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Post by JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE on Jan 14, 2012 14:50:49 GMT -5
This was why he despised group projects.
Joshua understood that teamwork was often an essential part of a job, especially that of a doctor or surgeon. He wouldn't argue that if the point was pitched to him. However, it didn't change the fact that he hated trying to compromise with other people. Each person in the group in the library that he now sat with seemed determined to use a certain idea for their assignment, something he was not entirely in agreement with. Though he hated to admit it, he hadn't been able to come up with anything better. His mind was at a blank and he knew a part of it was stubbornness; he didn't want to share his thoughts with other people, he wanted to work on his own. He felt childish when he had thoughts like these but Joshua couldn't help himself. I'll be glad when this is over, he thought, wishing that the hour would end so that he could do something else. Of course, it wouldn't change much—he'd still need to work with them eventually—but it would give him a little bit of a break, at least. His partners were not stupid, far from it. They all had their own intelligence and their own ideas on what should be done, though, and even the other four had not reached an agreement. They were stuck between two ideas and bickering over the pros and cons of each.
"You've been kind of quiet, Dale," one girl pointed out. He silently cursed her for noticing. He'd thought that maybe, if he just kept his mouth shut, they'd call an end to the study session without asking him for too much input. "Do you have anything you want to add?" He thought about that for a long moment, trying to rack his brains for any sort of suggestions. He found nothing. Shaking his head, the Fire graduate waved a lazy hand and promptly stopped trying. "Nah, I agree with you," he said, wondering if he would later regret this. He wasn't entirely sure which idea she'd been gunning for. The girl grinned at his words and rounded triumphantly on the two boys that they were working with. "That's three against one," she announced, gesturing at herself, Joshua, and the boy who'd come up with 'their' idea in the first place. "Looks like we're going with Jeff's."
Though he didn't like to admit it, for that would mean he was wrong, things went surprisingly smooth after they had decided on what they were going to do. Not wanting to fail just because he was being as stubborn as a mule, Josh did his best to get in on the project at least on some level. It wasn't so bad once they made sense of what Jeff had been suggesting and by the end of their study session he was feeling a lot more relaxed and confident in what they were going to do. It was a first for him, really. He usually loathed group work like nothing else. I still hate it, he thought to himself. He didn't think he would ever enjoy the lack of free reign. He'd gotten a few partners in the past that had just let him do all the work but that pissed him off even more than the opinionated, argumentative partners did. He didn't like working with others no matter how amiable or intelligent they were.
The bell clanged loudly from the direction of the courtyard, alerting the five of them to the change in period. The only female in their group jumped up and said something about meeting her boyfriend before rushing out. Josh blinked, shrugged, and stood a lot more slowly. The guys muttered their goodbyes and went their separate ways, with the exception of Jeff and another, who left together in conversation about hanging out over the weekend. Josh did not depart the library but instead sat back down after a brief consideration. It was lunch but he was not entirely hungry and didn't feel like heading down to the mess hall. I'll eat later. The good thing about being a day student rather than a boarder was that you could always make up for missed meals when you went home. Nell crossed his mind briefly and he texted her to let her know he wasn't going to lunch. Satisfied, he settled for scrolling aimlessly through his phone, bored but not particularly in the mood to read after the length period of time already spent in the library.
[Ack, sorry about the shit starter, I couldn't think of much LOL]
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Post by annie on Jan 22, 2012 0:10:46 GMT -5
the perfectionnist side of poppy’s personality always when she was forced to work in teams. she would always make sure others did as little work as possible so that she could make sure everything was to her liking. she was just like her mother on that part. if something was not to her taste, she would get frustrated and would have to do it all over until she was happy with it. this included cooking, cleaning, any type of work around the house, pretty much. for poppy, it was in her studies. this was the main reason why she generally disliked teamwork. people would think that she thought she was better than them and did not need them for the work. they would get angry with her and most likely end up telling the teacher if she did not give in. and when she did not cooperate in the team meetings about the work because of her fear of general interaction with others and her pure shyness, they would accuse her of letting them do all the work since she could not do it herself. after a few problems with her peers, she had eventually learned to let it go. if there was one thing she hated more in the world than not being able to have everything to her liking, it was conflict. even if she had never quite been forced to witness any kind of violent conflict in her family, she still disliked the way it made her feel bad about herself. and that was just when she was not even involved in the conflict. imagine when she was. she had once had a panic attack over a conflict she had had with her peers in ninth grade and had ended up having her passing out on the library floor. for the entire year, most of them had stared at her and murmured things to one another when they saw her walking by. a nightmare, really. people had eventually gotten over that and moved on to the next big event of the year. but she still thought about it everyday and she would feel the heat coming up to her cheeks as she did. it had always been quite a hard thing for poppy to forget about the humiliating moments of her life. she could