salad.  Heavy on the dressing, a few croutons, some kale on the side.