It Becomes So Clear;; (Jared)

[MASLYNN LIA ROY]

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The afternoon was sunny, cheerful. The sun was bright and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It wasn't altogether that hot, though, thanks to the breeze.

Massy decided that she was getting far too stressed out with her school work and it wouldn't be such a bad idea to go and take a walk. So, halfway through her English report, she put her stuff away and put her shoes on to go outside. She smiled when the sun hit her face; it had a sort of soothing quality to it. She felt much better almost instantly.

Massy walked slowly, taking in all of the scenery on her way to one of the paths through the forest. She thought that it all seemed a bit fairy tale, really, and then laughed at how ridiculous it was that she was so easy to accept the idea of so many people with strange powers, but a forest was fantastical to her. She covered her mouth quickly, stopped, and looked around for someone. There was no one that she could see, so she went back to walking. She was really beginning to sink into her happy place when she noticed someone on a bench a little ways ahead of her. She stopped walking and cocked her head to the side curiously. She wasn't close enough to see who it was very clearly, and she was thinking that she should turn around and retrace her steps, take a different turn and leave this person to their lonesome.

Just before she did that, however, she thought she recognized the back of the stranger's head. She took a few dainty, tentative steps forward and was thankful that dancing had given her light feet when she didn't make any sound. After a while, she was sure that she'd been right; that was definitely Jared. Massy stopped walking again and brought her hand up to her mouth to bite down on the tip of thumb. Recently, Massy had been thinking that Jared was really cute, and sweet, and funny. Thinking those things about a friend (classmate?) sort of complicated things.

Massy considered, again, turning around. But...it was just Jared. What was the worse that could happen? He didn't like her back? Massy's been through that enough times that it wouldn't bother her too much, and she really didn't think Jared would be the type to make things awkward between them because of that. It took another few seconds, after her speech, for Massy to actually work up the courage to go over to him.

The only thing she could think about before she sat down next to him on the bench was how impossibly long the walk seemed. "Hey," she greeted with a smile. "What're you doing out here all by yourself?"

Start small, Massy. You can do this.

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[JARED LIAM ROBINSON]

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Good gracious, how could anyone study when the weather outside was so nice? Jared sat at his desk, looking out his window with a pencil in his hand. He had an English paper due, not to mention an SAC reflection. But it was hard to study when the blue sky beckoned you so often. He looked up once more from his paper to the temptation that lurked just outside the dorm room. Ah forget it. He will just go out for an hour. Relax a bit, unwind from all the stress. He looked at his clock and made a mental note to be back in less than forty five minutes.

He stretched and embraced all of the warmth and sunlight that seemed to greet him as soon as he stepped outside of the building. It was a glorious feeling, one unmasked by any other. But where to go? He needed a quite place, a place to just think about his life. Around him were paths leading to the school, to the beach and to the forested area. Yes, the forest sounds really good right now. There was nothing more than he loved than smelling the sweet pine and the soft ground beneath his feet. Not to mention he would very content spending a few minutes on a bench, under the shade of several trees.

Carefully, he made his quietly into the middle of the forested area, where he made himself comfortable on a bench. The legs were already partially covered in moss, a real sign of how well this forest thrives on the island. A soft smile appeared on his face. Jared closed his eyes momentarily and allowed himself to clear his mind and rest.

But out of the corner of his ear, he heard someone. His eyes flickered open and he looked toward the source. Oh, it was just Massy. He straightened up, a bit embarrassed that she had caught him resting on a bench in the forest. "Uhh ... just doing some thinking." he replied, as he rubbed his left eye gently. "Come sit, I could use the company." he smiled, cheekbones framing his deep, deep dimples.

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[MASLYNN LIA ROY]

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Massy gladly accepted his invitation to sit down. She was truly beginning to love this school. The kids were all very friendly, for the most part, and they were all making it so much easier for her to emerge from her little cocoon bit by bit. Plus, the island truly was gorgeous. She couldn't get enough of the scenery.