generally remember every single one of them, even if she had to go back to the very beginning of her life. well, not that far, really. how could she have been humiliated in any way while she had still been growing in her mother’s uterus? but she remembered that time when her father had attempted to teach her how to ride her bicycle in the courtyard of her elementary school when she was not older than six years old and when she had fallen over in front of a gang of older girls which were quite popular in school. she remembered, more than anything else, that time a little bit later in elementary school when she had been totally humiliated by that boy who had taken advantage of her by stealing her fruit snacks. she would still hear his voice from time to time, telling her how pathetic she was. since that time, she had had a hard time trusting just about anyone, and it had become even worse when she had moved here where she knew absolutely nobody except from her parents who lived in town and who she barely ever saw. she had basically been thrown into a strange world without anything familiar but herself. and, since she did not make friends easily because she thougth they would end up taking advantage of her, she would spend most of her time by herself. however, poppy did not generally mind that. she was a lover of the calm and the quiet. she listened to classical music most of the time and would spend her free hours reading books of any kind, from encyclopedias, to plays, to anything. there was a reason behind her liking the library so much even if it brought back all kinds of bad memories to her. the calm and quiet it generally provided seemed to have a great effect on her. it was the only place she could relax. even her dorm was not as peaceful as she would have wanted it to be. she had been sitting there, in an aisle of a library, on the floor and leaning against a shelf of books for the past hour or so when the bell had announced lunch. she was a cardigan which was almost two sizes too large for her and looked like a blanket right now, wrapped around her like it currently was. the sleeves were slightly rolled since her arms were too short to fit the large thing and they hid her hands. it seemed as though her hands had been replaced by two small red balls as she held onto her book of the tales of beedle the bard. her knees were pulled up and the book was resting on her thighs. her head was bent over it so she could properly read it but, by doing that, she was keeping any light from hitting the pages, thus making it easier for her to read. she did not seem to mind, however. the glasses she was wearing, which were purely for style since she had never shown any sign of eye problems, kept constantly falling down on her nose. she would push them back up by the middle with her index finger every second, rubbing her nose everytime she did that simple movement. locks of her blond hair was also falling in front of her eyes, but she did not bother with those. she had gotten used to the curtain they provided. when the bell rang, the teenager barely moved. she simply rose her slightly pink nose due to the allergies she currently was having from her book to look up as students rushed to exit the library and get to the hall to eat lunch. as soon as they had passed, she went back to reading, not really caring about lunch. she never ate at the same time as the others. most of the time, she would go at the very end of it seeing as it was calmer by then. she would grab a few things if she was too late to calmly eat in the hall and bring it somewhere else that was calm enough so she could read as she ate. if she had to go to class, she would hide it in her bag and eat during class. it was a system she had put together when she had decided that she wanted to have as little encounter as possible with any one of her peers. as she entered the universe of the tales she was currently reading, her mind completely let go of the real world, of the universe she truly existed in. it was as though her body was slowly sinking into the world of beedle the bard and a light smile lit up her pale face. it was really the only time you would ever see her smile, unless you happened to see her on one of those rare times when she happened to see her parents. no, no, NO! don’t do it, you idiot! she exclaimed, not really realising how loudly she had been speaking seeing as her mind had completely left reality. if anyone tried to talk to her as of now, she probably would not have heard them. she bit down on her bottom lip as she continued reading, pushing her glasses up on her nose once again. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - credit , to me  tagged , mister joshua donovan dale, aka taylorrrrr. music , everything on my comp. outfit , clickers, bby.words , ONE TWO EIGHT FOUR. notes , here goes nothing.
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Post by JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE on Jan 22, 2012 12:36:06 GMT -5
Embarrassing moments really did stick with a person, even someone as currently confident and self-assured as Joshua. He had not always been as certain of himself as he was now and the memories of his childhood sometimes made him cringe. He remembered all too well what it was like to be that dorky kid reading in the back of the class while the other kids shot spitballs at one another or argued over who got to play with what toys during recess. He could also clearly remember an attempt to befriend another group of guys in his class that had ended in him being teased and ridiculed. He'd been very susceptible to their cruelty back then and had retreated further into his shell, hence why it had been so easy for the gang to manipulate him with a few nice words and a promise that he would be thought of as 'cool'. Thinking back to how wonderful that had worked out for him, Joshua had resolved to never sink that low again. He had built up his walls and he'd learned how to assert himself, how to stand up for himself. Confidence had come with time. However, his past experiences had also taught him not to be very judgemental of others in certain embarrassing situations. He knew what it was like to slip up and make mistakes, knew how it felt to be ridiculed for something silly that you'd done. So when he heard a rather loud exclamation of protest from a girl nearby, he did not laugh once he realised she was talking to her book.
