Coffee, por favor? [OPEN!]

[Summer Accurso]

Summer entered the lounge with a perplexed expression on her face. She was tired -- no, she was BEYOND tired. Today had been rough, and her students did nothing to make the day better. In fact, they only seemed to amplify her already miserable day. She loved her students, but she today she would have loved to strangle half of them. Summer had to remember, although they were special, they were still teenagers. It was days like these that she was grateful that she didn't have any of her own. She wasn't sure if she could deal with a hormonal teenager.

"I need coffee, NOW," she said to herself as she went directly to the counter. Luckily, there was already some made, so she didn't have to wait any longer to get her hot liquid. Finding a cup, Summer quickly poured herself some. Unlike most people, Summer drank her coffee black -- something she had grown accustomed to when she lived in Brazil. Sadly, this was no Brazilian coffee, but it would have to do for now. Without waiting, Summer gulped the liquid down, ignoring the fact that it was practically scorching hot. She would worry about the consequences after she was done.

Now that she had her coffee, Summer found herself a seat on the couch. Unfortunately, she still had a few papers to grade. She had gave her students a test to see how much they knew; it was safe to say that she had a lot to teach them. Siting her coffee down, she took one of the papers out and began grading it. Like she had expected, it was another failing grade. Ah well, she would accept the challenge. They weren't completely helpless, just a little misguided and confused. Well, in most cases. Some of them just didn't care about grades. Those were the students Summer had the most trouble with: the one's who didn't try.

Putting the paper down, Summer sighed, "Today has been a rough one." She said to herself again, knowing she looked like a fool talking to herself. Then again, there was no one around to see her. And even so, she could care less about looking like an idiot right now. She had more important matters, like how she was going to help her students and deal with the upcoming anniversary of her husbands death. However, those problems would have to wait another hour. At the moment, the only thing she cared about is finishing her cup of coffee.

[Mason McQueen]

Mason nearly jumped off his seat when a woman suddenly appeared from what seemed like nowhere, apparently a bit too grumpy for her own good, demanding coffee. He was, surprisingly, a little too into marking the lab reports beside him (he says reading through bad English is hard) that he didn’t even notice her until she talked. Though he isn’t much of a caffeine-a-holic, he does get a bit too cranky when he doesn’t get his required cup every morning, so somehow he knows where she’s coming from.

“Oh, I just brewed coffee. It’s right over-” And she found the pot he brewed even before he finished saying it. A good thing if you look at it, but somehow he felt just a tad bit upset about it. Not that he could blame her though; it’s not like she’s asking for directions to it earlier (if she was, it must’ve been rhetorical in nature) and he did squeak a bit when he first spoke. Claims it’s a side effect of being surprised.

Returning to his work, he continued walking through a senior’s Chemistry lab report, shaking his head in a mixture of frustration and disappointment at the fact that he’s writing something (underlining a word, putting a strikethrough on a phrase, or encircling punctuation) every two lines or so. Didn’t he stress in class that things have to be written in third person, passive voice? That numbers, when written as the beginning of a sentence, should be spelled out? That they had to double-space their work? That spell check is a must? “I feel like such an English teacher right now,” he muttered with a sigh.

“You’re new right?” Mason asked, hoping she won’t take it the wrong way should he be wrong. He knew there was an influx of new science teachers (thank god he and Mrs. Barnes wouldn’t have to teach general science, biology, chemistry and physics on their own) and while he has been introduced to them, it was all but brief. And Mason’s anything but a good guy when it comes to remembering faces and names.

“Biology, right? I’d say it gets better, but it doesn’t. At least not much,” he said with a grin. Not really what one needs to say to a new teacher, but it’s not like him lying right now would be believable. (read: large stack of papers beside him). “Wait till dissection day comes.”

Taking a sip off his own drink (three creamers and two sugars; he can’t do black, unfortunately), he promptly extended his arm out and finally remembered to introduce himself. “I’m Mason, Mason McQueen.”

