bump it, set it, spike it. [open]

[tessa colleen foley.]

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
we. were. born. for. this.
tell me, tell me, do you feel the pressure now?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Seeing the doors to the gym always seemed to give Tessa an adrenaline rush. They were kind of like a magical gateway to happiness…which sounded really cheesy, but it was true. Even if her day sucked, the sophomore could come in here and smile. She loved everything about it. The echo of a ball slamming to the ground, the smooth floor, even the slight odor of sweat was tolerable. It sucked not being able to compete at state or beat a nemesis school, but she was still able to come in here and play volleyball. That was all that mattered to her.

She quickened her pace as she neared her favorite part of the school. The volleyball tucked under her arm was within seconds of being used. Was it normal to be this excited about hitting a ball around? Probably not, but nothing about her was really normal. Despite the semi-chilly weather, she wore a pair of black shorts and a purple tanktop and her long, dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail. The cold really didn’t bother her. Besides, she wouldn’t be outside much longer. She pulled open the gym door with what had to be the expression of an eight year old on Christmas morning. No one else was in sight. Perfect. She held the ball in her fingertips, let it drop and bounce back up, then she hit it back down with the palm of her opposite hand. It came back up with force. She caught it and repeated this as she walked toward a wall. The only downside to practicing alone was not having someone to pass with, but hitting in against a wall worked just as well.

There was an intensity to her whenever the ball was in her hands. Even when she was all alone, she played like an entire stadium was watching her. She lifted the ball in her left hand and raised her right. Her aim was directly at the wall. She took a deep breath, threw the ball up, and felt her right hand collide with it. As soon as it did, she backed up and positioned herself to bump it. It bounced off the wall, connected with her waiting hands, and went flying back in the direction it had come in. She moved forward just in time to set it up in the air. If someone else was there, they would have spiked it. But, seeing as it was just Tessa, she stepped forward and bumped it once more. It was a continuous drill from there. If it was high, she set it again. If it was low, she would bump it once more. Sure, it was repetitive, but she loved it.

Her mind wandered as she practiced. Marissa, her sister, had called her just that morning. She had married her high school sweetheart a week earlier and the honeymoon was going wonderfully. Of course, Tessa was happy for her and all…but it wasn’t fair that she hadn’t been able to go. Riss had wanted her to, but their mother had been against it. She’s still dangerous. She’s still out of control. Do you want her to maul the guests? The woman’s voice in her head made the teenager hit the ball twice as hard as she had been. She wouldn’t say that she hated her mom, but the fair-haired woman with a Southern twang wasn’t her favorite person in the world. They had always been very different from each other, but things had even gotten even more strained after Tess’ power was exposed in the worst way possible.

The ball went flying past her head. “Damnit!” She turned and chased down the object that was now rolling across the gym floor. A few stray stands of hair fell into her face as she leaned over and grabbed it. Nothing bothered her more than messing up and missing a ball. She walked back to her previous position and started again. She could honestly do this forever. Tiring out was never much of a problem for her unless she did a ton of running. Like lots of other things in her life, she blamed this on her animal side. She was fit and strong, just like a tiger or a German Shepherd. But that was one of the things she actually liked. The entire turning into a possibly dangerous animal if pissed thing and her uneasiness around fire just sucked. She would love to sit around a campfire and tell stories with friends, but it was impossible for her to stand within ten feet of it and be comfortable.

Though she had just barely broken a sweat, she caught the ball in her hands. Water. She needed water. Her eyes locked on the familiar water fountain that was attached to the wall nearby. Dropping the volleyball on the ground, she made her way to it. There was nothing better than cool water after a good work out. She took her time leaning over the machine with her lips touching the steady arc of liquid. After a few moments, she lifted her head and turned back toward where she had left the ball. She had nothing better to do, so why not spend a little more time burning off some energy?

- - - - - - - - - -
status; finished!
word count; 953
outfit; these shorts and this tanktop
notes; join on in, don't be shy!
- - - - - - - - - -

[tristain kingsley everhart.]

Aren't these some times?

It's gotten bad, and it's been pressin' on my mind...