Instead, Josh couldn't help but feel a slight intrigue. His curiosity really did get the better of him sometimes, but it was a real nuisance when it clashed with his desire to leave others in peace. He didn't often bother with strangers but she was not a stranger to him, at least not quite. As they both liked libraries and spent a lot of time in this one, he'd spoken to her a few times before. He was not shy and he didn't hesitate to offer a 'hello' if he was sharing a table with someone or to offer his help if someone ended up getting lost in the maze-like hallways of books. He knew the library like the back of his hand after six-going-on-seven years of attending the Academy. He did not know every book, of course—it would be a remarkable feat to memorize the lot of them—but he at least knew where all of the different sections were. He would occasionally help out the librarian by wandering around and picking up discarded books that people had carelessly left when they went back to class, finding their correct sections and slotting them back then. Had it been on one of these rounds that he'd run into Poppy? He thought so but he wasn't sure. Joshua was not a particularly social person but there were quite a few library regulars that he'd say hello to if he passed them.
Like Leonard. The thought resonated in his mind for a moment. It was still strange to consider that the Earth elemental would never again be found hunched over his newest read in the library, that Josh wouldn't be able to make a comment on whatever it was he happened to be reading. He was not physically affected by it and had not cried even at the funeral but it did tug at his chest sometimes. Losing a friend, even someone that wasn't a particularly close friend, was never going to be easy. In order to take his mind off Leo, Joshua instead focused on Poppy, abandoning the app on his phone and pocketing the mobile device before going over to her. He tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention before sitting down, casting her an amiable look. He did not smile but this was not all that surprising, considering he did not smile very often. He was not hostile and he hoped that would be enough to communicate the fact he wasn't here to start trouble. "Hello, Poppy," he said. "Sorry for the interruption, I just heard you shouting. What are you reading?" He knew what it was like to get so involved in a book that you lost yourself in it, though thankfully Josh had never spoken aloud to any character when he was reading. He didn't often read fiction and so it would be a bit strange to shout at historical facts or a book on anatomy that he had to read for a Biology course. Joshua could see the title of the book but it was not familiar to him, so in asking the question he was really wondering what it was about. "I hope you don't mind the company?" He posed it as a question, wanting to let her know that he'd leave if she wanted.
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Post by annie on Feb 5, 2012 21:17:18 GMT -5
there were two ways of dealing with those embarrassing moments, the moments you never wanted to think about because they were really painful when you thought about it. you could either choose the hard way and learn from your mistakes of trusting people too easily. afterwards, no one would ever be able to walk on your feet again. you would be strong and confident. but truly, if you had been through things similar to those poppy had been through, you knew that was easier said than done. most, like her, ended up choosing the easy way, the one were you closed yourself up completely from the world. the two were similar in the way that you did not have anyone walking all over you. however, in the first choice, you had to actually confront people who tried to abuse of you. you had to make them regret treating you like a piece of crap. whereas, in the second choice, you simply had to walk away as soon as you sensed something bad was going to happen. after years of practicing such a behaviour, poppy had eventually become really good at it. she was an expert at being a loner, really. she barely ever talked to anyone, which helped greatly with keeping her out of trouble. however, sometimes, she did not really have a choice. she remembered that time when she had been wondering around the library late after dinner, running her fingertips over the bindings of the books when a boy had come up to her, asking her if she needed help with anything. to be honest, she probably was one of the few that would never need help finding her way in a library. even though some small details sometimes changed from a library to another, she had spent so many days of her childhood that a map of almost every single library had been stuck in her mind ever since. she understood how the placement of the books worked and would sometimes replace some books on her own. the boy she had met that day was joshua dale. it was not that she had not wanted to speak to him at the time. truly, she loved people. she loved learning about them and where they came from or how they were around others. it had fascinated her ever since she had been stabbed in the back by that little boy in elementary school. psychology was one of the things she liked reading about and so she sometimes allowed herself to observe people from as far away as she could, just in case someon started wondering why she was staring at them like she always was. but, then again, when someone came up to her and started talking to her, she would normally shut the door that led to her heart.. or her mind. she had always thought that if you kept thinking about someone, they would eventually make their way to her heart, and there was no way she was ever going to let that happen again. however, he had only asked if she needed help and so that was how the two of them had started to greet each other whenever they would see the other around the library or such. they had never really had a long discussion on any subject of any kind, even if it had been the most random of subjects you could ever think of in your entire life. “hello, how are you?” was the farthest they had went in their relationship, if she remembered correctly. she had a good short term memory, but her long term memory would sometimes play tricks on her. when she had an exam coming, she