Not in Control - Arrival of MichaelFriday March 16th @ 11 am? (I'm open to any other times if someone who has a better grip on what's happening when has a better idea)
With his earphones on and his eyes firmly downcast he could almost block them out entirely. Almost, however, was the key word here for no matter how hard Michael Hryciuk tried he couldn't quite get rid of the numbers that raced through his head whenever he was around people. Even his dreams consisted of numerals but in such a surreal way that he felt as though he was in a Salvador Dali painting. In sleep he was no longer able to escape the effects of his mutant powers but in music he came close and with each passing day Michael seemed to keep the earphones on longer. To him they were a safety blanket, something to ward off the demons in his head although others might have seen the growing devotion to music as more similar to an addiction than a blanket.
At this moment Michael was so absorbed in the song that he had lost track of location and the driver of the taxi he had taken from the bus station had to repeatedly shout before he got through to the twenty-one year-old.
"Kid, ride's over." The not unkind voice of the cabby cut through the music at last and Michael looked up, chocolate brown eyes glancing at the driver without any awareness for a moment before realisation set in.
"Right," Michael replied, more because he felt acknowledgement was needed than for any other purpose. The earphones remained on though because the cabby had alot on his mind, everything from mileage to the fare and Michael had gotten it all. He wondered at times if it was any better to have powers that were more directly psychic. Most of those times he decided it wasn't any better however and that feeling the pain of people or their every worry was probably just as aggravating, if not more, than his own abilities.
"That'll be," the driver started in a thick New York accent that seemed out of place to the young Canadian. The music had been turned down slightly so the words could be heard and that was enough for Michael to feel the dull roar of the numbers again in his mind.
"Seventy-two ninety," he said quietly, ignoring the strange look from the cabby who couldn't figure out how his passenger would know the exact fare he was required to pay. Michael was deep in conversion mode, as he always seemed to be in this country. Everything he paid for was automatically converted in his mind to Canadian money, the difference between the currencies nearly made up for by the lack of taxes in the United States. He paid the cab driver in plain green bills that he had always thought resembled monopoly money and that seemed to strange compared to the multi-coloured bills he was accustomed to and thanked him profusely before picking up his bags and standing in front of the large gates.
The gates to the school were open and yet they were no less intimidating to the eye. Beyond the gates rose the large building and it occurred to Michael that this strange new experience was like his first day at University. University had been entirely new people, a building far larger than his small high school and it was awkward and nerve-wracking yet exciting all at the same time. With the cab out of sight and the institute still several metres away everything was quiet within his head and Michael took a moment to savour that sensation before cautiously walking forward. Even in this strange new place he felt the exhaustion of nights of tossing and turning and the after-effects of a struggle to remain normal in front of his family and friends without showing the emotional problems his powers had inflicted upon him.
Say that you're in control, you say that you are
But I can't think of a time when you looked less alive
The pleasant voice of the lead singer flooded his ears, the words seeming to ring more true than they ever had before. Particularly since Michael knew from a quick glance at himself in the bus station mirror that dark circles resided under his tired eyes. This wasn't a time for reminders of the past though, with any luck this would be the beginning of something entirely new for him, a life where he could go out in public without seeing the numbers important to everyone around him in his head.
Michael slowly approached the large door, feeling as though he were in a movie or something since the setting seemed very nearly unreal. He knew that he was expected, having spoken to someone at the school whose name he couldn't remember on the phone about arriving soon, but since transportation was often unreliable Michael hadn't given an exact time. In fact he had even given a range of a few days for his arrival, not wanting to arrive before they were ready for him or to be unfashionably late.
Almost as an afterthought he removed the headphones, reluctantly shutting off the music just as the same singer continued 'be what you are now, just be what you are'. He raised one fist to the door, long thin fingers curled tightly as he knocked then awaited the beginning of the adventure as he had come to think of it.
TBC - anyone? Completely open to anyone here. Totally up to you if you want to have been sent to greet him thanks to the security camera catching all or just happen to stumble into the lobby.
Enjoying her last recess before the weekend was the luck-altering mutant known as Lauren. Well, okay, enjoying it wouldn’t be the exact word but whatever it was was a mixture of content for the break and a dread for a biology test she had next. Now Lauren was a smart girl but also a little slack when it came to studying and when she actually studied distractions were always around. That’s what you get when you study with friends! But this time there was no Heath, Angela or anyone else so there were no excuses to get in some last minute cramming.
‘Cells has to be one of the worst topics ever,’ she thought sorting her notes from various sketches she had drawn for art. What she wouldn’t do to get out of that test.
