|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2011 2:32 am
“Detention, and a shaved head, probably. Blonde hair takes dye well, and so short your hair might not be too different from AstroTurf.” He beamed back.
Talia seemed to be checked out, or was she particularly, horrified in fascination at his arm? It was a little creepy, the pleasant, vacant smile at the joke unraveling across her lips while she was still just…staring at his arm. At least his size made specific body regions particularly clear when small people were looking at them. Oh, no, no she was just zoned out. Maybe she hadn’t even heard the joke and was just smiling about something else. Nearly everything out of her mouth was short, simple sentences, a little generic. Maybe today had not been a good day after all, and her thoughts were somewhere else…busy on some task she was foregoing in order to be here. That or she really hated the place? Zoning out already and they hadn’t even gotten started. A worry line formed between his brows, spiting the up-curve of his own smile. “Ja, let’s go. “
The minigolf was nice looking- clean, well-kept little traps and obstacles in shapes like mythic animals, turning windmills, and water-geometry puzzles. There were footbridges and rope paths that led from lower elevation holes to the higher ones, all meant to look very dangerous, but plainly maintained. The equipment stand, manned by an elderly staff-woman, was full of well-polished putters and festive, coloured golf balls.
“A putter should be about at waist height.” She helpfully offered as they approached. “Oh…well, at least you’re not much taller than you are wide. We get some tall fellows here with their kids sometimes. You’ll want to take from this side.”
She kindly directed Björn to the left side of the table. “You two can probably grab from the middle, whichever one you like. The far right are probably all too short, those are meant for kids. “
Björn grabbed a bright yellow golf ball to go with his putter, then considered a moment. “Do you have any broken putters on hand?”
“Yes..there are a few.”
“Can I see two? If they just are thrown out.”
The woman rummaged beneath the shelf set up and produced two heavily worn putters, slightly bent from some overzealous hoodlums, and offered them up to Björn.
“Just a trick, for my friends. They are steel, ja” He lifted the two putters for Colin and Talia to examine, “ A souvenir for each.”
While they were looking the knackered putters over, he set his new one against the wall of the supply stand, pocketed the ball for a moment, unbuttoned and rolled up the sleeves on his shirt so that they didn’t bust when he flexed.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2011 5:43 pm
Talia's sour expression wasn't missed by the shorter blond, but he chalked it up to her very obvious dislike of the clashing band around her delicate wrist. "You're probably right. Detention wouldn't be too bad, but I'd rather not have my head shaved." So maybe he was a little bit vain when it came to his hair - it was soft and curly and while sometimes it made him appear more feminine than he might have wanted - but having it was infinitely more acceptable than being shorn and looking like a jarhead reject.
The elderly staffer was quite helpful in letting them know which putters would make good choices, and even managed to not gawk at Bjorn (probably because she was so old and had seen way more than most of the people they were going to bump into around the facility). Colin picked up one of the middling putters, swung it just a little to test the weight and then snagged a bright green golf ball to go with. It didn't quite match the band on his wrist for eye-searing visibility, but it came awfully close and Colin felt that it would be funny to have it - certainly wouldn't get lost, now would it? - while Bjorn was asking about the broken putters, Colin stood back so that Talia could take her pick.
Colin tilted his head at Bjorn's offering of the abused putter and stuffed his neon ball into a pocket so that he could take the steely item from his friend; clearly it had seen better days...and from the way that the Swede was loosening his shirt sleeves, it was going to have even more 'abuse' done to it! He looked over at Talia first, then the elderly employee and grinned at both; whatever his friend was going to do, he had no doubt they'd want to watch - it was bound to be awesome.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2011 8:26 pm
Talia picked up her own golf club and weighed it in her hand. It was no secret that she wasn't good at mini-golf- many tales had been told about times when she let the club go flying out of her hand, or when the ball landed in places it wasn't even meant to go in.
Not today though. Even if her competition was fierce (how the hell was she supposed to beat a sixteen year muscle man...) she would still win, because she was Talia Chu. That was what she did.
Win.
Her own golf club matched Colin's in that hideous green color, but then, the clubs weren't that varied anyways. Her club was clearly shorter (she wasn't that tall after all), but it seemed they only came in so many colors.
