forum Private RP with @Fraust

Started December 01, 2021 by @Rainy_is_back

tune

(Hey- sorry it's taking so long aha)

Lucas was clearly not present anymore when Melissa returned, completely focused on whatever he was drawing. Upon closer inspection, he seemed to be doing some sort of scene with him and Melissa and his old dog, Boney. Although, it definitely wasn't the only thing he'd drawn in her absence. He'd drawn much more scattered and unintelligible things before he was able to work himself up to something peaceful like this.

So, when Melissa tapped his shoulder, he jumped, clearly startled by her sudden appearance. "Oh, h-hi Mel… is your dad here?" He asked softly after he'd taken out his earbuds.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. And no, not yet, but he will be soon." With a soft smile, she slid into the seat next to him. "What have you been working on?" Leaning closer, she made sure to leave a little space in case he wasn't comfortable with her being so close.

(Np ^^)

"It's fine… I've mostly been drawing and listening to music. Took a while to clear my mind enough to do something intelligible." Lucas laughed weakly and flipped back a couple of pages in his sketchbook to a page that was mostly just torn and scribbled on. The next page was more scribbles, but less tearing, and a page after that had some sort of hunched over figure in the middle, still in a much more chaotic style than he usually did. It seemed to be several pages later that he had managed to do this loose sketch of him, Melissa, and Boney.

Melissa studied the pages in silence, her interest piqued with every turn of the page. She tried to make out some of the little doodles scattered throughout the book, glancing up at him when he stopped flipping the pages. "Have I ever told you how good you are at that?" She asked softly before turning her gaze back down to his sketchbook.
"I mean seriously, you're so talented. Have you considered going into art once you've graduated?"

"Ah?" Lucas flushed at the compliment and looked over at Melissa, evidently taken aback and surprised. He looked down at the sketchbook and gripped it more tightly, flushing darker as Melissa continued talking. "I-I… I dunno. I never really… thought about it." He replied softly. To be honest, he rarely considered his life after he graduated since he didn't usually think he would last that long. He couldn't imagine himself as an adult at all. "My dad always thought it was stupid… I-I can't make good money with art, right? I should… do something more sensible with my time." He sighed, tapping one foot on the ground anxiously.

"I mean if you can make money off of it to survive, does it matter?" She asked softly, glancing up at his red face. "Oh- I'm so sorry, did I make you uncomfortable? I didn't mean to." Pulling herself back some, she gave him a concerned look. Her hands were now in her lap, and her eyes fixated on his face. Concern was knit between every crease on her face as she studied his features. "I should have thought that through before saying anything, sorry…"

"No, no, you didn't! It's fine— I-I'm fine, really!" Lucas insisted, now feeling guilty for making Melissa feel bad. "I'm fine, I swear. Thank you, I just…" He floundered for a moment, unsure what to say. "I'm… not used to getting compliments like that. Especially not my art, since I don't show it to people a lot… you kinda caught me off guard." He laughed nervously, looking down at his drawing. "And I don't really… think about what I'm gonna do after I graduate. Don't think about graduating much."

Melissa's features instantly relaxed, but her stiff posture didn't change. She still didn't look entirely convinced, starting to chew on the inside of her cheek. "That's okay- I'm just sorry I made you feel so flustered. I always forget how poorly you react to compliments- not that it's a bad thing!" She quickly added, trying not to make him feel bad. That wasn't her intention, and yet it seemed like it kept happening. "I just know you're not used to them, so it's just a thing I have to remind myself of."
Finally relaxing back into the couch, she turned to look at him. "That's okay, I'm still not sure what I want to do. My parents on the other hand seem to expect me to follow their plan for my life, which I am not thrilled about. My brother wasn't either, and yet now he's well on his way to becoming a doctor." Shrugging, she turned her head to look at him with one of those "what can you do about it?" kind of looks. "We've got time though. It's still a few years away- not to mention you don't have to know right away."

Lucas sighed and, after a few moments of hesitation, returned to his drawing while he talked to Melissa. "It's fine, really. Don't worry about it." He smiled softly to reassure her, looking up for a moment before looking back down at his sketch. He was definitely doing better than before, but he was still pretty tense and on edge, and he was a little uneasy with the topic of his future.

