SUE: Laundry Day (Kuni)

[Eloise Eaton]

Eloise hadn't been feeling too great recently. There was a bug going around school, and even though she did everything she possibly could to avoid catching it, but it seemed like she had at least a little something. Nothing too bad yet, though - a little bit of a cough, a fever that she managed to get down with some tylonol. Her stomach had been bugging her a bit too, but nothing too awful. She considered herself lucky - some people around school were a lot worse off.

So Eloise decided to take the day to do a bout of laundry before graduating and moving out. It had been a while since she washed her clothes. With Eloise's expansive wardrobe it was easy for her to go for long periods of time without having to clean any. It took her almost 4 loads to clean everything at once. It was a pain sometimes, but she couldn't bear to part with her clothes. And she was much to busy (read: lazy) to put in a single load every time her hamper filled up.

Eloise was sitting cross legged on her bed, folding her copious amounts of clothes. She was wearing grey sweatpants and a white tanktop - nothing fancy - very appropriate for how she was feeling. Her hair was up in a messy bun as it often was while doing her chores. And as she folded her clothes, stopping only in the moments she wanted to turn her head and cough, she came across something she forgot she had - a tshirt about 4 sizes too big for her.

Since graduation was coming up, Eloise figured now was as good a time as ever to return Kuni's tshirt. She meant to get it to him way sooner, but her poor laundry habits were hard to break. She walked barefoot up to the boy's dorms, and found her way to room 502 - just like the boy had told her when they had arrived back at Hammel from their first... encounter. She raised her hand and knocked on the door, lowering hand to rest on her stomach momentarily as it had started churning a bit again on her walk to Kuni's room. She ignored it for the most part - the churning had amounted to nothing over the past few days, why would today be any different.

[Kunikpok "Kuni" Arrluk]

Like the whale he sometimes was, Kuni had a very strong immunity system; it was very rare that he ever got sick, and this bug that seemed to be going around the school was no exception. He'd gotten a cold during the winter, which was usually the only thing he got every year - just a mild thing to clear out his systems. He was doing all he could, then, to help those of his friends who were sick get better as soon as possible. Kuni wasn't too worried about catching it by being around them, but if it happened, it happened.

He'd pretty much forgotten about the shirt he'd let Eloise wear those weeks ago, although he hadn't forgotten about the girl herself. They'd had another awkward series of moments at the Spin the Bottle party a while back, which left him... Honestly, not super excited to see her again, if only because he was afraid she thought he was a complete moron and he'd end up making her think that even more by doing something else dumb. Kuni did like her, though; he just wished he could figure out how not to be so awkward!!

At the moment, he wasn't thinking about that, though - he was in his room, shirt off and window open, doing some reps on his bedroom floor. He'd been doing some last-minute studying for the end of the term, and it always made his head hurt and body feel sluggish, so he'd decided he needed to get up and do some push-ups and crunches. It had ended up being a longer session than he'd planned, though, and he'd ended up getting overheated in the almost-summer weather, hence the open window and lack of a shirt.

Sweat dripped from his forehead as he stood and let out a heavy breath, deciding he was finally done and might be able to concentrate on his studies again. Before he could, though, a sudden knock came at his door, and Kuni's brow furrowed. He didn't think he'd asked anyone over... Nevertheless, he went to open it, only to find Eloise herself standing before him, looking a tad green. And... With his shirt! "Oh, hey," he finally greeted after the initial oh-my-god-what-do-I-say. "How, uh, how are you?" He gave her a smile, although it wavered as he tried to block any... Weird thoughts that might surface against his will.

[Eloise Eaton]

When the door opened to room 205, Eloise stood slightly slack-jawed for just a moment. She knew someone was coming to answer the door. She had even been hoping it was Kuni - just to make the entire exchange easier. However what Eloise wasn't expecting, was for Kuni to be standing over her shirtless, glistening with sweat, and panting slightly. It took until Kuni spoke for Eloise to snap out of whatever weird trance the boys appearance put her in. "Hi!" she said back almost too quickly, trying to recover.

