Time Warp: First Love (Open)

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Early 2011

The day was cool, but not terribly so. As such, fifteen-year-old Phoenix found himself out by the pond, sketching out a drawing of his boyfriend Rue. The older boy encouraged him to practice this skill that Phen had, which resulted in many drawings of Rue himself, but Phoenix thought he was getting better and better every day because of his support. In fact, if not for Rue, Phoenix likely would have drowned himself in his own dust as a way of coping, when he was taken away from home and ripped away from his other addictions. It hadn't been easy anyway, but his boyfriend was helping him with a lot of his demons.

He even looked healthier than he had before he'd come to Hammel. Phoenix was a little taller, and also a little more filled in, since he managed to eat on a regular basis, also with Rue's encouragement. His hair was shiny, his skin not as dull as it used to be, and there was a spark in his eyes that hadn't been there before he'd fallen in love.

And so, anyone who came across him would likely be met with a smile and a friendly, if shy, greeting. Phen still wasn't particularly social, but he wasn't against making new friends if they happened to stumble upon him.

[Kristina Novak]

A sixteen year old girl was walking around the pond just off of Hammel, her hands tightly gripping a new digital camera in her hand. Kristina had received it as a gift at Christmas, her parents mailing out the gifts for herself and her sister Sofie, who had graduated the year before and was going to the university here. An aching feeling lingered in her chest, as it had been at least a month since seeing her older sister. She thumbed the shutter speed dial, absentmindedly.

Kristina missed her family. She missed her mom and dad, who just didn't have the money to send her from Hammel to Boston at every break. She only saw them during the summer. Her sister's presence was spotty, and the Czech girl's social life was non-existent.

She found herself drawn to the still water, ready to spend the afternoon taking photos of Vermont's nature. Shivering, the skinny girl burrowed herself further into her jacket, finding someone else sitting by the water's edge. She quietly approached the boy, curiously looking down at the sketchbook from over his shoulder.

"That's... really good." Kristina commented, in a soft and shy voice. Normally, she would be fine just roaming around by herself... but the loneliness was overwhelming.

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Phoenix wasn't particularly expecting company since the pond was so far pretty quiet. He was beginning to peer at the koi in the pond and get ideas for his next sketch, since he was nearly finished with the one of his boyfriend. Koi really were pretty... All colorful and shiny and sinuous. Phoenix wished he'd brought his small collection of colored pencils along with him to try to capture their brilliance.

He was busy pondering whether it was worth the trip back when someone spoke behind him. Phen jumped, having not seen her approach, and nearly dropped a pencil in the water. "Oh, th-th-thanks," he stammered, blushing with embarrassment. "I'm s-sorry, I didn't realize you were there...!" Phoenix finally managed a tiny, shy smile and looked back at his paper. "It really doesn't do him justice, though. He's so much more beautiful in real life."

He peeked meekly up through his bangs at the slightly familiar girl. He was pretty sure he'd had classes with her, or something. "U-um, I'm Phoenix, by the way," he added quietly with a small, weak hand. When they shook, his grip would be weak. Even though he wasn't as sickly as he used to be, he still was frail by nature. Phen saw the camera in the girl's hands and softly asked,"Are you taking pictures?"

[Kristina Novak]

Kristina hadn't been expecting anyone else to be out by the pond, since it was on the cooler side outdoors. Although sometimes the silence was overwhelmingly lonely, it was what she knew and what she stuck with. She stayed among the shadows, watching her classmates laugh and interact with each other while she hid behind her sketchbook or camera.

Part of Kristina regretted saying something, bringing the attention to the boy who had been in his own world of drawing and art. She knew that when others interrupted her, she got a bit frustrated. Thankfully, he seemed to be taking it well and she let out a small sigh of relief. "Sorry for startling you there." The Czech girl mumbled out an apology, with a tight lipped smile. Which was a lot, from her. "I.. I just enjoy seeing other people's art." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Well, I think it's plenty good."

As soon as he said his name, Kristina nodded, recognizing Phoenix now. They had a few classes together, and she remembered seeing him around the school a handful of times. She tended to observe rather than interact. "Kristina." She greeted in return, taking his hand in hers with a solid, but not deathly, grip.

"Oh... yes." Kristina forgot about the camera in her hand. "It... I just got it as a gift from my family. I figured I would use it." Her smile widened, fractionally. "You... you into art as well?" She enjoyed sketching, but it came second to photography.

