Meditation

[Lani Hunter]

Lani yawned his eyes falling up and was just sliding around his room trying to force himself to get dressed and do something productive like actually make it to his morning class. He shook his head, he really needed to start sleeping. It was doing nothing for his powers control. If anything it was making him even worse. He sighed and shoved himself into the shower shaking out his hair before pulling on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Then after looking at the weather on his computer he decided to pull a hoodie over his head as well. It was the kind of thing that was baggy yet still fit well. It was black and had a large print letters of The Who. His father was a big fan and in turn he was as well. He stuffed his feet into his boots and shuffled out the door.

Barely seeing his powers let his keys drift along behind him. They bumped him in the back of the head and he silently thanked his power. He pocketed them, this power was kind of a handicap for him. When he was absent minded there was always that little part of his mind that was looking out for him. He drifted out of his room startling two people walking by when he just appeared out of nowhere. Lani was the kind of person who was skilled at slipping around places and not being seen that he had to teach himself to name noise. However when he was tired his instinct took over and he all but drifted like a ghost through the halls with the cafeteria as his destination. He moved inside his eyes not completely open as he moved his tray across grabbing random things both with his hand and with his power. He shook his head trying to keep his power in control and keep it from acting out.

Sometime, Lani reflected, he had wished for more than one set of hands and now he had an infinite number of 'hands'. Though if he used to many it became a dangerous and uncontrollable situation. He closed his eyes and leaned on his hand nearly falling into his food as he drifted back into sleep at one of the tables. Periodically his hand slipped startling him awake and he would eat a little then finally he dipped his fingers in his ice water and rubbed his eyes startling them awake. Lani shook his head and suddenly became aware of his surroundings. He didn't really remember how he had gotten here. He looked down at his plate and smiled at least he hadn't gotten anything that he didn't like. He suddenly noticed how close he had sat down next to another person. He blinked, "Sorry, it appears I just woke up. What time is it?" He asked stifling a yawn.

[Hyun-Jung Choi]

She’d only been here for a few hours, and already Hyun was feeling most uncomfortable. While her parents were making her sleeping arrangements and finding out if they could get a residence nearby so Hyun wouldn’t be alone all the time, they’d left their daughters in the cafeteria. The busiest place in the school. How very nice of them.

“Wow… they’re just like you…” Min mumbled under her breath as she looked around the room, “Some are even freakier than you too, and ow-!” the younger girl narrowed her eyes and glared at her sister when she very subtly kicked her, “Not my fault you happen to be weird!”
Though it was supposed to be an insult, Hyun didn’t feel that terrible this time. At least her sister always spoke her mind, unlike most people who would say one thing and then think about what a freak the girl really was. She liked her sister’s honesty, even if it hurt.

”Just be quiet.” Min had obviously spent too much time in America already. Where were her manners? If she spoke to her sister like this in Korea, she’d be in trouble. Apparently respect wasn’t that big of a deal here, and Min loved it. She loved tormenting her sister.
”Whatever.” Min responded before getting up and walking off somewhere. Hyun would’ve followed her, if she hadn’t been so tense and worried. There weren’t that many people here, but there were still lots of thoughts going around. Some girls behind her had apparently noticed the sisters communicating in a language other than English, and were now thinking about how they should just go back to their own country if they didn’t want to adept to their new surroundings.
For a few minutes, Hyun simply sat and stared at the table. Her father had said this would be a good opportunity to make friends, but so far she wasn’t doing much. Aside from sitting there feeling awkward, of course.

Then some random guy sat down next to her, and for a moment she wondered if he came over to talk to her because he noticed how lonely her table was. But then she noticed him just staring blankly ahead of him and occasionally letting his eyelids drop.
Of course it was a mistake. He seemed older than her, and he’d probably been around for a few years. That meant he likely had friends and had absolutely no reason to sit down next to some random kid he’d never met before.
”Come on… hurry up…” why did her parents have to take their sweet time with this? Couldn’t they get a move on so Hyun could go somewhere more private? Damned insensitive pricks.
"Sorry, it appears I just woke up. What time is it?"
“Huh?” the guy’s voice instantly pulled her from her thoughts straight back into reality, she blinked a few times before checking her watch.
“It is… almost 10:30?” she spoke quietly, feeling extremely self-conscious about her pronunciation. She sincerely hoped he was still too dazed to notice.
But then… this wouldn’t be the last time she’d have to talk to people, so she had better practice her English when she got the chance.
“Uh… I am Hyun, nice to meet you.” if he walked away now, at least her mother couldn't whine later about how she wasn't trying.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani took a closer look his green eyes icy but curious at the same time. Like he wanted to know everything about everyone else but kept his secrets locked in his heart. He hated being so tired. Normally he slept well and was nowhere near this tired. He certainly had never walked to the dining hall asleep. She was a fair amount younger and smaller than he was and telling by that terrified look she was trying to hide she was new here. More new than he was certainly but younger which made her situation better. Lani tried to smile comfortingly. Things had certainly gotten better. He still felt trapped but in some odd way the people he had met made it all worth it. It was so unlike him to get close to people and yet he had. He had always been an outcast just barely holding onto normalcy by how he pretended to be. However here ironically in his imprisonment he had met freedom to be himself completely, powers or none.

