Saturday Night Special

[Brendan Talbot]

Some students tried to sneak in alcohol, drugs or other contraband. In his time at the school the Scot had known people try to smuggle in everything from a dog to a 6-pack to a person. The rules were strict and the dorm monitors seemed to catch most smuggling attempts. Brent had never been one to push those particular rules; drink and drugs would mess up his riding and he was usually in enough trouble as it was without tempting that particular rule-set. But then again, he'd been at Hammel for almost a year and he'd never heard of anyone getting screwed for bringing in flour and sugar before.

The little microwave in his room had been the setting of his latest cookery adventure. Between culinary arts classes and his weekend job at one of the restaurants in town Brent did get plenty of opportunity to practice his skills, but it was a completely different thing being able to cook for himself. The food in the cafeteria was always good quality and there was always variety, but there was only so many times anyone could eat in the same place before they became stale of it.

Thus, flour and sugar had been combined with eggs, bittersweet chocolate, butter, vanilla extract, baking powder and a pinch of salt inside a mug, and within minutes a gooey, sticky chocolate cake emerged from the microwave. Brent had stared at the mug for a long moment, trying to decide if he wanted one or two. He finally shrugged and thought 'fuck it, it's Christmas' and five minutes later he was carrying two chocolate mug-cakes and a spoon down to the common room. The common room was unusually empty for a Saturday evening and so Brent put the mugs on the coffee table and flopped onto one of the big sofas, flicking through the TV channels until he landed on a skateboarding documentary on one of the sports channels. It was hardly his sport of choice, but Brent still had a huge respect for the top riders and what they could pull off.

Settling down on the sofa, Brent picked up one of the warm cake-filled mugs and started slowly munching his way through the indulgent treat. Such a shame he forgot to bring in some Readi-Whip to go with them.

[Kailin Bishop]

Normally on a Saturday Night, Kailin would be curled up on the couch or in her room either reading or watching some crime dramas on Netflix, but today she figured she might be remotely social since one of her friends seemed to be stuck at Hammel over the break. It didn't turn out as she hoped, though, since her friend seemed to fail to tell her that she was going out that night. Kailin had texted her, asking where she was, and all she got was 'out at the club'. It crossed her mind that yes, her friend was indeed 18, so she was able to get into such clubs that Kailin was not.

But instead of going back home, she figured she might as well hang out in the commons room, see if there was anybody hanging out. A potential for some human interaction that didn't involve her siblings.

Upon arrival, the blonde noticed the relative emptiness of the room, which was quite uncommon (in her experience) for a Saturday night. It was usually packed with bored teens looking for the same thing Kailin was. Just a good time. What she did see, however, was a single boy sitting on the couch with a single mug in his hand, and another on the coffee table. The smell, she realized, was mouth watering. Chocolate. She smelled chocolate, which was enough to catch the attention of a girl with an incredible sweet tooth. She glided across the room and once close enough, Kailin spoke up.

"That smells delicious," She smiled sheepishly, and gestured toward the second mug "Are you waiting for someone or do you just have as big of a sweet tooth as I do?"

[Brendan Talbot]

On any other Saturday evening Brent would have been out on his bike, practising until his body physically couldn't take any more work for the day. If he wasn't out on his bike he was at work, but he'd been given the lunch shift today which left him with an entire evening of nothing to do. For the lad who craved constant stimulus in some form or another, the winter was always a massive drag. The snow prevented him from going out on his bike, and with little else to occupy his mind the teenager always very quickly became restless. This was his first full winter at Hammel and already he was feeling pent up due to the deep snow outside. What the hell was he supposed to do in the dorms all evening?

Well, he could think of a few ideas but they wouldn't pass the whole evening.

Blue eyes glanced over the girl that entered into the dorm common area but he paid her little heed. Brent couldn't recall seeing her around and it was likely she was just running in to see a friend, so she was unlikely to provide any actual distraction. He was therefore rather surprised when she approached, and the vague hint of a smirk curled at the corner of his lips as she spoke.

