Teeth Will Roll

[Luxanna Viera]

Lux stood outside the apartment complex she'd been asked to show up the day before, and the landlord had yet to show up. With a huff, she brushed her hair behind her ear and looked around. To be fair, this neighborhood looked awfully shady - but she couldn't very well afford anything better. Maybe she should have looked at the various bulletin boards and checked if anyone needed a roommate. Naturally, the brunette had dove head first into this without really thinking it through.

Which was about to happen once more. The moment she heard the footsteps, she automatically assumed that it was it the guy wanting to rent his apartment out. And she sort of ended up staring at him while smiling, looking as if she expected him to talk to her - which she did. 

Because he totally was the landlord, right? Although, he looked sort of young... Maybe he was one of those people who got into the business early... Not that he looked like a business man.

...

She was probably looking like a fool, standing here, staring at the guy she now realized wasn't the landlord at all - especially since the landlord had some kind of Polish accent and this boy didn't look Polish. At all.

[Taylor McCarthy]

Taylor had been stricken with a certain cabin fever, despite the fact that most of his work days were comprised of long hours outside in the elements. In truth, Taylor had been a disgruntled, college age shut in when he was in the country last. Three years had changed a great deal of his perspective on so many things. Now he had a job that paid better than he could have ever imagined and, when they weren't spending stretches of days in the field or travelling for training, afforded him more free time than he knew what to do with.

The Irishman moved up toward the apartment building with a bit of a skip to his step. There had been a break in the weather as Montana moved toward spring. The air was still chilly but the overcast sky had finally relented and a few rays of sunshine were breaking through. He caught sight of someone, a girl, and took a moment to appreciate that from a distance but otherwise didn't have intent on paying her much mind. It was only when he noticed her watching him that he gave her another look. His brow furrowed as he drew closer. She was looking at him like she knew him. He glanced over his shoulder to see if there was someone else nearby that she was actually looking at. Finding nothing he turned his attention back to her.

"Uh, excuse me?" He said curiously. "Can I help you with something?"

[Luxanna Viera]

The startling realization that the boy had not only spotted her staring at him, but also talking to her, had the brunette's eyes widening in sheer horror and she simply gaped at him. Though it didn't last very long when the overly familiar accent sent a flush of warm energy through her body; The accent, although not the same, reminded her of Jack. There was something cozy and homely about it, even though it had nothing to do with the boy standing in front of her.

"No," she quickly said with a shake of her head. She then offered him a friendly, yet sheepish smile. "I was waiting for someone and was hoping that would be you, but you don't look, nor sound very Polish," she added with a small chuckle as she gestured towards the apartment complex behind her.

[Taylor McCarthy]

Taylor watched the young woman curiously. She looked out of sorts, which he found just a bit amusing, even though she carried a certain whimsical, almost haunting nature about her. It was either her captivating, azure gaze or the deep sense of deja vu that had sunk in the moment he began drawing closer. So strong was the sensation it caused him to hesitate, stumbling over his response before getting out the words.

"I am certainly not Polish." He confirmed with an amused nod. His accent, obviously, attested to that claim. He trailed off then as he studied the brunette before finally shaking his head and glancing down with an almost sheepish smile touching his features. "Sorry." Taylor chuckled lightly. "I just can't shake this feeling of deja vu." He lifted his eyes back to the young woman. "Have we met before?"

[Luxanna Viera]

She had to ponder that, in fact, though, she already knew that the two of them hadn't. "No, we haven't," she announced. "I only know one other person with an Irish accent and you're certainly not him," she added with a smile. The accents weren't even the same and that was without pointing out the obvious; he didn't even look like Jack. Where Jack was thin and lanky, this boy was broad and muscular. Jack had more of a youthful charm; although this boy had boyish charm of his own, it wasn't quite the same.

And this person seemed a lot more put together and sane; the thought made the brunette smile to herself. Still, she couldn't really remember seeing the boy before. "Guess it's just one of those encounters?" she offered; she didn't want him to feel bad, after all.

[Taylor McCarthy]

Taylor let out a soft chuckle and shrugged his shoulders. He worked with an international crew of soldiers for hire. He was used to accents and being around people of different cultures. Sometimes he forgot he was one of the few Irish-born folk living in the area. "There's not many of us around." He agreed with a nod. "You should see it when my brother and I go out drinking." The thought brought out an amused shake of his head. Why he was suddenly speaking to this young woman like they were old friends he didn't know. Perhaps he was stalling for time until he could remember where he'd seen her before. "It's like no one's heard an Irish accent before."

There was a pause as Taylor mulled over the young woman's words. He nodded faintly, even though he wasn't quite ready to dismiss his feeling as simply being 'one of those things'. "Maybe you know my brother." He offered with a shrug. It was worth a shot. If he didn't figure it out he knew it would bug him all day. "Jack." He held his hand up indicating his shorter brother's height. "About this tall, gangly... daffy son of a bitch who hates cats?"

