|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2015 4:43 pm
The heat had finally broke courtesy of some nasty storms that had moved in the night before. With the sun out, only a few fluffy white cloud in the sky and a temperature sitting in the low 80's the day was beautiful. So beautiful in fact that Chailee had decided to head out on a ride with Willow. She had wasted no time in giving the mare a quick curry comb before tacking her up and heading out. A gentle breeze rustled Chay's hair which she had pulled up into a ponytail. Since she wasn't intending on doing anything strenuous she had opted to not wear her usual riding attire. Instead she wore light weight capri's, sneakers, and a simple green v neck t-shirt. She was comfortable and happy. Opting to take the path that led towards the park, Chay reined the mare to the left of the path as it split. Willow snorted and bobbed her head. The mare's ebony mane was done up in small tight braids that bounced on her chocolate brown neck. Chailee couldn't help be feel that Willow was as pleased with the temperature change as she was. The ride through the woods and fields was always pleasant and always made Chay feel more serene. Little, if anything, bothered her when she was out enjoying time with Willow in nature. Eventually the path split again and Chay moved Willow to the right. Not two minutes down the path the treeline became more sparse until they finally emerged into a well manicured field. The city's park was certainly being taking advantage of. People were roaming all over. Kids were playing all sorts of games, other people were enjoying walks, runs or just happily settled on one of the many park benches. Keeping Willow to a lazy walk Chay had the made stick to the well worn riding path that bordered the treeline. The path was often used by bikers but she and a few other people she knew used it while out with the horses. There had never been any rules against horses in the park so they took advantage of the area. As they walked along Chay happily gazed around her. They had passed many a park bench. Most were empty. Not too many people ventured this far into the field. IF one did it was usually in search of somewhere quiet to avoid being distracted. Chailee had fond that some of the benches along the path were perfectly situated to take advantage of the shade that the trees provided. So, when the rounded a bend Chailee was vaguely surprised to find a man sitting at a bench that was well shaded by a large maple tree. It wasn't until they drew closer that Chay realized she knew the man who looked very absorbed in his book. With a grin, Chay clucked her tongue to Willow and directed the mare to the bench. It wasn't surprising at all that Rohan was so into his book that he didn't notice their approach from his side. Unfortunately for him though, as Chay reined Willow in to a stop the mare curiously lowered her head to the book and sighed heavily into the pages. Chailee began laughing.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Aug 09, 2015 2:46 pm
 
The day was... fine. The temperature had lessened, and given the fact Rohan had always been an outdoor sort of person, he'd decided to take his reading to the park, where he could better enjoy both the cool breeze and the lukewarm sun. The sound of people around him had been drowned, tuned out for the most part, as he favored the sounds of nature around him.
The tree to his left offered ample shade, and the bird that hooped around from right to left on its branches gave him a good distraction from the people taking picnics. He was loath to admit it, but even the sound of people around was rather... lulling. Nice even, so long they were not interacting with him, which they were not.
As such, the situation was prime for reading, and thus... read Rohan did. He'd finished his little study of Wuthering Heights a few days prior, and had switched to the next item on his syllabus list. The title, whatever it was, either did not agree with him, or somehow distressed him, given the fact the man would read a few page, grimace, turn the book over... glare at the paperback copy and then turn back to reading. This happened several times before he let out a sigh, threw his head back against the bench and stared up at the canopy of trees.
Who on Earth would ever put a Jane Austen novel on the bloody syllabus? While they were classics in their own right, which he actually enjoyed from time to time, they were hardly a good choice for a teen class. Rohan's head lifted and turned back to the pages of Pride and Prejudice as he grimaced once more. He was quite sure he was going to lose around 80% of the bloody class the moment he announced the title, and the remaining 20% which he wouldn't lose... will have probably already read the novel in their own free time.