The Scottish lad was not overly subtle as his eyes did a quick flick over her, and narrow shoulders shrugged vaguely. “Am no saving it for no one. Is jis warm an keeps the munchies off, ye know? I'll be willing ta give it ye, if it's worth somethin' to ye.”

[Kailin Bishop]

The boy wasn't very subtle in his scanning of her body, and she began to feel slightly uncomfortable. Men didn't pay her much mind, or at least, not that directly. Kailin was gorgeous, and she knew that. But the guys she typically spent time around didn't make it so blatantly obvious that they were eyeing what she had.

She resisted the urge to cross her arms across her chest right then. It would show her discomfort which, if she had anything to do with it, wouldn't happen. Kailin was not shy, and she wasn't about to let some eye wandering deter her from her actual goal here. Human interaction was always nice, but the chocolate was probably more important than any item in the room.

"Chocolate and a decent conversation with a handsome Scottish boy? It's worth quite a bit," Was flirting to get chocolate a bad thing? No, it was harmless. She probably wouldn't see him again for a while, considering she didn't live in the dorms and it was Christmas break. If she wanted to avoid him afterwards, she could. And if he tried to make a move, well, her power was well useful on scaring him off.

She repressed her laughter, and instead, took of her white coat, revealing her red and white plaid long sleeved shirt and white jeans. She proceeded to take off her mittens and draped it on the dining chair in the far corner of the room, before turning it around and sitting down, her head leaning against the backing.

"So what d'ya say? Sound like a plan?"

[Brendan Talbot]

Despite his eye wandering Brent was relatively harmless, even if it might not have seemed that way to the girl. He could appreciate a pretty face and a fine body and this girl seemed to have both in abundance, but he had no intention of actually making a move unless she initiated it. He didn't really have to. His power was making him rather lazy in that regard, but he figured that was better than the alternative. His way, there was no risk of anyone actually getting hurt, and that was how he often chose to justify it.

The corner of his lips quirked into a smirk at the handsome comment, but it quickly changed into a bright grin as she recognised his accent. “Aye, ye fair bonny yeself lass. Least y'aint callin' me Irish, ye'da never got the mug then.” He laughed softly, but he was only half joking. He had always taken great pride in his heritage and it didn't take much to insult that.

Brent watched her taking off the coat out of the corner of his eye, flicking his gaze between her, the documentary on the TV and the warm mug in his hand. Turning his gaze more towards her, he indicated with the spoon to her top. “Very festive. Many could'nae pull the shortbread tin look off.”

With a smile still curling the corner of his lips, Brent pretended to ponder it for a moment, idly scooping another spoonful of the chocolate cake out of the mug in his hand. Eventually he nodded. “Aye, ye gotta deal.” He slid the second mug-cake across the coffee table towards her. “Don't scarf it doon; I dinnae make them often.”

[Kailin Bishop]

"Kinda make it my mission to know the difference between accents." With her power, and the fact that it was so difficult to replicate voices, she attempted to make it easier on herself to know the differences. It had seemed to work, for the most part. The accents typically were down, but the cutting in and out had yet to be fixed.

"I try," She joked lightly, "Though, I've been told I can pull anything off." The girl was normally very modest about her looks, but there was something about the boy that made her feel that a few conceited comments wouldn't bother him much. After all, he did just check her out a few moments before.

The blonde stepped over to the couch, nodding when the deal was set. Instead of heading towards the couch to grab the cup, she headed toward the island in the middle of the commons room, and went to where the plastic spoons were stashed. She grabbed a single wrapped spoon, and threw the plastic wrapping away.

"So I'm guessing you made it yourself?" She said as she walked back towards the couch and grabbed the cup with a grateful smile. "I have no doubt it tastes as good as it looks." She dipped her spoon in the chocolate concoction, and took a average sized first bite. It was incredible.

"Mmm," She mumbled softly. "Well, it's official. That has to be the best thing I've tasted in a few months. Delicious, --" Kailin realized that she had yet to learn his name, and a proper compliment was not given unless the name was used.

