flyers literally fly

[Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe]

Who knew flyers could literally fly? Zoe hadn't thought that they'd live quite up to their name until she'd accidentally dropped the armful that she'd been carrying. One moment she'd been reaching up to attached some flyers to the pinboard in the lounge, the next she had flyers literally fluttering throughout the room. Zoe, of course, panicked. That meant that both hands went flailing to try and catch the few that had flown. This in turn caused the flyers she had been holding to start sliding.

"Watch out!" she tried to call for warning, waving her hands. She caught a few flyers, hurrying around to catch the rest. She'd put a fair amount of effort into making them colorful and striking. They were to promote her upcoming photo-show, and she wanted to get at least a few of the students to go. It involved several of their peers, after all. The flyer itself showed some of the striking images that had been selected, including the shot that started it: a student blowing fire into a dark night. Zoe had hoped they'd get interest.

Now she was just hoping that nobody stepped on them.

"Please be careful!" she called as she started scrambling. Unfortunately, Zoe was so flustered that she ended up dropping one nearly every time she picked one up, which really wasn't working to clean the mess at all.

[Cade Carson]

The wind picked up one of the flyers and flew it upwards.

Then Cade caught it smoothly and crouched down to help pick up the flyers. She wasn't exactly having an easy time of it and he aimed to help. He smiled, picking up a few. And he couldn't help but see the picture on the front.

"Awesome photo. Wouldn't happen to be yours, huh?" That was one thing he did mourn. However awesome his powers were, visually they were nothing special. He could make himself have the muscles of an athletic model, but that was about it. Whereas this guy could breathe fire and so it was literally breathtaking.

"Gee, who needs to turn these things into paper planes to get them to fly? Although that might be a very good way of getting people to take them, I have to admit."

[Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe]

Zoe heard someone commenting and turned to look. She didn't immediately recognize the young man, and she supposed that she should find him handsome. He did have something of a striking face, and he certainly seemed to be doing handsome actions, judging by how he was plucking her flyers out of the air.

"Uh, yes, that is, mine," Zoe said, pointing at the flyer. She moved to pick up one of her own, turning it so she could show it to the guy. "I'm--" she paused as he talked about the flyers flying and let out a laugh. "They do seem to be getting everywhere. It's probably, um the heat," she looked up. They were nearish to a vent. Zoe shuffled to the side and bent to pick up more flyers, careful to do so away from where the young man was, not wanting to bump into him or have him experience her oh so wonderful power.

"But, um, yes, that's mine. So's the show. I'm, um, her," she pointed at the name on the poster: Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe. Then Zoe flushed, apparently using up her store of courage in that, instead focusing on trying to gather up yet more flyers.

[Cade Carson]

"Your name is Zoe. And you have your own show. Nice. I wish I was as accomplished." He laughed.

"I'm just a sleepy bum of a college student who also happens to recruit." He shrugged.

"But now that I think about it, your name sounds familiar. I think we might have a mutual friend. Olivia Chance? She's a friend of mine. Also, these photos are really really good. I wish I was as talented." He smiled.

"I'm Cade Atkinson by the way." He helped her pick up more flyers.

[Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe]

Zoe nodded as Cade repeated what she'd said. A flush soon came after, and she was suddenly quite interested in gathering as much of the paper as she could. His description of himself sounded rather humble too, and Zoe wondered if she shouldn't have tried that as well. But it wasn't as if she could really hide that she was throwing an art show.

"Oh, you know Olivia?" asked Zoe. "We're, um, friends, more or less. I think she mentioned you at one point," and Zoe was fairly certain that this was the same guy who kept getting mentioned along with Devyn, which probably meant that Alice had told him off and that he'd heard all about Zoe's relationships there. All of which was very much information that she wished he didn't know.

"But it's just a small show, really," she said, gathering up more flyers, "the art show. Just local. Tiny, really," and now she was having trouble holding onto the flyers again. At this rate, she'd wreck them and have to make more.

[Cade Carson]

"Haha she mentioned me. Then you probably already know my family history. Olivia was practically having a coronary over that. I wouldn't be surprised if her next science paper mentions me under 'subject'." He rolled his eyes and chuckled.

"She did mention how you put her in touch with people who could help her with her music. How awesome that was. Really only good things to say about you." He smiled. Then she got all modest about it being a small show. And she started to lose the flyers. He grabbed the edge.

"No need to be modest. You have a show, after all. And...where are you going with the flyers? You seem to be having trouble keeping track of them so why don't I carry them for you?" Cade could be a gentleman sometimes. He didn't even have any ulterior motives this time except getting to know her better. Of course, there was the interesting tidbit that this was 'Pikachu' and therefore Devyn's ex. But Cade wasn't rude enough to mention that or even really care. After all, he was in some measure happy that Zoe was Devyn's ex. Even though Devyn was really down about it, Cade knew he'd have absolutely no chance if they had been still together.

[Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe]

The way Cade spoke almost made it seem as though Olivia had a crush on him or something. Zoe supposed it probably had something to do with his looks or his confident demeanor or something. Though when she really thought about it, she didn't think that her friend was quite interested in him in that way, but she certainly didn't want to say as much. Instead she simply lowered her eyes and focused on getting the flyers more or less together.

Now he was insisting that he carry the flyers, which just had Zoe flushing to the tips of her ears. "I can handle it, really," she said. Zoe took another deep breath and adjusted her grip on the flyers she already had in hand, rearranging them. They still slid, but this time she managed to keep a good handle on them. She gave Cade another smile and reached to take a few of the other flyers.

"I wouldn't want to take up any more of your time anyway. I'm sure you have better things to do," she said, half-mumbling the words. She just needed to get a few more flyers up, and she was fairly confident that she could handle them now. If anything, she was almost gripping the flyers too tightly, her fingers practically digging into the paper.

