Gonna Getcha Good

[Julian Sinclair]

Julian had waited for the classroom to empty before stepping inside. He'd walked straight for the young boy's desk; he'd seen a little of the boy around school and done his fair share of research. He knew his name, and he knew the kind of circle the boy moved around. He was a surprisingly popular kid for being as... Reserved, maybe? Ah well, it was interesting nonetheless, and Julian figured he could score big by getting this boy on board.

It surely helped that the boy was a looker too; something Julian could, for what it was worth, appreciate.

Leaning forward, Julian placed his palms against the desk and propped himself against them. His light eyes studied the boy for a moment before he offered him a lopsided grin. "Morning," he said, nodding. "Name's Julian-" he began and reached out one his hands. "-I recently transferred from St. Bethany." Thankfully, Julian wasn't at all the shy kind.

"I apologize for my own forwardness," he said politely as a faint chuckle fell from his lips. "But I have a business proposition for you. But ah, you don't have to say yes right away. It's something I want you to think about before answering." He lifted his hand then, as if to prevent the boy from interrupting. "Now, don't worry. It's nothing illegal, and although some people might consider it... Questionable. I assure you; It's perfectly harmless."

Tag: François Laffont

[François Laffont]

Although the class was now over, Franck was in no hurry to leave. He always tended to be the last one leaving a classroom and that had nothing to do with him being a teacher’s pet or anything of the like. He simply didn’t see the point in rushing out when he would have enough time to get to wherever he needed to be after this. Not to add that it allowed most of the students to leave first, preventing any unnecessary contact with them. Franck might have grown used to the flow of emotions he got when he was around people but the depth of those feelings and the way they can affect him remained an issue. One he preferred to avoid when he could.

Because he had spent time in class, with many other students, the fact he perceived emotions still around was not surprising at all. Even though he had not seen the guy, it meant one was there and it was understandable. He really paid attention only as the guy sat on his desk and introduced himself as Julian. “Oh, hello. I’m Franck. Welcome to Bellefonte,” he said. He didn’t recall seeing him in his class but he might not have paid enough attention.

As it always happened, Franck did more than simply study the guy’s features. He shook his hand, it gave him, for a short period of time, a clear idea of everything bubbling up inside of Julian. For not being shy, he sure wasn’t. Franck sensed none of it while shaking the guy’s hand. He didn’t sense any of this excitement at trying to make new friends either but what else could this boy came to talk to him for?

Apparently, there was another reason. A business proposition. Franck didn’t hide how it surprised him that someone might want to talk business with him. He didn’t see why someone might want to do that. Especially not a stranger. But it was not like Franck to simply ignore a person just because he didn’t get what they wanted of him. “Oh?” Franck let out but he stopped as Julian asked that he could continue without any interruption. He frowned slightly though at the mention it might be questionable. No moral compass pointed north better than Franck’s so questionable might as well be illegal in his book. The fact it was harmless, according to him, didn’t make it any more right. “And what is it?” He still bothered to ask, just for the form. But Franck already felt like he should just say no.

[Julian Sinclair]

Nodding at the name, Julian's smile widened ever so slightly; Franck. He already knew the boy's name, but was hardly in a position to share that just yet. Unless the boy had realized it already, of course. After all, Julian had approached him with an intent in mind. That wasn't lost on the boy, it seemed.

"If you have the time, could we go somewhere else to talk? Or would you prefer this classroom?" Julian tossed the room a quick glance. The classrooms were pretty much similar to what they had looked like at St. Bethany. He wondered if it was the same thing for other schools too. For someone who had spent their life (before being a mutant) with private tutors, he hadn't had much experience when it came to other schools besides St. Bethany and now Bellefonte.

The French boy looked suspicious and Julian couldn't really blame him. Julian had purposely worded himself the way he had. It put a veil of mystery around his words, which more often than not made people curious and wanted to know more. He wasn't sure if the boy would at all be interested, but maybe it could at the very least spread the word some - maybe he'd talk to his friends about it. Free advertising was always a plus.

[François Laffont]

Julian was right, despite the fact something inside of Franck told him he should just say he didn’t want to have anything to do with questionable activities, he was also curious to know what it might be. He could still say no later, after hearing what it was about. He didn't think for one second however that Julian might have come to him knowing his name and who he was. He just wanted to be friendly, even though the nervousness and excitement one normally has when meeting new people didn’t seem to be what the young man felt. It just meant he was at ease with meeting new people, is all. Franck was not going to hold against him the fact he was not nervous to talk to him. He was trying so hard to put people at ease.