[/font][/size]

~~~

Tristain's soccer ball was a good, familiar shape under his arm. He was glad he had a spare moment; it was time to get back into the swing of things, get into shape. Granted, he'd never technically been out of shape, but he felt unfit when he didn't go through his workout. Soccer was one of the few things he put his all into. He didn't half way do it like he did with school work, he didn't deem average alright. This was something he excelled at, and he enjoyed excelling at.

The gym seemed perfect today; it was a little chilly for him outside, and he was almost sure it was going to rain, or otherwise ruin the decent weather. The gym wasn't his first choice, but when there was a chance the fields were going to get nasty, well... he would make do.

Thalia was off with her friends, which always made him a little nervous. He didn't like it when he couldn't protect her. He was the big brother, after all; wasn't that his job? Granted, it was only by a few hours, but that was enough of a head start for him. And she was just so unpredictable sometimes... not that he wasn't. He had his temper issues every once in a while, and, hey, he liked spontaneity for the sake of spontaneity, so he really couldn't judge her. Still...

His friends didn't quite understand his love of soccer. They were too into football, or basketball, or one of the other more recognized sports. Soccer wasn't what most boys aspired to play when they were little.

So, he came to the gym alone.

He opened the doors and paused when he heard the rhythmic thudding of a ball hitting the wall begin suddenly. He walked a little farther into the gym to see a girl, hitting a volleyball repeatedly against the wall, her brown hair swaying in its ponytail as she moved. He didn't really recognize her, but that wasn't very surprising, for him; after four years, you'd think a guy would know everyone, but that wasn't the case for Tristain. He didn't relish int he opportunity to meet and torment underclassmen, so most of them were foreign to him. He assumed she must be one of those, because, being a senior, most everyone was an underclassman, and he knew most of the people in his class.

"Sorry, uhm... how long are you gonna be?" Tristain asked, wondering if there was really any reason to wait for her. He didn't want to have to share the gym, if he didn't have to; he much preferred to have the entire space to himself, so he could run through various drills and take up as much or as little space as he wanted. He hoped he didn't sound like a jerk, and make her stay as long as was humanly possible, because he really wanted to get in some work out. It'd been far too long since he'd kicked a soccer ball, ran a few laps, and did some strenuous physical activity. But he wasn't desperate enough for it to risk bad weather.

~~~

And I still believe
There there's more love than hate,
There's more heart than ache,
And we're stuck in this great big world together.

522~Word Count~
Tristain's first post = muse>Muse<
Note to self: don't write posts within an hour of midnight. =D*Notes*

[/right]

[tessa colleen foley.]

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
we. were. born. for. this.
tell me, tell me, do you feel the pressure now?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Every time she felt her hand hit the lightly padded surface of the volleyball, it seemed like a little bit of stress left her mind and body. It reminded her of the days before she was sent off to Power’s. She had been one of the best players on her junior high team. Things had been so much easier back then. But, after everything that had happened over the past few years, at least she still had volleyball. She could safely release any built-up anger or strong upset feelings and prevent herself from turning into a dangerous animal when one little thing pushed her over the edge. Dancing was also great, but she only got an opportunity to do that if the gym was guaranteed to be empty or the theatre wasn’t in use. She didn’t like people watching her dance alone. As part of an ensemble, yes, but not when it was just her. Someone walking in and watching was a thought that made her flat out uncomfortable. She wasn’t usually one to enjoy having a solo or the spotlight on her.

Her focus was broken when she heard the familiar, light creak of the gym door opening. She glanced in the direction of the noise, but quickly looked back so she didn’t miss hitting the ball. That was a little odd. On most days like this one, people liked to stay in their dorms and relax. She didn’t really mind, though. It wasn’t like she owned the gym. Turning her attention away from whoever had just walked in, she hustled forward to jump up and spike the ball as hard as she possibly could. It had enough height to where it could clear a net, and then landed right where the wall met the floor. A smile pulled at her lips and she walked over to lift the ball up. She wasn’t really even sweating and her breathing was just a tad heavier. Her stamina was something the girl had always been proud of. It was very possible that she could keep playing for hours before she would finally have to declare herself done for the day, but she would definitely be sweaty and gross by then.

