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 Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2010 10:08 am
It was pretty obvious when Dana was not in a good mood. She'd shuffled into speech class without any of her normal pep, her eyes puffy and swollen. They were red, too, like she'd been crying (and she had been all night), and no one wanted to show up to school like that. Without a word, she trudged to her seat and sat down, dropping her bag on the floor and staring mutely at the front of the room.
She still hadn't found her pen. This was day two now of being a normal, worthless nobody, and the hysterics had faded into a dull, defeated outlook upon life. There was no point to anything anymore if she couldn't find that pen. Every other superhero in the world had it easy, being able to use their powers whenever they wanted. Did she really need that pen anyway?
Yes, the girl sadly told herself. She had danced in front of her mirror all night, had whispered 'Dorado Power Makeup!' to herself over and over and over until her throat was hoarse, and nothing had happened. There was no way she could lie to herself; the pen was the magic.
With a loud groan, Dan let her forehead smack into her desk, and stayed that way despite how people around her glanced over at the sound. She still had a flare for theatrics, regardless of her plight.
"My life is over." The girl muttered into the fake wood, lifting her head up and smacking it against the desk again.
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Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2010 8:39 pm
Benji was a good student but he, decidedly, didn't care much for speech class. Lucky for him, though, the teacher hosted projects so few and far between that he could get away with not having to get up in front of class while still managing a proper grade. Sure, he probably could have gotten the “A”, had he chosen to showboat himself around, but that simply wasn’t his style. There were plenty of people in class to sieze that oppertunity too. Especially...
Thunk. My life is over. Thunk.
Dana McZeal sat approximately ten feet away from him at a twenty degree angle; that was, three desk up and one to the left of him. Benji often took a seat near the back of the class, not just because he was quiet by habit but because he was notoriously tall. He was often the first to get to class in order to achieve this seat and generally the last to leave as well due to his position. Not that he minded at all- Benjamin Jerry was a very patient person when he had time on his hands. Caring, too, which is why he hesitated a little when he saw the bluenette banging her head against her desk. Weird isn't something he's found out of Dana McZeal's character pattern, but it's a little different from what her normal outbursts seemed to follow. Just what could bringing her down today? He's too far to see that her eyes are red, but she's clearly upset.
It feels as if there's something he's forgetting when he takes a moment to study her, then the surrounding room. Class is beginning to fill up, and if he wants to make a move, he'd better do it fast. He's got no desire to get caught out of his seat when the lecture begins, even if the class posture dissolves as the period stretches on to boorish chatter. Benji often works on math homework that's due tomorrow (somewhat guiltily), but he'll have to wait. Shifting carefully, the jock removed himself from his desk and made his way down the aisle, leaving his bookbag behind a moment as he went to sit at the empty desk next to the bereaved girl.
"It's Dana, innit?" He implored her softly, eyes flickering to the nearby clock and quickly back.
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Posted: Wed Apr 28, 2010 11:59 pm
Dana sometimes forgot that the world was not her private stage, and that people lacked appreciation for her talents. That was why she may have started a little when the soft, southern drawl inquired about her name, and the teen jerked her head up to meet the boy's eye. Who was he? Did she know him? Well, of course she did, but everything felt hazy right now as far as her memory went, and she had to think hard.
"Uh-huh." She finally settled for, too tired for a more fitting introduction for herself, and scrubbed at her eyes with the back of her hand. "Dana McZeal." Her forehead was red from where she'd smacked it repeatedly into the desk, and it probably would have been funny if she hadn't looked quite so upset still.
There was a pause. "You're... Benji." It was a confirmation more than a question, and she seemed to nod a little determinedly to herself. She was watching him now, as though expecting him to ask for something. No one usually talked to her in this class unless they needed something--and her brows furrowed almost instantly at that. "If you need me to write your speech, I already told Bobby that that's cheating." She sniffed slightly, looking tired again.
Dana did not condone cheating.
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Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2010 12:18 am
The boy leaned just slightly forward to better address the girl in low tones, nodding silently in confirmation to his own name. Up close... she really looked a mess. Well, not a mess, of course, but it was evident that she had been crying. A pair of tawny brows lifted at her warning of sorts, and if it hadn't been for her serious disposition, he might have smiled. As it was, he just shook his head and said, "Good lawd, no. Even if ah'll make a fool-uh muhself come time ta present, mah work is done. Naw, it's just..."