would need to read her notes every single day before it. otherwise, she was certain it was going to escape the grasp of her brain and she would fail. that was not something she was ready to allow either. sure, they had exchanged names the first time they had met, but no more information than just that had been exchanged. her eyes kept wandering over the lines written in the book she was now holding rather tightly in her small hands. her knuckles had become slightly whiter than they had been before, but she did not seem to notice at all. she simply kept reading. fiction was definitely one of the things poppy loved reading the most. she loved how it allowed her to escape this world and explore a new world full of wonders. she would get lost in between the lines as she would let her mind wander around the universe of the book that she imagined. if god had granted with one thing, it was her ability to imagine pretty much anything. she had such a vivid imagination, which explained why she constantly had weird dreams every night. when she felt someone tapping on her shoulder, the girl jumped, quickly looking up from the book and tightening even more the grasp that she had on it. however, she calmed down when she recognised josh, the boy she had met before in the library who had asked her if she needed help. she eventually let go of the book slightly, putting the marker in between the pages where she currently was at and closed it, letting it rest in her lap as she bit down on her bottom lip. his comment on how she had been shouting made her cheeks go slightly red. how could she have not noticed she had been speaking so loudly? i’m really sorry, j-joshua.. i didn’t mean t-to disturb anyone. she said softly, now barely making any sound at all as she spoke. the slight stutter had become normal for her. everytime she spoke to someone other than her parents, it would be there, annoying the crap out of her. but she had learned to live with it. it was not like she exactly had the choice, anyway. was it? it’s uh.. it’s tales of b-beedle the b-bard.. by j. k. rowling. you know, the author of the harry p-potter series? she continued, looking back up at him once she had calmed down from the scare he had put her through a few minutes ago. company? why would she have minded it? probably because he thought that she actually needed to read the book. however, it was not really a need. she could read whenever she wanted. she simply had not had anything better to do today, like any other day, so she had decided to come and read her calmly. or not so calmly, as he had mentionned. i don’t! n-not at all. you’re.. welcome to join me.. if you want, of course.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - credit , to me tagged , mister joshua donovan dale, aka taylorrrrr. music , everything on my comp. outfit , clickers, bby.words , ONE ONE TWO OH. notes , hehehe, poppy’s just so awkward.
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Post by JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE on Feb 6, 2012 0:06:21 GMT -5
Thinking back on it, Josh really wasn't sure what had possessed him to approach Poppy and ask if she needed anything the day they'd become acquainted. The Fire graduate usually kept to himself in the library and didn't go out of his way to socialize with others unless they sat close to him or initiated conversation. His thoughts drifted back to the times he'd helped out the librarian and concluded that he might have been doing it out of duty and courtesy as opposed to some strong desire to communicate. Her shy demeanour had surprised him at first but he had adjusted slightly. Still, someone who seemed so nervous in conversation wasn't someone he felt comfortable in asking too much questions so he hadn't really tried to get to know her all that well. Everyone had their social faux pas and his just happened to be how careful he was. He wasn't open and bubbly and so when getting to know him it took quite a lot of patience to get anywhere. He also didn't make substantial efforts to intrude upon the lives of others. People were not walnuts ready for cracking or books ready to be opened and read at ones leisure. They were complicated creatures with many mannerisms and habits beyond the realm of understanding. He was similarly fascinated by psychology and sociology, anything that dealt with people and the way they worked. However, it was not enough of a fascination that he would make a career out of it or take it as his second major (that title went to History) or even a minor. No, he'd stick to saving lives rather than profiling them.
Still, being wary of upsetting her did not mean that he would be distant or unfriendly. Instead, Josh decided that he would behave as he did with any of his other acquaintances and hope he didn't make her too uncomfortable. He wasn't used to dealing with shy folk, see, and so he didn't know if there was any sort of rules to follow. Poppy didn't seem to mind his presence and so he took that as a good sign and ran with it. "No harm done," he said pleasantly, voice smooth and a light smile flashing across his features for further reassurance. He didn't make a habit of smiling very often—maybe that was why some people thought him so unapproachable—but he thought it might help to diffuse any awkwardness in the situation. He hoped he hadn't embarrassed her too much by revealing the fact that he'd witnessed her little outburst. "I wasn't doing anything too important." This was true. Scrolling aimlessly through the applications installed on his phone was not what one could call important and certainly not what you'd normally find Joshua doing when he was in the library. The group project had frustrated him and threw him off his game, making it much more difficult to concentrate on reading. He loathed reading when he had to go over each sentence five times before actually committing anything to memory. He liked to read and understand things right away, feeling like he was failing intellectually if he had to think too hard about something. The standards he set for himself were ridiculously high at times and perhaps it was lucky he didn't hold others to the same candle, else he'd never be satisfied. He was never satisfied with his own pool of knowledge, after all. He was very smart but there was always room for improvement.