Knock, knock.
Flicking through her biology notes in an attempt to remember something she swore hadn’t been covered yet (but most likely she wasn’t paying that much attention in that lesson) she looked up from them and over to the door. Hello. Now anyone who lived at the institute knew just to walk right in, so this had to be someone new right? ‘Hmm... keep reading about the differences of plant and animal cells or open the door?’ she smiled at the unspoken question. This was just the lucky break she wanted, surely if she was helping someone she wouldn’t get in trouble for missing the test.
A lucky break indeed. Luck. If this had of been a few months earlier she would have wondered if she had caused it but now she felt a slight tingle when her power worked. Besides she didn’t feel happy enough for some good luck like this. Stupid test! At least she wasn’t in a too bad a mood for bad luck to be dished out.
Hand falling on the door handle, she withdrew it slightly, maybe she should just leave it as she guiltily looked down at her notes. Seeing the word ‘cell’ among the typed up notes quickly made her turn that handle swinging the door open a little too eagerly.
She looked at the boy, she didn’t recognize him but that meant nothing since she was still seeing new faces of people who had been there longer than herself. He was older than her she could tell at least. He also had brown hair... it was then that she realized she hadn’t said a word yet. She must have looked like a bit of an idiot just standing there, staring and not saying a word.
“Hey!” she greeted the older boy who Lauren thought as her savior if her was new and kept her away from class. “You ne-” she was about to ask before getting distracted be the headphones in his hand. “Ooh, what were ya listening to?” she asked before she could finish her other question. The Australian mutant had a large collection of CD’s and liked sharing her bands with others – if they liked it or not! Like how Heath hadn’t when she first played him some of her more rockier music.
A breeze blew through the doorway, making the luck mutant get goosebumps on her bare arms. It was a nice day for the early spring but the wind still had a bite to it. Becoming aware that it would be warmer with the door shut, she invited the boy inside... well kind of stated nicely.
“Come on in, it’s a bit nippy out there with the wind.” She stepped to her side to let the other mutant in but ready to quickly close the door one he was in.
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ooc- Now you'd better have my questions answered!
Re: Not in Control - Arrival of Michael
His knuckles rapped against the door but after the noise of the knocking there were no sounds to be heard and Michael suddenly felt very lose and alone without his music. The only blessing he seemed to have was that no numbers flooded his mind. However the downside of this realisation was that it meant there was no one nearby to answer the door and as a blast of wind hit the Canadian mutant he became aware of a slight chill. Maybe it was the fact that the winters Southern Ontario was used to by now were far colder than the mild winter just now beginning to pass or maybe it was the idea of being in a new country at a school he had never visited in his life but something chilled Michael and he folded his arms across his chest in an effort to add some extra warmth.
When there was a pause that felt like forever he began to wonder if anyone had heard him and thought that perhaps it would be best to knock again. On the otherhand he didn't want to annoy anyone who might potentially by coming to greet him. Judging from the outside of the massive building and from the gates Xavier's was a spacious place and perhaps it just took some time to get to the door. Then came the murmurings of numbers in his head, ones too faint for him to read properly but they signalled to him that someone was there to bring him in out of the cold.
The girl who finally answered the door was brown-haired and at first glance Michael assumed she was younger than himself even though he was quite poor at telling other people's ages. After a split second went by where nothing was said by either party Michael added 'quiet' to his first impressions of the girl. She spoke up to greet him in another second but the enthusiastic greeting of "hey!" barely registered with the older mutant as he was struck with the first of many numbers he was unwillingly to receive during their conversation.
17. Her age perhaps? That looked about right. For once being on the receiving side of numerals didn't seem so bad. It was afterall good to have an idea of how old the person you were talking to was. Having been on the scrawny side as a kid and with a boyish haircut he had been mistaken for younger enough times not to wish it upon anyone else.
“You ne-” That part Michael managed to tune into but the stranger didn't even finish the question as she was instead abruptly distracted by something. Brown eyes followed her gaze and realised the girl was looking at his earphones. That drew a half-smile from the twenty-one year-old. Did this mean she was into music too? Probably not in the same 'grant me sanity' way that he was but any interest in music was a bonus for Michael since it at least provided a handy conversation piece that didn't involve asking what a particular nine digit number was or asking why someone had chosen all twos for their bank machine passcode.