He was still glaring intently at the pages of his book when suddenly, a horse snout came into his immediate line of vision, snorting over the pages of his book. He was so caught off guard, that for a second, two, Rohan could only look at the mare's snout in astonishment, as if he'd somehow summoned the beast from the book's pages. The merry laughter that followed the intrusion to his privacy, was, however, familiar, and it managed to drag him out of his mildly shocked state. He looked up against the sun to offer the child a probably most ineffective glare, given he didn't really put much force into it whatsoever, "I see your mare is about as curious over what I am reading as you tend to be."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Aug 09, 2015 3:19 pm
Before Chailee could rein Willow back the Mare snorted at Rohan, ruffling his hair before stepping back the obligatory steps. Needless to say Chailee was still getting quite a good chuckle out of the whole thing. Especially with the halfhearted glare Rohan had graced her with. "Oh, she's just looking for attention. As always." She said through her laughter before slowly calming herself down. Reaching into a front pocket of her capri's she produced a small white sugar cube which she promptly tossed to Rohan. "Not that you need it since she seems to like you." She grinned and leaned forward in her seat to pat the bay's neck. "Rohan, this is Willow and she's the biggest attention seeker I think there is." As if in agreement, Willow tossed her head slightly before nosing forward for the sugar cube she knew Rohan now held. Feeling a bit awkward sitting on the mare and begin so much taller than Rohan, Chailee swung her leg over and dismounted the mare. Willow didn't seem to even notice as she stood happily in the warm sun. Her tail flicking away the occasional fly. "I am really glad I ran into you again! And at the Park! For some reason you didn't seem like a park going kind of guy." She swept a hand over her not-too-tidy ponytail, searching for any strays that had fallen out or had been pulled out from stray branches during her ride. Soon enough she had the two pieces she had found back into the mess of curls. She paused for a moment and tilted to the side at her waist to get a look at the spine and cover of the book he was reading. She wrinkled her nose. "I...don't think I'd like that book. Mom said it's sort of dull and just not a lot of fun to read."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Aug 09, 2015 3:38 pm
The lump of sugar was caught with what looked like practiced ease; something that almost seemed contrary to a man that was almost... disheveled in appearance. His reflexes were as sharp as his tongue, and though he did arch a brow at the girl still riding her horse, he did not object to her whatsoever. In fact, he gave the page he was on one last look, and then placed the paperback open, spread on his left knee before offering the mare the small lump of sugar.
Amusingly enough, the way he fed the horse the sugar was also done with what appeared to be practiced ease; he spread his hand, making sure his palm was the only thing the mare could scrape with her teeth, his fingers facing downward. The hand he was not using to feed the animal came up, rubbed the creature's nose and then lifted to pat her neck, "I like horses," he told the girl, "My father had some, long ago. Lovely creatures. Loyal, too," Rohan had always liked animals far more than he did human beings; animals were easy to understand, and tended to work in much simpler ways than humans did.
A horse would allow you to ride him to hell, if his loyalty was freely given. A horse could not betray you. At least not like a human could.
As the creature chewed on the sugar lump, Rohan rubbed her nose again, "Charmed, Willow. I'm afraid that sugar is all I have; and I believe inviting you to tea would be a disaster. I don't think you'd fit in my living room, let alone the front door of my apartment," he clicked his tongue at the animal, "We'll have to make do."
He watched the girl dismounted, and then, for some inexplicable reason, found himself scooting to the side on the bench, allowing her space to seat herself without the distance between them being so small it would be awkward. As she spoke though, he huffed, "Says the child whose skin tone looks several shades lighter than mine," he looked at her out the corner of an eye, his hand still petting the horse in front of him, "I like the outdoors just fine. It's the people that don't agree with my sensitivities... nature has done nothing to offend me."
His gaze lowered to the book on his knee, and this time, the huff sounded suspiciously like laughter, "I was actually thinking that this was a deplorable choice for a syllabus book," he turned to offer the poor, harmless book a glare, as if it had indeed offended him, "I do not chose the books though, and must suffer through them," a pause, "Then again, they could have put Romeo and Juliet; see how you all fair with old English."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Aug 09, 2015 4:10 pm
Willow contently took the cube and munched it down as her ears swiveled forward as Rohan spoke to her. She enjoyed the affection being doted upon her as her eyes drooped slightly and her right back leg she let relax with the toe of her hoof propped up on the ground. Oh yes, the mare was quite happy and now fairly lazy. Chailee smiled at the affection Rohan was giving Willow. She recalled how he had acted with the cat at his apartment and came to the conclusion that the man was very content with animals. That was all certainly right up Chay's alley as she was very much an animal lover. "OH! I wish we had a lot of horses but being in the city makes it tough. I am lucky that my parents let me have Willow here." Reaching forward Chay ran her hands through Willow's braided mane. "I would love to live outside of the city and have my own little farm with lots of animals." As Rohan moved over for her Chailee didn't even think twice as she plopped down beside him. Willow was just about to doze off so there was no worry that she'd take off. The mare was fairly well trained in that department anyway. Standing and waiting for Chailee was a norm now. "I have a pale complexion and wear lots of sunblock." She huffed in mock fashion. "Besides at least I don't have a people allergy." She grinned smugly thinking herself rather smart for coming up with that. Now, that book on the other hand... "Well, I think you'll have a hard time with it. I mean, I've never read it but I've heard of it and I am sure other people have too. I doubt there's going to be many kids who are actually going to be interested in a romance novel like that. I mean, Romeo and Juliet would probably be worse but Pride and Prejudice won't be fun at all." She leaned back on the park bench. Her ponytail half caught against her and the bench the rest of the curls bunching up as she looked up at the puffy white clouds in the sky. "So how have you been?" She asked as she lowered her head to look back at him. "Hopefully not giving everyone who comes near you that glare of yours I hope." It was quite obvious that Chailee was very comfortable around Rohan. She didn't feel like teasing him would cause Rohan to grow cold towards her. If anything she'd get one of his 'trademark glares' as she was now referring to them in her head and maybe a little lecture but nothing that she had to really worry about. Whether Rohan knew or thought it himself, Chailee was already thinking of him as a friend.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Aug 09, 2015 5:14 pm
It was with a side glance at the child beside him, that Rohan realized he would not at all mind living in such a place. Animals had always been as keen on him as he had them, and they, unlike humans, tended to stay true forever once won over. It was this thought that made him look up to the sky, "While lovely... it would be folly for me to do that. I can not tend to a farm, nor drive to work every day from the city outskirts," a small sigh was released, and he offered the horse another pat and a rub, watching as she dozed off in mild mannered ease, "Given I do not think I can fit a horse into my apartment... and Felix only seemed to want food, I might be in need of canine company in the future."