[Summer Accurso]

The sound of his voice had shocked her; Summer had assumed she was the only one in the lounge. However, after the initial shock wore off, she just felt rude for not seeing him any sooner. ”I'm so sorry!” Summer said instantly. “You must think I'm the rudest person alive,” she added on sheepishly. In all honesty, she had not seen the man, but that still didn't keep her from feeling like the most impolite person around. Then again, Summer had a tendency to overreact to the smallest of situations, right now being no exception. Still, Summer managed to regain her composure in time to answer his question. ”Yes, It's my third week,” she told him, looking him in the eye for the first time since he walked through the door. He was Mason McQueen, one of the other science teachers. They had met in passing once before, but Summer just happened to be good at remembering names and faces.

His response to her papers was not reassuring at all. ”Well, I gladly accept the challenge,” she said with a small, that was more to convince herself than him. ”It's a nice change from traveling and dealing with wild animals.” Summer's major was originally Zoology – it was what she had her Master's degree in – so she was used to dealing with animals and not students. ”Though now that I think about it, some of these students can be quite vicious,” she added on with a light giggle. Her giggling stopped at the mention of dissecting, something Summer was not a fan of. Unfortunately, it had to be done. She made a mental note to look into virtual dissections. It was a method her college used a lot – made less of a mess.

Summer smiled as he introduced himself; she found his name to be giggle worthy. Weird, but for some reason his name just made her smile...it was just so unique. ”Yes, we've met. I'm Summer Accurso,” her last name rolling off her tongue. Spending so much time in South America, she had developed sort of an accent. In fact, she could probably speak Portuguese and Spanish more fluently than she could English. Sad, but true. ”So, I heard you also teach Chemistry...good luck.” Summer had loved the Chemistry in school, but she couldn't imagine teaching it herself. With so many formulas and things to remember, Summer would have been more lost than the students.

”Any advice for a first year teacher?” Summer asked curiously. Biology, that was something she could be considered an expert at. However, knowing something and teaching it were two completely different things. You could be the smartest person in the world, but yet be the worst teacher, and that was something Summer didn't want. Not that she was the smartest person in the world; no where near, actually.

[Mason McQueen]

“Oh no, there’s no need to apologize,” Mason grinned, shaking his head as he waved her apology off, “I mean, it’s not really much of a bother.” Not that Mason would’ve done something differently if he had been the one in her place anyway (read: he would apologize too). But really, he doesn’t feel offended by her apparent disregard of his presence. He wasn’t trying to draw attention to himself anyway; if it were up to him, he’d prefer being a wallflower at the moment – he’s not good at multitasking and he’d really prefer if he gets to finish his papers now. If this was, say John or Chloe or Mitya, he would’ve just let them be. But since she was new, he figured a little warmness would help her a whole lot.

Heaven knows he needed that a lot when he first started. (Not that people were cruel to him; the new acquaintances were fun, it was Ella and Flo that made things bad for him).

“Third week? That’s great. At least you still had time to adjust. I came in at a relative bad time – November – so they’re rather pressed for exams and we still have a lot to cover.” It surprised him that they did finish the course and, well, almost everyone passed. More than handful even got an A+. Though he might’ve made the exam a little easier than he used to back then (the next exam only one got an A+. The rest fell down to an A-). “So you’re just doing lectures right now, are you? Or did you do a lab already?”

At least her response was great. He didn’t really mean to be all discouraging. It’s just that between Samuel Rixon and Vincent Verax, well – he can just hope they’re not in her class. “You’re a zoologist then?” he asked, blowing his cup before taking a second sip, “That might help. Since aside from the metaphorical ‘mischievous monkeys’ and ‘haughty hyenas’, we do have a lot that shift uncontrollably to such animals in the middle of class, especially if you’re teaching the earlier sciences.” Just earlier he had to calm and entire class down when a boy sneezed and turned into a badger. “I’m a biochemist by trade, so I really don’t know how the knowledge of macromolecules can help me much.”

Summer Accurso. He mouthed it once or twice, hoping it’d help him remember her name better. “Oh yeah. Chem labs are a whole lot more rowdy than bio labs.” Especially when people keep doing what they’re not supposed to do. Not only are the potentially toxic and generally dangerous, they’re mighty expensive too. Though with LaRousse supposedly increasing their grants to cover what his son did…

“Kanda has it easy though. I miss Physics labs and their relative simplicity.” Scales and ramps are nothing compared to highly reactive cesium and water. (Yes, they make a loud bang. And indeed, a smart student snuck through his chemical closet and did just that. Right after he explained to the class how dangerous it is. How fun).