The person that had just walked through the doors moments before had totally slipped her mind until she heard a voice. She looked back toward the figure, tucking the volleyball back under the arm. His question didn’t bother her, but she couldn’t help but feel a little amused. What would he need the full gym to himself for? Some extravagant one man game of soccer? “Eh, I guess I’m done. I was just messing around so I wouldn’t die of boredom in my dorm room,” she spoke with a shrug. She tossed the ball in the air once more, set it straight up, and then caught it as it came back down. For some reason, she always felt more social and talkative after a good workout. Maybe it just put her in a better mood and made her more willing to be around people. “I don’t think I know you,” she said, trying to match his face with a name. Her head tilted slightly to the side as she looked him over. She had to admit, he wasn’t unfortunate in the looks department, but she wasn’t the kind of girl to fall all over a guy for that reason. “I’m Tessa,” she added, giving him a laidback, friendly smile and walking a little closer to decrease the large gap that had separated them.

She took another look at the ball that was under his arm. “Do you play often?” she asked, nodding toward it. Hm, soccer…she had never played on a team or anything, but it was a sport. Almost anything that involved being athletic appealed to the teenager. Except for maybe cheerleading. Seeing as she was pretty short and skinny for her age, there was no doubt that she would be one of the girls that was lifted and thrown or had to stand at the top of the pyramid. That didn’t sound like her kind of thing. The risk of falling and breaking her neck? No thank you. She liked having both of her feet on the ground.

- - - - - - - - - -
status; finished!
word count; 709
outfit; these shorts and this tanktop
notes; meh, I guess this post isn't too shabby =]
- - - - - - - - - -

[tristain kingsley everhart.]

Aren't these some times?

It's gotten bad, and it's been pressin' on my mind...

[/font][/size]

~~~

"Uh, seems doubtful." Tristain answered. He shuffled uncomfortably as she drew nearer to him. He regretted making his presence known now; he wished he could just turn around and go back to his dorm, to sit around and do nothing like most of the guys were doing right about now. He could have been hanging out with his friends, eating junk food and watching a movie. Or one of Thalia's friends had invited him to hang out, but he wasn't sure he wanted to get... well, involved with them. They were a scary group of girls, no doubt.

Tristain realized a second after he answered that he probably should have answered with his own name. He wasn't very good in these kind of social situations, he froze up and did awkward things. "I'm Tristain." He said quietly, timidly. He hated it when his voice did that, he wanted to sound bold and courageous like everyone else, but... well, it never quite came to him. He was always awkward, and he knew it. "I'm a senior.

Oh, he felt so awkward and nervous, all at once. She was just out there, totally comfortable, and he had to be... well, him. If one thing got him down, it was the way he was when new people were involved.

'Do you play often?' Tristain nodded without thinking, taking comfort in the familiar ball under his arm. "My favorite sport. Trying to get fit for the season." Well, obviously he was trying to get fit, what was he thinking? Why else would he be coming here alone? He said some really stupid things. At least this time he didn't sound like a five year old asking a stranger for something. He sounded at least like he was competant.

He smiled nervously. He could tell in the way his lips pulled that it wasn't a natural grin, and that the world could tell. He'd gotten used to the feeling after the hundreth time. He forced himself to calm down. He'd be fine. The worst thing that could happen was that this girl would think he was a freak. Maybe she'd never talk to him again, or avoid him in the halls. Maybe she'd spread rumors. He could live with that. And besides, she was just a girl. A brown haired, green eyed, skinny girl with a volleyball under her arm. He'd live.

Still, he couldn't help feeling uneasy. Here was a girl that seemed totally self-confident... it just made him feel that much more inadequate. Oh, how he envied Thalia's easy way with people, the confident air that made Tristain proud to call her his sister. How he wished he had gotten that trait. But he couldn't have everything, and he liked himself the way he was... except for this small aspect. Except for the first impression, which apparently meant everything.

Tristain smiled. Behind that smile confidence died, but dang it if he wasn't going to try to get past it.

~~~

And I still believe
There there's more love than hate,
There's more heart than ache,
And we're stuck in this great big world together.

496~Word Count~
Tristain's discomfort>Muse<
Oh, Tristain... ;_;*Notes*

[/right]

[tessa colleen foley.]

