Title: Boyfriends, Cougars and Broken Fingers
Emitter: -
Characters: Mari, Adrian
NPCS: -
Place: Jones Hall - Steranko Institute
Time: Sept 21, 2010 - Afternoon
Summary: Adrian comes to visit Mariscka, bearing the gift of ice cream. There the two talk about boyfriends, cougars and … breaking fingers.
Adrian shows up at Mariscka's door bearing gifts. Namely, Adrian has a pint of Breyer's chocolate chip ice cream and two spoons. His backpack is slung over one shoulder and he has a ridiculously happy grin on his face. He knocks on the gypsy girl's door in the 'shave and a haircut' manner, then steps back to wait.
There is a momentary pause, before a knock of 'two bits' is returned from the door. The knob turns and the door opens, to show Mariscka at the other end of the room, cards whirling around here, frowning at a piece of paper. "Why didn't that work? That should have worked. Well, then, what does this blasted card /DO/?!" she harumphs in typical Mari Frustration.
As the door finishes opening, a glow appears behind it, shrinking into the size of one of her tarot cards, and streaks back into place floating around the young woman. "Oh … " starts Mariscka, shaking with her frustration, before she holds out her hand and the cards neatly stack themselves there, "bother!" she exclaims.
Finally the young woman turns to look at the door, and the frustration simply melts away. A squeal of delight leaps from the young woman's lips as she sets the cards down and hops over to the door, attempting to leap at Adrian and wrap him up in a hug. "Big Brother!"
Adrian laughs as Mari comes bounding over and drops his backpack on the ground in order to catch her. In doing so he somehow manages to retain his hold on the ice cream container as well. "Good to see you again too, Mari," he says, laughing and giving the gypsy girl a kiss on the forehead. "Hope I'm not interrupting something important?" He nods towards where she set her cards. "Because if I'm not interrupting something important, I can wait and come back when I AM, so that I can provide horrible, sinful, frozen temptation… as is the duty of an adopted big brother."
Starting to answer in the negative by the faint beginnings of a shake of her head, Mariscka pauses, eyes Adrian, then twists to peer at the ice cream. "Yes, it was VERY important. So important I must simply insist you come back another time, so that you actually stay, and tempt me into submission!" she exclaims, squeezing Adrian one more time before backing up and making a sweeping motion of invitation into her 'lair'.
"Good, I was hoping you'd say that," Adrian snickers. He steps into Mariscka's home, admiring all of the scarves everywhere. "It looks like a fabric store threw up in here," the boy says in a tone that makes it a compliment rather than a criticism. "It's great. Very you." He looks for a spot to sit down and then settles, popping open the tub of ice cream and holding out one of the spoons for Mariscka. "Don't worry, I'm good for this. I worked out hard during Power's Training and calculated my lunch with the sole purpose of indulging later. So… haven't had a chance to see much of you since the summer session ended and classes started. How goes the Freshman year?"
Mariscka takes the spoon, eyes Adrian for a moment, her eyes narrowing, before she smiles and digs the utensil into the tub. "Oh, it's going. Trig's a pain, but then I'm in a class full of Juniors and Seniors, that doesn't help," she notes with a bit of a shrug. "Had the WORST EVAR post-cog a while back. Like watching some bad gang flick rated NC-17 or something," she says with an obvious shudder before stuffing the smoon in her mouth. "Buh, Ah'm yust angin', ya nhoow?" she asks around her mouthful of ice cream before swallowing.
"Hey, Ade … when you're boyfriend and girlfriend, what's … what's that supposed to mean? I mean … what's it like? Wil calls me his girlfriend and … he's cool and all and I like hanging around him an stuff … but I mean, that's good, right? It's okay? I'm … I dunno what I'm even askin', honestly."
Adrian sticks his spoon into the ice cream, getting a chunk and shoving it in his mouth as he listens. He nods, speaking only after he's swallowed. "Algebra Two isn't so bad. I liked Geometry better, but any math class is better than English." He frowns though, looking Mari over, "That doesn't sound like a fun post-cog. Need to talk about it or…?"
