If I Promise to Behave... (Reeve)

[Zachary LaRousse]

A series of reluctant steps slowly made its way through the school grounds, entering the dormitory building and going up the flight of stairs, becoming increasingly slow and heavy as it got nearer and nearer to a certain dorm suite. I could still go back, thought Zac, despite seeing the said room right across the hall already. He was just ranting after all; ideas that come out of rants, full of unstable emotions as they are, shouldn’t be taken seriously, not one bit. It was just a random thought, one of a number actually, but Anthony, the unfortunate soul he was venting out at that time, told him it was a great idea, that it might really work. Only problem is, the idea involves him begging. Or at least asking without threatening, pushing or possibly flirting. No, he had to rely on the person’s ‘good will’ this time. Darn that Mia.

You see, Mia Keystone, Hammel’s beloved stalker and creeper, had taken a liking to good old Zac over here. He doesn’t really remember what he did to the poor soul, but he has managed to get on the girl’s bad side, and trust me, it really isn’t nice. Just ask his English classmates the other day, when a bestiality video clip popped up in his laptop all of a sudden, moans and groans and all, in the middle of Mr. Dalton’s lecture about Shakespeare’s ‘Taming of the Shrew’ (thankfully the video did not contain shrews or other rodents, which would be a very ugly sight indeed, not that bestiality in itself is not ugly). He almost got detention, the part about Mia targeting him and all that barely saving his skin. Then again, detention he can handle. Public humiliation, not so much.

Taking a few deep breaths as he stood in front of the door, he knocked slowly, hoping the guy he came for indeed was inside. According to his numerous sources, he doesn’t really come out of his room for anything other than classes (and the occasional trip to the library and cafeteria), so he should be inside right now. “Reeve? You in there? It’s me, Zac.”

He just hopes Ann won’t be the one to open the door, ‘cause that would never be good.

[Reeve Rzeznik]

Reeve looked up from his laptop as he heard the knock on the main door. With a thought, his music shut off, and he leaned back and twisted his head around to look in the direction of the door. Much to his surprise, the words that followed were of someone asking for him, specifically. Reeve's eyebrows raised up at the idea, for he had no idea who would be calling on him. He didn't have too many friends, that girl Mia was still probably the closest thing he had to one. Robbie was a decent enough guy, and Reeve liked him alright, but he would never assume that they were particularly close. Probably not the 'randomly coming up to one's room' type close, at least. With a sigh, Reeve pushed back his chair and closed his laptop, stretching a bit as he grabbed a long-sleeved black t-shirt to put on, as he'd just taken his shower and was just reclining in a pair of cotton pants and no shirt.

Reeve, of course, didn't particularly move to the door in any hurry, likely making whoever was at the other side wonder if anyone was even going to show up. When he did, Reeve first looked through the peephole to see who it was, making a mental note to install video cameras he could access remotely, instead. Another random thought entered his head, causing him to realize he hadn't really spoken to any of his roommates lately. Being irrelevant, it was quickly pushed aside, in favor of deciding what to do with the guest.

It was Zachary LaRousse, well-known pretty boy and egotistical ass. Reeve had never had too many exploits with him, and as such, held no personal grudge, but the rumors of how rude and arrogant he could be were far-flung, as Hammel was not particularly a large school. Reeve wondered off-hand what it was someone like Zac would want with him, and figured that, whatever it was, it probably wasn't anything good.

With a shrug, Reeve released an inaudible sigh from his lips and put on his 'game face,' acting the persona of the quiet, but friendly kid that most of the student body knew him as. Finally, he unlatched the door and swung it open, offering his best impression of a nervous smile.

"Oh, hey, uh, Zac," he began, using his best feeble and surprised cadence. "What's up? Did you get lost?" he offered as a joke, his nervous smile widening a bit more to show that he was only kidding.

[Zachary LaRousse]

Zac’s face visibly lit up as a shirtless Reeve, and not an angry or annoyed Ann, went out and opened the door. With all the confusion that’s been between them lately (mostly because of him anyway; the empath made it clear early on that she doesn’t want to associate with her and yet he continues to push himself in, the idiot), he’d rather not see her, at least when he’s got a relatively more important thing in mind. Seeing her might somehow make him a wee bit angry (irrational jealousy on the news of her apparently seeing the tattoo-kid Alex), and derail him from the manipulation he’s about to do upon the powerful technopath. “Anyone else in there?” he asked absentmindedly, taking a quick glimpse of the room.

