Seren walked into the cafeteria, looking tired. It had been a killer morning with the Statistics and tutoring a more stubborn person. He was a challenge every time she had to deal with him, but she was getting paid so she dealt with it. That customer service face she had learned when she was working at the jobs she'd had as a teen had come in handy, when dealing with people like this.

She glanced around, noticed it was kind of busy, and sighed, but headed for the food line. She should have expected it, what with the late spring rain that had decided to hit. The people who usually ate outside were trapped inside today. She eyed the choices, selected the spaghetti and meatballs as the least unidentifiable option, then a small salad and some tea, before heading to use her meal plan card to pay.

By the time she was done, she found there was... almost nothing left. She sighed and found a small table in a corner, with one other seat, and settled in.
May 15, 2018



"Uh, hi." It was quiet and apologetic, coming from beside the rainbow haired girls shoulder. A shorter girl with dark hair and dark skin, eyes a rich burning orange and smile unsure but genuine. She had a tray in her hands, and had seemed to have come to the same conclusion over the lack of seating as Seren had.

"Would you mind if I sat here?" She didn't want to impose, but there really wasn't much left. What few empty places Jack had seen had been at tables already claimed by groups of students, and she really wasn't in a hurry for that, not today. Something quieter was much preferred.



Seren controlled the urge to jerk around, because she hasn't expected anyone to approach her. Once she had her startled reaction calmed down... Jack might have noticed a subtle tensing of the young woman's body, almost like she expected something to happen... she turned enough to see who had spoken to her. Not someone Seren knew, though she was a pretty girl, and there was a moment of quiet contemplation if the other lady, almost instinctive.

Then she started, as she realized she hasn't responded. "Ah! Yeah, of course. It's ridiculously crowded today. Blasted rain. I know it's important and all..." She'd probably never forget the drought California had been in when she fled that state. "But I wish we could skip it. Or it would wait until today's classes were over, at least." She gave the other girl a shyly friendly smile, and gestured a welcome.



Shoulders hunched, Jack gave an apologetic since in response to having startled the other girl. "Very sorry about that," she chuckled softly. "I didn't mean to startle you." She happily accepted the invitation to sit though, and set yet tray down before drawing her chair up a comfortable distance.

Dark eyes flicked up at the comment, got lost in the blended sunset if her hair for a moment, then snapped back to attention. "Unless you were hoping to enjoy the sun after classes." It wasn't contrite, just another point of view.



"It's ok, I was... lost in my own thoughts, it's not your fault." Seren chose to make light of it, because it was easier then explaining anything. She watched the other girl settle in, thoughtfully, taking in the details. Gorgeous braids, unique colored eyes... Interesting. Seren just gave her another slightly shy small smile.

"I suppose that's true. Perhaps 'once most of us are home' then, though I admit that doesn't take into account people on the night shift." She gave a soft sigh and shrugged. "I suppose there is no time that the rain wouldn't be inconvenient for SOMEONE but I do have having to wait for buses in the rain, and the like." Her ankle was still a touch twingy from that small accident with her neighbor the other day, too, and wet Ace bandages were, in her mind, pure misery.



Jack gave the other girl a bright smile as she spiked a bit of salad on the end of her fork, then used the dressing drizzled greens to gesture with—she'd always talked with her hands. "Yeah, that's no treat. But it does smell nice, don't you think? And sounds nice, too?" She took the bite, looking thoughtful a moment as she chewed and swallowed. "I don't mind it too much if I'm out there willingly." Which, truthfully, didn't happen that often, but it wasn't unread of for the photography major.

"Pardon me for saying so, but your hair looks amazing." The compliment came with a subtle flush. Jack want usually so chatty, not on a first meeting, but the blend of colors was really too pretty not to mention.



"It smells alright, though... City-Rain smells not as good as country rain. Though, at least, it does clear the air out a bit." Seren tilted her head, thoughtfully considering that, and the sound question. "I do like the smell of cool rain on hot pavement, though. And... It can sound nice, but sometimes it can keep me up when I want to sleep, I've found."

The compliment, however, had her looking up and giving the other girl a brightly beaming smile. This was Seren's pride and joy, the one thing she could look in the mirror and go 'That is beautiful. I have something that is beautiful about me.' "Thank you! It's... It's my big indulgence, really. I can't afford to splurge a lot, generally, but this... This is my big splurge."



"Rain on hot pavement is nice. Oo, and ozone before a storm." Jack grinned as she took another bite of her salad. "Thunderstorms aren't everyone's thing, but I love listening to them."

Her head tilted as she listened to the other girl explain her hair and it struck her that they'd gotten this far into a conversation already and hadn't even introduced themselves. Jack's cheeks darkened at the slight. "It really is beautiful." She rolled her lips together before smiling again. "By the way, I'm Jack. Thanks for letting me sit with you."



"Hmmm I always associated that ozone smell as a warning to get home, fast. I didn't like being outside, back home, when the storms hit." She didn't want to go into details as to why, but... it usually was best for her. "But once I was inside, I did enjoy hearing them in the background."

