The Muse

Secrets - Closed

@Knight of Doom Have Tara run into Elliot and spill hot coffee on his face.

Secrets - Closed

Sophia, Elliot & James

10:30am

_{Collab with @Snagglepuss89 & @Saint Girralo}

Compared to the walk across town, the walk to the diner was quick and easy. Still drained from the encounter that had just taken place, Elliot opted to walk in silence, and Sophi didn’t seem inclined to change the atmosphere either. Truthfully, he was in a good mood, not that he would ever let that show, and he was looking forward to actually getting some job hunting today. Hopefully it wouldn’t turn into a debacle like the day before. Then again, yesterday hasn’t been all bad. He made a note to try and swing by Nana’s place again to return her belongings, wondering when it was that she’d be home.

He also made damn sure to keep those thoughts to himself, glancing over at Sophi beside him. The last thing he needed was her hearing he was planning to visit a woman sometime. In highschool she had been downright possessive of him for whatever reason, and he really didn’t need his mood ruined by her jealous streak. Still, it was nice to just be… almost normal again between the two of them. The last couple days had been stressful, let alone the last five years. Maybe their relationship wasn’t repaired yet, but he had his best friend back.

It wasn’t long before the two of them were in front of the Orchid, and all the hesitation Elliot had felt yesterday was gone. He could face the other Reese's if he knew Sophia had his back, eventually smooth things over with them too. He looked over at her with a smirk as he held the door open for her, saying as she walked passed him:

“Okay, fair’s fair. I’ve done my part of the work, you can do the cooking for us.”

“Oh, please. Ron can do the cooking.” She laughed and walked inside, spotting only one customer in the back corner by himself and working on his laptop. At least it wasn’t too busy so far this morning - she didn’t have to feel guilty for not arriving earlier.

“James is probably in the back somewhere.” She grabbed a menu as she passed the hostess stand and gestured for him to follow her. “Let’s sit here.” She walked toward the back of the diner, finding a booth. “Comfiest booth in town if I do say so myself.” She smiled and slid the menu over to his side of the booth. She had the menu memorized like the back of her hand, but Elliot probably needed some refreshing.

As she waited for Elliot to finish looking over the menu she leaned back into the booth, her eyes studying his face. He seemed tired, rightly so, and a lot older than she remembered him. Not in the way that he appeared older, but the naivety of childhood had been erased throughout the years. Until a few hours ago she hadn't really gotten to look at him. Last night had just been a blur, and the previous morning she had been seeing red. "I can't imagine the stress he was under..." Images of the bruises that traced his body flashed in her memory, pinging another feeling of sympathy and guilt.

A gentle smile lifted her lips as she looked at him, watching his hazel eyes scan the menu items. "I think you should get every item on the menu, you're too skinny." She grinned, curious if he knew that she was referencing her mother who always use to try to shove baked goods down his throat when they were younger.

"Yeah well you're too fat, so let's split the difference and just get two meals."

Elliot dove in the booth the second he spoke for protection, in case any projectiles came his way and proceeded to keep reading the menu lying down. Truthfully, he wasn't much of a breakfast food person, but he had caught the reference to her mother and was beginning to crave something sweet. Besides, he'd taken her comments a bit personally. He couldn't exactly help that he couldn't eat and work out like he used to.

Cautiously, he peeked his head up over the table, sliding the menu over towards her. It hadn't exactly changed much since he left, and he assumed it would probably taste about the same. She had mentioned James being here... Was he going to be the one cooking? Should Elliot pop back and say 'hi'? Maybe not, James was not the kind of person you wanted to interrupt while he was working. He'd always been so focused as a child.

Fortunately James was coming out of the kitchen and brought a carafe and mug a over to the man working on his laptop, and spotted the two. Oh this was getting interesting. After pouring the man some coffee, he walked over with the half empty carafe in hand. ”Hi Sophi.” he said addressing his sister for a moment before turning his attention to the man sitting across from her. He noticed a slight bruise on his fade and just had to do a double take. ”You okay Elliot? I didn't think she actually went and hit you that hard yesterday.”

Speak of the Devil...

Elliot took a moment to look over his old friend. James had been just a teenager the last time the two had seen each other. Now he must have been old enough to drink, or close enough. It was an odd feeling every time he saw someone he used to know all grown up, but he was getting used to the notion. Perhaps if it were yesterday he'd have greeted James with a hug or a handshake. Today though? He was in a good mood. Paradoxically, that always turned Elliot into more of an ass.