He almost tilted his head in confusion upon hearing Reeve’s supposedly awkward greeting. It did sound awkward, to a point, but he could feel something odd from it. Like somehow, he’s just faking his emotions. No, Zac was definitely no empath but he could feel something odd from the kid. Could the rumors be true about him being a cyborg really and not a meta be true? “N’aw, I’m actually looking for you buddy,” he winked, suddenly grabbing Reeve and slinging his arm over his shoulder, quickly shedding away all shades of hesitation he had earlier. He’s already here, Reeve’s already seen him, there’s no point backing up now. He gave Reeve’s shoulder a light squeeze before playfully asking, “So are you going to let me in?”

And yes, he didn’t even wait for Reeve to invite him in, much less answer his question. He promptly dragged the boy into the room, closing the door with a light kick, and settled down on the couch. He briefly scanned the room, and wasn’t surprised it wasn’t as messy as his. After all, Reeve didn’t have roommates with ghost buddies who thrash the room each night. True to form, Zac made himself comfortable without Reeve’s urging, stretching and draping his arms across the couch as he leaned back and casually crossed his legs. “So Reeve, what do you do for fun here anyways?” As it seems, Zac has no plans to rush his plans. After all, this is the first time he and Reeve actually met and talk (if he could remember things right), which meant that him asking a favor almost immediately would not only be weird, it would most certainly be turned down immediately. A small talk ought to loosen Reeve’s nerves and make him less prone to denying Zac of his request. ‘Cause Zac doesn’t really handle rejection too well.

[Reeve Rzeznik]

"Nah, just me," Reeve replied to the first question with little hesitation, only bothering afterward to actually stop and glance around the room to make sure. His roommates were pretty cool, by regular people standards. He wasn't so sure Ann liked him, and knowing that she was an empath, it probably had something to do with his rarely-expressed emotions. From what he'd learned from empaths earlier in life, he registered kind of like a black hole in the emotional spectrum, and it had a habit of putting people who were sensitive to that ill at ease. Reeve didn't particularly keep a strong rapport with any of his roommates, though, for that matter. He was a pretty insular kid by nature, and while, at the time, he thought it'd be interesting and/or amusing to hack himself into the co-ed dorms, living with girls was an altogether nerve-wracking endeavor, even when they were as laid-back as Dylan.

At the moment, though, he had more pressing matters to deal with. Zac had welcomed himself into the room and draped an arm over Reeve's shoulder, as friendly as could be. Even as he asked to be let in, he continued inside regardless, causing Reeve to, for a second, make a mental note that Zac must not be a vampire. As Zac's arm slipped off his shoulder, he went to the couch, sprawling himself out and making himself as comfortable as possible, from the looks of things. Reeve took the time to slip on the shirt he'd been holding in his hands, with another look over at Zac.

When Zac asked him what he did for fun 'around here,' it gave Reeve pause. He wasn't entirely sure if his idea would fun would match up to Zac's, and so, couldn't decide if telling him would be worth the almost inevitable explanation that would follow. With a mental shrug, Reeve decided to go ahead and risk it, crossing the common area to the fridge.

"Just the usual geek stuff, I guess. Video games, web surfing, movies, maybe a comic book here and then. You probably wouldn't find it too impressive. You want anything to drink?"

Reeve offered the drink, and then opened the fridge to see what they had. No way was he going to offer any of the things he hadn't purchased for himself, which, unfortunately, left very few options.

"I've got bottled water, bottled water, and, uh, bottled water."

[Zachary LaRousse]

Telling himself that he won’t laugh at Reeve and actually not laughing is quite the feat, considering how easy the boy’s making it out to be. The moment Reeve mentioned the word ‘geek’, Zac slightly leaned/jerked forward, as if catching his laugh and forcing it back down, the prominent movement of his Adam’s apple evidence of such an act. As unfair as it may be to Reeve, ‘geek’ has been one of the words mostly used to describe him. In fact, Zac himself was guilty of using it (not that he feels remorse or anything) when he was first asking where Reeve stayed. “You know where I can find the geek computer-kid? Reeve whaz-its?” was one of his opening lines. Such a two-face really.

