[RP]Labeled

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Book Club
Wearing:

Spoiler:

Oh, New Girl is here too. He said to himself about the red head. He had seen her around last semester but he didn't bother to learn her name. All he really knew about her was that she was nice and sort of a push-over. He flashed a smile in her direction and turned his attention to Michelle, his copper eyes flashing with mischief while she stared him down.After coming all this way, this is how I'm greeted. Talk about feeling wanted. He mused despite Michelle's reaction to his appearance screaming for him to get out of her club meeting. "Rolling your eyes? That's hardly anyway to greet one of your friends, especially since you haven't seen them in almost two months," he chided her.

He removed his gaze from Michelle's just in time to see Tiana walked in. It didn't take her long to figure out what was going on between him and Michelle. He shrugged and his eyes shifted back to Michelle. He had no intentions of joining the book club today or ever, he already had enough extra curricular activities on his plate but that didn't stop him from letting himself in.

As he walked closer to her he noticed the intensity of her gaze and he couldn't help but laugh.
Oh Michelle!

"I know the way out, I'm not five. You of all people should know reading isn't necessarily my style." He picked up the book that she would have given him if he decided to join the book club. "The Book Thief?" he asked rhetorically as he examined the cover. He remembered reading this story a few months ago. "Been there, done that," he yawned as he placed the book back in front of Michelle. "Much to your delight, I have no intentions of joining the book club so don't worry about me ruining your precious club. I just came to say hello," he said as he mockingly bowed. "To think I came all this way from France and this is how I'm greeted." he huffed and folded his arms. "I even bought you a souvenir."

He rested on the table and spoke matter-of-factly, "As I recall you and Jazz have stuff to tell me, so will you be coming to the Cafe after this too?"

He paused before he spoke again because he was unsure how Michelle would react to his next statement, especially since he seemed to contradict himself. "Oh, I know I said I wouldn't be joining your club but you wouldn't mind if..." his voice lowered and he knotted his fingers together, "...I stayed here until you're done. I have nothing else to do and I promise I'll be good."

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Book Club
Wearing:

Spoiler:

"Excellent choice," Delilah beamed. "I, too, have read this one, it's a great read." She was going to continue the conversation when Michelle was interrupted by a dark-haired boy. Delilah had seen him a few times when she would go to the school's swimming pool. Aaron was it? she pondered on his name. He flashed her a quick smile and she returned the favour but his gaze was back on Michelle and Delilah could feel the tension in the air. Michelle looked annoyed and was giving him a very intense death stare which didn't seem to phase him.

A familiar voice snapped her attention away from the slightly amusing scene that seemed to be unfolding in front of her. Delilah beamed as the slate-eyed girl took a seat next to her. "Oh you know it's all thanks to your incredible skills," she praised Tiana, as she fluffed her red curls. "How's Noir? I hope Sage didn't bleach the poor thing!" Delilah joked. Tiana seemed engrossed in her phone so Delilah decided to pull hers out as well and like magic, at that moment she received a reply from her ebony-haired friend.

To: Sage Sensei :3
From: Dee
I'll meet you there
Message sent.

The other members of the book club hadn't arrived yet and since Delilah read the book already she still had some time to kill. She checked her twitter feed but there wasn't anything to necessarily grab her interest. Until she saw the Burner's latest tweet. A few weeks had passed since the incident at Frey's party and everyone seemed to forget it, Jessica even allowed her to join the Musicians. Delilah sighed, Jessica went from wanting to pound her head in to a peace offering by letting her join the Musicians, providing she had enough talent. Luckily, she remembered enough to get in. Which reminds me, I need to practice some more, before I lose my place. Thinking back to the Burner's tweet, Delilah began to worry what he or she might publish in their next article. The Burner didn't jump on her case and Delilah was certain that the Burner was going to have a blast with that incident.

Delilah looked up from her phone and remembered that Tiana, like her cousin, also enjoyed tea. Must run in the family. "Sage and I are gonna get some tea after, wanna join us?" she invited, oblivious to the plans Tiana made prior to her impromptu invitation.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Kingdom Crest High --> Gamestop
Thoughts: 'And now I know why I hate pickles.'
Wearing:

Spoiler:

With an easy shrug of his shoulder, Joe's guitar was placed to rest on his back. In a different circumstance, he might have been tempted to leave his guitar where it was and come back for it tomorrow. But, with a few enemies in mind, he decided that this would do more damage than good. He was positive that some form of vandalism would be done to his precious guitar and would do nothing to risk it. Taking the case to the mall would just have to do.

After stuffing his journal back into his backpack, he carried it on his wrist and swaggered out of the band hall, making sure to turn the lights off before he left. The band teacher left with Joe in the room and would be returning soon to lock the doors. The tall male knew better than to bring his backpack and his guitar to the mall, so he decided to do what he always did: stow everything away in his locker. If Joe did have homework, he could complete it in the minutes before the class started. '27...4...18' he thought to himself as he turned the combination in. Right before he pulled down, he heard a small sneeze echo throughout the hallway. It was a petite sneeze that definitely belonged to a female. Joe's eyebrows arched as he stuffed his slim backpack into the small interior of his locker.
He was in the science hall. It was after school. The sneeze was adorable. It could only belong to one person. Sage. he thought to himself. His heart squeezed in his chest at the chance to spend time with her. They were in Forensics together, he could easily lend a helping hand without seeming too desperate. Joe closed his locker door and began to walk towards to sneeze sound, looking through the door windows to see if her small figure was occupying it.
When his brown eyes looked through the glass of the Chemistry Lab, he saw her. His heart fell into his stomach and his eyes widened. Happiness surged through his body as he began to open the heavy lab door, but he was interrupted by the vibration of his phone. It was a silent sound, and with the addition of the heavy door, he was sure Sage did not hear him. With a shaking hand, Joe quickly fished his phone out of his pocket and set his eyes on the bright screen. Oh...Kevyn...

Inner turmoil was the only thing that could describe the emotions that he was feeling. Stay with Sage, or go with Kevyn. Joe shook his hair out of his face and turned his eyes to the ceiling, sighing a thousand sighs. It wasn't that he was frustrated with Kevyn: that was the last thing he was feeling. He just knew what the right thing to do was. Joe let his eyes linger on Sage's cute, alluring back before he turned and walked away, not letting himself look back for fearing a change of decision.

_____________________________

Joe took the bus to the mall. It was a pain that he didn't have his own car, but he thought saving his money for music equipment was more important than a form of transportation. He got dirty looks from old people who probably assumed that he was some hipster musician that didn't respect authority. He offered a smile before settling in a window seat, placing his guitar on the chair that was beside him.
To occupy his time, Joe decided to pull up Twitter on his cellphone and to see what was going on. His thumbs immediately pulled up Sage's profile and he began reading her tweets. When he saw that she had been talking with Sam, jealousy is what pushed him to read into their conversation.

At first, Joe was confused about what the two of them were talking about. But when he read on, his confusion quickly evaporated.
'I knew you didn't have what it takes to be my ink partner.'
'I thought you said these tattoos would be fun... Mine's still sore.'

The small technoloy slipped from his fingers and fell into his lap. The bitter taste of defeat stained his mouth as his eyes looked out the window. With each passing object, Joe's thoughts passed as well. Did they have matching tattoos, or did they just go together? Is this a sign that they're together? Why Sam...why not me?
Joe was not the type of person to cry; especially not in public. But when he thought about losing Sage to someone else--even if she wasn't officially his--was unbearable. Yet, it was easy to imagine Sam and Sage, laughing together at a tattoo parlour while the ink was pushed into their skin. His brown eyes became bloodshot as he fought the tears away by biting his inner cheeks.

