I Wasn't Staring, I Promise!(Alex)

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In no amount of words could Junpei ever be described as an athletic person. Not even with his skating, that would still be stretching it, since he was still a klutz and most of his "ability" was a direct result of him abusing his power. It was one of the reasons he admired Yue so much, she had such strength in her for such a small person. Junpei could never be like that, or at least he didn't think so. Despite that, it did inspire him to try. And try he did until his lungs felt like they were melting and he was going to heave up his guts from the intense workouts during gym.

Junpei struggled to catch his breath, sweat dripping down the side of his face as he sat on the edge of the gymnasium, trying to rest and regain the energy needed to either continue or just call it quits and head to the locker room to shower/change. His eyes casually followed one of his classmates, one he didn't realize he'd followed before. Or that one that he'd often found himself following. Of course, the idiot Junpei didn't think anything of it.

At times the boy would notice and Junpei would just smile friendlily and give a small wave. Which is what he did today too as he took a drink of his water. Maybe the other boy wanted to be friends too? Junpei really should talk to him more, but there was usually so little time to do so before he had to leave for his next class. Junpei sent him a nod and scanned the room again to watch the other students finish up the class.

[Alexander Rothwell]

Gym was.... gym. For some kids, exercise in the gymnasium was absolute hell. For others it was a very much enjoyed paradise. For Alex, it was just another class to get through and deal with the in's and out's that it came with. He wasn't an out of shape person, in fact, he liked to keep at least some sort of fit body, but he just wasn't the type of person to enjoy intense physical work outs. Muscles sort of came with puberty, much like the migraines, and he really never worked much to keep them or do anything to lose them. 

The teen let out a small sigh, finishing up the last of his crunches before sprawling out on the gymnasium floor. His stomach was on fire and he could feel his heart beat inside of his head, which was usual for him, after rushing through his exercises. Another small sigh escaped his lips before he pulled himself back up to his feet, ready to be done for the day. Across the room sat his water bottle, so that was where he went. 

Life giving liquid gushed into his mouth and down his throat, between gulps held in rapid succession. Sweet Jesus.. Cried his mind, in pure bliss. 

In the corner of his eye, Alex caught a boy looking at him from across the room. The same who had snatched glances at him often, Alex wasn't stupid, he knew what lingering stares usually meant, especially in a changing room or during gy practice. He was gay, after all. A small smile crept onto his lips as he caught the boy, who then smiled toward him and gave him a small wave. Alex returned the smile with one of his own while moving toward the changing room. The coach, as he always did before the bell rang at the end of class, told the guys to head to the changing room and shower/change. 

Once there, Alex plopped down on the section of the bench closest to his locker and searched the metal box for his shower gear. Sweat dripped down his forehead, he hated the feeling, it made him feel gross and sticky, he couldn't wait to get all that crud off. When he found his towel, trunks, and shampoo he quickly dressed down, slipping into his shower gear before heading off. 

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A small sigh of relief escaped the boys lips yet again. He liked feeling clean and freshly showered, his messy semi-dried hair and skin glistened with moisture as he moved back to his portion of the bench, changing quickly from a simple towel around his waist to the boxers he had come to school in, and as quickly slipped his jeans on as well. That was when he caught the boy glancing toward him once again. Sure a glance at him while he was exercising was one thing, but glancing at him multiple times in the locker room was a whole new ball game. 

After slipping on his shirt, the teen decided that he might as well try to talk to the guy. He seemed nice enough, and he really was curious as to why he was glancing at him. When the other boy was fully dressed as well and the bell was ringing to excuse the two to their next class, Alex decided to make his move. In a fluid movement, he stepped next to the kid and matched his gate to his. A small smile crept onto his face as he introduced himself. "Hey, I'm Alex. I haven't seen you around the GSA." It was casual enough, and more than enough to introduce himself to the other guy. 

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Junpei was pleased. Maybe the two of them could be friends, right? He seemed friendly enough. Actually, there were many people in his gym class that Junpei thought he might be able to get along well with, however, he was just a tad intimidated by them. After all, most of those guys seemed to be in a lot better shape than Junpei, and, despite his friendliness and show of confidence he usually displayed, Junpei was quite self-conscious of himself.

After spending a good enough time catching his breath, Junpei finally worked up the energy to head back to the locker room and jump to the showers.

Of course, by now, especially after having gotten the positive response of a smile from the other boy, Junpei found his eyes spying even more upon him, curious if maybe they could initiate conversation or something…maybe? There was just something about him that seemed to stand out more than the other guys, something that just made Junpei want to be friendlier…it was the same sort of something that made him want to be good friends with Sebastian, though Junpei had been trying his hardest to not overwhelm the quiet and easily startled precog.

Junpei showered and clothed himself quickly, having realized his own habit of taking forever to do both and often times being late or just barely short of the bell when getting to his next class. If he didn't watch himself, then he'd end up being scolded by the teacher this time again too. He sighed, wishing that there was more time to intermingle with his classmates between classes, because then he would have gone up and introduced himself to that friendly looking, eye-catching person by now.

Which was why he was startled when said person came up and introduced himself of his own accord to Junpei. But, as everything was so clearly shown on his face, Junpei's smile brightened and his eyes lit up. He slowed his walk to make it easier for the two to interact. "Hello! I am Junpei," he returned the greeting. "It is nice meeting you, Alex." His accent was thick, but much more understandable than it had been in previous months. Junpei tilted his head with question. "What is sa Gee-Essu-Eii?"