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Post by CHARLOTTE AUGUSTINE REID on Jul 10, 2012 3:37:12 GMT -5
It had been a few weeks since Charlie had come to stay at Brook Haven. The summer had been hot so far, and the humidity was skyrocketing and there were storm clouds in the sky when she had finished up exercising her horse and put her away in the barn. By the time that she'd made it to the mess for a post-ride snack, she was drenched from the rain that had let loose from the skies, leaving her hot, sweaty, and wet. Although she hadn't checked the temperature, Charlie was pretty sure that it was at least in the eighties. It had been dry for weeks and when the rain had finally come, it came with a vengeance.
Wringing out her hair and cursing under her breath, Charlie let herself into the building, closing the door gently behind her. Her clothes were soaked and she was still going to have to find a way from mess to the lodge or possibly back to the dorms, but at least class was out for the day. At least if she was indoors she wouldn't have to worry about trying to cross the lawns unless she wanted to.
It had been hard being here, and even harder making friends. Charlie generally kept to herself since she was so often bullied by other students at her old school. It hadn't been so bad since she'd been living with her father, but she swore that her mother encouraged the bullying instead of doing what she could to try to prevent it. For that reason Charlie was very careful about the people she hung out with, and really, she stuck close to Ken and didn't explore outside interests. It was easier to stay close to what you knew, and he was, after all, going to be her step brother, as well as her boyfriend.
Blushing at the way that she was dripping all over the floor, Charlie made her way over to the kitchen so that she could slip inside and find some of the fruit that was always kept available for the students. They weren't allowed to eat in class, but food was always available in case someone was dealing with blood sugar issues. Though she wasn't diabetic, Charlie did like to keep her strength up by eating small meals on a regular basis rather than just eating three large meals a day, so it was good to have the access.
She grabbed a banana and headed for one of the tables, sitting down and wishing momentarily that there were televisions in the mess, so that she'd have something to do. It sucked not to have her telephone or her computer to use when she was bored, such as at moments like these. It made it worse that she was trapped inside without being able to just head on out to the lodge, where there was (limited) access to screens.
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Post by AIDAN DANIEL CONNERY on Jul 10, 2012 15:35:59 GMT -5
As far as Aidan was concerned, Brook Haven was about the lamest place ever. They were expected to wake up well before the sun did, and go to bed after, all while doing chores and other rigorous things in the mean time. There wasn't a day that he didn't fall into bed exhausted from activities that had taken place.
Prior to his arrival he'd been told that he would be kept busy, but he hadn't believed them. As it turned out though, his probation officer had been right, but what everything worse for him was that he was completely out of his element. He wasn't used to the animals, not ever having been allowed to have one, he wasn't used to the work, and he certainly wasn't used to all the restrictions that seemed to be surrounding him.
Everything Aidan knew was in the city, and the country was something new, and as he was starting to learn, would take quite a bit of adjustment. Life at Brook Haven was different, from the hours, to the labor, and even to people who he found surrounding him. Sometimes he swore the environment of the ranch could be just as stifling as as the weather.
By the time that Charlie came into the mess hall, Aidan was already there and determined not to head out into the rain, but unsure of who was there he stuck to the shadows, at least until he was sure that all was good. Watching Charlie, he hopped up onto the counter that separated the kitchen from where everyone sat for meals. Unsure of what to make of her, he bit into his apple then shrugged. "You come here often?" he asked, after swallowing the bit of food he'd bit off, breaking the eerie silence.
It was likely that he'd scare her, but it wasn't like there'd been a better way to announce his presence, and he didn't feel like leaving.
 CREDIT SAM !? of A Changed Hogwarts. LYRICS save me - my darkest days NOTES notes here WORD COUNT 332
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Post by CHARLOTTE AUGUSTINE REID on Jul 10, 2012 22:33:00 GMT -5
A lifetime of riding had given Charlie a good sense for when it was okay to show fear and when it should be avoided. Horses could sense it, and a riders intimidation could cause the horse to become jittery and unmanageable. But that didn't mean that he wasn't capable of experiencing fear, or being startled. So even though Charlie might not have jumped physically, her heart rate did pick up quite a bit when she realized that she was no longer alone, and she turned around slowly, twisting in the seat until she was leaning on the back of the chair and staring at the boy who was sitting so casually on the counter and eating an apple.
Narrowing her eyes, Charlie stared at him, momentarily convincing herself that he wasn't supposed to be here. She was getting used to being alone, since so many of the students kept to themselves. She didn't mind being around the horses, though she did mind being around the human people who lived on the ranch. The staff wasn't so bad. The students were. She didn't specifically avoid them but she did spend a good deal of her time in the stables instead of around other students.
"Three times a day, every day," she answered the boy's question. She was pretty sure that he was in her math class. "You're Aidan, aren't you? You sit behind me in Geometry. I'm Charlie Reid."
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Post by AIDAN DANIEL CONNERY on Jul 14, 2012 14:56:09 GMT -5
As much as Aidan might like to see Brook haven in a different light, he just couldn't; the place was a prison. Everything he knew had flown out the window upon his arrival, and since then his life had been filled with schedules and responsibilities he didn't think should belong to him. After all, he didn't ask for a damned horse so why the hell was it required? He didn't understand the place, and with everything going on, he often felt trapped, and cornered, so away from everything he knew; the city.
