[IC] Minutes to Manhattan

[Bee]

_{@Altered Tundra}

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The look on the girl's face said all she needed to know about her reaction to what Lillian had just said. Typical Americans. You don't speak their language, you might as well be speaking Chinese to them. Lillian rolled her eyes as she didn't budge a single inch. Apparently it didn't get through that thick, American skull of her's. Better yet, much to her dismay, the girl actually sat down and got a little closer to her than she would've liked. The Brit instinctively backed away from the American's rather disruptive presence. She was way too close, and way too comfortable.

Then, the girl started going on a tirade about her family and whatnot. Is this really how it worked in America? The louder the are, the more respect you must be commanding? No wonder Trump was on Twitter so often. Clearly, he had a lot of power based on how much he tweeted and how much he talked. Guess this girl was one of those Trump types. The more she talked, the more Lillian started to dislike her. She looked at her, but internally she was imagining things like shooting her or stabbing her or pushing her off the railing nearby. Anything to get this loud-mouthed girl out and away from her.

Then, there was the small thing about her family. All this flexing was bothering Lillian. Clearly, she didn't know what Lillian came from as well. The only thing on Lillian's mind right now was having this lady shut her fucking piehole. She was bold. Lillian liked that, but she really didn't like this girl overall. Her name wasn't Clementine or Annabelle, damn it. She wasn't that British. As she continued talking, Lillian had discovered that this girl was named Ava. "I came here because I chose to. Simple as that. But, what does it matter? Not like you know how to listen and remember things, anyway." The British girl cleared her throat, "And it's not Annabelle or Clementine, it's Lillian."

[mickilennial]

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^{University Library, Columbia University}

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First day at Columbia and I’m about to witness a fight. Fantastic.

J.J. Reyes tried to keep his eyes down on the set of syllabuses in front of him, mulling over the options. Though, focusing on what he was setting himself out to do was a little difficult when he was about to witness the next coming of the American War for Independence and he couldn’t help the urge that was growing in the back of his mind to de-escalate the situation between the two girls at the table. Problem was, his anxiety made it difficult to approach these things calm-headed and he knew it. The prospective College Athlete could nearly hear the voice of his sister in his head, reminding him that his need for everyone to get along was as pointless as it was stupid. Still, he was already in the process of poking his nose in these girl’s business.

He cleared his throat, entering hostile territory. “Is this really a good time for this? Can’t you two get along?”

J.J. wasn’t even sure if they were the right words or the best ones he could’ve said. But anxiety be damned, he wasn’t going to stand for pointless bickering. He may not have been commanding or particularly unfriendly, but he thought he made the right choice. But things in the past had turned south after J.J. acted from his good intentions. He just hoped this wasn’t going to be a repeat of his past. He came to Columbia for a fresh, ambitious, and exciting new start, after all.

[Grim327]

^{Interacting with Ava @Altered Tundra}

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Day one of classes and tempers were already flaring. The one place Harvey believed he could get away from all the ruckus and commotion going on throughout the campus now had its own disturbance.

The handsome Asian initially tried to keep to his dorm room, but that haven was quickly quashed when everyone started getting on with their mornings. The morning was still relatively early when Harvey strolled down to the library. As he walked around campus, he admired the architecture that went into every building. When he passed through the quad, there was still a thin layer of fog hugging the ground as club hands were setting up stands and stages. He didn’t stay long to see what clubs were being offered, and kept on his way to his final destination. When Harvey arrived, the library was still closed. There must have been a few minutes before they opened their doors, so the young man pulled out his phone and swiped through his varying apps. Mr. Rayner had the app for the local news station and opened it to see the headline news. The top story brought a smile to his face. In big, bold letters the headline read,

