Highmauve: The Quad

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2008

Winter sat in the quad at a picnic table. She had a cup of hot chocolate in one hand and her pencil in the older. It was a beautiful fall day. The leaves were changing and the sun was still shining. There was a slight breeze but it wasn't cold. Winter only wore grey sweatpants and a bright blue hoodie. It was a casual day for her. Most kids had returned from fall break but she didn't go home since it would have been almost a whole day's worth of layovers and flights before even getting to Alaska and then she would have to be picked up and then driven home only to turn around and do it all again... not to mention the money. It depressed her a bit to not have gotten to see her family but thankfully Skype existed.

After the entire ordeal with Evan, Tobi, and Noelle, she was exhausted. She was able to more or less take control of the situation after the others had left and told the police the whole story. She also added a bit about how it would look bad on the school if word got out that this happened and she knew that the university brought in money for the rest of the town. STill, she wished she could have checked up on them in person instead of sending a text to them telling them that everything was alright.

Regardless, she was stuck doing homework for a teacher who insisted on assigning homework right after break. She stared at her textbook blankly as she reread the same passage over and over again before finally jotting down the answer to the question. She sighed. "Five down... twenty to go..." She muttered under her breath.

Noelle is walking from the Liberal Arts building. She's mainly back to her old self, namely her stoic nature. She walks across campus, eyes down and silent. She observes and sinks into her surroundings, comfortably.

Since homecoming, she had felt like she needed to build her walls again- she let her guard down with Evan and it seriously bit her in the ass. And while she was so happy with Tobi- happy with the peace and raw vulnerability that he allowed her to experience with him. But other people? She couldn't make that mistake again. She needed a happy medium between the supreme isolation and opening herself up and allowing pain in.

She sees Winter across the Quad. 'Yeah. There's a start.' Noelle was grateful for the short girl's take-charge attitude during the fallout of Homecoming weekend. She had texted Winter a little bit during midterms week and fall break. When the authorities called her, Noelle had checked in. But she hadn't really been too responsive and her responses were short. And she hadn't properly thanked her either.

She changes her path, walking over to Winter, and sits down next to her. Noelle looks serene and calm as she says "Hey, Winter. Haven't seen you in a while."

Winter looked up and grinned. Perfect. A distraction! "hey Noelle! Yeah. Haven't seen you since before midterms." She said. She decided to leave out the fact that she haven't seen her since that night. Noelle was a little sensitive. Plus she seemed to be holding something back.

She patted a spot across from her. "Come join me. Did you go home over break? It was like a ghost town here." She said. Her grin never once left her face. "Only the sports people and the international students stayed here."

"Um, yeah. I went home right after homecoming. I actually just got done making up my midterms." She meets Winter's eyes "Hey, I never got a chance to actually thank you for taking care of it. Everything. So... I got you something."

Noelle reaches in her messenger bag, and takes out a thick, knitted scarf. It's purple and white with silver accents. She carefully hands it over to Winter "I actually made it."

"That sounds nice. Got some R and R with your family. But I'm glad your professors were able to let you make up your exams. That would suck if they didn't." When Noelle met her eyes, Winter openly met her gaze. She was actually a bit surprised that the other girl met her gaze but she didn't say anything of it. Noelle seemed to have something important to say.

"you got me something?" She asked. She gasped when she saw the scarf. "You made this? This is amazing!" She gently took the scarf and felt it. "It's so soft! You're super talented! I don't have the patience for this. Thank you!" She reached across the table and hugged her.

Noelle freezes with the hug but carefully tries to returns. She knows she is stiff, but she tries. And then she breaks it after a moment.

"Yeah, I did. Thanks. I like to... I like making things."

She failed to mention how her mother had literally stuffed knitting needles in her hand and had said "You need to do something besides stay up way too late worrying about everything or reading about things that worry you." Since her return home, Noelle had spent her idle hours knitting or writing or doing anything that brought her any semblance of joy. Creation and crafting had her make something out of almost nothing. Very much like her abilities, but she could stop making things whenever she wanted.

Winter released her once she started to pull away. She grinned at her as she put on the scarf. "That's really cool. I'm not real crafty. I can fix cars and stuff but that's about it." She admitted. "I think this is super cool. And it's purple!"

"Yeah. I figured it's a color that you like." She shrugs.

For a moment, she sees a blonde haired boy walking from across the quad. She stiffens and watches carefully. A million thoughts run through her head, and she grips the edge of the picnic table, the only change in her expression is that she is now biting her lip. Her eyes are fixed on Winter but occasionally flick to the boy.

Not here. Not now.

The boy turns. She relaxes everything. It wasn't him. Noelle turns her attention to Winter completely.

Winter grinned. "You gussed right!" Winter continued to babble on about the color purple when she noticed that Noelle stiffened and kept looking away from her. Winter turned and saw the blonde boy. "That's George." She said softly. She could see why Noelle stiffened up. He did look like Evan in passing.

"hey... It's okay.... He's not here. You're safe."

Noelle stays stoically calm "Yeah, I know. I'm fine."

