Kaimana Curry, Paradise Wayne-Isley and Soren Thorson
Location: The Gardens; The Academy.
Interacting With: Each other.
Song: “Close To You” by The Carpenters.
“..why do birds suddenly appear, everytime you are near..? Just like me… they long to be… close to you…”The music was gentle… sweet; filling the air as she lightly strummed over the strings of the ukulele she held against her, the various flowers lain around them growing brighter, each becoming more vibrant in color as her voice mixed perfectly with the familiar melody of the Carpenters,
“..why do stars follow from the sky, everytime you walk by..? Just like me… they long to be… close to you…”The feeling of his arms wrapped around her middle-... Her body relaxed, more now that she had been given that chance to calm herself; Paradise closed her eyes, her soft lips parting from one another as she felt her heart leaping within the confines of her chest as she let, her body nestle further back into his.
“..on the day that you were born, the angels got together, and decided to create a dream come true… so they sprinkled moondust in your hair of gold, and starlight in your eyes of blue…” The gentle music pausing, her fingers hovering above the strings, Paradise couldn’t help the way her lips turned up in a loving smile, her head turning, her gaze flicking to meet with his for but a moment before she brought her eyes back around to the instrument.
“..that is why all the girls in town, follow you all around… just like me… they long to be… close to you…”Kaimana held her in his arms, giving her enough room to play, letting himself enjoy her music, her singing. The peace and simple joy from it, was more than enough to make him happy. Here with her, surrounded by plants he knew she would feel better, and that was more than enough for him. The serenity of it… it made it seem like this was a moment that would last forever, and how he wished he could stretch it out.
”You’re the only girl I want close to me.” he said softly, hugging her closer to him, gently resting his chin on her shoulder and smiled,
”that was almost as beautiful as you” Now that his father had basically thrown him into the deep end, Soren didn't dare look back until he was far enough away to know that he wouldn't be getting jabbed by that damned hammer again. By then, though, Thor had already spotted his adopted brother and began to pester him, instead. He noticed that his uncle had indeed brought his children - cousins he grew up with but was never allowed to really
mingle with. He sighed. He'd go and say hi to Thracius and Svanna later. It looked like they had their hands full anyway with Midgardians.
His light brown eyes scanned the area. Everyone seemed to kind of already know each other, in a sense. There were lots of groups and people mingling about. After the weather had returned to normal, he could only assume that the Midgardian's referred to this as normal Thor behavior before going on about their lives. Interesting.
His feet carried him to the gardens where there wasn't so much traffic. The plant life here on Earth was absolutely something else. His fingers delicately touched at a green, planty thing that he had never seen before, it's leaves thick and almost rubbery and about the size of his hand. Remarkable.
Looking up, he then realized that he had stumbled into something that might have been private. Considering the couple (at least they appeared to be a couple. She was singing and he was holding onto her with that doe-eyed look he had seen a time or two before) for a few moments, he gave them an awkward smile and waved, as though to dismiss the fact that he was even there.
"Sorry. Just passing through..." He doubted that they even knew who he was. And... he was okay with that.
Her cheeks flushing a brighter shade of red, she couldn’t help the soft giggle that fell through her lips. He was so sweet… so caring… and while he could have had any girl he wanted; he had chosen her. How had she gotten so lucky in her short life to deserve someone like him in it..?
Lifting her head at the sound of another’s voice, only slightly caught off guard at his being there with them, Paradise quickly brushed it off as nothing, her smile lighting up her gentle features as she shook her head, her gaze flicking down to the strangers hand, noticing that he had taken interest in one of the few plants she had introduced, without thought, to the new environment,
“..it’s called strelitzia… or bird of paradise… if you want; I can make you a smaller one to keep if you like it so much…”Kaimana looked up at the sound of a stranger’s voice, gently tightening his grip on Paradise. He gave a shake of his head,
”It’s okay, they’re public gardens…. “ although he resented the interruption somewhat, he didn’t particularly mind. They had to meet others eventually, and maybe in small groups it wouldn’t be so bad on her.
”I…” Soren looked between the pair, the girl bright and welcoming while the boy seemed to be a bit more guarded. At least he felt half welcome. Realizing that he was still touching the plant, Soren quickly brought his hand back to hang at his side.