“Web surfing huh,” he nodded cockily, before finally laughing loudly, “Know any good porn sites lately?” Assuming he is indeed as powerful, if not more powerful altogether, than Mia, he should have easy access to that stuff. Not that Zac still looks at that stuff anymore (at least not that he’ll admit); he just wants to tease the seemingly stiff boy. “Kidding. I’m just playing with you Reeve. You seem so tense. Video games are nice. And I do adore comics. Mostly.” Despite having every conceivable gaming console back home and in his dorm room, he haven’t used them that much. He was quite the gamer when he was young, but now, to him, their magic just vanished. As for his knowledge in comics, well, it was mostly his former roommate’s fault.

As Reeve went out to grab something in the suite’s kitchenette (hopefully something to munch on, not that he was that hungry, but it would help him go through the awkward moments he fears Reeve might reply with), Zac simply sat there and waited, yawning in the process. He tossed and turned for a bit, before finally deciding to declare the whole couch as his own and lying on the length of it. Indeed Reeve, you have quite the guest. “Motor oil would be lovely,” chuckled the mimic, waving his hands wildly as he retracted his rather inappropriate teasing, “Anything will do Reeve. Really.”

If it was a normal manipulation he’s going to do, he’d rather have Reeve stiff and shaken, that way it would be easier to make him do whatever Zac wants. Unfortunately, what he wants Reeve to do is not a one time thing; his main problem with Mia’s work is that it changes often, so no matter how efficient his the solution (read: program and blocks) his technopaths give him, Mia just ‘evolves’ and counters it. He needs something that can keep up with Mia’s power, someone close and powerful enough to stop Mia in her tracks. Which brings him to Reeve. “Hey dude, I won’t eat you. At least not alive or anything,” he said, winking, “We were in, I think English was it, a few years back. I was nice, wasn’t I? I just want to hang out, that’s all.” He promptly got off the couch and went to the TV, looking at the stack of CDs below it. “So, what games do you have? Anything worthwhile?”


ooc:
Whee. Zachie's 400th post. Lol. XD
- Jam

[Reeve Rzeznik]

Reeve couldn't help but smirk at Zac's mention of porn sites. Not that he made a habit of it, but whenever the mood struck him, getting into those password protected sites without actually paying for a password was one of the easiest things his technopath abilities could do. As such, when he surfed for porn, it wasn't like most people who just skirted around the free content. No, Reeve had the entire internet's worth of pornography to peruse. Not that he made a habit out of it.

At Zac's other comment, though, Reeve actually looked over the kitchenette counter at him, face scrunched up a little. "Motor-what?" he mumbled, not entirely under his breath, before shaking his head and chuckling slightly. Tin Man. Robot Joke. Funny. "I'm just as flesh and blood as you, buddy."

Grabbing two bottles of water and a box of Triscuit crackers from the fridge and the pantry, respectively, Reeve wandered back over to where Zac had claimed the couch as his own, dropping a bottle of water onto his lap once he was sure that Zac had seen it, so as not to surprise him. For his own part, Reeve tumbled not-so-gracefully, but intentionally, into the armchair next to it.

He listened quietly as Zac spoke to him, apparently trying to assuage whatever fears the boy supposedly had about him being here. In truth, Reeve didn't really bother to feel nervousness or fear, not so much these days, and Zac's continuing assurance that everything was okay, that he was 'just here to chill' was doing more to put Reeve ill at ease than if he'd just shown up and pretending like they were old friends.

Reeve just shrugged nonchalantly at all the comments, until he was given one he could actually answer. He twisted the cap off of the bottle and took a drink of water.

"If you like a video game, if I don't have it, I can probably get it," Reeve said confidently. "So if you want to play something, just let me know."

((This post ends funny because I just got called into work and had to wrap it up, but I'll be around for posting more often now that I've got my laptop back!))

