Rhiannon covered her mouth, discreetly holding in a laugh when Angel shot Devon a strange look. Afterwards, Angel got a thoughtful look on his face, not really looking away from Devon. Rhiannon checked her Rolex for the time, noticing that the whole Committee should have been there five minutes ago.

And she hated when people were late. But, then again, she couldn't say anything, since she was late half the time. Tuning in to what Angel said at the last second, she laughed, smiling. "I thought I always saw someone hiding in my closet when I was brainstorming. And, don't worry, you'll think of something." She smiled, reaching over and holding Angel's hand.

"Angie!" Damn. Rhiannon absolutely hated Ariel's squeaky little voice, clenching her hand into a fist. It was sad though, because Ariel was actually a really sweet girl. Ariel giggled, practically running towards Angel. They had started dating the day after Thanksgiving, at least that's what Rhiannon thought.

Rhiannon raised her eyebrow at the groan that came from Angel's lips as soon as he saw who it was, her hand never moving from his. Of course, she wouldn't think Ariel would mind. She and Angel were only friends after all.

Ariel smiled and almost tackles Angel from his chair. "Nice to see you to Arie." He said in a well acted happy voice. He realized that his hand was still locked in Rhiannon's hand. A small blush grew on his face, but he kept his gaze at his girl friend. At least if people saw his blush they'd think he's blushing because of Ariel.

Ariel smiled. "Oh my god!" She said in a perky tone and smiled at her boyfriend. "I can't believe you're int he committee too! This is going to be so much fun decorating and stuff with my Angie."

Angel chuckled. "I told you I was in the committee last night didn't I?" He said with a small grin. "Yeah...real fun, dear..." He said smiling at her.

Ariel giggled and then saw Rhiannon, as if she just realized that the girl was beside Angel. "Oh, Hi there Rhiannon." She said with a soft smile. "I heard you're one of the girls trying to be Miss Holiday cheer. But then again, who doesn't know?" She giggled again lacing her fingers with Angels as if saying that he was hers. "How's the voting so far?" She asked trying to act like she's not bothered by Angel's other hand.

(Im ganna head off to ben now :3 night)

Devon's head was whirling at all the activity, all the holiday cheer, and now this-- a painfully perky girl who appeared to be, what, Angel's girlfriend? It caused Devon a small spark of amusement that Angel didn't seem terribly thrilled to see Ariel, that his hand was still encased within Rhiannon's, and that everyone was pretending it was normal. Well, he thought, if he had to be on this ridiculous committee, at least there would be no shortage of entertainment.

But the more he learned about the Miss Holiday Cheer competition the more he was convinced it was an utterly needless, absurd tradition. The petty rivalries of girls who wouldn't sit at the same table, the prize money in the hands of one silly seventeen-year-old girl... The intricate dance at work here was mind-boggling to the young man who maintained at all costs pragmatism. And that it was all done in the name of Christmas (and wasn't this supposed to be about Jesus or something?) was just too much. And he could endure silence no longer. What a ludicrous holiday.

"From what I can tell," Devon spoke lazily, directing his words at Ariel without an pretense of preamble or introduction, "the voting seems to be going in every bit the absurd fashion it's expected to. Girls are poaching votes left and right. Your man here was attacked by that girl," he flapped a hand at Ashley, "though I daresay his vote is safely in the hands," he barely bit back a smirk as he glanced at the held hands of Angel and Rhiannon, "of Rhiannon here."

"For my part, I'm still trying to determine whether voting is even worth it. The whole thing wreaks of forced jollity."

Rhiannon didn't want to say anything at the painful expression that Angel hide under his fake smile. She noticed that his girlfriends kept getting perkier and perkier. Really, Angel? Ariel looked over at Rhiannon as if she had just realized that she was sitting there. Right in front of her face. Which means it would take her a while to figure out that Angel didn't exactly enjoy her company.

Her smile was soft, and Rhiannon smiled right back, wondering if she would say anything about Angel's free hand. She obviously took the other hand to stake her claim on the poor boy. Rhiannon shrugged, choking out a friendly laugh. She couldn't help but wince at the girl's strange giggles.

"I don't actually know how the voting is going. Since I can't really vote." She kept that same smile, glancing over at Angel. Her eyes moved towards Devon when he opened his mouth. Her eyes widened at what he said, then narrowed, and widened again.

"From what I can tell," Devon said the words lazily, "the voting seems to be going in every bit the absurd fashion it's expected to. Girls are poaching votes left and right. Your man here was attacked by that girl," he flapped a hand at Ashley, "though I daresay his vote is safely in the hands," he smirked slightly, looking down at the interwined hands of Rhiannon and Angel, "of Rhiannon here."