Massy laid her palms down flat on the stone bench and stared straight ahead, smiling dreamily. She loved the way the sun was filtering through the leaves, making the greens and golds and oranges melt together. She couldn't help relating it to a sort of slow dance to a soft, melodic humming. Although Massy was a bit more inclined towards the heart-pounding, booming, thundering sort of music like the kind she might have listened to back home to calm her nerves, she thought that this imaginary beat could quickly become a favorite of hers.

She noticed that it had been silent for quite some time, maybe just long enough to make things a little awkward. Then again, she figured that nature filled the silences well enough that normal circumstances didn't really apply here. "It's crazy pretty out here," she commented airily. "I'm used to the city, you know, so all of the nature has been really nice." Massy was thankful for cleaner air and a wider expanse for inspiration. She had decided, about a week into the semester, that she would never live in a city again if she could help it. She found the city's buildings, crowds, and traffic more constricting than the easiness of nature under mild conditions.

Sometimes, she had to remind herself that she had room to breathe here amongst all the books and training and stimulating new concepts. She felt sort of like a newborn, when they're first brought home and they're chubby head darts around as quickly as their brand-new muscles will let them, trying to take in everything at once; the glaring television, the smiling adults, the sticky toddlers, and the confused children. It was all a little surreal. She wondered if she would ever get used to it; maybe breaking out of routine was good for her.

"So, what's new?" That was a normal thing to ask people, right? Massy felt like she had been saying all the wrong things lately, and right now she really, really needed to be normal. Or, normal under the current circumstances, anyway. Funny, she thought. I keep forgetting that there's even anything abnormal about all of us. That's good, right?

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[JARED LIAM ROBINSON]

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Jared was happy to see Massy accept his invitation to sit. Even though he didn't know it, Massy helped balance his wild, childish self while still allowing him to act like himself. It was something about her innocence that really got to him. Regardless, he enjoyed her company and wouldn't mind spending a few minutes with her in the forest.

As she sat, Jared closed his eyes once more and let the sun warm up his face. It felt so good. He was tempted to make the sun shine brighter , with his power, but he figured that it may make the moment seem artificial. Instead, he greeted the sun as warmly as it was treating him. Around him chirped birds and the leaves rustled far above him where the wind could reach. There was nothing like the forest.

To be honest, Jared didn't seem to feel the moments that passed. He could sit out here all day, but he had errands to run and people to see. Maybe in the future, or even over this summer, he'll make himself comfortable in one of the many sheds that hid themselves in the forest. Yes, he would do that once there was more time. He nodded in agreement to Massy's comment. "I know what you mean. Sometimes the city is just ... too loud. I like the forest a lot."

Although he loved the forest so much, he couldn't see himself living here long term. Sure, a few weeks, but it would drive him nuts. He kind of liked the bustling and hustling of the city life. It was fun to live a packed, busy life... but it was still priceless to go to the forest and unwind.

His thoughts were interrupted when Massy asked him if anything was new. He smiled a little and let out a scoff, "Huh, even though we're so special, we still act normal, hey? Uhh ... but really, nothing. Just you know. The usual drama." Jared leaned forward, intertwined his fingers and rested his elbows on his knees. "What about you? Anything new?" he grinned, looking back over his shoulder to Masslynn.

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[MASLYNN LIA ROY]

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There's just something about this moment that had Massy feeling a little reckless. Reckless for Massy, anyway. She's always been pretty cautious, actually. She follows all the rules.

One of the things that surprised her about this place was the amount of rules; there were actually more here than back home. Of course, her mom had been pretty liberal. But there was still school and the law and the facts-of-life sort of rules. Massy stuck to each one of them. She thought it made her sort of boring, really. She'd been working on being less strict with herself, but her plan wasn't too successful, really.

Well, at least she'd taken a break before finishing her homework for once. That was something.