Though he initially offered only a nod in response, Josh decided to vocalise his answer to her question after a moment. "I've certainly heard of her." You would be hard-pressed to find someone who hadn't. His thoughts went to Nell—they did so often, but this time it at least made sense. She'd gotten him the Harry Potter series for his birthday, if he remembered correctly (which he usually did). Josh was not a big reader of fantasy but that did not mean he would not peruse and appreciate it if the novels were offered to him. He'd finished the series rather quickly and then read over it again in an attempt to connect all of the plot points that were scattered throughout. All in all he'd found it enjoyable, though the graduate still preferred his history books and his biology notes. He liked to learn things that were beneficial to his knowledge and his future career. Reading books for pure leisure was not a sin, merely wasn't his usual style. In childhood he had taken to reading from his father's dictionary and pestering him when he didn't understand the definitions of certain words. He had been a bit of a lonely kid but he couldn't remember much lament over it in the early years. Then his sister had come along, school had started, and he'd truly realised what it felt like to be the odd one out. Briefly, he wondered how Poppy was treated by the rest of their peers thanks to her stammering and quiet voice. He wouldn't be surprised if they poked fun at her. Josh wouldn't do so himself, of course, but their school-mates could be assholes at times.
When he'd recieved her permission to sit down and share her company, Joshua remained where he was sitting and allowed himself to relax, getting more comfortable with the situation and his surroundings. Though he wasn't exactly empathetic, he did try his best to be polite. His parents had taught him good manners and social etiquette, being that they often had company at the mansion and it wouldn't do for their son to make a bad impression. He didn't go out of his way to be courteous to strangers when he was at school, mostly because they wouldn't return that favour, but in public and around his friends he definitely kept his mannerisms in check. Inviting yourself into someone's presence without first asking their opinion was a bit rude, especially when you were interrupting their reading. "How have you been?" he wondered, hoping that she didn't mind his continuing the conversation. He could have let her go back to her book but it would have been a little dull for him to sit there and stare around aimlessly. He did not seek out company for the mere presence of another person. He wasn't the clingy sort. If he wanted company it was because he wanted to chat. "I think it's been a little while since we spoke. How's school going for you?" Well enough, I'd think, if she has spare time to read. Then again, not everyone prioritised their studies. Rather than making further assumptions, Josh looked at her expectantly and waited for an answer.
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Post by annie on Mar 30, 2012 21:00:04 GMT -5
the fact that josh was not one who wanted to crack her open and make her tell every single one of her secrets was probably one of the things the girl liked the most about him. he seemed to understand the fact that whatever thoughts she had, if she did not share them with him, it was because she did not want to. most people would have intruded, forced their way in, and she hated it. even though, most of the time, she tortured herself with things of the past and even though she knew it would have been better to talk about those things instead of keeping them all hidden deep inside her soul, she preferred keeping them to herself. it was not really because of the fact that she generally did not trust people. well, that was part of her problem, but it was not all that. in fact, she did not think it was really appropriate to lay your problems on someone else’s shoulders. those were her problems, she had to carry the weight on her own and she had always been taught that she had to accept whatever life might throw at her. so far, she had been able to handle it all on her own, and she would continue doing so. the relationship josh and herself had was just perfect for her. she was not one to easily open up to anyone. he was the same. that was the thing she enjoyed most. they could talk to one another about books or abouts other things. yet, they did not have to talk about something deep for them to connect. they had this simple friendship thing going on. she would have wanted for it to go into any other direction. still, making poppy uncomfortable was common ground for anybody who tried some form of socializing with her. she never was quite comfortable around anybody. she was shy and could not help it. she could not talk without stuttering. she knew that it made other people uncomfortable as well, but she simply could not help it. many people in her life had given up. however, whenever they saw each other like now, joshua did not back down. he talked to her, even if it might take minutes to actually get a proper answer out of her mouth. she smiled at his answer to her apology. at least, she had not disturbed him. but she knew they probably were not the only ones in the library currently and she hated to think she might have disturbed someone else with her little shriek. she knew perfectly how annoying it could be when people disturbed the peacefulness of the library, particularly when you needed it badly. and there she was, getting carried away once again and unable to contain herself. she glanced around quickly, even though she could barely see a quarter of the library and sighed. no one seemed to be around. of course, they could be in other parts of the library, rolling their eyes at whoever had just shrieked. her. she sighed deeply, forcing her eyes back on josh even though her thoughts were all over the place. well, just like they always were. j. k. rowling. the famous author of the harry potter series. of course, he had heard of her. even though she was almost sixteen, poppy had always preferred fantastic books. they made her feel better, feel like there was a better world out there, even if it was only for a second. it might have sounded over dramatic, but poppy had never felt like this world was hers to live in. she wanted to go some place else. some place like hogwarts, maybe, where all of her dreams would have come true. and probably nightmares. but she made sure that part was kept in the back of her mind so she barely ever had to think about that. life was hard, wherever you went. you could never run away from your problems, even if you ran as fast as flash, the superhero. they would always catch up with you. so, instead of trying to run, she made herself forget by reading books. it had worked so far. why give up now? his question threw her a bit off guard. how had she been? well, pretty normal. right? she could not say she had been absolutely wonderful. that simply would not have been like her, to say such a thing. but she definitely had not been doing quite bad. had she? she had met some people, talked to a few friends, finished a book and started a new one, still had good grades. yes, things were pretty normal. pretty good even. so that was what she told him. g-good, thank you. how have you b-been? she said, attempting a slight smile for a second before letting it fade away, wondering if it looked more life a grimace than a smile. too late to change that now. the girl managed to pull her knees even closer to her chest, holding onto them like she always did when sitting on the floor. to be completely honest, she would have preferred continuing to read her book. at the moment he had come over, she was in a particularly good part of it and every single part of her mind was turned toward it. only her eyes seemed to have their attention truly fixed on him. and then he spoke again, forcing her mind to snap back. school? well, seeing as poppy was not really a social butterfly and much more of a wallflower, it was easy for her to focus on schoolwork. she always had everything done days before it was due. she would hand it in first thing when she entered a class. she often had free time which she spent mostly by herself here. she did not think anything in her situation at school had changed since they had last spoken. g-good as well. i’ve b-been having t-trouble with.. with my wind c-control. b-but i’ll work it out, eventually. she replied and looked away. she barely ever had difficulty with controlling her element. it must have meant that the things they were teaching the students were getting harder. and for you?- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - credit , to me tagged , mister joshua donovan dale, aka taylorrrrr. music , everything on my comp. outfit , clickers, bby.words , ONE OH FOUR SIX. notes , guh.