She looked over at Björn, who was talking with some lady at the counter. Did he know her? A tiny sliver of jealousy crossed her face, and then it was gone. She was already distracted by his sleeve-rolling and those muscles. Completely starstruck, she leaned over to Colin and quietly said, "What does he want with a broken club?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Oct 26, 2011 9:20 pm
Once his sleeves were up and they’d each had a chance to look over the respective steel of the old putters, Björn took one of them again and set to making a tighter loop in half. Once that was done, a ‘quick’ twist, followed by bending out and around the putter head and the handle finished the knot. Sure, in satin rope, or probably nearly any other raw material, the knots would be more decorative to the eye, but the point was the feat itself. He’d found that using common, easily recognized starting objects meant people related more to the effort, and were generally more delighted. He handed the first to Talia, “You don’t have to keep it forever, or even a day. It isn’t pretty. It’s just fun, ja? Conversation piece for a side table for a little.” With that he took up the second and made a knot-putter for Colin. “It would be really inconvenient to carry these around the whole game though, I guess,…” “Could you keep them here until we return our putters?” It was posed to the clerk. She gave warm nod. “Well then, are we ready to start? Colin first?, " Talia had deferred to the smaller boy's guidance once already, so maybe she would prefer it here as well? He'd never imagined her as shy, but breaking the ice and going first in something was always hard. It meant that everyone was watching you and was going to have the benefit of watching whether what you did succeeded or failed. " Anyone but me should keep the score-card. We wouldn’t be able to read it after 18 holes if I am writing. “ (I propose we can each use the dice, rolling 1-6 for sets of 6 holes - so three sets total - and can summarize actions and write reactions to each other’s banter and success/failure at winning the holes in the body for the set roles? Lowest numbers win the hole, obviously, for golf. )
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Syrie rolled 6 6-sided dice:
4, 2, 4, 1, 1, 2
Total: 14 (6-36)
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Oct 26, 2011 10:15 pm
Watching his bulky friend bending the already wonky putter like a supermassive steel pretzel was - in a word - AWESOME. Maybe he'd had more of a chance than most to see Björn in action, but he hadn't seen him do something like that before! Seeing the Swedish strongman (in training?) twisting the hell out of a freaking miniature golf putter was not only impressive, it was damned cool. It was also drawing some attention from other patrons of the mini-golf course: a small group of civilians just coming back in from their game had gotten to see Björn twisting the one that was to be Colin's and were clapping with wide eyes.
It wasn't everyday that you saw someone pretzel a steel putter in Destiny City!
Green eyes danced with amusement as he took the nicely-mangled souvenir and held it over his head a la a victorious sporting event winner hefting a trophy overhead. "Björn my friend, you are amazing. Isn't he amazing, Talia?" He grinned at both and then took his new conversation piece over to the kindly employee for safekeeping while they played. "Uh, I'm not great with numbers, Talia? What do you say, will you save us and keep the score-card?" If she didn't know how, he would be happy to help and guide her through it, but his handwriting really wasn't anything to write home about - pun intended.
Once they got everything squared away (Talia's new pretzel safely tucked back with Colin's and the score-card issue decided), Colin happily took the lead. If nothing else, the curly-haired dancer had no problems at all being the first one to go, to be scrutinized (should that be the case) and watched as he awkwardly wielded his putter to move that atrociously hideous neon-green ball (even if it made him look like a total dork in front of the cute girl).
[I agree - that's a great idea. biggrin HERE WE GO! *ROLLIN ROLLIN ROOOLLIN~~~*]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
chiickadee rolled 6 6-sided dice:
3, 1, 2, 5, 5, 4
Total: 20 (6-36)
|
Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2011 12:37 am
Talia smiled and clapped as Björn bent the putter like it was his b***h. Now that was something she could admire in a boy. The ability to crush things. Most teenage boys she met had talked about how great they were at throwing a football, or about how they could dunk a ball with ease, but she had never really seen any of that talk put into action. This was definitely action.
The stares from random strangers just boosted her self-absorbing ego. She loved having a spotlight on her, but there was no way she was about to outdo that. For once in her life, Talia actually admitted that Björn was the better opponent. She'd been bested, simply because she couldn't counter. Well ten points for Björn.
To Colin she absentmindedly said, "Definitely amazing. How did he even do that!" Björn took the putter pretzel from her hand (which she had been very busy examining) and put it back with the employee.