She turned her attention to Jared, her blue-green eyes following him lazily. Mmmhm. I never want to live in the city again after this," she mused. "It's too..." Her voice trailed off briefly and she looked around again, searching for the right word. She had been going to say intimidating, but that didn't sound quite right. ". . . cage-like. If that makes sense. She knew that wasn't quite what she was looking for, but it served its purpose.

She smiled, wrapping her arms around her middle and looking up at the sky. "I guess we've all just adapted." Adaptation was one of man's best abilities, Massy thought.

Massy pressed her lips together and wrinkled her nose in thought. "Hmm. Nothing really interesting. I've just been thinking a lot lately." A part of her wanted him to ask her what she'd been thinking about, because, of course, she was referring to him. Another part of her, however, was infinitely afraid of saying anything about it. She knew herself well enough to know that it probably wasn't anything serious--she was always falling for guys she was better off staying friends with. But she couldn't help it; the former part of her was much more dominant. She decided that if he didn't ask her what (who, really) she'd been thinking about, then she wouldn't say anything. (She probably would.)

But then again, she was young. What did she have to lose, right?

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[JARED LIAM ROBINSON]

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A child-ish grin appeared on Jared's face. "Haha, yeah I know what you mean..." his voice trailed off as he looked up toward the tree tops in time to see a flock of birds fly by. They were so magnificent. If he hadn't had his power to manipulate light, he'd probably want to be able to fly. There was something about it that looked so majestic and graceful, which he was far from.

In fact, people described Jared's walk as more of a ... strut. He supposed that he walks naturally, but many say he saunters like he's always on a runway. Makes sense right? With his good looks? The only thing that makes up for his handsome build was his conceited nature. Admittedly, Jared does believe he knows best and does his best. It's true that he wants to change that, but it's so much easier to be yourself. That's why he may come off a bit immature or kiddish, but he is already far from it.

Not only did the forest help Jared feel sacred, it also reminded him of all his books. Whenever he thought of the forest, he is reminded by his favourite books that took place in the forest. His ability to manipulate light had made him able to read at night ... and he did it for most of his childhood. That was how he lived, how he socialized. Books were what he breathed, lived, loved, other than Nina.

"W-What 'bout?" he said, snapping himself back into reality. Jared had found himself thinking about Nina once more and tried to shake the thoughts. Lately, he's been thinking a lot about her ... and he was sure that she was thinking about him. "There's been something on my mind too." he said, looking at Massy with undivided attention.

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[MASLYNN LIA ROY]

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Massy is pretty young, so she hasn't had much time to be in a relationship with anyone yet. Not a serious one, anyway. She's only ever dated one boy in her life, and that was for maybe three and a half months collectively. They broke up a lot, because Lane kept needing breaks before he decided that he was still head over heels in love with her and could, once again, put up with her.

It took Massy a while to realize that that wasn't a healthy relationship and that if Lane had really loved her, he would have overlooked the stranger things about her and would have tried to make things work. Of course, she was only in the eight grade at the time, so maybe love was an off chance to begin with. But Lane was cute and he was nice to her and there was just something about him. It seemed to Massy that no one really knew what that something was, and that she should write a book about it if she ever found out what, because people needed to know. She also decided that there had to be more than one type of Special Somethings because Lane definitely did not have The Special Something that she was looking for.

Maybe Jared had it. Or maybe he had someone else's The Special Something. With that thought, Massy met Jared's look which seemed sort of intense, and started to rethink her determination to tell him she liked him. What if there was already someone that had a Special Something for Jared? Or someone else found one in him.

Maybe everyone had a Special Something, but certain Somethings were only Special Somethings to the right person. Or something.

Oh, well. What's the worst that could happen?