“Advice?” Hrmm. That’s hard. “Don’t stress out too much? I mean, it could be very stressful-“ especially since he’s doing detention duty right now too “-but you should take a break some time. Have you looked around the town yet?”

[/justify]

[Summer Accurso]

Summer cringed, she would have died if she came in at the time that he did. Heck, she was barely keeping it together now; let alone coming in during exam time. Not that she didn't have confidence in herself, she just couldn't visualize coming in and getting the job done. Sadly, she was still a novice at this teaching game, and would probably be considered one for a while. That's why she wanted to prove herself -- to show that she was just as everyone else. Of course, it would be a while before she got that chance. Even then, she still had doubts. "You must be a pretty great teacher," she finally said.

"Labs? No, I'm afraid not. They can barely focus as it is." Not surprisingly, they just happened to throw the all the 'troubled' kids on the new teacher. Not that Summer minded; she found the kids with the most problems had the most potential. Well, most of them. Some of them were just headaches. "Though I do plan to bring in a few animals, just to show them the type of life that exist out there," she added on, remembering her phone call this morning. Calling an old friend, she had managed to get him to bring in some exotic animals. Hopefully it would get the kids excited about the current lesson on animal kingdoms.

"Believe me, Zoology wasn't my first choice. But one person managed to show me things in a different light," Summer said wistfully, her mind travelling to the good ol' days when she had first met her husband. Though just as quickly as it had appeared, the nostalgic moment had left and was being replaced by the reality of the present: he was dead.

Her mind now plagued with negativity, Summer quickly put her guard up and faked a smile as he talked about chem labs. She refused to show her sadness -- it would only lead to questions, and questions always lead to revelations. And there were some things Summer wasn't quite ready to share. Taking another sip of her coffee, she focused on what Mason was saying. "Looked around town? I wish! I'm kind of pathetic; I go straight home and watch Animal Planet," she said with an embarrassing giggle. "It has changed a lot since I went to school here, though. What about you, what do you do for fun?"

[Mason McQueen]

Mason did sense that he was, somehow, being a little too negative for comfort – not really what one would want from a superior. And besides, Hammel isn’t really all that bad; seems he’s still just a tad bit pissed that the job of taking care of the pompous asshole-of-an-heir’s detention fell on him. While he could understand the need to create a prank that big (he’s been involved with quite a few in his time, courtesy of his beloved roommate-best friend Sam Caraway), what he can’t understand is the boy’s perpetual need to irritate his ‘wardens’.

Seriously, that boy can’t shut his trap even if he tried.

“Nope. I’m still learning the ropes myself,” he said bashfully, waving the compliment off as a slight blush creeped on his cheeks. “I had great mentors.” Mrs. Barnes was a great help, and so was Dalton; unfortunate that Mrs. Barnes retired just a few months ago (then again he had her as his Biology teacher when he was still in Hammel, so she deserves it) and Dalton had to move back to England due to that unfortunate incident with MSAD. “And the people here are awesome. Kateri’s a sweetheart, and so is Chloe and Mitya. John’s a little bit of a gruff, but I’m pretty sure you can get through him.” That was positive enough, wasn’t it? Not that he’s pushing it, ‘cause his fellow staff members are indeed wonderful in their own right, but yeah. “If you’d like, I can give you my number and you can just ring me up should you need help,” he grinned, not really thinking that, well, such a proposition might be looked upon by others in a not-so-friendly light.

He chuckled a bit when she said something about the rowdy kids in her class. “Well, wait ‘till you meet the rest of the student body. Your class will look like pure and holy angels compared to them.” At least that’s what happened to him as his class load got bigger and he got into the student body more. “Not that it’s a bad thing. They might be rowdy, but they’re tons of fun too. Outside class anyway.” Or at least when they invited him once to play dodge ball with him. Which he lost rather badly too. But hey, at least the class got a good laugh out of his clumsiness.