"Hi, I'm good," Eloise repeated her greeting, laughing a bit at herself. "Well..." she amended, realizing she may have just lied a little, "I'm alright. I haven't been feeling too well... but nobody's been feeling well so..." she shrugged, playing it off like it was no big deal - which it wasn't! She was fine. Eloise Eaton didn't let viruses or bacteria get her down. She sucked it up and went on, because life doesn't stop for sick days.

A moment of silence passed as Eloise tried to recollect her thoughts over her churning stomach and the slight background noise that was Kuni reminding himself to watch what he thinks. Part of Eloise wanted to assure him to stop worrying and that she'll keep out, but the other part remembered why she had come in the first place. "I uh, I washed your shirt," Elosie informed the boy, offering him the folded piece of fabric in her hand. "Sorry it took so long," she added, knowing it had taken weeks for her to actually get any laundry done. She smoothed out a wrinkle on the shirt with her free hand."I figured I should probably get it to you before graduation."

[Kunikpok "Kuni" Arrluk]

Kuni was too in sort-of shock himself to really register what him coming to the door looking like he was might impress upon his visitor. It wasn't until the slight awkward pause between their introductions that he looked down and seemed to realize how he looked. "Oh," he blurted, flushing deeply. "Sorry, I was just, uh, taking a break, and it got hot..." Nope, he wasn't helping his case at all. "... I mean... You know... Exercise..." He really needed to just stop while he wasn't too deep into the hole he kept digging.

"Good! That's good," he rambled with a nod. He paused as she seemed to change her mind, though, and frowned sympathetically. "Ah, yeah... I've seen something going around. I haven't caught it yet, fortunately. I've been told I have the immunity of an ox," he chuckled. "I'm sorry to hear you caught it though. That's too bad. I hope you get better soon, being sick isn't fun." Was he still rambling? He was totally rambling. And talking too fast. Kuni rubbed his hand on the back of his neck, ears burning.

He was relieved when the subject of his shirt came up to hopefully distract him from his swirling thoughts. "Oh, thanks!" he told her, taking the shirt with a smile. "Don't worry about it, I have plenty of others." This one wasn't anything special... At least it hadn't been until now. He could smell the faint whiff of something distinctly feminine lingering on the fabric. Kuni wondered if it would fade, but realized he didn't really care if it didn't. "You're graduating?" he blurted with a blink. "Oh... Wow, I guess it is that time of year, isn't it?" Had he been on track, he would be graduating this year too; as it was, he needed to catch up more on his studies, not to mention more control over his ability. "Well, uh, congrats for um, graduating and all," he told her. "I would be on the same boat, but... I've got a couple years left here. You'll come visit, right?"

Oh, why did he say that!? They still barely knew each other!

[Eloise Eaton]

"Oh it's fine," Eloise promised, regarding Kuni's appearance. The boy honestly had nothing to be sorry about. It just took her a little off guard. It was hard to stay straight faced when the door opened and - bam - abs. Glistening abs, at that. "Exercise is... good. Important," Eloise noted, struggling to come up with what in the world she actually wanted to say in regards to what she was facing. She was glad she wasn't a telepath who accidentally put her own thoughts into other people's mind.

"I haven't felt too bad though," Eloise said positively, which was completely true. She had felt totally fine, basically until two minutes ago on her walk up to Kuni's room. She wouldn't get into that though. She wasn't trying to offend anyone - like the thought or act of seeing them made her sick. Even if trying to talk to Kuni sometimes threw knots into El's stomach. It was sometimes hard to face someone whose first impression of you involved skinny dipping in a lake.

Eloise smiled slightly when Kuni asked if she'd visit. She wasn't sure why, but there was something touching about the way he asked. No one had ever really explicity asked her to visit them, or keep in touch when she was going away - and Eloise went away a lot. She didn't have many old friends because of the fact - noone ever even bothered to keep in touch. "I might," she said, a bit of a teasing tone to her voice. "I uh... I think I'm going to stay in Pilot Ridge for a while though so... I'll be close," another small smile pulled at the corner of her mouth. And it would be nice to still have a friend around while she stayed. She wasn't sure how long she'd stay, or how often she'd come back after. Eloise's plans were often a big question mark.