“Ooh, what were ya listening to?” Yup that qualified as interest and Michael's smile became slightly easier although he still remained guarded. He wondered if she was into rock music like he was although perhaps his classic punk rock wasn't exactly her cup of tea. It was strange how classic punk would have meant the Ramones to his parents and meant bands like Green Day to his generation but that was the way music went he supposed. The only problem with liking the old stuff was that you couldn't then wait anxiously for a new CD.
Again the assumed seventeen year-old was talking though. It didn't really bother Michael, he had talkative friends and it was refreshing that the people here seemed nice already. Far better than the cold welcome he might have gotten. The new mutant wondered briefly if she was a Gemini with all the chat. He didn't believe in all that star sign crap but Joanna had put a lot of stock into it and he hadn't wanted to shut her down. It was awfully coincidental that he with the two personalities had a birthday that fell under the sign of the twins afterall.
“Come on in, it’s a bit nippy out there with the wind.” The girl stepped to the side to allow him space to get by and Michael easily got by her, not being a large guy. "Thanks," he replied once he had stepped into the front hall and the stranger had shut the door behind him. "It is a little cool," he agreed and that almost brought another smile to Michael's face. It was almost like home where weather was a constant topic of conversation and with its ever-changing state in his hometown it went beyond the smalltalk weather was limited to in most other places. To begin a conversation with weather was almost second nature to him but that didn't seem to be the case in America based on his limited past experience.
"And uh Alexisonfire. It's an old CD though, twenty-years old and they were a Canadian indie band so you probably don't have a clue who they are". There was a genuine openness in Michael's tone, a friendliness that was often present when the conversation turned to music in his presence. He laughed slightly as he finished his answer, knowing that many of his friends had no idea who the bands he considered classics were. By now he was getting used to it but the songs helped him through somehow. Music soothes the savage beast, perhaps it also soothes the quick-thinking mind.
07. 07. 2007.
Right on cue that had to be the birthday. A person's date of birth tended to be important to them for obvious reasons and it was one of the first numbers Michael often received off a person. Unless of course they wanted to keep their birthday a secret and it was not at the forefront of their mind which on occasion happened. Doing some quick math in his head lead to a confirmation of seventeen as her age, not that he could really tell the girl any of this he would still have to ask the hard way or things would just be awkward. The girl. It seemed wrong to refer to a person you were having a conversation with as just the girl and Michael figured he should know her name before they carried on.
"I'm Michael by the way," he said, choosing to leave out the last name for the moment since he didn't want to get into explaining why he was using his middle name as his surname at the moment. That was a long story and one that Mike never wanted to tell. This time a larger series of numbers roared in his head and Michael closed his eyes briefly, hoping that focusing on the other mutant would help since he couldn't really dive back into his music now, even if the next song on the album, "It was fear of myself that made me odd", was appropriately titled for his unique situation. "I'm new," he offered, realising that was pretty much a given and something he didn't really need to say. Still it seemed like it should be said just to clarify and at the moment Michael was happy to do or say anything that would stop what he presumed was her phone number from running through his head.
Re: Not in Control - Arrival of Michael
ooc - Forgive me for crapiness but the more time I was taking the harder it was getting.
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She closed the door quickly after he entered, rubbing her arms to brush away the coolness from her arms as a breeze swiftly entered as she closed the front door.
"Thanks," At least he was polite enough to thank her. There were way too many grumpy mutants at the Institute and another was not needed. Too many seemed too caught up in themselves to move out the way in the corridors, and they would have seen her too. Lauren was often pushed to the side and was the one told off when walking past someone such as Madison Enright.
"It is a little cool," Yup, it sure was no thanks to the back-to-front seasons which had had made the seasons a pain for the Australian girl. Normally, for her, it was early autumn back in Australia so it was not as cold as March was straight out of summer. Warmer than here. The back-to-front seasons were something Lauren was yet to grow used to despite spending over a year in the Northern hemisphere. Could explain the thin t-shirt she had on today.
'And uh Alexisonfire. It's an old CD though, twenty-years old and they were a Canadian indie band so you probably don't have a clue who they are". ‘Alexisonfire?’ The luck mutant tried to keep the blank ‘who are they?’ look at bay since she often was on the other end of that look with some of her Aussie bands and didn’t want to offend him. ‘Ah,’ she thought as Michael explained further, ‘an old Canadian band,’ that explained why she had never heard of it. The fact that it was old would have made the mutant frown if she was about five years younger but not any more. Hell, she even owned a CD that was of her Grandparents era! So she was cool with older bands.
"I'm Michael by the way," He closed his eyes. Nothing too long but long enough for Lauren to notice that it was not a casual blink but not long enough for her to act upon it. He was probably just tired from his trip here...
