Going to the Party

[Havok]

(( After : The Grounds : Stellar Radiation ))



Alex had been so lucky as to find the place where he had been able to get a costume that had looked more or less like those from the movie Tron: Legacy. When he had looked at himself in the mirror, he felt at once excited and silly. Excited for the obvious reason of doing something fun and out of the ordinary, and silly because it had been ages since he'd gone out to a club, much less observing a fantasy dress-code.

As agreed, he was now waiting for Violet to pick him up in front of the mansion. He noticed some other people leaving, judging by their clothes, in the same direction. Violet had mentioned she'd be driving a truck; he was wondering if she had actually meant it literally and what kind of a car this could be. With Violet, as he had learned pretty quickly over the past few days, one could never be sure.

He had been musing over the strange, zigzaggish way their last meeting had turned out. She had paid him compliments, she had admitted (or went in circles around admitting) flirting with him, she had displayed several emotional shifts and... well, yes, the pool had been the most bizarre part of it all, but it had been nice, too. Alex had to ask himself if she was really confusing or he was just easily confused. Could be either. He just couldn't tell. Eventually he resolved on acting like nothing had happened, hoping that this would give him a chance to be objective.

[gravity]

Now that Violet was in her costume and outside of her room where other people could actually see her, she felt self conscious. She kept pulling on the sides of the cropped jacket in an attempt to cover all the skin she was baring. She made her way into the parking deck, trying to avoid the eyes of students, thinking about how inappropriate this was.

Finally safe inside her truck, she tried to figure out a way to drive without completely exposing herself. She maneuvered the Bronco out of the deck and pulled up in front of the mansion, where Alex was waiting in his costume. It was the exact costume they'd discussed and Violet couldn't help but laugh with excitement. She leaned over and called out of the passenger window, "You look great! Are you ready to go?"

[Havok]

Alex stared at the car for a second. Well, she probably had the right to name it a truck or a tank or an APC. However, this didn't bother him, he was just glad he'd finally sorted in the vague mental image from her mention with the actual thing.

"I was trying to guess what this car would look like," he told Violet with a smile, "yeah, I am," then he walked around the car to get into the passenger seat. He didn't register her outfit in the first moment while he was busy getting in and buckling up.

[gravity]

Violet didn't know if she was relieved or disappointed that Alex hadn't noticed her outfit, but she had decided that this night would be free of the weirdness they'd experienced the last time they'd hung out. Plus, she was sitting inside the truck, where it was kind of hard to see her. She waited for him to buckle up and then they were off. "It takes about an hour to get there, but then it's sometimes difficult to park this thing in the city," she turned to him with an apologetic smile, "But at least we didn't have to take buses and trains and stuff."

[Havok]

Then, after he was finally at rest, Alex looked at what Violet was wearing. It looked great on her and definitely corresponded to the description she'd given him earlier. The bared parts, rather unexpected (a pleasant surprise, he decided), didn't skip his attention, either.

"Wow," he said, "you look great. So, is this... how's it called? A Final Fantasy look?"

[gravity]

Violet avoided eye contact, which was easy while driving. "I guess. It's kind of generic; made out of whatever I could find at the thrift store." She had to admit she was grateful for the compliment. She wasn't exactly comfortable in her costume and the fact that he liked it made her feel a little better.

[Havok]

"Well, it looks like a single piece," Alex said, unable to help glancing at Violet's bare leg that was visible to him. "I feel so uncreative."

[gravity]

Violet laughed again. "See, I feel like a mess and think you're costume looks much more put together," she said. "I guess the grass is always greener on the other side."

[Havok]

Alex considered it for a moment. "That's true," he agreed. "Well, something tells me that we're going to be just lost in a crowd of Trekkies and Storm Troopers, so none of it will matter too much."

[gravity]

"Who knows," Violet said with a slight shrug. "Science Fiction has really branched out, you know?" She glanced over at Alex, happy he was there with her. She had been scared that, after their last experience, he'd cancel their date.

[Havok]

"Yes, but the stereotypes prevail, you know-" Alex said, and then his thoughts took a different turn. "I wonder if they're going to have a costume contest."

[gravity]

Violet tilted her head, trying to remember all of the information that had been packing into the flyer she'd seen. "I honestly don't know," she said. "That could be kind of cool, though." She reached over to shift gears and accidentally brushed Alex's hand. Though the brief contact startled Violet, she tried not to let it show.

[Havok]

Alex, too, was startled and couldn't figure out what to do, remove his hand from that place or keep it there. While thinking, he kept it where it was, of course. "Not that I claim to have a costume worthy of a prize," he chuckled, a bit nervously, "I'm just wondering."

[gravity]

Violet shifted gears and returned her hand to the steering wheel, repeating to herself, Don't let this get weird, Don't let this get weird. "It depends, I guess," she replied distractedly, "I mean, I like your costume. If it's a voting situation, you never know what a drunk crowd will decide."

[Havok]

"True again," Alex nodded. "Well, you already have my vote, anyway," he glanced at her with a small smile. "I promise not to scout for other favorites. I can't really turn my back on my date in such a nasty way, can I?"