[Zachary LaRousse]

As it was, Reeve’s smirk did not escape his rather pompous guest. He was no mindreader, but Zac’s mastered enough about the male teenage psyche (or at least basing it on what he would’ve done in certain circumstances and imposing such standards on other people), so he knew exactly what that smirk meant, given such a context. The naughty kid, he thought. He smiled slightly as he tried to process the realization. While he does believe that Reeve is human (or at least a part of him does), he still can’t munch the fact that he’s human up to that extent (no offense to the boy). Well, the only consolation Zac got is that such knowledge came to him with a facial expression, not something more indecent like say a boner or something (nope, he’s got enough peens being pointed at him at the moment, he’d rather not to add one more). “Awesome. I should come to you whenever I’m in the mood for some new porn film then,” he chuckled, giving Reeve a playful wink.

Catching the bottled water without so much of an effort and shaking his head in slight amusement as Reeve slipped on the way to his chair, Zac assumed a much more civil position (read: he finally sat down properly), opened his drink and gave Reeve a light punch on the arm. “Hey dude, don’t take it seriously,” he said, referring about his motor oil joke. Seems he stroke a cord there. Not good. The boy would not help him if they got on the wrong foot, and currently, he’s his only hope (against the Mia menace). “Sorry ‘bout that. Really. Guess the people outside just got into me.” Hopefully Reeve would buy his act. He didn’t take Drama Class for nothing after all. “Start over dude?” he asked, reaching an arm out for a handshake.

“Black Ops sounds decent enough. You play online?” he said, waving the CD case at Reeve. “Should I start the console and everything now? Or can you do it like, on your own?” Zac figured that now’s the perfect time to start prodding Reeve about his powers. He knows they’re powerful and all that, with rumors flying around about him rivaling, if not totally beating, the snoop at her game, so right now, he just needs proof. Or at least further explanation. “I mean, I don’t want to sound like some lame first-time Hammel recruit or anything, but how does your technopathy work really? Is it like telepathy or mind control, but only with things with circuit boards? You don’t sprout wires from your fingers like those in the movies, right?”

Hopefully Reeve won’t suspect anything. Hopefully.


ooc:
*jumps for joy* WHEEE!
And and and, I want to ask for forgiveness for my previous reply smexy Texy. I think I gave you faaaaar too little to work with back then. >.<. I promise not to let that happen in the near future.^^. Sankyooo.^^.
- Jam

[Reeve Rzeznik]

Zac's reply to Reeve's smirk brought a little shake of Reeve's head. He was clearly not comfortable enough to actually talk about this to the other boy openly, but the chuckle that arose from his lips more or less spoke volumes. I'd be good for it, it said, hopefully not opening any more doors of awkward entry for Zac to come barging through.

By the time he was sitting in the chair, though, Zac apparently felt bad for his joke, apologizing in a manner that Reeve thought was a little profuse, but he didn't show it. Of course, that comment was, likely, one of the only things a person could say to Reeve to actually get a rise out of him, which is why it broke through his little act so quickly in the first place, but now that he was ready, it was easy to cover it up. Just as Zac was doing, Reeve was playing his part in this little charade perfectly.

"Start over?" he sat up and laughed a little, shaking his head and then Zac's hand firmly. "What's there to start? I know the rumors, Reeve the Robot and all that. It's kinda funny the first few hundred times, I guess."

Reeve gave him a lighthearted little shrug and released his grip on Zac's hand, flopping back into his chair. "Let's just play video games and not worry about it."

It seemed that Zac had already taken an interest in the video games, and was sifting through his DVD's looking for something worth playing. He lifted up Reeve's copy of the latest Call of Duty, which Reeve had amusingly photoshopped custom box art onto. Reeve saw the case and grinned, this time genuinely. There were very few things that Reeve did artistically other than his music, and even though he didn't consider photoshopping movie stars onto a game cover 'art,' it managed to amuse him all the same, and with his condition, every little bit helped.

"Black Cops?" Reeve asked, so used to calling it as such that he forgot to use the game's actual name in real conversation, "Sounds good to me. And, well..."