Joe was thankful that the ride was a short one to the mall. If he had been left with his thoughts any longer, his mood may have turned sour and he would have to cancel plans with Kevyn. In all honesty, he wasn't looking forward to spending time with her. He wanted to pout in his bedroom while listening to songs that matched his emotions. But now he was forced to share conversations and try to hide the depression he felt.
Grabbing his guitar, he set off to find Gamestop. It didn't take long to find the redhead who was obsessed with gaming: she stuck out like a sore thumb. Joe sneaked up behind her and wrapped her in a bear hug, his arms crossing just above her belly button.
"Guess who." he whispered into her ear before chuckling.
For some reason, just the site of Kevyn had lifted his spirits...somewhat.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Just chilling at home
Thoughts: 'If only I could pause time to stay in the shower forever.'
Wearing:
(Before shower)

Spoiler:

(After shower)

Spoiler:

Harley's legs felt like jelly as she stepped down from the treadmill. She was in training for softball and didn't want to be caught off guard by the practices that were coming up. She had pumped out a satisfying five miles in a sprint before she felt like she could run no more. Her legs screamed each time she moved, but the soreness was welcome. The sweat, however, was not. Her baby curls were clinging to the back of her neck because of the dampness that mistified Harley's body. A good shower was called for.
Stripping out of her clothes, Harley pulled her naked body into the square shower. As soon as the warm water hit her muscles, she let out a satisfied moan and leaned against the wall, letting her legs relax under the intense heat. It wasn't always that she gave herself the luxury of a long shower, so she enjoyed spoiling herself to a thirty minute shower.
Emerging as a new Harley, she ditched the towel and walked to her bedroom in the nude. Picking out clothes for the fall weather, she draped herself in a comfortable get up that still screamed her simple personality.
Laying down on her bed, Harley logged into twitter. Lately she had been following the burner's posts to see if the burner had posted anything about what happened at the party. The thought of it made Harley flinch as shame still remained. It wasn't something that she would forget, and it wasn't something that the school was forgetting either. They had all been taken by surprise when nothing about the party was posted and the Burner all but vanished for the month.
But, seeing the new twitter posts, Harley saw that the burner was back. But, fortunately for her, they were tearing into Jacob instead of her.
Her fingers pressed the screen icon for 'messaging' and she quickly sent out a text to Jess.

To: Her
From: Harley Babe
Message:
Hey What are you up to?

Message Sent

She laid her phone back on her bed as she transferred over to her computer, deciding to spend her time on the glory of the internet. On her computer, she sent another tweet out. Twiddling her thumbs, she waited for a reply to either one of them.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Outdoors sports track

Wearing:

"C'mon girls! One more lap, one more!" Behind her, Eyree heard exasperated groans, moans, and a few sparing curses, as well as a few faltering footfalls as the Kingdom Crest gymnastics squad braced themselves for another torturous lap around the track. Her own legs were burning, crying for a reprieve. It seemed like they had been out here forever, the relatively cool outside air doing nothing to soothe their burning muscles or sweating skin. The girls had endured Eyree's manic pace and demands in lieu of not having the gym and equipment to practice on. As per her arrangement with the wrestling team, the boys got the main gymnasium every Wednesday and Thursday. She was glad to leave those sweaty, hormonal boys to their primitive grunting and tossing of sweaty bodies onto mats. Today, however, the auditions for spring Cheerleading were being held in the small gymnasium, which had ruled out the elevated sports track in the small gym. So Eyree, frustrated with all the administration's oversight and overlapping practices, had dragged forty-some girls outside into the cool, overcast outdoors for a day of cardio. "There's no excuse for laziness," she had said. The coaches were glad to have a free day after a chaotic month. The squad had done remarkably well under the coaches' tutelage (and, she liked to think, her own input). KCGS had made it to another State showing, now only a little under a month left until the actual tournament.

Panting, Eyree picked up her pace for their final lap around the track, arms pumping, vivid ponytail bouncing frenetically with the intensity of movement. The groans behind her had died down, replaced by panting and barely controlled breathing. They had made it twenty laps so far, one more wouldn't hurt anybody, she decided. "Trudneye, luchshe, bystreye, sil'neye," she murmured to herself, leaning into the curve of the track corner. She might be hated for the grueling set she had created for them, but at least she was respected. And their performance at the State tournament would be all the better for it.

A few minutes later and all the girls fell into a liquid, gelatinous, panting pile on the cool grass. Eyree continued another half lap before falling into the grass herself. She welcomed the faint damp that still clung to the verdant blades of grass, sinking further into their spongy comfort. Her legs thrummed and throbbed, the glorious pain somehow oddly exhilarating, bringing her smirk of a smile to her plush pink lips. Her eyes closed against the brightness trying to peek through the low hanging clouds, Eyree called out, "Another lap girls?" This was met with bewildered cries of "Is she serious?" and "Fuck off, Eyree!" She chuckled silently to herself, laying an arm over her closed eyes, chest heaving as she worked to get her breathing and body under control once again. After a few moments, she pulled her phone out of the inner pocket of her tiny red shorts. A quick perusal over twitter revealed quite the hot debacle, something that she honestly felt uncomfortable reading. It seemed the Burner had done it's job again, inciting jealousy, rage, hatred. It seemed Jacob, Asher, and Carmen were in the thick of the Burner's insidious control. Their realm of influence kept growing and day by day, Eyree grew worried about the portrayal of her own actions and the protection of her painful, dangerous past.

Eyree, as well as quite a few others at Kingdom Crest, had been shocked at the Burner's silence immediately following the party at Frey's only a month ago. A few had begun to hope that this meant the end of the Burner and some were distraught, desperate for the newest piece of gossip. But, just as she had feared, the Burner was not gone for good. No, the Burner was the perfect little snake, coiling and bunching in the bushes, biding its time, waiting for the right time to leap out and strike. She was dreading what would be said about that night, that party. Eyree allowed her thoughts to drift backwards, dwelling briefly on the events that had unfolded that night.

She had left in such a hurry, her stomach turning at the thought of witnessing this disagreement turn physical, with the phantom blows and sting of her gunshot wound pulling at her skin. She had burst outdoors, pacing, her breath coming in shallow gasps and the tiny discs in her hair creating a riotous chorus at her quick, sharp movements. The cool evening air had done nothing to slow the racing of her heart or return her breathing to normal or chill her feverish golden skin. Tears had threatened, pricking at her wide cerulean eyes as she fought back the horrid memories. It seemed that no matter where she went, no matter how far away she was from that night in Mexico, her own stupidity and mortality was constantly being shoved in her face. When she finally managed to calm down enough to where she could breath without seeing black at the edge of her vision, she wasted no time in clambering into her vehicle.

Eyree careened down the streets, that familiar panic bubbling at the base of her skull threatening to push her off the edge in moments. Thankfully, she pulled her SUV safely into Issiah's driveway, practically falling out of the vehicle and towards the comfort and understanding he offered her. When his mother answered the door, she offered a watery smile, politely answering her questions before she left to go fetch her son. The moment he appeared, Eyree launched herself into his arms, the tears coming unbidden now. "I don't want to talk about it," she had managed to get out between heaving sobs. And, bless the boy, he had listened, allowing Eyree to cry herself out, her tears soaking the front of his shirt. All the fear, all the rage and anger, all the guilt and shame came tumbling out in her tears and she was grateful for his comforting arm around her violently shaking shoulders. It was a half hour later when she completely exhausted herself, reduced to tiny sniffles and hiccups, no more tears in her body to shed. She felt better, somehow safer when she was around Issy, and the awful memories that plagued her finally seemed more distant.