”I’ve just never seen anything like it before…” he said softly, unable to help the sense of awe that came with his tone.
Nodding her head lightly, understanding completely how it was that he felt, Paradise let her gaze wander slightly, a gentle sparkle shining within them as she took in the both familiar and unfamiliar scenery that surrounded them all,
“..nature is beautiful… it can inspire much should you give it a chance… though I understand it can be overwhelming…””Is plantlife always like this around here?”Kaimana stayed silent, knowing how Paradise could get when talking about nature, smiling slightly. He was more than happy listening to her, watching how it excited her. She always got such a life about her, when she talked about what she loved. At the strangers question, Kaimana frowned, sure it had a different meaning to it then what he was thinking.
”We come from Hawaii… we’ve only been here for a few days, and I think these gardens were created, like what Paradise does.” ”Hawaii?” Soren asked, growing more confused.
”Then you do not hail from Earth? My apologies for assuming.” He bowed slightly in apology.
Exchanging a quick glance with Kaimana, curiosity and confusion playing over her features, Paradise turned her attention back to the man standing before them, giving him a soft and understanding smile in an attempt to try and give him some comfort as she shook her head lightly from side to side, the action causing her long locks to brush over her back,
“..heh… I think we might all be misunderstanding each other… let’s start over; my name is Paradise, or Paras for short… and this is Kaimana. We’re from Earth; from an island called Hawaii…”Pausing a moment, she reached out, placing her ukulele back in its case before moving her hand to pat at the grass in front of them, inviting him to join them,
“..I get the feeling though that you might not be from Earth… right..? It’s okay if you aren’t, we don’t mind.”Kaimana tried to follow what Paradise was saying, wanting to understand what it seemed she had figured out. Not from Earth? He supposed he had to get use to people being from different worlds… although he wasn’t sure how that worked.
”Oh… I see.” he said softly, although still a little confused.
”N-no. I’m not.” Soren hesitated before moving to where the Earth girl was motioning for him to sit on the grass. He crossed his feet first before plopping down, resting his arms on his bent knees.
”I hail from Asgard. My name is Soren Thorson. And it is a pleasure meeting someone from here. My father talks of Earth often, and fondly. It’s the first time I’ve been able to see it for myself.”Kaimana had heard of Asgard… somewhere, but didn’t know anything about it. The name had probably been passed onto him by his father, but thinking it wasn’t important, Kaimana probably hadn’t listened properly.
”So you’ve never been before? That seems strange if your father has spoken of it before.” his tone one of trying to understand, a little confused.
“..maybe it’s like how my mum always speaks about her time in Rome, and how much she loved it; but then I’ve never been…” Shrugging her shoulders lightly, though very clearly not too worried about it, Paradise tilted her head lightly, watching Soren thoughtfully for but a moment or two before speaking again,
“..either way.. welcome to Earth, Soren… I’m glad that you finally get to see it for yourself…””There were many problems with who was able to leave Asgard and who could not. My grandfather was very strict on such travel. It wasn’t until my father took over that things became much more lenient. So here I am.”Kaimana looked to Paradise, wishing he could take her around the world, everywhere she wanted to go as she spoke of her mother visiting Rome. Turning his attention- or most of it anyway- back onto the conversation, he said
”Well… at least you can be here, this place seems great.”“..what’s it like..? Your home, I mean...””Uh…” Soren shrugged. He hadn’t seen much of Earth yet, and had very little to compare to. How was he to answer a question like that?
”Our sky holds more color and…” He squinted, looking at the sun.
”We’ve more planets within the heavens.”Gaze drifting back to the water of the lake they sat beside, her expression thoughtful at his words, Paradise couldn’t even begin to picture what it might be like. Turning back to him, her eyes filled with awe and a slight pang of jealousy, she leant forward, her body shifting, leg drawing in closer as she wrapped her arms around them, the bloody tissue she had been using earlier falling from her lap to rest on the grass beside her,
“..it must be so beautiful there…””It’s home.” Soren shrugged. He supposed he just got used to it, as these Midgardians probably got used to Earth and… Havi eh?
Kaimana let his arms fall from Paradise, so she could move more easily, but still stayed close to her. He thought of home, the sunny beaches of Hawaii… the surf… he missed it, but to him, Paradise was more important. She was what made home, home.
