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 Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 3:27 pm
Yvette looked over the folded piece of notebook paper in her hand, then at the number painted on the edge of the curb. This seemed to be the right place, but she couldn't get over how nice the house was.
This whole ordeal had started at school. She had been kept so busy with her classes, she had barely any time to really talk with any of her friends from Barren Pines. She had been able to meet up with Tara one time to watch the first Star Wars movie, but that was it really. So it had been her luck that she accidentally bumped into Topher one day in the hallways while on her way to the art building. After profusely apologizing to him (it had been her fault, obviously), he laughed it off and invited her to come visit him on Sunday. They hadn't talked in so long, it was near impossible to refuse. He quickly tore out a piece of paper from his notebook, scribbled down his address, and then fled towards his next class. She didn't think about it until she got home and was looking up the best bus-route to his place.
Sunday was Valentine's Day.
There was no way she was going to try and explain to Daddy that she had been invited to a boy's house on Valentine's Day. Daddy's head would explode and he would probably go on a murder rampage with his favorite sledgehammer. Daddy had always been impractical at best when it came to boys.
So she had to tell one little white lie. Well, it really wasn't a lie, because she was going to a friend's house. It just happened to be that the friend was a boy, who invited her over on Valentine's Day. Yvette was having a very hard time getting over the fact it was Valentine's Day.
The girl hugged her jacket up close to her body as she wandered up to the front steps and rang the doorbell. She could feel her cheeks turning a nice rosy color, and where most people would have probably blamed it on the cold weather, Yvette knew the real reason her cheeks were warming up.
She had been invited to a boy's house on Valentine's Day.
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Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:07 pm
It must have been quite the surprise for Yvette when the rather heavy oak door swung open to reveal a middle-aged woman, familiar colored blue hair pulled back into a low ponytail, ruddy brown eyes shining with the same kindness that Topher's did. It was obviously his mother without any reasonable doubt.
"Are you Yvette?!" The same loud voice that went through the halls of Meadowview was in that doorway right now only higher and much more feminine. "It's so wonderful to meet you! I'm Topher's mom but I'm sure that's pretty obvious. Don't even bother calling me Mrs. Coral just call me Eva. Everyone calls me Eva! Even people I barely know!" A few minutes and a few more explanations of her name later, Eva Coral finally realized that they hadn't quite gotten inside. "Goodness! I've been keeping you outside in the cold listening to my ramblings. I'm sorry honey! I hope I didn't talk your ear off or something. I should probably hand you off to Bo before I get too loud again! Feel free to come in and talk to Lucas if you'd like while I go get him for you!" And, with that, the woman was already half way up the hall stairs.
As Yvette walked in, she would see just where her friend's sense of style had come from. Everything was old fashioned. From the dark hardwood floors to the blue flower wall paper to the vaulted ceilings and even the small little cluster of family photos hanging on the wall seemed to be washed over in sepia. Though that might have just been from age rather than ambiance. Lace table cloths and lacy sheer curtains finished off the little hallway. A quick turn to the right was the living room. It was a bright room even with the harsh burgundy walls. Unapologetic pristine white furniture was lined with dark wood, the handles carved with animal motifs and...was that an elk head over the mantle?
Directly under said elk head was a middle-aged man in a dark brown leather la-Z-boy reclining chair, the only non period style thing in the house most likely. His brown hair obstructed any sort of expression as he waved a hand to the shy girl, not even looking up from the newspaper article before speaking in the most bored yet irritated tone anyone could possibly muster when meeting someone new. "You know she's been running around the house like a crazed mental patient to get the place ready for company, right? You must be worth it..."
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Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:43 pm
Yvette did not have time to speak. All she could manage to do during that flurry of introductions was blink like the timid creature she was. Topher's mom (not Mrs. Coral, but Eva apparently) was everything that the girl wished she could be. Lovely, friendly, and loud. The girl couldn't help but wonder if she had been some random stranger, would Eva have dragged her into the house as if she had been this "Yvette" person? After all, the girl had yet to really confirm that she was, indeed, this Yvette person.
When she had managed to step inside, she couldn't help but repeat one thing that was curious to her. "Bo?" Did Topher have a brother that went by Bo? Why would she be getting handed off to a "Bo" rather than to a Topher? Either way, her question probably went ignored, since Eva was already flying up the stairs, but the dark haired girl was used to this. When you were quiet, people ignored what you had to say. Timidly, like a cat in new surroundings, she made her way in.