He gets another spoonful of frozen goodness and leans back. One leg bends at the knee and he rests his free hand on the floor, propping himself up in a casual lounge. The spoon is still hanging out of his mouth as he smiles around it. "Wil ashe you out? Thas grea Mari!" He pulls the spoon out, "I mean, that's great. I've had lots of girlfriends. It's a label. A way of saying that while you two are dating you aren't going to date anyone else. Though, I can say now that my experience on the matter was more, what's the phrase I'm lookin' for here? All a big show."
"And," he reaches to spoon another bite. Apparently double-dipping and germs aren't a bit concern here, though he is at least sticking to one side of the container in case Mari might be bothered by it. He holds up the spoon with a rogueish grin, "…I can say that I'm not going to be having any more girlfriends."
"Well, actually," offers Mariscka as she takes another swipe at the ice cream, "he hasn't. Just … when we were kidnapped, he said I was his girlfriend, an well … I mean we do everything together, well, alot together, so that means we're datin', I suppose," she offers before popping the ice cream in her mouth.
She then stops and stares at Adrian for a moment, obviously confused, blinking at the young man before she swallows the bite whole. "What do you me… AAAAHHH! BRAIN FREEZE!" she groans the last putting a hand to her head. This, of course, gives her some time to think, to connect the dots a bit. "Wait… no girlfriends but…" she arches an eyebrow after a moment, "boyfriends?"
Mariscka considers this a moment, and smiles at Adrian. "Newly found, or just finally admitting somethin'? I mean, you've GOT to be who you are. Being somethin' you're not that's just …" she says, her smile a bit brighter than her eyes, but then, she is still suffering from brain freeze.
"Put your tongue to the top of your mouth and press real hard," Adrian offers helpfully to Mari when she complains of brain-freeze. He's trying not to laugh at her plight, but he can't quite prevent one little snicker from escaping, so he's forced to bite his lip. "I'm sorry… I shouldn't laugh."
He nods, however, to Mariscka's deductive reasoning. "Yeah. Me an' Laird. You've met him, right? Hell, you might even have a class with him. He's a Freshman too." Adrian sits up, rubbing the back of his neck and gives a small shrug of his shoulders. "Finally admitting. I think Sam kinda hit the nail on the head when she said something about this friend of hers who was over-compensating. That uh… yeah. That kind of rang true for me too. But, you and Wil, though… that's cool. And based on what you just said, I'd say you and Mr. Stretchy are boyfriend and girlfriend."
"Put your tongue to the top of your mouth and press real hard," Adrian offers helpfully to Mari when she complains of brain-freeze. He's trying not to laugh at her plight, but he can't quite prevent one little snicker from escaping, so he's forced to bite his lip. "I'm sorry… I shouldn't laugh."
He nods, however, to Mariscka's deductive reasoning. "Yeah. Me an' Laird. You've met him, right? Hell, you might even have a class with him. He's a Freshman too." Adrian sits up, rubbing the back of his neck and gives a small shrug of his shoulders. "Finally admitting. I think Sam kinda hit the nail on the head when she said something about this friend of hers who was over-compensating. That uh… yeah. That kind of rang true for me too. But, you and Wil, though… that's cool. And based on what you just said, I'd say you and Mr. Stretchy are boyfriend and girlfriend."
Mariscka's brow knits as she concentrates on pressing her tongue to the top of her mouth, eyes crossed looking down her nose, before focusing back on Adrian. The young woman watches him for a moment, before nodding. "Think I have a class with him… the name sounds familiar," she offers after a second. Then the spoon darts up and waggles at Adrian. "You better stop laughing or I dump you in the pool from right here!"
Mariscka then considers, absently reaching out to grab some more ice cream. "That's cool though. So … is that what the smile was for, not just because you were happy to see me? And dude… you so do NOT want to know ANY of what I saw. I'm doin' what I can to forget it. Though, I do know the face of the guy distributing Magma for a local gang, now. Still … ugh!" she notes, taking a tentative nibble on the frozen dairy delight.