His eyes brightened at the mention of animals. “Guess I might just have to stop in your classroom when that happens then.” He might be a biochemist by trade and protein structures interest him more than Jersey Shore (not that he watches that stuff), but animals do have a special place in his heart. “Aren’t we all? I was planning on being a civil engineer when I first stepped into my university.” Funny how he ended up being where he is anyway.

“For fun? You have to me more specific,” laughed the man, slouching back for a bit as he tried to recall what he does in his free time. “Well, I take yoga classes with Flo and Levi during Tuesdays. And Wednesdays I have self-defense with Levi and Josef. The rest I either go for walks out with my dog or just bum at home.” He’s not much of a party person after all. “I can introduce you to Flo and you can join us during yoga. Or, if you can wait for a bit, let me just finish this paper I’m grading and I can take you ‘round town. There’s a nice Italian restaurant just beside the mall that people tend to overlook.”

Nope, he’s not asking Summer out on a date. Whatever gave you that idea?

ooc:
Sorry if this is soooo crappy and late. I'll try to do better next time. D;
- Jam

[Summer Accurso]

Summer smiled as he blushed at her comment; Kevin used to do the same exact thing. In a way, Mason sort of reminded her of her now-dead husband. Then again, as of late every guy she met had been reminding her of Kevin. It was like this every year the anniversary of his death came around. Still, there was something about Mason that she couldn't quite put her finger on. Summer shrugged, it was probably his scientific mind. It had been a while since Summer had been around people who loved science just as much as she did. Well, maybe not exactly as much as she did. Summer was on the verge of being obsessed, especially since she had a lot of free time on her hands. Even her parents have been pushing her to get out more, though they only wanted her to start dating once more. Now THAT was out of the question. It was hard enough finding a guy who shared some of the same interest, but finding one who would accept her as a meta-human, too? That was highly unlikely, and Summer was prepared to live the rest of her life in solace.

Without thinking, Summer gladly accepted his number. "Sure, but I should warn you, you might have to change your number. I'm going to need a lot of help to make it through this year," she said, giving her trademark giggle. Summer didn't worry too much about how others would perceive this conversation; she was just trying to make a new friend, and hopefully a person who could help her out. Besides, people tended to think what they wanted, anyway. "Oh, and I can't wait to meet them," she quickly added on, remembering the other teachers he had mentioned. She was too busy getting caught up in his -- never mind.

"You mean there's more of them?" Summer asked, hoping that what she had was it. It was hard enough keeping the ones she had now entertained. "I just hope they're aren't too much fun. The girls are fine, but it seems the guys have troubl -- well, let's just say their eyes like to wander," she said with a blush. It was true though, her males students made it no secret that they thought she was beautiful. The constant stares and whispering was enough to make her extremely uncomfortable. Luckily, the longer she stayed, the more they kept their hormones in check.

" So you like animals, too? It would be nice if you stopped by, I might even let you play with my snake." To anyone else who didn't catch the beginning of the conversation, the comment might have sounded a tad bit strange. Fortunately, they were the only two in the lounge and Summer had nothing to be embarrassed about. Rumors were the last thing she needed to deal with, even though she had heard quite a few already. However, most of the rumors came from the mystery of her power. Not many knew -- besides the people who had hired her and a few others -- what her ability was, so that left a lot of room for people's imagination to run wild. Needless to say, no one had even come close in their assumptions.

Sure, it was just a friendly offer, but Summer couldn't stop herself from blushing at his offer. She had been out to lunch with guys before, but for some reason Mason's offer made her feel...giddy. Summer took a deep breath; she was acting like a teenage girl. "Sure, I would love to go. It would save my taste buds from another night of my cooking."


A/N: Your post was great! : )

[Mason McQueen]

The implications of him giving his number to her (and vice versa, or at least he hopes it’ll be) hit Mason a few minutes after he’s handed his phone over to Summer and asked her to write her number in there too. It was a good thing she happily agreed, ‘cause the man wouldn’t really know how to react had it happened otherwise. (He doesn’t handle rejection too well, not with a self-esteem as fragile as his). “Oh don’t worry, I did the same thing to Mrs. Barnes when I first started too. Says I almost always fill her inbox every end of the week.” Then again Mrs. Barnes was a little behind when it comes to technology, so Mason’s never-ending questions may not be the wholly responsible. “Call it karma?”