"I'm fine, but I wish it'd have been you doing the swinging. Unlike Sophi you always hit like a girl."

Sophia had been glaring at Elliot for the past five minutes, after that comment about her weight. What was with everyone lately?! Normally she would have kicked him in the shin immediately after that comment, but luckily she thought better of that impulse. She was reminded why as James brought up the bruise on his cheek.

Sheepishly, she looked down at the menu on the table and pretended like she was reading it. It was probably better if she didn’t open her mouth, even if Elliot was making light of the situation with his usual sarcasm.

James rolled his eyes, and thought, Yeah, and?Is that even news anymore. He pulled out his order pad and a pen and snorted, ”Alright, Scrawny as Helliot, so you're getting one of everything to bulk up yourself, right?” he shot back jokingly as he lightly shoved his long time friend’s shoulder. Yeah, things were falling right back into place. ”Seriously though. Are you two ready to order or do you need more time?”

Sophia smiled as her brother went along with the joke. Luckily it didn’t seem to awkward between the two. In fact, James barely seemed phased by Elliot being back again. At least on the outside. How was James always so put together and Sophia was always…. Well, Sophia. “One flapjack and a side of scrambled eggs for me, please.”

Elliot ignored the comeback, while he was in the mood for a verbal sparring it was probably wiser to ease back into things slowly. Thankfully it didn't seem like Sophi had taken his comments too seriously, despite glaring daggers at him. Anyone who thought the woman was anything but fit had to be out of their goddamn minds. He slid his menu towards James before answering;

"I'll take some french toast. No sides, just some syrup- and coffee, please."

James nodded as he wrote down the order from his sister and one of his best friends. He was wondering where the guy had gone off to when he disappeared. But that didn't matter now… He was back where he belonged, with his closest friends, with his family. ”Okay, unless you two have anything else you want to add, I'll go get this order ready.” he said as he took a step back.

After about fifteen minutes or so, James returned with their breakfast. Grinning, she took her plate and began scarfing down her pancake and eggs - having skipped dinner last night and filling up on alcohol had left her absolutely starving.

"Ron never disappoints." She proclaimed when both Elliot and herself were finished, having sparsely talked with each other while shoving food in their faces. "I have to stay here and help with the diner for a while... " She grabbed his empty plate and put it on top of hers, readying it to be taken away. "I know you were just dying for the opportunity to spend all day here, but I assure you it'll be pretty boring." Although if it went anything like yesterday, maybe it wouldn't be. "You have any plans today?"

Ron huh? I need to go back and say hi sometime.

Elliot shoved his french toast down his throat almost immediately, but savored the taste of his morning coffee while Sophi finished. While he had asked for an application the day before, he didn't really have any plans to work at the Orchid. Standing all day wasn't exactly something that would be good for his health. Still, while he had no plans to stick around, he still wouldn't have minded spending more time with Sophi. As much of a pain in the ass as she could be.

"Yeah, I need to go job hunting. Find a bit more income for myself."

He paused, before glancing around for someone he knew. Seeing it was safe, he scratched the back of his head sheepishly and added:

"It's, uh, been nice though Soph. I've missed this- you- for a long time. If you need to get away from your crazy family feel free to crash at my place again sometime."

"Don't tempt me with a good time." She winked at him, giggling as she stood up. "Good luck with job hunting. I'm sure you'll find something in no time. Who wouldn't love a face like yours?" She smirked as he stood, immediately grabbing him for a hug. "I missed this too."

In the back of her mind she couldn't help but wonder if Elliot would disappear on her again after this. She embraced him a little tighter for a few moments before finally letting him go, trying to push the thought away. "See you later?"

His first reaction, now that he wasn't an emotional wreck, was to pull away from Sophi, but he fought it this time. She'd seemed really offended when he pulled his hand back earlier that day, and he wasn't in the mood to ruin their good vibes. Instead, he simply squeezed her back and grabbed his cane once she let go.

"Yeah, you'll see me. Who knows, maybe I'll crash by your place at midnight this time?"

Sophi laughed, “Unless you want to be up all night listening to Kylie screaming, I wouldn’t recommend it. See ya, Elliot.” She waved and took the two empty plates from the table as Elliot made his way out of the diner.