"Why arn't you graduating,though?" Eloise asked curiously. She thought they were the same age, but perhaps she had been worng. Then again she knew people who had to stay a little extra at Hammel for various reasons. Like Monroe, who still didn't have much control over his power. He wasn't going to still live there though.

[Kunikpok "Kuni" Arrluk]

Was... Was Eloise acting a little nervous, too, or was it Kuni's imagination? Probably his imagination. There was no reason to be nervous around him! Well, except for the fact about how they met... But it was okay, it made him feel better to think that maybe he wasn't the only one that felt awkward. "Yeah, definitely," he replied with a bob of his head. "It helps me, um, focus more when I start studying again, if I take breaks like that." Kuni had a hard time studying as it was, so he needed all the help he could get.

"Oh, well that's good!" he replied with a smile. "I'm glad to hear that. Hopefully you'll get over it soon and it won't get any worse." It sounded like everyone that caught it was getting different levels of severity; Kuni hoped Eloise had already gotten past the worst of it. He didn't realize she was more nauseous now than she had been before coming to his room; he would have felt awful if he knew.

At least she didn't... Laugh or look weirded out when Kuni asked if she'd visit. He gave a small, nervous smile. "That... That would be nice," he replied, trying not to sound... What? Clingy? Needy? Kuni had to remind himself they still barely knew each other, and their initial meeting had been weird (to put it lightly). She was probably just... Humoring him, right? "Are you, um, going to college, or...?" Kuni didn't mean to be nosy, but he was curious.

"Oh! I'm being so rude, why don't you come inside?" Kuni laughed awkwardly and stepped to the side, giving Eloise room to step inside the common room. He quickly grabbed a towel and wiped off his brow, giving an embarrassed smile at the question. "I, um... Well, my grades aren't the best," he admitted. "But... It mostly has to do with my powers training." ... He was going to have to tell Eloise what he could do, wasn't he? "It's, ah... The nature of it doesn't make it easy to train here, so I can't practice as much as I wish I could." He sat down on one of the couches and fiddled with his fingers in his lap.

[Eloise Eaton]

Eloise was nervous. It was weird. Eloise Eaton wasn't one to be nervous around anyone or anything that didn't involve the fashion industry or advanced mathematics. But she too chalked it up to how they met. It was a simple, reasonable explanation for the awkwardness that always seemed to ensue between herself and Kuni.

Eloise played absentmindedly with the bottom of her tank top as she spoke and took a couple steps into Kuni's room, trying to keep her mind focused on the topic at hand instead of going off like it had before... between Kuni's body and the feeling in the pit of her stomach which she couldn't quite chalk up to nausea or nervous knots or an awful combination of the two. She took a seat on the arm of the couch, and placed her feet on the cushion, wrapping her hands around her knees. "I uh... I'm taking a year off," she explained. She wanted to go to college, she thought, but not right now. "I want to go to fashion school so I need to work on a portfolio and so... I 'm just hanging out," she explained with a small shrug, feeling like a lot of people might hear that plan and call it stupid, but also believing that Kuni was way to nice to ever think anything like that. So the worry left her mind pretty quickly.

Eloise nodded in understanding when Kuni said his grades weren't the best. Hers wouldn't be either if it weren't so easy to obtain a cheat sheet in her mind. (Most teachers made telepaths take test separately in a different room, but they also often forgot to make those arrangements.) Though when Kuni explained it had to do more with his power, and the difficulty in training on campus, a confused look crossed Eloise's face. She was under the impression that his ability was what kept him breathing under the water that whole time at the lake, and she was certain that Hammel had a pool.

Right as she was about to question him, though, her stomach lurched. "I uh..." she started, trying to recover. She kicked her legs off the couch. "Can I use your bath..." she started, but unable to finish as her stomach lurched again, this time causing Eloise's stomach to empty its contents - and it was pretty amazing how puking on a hot guy's floor can make your stomach feel a little better, but everything else a whole lot worse.