The score-card issue was passed from Björn to Colin, then from Colin to herself. With a laugh, she said, "Well I think that I can keep up with that. Should I just put a bunch of tens next to your names now? And ones next to my name, of course." The mischevious glint in her eye gave away her joking attitude. Of course, it wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing if the game turned out like that...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Edelsteine rolled 6 6-sided dice:
5, 3, 4, 4, 3, 4
Total: 23 (6-36)
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2011 3:20 pm
“Tens? Well, if we were at a bikini competition, maybe that would be accurate, but we want low scores for this game. I don’t think I’ll need any helpful tens to keep my score too high.” He chortled, running the ball of his forefinger and thumb along his chin thoughtfully. He gave a thankful lift of his hand to the brief audience that had been attracted, beaming a smile. Crowd feats probably his favorite part of his hopeful occupation.
The first few holes were quite the contest between his two friends! Talia began the real business of making it get real, sinking a hole-in-one on just the #2 course, a cross shaped green with billiard bumper obstacles that were shaped like tiger cubs with moving paws to try to knock balls off course. It was like magic, she putted her shot and it ricocheted off a few sides, skirted the kittens and plunk! - right into the catch dish. Colin’s third whole showed some intimidation, or over-compensation maybe, to the challenge, taking 4 tries to get past a ball-sized bridge maze. Getting the silly spheres up ONTO the bridge was the really hard part, and Björn shook his head as it took the whole first third of the 18 holes to even start getting the hang of trying to predict where the ball was going to go once you hit it off of something.
Was there some trick to it? Equality of physics and geometry in calculating kicks and banks, reflections over x-and y-axis were completely out of his experience. He’d been through basics of mathematics a lot, functions and statistics, basic algebra and introduction to geometry, but he’d never had an applied geometry course. It was a surprise each time which way it went! What strategy and magic were Colin and Talia using!
But holes 4, 5, and 6 saw Talia mostly back with him while Colin got to triumphantly watch and relax near the catch-cups at the green-ends. “Maybe instead of trying to get the ball in the cup, we should just try to keep your ball away from the cup, Colin. “
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Syrie rolled 6 6-sided dice:
5, 1, 1, 1, 3, 1
Total: 12 (6-36)
|
Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2011 8:07 pm
Talias' offer of pre-filling the scorecard to her benefit brought a chuckle from Colin that went nicely with Bjorn's input. It seemed as thought they were all destined to have a lot of fun even thought their initial start had seemed a little uncertain. Colin was very happy for this; he certainly didn't mind the ribbing he'd gotten for his bad puts, nor the astounded looks on Bjorn's face as both he and Talia managed to get past the first six holes without too much trouble.
Poor Bjorn! But at least they were having a lot of fun, right? And by the end, his large friend was suggesting an easier way of 'winning' the game as he stood at the end, encouraging them both the whole time (it just wasn't in the curly-haired dancer to be cruel or snarky at his friends). All he could do was smile and shake his head, maybe offer the Swede a playful punch at his massive shoulder for joking like that.
"Come on, I'm not that far under you guys!" Perhaps he wasn't the sort to be cruel, but he was a teenaged boy and he wasn't above being prideful about his "skills" - it was just human nature to be like that. At least the cocky grin on his face was probably not too unbearable to Talia and Bjorn.
They say pride goeth before a fall...and that was certainly very true for Colin on the 7th hole: a pink and purple "giant" toadstool with little fairies (for flair) and little gnomes and critters to help bat and block the ball along a curve. On this superbly obnoxiously pink hole, it took him five tries to get the ball into the stupid catch-cup! By the time he'd made it beyond that hole, he was properly sheepish and his cheeks flushed pink from embarassment and shame at having been so cocky only minutes before. Even with that frustration, he kept a pretty good sense of humor and made a lot of fun at his own expense while his friends took their shots too...and once he got past his Nemesis Shroom, was that he managed to do quite well on the following five.
And, of course, he had a helluva lot of fun joking and talking with Talia and Bjorn on each one, even going so far as to quip after his 3rd hole-in-one in a row that maybe the Swede had the right of it: keeping him from making his goal might have been a smart idea. "I swear, I've never played so well! It must be you guys - you're make me lucky!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
chiickadee rolled 6 6-sided dice:
2, 6, 5, 2, 2, 2
Total: 19 (6-36)
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2011 7:59 pm
Well Talia had kept her mouth shut most of the first part of the course. She had been furious that she was losing of course, but it had mostly come across as grumpy mutters to herself. She did feel a little better when she watched Björn play. The boy may have been the most muscled man on the course, but he really had no clue how to play mini-putt golf well. He was well in last place.