Massy bit her lip and looked away, fighting hard to keep her cheeks from coloring. They did anyway. "I was just thinking that you're really cool, you know. And-and cute. And stuff." If Massy was awkward before, this was nothing. How did normal people do this without freaking out? She knew they did. She'd seen it. How do they keep from getting nervous in these situations? She would never understand.

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[JARED LIAM ROBINSON]

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Jared couldn't help but smile. She was thinking about him? He was expecting more of answer like, 'You know, school.' or perhaps 'You know, life.' But about him? Jared was unsure to feel flattered or to feel ... awkward about it. He supposed he's never really had anyone tell him that they were thinking about him. All his life, relationships were exciting, but brief. Other than Nina, he couldn't really see himself with anyone else, either.

He sat there, like any old awkward teenage boy, unsure of what to say. Jared sat up straight, breaking the eye contact. "Oh." was all he could manage to say. He fidgeted with sweaty hands on the end of his shirt. Did she like him? What was he supposed to think?

There was some kind of unwritten rule in the high school world that if someone even showed a hint that they may like you, than you must absolutely like them back. There was little room for casual anything. Things like small notions were blown out of proportion, and that's how kids like them are able to 'date' for only hours. Because an hour in the high school world is like a whole week. Crazy, yes, but that was how it worked.

Now Jared was unsure if these feelings were genuine or were induced by his comment in the chat about him missing her. That was truly just a casual comment, that had blew up and was a source of teasing. Jared had just enjoyed her company online, as she seemed to balance out the craziness of the chat. Hopefully, none of them had taken it too far ...

"Thanks..." he added, looking down at their hands nervously but then quickly looking back up to her for some guidance on what to say next.

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[MASLYNN LIA ROY]

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Maslynn watched his reaction carefully and was almost relieved by it. He wasn't being mean or anything, which was always good. Plus, he hadn't said anything to make the conversation truly awkward; this conversation would not be hard to steer back on track. In retrospect, Massy wasn't even completely sure that she actually liked him. "You're welcome," she replied pleasantly. If she just acted like it was nothing, surely, it would go away.

Massy smiled uneasily and looked back up at the trees, rocking back and forth a few times. She cleared her throat. "So, anyway, what was it you'd been thinking about?" she asked. Sure, that wasn't exactly the reaction she'd been hoping for, but she can't say she exactly expected for him to leap with joy and proclaim his undying love for her; that sort of thing only happened in her silliest daydreams.

In all honesty, this form of rejection of sorts was one that Massy handled rather gracefully. In fact, she was probably better at handling the aftermath of this situation than any other social situation she was ever likely to be in on more than one occasion. She was used to it, really. Massy was always one to put a friendship on the line if it was very new and she and the other person were not-so-close for this sort of thing, because . . . Well, she wasn't really sure why. She just always had. It was probably just the hopeless romantic in her.

Massy's thoughts turned back to Jared, and she wondered what he had been thinking about. Maybe school work or his family or something mundane and general like that. Maybe he'd had a fight with a friend (though his mood, she noticed, had been much too positive for something like that when he mentioned it).

Against her better judgment and moral standing, Massy closed her eyes so she could see what Jared's mood was. She saw seven other shimmery, colorful blankets in her mind's eye, but was able to zero in on the two that hovered next to one another. She recognized her own, because it was small and she couldn't reach it with the hand in her head that she used to mess with other people's moods. In Jared, she saw tell-tale signs of uncertainty. She didn't stay with the image long enough to observe much else, and her eyes flickered open again. The guilt had begun to set in; emotions are private. If people wanted her to know exactly how they were feeling at any given moment, they would carry around digital signs that detailed them for everyone to see.

Though, she could name a few people who really wouldn't need the signs, they way they acted.

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[JARED LIAM ROBINSON]

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A few moments passed and Jared looked back down at his hands. His nails were clean, shiny and healthy. Actually, he wasn't sure if that was good or bad... many people told him that girls didn't like a guy with perfectly manicured hands. And with that, he fidgeted with his nails to see if it would ugly-fy itself.