[Cade Carson]

"Hey relax. You're acting like you think you're being a bother. You're not. You just made my day a bit more interesting. I have nowhere to be. I already said: I'm a total sleepy slacker." He laughed.

"Maybe if I hang around a girl who's industriously putting up flyers and will someday become a famous poet, some of the genius will rub off on me and I won't make my professors angry anymore. Ha, fat chance of that but it's worth a shot, right?" Cade shrugged.

[Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe]

Zoe flushed a little as Cade cut to the heart of things. Why was it that everyone seemed so willing to say that and tell her to relax? Zoe almost wanted to protest, but it was rather obvious that she was still feeling a bit stressed about things. Still, she wanted to do this on her own.

Cade almost seemed like he wanted her to rub off on him, which had her flushing again. "I don't think it works that way," she said. since he appeared to be mostly standing there, Zoe gathered up her various flyers, shuffling them, glad for something to distract her from things. "I do appreciate the offer, but I have this, really," she insisted. Zoe nodded again and, as if to prove the point, she turned and began working to put a flyer up on the cork board, which had been her intended task when she'd dropped the lot. It should be easy enough.

[Cade Carson]

He leaned lightly on the wall beside the corkboard, smiling.

"Okay. If you want to do it yourself that's fine. But unless I'm really bothering you, I'm going to stay here anyway. I don't want to be a jerk though, so just tell me if you want me to buzz off. But you seem like an interesting person to talk to. And I honestly have nowhere to be. I'm kind of bored, if I'm being completely honest. You'd be doing me a favour just tolerating me." He shrugged, a lopsided smile on his face.

[Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe]

Zoe watched as he leaned against the wall... the wall right next to where she was working. She found herself looking at him, noticing that he was looking at her. Being studied like that made her flush, feel nervous. She had the urge to blurt out that she was most definitely not interested in him for some reason, though he hadn't done anything that really made her think that he was. He just kept talking, insisting that it was perfectly fine but he wasn't going any where.

"It's... it can't be very exciting," she said. Suddenly Zoe really didn't want to move, mostly because she couldn't help but feel like Cade was going to study her intently. "Watching someone put up flyers," she chewed her lip for a moment, working over what he said. She ended up frowning. "Wait, bored?" she looked back at him, truly confused. "With all there is in this school?" she gestured. "I... never mind," she flushed, moving to put more flyers up.

Of course, now she was nervous, so when she reached up, she found flyers sliding out of her hands. Zoe scrambled to grab them and, sure enough, flyers flew yet again.

[Cade Carson]

"Yeah there's a lot to do. But none of the activities particularly interest me. I mean, I went to the truth or dare session a while back. I've hung out a bit with Olivia. Contemplated pranking Jamie Foster along with Frank Cox. The girl has a good head on her shoulders where that's concerned." He chuckled.

"Also, went to a party with Devyn. So really I've had enough of the normal kind of excitement. I like just talking to people." When she started to lose the flyers, he just smiled kindly and crouched, catching a couple of the flyers and putting them in one hand before he caught another one.

"Are you entirely sure you don't want my help?" He arched a brow and smiled, looking at her.

[Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe]

Oh, Zoe knew all about the Truth or Dare sessions. She'd been most insistent on avoiding them precisely because of what had happened there. She'd also seen the aftermath, or at least the DL posts. She also heard the bit about Olivia again, which further cemented that this was the same Cade that Olivia had mentioned before. The thought of pranking the art teacher had Zoe frowning though, even if Frank was involved. Zoe had, of course, met the other girl in passing, but she'd at least been lucky enough to avoid any real one on one conversations.

And there was the mention of Zoe's ex. Just hearing the name made her flush and get more shaky, which of course did no favors when it came to gathering the flyers and getting them organized and what have you. He was already catching flyers, and Zoe moved to take the ones he had, mumbled her thanks.

"I don't want to bother you, really," she insisted. She looked away, not wanting to add that it was talking to him that was making her nervous. Talking to people always made Zoe nervous, and if you added on the rumors that stated that this was the guy who had sort of not really fought with her girlfriend and was apparently interested in her ex, well...

[Cade Carson]

Zoe looked flushed. And she was a little shaky. Then he remembered. Devyn.

"Aw crap I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I figured out from DL that...well, that Devyn's your ex. And...I did kind of get worked up on the forums, if you heard about that." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"But...I realized something. I don't mean to sound totally callous, but I realized I'd have even less of a chance if you two hadn't broken up. Don't let that get back to Devyn though because she'd probably kill me." He laughed, smiling as he thought of Devyn. Okay, he was cheesy. He really liked Devyn.

"You're not bothering me. If anything, I'm the one bothering you. You can tell me to buzz off you know." He helped catch more fliers with a smile.

[Zoe Wallerstein-Smythe]

Somehow, Zoe hadn't quite prepared mentally for this. She felt like she probably should have. It was actually a little surprising that it had taken this long for her to run into whoever was to step into Devyn's life next. It did feel decidedly odd to be having this conversation with a man though, and one that seemed so drastically different than herself. Then again, maybe that was precisely what Devyn needed.

he did seem to have Zoe's same apologetic tendencies though. Zoe flushed and looked away as he apologized. "Well, ah, that's..." probably not, "true," she said, biting the inside of her cheek. After all, part of what had wrecked her relationship with Devyn had been the "open" part of it... and her own virginity... definitely not topics that she wanted to discuss with a stranger.

Just thinking about them kept Zoe more or less locked in place. That Cade was taking on her normal role of apologizing only made it worse. That was the script Zoe was used to following: it felt like someone was reading her lines. She ended up looking down, fidgeting, as if she hoped someone would shout what she should say next from the sidelines.