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Post by JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE on Apr 1, 2012 0:08:20 GMT -5
Joshua could not help but to realise that Poppy seemed rather uncomfortable. Whether it was due to his presence or simply the awkwardness of their initial situation, it was enough to put him on edge as well. He was not an awkward person and he was confident enough that dealing with other people did not bother him but when someone he was talking to seemed distinctly opposed to his presence, it was hard not to take notice. "I've been good. Great, really." His recent engagement was a part of that, though he did not mention it to Poppy. His mood was light as the Earth elemental possessed his thoughts but he could not shake the fact that his current companion did not seem nearly as relaxed as he was. Does she have a problem with my being here? Feeling unwanted had been the primary motivation, in youth, for his joining the gang. It had once made him upset, made him feel lonely. Now it simply made a conversation much more difficult. A sharp laugh from a table some distance away distracted his attention and he glanced toward it, frowning, his thoughts momentarily on different things. It was enough to drag him back to the conversation at hand and for him to make another stab at pleasantries.
He nodded when she mentioned her wind control issues, thinking back to his own days in high school and how difficult they had been for him at times. "I'm sure you will. Practice makes perfect, as they say." In contrast to her soft and stammering voice, Joshua's was confident and fluid. He spoke quietly but there was still a marginal difference in the way they reacted around one another. He was noticing it more now than he usually did, likely due to her attempt at a smile earlier that had tipped him off. "You're in the eleventh grade, right?" Damn, had it been a long time since then. He was four years her senior, in his third year of college just as she was in her third in high school. He could recall certain things about his experiences in the eleventh grade but most of it was irrelevant. Once you'd reached a certain point of skill in a sport or other activity it was hard to recall what it had been like when you were awful at it. He knew he'd not always had the impressive control he now had over his Fire but it was not easy to remember the distinct frustrations. The year was young, at least, so Poppy had plenty of time to work things out for the exams. Exam week was a hell of a hassle for everyone. Panicking and practising, frantic revisions. He was highly intelligent but tended to feel the stress just the same. No one liked getting a bad mark or risking a fail.
The question was turned around to him and Josh had no trouble answering. School was never too much of an issue. "Good as usual for me. I've heard this year is supposed to be difficult but I'm not all that worried." He shrugged. He was smart and he was willing to take on the challenge. A difficult year meant that he was learning the hard stuff and that was what he'd always wanted to do. Becoming a doctor was not a walk in the park and he had never expected it to be, so Josh would never quail if he heard that a test or exam was going to be challenging. "I'm experimenting with my element, of course." It was common knowledge at the Academy that the college students had free reign with their powers. The Academy taught them to broaden their stamina and increase their resistance to the opposing elements but they were left on their own in terms of learning different tricks and techniques. He was quite good at manipulating heat, having started on it in his freshman year, and controlling the destructive, consuming power of the fire was his next task. That was proving to be a hassle but thankfully he wasn't a quitter. Glancing at Poppy, her book, and then back at her face, he said, "You know, I should probably get going, soon." If she was more interested in reading than their conversation, he wasn't going to stick around.