Reeve smirked, and raised his hand menacingly towards the Xbox. It was just for show, but if Zac wanted a demonstration, he was going to get one. The TV and system turned on, and the Xbox was, of course, heavily modified. The incoming swirls were a mix of blues, greens and pinks instead of the usual color configuration, and the words "REEVEBOX 720" flew in and circled the ball, which was now a Disco Ball. The disc tray opened and a robotic voice proclaimed:

"FEED ME."

Reeve smirked and gestured towards the system. "I think he's talking to you, dude."

Reeve snickered and leaned back even more in his chair. This was his realm, something he thrived in, something he was most comfortable with. Here, surrounded in technology, showing off what he could do, the mask dropped and Reeve's true inner confidence managed to shine through. He was all too eager to explain himself when Zac asked.

"Well, as cool as that would be, no. But I bet I could work up some kind of interface, a glove or something, that might actually make my powers work even bet-oh nevermind," Reeve shook his head, snapping back to attention. One of the downsides of having a mind that worked more like a machine was that he was constantly thinking of ways to improve basically everything. That usually involved some crazy new device or design, which Reeve would then start subconsciously tapping into various machines nearby for inspiration on how to fully conceive said device.

He coughed, clearing his throat and trying to start back in layman's terms. "Anyway, it's more like what you just said about mind control with circuit boards. See, machines talk, just not quite like you or me. Every electrical impulse is at some point turned into an instruction, and I can hear those instructions, basically. From there, I can more or less give my own instructions, if I want, or just listen in on what the machine's doing. Like, this Xbox?" Reeve gestured to the TV screen where the Xbox was loading up his customized User Interface, vastly different from the regular Microsoft faire. "In my head I can hear it. It's processing the disc currently. It's sending queries every second to the main Microsoft server, pinging each individual friend's Gamer Tag to see if it is online and displaying the return ping. Mine's modified, as you can tell, so it's already preloading the videos and maps for Black Cops so it'll run faster once we start it up, and it's basically just telling me all of this. If I want it to go to my friend's list, I just ask it."

Reeve shrugged, and looked over at the Xbox. "01011000 01000010 01001111 01011000 00111010 00100000 01000001 01100011 01100011 01100101 01110011 01110011 00100000 01000110 01110010 01101001 01100101 01101110 01100100 01110011 00100000 01001100 01101001 01110011 01110100 00101110"

The numbers spilled out of his mouth in a rapid-fire mumble. Simple commands, such as things that can be easily done with a mouse and keyboard (or controller, in this case) rarely required him to actually speak the command, but once again, Reeve felt like showing off. Sure enough, his Friends List appeared on screen.

"So yeah"

And with a word, Reeve seemed to return to his mild-manner alter-ego, nodding with a sort of nervous finality, as if he were afraid he'd spoken too much. "It's pretty nerdy, I know, but I kinda like it."

OOC: First off, I sort of got a little carried away in this post. Second off, don't apologize for silly things like that. Not only is it a good RPer's job to work with what they've been given, it wasn't even a problem, your post was fine.

[Zachary LaRousse]

Unfortunately for Reeve, Zac isn’t really known for taking subtle hints at discomfort that well. While he gets all these little quirks and clues, rarely does he act upon them. More often than not, he’d actually push such unease further, just for the fun of it. And besides, the offer of free porn sites isn’t really a bad deal. Indeed, despite acting otherwise, Zac is quite the hormonal teen, so add that to the fact that he finds Reeve’s naughty side extremely amusing, he’d absolutely tap on that offer (so Reeve, expect a lovely visit from Zac in the next few days or so, just to have you break a site for him to see). He figures the boy is quite bereft of social interaction, so the least he could do is repay his ‘kindness’ (should his manipulation be successful) by adding a little spice to the recluse technopath’s life. And have fun in the process, of course. He gave Reeve a knowing wink, leaving the other boy to ponder about what that might mean.

