Late Night Rendezvous (Lux)

[Kodah Pierce]

Thread Takes place at 6.19.13

The courtyard was dark and ominous, seemingly empty. During the day the courtyard had been so bright and filled with life, it was amazing how drastically the setting changed after the sun fell behind the clouds. The empty halls of the school seemed oddly familiar to Kodah as he quietly tip toed past the dorms and the common area. He was still wearing the same black, ripped outfit he had on earlier that day and it blended in well against the shadow coated walls. He was well aquatinted with the art of stealth but he wasn't sure what sort of security the school had in place.

Kodah carefully opened the door that led to the courtyard, making sure that it didn't slam behind him. Getting in trouble at school was a lot different, you couldn't run away because you would have to return eventually. Running from the police or security guards was a lot easier; sure, they could put him on a wanted persons list but no one seemed to pay much attention to those anyways. Strangely, his memories of running from the police were some of his best. He wondered if the Hammel staff figured that Kodah would cause just as much trouble as he did in New York in Hammel. Was the staff even aware of his criminal record? Kodah wasn't sure.

The stitched messenger bag that hung across Kodah's chest was filled with supplies and he tried to keep the metal can from hitting each other. He had stuffed the bag with a few shirts to lessen the noise and it seemed to be working effectively. So far he hadn't spotted anyone wandering about and no one had spotted him. He searched the courtyard for the girl he had met earlier, still not sure of her name. The main cause for Kodah doing stupid, risky things were girls. He'd do anything to impress a pretty girl, even if he wasn't trying to have sex with her.

Finally reaching the meeting spot, Kodah took a seat. He hoped that the girl hadn't changed her mind; he didn't want all this effort to amont to nothing. He peeked into the messenger bag, taking a quick look at the cans of spray paint he had stolen from the art classroom a few hours earlier. He wasn't sure if he still had the intention of returning them, he could always use a few extra cans. Kodah wasn't much of an artist but tagging the city was one of his favorite past times. Pilot Ridge was still fresh, he needed to mark his new territory. He noticed a few blotches of half assed graffiti but nothing impressive.

[Luxanna Viera]

She figured the best way to dress at this kind of weird occasion was dark. Since they were apparently going to be outside, and Kodah being a claimed badass, she didn't really know what to except, so anything that wouldn't make her too noticable in the dark sounded like a good idea. She put on some dark jeans and a black hoodie. She put her hair up in a messy knot, opened her bedroom door and peaked outside. The halls were empty. Good.

As she snuck down the hall and headed towards the courtyard, she started regretting this. She would get into so much trouble for being out past bedtime. If they even had a bedtime around here. She didn't really know. Still, she had to prove herself to be more than what she had been before. A well-raised, well-behaved and polite girl who had been raised by two overly religious parents. She had never really been the rebel type, as much as she wished she had more of an interesting past. Sure, she wasn't perfect, but hey. She was no Kodah either.

She opened the door that lead outside, making sure no one was around to bust her. She closed the door carefully behind her and headed towards the meeting spot. And there he was. ''Damnit.'', she said to herself, low enough for him not to hear. She was kind of hoping he wouldn't be there. But it was too late to back down now. He was looking through some kind of bag, and it made her feel even worse about this idea. What on earth was he planning? Man...

She sat down next to him and looked at the bag once more before turning her gaze to his face. ''Hi.'', she said and gave him a half-hearted smile. She didn't really know what she was expecting, but she was sure she would find out pretty soon...

[Kodah Pierce]

Kodah heard the girl's footsteps lightly echo through the courtyard and she took a seat on the floor next to him. She tried to steal a glance into the bag but Kodah closed it quickly with a mischievous smile on his face. The girl had no idea what she was in for and to be fair she was the one that challenged Kodah in the first place. Kodah never backed down from a challenge, sores and welts would heal but pride would not. He had decided that if he were to ever be one of the seven deadly sins he would be pride.