But as he sat there, staring at the girl across the room from him as he bit into his apple again, he nodded his head. At least there were some things that hadn't changed; girls. For a minute, he had to concentrate on who he was looking at, but after that short period of time, he nodded his head. He liked her spirit, and her quick answer had his mouth tilting up into what would soon be a smile. But when she mentioned class, that beginning of a smile fell and he rolled his eyes.
"Geometry. Right." he agreed then shrugged a shoulder and pushed himself off and away from the counter he'd been sitting on. The day was rainy, but there had to be something to do, and as he made his way across the room toward Charlie he had to wonder if she'd be interested. School and chores took up a lot of time at a place like this, but part of him knew there had to be something else to do.
"So?" he asked, plopping down in the spot before her. "You ever do anything interesting? Aside from chillin' here in the mess hall or going to geometry class?"
CREDIT SAM !? of A Changed Hogwarts. LYRICS save me - my darkest days NOTES notes here WORD COUNT 332
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Post by CHARLOTTE AUGUSTINE REID on Jul 15, 2012 23:40:37 GMT -5
Charlie rolled her eyes. "Right, because Geometry is so interesting," she said, then flashed a grin and shrugged her shoulders at the boy. In general Charlie hated school, but was trying hard for her father's benefit. It was important to him and therefore it was important to Charlie. Although she wasn't all that good at it, she worked hard, and that meant taking time out of her otherwise busy schedule to... go to class.
Shrugging, she glanced up at Aiden then pulled off a bit of her banana and bit into it, thinking for a moment about the things that she did when she wasn't in class. "I ride when I'm not doing school. I mean, I guess we're all supposed to be doing that, right? But I love it. How about you? What do you like to do for fun?"
Thoughts drawn toward Kenneth, Charlie closed her eyes, wishing momentarily that she could see him, and then she shook her head, turning her attention back to Aiden. She'd call Kenneth later.
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Post by AIDAN DANIEL CONNERY on Jul 18, 2012 21:02:10 GMT -5
School was definitley not Aidan's idea of a good time. Intelligent as all hell, it had never made sense to most people why he didn't get high marks, but he never had. Talking about the material, Aidan could do, but when it came to putting it all on paper everything he knew went out the window. So over the years Aidan had learned to hate the whole idea of school as much as he used to hate constantly trying and failing when he was younger. So when Charlie made her sarcastic comment about the class they had together, he couldn't help but to smile just slightly. At least until she mentioned the horses, and riding.
Part of the chip on Aidan's shoulder was that he didn't understand why he was there. The country made zero sense to him, and in their attempt to do whatever they were trying to do they'd put a horse in the hands of a kid who'd never been able to keep a goldfish alive. He detested the chores, and didn't understand why there was always more work to do than there were hours in the day. But then again, that was what he got for being the 'problem child' and the sibling no one wanted.
"Nothing here." Aidan said when Charlie asked him what he liked to do for fun. The whole atmosphere was something that he didn't understand, and how to make 'fun' out of ridiculous amounts of acreage they had, he didn't know. "I don't know anything about horses." he told her, tacking on in his head, 'But that's not really all that new.'
CREDIT SAM !? of A Changed Hogwarts. LYRICS save me - my darkest days NOTES notes here WORD COUNT 332
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Post by CHARLOTTE AUGUSTINE REID on Jul 19, 2012 14:57:47 GMT -5
Charlie raised both of her eyebrows, slightly surprised by what Aiden had said. She'd always thought that the kids here came here because they loved horses, not because they were simply being forced to interact with them. Of course she hadn't talked to Mr. Brook about that, but it was something that maybe she'd bring up the next time that they had a conversation with one another. She'd love to know how this all was supposed to work.
"Do you have a horse? I think everybody's supposed to have one." Charlie shrugged and bit into another piece of her banana, thinking about everything that she'd learned and wondering how she could help Aiden. She didn't now him, of course, but he seemed nice enough, and Charlie had found herself reaching out to people more here than she had with others in the past. People here were somehow nicer, which was amazing considering that they all had histories. Histories, Charlie corrected herself. With a capital H."
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Post by AIDAN DANIEL CONNERY on Jul 25, 2012 23:43:29 GMT -5
Everyone on the ranch had a horse, or at least they were supposed to. Aidan was no exception to that rule, no matter how little he really knew about them. Upon the week of his arrival they'd gotten him out there with the animals, and as it turned out, the horse he picked ended up picking him as well. Ryder was a great horse, and the one Aidan saw as the best. What intimidated him was his lack of knowledge in a place where everyone else seemed to know everything.
"Ryder." he told Charlie, then sighed deeply and shrugged a shoulder. "You know, the stallion. Long Road Home. He was one of their rescues." he said. "He's a good horse." Of course, Aidan hadn't shown up with a horse of his own, but apparently, that wasn't too abnormal and was part of the reason that they had the rescue's available for adoption, given that they found their right match.
CREDIT SAM !? of A Changed Hogwarts. LYRICS save me - my darkest days NOTES notes here WORD COUNT 332
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