Thayer's impromptu photo shoot of Jenny is perhaps the most blatant show of his affection yet, although the two of them are perhaps so blinded by their own crush that they can't see the feelings in the flash of the camera and Thayer's affectionate attention to detail. Behind them, the announcement that the dance is soon beginning is made. Keevan scans the crowd to try and pick out every new match that is dancing together tonight. Some of them are just friends joking around, some have simply grabbed the person nearest to them because they desperately want to feel truly included in the basically meaningless tradition.
Keevan is more interested in those who are nervously asking a crush to dance, or who are pointedly dancing with someone other than their significant other. The making and breaking of a couple is the most interesting part, to the young writer, with the rest of it often just feeling like fluff and filler. Of course, having never succeeded in a relationship for more than a few weeks, he hardly has an experienced approach to relationships. Keevan tends, instead, to fall for people he can't have, pine for three months or so, and then move on to another person just out of reach. He's too much of a romantic to take part in real romance. And yet, not so much of a romantic that he isn't interested in bringing the private out to the public. A celebration of human interaction, he would call his love for gossip. As a writer, he's always been good at sugarcoating.
"Why don't you two break tradition for once and go dance as a duo?" Keevan smiles at his own suggestion, giving Thayer a meaningful look that he believes to be subtle but is in fact quite transparent.
"After all, this may very well be Thayer's last summer here, right? Oh, lord, I think I may make myself cry thinking of that," Keevan mocks wiping a tear from his eye, but the thought of Thayer's graduation does bring him genuine pain. What would he do without his roommate and best friend? What if he gets bunked up with some obnoxious busybody his senior year? Certainly two of those in one room would become incredibly grating.
Jenny has a similar thought, challenging them all to a race to the dance floor. Keevan laughs as she darts off, and as soon as she's out of earshot looks over at Thayer and gives him an encouraging nudge. "No dancing as a group for this song, big guy. I want to see hands around waist, with at least two feet of space in between you. Wouldn't want to feel too intimate, would you?" He gently pushes Thayer forward so that the ginger will be the closest behind Jenny. Keevan, for his part, hangs back a few seconds and winks at Drake who is just as aware of the situation as he is.
Emerson, thankfully, is pulled out of her little moment of melancholy by a friendly figure appearing and giving her a much needed hug. She looks over and immediately the wistful expression melts away to one of happiness at the sight of Mina, one of her absolute favorite people at this school. "Want to show those guys how it's really played?" Em follows the line of Mina's gesture to see a table at which a group of people are playing or spectating flip cup. Fond of any sort of competition, and at this moment very in favor of anything that leads to her having a few more drinks to chase away the sad nostalgia that is caught in her throat at the moment, Emerson gives Mina a tight squeeze back.
"That is exactly what I want to do right now- are you sure you weren't admitted to this school as a telepath? Have you been poking around my brain by any chance?" Em jokes. Of course, anyone who has seen any of Mina's art will know without hesitation why the talented artist was admitted to Laurel. As far as Em is concerned, Mina's art puts her inventions to shame. She could sit in a room and watch Mina work for hours without getting bored, which is saying quite a lot considering how Em tends to be quite antsy when not working on her own tinkering projects.
Em grabs Mina's hand and drags her over to the flip cup table, where they are met with more drinks and a cocky group certain of their victory. What they have not counted on are Em and Mina's fine motor skills, both quite adept for separate reasons.
The text from Kat buzzes in Em's pocket, but she is too caught up in the game to check the phone, quickly draining the drink in her cup and going into deep focus mode as she flips it over after three tries. She can normally do it in one, but Em would be lying if she said the alcohol was not affecting her in any way. Already her normally quick hands are starting to slow a little bit. In her attempt to cheer up, she had certainly had a few too many drinks. To be fair, most of the damage had come from that game of drunk Jenga earlier.
Kat arrives as Mina is taking her turn, giving Em the freedom to glance over at her friend and give her a large, almost sheepish smile. She already knows that Kat will be coming with a good-hearted scolding. "I'm not hungry! The poptarts were brown sugar, too, which makes them the least junk-foody of the poptarts. And I had two of them. Where's your drink? Oh, Kat, I'm going to feel silly if everyone else is more put together than me."
This, of course, is inevitable. Even when she is completely sober, most people seem to be better put together than Em.
Daniel raises an eyebrow at Petra's challenge, but it one that he feels completely comfortable rising to. As cold as he seems, Daniel is actually quite good at taking care of other people when they get a bit too sloppy. Perhaps it is from his efficient control that this skill comes from. There may not always be warmth in the way he takes care of people, but he will without fail have a drunk friend tucked into bed with a glass of water and two aspirins on their bedside table for them in the morning. He has had to do this for many friends in the past, especially since several in his clique have a penchant for partying.
Brooklyn demands a future dance out of Daniel, to which he responds with an indulgent smile and an expression that makes it clear he is quite confident he'll be able to get out of it later. For all of his skills and talents, Daniel has two left feet, and prefers to avoid showcasing the weakness to the entire school. The smile fades quickly as he catches sight of something.
Most people would not catch Brooklyn's sleight of hand, but Daniel has always been the one who sees through magicians' acts. Besides, he and Brooklyn have been friends for nearly as long as he has been at Laurel, and the young woman would have trouble slipping anything past someone who has paid such close attention to her for so long.
Of course, Daniel does not say anything, because he would never do such a thing in front of other people. Truth be told, he is unlikely to do it in front of even just Brooklyn. Daniel is less inclined towards a confrontational intervention and more someone who works through small, subtle acts. He makes a note to keep a close eye on Brooklyn and Petra alike tonight. As they both disappear into the crowd of dancers, he remains back, but still able to see them over the heads of others. He is a silent guard, a watchmen in the night. Perhaps the perceived positions of the group are inaccurate. It seems that Brooklyn and Petra are more like a pair of co-ruling queens, and Daniel the one who watches and protects them.