He blinked several times as she spoke and at first he had to think about it a while to determine that indeed she was speaking English. His sluggish mind wasn't making it any easier but he got the information that he had been seeking. 10:30? Not too bad. He had been afraid it would be either really early or really late. At least it was Sunday and time didn't really matter. Though he was one of those people that felt terrible if he slept too long and felt like he had wasted a day. Or sometimes a night. "Thanks," He smiled. That smile fading to a frown when he realized how alone the table was. He had been new not too long ago and he still experienced the pain of a lonely breakfast table... and lunch and dinner. He shook his head absently and glanced back over as the girl introduced herself. He set down his fork and absently 'grabbed' for the salt with his mind hands.

"Huun?" Lani attempted with a wince knowing that when he said it is was wrong. The salt started shaking over his eggs and he held out his hand with a bright smile. "Lani. I take it you're new here?" He asked curiously glancing over. "Ack! Too much!" Lani exclaimed. He batted the salt away from his eggs as a small white mound formed on them. He caught it before it skidded off the other side of the table an awkward 'you didn't see that' laugh. He flickered some salt over his shoulder to ward off the bad luck of spilling it and set it down carefully. He shook his head, well sometimes it looked out for him more of the time it made his life hell. He laughed awkwardly and ducked his head running a hand through his messy locks. "So... Are you new here?" He asked casually like nothing had happened. "Pleasure to meet you as well," he added after a moment. Great, he thought, you're scatterbrained, you know bad things happen when you're scatterbrained! His internal mind scolded him, Please please please, he pleaded silently with his power, don't hurt anyone!

[Hyun-Jung Choi]

“Thanks,” he smiled at her before looking around the table and allowing that smile to fade into a frown, Hyun hung her head slightly and held her hands in her lap. Now he knew she didn’t have any friends, she’d argue that it was because she was new, but her lunch table had been like this last year too, when she’d first gotten to America. She’d been in a class with students from other countries who needed some extra guidance and wouldn’t be able to handle a normal class because of the language barrier, and even there she’d seemed a little strange. She’d never been this anti-social back home, in fact, she was always the lively one in class with lots of friends. It was strange how much moving to another country could change you.

She merely nodded as he thanked her, and felt her cheeks blush slightly when he mispronounced her name. There was a reason her mother had wanted her to pick an American name, and this was it. To avoid awkward situations like these. Her mother had started calling her ‘June’ because she felt it was the closest she could get to her original name while still making the name simple enough for others to pronounce. June was a month, if an American person couldn’t pronounce one of their own months, there was something seriously wrong.
But she really didn’t want to go by the name ‘June’. All her life she’d been Hyun, her friends and family in Korea called her Hyun, her father and sister called her Hyun… she’d spent so much time as a toddler learning how to write her name, it was such a big part of her… how could you just let that go? But if people couldn’t pronounce her name, that was really going to make things difficult.
She took a shallow breath before opening her mouth again, “You… you can call me… June…” it was a big bridge to cross, but at least she’d done it, no matter how sad it made her feel. It felt like she was betraying herself, but what needed to be done, needed to be done. At least she’d gotten it over with quickly. This person would likely not be the last to struggle with her name, and there would be plenty of people who would have to resort to calling her June, better get used to it.