With a sigh she made her way towards the kitchen in the back. Fun time was over and it was time to talk to James about whatever was going on with Kylie. From the looks of breakfast earlier, she was nowhere to be seen which was probably the best thing for the diner even if they were short handed. At least no one was crunching on glass or drinking bleach.

Immediately she noticed James beside Ron, working the grill. "Hey Ron." She waved, a half hearted smile on her lips. "James, you want to go talk in my office now?" She paused and looked around, "I can go wait some tables." She hadn't really paid attention to whether or not business had picked up during breakfast; Elliot had her attention 110%.... And the food.

”Yeah, let's talk real quick.” James said, looking up from the grill. He was glad to see Sophi was alright, and that meant he wouldn't have to yell at Elliot. ”You got this for a few minutes, right Ron?” he asked the guy, who nodded and said, “I'll be fine for a few minutes.” He walked to the office and opened the door for his sister and held it, waiting for her to walk through and sit down. He hoped this wouldn't go too long since they were short staffed at the moment.

“Thanks Ron.” She dropped off the dishes in the sink and then followed James to the back office, stepping inside and taking a seat in one of the old tattered lounge chairs. The place still had the original furniture and was in desperate need of a makeover. “So what’s the story on our darling little sister?” Leaning back into the chair, she rested her head in her hand and waited for James to lay the bad news on her.

As soon as Sophi asked about the situation with Kylie he groaned in annoyance. “She screwed up and screwed up bad. She wouldn't say how, but she said she owed the IRS something like ten thousand dollars. Riley is helping her go around and apply for jobs, but I told her that if she can't find a job that she'd be working here, regardless of whether or not she has social anxiety. However if it does come to that, I did say that I would make sure she got trained.” James pinched the bridge between his eyes and looked up towards Sophi as he sat down in one of the other chairs. And of course as soon as he sat down he got a text from Olivia asking if they need help at the diner tonight. But the wording was strange, and he knew what Olivia was looking for. ’Yes, I'd rather have you here tonight.’ he texted back, hoping that was what she was looking for.

“Ten thousand dollars?!” Her eyes practically popped out of her head, suddenly sitting upright in her chair. Shaking her head, Sophia echoed James' groan from earlier. "And of course we have to be dragged into this." She thought outloud, bitterly. Of course, naturally, she wanted to help her sister, but in the moment she would have liked to drop kick her right off a cliff. How in the world did Kylie always manage to get herself into situations like these?

“I might be able to help but... ” She sighed, sinking back into her chair. “Mom and dad left me access to their savings. I think there’s enough in there… but I doubt this is what they intended on spending it on.” She bit her lower lip as she pondered the thought, staring at the old worn out carpeting. What was the right answer?

”Before you even touch that, I want to take a look at it all myself. I want to look over her tax form, her paychecks, everything. I think she screwed up somewhere along the line.” James scowled momentarily at the revelation that Sophi had access to the savings account, and would have been willing to use the entire thing on their reckless sister. ”If there is even a chance she owes less that she thinks, I'm going to help, but she's going to have to learn that we aren't going to make all her problems go away. She's going to have to work off what she owes. And if we need to reach into the savings account, she is going to pay it back or I'll take her computer and gaming stuff away until she does.” James replies, frustrated that Kylie was so careless.

Sophia nodded as she listened to him. He was right, Kylie needed to learn some kind of responsibility for once. She always got the "easy way out" handed to her because their mother tended to be much too lenient, especially with the way Kylie could throw a fit. "Alright, that sounds-" She paused, the word paychecks resonating in her mind.

"How the hell has Kylie even been getting paid? She just plays video games all damn day." She rolled over multiple paying online jobs in her mind for a moment. "Cam Girl" was the one thought that kept coming to mind. "I swear to god, James, I'll kill her if I find out she's selling her body."

James shook his head, more so out of denial than assurance. Certainly there was a chance, given what their sister’s Twitter feed looked like, but he didn't want to even think about it. ”No. There's no way that's the case. There's a better chance she is a hacker… That being said, I doubt that's how she got the money either. I don't know how she expects us to help if she won't tell us what we need to know.” He said, clearly still trying to get the idea that his sister has been showing her body online for money out of his head.

