Beer and Culture [Solomon]

Solomon lived for these trips, especially now that he was older and didn't get as many chances to spend time with his father. He'd always felt close to him, he shared a lot of thoughts with him that he didn't share with anyone else, and he was a much more relaxed and open young man around him. He'd been looking forward to their trip to Germany for months, making sure his schedule was entirely cleared of any commitments and that none would come up unwanted. Nothing was going to get in the way of this trip.

To say that Ian was his son's hero would be an understatement, even as a grown man he idolized his father for the things he'd done and the things he still did to help people. He'd never once tried to steer Solomon to any one career path, he'd always been free to explore his own interests, he appreciated that more than Ian would ever know.

He took in a deep breath as he inhaled the crisp air of the start of fall, taking in the sights with admiring eyes, "Germany is beautiful." He chuckled, "I'm glad we caught the start of Autumn." He mused, giving a soft laugh, "No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace as I have seen in one autumnal face." The quote came to him as he studied the leaved that were just starting to change.

He looked to his father when he spoke, putting a hand on his stomach and laughing, "I'm starving, breakfast feels like forever ago. We should walk until we find somewhere interesting to eat!" It was so easy to speak to his father, it always had been.

He smiled as he listened to the bit of recited poetry. Solomon had always had a good head for, well, most things. He could remember numbers and figures and technical data with ease, then turn around and recite poetry, pick apart more abstract concepts in art and theater...whatever things he'd shown an interest in growing up Ian had been more than happy to indulge.

There weren't many things in his life that he was proud of, but his son topped that short list. He'd fought hard to stay in his son's life after the divorce, a thing several in his immediate family, including his own father, had never really forgiven him for. And through the years knowing that Solomon looked up to him and needed him was one of the few things that cut through the confusion and anxieties and that blurred, blurred line between reality and his days in the war, and kept him focused, kept him working hard at what he did...kept him from just eating his service revolver and being done with it all. He shared most things with his son, but that was not one of them. He was young and just starting out his own life, he didn't need to carry the weight and responsibility of his father's sanity around with him too.

He shook his head just slightly to shake off the dark edges of thought, they seemed to creep around the corners of his mind no matter what he did. But today, today he would once again push them as far back as they could go, and go on about with his day that he was determined to enjoy.

"Well, breakfast was..." He lifted his wrist to look at his watch. "Close to forever ago. So you're not wrong." He agreed.

"I think we'll find a lot of interesting places here." He looked around, peering curiously into various shop windows and places to eat, looking for anything that caught his attention. "If you see something you like before I do, just drag me on over!"

Solomon snorted at his dad and squinted an eye at him, looking amused, "That was the most dad thing you've ever done!" But it was still funny, because it was a dumb dad joke that his dad had made, so he laughed and covered his snorts, "I wish my watch could tell time like that." He was at least vaguely aware of the dark bits that his father refused to talk to him about, he was an observant young man, he always had been. He could perceive the slightest shift in someone's expression to alert him to a lie, or to sadness that their voice didn't show. But he never pressed his father like he tended to do other people, he allowed his father his secrets, it wasn't like he didn't have his own things that he never talked about as well.

He cleared his throat when he realized he'd been silent for far too long, grinning as he suddenly spotted something, "listen...It's not lunch...But that bakery over there has a mighty tempting smell wafting out of it." He laughed as he recalled a quote, putting his hand on his chin, "I've never met a problem a proper cupcake couldn't fix. So. Lets see what they've got, eh?" He chuckled and took his hand, tugging him in the direction of the bakery, for all his smarts and achievements, he was a kid in a candy store when it came to sweets.

He smiled over at Solomon, sharing in the amusement. "Ahh, but it's a great family heirloom. Someday when you have your own kids I will pass it on to you, and then you in turn will be able to tell the terrible dad-jokes." He said with a bit of a flourish and an overdramatic tone, as though promising some great honor that would someday be bestowed.

He looked in the direction that was pointed out and nodded his agreement. "I don't see any reason cupcakes can't be lunch."

He allowed himself to be pulled along to the doorway of the place, complete with flowers in the window, little white tables and chairs set up and a fairly impressive display counter of a boggling number of treats set up inside. It looked like the type of cute little place that belonged on a postcard: 'Greetings from Germany, wish you were here.'

He nodded a greeting to the woman behind the counter, his German was a little halting but he still offered a hello in the native language to her, before coming closer to get a better look at all the choices spread before them.

Solomon laughed and gave his dad a gentle shove at his lame dad humor, grinning wide, "Goodness I hope not! I feel sorry for any kids I have!" Kids. That was something he didn't foresee happening, he could barely deal with adult humans much less tiny dependent ones, but he wouldn't dare say that to his father, it was his own secret.

He chuckled and nodded his agreement, giving the man a cheeky grin, "Yeah? Well I'm glad we're on the same page!" He put a hand on his cheek and sighed fondly, "though I shouldn't be surprised, you've always given in to my sweet tooth, remember when you'd catch me with my hand in the cookie jar?" He chuckled as they stepped into the bakery, "you would put a finger to your lips and slip one yourself." He let out a soft laugh, already studying the counter and everything it had to offer.

"Ooooh Black Forest Cake." He looked over at him, "we should grab a couple of slices of this, you don't get it authentic very often!" He was drooling just thinking about it, "Maybe a couple of these cute cupcakes too?" He laughed and shuffled, "sorry, you know hoe I get..." A sweet tooth that could put a five year old to shame. It was accurate.

