She did what?

[Bobby Drake]

(( The evening of CTF… some time after whatever transpires between Matty and Laurie… just in case Matty feels like talking about it. ))

Bobby’s muscles haven’t felt this sore in a very long time, which if nothing else teaches him something important: even though he doesn’t seem to feel muscle-strain or fatigue when in ice-form, extreme exertion still catches up to him eventually. Fortunately, his flesh-and-blood form still responds well to a long sauna and an even longer hot shower, and he’s feeling almost human as he returns to his room to get dressed for dinner.

He hasn’t seen Matthew since team selection, but is unsurprised to find his roommate in their room – after all, the kid is usually to be found in their room or the music room, when he’s not in classes – and he offers a quick wave and smile. "Hey, so, what happened to you during the game, man? Rumor is your own sister took you out… whatever happened to sibling loyalty, I ask you? Why, we ought to…"

He trails off as he actually sees Matthew’s face, sporting a kind of shell-shocked expression Bobby can’t readily identify. He can’t still be sulking about the game, can he? His roommate isn’t ordinarily the sort to get touchy over his score in Institute competitions… as competitive as the next guy, sure, but he doesn’t usually have much ego tied up in winning and losing. (Certainly not as much as Bobby does, a lack he has sometimes envied.) And he doesn’t actually seem upset, just… weird.

"Um… you OK, dude?"

[Matthew Craft]

The music’s still playing (and at least he had enough decency to wear his earphones this time (because he’d get slaughtered by all the poor Capture The Flag participants who were trying to sleep their injuries away)) but he had never really paid attention to what was playing. One of the earbuds has fallen out somewhere between the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack and the new instrumental Transformers theme, but again, Matthew hadn’t noticed.

He’s happy--actually beyond ecstatic. Maybe that’s why he’s trying to seek some calming sanity through counting the specks on the ceiling tiles. Unfortunately, he lost count right around the same time the earbud fell out, though Matthew’s pretty sure he was at about 1,276.

"Hey, so, what happened to you during the game, man? Rumor is your own sister took you out… whatever happened to sibling loyalty, I ask you? Why, we ought to…Um… you OK, dude?" Matthew blinks a few times, trying to rid the tile specks that have successfully burnt themselves onto his retinas, then looks at the freshly showered Bobby.

“Uh...yeah. Fine.” He reaches behind him and punches the stop button on his stereo and coils up the earphones. Matthew tries to remember what Bobby had asked him just moments ago when he was busy trying to figure out where he’d left off in his speck count. Sibling loyalty? He snorts. “That was Toni’s idea of a sympathy killing.” He feels the back of his head for the sore spot. Matthew is a little above average in terms of toughness, but his sister deals out one hell of a punch. “She figured that going after Laurie was more important than winning the game. Not that I disagree mind you, but I could have done without the headache.”

Giving up on trying to count the specks, he sits up and yawns, trying to get rid of a stubborn cowlick by running his hands through his hair. A flutter of jitteriness tingles his stomach as his earlier conversation (and subsequent kiss) with Laurie comes back in a bit of a rush. He tries to hide the content little smile, but realizes he’s failed miserably when sees his own happy grin in the mirror across the room.

[Bobby Drake]

> " That was Toni’s idea of a sympathy killing. She figured that going after Laurie was more important than winning the game. Not that I disagree mind you, but I could have done without the headache."

Bobby takes a moment to work through the implications of that answer… then waits a moment more for his roommate to continue… then another, just in case, before flopping down on his bed. "So? Don’t keep me in suspense… did you get the girl?"

Privately, Bobby suspects that’s entirely the wrong question… the impression he’s gotten from his conversations with both of them is that Matt is more of the ‘gettee’ than the ‘getter.’ Whereas Laurie seems too nervous to decide what she wants for breakfast half the time… or at least, to admit to it. So Bobby can certainly understand why Toni felt the need to intervene… though, admittedly, clubbing her brother over the head seems like the sort of matchmaking technique only Toni would come up with.

Still… it seems to have worked, if the goofy grin on his roommate’s face is any indication. He stops short of having the “tie-on-the-doorknob” conversation with Matt, though, remembering just how flustered Josh got when he raised the same question about Warren last year. Of course, in that case he had started out by walking in on them showering together, whereas Matthew and Laurie seem to be more at the holding-hands-and-sharing-a-soda stage… which, as Bobby thinks about it, seems like it might be something of a relief.

"Because you really don’t want me asking her for the details instead, do you?"

[Matthew Craft]

"So? Don’t keep me in suspense… did you get the girl?"

Matthew grins even wider then drops his head in happy defeat. “Yeah, I got the girl. More like she got me though. Safe to say I never saw that coming.” Never in a million years would he ever expect that Laurie would actually take the initiative and be the one to pull them into their relationship.