"I dunno… I've thought about doing something in science before, I guess. I like science, and I'd make more money probably. But I do like art… I dunno, I just don't really think about the future much. I try not to." He laughed weakly, tapping his foot on the ground anxiously. "What do you think you'd want to do?" He asked her.

(Dude- life has been crazy- I'm so sorry I keep disappearing)

Melissa shrugged, nodding along as he spoke. Picking up the hints he wasn't super comfortable, she didn't pry anymore about his hopes for the future. Gently tracing circles onto her leg, she let out a deep breath. "I don't know." She started, looking up at him. "I used to want to be an English teacher- but I don't think that's what I want to do anymore. I'm not really super talented in any of the fine arts fields- at least for anything realistic- and nothing interests me in the "sensible" careers either. I mean psychology is interesting, but I don't think I should waste thousands of dollars on something I find mildly interesting."

(Np ^^)

Lucas shrugged, scratching at his wrist as he stared at the floor. "I mean… you've got a couple more years to figure out what you want to do, right? I'm sure you'll find something that you feel passionate about." He smiled softly, which didn't quite match up with him scratching more insistently at his arm. "You're pretty good at everything I've seen you do, so I have no doubt you'll find something, yeah?" He sighed and shifted how he was sitting, clearly unsettled and uncomfortable. He was definitely antsy, but there wasn't much to do that would help quell his nervous energy. "I don't really know either… I-I think it's pretty normal for people our age to still be figuring it out."

"Yeah… I guess so." Shrugging, she gave him a half smile. "It just feels like I've got to have this all figured out now- I mean some people know they want to go to an Ivy League school when they're in elementary school. I guess I'm just not one of those kids." As she spoke, her eyes drifted to his fidgety hands. Watching him scratch at his arms made her feel a bit squeamish. She knew this was his way of distracting himself, but she couldn't help reaching over to take both of his hands in her own. Maybe that would distract him too.

"Yeah, I guess so… a lot of those kids' parents plan their lives out for them, though. They might end up doing something they hate because it's what their parents want." Lucas shrugged, still fidgeting uncomfortably until Melissa took his hands. He hadn't even really noticed that he'd been scratching himself until just then. "Oh… s-sorry." He murmured. He squeezed her hands tightly to keep his own from shaking and sighed softly. "I try not to think about it a whole lot, to be honest. But I guess I should probably start so I'm not overwhelmed when I actually need to know…"

"I guess you're right." Looking up at him, she gently squeezed his hands back. It felt so… natural. They had been friends for a long time, though. It should feel natural, right? They were best friends, after all, it wasn't that strange. "You don't have to start right this second though. I mean there's no point adding to your worries right now, right?"
As she finished her sentence, there was a knock on the door. The principal and Melissa's father stepped into the room when given permission to come in. The second her father spotted where she was, he quickly made his way over next to her. He seemed nervous- anxious even- from how he fidgeted with his car keys.

"Are you okay?" He asked as Melissa pulled herself away from Lucas to greet her father.
"I'm okay." Her response was short and to the point, but that was typically how their conversations went. It was a strange sight to see a father and a daughter treat each other as if they were business partners, but that's what they were used to. So when he went in for an awkward hug, Melissa didn't really know what to do with herself.
"Oh- are you alright Lucas? Physically at least, I mean." He asked after the brief hug.

"Yeah… definitely don't need any more stress right now." Lucas chuckled dryly and squeezed Melissa's hands again. They seemed so soft compared to his own. His hands were rough and calloused from baseball; nothing like Melissa's. Hers seemed… delicate, almost, but he knew she was anything but. He flinched at the knock, pulled out of his thoughts by the sudden sound, and looked over to see Melissa's father come in.
When Melissa headed over to greet him, consequently letting go of Lucas' hands, he felt a slight emptiness in his chest. His hands tingled a bit, longing for Melissa's touch to return. He shook his head and his hands, grabbing onto his sketchbook so the empty feeling wasn't so noticeable.
He watched Melissa with her father quietly. He didn't quite catch onto the awkwardness all that much, only really noting that she was able to have an interaction with her own father that was even remotely positive. Even if it was a bit stiff, the man did seem to care. For some reason, he seemed surprised to be addressed.
"Mm? Oh, u-uh… you know. My heart's still kinda in my throat, and I'm… a bit nauseous, but overall I'm fine." He assured with a shaky smile, gripping his sketchbook a bit more tightly. "Just… caught me off guard. He was really mad… I never thought he'd go after me in public, y'know?" He sighed, getting to his feet, which seemed to be a bit of a struggle at first. His legs were less functional than he would've liked them to be; they were pretty shaky, but he could still walk unassisted if he was determined, and he certainly wasn't going to ask for help if he could avoid it. "Sorry for having to call you in the middle of the day, sir… I hate to bother you. I-I know you're very busy."