Apparently, though, her absence at the party had been noticed. The next day, multiple people came up to her, subtly inquiring about her whereabouts after the party. Her abrupt and hasty disappearance had been noticed, especially after things had begun to de-escalate (for which she was grateful). Once the thrill and adrenaline of a possible brawl had died down, monotony had ensued and Eyree, with her purple braid and lively party antics, had been sorely missed. She had merely laughed and offered them her smirking, all-knowing smile, claiming that she had other prearranged plans that evening that she had to rush off to. And, for the most part, people seemed ready to accept her excuse, quickly launching into tales about the epic party and the almost-fight. One of the basketball players had held up a tiny golden disc that had fallen from her hair that night, saying that she had "left her glass slipper at the ball". And just like that, seems things to go right back to normal for Eyree.

Of course, they weren't. But she was more than willing to pretend they were.

She banished all those thoughts to the back of her mind and opened her blue eyes to the brightness of the hazy, cloud-covered sunshine, glancing down at her phone. She owed Issy big time for arriving in near hysterics and leaving with no explanation, only a muttered "thank you."

To: Rojas
From: Ree

Hey, skip the Rec tonight and tell your mom not to worry about dinner tonight. I'm coming over to make dinner for you all. You can teach me how to play football, instead. (:

Tucking her phone into her pocket, she stood slowly to her feet, her leg muscles groaning in response. Another smirking grin turned the corners of her mouth. "Alright girls. To the weight room!" Eyree smiled as vehement curses and groans erupted around her.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location:
Book Club room
Wearing:

I bought this in Japan:

In the middle of the staring contest between Michelle and Aaron, Tiana had waltzed into the room, lightening the mood a bit with her ballerina hairdresser Northerner aura. Breaking eye contact with the athletic superstar, Michelle took the opportunity to grab another copy of the Book Thief and hand it to her dancer best friend. Although Dee was a lovely part of the club, Michelle loved having Tiana there for the ride too. Although she sometimes didn't show it, Michelle valued Tiana's friendship maybe a bit more than she valued writing. "Chotto Tiana." She addressed her friend in a way that she addressed many people - Japanese.

She turned back to Aaron, who had started to scold her jokingly about her being his friend and not greeting him like friends should. Michelle liked Aaron. He was a great guy to have by your side, albeit he was a bit annoying. Turning her gaze back onto Aaron, Michelle tapped her fingernails onto the library table. "Yes, well you don't come to your friend's book club and crash it - two months or not," Although her face was serious, a glint in her eyes gave away the fact that she was actually happy to see Aaron again after two months. But her face was stony and blank, unamused.

The Jap watched as Aaron picked up the book and started to read the cover, saying that he'd read it before and still wouldn't think of joining the book club. His voice droned on and on through Michelle's mind until she heard one special word:

Souvenirs.

Her face perked up a bit at the word, fingernail tapping coming to a halt. "So-Souvenirs? Odosans? What type of souvenirs?" The excited tone was clearly shown through Michelle's pronounciation of both the English word and the Japanese variation. Covering her mouth, Michelle composed herself before speaking again, this time in a robotic tone. "Souvenirs? What type of souvenirs?" Aaron then continued on, speaking about what she and Jazz had to tell him.

Oh yeah, she nearly forgot.

With band practice today and a gig yesterday, Michelle hardly had room to remember meetups. Maybe if she could wrap up the book club quickly and go to the cafe for a quick chat...

Her train of thought was suddenly wrecked by Aaron's words, asking if he could stay in the club. Although she knew this was probably not the best idea, nor the best time to follow through with the idea, Michelle knew this would be the last time Aaron Descartes would be setting foot in her club with the thoughts of crashing it. "Fine. You may stay. Don't break anything, don't touch anything, and do not be too loud. As for the cafe, I'll try to stop for a quick coffee."

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Hallways ➜ Auditorium

Wearing:

It felt good to be back at the school after a lengthy Christmas vacation. The trip had not been intended as a several month affair, starting out as a business trip for only her father. But then, after weeks of pleading and begging, the Kuolt children had been allowed to come, with every intention of returning in time for school. Fortunately for the Kuolt children, whatever business her parents were dealing with in Turkey was taking extra time and, in the chaos and hard negotiations of her parents' work, the children were practically forgotten and allowed to stay the extra month with their parents. Sabrina, for one, was thrilled. Istanbul was beautiful, all glittering water, colorful architecture, and opulent mosques. She had gone through countless rolls of film, not trusting her memory to file these glorious sights in her mind and still do them justice. The colors, the sounds, even the smells had been the artistic inspiration she had needed and, as time went on, she found herself itching to get home, rip into some canvas, and paint her memories. The trip had not been all relaxation, however. Max had endured an episode during their stay and didn't rise from bed for almost an entire week, his hair beginning to thin ever so slightly, that usual luster slipping from his olive skin and grey eyes, as the usually loquacious Maxwell Kuolt slipped into exhausted silence. Benjamin had played an excellent nurse, spending his days by Max's bedside, chattering on about nothing in particular for hours on end, eliciting smiles and the occasional weak laugh from little Max. he had insisted that she go out and enjoy herself.

But it was very hard to enjoy yourself when someone you loved was dying.

Plus, the Kuolts, all a part of the Honor Society, could not allow their academics to go entirely untouched, especially not of their parents, always adamant about good grades and performance at school, caught wind of their laziness. The homework, assignments, and projects she had completed while in Istanbul took up almost a third of her suitcase; she was ready to unburden herself of so many sheets of paper. Sabrina had arrived at school and her small circle of friends had wasted no time in catching her up on the events of the past few months. It was through them that she learned of this Kingdom Burner and had took to Twitter to see what all the fuss was about. This Burner, whoever they were, seemed like quite the insidious fellow, mischief and heartbreak their only goal. And, by the look of things, they had succeeded. It was a disgusting aspect of human nature to want to know the sordid secrets of someone else's life, to want to know every little detail about them, no matter how miniscule. The Burner seemed to take that just a little too far. But she didn't allow her mind to dwell too long on the dastardly spy; she had been absent these past several months and was always on such good behavior as it was. Bri was the model student: smart, academic-minded, quiet, and certainly not a social butterfly. She was a "goody two-shoes", an expression that did nothing except to confound Bri with it's implied mockery.

Scarcely a minute after the final bell had rung, her brother had skipped over to her side. "Hey sis!" He had greeted before launching into a conversation (entirely one-sided) about something or other. He continued to follow her as she made her way to her locker, picking up the stack of homework completed in Istanbul, and around the school as she distributed the late work. Max continued prattling on, completely oblivious to the muted conversations she had with her teachers discussing the work she handed them and continued nattering even as she bent over the water fountain for a drink. Finally, she interrupted him, turning to face him, blinking her hooded pewter eyes up at him. "Don't you have friends to pester, Maxwell? You've been gone for practically two months." Her voice did nothing to betray her barely contained annoyance at her brother's typical boisterous actions. They had since returned to her locker, Sabrina filling her bag with the necessary books she would need for her homework tonight. Max broke into a wide grin. "Of course I do! But they aren't my ride home," he said, his voice light. Sabrina fought the urge to roll her eyes. Turning her attention back to her locker, she swapped out textbooks. "If you were listening to me this morning, you'd remember that I told you I had my book club meeting today and would be staying later to make sure I had caught up on everything I had missed. You'll have to catch a ride home with Benji."