"Hey," Kodah replied. His expression had morphed from a sly smirk to a boyish half smile. He looked her over, examining her stealthy appearance. "Nice outfit," his compliment had a flirtatious undertone. "They'll never see us coming in your predictable thief attire, you look like you just mugged someone in an alley. Not to say it isn't a sexy outfit though," he winked and then stood up, offering the girl a hand. "By the way, I never got your name". He had gotten so worked up about planning tonight, that he had forgotten to ask her again. "Assuming you have one. For all I know you could be nameless."

Kodah made his way across the courtyard, beckoning for the girl to follow. He gave her a look filled with sarcastic empathy, "Wanna hold my hand, princess?" Kodah teased everyone, from teachers to girls. It was often disrespectful and rude but he enjoyed seeing the reactions on peoples' faces. He was naturally nicer to girls but he still tormented them, just not as much as the rest of the population. While he was still in school he had received numerous detentions for unruly behavior and disrespectful attitude. It always seem strange to him, they kept giving him detention but it never solved anything.

"Here we are," he mumbled to himself, opening the hole in the fence he had found earlier. He held up the chain link and wiggled underneath the wire. He held up the wire for the girl, being the gentleman that he was. He led her through a small mess of tress until the two hit the sidewalk. "Try to lay low." As they neared a brick wall Kodah grabbed two cans of spray paint from the bag, tossing one of the cans to the girl. "This wall looks a little too nice, don't it?" He asked mockingly, spray painting black in random patterns on the wall. "I think it could use a little character."

[Luxanna Viera]

She scowled at him when he commented her outfit. ''Well you know, it was either this or a leather cat woman suit. Then I realized who I was going out with, and I doubt we're going to fight crime.'' She slowly reached her hand towards his. And as their hands touched, she could feel her heart skip a beat. ''Get a grip, girl.'', she thought to herself and stood up, quickly retrieving her hand. ''Name's Luxanna.'', she said and looked up at him, her face slightly flustered. ''Lux for short.''

She followed him through the courtyard, studying his back. He had a slender neck, rather nice shoulders and.. ''Get a grip!'', she thought to herself again. ''Oh yes, please! Be my knight in shining armor!'' She put the back of her hand against her forehead, as if she was fainting. ''Take me to your white horse, ride off with me into the sunset and let's live happily ever after!'' As if. The closest thing this guy would ever come to being a knight, was cleaning the stables after their horses. She flicked the top of his head and chuckled.

Lux looked at the hole in the fence obviously skeptical. Well, this seemed like a good start. Sneaking around in the dark, crawling through holes in fences... Yeahhhh.... She slipped through the hole as he held it up for her. ''Thanks.'', she mumbled. Stay low? Why? She looked around quickly. They were completely alone. And then she saw the cans. Oh, fuck. She grabbed it and looked at it. Vandalism? Out of all the things he came up with, he came up with vandalism? ''With your artistic talent? Don't make me laugh.'' She shook the can and watched him pain the poor wall black. She stepped a little further away and pressed her finger on the top of the can.

She took a step back and looked at her piece of art. She chuckled. ''It fits, don't you think?'', she smirked. ''I'm with stupid. ---->'', it said on the wall.

[Kodah Pierce]

There was something about spray painting a perfect wall to destruction that brought Kodah peace. He was stuck in the moment, no concerns of what had happened and what was going to happen, it was all about that present moment. As his spray of paint coated the walls, he stole a glance at Lux and was grasped by a strong feeling of euphoria. It was almost like being on molly but without the awful taste. He and his friends had taken molly a lot, you could do almost anything on the drug and feel amazing. For most of the other kids, that was the happiest any of them could get.

Standing next to the newly ruined wall with Lux made him feel at home in Pilot Ridge for the first time. Despite the fact that the two barely knew each other, they were now partners in crime. Nothing was more attractive than a girl willing to tag along with Kodah on his late night exploits. He watched as Lux picked up a can and began painting letters on the wall. He laughed, "Oh how creative of you." He reached down into his pocket and lit a cigarette he had snagged from the teachers lounge earlier. He blew a few puffs of smoke out of his mouth before offering the drag to Lux.