Keevan is more interested in those who are nervously asking a crush to dance, or who are pointedly dancing with someone other than their significant other. The making and breaking of a couple is the most interesting part, to the young writer, with the rest of it often just feeling like fluff and filler. Of course, having never succeeded in a relationship for more than a few weeks, he hardly has an experienced approach to relationships. Keevan tends, instead, to fall for people he can't have, pine for three months or so, and then move on to another person just out of reach. He's too much of a romantic to take part in real romance. And yet, not so much of a romantic that he isn't interested in bringing the private out to the public. A celebration of human interaction, he would call his love for gossip. As a writer, he's always been good at sugarcoating.
"Why don't you two break tradition for once and go dance as a duo?" Keevan smiles at his own suggestion, giving Thayer a meaningful look that he believes to be subtle but is in fact quite transparent.
"After all, this may very well be Thayer's last summer here, right? Oh, lord, I think I may make myself cry thinking of that," Keevan mocks wiping a tear from his eye, but the thought of Thayer's graduation does bring him genuine pain. What would he do without his roommate and best friend? What if he gets bunked up with some obnoxious busybody his senior year? Certainly two of those in one room would become incredibly grating.
Jenny has a similar thought, challenging them all to a race to the dance floor. Keevan laughs as she darts off, and as soon as she's out of earshot looks over at Thayer and gives him an encouraging nudge. "No dancing as a group for this song, big guy. I want to see hands around waist, with at least two feet of space in between you. Wouldn't want to feel too intimate, would you?" He gently pushes Thayer forward so that the ginger will be the closest behind Jenny. Keevan, for his part, hangs back a few seconds and winks at Drake who is just as aware of the situation as he is.
Emerson, thankfully, is pulled out of her little moment of melancholy by a friendly figure appearing and giving her a much needed hug. She looks over and immediately the wistful expression melts away to one of happiness at the sight of Mina, one of her absolute favorite people at this school. "Want to show those guys how it's really played?" Em follows the line of Mina's gesture to see a table at which a group of people are playing or spectating flip cup. Fond of any sort of competition, and at this moment very in favor of anything that leads to her having a few more drinks to chase away the sad nostalgia that is caught in her throat at the moment, Emerson gives Mina a tight squeeze back.
"That is exactly what I want to do right now- are you sure you weren't admitted to this school as a telepath? Have you been poking around my brain by any chance?" Em jokes. Of course, anyone who has seen any of Mina's art will know without hesitation why the talented artist was admitted to Laurel. As far as Em is concerned, Mina's art puts her inventions to shame. She could sit in a room and watch Mina work for hours without getting bored, which is saying quite a lot considering how Em tends to be quite antsy when not working on her own tinkering projects.
Em grabs Mina's hand and drags her over to the flip cup table, where they are met with more drinks and a cocky group certain of their victory. What they have not counted on are Em and Mina's fine motor skills, both quite adept for separate reasons.
The text from Kat buzzes in Em's pocket, but she is too caught up in the game to check the phone, quickly draining the drink in her cup and going into deep focus mode as she flips it over after three tries. She can normally do it in one, but Em would be lying if she said the alcohol was not affecting her in any way. Already her normally quick hands are starting to slow a little bit. In her attempt to cheer up, she had certainly had a few too many drinks. To be fair, most of the damage had come from that game of drunk Jenga earlier.
Kat arrives as Mina is taking her turn, giving Em the freedom to glance over at her friend and give her a large, almost sheepish smile. She already knows that Kat will be coming with a good-hearted scolding. "I'm not hungry! The poptarts were brown sugar, too, which makes them the least junk-foody of the poptarts. And I had two of them. Where's your drink? Oh, Kat, I'm going to feel silly if everyone else is more put together than me."
This, of course, is inevitable. Even when she is completely sober, most people seem to be better put together than Em.
Daniel raises an eyebrow at Petra's challenge, but it one that he feels completely comfortable rising to. As cold as he seems, Daniel is actually quite good at taking care of other people when they get a bit too sloppy. Perhaps it is from his efficient control that this skill comes from. There may not always be warmth in the way he takes care of people, but he will without fail have a drunk friend tucked into bed with a glass of water and two aspirins on their bedside table for them in the morning. He has had to do this for many friends in the past, especially since several in his clique have a penchant for partying.
Brooklyn demands a future dance out of Daniel, to which he responds with an indulgent smile and an expression that makes it clear he is quite confident he'll be able to get out of it later. For all of his skills and talents, Daniel has two left feet, and prefers to avoid showcasing the weakness to the entire school. The smile fades quickly as he catches sight of something.
Most people would not catch Brooklyn's sleight of hand, but Daniel has always been the one who sees through magicians' acts. Besides, he and Brooklyn have been friends for nearly as long as he has been at Laurel, and the young woman would have trouble slipping anything past someone who has paid such close attention to her for so long.
Of course, Daniel does not say anything, because he would never do such a thing in front of other people. Truth be told, he is unlikely to do it in front of even just Brooklyn. Daniel is less inclined towards a confrontational intervention and more someone who works through small, subtle acts. He makes a note to keep a close eye on Brooklyn and Petra alike tonight. As they both disappear into the crowd of dancers, he remains back, but still able to see them over the heads of others. He is a silent guard, a watchmen in the night. Perhaps the perceived positions of the group are inaccurate. It seems that Brooklyn and Petra are more like a pair of co-ruling queens, and Daniel the one who watches and protects them.