LOCAL EATERY TARGET OF ARMED THEFT

That should ruffle the feathers of the Mossos’. I wonder what they’re response will be.
As he obtained the details from the full article, a few other students had gathered at the steps to the library as well. The librarian arrived soon enough, however, to unlock the door and allow the students entrance. Harvey stepped through the front doors and was immediately hit with a sense of belonging. He always admired the sight of grand libraries with books lining shelf after shelf. If fate had other plans for the new student, he could have found himself manning a library of his own. Sadly, that wasn’t the case. Harvey quickly pushed the thought aside and began his search for a specific book. After quickly understanding the filing system, the new student soon found the book he was looking for. He grabbed it from the shelf and found a decent spot for him to begin reading. Harvey laid the book on the table and read the title. In simple, plain text the words, The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli were inscribed on the front cover. The young man has already read this book a number of times, yet each time he reads it, he gleams something new from the pages. Before long, his phone buzzed with a notification. The news was simply that of a glorified stalker, this Gossip Girl, that his colleagues seem to be raving about. How his name appeared on her radar, he’ll never know. As long as the news sticks to that of social gossip, Harvey won’t mind. In fact, it would help keep up outward appearances. While Harvey didn’t think too much about this person, the possibility of learning something of use was not lost on him. So Harvey would put up with the trivial matters of the social elite of the Upper East Side.

The young Asian had made fair progress though his book when tensions started to rise. Harvey heard a familiar voice from down the table. He looked up from the novel and saw Ava Mossos conversing with someone new. The new face was British and unknown to Harvey. As the situation began to escalate, the young African-American man who was sitting across from the girls lent his voice to the situation. His intentions seemed to be in the right place, but Harvey practically knew his words would fall on deaf ears; at least in the best case scenario. While Mr. Rayner would prefer to keep out of their business, the opportunity to befriend Ava was right in front of him. The decision was made. Harvey closed his book, stood up from his seat and stepped to the other end of the table.

“Is that you, Ava? It’s Harvey from the New Year’s Eve party,” he began as he threw on a good smile, “ I’m sure these trust-fund babies will get over the comments you’re making, and Lillian seems nice enough. I think we have the same English class together. At least we’ll have plenty of chances to talk about the privileged pricks in all these novels they’re having us read.”

[skidcrow]

@Dirty Pretty Lies

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G H O S T

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It took Ghost a second to even realise there was anyone stood near him, never mind talking to him. He quickly slipped his earbuds out, fingers fumbling to pause the music before he looked up finally, piecing together whatever he'd managed to register as words. It was none other than Marissa Guerrero de Massy; someone he didn't need a gossip blog to know a good few things about. The two were classmates last semester, sure, but he'd expected her to be anywhere other than talking to the one guy who'd barely said a full sentence to her for the time they'd spent in class together. Still, she was probably one of the few people he'd met who was worth talking to, so he wasn't about to reject her offering to actually occupy the same space as him. Or, y'know, something that sounded a lot less borderline beta male creepy than that. Now I know why I don't keep journals.

“Wouldn't be opposed to it.” He responded, gesturing to the space next to him as his eyes flickered to the hot chocolate in her hand, taking note of the Sprinkles label. “That a plain old hot choc? It's better with syrup. Orange or mint.” Of course, he had to hold himself back from going down the entire menu in his head and pointing out the little sides and extra sauces and syrups that would enhance each drink or food item. Even if he hadn't worked at Sprinkles Café for that long, he'd made a little game for himself out of experimenting with the different flavours he could add to the drinks. Not that the products themselves weren't awesome on their own, but it's the little things that counted to him. It was better than lingering around and gawking at people like he usually did at school, at least; which he found himself doing in his current situation. “Am I staring? Feel like I am. Didn't sleep well.” He let out a humourless half-chuckle, half-sigh.