Eloise's hands flew to her mouth, as she said "Oh my god." Into it over and over and over. "I'm so sorry," she said, and equal amount of times - her face burning red from, her feet planted on the ground in shock, fearful to move at all. Her throat burned, and her eyes were watering, though she wasn't so sure if the latter was actually due to the vomiting, or because she actually felt like she was going to die of embarrassment.

[Kunikpok "Kuni" Arrluk]

For some reason, it was easy for Kuni to forget that Eloise could read his mind. Maybe it was her nature, or maybe it was because he was often so simple-minded and not thinking about much that didn't make him paranoid. "Taking a year off sounds like a good idea," he nodded, smiling. He wasn't sure if he would even be going to college at all; he didn't have the money, or the smarts. "Fashion school?" he repeated, blinking a little dumbly. He hadn't even realized that was a thing. "That... Wow, that sounds interesting," he replied curiously. "Is there one nearby, or would you have to move?" Kuni really knew nothing.

If he could read the minds of those around him, maybe he would do better on tests. As it was, words just sort of turned to goop in his head as he tried to answer problems. It wasn't that he didn't try hard; he was even being tutored. Kuni just... Didn't have a bright mind. He was raised to hunt and fish and protect; not solve trigonometry.

"Hm?" Kuni blinked, innocent and confused, as Eloise's mood suddenly changed. "Are you oka-?" The Inuit boy's eyes widened and he automatically cringed back against the sight. "Oh, no!" he gasped. "I'm so sorry, I should have gotten you a towel or something...! Of course, there had been no way for him to know this would happen, but...

He rushed around trying to grab mops and paper towels and such to elan up the mess. "It's okay, it's okay," Kuni told her repeatedly over and over. "Your body wanted it out, so it got it out now." He deemed Eloise too sick to clean up after herself, though, so he didn't let her help. "Do you feel better?" he asked, trying to find light in the situation. "Here, how about you lie down so maybe you'll feel better..." Kuni adjusted the pillows on the couch and ushered Eloise too it. "Can I get you anything?" he asked worriedly. "Should I take you to the infirmary?"

[Eloise Eaton]

It quickly became apparent that Kuni wasn't going to let Eloise clean up her own mess, which made the entire situation that much more horrible in the blonde's mind. "I can clean it," she offered, but Kuni was too busy rushing her to the couch and making her sit down. "I can't believe that just happened," she muttered to herself, hopefully not loud enough for the boy to hear as he went over the spot with a mop. At least he had something on hand to clean it with...

The evidence was soon gone, but Eloise still felt awful. Her stomach felt much better. What the guy had said was true - it wanted to get out. Well it was out. But Eloise would do anything to rewind time and make it so that atrocity hadn't occurred. "I'm so.... so sorry," she repeated for what was probably the hundredth time, as she grabbed a paper towel to wipe off some of what had splashed onto her feet, cringing as she did so. "I... I feel much better... or at least my stomach does," she said honestly.

"I don't think I need a doctor or anything but maybe I should just..." Eloise started gesturing to the door, ready to dash away and never look back. She stopped though, and suppressed a groan when she remembered the piles of clothes that still littered her bed. They would take her quite a while to put away before she could just lay down and relax until she was over this little episode.

[Kunikpok "Kuni" Arrluk]

No, Kuni wasn't going to let Eloise clean up the mess. For one, if she had a weak stomach and was already sick, he was afraid it would just make her vomit more, which wouldn't be helpful. And she obviously wasn't feeling good, so she needed to rest. "It's alright, I don't mind," he told her honestly. Kuni had always had a strong stomach and didn't mind this sort of stuff - must have come with cleaning out whale and other animal entrails. He quickly got the mess away and went to wash up, grabbing a trash bin before he came back to sit beside the couch in case Eloise needed to vomit again.