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
we. were. born. for. this.
tell me, tell me, do you feel the pressure now?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

This really was unusual for Tessa. She wouldn’t often consider herself bubbly, especially around someone she didn’t even know. Back home, she had never been the social butterfly. She had had a little group of friends that accepted her and all her strange habits, but that was it. The other kids had done their best to ignore her. She had adjusted to that and never really knew how to react when one of them talked to her for one reason or another. It had caused her to become awkward around people, especially boys. Today seemed to be a different story. She wasn’t up in the poor boy’s face or anything, but there was a serene smile on her face and she was actually trying to start a conversation. “Yeah, I don’t think I’d forget your face,” she responded absentmindedly. Her eyes widened slightly when she realized how stupid what she had just said sounded. “I mean, I’m not hitting on you. I meant that I’m good at remembering faces. Not that I would have any reason to not hit on you. You seem like a nice guy and you’re not ugly…” she trailed off, putting an end to her embarrassed rambling as her expression became rather sheepish. “My power isn’t sounding like super idiot, I swear.” It was a pathetic attempt at a joke, but she didn’t know what else to say.

She waited with slight amusement for him to say his name. It was easy for her to see how uncomfortable he was. Why he was, however, she wasn’t quite sure of. The only thing she could come up with was that he was simply shy. There was nothing wrong with that. She knew what it was like to feel nervous and uneasy around new people. “It’s nice to meet you, Tristain.” She gave him a small, mild grin. “You don’t need to look so tense. I promise I don’t bi-“ she stopped herself before finishing the word ‘bite’. It would be a lie to say that she didn’t bite. Really, if he for some reason got her mad enough, there was a pretty good chance he would get bit. “Well…you don’t need to be tense around me,” she restated. And, hopefully, you also won’t have to worry about me biting you. She really hoped that he wasn’t completely weirded out by how bizarre she was acting. At least he hadn’t started inching toward the gym doors. That was a good sign.

For some reason, she really was interested in seeing if she could get through this boy’s shell. From what she could sense so far, he didn’t seem mean or stuck up or anything. “Ah. I’m a sophomore. You aren’t one of those ‘I’m cool, so I’m gonna go stuff an underclassman in a trash can’ seniors, right?” she joked, trying to get him to relax at least a little.

“Oh, nice,” she responded. A few strands of hair that had escaped her simple ponytail fell across her face in a distracting way. That wasn’t surprising. It was difficult to keep her hair up and totally pulled back when she was running around and trying to keep up with volleyball. She reached back behind her head and removed the elastic ponytail holder, allowing her slightly curled, dark hair to fall just a tad past her shoulders. She preferred it down and free, but it was difficult to engage in sports when her hair was in her eyes. “Need a partner? I won’t be offended if you say no, but I’d be happy to run some drills with you,” she offered, pulling her hair back once more in case he said yes. Sure, she might not be the best soccer player in the world, but she was capable of kicking the ball around without looking like an idiot. Plus she would have an excuse to stick around and talk to him as well as avoid sitting bored in her room.

His attempt at a smile made her want to hug him. There was no doubt in her mind that he was just shy. Hopefully she wasn’t coming off as some obnoxious chick that wouldn’t leave him alone. The last thing she wanted was him getting the impression that she was just flat-out annoying. She felt her confidence fade at the thought of that happening. What if that was his thought exactly? Should she have just left so he could practice in peace? It was times like this that made her wish she could read minds. Her strange burst of outgoingness was starting to subside and her more skittish side was taking over. Still, she didn’t let her gentle smile waver. There was a good chance that she was just being paranoid.

- - - - - - - - - -
status; finished!
word count; 792
outfit; these shorts and this tanktop
notes; Bahaha, Tess doesn't know what to think!
- - - - - - - - - -

[thalia alexandra everhart.]

Aren't these some times?

It's gotten bad, and it's been pressin' on my mind...