[AlteredTundra]

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_{@Bee @inkarnate @Grim327}

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These Brits sure were feisty, huh? Though Lillian wasn’t nearly as accepting of Ava’s own, personal peanut gallery as Liz was, it still made her smile that, despite all the talk about them as a whole, this Brit didn’t write off Ava by simply walking away. That, if nothing else, was proving all them anti-American stereotypes wrong. Though, Ava wasn’t an American herself. But Lillian obviously didn’t know that. Oh god, Ava’s starting to play the same game her brother does. God-fucking-dammit! She had to do something about that.

Oh, but of course, before Ava could jump at the chance, someone who happened to be sitting at the table that she and Lillian were, decided to open up his mouth. Who was he? And why the hell didn’t she or Lillian spot him when they sat down? Based off of how stereotypically-withdrawn this guy appeared to be, Ava’s first impression of him was that didn’t want to speak up. He seemed like one of those guys that chose to sit in the front of the class because it meant not having to deal with the troublemakers in the classroom. Ava never had any problem with those kinds of people. Hell, she was friends with a couple of them. Nice people when they want to be, but there were types in that same group that did it because they were a self-loathing, purposely-hateful collection of introverts that wanted everyone to feel sorry for them.

Ava couldn’t deduce which side of that spectrum this guy was. “I’m being perfectly civil. Just tell him, Lillian,” Ava said, smiling, through her eyes, she teased Lillian. How’s that for listening? “But, if it’ll make you feel all that much better, Mister...whatever your name is, we could take this--”

As Ava attempted to finish that thought, someone interjected yet again. Seriously, these people budding in a conversation was getting old. “What the hell do you want?” Ava snapped, her head whipping back. Only then did she realize who it was. She couldn’t remember his name, but the face seemed familiar. Where she met him wasn’t clear, but that would soon change as his lips moved and words flowed out of them. Apparently, he was Harvey and she met him at that boring party. “Right, because I totally remember you.” She rolled her eyes, not really listening to what he said. She only caught the last bit about novels and reading. Again, it bored her, though she just nodded and pretended to understand what he was saying. As far as he knew, she had been listening to every word.

Taking just a moment to gather herself, Ava would lean back in her chair, trying not to be suffocated by the increasing amount of people at the table. She couldn’t vouch for the black guy, but she was getting a little antsy. Plus, she dared not bring the wrath from the librarian. “So tell me, do you lot always choose the libraries to find friends? Or is this just one of those chance encounters I’ve read so much about?” Ava asked, though she wasn’t sure if they caught on that she wasn’t seriously wanting to know the answer to that question. She asked it purely for the shits and giggles.

[Bee]

_{@Altered Tundra @Inkarnate [@Grim237]}

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People in this country really didn't know how to mind their own business for whatever reason. One guy came out of nowhere and started talking to them and butted into the conversation between her and this stupid fucking Ava girl. It was bad enough she had to deal with one person, but to deal with more people? Why? Were Americans not taught proper manners? This made no sense to Lillian whatsoever. As Ava asked about her opinion, Lillian only looked up and shot the dark man a look. She did't want to open her mouth and say anything to the man who had just butted in out of nowhere.

But then, out of nowhere, yet again, another person seemed to come out of nowhere else. What was it with this fucking country? Lillian was beyond confused at this point. What gave them the idea that this was an open conversation? What sort of twisted, contorted social custom did this follow? Lillian was tapping her pen against her cheek as she heard the Asian-looking male converse with fucknugget Ava over there. After they finished, Lillian looked up while still tapping her pen. She sighed.

"Listen.. I don't know how you blokes run it here... but I think that you lot should be minding your own business instead of butting in on things that are irrelevant to you." Lillian rolled her eyes.

[AlteredTundra]

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_{@Bee @inkarnate @Grim327}

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This was certainly getting to be way too entertaining than Ava had originally anticipated. She has always loved to have her own brand of fun. Sometimes it had her butting heads with the wrong people or getting those who appeared to be mild-tempered to always lose their cool, but always it had her on the receiving end of these people. Ava always had this knack for bringing out the tempers of those that she purposely antagonized. This was evident by Lillian’s vocal annoyance with those who kept on — as she put it — butt their heads in her business. Even though Ava shouldn’t have, she couldn’t help but let out a low chuckle, a chuckle that she tried her best to muffle with one of her hands.