Casually, she slipped her coat off, revealing her pink halter top with the little heart-shaped opening along the chest. It was Valentine's day, and she was a sucker for dressing up for holidays. She tucked her coat over one of her arms before holding both arms firm against her body. Following the path that was before her, she soon enough found the living room, as well as an elk-head and a man there to greet her. Yvette was not exactly the sort to protest for animal rights, but at the same time, she wasn't exactly the sort to look at an elk head and not feel just a bit bothered by it.
Lucas' words seemed to stir up a reaction in the girl. In her usual shy and quiet voice, she immediately apologized. "I-i'm s-sorry!" Her fingers clenched against the coat she was holding in her arms. "Sh-she didn't h-h-have to g-go out of her w-way f-for me..." Her confidence level dropped at least another fifty points, her eyes submissively shooting down to the coat in her arms. This house was so much nicer than her own, that even on a bad day, it could easily outshine the standards Yvette was adjusted to. In all of her flustered embarrassment, the girl had forgotten to introduce herself to the man. She knew better, but now she was feeling bad about the whole cleaning ordeal that had been mentioned.
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 7:06 pm
Lucas shifted in his chair, still completely absorbed in the newspaper. "Bo is what Eva calls him. Something about that lamb he used to have. Carried it with him all the time. Shame I don't know yours yet" If it had been anyone else, it probably would have been the most embarrassing thing any parent could have said but, coming out of Lucas' mouth, it was just fact. You couldn't laugh at or argue with facts. Not to mention the fact that he subtly knocked off a few first impression points for her not introducing herself. Though, with how loud Eva was, he got the name memo long ago. With that, the man folded up the newspaper after realizing that she was probably going to be standing there for awhile. There wasn't much he could do about that.
"Don't worry about it. Company is company. She even cleans that house when she knows I'm coming home. It's just that this time she's been extra obsessive. I was banned to my study for the past few hours...'' Above them, they could pretty much hear the blanket being pulled out from under Topher and the loud thud when the boy toppled to the floor. Lucas' eyes darted up to the ceiling, shaking his head at the cacophony going on upstairs. " He was probably asleep. Topher's gotten into the habit of sleeping all day when he can. It's like he stays out all night or something." Another bit of scuffling upstairs follow by muffled laughter and Eva's voice trailing down the stairs and into the kitchen. He finally looked at her for the first time that evening, taking in what the girl as wearing with a raised eyebrow. "I take it you like to dress for the holidays? Judging by the heart and all."
Lucas pointed the folded up newspaper towards the chair next to the tall bookcase in the corner. "Feel free to sit down if you'd like. Might take a few more minutes for him to actually come down. Probably wouldn't be a good idea to just stand there for that long."
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 9:13 pm
Count down to blood rushing to her face in 3. 2. 1.
WOOOOOSH, Yvette's face was completely red.
In a squeaky tone, she began to apologize in an absolutely flustered fashion. "I'm so sorry! M-m-my name is Yvette Weaver, sir!" Of course, in her embarrassment, she couldn't handle looking Lucas in the face. Her eyes easily fell from her jacket to the floor, fixing themselves onto the floorboards. Her toes even curled slightly within her boots. Out of all the chastising, she did manage to grab one gem of information.
Topher was a Bo.
Yvette didn't really have any specific nicknames. Her Daddy came up with all the generic nicknames one could give their daughter, such as "baby" or "pumpkin," but nothing too specific. And her Mommy loved calling Yvette by her birthname, since Mommy was extremely fond of the name. However, Bo was a very cute and personal nickname. If she had more backbone, maybe she could call him that on occasion to tease him. She could never do something like that. She'd feel horrible teasing someone, especially since she was the sort who never did well with teasing to begin with.
For that brief moment, she had gotten lost in her own thoughts, but soon enough with a loud "WUMP" from above was enough to startle her back to reality. She really could have been mistaken for a mouse today rather than a young girl, for she instinctually let out another squeak. As she listened to the explanations, she slowly lifted her head up to an almost normal level of sight again. "Oh... um... m-maybe I should just go home instead... s-sleep is v-very important."
Had any color drained from her face from her previous embarrassment, it came back swiftly at the mention of her shirt. What could she really say? He technically had pinned the assessment perfectly, but it still made her feel really silly. Her purple eyes did manage to catch the motion to the other chair, and rather quickly, she scampered over and took a seat. She had already embarrassed herself enough. She offered a meek "Th-thank you" as she passed, and went completely quiet.