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Phoenix really didn't mind the interruption too much. Sometimes, when he shut himself in his room to sketch or zone out, he did it purposefully so people wouldn't bother him. Out here, while there weren't often many people, it was still public, so Phen had to expect it to some degree. "Oh, u-um, it's okay," he stammered, but at least he was smiling a bit. "I get spooked easily, honestly." It could have been a bird rustling in the bushes and he still would have gotten startled. Phen was still blushing, though. "I-I, um, I like t'look at people's art too, so I understand." He chuckled and dipped his head, cheeks turning even more red. "Th-thank you." He really should work on that stutter problem...

Phoenix thought he recognized the girl too, and when she introduced herself, he vaguely recalled her name from a class or two. "N-nice t'meet you, Kristina," he said politely. "I, um, I think we might have some classes together? You look, um, sorta familiar." Her handshake was firm, which made Phen feel like a wimp, but there was nothing new there.

"That's a... A very nice gift," Phoenix replied, feeling a slight pang of envy. His mother couldn't afford to give him such extravagant gifts, and he didn't talk to her much anyway. Still, he knew it was no fault of Kristina's, so he managed another smile. "I bet you're, um, puttin' it t'good use." He nodded and glanced at the water. "Yeah, I... I mean, it's pretty much the only thing I'm decent at, so I figure I should try t'keep it up," he mumbled, rubbing his arm. "A-anyway, what've you been takin' pictures of?" he asked curiously, peering a bit to see if he could get a view of the display screen.

[Kristina Novak]

Kristina just nodded as a response, still smiling as she gazed down to the boy on Phoenix's page, then to the still water. She noticed the colour of his cheeks, the corners of her lips curling up ever so slightly. But, she didn't say anything or point out the fact that he was embarrassed, since it was something he was probably aware of. Instead, she shuffled in one spot, trying to keep herself warm by moving periodically. "Yeah... art can say a lot about a person." She commented with another nod.

Letting go of Phoenix's hand, the dark haired teenager confirmed that she did know the boy and saw him around before. Of course, she didn't say anything, having nothing to talk about before. She wasn't good at small talk, but Kristina was trying. "Yeah... math, right?" It was the one class she was sure of. "English too." She kept her sentences brief and to the point, as always.

"Yes, it was for Christmas." She gingerly held the camera in her hands, glancing down at the screen. Kristina loved both digital cameras and film cameras, although the former were more practical and conventional for everyday use, in her opinion. "I hope so." His comment got a short chuckle out of Kristina, as she noticed Phoenix trying to look at the screen. Shifting, she bent down, kneeling close to the ground, giving him a good viewpoint of the screen. "Mostly nature." Pictures of trees, the lake, and patches of snow were the majority. There were a few candid shots, of strangers, and at this Kristina blushed.

She understood what Phoenix meant, since art was her haven as well. She was okay at the sciences and maths, but English was a whole other story. "I know what you mean." Kristina added solemnly. "But it's good to have a hobby. Keep yourself occupied and whatnot." Gesturing to his sketchbook, she asked "You have other sketches in there I can see?" As a fellow artist, Kristina understood if Phoenix decided that he didn't want to share.

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"Heh... I guess my art says I'm obsessed with Ru- my boyfriend," Phoenix said sheepishly, looking back down at the drawing. It was one of many of Rue in just that sketchbook alone, not to mention others.

Phen wasn't much of a talker either, so conversation between the two might be short and sweet, but not unpleasant. "Um, yeah, I think math is right," he said with a small nod. "Not my best subject." Nothing really was, though, except art. "Ahh right, English." Another blush came to his cheeks. ".... I hope you don't remember that time I fell asleep durin' one of Mrs. Lennox's lectures and fell out of my chair," he mumbled. English was.... Well, boring.

"Ahh," he replied with a small nod. Phoenix's Christmases had always been small with small gifts, like a gift card to Walmart or something, nothing special. His mom never had the time or money to shop. "That was really nice from... From your family." Nope, not jealous... Phen glanced at the screen as she offered him a view, watching with interest as she flipped through the photos. "Those are pretty," he offered. "I... I think you have an eye for it." As far as he could tell, at least - he wasn't a photographer.

