Cold March Air (Ariela)

[Milo Ellis]

Milo sat in the staff room with a cup of soup (green Thai prawn soup, from a Soup Maker at home) curled up in a chair in the Staff Room. It was 12:30 and Milo was taking a rest from a busy morning of students and classes and NOISE! How much noise could 20 children make at one time? Milo was trying to hold himself together with Custard Creams (whenever he visited Britain he would buy himself a crateful of English biscuits or 'cookies' for over the pond) and soup, but he had a blinding headache which worsened by the hour and his ears were ringing painfully, both side effects of his power. The soup was delicious and its warmth pulsed through Milo's head and down his neck, spreading through his very being, doing absolutely nothing to help. Still better than a coffee, though.

Milo had become addicted to coffee in his first year of University. He was drinking three espressos a day before he realised it was too many, so he managed to swap one of those for 3 hours sleep, bringing his total up to 6 hours of sleep each night! By the end of Uni he was on a single mug of decaf a day and now he much prefers tea. Delilah always preferred tea. Milo pulled the blanket on his lap closer. He saw people avoid him like the plague and he smiled to himself. Being ill was a repellent, and a mighty strong one at that.

[Ariela Hayes]

Ariela was ridiculously bored. It was the same routine over and over again. Wake up, work out, deal with students, discipline students, blast music, shower, put in ear plugs, go to sleep. Sometimes other mundane activities were mixed in. It was driving Ariela crazy. She hadn't really made any friends with the staff yet. Of course there was her twin Zeb and then Thomas...who she could at least smile and wave at, but friendship was always something Ari had struggled with. She didn't get attached like other people, not as quickly. But every time she went into the staff lounge, there was an opportunity to make conversation with a staff member, even if the small talk killed her.

This time a few people passed her on their way out of the room, but there was only one person sitting inside eating soup. She heard what they were saying as they walked down the hallway.

He does not look well.

He seems really unapproachable.

Ari smiled to herself as she walked into the staff lounge, she was queen of the unapproachable, so maybe she could approach him. "They're talking about you," she told him with a wave of her hand to the doorway.

[Milo Ellis]

It wasn't that Milo was unsociable.
It was just that he had the worst patience on the planet.
He had little time for fools and less time for people he didn't like, which meant he had few friends, but formed strong and long-lasting bonds. That's what he liked to believe, anyway. He still Skyped his University friends now and then, which was something at least. Moving over the pond didn't exactly improve relationships, however. The staff room had seemed like a decent place to socialise, but the overwhelming smell of coffee and the gentle chattering of teachers and other staff, already formed in close knit social groups, were all enough to send a man crazy. Milo was used to it, though: moving about every 6 months taught you not to depend on friends too badly. That's why he was smiling at the obvious disdain shown by his co-workers, rather than being upset. He had seen it all before.

Milo was awoken from his cheery trance by the smartly dressed lady nearest to him.

"Let them,"
Milo nasally replied, his British accent prominent. If he didn't depend on friends very much, there was now way he would let the gossiping of a few 'mature' adults get to him. In fact, to prove a point, he turned and waved to them, smiling pleasantly, in the most passive-aggressive way he could.
So, maybe it annoyed him a little bit.

Milo took another sip of his soup.
"So why are you joining the sick bay over here?"
He was asking a genuine question and din't mean to be rude.
"Feel free to help yourself to a Custard Cream. I'm Milo, by the way." Milo nudged the plate a little in the lady's direction, not wanting to contaminate the British biscuits. This lady seemed nice and he wouldn't wish this cold on anyone.

[Ariela Hayes]

His response made Ari grin. "That's what I like to hear," she told him in response. "I like to tell myself that being talked about means I've been noticed, that I've made an impression on someone." That's how you had to look at it, especially with her power. She always knew when someone was talking about her.

"Truth is, I have an impeccable immune system," she said with a wink. She did eat healthy and take in a lot of vitamin C. And in general, she usually didn't get sick anyway. She lucked out. "I'm usually all about eating healthy, but those look really good," she commented before picking one off of the plate that he'd pushed in her direction. "Ari," she offered in return, taking a bite of the biscuit. She was new at Hammel and sucked at making friends, so hopefully Milo would understand that.