[/font][/size]

~~~

“Well…you don’t need to be tense around me,” 'And, hopefully, you also won’t have to worry about me biting you.' Tristain laughed to himself at the unspoken words. "What's your power?" He asked, before realizing that it was incredibly rude to ask about someone's unspoken, private thoughts, and immediately he flushed a bright red. "I mean... well... forget it, you don't have to answer that." He wished he could take that back, but he knew that he could only apologize for his error. Now she'd avoid him for sure; she was practically a stranger to him, and he was already answering her thoughts. If that didn't say nutcase, nothing did. Granted, at a school like this, he didn't have to worry so much about being a 'freak', but people tended not to like having their private thoughts out in the open.

No, I don't plan on dumping you in a trash can," Tristain chuckled slightly, and then marveled at how easy that had felt. That was a genuine laugh that she'd gotten; he wasn't used to that with new people. "I suppose... well, if you wanted... you could practice with me..." He smiled and hit the soccer ball against the floor a few times, finding an excuse not to look at her. 'Hopefully she wasn’t coming off as some obnoxious chick that wouldn’t leave him alone.'

[/i] "I don't think you're obnoxious." He looked her in the eyes just as he realized he'd done it again; how had he managed to do that twice in one conversation, so quickly? He cursed himself out in his thoughts and turned away from her, blushing profusely and feeling like a complete and total idiot. He'd thought he was making a friend, but maybe he was just freaking her out. Thalia would know how to fix this, but Tristain was just mortified that he'd done that. He was getting so good at blocking them out, and then something like this happened and he screwed it all up again. He'd have to start from the beginning, thoughts would start to flood his mind...

Thalia would be upset with him if she realized he'd done it again. He closed his eyes and worked to block out further thoughts. He didn't want to go backward in his schooling, he wanted to be good. Thalia may only be his sister, but her opinion mattered to him, and her opinion, in this case, most definitely affected his social life, too.

"Look, I'm sorry." Tristain said quietly, feeling all his discomfort surge up inside him. He'd been getting comfortable, but after that... well, it was hard to be comfortable when he knew he'd screwed up... big time. His hand twitched to his pocket and he looked at the floor, letting his soccer ball fall to the ground and bounce softly away. "I don't mean to, honestly..." He shook his head, letting his hair fall in his face and block his view. He didn't want to look at her right now. She was probably giving him some infuriated stare, or else she was just shocked and upset. He stuck his hands in his pockets and stood still, his body tense. Oh yeah, he'd screwed up.

"I'll just go." Tristain said quietly, and turned to leave. He didn't care that his soccer ball was still sitting on the gym floor; he'd come back later to get it. Right now he was too humiliated and embarrassed to think about it. [/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

~~~

And I still believe
There there's more love than hate,
There's more heart than ache,
And we're stuck in this great big world together.

576~Word Count~
Nerg>Muse<
It's a tad choppy. =/*Notes*

[/right]

[tessa colleen foley.]

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
we. were. born. for. this.
tell me, tell me, do you feel the pressure now?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

His question sort of caught her off guard. She wasn’t offended by is curiosity or considering him nosy, she just hadn’t expected him to come right out and ask. He spoke again before she could answer his question. “Um, alright.” She really didn’t want to tell him until he got to know her better. Explaining that she could turn into animals and was murderous and untamed in a good number of those forms wasn’t something she wanted to do right off the bat. Her fear, obviously, was that the second part of that would scare him away. There were people that avoided her because of the instability of her powers and it made her feel like a monster. She was worried that this guy would join their ranks. He already seemed skittish enough around her. Informing him that she could turn into a wild wolf and rip him apart if something got her upset might have made him leave and keep his distance from her.

She was smiling again. “Good. There are some questionable items in those things that I really wouldn’t like to come in contact with,” Tessa said with a grin. He had actually laughed. She couldn’t help but feel at least a little proud of herself. This Tristain guy seemed to be starting to actually warm up to her a little. “Ok, sounds good!” Her happiness at not being rejected made her light up. Maybe he didn’t consider her a pest for cutting into his practice time with idle conversation. She tossed her volleyball toward the side of the gym where it would be out of the way on focused on the soccer ball. What he said next made her look up in surprise. How had he…? It only took her a few seconds to realize the answer to her own question. He had to be a mind reader.

For a moment, she was sort of in awe. Despite the time she had spent at Power’s he was the first person that could read thoughts that she had ever met. She was jealous, too. Reading minds had always been something that she had wanted to do and it would be way better than being able to run around as a dog or lion. Being able to turn into a bird was something that she might’ve not wanted to give up, though. Flying was amazing. Her attention went back to Tristain. “No, you don’t need to be sorry,” she spoke with a soft half-smile. It wasn’t like she was mad at him for reading her mind. Like everyone else around here, besides the teachers, obviously, he probably had trouble controlling it. Concern was clear on her face when he dropped the ball. The poor guy really was upset with himself. She struggled to resist the urge to just run closer and hug him.