How did he put this? "Ah jest wanted to, ahh... Offer ya a seat in tha back, s'all. The one by me has a guy that's always sleepin' anyway- do him some good ta sit up here. If ya want." In the back, people were less likely to see the puffy red eyes, and if she started to sob again, no one was likely to notice. Benji didn't care to see anyone crying, but he'd rather endure the discomfort than leave her sitting up here to be a spectacle for the whole class. Just what had happened to her, anyway? Hopefully not another typical boyfriend crisis... although it probably was, he thought, but she didn't seem angry at him (being a boy), so maybe not...
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Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2010 7:00 pm
"Oh." The girl would visibly soften at that, not in the mood to stay suspicious when he was being so nice. Of course, his offer just had her staring for a moment, clearly not understanding what he was offering. "Why?" Was the immediate question, but she'd turned her head as though to take in the classroom with a faint frown--and realized most of their classmates were staring. This was not the type of attention she normally attracted, and it was enough to make her stare down at the desk in a span of self-consciousness.
"I guess." She finally answered, rubbing again at her face before she gracelessly gathered up her backpack, hugging it to her chest for a moment. "I've never sat in the back before." Like it was something secret she was admitting, something to be excited about. It was where the kids who didn't want to pay attention sat, of course! And today, she really didn't feel like paying attention.
Dana would finally climb to her feet, offering hm a tiny, somewhat wavery smile. "...Thanks, Benji."
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Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2010 8:00 pm
He seemed to falter at the question, trying to figure out the best terms to answer her in. Luckily, she figured it out for herself and moved to stand. The admission was enough to produce a faint smile out of him before he slowly lurched to his feet, moving to lead her down their separate rows to their desks, which would be next to each other give or take three and a half feet. The aforementioned neighbor he usually had wasn't there yet, but when he did show up, Benji had the right look to pass him to nullify any sort of trouble that might spring up.
"Don't mention it." Benji grunted humbly as he sunk into his own seat, and made to resume the comfortable silence that always surrounded him. The bell rung, bringing in a flurry of students before the teacher could get to the door to lock them out. Someone who was running down the hall was allowed in as well before the teacher shut up the class and began to announce their daily assignment. Puzzles, she said. They would each be assigned a unique puzzle and separate into groups of four. It was a thousand pieces and a group project, to be turned in by the beginning of the following week. Those that sat close were paired off for convenience so that they could turn their desks and begin immediately. It was probably one of the more ridiculous assignments Benji had been given, but hey, he couldn't complain. It seemed easy enough to him...
A box was set before them, the cover display a graphic ocean scene with sea critters everywhere. Well, at least it didn't look like a particularly hard puzzle... it'd just be a little time consuming. Benji glanced up at Dan, as if to assure she was alright before he waited for someone to tell him what to do.
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Posted: Thu May 06, 2010 6:07 pm
A puzzle. Dan was not normally patient enough for puzzles, especially not puzzles that had a time limit and were required for a grade. She groaned a little, burrowing her face in her arms for a moment until curiosity had her peeking through her fingers to see what sort of puzzle they had to work with. The sight of the brilliantly covered fish made her heart sink a little, and her forehead thudded against her forearms dully as she again mourned her current, powerless fate.
Eventually she sat up, eying the two that herself and Benji had been paired with with a savage sort of scrutiny. Neither of them did their work on time or very well, she knew that much, and it seemed as though they were all going to sit around awkwardly until she spoke up. "Well? You heard Mrs. Hawking; we aren't going to have enough time to finish this in class! We're gonna have to take it home and meet up to finish it." She was greeted with dead silence and apathetic stares, and despite herself, she was starting to puff up a little indignantly.
"I can't take it home tonight." The girl finally stated, and the other two boys mumbled their excuses which earned a 'hmph!' from her. She fixed a stare on Benji now, considerably less harsh. "Can you, Benji? If you can't, I can at least bring it home to my house, but you'll all have to come over tomorrow, or something."
And she'd have to stare at those stupid fish the entire time she worked on it. This was just great.
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