The Prince’s anxiety dropped a couple of levels when Reeve took his hand and returned the gesture. At least he agreed to put the supposedly funny yet (not surprisingly) offensive comment behind them. Not his fault he didn’t know the Robot had emotions before anyway. “Fuck it dude, you’re making me feel all sorts of guilty right now, looking at me like that,” he said as he gave Reeve a nervous chuckle, completing the said gesture with a rather awkward rub behind his neck. Of course this repentant state he’s in, like most everything he does, is just an act. It would take more than a scowl to make him feel bad for belittling a friend, more so someone he just approached to use. “N’aww, it’s not funny anymore once you said it like that,” he nodded, continuing with his guilt-ridden act, “Fine. You got me. You can stop doing that now.” Then, as if an idea suddenly popped in his head, he smiled slightly, saying, “Tell you what. To make it up to you, I promise that I’ll try to stop rumors like that from spreading after this. I have quite the grip on the student body you know.”[/b][/color] Quite the exaggeration really, but he hopes Reeve would buy it. Or at least commend him for trying. “Nice idea, I’ll go grab us some then.” He promptly got off his seat, leaped above the center table with such ease, and landed gracefully in front of the CD rack. Seems his after school training is paying off after all.

He almost laughed when he saw the photoshopp-ed CD cover really. If this wasn’t Reeve he’s talking to, he’d actually think such a copy is a bootleg, as he finds the cover art really repulsive. Then again, bootlegs wouldn’t be a problem to the kid anyway; if anything, Zac assumed Reeve can make any bootleg at par, if not even better, than the original. That is, if his ability’s as powerful as what they say them to be.

“Oh shit” was all Zac could say when Reeve started to do his magic. He’d never really seen a technopath in action before (despite them employing quite the number in their household staff years before), so everything was oh-so-new to him. It really didn’t help that Reeve made it seem like all the manipulation he’s doing is child’s play still.

He actually jumped off his seat and landed a few paces back when the disc tray suddenly opened and talked to him. “Are you trying to make me pee in my pants Reeve?” he laughed, a little more warmly this time, totally engrossed with the wonders unfolding in front of his eyes. He never expected for the kid to be this cool (heck, he never expected to refer to Reeve as ‘cool’ in the first place either). “Where have you been all my life Reeve?” he asked with child-like awe as the ‘REEVEBOX 720’ went on to its start-up and did things he could never even imagine. “Would it be too much to ask if you can do that to my game consoles next time too? Dad says he won’t develop a game system (even one under my name) considering how successful Microsoft, Sony and the others already are, so I want to rub it on his face and show him how awesome it would be to have like a Zac-Station or something in the future.” Hooray for vanity.

While Zac does consider himself to be quite smart, he actually lost Reeve after ‘electrical impulse’. After all, Reeve showed him enough for the Prince to believe him anyway. “Reeve, you really are a dork,” he said as he threw the controllers to Reeve, smiling to tell the boy he’s only joking. Or at least slightly joking. He gave Reeve a playful pat on the head, messed his hair slightly, before sitting down on the couch. “Please don’t tell me you don’t use controllers when you play.”

Seems he’s already found his guy after all.[/font]


ooc:
Pfft. 'Tis ok smexy Tex. It's wonderful, really. That and -huuuuug-. You're awesum. 'Nuff said. ^^.
- Jam

[Reeve Rzeznik]

If Reeve noticed the wink, he didn't make any mention of it. If Zac wanted to come to him sometime down the line to unlock one of the dirtier porn sites, Reeve would probably be down. All in all, Reeve really enjoyed using his powers, so any chance to use them is a plus for him. Hell, Zac wasn't really so bad, either, Reeve didn't guess.

Speaking of Zac, he was doing his best to apologize for his joke, and kind of over-selling it, in Reeve's opinion. The young technopath hadn't even been that upset about the whole thing, really. Zac's promise, then, mostly fell upon deaf ears. Reeve didn't really care what the students said, more so than most. It would actually be better, in his eyes, if he did care, or even if he could. The rumors were little more than buzzing gnats around his head, but he supposed any effort to quell them was better than nothing.

"Yeah, sure man," Reeve agreed nonchalantly. "Don't worry too much about it, though, it's really not that big of a deal."

Reeve's nonchalant expression changed to one of pride and satisfaction once Zac's reaction to Reeve's souped-up gaming system became apparent. He reclined further back in his chair and smirked, shrugging at Zac's second question to answer them both. When he asked for his own system, Reeve paused, considering it for a second, and then nodded.

"Well, yeah, sure. But it'll cost ya."

