forum The Pandora Effect (OxO Closed)

Started July 18, 2023 by @LolaBug

tune

As much as he had desired for human interaction, Keanu had to admit that he felt strange. Not that he didn't want to speak to this kind person…No no no. He was so happy to be talking with her. It's just she was the first person he's talked to in a very long time that wasn't a scientist or a guard. He dreamed of this moment, but he was unsure if it would come true. But it did! It did.

Talking was a task. It was for him and it was for her. Who knew? He never really spoke to anyone since whenever he was dragged into this hellhole. The only time he did was to shout "No" or "Yes" and sometimes even "Okay" to whatever the scientists wanted. He didn't know if it was the same for this lady but he figured that she might be able to relate to this in some way. Maybe. He wasn't sure.

When she sat down against the tree, he decided to sit on the ground with her. Keanu gently sat down with his legs pulled in. The tip of his chin rested against his left knee. He kept shifting his gaze at different things so he wouldn't be staring at the lady sitting in front of him.

He found the name to be beautiful: Alouette. In his mind, he spaced out all of the syllables. Keanu faintly smiled at her. "Alouette," He muttered, "Lovely…name…and…wings." For a second, he lifted his finger to point at them before resting his hand on top of his other hand. His gaze wandered to the ground. It lingered for a while till he lifted his chin to look at Alouette.

It was then when he was able to get a better glimpse of her eyes. Still, he wanted to limited eye contact for he wasn't sure how comfortable Alouette was with it. The shade of her irises reminded him of lavenders and wisterias. Keanu would've said something nice about them, but he decided to be silent at the moment.

(Sorry! I found a cat on the side of the road a few days ago and things have been a little hectic!)

Being trapped in such a place, deprived of human interaction, and treated as an experiment is undoubtedly isolating and dehumanizing. In the storm of darkness and misery that is her life, she finds Keanu to be a small ray of light at the end of the tunnel. She appreciates his attempt to engage in conversation and finds his compliment about her name and wings heartwarming. She already finds herself admiring his gentle mannerisms and the way he speaks with consideration despite that talking is a challenge in and of itself.

She notices his gaze wandering, and she can tell that he is still trying to adjust to this newfound interaction. She shifts her position slightly, trying to convey a sense of ease and acceptance to hopefully make him more comfortable being near her. Having a conversation should be natural and easy, yet just speaking a few words to each other is a struggle. It feels….wrong to be doing something so normal.

Deciding to let the silence linger for a moment, she offers him a moment of quiet companionship so they can both adjust to the situation. Once she's had a few seconds to collect her thoughts, she speaks: "Thank you." It's a simple phrase and one she's must have said a million times over her life and yet she struggles. Having been silent for so long, some times speaking feels like glass scratching her throat. Despite her discomfort, she isn't ready to give up.

She turns her eyes onto him, studying him. His unique features interest her. Many people here have changed looks due to the experiments but this is the first time she's cared to properly take notice. "I like…..your….hair."

Though she has many questions for him, she knows that they have to start slow Neither of them are able to carry on a proper conversation and that's okay. For now, she's just happy to have some company. It's been so long since she talked to someone…..touched someone. She would kill for a hug right now or just some form of affection. The rough hands of the scientists grabbing her and strapping her to the table for torture should deter her from wanting any physical interaction and yet it doesn't. She desperately misses just being held.

Isolation has left her with a hunger that seems insatiable, a deep ache that gnaws at her soul. She longs for the warmth of another's hand in hers, the simple comfort of an embrace, and the reassuring presence of someone beside her. It isn't just physical touch she craves; it is the emotional connection that accompanies it. She yearns to be seen, understood, and cared for, to have someone with whom she can share her thoughts and fears. She dreams of having a companion who will be there to lean on when the weight of her experiences becomes too much to bear alone. Her mind often drifts into daydreams, imagining the sensation of a gentle caress, the feeling of tender fingers tracing patterns on her skin. She craves the closeness of a hug, the way another person's arms would envelop her, offering a sense of safety and belonging that she so desperately desires.

(It's all good! Sorry about the wait)

"My hair?" Keanu whispered. He combed through his hair twice then sighed. So far he has lived through twenty-three years and his hair is going gray already. Having abilities that could harm everyone was already difficult enough to deal with on his own, but his hair changing was something else. If he returned to normal life, he worried about what others would say.

A faint smile appeared on his face. "Thank…you…" He appreciated Alouette and her words. If he wasn't so exhausted from all the tests, he would feel jittery from all the excitment. His heart was warm with glee. Even though he kept his eyes down at the ground, they were lit up.