Mr. Brenahan's face softened with a frown as he stood up. It was difficult to read his expression. The only thing that could be determined, was that he was a bit… troubled. Whether the other accent was empathy or irritation was too vague to determine at a first glance. Hesitating before reaching over, he gently rested his hand on Lucas's arm.
"You don't have to apologize. This was an emergency- I completely understand. Even if it wasn't an emergency, I would have done my best to be here." The honesty and gentleness in his tone were heavily emphasized as he spoke. Almost as if to make up for the lack of clarity in his expression. "I care about Melissa— she's my daughter after all— and who she cares about, I care about too."
Melissa watched from behind, trying not to let her confusion display on her face. This part of him was completely foreign to her. Sure, she blamed herself in part for not reaching out further to ever reach this part of him. However, she was under the impression that he had no interest in anything that she was a part of. More often than not, her brother got the attention. If they weren't giving it to him, work took precedence. So watching him treat Lucas with such kindness… was bizarre.

Lucas jumped slightly when Mr. Brenahan touched him, evidently not expecting it, and blinked up at the man with a confused, curious expression. He couldn't remember the last time his own father had spoken to him that gently, or cared enough about him to do anything like this really. He glanced over at Melissa, almost as though he was asking her for help on how to react, but quickly looked back up at Mr. Brenahan. Eye contact certainly made him uncomfortable, but he really didn't want to be rude.

"Ah… r-right, sir. Well, um… thank you for coming, either way." He replied awkwardly, still unsure what to do. "I appreciate it, sir." He dipped his head politely, thankful for the brief break in eye contact, and grabbed the few things he had with him after hesitating for several seconds. "I've got some spare clothes in my bag… I'd, um… rather not get my stuff from my dad's house right now, if that's okay with you sir."

"That's completely alright," He smiled, stepping away from him to give him some space, and to talk to the counselor and principal. When they made their way over to the desk, Melissa shuffled toward Lucas. She was still mulling everything over but wanted to push it aside long enough to focus on Lucas's needs. Her own confusion wasn't that important right now. At least not to her.
"You doing okay?" She asked quietly. She began to reach for her bag, pulling it up over her shoulders before sitting on the edge of the couch. She kept her eyes on him, leg bouncing as she watched him.

Lucas fidgeted with the strap of his bag while he waited for Mr. Brennahan to sort everything out with the counselor. He looked pretty jittery and on edge still, understandably, but he was definitely more present than before. He looked over when Melissa addressed him, blinking a couple times as he took a second or two to process what she'd said.
"Oh, y-yeah… I'm okay. Glad to be leaving, I guess…" He replied with a weak smile in an attempt to reassure Melissa. He was looking forward to leaving, but not looking forward to having to change pretty much everything about his life all of a sudden. He also wasn't looking forward to coming back to school after this whole ordeal. Surely people would mess with him for it. "I'll be fine. How are you doing?"

How was she doing? Honestly, she wasn't sure. Her best friend had just been nearly attacked, forget about the mental toll it would take on him. Just the thought made her jaw clench. How could he do something like this?
"I'm fine… it's just been a weird day." She muttered, running her hands down her face.
Her wording didn't describe the half of it. This was probably the worst day in the history of first-day-back-at-school that could have played out. Of course, besides someone getting hurt, or potentially dying. But this was going to impact him for the rest of the year- whether it was his ability to come to school, or the people around him who would mock him for it. It wasn't fair that he had a crappy example of a father, but now for others to have to see it, and get to mock him for it. This was beyond unfair- it was cruel, and quite simply, wrong.
"Can I do anything to help?" It felt futile, but she asked anyway. "I can't do much, but I can try."