He laughed at the memory. "But just one, so you don't spoil your dinner...and don't tell your mother." He grinned. "I think if you could have figured out how to live off cookies you would have gladly done so."

He was already ordering the items even as Solomon listed off what he'd like, adding in a few more pastries that looked appealing while he was at it, the thick slices of cake onto plates and the other goodies placed in a colorful, festive box for them.

"Don't apologize, Why are you apologizing, there's nothing wrong with that." He chided a bit, he felt like he'd spent so much of his own life apologizing for so many things about himself, it was a habit he didn't like to see in others. Apologies were for when something hurtful had been done...not for merely being the way you were.

"Here, eat your cake." He handed him one of the plates and indicated one of the tables near the window, where they could still watch the people coming and going on the street outside.

Solomon laughed and nodded, "yeah you finally said just one after the third cookie!" He poked his tongue out in a cheeky way, he'd always gotten away with murder, but he supposed it was because he was a good kid outside of mischievous little misdoings, he did as he was told without complaining.

He was eager as he listened to his father order their dessert-lunch, "at least this will give us plenty of energy to go exploring." Sure, that was a good excuse, it wasn't because they were grown adults who could still act like twelve year olds, he chuckled, then looked over at his dad when he scolded him for apologizing, "yes sir, I guess I forget sometimes that there's no shame in just being who you are, t'know?" At least with most things, he glanced over at his dad as a memory was called up, a topic that had been gingerly brought forwards and the reaction it'd grabbed. He frowned momentarily, but smiled again by the time his father was there to offer cake to him, "as if I'm going to object to that!"

He was eager to carry his cake to the table pointed out and sat down, not wasting time as he took a generous bite of it, "Mmm. 'If I was made of cake I'd eat myself before somebody else could.'" He giggled, stuffing more in his face, "I think the setting and the atmosphere make it taste all the better, don't you?" He looked out the window at the people passing by and sighed, looking content, "it's nice to just...Be...Sometimes." He glanced at his dad with a smile, "to just let the world pass by without worrying that you're being left behind." He was here and there were no obligations, and that made being here that much more beautiful.

A flicker of something passed across his expression at Solomon's words, no shame in being who he was. It was something he was terrible at himself, but had tried to encourage in Solomon early. On some topics though, he was sure he hadn't done nearly as well as he could have. His mind passed over the same moment of conversation between them, it had struck a deep nerve and in the unexpectedness of the moment he'd reacted poorly...he'd never been quite sure how or if he even should bring the topic up again, so left it to rest in an uncustomary uncomfortable bit of silence between them.

He sat and started to eat his cake. "There is something to be said for just sitting and watching everything else go by. Watch those people, wonder who they are, what they're off to...whatever made them think those shoes went with that tie..." That hadn't quiet been where he'd been going with that thought....but that tie on the man that passed was pretty terrible.

He looked back to Solomon after a moment. "Is that what you're thinking? That you're being passed by and left behind from something?" He asked, tone causal but still wanting to know if something was on his mind.

Solomon idly ate his cake for a while as he pondered the people passing by on the street, "it must be nice to just...Not have to worry." He sighed and smiled, "feels so detached here, it's peaceful." He was watching the people passing by as much as he was admiring the attractive young German men, of course he wouldn't say this outloud, but it was his favorite part of people watching, "I saw that guy...I guess not everything is better in Germany, eh?" He chuckled, musing on how odd a thing to notice that was.

At the question, he looked thoughtful, shrugging softly, "Maybe, I'm not sure." Was he? Did he feel that way? He was doing more with his life now than most twenty year old men did, "I've accomplished a lot given how young I am...And I guess I could say I'm content...But..." He was picking his words carefully, "maybe I'm just...Lonely." He had his chin resting on his hand as he glanced out through the window, sighing softly and smiling, "maybe left behind isn't the right word." He mused, "'Two people in love, alone, isolated from the world, that's beautiful.'" He sighed and chuckled, turning back to him, "I'm being sappy. And this cake is too good to pull out the melodrama in the presence of." He grinned and stuck a big fork full into his mouth, finishing it off.

He nodded seriously. "You do spend a great deal of your time with all the rest of your projects, I can see where it doesn't leave you much time to meet people or date. And even staying busy can start to feel like something is missing after a while, if you're not wanting to do it all alone."

He laughed a bit after a moment. "Alright, we don't be melodramatic at the cake...it is vacation after all." He ate a couple more bites before going back to looking out the window again. "What should we do next?"

Solomon chuckled as he looked out the window with a thoughtful expression. He was right, he was often too busy to devote much time to that sort of thing, but that had never been the only thing keeping him from exploring the dating scene, "yes...I should like to find someone I can connect to." It was easier said than done when you were scared of disappointing your hero, surely his father wouldn't shun him for it? His mind wandered back to that conversation, "I'm terrible with people though. Never know what to say..." He had the social skills of a wet fish head unless he was reading from something, how can one date if they can't even speak to someone without saying something rude or overly honest?

He couldn't help but laugh when he father did, grinning at him before looking thoughtful, "Mmmm...Maybe we hit the pavement and see where our feet take us?" Sometimes it was exciting to do things unplanned, to just see where you ended up. This was a new place for both of them, there was so much to explore, "it'll be like an adventure, eh?" He grinned at his father.