He didn't know what else to say. There was so much he wanted to say to Alouette, but he found himself struggling to find the best way to talk about whatever was reveling in his mind. Talking wasn't really much of his thing. In almost every conversation, he just sat there while the other person or people just talked the whole time. He only talked here and there, and that was perfectly fine for him. In a space like the lab, it wasn't. Not once did he ever get the chance to be with someone else so there was no talking nor listening.

But he wanted to do both. Mostly listening though. That'd be difficult to do for the time being. It was understandable to him though. Rarely do any of the subjects get a chance to talk to one another. They never get to be close or anything. Perhaps it is strange, but he wanted to be close with someone. Holding hands, hugging, or some form of physical contact, he yearned for it as much as having conversations with others. Even putting his head on someone's shoulder or vice versa would be like a dream come true.

Keanu wanted to ask Alouette a million things like what's her favorite food or what hobbies is she interested in. With a lift of his chin, he gazed into her eyes. "I like…your…eyes," He finally said. The more he slowly spoke, the more he got comfortable with it yet he had to keep speaking slowly. "They remind…me…of flowers…Do you…like…flowers?"

(Man, I’m sorry. I’ve been so bad about replying to this lol But things will be finally settled by like Thursday so I’ll be posting regularly then)

Alouette can’t help but notices Keanu's silent worries about his hair. She watches him comb through it, feeling a twinge of sympathy for the internal struggle he must be facing. She understands perfectly the weight of feeling different, the fear of judgment from the outside world, granted they ever get the chance to return. Society doesn’t look kindly on those who are different so she worries about how being reintroduced to society will go for everyone here. Some people have more obvious physical differences than others that will make them targets. Despite her eagerness to get out of here, she does worry about if she’ll ever be able to live a normal life again.

Her eyes soften as she takes in his faint smile, a surge of warmth spreading through her at the thought of being able to offer him some comfort amidst the trials of the lab. She meets his gaze as he thanks her, her own lips curving into a the beginnings of a smile. She senses the excitement in his voice, even if it's masked by exhaustion. They’ve both been without proper interaction for far too long it seems.

A proper but shy smile tugs at her lips when he mentions liking her eyes, and she ducks her head for a moment, feeling the weight of his gaze on her. His comparison to flowers catches her off guard, a hint of surprise lighting up her features, yet the sincerity in his voice reassures her that he means every word. She knows that they’ve changed since the experiments started. The violet color is unnatural so it’s a relief to hear kind words. Gathering her thoughts, she finally responds, her words carrying a mixture of timidity and warmth.

"Thank you," she says softly, her own eyes lifting to meet his. "I… I do like flowers. Sunflowers….snapdragons…..” There are dozens kore than she loves but she doesn’t have the energy to try and sort through her brain to figure out the names. She used to have a small garden on the balcony at her apartment that was her pride and joy. Her heart sinks as she realizes that her once-vibrant garden is likely now a somber tableau of withered petals and drooping leaves.

“What did….you do….,” She has to take a moment to clear her brain a little more before finishing her thought. “before all of this?”

(No, you're all good! Sorry for taking forever. I just started classes so my responses are gonna take a while, but I'll do my best to respond asap.)

All it took was one second for his eyes lit up orange again. Was it weird for that to happen all because of Alouette's eyes met with his? He really did like the way her eyes looked. Flowers, jewels, stars, he was reminded of all of those things as they stared at each other. The small smile remained on his face. It warmed his heart. All of it did.

He would have said something about her smile. Mesmerizing. Vibrant. Lovely. Keanu wasn't able to. Blush began to cover his face. Almost instinctively, he ducked his head for a second or two. It wasn't long before he returned to staring at Alouette and her smile. He took note of the two kinds of flowers she said. Sunflowers and snapdragons. "Those…they are…really…pretty," He whispered. His gaze lingered. When she asked him a question, he bit the inside of his lip.

The first he could think of was boxer. When his mind said the word, something felt off. There was more to what he was doing before magically winding up here. Boxing, working at his mom's restaurant, the gym…Wait no, that wasn't it. He remembered that he quit boxing so he could get ready for his first semester at college. A lot. There's a lot that he was doing before he magically ended up here sitting with Alouette, wearing gloves that somehow stop him from setting everything ablaze. Not that he didn't mind sitting with Alouette or anything.

"I did…a lot…of…stuff," He shrugged. The words floated around his mind. It took extra energy for him to put them all in the right order. Keanu didn't want to talk about his mom or anything. It made him think about getting out of this hell hole, and he couldn't imagine one way to escape. He was weak to begin with. On the other hand, he wanted to keep this conversation with Alouette going. She was lovely to speak with and he wanted to get to know her better.

"Boxing…I used to…do that…but I work at…a gym…I was…supposed…to go…to…college…" He finished. His hand rested on his right knee. Glancing back at her, he asked, "What about…you?"