"I'm new," Well, that answered her half asked question. So he was new. He was lucky not to be greeted by an alternate dimensional girl, unconscious like she had on her first day. A nice and normal greeting was what she had wanted. She was a very shy girl back then, since though she had come out of her shell she still shuddered upon remembering that.
“Lauren,” the younger mutant said, introducing herself. “I’ll have to check out that group sometime.” She stated in reference to the band, which she would do as she was forever curious about expanding her favourite bands and artists.
“So does anyone know you’re here? Can I take you to them? Or do you need to be taken to the offices or something?” she asked all too eager to help out this boy rather than to do a science test. She could make up for it on Monday or ‘I won’t ever have to do the test’ she thought knowing she would. It was only a little test anyway, just to check their progress so it wouldn’t be like she was missing something huge if she had to hep Michael out.
Re: Not in Control - Arrival of Michael
ooc - *nods wisely* Been there, had that happen.
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The seventeen-year-old's face was refreshingly devoid of a telltale blank look but Michael was still certain that she had no idea who his band of the moment were. He remembered vaguely reading that the quintet had been to Australia on tour a few times but they hadn't really hit it big in anyplace other than their homeland. Not being the type who was aware of popular trends or who were the "It" band at the moment Michael failed miserably as he tried to remember if classic rock was in this month or not but Lauren didn't look like she had completely lost all interest in talking to him. He wasn't fond of the popular kids at school usually, those who followed magazines and pop culture religiously so Michael hoped briefly that Lauren wasn't among them although she certainly seemed nice enough regardless.
“Lauren,” she introduced herself and Michael was immensely glad of the letters which shoved a second phone number from his head. He was also more than a little relieved that he was now able to put a name to the face since referring to the person he had been talking to for the last few minutes as 'that girl' seemed strange.
“I’ll have to check out that group sometime,” she added and Michael's guarded eyes studied her for a brief moment before deciding she meant every word. It wasn't that he had little faith in people but the number powered mutant was so used to keeping secrets himself and to lying to others that he had lost the ability to trust quickly and without doubt that came easily to some. The honesty was refreshing but every bit as encouraging was the fact that she seemed genuinely curious about the band he had mentionned. That curiosity made Michael wonder in turn what the bands that Lauren listened to were like, perhaps she liked strange rock music just like him!
“So does anyone know you’re here? Can I take you to them? Or do you need to be taken to the offices or something?” Remembering why he was here in the first place Michael processed the questions. He wasn't quite sure if they knew that he was here. Afterall he hadn't been expected at any exact time but on the otherhand perhaps someone had seen on the security system Michael had been told about. The Canadian mutant thought about it then looked down at the few bags he had brought with him from Streetsville. He wasn't the type who had several material posessions but there was his entire CD collection, some clothing and personal effects and Michael wondered where new students put their bags since presumably others brought their own luggage with them. He noted the eagerness to help in Lauren's voice and somehow that helped relax the brunette as if he hadn't been sure he could stay here before but now was less nervous about the proposition.
"Well I'm not sure," Michael started honestly. "I talked with um.." he racked his brain trying to remember the name of the woman he had been speaking with here. As wonderful as the mutant was with numbers he was far from excellent with names and was often unable to remember the names of people he had spoken with before although he knew them still by their faces and personal numbers that he had read. For a moment Michael hoped that it wouldn't be this way with Lauren and tried to pound her name into his head so that she would be remembered not as 17 or 22 but as Lauren, the nice mutant girl who had greeted him at the door.
"I think her name was Jean and then there was a colour..." Michael trailed off and glanced hopefully at Lauren, wishing that she had somehow figured out from his pitiful description who he had been speaking with. "I'm really bad with names," he apologized. "I think it was a Jean I spoke with though. I told her approximately when I was coming but not specifics so I don't know." Chocolate eyes fell to the ground for a moment before they glanced to the side and again Michael became aware of the bags he had brought with him which were just sitting there.
"Um I have these bags, I'm not really sure what to do with them," Michael said, looking up from the ground once more with steady brown eyes not yet infected by the madness that sometimes overtook them. This was incredibly awkward, more awkward than most situations in his life had been and that included having to tell his sister what she had already known, that his powers were beyond control. Not wanting to babble and feeling that Lauren had enough unasked questions to answer and directions to point him in he stopped speaking. The momentary silence of course led, like everything in his life did, to the numbers and again Michael found himself closing dark rimmed eyes in futile attempts to squeeze them out while he waited for Lauren to take the initiative.
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