“I think she’s trying to tell us something.” Ava said, humming thoughtfully. She knew exactly what Lillian wanted, but there wasn’t any harm in riding this train until it was at the very end. Though, as Ava eyed Lililan with a smile, her eyes would fall on the African-American male. He seemed a bit...wary about the increasing amount of people around the table. “There’s no need to worry. We don’t bite.” Ava tried to assure him. She didn’t know if it worked given how it seemed he didn’t respond with a look of any kind, but Ava kind of felt bad for him, so she figured she’d give him some sort of reassurance.

[Venus]

_{Interacting with: @Mara’s Ghost}

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Marissa smiled cheerfully at having her company be accepted, and eagerly took a seat next to her classmate. This particular bench wasn’t very spacious, so Rissy ended up sitting closer to Alexander than she thought. It didn’t bother her, though, and she hoped it didn’t make him uncomfortable. In all honesty, the short distance between her and this very attractive young man made her feel a little bit nervous. Back home, all of her interactions with the opposite sex had not only been limited (as seen in her attendance to the all-girls boarding school back in Spain), but the few ones that happened were heavily supervised by the watchful eye of her family members. As a member of the royal families of both Belgium and Monaco, expectations of behavior were very strict. For Rissy, there had been no dates, no first kiss, no talking to your crush between classes or lunchtime or after school... In fact, in her eighteen years in this world, this was the first time Marissa was interacting with a boy unsupervised.

It felt pretty good.

Apparently Alexander had noticed the Sprinkles cup in her hand, because he asked about the contents of her drink. At her nod confirming the cup’s contents were indeed hot chocolate, he mentioned how adding mint -or orange of all things- syrup could make the drink’s flavor take a new dimension. This earned the boy a raised, curious eyebrow. Marissa had forgotten he was a barista at Sprinkles, so it shouldn’t have surprised her that he would know all about the possible ways you could spice up your preferred drink. But, of course, this detail had slipped her mind.

“Orange?” she repeated doubtfully. “The mint syrup I can understand, because the pairing of mint and chocolate is a rather delicious combination I enjoy occasionally. But as to orange… I am not sure that would be a flavor combination I would enjoy too much.” she giggled, taking a sip of her hot chocolate.“But actually, this is not just your average hot chocolate. I happened to request a pump of hazelnut syrup to give it a Nutella-like taste. Have you tried that combination?”

She turned to him with the smile still in place, but upon seeing his dazed expression, Marissa’s smile fell a little. Was she talking too much? Was his interest dwindling because he found her annoying? Her paranoid mind began to race with all the possibilities, but they were quickly put to rest. Thankfully, Alexander seemed to notice the awkward silence that had started to set, because he quickly clarified his actions were due to lack of sleep.

“Oh, that’s quite alright.” Marissa replied, letting out a little sigh of relief. “I thought I might have been boring you.” she admitted, the slightest bit of color rising to her cheeks. Rissy quickly looked away, trying to hide her face before Alexander could catch a glimpse. “But yes, I can relate. My past night’s sleep was not the best either.”

[mickilennial]

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^{University Library, Columbia University}

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The words weren't exactly reassuring, and J.J. was pretty sure he had just stumbled into a den of wolves despite the fact he had been minding his own business first before the two women decided to snark at each other in the middle of a public area. His sister would've told him he got exactly what he deserved by interjecting and he was pretty sure his friends would've laughed at the whole situation. He tried to center himself as he looked to the girl who tried to make the point that they weren't going to attack him or each other.

"Could've fooled me." He sighed as a nervous chuckle followed.

He was still anxious about the scenario, but whether he liked it or not he couldn't just sit back down and shut up. He had already put his dog in this race.