Hearing those words, Rhiannon tore her hand away from the green-haired boys. She pursed her lips and opened her mouth to retort, but none of the words she was thinking would come out. Her eyes were cast downwards, to her fiddling thumbs and she wished, just wished that there was someway she could get out of the meeting.

The student boy president stood and took the small microphone into his hands. "I just got a text message from the Committee Chair, and she will not be arriving. The meeting is now moved to tomorrow." Rhiannon jumped up with joy, then frowned when she realized what he had just said.

"But tomorrow's my birthday. I can't go to a meeting on my birthday.." She murmured to herself.

Angel glared at Devon for a moment. He wanted to say something to somehow defend his best friend. But Areil gripped his hand tighter as if telling him to shut up. He hung his head for a second before smiling up at his girlfriend.

As much as he hated to admit, but Ariel seemed to be the one wearing the pants in this relationship. But then again he liked the girl, of course not as much as he liked Rhiannon, But he liked her more then the other girls he went out with. He decided to put up with her for a little longer.

He pulled his hand away when his best friend did, feeling a little sad. He still couldn't give up on the girl even though he wanted to.

He frowned a little when he heard the meeting was moved. "I'll be back babe.." He said to Ariel and walked over to the President. "hey man.." he said with a smile. "Maybe we can move the meeting two days from now..I won't be able to make it you see.." He looked at him with a pleading face.

Rhiannon smiled a little at how Angel walked over to negotiate with the Student Body President, changing the first meeting from her birthday to some other time. Looking over at Ariel, she raised an eyebrow, noticing the look she was giving her. Glancing down, Rhiannon grabbed her bags, waiting on Angel so that maybe they could ride home together.

She motioned to him that she'd be right back, changing back into the clothes she'd actually worn to school that day. Rhiannon rushed to the girl's restroom, going to the Handicap stall since it had the most room. She took off her shoes and her hoodie and the shirt under it. She put on her white People's Liberation t-shirt, and her red wedges, taking her hair out of the pony-tail and shaking it out so that it lay straight down.

Rhiannon walked back into the meeting room and smiled.

From a corner of Angel's eye he saw Rhiannon leave the room with her bag. He smiled at her knowing that she'll be back in a while. He then turned his head back to the Precident. "C'mon, I'm apart of the decorations, I can't miss this meeting. And all the more I can't come tomorrow."
"WHy exactly?" He asked the green haired man.
"It's my mom's birthday. I can't miss that or she'll kill me..."All that acting lessons he took with Rhiannon payed off after all.
"Well..." The President said thinking about it for a moment. "Alright I guess. Everyone, the meeting will be moved two days after today. Don't be late!"

Angel smiled. "Thanks man." He said walking back to the two girls with a smirk on his face. "You're welcome." He smiled at his best friend before having Ariel putting her hands around him.

"So are the tree of us celebrating Rhiannon's birthday" She giggles happily.

Angel looked at Rhiannon as if asking if it's alright to bring the perky girl along.

"You, my darling, are amazing." Rhiannon laughed, just about to give Angel a hug before Ariel stepped up and wrapped her greedy little hands around him. And when she asked if the three of them were going out to celebrate, she nearly choked. She shot Angel a quick look, and frowned. 179 days a year, she could handle Ariel. Just not on this one day.

And then she caved when Ariel gave her a look. "Sure." She murmured, trying her best not to retch and complain to Angel. After all, that was his new girlfriend. Sadly enough, his best friend had to deal with it.

( Sorry about the short post ! )

"I think that's my cue," Devon said, hauling his lanky frame to his feet. He had watched them play the Student Body President, had watched them twist a schedule to meet their needs, had watched the three of them in their strange dance of sexual tension, but this latest was too much: he actually found himself feeling badly for Rhiannon, for the girl who looked so much more human and sympathetic out of her ridiculous holiday garb, who now had to spend her birthday with someone she clearly wasn't overly fond of.

Devon rather enjoyed birthdays. Not necessarily his own (it was often lost in the hubbub of Christmas-- he had been born December 18th), but the idea of it was rather lovely-- a day to celebrate a specific person, a holiday in their honor, a day they didn't have to share or adhere to a litany of stupid traditions. A birthday was one's own and should be spent however one pleased, or so Devon maintained. Birthdays were freedom. Except, it seemed, for Rhiannon.

