The Danish Invasion (A.J.)

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"I think the word is differently defined by everyone. But I think what you deem as progress for yourself is most important," AJ told him, softly. Sure, she was worried, about Oriel's mental health and Phoenix's as well, but they'd proven to make each other better people before, to bring out the best in one another. All couples had issues, right? AJ had only ever had one boyfriend, and that was Travis, but they hadn't been able to work through their issues. It almost made her think if she should have tried harder, if she'd merely just left him in the dust because she couldn't deal with him. But at the time, it'd felt like the right thing to do, no matter how hard it was. Her mental health was deteriorating along with his. Love just wasn't enough sometimes. But maybe Phoenix and Oriel were different, and who was she to decide the outcome?

"I'm sorry," she mumbled into his shoulder as he'd hugged her, finally after coming out of her own head. "I just worry. About you and about Phen. And I was looking at my own experience. But everyone is different." She did feel the need to apologize, especially since Oriel had been so excited. When he pulled away, she mustered a small smile.

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Oriel…appreciated those words. To hear them from someone else who knew enough of the situation, but had nothing to gain or lose from telling him the same lies he’d heard before.

“Thank you….” he said softly into her hair. “For worrying about us.” Oriel gave her a gentle pat on her back before pulling away. “We’ll be okay.” Hopefully. Oriel himself had doubts, though he’d never voice them. He was far to stubborn and selfish to let Phoenix go. No matter how bad it might actually be for both of them.

Oriel went silent for a moment, staring between AJ and the floor. “So…that’s all I had to tell you.” He backed up, keeping his eyes to the floor. “Y….your turn,” he said, looking up to her with a strained smile. There was still other stuff she wanted to…ask him about….wasn’t there…?

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"Yeah...really...it's just something I do naturally. Worry, I mean." AJ always knew that she was a worrier and it had turned into anxiety after everything with Oliver. "I know. It's not that I don't have faith in your relationship. I just...worry." She sounded so repetitive. "Sorry..."

"My turn?" she asked, running a hand through her hair. She didn't expect that. Then again, she did need to run some things by someone and Oriel was her friend, so why not do it? It helped get things out of her head. "Uhh, what do you think about me possibly joining the swim team? Is that lame? Or...I mean, I don't know if I'll like it." There were more serious things to talk about of course.

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Of course she worried. And that thought….Oriel didn’t know quite how to react to it, hence why he became so defensive at first. People worrying about him was not something he was used to still. So he nodded, and tried a smile. “I know….S….sorry I freaked out on you.” That word still felt awkward on his tongue.

Yes, her turn. Oriel had urged past whatever she’d been trying to say so much that he wasn’t sure if her concerns were addressed already or if she had more she wanted to get out. But apparently AJ found something else to report, to which Oriel was quite delighted to hear. “The swim team?” he repeated. Oriel shook his head. “No! It’s not…I mean….fuck I thought that for a fucking long time ‘bout dance and the drama club, but…” Because he was always so anti-social before, and afraid of interacting with other people and crowds and… “Fuck…I’m glad I did….join, I mean…” Hopefully that helped?

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"It's okay. You just want someone to believe in you and your relationship. There's nothing wrong with that," AJ mused. She knew why Oriel reacted the way he did.

"Yeah." The swim team. "I know, I mean....but this is a sport. And while I know I was good back home, I just don't know. I'm so rusty and I do it to relax now, but it's my last few months here at Hammel and I don't have any extra curriculars to put on my college applications." That was worrying her the most to be honest and while she was undoubtedly intelligent, her grades hadn't started out that well when she'd first came to Hammel. She had to start thinking about that. "I just don't know if it's what I want to do or not." She should probably actually finally talk to him about Oliver instead of rambling about joining the swim team.

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Sports. Oriel tried to hold back his distaste for the word. He wasn’t a sports person. It was too tedious for him to think about, with all the rules and shit. But he tried to anyway, for AJ’s sake. “What does it being a sport have to do with anything? If you want to fucking do it, then do it, I say.” Why did it have to be so complicated? Oriel didn’t understand the importance of college applications either, nor how they worked. Either way, it seemed like a ridiculous thing to have to think about just to be allowed to go to school. Though maybe if Oriel had any intentions of going to college, he might see it differently. There was no way they’d let him, though. Not with his grades.

But AJ was different. She was smart, at least Oriel thought so. “…is there any rule that says you got to have it to get into college? Or if you start, you ain’t allowed to stop?” Shouldn’t she be allowed to stop an activity if she didn’t like it? "And who the fuck says you got to pick only one?" Oriel was in two clubs himself.

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"Sports have a bigger committment, I don't know. They're competitive. I have to be good enough," AJ mused after he'd asked what it being a sport had to do with anything. "I love swimming, but I only do it on my own time in an empty pool. I don't want to turn something that's helped me relax into something that makes me feel stressed, you know?" She just wanted a few opinions and she held Oriel's in higher regard than some guy she'd just met at the pool.

"No..it's not really a rule, more like something people just drill into your head all through your education. It's what sets you apart. I don't know, I think I'll look like I spent four years in high school as a recluse..." While he was somewhat irrational, he actually brought up some good points. Why couldn't they just look at your grades and what kind of a person you were?