[Luxanna Viera]

"I guess I can see that," she smiled. This guy had a broader accent than Jack, but she could see the reason people would stop up and stare - or whatever else they'd do whenever someone from Ireland walked by. Normally, most of the kids from that side of the world attended St. Bethany, so there was only a handful of British, Scottish or Irish students around.

"Oh," she replied, lighting up a little at the mentions of Jack. So, this was Jack's brother. She'd never really had the pleasure of meeting him before, though, she couldn't really see the family resemblance. "I guess you could say that, yes," she chuckled softly as she reached out her hand; in a way, she was fairly certain this boy had heard of her, although, she wouldn't be surprised if Jack had decided to keep that information to himself. "I'm Lux. You must be Taylor."

[Taylor McCarthy]

The revelation finally hit Taylor. This was the girl his idiot brother wouldn't stop talking about. For all Taylor knew, if he had gone by Jack's description, the young woman should have been wearing religious vestments and flittering about with a pair of angel's wings accompanied by a heavenly chorus. Taylor had no doubt she was probably every bit as nice as Jack made her out to be, after all, she must have the patience of a saint in order to put him him for as long as she had.

But there was no beaming aura or white light surrounding her. She was merely a young woman who'd mistaken Taylor for a landlord of some sort. In a way it was almost a relief that the expectations presented by his brother fell well short of the mark. Lux was such an integral figure in Jack's life it was only a matter of time before the two of them would meet.

"That's me." Taylor took the offered hand and nodded. "I don't imagine he's painted nearly as flattering a picture of me as he has you." A light chuckled escaped then. "To hear Jack tell it, I half expected a choir of angels to be echoing your voice."

[Luxanna Viera]

"Well... Jack barely paints anyone in a pretty picture," she offered with a smile and a shrug. After all, Jack seemed to have the kind of distrust and phobia that few people shared. The second part had the brunette bursting out a laugh. "What can I say, your brother enjoys a flare of the dramatics." Still, she felt flattered, but not surprised. She knew just how high Jack held her. It had been a part of her struggle as she'd gone through life.

Jack always expected her to do the best she could and be the best, yet she was barely hanging on, trying her best to live up to those expectations.

"Still.. I've always thought my voice held a certain... Melodious ring to it." 

[Taylor McCarthy]

Taylor gave a laugh at that. Lux truly did know Jack far better than most, it would seem. Even if Taylor did find her words to be a touch on the side of understatement. To imply that Jack McCarthy was merely dramatic would be akin to saying Jack the Ripper was little more than a misunderstood fellow who was simply trying to offer young women free healthcare. "You are as nice as he says you are." Taylor mused. "I've never heard such a politically correct assessment of my brother's antics." Another laugh followed, this one self deprecating. It wasn't as if Taylor wasn't fully aware of his own shortcomings of this nature.

"Well, you're right." Taylor agreed with a faint nod. "It does have a sort of... whimsical quality to it." Hands found their way into pants pockets as Taylor glanced around the apartment complex for a moment before his eyes fell back to the brunette. "Are you looking for a new place?" He asked curiously. "Is that why you're trying to find the landlord?"

[Luxanna Viera]

"Nice might be," she began, shrugging. "But that doesn't make my words any less true." She adored Jack for the way he was. In fact, he was her favorite friend for exactly that reason. He was crazy, but true to himself. He just walked through life, being exactly himself and not caring. Well, he probably did care, though she couldn't honestly believe he'd ever go as far as realizing it or admitting it to himself.

"Whimsical?" she snorted, though added a laugh to it. "I guess that's a pretty accurate description," she quickly added with a warm smile. She was whimsical. Perhaps not as badly as she'd once been, but she hadn't quite grown out of her clumsy nature just yet. Then, the topic shifted and the brunette looked up towards the apartment complex. "Yeah," she said, nodding. "I figured I'd find a place for me and Jack so we don't have to bother my mom too much."

[Taylor McCarthy]

Taylor chuckled and offered a shrug of his shoulders. Lux wasn't wrong, per se, in anything she had said. Taylor had witnessed firsthand his brother's big heart and tendency to wear his emotions on his sleeve. His methods were often unorthodox and strange (to put it politely) but Jack's intentions were always in the right place. That still didn't the junior McCarthy didn't position himself to be subjected to some harsh criticism at times. "He's one of a kind, I'll give him that." Taylor said with a nod. "Even if he is a little on the strange side." Another chuckle escaped. "But I guess that runs in the family."

Taylor's brow furrowed and his head tilted in curiosity at Lux's next words. He hadn't expected to hear of Jack moving, at least not from Lux rather than his brother. "You and Jack?" He repeated. "That's... huh." He ran a hand through his hair then scratched a bit at the back of his neck. "Jack never told me anything about moving out." He admitted. "When did you guys decide this?"