Better late than never (Stephen, still around?) on Labyrinth Gardens

Mia Kerova

September 27, 2006 8:04 PM

Better late than never (Stephen, still around?) by Mia Kerova

OOC: A few days later than I said, but here it is. Sorry again.

BIC: Mia arrived back at Sonora Academy early evening three days after the holiday break was over. She walked into the Pecari Common room with her suitcase in hand, butterflies in her stomach and a slightly darkened, half shut left eye behind small framed glasses. Over the holidays she hit her eye on the blunt railing of her best friend’s stairs after a fainting spell. She woke up in the emergency room the next day being lectured by nurses on how anorexia and malnutrition affects girls her age. God, that was awful. It took hours to drill it through their heads that she just had a small appetite and a small build and she didn’t think it was fully understood by the medical staff until finally there was some medical explanation they found. Mia didn’t care about details or what the annoying nurses had to say. She did become self conscious despite her mother saying she looked healthy, and wore thick sweaters. It seemed like her brain was catching up with her age. Her body had done that already almost without her noticing and after an emphasis was put on her body by those nurses, it was hard to ignore. She couldn’t wear the sweaters at school though, with the pretty even temperature. She had to wear a jacket over a regular shirt with her jeans. The dark, swollen eye stood out. Luckily her mother knew a thing or two about makeup where Mia’s knowledge lacked. Lyn put it on Mia’s eye for her, showing her how to do it herself. She couldn’t do it as well as her mom did it so Mia made sure Lyn put the makeup on her before coming back to school. It also helped that most of the swelling was gone by the time she got back. It wasn’t the brightest way to spend her New Year’s Day and the rest of her extended vacation. At least everything before that was fantastic.

There were a few students scattered around the common room either late for dinner or had left Cascade Hall a little early. None of them was the one she was looking for. Mia went upstairs to her dorm room and put her suitcase on her bed. No one else was there. If Stephen was with the Cravens, which was the most likely possibility in her mind, then that could be a problem. She never liked them being around, but especially not now. Mia opened her suitcase and pulled out the present she bought with slightly shaking hands. It was wrapped in green wrapping paper since that was obviously the color of choice. Inside was a box that held a plastic racetrack folded in half. Originally it came with two RC racecars, but Mia decided to change that. With her step dad’s help she had the cars transfigured. One was turned into a motorcycle, green with a black lightning bolt along each side, and the other a broomstick that was enchanted to fly along the track when the race started. How Antonio managed that, Mia didn’t know, but she thought it was pretty cool. The race started on command, the bike and the broom did five laps, and then they stopped when the winner crossed the finish line. Cheering also came when either piece won. It was a real race. Mia looked at the wrapped up package for a whole minute fighting back her last minute ‘what if’s.’

Mia took the present with her out of the dorm room, crossed the common room again and went out into the labyrinth gardens. She wasn’t as bold as Stephen to yell down the boys’ corridor to see if he was there or not. She guessed he would probably be in Cascade Hall having dinner. She sat on a bench close to the magic suit of armor that let Pecaris in their common room. She held the present in her lap and took a deep breath as she waited. She blew a stray piece of hair out of her face. If Stephen was at dinner or anywhere in the school, he’d have to come by where she was sitting to get back in the common room. Going through Connell’s office seemed to be a last resort, for things like crazy mud storms. The green wrapping was bright enough to catch his attention as the sky slowly darkened. Mia wasn’t going to dinner, something she’d be severely scolded for if her mom knew, but her mom made her eat so much at home before she left, she couldn’t think of eating without feeling nauseated.

Mia started fidgeting with the charm bracelet on her wrist without thinking. As she stared at the package in her lap, she hoped Stephen would come out there soon and she hoped he’d like the gift. She was starting to feel stupid for considering it, for considering any of this. She shook her head to clear those thoughts, once again causing her glasses to slide down her nose a bit, and concentrated on something else, anything else, while she waited. Just sitting outside again after being cooped up in her house with a fever for days was something to think about. She used the fresh air to calm her nerves.\n\n

0 Mia Kerova Better late than never (Stephen, still around?) 0 Mia Kerova 1 5

Stephen Baxter

September 28, 2006 11:07 AM

(Aren't I always?) by Stephen Baxter

She hadn't come back.

Everyone else had come back, but Mia hadn't.

If it hadn't been for the distraction of the new, leather-jacket-wearing, steel-capped-boot-stomping Sorrel, Stephen would have had more time to consider whether this might be as a way of avoiding rejecting him. As this were, the idea had occurred, but hadn't really been given the chance to take hold. Of course, that also assumed that it would have.

Mia was just a chick, however hot. Right?

No need to worry that he'd put himself out in telling her that he liked her and that now she'd just not come back to school. There was probably a perfectly reasonable reason behind it all. Probably. And, for the past two days, that had been enough. By the third day he was starting to put it all behind him, and had already taken note of the fact that Tally Adams was cutting a very fine figure when she wandered around the school. A very fine figure indeed.

He was musing about that, and thinking gleefully about what the look on Geoff S's face would be when Stephen gave the kid a sneak peek at the new improved Fido, when his eye caught sight of something.