When she looked up from her lap, she noticed salt floating over the table, and though she didn’t say anything, her eyes widened in shock and she swallowed nervously. Flying salt… she’d really seen it all now. Seeing things like this would be something to get used to as well.
He held his hand out and smiled brightly, Hyun did her best to mimic the smile but she was still a little shocked about the salt. She shook his hand slowly before glancing back at the salt, “Y-Yes sir. My parents are taking my things to my room now.” She kept looking back and forth between the young man and the salt and awkwardly bit her lip. Did he really need that much salt?
"Ack! Too much!" …apparently not. She tried, she really tried not to laugh, but a quiet giggle escaped her anyway as he batted the salt all over the table and struggled not to let it fall off the other side. In an effort to compensate for laughing at his misfortune, she smiled and spoke up quietly again “Do not worry, it happens to me all the time.”
But then he threw the salt over his shoulder anyway, and Hyun slightly tilted her head. Why put so much effort in catching it before if you were going to throw it on the floor anyway?


”… you know bad things happen when you're …!
Oh no, not again… Hyun sat up straight and nervously looked around her before she realized the voice was coming from right beside her. Again she only picked up pieces of a sentence, what good was this power if you couldn’t hear exactly what someone said? She paled when she heard something about hurting someone and scooted away a little, “I-I am sorry,” she stuttered as she looked at Lani with wide open eyes, she had no idea what she’d done to deserve getting hurt for, but apparently she’d done something wrong. Maybe he was mad she had laughed at him before. “I-I did not… please do not hurt me…”
But then she realized she’d listened to his thoughts without his permission and that she’d made that fact known as well, “I did not mean to listen to your thoughts, I am sorry! I will… I will go if you want.”
A part of her did realize he might have said something completely different, but it was too late for that now. She’d already reacted to his thoughts and had probably made a fool out of herself already. The first person she meets, and she leaves this kind of impression.
She hung her head again and felt tears stinging in her eyes, threatening to fall out. She wanted to go home so badly, back to her friends, back to her family. Back to how things were before.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani smiled to hide the way he was completely out of his mind with sleep deprivation. Yes he really really needed to start sleeping. He had not a clue how to read emotion but he knew enough to know that calling her June was something that not a lot of people were able to do or rather that the girl didn't want them too. "Pleasure June." He said with a beam trying to lighten her mood. Lani had gotten into the bad habit here of expecting all people to be used to the way things worked around here so a new person was basically a new experience for him. Granted she was younger and had an advantage over him by that alone but he was semi-used to this place now and she wasn't. Plus she was young and having to leave her parents. That would be hard. Lani certainly knew that if someone had tried to pull his little sister away he would not have been pleasant.

He nodded, "I see." He shrugged. "You're lucky you know, my parents haven't even seen this place yet." He was glad she had supportive parents and not to say that his weren't but rather they liked it better if he didn't show off or anything. "But don't take that the wrong way," he added quickly realizing now how that must have sounded, "My parents just haven't had the chance." He reflected, they hadn't even moved him in. Instead he had been stuck in a car for four hours on the way here completely distraught and alone. It had taken him a long time to get over that and start meeting people. This place was certainly more pleasant with people in it.

Lani was so embarrassed at the salt indecent that he almost gave up on the day and went back to his room to go back to bed. He glanced at her when she giggled a little bit and only turned more red. "I'm sure," Lani chucked at her comment. "Good luck," he explained at her confusion about the salt over his shoulder. "Its superstition, its bad luck to spill salt and to ward it off you toss salt over your shoulder." Lani was feeling rather better than when he woke up already. Pleasant conversation was always good even though his eggs were ruined. He sighed and pushed them away with his fork separating the now snowed on eggs from the ones that hadn't got nearly enough salt. He turned back to June intending on asking her a question, but said question was forgotten when he saw her face.

His eyes went wide with shock and confusion. He resisted a strong urge to smell himself at the wide eyed look she was giving him. He shook his head when she started speaking and his heart went cold when she pleaded with him not to hurt her. He let his face fall into his hand. "Oh god," he voiced. He felt like crying for some reason, perhaps it was because he was tired or perhaps it was that no one had ever looked at him with such fear. It was what he was afraid of ever since this happened. If she knew what he could do she would probably be running. He hated people to look at him like that, he never wanted to see those eyes. "Why would you....?" He started but then she explained about reading his thoughts and he felt like slamming his head on the table a few times, just to get a little brain damage nothing major.