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Post by annie on Apr 1, 2012 20:24:17 GMT -5
if practice made perfect, poppy must have been quite close to finally achieving perfection. in fact, she had practicing the same trick for weeks now, and couldn’t seem to quite get the hang of it. from the beginning of her first year, everything that involved controlling wind had seemed quite easy for her. even easier than normal classes. she had always had a natural talent at controlling her element. it was probably because both of her parents and both of her grandparents were wind elementals. maybe that made it easier for her. she wasn’t quite sure since she did not know much about genetics, much less those of elementals. but she guessed it might have had something to do with it. this was the first time that she truly had difficulty learning and perfecting a trick. it did usually take her a few days of practice before she finally got something right. however, after those few days, she would get it perfectly. it was the main reason why she had accepted to help out younger students who were experiencing trouble with controlling their abilities. she wanted to help them out by giving them tricks which would help them controlling their abilities just like those tricks had helped her. now that she was having more difficulty than usual, she was scared that she might have to give up on her tutoring. being a tutor had really helped her with most of her issues such as a shyness. in order to be able to properly teach younger ones, you had to be able to properly communicate with them. otherwise, they would not listen to you. because of that, she had learned to put her nervousness aside and simply focus on teaching and helping. she loved it, really. she loved the feeling she got when she was done helping a student. she loved the feeling she got when one of the students she had helped came over to her and told her that he had nailed his exam because of her. you could be sure that that was one of the main things that would put a smile on her lips. she would cling to that feeling of warmth as long as she could. just this morning, a fellow wind student had told her he had finally managed being able to make clouds move. she focused on this to finally get a real smile out for josh. y-yes, i am. she answered softly. even if she practised, poppy never could seem to get rid of the stress that inhabited her whenever an exam would come around. she would be chewing on her nails, biting her bottom lip, playing with her hair, playing would the hem of her shirt. any habit, really, that would show to anyone who might have been watching that she was stressed. she had never really gotten a bad grade, nor had she ever failed a test. but with all this practising and not improving, she felt that the time had come during which she would have to accept the fact that she might get a bad grade. she closed her eyes for a few seconds, thinking of a way to make herself improve even faster so she would be ready for the exam. she could easily have asked one of her peers. well, that was if she had ever actually talked to one of them. the only one she talked to was asher. well, he might have been just what she needed in fact. he was older than her, right? so he must have known that trick. yes, there was her solution. a light smile spread across her lips when she figured it out and she brought her attention back on josh, tilting her head slightly as he answered her own question. of course he was doing good in school. she was not worried about his doing well either. even though they did not really talk all that often and, when they did, they never really went far with their conversation, poppy knew that josh wanted to become a doctor. it probably was the only specific thing she knew about him. or well, the only one that she remembered. she never really had had a good memory. well, of course, she could remember things that had happened a few weeks ago. but months, or years ago? there was no point trying. she sometimes tried to remember parts of her childhood – well, other than those which had greatly marked her – and she simply couldn’t. those memories never came back to her. anyway, she found the fact that both her and joshua wanted to help others, whether it was now or later on. it was something they could relate on, at least. i c-can’t wait to do t-that! she said and managed a little note of excitement in her voice as she said so. i’m t-tired of always d-doing the same t-tricks..it was true, after practicing over and over the same things all the time, it got quite boring. however, she kept doing it, repeating to herself that practice made perfect and that, when she would get to josh’s level, it would make it easier to experiment with her own element. she sometimes dreamed of using wind like her mother once had to bring the comforting scents to her daughter when the little girl had had a bad day. she imagined doing so with her own child, if she ever had one. this was probably one of the things that poppy was certain she wanted to do after graduating. having children. it would have meant the world to her to see the smile on her baby’s face. she would care for it and would give her life for it if she ever had to. she shook her head to stop thinking about such things. now was not the time. when she looked back up at josh, she only heard the last part of his sentence. she instantly felt bad. had she done something wrong that would have made him want to leave so soon? she was convinced it was her fault. she was just so awkward that it would have been normal for it to be her fault. a light frown appeared on her face as she looked down once again. however, she managed to quickly wipe it off and look back up at him. o-oh.. okay. h-have something important to d-do? she asked in a voice that wanted to be nonchalant even if all she wanted was to ask if she had done something wrong. but that would have not been the right thing to do. she knew as much. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - credit , to me tagged , mister joshua donovan dale, aka taylorrrrr. music , everything on my comp. outfit , clickers, bby.words , ONE ONE ONE ONE. notes , lololol, lucky.
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Post by JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE on Apr 2, 2012 18:48:55 GMT -5
The more Joshua took notice of Poppy's habits, the less comfortable he felt with their situation. She seemed to be zoning out, her eyes closed and her lips still, not speaking to him or indeed giving him any of her attention. He did not crave acceptance from other people. A stubborn, spiteful part of him insisted that he wouldn't care about Poppy's acceptance even if he did. He could not help the nastier thoughts that lurked about in the darker parts of his conscience, always nipping and biting. The bitterness did not fade as she seemed to bring herself back to the surface and reply to him, though it was also not evident in his features. He was good at hiding things from people. Secrets, feelings, intentions. Hiding was one of his greatest talents. Calm down, he attempted to soothe himself. It took more than that. Fortunately for Poppy he was more irritated than truly incensed. "If you think about it, all of the practice is meant to build up stamina," he pointed out. "Without those same old tricks, you wouldn't be strong enough to learn new ones." He remembered when he had grown impatient in his younger years and got out a book of advanced techniques, under the illusion that he was strong enough to tackle them. Needless to say, he'd woken up a few hours later, having passed out from the exertion. The Academy took things slow and steady for a reason. No one was truly superior.