”It must be different… “ he thought on how different Hawaii was to here… he couldn’t imagine how different it would be to another world.
”My father made mention that your Earth is round?” Soren asked, figuring that a good place to start would just be by asking about the questions his father came back with stories about.
Nodding her head lightly, Paradise smiled,
“..yes; people used to believe that it was flat, but after Christopher Columbus set sail in order to discover new land, he actually found that the Earth was indeed round…””I do not understand how round planets are able to maintain life. The ones in our heavens are mined for resources. Nothing is able to thrive there.”At a slight loss, Kaimana was silent. He wasn’t the best with this sort of thing, and found it best to just stay silent. He frowned at Soren’s words however,
”But… what shape is your planet then?” he said rather perplexed.
Soren blinked, a little confused as to why such a question would even need to be asked.
”Flat.”Kaimana frowned,
”But… how do you not fall off?” He asked, a little unsure.
”We have gravity to keep us here… “ or at least he hoped that was right.
”We keep to the bridges. Those who fall have removed themselves from the gene pool, making the future of Asgard smarter, and stronger than generations of old.”Taken aback at the rather crass comment on those that fell, Kaimana stared at Soren in shock,
”But what if you just stumble and fall? How is that fair?” he asked,
”Everyone falls over at some point… “Soren shrugged.
”Then don’t leave the inner city.””That doesn’t seem fair… “ Kaimana said, deciding he didn’t particularly want to see what this other world was like, if this was what came from it.
”We Asgardians don’t usually leave the inner city anyway. There are a few bridges that branch from the heart to the outskirts, but they are wide and some have railing. They aren’t often travelled. Not very many people have fallen.” Soren thought back to his father a few years back - about how many times he had stumbled home drunk from who knew where. He could have easily plummeted if he hadn’t been watching where he was going. Really, he hadn’t even thought about it until the dark-skinned boy brought it up.
Kaimana frowned slight, not understanding. Why would you live in a world, if you didn’t go outside the city?
”Okay… “ he looked to Paradise to see if she understood,
”We can go anywhere we want… most of the time.”“..you can- you should..! I hate the fact that I hold you back…” Wrapping her arms tighter around her knees, pulling them just that little bit closer into her body, Paradise turned her head, her eyes growing sad as she let her cheek rest over them. She didn’t like it… she was holding him back. He could do anything he put his mind to; and yet, even while she truly appreciated it, he was right there… right by her side instead of living his life to the fullest.
Kaimana shook his head, reaching out to pull her close against him,
”I don’t need to see the world… you are my world.” He said softly,
”And I’ll be here with you, and that’s enough for me.”“..and when I’m gone..?”Kaimana didn’t like to think about that, didn’t want to think about a life without Paradise. He hesitated a moment, before saying softly
”Then I’d know you’d still be with me.”Were all Midgardians this… dramatic? Soren blinked, watching the exchange between the two and starting to feel the same way he did when he had first walked in on their private moment. He moved to stand himself up, not wanting to interrupt or draw attention to himself.
Turning her head, his movements catching her eye, Paradise was a little taken back. He was leaving..? Had they done something wrong..? Sitting forward, her body slipping from the warm circle of Kaimana’s arms, she gave him an apologetic look, her heart sinking slightly at the thought that she’d helped to make him feel uncomfortable,
“..I-... I’m sorry if we said something wrong… but... you don’t have to leave, if you don’t want to Soren…”For a brief few moments, Kaimana had forgotten that they weren’t alone. He let Paradise go, a little reluctant to do so.
”Sorry…. “ He said politely, not sure what else to do.
Soren, now standing, reached back to scratch the back of his head. This was all just very awkward and he didn’t see things getting any less.
”It’s okay. I’ve… got some cousins I should probably meet up with…” Even if it wasn’t now. But what other excuse did he have? It’s not like he knew anyone else in this realm.
”It was… nice meeting the both of you.”Kaimana hesitated, reaching out to take Paradise’s hand,
”Uh… well… you’re welcome to stay if you want… or return later.” Kaimana said, seeking to make things even a little better.
”Yeah. I’ll probably see you guys later.” He gave the cuddly couple a small, tired smile before waving at them awkwardly while he turned his body and headed back the way he came.
Midgardians were strange.
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