“I’ll see if I can talk to her…” She sighed for what seemed like the millionth time today. “So,” It was sad that this was going to be the less stressful part of the conversation. “We obviously need to do some hiring now. We’re all running ourselves so thin… I’ll put some ads out, online and a sign in the window. I can interview, or we both can interview.” She glanced over at the door, “I should probably get out there to wait the tables now, though. Thanks for helping Ron while Riley is out.”

James smiled as soon as she said that they'd start hiring people. ”That's actually something I was going to bring up myself. I think we should both do interviews, personally, but I can handle them solo if you would rather I did. Also it's no problem me covering for Riley. It's just nice to change things up occasionally. If you're going to work the floor, I'll head back to the kitchen then.” he said as he got up, waiting for an answer as to who is interviewing applicants.

“I’d prefer we both did the interviews too. We can gauge who they are better that way.” She stood up, smiling slightly. “I appreciate all your help, James.” She took a moment to meet eyes with her brother, hoping he knew how much she genuinely appreciated all of his work. Despite James being a pain in the ass sometimes, he at least seemed to be the one sibling who “had it together” most of the time.

Stepping out of the office again, Sophia grabbed an apron and tied it over her clothes. If it weren’t for what she had just discovered about Elliot earlier this morning she would have offered a job to him, but that wouldn’t have seemed like a very good fit now. Alas, they would have to go through the painful process of interviews. She remembered the stories her parents would tell about horrible interviews; one who seemed like he hadn’t showered in years, one who readily admitted to being a drug addict, one who took a phone call in the middle of the interview.. The list went on. “I can’t wait…”

12pm

Pushing out of the kitchen and entering the diner once again, Sophia’s eyes immediately landed on a certain purple haired devil entering the diner. Wes Harmon. Not at all who she wanted to see this morning, or for the rest of her life for that matter. Why did he have to come here?

Although she didn’t exactly have warm feelings for Wes, she did not hesitate to put on a bright heart-warming smile as he greeted her. She knew better than to upset him, she had seen him light off like a firework plenty of times in the past, even over just a simple unpleasant facial expression.

“Good morning, Wes.” She grabbed a menu and followed him to the seat of his choosing, not bothering to try and stop him. It was only her on the floor anyway. “It’s been awhile since I’ve seen you around here.” About a year, actually. Ever since she had cut ties with her ex boyfriend, Greyson Reed, who liked to hang around with Wesley’s crowd.

“Uh.. My parents actually passed away last month.” She frowned, simultaneously because her parents deaths had to brought up once again and because he had decided to refer to her mom with a measure of disrespect. “Thank you for remembering, though. Here’s your menu.” It was better to thank him for even mentioning her parents, lest Wes take it as an insult. “What can I get for you this morning, Wes?” She readied her pen and paper, replacing her frown with another smile just for him.

James nodded in agreement when Sophi readily accepted the idea of them both doing interviews. When Sophi left the office and went out to the dining area, James grabbed a marker and a piece of paper and wrote the words “Help Wanted. Possible On The Spot Interviews.” He wanted to find competent people, but he also wanted to find people quickly. He just had to hope that they would be one and the same. Walking out to the front door, he quickly taped the sign in the front window, when he noticed Sophi talking to Wes. Yet another thing he was uncomfortable with.

_{@Viciousmarrow}

Secrets - Closed

There should be an Elliot, Sophi, & James post up tomorrow sometime. Just waiting on the last few details. :]

Secrets - Closed

I would like to point out the brilliant ways that Muse and I start out collabs.

<Snipped quote by Idiots>

@Snagglepuss89

WHY'D YOU HAVE TO GO AND OUT OUR AMAZING COLLAB SECRET!

Secrets - Closed

I'm going to make a second post with Sophi tomorrow of actually getting to the diner and tending to James and Wes.
I have jury duty tomorrow so I'll have plenty of writing time... Haha Ughhh.

Wanderlust (High Casual)

Literally banging.

Secrets - Closed

Blake Warren

_{The Previous Day}

Things were just so much better with Chris around. Last night had been one of the best nights he had in quite a long time. Instead of holing himself up in his room to play video games or draw, he actually went out and enjoyed the rest of the day. Despite going against his mother’s wishes, she seemed happy that her sons were spending time together again when they returned home. Of course the two brothers didn’t tell her or their father that they had seen Deadpool, a movie clearly too R rated for a person of Blake’s age, but luckily they didn't ask too many questions about it. Aunt Cynthia was there to distract them from scrutinizing every word that came out of Blake’s mouth. That, and they were actually having a family dinner for once.