"Because you really don’t want me asking her for the details instead, do you?" Matthew laughs with a small roll of the eyes.

“Dude, like she’d actually tell you. Besides, there’s not really much to tell.” Not that it wasn’t as exciting as he’d made it to be, but the entire process of her admitting to him that she was ready and willing and him gleefully agreeing had been short, but undoubtedly sweet. “I guess Laurie finally realized that the whole pheromone thing isn’t really as bad as she thought. And she said that you had a bit of a hand in that. I owe you some thanks for that one.”

“Anyways,” As enthralled as he is, Matthew isn’t completely comfortable talking about his newfound relationship with Laurie. He’d rather keep it quiet until he knew that both of them were completely comfortable and ready to discuss it with their schoolmates. “Got a date for the dance yet?” He prods, letting Bobby know that it was his turn to dish out details of his romantic life.

[Bobby Drake]

> " Yeah, I got the girl. More like she got me though. Safe to say I never saw that coming"

Bobby nods as he kicks off his sneakers, unsurprised by that particular bit of news. "Yeah, no surprise there. Super-strong, super-tough, super-radioactive, musical genius, yadda yadda yadda… but super-perceptive about girls, not so much." He grins up at his roommate to make clear that the teasing is meant good-naturedly and adds "That’s great, though! Glad she finally, um…"

He hesitates for a moment, about to say “got over her anxiety about her pheromones” before realizing Matt might not appreciate discovering that he’d been a subject of conversation between him and Laurie, and stares at his socks embarrassed for a moment. "…glad she finally noticed what a great catch you are," he finally adds, unable to keep a vague apologetic tone out of his voice.

Bobby kicks himself mentally at his lame attempt at recovery. Real smooth, Drake – now he probably thinks you have a crush on him or something. Granted, Matt is one of the best-looking guys on campus, but he’s also fifteen, and straight, and fifteen, and, basically, ew. Oh well. It’ll work itself out. Trying to explain would just make the situation more awkward. Besides, it’s not like Matt’s oversensitive about that sort of thing – Bobby’d worried, when the new room assignments were announced, about whether the whole orientation thing would be an issue, but Matt seems to take it all in stride.

> " Dude, like she’d actually tell you. "

He smirks in response before leaning his head back on his pillow and staring up at the ceiling. "Ah, but you underestimate how easy I am to talk to… the very model of a sympathetic listener. I just nod my head and go ‘mm’ a lot. Girls like that." The truth is, Matt’s probably right; Laurie doesn’t talk very much. Or, rather, she talks a lot, but she doesn’t say very much. Her opening up to him about her feelings for Matt and her concerns about her powers, was probably more due to her anxiety about what had happened during the Invasion than anything else.

> " Besides, there’s not really much to tell."

"Mm-hmm… nothing at all, I’m sure, which is why you’re sitting here grinning like you’ve contracted an advanced case of rigor mortis, right?"

> " I guess Laurie finally realized that the whole pheromone thing isn’t really as bad as she thought. And she said that you had a bit of a hand in that. I owe you some thanks for that one."

Bobby’s actually a little surprised by that, and pleased at the recognition. He levers himself up on one elbow to look at Matt again, more seriously. "No worries. Consider it karmic payback for you being so cool about my lame power control for the last couple of months. Besides, that’s why we’re all here, right? To get used to having these powers, controlling them instead of letting them control us. I figure we’ve gotta help each other along, sometimes… can’t wait for your sister to do all the work." He grins and adds "Ask Laurie to tell you about the goldfish-murdering Sinatra fan some day."

> " Anyways… Got a date for the dance yet?"

"No, not really… I figure I’ve still got time." The truth is he’s been trying not to think about it for a while now. Hell, after that humiliating business with Hank’s incubus thing earlier, probably nobody’ll even want to be seen with me, let alone be my date. He returns his attention to the suddenly fascinating ceiling, hoping the subject will go away if he ignores it, but Matt keeps giving him that “your turn to dish, dude” look and he finally gives in. "Honestly? I don’t know who to ask. I mean, with my being Freaky McNutjob for most of the year between one thing and another, I dunno… feels like half the school just gives me weird looks in the halls when they see me. Truth is, you and Laurie are pretty much the only underclassmen I’ve gotten to know beyond waving at them in the halls. And…" he hesitates then, not sure how far he really wants to go into this with Matt, then shrugs. "well, after my whole fiasco with John I’m not sure I’m ready to start dating again. Which, yes, I know, is completely pathetic, it’s been over six months, but, well, there it is. So, I dunno… maybe I’ll just go stag. "