His easy grin immediately dropped. "Awww man, not with Benji! He hogs the seat on that crotch rocket of his. He never shares when I ride with him. There's only a quarter inch separating me from death on that stupid motorcycle!" He groaned, arranging his face into a carefully practiced theatrical pout. Sabrina blinked lazily, unfazed by her brother's over-the-top theatrics (though she knew he was entirely serious in his words). "Well, if you had listened to me this morning you would have heard and understood to bum a ride from one of your friends because I would be otherwise unavailable. It's your own fault you're now relegated to riding above the back wheel of Benji's bike," she replied dryly. Maxwell's features turned exasperated, his brow knitting together and his mottled grey-green eyes silently fuming. "It's hard to listen to someone when they're dressed like a grandma. I mean, honestly, who wears pearls to school? Only the really old ladies in the attendance office." Another lazy blink. "Now you're just being petulant." Maxxy twisted his mouth. "I bet you don't even know what that word means," he mumbled, pouting.  Sabrina blinked exactly three times before Maxwell finally conceded defeat. "FINE! I'll go find Benjamin. He's probably ogling the girls at cheerleading practice..." he grumbled. Sabrina slammed her locker door shut, the barest hint of a smile pressing at the corners of her mouth. "Good. And if he gives you any trouble, tell him that Bri told him to get you home at once and if he doesn't, I'll get very angry with him later." Max's eyes widened, knowing full well the implications of that. Unlike most angry people who shouted and screamed and turned red in the face, Sabrina's was a quiet fury. Her chilling anger was the breath of complete silence before death swung his ax; it was a terrifying thing to behold. Max nodded. "Good boy. I'll see you at home this evening, Maxwell," she called, turning smartly on her heel and marching her way to the room book club was meeting in.

Sabrina marched down the hallways in that unnervingly controlled fluid way of hers, a destination in mind. But then she passed by the auditorium and could hear the slightest strains of music emanating from behind closed doors and, much to her surprise, it was a song she recognized. Her dappled silver eyes flitted back and forth, from the heavy auditorium door, to the hallway just ahead that housed her fellow book club members. Michelle would no doubt be angry with her for her tardiness to the meeting, especially after missing the past few meetings what with being stuck in Turkey. But Sabrina, being the artist she was, had always had a soft spot for music, though she was never talented enough to warrant a spot in the Musicians. And this song, a song that she knew, seemed to call out to her. I'll just step in and listen and be right out, she told herself, silently pulling open the heavy doors. She crept into the dark auditorium, weaving around the seats, tall lithe frame hidden in the shadow. On the stage, illuminated by the bright stage lights, sat a few of the instruments used for choir practice. There was the beautiful grand piano, all gleaming black wood under the light, so similar to the one that sat in the Kuolt home that Sabrina had learned on, and the keyboard, at which sat her favorite dark-haired musician.

She wasn't entirely sure when her feelings toward the Brit had begun to change. Her relationship with Travis had been nothing but confusing. They had gone from being the best of friends, to having a secret passionate relationship, to her breaking it off for reasons she wouldn't discuss with him. She had yearned for things between them to return to normal, for him to be the light, witty sarcasm to her thoughtful, taciturn occasional snarkiness. Instead, they had been incredibly strained. And once again, she thought dismally, I was powerless to stop it. Her heart still ached for her friend, who had retreated towards cool civility with her. She couldn't separate what exactly her feelings still were for the boy, even as he elected to stay quietly distant from her. And maybe it was that cool civility that she had so feared from him, that seemed to only want to push her further away, was what had turned her eye to Leighton. He had the some of the same mannerisms that she had found so appealing in Travis and his music spoke to her artistic nature. He was self-sufficient, just like herself. But, so far, things had only been a friendly banter between them. Sabrina crept further through the auditorium, careful to not make a sound and disturb him, silently ascending the stage and standing off in the corner. When the song came to a close, she smiled, her lips turning upwards at the corner, and she clapped. "And here I thought you were only a pretty face with a guitar," she announced, her tone hushed so as not to break the beautiful silence that followed the music. She slowly came to stand beside the keyboard, a long olive finger caressing the tips of the keys. "I suppose it's a requirement to know multiple instruments to get into the Musicians. Probably why I was never invited." She offered a lighthearted smirk.  

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Location:Home-->Harley's.

Wearing:

In the few weeks that  had passed since the incident at the party, Jessica was beginning to believe that it was a sign—though she couldn’t tell if it was a good or bad sign. After she had left in a nearly blinding rage and forgot to drop Harley off—things began to change for Jessica. It started first with that night when Harley had to spend the night—it was either that or walk home—and Claire took a liking to the blonde. Maybe it was her mother alone who made Jessica forgive Harley, or maybe it was the simple fact they stayed up the entire night watching television and stuffing their faces. Every time that Harley tried to apologize, Jessi would just simply keep her eyes focused on the television and throw up her hand to tell her that if she thought about it anymore, she was more than likely to do physical damage to her crush. Everyone was well aware that Jessi was not one to share her raw emotions, and she refused to do so at the moment with the one person who had hurt her the most.

The days that followed after seemed to be just as eventful for Jessica seemed to remain rather distant towards everyone, barely breathing a word inside Kingdom Crest. She spent all of her time inside the Music Room where she played her violin fervently, blocking out the world consuming her or the participants who would simply stop and listen to her melodic tone that stirred emotions inside that they weren’t even are they had. It was a gift, a beautiful one that Jessica appreciated since it was her only outlet to expression her anger, frustration, and most of all  the deep depression that loomed around her.

She wasn’t sure how, but her brother who had been visiting seemed to sense this and after countless arguments from their mother—Jessica found herself being boarded onto a plane to have a taste of the sunny days of California once again. It broke her heat to see her mother standing there, sobbing as Raphael lugged her suitcase out of the house with one hand, using the other to lure Jessica away. Jessica didn’t know how her brother knew but California was just the thing she needed. Returning to the neighborhood was like having life breathed back into her slowly dying soul—and seeing old faces of old friends brightened her mood tremendously. Of course she kept in contact with Harley to say the least via text messages and soon that escalated into nightly phone calls. They both needed space but still wanted communication and with Jessica in California that was exactly what got.
Of course, there were the downsides of being back in her old neighborhood. It was still violent as ever, certain areas she couldn’t step foot in and there was the caution of wearing certain colors—the life of gangs, something Jessica tried to leave behind, but she knew that wasn’t entirely possible, not when she was around all five of her brothers.

Jessica found herself slowly slipping back into that lifestyle and she even thought about how she could make herself rise up the ranks. Luckily for her, Raphael was beginning to notice the change and began to regret his decision of bring the only sibling in the family who actually had something to truly live for. He decided to correct his wrong by forcing Jessica to apply at her dream college—Julliard—and sent her back on her way to Kingdom Crest…though too little too late.