When the question arose about what he had been thinking about, Jared was a bit unsure on how to answer. Was he supposed to say something about her ... or, you know, about what he was actually thinking? And being a dude, Jared had to answer somewhat truthfully. "Um ... I've been thinking mostly about life, and-and my power and this one girl." his voice trailed off.

It was true, Jared had been thinking a lot about Nina lately. He wasn't sure why. I mean, who ever knew? Regardless, it didn't apply to him that when he mentioned that he was thinking about a 'girl' that Massy might have assumed it would have been her. Instead, Jared thought it was clear that it wasn't her and went back to fidgeting with his fingers. He glanced once at her, seeing that eyes were closed.

He was even more confused. Man, girls were confusing. He shrugged it off though, a feeling of uncertainty still lurking within his body. It wasn't that he didn't like Massy. On the contrary, Jared enjoyed Massy a lot, as so did the other students here on the island. She was the kind of young girl that everyone wants to take care of and nurture. It was her look innocence that urged everyone to preserve her and to make sure she is clear of harms way. In a way, it reminded everyone that they were all super heroes and there were people out there that needed to be rescued from forces of bad.

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[MASLYNN LIA ROY]

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Massy almost laughed at her own idiocy when he mentioned some other girl. There was never a doubt in her head that he didn't mean her. If he had, the emotions she had picked up on wouldn't have been close to uncertainty, she was positive. Mostly, Massy didn't want to let the possibility conceive its child in the more imaginative part of her mind. She had been down that road before, and it was not a pretty one. The pavement was made of over-analyzing and the resulting back-and-forth mayhem that it caused in her mind. The trees were stumbling and blushing mirror images of herself, and the end of it was a ruined friendship, elaborate just-casually-avoiding-you maneuvers, and awkward unavoidable run-ins. It was not a place she would like to end up at with Jared, especially considering this was a new school and all, and she would be here for the next four years or so taking classes with him.

The one thing about Massy's personality that counteracts her reckless romanticism is her ability to use logic and to think ahead in the most desperate of situations, regardless of what her heart was telling her. She was lucky, she supposed, though she could also say that it was one of the reasons she thought too deeply into things and was so terrible at the whole casual-admittance-of-attraction. She made a mental note not to revisit this anytime soon with anyone else.

"Typical teenage stuff, then," she said lightly. "With the added super power bonus, naturally." She flashed an amused smile, dragging her eyes back over to him. She personally hated it when someone else didn't look at her while she was having a conversation with them. It made her feel insecure and unsafe; she always assumed the person was hiding something. Technically, she was hiding something, but nothing sinister. Besides, the quicker things got back to normal, the quicker she could get over her embarrassment.

Massy bit her lip, but she couldn't help herself; she had to ask. Curiosity was getting the better of her. "Who's the girl?" She found it almost difficult to find the balance between a casual tone and a bitter, jealous one, though she didn't think she was either of those. Not really. "Does she go here?" The wings of Massy's imagination soared away on a wind thick with a tragic sort of romance in which Jared had fallen in love shortly before discovering his power, and once he told whomever about it, she was revolted by him and had cast him off like he were the scum of the Earth.

Though, a small part of her brain reminded her that it was much more likely that he was just crushing on one of his classmates. That, however, was a much less interesting story, and she cast it off to the side as though it were the scum of the earth.

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[JARED LIAM ROBINSON]

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A soft smile appeared on his face. "Yeah. Regular teenage, boy stuff." Jared was a bit confused, he had to admit. Usually people didn't ask him what was going on in his day, in his life really. They just all assumed he's doing pretty good; none of the real conversation stuff. It was refreshing though, he had only ever done this with perhaps his parents and Nate, surprisingly enough. Jared appreciated the effort and hoped Massy knew that.

