Jump For My Love

[Alexandra Lawson]

Using a hand, Alex shielded her eyes from the sun for a moment, peering over to Ezra as he moved to sit beside her. She offered him a warm smile before closing her eyes and resting her hands behind her head. "Too long." She replied. She didn't bother saying anything more about her comment from before. If Ezra had come to learn anything about the sometimes spastic, easily excitable now-redhead, it was that he couldn't take her ramblings too seriously. Especially when there was tickling involved.

"Thanksgiving." She elaborated, letting out another contented sigh as she soaked up the warm, summer sun. "I got to go see my parents but it was only for a few days." Her head tilted then, eyes opening to regard Ezra with a certain sense of envy gleaming in them. "You're lucky to be from here." She said. "Never had to deal with homesickness."

[Ezra Cooper]

He responded to her warm smile with one of his own before looking out to the glistening lake. As she spoke about home, with her ensuing remark about homesickness, Ezra's smile turned slightly bitter.

"Yeah, lucky." He responded before scooting down a little so he could lie down and still remain head to head with Alex. "You planning on going down there again any time soon? How far away is it if we wanna roadtrip it though?" He asked, closing his eyes as well before folding his arms under his head.

[Alexandra Lawson]

"Eight hundred and ninety five miles." Alex said promptly. She'd looked it up many, many times before. That was the wonderful thing about the internet. If you wanted to know just about anything the information was right there and your fingertips. Alex hadn't seen the slight frown touch Ezra's features, though she could nearly feel the cold creep into his demeanor. Home, it seemed was forever a touchy subject, though she figured if Ezra wished to discuss it at some point, he knew she was there for him.

"Wait." Alex shifted, propping herself up on her elbows and looking to Ezra with a curious expression. "Why do you ask it like that?"

[Ezra Cooper]

The quick response got Ezra chuckling. "Did you jot that down on your hand when you found out and just memorised it till now?" He teased, ribbing her lightly.

He felt her shift but didn't open her eyes, though a smile spread across his lips as he imagined how Alex's face was looking like right then.

"I don't know. Maybe I was thinking of roadtripping." He started. "And maybe Cali could be a good destination for it. Nine hundred miles isn't too bad." He continued as he tried to think of ways to actually do it. He could borrow his neighbour's car, maybe they could rent a motel along the way if they got too tired...they should definitely bring other people, for buffers.

But it was doable.

"I could do with a good surf."

[Alexandra Lawson]

"I looked it up." Alex said with a short nod, studying Ezra's face for a moment. "A lot." She confessed. "You know I was homesick when I first got here." And still was. Even though Bellefonte had become very much like a second home to her it was just that, second. She had a home she couldn't wait to return to as soon as she would be allowed. Nothing would keep her from home once she completed college. Nothing.

She gave a little shrug before moving to settle back down in the sun with a laugh. "Then you're thinking of the wrong place. Redding isn't anywhere near the beach. There's a lake... but it's not surf. It's smaller than this." Alex waved a hand toward the lake they were laying near. "Nowhere near as nice. I did have a couple friends with pools, though. But I think they've probably all forgot about be by now." She didn't even want to give real, actual thought to the idea of taking a road trip home. She couldn't allow herself to get excited over something that would probably never happen. Yet.

[Ezra Cooper]

"I know." Ezra responded softly. He opened his eyes and looked over to Alex before raising an eyebrow. He wanted to question the look on her face but decided against it.

"Hey, maybe I drop you off home and then drive out to where there's a beach to scope it out." He shrugged with a chuckle. "Ah nah, they always say California girls are unforgettable." Ezra chuckled. "Daisy dukes, bikinis on top and all that."

[Alexandra Lawson]

Slowly a grin spread across her face as Ezra mentioned California girls. At first she thought it was a compliment directed toward, seeing as how she was one, though it quickly took a turn for the ridiculous. With a laugh she reached over, eyes still closed, and flailed a playful bap somewhere in Ezra's general direction. "One California girl in your life is enough." She said. "Wouldn't want me to get jealous now, would you?"

Since laying in the sun had become the thing to do, Alex got up just long enough to retrieve her towel. She didn't bother laying it out, though, since the ground was soft enough as is. Instead, she rolled it up into a makeshift pillow and slowly moved back to lay on her stomach and resting her head against the towel. "That would be cool, though." Alex had to admit that. Try as she might, there was no keeping the idea from growing in her mind. "I've never driven that far." She smiled a little. "You should find yourself a lady friend and we all four can make the trip."

[Ezra Cooper]

"But why would you be jealous though?" Ezra chuckled, though there was a tiny part of him that soared just a tad bit. It was quickly quelled though when he was reminded that Alex already had a beau. One that she was clearly very much into.

Ezra heard her shift about but couldn't be bothered to look at what she was doing. Her more or less kind of being intrigued at the idea of the road trip did perk him up a little but when she suggested he went and got himself a lady friend, Ezra forced a chuckle out and shake his head.

"I'd rather bring Barry." He said and nodded. "Why the hell not. At least you've got three bodyguards at your disposal."

[Alexandra Lawson]

"Barry would work. He could totally be your lady friend." She grinned at the idea, though then the image of her portly, boisterous friend in drag flashed through her mind and there was no stopping the fresh influx of laughter. Her overactive imagination even had Barry doing his best 'sassy black woman' voice with an equally sassy finger snap and head bob all the while being covered in horrible makeup and a garish blonde wig with pink highlights.