When she returned, Jessica had a different look—tattoos covered the sleeve of her arm and her chest that were no doubt gang affiliated and piercings rested underneath her lips. Sad to say that her mother didn’t react too well to the situation and the moment Jessica came home—she was kicked out. A regular teenager would have been distraught and probably lost on what to do, but thanks to her resourcefulness and street smarts—Jessica found herself a decent two bedroom apartment on the outskirts of King Arces and Knight Drive --all funded illegally but who asked for specifics?

New Look:

Apartment:

Now she was back in Kingdom Crest, but she decided to opt out of going to class—even though she had just been re-registered back into the school—and spent her day practicing her lessons in her studio apartment. It wasn’t until she received a buzz from her phone to indicate that she was being contacted. Picking up the phone, she noticed it was from Harley and a small smile tugged at her lips. She was about to respond but decided to check twitter first, only to see that her blonde surfer wanted to hang with someone. Replying to the tweet and receiving a response, Jessica put away her pride and joy and grabbed the keys to her baby blue lover.

It really took her no time at all to reach Harley’s home since she lived a bit closer now since her move. She would have gotten out of the car but she wasn’t in the mood for having to converse with anyone and her time in California almost made Jessica lose her mannerism—who knew that she actually had manners?—so she simply pressed her palm on the horn of the car and let it blare to life twice, signaling that she was there.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location:
Mall
Wearing:

Perfect for running away from drunks:

Examining the games in the bin in frnt of her, the redhead blanched as she found nothing within her interest. A lot of games were on sale, but none of them matched what she wanted in a game. Looking to her side, Kevyn saw a familiar green diamond logo. Sims. She could probably buy it if it were good, on sale, and something she didn't have already. Grabbing the game, she examined it. 'Sims 3 Island Paradise.' She hadn't bought this one, and judging by how it looked, she didn't need to buy this one. Grimacing to herself Kevyn chucked the game back into the bin and fingered her pocket. She had twenty dollars, what could she spend it on?

Games were out of the option at the moment, none of the good ones would sell for such little money. Sighing, Kevyn was just about to turn around when she felt slender arms wrap around her and a vojce whisper in her ear. Oh, she knew exactly who this person was. Feigning confusion, Kevyn put a finger to her chin and spoke in a questioning voice. "Oh, who is this?" She ran a hand up one of the arms and onto the person's face, all without looking at them. Feeling around, Kevyn smirked and patted the person's cheeks, who was obviously a guy. "I'd say that this person was...Joe?" Turning around so that she was both in his arms and facing him, Kevyn prodded his cheek. She was about to speak again when the tone of an explosion came from her pocket. She had gotten a text from Sage.

From: Kevy-Kev
To: Sagey-Wagey
I'm at the mall with Joe. How about you and Dee go and meet up with us after?

After sending the tex she looked up at her musical best friend. "That was Sage. Her and Dee are going to the cafe, so would you mind if they came over after?"

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Bedroom --> Jessi's Muscle Car
Thoughts: 'Is it bad that I'm still attracted to her?'
Wearing:

Spoiler:

The computer speakers had made a sound to notify Harley that someone replied to her tweet. The blonde moved the mouse over to see who had responded. The curly hair that took up most of the picture had given her a quick answer. Harley had tried to stay calm while typing up a response, but her heart pounded against her chest with the thought of seeing her again. After pressing the send button, Harley thought back to the last time she did see Jessi.

It was the night of the incident. After Harley had gained enough nerve to ask a pissed off Jessica for a car ride, she hadn't said another word. She didn't even question when the sights had turned unfamiliar. She just sat quietly, letting Jessi alone with her thoughts, even though she wanted nothing more than to know what she was thinking. But when the car had come to a halt in front of a house that Harley had never seen before, she turned incredulous blue eyes over to the driver. In the back of her mind, Harley had thought that Jess couldn't stand being in her presence any longer and was preparing to kick her out of the car and tell her to walk home.
Imagine Harley's surprise when Jess had told her that it was her house, and that she would be spending the night there. The surfer had been so surprised that she had lost the ability to move her legs as her mouth stood open. When she finally removed herself from the interior of Jessica's car, the violinist's long legs had already placed themselves at the front door.
Harley had fast walked to try to keep up with her, but was caught off guard by the smell that reached her nostrils as she entered the house. It was the smell of home; a smell that only a family could achieve. Harley's feet had turned to lead as she stood as examined the small house. It's furniture wasn't 'modern' and 'sleek', it seemed like it encouraged the idea of being used. The walls were lit by a warm light, and were covered with pictures. It was the complete opposite of Harley's mother's house, yet it was everything that she had ever wanted. The sight had pulled at her heart strings and caused Harley to cover her mouth with her slender hand.
It wasn't until another voice had spoke that Harley realized that they weren't alone. The voice was then accompanied by a woman who had poked her body out to see Harley. The woman had smiled a smile to the blonde that made her forgive herself in every way. It made her feel like she was being judged, but accepted as well. When Harley introduced herself, she saw that Claire's eyes had matched Jess's chocolate ones, but had experience behind them. One could easily tell that the eyes had probably cried a thousand tears, yet still gleamed when a smile reached them. Harley had took an immediate liking to the woman, and after exchanging polite small talk she had been offered a meal.
Harley couldn't help but feel that Jessi was watching the two of them. She didn't know if she was crossing a line befriending Claire, but Harley did it anyway. She had laughed at the stories Claire shared, and even offered a few of her own. In the small amount of time that Harley talked to Jess's mother, she had felt more comfortable with her than she had ever felt with her own mother. When she had said goodbye and goodnight to the woman, Harley let the silent Jess lead.
After a few attempted apologies, conversation had began to start between the two of them again. And after a few minutes, it was accompanied by laughter. A friendship had formed between the two of them once more; maybe even the chance to be something more again.

But it would never be the same.

It was because of this fact that Harley didn't ask the violin player to stay when she left, even though she had wanted to. With nothing between them except phone calls, Harley had pieced herself back together again. Rumors in school had died down, and so had the anticipation for the Burner's new article. People had stopped speaking and looking at her like she was a drunken whore and had come to accept her as the leader of the athletic's again.
Harley will never forget how she felt when she heard the rumors of Eyree replacing her as the leader. It wasn't that she wasn't worthy of the position, it was that Harley couldn't believe how one mistake had ruined most of her life. Delilah had avoided Harley at every opportunity, and the tension between Carmen didn't die down. But time had healed over the wounds, and things had began to become normal again.

Then Jess returned.

She was a completely different person. Still respected and still intimidating, but in a different way. Harley didn't even want to question the tattoos or the piercing, nor did she question how Jess had been skipping class. The blonde had kept her judgments entirely to herself. But, even then a small amount of real life conversation had taken place. It was still reserved to phone calls. So the fact that they'd be alone for the first time since that night had unnerved her.

The sound of a horn blaring had startled Harley back to the present. During her thinking, Harley had missed the new tweets from the Burner: she was blissfully ignorant. The blonde had fluffed her hair before walking out to see the sports car waiting.
She brought her hand up to wave and approached the driver's window.

"Hello beautiful." she said to Jess, not bothering to hide the nerves that were apparent in her small voice.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Location: Home

Wearing:

As the Beloved sat in her private studio on the fourth floor of her lavish home, Leigh-Ann let her mind wander as she continued to sketch out a design she had been working on for the past month. It seemed that in just that short period of time, life changing events had taken place. For starters, there was no more Victor. No call, text, or even a letter to say anything about his disappearance and what was worse, she had no form to contact him over the internet since his twitter was no longer available. Since then, Leigh-Ann seemed to stay offline and from the “tweet world”—it had nothing but bad memories for her.