She was more determined this game, however, to get ahead. A little bit more of that overflowing confidence swelled in her on the first whole. Colin had taken five tries to get the ball in, while she had only taken two. That wasn't so bad! She could still make a comeback if she tried hard enough. Maybe Colin would suddenly start sucking at mini-putt. One could hope, right?
It all went downhill from there. After that, Colin scored not one, not two, but three hole-in-ones. From there, she had just stuck to pouting in a girly fashion.
"Lucky! If we were so lucky, you wouldn't be in first!" she said, pointing out his own flaw. Regardless of if she was losing, Talia was still happy she had come. Losing sucked, but this was something she could let go. Maybe. "Sleep with one eye open tonight!" she said jokingly, and then let out a laugh. This really was more fun than she had imagined it being.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Edelsteine rolled 6 6-sided dice:
3, 2, 3, 5, 1, 6
Total: 20 (6-36)
|
Posted: Sun Nov 06, 2011 2:06 pm
The second third of the course was a consistent foot climb up the roped paths to higher terraces and more elaborate sculptural barriers – mountain goats and waterfalls, water wheels and even a snow leopard whose segmented wooden tail whisked slowly back and forth. He started out doing better, even fair! Three hits and two seemed very respectable, normal even, though he couldn’t easily predict how one should do it regularly except ‘hit the ball towards the hole’. The tenth, eleventh and twelfth holes were both disheartening and exciting. A joke at his own expense, maybe. The Tenth, a return to his usual terrible game so far, then the eleventh where the cat tail scooped his ball from where he’d hit it right into the hole! A hole-in-one!
He’d never managed that before, and gave a laugh, “Well, luck for you and me, however bad I play. I’ve never gotten one before, even if you get twenty in an 18-hole game. My game’s complete whatever happens. “
“Though with luck like that we should buy lottery tickets and pretend you’re eighteen. You might win. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of 6 in one game from one person. You're insane, Colin. You should be doing this for a summer job. They have tournaments, you know. If company is all that’s needed for this sort of luck, I’ll gladly tag along. “
“But you’re doing just as amazingly, “He tapped the scorecard lightly so as not to muss Talia’s writing as she scratched in more numbers. “Two shots on so many holes. You have this game figured out.”
There was only the final third to go. Talia was the only one with a chance of taking the lead, and even at that the chance was looking slim. Colin had her by ...how many? Mental math was impossible. He hadn't been keeping track exactly of all their shots at each hole, not that he probably could if he'd been making the effort. Asking Talia seemed unwise, even if she was their scorekeeper with the card, like prodding cats that were sleeping in a shaft of sunlight.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Syrie rolled 6 6-sided dice:
1, 3, 5, 6, 4, 4
Total: 23 (6-36)
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Nov 06, 2011 4:45 pm
Sleep with one eye open!?!? Green eyes went wide as their female companion jokingly threatened to come after him as he slept, but then he laughed. "I sleep pretty heavily, but luckily I share a room with Björn...you'll protect me, won't you?" With a light, playful tone the dancer pretended to need his friend's protection while he slept. It was fun, joking with Talia and Björn like that - the awkwardness and slightly off feelings he'd been having during some parts of their game dissappeared at the ribbing and joshing happening.
"That's a good idea, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't pass for eighteen, but I bet you could." Colin nudged his large friend with a grin on his face; it wasn't a joke either - of the three present, only the Swede could have passed for someone out of high-school. Well, perhaps Talia could pass...but certainly he couldn't! Not with his slim, dancer's body and soft curls - cherubim, perhaps, but definitely not an eighteen year old (try again next year!).
He blushed a little bit at Björn's praise of his miniature golfing "skills" and pushed his hair back from his eyes, fidgetting as he mumbled that yes, perhaps he would look into something like that. At the very least, playing in tournaments would appeal to his competitive nature and it would probably be quite fun. "But only if you and Talia come to cheer me on. Who knows if I'd do as well without you guys at my side?"
After all the praise (and joke-threats) that Colin had gotten, he started on the last stretch of holes with confidence. Initially he did well, but Colin realized that he would have more fun if he didn't sink everything so easily. He wasn't going to say anything aloud about it because he didn't want Björn or Talia to know what was going on...it just wasn't something a friend would do. Instead, he blamed it on that old adage about pride going before a fall - it was totally plausible that he screw up like that after having been so successful up to then.