"Okay, but … so … I mean, what am I supposed to do when dating someone. I mean … I know what my mom would say and I SOOOO don't want to do that. If she EVER finds out he's a gymnast? Spirits help me! And woe be unto me if she ever finds out he can be Mr. Stretchy! My head'll explode from all the ideas she'll start coming up with… if she doesn't try to go all cougar on him herself!"
Adrian does his very best to put on a serious face. It doesn't last long, before Adrian is smiling again. "Well, I was happy to see you, but you caught me. I can't stop smiling. It's like, I can't stop thinking about him. I never really had that with any of the girls I dated. I mean, I enjoyed seeing them and doing things with them, but there was never the whole… eagerly waiting for the next time I get to see them. I actually feel giddy… is that ridiculous, or what?"
Adrian laughs and stabs the ice cream with his spoon again. "I mean, I'm not the 'giddy' type, am I? Not that I'm some dour curmudgeon, but I think I kinda get the whole cuddly, sickeningly-sweet thing that Linus and Sunday have now." He outright grins at Mariscka, and points his spoon at her, "I could never have done this at home. Hell, I'd probably be dating two cheerleaders right now and halfway convincing myself that I was enjoying it." He takes his bite of ice cream, thoughtful for a second. "You think you could describe it well enough for me? I could maybe do a drawing of the guy's face to go by. You know, like those police sketch artists?"
"What're you supposed to do…?" he asks, and then he does burst out laughing. "Damn, Mari, I gotta meet your Mom. Sorry… sorry… look, don't worry about it. Don't stress. Just… what feels right to you? Laird and I are both starting with that. Neither one of us has a damn clue what we're doing, we just know we like each other and we're going from there. If holding hands is enough, just stick with that."
Mariscka keeps nibbling at her spoonful of ice cream as she listens to Adrian with a wide, dark-eyed stare. "Well, I dunno. If it was all an act before, maybe you /are/ the giddy type. 'Sides, would could /HONESTLY/ enjoy dating two cheerleaders," she groans with a roll of her eyes. "The insesant 'Tee-Hee' giggling is enough to drive you mad from ONE cheerleader, let alone TWO!" she offers, before smiling.
"My mom would say you have sex with him of course," notes Mariscka with a shrug. "Kinda why I've never had a boyfriend or anything. She'd totally be on my case … and I'd have a years supply of condoms via overnight delivery if I ever mentioned it," she says, sticking out her tongue, while she scoops up more nummies!
"Not all of it was an act," Adrian mutters, sticking his tongue out at Mari, "I mean… I am still inherently made of awesome AND I'm a prime athlete full of wit and charm. Plus, I'm totally irrisistable. You know you want me." The boy waggles his eyebrows, dramatically, before taking another bite of ice cream. He snorts in laughter at Mariscka's description of a cheerleader. "They aren't all like that. I mean, look at Violet. I can't see her going 'tee-hee' to anyone. I actually have her to thank for me finally admitting it. If she hadn't shown up and caused me to have to apologize to Laird because I was a complete asshole to him and Sam." Adrian shrugs. "Though, I'm sort of dreading seeing her again. Old habits die hard."
"But, I can honestly say, I don't give a damn what she thinks now," Adrian says. Okay, maybe some small part of him does still care, because she's been his best friend since they were five, but… a lot of that friendship was based on the social status that the two of them built over the years. He flips over, laying on his stomach and propping up on his elbows as he gets another spoonful. "Your Mom is twisted," Adrian says, "You don't have to have sex to be dating someone." He takes the bite, then continues with the ice cream in his mouth, "Cathe in pointh. Ibe neber…" he swallows, "gone there. Might've said I did, but…" He shrugs. "I know. I was a big poser. Whatever. But seriously, your Mom, Mari? That's messed up."
Mariscka arches an eyebrow at Adrian, then blinks. The young gypsy's face looses all emotion and becomes slack as she offers in a monotone, "Oh yes, baby. I want you bad. I burn. Take me, oh Baby, oh."