Luckily enough for her, she wasn’t down on her luck for too long. If it wasn’t for Nazario…well Leigh-Ann couldn’t help but smile just at the thought of him passed through her mind. Nazario—her Italian hero. When she was down and out, he was right there to extend her a gracious hand and a warm embrace, allowing her to try her tears on him. At first Leigh-Ann felt guilty about how she was feeling for the leader of the Gurus. First it was because she had just ended things with her former boyfriend (or so she would think, never would she allow the fact that he left her for some tasteless broad), but that quickly evaporated and she thought about the reputation it would bring. Queen B, with King Nerd? That was one of the most absurd thought anyone could think of! But, that didn’t matter to Nazario…and he made it clear that he didn’t care what the others would think. For Leigh-Ann’s sake though, he promised to keep their relationship a secret—for now.

Putting her sketching pencil down, Leigh-Ann sat back to observe her work. A proud grin crossing her flawless features, though she wasn’t just smiling because of her completed work—she was smiling because today she had promised Naz she would spend the evening with him. Sure she had other things to do, like focus on the upcoming charity and Valentine’s fair that was lurking right around the corner—but this was the one male who stayed with her an entire week, feeding her chicken noodle soup and tucking her into bed when she caught her younger sister’s nasty flu…how could she possible turn down a chance to spend some time with him?

Pulling her phone from her purse that sat just a few inches away from her, her hand slipped into the bag and extracted her phone. Working with obvious skilled fingers at handling a mobile device, Leigh-Ann quickly sent out a text message to her newly found…well she wouldn’t call it love, not just yet—she was too stubborn—and placed the mobile device down, ash grey orbs staring in anticipation for a response.

To: Nazzy
From: Leigh
School is out, I’m free—I can’t wait for our evening together.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

“Ready little man?”

The golden toned male asked his son who sat on the foot of the bed of his father’s room, his little eyes focusing on the television that was providing him entrainment by playing one of his favorite cartoons. His father was sitting on the edge of the bed, bending down to tie his laces. Today they would perform their father and son ritual, which had sadly been cancelled numerous times on the fact that Issiah had been working double shifts at his job. The money wasn’t the same caliber as the money he made in his dealings—but with his mother on his back and the last slip up of seeing Avery—Issiah was trying his best to avoid it at all cost.

That didn’t mean his phone wasn’t ringing off the hook—his other phone. After seeing Avery, Issiah had taken the liberty to get a cheap tracfone for his business contacts only—he didn’t want a direct line to his personal life, his life with his son. Sitting up after lacing his sneakers, the Columbian male turned his attention to his son who sat there swinging his little feet, humming alone to the theme song of the show. How could Issiah not smile as he watched his son enjoy himself. Maybe they could put off the park for the day and go tomorrow… As his thoughts dwindled away and his body retracted to lay back onto the softness of his made bed, his phone vibrated in the pocket of his black baller shorts. Digging into it, he didn’t even have to look to tell who it was—Eyree.  A faint smile was on his face as she read her message announcing that she would be cooking dinner. It was amusing to Issiah for the simple fact Eryee was actually allowed to cook inside his mother’ kitchen—the woman was psycho when it came to her clean kitchen and recipes. Though, his mixed heritage friend stole his mother heart the moment she laid eyes on her. But the amusement died slightly as he thought about the night he had encountered his best friend in a devastated state. With each sob that Eryee let escape from her lips, a part of Issiah’s heart shattered and his grip on her grew tighter—protective. He would do anything to make her happy and if that meant just listening to her distressing cries.

To: Ree
From:Issy
You’re not getting me killed, you tell her yourself!

After the text message was successfully delivered, he tossed his phone onto his bed pillow and rolled his athletic figure over to his son so that he could wrap his arms around him and pull him into a light but loving embrace.

“Alright, you win. We’ll watch tv instead.”

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Location: Kingdom Crest High-->Book Club
Thoughts: "I was just trying to help..."

Wearing:

Tiana had placed her phone down after she sent a message to Travis, turning her attention back to Delilah—well more of her hair, how could she not…it was fabulous after all. With a breathtaking smile on her face, she reached out and extended her hand to lightly caressed the red tresses.

“I would kill to this color—naturally of course. I could but it just wouldn’t look right with my complexion.” She was rambling now like she always did when it came to hair, the passion in her eyes was apparent and it didn’t seem to diminish as her hand dropped when Noir was mentioned. That cat was the last part of her old life that Tiana had and she held onto her dearly, the simple thought of losing her—or worse, Sage getting ahold of her—made the ballerina shudder.
“She’s fine. Sagey is just upset that cat gives her a bit of allergies. I try to keep Noir away from her, but she likes her!” After the owrds left her mouth, Tiana’s phone vibrated in her lap. Shifting her eyes to Michelle to see her reaction to a phone interruption, she was pleased to see her friend wasn’t really paying her any mind—not with that tone of excitement in her blunt friend’s voice.

A soft sigh escaped her lips as she read the message from the head Badass-Jacob. Something about the male was strangely…attractive and it wasn’t his “badass” title. Perhaps it was the fact he was a bit lost to Tiana, something she could fully understand. Though even with that being the case, she didn’t like his tone of voice through the messages. Everyone, every soul in Kingdom Crest had seen or heard about the wild fight that had ensued that between the newly Beloved and Head Badass so it was no surprise that his emotions were so high as sent message after message to Tiana—still there was no reason to be so…rude. Her brow furrowed in frustration and she couldn’t help but think about Michelle always told her—niceness is too sugarcoated.

Hearing Delilah direct a question her way, the expression from Tiana’s face quickly evaporated back into the usual graceful expression matched with a smile. That was one thing she and Sage had in common—they were both experts at hiding what they were truly thinking.

The café? Well I’m already going there with Travis after book club, so I will meet up with you two there!”

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Location:Chemistry Lab--->Student Parking Lot
Thoughts: "Why am I smiling..”
Wearing:

Spoiler:

Sage didn’t know what she found funnier, the fact that Joe thought she didn’t see him, or the fact he was too afraid to come in and speak. She was a brilliant female—a genius even, yet she still couldn’t comprehend the fact that her family friend, had feelings for her. Sage had always pegged him as shy and with her own involvement with females, the raven haired mastermind never thought twice about it.

The porcelain doll did however finding herself thinking twice about her sexuality. For the past few years she had been with no one but females—adult females. Hell, she had even achieved the name “The Woman” from her encounters, and was the talk of many female get-togethers, her alias was always used and people assumed that they were simply talking about a fashion designer, or a remarkable hairstylist. In fact, there had been talk that “The Woman” hadn’t been around in quite some time—no one had seen or heard from her since winter break. It was a reason for that too—not that Sage believed she was getting emotionally involved with any of these women (some were old enough to be her mother), but she was getting emotionally involved with someone, the quiet brainiac just didn’t want to admit it.

Her thoughts were interrupted—which was fine by her since she wasn’t even focusing on her work anymore now that her mind was dwindling somewhere else. Picking up the sleek contraption from the table, she let her chocolate orbs scan over the text messages that she received. The first was from Delilah confirming that the two would meet up and the second was from Kevyn, informing her that she was at the mall and thought they should meet up. Sage had no problem with that—grab a cup of tea, listen to whatever scheme that Travis had cooking up (she was all too excited to know what it was—though her void expression told a different story) and then head over to the mall…she did want to get a bit of shopping done, maybe a new pair of wedges...