He ran through a sting of swears in his head, then a few more when he remembered he could hear him. "Oh, no," he muttered, "No, don't go, I'm..." He shrugged uncertain whether to come out and say it. "I'm..." Deep breaths Lani... "I'm a untrained Telekinetic with too much power that never listens to me." He spat out what he had been thinking since he got here. He shook his head sadly his heart clenching as flashes of his little sister staring at him in terror rushed into his mind. "Please... I'm half-controlled at best and I'm tried so that doesn't help. Just... Please please please don't look at me like that." He pleaded not realizing how close he was to tears until his harsh breath came in a soft sob. He protested the weakness of tears and backed them off. "I'm sorry to have scared you. But in a way you're right, I don't want to hurt people, but I could without even meaning to." Like Jared... his thoughts reminded him. That in retrospect had been a lot better than it could have been. He had accidentally launched a ball with his power and it had knocked him friend right off his feet.

[Hyun-Jung Choi]

"You're lucky you know, my parents haven't even seen this place yet."
Hyun’s expression saddened some as he mentioned his parents. And she thought she had it rough. At least her mother and father were here to help her out, they were even discussing moving to Vermont to be closer to their daughter. Even her younger sister was here, though that likely had more to do with getting a day off of school in order to see big sis off than anything else. It was still somewhat comforting to have her here though.
"But don't take that the wrong way, my parents just haven't had the chance."
Though she nodded understandingly at his remark, she still felt it was only a half-truth. What parent wouldn’t just make time to see their child off? If your child or even just your relative was dear to you, you’d find a way to be there for them. It wasn’t her place to judge though, as she didn’t know Lani’s parents, nor Lani himself really… maybe they had really important jobs? Or maybe Lani had asked them not to come.

"Good luck," he explained at her confusion about the salt over his shoulder. "Its superstition, its bad luck to spill salt and to ward it off you toss salt over your shoulder."
She rose an eyebrow and sort of blabbered her words out without really thinking about them, “Americans are strange.” Upon realizing she’d actually said the words out loud, she turned a bright pink and held her hands up defensively, “I mean not all Americans are, it is… I just… it is strange to me because I did not know, sorry, I did not mean to insult.” When had she started saying her thoughts out loud? Was that a side-effect of her powers? If it was, she’d be in for some awkward situations in the future, as if this one wasn’t bad enough.

The seemingly pleasant mood quickly took a turn for the worst when Hyun misinterpreted his thoughts and assumed he wanted to harm her, and she had been stupid enough to actually ask him not to do so too. Rather than his face turning into that of a psychopath though, it seemed like he was breaking down. Though it was somewhat difficult to see, there was the slightest hint of tears forming in his eyes and he started swearing in his head, over and over again, scaring Hyun even more. She’d already reached down for her bag and was about ready to run away in fear when he explained his powers to her.
"Please... I'm half-controlled at best and I'm tried so that doesn't help. Just... Please please please don't look at me like that."
She hadn’t realized she was already standing until now, and slowly sat back down, though the look on her face remained unchanged for the moment as she tried to keep up with his words.

"I'm sorry to have scared you. But in a way you're right, I don't want to hurt people, but I could without even meaning to."
A strange sense of familiarity washed over her and she hung her head, both in sadness and in shame. She’d been so terrified of people judging her negatively because of her telepathy, but wasn’t she doing that very thing right now? Wasn’t she treating Lani like a freak, a scary freak that could hurt you at any given moment? Oh dear, she hadn’t meant to… but that didn’t change the fact that she had indeed done so.
“I…” would it be better to just apologize, get up and leave? It was strange seeing someone who was so much older than herself be just as scared, apparently age didn’t matter when it came to fear of the unknown. He must’ve felt awkward too, so she really should just leave, for his sake too. But somehow it felt harsh to just walk away when you had caused someone so much distress.

Her own eyes began to water, “I am sorry.” She tried to will her tears away, but thinking about the situation just made her more miserable and caused her tears to actually fall into her lap. It made no sense for her to actually cry, did it? She hadn’t been wronged, Lani had. By her. And though she knew she should feel bad about that, it wasn’t like she had the right to cry over it. The only one with a right to cry was Lani right now.
Maybe it was because he was crying that she couldn’t stop herself either. If someone his age, and a guy too, were so hurt by this, what chance did she have? Even if she hated to admit it, she was still just a little girl.
“I am so sorry.” Why couldn’t she be normal? Why couldn’t Lani, or anyone in this school be normal? Why did this have to happen to them? Had they done something wrong in a past life, and was this their punishment?
Wiping at her tears sadly didn’t stop them, “I-I am… scared…” she sobbed finally, burying her face into her arms and resting them on the table, “…of myself.”