After dinner, Blake helped clean up at the commandment of his father and Aunt Cynthia left after smothering both Chris and himself in hugs and kisses. Once formalities were over, Blake did as he always did and scurried up to his bedroom to lock himself in for the rest of the night.

---

_{This Morning}

The sound of dishes clinking together awoke Blake from a deep sleep. He blinked a few times and rolled over, wondering who in their right mind was washing dishes so early in the morning. As his vision cleared, the alarm clock on his nightstand displayed in vibrant green: 8:47AM.

Like he had just gotten tazed, Blake jumped up from bed and flung his blanket to the ground. “No, no, no, no, no!” He was late for school. Why hadn’t anyone woken him up?! Why hadn’t his alarm gone off?!

Without time to dwell on it, Blake rushed into the shower and hurriedly got ready for the day. Luckily school wasn’t far, so he could walk himself there, but his mother was probably going to get a call that he had been missing for his first class of the day. Yesterday had been great, and today was starting off as pure shit.

Around ten minutes later, more or less ready for the day, Blake burst back into his room to grab his backpack. Upon entering, he spotted a woman he had never seen before. He froze in place, eyeing the black haired beauty passed out on his bed. He blinked a few times, “Is this real?” He slowly tip toed around the edge of his room as if he was the intruder, brown eyes locked on her.

After convincing himself that he was actually seeing this woman, a real life person sprawled out on his bed, he took note of her uniform. By the looks of it, she was one of the maids that his parents hired to clean the house daily. Oh, hadn’t his mother said something about the elderly maid retiring recently? Perhaps this one was the replacement… a much younger and more attractive replacement… and very, very unprofessional. What kind of person literally slept on the job? On a complete stranger's bed? If he told his parents about this she would have been fired and reported by noon.

Suddenly the paranoia began to settle in. He glanced around his room frantically; how long had she been in his room and what had she seen? The previous maid knew that he liked his privacy and preferred to clean his own room, but this one obviously knew nothing. He couldn’t blame her, but anxiety seized his body. Walking over to his dresser, Blake grabbed an assortment of medications off the top and stuffed them into his backpack. He didn’t need her snooping through his personal business.

Loudly clearing his throat, Blake waited for the woman to wake. When she opened her eyes and raised her head, he made his way to the bedroom door. “I’d appreciate it if you stayed away from my room. I can clean it myself…” He tried to sound as nice about it as possible, but his stern facial expression said otherwise. “Thanks… ” Panicking, he turned and left in a hurry. He probably should have introduced himself, but Blake had zero skills in talking to pretty girls, especially ones that had just been sleeping in his bed. Where was Chris when he needed him?

With that, Blake rushed out of the front door and began jogging to school. Hopefully he would make it in time to get to his second class of the day with Ms. Labelle, his Social Studies teacher.

_{@lovely complex}

---

Blake Warren & Zoey Reese

_{Collab with @BlueAjah}

Ms. Labelle was most definitely one of Blake’s more interesting teachers. While he didn’t exactly enjoy her, he at least tried to pay attention in her class. It wasn’t the fact that what she taught was particularly interesting or that she was a good teacher, it was just that she would occasionally ream you in front of the entire class if you were caught slacking off. This morning was no different. Thank the lord above that he had made it on time.

Apparently nearly the entire class had gotten F’s on the latest test, aside from Blake and two other students. He bubbled up with pride inside, something that rarely happened. Wow! He was actually one of the few to get a passing grade? Amazing! Maybe Ms. Labelle’s teaching methods were actually working.

"I said, 'you either pass my class as a group, or you fail it as a group' remember? You seem to have decided to fail as a group, after doing so well all year."

A majority of the class groaned in unison as the realized what they had done, including Blake. So, another F on his report card to show mom and dad. Pride dissolved in mere seconds. Even when he was doing good, he was doing awful.

"Please, alphabetically, I want you all to grab one stick out of that can and return to your desks."

Quietly, Blake did as he was told and returned to his desk. As Ms. Labelle went over a type of Roman punishment, Blake began to zone out as he twirled his popsicle around on his desk. What was the point in paying any more attention when he was just going to fail with the rest of the class anyway? “Number Eight…” He examined the number written on the stick in black sharpie, wondering what his eccentric teacher had up her sleeve this time. Surely, it was not good.