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Oriel understood competition, though not necessarily in the aspect of sports. He liked to be the best at what he did himself, but that was because he hated not being good at the things he did. If he wasn’t good enough to be called “amazing”, then Oriel usually didn’t try at all. It took a lot for him to get over that for some things. Like dance. He hated feeling so inferior to the rest of his teammates, with them and their fancy, expensive lessons behind them. Oriel wore a serous frown as he considered his own experience against her own. “Just ‘cause you ain’t good enough don’t mean you shouldn’t try anyway. If it’s something you love to do, then it don’t fucking matter if you measure up, that’s not why you’re doing it anyway.” Other people and their opinions could just lick his well-toned ass for all he cared.

“Hmph…so just another expectation that’s abstract as fuck,” Oriel concluded. “Bet the guys who came up with that didn’t have to fucking deal with shit powers or shit families or nothing.” Oriel knew why AJ seemed like a recluse sometimes. Her power gave her a lot of trouble. It seemed unfair that her college prospects could be affected so much by the power she was born with. Oriel didn’t agree with at all.

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"That's why I've been thinking about making a swimming club instead. It's the sport and the fun of it, but without the pressure," AJ mused, shrugging. "I'm still undecided. But I did find someone to help me start it up." Swimming was supposed to be carefree in her opinion, the sport kind of ruined that part.

"Their expectations don't really work too well for meta humans," she agreed. "And isn't growing up hard enough?" She didn't agree with it, and like Oriel, she amounted it to bullshit, altough she wouldn't say that. "I'm just trying to figure out what to do. I want to go to college. I've always wanted to go. I'm sick of struggling through math classes and science...I know what I'm good at and I want to do that."

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A swimming club? “Huh….that actually…sounds like a better idea.” Oriel brushed his stubble pensively. “I mean….you said colleges look to make sure you’re doing a lot of shit in high school besides studying, right? I mean…won’t it look more impressive if you, I don’t know, start shit on your own instead of just….following or whatever?” Did that make any sense? Oriel didn’t know shit about getting into college, so he might be way off base here.

He nodded, agreeing with her. “Yeah…I can vouch for that all on my own.” Oriel’s life had been pretty shit before he had powers. And after…well, there was still shit, it just came in far more different shapes and sized now. He nodded again. “Yeah, I can’t wait to be out of this fucking place either.” Oriel had had enough of this school and their fucking rules and restrictions. They were….almost there. Well, AJ was. Oriel might have a bit longer to go…

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"Really? A swimming club is a better idea?" AJ wasn't sure why she doubted herself about it. She just thought that more people wanted to join a sport. Oriel certainly had a point though, about taking charge and creating her own club looking good for colleges. But the only issue was making sure people joined the club. "I think you're right. That makes sense," she mused. "I do only have one other willing member so far though."

"Do you want to go to college?" she asked curiously.

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“Uh…yeah, I think…I mean, I don’t know shit ‘bout how the whole….college…hiring thing works, but it sound good, don’t it?” AJ seemed to agree once it was all out there, so he must’ve been onto something. “Only one…? Hmm….I could…make Phoenix join….if you want?” Phoenix needed to get back to swimming again anyway, he still sucked balls at it and still hated the deep end.

Oriel blinked at the question. “Uh…” Did he? Oriel looked away and shrugged. “I don’t know…I don’t know what place’d take me. Not with my grades ’n…my record.” He was a troublemaker, after all. Surely they wouldn’t want a guy like Oriel at their school.

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"You don't have to make him join," AJ told him, with a light smile. "But it wouldn't hurt to mention it to him for me, if you could." She knew Oriel wouldn't join, but at least he was trying to help.

"It doesn't hurt to try. I can help you with applications," she offered. He wanted him to have options, to not feel like he was hopeless. He was working on himself as a person. That was what was important.

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Oriel laughed into a loud snort. "Don't worry, he'll join. He loooves the water." Lies. All of them. But Phoenix needed to learn how to swim already and AJ would probably be good at teaching him. "Especially with one of them kickboards or whatever they're called." With a toothy smile, Oriel dipped his head and chortled in sadistic amusement. Phoenix had been so adorable flopping around on that thing.

On the matter of college, Oriel still wasn't sold. "I don't know..." he said again. "It's not just that...I'm not even sure I want to go to college." Believe it or not, he had ideas of what he wanted to do once he got on his feet. Like go back to NYC and dance on Broadway. Or... "They got, like...dance colleges or something, right? Like places that specialize in all that theater-like shit?" He never really looked into it before, but it had been on his mind.

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

AJ didn't keep up with Phen enough these days to know that Oriel was completely bullshitting her. She was just happy that someone would possibly join her club. That was all. "Oh, those are fun." She remembered using those in the water when she'd first taken swimming classes.

"Well I'm here for you either way," she told him, and listened to what he ha to say. "Oh yeah. And lots of colleges have theatre and dance programs too." Ori could definitely benefit from some researching. At least he was interested in something! That made her excited.