Seren saw the light hint of a blush, and her head tilted, in surprised curiosity, and then chuckled when she realized what was up. "Thank you. And I'm Seren. It's a pleasure to meet you, Jack." She glanced around and chuckled. "As long as you're not someone who's made me miserable in the past, I don't think I'd feel right not letting someone take the empty seat. I just am lucky it was someone nice."



Jack was fairly aware that her appreciation if storms went being what was normal for the majority of the population, and that was fine. Not everyone enjoyed getting wet, or the loud crashes if thunder. For her, it was like the sky was alive. it was energizing.

There was a history behind that singular comment, and a question flickered across dark features. The hint of a puzzled frown as she wrestled with herself on if she should ask. Instead, hoping she didn't make seren feel uncomfortable, she reached across the table to lay her hand over the other girl's. "Can't fathom why anyone would want to make you miserable, you're really sweet. It's nice to meet you."



There was a moment of total stillness at the touch, not the kind that indicated a freak out, or a rejection. No, it was more like stunned surprise or maybe someone resisting the urge to reach for more, as if maybe they were affection starved. Seren wasn't sure how to react. It had been so long since anyone had touched her, intentionally, in a kind or affectionate way. So very long.

She lowered her head, trying to hide her internal emotional response, and said, in a voice that was fairly steady given her internal battle, "Some people are cruel for the pleasure of it. Some people just don't care. And some people just think they're playing around but cut to the bone with their words and actions, unfortunately." There, that should be a fairly... Safe way to answer while not giving up too much.



Under the combined weight of the stillness and the response Jack realized she'd tapped into something large and looming in the other girl's life. She hasn't intended to do it, but she couldn't pretend she hadn't, either. Not in the face of what seemed to be quite a lot of buried pain. The answer had been very vague, but she didn't need detail to read the subtext in that soft voice.

Setting her fork down, she reached out with her other hand so that Seren's was sandwiched between her own. "I'm sorry." Not an apology from personal experience, but I'm sympathy.



Seren was uncertain what to do. On the one hand, the other girl was being very kind, and accepting the caring touch felt so nice. On the other hand, Seren did not want to risk getting hurt all over again. And besides, this was almost certainly just a lunchtime brief meeting. She'd probably never see Jack again, given how busy this campus was. What were the real odds?

She decided to go on that basis, and be accepting but not let too much out, or in, because it was safer, safer to guard herself. Friendship wasn't something she knew well, and the first real friends she had... no, she wasn't going to think on that. "I appreciate that. Unfortunately, the world is not always the wonderful place people like to make it out to be." She lifted her head, once her emotions were steadied, and gave the other girl a small smile. "But we keep going, right?"



There was a world of weight and pain behind those words that left Jack feeling damn near hollow, and the soft, small smile Seren showed her only really cemented in her mind that something truly awful had to have happened to the other girl.

Even without context it was heartbreaking.

"No, it's not, but we don't stop trying to make it better." She gave Seren's hand another reassuring squeeze before letting it go, smiling sweetly back at her. "Or trying to find the good in it."



Seren gave her another smile, and nodded. Jack seemed to be a kind young woman, and Seren did not want to give her too much of her past to deal with. No one needed that, really, and she did not want questions about the worst of it to come up.

She was here to escape her past, not wallow in it. Even if, sometimes, it snuck up on her, and made it hard for her to keep moving forwards. But she refused to get stuck.

"Exactly. It's why I'm here. I won't let what has been make what will be a terrible thing. Moving forwards, finding the good in life. It's what keeps me going."



Every positive affirmation betrayed a difficult past, and Jack couldn't help mounting curiosity but wouldn't dare ask. It was prying, and rude, and just wasn't her business to begin with. She'd let Seren keep those painful secrets and pretend she hadn't seen even the tiniest glimpse of hardship written across every fiber of the lovely young woman sitting across from her.

So she took her hand back, returned to her lunch. Seren didn't want to linger on the subject, so they'd move on to another.

"Why are you here, if you don't mind my asking. What are you taking classes for?" She speared another bite of salad on her fork, bringing it half way up to dark lips.



She leaned back a little, taking another bite of her lunch as she did, her eyes thoughtful on the other woman. The respect that Jack was showing, by being kind and supportive, but not asking questions that Seren never wanted to have to answer, was something she appreciated greatly. She had no desire to give her personal past to anyone, and people who didn't pry made that ever so much easier.

It meant Seren was willing to consider talking to her again, in the future. Perhaps a friend, even, because Seren longed for one of those. She just was so scared to let people in, scared that they'd try to get into her story, and then... Well. No one needed those details.

This question, however, was perfectly safe, and easy to deal with. "Astrophysics. I want to be an astrophysicist, and get into the physics of quasars, because I find them utterly fascinating." She gave a bright grin. "What about you?"



Elbow resting on the table, her chin lowering to rest on curled fingers, Jack listened keenly to the other girl as she brought another bite of her salad up to her lips. Pausing briefly, eyes widening in surprise, as Seren gave up her major. "Wow, that's really impressive." For as much star gazing as the brunette might have done when the chance presented itself, Jack knew very little about space as a whole beyond what she would have considered the basics.

