[b][u]Holly Gabrielle Baless[/u][/b]

Well, this Baron man certainly seemed jovial enough! Truly, Holly enjoyed meeting new strangers and getting to know them. Although she was admittedly a bit confused as to what "not until my deathbed" meant. Perhaps he wanted to be remembered fondly, but didn't want to deal with the hassles of fame and being in the public eye before then? Yes, that would make sense. Holly finished up her croissant and wiped her lips clean-sitting with one leg folded over the other, a neat purse tucked over her shoulder and excellent posture, Holly was regal yet humble. She was dressed nicely but not overwhelmingly so-one got the feeling she liked to look presentable but wasn't terribly concerned with being fashionable or getting the attention of boys (which, as a teenage girl, is normally fairly easy to obtain). In that there was almost something childish about Holly, a sort of disconnect with adulthood. Perhaps it was the idealism or just the general happy-go-lucky stance she took in regards to life's problems. "Well, Doctor, thank you again for the croissants. Very sweet of you." Holly returned Deborah's playful smile. "Definitely! I'll be back here tomorrow." 

And yet Deborah seemed to be quieting down a bit. Hmm. That was peculiar. Not that Deborah was particularly chatty-Holly generally wasn't a fan of people who never shut up, she felt they'd do better to listen more and talk less-but she seemed more...mellow? Grounded? Holly, unlike the other two sitting at the table, had no experience reading people beyond sixteen years of life experiences and a friendship with Deborah. She couldn't put her finger on it, but something seemed up. Holly made a note to herself to gently ask Deborah about it later, keep an eye from afar to make sure all was well. Jago or Newt might've gotten into some sort of mischief. Holly had to repress a laugh, knowing it would be quite out of place in the conversation. Oh, the many stories she'd heard about Jago...

"Hm? Oh, I'm afraid I'm not interested in psychology, Doctor. Not as a major or anything. A fascinating subject, but I don't think it's for me." This was not entirely correct-Holly thought being a psychologist would be fascinating, but greatly doubted her ability to earn a Ph.D. as far as academics went. Beyond that, well, while Holly was certainly empathic and interested in helping people, she had a judgmental streak. She was at least aware of it, and attempted to keep it down, but psychologists must be impartial, and Holly was certainly not that. "But there's-" Holly stopped, blinking and looking around for the sudden noise. Oh! Deborah's phone! Holly's earlier suspicions were confirmed-curtly and with a look of worry briefly flashing across her face, Deborah got up and went off to take the call. Hm. Holly didn't attempt to sneak a glance at her phone-it was certainly Deborah's prerogative, her business, and yet still curiosity gnawed away at her as she turned back to continue speaking with Baron. A slight hint of apprehension crawled up Holly's spine. Well the Doctor was certainly very kind, it was a bit uneasy talking to a man so much older than her-a Ph.D, that was, what, at least 27? 28?-all alone. She quietly wondered when Deborah would be finished with her mystery call and return to finish the croissants. "But there...ah, I seem to have lost my train of thought. Hm. Don't suppose there's anything a psychologist can do about that, huh?" 

Holly's anxiety was briefly alleviated by Deborah's return, and promptly intensified with her absence. "Oh. Well I do hope everything's alright, Deb. Let me know if you need anything!" What was going on? They'd hardly even gotten the chance to speak. Trouble with Jago, maybe. He was always getting in tussles with people. Holly admired his spirit if not his discretion. A pregnant pause followed Deborah's hurried absence, as she wasn't quite sure if Baron wanted to continue speaking with her or not. "Ah, I imagine it's something with her family. Very lively younger siblings. Always having run-ins with the police and NEST and whatnot." Holly sipped again from her hot chocolate and realized what she said-oh. Hm. She hadn't intended to gossip, but the anxiety over being left alone with the Doctor left her a bit rattled, her tongue spitting out words before her brain had time to consider them. "Ah. Um, Doctor Baron, please keep that between us. Not sure if Deborah wants her siblings'...abilities to be public knowledge." Holly cupped the mug with her hands, staring down at the marshmellow-infused goodness. Heh. The great irony, of course, was that Holly was asking Baron to keep the knowledge to himself when she herself was a meta. Well, she somewhat rejected that label. Holly didn't think anything she had was borne of science or genetics, but others would disagree. And that was okay, that was their right. They were wrong, but they had that right. "You understand, of course."