Soft Landings (Monroe)

[Deleted]

Now that the weather was starting to get a little warmer with the arrival of Spring, Xun was taking advantage of the sun and dryness to practice outdoors.  He usually just trained in the training rooms, which was fine, but the floors in there weren't always so forgiving, so he preferred to practice some of his jumps outside, where the grass could buffer his landing if he fell awkwardly.  It didn't happen as much now as it used to, but the more daring he became and the more he pushed himself to go higher, faster, and throw more combinations together, the more likely he was to mess up.  It was just a part of getting better.

The Chinese boy had been doing well so far, though.  There were some other people out and about, which made him somewhat self-conscious, but he managed to ignore them for the most part and just focus on himself.  Of course, anyone performing anything that seemed exotic or out of the ordinary was bound to get some onlookers, but so far no one seemed too incredibly drawn to him, which Xun was pretty relieved by.  Because onlookers asked questions, or wanted to try, and that just kept the athlete from practicing as much as he would like.

He set himself up for an aerial, taking several long steps before jumping into the movement, kicking his legs up above his head and smoothly over to the other side, keeping his arms a good distance above the ground.  Xun landed without a hitch, and went over to grab the camera he'd been recording himself with, judging his own movement.  Hmm... His left leg could be a little straighter...

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

Monroe was dozing, waking up every few minutes on the bench in the courtyard to receive a strange look from another student. One time someone even lightly kicked him in the shin to rouse him. It was about the fourth time he'd woken up and he blinked before rubbing his eyes. He was able to catch some sleep here and there, some few minutes of blissful sleep every so often when no one near him was sleeping, but it wasn't like he could go to school at night and sleep during the day. That would be an ideal school for him...

He looked out into the courtyard, his vision focusing on a boy in the grass doing jumps and movements in the air that almost appeared like he was dancing. And then he bent down to look at a camera, looking less than pleased with himself. "I think you should be applauding yourself for not falling if you ask me," he offered, just loud enough for the boy to hear.

[Deleted]

Having blocked out the people milling around him, Xun hadn't even realized there was someone dozing on the bench a short distance away. He was busy scrutinizing every little mistake he'd made with his contact-clad eyes, trying to determine what could use the most work.

It wasn't until that person spoke up that he blinked and looked around, realizing the voice was addressing him. What had he said? Something about applauding? "I, ah, still have a lot to work on," he replied slowly, gaze settling on the person who had spoken. A long-haired boy he didn't recognize. Not surprising, considering Xun didn't make a habit of meeting new people. Xun wavered, then approached the guy, feeling a little bold from the adrenaline pumping through his system. "Would you, um... Qing, would you actually mind holding this and recording for me?" he asked in a shy, quiet voice. "I'm not getting the best angle with it on the ground." He was already sitting there, so he wasn't asking the guy to go out of his way, right?

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

"Well, it's not like I could tell," Monroe said honestly with a shrug. He knew nothing about what this guy was doing, let alone what it was called, although he was sure it had a foreign name. The guy was approaching him and Monroe tried to look more awake than he felt, although he was sure that didn't help. "Yeah, okay." He shrugged again. It was really beginning to get to him how often he did that. "Am I supposed to hold the camera at a certain angle or...just record?"

[Deleted]

That was true, Xun knew. He also knew that he was very nit-picky about how his form looked; and he needed to be, because judges at competition were even worse than he was. Regular people that didn’t practice wushu just saw athletes like him jumping around and thought it was ‘cool’, he’d come to learn. “I… I’m sorry, you don’t have to if you are sleeping,” he added quickly, realizing the other boy looked a bit tired. But he seemed okay with it, so Xun handed the camera over and motioned to the record button. “Oh, just record, that would be wonderful,” he replied, mustering up a smile as he went back into position. After a few moments of rest and a cue from his new recorder, he ducked down into a low stance and kicked himself into a butterfly kick, landing with only a slight jolt. It felt like a pretty decent jump; he got some good air on it.

“Did you get that?” he asked quietly as he approached the other boy again. “Ah… I’m Xun, by the way,” he added belatedly, offering a slightly trembling hand from exertion. “Thank you.”

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

Monroe laughed and ran a hand through his hair. "You are probably one of the first people to not question the strangeness of my sleeping on a bench in the courtyard or call me a hobo," he pointed out to the boy. "I appreciate it," he added, his half-smile turning into a smirk.

He grabbed the camera firmly with both hands, not wanting to drop it and ruin a good impression. He wasn't all about impressing people and he never started off very well being half asleep when people were trying to talk to him, but he didn't want to ruin someone's camera. "Alright," he agreed, finding the red 'record' button. When Xun gave him the signal, he started recording, in awe at what this guy could do. It was one hell of a sport.

"Yeah, I got it," he said, still in awe as the boy approached him. "Monroe," he said, holding out one hand and making sure to still have a grip on the camera as he shook the guy's hand. It was then that he realized he was still recording. Now their introductions were on tape. He quickly pressed the button to stop it and looked bashfully at Xun.

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Xun gave a small smile, shrugging a shoulder. "I get tired sometimes too," he replied, stretching out his arm absent-mindedly while he spoke. With his ability, he commonly had exhaustion spells. "And... You are definitely not a hobo," he added, a little confused. He'd seen plenty of homeless people on the corners of Seattle; they looked nothing like this well-groomed (if long-haired) guy.

And he appreciated the stranger's willingness to record his jumps. Maybe, if he came out here on a regular basis, he could become Xun's cameraman. No, no... That was too selfish and asking too much of someone he barely knew. He quickly brushed away the idea.