He looked around the classroom as he mentioned perhaps going somewhere else. “Yes, I suppose it would be best, in case there is another one coming after. The lounge is a little far, maybe the cafeteria? Or do you prefer a less crowded place?” Franck had no idea what this boy wanted to ask of him. A business proposition... Who had business proposition to discuss? It couldn’t be drugs, right? He better not sell drugs. No, it couldn’t be. Nothing in Franck’s appearance and way of carrying himself suggested he was into that kind of stuff and a quick survey would prove he was the last person you should talk of this to.

Julian indicated he was new however and Franck didn’t know if the boy knew exactly where everything was. “You need help finding the place or you’re good?”

[Julian Sinclair]

"Wherever you'd feel the most comfortable," Julian replied without missing a beat. Despite preferring somewhere more private, this was in the end, all about making sure the boy didn't feel out of place or as if he was pushed into a corner. That was in no way how you wanted to go about such delicate matters. He wanted the boy to feel comfortable and at ease. He couldn't do that if he forced the boy to be somewhere private that might in the end, put him on edge.

Julian liked to consider himself a rather understanding man, all things considered. Making sure that your employees and friends felt comfortable and safe was at the top of his list. He didn't run a business to fuck around. He took these things quite seriously.

Offering the boy a chuckle, Julian's hands went up as his head shook. "No, no, it's quite aright, Mr. Laffont. I assure you." He offered the boy a polite smile as he turned to face the door, pausing only to look over his shoulder to make sure that the boy was indeed going to follow him. "Lead the way," he offered with an amused smile.

The boy didn't trust him, and that was something Julian had to take into account.

[François Laffont]

Franck was a little surprised that he could choose where he’d be more comfortable for them to have a discussion. He was so used of letting people pick the place or the activity to do that he forgot he could do it as well. For a moment, he seriously found himself wondering what he should do. He was spending way too much time putting people at ease, he never thought he might be the one you’d do that for. “Well, if it’s a something delicate, a more private place would be better. We could go to the lounge. Or find an empty classroom but I think they want us out,” he said, eyeing towards the teacher.

This Julian was a character and if Franck realised he used his last name, the fact he had not told him did not come to mind. “Please, just call me Franck,” he told him with a smile. Being called mister Laffont, even though it was accurate, was rather weird. It was his father, not him.

He looked at him as he reached the door and gave him a nod before grabbing his bag and joining him. After what they said, Franck chose to head towards the student lounge. His eyes did wander from time to time towards the other classrooms but he never really bothered to stop at one and see if they could use it for their discussion. “You say you’ve arrived recently from St. Bethany? How do you find Bellefonte?” Franck simply could not walk all this distance without talking to him.

[Julian Sinclair]

Following the boy's gaze towards the teacher, Julian offered them a bright smile. "Yeah, seems like it," he chuckled. The student lounge did sound like the place to be, but after all, Julian had left the decision up to the boy. He wasn't going to step over his decision and to be perfectly honest, Julian wasn't ashamed of his club or anything he stood for. So to him, it didn't matter if their talk was had in the middle of a crowd or somewhere a lot more private. That wasn't what he was going for here. He wanted to make the boy comfortable.

Ah right; Julian almost forgot. The fact that he'd checked up on the boy beforehand was something he hadn't mentioned. Well, it didn't seem as if the boy had given the fact that Julian had called him by his last name much thought. Good. "Franck it is," he nodded and offered the boy a smile.

Following the boy to what he assumed was the student lounge, Julian's attention was once again offered completely to the younger boy. "I knew of it from the day I manifested. I was meant to go here, but my parents wanted me to go to St. Bethany, and I saw little use in transferring before I graduated," he explained. "And considering how this is the high peak of mutant activity, I figured this was the best place to set up my business." He had nothing against sharing personal information about himself. Julian was a man who had very few secrets and even less to hide.

"You see," he began, offering a random student passing them by a smile. "I'm from New York originally, but have been in England since I was eleven, until just recently." He looked back at the boy then. "So, once I graduated, I decided to continue my college degree here."

[François Laffont]

Franck could have been comfortable around Julian even if they were alone in a room. In fact, the less people around, the better it would be for him to concentrate on what the other guy was saying. It was already hard at times to sense all those emotions constantly changing depending on the conversation or what was around them, he didn’t need to deal with that in a fully crowded room. It was true that he could barely perceive anything specific then but that didn’t make it that much easier to concentrate.