"Would anyone with the number eight, please stand up?"

Blake looked up, holding his breath. Crap.

Reluctantly he stood up from his desk chair, heart racing inside his chest. This was the kind of thing that kept him from actually liking Ms. Labelle.

"Please, students, gaze upon your sacrifices with admiration, for they are saving your grades! Warren, screwoff, you two now have 0's. Everyone else? 100%"

Blake sighed, standing in view of the entire class with faintly pink tinted cheeks. He hated having all eyes on him, even if he was standing with one other student who was unlucky enough to have the same number as him. On top of that, he just got a big fat 0 on his test. Mom and Dad were sure to love that.

"By the way, everyone. That test is now worth one point. Retest tomorrow! STUDY THIS TIME!"

He sat back down in his desk, slumping down as if to hide himself from prying eyes. Well, at least the test wasn’t worth anything. With luck, he’d be able to get an even better grade on the retest. Maybe his parent’s wouldn’t notice and gripe about it after all.

Seeing Ms. Labelle write his name right next to Zoey Reese, he looked over in the corner to find the brunette paying no attention to whatever was going on. He hated group projects, but at least Zoey wouldn’t annoy the hell out of him. She probably hated group projects just as much as he did. Blake didn’t know much about her, but what he did know was that she was quiet and just recently went through the loss of both parents. Practically the whole town knew by now.

Hearing the sudden crack of a whip made him jump and tense up, his eyes snapping over to Ms. Labelle. This lady was crazier than he was.

With that, Blake stood with the rest of the students and dragged a chair over to Zoey’s desk. Setting it at the edge of her desk, Blake plopped down and stared at her. “Hey.” The edge of his lips cracked the faintest hint of a smile. He had never talked to her before, but now he was being forced to. He’d be damned if he let Ms. Labelle catch him not “obeying orders.” “So… I guess we are supposed to study or something?” He didn’t have the slightest idea of how he was supposed to be teaching her. Wasn’t this Ms. Labelle’s job?

Zoey should have known getting a moment of silence in Ms.Labelle’s class was foolish to even consider. Seconds after she had posted the partners, Blake Warren pulled up a seat beside Zoey. She couldn’t help but shift uncomfortably away. There was a reason she didn’t have any friends. Perhaps it was her attitude but she never seemed to get along with anyone. With the exception of her family and perhaps her music teacher, talking to other people was incredibly awkward. In some ways, being alone gave her more time to think and practice her violin. With friends came a long list of requirements that would most certainly drive her insane too.

“Hey.” She responded, not even trying to look interested. Gosh, I should have stayed home today. Staring at the neverending clock, she knew this class period would go on forever. Zoey slightly nodded as he spoke again, unsure exactly what she was supposed to say next. Studying for a subject she had absolutely no interest in? Not how she wanted to spend the next fifty minutes of her life.

An awkward silence filled their conversation and Zoey took the moment to study Blake’s appearance. Dark black glasses covered his eyes that were the color of acorns. Not a single ounce of meat covered his body and he was rather short, still managing a few inches over her though. He looked friendly but there was no use trying to judge someone by their look. Shrugging, she pulled out her violin music and sighed. School wasn’t important to her, she could fail this class and it wouldn’t mean anything. While she had promised to show up, it didn’t mean she had to try. “Just pretend you’re studying..” She mumbled, not even caring if he disagreed.

The fact that Zoey showed no interest in talking to him was somehow calming, unlike his previous interaction with Eliza the previous day. Zoey was intriguing in that way, and certainly less intimidating. Luckily for him she also had no interest in actually studying, which suited him just fine - he was no teacher. His eyes looked over her briefly as she pulled out sheet music, noting how she looked similar to the older Reese girl that his brother had briefly dated. What was her name again? Sonia? Something like that…

“You play an instrument?” He asked, removing his gaze from her and looking over the sheet, having no clue what type of music it was. He never had a talent for instruments, even though he tried his hand at guitar once or twice. “What do you play?” Even though she was giving him the cold shoulder, it was somehow easier to ask questions and attempt a conversation. It would be better than sitting here in awkward silence the entire time, or at least he thought so. Plus, Ms. Labelle was bound to catch on if they weren’t talking at all.