"Nice to meet you Monroe," he said, politely and quietly, but his firm handshake gave away his physical strength (as though the jump hadn't already). Xun took the camera back and pressed play, watching not only his jump (which was probably his best so far today), but also the introduction they had just had. "Well, at least now I won't forget your name," he said matter-of-factly, meeting Monroe's eyes with his contact-clad ones. "Thank you. I'm sorry if I bothered you... You can go back to your nap if you would like." He didn't say it teasingly; he just didn't want to force the guy to interact any more than he wanted to.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

Monroe could only nod at what he said about sometimes getting tired. Monroe was always tired, and while he didn't find the need to advertise it, sometimes his body language and lack of speaking or paying attention spoke for itself. "Thanks, kind of you to say," he told the guy. "I think it's the long hair...or the fact that sometimes I wake up and put on clothes that really don't match..." He laughed.

"You too," he said with a kind nod in Xun's direction, taken aback by the guy's strong grip. Honestly, he didn't appear to be someone who would have such a strong handshake, but Monroe now felt as if his grip was gentle in comparison. He felt a little awkward after Xun replayed the video. "Sorry, I spaced," he explained dumbly. "Forgot I was recording. It's a hobo thing." He made really lame jokes when he was tired and meeting people for the first time. "Yeah...naps usually don't work out so well for me."

[Deleted]

It always took Xun a little bit of time to get used to talking to new people; he didn't pick up on strangers' personalities well, and he wasn't very good at adjusting how he reacted to things depending on who he was talking to. Fortunately, Monroe didn't seem like the hyperactive type (okay, well, obviously), so that helped a bit. "You have nice hair," he said rather matter-of-factly with a faint smile. It was long, and pretty, he thought. As for clothing,"Ah, well, I am not someone to judge for that," he laughed a little, motioning to his own workout attire. It was nothing more than simple gray and black, loosely fitted; it was pretty much all he wore even when not practicing.

"Don't worry about it," Xun assured Monroe, turning the camera off. "I've done it plenty of times." It took him a moment to process the joke, but when he did, he gave a little laugh, actually finding it rather humorous. "Ahh... You're funny," he chuckled. "Mm, perhaps you should find somewhere where there are less people?" he suggested uncertainly. Xun was about done practicing for the day, so he'd likely find somewhere to crash and work on homework or something.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

Monroe was flattered at the compliment. "I do, don't I?" he replied lamely, touching it for a moment and then chuckling awkwardly after. "Thanks. Guess I can't be a hobo when I have nice hair." He shrugged his shoulders at his lame jokes. "Yeah, but you're working out which looks productive. I'm sleeping on a bench. I think there's a difference."

Monroe was not very good with electronics, perhaps a lot better than his friend Sebastian as he mostly knew how to use them and didn't swear off computers for a typewriter. The guy was laughing at his joke and then told him he was funny. "Are you sure? Because I've been told I'm not funny." he ran a hand through his long hair. "See, I don't like sleeping which is why I try not to go to quiet places."

[Deleted]

Xun's quick eyes followed after the motion of Monroe's hand, nodding in confirmation. "I do not believe having nice hair is a hobo trait, no," he agreed, a lame attempt at his own joke. He tilted his head and let his gaze slip over the boy's body before giving a shrug. "I can teach you something sometime if you would like," he offered slowly. But he wouldn't push it - the guy looked awfully comfortable.

He shook his head and chuckled again at Monroe's question. "I don't know why people would say that, I enjoy your sense of humor. You aren't... Crude like so many people our age are." At least, he wasn't being crude yet. Xun folded his legs underneath him and settled on the grass in front of Monroe, content just to talk for now. "Why do you not like sleeping?" he asked curiously. He personally enjoyed sleep very much. Xun picked at the grass for a moment before looking up again. "I love naps," he admitted. It helped him recharge after he used his ability.

[Thomas "Monroe" Montgomery]

"True, but who says I shampoo it?" Monroe asked, keeping the joke going and winking lamely afterwards before considering what he said and almost bursting out in lauhter. "Uh, I'm really not sure that would be a good idea. You see, I'm really scrawny. Like, I walk up the stairs and get winded." He was unhealthy after all. He knew that. Not sleeping had many other effects on him than just being tired. "I doubt I'm capable of what you do."

"I think that's what people think is funny...crude sexual jokes. Fortunately, or unfortately, depending on how you look at it, I'm not your typical teenager." He grinned at him as he plopped down in the grass as well. "It's not really that I don't like to sleep, more like I don't like what happens when I sleep. I feel like every conversation leads to my power. Do you ever feel like that?"

[Deleted]

Xun suddenly eyed the guy's hair with more scrutiny. Hmm, maybe it did look a little greasy... But that didn't particularly matter to the Chinese boy. He didn't judge; he was sure his hair was a mess from working out anyway. "Ah... I see," he replied, frowning slightly. Monroe didn't look particularly unhealthy - he was thin, though that wasn't necessarily a sign. "Well, I, ah, supposed it's hard to stay active if you are tired all the time," he commented after a moment. Xun knew what it was like to try and train when the body was exhausted - it wasn't enjoyable.

The word 'sexual' made Xun flinch visibly. Even if Monroe wasn't using it in a bad way, it still made him uncomfortable. "I... I am not either," he replied, folding his arms over his knees and resting his chin on them. "I do not understand most people my age..." But then again, he didn't have much of a sex drive, if at all, so he couldn't relate to those kinds of jokes. "Oh... I understand," Xun replied, looking at his new acquaintance. If it was an ability thing, he could definitely relate. His own caused him a lot of grief. "Yes... Well, at least, my ability has unfortunate side effects," he replied. "It... Can be a pain." He didn't usually talk about that sort of stuff with other people. "Ah, anyway... I should be going," he said suddenly, hopping to his feet. He just remembered he had a training session he definitely needed soon.