"Well you ain't too smart yourself," Kodah commented, leaning against an unpainted portion of the wall. "If you were half as smart as you thought you were, you wouldn't be out here with me. But you're pretty enough to get away with it." He winked at Lux and flicked a small amount of ash away from the cigarette. His smile got wider as he spray painted a giant smiley face on the wall, a cigarette hanging out of its poorly painted mouth. He hoped that Lux could see what lengths Kodah would go to just to get her to hang around him; he'd never go out and vandalize public property alone, it was something you did to show off. "You ever done something like this before? It's a rush, huh?"

[Luxanna Viera]

As he laughed, Lux looked at him with a broad smile on her face. ''Oh, you're just jealous you couldn't come up with something just as clever.'' She turned back to the wall and chuckled. For a first time, she sure could've done worse. Besides, it was way better than trying to draw something with spray. And she didn't exactly have that much of experience when it came to what you were supposed to 'draw' anyways. ''No, thank you. I can think of better poison to ruin my body with.'', she said with a soft smile as Kodah offered the cigarette. Like food. Greasy, unhealthy food. Now that, that was more her style.

She took another glance at her work. Man, her father would've had a heart attack if he could see her now. She had been the perfect daughter once upon a time. Until her powers manifested anyways. ''I think it's pretty good for a first try.'' And then she nodded, slowly. ''Yeah, I suppose you have a point there.'' She laughed and looked at him with another broad smile. She couldn't help but blush a tad at the pretty comment, but she turned her face away, trying to hide it.

Well, he had proven to be bad. At least a little. And she was glad he hadn't dragged her out on something worse. She laughed at the smiley. ''Self portrait?'', she asked with a smirk. Even though this boy tried so hard to seem bad, she was pretty sure he had a gentle heart, even if it was deep down. ''I sure haven't.'', she began and pulled a lock of hair behind her ear.. ''A surprising rush, actually. Now it kind of makes sense.''

''Hold on, you have a little bit of paint...'', she said and lifted his bangs up with her index finger, and wiped away some paint off his forehead. She studied his face as she did, and when their eyes met, she quickly looked away. Her heart skipped another beat as she stepped back, turning back to the wall, her face slightly flustered. She coughed. ''So... What's next?'', she asked without looking at him. ''Okay, girl. Keep your hands and eyes to yourself before you make this awkward.'', she thought and took a deep breath. She let her hair down in an attempt to cover up the side of her face, so he couldn't see her flustered look. ''Another wall you want to massacre?'' She didn't really know what else to say. She felt embarressed, a little uneasy, but most of all, free. It was nice. She could easily get used to this.

[Kodah Pierce]

"You're welcome" Kodah said with a smug smile. "I can think of a few things that are a lot more of a rush than this," he said, winking at Lux. Perhaps he should have thought that one through before he said it. He always had a foul mouth, even when he was still a child. He had gotten sent to the principal's office on multiple occasions for disrespectful language and poor attitude. Poor attitude? If you asked him, he would have told you that he thought he had a rather rich attitude; another remark that often got him in trouble. He would also get himself yelled at when his mother would say, "Don't be such a smart ass," and he would respond with: "Better than being a dumb ass."

Unlike the rest of his teachers and anyone else who knew him, Kodah thought he was brilliant. He always thought that the skills taught in school weren't practical. Anything he had learned in the past two years on the streets had benefited him more than anything he had ever learned in school. He doubted he would ever graduate from high school but what would a diploma really do for him? Sure, it might get him a well paying, nine to five job but that wasn't the future he wanted. He would never be shackled by society the way his mother and her husband were. It was all a rat trap, and he had found a way out of it.

Vandalism, parties, booze, drugs, anything that wasn't sanctioned by the mass population was what Kodah loved to do. Lux, on the other hand seemed to be almost opposite. He could tell her type, a good girl who made A's or B's in school with little to no rebellion. If anything, Kodah was a positive influence on Lux, getting her out of her shell to try new things. Despite the fact that these 'new things' were illegal, he believed that a good girl like Lux needed to learn how to rebel every once and a while.