His smile grew bigger when he heard her giggle. He took it as a sign that his welcoming had been going smoothly. That, and she looked so cute when she did that. “Great! I’ll introduce them to you the first thing next week.” It was the weekend after all and there isn’t really a big party/gathering happening between his officemates as far as he’s concerned.

“Well you really can’t blame them,” he said with a grin. It took a second or two for Mason to realize what he just said and he turned beet red, quickly covering his mouth as his eyes widened in shock. “I didn’t mean that that way!” the chemistry instructor quickly added, waving his hands in front of him, “I mean, you’re beautiful and they’re just- Errr- Argh- Ohgosh.” Lost for words, the man tussled his own hair and buried his face behind his hands. “I’m sorry. Trust me, I’m not a creeper. I…”

“…Just don’t ask Levi. He’ll purposefully trick you.” Everyone knows close friends never say the truth about their buddies. At least when it comes to the opposite sex.

His eyes widened when she mentioned her pet snake. (Or at least he assumes it was a pet). “Are you serious? That’s awesome!” Never could he have pegged her to be a snake owner. She seemed more fit with a cat really. Then again, Mason’s never the best judge of character and he tends to omit exotic animals when it comes to guessing people’s pets. “Is it hard taking care of one? Or are dogs more time consuming than them? ‘Cause if they are, I’d be happy to trade my hump-dog in a flash.” A joke, he insists. Chowder’s like a son to him after all. A furry son that never runs out of energy.

Tired from sitting all afternoon, Mason quickly went over the paper in his hand, scribbled a few comments and began packing. At least now he had a valid excuse for going out now. “I’m sure you cook just fine,” he nodded as he zipped his bag and put it over his shoulder, “My cooking is a whole lot worse. Anyway, I’m ready to go. We good?” Mason instinctively extended his hand out as he walked over Summer, flashing a wide grin towards her direction.

ooc:
Should we continue in another thread downtown? I'd happily start it next time if you want, I think. ^_^.
- Jam

[Summer Accurso]

"Glad to know I'm not the only one who had a rough start," Summer said, taking another sip of her now cold coffee. She didn't mind the cooler temperature of the liquid too much; in fact, she had gone with cold coffee plenty of times in Brazil. One wasn't exactly able to access a microwave in the middle of the forest. Kevin had tried once, needless to say he realized how stupid it was. In fact, Summer still thinks to this day that he was seriously sick then. Either that, or he had a bit too much wine the night before. The former was much more likely considering Kevin didn't drink.

"That would be great! I would love to meet the other staff," she said with a bit too much energy. "Hopefully they're as nice as you," she added on, although she didn't really mean to say it aloud. It was more of a thought that had slipped. Luckily for her, it was not too bad of a statement.

Summer's face turned a shade of deep red at his slip up. Unfortunately, she had also managed to choke on her coffee in the process. (Control yourself, Summer) she mentally chided herself. It was just a simple mistake, or at least that's what she kept telling herself. It wasn't unusual for her to compliments from the opposite sex, but coming from Mason it was different. It was different for reasons Summer didn't care to admit -- reasons she couldn't admit. She had made a promise to never feel the slightest attraction to another man, and she didn't plan to break that promise. However, it was becoming increasingly difficult the more time she spent around Mason. "It's okay," she said attempting to laugh it off.

"Jibbs? No, he's not at all hard to take care of. A little aggressive, but I have no problems with him." Summer loved her snake; she had gotten him from the forest of Brazil. Honestly, she had no idea how the snake had survived for so long, but she was glad he did. The snake was like a child to her. Yes, A SNAKE was her child. Summer sighed, it was just another thing to make her more awkward than she already was.

Luckily, he had saved her from her embarrassment by getting up to leave. Summer gladly took his hand, and smiled brightly back at him. Maybe chivalry wasn't dead after all. "More than ready," she simply responded.

A/N: Sorry for this terrible post. And yes, it would be good if you started. If not, I can!

[Mason McQueen]

Continued in
Totally Not Blowing This Off, Right?

ooc:
Pfft. Totally not terrible at all. My intro post in the other thread was a little bit confusing though, so for that I apologize. -nodnod-