Flash of green. Not entirely unusual in the gardens, but then ususally not quite that shade. Or on those jeans. Over those legs. Attached to that girl. Stephen beamed as he pushed his other thoughts aside, and sped up a little. Clearly she was waiting for him, and with a present in hand, it had to be all good. Besides, what real girl could resist a guy like him? He was so much better than any stupid old biker with a stupid leather fetish cracking onto girls who had to be half his age. And clearly his faltering smile had something to do with the fact that he was going to pretend to be annoyed, than because of a stupid old biker. Because he wasn't feeling threatened or anything like that. No. Defintely not.

"You," he said, reaching Mia, "are late. Dinner is over, you've missed class and.... other things probably. And me. Not cool, Miss Kerova. Still, you're back, and," he picked up the present without waiting for it to be offered, "you come bearing gifts." He paused, pursing his lips dramatically, before switching his grin back on. "I'll forgive you just this once."

He sat down besider her and then Stephen turned a little more serious, even as he listened to the present for a moment, to see if there were any give-away sounds. "I- Look, you did rea- I mean, I've got this rather vivid memory of -" he checked himself and then looked around. The idea of Sorrel showing up just then wasn't one he really wanted to become a reality. Last thing he needed was to become a further laughing stock. "-writing a poem or twelve last semester. What I don't have is a vivid memory of-" Reciprication? Disbelief? Overwealming joy? Getting up close and personal in a dark corner of the commons? "-a reply."
\r\n\r\n

39 Stephen Baxter (Aren't I always?) 49 Stephen Baxter 0 5

Mia

September 29, 2006 11:27 PM

(As far as I can remember.) by Mia

‘Well, that didn’t take very long.’ Mia thought as she heard quick footsteps heading her way maybe ten minutes after sitting and saw that they were Stephen’s. A small, almost shy smile formed on her face when she saw it was him. He came on with a bothered tone and for a moment Mia thought he was actually annoyed with her, but the thought passed quickly and the small smile came back as more of a grin. He had done something like this before she left, though it was more concerned than annoyed last time. He took the present from right between her hands before she even had a chance to give it to him. She looked a little surprised, but mostly amused.

“I’ll forgive you just this once.” Mia laughed. It felt good to laugh without coughing.

“Oh thank you so much.” She started over dramatically. “It’s more than I deserve.”

Mia’s eyes traveled from Stephen, to the present, and then back to Stephen as he sat next to her and tried to figure out what she got him. Once again she really hoped he’d like it. Then he spoke again, sounding uncharacteristic of himself. She had never heard him stumble on his words before, but now the sentence was choppy. She gave a small inquisitive nod, silently prompting him to continue which he did, but not without another stop to look around. She could guess why. They weren’t exactly in a private place being near the entrance of the Labyrinth Gardens.

When he did say what he wanted to say, Mia wasn’t surprised. Of course it had to do with the poem. That was what the whole beginning of her vacation had to do with. She had looked at it so much she nearly had it memorized. There had been moments she couldn’t believe it was really for her.

But this was it. Now she had to tell him how she felt and she couldn’t do it on a little slip of paper. She actually had to say the words. She could feel her heart start racing as she looked at her hands in her lap for a moment. It was the absolute last chance to change her mind, but as that thought came into her head, she didn’t want to. She couldn’t really think of reasons why. She looked back at him with that same small smile she started with. She fingered the stray hair from before behind her ear again, purely out of nervous habit.

“I have a pretty vivid memory of getting a nice poem last semester.” Nice? That hardly described it. So it wasn’t award winning. It wasn’t bad and she definitely got the point. “It deserves a reply.” She paused getting the words out of her throat. “Yeah, I—I do like you. I don’t have a whole poem of my own written out to tell you, but hopefully that’ll make up for it,” She indicated the present he was holding and continued with a more confident smile having said the words she needed to “and for being late and missing classes and other things, and you.”\n\n

0 Mia (As far as I can remember.) 0 Mia 0 5

Stephen

September 30, 2006 3:57 AM

(only I probably won't be for the next few days) by Stephen

OOC: As it will soon say on the OOC page, I'm heading off for a few days for a short break. I might have access, but I probably won't. Either way, don't let that stop you replying ;) BIC:

Megawatts. They had to be behind his smile, because if it got any wider Stephen suspected that there would be stitches needed. As things were he didn't think he could stop grinning. Not just yet. She liked him too, and... well, that meant that Mia was now his girlfriend, right? Right. Obviously.

And with the obvious hint that he should get with opening the present he quickly shredded the green paper to see what it was hiding. Another moment to pull the box open and there is was. Something plastic; it looked.... he unfolded it. Awesome.

"Awesome," he said, jumping up from his seat so he could crouch on the ground and put the track down. "Mia, you are totally the best."

He got down close to look at the broom and motorbike, poking them first with a curious finger and then, after a moment, he pulled out his wand and gave them a quick poke with that as well. No stupid nancyboy harley; the model bike looked like it could handle some proper racing action, on or offroad, and the colour was a definite showing of growing good taste. It even looked muggle enough that he could probably get away with using it outside of school. Once he had how to start and stop it sorted out. Mia would know. Mia-

"There's just one thing missing to make this properly vivid," he said, looking up again. He stayed there a moment, before deciding that she was hardly likely to object, then sprung easily back to standing, and then sitting back on the seat again. He grinned once more - although in a more muted fashion - and then leaned in for what was probably the shortest kiss of all time, before pulling back to check her expression just to make sure.\n\n

39 Stephen (only I probably won't be for the next few days) 0 Stephen 0 5