''Hold on, you have a little bit of paint...'' Suddenly Lux moved closer to him. Kodah stayed still, looking into her eyes for a brief moment. He rarely made eye contact and he held only for a few moments before switching his gaze toward her lips. He wanted to lean in and kiss her but she pulled her face away too quickly. Slightly frustrated, Kodah looked away from her and off into the distance. He could tell she was nervous and strangely Kodah was too. He ran his fingers through his hair, thinking about what to do next. "Up to you, princess." He shrugged and sat down on the pavement, pulling out a stolen, half empty whiskey bottle from his messenger bag. He took a drink, then offered a sip to Lux.

[Luxanna Viera]

She didn't understand what he was trying to say as he winked at her. Nor did she know she wanted to. She just put on a faint smile and took another glance at the wall they had just ruined. She understood why people did this though. Breaking the rules. It was sort of addicting, the rush and all.

As their eyes met, Lux could feel a sort of sensation growing in her stomach, as if something was fluttering inside. She didn't recognize the feeling, and she wasn't even sure if she liked it. And then his eyes moved to her lips, and she felt her heart skip yet another beat. She needed air, and as she had pulled away she tried calming herself, which didn't work out as good as she had hoped.

She was nervous. Not a good kind of nervous either, she had no idea what she was doing or why she was feeling the way she was. Her entire face felt as if it was about to lit up in flames. ''God. Get a grip.'', she thought to herself. And then he handed her the bottle. She had never touched alcohol, cigarettes or any of the kind, but at this point she didn't know what else might calm her nerves.

She took the bottle and took a deep breath before taking a sip of the brown liquid inside. It tasted horrible, and Lux had to force herself to swallow it. She coughed and made a grimace. ''Yuck.'', she said before handing the bottle back. She was sure there had to be something better than that.

She still felt uneasy, and needed something to do with her hands. She picked up the can and looked at it for a few seconds before nodding. Taking a glance around the area she looked for yet another wall to ruin. Why was she feeling so uneasy, nervous and... Ugh. Maybe she was getting sick? She had never felt this way before, but truth be told, she kind of liked it.

[Kodah Pierce]

Kodah chuckled at Lux's reaction to the liquor. She was more inexperienced than he thought. Usually the innocence would turn him off, he'd be too afraid to ruin her but something about Lux drew him closer. She handed the bottle back and Kodah took another sip. "Don't worry, you'll get use to the kick." As long as Lux wanted to hang around with him, he'd slowly introduce her to all sorts of flavors. He took one more drink before offering the bottle to Lux again but he retracted the invitation when he noticed her expression. "Hey, are you alright? This isn't too much for you, is it?" His question was sarcastic but there was a hint of sincerity. He wasn't trying to scare her.

"Here, I've got another idea." He jumped up from the pavement, put the bottle in his bag and offered his hand to Lux. He headed over to the elementary school across the street, keeping an eye out for any sign of security. Since it was summer it wasn't likely anyone would be there, especially this late. He hopped the fence and offered Lux assistance after he got over. Once the two were over the fence he took her toward the back of the school. There was a large garbage dump positioned perfectly, allowing for Kodah to easily climb over and step onto the low roof.

Kodah was use to jumping fences, climbing over garbage cans and scaling rooftops. He often forgot that other people weren't use to life on the streets and didn't have his particular skill set and it didn't occur to him that perhaps Lux was having trouble keeping up. She was innocent, maybe even naive, but she seemed like she could hold her own. "Nice, huh?" The rooftop was smoother than most, perfect for stargazing. He would have rather brought a girl up there to hook up but looking at the stars would have to do. "Want another drink?"

[Luxanna Viera]

''Get used to the kick.'', she repeated and scoffed. ''I bet you know everything about that, huh.'' It was more the fact that her parents had been religious and the town she had been living in that had kept her away from all the things 'normal' teenagers seemed to have experienced. She looked up as he spoke again and nodded. ''I'm fine.'' She smiled. Honestly, she was kind of glad someone came along and pushed her out of her shell. She felt as if it was about time.

