Checking In (Adrian)

[Deleted]

Danny had long since learned to not take everything his little sister said at face value. That wasn't to mean that he didn't trust her, or believe it when she said she was doing alright...just that he knew it was impossible for there to be nothing going on when she said there was 'nothing going on' when he asked her if there was anything going on in her life. She didn't even talk about class projects she had, friends she went out with, whether or not she was eating enough, if she needed extra money for anything....Amy Kim was a very private girl. Very independent. And while those qualities were good for a person to have, they did make Danny worry much more than he needed to.

One thing which was fortunate was that one of the dorm monitors which looked after her was an old upperclassman of his from when Danny was still in school. The two of them weren't great friends, but Danny did help Adrien on a couple of occasions with his schoolwork. It was when Danny had to skip a year to take care of his mother that the two lost touch. When Adrien came into his position as a dorm monitor, though, Danny was grateful that there was at least one person he knew well to keep an eye on his little sister.

Danny had just gotten off his shift at the Bubblebeam Tea shop, which wasn't very far from Hammel itself, so he thought it wouldn't take too much time for him to stop by and check in on how things were going. Since it was a Monday, he didn't have to work at the lounge tonight. Mondays were often their slowest days, so they only needed one bartender on staff. Danny took his days off readily when they came, using the free time to do things he otherwise couldn't. Like...take a quick trip to the Hammel dorms. Danny left his work shirt in the car and ventured into the halls with only a hoodie over his white undershirt. He didn't mind the cold, especially since he wasn't going to be outside for long.

He stepped quickly out of the way of a crowd of kids barreling down the halls of the first floor commons to the stairs.... "Don't hurt yourself," he warned them, evoking a look of confusion from the kids, wondering who this though he was, telling them what to do. One of the kids shouted something quite obscene back at him, leaving the man staring right back at their retreating form in even more confusion. Why would they say that to him when he was just trying to help? Danny would stand there in a bit of a daze for a few moments longer as he tried to process this...event. "Children are strange these days," he said to himself like an old man.

[Adrian Garcia-Reyes]

It would be impossible for Adrian alone to look after each and every of the students that passed through the dorms. Trainers and teachers weren't expected to handle all the students; how could a simple dorm monitor like himself do it as well? He was sure that's why there were three of them at the school, which was much more manageable in terms of covering ground. Of course, there were certain students that warranted more attention than others. Adrian didn't meet a lot of students; only those who sought him out in his room or were part of the group of troublemakers.

One exception was a girl by the name of Amy Kim. He kept his eyes on her as part of a favour to an old classmate of his, Danny. Although he saw no reason to be concerned, Adrian made sure to stay updated on Amy's life in the least intrusive way possible. Afterall, he couldn't lie to Danny, nor would he want to. It was easier to just be aware of what was happening in her life.

Danny and him had never been particularly close; acquaintances in high school was the best way to describe them. Adrian had received help from Danny after his issues with depression came to light and he needed some guidance in order to get back on track. He was grateful for Danny's help because without it, Adrian didn't want to even think about where he'd be.

It was just another Monday. Nothing too interesting had happened yet as most events happened during the night. Still, Adrian roamed the halls to do some quick checks. Making sure that no students that were minors had any contraband, all that stuff. Certain students warranted more checks than others. It was something that the school wanted to crack down on, which is where he came in. He was just finishing a round and was about to head back to his room when a group of students came running up the stairs as if they were running away from a murderer. Which was a rare probability; he didn't need his ability for that.

"They sure are." Adrian answered with a grin, nodding towards Danny's direction in greeting. "Now imagine this happening at three in the morning. It's the worst."

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Danny sincerely hoped that none of those students were providing a bad influence on his little sister. If Amy acted like that in any way, Danny would find it…disturbing. He disliked the idea of having to scold her for any unsavory behavior. If those sort of students were common at the school though, then it was even more worrying. But Danny trusted his little sister to make good decisions.

That didn’t stop him from worrying.

Danny turned his head towards the familiar voice of his friend, Adrien, and returned the nod, offering his usual polite smile. “I would think that would make it hard to sleep, for both parties.” Danny tilted his head, pondering the situation. “Why would they be running around at 3 in the morning when they should be asleep?” If they had classes to do the next day, then they should be in bed already getting a full night’s rest so they could succeed to the best of their abilities the next morning. “I never understood why people did that.” Even when Danny was living in the dorms, there would be disturbances at strange hours of the morning.