[Lani Hunter]

Lani laughed at her 'Americans are strange' comment. Truth be told, he couldn't help but agree. He shook his head, "Don't be sorry I know its different, we Americans don't even understand ourselves sometimes." He grinned at her, "Plus I bet where ever you're from I would be a sore thumb and think everything there was strange." He shrugged and added, "Don't worry about it, I get it, you're not from around here of course its gonna be strange, not to mention you're here." He gestured randomly to the school, "This threw... is throwing me for a loop, still." Being a new person here was terrifying, being from another country plus being at Hammel Lani couldn't even image. He would have never left his room. It would have taken even longer for him to adjust than it already had. Poor June, he mused silently.

When the mood when south Lani could only sit there and grit his teeth wanting to be anyone but himself and anywhere but here. It was the eyes every time that got him. Terrified, pleading, begging, wide tear filled. His sister's eyes were all he could see. He could never forgive himself for being the cause of her fear. He pushed his plate away his appetite lost and clenched his fists together and rested his elbows on the table. He closed his eyes and rested his head on his fists his knuckles digging into his eyes. She was already standing and ready to high tail it outta there. He opened his eyes looking out of his peripherals as she sat back down. She was shaken by him. He glanced over his eyes glaring and harsh defending their owner from the shame of revealing the pain he was feeling. Why hadn't she run?

She hung her head and Lani's eyes softened as he saw what he had forgotten. She was just a child. Barely older than his little sister and she was scared and in pain. The ice dropped from his eyes and he shifted toward her, unsure of what to do. Lani hated to admit that she had pulled the first tears from his eyes in years. He blinked them away and frustratedly wiped them on his sleeve. She apologized and he didn't say anything. She shouldn't have to apologize to him. He was completely shocked and at a lose for words. Here was a little girl dealing with what he, her elder by several years, was dealing with. It was painful to watch. Now, had this been his sister he would have scooped her up in his arms and sing to her softly until she was soothed and even then not let her go and let her know that she was always protected in his strong arms.

He hadn't known this girl form more than a few minute and worse he had already scared her. His heart throbbed for her. Hesitantly he shifted and put a gently hand on her shoulder. He leaned down resting his head on the table looking at her with concern. "We all are." He said, "Afraid, terrified of ourselves." Lani closed his eyes and forced a smile on his face, "You're not alone here June. It took me a long time to realize that but we're a family here, we all understand." He sighed and reached over offering her a napkin, "June, I'm not going to tell you not cry but think about what you're crying for. Are you crying for yourself or are you crying for the self you used to be?" Lani wasn't sure if he was helping but it was a valid question. It had taken someone practically beating a board over his stubborn head for him to clue in that he had to forget the past and start living for the future cause no matter what he was never going to go back to Lani the normal thief.

[Hyun-Jung Choi]

"Don't be sorry I know its different, we Americans don't even understand ourselves sometimes. Plus I bet where ever you're from I would be a sore thumb and think everything there was strange."
She laughed softly to herself as he said that. He was completely right about not fitting in back in Korea. Not that that was something to be ashamed of – few people did. Few people understood why she bowed down before her elders, whether they were 50 years her senior or just 2. Few people understood the need for different ways of addressing people based on their status, age and gender.

Boy how she wished she were there right now, right this instant. Being anywhere but here would be great.
She’d promised herself she wouldn’t cry in public, and what was she doing now? Right, crying in public. It was a good thing her family wasn’t around, or that would’ve only made things worse. Her father would’ve instantly blamed Lani for her despair and then would’ve probably cried with her when he realized he couldn’t help her. Her sister would’ve been ashamed and angry, and her mother would’ve reminded her once again that girls her age were wise enough to speak of their problems rather than resorting to tears.
Even so, she wished they were here right now – she could really use a hug.
What she got instead was a gentle hand on her shoulder, she looked up from her arms to see who it was and was actually quite surprised to see Lani, of all people, attempting to comfort her. She didn’t feel she deserved that, not after almost making him cry just a moment ago with her ignorance.
She sniffled before lying her head back down on the table. She really wasn’t ready to deal with this – any of this – not yet. Why couldn’t her ‘gift’ have waited a few years? Why couldn’t it have waited until after puberty, so she wasn’t so damn sensitive and weepy all the time?
"We all are." He said, "Afraid, terrified of ourselves."
“I wanna go home…” her voice was muffled by her arms, but it was still quite clear she was in distress. Damned hormones, damned powers, damned everything!