She looked at his hand before slowly grabbing it. She followed him without a word, curious as to what he had in mind. She didn't mind, and she sure as heck didn't mind him helping her get to wherever they were going. It was a nice feeling, being lead somewhere she didn't know of. Being taken out on something that could seem like an adventure. ''Thanks.'', she said as he helped her, and gave him one of her usual warm smiles.

She took a look around the roof before turning her gaze upwards. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before re-opening them again. It was beautiful. She hadn't expected to be taken someplace like this, though she wasn't entirely sure about his intentions. She walked towards the edge of the rooftop and sat down on her knees. ''It's amazing.'' She turned her head towards him and grinned.

She still felt the taste of the alcohol in her mouth, and it wasn't nice, thus she shook her head and smiled. ''Unless you have something that doesn't smell like its been hidden under your dirty socks for years, then no thank you.'' She reached tongue out at him and chuckled.

[Kodah Pierce]

"Yeah, I guess." Kodah shrugged. "It's still just a ratty old roof." As Lux went to sit near the edge she turned and gave him a big grin. He returned with a goofy smile, "You're cute." He dug his hands into his bag to find his half finished cigarette. It was an awful habit but he had become addicted in the last two years. He never regretted picking up his first cigarette, at least not yet. As if intentional, he hiccuped a burst flame and destroyed the cigarette. "God dammit," he muttered. "Every time."

"Cute and funny," Kodah said, laughing at her dislike for alcohol. He remembered how much he hated the taste at first, but it had been around so much that he had adopted it into his life. It had eventually evolved to the point where the older kids were able to get thirteen year old Kodah to shoplift bottles of booze out of stores for them; he had always been the best kleptomaniac out of the group.

"You'd like the view in New York, my buddies and I use to sneak onto the roof tops all the time, except these ones were ten times higher. You can't see the stars too well, but the city lights are pretty cool."

He sat down next to her, letting his feet dangle off the edge. "So what's up with you? Where ya from?" He had made a lot of assumptions and guesses about Lux but he knew nothing about her. "How'd you end up here?" He didn't really want to talk all that much; he wanted to appreciate the moment, he wanted to savor the way she looked up at the stars and they way she smiled at him but it was getting too dangerous. He was all for getting close, but he still needed a wall between himself and other people.

[Luxanna Viera]

She couldn't help but to blush as he called her cute. No one had ever called her cute before. Though, it wasn't all that weird considering where she was from. And now she knew what kind of power he had, so at least she didn't have to be curious about that anymore. She put the back of her hand against her mouth and laughed as he burned his cigarette. She didn't really mind, she wasn't quite used to the smell yet.

Though, she understood not being quite in control of their powers yet, she had just recently been able to stop her random shifts. Now they usually came whenever her emotions got out of control instead of popping up out of nowhere. Running around as a large cat was all right enough, but the naked part was something she wasn't quite used to yet.

''Yeah, I bet. I've never been in a big city before.'', she replied with a smile on her lips, and her eyes moved back up towards the sky. ''Must be such an adventure.'' She grew up in a rather small and closed town, and they didn't have much contact with the world outside.

As Kodah sat down next to her, her smile grew wider. She didn't quite know how to answer his questions. Should she tell the harsh truth or paint a pretty picture? ''It's a pretty small town. Not a lot of people have heard about it, not that I blame them or anything. It was a pretty closed community.'', she chuckled as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. ''Long story short; My parents are extremely religious, and me being a meta-human didn't exactly benefit them. And when they figured out they couldn't fix me, they packed up their stuff and left.''

She tilted her head towards him, still a smile showing on her lips. Her past didn't hurt as much as it had used to. She had given it a lot of thought, and decided it wasn't worth the trouble. In the end it was her parents loss and their ignorance had cost them their daughter. As far as she could tell, there was nothing wrong with her. At least not because of her powers. And she had to admit, it was nice sharing her story with someone for a change. And that someone being this guy, just made it better.

''What about yourself?''

[Kodah Pierce]

Lux's smile captivated him and it was as if he couldn't pull away. A look of disgust crossed his face as she mentioned her religious parents. "Aw, fuck 'em. They don't deserve ya. If anything, they're the ones that needa get fixed." His mother was a Catholic and he remembered loathing the Sunday mornings that he had wasted in church. One of his favorite parts about leaving home was being able to sleep in on Sundays. "Religion is bullshit," Kodah mumbled under his breath. By the looks of it, Lux didn't seem religious, but maybe she bought into it like so many other people.