But that aside, where were his manners. “Hello, Adrien. It’s good to see you. Are you well?” Because manners were important.

[Adrian Garcia-Reyes]

Shrugging, Adrian replied "I have no idea. Maybe they think it's funny, or entertaining. It's more of an annoyance than anything else." Maybe that's what they wanted; to stir a reaction out of the dorm monitors, which is what they got when he had to respond to the shouting and laughter in the early morning. "Definitely not the dream job but what else can you do?" He said with another shrug. If anyone else understood the hardships that came with work, Danny would.

He grinned before laughing to himself. "Sorry for launching into a rant there. Guess it kind of builds up after awhile." Looking over at Danny, he responded with "Besides for dealing with the students I've been well. How about you? Ready for the holiday season?" He asked. Even though it was a little under a month away, Adrian figured it was never early to start preparing for the season.

[Deleted]

“I do agree it’s bothersome,” he agreed with Adrien. “In addition to being confusing.” It was just another thing that Danny didn’t quite understand. Why was it amusing to create noise for the sake of bothering other people? Why was it amusing to bother other people?

….he supposed he might be able to understand, seeing as he bothered his roommate Zeke often for no reason. But that was simply because…that was just how their relationship worked, he supposed….but there was certainly no reason for it.

Danny nodded. “I understand. The jobs I work aren’t the best either.” Food service and retail. Danny did find it bothersome sometimes, but he did his best to do his best. He shook his head and smiled plainly. “It is fine. Part of my work is listening to people walk about the things that bother them. They tell me it’s therapeutic.” As for his own wellbeing. “It’s become busier….” he mused. “I think I won’t have much time to celebrate the holidays. It’s unfortunate.” Danny would likely have a small dinner with Zeke and possibly have Amy over as well. If she wanted. Speaking of his little sister. “Has Amy been well? Regrettably, she doesn’t tell me everything.”

[Adrian Garcia-Reyes]

"Too much built up excitement, or something. Sometimes it makes me feel like I'm watching a bunch of kids who are five." Adrian admitted, though truthfully, part of him preferred dealing with students running around with too much energy than those who tried to sneak off of campus in the middle of the night and brought back alcohol or other contraband.

There was no reason for it. Or, if there was, he had yet to discover it. For Adrian, it was just one of the many things he had to deal with on a daily basis.

"Yeah, I don't know how you do it." He said with a short laugh. Jobs that involved customer service were too draining. At least as a dorm monitor he could run off and escape every so often. "Not to mention the tips that come along with being nice." Adrian added optimistically, unsure if that was really the case but figured the numbers were in Danny's favour. Especially if consoling a sad drunk who had a bit of cash to spend. "Aww, really? That's not fun. Must make the time go by a little quicker, though."

"Ah, yeah, your sister." A thoughtful expression crossed his features. "From what I've seen, she's been good. Often she spends her time alone but she always looks hard at work. But any time I talk to her she almost gives off the impression that she'd rather be by herself than with others."

[Deleted]

Danny nodded. “I suppose if their bodies are with a high metabolism, then they would need an outlet of sorts at some point.” But that was what sports and exercise were for, not running around like barbarians. He and Zeke were never like that…

He smiled at Adrian’s laugh and comment. “I am sometimes surprised by my perseverance as well.” Especially since he no longer had the energy that the kids who pushed past them displayed just now, and was often left extremely fatigued at the end of the day. “The tips are more often than not an advantage,” he agreed. Sometimes he would get an extra large one that completely made up for a busy evening, while other days he might not get anything at all. He didn’t agree with Adrian’s assessment though. “Time moves as fast as time moves,” he pointed out, not completely understanding the concept of time ‘seeming quicker’. Nothing made time move faster, no matter how busy one was. Danny made sure he always kept a very sharp eye on the time, though, because sometimes what he initially thought might not take very long ended up taking much longer, thus making him late. That wasn’t a matter of time ‘moving faster’, but rather of a misjudgment in his calculations. Unfortunately, this happened more often than Danny would like.

Finally they were past the pleasant greetings and could move on to the intended subject of Danny’s sister, and Danny frowned slightly at what he heard. “That is not good,” he said with a face of some concern. “Does she not have many friends then?” It couldn’t be healthy for Amy to be alone so often, and working so hard all the while. “I want her to have a positive social experience while at Hammel.”