Reeve shrugged again, raising his eyebrows slightly in a 'what can ya do?' look. His dad had always told him, "if you're good at something, never do it for free." If Zac wanted a customized video game system, Reeve would make him the best damn video game system ever. It just wouldn't be out of the kindness of his heart.

Zac tossed a controller in his lap and called him a dork, and Reeve laughed. "Yeah but I hear girls dig that these days," he played it off, looking at the controller and setting it on the armrest with feigned disgust.

"Controllers are for peasants," he concluded with a sarcastic smirk. He glanced up over to Zac. "Or guests, or whatever." Reeve chuckled a little to accentuate the point.

To prove it, Reeve closed his eyes and the game started to navigate the menus seemingly on its own. "I rigged it up so we can both play online. If you suck, I won't let you play on my team."

The game started up, allowing Zac a chance to sign in his GamerTag if he so desired. Reeve's eyes were flickering, opening and closing rapidly. It was if he spent equal time imagining the game in his mind as he did actually watching the screen.

[Zachary LaRousse]

To say that Zac was amused (and slightly surprised) would be an understatement. While he does know that Reeve has emotions despite what rumours say about him, he'd pegged him to have more of what people expect from a supposedly socially inept guy: stuttering, overtly nervous, shy. And so far, Reeve has shown him none of that. (True he did seem a bit startled when he first saw Zac by the door, but it was expected; after all, the two haven't been in speaking terms, at least before this encounter). Instead, Reeve has shown him quite the opposite of the traits he's been expecting: he's been horny (to an extent), quite cocky (at least with his powers) and relatively 'greedy' (for the lack of the better term). Put a dash of vanity in the technopath and Zac would've said he's seeing a mini-him in the boy.

“Pfft. You do know who you're talking to, right Reevie?” scoffed Zac as he leaned back to the couch. He can't believe Reeve actually asked him that. Is he serious, or was he just playing with him? Instead of talking about himself and all that, he simply resorted to giving Reeve a disbelieving and rather cocky grin, hoping the boy's as smart as he's said to be (to get what Zac means, that is). “So, are you up for it?” Not that he's really serious about pitching a game console with his father (all that thing is more or less bullcrap after all), but the prospect of having a modified game console (or consoles, for that matter) doesn't seem so bad. After all, what more can an egotistic jerk give himself but stuff named after him?

Girls?! Did he just hear him right? So he isn't asexual as people (and Zac too) thought he'd be? What else does he not know about this boy anyway? “Really? So that's why they don't buy my whole macho act anymore,” his voice laced with sarcasm. He flexed his arms a bit and gave them a small peck. “And to think I worked so hard to get these babies. You should teach me then,” chuckled the boy, “Can I apply to be your apprentice, dear Dork Master?” Hopefully his laughs are enough to tell Reeve that he's just kidding with everything (especially with girls digging dorks now. Or so he hopes).

“Hey! I resent that!” protested Zac, giving Reeve a light punch on the arm. He can't help but feel a little stupid the way he felt so apprehensive and nervous about approaching Reeve earlier. Considering how well they're getting along right now (at least on the surface), his worry may have been misplaced after all. “Just you wait 'till this peasant kicks your sorry butt dude.” While he really isn't a pushover when it comes to games and all that, he does know he sits not with Reeve on this one. He's more of a casual gamer than a devout follower after all. Oh skills don't fail him now.

He promptly selected his profile and braced himself for the game. He can't help but shout in protest as he found himself in a new map (at least for him). He turned his head slightly, about to ask Reeve if he could change the map for them, when he saw the rapid eye(lid) movement the boy's having. “Dude! Are you ok?” As creepy as it is, he wished they were just side effects of his power.

As the game progressed, Zac actually surprised himself with the way he's handled himself amidst these expert gamers. He's currently in a 5-kill streak, two of those he got with a headshot. He almost crushed the controller however, when he was suddenly ambushed by two others and was, inevitably, killed. “Boo. But hey, that's my first death. You're not going to boot me off your team now, are you?” He gave Reeve a pleading look when an idea came into his head. This may be another good test to see how well the boy is with hacking and all that. “Think you can give me a minor upgrade? Like, make me faster or at least, I don't know, something to hide me from my enemies better?”

Zac says that is so not cheating. At least not in his book.