“No!” She didn’t sound demanding or forceful, but almost pleading. The teenage girl rushed to his side and lightly touched her hand to his arm. “I’m not mad at you, I swear,” her voice softened. The look on the poor boy’s face was absolutely heartbreaking. “Look,” she sighed, “I know what it’s like to not be able to totally control a power. I’m…I’m a shapeshifter. I can turn into any feline, bird, or canine. But whenever I’m in an undomesticated canine form, like a wolf or a fox, I can’t control myself. At all. And I tend to transform against my will whenever I get really mad.” She winced slightly once she finished explaining her power. “I’ve hurt people before,” she added softly, looking down at the floor before finally looking back at him. She removed her hand from his arm and waited for his reaction. If he hurried off, she wouldn’t blame him.

- - - - - - - - - -
status; finished!
word count; 629
outfit; these shorts and this tanktop
notes;aghh, sorry...this post kind of fails.
- - - - - - - - - -

[tristain kingsley everhart.]

Aren't these some times?

It's gotten bad, and it's been pressin' on my mind...

[/font][/size]

~~~

'If he hurried off, she wouldn’t blame him.

"If you don't want me to go, I won't." Tristain said as he shifted his gaze to the hand lightly touching his arm. "Although I can't guarantee that I won't.... do it again." His hands played with the hem of his T-shirt. He didn't know where to look, or what to do, really...

"You're a shifter? That's cool." He gave a small smile to the floor, where he was staring. "Better than hearing people's thoughts all day." His gaze moved to her face, and he blushed. She was pretty. And the way she was looking at him... well, most girls thought he was odd until they really got to know him, and he got used to them. Tessa didn't seem to have that issue, though - she even seemed a little anxious about explaining her own power to him. But he didn't see much harm in hers; everyone got a little upset sometimes, and with Powers... well, uncontrollable things happened anyway. "I've hurt people too; probably not quite the same way, but all the same..." He shrugged, then turned around to look at her. He found it hard to look her straight in the face, but he wanted to... look at her. That sounded weird, even to him, but she was pretty, and he supposed he could take the Thalia's ideas and say that all he could think about was girls because he was a man. If he even needed an excuse.

Tristain smiled as sincerely and happily as he could, trying to get past the discomfort in the pit of his stomach and the awkwardness of powers that couldn't be controlled. "You know, uh... well..." Tristain didn't really want to practice to much, all of a sudden. He wanted to just... hang out with this new girl, get to know what she was like and who she was. But maybe it'd be a little less... awkward if he were doing something. He didn't know how these situations worked, if he was supposed to just go on with what they'd been planning to do or try something else. Or do neither of the above and just leave. Of course, that last part sounded totally wrong to his mind, but his body was also yelling at him that he was shy and awkward and that he should just give up while he had the chance.

He sighed inwardly and walked over to his ball, kicking it into the air with his foot and catching it. He tucked it under his arm again and looked at Tessa. "You still wanna practice with me?" He wondered if he looked awkward. He wondered if he was blushing. He wondered if he had something between his teeth. He wondered if his shirt was laying down the way it was supposed to. He wondered if his hair looked alright.

He wondered what she thought about him.

~~~

And I still believe
There there's more love than hate,
There's more heart than ache,
And we're stuck in this great big world together.

489~Word Count~
Tristain's cute. =D>Muse<
Gah, shorter post!! *Notes*
“Believe” By The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus&Credited&

[/right]

[tessa colleen foley.]

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
we. were. born. for. this.
tell me, tell me, do you feel the pressure now?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A smile pulled at Tessa’s lips. Well, he didn’t seem anxious to get away from her. That was a good thing. Her hand remained on his arm for a moment before she finally moved it away. She hadn’t really even noticed that it had ended up there in the first place. It had just been a natural reaction, something she had done absentmindedly. Her head tilted to the side a tad. “What, read my mind?” She shrugged. “I don’t care. My thoughts aren’t that interesting, anyways,” she attempted to joke. The point was that she understood that he couldn’t control it. Most of the students around here had the same problem. If she did have even an ounce of annoyance for him listening in on her mind, she would be the biggest hypocrite ever. He probably hadn’t almost killed someone he loved like she had. A flashback of what Noelle had looked like in the hospital made the teenager’s stomach twist. She felt guilty every time she remembered it. To add to her list of things to feel awful about, a group of local farmers had also gone out and killed every coyote they saw within a ten mile radius of the ranch. Of course, they hadn’t shot the real criminal. Those poor animals had died because of her.