"You're not alone here June. It took me a long time to realize that but we're a family here, we all understand." He sighed and reached over to offer her a napkin, which she gratefully took back to the shelter of her arms. ”You’re going to have to look up sometime.” a voice in her head whispered, and she wasn’t sure whether it was her own voice or someone else’s. Instead of making her feel better, it only reminded her of what she didn’t want, and made her more miserable.
"June, I'm not going to tell you not cry but think about what you're crying for. Are you crying for yourself or are you crying for the self you used to be?"
At this, she remained quiet as she thought about the question. She really wasn’t sure which one she was crying for. Was there a difference? Probably… but she couldn’t think clearly at the moment.
She glanced up at him with her tear-streaked cheeks and puffy red eyes and stared uncertainly at him, “I…”
The more she thought about it, the less sense it made. She was still the same person, wasn’t she? She had these bizarre powers now, but did that make her an entirely new person?
For some reason, thinking about it caused her to stop crying and sit back up, though her face still hung low with her hair hiding most of her face. “I just… want an off-switch.” She sniffled, “I want to be the old me again, the one who is normal… I just want to be normal.”
She looked him straight in the eye then, remembering that he had almost been crying too. "Did you cry too?" she asked quietly. She wasn't the only one in pain, he deserved a chance to get his frustrations and insecurities off his chest as well. Plus it gave her a chance to focus on someone other than herself, judging by how she'd hurt him before, it wouldn't be bad to be more considerate and understanding of other people.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani cocked his head at her wondering where exactly she was from that this would be so different. He was from a few states away and even this seemed like a whole new world he couldn't image coming from another country where no one was like you and everything was different. He would have been sane for a long while, especially with a language barrier. He certainly wasn't the kind of person who would probably fit in where she was from. She spoke formally and carefully and always politely. Goodness if that was how everyone was where she was from, where everything was formal and polite. He would certainly not fit in. He was farthest from polite and formal. It took all of his energy not to make snide comments and roll his eyes when authority lectured him.

It hurt to see June cry. It was painful, almost as painful as when his sister cried. It was terrible he wanted to just hug her and tell her everything was going to be alright, but that would be a lie. He only wanted that because he saw his little sister in her, but also he could not tell her it would all be alright because he himself wasn't sure. All he could do was comfort and try to help. It hurt to cry, to accept that you weren't as strong as you thought but it hurt even worse to do so where other people could see. Lani nodded at her, "I know, me too." He agreed, "June," he rubbed her shoulder comfortingly with sympathy, "Its not an easy transition. But your home doesn't go away just 'cause you're here." He smiled a little but his own words stung him. He hadn't realized it but he had been exactly like that when he came and he never thought he would see his home again. It was like he was giving advice that he himself didn't really understand or follow. Well, what you can't do, teach.

Lani knew his question probably didn't make any sense to her, he really needed to keep remembering that she was just a child, barely older than his sister. He needed to stop forgetting that everyone here wasn't his age. He caught her gaze and held it when she looked up. It was painful to see the glazed puffing red eyes with the tear streaked cheeks and mouth pulled down in despair. Lani nodded, how he also wished for a off switch. That would be the best thing. "The old you, no matter how much we want it, this is who we are now." He said his eyes vacant as he remembered this being thrown at his face. He closed his eyes and nodded. "I didn't believe that for a long time." He was dodging the question. Lani took a deep breath and nodded, "Every night for the first week. I wanted so badly to be me before this was me. I had a future and this tore everything away from me." He admitted, "But," he paused for emphasis, "I've found I can't live without my power, its kind of become a part of me in a way that I couldn't go back to the way things were even if I wanted to. The future I wanted was fake, I would have failed that way anyways." He shook his head realizing that he was rambling on. "I guess my point is to give it time." Lani thought for a moment, "You know, June, you really remind me of my little sister." He smiled and gave her another pat on the shoulder.

[Hyun-Jung Choi]

"June, Its not an easy transition. But your home doesn't go away just 'cause you're here." Lani told her as he rubbed her shoulder comfortingly, but Hyun wasn’t thinking clearly enough yet and just shook her head.
It was an easy thing to say, but who knew if it were really true?
She didn’t think her father would just get up and leave her here, but she wasn’t so sure about her mother and sister. Her mother seemed awfully fine with the whole situation, from the start she’d insisted on Hyun coming to Hammel, even when Hyun’s father didn’t agree. It had caused quite a bit of tension back home, and Hyun hadn’t missed her mother’s slipping thoughts about how she wished Hyun could just stop having her powers.
And her little sister, Min, seemed so embarrassed about Hyun, it wouldn’t surprise the older girl at all if she’d avoid contact in the future, cutting her out of her life entirely, as though she never existed.