But by the time Massy had asked him about who he was thinking about and if she went here, he couldn't help but pick up a bit of ... bitterness to her tone. Had he upset her? Drat, how did Jared have such a talent for doing that? He bit his lip in utter contemplation whether or not to continue. Doing so may lead to some ... fatal consequences.

In the end Jared tried to go with his gut and tell the girl the truth. After all, he didn't want their--or any--relationship to start off cloudy. "I've been thinking a lot about Nina." he said bluntly, clasping his hands together and looking toward the ground. Then, took a quick glance toward Massy to see if she disapproved.

Yet again, Jared found himself stumped with something to say. Like any guy, he wasn't one for talking. A moment of awkward silence had escaped them, and suddenly the oasis they had once created in the forest had mindlessly disappeared. With a vain attempt to continue the flow of conversation, Jared added, "But, it's probably not going to go anywhere." with a soft laugh.

'It's not going to go anywhere? Jared scolded himself in his mind. Did that mean he was thinking about Nina for no reason? Had he made the impression that he was just lusting over her body, and not really thinking about her as a person. Jared felt a little embarrassed. He knew that it wasn't interpreted that way, but he couldn't help but feel paranoid.

Great, now he was digging himself a hole. He was half tempted to leave her, but he knew that would be rude. Instead, Jared waited for a response from Massy, in hopes that she didn't find this conversation as awkward as he did.

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[MASLYNN LIA ROY]

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Massy decided that she would lay off of the whole expression of feelings thing for a bit. A good bit. She couldn't stand how awkward the atmosphere had gotten all of a sudden. Not that it hadn't been awkward before. It was just that now it was much more so. Maybe I should just never speak to people, she thought. Then I could be a lonely cat lady secretly making everyone feel happier from my lonely apartment. She knew, of course, that there was a very slim chance of that ever happening. But it was nice to think that she might ever possess that sort of will power, wasn't it?

Massy searched her memory for anyone named Nina. She remembered the name, but it did not resonate with a face for a while. She tried to think of people she'd seen hanging out with Jared, and that was when it came to her. His roommate. She'd met Nina before, once or twice. Only in passing. Massy just smiled. She didn't really know Nina so it wasn't like she could make judgments.

She tried not to let his second comment get to her. It still did, but she was going to pretend it didn't. She wondered what exactly that meant. It was such a vague comment. There were so many meanings it could have. Massy bit her lip and made circles in the dirt with her foot. "What's Nina like? I don't really know her." Massy wasn't exactly sure that that was an okay thing to ask, but she was proud of herself for how casual she sounded. Just curious. Maybe she did have some self control. Or something. Or maybe this wasn't affecting her as much as she thought.

Whatever it was, she didn't sound like a heartbroken idiot or anything, which was good. Massy kind of felt like she was scaling the side of a huge cliff and couldn't see how far she had to go to reach the bottom. It could be a few feet or a few miles. She just had to hang on tight and hope she didn't lose her footing.

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[JARED LIAM ROBINSON]

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Jared was unsure of the atmosphere that surrounded them. He was sure it was awkward, but the two seemed to be casual about it. At this time, he very much wished he had a different power than just to manipulate light. He watched as Massy made small circles in the dirt with her foot. Girls were so confusing ... what was she thinking?

At the topic of Nina, his ears had gotten a bit hot. This topic was easy for him to spit out information. "Uh... Nina is .... special. I've known her all my life. But, uh, it's only lately have I really been thinking about her. I dunno, a lot of people call her a bitch, and evil, but she just knows what she wants and will use her power to get it." his voice faded away as he talked. But he realized that Massy might be unaware of her power. So quickly, he added, rather loudly, "--She is able to hypnotize people, by the way... not in like a sexual way, but like literally. She's gotten pretty good at it, but before, when we were growing up, for example, she wouldn't be able to knock them out of their trance. So there are still people out there that are under her trance."