She gave a slight, weak laugh. “Yeah it, um, can be kind of cool,” she responded. That wasn’t a lie. When she could control herself, she honestly did enjoy it. It was just the scary feeling of her mind being taken over by her ‘other side’ that she hated. “Oh, come on. It’s got to be at least a little awesome to know what people are thinking,” her tone kept its lightness. All powers had their perks and their downsides. It had to get irritating for him. Some thoughts were better left unheard, but it was still something she would consider trading for her shape-shifting. It would make it a lot easier to separate your true friends from your fake friends. There were plenty of people that had treated her like a best friend and then turned around and started some cruel rumors. That had mostly happened in junior high. Her eyebrow rose at his statement. “How so?” she asked, momentarily not realizing how nosy she was being. The words had just slipped right out. “I mean, if you don’t mind me asking,” she fumbled to add. She half-smiled as he shifted his gaze to her, a soft, amused chuckle escaping her throat. This was such a different situation. Usually, she was being the slightly aloof one in a conversation, especially when it involved a boy. But, for some reason, she felt relaxed and easy going in Tristain’s presence.

Reading his body language wasn’t an easy task for her. She was used to being around guys that were totally douches most the time. Hell, there weren’t many that were totally decent sweethearts. But most of them gave her one of two vibes; the ‘I want in your pants’ one or the ‘what a loser’ one. The latter tended to include her being teased, usually for her behavior. She wasn’t an alcoholic. She didn’t even want to try smoking. Detention was a waste of time and not a place she spent much time in. Lastly, though she didn’t bring it up very often, the furthest she had gone with a guy was some light kissing and hand-holding. She was in no way embarrassed about it, but it really wasn’t anyone’s business. But, the point was, Tris fit neither of those vibe categories. He was shy and, well, he was cute. She wouldn’t deny that. It didn’t mean that she would start giggling and acting like a love-struck fool. Tessa was a strong believer in really getting to know someone before developing the smallest feeling for them. Maybe that was why she had been single for so long.

Her little smile grew into a grin. Of course she still wanted to. The only time the girl would pass up playing a sport of some type was if she was sick or dead tired. Even when she was angry or sad, she would hit or kick a ball around. In fact, that was what she would want to do the most. Nothing released stress better than sports. “I would love to.” She eyed the soccer ball for a moment before looking back at him. “And, if you’d like, we could play twenty questions or something while we practiced. It’d be nice to get to know you better…unless you’re worried about getting too distracted and being schooled in your own sport by a girl,” she said cheekily, a smirk taking over the grin. The last part was totally just a joke. Unless some divine intervention was involved, she was pretty sure that he was more talented in this game than she was. But, as long as she didn’t humiliate herself, she didn’t mind.

- - - - - - - - - -
status; finished!
word count; 828
outfit; these shorts and this tanktop
notes;sorreh it took so long!
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[tristain kingsley everhart.]

Aren't these some times?

It's gotten bad, and it's been pressin' on my mind...

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~~~

Tristain grinned as he reached the soccer ball. He picked it up and tossed it around a moment before answering her. "Sounds good... Do you want to use your 'how so' as your first question? He didn't really want to answer. But she'd told him something that she hadn't wanted to, he'd read it in her body language. So it seemed only fair. Besides, he wanted her to trust him. He wanted her to like him.

He kicked the ball into the air a few times, finding a way to keep his attention on something else. If she wanted to know, he wouldn't be able to look at her.

It hadn't been much, really. He'd just said something that hadn't been meant to heard... well, he supposed it was kind of a big deal. He hadn't meant to do it, he'd promised afterward, but... well, that wasn't good enough, he supposed. He hadn't physically hurt anyone, he didn't think, but he'd had his fair share of hurt and bad encounters before. There was nothing quite like losing control without realizing you'd lost it. He assumed she knew that she was losing control at some point; for him, it just sort of... happened.

Tristain counted the number of times he hit the ball before it hit the floor. One... Two... Three...

~~~

And I still believe
That there's more love than hate,
There's more heart than ache,
And we're stuck in this great big world together.

220~Word Count~
>.<>Muse<
Are posts going to get shorter as they get to talking>? XP Sorry for the shortness.*Notes*
“Believe” By The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus&Credited&

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