He was a little surprised when she did not simply reply with an 'o-okay' and let him leave. He hadn't been expecting too much protest to get in the way of his departure and so he did not start walking away, instead eyeing her critically for a moment as if trying to figure her out. It failed, for people were not open books to be read at one's leisure. "No, not really," he said smoothly. "You just seemed like you had other things on your mind." He tried and succeeded in keeping his tone neutral, light, more matter-of-fact than snide. He was not trying to be cruel. He did not hate Poppy and did not find her shy demeanour repulsive, it merely seemed to be getting difficult to make conversation. He was not the type of person that could make a one-sided effort. She'd asked him questions as well but he still couldn't shake the feeling that it was awkward. Maybe it was her personality that made him feel this way. It injected a moment of doubt, a feeling of uncertainty. Did she want him to leave or was she just being herself? Do I really care? It wasn't like him to put the feelings of others before his own, not unless those others were people very close to him. Like Nell, Lark, Devin, Ace. Not Poppy, because amiable as he usually was to her, they were still just acquaintances.
He stood up but did not leave immediately, instead lingering with his hand braced against the table. "So, if that's all...?" He trailed off and looked at her questioningly. It was up to Poppy, at this point. If she wanted him to stay then there was a chance that he might make another attempt but he was not patient enough to make the decision on his own. At least now she knew that he had a limit. That was one of the most important things anyone getting to know Joshua could learn. He was not perfect. No one's perfect. Poppy wasn't, either. I can understand if she wants to be left alone but I'd have liked a warning. He'd asked her if she didn't mind the company because he didn't want to intrude. Josh was a bookworm, he understood more than most the pull of another word. The books he read were usually non-fiction but that did not mean he could not get lost in them. The man had his own library, for goodness sakes.
[Josh and his TEMPER. Jesus. xD]
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Post by annie on Apr 3, 2012 15:27:43 GMT -5
all that josh was saying made perfect sense to her, of course. she knew that practice made perfect and that she needed to keep doing it if she, someday, wanted to reach a higher level. however, she still could not help but find it boring. she knew it was for their own safety, for them not to hurt themselves as they attempted to do something that was way out of their league. still, when she saw other wind elementals that were older than her doing things that she was not yet able to do, she could not help but daydream about the day she would be able to do as much. how she would one day be able to use wind however she might have wanted. it was not exactly that she was looking for power. in fact, it was not that at all. she simply thought it was wonderful what every single one of them was able to do. she nodded at josh slightly after he was done speaking, playing with the end of her sleeves. she could not help but notice the slightly rougher tone in his voice that had just appeared. and there she was again, wondering what she had done wrong. she did not even need to wander if she had done anything wrong. she knew she had. the real question was what. she always managed to ruin things, or so she thought. in her eyes, anything that she attempted to do would end up being a mess. well, when it involved other people. she had not been made to socialize with others. there was a reason behind the fact that she was always alone, and that she preferred it that way. she did not want this kind of situation happening. and there it was, happening right in front of her eyes while she looked at him, completely helpless. she should have known better, really. she was used to people reacting like this to her most of the time. but at least, just like her mother had told her to, she had tried. she had tried to socialize with others. the other being josh, as of now. she had played the game and had lost. but at least she had played.
his words sunk in with a rather sour note. she knew that. she trid to improve that. but it never seemed to work. i’m t-truly sorry, j-josh.. she started, her eyes wondering off to stare at her yellow shoes as she spoke to him. her hand rose to her hair, twirling it around her index finger just like she would always do whenever she was nervous. m-my mind always wand-wanders off. she continued. she did not exactly know why she was explaining herself. she could have just let him leave. but this was true. she had never been diagnosed with this, but she was certain that she was slightly hyperactive. well, not physically, since she absolutely despised physical activity, but mentally. her mind was always jumping from thing to thing without it having anything to do with the conversation that was going on between her and the other person in front of her. it did not even have to be during conversations. she could have been by herself and simply be thinking about life. most of the time, when she was alone outside, this was what she would be doing. she would look up at the clouds in the sky, telling herself how this one looked like a rabbit, and this one a frog. it could have kept going for hours until something like a voice or her stomach requesting food brought her back to reality. like now. as josh stood up, the girl looked up from her shoes and at him. she quickly stumbled up as well, brushing the dust off of her clothes. yes..
[/b][/color] she said rather quietly, biting down on her bottom lip. y-yes. again, sorry. um.. have a g-good d-day, yeah? she said softly, offering him a smile and wrapping her thin arms around herself. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - credit , to me tagged , mister joshua donovan dale, aka taylorrrrr. music , everything on my comp. outfit , clickers, bby.words , SIX SEVEN FOUR. notes , well, that was short. but since the thread is ending.~[/justify][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote] |
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