Now it was time to play the waiting game.
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 7:35 pm
"Well, Yvette, it's nice to meet you." He was definitely someone who was always on a first name basis. Not out of familiarity but out of his own fear of misusing the terms. 'Miss' and 'Mrs' got confusing when people got offended."Topher needs to wake up sometimes. It isn't healthy for someone to sleep so much..."
It was an awkward few minutes waiting for Topher. Lucas had gone back to ignoring the girl and looking intently at the travel section of the newspaper. A good entertainer he was not. Except for a few casual glances, there was nothing even close to socializing until the familiar stampede of footsteps signaled Topher finally coming down the stairs. The blue haired teen really had finally gotten himself up, out of bed and into clothing that didn't make it look like he had gone through he hamper and pulled something out for the sake of putting on clothing.
The smile on his face definitely didn't look like someone who just woke up a few minutes ago but it was Topher and that was fairly normal. "Sorry about that. I guess I was just really tired! Hope I haven't kept you waiting for too long..." Blue eyes shifted towards Lucas' chair as he slipped into the study, leaning against the back of Yvette's chair. "I hope my Dad hasn't been too much trouble for you. He can be a bit of a loser sometimes." The only response was a slight chuckle that was even more coated with sarcasm than normal.
Topher matched the little chuckle, tapping his fingers on the back of the chair before turning his attention back to his guest. "I think my mom has brownies and cookies in the kitchen for us. I'm sure you'd like that wouldn't you Yvette?"
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 8:20 pm
For a few minutes, the girl merely contented herself with fiddling with her coat slightly. She had managed to locate a couple loose buttons, which would require further attention when she was home again. It would be a bit weird to ask for a needle and thread at someone else's house after all.
She only looked up once she heard a very familiar voice greet her. Her lips curled in that infamous tiny smile of hers, but she didn't speak right away. The quiet girl just observed. The banter between Topher and Lucas was much different to that between herself and her daddy. It might not have been much, but it was still there.
"N-no! I-it was no b-bother at all..."
Her voice paused for a moment before she added in a shy, yet playful tone "Th-that's not very nice thing to say!" She didn't want to agree with him, because that would be rude, but she had not exactly felt very welcome with Lucas hanging around.
Her thoughts didn't stay on manners for very long, for soon enough she heard very welcome words. Her indigo eyes seemed to light up, turning to Topher eagerly. She didn't say a word, but her head bobbed up and down like a child that was struck dumb from excitement. Brownies and cookies were an easy way to win this girl's heart. Heck, a bag of pure sugar would also probably do the trick. Not knowing what she should do, she just simply sat there, looking like she could almost burst from the excitement.
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Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 11:27 pm
Topher leaned over the chair a bit, looming over the girl in a way that he hoped wasn't very threatening. "Don't worry. My dad and I act like that all the time!" With a quick pat to the edge of the chair and a half-assed salute to Lucas, Topher slipped away from the study. "Come on! The kitchen's this way! My Dad needs to work anywway...or read or whatever he was doing!" Honestly, he just wanted sweets. Lucas could have been trying to talk to them and he would have still inched his way towards the kitchen. That's just how Topher was. Having Yvette over with him wasn't making that any easier with how excited she seemed for them as well.
By the time they both got to the kitchen, the dining table was covered from side to side with an array of different desserts. His mother had clearly gone all out. The linen tablecloth could barely be seen between the pink, red and white china. Without skipping a beat, Topher dove for a red plate stacked with white brownies. They seemed completely out of place in the sea of chocolate cake, syrups and fudge and yet the look on his face was one of pure, unadulterated joy.
"I love white chocolate brownies! My Mom hasn't made them in so long!" Before even waiting for Yvette to chose anything from the table, he took a large bite of the brownie only to hear an exasperated sigh from the dining room. Eva was standing there, holding another giant plate of cookies, eyes focused on her son. "Wait for the lady to eat you silly boy. Ladies first!" It sounded like she was seconds away from smacking the dessert from his hand but still looked like the sweetest person in the world, a large smile plastered all over her face.
"Go ahead sweetie!" She said as she placed the plate in the last available space before gesturing to the rest. "I hope you aren't allergic to chocolate or anything, Yvette!"