“But it will change,” She muttered finally, “It will change without me, and what if I can not fit back in?” that was her biggest worry: Not fitting in.
She hadn’t been able to fit in with her former classmates, she hadn’t been able to fit in with kids her age. Even here she felt odd because of her powers, because hers weren’t visible. Hers were weird and creepy, because she violated one of the most important things people had, their privacy.
Her home was the only place where she fitted in. Even if she didn’t get along with her parents or her sister at all times, there was still a sort of understanding between all of them. They were a family, they’d experienced all of Hyun’s important memories with her, they knew her likes and dislikes, they understood her quirks. But now she was here, away from them, in a strange school with more students than she could count. And each day that would pass by here, would also pass for her family.
Would they eventually grow used to having just one child around? Would they even want her back if she ever managed to control these powers?
“My family will change, everyone will be different people, and I will not recognize them when I go back, will I?” she asked in a shaky voice, “I do not want them to become strangers.” The thought of being without her family, all alone, scared her more than even her powers could.

Lani sounded like he knew what he was talking about, but Hyun didn’t want to admit he was probably right. He was asking her to accept herself as she was now - to give it some time, and that, she just could not do. She couldn’t accept this new person, this weird person she felt no connection with whatsoever. How could one give up on their old selves so easily?
"You know, June, you really remind me of my little sister." He smiled and gave her another pat on the shoulder.
At first, she didn’t respond to his statement. She was feeling sad, and angry, and bitter, and all sorts of other negative emotions, and she feared if she opened her mouth now, she’d lash out at Lani, taking out her frustration on him. And he hadn’t deserved that.
“Do you want to talk about her?” she asked quietly, hoping that a change of subject would calm her down enough to have a decent conversation again without breaking down and bawling her eyes out like some kid. “How old is she?”

[Lani Hunter]

Lani nodded sympathetically, "Yeah it'll change there's nothing that will stop that but the people who love you will never stop loving you." He said infinitely glad his sister had gotten over being scared of him. Lani looked at her his icy eyes soft and warm. She was so little, so young to be thinking about things like this, Lani was older with more experience in life, if not in meta life and he knew enough now to realize he was being selfish in thinking about himself in this event. People here were trying to help him, if they weren't doing a good job it was because of him and his inability to trust people. "Family if forever," Lani stated reciting his mother, "Friends may come and go and people will change but family is forever no matter if we all turn green and sprout three heads." He laughed a little at the old reference. His mother used to say that to him when he was younger, imagine her reaction when she realized that something like that could happen.

"You don't have to stop being yourself because the circumstances have changed. I'm still the same stubborn mule with no respect for authority that I always was," he grinned hoping to make he laugh and feel a little bit better about herself. Stuff like that always made his sister laughed and she'd respond, 'True but you forgot arrogant, annoying, trouble-maker with a fear of small places.' Lani was taken aback at first at her question about his sister. Then he smiled warmly and nodded, "Of course." He loved his sister and would tell anything he could about her to anyone who would sit and listen to him long enough. Some people probably thought he had a complex but when one almost loses the thing most precious one tends to get a little obsessive. "She's eleven now." He smiled proudly reaching for his cup and taking a sip before continuing.

"You see we celebrate every birthday she has in a big deal, I even got out of school for it." He grinned, he could never stop smiling when he talked about her. "You see when she was very young she got very sick and no one thought she would make it, but miracle of miracles she pulled through." He remembered the old times when she was so frail all she could do was sit up in bed for hours at a time getting tired very easily. But she always seemed to be able to stay up and talk to him and listen to his stories. "She's amazing, maybe you'll get to meet her one day." He glanced back at June for a moment, "She's strong, stronger than me. She never let anything get her down. She would do whatever she could and she never stopped smiling no matter how tired she was." He smiled closing his eyes just thinking about it.

[Hyun-Jung Choi]

"Friends may come and go and people will change but family is forever no matter if we all turn green and sprout three heads." Lani laughed at the statement, but Hyun just looked confused. People sprouted three heads? And they turned green? No, that was impossible. Must be an American saying.
Even though it sounded strange to her, she still smiled in an effort to lighten the mood some.

