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 Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:04 pm
Paul shrugged. He didn’t particularly care if she liked less sugary pastries usually; he was partial to savory things himself. But plain pastry, like croissants, wouldn’t do much for her blood sugar, and if she wanted to avoid fainting in front of her dad… “I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, because if they were going to hang out, he figured he would have to. To be polite.
“I do tai chi,” he said. “It’s calming. But that’s not why I’m doing this internship. It’s mostly because it’s close to home, and with the way things are in the city, I wanted to be able to get home quickly.” Of course, it hadn’t saved Shay. It probably couldn’t have saved Shay. He didn’t have enough power to protect her from a General. He swallowed against the bile in his throat and narrowed his eyes at her for a moment.
Then he shrugged. “I’m not deep enough in to choose my speciality,” he said. “I actually want to do trauma medicine. It seems like it’d be useful, with Destiny City the way it is… I’d like to be able to help people. Save lives, you know. Sports medicine seems a lot less… You deal with a lot more…” Paul couldn’t think of a way to save that and make it sound polite. “I know it’s still helping people, but to be honest, most DCU athletes are brats.”
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Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:04 pm
Tallulah could hear him trying to phrase it politely, and barring that, at least his honesty was amusing. She laughed. “It’s funny because it’s true,” she agreed. “I was on the swim team my freshman year and I’m not sure I would rejoin even if I could after the sort of awful behavior I saw.” Everything made a bit more sense once he explained where his real interests lay, and trauma medicine was a pursuit she could get behind.
“It is sort of… worryingly violent around here,” she agreed, trying not to seem any more invested in events than any ordinary citizen would. “I’m not sure if it’s better or worse than when I left - mostly just seems like it’s stayed the same. But if you want to do trauma medicine - The world needs people like that. And you seem like you’d be good at it. I mean, as much as I can really say having known you for forty minutes.” After all, he’d helped her, and she hadn’t exactly been staggering around shouting for a medic. That seemed like good instincts.
“One of my friends wants me to start going to pilates with her,” she said, breaking a piece off the danish. She stared at it for a moment before eating it. “You know more about medicine than me - doesn’t seem like it could hurt, right?”
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Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:05 pm
He thought it’d gotten worse, but he couldn’t exactly say so without looking like he cared a lot more than he wanted her to think he did. His perspective, after all, was that of a participant of their city’s weird war. Hers was that of a bystander, and though she had no way of knowing, a potential victim. Then he recalled: med student. He was allowed to have access to different stats than she did. “It’s getting worse,” he said. “Actually. People keep showing up at the teaching hospital with broken bones and that weird fatigue…”
Paul shook his head. “Anyway… I don’t see how pilates could hurt, as long as you take it slow and keep a cereal bar on you.” Maybe, when Leigh got here (because his mother had only wanted to have her errant son closer, rather than leaving him in Canada where he would be safe) he could introduce him to Tallulah. Paul rather thought Leigh’s unending supply of clif bars would only help Tallulah in her healing process. “You know. Start feeling dizzy, sit down. That sort of thing. Just be careful and don’t do more than your doctor says you should.”
After a moment’s thought, he pulled out his phone and passed it across. “Put your number in,” he said. “So we can arrange to meet up again sometime soon.”
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Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:05 pm
Tallulah wasn’t sure whether he was being smooth or just polite as she took the phone from Paul. “All right,” she said, adding herself to his contact file and passing the phone back. She finished off the rest of the pastry and then drank some more of her tea. “That’s depressing,” she sighed. Of course, any rise in the crime rate was. She decided to not ask about broken bones and the weird fatigue, because of course anyone who hadn’t been living under a rock would know at least a thing or two about it. Best not to appear too interested, though - that was certain to attract trouble.
“I’d better head over to the library if I’m going to find the books I need before my dad gets here,” she explained, getting up from the table. “But it was really great to meet you, Paul. Text me, so I’ll have your number? And we can make plans about studying. I really, really do appreciate the offer. And the help. And the breakfast.” Should she offer to make it up to him? Would that be weird. Tallulah smiled and picked up her tea. “See you soon I hope?” she suggested, reaching for her gym bag.
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Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:05 pm
“Soon,” he agreed. He sent her a text--this is Paul, add me?-- and then put his phone away and stood up. “I’ll see you around, Tallulah.”
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