The Lake Waits For No Man

[Poppy Lockwood]

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| Tagged: Gabriel Mendes |

1714 HOURS Compose a message

To: Gabe M

At precisely 1730 hours aka 5.30 look out your window that overlooks the lake ;P

Px

Nineteen year old Poppy Lockwood had arrived at the lake five minutes after she had sent the text. Winter had arrived and the lake was frozen -- perfect for skating. Of course most people she knew went to the ice rink near the town hall where it was more lively, festive and filled with the season's decorations. But ever since the first time her recruiter, Gabriel, brought her to skate at the lake, she rarely opted otherwise.

Tightening her coat, the girl stared at her watch willing it to move faster. She was an impatient one. The sun was down but the Chrismas lights hanging on the tress and curling around the lamp posts were twinkling away into the night.

Sitting on the pier, she ditched her sneakers for the pair of purple skates she had brought along. Coming onto the ice, she skated to where she knew she would be in line with Gabe's window, she waited another two minutes before waving frantically.

If he had looked like she instructed, he should be able to see the girl dressed in light green coat, pink hat and gloves, jeans and purple skates. It was not that hard considering she was the only one there. Still, she dug her phone out to give him a call.

"Hey do you not see the girl here? Bring your skates!"

[Gabriel Mendes]

When the message came in, Gabriel was taking a warm shower after a long day's work out. It was deathly cold out and the warm water on his back was so damn welcomed.

He only got to the message two seconds before the call came in. He grinned at the picture that filled his screen before picking it up. Even before he could say hello, he was accosted by the younger girl's chirpy voice.

"I don't know, what girl are you talking about? Are you seeing people around, honey?" He teased as he went to his cupboard to get dressed.

[Poppy Lockwood]

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The voice that came through the phone put a smile on her face and his teasing confirmed for her that he was in. "My dear Gabe, how can you not see the mismatched clothed girl?" She said and laughed. Poppy had purposefully chosen to wear her brightest clothes -- exception of the jeans -- that day so she stood out in the midst of everything.

The colorful twinkling lights did not help with her purpose.

She groaned into the phone as her skates made a full circle. "The only person I'm not seeing is you, mister. Imagine me now sticking my tongue out at you." She stuck out her tongue even though he could not see it over the phone. "It's getting lonely out here..."

[Gabriel Mendes]

Gabriel almost dropped his phone when he reached out to grab a sweater from his closet. "I don't know, Pops. You have a pretty overactive imagination. Are you even at the lake right now?" He was still teasing her as he put on his jeans.

"Aww, poor thing. Impatient as all hell, but poor thing."

He walked over to his window and saw the girl in mismatched clothes and laughed into the phone. "Did your closet vomit or something?" He asked with a chuckle before grabbing his beanie and coat, followed by his skates.

Locking up, he went out of his apartment and started to walk over to the lake.

[Poppy Lockwood]

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"Hardy har har. You know what they say, time is gold." All of what he had said was true. The brunette was impatient and had an overactive imagination.

Gabe had also called her that dreadful nickname -- Pops. It made her feel really old and like a dad. Although that is the case, the brunette did not feel like pushing her friend off a mountain like she felt when anyone else called her by that name.

She laughed at his comment on her clothes. Whilst choosing her brightest colored clothes, she knew the colors looked horrible together. The light green coat was not the best choice. "Hey, I'm a kid. I get a pass in having zero fashion sense."

[Gabriel Mendes]

"You sound like my dad, Poppy. Doling out sage advice like that." He laughed, knowing full well the girl didn't like the nickname he gave her, even though she literally just made his point for him. Of course, he was only teasing.

He walked through the alleyways to get to the lake faster, not wanting the girl to wait any longer than she already has. She really was quite impatient.

"And here I was thinking kids were the fashion forward ones." He chuckled before spotting the lake. "You know we could just wait until we were actually face to face to actually talk. Seeing as I can already see you." He snorted before ending the call and pocketing his phone, tugging on the gloves he had kept in his coat pocket.