It probably was fascinating, too. Learning about the farthest reaches of the universe and everything within it.

"Me? I'm majoring in photography." Nothing fancy.



"Impressive? I dunno. It's just what I love. Science is fascinating, the math is interesting... Except statistics. I hate statistics... And it's what I'm good at. I don't see it as any more impressive then a law degree, or being a talented artist of any variety." She paused, then added, in a slightly dour tone, "I admit to being a bit judgmental about what some artists call 'art', but that tends to be towards those who think taking a skull and covering it in diamonds is 'art'. I'm sorry, that's just showing off."

She coughed a little, then shrugged. "But that's me. Art is what it means to you, I guess. So yeah, I don't see it as all that impressive, because it mostly comes easy to me. Cooking, now... If people are impressed with my cooking, that matters to me."

She blinked and then smiled a little, enviously. "I'm not good with a camera, not even my phone camera." She acknowledged, though she avoided why. "So to me, that's impressive."



Jack scoffed softly at the denial. "A law degree seems pretty impressive to me, too." It was something the dark haired girl just didn't have the mind for, or the attention span. "Any of those fields that lend themselves to heavy research or long hours behind a desk. I couldn't do them." She gave a little shake of her head.

"Cookings fun though," she said as she waved her fork at the other girl again between bites. "You like to cook too?" Photography was Jack's real passion, but she felt perfectly at home in a kitchen.



"We all have our own ways of looking at the world... What comes easy to me is different then what comes easy to you. Your talents are just as valuable and impressive, from the outside. Don't let yourself see otherwise." She tried not to think about how often she had to fight with her own head telling her that she had no talents, or that what she did had no worth. She might not be any good at making herself like herself... but she'd do her best to make sure others like themselves.

She sighed as she ate one of the meatballs, thinking to herself that they should use the kitchen as a practice area for the more advanced students in the Chef programs, because gods these were... edible but not delicious.

The question got a smile, one that was mostly happy, though shadows showed. "Yeah. I... learned to cook early, and it became something that I learned how to do well. I'm proud of my skills in the kitchen."



Jack blinked. "Oh no, it's not that I feel like my skills aren't important or have value. It's just impressive when people can do things I can't." Not exactly self doubt. Confidence wasn't exactly her virtue, but she was happy with her photography, at the very least.

She speared another leaf of salad and bought it up to her mouth, though paused before taking the bite. "Do you like baking?" Jack didn't mind it, sweet treats were great, though she loved being able to prepare a full meal. Something well rounded and savory. Stews were always fun to mess around with, and soups.



Seren smiled a little and laughed. "Like I said, perspective. Everyone, I think, is impressed when someone else has skills they, themselves, do not have." She paused, thoughtfully, then added "Well, mostly everyone. There are probably some exceptions, like people who are so self absorbed the rest of us could disappear and the only reason they'd be bothered is it meant they had to do things for themselves..."

"Yes! I like cooking almost anything... Brussels sprouts are out, mind you. I hate them. With a passion." Her expression was a little screwed up, like the idea of brussels sprouts was enough to make her taste them. "But baking... I love baking. Cooking is a somewhat science based art form, and can often take a lot tweaking and playing with, when you understand the basics. Baking... Baking is an artistic science. You can tweak to some degree, but you have to understand the principles of what you are doing, and why, or your cake will be flat, your bread won't rise..." Her eyes sparkled.



It was clear to Jack that they functioned on very different wavelengths, and that was just fine. Seren seemed like a very sweet girl, mysterious baggage or not. Jack probably could have sat there all afternoon and takes to the other girl, but that really want an option. Not today, anyways.

The phone in her pocket buzzed at her, and she looked puzzled as she drew it out of her pocket, and then alarmed. "Oh no." Dropping the phone on the table she shoveled a few more rapid burs into her mouth before letting her fork coaster into her mostly empty bowl.

"I'm very sorry, but I have a lecture in five minutes that I completely forgot about." In a haste the dark skinned girl collected her belongings. "It was very nice to meet you, though! Um, what's your number, maybe we can do this again sometime?"



Seren blinked at the 'oh no', startled and then understanding crossed her face. This behaviour she knew and had done, herself, more then once. The 'Gotta finish eating to get to X on time!' rush. She just ate, letting the other girl get her food down, until Jack spoke again.

"No worries, I understand! Gotta go to class, it's what we're here for." Seren pulled out a pen and scribbled her name and number on a napkin, since it was right to hand, and slid it over. "I look forwards to seeing you again, Jack, and talking with you. Feel free to call me whenever. I hope you have a good lecture!"



Jack snatched up the napkin with a grateful grin and stuffed it into the pocket of her jacket. "Likewise, I hope I see you around campus more as well. I hope the rest of your day goes well!" And with that she was gone, rushing out of the dinning hall as a hurried walk before sprinting out the doors and across the quad toward the lecture halls.