"Shh... It's alright," Kuni said soothingly, taking on the voice he often did when he'd been helping some of his other sick friends. He awkwardly patted his large hand against Eloise's shoulder. "I'm glad you feel better. I'm just sorry that's how bad you felt beforehand..." The Inuit boy's soft heart squeezed in sympathy.

"Okay..." Kuni wavered, wondering if he should insist on her going to see someone, but if she didn't think she needed to, then he wouldn't press it. "Um, you don't have to leave, though. I... I really think it would be better if you just laid down and relaxed until you feel better. I mean... I don't mind at all. I really don't." He smiled gently. "It would make me feel better knowing you're somewhere where, uh, someone can take care of you if you need it, anyway." He felt a blush rise on his cheeks again and looked away shyly. "I mean, I'm no doctor or anything, but I do what I can to help."

[Eloise Eaton]

Eloise buried her hands in her face as Kuni finished cleaning up, mostly because she didn't want to watch. She only peaked through her fingers when he sat next to her after washing his hands, and bringing a trashcan over - clearly in preparation for it to happen again. He awkwardly patted her shoulder, and she finally let her hands drop from her face, still leaning her elbows on her knees. He offered her to stay. Which was nice. But she wasn't so sure how to tell him that a huge part of her didn't want to.

"Any other day... I'd probably leave and try to forget this ever happened. Because this is easily the most horrifying thing that has happened to me in a long while," Eloise said in complete honesty, not trying to offend Kuni in any way, but possibly succeeding. "But there's a hug pile of laundry on my bed that's waiting to be folded and I don't think I can face that right now," she added, her way of accepting Kuni's offer, although reluctantly. She sighed and finally leaned back on the couch, still not quite comfortable enough to lay down like Kuni suggested. There was something inherently weird about laying down on the couch of someone you've only been with a couple of times.

"This isn't like me..." Eloise said softly, eyes closing. "I mean... not the sick part. Well I'm not usually sick... I mean..." she groaned slightly, and pushed some stray hairs out of her face, taking a moment to breathe and collect her thoughts.

"I feel like you never get the change to meet the real me," Eloise finally explained in the words she originally wanted to put forth. "I've been naked, throwing up, or in a crowded room full of horny teenagers who can't shut their minds down for two seconds," Eloise said, recounting their previous encounters, and how each time she was put in a situation that made the meeting strange. "I think you're bad luck," Eloise joked, at first looking at Kuni with a straight, serious expression, but eventually cracking a small smile. "Why can't we just ever have a normal conversation in a normal place... in normal clothes?" she asked, now realizing that she was dressed like a mess too. 2 out of 3 times Kuni had seen Eloise when she was a mess - dripping wet in a too-big tshirt after getting out of the lake, or in baggy sweatpants and an old tank top because she was sick. "You must think I'm a mess," Eloise added with a laugh, not even bothering to find out for herself, because a huge part of her didn't want to know.

[Kunikpok "Kuni" Arrluk]

Kuni smiled kindly, not surprised by Eloise's dismay with what had happened, but not holding the event against her in the slightest. It hadn't been her fault; there was no stopping it. "It's quite alright," he told her, looking up at the ceiling. "I wish... I could say something to make you less embarrassed, but I don't know what that would be other than I've seen worse." Seriously, whale and fish carcasses smelled (and looked) way worse, in his opinion. He nodded in understanding at her explanation. "I wouldn't want to fold clothes if I felt awful either," he sympathized. Kuni was glad when she finally relaxed, but he did notice how she was still sitting.

He blinked as Eloise started to try to explain herself, tilting his head with a small "Hmm?" Kuni wasn't quite sure what she was trying to get across, but he waited patiently until it seemed she figured out what she wanted to say.

"The real you?" he repeated, a little confused. How could she be anyone that she wasn't? When Eloise explained further, though, Kuni started to understand. "Ah... Yeah, we have always met... In odd ways...." he agreed with a small chuckle. Eloise, admittedly, had had the worst end of each encounter in the long run, but Kuni hadn't exactly been all that smooth either. "Well... Each of those times was out of your control," he said thoughtfully. "And I think... Well, if nothing else, it hasn't been boring, getting to know you." His smile cracked wider, and he laughed again. "Maybe I am bad luck. But at least I got to meet you." He... Hoped she didn't regret it, because he sure didn't.