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Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2010 12:03 am
The girl nodded a silent goodbye to Lucas now that Topher was leading the way to the kitchen. There was a slight bounce in her step as she trailed close to her friend. In all honesty, she had no idea what to expect, except that there would be sweets. So when she saw a full table decorated so beautifully with a bunch of sweets, she almost felt like melting. In all honesty, the only reason why she was still standing upright was because her fingers had managed to locate the edge of a counter.
She still was greatly lacking in a voice, and in all honesty, staggering a bit from shock. So when Topher cut in to snatch up what he wanted first, she had no problems with it.
Yet apparently someone did have a problem with the boy going before the quiet dark-haired girl. Wide indigo eyes looked over to the source and found Eva there. Eva was there with cookies, but she was also now scolding Topher.
Yvette obviously was more flustered over the whole ordeal, despite the fact that it was her friend who just got in trouble. "I-i-it's okay...th-there'ssomuchherethatIcouldn'tdecide..." There was an uncertain pause as her eyes drifted to Eva's, before glancing back at the display of delicious treats.
"I-i-i'm allergic t-to s-strawberries... b-but not ch-chocolate..." The girl shuffled her feet together while clinging onto her coat, as if uncertain as to what she should do.
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Posted: Sun Mar 28, 2010 6:56 pm
Eva completely dismissed the strawberry issue with a wave of her hand. "Oh don't worry. The only thing with strawberries in it is a pound cake for Lucas and I and that's tucked away in the fridge. Now, unless you go snooping around in there for something then you'll be fine with anything on the table. No one can eat chocolate like my little Bo!" With a quick nod to the extravagant spread, her smile widened at the pair as she slipped out the other side of the kitchen through the little french doors she'd come through.
If Yvette were to look at Topher at that moment, she would have seen something she'd never seen before from the boy. A scowl. "I hate it when she does that..." In the Coral household, a knowing smile was worse than a a frown. It was part of the reason why he never really got angry himself. Somewhere along the line, Eva had learned that blind anger didn't effect her son at all. The new tactic worked brilliantly.
Taking another bite from the brownie, the scowl finally melted away to pure contentment. "Don't worry. Lucas is really the only one who likes strawberries," he chirped happily as he reached out for a large plate of cookies, excitedly holding one out to her. If there was one thing Topher knew, it was Yvette and he knew she would probably stand there looking at the table for minutes on end waiting for an invite. "These are the ones she made for me at the hospital! The ones you said that you liked. You didn't have a reaction to those did ya?"
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Posted: Sun Mar 28, 2010 8:23 pm
Indigo eyes remained fixed on a particular plate of cookies as she listened to all Eva had to say. There were no strawberries, everything was safe and peachy keen. A tiny puff of a sigh escaped the girl before she offered an itty bitty "k-kay!" Her eyes were still shyly fixed on the cookies, so she failed to notice the look upon Eva's face as she slipped out of the kitchen. She also didn't see the reaction on Topher's face.
Instead, she heard Topher's reaction. In return, the girl squeaked. Had Eva done something mean? For a moment, her wide eyes moved themselves from the sweets to her friend's face.
Oh, she did not like that expression. She didn't realize it, but she let out a tiny whimper of disapproval. Topher wasn't supposed to get upset at things. Her mind soon enough began to dart around at any possible reason why Topher would get mad. Maybe it was the fact his mom called him "Bo" in front of company? Maybe it was the fact she scolded him for grabbing up food earlier. Maybe it wasn't Eva at all, and somehow Yvette had managed to screw things up again.
Yvette was very good at messing up without realizing it, at least she seemed to think so.
With all this fretting going on in her mind, she didn't notice that Topher's mood seemed to completely reset itself as he ate something sweet, and for a moment, she didn't even notice the cookie now being held in front of her.
Three seconds after he had been holding the cookie in front of her, she squeaked in surprise. When had he snuck up on her like that?!
"O-oh... s-sorry about that... " she eventually offered before taking the offered cookie in her hands and starting to nibble on it. Little Yvette the hamster-girl nibbled on her cookie for a few minutes, quietly looking down at what she was eating, then shyly up to Topher, before looking back to the cookie again.
"So... d-do you n-not like being called 'Bo' o-or s-something...?" Wait, had Yvette actually grown a spine or something?
