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Cassius was relieved he was allowed to get chocolate. He'd be lying if he wasn't internally happy. Coffee flavor just didn't sound good at the moment.

He focused his thoughts on Calintha again as she spoke about her mother. Man, someone else who dealt with an idiotic parent? That was rare. "I'm sorry to hear you deal with the same crap I do." He sighed lightly and lost his smile for the moment. "That must be really hard. I don't know if its better to be around someone like that and try to work it out or to just move on and find real happiness elsewhere." He was constantly conflicted with the thought himself, and the answer always seemed to be moving away from said parent. There probably wasn't a real answer though, and Cassius had accepted that. Everyone did things differently he guessed.

"If that's what's bothering you, vent away. I'm all ears for that sort of thing."

She'd never been invited to a crazy party? "Well I am surprised to hear that. Any party is usually fun, you should look around for them soon and try one out. You may love it." Now that he thought about it, he knew quite a few people at Meadowview that he could probably hook her up with. There was definitely some potential there.

Even if Cassius didn't understand the full meaning to her sentence, there was one thing he picked up on. Calintha was not happy and she made that perfectly clear now. "It sounds like things are very complicated for you." he finally added while brushing his hand throughout his hair. He usually did such a habit when he was contemplating things. "I just wonder. Should I even ask? I want to, but.." He didn't want her to feel obliged to talk to him about it. But talking did always help.

When they made it out of the park Cassius lead her across the street and forward towards the ice cream shop. They weren't very far at this point and Cassius was pleased. Calintha had some serious things to deal with and he wondered if he'd be able to understand them all. If the worst part of her life wasn't a family issue, how bad could it be? It was sort of frightening when he thought about it.

"Just a block away." he finally added, after a brief silence between them.

Before things got too complicated and deep, Cassius could only grin when he noticed Calintha's focus on all of the flavors. So ice cream had been a good choice for the day? He honestly believed it could cheer up any distressed thoughts if even for a small moment in time. "If you can't decide on one flavor you can always get two different scoops of things you want to try?" Now he thought about what he would get as well.

He saw a young girl behind the counter walk over to them and offer them help. Cassius looked at Calintha and wondered if she needed some more time with her decision. "Would you like me to order first while you think about it? Or if you are ready go right ahead." He didn't want her to feel rushed of course. But he was curious with what she would order. Everyone had different tastes and he liked observing what people enjoyed.

Cassius pondered for a moment before deciding as well. "Two scoops of rocky road please, in a cup." Before Calintha could notice he handed the girl enough cash for the both of them and awaited his ice cream and change. When his ice cream was neatly placed in the cup, the girl handed it to him as well as a few dollars in return.

Cassius didn't like to make a fuss out of things like that, so he was quite to move onwards. "Let's go find somewhere comfy to sit." He lead her forward and dug his spoon into the hearty chocolate. Oh yeah, ice cream was so worth it. He wondered if Calintha ordering berry made her choice healthier- but he did enjoy the colors that lay on top of her cone.

They arrived at a quaint table and each took a seat. "How is yours?" Of course he had already eaten some of his, so he was curious if she liked what she chose. "Your tong might turn blue after you eat it." He chuckled lightly with a grin.

He was relieved she was so happy. Even if happiness seemed distant at times, there were little things here and there that made it all better. Sure some people could call them distractions- but they were good distractions. Cassius knew many little things that also made him happy, so why not share when he could? Now was the perfect time to share with Calintha, and he had picked up on that. "You are very welcome." he added, while digging his spoon into the ice cream and smiling away.

A few minutes went by where they both were very focused on their tasty treats. Cassius wondered what he should do about Calintha's situation. There were some people who needed to vent, so he always listened happily. But, there were also others who needed to keep it all in to feel better. He couldn't tell which Calintha preferred, so he was torn about what to do.

He wondered if it was best to just ask her flatly? That was usually his plan of action anyways, so he figured he'd give it a shot. "So.. when it comes to everything you've been thinking and the things we were talking about earlier, would you like to vent about it? I try to be a helpful listener. I just wasn't sure what you preferred." He didn't want to break the happy moment, but maybe he could potentially make the rest of her day better for getting through the rough thoughts?

It was safe to say Cassius was expecting something a bit less intense- maybe something along the lines of boy drama, friend rivalry, or bad grades in school. But as Calintha spoke, his eyes widened and he found himself completely shocked. It was hard for him to usually hide how he was feeling so now was no actual exception. He was totally surprised. Calintha had been through so much in so little time. Damn.

As she explained herself thoroughly, his expression became more calm but concerned, and he leaned back into his chair and thought about how difficult this must have been for the girl. Ice cream was definitely not going to be the savior in this situation. And for once, he wasn't sure what could be.

"I am so sorry to hear you've been through all of this.. I had heard about Barren Pines but I've never spoken to someone who went through it." He had only heard rumors of similar horror stories and people not knowing what had happened to them. It was so scary.

The part that struck him the most was her family. He could imagine it was all as horrifying for them as it was for her. Cassius had no idea how'd he react if he was in that situation, and he felt bad for that. "It makes sense now why you have so much on your mind. I.. I wish I was an expert on this sort of thing. But all I know is you are here and well so the rest of us are lucky to meet you and know you." He paused lightly and brought back a smile for her. "Where do you plan to go from here? Have you sought out help, maybe a counselor of some sort? I've heard they help?" There was no point of her suffering afterall..

Cassius knew that everybody had their problems and he had encountered friends with similar deep hardships. He was also the first to know that nothing in life was perfect, and he had been through his own craziness to understand Calintha's distress more then she realized. "It was only a lot to handle at first because I realized how brave you are for dealing with it so well. I do have some advice at least, I have no idea if it will help." He was still grinning of course, and he finished up his ice cream and placed the dish on the table. Seriously, Calintha was a saint for being so strong.

"I was curious if you had gone to therapy because I've always had a problem with it myself. It worked at first, but then not so much. When I went as a child I could only last for a few weeks because I realized the therapist kept bringing the problem up as if to remind me daily. Its not that I wanted to forget it, but I thought we were supposed to move on and swallow it in our own ways. We all do things differently, and my therapist wasn't accounting for that." he grunted lightly. "And I couldn't do the drugs either- I commend you for that as well, they are not an escape at all. They only bring you closer to everything that's happened in a rough way." He enjoyed doing drugs on his own accord for fun, not therapy. Because the nightmares were real.

"The hardest part is accepting what you feel. Reality is up to us, and there are people who will try and skew your thoughts so you can forget what's really in your mind. I believe what we have in our memories is most sacred, so don't let anyone tell you otherwise." Even if the memories were haunting and terrible, he'd never forget his own. They were all he had. "I dunno, I can't say I've gone through as much as you have, but I have been in a dark place Calintha. It was long ago, but man, you won't be in there forever." He nodded to her gently and knew such was true. "You'll find a happy medium and accept it all soon, I promise." Maybe he was too hopeful, but he had moved forward so he liked to believe everyone had their chances in the future.