With Ms. Labelle in mind, Blake grabbed his textbook and opened it up to the Roman chapter they were supposed to be studying. He had to make them look like they were trying. Scooting his chair around to the front of her desk, Blake attempted to block their “work” with his back to Ms. Labelle. Unless she decided to walk around the room and examine each and every student then it would be difficult to point out their lack of work.

Despite her obvious attempts to ignore him, Blake still issued conversation. She would have stayed quiet if he hadn’t asked if she played an instrument. There was nothing more she cared about than her beautiful violin. It seemed all of her time was spent on the lovely instrument. From the way her fingers touched the strings to the enchanting tune that always seemed to possess her, there was nothing she didn’t enjoy about it.

“Yes, I play the violin.” Zoey stated awkwardly. Conversation wasn’t her strong point and she simply didn’t know how to continue the conversation so she stayed quiet. Blake moved his chair to sit directly across from her and pulled out a textbook, probably the one she had left untouched in her locker. Whoever invented such bulky texts full of useless print clearly didn’t understand that carrying around that much weight was impossible. Of course Zoey’s bag was extremely light, full of empty folders and music. She couldn’t even remember the last time she had taken notes for a class, probably because she never had.

Continuing staring down at her notes, Zoey hoped it was the end of the conversation. She thought it quite odd that he even wished to talk to her. Most kids just silently stared at her with annoyance or whispered beyond her back about how slacking she was. Blake seemed to genuinely care and she found it oddly refreshing.

Blake nodded as she replied, remembering that she had seen her in the halls carrying a violin case before. “That’s cool.” For once, he actually did think that was cool. Anyone who could plan an instrument had a special talent that he could appreciate. “I can’t play any instruments.” He shrugged, “I tried guitar once but my mom said it sounded like I was killing animals, so… I’ll just stick to drawing.” He smiled, his eyes scanning her facial expression for the faintest measure of amusement. Unlikely, but still. “You know, my older brother dated your sister when they were in high school. She came over a few times, but I don’t think I ever met you. I probably would have remembered… ” He had only meant that he had a very sharp memory, but it came out like he was flirting. Blake was oblivious to the entire notion.

Part of her was a little disappointed when he claimed he ‘couldn’t play instruments. People could only get as far as they believed. “You know, it’s not that hard if you try.” Of course he would be terrible at first, everyone was. Zoey had spent endless hours practicing to get as far she was. “All it takes is a lot of effort..” She muttered, surprised that she was talking as much as she had. Perhaps it was a good thing.

As he began to describe his brother having a relationship with her sister, she simply shrugged. Zoey didn’t pay much attention to the love life of her siblings, it was incredibly uninteresting. “I don’t remember. I usually don’t go out.” The conversation was slowly becoming more personal and awkward so she decided to stay quiet for good. It wasn’t like her to talk to others, let alone tell them her life story. Zoey wanted no sympathy or pity from anyone, especially not Blake.

"I suppose you're right." He thought back to his drawings, which also took much tenacity to come up with something even remotely decent. "I guess I just like drawing more, then." At the mention of her older sister, he felt the tension rising in the air. Apparently talking about her family was a touchy subject. To be fair, if he were in her shoes then he wouldn’t want to talk about his family either. “Yeah, I only saw her whenever Chris brought her over.” He replied, beginning to actually look at the textbook in front of him. He wasn’t truly reading the chapter, but looking through the array of pictures depicting Roman life was interesting enough. Silence slowly settled in between them, but luckily the chatter in the classroom kept it from becoming too terribly obvious.

Soon enough the bell rang, buzzing loudly through the halls and causing all students to jump to their feet. Blake closed the textbook and met eyes with Zoey, “Well,” Her eyes were strikingly vivid, and distracting. “I hope you do well on the test tomorrow.” He stood up and dragged his chair back over to his desk before grabbing his backpack. Zoey hadn’t been so bad to sit with; maybe he could pair up with her the next time Ms. Labelle insisted on grouping up on a project. Those assignments were always awkward for people who had no friends, like Blake and Zoey.

Either way, it was time for the next class, then lunch.

Wanderlust (High Casual)

A 19 year old is already hitting on a 35 year old. (kinda) xD

CLOSED.

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Wanderlust (High Casual)

<Snipped quote by Rune_Alchemist>

She'd flirt on a young boy o///o?

@Sagittarius

Senna is only 19 herself.. so probably. xD