"No... No, I don't think that at all," he said honestly. If Eloise looked into his head, she'd find it to be true. "It's obvious to me that you're a beautiful person even though our chance meetings haven't been... Picture perfect." As soon as Kuni realized what he'd said, he blushed deeply. "I mean... I don't know. I don't know what I mean." Good going, Kunikpok. He gave a breathless chuckle and leaned back against the couch. "You probably think I'm just a big dumb lump anyway, so I'd say we're even."

[Eloise Eaton]

"You're not a dumb. Or a lump," Eloise promised Kuni with a small chuckle when Kuni expressed a feeling similar to hers - that her opinion of him was not ideal. She turned her head and looked him up and down, as if she had to get her facts straight before she made her next comment. "You are big though... I'll give you that," she finally said, smiling softly, finally leaning back on the couch, pulling her legs up with her to hug them against her chest.

Eloise hadn't even noticed Kuni blush. She couldn't even look him in the eye yet. Not after she watched him clean up her puke out of her peripheral vision. "I appriciate that, though. That you don't think I'm some sort of freak," Eloise clarified with another small laugh - directed mostly toward herself. "I feel like some sort of freak though..." she said with a roll of her eyes, settling her chin on her knees, and turning her head slightly toward the Inuit who was still looking at her with some worry in his eyes.

"I just wish there were some way to rewind and start over... preferably with clothes on." Eloise was pretty sure she'd never be able to forget a meeting like that, though.

[Kunikpok "Kuni" Arrluk]

Kuni grinned widely. "I don't know, you'd be surprised, I do some pretty dumb things," he retorted. He knew he wasn't the sharpest person around; it was one of the reasons why he wasn't graduating yet. He'd had a simple upbringing until he came to Hammel. "Yeah... That's something I won't argue," he laughed again, looking down at himself... And remembering he still hadn't thrown on a shirt. Oops. Ah well, it was sort of late now, the damage had already been done.

"Freak? Are you kidding?" he replied, genuinely surprised. "I would never think that. Not unless you were, um, growing horns out of your head, or something." Kuni paused and then added,"Although even at Hammel, that wouldn't be entirely strange," he corrected himself. And laughed once more. "Honestly, I really don't think badly of you at all. I hope you realize this. And I... I want to get to know you better, hopefully with less, uh, awkward meetings." He chuckled and ran his hand through his hair.

"Ah, clothes, right..." Maybe it was time he dressed, considering the conversation. "I'll be right back." Kuni quickly went to his room and tossed the shirt that Eloise had brought over on his bed before throwing on a (clean) tanktop. He came back out and glanced around. "Can I get you anything?" he offered. "Some water, or crackers...? Does anything sound good?" Kuni wasn't sure that eating anything now was the best idea, though. "Or I could get a blanket and put on a movie," he added.

[Eloise Eaton]

Eloise was happy Kuni didn't think she was a freak - even if she felt a bit freakish every time she was around him. He had a point though. If anything, Kuni should/would think she was a freak because she could read minds. But he didn't. She knew that from his reaction when he and found out. And Eloise more than anyone else (aside from a lie detector) could tell when someone was lying.

"Water might be nice," Eloise admitted when Kuni came back from his little adventure to put his shirt on. She had stayed in one spot, eyes scanning the room briefly. Just trying to keep her heart rate down (which had definitely spiked during her little panic directly after the incident) and her stomach settled. The prospect of a little bit of water was appealing, since Eloise felt like most of her fluids just forcefully left her body. And food was not so appealing, since she feared it would try to leave her body again.

"And... I guess I could stick around for a movie," Eloise said with a small smile, deciding that the offer was definitely better than going and trying to fold laundry or sleep on her couch alone. And it had been a while since she'd seen a good movie - most of her time taken up by school over the past months. Along with apartment hunting and making sure all her credits from Kocher transferred so she could graduate on time.