"Born in Jersey, I had a pretty comfy life up until my drunk of a dad wrapped himself around a tree in his shitty old truck. My mom remarried to some prick from California a few years later. I took off after that and lived on the Streets of New York for three years and then I arrived here a few days ago. That's basically my story." He shrugged. Three years ago he would have never told anyone about his dad's death or his mother's remarriage. Now he acted like it didn't bother him but his dad's accident would always be a sensitive subject for him.

"Ha, ya know what?" Kodah asked amused. "Reminds me of that lame old song." He elbowed her, lightening the mood. "Just a small town girl, living in a lonely world! Took the midnight train going anywheeeeere!" He sung loud and off key. "Just a city boy, living off streets in New Yooork" he changed the words and they fit awkwardly, but he continued his rendition of the song. "He took the midnight train going anywheeere." His grin was goofy but he didn't care. He had no talent for singing either but it never stopped him before.

[Luxanna Viera]

She had to laugh at his obvious disgust. Honestly, she hadn't really expected anything else from him, and really, she didn't like religion too much herself. ''Right!'', she said with a goofy, sheepish grin. She was happy Kodah was the one she told her story to, she was already feeling a lot better about the situation. And of course, it helped that he was cute and all. She poked his shoulder with her fingertip and chuckled.

...Wrapped himself around a tree. Well, that was one way of putting it. She didn't really know what to say, or how to act to what he told. ''Well, shit.'', she uttered and shook her head. She wasn't really one to use words like that, but else could she say? Kodah didn't really strike her as the guy who wanted pity or someone to feel sorry for him. She turned her gaze back at the sky and tilted her head to the side, all the while tapping her chin with her index finger. ''I'm sorry about your dad. Must have been hard on you.''

She looked at him with raised eyebrows, as if she was slightly caught off guard and maybe even a tad shocked at his sudden change of mood - and topic. ''H-hey!'', she called out at him as she felt his elbow bump into her. She pushed his shoulder with a chuckle and rolled her eyes at him as he started singing. She tried, she tried really hard to keep the laughter in, but it was impossible as he just kept going on and on. She leaned over him and reached out for the bottle of alcohol, trying to grab it. ''All right, all right, Singstar! I think you've had enough!'' She didn't really expect to actually be able to reach it or anything, and hopefully he'd understand it was just a joke and not her trying to tell him what to do or anything. Besides, after all she was still laughing.

[Kodah Pierce]

"I'm goin for an Oscar or grammy or whatever the hell it's called," He joked. "Think I got a real shot at it?" When Lux reached for the bottle he jokingly pulled it away, "Ay, get yer own booze. And I ain't had nearly enough yet. Gotta keep up the family tradition, right?" To anyone else his joke would appear incredibly offensive but he had to make light of the situation with his father. He took another drink then capped the bottle, tossing it over toward his bag. There were some people that he couldn't be around unless he was drunk but he could hang around Lux whether he had been drinking or not.

"Glad ya came out tonight," his words were filled with sincerity. "We should do this more, you're the only person I've brought up here." He looked at the rough rooftop; next time he'd bring a blanket so they could be more comfortable. If the bottle hadn't been half empty he would have smashed on the roof to give it some character. Perhaps before they took off they could tag the school. The janitor would probably have it cleaned up by the time summer ended but Kodah could always find more spray paint.

Kodah moved his gaze towards Lux's face, carefully viewing her features. Delicate and untouched, he moved a little closer towards her. He gazed at her eyes then to her lips, a convoluted look of lust and innocence cast across his face. He gently moved even closer, his body faintly touching hers. He wanted to reach out and kiss her but there was something holding him back. He wondered if Lux had even kissed someone before, she appeared so pure as Kodah dismissed his doubts and slowly moved in. He placed his hand on the nape of her neck and softly pulled her into a kiss.