"You don't have to stop being yourself because the circumstances have changed. I'm still the same stubborn mule with no respect for authority that I always was,"
That statement held more truth than he realized, because Hyun’s upbringing quickly made her press her lip together to form a thin line before she opened her mouth, “You must respect your elder.” She lectured him like she’d so often been lectured as a child. “Um… if you want.” She added quietly.
Great! She was going to inform him of respect towards elders, and in the same breath, she lectured her elder. Stupid stupid! Oh well, her parents weren’t around, nor anyone else who would understand why her statement was rude, so it wasn’t that big of a deal.

"Of course. She's eleven now." He smiled proudly reaching for his cup and taking a sip. ‘Just like Min!’ she thought as a smile appeared on her face as well. That made the story he was no doubt about to tell a lot more relatable.
Her mind wandered to Min for a moment. The younger girl had just run off, and she hadn’t returned yet. Was she okay? Knowing Min, she was likely already making friends with people she’d likely never see again. Hyun often wished she could be more like her little sister.
"You see we celebrate every birthday she has in a big deal, I even got out of school for it." He grinned brightly, and his positive energy almost seemed to get transmitted to Hyun. He must really love his sister a lot to be smiling like that, it was really sweet.
“Did you not get into trouble for not going to school?” she asked seriously. Of course a birthday was fun and all, but to stay home for it seemed a little bit exaggerated.
It wasn’t like they couldn’t celebrate it when everyone got home. “And did your sister not have school?” maybe his sister got the day off too.

"You see when she was very young she got very sick and no one thought she would make it, but miracle of miracles she pulled through."
“Oh, I am sorry…” she mumbled sadly before he mentioned she’d pulled through.
“She is healthy now again?” If she was, then Hyun really didn’t see why they would continue their tradition of illegally staying home all day. If she was better, they both needed to go to school, because school was very important.
But who was she to judge? She did, but she wouldn’t voice her thoughts. What Lani and his family did was really none of her business.
"She's amazing, maybe you'll get to meet her one day. She's strong, stronger than me. She never let anything get her down. She would do whatever she could and she never stopped smiling no matter how tired she was."
“Wow.” Hyun smiled brightly, “She sounds very wonderful. It would be honor to meet her.” And she meant that. For someone that young to be that strong, you’d have to be a pretty special person. Who knew, maybe meeting Lani’s sister would be an inspiration for her?
“Does she visit often?”

[Lani Hunter]

((OOC: sorry its so late and so terrible >.<))

Lani was glad to make her smile but he was completely take by surprise when she scolded him. He blinked at her for a few moments and laughed a little when she added 'If you want.' He shook his head at her, "Pay no mind to me I'm just annoying. I do respect my elders, but only the elders who deserve it. Trust me we're on the same level in this place. Think of me as a peer." He hated to think of himself as someone else's elder. It made him feel like some ancient old wise man with a long beard and meditating all the time.

Lani ducked his head and laughed awkwardly, "Well, actually I got in boatloads of trouble. You see, my family lives a while away and so as a surprise I skipped school to show up to pick her up from school." He shook his head, he had known that it was a bad idea but at the same time he hadn't cared. And he still didn't. "I didn't exactly ask permission... Security and I are," he hesitated, "Lets just say we have a strained relationship." Being a thief Lani had found it extremely hard to break out of this place. Hammel security was nothing to shake a candle at but at the same time he had never been fully prevented from leaving. It was having to come and go from the same place that made it dangerous. He would never rob the same place over and over again. That would just be foolish. But here at Hammel one didn't really have a choice for where they would get out. "No worries though." He added with a bright smile.

He nodded and his eyes darkened with worry, "For now. They say she is doing very well but I just can't get the thought of her getting sick out of my mind. I'm sure you'd feel the same way about your sister." That and Lani was protective. Way over protective of her. It made him twitch sometimes when he couldn't be near her to make sure she was alright. Lani smiled, "She is a blessing to be around." His smile faltered but he forced it back. That was a hard question. 'Does she visit often?' "No." He said with an air of sadness, "But no matter, she's busy and I'm busy." Lie. Lani was never busy. Ever. Maybe if he went to class more often and did assignments he might be but rather than take all this in stride he insisted on becoming a recluse and putting off school work. If June knew his grade she would probably pass out. He never was good at school, but he had always tried and done decently but now he just didn't see the point. It wasn't like he could go to college.