He smiled fondly back down at his sketchbook. "Yeah... It is nice t'have a hobby," he agreed. Phoenix wasn't sure what he'd do if he wasn't good at anything at all except maybe making lo- but Kristina didn't need to know that. "Um... Yeah, I have some," he said sheepishly, flipping through a few more pages. There were a couple more sketches, most a bit rougher, of his boyfriend, along with some animal doodles and more abstract designs. "I haven't really found my style yet, I think," he mumbled, looking through the odd mixture. "I like t'try all sorts of stuff."

[Kristina Novak]

"Obsessed may be a strong word." Kristina assured him. There was nothing wrong with sketching someone close to you, a significant other. Not that she had much experience with that. "You.. been with him long?" She asked.

"Mine either." She agreed. Then again, she wasn't much good at anything at school, except her art classes, like Phoenix. The Czech girl was a solid C+ student, with higher grades in artsy subjects and lower grades in English based classes. Thinking back, a hint of a smile appeared on Kristina's face. Unfortunately, after thinking back, she did remember that moment. "I do, but it's okay." She reassured him. Kristina hardly paid attention in class, and instead, doodled in the margins of her notebook.

A faint blush appeared on her face. "Thank you." She said, genuinely happy to hear that from someone. Sometimes, the dark haired girl felt like she was wasting her time and resources, but photography was something Kristina was incredibly passionate about and not something she wanted to give up anytime soon. "I enjoy it."

Her eyes landed on the pages that Phoenix flipped through, nodding to herself and taking in the doodles and designs. "The animals are cute." She complimented, with a subdued smile. "It's okay, some people don't." Herself, Kristina knew she preferred realistic pieces, hence the photography. In her personal sketchbook, it was full of scenes from around town. "Well, you're really good. I think it's alright to dabble around in styles."

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"Oh, um, let's see... I think it's been a little over a year now," Phoenix replied, thinking back to the winter when they'd first gotten together. He'd never been happier in his life. "He's a couple years older than me, so... He's graduatin' this year." It wasn't something Phoenix was looking forward to, but he was convinced it wouldn't affect their relationship.

"Mmm... Yeah, I've been takin' tutorin', actually, t'help with some of the harder stuff," he admitted a little sheepishly. Rue had encouraged Phoenix to do it, so he could hopefully graduate on time if he got his grades up. He blushed deeper as Kristina confirmed she remembered that accident, and Phen his his face against the ends of his too-long sleeves. "That was so embarrassin'..." he mumbled, wishing he hadn't even brought it up. She probably realized what a loser he was now.

He nodded at the thanks, managing to peek up from his meek position. "I can tell," he murmured, looking back down into the water. "I think it really, um, shows, when people are passionate about somethin'."

Phoenix's cheeks grew hot again at her own compliments. "Th-thanks," he stammered, smiling despite himself. "I think, um, I think I do prefer more abstract stuff most of the time," he admitted. Phen still took hits of his hallucinogenic dust sometimes when he felt too frazzled, which made his imagination wander. "Um... I should, uh, I should probably get goin' pretty soon, I told Rue I'd meet him for dinner later," he mumbled, scratching the back of his head. "It was, uh, really nice talkin' t'you, though!"

[Kristina Novak]

"Well, congratulations." Kristina said with a genuine smile. Being in a relationship with someone for over a year was an accomplishment, especially with high school students. She observed all of the drama from the sidelines, but never took part in it. Nodding, she asked "Is he staying around town then?" out of curiosity.

Kristina nodded when Phoenix admitted to getting extra help outside of the class. Tutoring was something that she wished she had done, since the only help she ever got was from her older sister. And since Sophie was in university, she had less time to help out her younger sister. It wasn't that Kristina was terrible; in fact, her grades said she was average. Maybe she would in English. Shaking her head, Kristina reached over to lay a hand, awkwardly, on his arm. "Oh no, don't be embarrassed." She said, frowning. Her intentions hadn't been to make him feel ashamed. "I fell asleep once in class." Embarrassing moments happened to everyone.

Her own cheeks felt hot as Phoenix complimented her work. She silently watched as his gaze flickered around, resisting the urge to take a photo of the barely stranger. Kristina's gaze fell on the water, taking a few absentminded snapshots before turning her attention back to Phoenix. "Yeah, it was nice talking to you." She said, her lips curling into a small smile. Maybe they could talk some more later, maybe become friends? Or was that too hopeful? Kristina didn't want to come across as pushy or too eager, so she stayed seated on the cool ground. "See you around, Phoenix."