Once they were actually face to face, Gabriel messed her hair up. "Hey kiddo."

[Poppy Lockwood]

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The girl kept skating in circles as she listened to Gabriel and waited for him. Gaah. She did sound like one of the old farts -- oh the horror.

"Well--" Her reply started when he mentioned about speaking face to face but was immediately cut off by the single beep on the other line. She growled before pocketing her phone back in.

She stared ahead and saw the tall man coming closer and closer. Meeting him halfway, Poppy went in to give Gabe a hug but he messed her hair -- like he always did -- before she could. Playfully pouting, she fixed her hair and hat.

Then she gave him a tight hug. With her hands on his shoulder, she looked at him. "Oh Gabriella what took you so long? You get ready like a girl," the brunette teased. "And why are you so warm?" She went in for another hug -- mostly because of the warmth.

[Gabriel Mendes]

He couldn't help but grin at the playful pout from the younger mutant and when she went in for the hug, a part of him hesitated for a bit. It still felt weird having a close relationship with a young woman when he had brought her here in the first place. He shouldn't feel weird since he had always seen her as his kid sister and would probably always see her as such but social conduct dictated that such relationships were frowned upon. Even if they seemed innocent.

He then decided to forego the hug, but the girl apparently was in a huggy mood. "Hey now, remember what I told you about the close contact?" He patted her shoulder and slid out of her grasp.

"Let's skate. We're here to skate. Even if your wardrobe is definitely going to stop me from making you eat ice." He chuckled.

He supposed he should have made it clear that they should have boundaries now. Even if he was the one who made the mistake of letting her get close to him in the first place. It became difficult for him to distance himself from his recruits as time passed by. Especially Poppy, who was the first ever recruit he had to handle on his own.

He did care for the girl, but he also didn't want either of them to get into trouble because of this. "So, besides letting your wardrobe burst on you, what are you doing out here alone?"

[Poppy Lockwood]

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"Right..." The man slid out of her grasp easily as she did not put much of a fight. Twelve year old Poppy probably would have, but as she grew older she realized and knew more about the kind of relationship they shared. From the books Poppy had read, things could turn in another direction where it could get complicated -- to put it lightly.

Though she did admit to herself that she had developed a tiny crush on Gabe before. How could she not when all the little girl had was a kitten for a friend and suddenly there was this handsome guy who gave her the time of day. The crush faded over time as Poppy viewed him more of a big brother she never had. Which made crushing on him feel a little weird.

However, she still found it hard to distance herself from him.

Rather than stressing about it, the brunette pushed it aside and reserved it for another day. Like Gabriel said, they were there to skate. So Poppy skated beside him and listened to him speak. She liked and enjoyed the friendship they had, and did not plan to jeopardize it anytime soon.

"Hey, I'm not alone -- you're here," she pointed out jokingly. She slowly turned her body as she skated backwards so she was facing Gabe as they conversed. "Just thought I'd come out for a skate. Catch up? How have you been, any Christmas plans?"

[Gabriel Mendes]

He was glad the girl understood and didn't make a big deal out of it because frankly, nobody should make a big deal out of an adult trying to avoid a situation that could potentially go south at any given minute. Although the fact that he even responded to her call in the first place was somewhat of a contention to that thought.

Either way, he was going to skate, for better or for worst.

"I was thinking of going home but a friend of mine pulled me to volunteer at the soup kitchen. You should too. They're always looking for volunteers." He stated before doing a lazy eight on his skates.

He turned when he heard laughter, only to see a family of five approaching the lake. Two of the kids were toddlers and running in what could only be described as a penguin run. One almost fell while the other looked like he was skipping every three steps.

"Your parents not coming over?"

[Poppy Lockwood]

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She smiled as she listened to him and watched him skate. The mention of volunteering at the soup kitchen got her thinking. Because of the season, Poppy understood why they needed the help and she was not one bit surprised that Gabriel joined in.