There is a heartbeat, before Mariscka's face becomes animated once more and she smiles at Adrian. "Hey, you are easy on the eyes. I'll admit that much," she giggles with a wink. "Woah… Violet was a cheerleader? Wow, not any kind of cheerleader I've seen around. Impressive." Then Mariscka just shrugs and nibbles on some more ice cream. "Yeah, well … welcome to my life. She didn't want having power and rebelled against it and is trying to get me to do the same. So I … guess being chaste is rebelling against her," she offers with a shrug, then more ice cream!
Adrian grins, laughing at Mariscka's response. "I love it here. The only friend back home that I could be this much myself with was Hunter and even he didn't know me. At least not everything," Adrian says, "It'd be weird to go back home now. I guess instead of rebelling against my parents, I was conforming to everyone's expectations. And now I'm getting to have my own little sense of rebellion."
"Oh, yeah. Violet was a cheerleader. You ever watch those cheerleading competitions? You know, where they throw the girls way up in the air and they do flips and all that crap? That was Vi. Add in that she's a martial artist, and, well…" Adrian shrugs, "She's intimidating." He puts his spoon in his mouth and pushes up to a sitting position. "…anyway, enough about Vi. You do what's right for you and don't be afraid to tell Wil what the limits are or if something makes you uncomfortable. And if Mr. Stretchy does something that you don't want him to? You tell me and I'll ya know, nullify his stretchy powers and break his fingers. Cause, that's what Big Brothers do." Adrian winks.
Mariscka truly smiles at Adrian as he talks, reaching forward to scoop up some more ice cream, before kissing him n the cheek. "Tu esti fratele meu de suflet. Te iubesc foarte mult.," she offers in Romanii, without bothering to translate.
Instead she nibbles on the ice cream a moment, before smiling again. "I will hold you to that. And yeah … I kinda freaked out on him once when he suggested cuddling and watching TV. Because… well … cuddling leads to roaming hands and all that. And … I need to make it to my sixteenth birthday … that's when my abilities will start to blossom into their full potential," she notes with a shrug. "I'm so glad you're my Big brother, you know? And I'm totally not intimidated by Violet," Mariscka says with a nod. "Just because you need someone who isn't."
"Whatever you just said," Adrian chuckles, "I hope it was a good thing." He pushes up to his feet, "I need to get going. I've gotta work at the Pharmacy tonight. You enjoy the rest of the ice cream."
"Before I go though," Adrian says with a laugh, "Cut Wil a break. Cuddling doesn't always lead to roaming hands. I think you're safe there. But, I will break his fingers if you need me to." He picks up his backpack and slings it over a shoulder, then grins, "And on that… how bout we do a double-date sometime? You, me, Wil, and Laird? Either out at the theatre or just over in the Rider Common… you think on it."
Mariscka blinks. "A date. A real one?" she asks, the thought obviously boggling the mind. "Well… um, yeah, I'll think on it. OH! And you tell the folks at the pharmacy hi for me, will you?" she asks, smiling. "And if you want, gimme a call, I'll come by and hang during the last bit of your shift."
Mariscka smiles then ducks her head. "Oh yeah, it was a total compliment. The best one I could give," she offers, before digging into the ice cream. "Okay, cut Wil a break. Will do. Mind if I tell him you said you'd break his fingers if he tried anything?" she asks, looking up with a wink. "Be safe, Ade. And … I'm happy for you."
"Yeah, a real one," Adrian says, grinning from the doorway. He nods, "I'll tell 'em and I might take you up on that hanging out bit." He rakes a hand through his hair and chuckles. "You can tell him that, sure," Adrian says. Though he doesn't add the part about 'if he breaks your heart, I'll break his face' because that wouldn't be nice. Ahem. The dark-haired boy smiles and to the observant eye lifts off the ground about two inches. He waggles his eyebrows. "Thanks Mari. I'll catch you later."
And, walking on air, literally, Adrian closes the gypsy's door behind him and heads out.