A moment of awkward silence had seemed to come between the two. This seemed to be happening too often. "I'll understand if you think she's .... er ... a bitch. But, I like her." he said, trying to break the silence once more.

There was something between Nina and Jared that did not want to commit. They know the ins and outs of each other, and yet, they don't seem to try anything other than sex and partying. It was purely a relationship of lust for now, and Jared was scared to lose it, if he tries to go the next level.b

He realized soon enough that the topics of conversation had mostly been about him and Nina. Jared tried to refocus the attention on her. Besides, girls liked talking right? And when boys listened to them? "What about you? Do you like anyone?" Jared looked away for a moment, as he asked the question. He wasn't exactly sure if that was something appropriate to ask. He supposed so, since Massy had asked him ... in an indirect way. Why were girls so good at that? Doing thing subtly or sneakily?

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[MASLYNN LIA ROY]

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Massy could feel the atmosphere growing a little bit lighter, then heavier, almost in waves. It was as though, she thought, Jared couldn't decide how to feel. That, or she was confusing her own emotions with his. Maybe even the mood of other interactions that were happening close by. Massie could never really tell unless she concentrated really hard. And even then, nothing was one hundred percent. Feelings, she'd learned, could be interpreted in one thousand different ways. It was really difficult to look into them in depth without becoming confused. That, she had always reasoned, was the purpose for the weird blankets she saw with their different shimmery panels and her ability to "zoom in" at will. She tried not to let it get to her, the uneven waves that were so obvious all of a sudden, but they were making it hard to concentrate on the conversation. Her ears were pounding in time to them.

She moved her foot now, sort of like a seismograph, making marks in the dirt that recorded the waves as she listened to Jared speak. When she could go no farther on one line, she started above it. She was halfway through the third line, about as far out as she could reach with her foot, when the waves stopped and everything locked into one density. She looked up, smiling briefly.

"I'm sure people just don't take the time to see what you see in her, you know?" Massy couldn't help comparing the situation to her relationship with her mother. Where most people saw her mother as uptight, bitter, and strict, Massy could see the ropes holding up a stainless steel defense, guarding a sweet, passionate young woman who had given herself away to hardship at the hand of an abusive husband and the mixed emotions she had experienced at his loss. Massy loved a part of her mother that she rarely got to see. She wondered if it was like that for Jared with Nina.

When Jared explained Nina's power, Massy bit her lip. She knew that everyone's powers were complicated and came with their own drawbacks--a lot of people even experienced more drawbacks with their powers than they did benefits. But she knew how a power could effect a person's personality very dramatically. She often wondered who she would have been if it weren't for her ability. Probably a lot less nervous; much more strong-willed and less accepting and forgiving. "Sounds dangerous," was all she said. She didn't exactly mean that it was dangerous for those who fell under Nina's trance; more so for Nina herself, but Jared could take it however he wanted to.

Massy laughed at his next comment. "I don't know her well enough to really say so. I'm sure she's lovely if you get to know her on a personal level." Massy would bet anything that it wasn't very easy to get to know Nina. Even though Jared hadn't said very much about her, Nina felt like someone Massy had met and talked to already.

However, her mind steered directly away from Nina with the next thing he brought up. She was thankful for her long hair, so she could bend forward a little to hide how pink her cheeks were. Her mind was a raging battle in itself. To awkward, or not to awkward. She knew that Jared was into Nina, so he wouldn't be into her. Besides, hadn't they already been through this? Well, sort of. All she had really succeeded in doing earlier was calling him cool, really.

She realized she had taken way too long to answer, and had to come up with something soon. "Uh, not really, I guess. I mean, I like you, but--Oh!" Massy had been talking way too fast to pay too much attention to what she was saying. Her eyes got big, focused on her Very Interesting feet and the dirt beneath them, and she brought her hand up to her mouth. She made a fist and bit down on her index finger, then pulled it away and looked up again. "I definitely did not mean to say that." But it was too late. The damage was already done, she knew.

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