"I guess I'll see you guys in a couple of days," he said, slipping a thumb into the front pocket of his jeans, hanging there like an ornament hook. And then, surprising no one more than himself, he swiveled his head to look at Rhiannon full-on, catching her eyes with his own: "And happy birthday." And what's more, he seemed to mean it. But before this could be categorized in any way as a moment, he turned around, long strides carrying him toward the hall's doorway.

Rhiannon had nearly forgotten about Devon, surprised when he spoke. She turned around, rubbing one of her arms. It appeared he'd been watching the whole thing go down. Her, complaining about how she couldn't make it to the meeting tomorrow; Angel, begging with the Student Body President and then lying to him; and Ariel, just pining for attention and permission to come with them on her birthday.

Her mind flew back to thinking about how to get out of seeing Ariel on her special day. What would the three of them do anyways? She'd just have to watch agonizingly as Ariel threw herself at Angel. Perhaps she'd play sick, or just make plans with someone else? Rhiannon shook her head, knowing there was no way out of the mess she'd made.

"I guess I'll see you guys in a couple of days," Devon's voice startled her again, and she took a step towards him unknowingly. Her eyes flicked down to see his thumb going inside the pocket of his jeans and she looked back up to see his back, walking away from her. When he turned around, she smiled, wondering if he would say something kin to 'Nice meeting you', or maybe, 'I'd like to see you again sometime.'

Instead, he said, "And happy birthday". For a moment, they stood there staring at each other. "Thank you." She murmured softly. He turned back again and took long steps towards the door. "Wait!"

Pulling her bags along with her, she walked up to him quickly, trying not to waste his time. "Maybe you'd like to come with us, tomorrow? For my birthday. I'd, uh, like it if you came." Rhiannon didn't want to seem desperate, but she was. She didn't want to spend her birthday with the lovebirds. "We might all go on a carriage ride around the city, and I really don't want to be alone with them..It'd be awkward."

She smiled.

At the sound of her voice, the called "Wait!" after him, Devon's chin dropped to his chest. Damnit. Why? What now? Was he about to be punished for his momentary kindness? Had it been taken as a sudden outpouring of Christmas joy? What did she want now? But he turned around, so slowly, trying to keep his face free from the annoyance he was preemptively experiencing. He was certain he was about to face a barrage of holiday-related pleas-- would he at least think about voting for her for Miss Holiday Cheer?

"Maybe you'd like to come with us, tomorrow?" she asked him, her bag slung over her shoulder in a way Devon rather liked. "For my birthday. I'd, uh, like it if you came. We might all go on a carriage ride around the city, and I really don't want to be alone with them...It'd be awkward."

The corners of Devon's eyes crinkled in something like amusement as she made her offer-- or was it a plea? This side of her, this unsure side dressed in a T-shirt, endeared Rhiannon to him, softening Devon just enough for him to offer her something very like a smile. "That would be awkward," he granted her as he mulled over her invitation. Did he want to attend a birthday party for a girl he barely knew? Not really, and especially not if it involved a carriage ride. But did he want to force her to spend her birthday as a third wheel on an awkward could-be date? Probably not. And social grace had been drilled into Devon since his first RSVP to a classmate's birthday party at age four. ("But I don't like them!" he had wailed as his mother shoved his arms into a tiny suit coat. "That doesn't matter. You have been invited, and so you'll go. And be sure to compliment Jake's mother on her new living room set.")

"Sure, I'll go." Devon surprised himself with the ease of his response. "It could be fun. And it'll give me some time to figure out just how that relationship works," he glanced past Rhiannon toward the couple they'd left in the hall. "Where should I meet you?"

He smiled at her, well it wasn't technically a smile, but that's what she took it as. Devon agreed with her about how awkward it would be to spend her birthday with Ariel and Angel, alone, in a carriage or a limo or whatever her mother picked out to drive them to the movie theatre. Rhiannon smiled, hoping he'd say yes.

He looked like he was actually thinking about going with them, so she'd leant in, bubbling with anticipation. She raised an eyebrow, waiting for his response. "Sure, I'll go." Those words nearly sent Rhiannon sky high. Now she wouldn't have to worry about being the only person at her own party that didn't exactly like Ariel."It could be fun. And it'll give me some time to figure out just how that relationship works," Devon nodded towards the two lovebirds, hugging behind them in the hall.

"Where? Uh, maybe I can call you about it tonight. Since my mother made all the plans. So, um, your number?" Rhiannon dug through her black purse, trying to find her phone when she came across a pin. 'Vote Ashley for MHC!', it said, so she threw that in a nearby trash can. Her Droid Eris peeked out from under her make-up bag, so she grabbed it and pulled it out, looking back at Devon.