She wasn't but that didn't matter. If she pretended that she was, eventually, she wouldn't have to deal with the aftermath of everything that happened. The reality of the situation was that she had thought she had seen Evan everywhere- at school, on the road home, in Maine, everywhere. Logically, she always knew he wasn't there. He knew his routes to and from his classes, she knew that she could avoid him. But that didn't stop the anxiousness.

But she couldn't and doesn't show it. She just held onto nausea and fear into herself.

"How was your break?"

Winter cocked her head to one side. She was pretty sure that she was being lied to but she wasn't sure what to do. She only slowly nodded. "Okay...." She looked down at her scarf before smiling at her.

"My break was alright. I mostly rented movies and Skyped my family. I didn't really do much. I did skate all over campus now that i knew that I wouldn't run over anyone. I didn't want to go home. It's too expensive and too long of a trip back to only be there for a day or so."

"I'm really sorry to hear that. Do you miss your family?"

Noelle crosses her legs, and leans forward, to show her focus and interest. She really was both of these things, but her younger sister pointed out while she was home that maybe sitting, hunched over yourself and not making eye contact didn't really show that.

Winter nodded "I do. But brothers can be a pain in the butt so that I don't mind. But I missed my friends from high school and everything." She smiled when she saw Noelle looking interested in what she had to say. "We were always pretty close growing up. I used to help my dad at work. He repairs cars, snowmobiles... Anything like that. If it had an engine, he could fix it."

"Repairing cars? That's really interesting."

Noelle was never good at fixing things. Or repairing things. Which frustrated her- her mind was very analytical and logical but she was able to use her creative side as well. But there was something about fixing things that she always had trouble with it. Maybe it was because she found solace in creation instead of reparation. She didn't know.

Winter nodded. "Yeah, my dad wanted me to carry on the family business. But I didn't want to be stuck fixing other people's cars. I wanted to do my own thing, you know? So I'm here. To better myself through a college education." she said with a grin. "But being a mechanic is a fun hobby. I think figuring out how things work but I'm way to lazy to go to school to be an engineer. That's a lot of math and science there. Though, one thing I do wish I could do is draw. I have no artistic talent at all. Nor the patience to be crafty."

"That's really cool. I'm the opposite- fixing things doesn't make sense to me. At least mechanical and electric things. What do you want to do?"

Noelle watches her intently. She liked learning about Winter- The two of them were as opposite as they could be, but Noelle had accepted her into her own circle.

Winter smiled. "I here for business. I want to eventually start the first mutant hockey league. I know back in high school, I had to jump through all these extra hoops in order to play. THen even once i got on the team, our opponents could choose to not allow me to play. I had to try out twice, once without a power inhibitor and once with it to prove that my mutation didn't affect how I played. It sucked." She sighed. "So that's what I want to do."

Winter studied the other girl. They were opposites but that didn't bother Winter at all. She was friends with all sorts and not many personalities bothered her. She just liked being around people. Granted, the fact that Noelle wanted to talk with her was a big deal. Winter knew this as Noelle rarely talked to others.

She nods. It was a desire that Noelle related to. It was similar to her own goal. "That's really awesome, Winter. Do you still play hockey?"

The conversation was still a little choppy, but Noelle was managing the best she can.

WInter grinned. "Oh yeah. I joined a field hockey team here at school but I play ice hockey whenever I get the chance. Have you ever ice skated before?" She asked, genuinely curious as she took a sip of her hot chocolate. "And what about you? What is your goal in life?" Winter didn't mind talking about herself but at the same time... Noelle didn't seem the type to listen to others brag about themselves.

"Yeah- when I was young. I fell a lot- not a fan." She didn't get into the fact that it was her father that took her skating and how he had helped her up and got her hot chocolate. Didn't seem like an appropriate or relevant fact.

"I want to become a children's author." It's put simply but concisely.

Winter nodded. "Well... you're an adult now with probably better balance. I can teach you. Most people make the mistake of being stiff legged but you're supposed to have a little bend in your knee."

Her eyes widened when she told her her dream "That's cool! You could be the next Dr. Seuss!"

"Yeah. No offense to Dr. Seuss. Love his work, love his message and means. But I'm thinking more C.S. Lewis, or J. R. R. Tolkien or Louisa May Alcott. I write more like... Storybook. Like the strong narrative structure, dynamic characters. You know."

These things are said with a nonchalant tone, but it's obvious she's passionate when you see the small fire in her eyes.

Winter laughed. "alright, alright. Story books. Got it. You'll be great either way." She said. Even if Noelle seemed so calm about it, she could see the fire in her eyes. THis was something she loved and she loved that. People were the most interesting when they talked about something they enjoy. "So... have you written any stories?"

"A couple. I have a few ideas I'm working on."

She doesn't elaborate. Noelle doesn't really talk to anyone about her stories and the many things that she has written. She has moleskins filled with stories and books and poems that she has written.

Winter grinned and leaned forward. "I hope you know that now I just have to read them!" She exclaimed happily. "You read all the time so you must know how to craft an amazing story!"