The picture that had been quickly painted succeeded in causing Alex to have to shift to her side, arms wrapping around her body as she felt her stomach tighten from the laughing fit. "Oh, god." He muttered weakly, yet again reaching up to wipe a tear from her eye. "Why do you do this?" She asked vaguely. "You know I can't handle it."

[Ezra Cooper]

The thought of Barry being his lady friend had Ezra cracking up as well. "Hey we could totally work as a couple. Barry's a sexy man!" Ezra exclaimed, not even joking.

As he looked on while Alex laughed, the heat manipulator turned on his side and patted Alex's back. "You okay there, honey?" Ezra asked. "I need to get into the water. The sun is getting to me a little." He sat up before standing up, reaching a hand down to Alex. "You coming?"

[Alexandra Lawson]

Alex had nothing but the utmost respect and love for her portly friend. Barry had been no less than a shining beacon of jovial happiness in her life since he entered it a little over a year ago. She would never say or do anything that could be construed as disrespectful or insulting. But the idea of him as a woman was, to say the least, among the funniest damn things she'd ever had flash through her mind. "He is!" She agreed with another laugh. "But that's why him in a wig and high heels doing a sassy finger snap and head bob is so funny!" Sure, she couldn't perfectly convey the image that she'd constructed in her head, but that wouldn't stop her from trying.

"I'm okay." Alex let out weakly as she slowly but surely regain control a second time. She unfurled herself from the fetal position she'd curled up into and sat up, tilting her head so she could look to Ezra, again squinting in the sun. "You know, it's weird." She said, following suit and climbing to her feet. "This is the only place I'm not... scared." Her mood instantly snapped to a much more serious tone as she looked out over the water. She brushed the dirt off her lower back and legs and started for the edge of the lake. "It feels like this is the only place where it can't hurt me, you know?"

[Ezra Cooper]

Alex's description of Barry as a woman made him roll over on to his stomach, hiding his face into the ground as he started heaving with silent laughter. Once he gained composure, he was sniffling as his eyes pooled with unshed tears of joy.

With her stood up, Ezra looked down at her as she spoke about the thing she was scared of. At first, Ezra was confused and wondered what she was talking about but things clicked into place as she looked out to the water. At least he thought it clicked into place.

"You know you're safe with me too." Ezra reassured her, puling his arm around her shoulder and pulling her close, squeezing for a second before letting her go.

"Last one in is a rotten banana." He stuck his tongue out and ran out to the bank and jumped into the lake.

[Alexandra Lawson]

"Yeah. I do." Alex's arm slipped around Ezra and she held onto him for a moment. She leaned into him, head coming to rest against his side and eyes closing, if just for a few seconds. Ezra was right. She always did feel safe around him. He was one of the few confidants she had she felt could be trusted implicitly. There was nothing she didn't feel she could say, do or be around Ezra. He'd seen her at her worst, mostly in the wake of the failed relationship that had left her heartbroken and lost. She let out a long, slow sigh before Ezra pulled away.

"Rotten banana?" She said, a smirk invading the previous warm smile that had been plastered across her face. "Who says 'rotten banana' besides you?" She may have been playfully messing with Ezra but his words still had the desired effect. She started for the water, though was easily beaten by the much longer legs of her longtime friend.

Splashing into the lake with a laugh, Alex stopped once the water reached waist height. The talk of her power had planted a bug in her mind. Alex rarely used her power on purpose. While she'd made great progress since coming to the Academy she still feared the very nature of her mutant ability. Standing in the lake, though, she felt as though nothing could hurt her. Water had always been her comfort element. She loved to swim and felt almost safe and protected while near it. Lifting her hand she splayed her fingers out, causing a small spurt of flame to shoot upward. The roiling fire didn't disipate, though, and it lingered in the air until Alex swept her hand to the right. The flames spread out, following Alex's movements like a charmed snake. It looped through the air in front of her, lazily swirling about.

Alex's eyes lit up as she manipulated the flame without ever coming near it. The fire danced around, swooping down to barely lick the water to cause a hiss of steam to rise up before Alex waved a hand and caused it to fade into nothingness, leaving behind only the faint, wavy lines of heat behind.

[Ezra Cooper]

He simply laughed at Alex's jab as he was submerged in water. The coolness of the lake made him shiver a little before he exerted a little of his energy to warm himself up a bit.

He emerged from under the water and started lazily floating on his back just in time to see the fire display Alex put on. It looked like she had pretty good control over her abilities already and Ezra felt proud of his friend. And the way the fire moved seemed almost graceful, it struck him in a way that was so like Alex.

Yes, she was clumsy and yes it was easier to find her schlumping instead of walking tall but there was a quiet charm to her that oddly seemed graceful to Ezra. Or maybe it was bias. Basically, the fire display, before it burned out, was pretty.

He clapped momentarily and whistled to Alex. "Good job!"

[Alexandra Lawson]

A hint of sheepishness touched her smile as Alex glanced over to Ezra. She'd always been told the control she had the potential to wield over her mutant power was impressive, to say the least, she only needed to reign in her own fear of it. Slowly, as she managed to get her phobia under control enough to begin training, Alex caught up with the other students of her ilk and, in some cases, surpassed them. She never thought of herself as someone who could posses such a dangerous and powerful ability. Though even through her fear there had always been a certain fascination with fire. It was so beautiful yet so destructive. And painful.

"Don't be jealous." Alex said with a wink as she moved deeper into the water. She could still feel the rush of heat from her little display lingering on her skin and wanted nothing more than to cool it off.