To: The Guru
From: The Master
How cute. I’ll inform you when we are on our way.
Message delivered.

Her final message came from Sam and as her dark orbs scanned the words, a smile began to tug at the corner of her lips before it spread across her face, bringing a wide grin across her face and allowing a soft chuckle to leave escape. Instantly one hand flew to cover her mouth to stop the small outburst that was luckily unheard—or so she heard.  Inwardly she chided herself for even laughing at such a childish joke that was picking on her name. But she couldn’t stop it—she was always that way around Sam—relaxed and…happy?

That earned her a personal eye roll and a mental smack.

Listen to yourself. You sound like a drooling idiot. Sage told herself as her hands moved swiftly across the keypad to type of a response—one that obviously hid how much that one text message made her day, and did the near impossible—made her laugh.

To: Samuel
From: Sage-Sensei
How inconvenient, they were just asking about you. Though we all know that there is nothing better than Sage.
Message delivered


Placing her mobile device back on the counter, Sage began to clean up her area so that she could prepare to leave.  Her mind was all over the place now and she wasn’t focusing on chemistry—not this kind. With her belongings gathered and station cleaned, her hand rested on top of her phone as she walked away from the table, gliding the phone off of the flat surface, her grip tightening to ensure that it fell into her palm.

Great. I can’t focus on work—because of a male. I need to detonate something.. Her thoughts continued as she left out of the lab, closing and locking the door behind her. Walking down the hallways to the exit of the school building that led to the school parking lot, Sage couldn’t help but let her pale finger tips trace over the tattoo that adorned her wrist as she thought about the matching chemical that rested on the wrist of her mischievous hacker.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location:
School
Wearing:

Punk Rock Genius:

The song had finished and the Brit could do nothing but sigh and pat himself on the back. He still had it. He was just about to play another song, a classic rock hit that he knew and loved, when he heard a voice speak up from behind him. Turning around so he could face the source of the noise, Leighton let out a breath in relief when he saw it wasn't some annoying niner begging to play another song for them. It was just Sabrina.

The girl was somewhat of a friend to him, which wasn't saying much considering practically every female was his friend. But Sabrina was a bit different than the loud ladies he usually hung out with. She was quiet. And he liked that, but not when it helped her sneak up on him and ambush him in his natural habitat. Scratching his back with a cocky smile, Leighton gestured with his free hand to his guitar leaning against the wall of the auditorium. "Guitar's over there. Technically, as of now, I am a pretty face with a guitar and a piano." He laughed and shrugged when she said needing to know more than one instrument was a requirement. It wasn't. Play one instrument as well as you can, whether it be keyboard or the kazoo, as long as Jess approves, you're in.

"Not really. I play multiple instruments 'cuz I'm also in a band. We play gigs 'n all that. You don't even have to be a musician to join. I'm the only musician there, in fact only two people innit are part of Kingdom Crest." It was true. Only he and Michelle were Kingdom Crest attendees. In total there were about six members (including him.) Two were from an upscale school, the other two were dropouts.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Gamestop
Thoughts: 'Just when I thought my mood was lifting...'
Wearing:

Spoiler:

"That was Sage. Her and Dee are going to the cafe, so would you mind if they came over after?" Kevyn had said to him.

His face immediately fell into a scowl. Never before had the word 'Sage' produced such conflicting emotions. He was reminded of the tweets--something that he had come here, hoping to avoid--and anger awoke inside him.
But Joe couldn't take his anger out on Kevyn. In fact, the last thing he would ever want to was hurt her. And she had looked so hopeful when she spoke up about seeing Sage that it was hard to decline. Instead, Joe stowed his pride away and nodded his head as an answer. But the thought of having such closeness to Kevyn after she betrayed him--not that she really did, Joe was just being a martyr--seemed so vulgar. The scowl remained on his features as he withdrew his arms away from her and stuffed them into his jean pockets, then he stepped back to put distance between them.

"Sure, they can come. Just don't bug me to make small talk. I'm not in the mood." he said, letting the words fall upon a sigh.

He had hoped that the time spent with Kevyn would have been alone and a way to escape the troubles he was having. But here she was, practically waving his depression right in his face by inviting the last person he wanted to see to spend time with the two of them.

Joe shook his head, letting his bangs fall into his eyes, and then walked away from Kevyn. He grabbed the nearest Sim game that was displayed against the wall. It was the latest update, and Joe knew that this particular game would most likely catch Kevyn's fancy.

"How about I spot you on this?" he asked her. He hoped the allure of the new game would distract her enough to not question his mood.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Location:Harley's.

Wearing:

As she sat there waiting for Harley to exit from her home, Jessica allowed her thick head of hair to lay back against the seat, her dark honey orbs gazing upward and the ceiling. Inhaling deeply, Jessica exhaled with a long sigh as she let her mind take over, her thoughts slowly consuming her.  What was she even doing there? It had been a month since she first laid eyes on Harley—and with her time away in California, she had changed—not just in appearance but emotionally as well. There was always something about that cold neighborhood that seemed to make Jessica even more frigid than usual, and that was one thing she didn’t want to be. But it wasn’t even her cold demeanor or her excessive involvement in gang related activities that bothered her most—it was her flirting. Since she had been away from Kingdom Crest, the only influence she had was from her brothers, and while she loved with dearly-there was no denying that they brought out the worst in her. How many girls had they introduced her to?

You aren’t dating her, Jessica. You don’t owe her anything. Jessica told herself just as she heard approaching footsteps. Turning her head to see, her honey orbs came in contact to a  lovely blonde hair girl approaching and in that instant that the tomboy knew no matter what she said to herself—the girl would always have a special place in her heart.
[i]I couldn’t even fuckanybody, I just keeping seeing her face.[/b] Her thoughts continued as the footsteps drew nearer and the athletic body that they belong to as they approached the driver’s window.

A warm smile spread across the curly haired beauty’s lips, showing off her pearly whites when she heard the nervousness of Harley’s voice, at least now she knew that she wasn’t the only one who still had some type of feelings, or so she hoped as she tapped her light ebony digits against the steering wheel while her other hand occupied the switch to roll down the driver’s window.

”Sup sweetcheeks? As much as I trust your driving skills, you’re gonna have to get on the passenger side.”The words rolled off her tongue in a teasing manner as she flashed her surfer girl a playful wink, though her inner turmoil didn’t match her outer calm and collected feelings. Inwardly she was fighting a battle to actually allow this female to become a part of her life. Taking her hand from the window switch, she hit the unlock button and nodded her head towards the passenger seat, indicating that she was free to hop in at any time—though to Jessica that meant more than just into the passenger side of her car.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Cheerleading tryouts

Wearing:

Considering it had been nearly two months since he had been back at school, it was exceptionally boring and uneventful on his first day back. Apparently he had missed all the drama, though, as people were all too eager to point out. The arrival of this "burner" had apparently spelled nothing but trouble for the citizens of Kingdom Crest. He read quickly through his twitter feed, his sterling grey orbs never betraying anything other than cool disdain. Benji was not impressed; in fact, he would have much rather continued exploring the Mediterranean than come back to his Kingdom in upheaval. Now, it seemed, it would be up to him, and whoever else desired the end of this damner Burner, to bring about this sorry fool's demise.