He returned Julian’s smile and nodded as he said his name. It was still a little weird that he knew his last name but he did seem to know who he was talking to so Franck tried not to react too much about it. It was just a name after all, one that everyone around here could easily learn should they ever bother to ask for it. He was even ready to give it to them, the full name, with the middle one and all.

“Oh? I was supposed to go to St. Bethany but my father asked if I should come here instead.” Nice coincidence, no? Not really, but Franck was ready to find anything they had in common. Julian didn’t seem to need it to be comfortable around him but it became somewhat of a second nature to Franck. “Yes, you mentioned a business. You have not told me what it was exactly, you said it was... questionable?” In Franck’s book, it meant morally wrong if legally right. And that might as well mean legally wrong for him. Though, lately, his righteousness might not have been as righteous as before. He didn't think it was that bad of a thing.

Franck listened to his life story with the proper amount of interest required. “Are the two schools very different? We actually have quite a few students from St. Bethany here, you might recognize some of them.” One name immediately popped in his mind but he preferred not to mention it. “You’re parents were fine with that idea? You’re an adult, so I suppose they can’t control your life as much but...” Franck seemed to realize that, if he was a college student, than he was not in his class to study. “You came to my class to talk to me?” Wow. When did he become that popular?

[Julian Sinclair]

"Is that so?" Julian asked, curiously tilting his head. Well, considering how the boy had a French accent, Julian supposed he could see that. "You need to tell your father thank you from me then," Julian added with a friendly smile. He didn't know the boy per say, but from what he'd heard, and the little he could tell from their short interaction, the boy was definitely someone Julian could see himself enjoying being around. "Well, questionable might have been a poor choice of word on my part," he said honestly, offering the boy an almost embarrassed smile. "Do you know what Burlesque is?"

Most people seemed to link Burlesque with the stripping business, when Burlesque in fact was a form of art. It was the mockery of stripping, in a sense. Of course, Julian wasn't surprised, nor offended when people didn't know. Still, he liked to correct them once they did prove just how wrong they were. He didn't particularly enjoy the bad reputation it got. Why would he? He did have a Burlesque club, after all.

"Different? Hm. Not really. St. Bethany is a little stricter and more proper, I'd say, but other than that, both schools are very similar." And yes, Julian didn't at all doubt that he'd see someone he knew, although he wasn't sure how many of his former friends had actually transferred. It was hard to keep track of after a while, and usually, once someone transferred, he'd generally lost touch with them. "They respect my decision." And admired it. After all, they had raised him to make his own choices. It wasn't as if they forced him to go to St. Bethany. It had been merely a suggestion on their part.

"That I did." He looked over at the boy. "I own a Burlesque club. I just recently opened it, and am looking for employees. Now, I'm not going to force you to do anything, but I would be very grateful if you'd at least considering taking up a job there. It could be anything you want, and you don't have to do anything that would make you uncomfortable, of course." He studied the boy's reaction then.

[François Laffont]

Franck could not hide some surprise to show on his face at Julian’s words. It was kind of an odd thing to say someone you barely knew. Unless he was flirting? No, he wasn’t, otherwise Franck would have sensed it and he couldn’t sense anything resembling lust or love from Julian. Was he saying that because they could now meet or because he couldn’t have seen him at St Bethany’s?

Did Franck knew what burlesque was? Now that was a tricky question. He had heard the name, considered it was something rather sexy and comical but he really shouldn’t be the one giving people the definition of the word burlesque. “Kind of... what does it have to do with me?” From what little he knew of it, he couldn’t see him matching well with the word.

“Very European,” he said to sum up the comparison. There was a different between the American and the European lifestyle. Having lived in both continents, Franck could tell. It was not always obvious but there was still a difference. Sometimes however, it was pretty apparent and he often wondered if it really was the fact he was European or just the way he was raised personally that made it so different.

“You own a club?” He did not try at all to hide his surprise. He didn’t expect a student here to own a club. Unless... “Are you a teacher here? Or just recruiting?” He doubted the administration would like that someone came here to recruit people for a club, burlesque or not. Or have a teacher do it for that matter. “What kind of work? Why should it make me uncomfortable?” Franck was a little suspicious as to what the other guy had in mind. He was not going to ask him to do anything dirty, did he?