A snort was released as the chit had the gall to sass him. He was both shocked and amused, and while he should have instantly put an end to it, given it would have been awkward behavior in class... he figured he could have a serious chat with her about that in the future. Not now though, "I'm not allergic to people, miss. I'm allergic to idiocy," he drawled at her, giving her a pointed look, as if he dared her to challenge him on this; most of the people around them were idiots.
Spoken like a true misanthrope.
His head turned to look at the book perched on his knee, and after letting out a sigh, he lifted it, dropped his head back against the back of the bench, and the put the book over his face, blocking out the view of the canopy above him, "Hmmm... haven't quite gotten through four chapters yet. I do not mind the book; It's a classic. I just do not think it a good choice for a class of hormonal teenagers. A third of the class will find it dull, another third will have already read it, and the last third will likely be impossible to control and keep snickering after every sentence," the book locked out the sun rather well, and did a good job at calming him, "Suffice to say, it shall be hell."
He lifted the book so that he could show her the arched brow-ed look he was offering her for her sass and teasing, and then huffed, allowing the object to fall back over his face so that it might conceal a smile, "My glare is usually quite effective, let me assure you. Very few dare oppose it. I'm still not quite sure where I failed with you, and have come to the conclusion that you're either very brave, or very... strange. Possibly both," his elbows found the back of the bench, and he reclined them on it, "There are better people out there to pursue than myself. Why do you keep coming back?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2015 9:09 am
Chay sat back, her feet just barely touching the ground thanks to the ground being worn away into a small decline due to all the traffic it supported and the natural flow of the earth. The toes of her shoes grazed the grassless spot when normally she'd be able to reach the ground. Obviously, with her feet dangling just so she felt the need to kick them gently back and forth. "Ohhh a puppy? You should get a smaller type breed. I mean, you say your apartment is small and all." She sat and pondered before giggling. "Though I can definitely see you walking around with a Great Dane. They're such dignified dogs but completely goofy at the same time." She blinked and stopped kicking her legs as she turned to look at Rohan. "So...if you don't like idiocy, why or...how did you become a teacher? I mean, it seems a bit odd to me. Wouldn't you rather work with people who you consider at the same level as yourself? Teaching kids has to get on your nerves at times. Especially when you have to teach us things that you know we probably will have no interest in." She looked pointedly at the book he possessed. Chailee truely was a bit confused by this, but the man had to have a good reason for his choice in work didn't he? After all, it almost seemed like he enjoyed teaching with the way he talked about it, but at the same time teaching sort of contradicted what he thought about being around people. After all, in a school day he'd see hundreds of people. "Hm, you could consider me persistent." She smiled as she turned to lean back on the bench again. "I dunno, just something about you screamed that you needed a friend. Plus, I've never really been one to get scared off by a scowl before. It can actually make me more determined." She turned her head to look at him, a grin on her face but it slowly fell at his last comment. "I think everyone is worth pursuing a friendship with." She sighed and stood up taking Willow's head in her arms and petting the mare's forehead. "I mean...we're all different right? So we all have our own thoughts and opinions on things. This doesn't make anyone better or worse than another person." She paused for a moment as if remembering something. "Well, there are some people who probably aren't as nice and truly are mean to others, so maybe they aren't as friend worthy, but you definitely don't fall into that category." She smiled fondly at the mare as she snorted and almost leaned her head into the gentle affection she was recieving. "I mean, if you had really didn't want me to follow you, if you were one of those mean, hostile people, you could have easily scared me off. But you didn't." She gave Rohan a look that she hoped conveyed that she was serious with what she said. She didn't think of him as someone to be wary of. He had a kind heart and Chay was more than willing to open up her heart to him. He seemed like he needed a friend so badly and she wanted to provide that even if she was young enough to be a little sister to him. With a sigh Chay looked at Willow before patting the mare's neck. "Anyway, do you want to go for a ride?" She grinned.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