"I'm sorry, I never asked your name. I'm Kailin, and you are...?"

[Brendan Talbot]

As the girl spoke Brent made no effort to dislodge the half-smirk-half-smile that was pulling at his lips. This little interaction was already going far better than he'd hoped, and he wondered why he'd never seen this girl around before. It was possible that their paths had simply never crossed; he wasn't exactly known for paying attention in classes and outside of class he tended to be rarely in the school at all, except to sleep. This last few days marked the most time he'd ever spent inside the building, and that was only because the snow stopped him going out on his bike.

The little smirk increased slightly at the girls less than modest comment, but she was spot on with her assessment. Brent really could not care less about a somewhat vain streak in another, especially when it was as clearly deserved as it was here. He was usually less than subtle himself. “I bet ye could, lass.”

Brent nodded as she asked about the origins of the chocolate mug cake, the slightly smug look clear on his features. He had all of the arrogance of a chef, though he knew that he was still nowhere near as good as he wanted to be. Hopefully his new-ish job would give him the opportunity he needed to improve. “Aye, that I did. Is a fine job, iffa say so maself.”

The girl's compliment did little to fade the smugness on Brent's face, and he grinned as he took another spoonful of his own. “I'm a chef, ye'know. Well, trainin' anyway. Keep the money comin' in til I can do what I wannae.” He smiled easily as she introduced herself. “Good tae meet ya, Kailin. I'm Brendan, most call me Brent.”

[Kailin Bishop]

Apparently she was getting somewhere with him, considering he couldn't seem to manage anything other than a smirk/smile. It was a curious thing, really. But the fact was that she was getting attention--though a bit too much, in her opinion-- and it could potentially be a learning experience. The more people she knew, the broader her understanding of body language and powers could become.

Plus listening to a cute accent was fun, too.

She picked up her spoon, placing it in her mouth and cleaning it of chocolate before pointing it in his direction and saying, "A chef, hm? No wonder." She didn't elaborate on what that meant and proceeded to take another bite, savoring the flavor. She appreciated the fact that he was confident with what he could do.

"At least you know what you want to do," The girl placed the cup on the coffee table and adjusted on the couch to face him. "Pretty little me is indecisive. My goal is graduating at this point. My power is still acting up."

Kailin realized she was talking about school after a moment, and she flushed. Of course, she was thinking about school. It usually happened at some point or another, but she wished that wouldn't be the case.

"So," She recovered herself, moving her hair to one side before grabbing the cup once more. "Are you the kind of guy who hold the recipe secret, or are you willing to share with a pretty girl?" The blonde flashed a sheepish grin, and though she may have looked as if she wasn't serious, she so was.

[Brendan Talbot]

Indeed no one could ever say that Brent was a modest person, especially when it came to something that he knew he could do well. What was the point in being all humble and coy and pathetic when someone was giving you a compliment? Take it and be proud of it! Although admittedly the Scot did sometimes have a wee bit of difficulty drawing the line between self-pride and arrogance. It was something that did sometimes get him into trouble, but oddly enough it seemed to be paying off here. The pretty lass didn't seem set on running away, anyway.

“Aye. I work ar'a restaurant in town; started a month back. Used tae work in ma dad's, but it's gone now.” There was a moment of lingering sadness in Brent's voice as he spoke that, but the emotion that stirred in talk of his father was quickly shoved back before it had chance to do much more than glance at the surface of his features.

Scraping the last of the chocolate cake out of his own mug, Brendan cleaned off the spoon before putting it back into the mug and discarding them on the table for now. “Ach, graduating is overrated.” Spoken like a boy who was well and truly failing his courses. “I mean, maybe if ye wanted te be a physicist or that kindae thing, then ye'd need it, but most folks don't get want they want anyway. There's people with masters degrees askin' if you want fries with your burger.”

Brent would never claim to be a great motivational speaker.

At Kailin's question, however, he visibly perked up and the slightly sly smirk was washed away with an earnest smile. “Always happy tae share it, thanks fer asking! You gorra pen? I'll write it out fer ya.”