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Posted: Sun Mar 28, 2010 8:47 pm
Finally his eating habits had begun to slow down, dwindling to bites that normal people would take rather than a ravenous teenage boy. When Yvette finally took the cookie, and he finished the brownie, he reached for a much smaller treat. Something akin to a chocolate tart with whip cream and a little cherry on top. How fitting for someone like Eva to be so precise. All that was needed were little heart shaped pieces of kiwi and it would've been on the cover of Home and Garden.
"Nah. i don;t mind the nickname" He shrugged. "Mom barely gets angry anymore. She just smiles...," Topher made a show of shivering uncomfortably, keeping his hand as still as possible so the chocolate tart in his hand didn't break apart. "It's unnerving. I wish she'd just yell at me ya know." Even with the subject matter, he chuckled. It was quite an odd thing to be upset about considering that he probably had it easier than most teenagers. "I guess I'm just complaining about stupid things. I'm sure a lot of kids would rather have a smiling parent than one that yells all the time!"
With a cheery smile on his face, he picked the little cherry off the top by the stem, popping it into his mouth, pulling the pit and stem from the berry in one go before throwing them into the trash can. "I don't think I'd like to be called Bo in public though. I'm quite the fan of Topher..." He watched her eat for a moment, almost amused by the way she nibbled on it. "Do you have any nicknames at home? I mean, ones that aren't totally embarrassing of course. I wouldn't want you to tell me anything horribly embarrassing if you didn't want to..."
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Posted: Sun Mar 28, 2010 9:04 pm
If there was one thing that the quiet girl was good at doing, it was listening. Her friend explained his situation without a problem. Topher was just an open book when it came to how he felt. There were no secrets between them when it came to his emotions.
Yvette, not so much. "E-eva is v-very nice though. I... I sometimes wish th-that Daddy could just smile when he was upset..." The dark haired girl's heart broke almost every time her Daddy got upset over something. If he was sad or if he was mad, it made her feel horrible on the inside. Fortunately, he never really got mad at her specifically.
For that short while that she was thinking about her Daddy, she paused in her nibbling. When she realized it wouldn't do her any good wishing that her Daddy could change just like that, she resumed picking away at her treat with her teeth in delicate tiny bites. By the time she had gotten halfway done with the single solitary cookie, there were more questions asked and comments to be made.
"I think Bo is cute! And personal!" She nodded her head slightly at the notion before supplying a bit more insight. "Daddy calls me all sorts of nicknames, but nothing that really sticks. Just general stuff, like 'baby girl' and 'pumpkin' and 'sweetheart' and stuff like that. And Mommy doesn't call me by anything other than Yvette. She was the one who picked out my name, so she likes to use it rather than silly nicknames." Of course, talking about something so personal, it was no surprise when the girl's cheeks grew a bit rosy. That was typical Yvette for you.
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Posted: Mon Mar 29, 2010 1:31 am
He never pinned Yvette's father as the one who would get extremely angry. In fact, anyone in Yvette's family getting angry just sounded so alien with how she always was with him. Maybe he was just used to be so like his mother that he forgot that most people actually got some sort of autonomous personality. Maybe she just took after her own mother too? I mean, it wasn't like he'd gotten much from being around Lucas for so long.
"I'm sure your Dad just loves you and all. At least that's what a lot of those parent shows say. We love our kids so much that we can't help but get emotional...or something like that." There was a small silence as he took a very uncharacteristically small bite out of the tart. "I mean, when I have kids, I'll probably be like that. Maybe not too the extent of your dad but parents think totally different than us" Topher said with a chuckle. He knew just how different parents could really be with their kids considering Eva's happy go lucky attitude and Lucas' nonchalant, grim way of addressing situations.
"I just only like Bo when my Mom calls me that. It sounds embarrassing when anyone else does..." He smiled before taking another bite as she spoke. They sounded pretty normal to him. Nothing too out of the ordinary. "Well I like Yvette too so your mom definitely has good tastes!"
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Posted: Mon Mar 29, 2010 1:46 am
"Oh, nonono! IknowDaddylovesme!!" she blurted out in her tiny voice. She just as quickly seemed to button her lip, looking at Topher as if she was ashamed that she had explained herself wrong earlier. Yvette had even stopped her steady nibbling on her cookie as her bottom lip quivered slightly.
Yvette was making yet another mountain out of an ant hill. She couldn't even move on to comment about nicknames any further. The girl just stood there awkwardly, as if she had gotten stuck on one thought.
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