Before she could answer, the family arrived. Poppy turned and observed them as well. "They're so cute," she whispered. She found the two toddlers adorable and remembered the times her younger self would frolicked towards the lake.

Her attention returned back to Gabe. Since Trevor was borned five years ago, her parents decided to move to Kalispell so the two siblings could be closer. "Eh, since last year I'm expected to take the bus back home." She was part of the population that had a license but unfortunately no car.

"Though Coca-Cola and buses don't mix well. So I'm asking around for a ride." If she did intend to hitch a ride, she better find one soon because Christmas was just around the corner. She shrugged as if it was no biggy.

"Say, which soup kitchen you'd be at? I think I might just come by and help."

[Gabriel Mendes]

Gabriel made a small noise of agreement as the smile spread. He wondered briefly what it would be like to be the father in that little happy family. The thought was extinguished when he realised he was not the fatherly type. He would probably freak the hell out if any of the girls he had slept with told him he was going to be a father.

Clearing his throat as though that would clear his thoughts, Gabriel nodded when Poppy responded. "It's not that far from the school though, yeah? I'm sure some of your friends would be happy to provide a ride." He pointed out.

"I'll text you the address. They're always the busiest around Christmas Eve so you should stop by then."

He was then distracted by one of the toddlers expertly whizzing by, surprising him a little at how agile she was when not even two minutes ago, she looked like gravity was just not her friend.

"Ten bucks says she'll be an Olympian by the time she's seven." He chuckled as he skated backwards, a little away from Poppy. "Oh yeah, how is Coca-Cola anyway? Feels like I haven't seen that little monster in awhile."

[Poppy Lockwood]

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The thought of being a parent did not even occur to Poppy. Most likely because she was young and a virgin. But the toddlers reminded her of her younger self and her little brother, Trevor. So carefree and probably naive.

"Yeah, friends." She did not point out that she only had a handful of those and Gabe was one of them. When she came to the academy seven year ago, her social circle did not improve much. Poppy made some acquaintances but none that you actually call for favors.

The idea to ask Gabriel came to mind. But for some reason, Poppy held back. This was one of the rare moments the girl actually thought before she spoke. The cause could be the realization of the limits of their friendship. "Cool, thanks," her responce were short and she stayed quiet -- very unlike her.

When he mentioned the kid again, it put a small smile on her face. At least it was not awkward between them. Shaking her doubts, she plastered on a smile. "He's alright. Stays in the dorms mostly. That old cat is getting lazier and lazier," she chuckled. As Coca-Cola aged, the feline tended to sleep more. "Probably even sleeping now. What about you, dating anyone, Gabe? Is it that friend that got you to volunteer?" she teased.

[Gabriel Mendes]

Poppy's short answer troubled Gabriel for a second before he realised that he had probably caused it. He needed to get her back to being herself, he knew that. He just didn't know how.

Until her cat was mentioned and all seemed to be well.

"Aww, you can't blame the kit." He shrugged with a grin. "As I grow older, I too am getting more lethargic." He sighed exaggeratedly.

The question suddenly moving to his dating life, Gabriel's eyes widened for a second before chuckling. "What? No. He's married. And don't be nosy. I didn't ask if you had a boyfriend now did I?"

[Poppy Lockwood]

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"Oh, Gabe!" The girl laughed at how funny her friend looked. "You old farts," she teased. But what Gabriel said was true -- about getting old and lacking enthusiasm.

Her cat had been curled up most of the days. Rarely did it ventured out -- well it was a domesticated cat. And Poppy knew the average life expectantcy of those were roughly around fifteen years. She and Coca-Cola had another five years before he reached the mark.

The brunette skated towards the man and gave him a playful swat on the arm. "I'm not nosy. Just...a very curious child." She said as innocently as she could. "Besides, aren't people your age "settling down" and all that?" She put the air qoutes as she said it.

"Never mind. Don't mind me." The subject was dismissed. "Anyway, what are your plans for later? Let's go grab a bite or something. My treat."