And so Colin finished out the game in a fabulously pitiful - but oh so fun - fashion! He took forever to get past the fifteenth and sixteenth holes (one a fantasy castle complete with a Princess in a tower and a unicorn that pawed at the opening the ball should go through to keep one from sinking the hole and the other this ridiculously difficult dragon). The last two were barely better and Colin was appropriately sheepish (and annoyed with himself) each time he failed to lob that massively neon golf ball where it was supposed to go.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
chiickadee rolled 6 6-sided dice:
1, 6, 1, 5, 4, 5
Total: 22 (6-36)
|
Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2012 5:30 pm
"Roomates?" she asked, curious. She wasn't aware the two were sharing a room together at ... Hillworth, right? Hm. Colin probably had a lot of juicey dirt on Björn... Talia tucked that one away for later.
All she did was nod at the stipulation that Björn could pass for 18. When Talia had met him, she had thought he was a college student right from the get go. It was hard not to imagine him being older due to those huge muscles. It was always an awkward staple reminder to her that he was a year younger than her. Too weird.
She also only nodded and smiled when he mentioned bringing her to a miniature golf tournament. Talia was a big advocate of social get-togethers, but professional miniature golf wasn't really her idea of the high life. She would go if invited but ...
Well nevermind that. Through the last wholes, she continued to spiral downwards just like Colin. It seemed they were both struggling on the princess one, and the dragon one was just impossible. At the end, she was still fiercely behind colin though. Ah well~ At least she beat Björn?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Edelsteine rolled 6 6-sided dice:
3, 4, 6, 6, 2, 2
Total: 23 (6-36)
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2012 2:14 pm
The last third of a mini-golf course was always designed to be the most challenging, and it proved as much for Björn. But unlike his friends, the unicorn and the dragon didn’t give him nearly so much trouble after the previous awful holes. Talia was a smart girl, so the scorecard was neatly settled even as he finished his last shot. The final hole seemed to be an endless hole, a tube return that automatically transferred the balls to the desk.
He was still solidly last, but it was nice to end on an up-note, at 66. Talia was second at a more respectable and reasonable 61. Colin was the freakish first at 49. “Who ever heard of so many holes-in-one! From both of you.”
It was an easy subject to praise skill. “I am glad that I don’t have to compete in serious sports against either of you. I would not last. Still, we’ve been on our feet at a slow but steady pace with no sitting for a couple hours. Can I buy you each a drink for a sit down?”
They could joke about their blunders during the game, now finally having a shared experience to relate on that was safe. Friendship was delicate, tottering on first steps and seeking ropes thin as spider’s thread in the beginning to connect people.
After that maybe they should see to farewells and return to studies, since the school year was getting into swing.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 7:35 pm
Despite the annoyance garnered during the last few holes of miniature golf, Colin ended the game with an open smile and general good humor. "I really think that you and Talia are like, the best lucky charms a guy could have. There's no way that I could have ever gotten that many without both of you here." Sure, he could be cocky and full of himself, but he could also try to be humble while flattering a pretty girl and his best friend, couldn't he?
"Only if you let me cover next time." The curly haired dancer didn't mind friends paying for things, so long as they didn't mind when he reciprocated - turn about was fair play! He truly believed that...it was something his long-deceased Grandmother had tried to teach him (and his mother, but she didn't learn it as well as he had, apparently...because she was forever having her 'boyfriends' pay for things...go figure).
Sitting with a cold lemonade after standing all that time was a very welcome rest for Colin; he sat and joked with Talia and Björn about the game, his hideous wrist-band and matching golf ball...the way that Björn had totally twisted those old putters into really cool conversation pieces and how Talia, even after gaming with them, still looked like a fashion plate. Mostly safe things, all meant in the nicest of ways.
And yes, after the drinks were gone and the conversation winding down, it probably was time to say good bye and return to dorms and studies. Colin had to keep up his grades or his mom wouldn't let him keep going to the dance studio...and of course, he was going to be helping Björn as much as he could!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Feb 05, 2012 12:39 am
Talia jokingly said, "But no one could beat you in any other sports competition!" in Bjorn's direction. It was no secret that the boy was built like a tank. He probably dominated in most of the sports he played, not that Talia would ever admit to defeat like that. She would do her best!
After sharing a few drinks with the boys, Talia decided it was time to head home in a timely, fashionable manner. She was about to politely ask the boys if they wanted a ride home when they both seemed to go their own direction.
She waved, and then turned in the direction of her car. Well that had certainly been fun. Nothing like a day with friends, followed with some shameless flirting after all.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