For the time being, however, he was content to sit back and enjoy his leisure time. How coincidental that his return back to school coincided with cheerleading practice and tryout for spring cheerleading. There was nothing he loved more than beautiful girls in tight costumes encouraging school spirit. After classes had got out, he had discreetly slipped into the gymnasium, climbing high up into the bleachers. He was far enough away not to be too much of a distraction, but close enough that his presence could easily be felt. Still, Benji was a hard person to miss. His six foot something frame stretched and sprawled lazily through the bleachers, his legs set wide, his elbows leaning against the bleachers behind him. He was the picture of calm and ease, both with his body and his surroundings. He had been sitting here for what felt like forever, but those damn cheerleaders sure were taking their time to assemble. His foot tapped a staccato rhythm as his impatience began to grow. There was one cheerleader in particular he was waiting to see, but she hadn't shown yet either.

To his left he heard footsteps, though he didn't bother to glance over and see who it was. "Sabrina told you to take me home," a familiar voice said. Benji turned his head leisurely, observing his brother with that lazy, blase grey-eyed look, so similar to that of his twin's. He turned his attention back to the small gaggle of girls chattering quietly in the gymnasium. "Go away, Maxxy, I'm busy." Beside him, his brother stomped his foot, placing his hands dramatically on his hips. "No you're not! You're being a peeping tom, which I'm pretty sure is illegal and means you can get sent to jail. And Sabrina said she'd get angry with you later if you didn't take me home.... and you know what that means." Benji snorted, sparing his brother the briefest of glances. "Bri might scare you, but she doesn't scare me." Actually, Benji was terrified of his sister, especially when she was angry. She was always the quiet one of the family, very introspective and thoughtful; on top of that, she always seemed in remarkable control of her own body. She never made a move that was not intentional. When she was angry, she was like a wild cat: silent, lethal, but the danger was still rolling off her in waves. But he was determined not to be rushed, least of all by his twin sister.

Much to his satisfaction, he heard Max stomping off. "Is this a twin thing?" Benji heard him mutter as he made his noisy descent down the bleachers. Smirking that shared twin smile, he leaned back on the bleachers once again, adjusting the hem of his shirt. He was eager to see the new crop of girls, though one girl in particular still held his attention. Still, it was getting boring just sitting here doing nothing. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he scrolled through his contacts.

To: Dentt
From: Benji

Hey, need a distraction? Come join me in the gymnasium. It's not a request. Kind of.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: The hallway

Wearing:

Man, being the baby of the family sure blows, he thought drolly, shuffling huffily out of the gymnasium. It was bad enough to be treated like a fragile invalid what with his precarious medical condition. But then to be regarded as some unwanted piece of lint on one's sweater, well... it was certainly not something he enjoyed feeling. First Bri, now Benji. "Anyone else want to have a go?" he shouted at the air, adjusting his cap tighter over his head and shoving his hands forcefully into the pocket of his jeans. It wasn't that his siblings were unkind; they were ideal when it came to siblings, never taking him too seriously. But constantly being the tag-along was wearying to all parties involved. For a brief moment, he thought about crashing Bri's book club meeting. But the thought of the chewing out the leader, Michelle, would give him quickly shut down that train of thought. He then considered crawling back to Benji and observing the cheer practice like he so enjoyed doing. But Maxxy was much too proud for that. Besides, there was only one girl he wanted to see and it was only when Bri had weekly meetings with the Journalism people about pictures that he got to see her. At least outside of the regular school day.

With no current prospects for getting him, he made his home down one of the empty hallways, sitting back against the lockers and bumping his head back against the cool metal. What was he going to do for the next two hours? He might be in the honor society, but he was not about to stretch out in the library and do his homework at school. That's what the five minutes before each class was for! He didn't have much else going for him at the time, unless he wanted to join the gymnastics girls outside on the track he had passed after leaving Benji. He groaned, finally ripping out his phone and some headphones. He put on some music, quietly jamming to his music as he made his presence on Twitter known. He sent out a desperate cry for help, trying to put on all that charm and charisma that Maxxy was so known for in person. Finally, he leaned back again. Hopefully someone answers soon, he mused as the strains of Lifehouse filled his ears.  

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Outdoors sports track

Wearing:

Eyree decided she had pushed the girls enough. Not only were they breathless and sweating, straining under the heavy weights they were lifting, but Eyree was beginning to feel the stiffness of a good workout set in, even though her muscles worked under the weights her own body lifted. The girls all took to the showers while Eyree cleaned up the weight room, putting back all the equipment and wiping down all the mats. The girls all popped in to wish her a good evening as they left and Eyree smirked and nodded in response. When the noise and chatter from the locker rooms finally died down, Eyree braved the locker room herself. She peeled off her clothes, stepping under the hot stream of water with relish. Her shoulders ached, her legs burned, but her blood was still thrumming. It would be a shame when she would have to give all this up in favor of her damaged body, she mused, fingering the tip of her tattoo that decorated her shoulder blade and artfully disguised the damaged and torn flesh from her gunshot wound. About 30 minutes later, she was out of the shower and dressed. Her damp hair, a dark violet except for the inch or so of dark auburn roots that were showing her lack of hair care, hung in gentle waves down her back, swaying as she made her way to the charcoal colored SUV that was sitting in the mostly empty parking lot. She turned the key in the ignition, turning the fan all the way up in an attempt to dry her hair faster. Finally, before getting back on the road, she pulled out her phone, the small ping alerting her to a response from Issiah. She smirked and offered a quick breathy snort for a laugh.

To: Rojas
From: Ree

Shame on you! Sending a woman in to do a man's job

Eyree made a quick pit stop at the grocery store before heading over to Issiah's. She was thankful to not be spending yet another evening alone in her house. She wouldn't admit it out loud in so many words, but it was achingly lonely living in a house (no matter how small and efficient it might be) all by herself. Her parents were still on assignment and would not be home for another several months. On the most recent Skype call, her mother had once again remarked on her lack of discernable breasts and a boyfriend, all the while praising her achievements in gymnastics, spurring a loud debate in Russian, during which her father sat back, a bemused, smug expression on his face. When the heated debate, switching between Russian and Arabic, finally died down, it was her father's turn. Her father's intrinsic jovial nature and easy smile showing behind the new growth of his curly auburn beard, serving to set her mind at ease and her heart light again. She pulled into Issiah's house promptly at 4:30. She buttoned up the front of her plaid shirt and donned her boots again as she made her way to the front door. She grinned as the door opened and held the bags of ingredients aloft. "Hopefully ukha is alright. Kiev for the little one."

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Location: Auditorium

Wearing:

"Mmmm," she acknowledged, fingers drifting over the keys. "I don't know that you were in a band." Sabrina drifted languidly, coming to stand by the piano opposite the keyboard. Her long fingers ran across the smooth keys. "How come you've never gotten your band to play at school events? It would be wonderful publicity and a great foot in the door," she mused. Bri lowered tall frame gracefully onto the piano bench, glancing up and grinning across the way at Leighton. Slowly, her fingers struck out the melody of a song. She couldn't claim to be all that good at the piano; her mother had been desperate for one of her children to learn the piano, the instrument that her mother loved so much, and Sabrina, what with her artistic inclinations, was the selected child (not to mention that Benji and Maxxy were positively tone deaf). But she knew her way around a few songs. As her fingers drifted across the keys, she spoke out loud. "What sort of music do you play?" She asked, pewter grey eyes flicking up briefly to make eye contact with the boy. The intro of the song came to an end and, in her soft, sonorous voice, began to quietly hum the lyrical melody.

Bri's song: