Argh. Sunshine. (Juniper)

[Eddie Smith]

'Argh,' Eddie thought to himself as he stepped outside into the sunlight. He couldn't even remember the last time he had been outside. Sounds horrible, but that's Eddie. He spent his time either studying, in hopes to graduate this year, or playing video games. It was only due to Kiara's orders that Eddie was now standing outside under the disgustingly hot burning sun.

Bringing his arm up to shield his face from the sun's 'deathly' rays, he made his way to the closest for of shade. Quickly, like a vampire burning in the sun, Eddie went to the pond and sat under the tree.

Pulling his PSP from his pocket he turned it on, 'Kiara said to go out and get some fresh air, she didn't say I couldn't play vids out here,' Eddie thought and chuckled to himself, feeling like the smartest, sneakiest person around.

As he was just to turn it on, he heard soft humming. Looking around he noticed one of the most beautiful girls he'd ever laid his eyes on. He hadn't noticed her before and it seemed like she hadn't noticed him at all. She was busy doing something in her hands, and Eddie couldn't help but wonder what she was doing.

Eddie stood slowly and quietly and timidly walked over to the girl. "Hey," he said softly, his foot gently kicking at some grass. "Whatcha doing?" he asked sounding like a kindergartener.

[Juniper Birdsong]

Unlike Eddie, Juniper spent as much time outdoors as possible. Studying, reading, drawing, singing - it could all be done just as easily outside as inside, and outside you could get clean, fresh air in your lungs and not be distracted by feet stomping down the hallway or other things in her room. She had a spot by the pond where there was a huge, thick patch of daisies just asking to be played with, and she came here to relax and think, and of course, to make daisy chains. Which was what she was doing now.

In fact, she had even dressed the part, as usual deciding on an outfit based on some object of nature. In today's case, it was a daisy. Along with the tanktop and skirt, she wore a pale yellow flower at the base of her side braid, but had kicked off her shoes long ago and opted for bare feet. There was nothing like walking bare-footed in cool grass on a warm summer day.

She was pulling the stem of one flower through another and humming a simple melody when a voice caught her attention. Startled, she looked up; she had been so occupied with her work that she hadn't noticed him appear. She blinked a few times to adjust to the change in lighting, but when her eyes cleared, she smiled at the boy. She didn't recognize him immediately, although after a few moments she thought maybe she had seen him in the hallways before. "Hi," she said quietly, pulling the flower through the stem completely. "I'm making daisy chains." Saying it out loud made it sound so silly, but that didn't matter to her - it was fun! Patting a spot next to her and continuing to smile, she asked,"Would you like to join me?" She studied him for a bit longer - long brown hair, green eyes, a shy smile. He was cute. "What's your name?" She continued on with her work, glancing at him a few times to see if he would sit down, or just laugh at her hobby and walk off.

[Eddie Smith]

Eddie's smile grew as the tanned girl blinked repeatedly, he assumed that she was trying to get a good look at him. Her hazel eyes fluttered as she blinked, and Eddie couldn't keep his eyes off of her. She was beautiful, especially in the sunlight. Ed agreed that if being outdoors meant meeting such pretty girls, he would spend all his time outside now.

Eddie nodded when the girl offered him to join her. "So, uh, daisy chains eh?" he asked as he sat on the grass next to her. "Ya makin' a necklace or something? Maybe a crown, that would be sweet. A daisy crown." His eyes jumped from her hands to her face. He wanted to watch what she was doing so he could join in, but at the same time he couldn't keep his attention away from her face. He was still stunned that he had never noticed her before.

After moments of watching, Eddie had an idea of what to do. He started picking at some of the daisies around him and began making a crown. "My name's Ed," he responded to her question timidly, "but people call me Eddie. What's your name?" he asked in return. He felt so awkward and juvenile at that moment but it was better than sitting alone, and he would never complain about being in a pretty girl's presence.

"You look like the Daisy Queen," Eddie commented, pointing at her clothing, "you just need your crown," he said with a shy smile as he was about to place the daisy crown he had just finished onto the girl's reddish brown hair, but instead he awkwardly handed it to her, "uh, here." What was he thinking? Eddie thought, beating himself up, 'You're going to scare her away by being so creepy.' His eyes now scanned the daisies around him as he mentally beat himself up.

[Juniper Birdsong]

Juniper's grin widened as the boy sat, apparently intrigued by what she was doing. She was a little surprised - no one she knew was really interested in making daisy chains, and this stranger seemed so willing. It was a good surprise though, so she scooted over until she was right beside him and showed him how to do it. "Oh, I suppose I could make a crown," she mused, nodding. "I usually just make chains and decorate my room with them, but that's a nice idea!" She kept catching his eyes on her face rather than her hands, so she offered a tentative smile, making sure it reached her eyes as she looked into his green ones. "You have nice eyes," she said. "They're like the color of oak leaves in the sunlight." Just an observation, but she didn't necessarily mean to say it out loud, and she found herself giggling over the comment. "Sorry. I speak my mind sometimes."

"Nice to meet you Eddie! I'm Juniper. Most people just call me June though. Or Junebug." She bit her lip, realizing she had offered the nickname her sister used for her most of the time, without really meaning to. Oops. His face was just so open, so tentative, she found herself saying more than she meant to. She turned back to her work, plucking a few more daisies and adding them to the chain. She felt oddly self-conscious, a feeling she wasn't used to. Most people, she was totally goofy and chatty around. But now, she felt a little... Shy? Was that it? She didn't understand. It must be those intense green eyes, she decided.

"The Daisy Queen?" she giggled, looking up again. "I don't think I'm quite royal enough to be queen of anything. But thank you, nevertheless." She glanced at her shirt, and continued to laugh. "Although I suppose I do look like one big daisy among a bunch of little ones." She bit her lip in glee, seeing his crown. When he seemed hesitant to put it on, she ducked her head under his hands so it was easy for him to place it on. "There!" she chirped, reaching up to feel the crown. "Aww, you're so sweet. Thank you." He seemed a little unsure of what to do next, so she finished the chain she was working on and reached up to put it on his head. "And now you're the Daisy King!" It was childish, but it was fun. She couldn't believe he was willing to not only put up with, but encourage her silly hobby. Where had this mystery boy come from, and why hadn't she noticed him before? "How long have you been at Hammel?" she asked. "I don't think I've seen you around before."

[Eddie Smith]

Eddie just smiled and nodded as the girl talked, he wasn't one for much conversation when it came to someone new, but he was one who could listen really well. Even if he didn't appear to be listening, he usually was. When the girl commented on his eyes, he smiled and let out a timid "thank you" as his face turned red. Trying to hide it, he continued his work on his daisies.

When the girl introduced herself, Eddie's attention was brought back to her face. "Juniper. Junebug, " he repeated with a smile, "very cute, suits you." The boy said quietly as his eyes returned to the daisies. He was already naturally shy, but this girl made him unbearably shy, he was terrified of saying something wrong.

They sat in silence for a bit while they worked away on their daisy chains, but when Eddie finally handed Juniper the daisy crown he created he was more than surprised to watch her bend so he could easily place the crown on her head. "Like a Queen," he said, mostly talking to himself.

But when Juniper said he was so sweet, Eddie cringed within, he knew what that meant: Friend Zoned, and he prayed he hadn't done it to himself this quickly. But then the girl was placing a crown onto his head and calling him a king.

Eddie couldn't help but chuckle, they must have looked so ridiculous the two of them, sitting on the grass with daisy crowns on their heads, but honestly Eddie didn't care, he usually never did when it came to other people opinions on himself. "Queen Junebug, and King Eddie, the ruler of the daisies," Eddie said as his chuckle escalated into a laugh, he knew he probably looked so lame, but he liked it. He liked being able to be silly and ridiculous with this girl.

His laughs slowed as Juniper began to speak, how long had he been here? He stopped to think, "3 years, I'm hoping I can graduate this year, if not then next year for sure. How about you?" he wondered just as intrigued as how he had seen her around before, "I'm more of an indoor person, y'know? Video games, studying, tv, that sorta stuff."

"But... I can see myself coming outside more often now..." Eddie said quietly with a shrug, trying to make his attempt at flirting seem less important.

[Juniper Birdsong]

Why was she giggling so much? His comments about her nickname made her laugh again, though she felt some heat rise in her cheeks as well at the compliment. "Thanks," she managed to get out between spouts of laughter. "It's my sister's nickname, and well, it's kinda stuck now." She brushed a stray hair away from her forehead, looking up at the daisy crown on her forehead. Her eyes crinkled as she smiled again. "I don't know how queen-like I look, but I appreciate it nevertheless," she breathed.

When she had called him sweet, she hadn't meant to put a label on him - she didn't know about getting friend-zoned and whatnot. She was simply saying what was on her mind, and she thought he was sweet. Whether that meant she saw him as just a potential friend rather than anything more was yet to be seen, but she did think the way the sun hit his eyes was dazzling, and his tentative smile was just oh so adorable. It sent a weird feeling through her stomach that she hadn't felt in a while, and she wondered what it could mean.

And now he was laughing, and she was laughing too, until her laughs turned to gasps and tears were beginning to form in her eyes as she clutched her stomach from laughing so hard. "Ooooh goodness," she sighed, wiping at her eyes and leaning back, trying to catch her breath. Most people probably wouldn't have thought their new titles were all that funny, but she thought it was hilarious - two strangers, meeting amidst a patch of daisies and becoming royalty in their own right. It made no sense, but at the same time, it felt so right. "You're fun, Edbug," she grinned.

Three years? And she hadn't met him in all that time? How strange. But when he explained his hobbies, she thought she understood. She spent most of her time outdoors (even in the rain, when she could find a dry patch), and had no reason to have bumped into him in the common rooms, as she didn't really play video games or watch a lot of TV. Actually, she couldn't remember if she had ever even picked up a game controller before. She did study, though, but mostly outside or in her room. "I've been here for... Five years now? Something like that. I'm planning on graduating this year too, and I'm going to go to college to study environmental science." She played with her braid as she spoke. "I spend all of my time outdoors though. That must be why we've never seen each other before now."

His last comment made her eyes widen as she looked at him, and then she looked back down, a shy smile spreading across her face as her cheeks flushed again. "Oh really? I would like that.... I need a Daisy King to rule my people," she chuckled quietly. She glanced back up, uncertain. Were they really flirting? She didn't really know how to flirt, so she hoped she wasn't coming across as awkward.

[Eddie Smith]

Eddie watched as Juniper started laughing along with him, his laugh grew quiet as he watched her break down into a laughing fit. She was adorable, he wouldn't lie. But seeing her like this, he couldn't help but stare, she was what he would call perfect. Or at least the closest he'd ever witnessed. When she started talking again, Eddie had to tear his eyes away from her, "yeah, you're fun too Junebug," he said shyly his face a slight pink.

Edbug. She had given him a personal nickname. They were Queen Junebug and King Edbug, the rulers of the daisies. The "king" couldn't help the butterflies fluttering in his stomach that were being caused by his new "Queen." He wondered if she felt the same way, or at least something close.

Eddie listened as Juniper talked about wanting to go to college, a wide smile crossed Eddie's face when she said she wanted to go into environmental science. "I'm hoping to go for bio-Chem," Eddie said with pride, "I'm hoping to get my acceptance letter soon."

When Juniper responded to his flirting, the butterflies in his stomach started to freak out more. She said that she would like if he came out more often! And hell ya he would come out more often if he knew she would be there.

Eddie caught her eyes when she shyly glanced up, her face was a slight pink and Eddie knew that she probably felt the butterflies as well. "I'd really like that actually," he said with a reassuring smile, "I'll help you rule these daisy people of the land."

"So..." Eddie quietly started, his eyes dropping back from Juniper's face and back to the daisies in front of him, "do you have a cell phone?" he asked her timidly, almost wanting to hit himself for such a stupid question. But just he wanted to know if there would be a way he could connect with her after they went their own ways.

[Juniper Birdsong]

Juniper didn't care that she was laughing by herself after Eddie stopped - laughing was fun, even alone. But she did catch his gaze on her again when she finally stopped, and she grinned widely at him. He was so cute and shy, she thought as he turned away. And he thought she was fun! That was good - some people thought she was just silly or weird.

"Oh, really?" she said in response to his college goals. "That's so cool! Personally, I don't think I'm smart enough to study chem." She laughed. "I'm taking it this year, and it's just killing me. So, kudos to you!" She gave him a double thumbs-up. "I'm sure you'll get your letter soon." Wait... Did that mean he had already graduated? He was almost done at Hammel? The grin dropped off her face, and she felt an odd twinge of sadness in the pit of her stomach. "Where are you going to study?" She hoped it was somewhere close. She had a feeling she and Eddie could be good friends.... And possibly more? No, it was too soon to be thinking about that sort of stuff. They had just met. She told herself that her sadness was simply a regret at not being able to see a new friend very often. She almost convinced herself it was true.

"Well, I'm glad you'll be outside more. It really is a marvelous place. I can show you my secret hideaways and nice places to study away from distractions." She tugged at her braid. "I know a lot of little nooks and things. You know, if you're ever up for an adventure before you leave for college." She smiled uncertainly. Was she being too bold? At least they seemed to be on the same page, if she was judging his actions correctly... Oh, why was reading boys so hard?

But apparently she was right, and her smile widened at his question. "I do happen to have a cell phone," she replied. "Only, I don't believe in texting. So if you want to talk to me, you're going to have to call." She winked. She asked for his own cell phone, and plugged her number into it, putting her contact name as "Junebug." She gave him her cell phone and had him do the same. After that was completed, and after many giggles and grins on her part, she stood and wiped stray grass and daisies off of her skirt. "Are you up for an adventure now?" she asked, winking.