A Million Ways ;; Open

[James Kent]

If nothing else, Jim was raised right. It wasn't in him to sit and watch while a girl Hero's size struggled with her miscellaneous belongings and he took the two books that she handed him with ease. His estimates had been right and senior year was proving thus far to not require the standard load which warranted a normal backpack. His own bag was slung sideways over his shoulder, messenger style. Inside was a laptop, which he was surprised more students didn't have. In Seattle it had been kind of a thing, but the last couple of days in classes told him that he'd have to go back to the old fashioned way of taking notes if he didn't want to draw attention to himself.

He lifted the main flap of the bag and slid her books easily into it. Lifting his hand to his hair which had a kind of messy, random nature he realized that she'd had to ask him the same question twice. "Oh, sorry... Yea, I moved here from Seattle, Washington," he explained. Something about her accent made him think she'd need the city and the state to render where exactly that was. They began to descend the steps and make their way toward the student parking lot. The buds of his headphones swayed as he walked. He tried to match her pace as best he could, but his longer legs and taller frame made for wide steps and anything less than his normal stride was uncomfortable.

"It's a lot different than Arizona," he said seemingly to no one in particular. "Cooler, damper, greener..." He said longingly. There were things about Seattle that he missed so badly it ached, but this friendship, or whatever it was, was a bit too new for that kind of information. "You said you were sort of new too, right? Did I miss you say from where?"

[Hero McLaghan]

Hero smiled appreciatively as Jim took her books. She adjusted her now much lighter backpack on her shoulder and followed him down the stairs, doing her best to keep up with him, but he took much bigger strides than she did. Her skirt also didn't allow for a whole lot of movement. "Thanks," she said briefly, thanking him for both the ride and for helping her carry her things. Jim seemed like a nice guy, and she was actually kind of glad that she'd missed the bus. Maybe they could be friends. She was new, and so was he, so neither of them knew a whole ton of people. That was something they had in common.

Seattle...Hero scrunched up her face, trying to picture where Washington was on the map. Somewhere in the Northwest, she was pretty sure. She did recognized the name, Seattle, though. From what she'd heard, it was a pretty big city, and she was sure, from the way Jim was talking about it, that it was a wonderful city. She smiled briefly, his homesickness reminding her of her own. Scotland was a beautiful country, and she missed it very dearly, though she was enjoying the escape of living in the United States now.

"Mm?" Hero glanced over as Jim asked where she was from. "Oh, no I didn't say," she smiled. "But I'm from Clydesdale, Scotland," she said, a hint of pride in her voice. She loved being Scottish, and everything about her heritage. "It's a lot different from Arizona as well," she said, blinking as they continued to walk. "Colder, damper, greener," she repeated how Jim had described Seattle, grinning at him slightly.

[James Kent]

As soon as she said it, Jim had a feeling he should have known. The unique way she treated her r's and the generally colorful tone were indicators more than anything else. His mom and dad had even taken him to Scotland on one of their many little vacations to Europe. It was more green than Seattle and almost felt more like home than Seattle ever did - plus you couldn't beat the pubs and the people.

As they made their way to the student parking lot, he headed in the direction of the silver Volvo that was waiting. From his pocket he found the keys and unlocked the doors remotely, causing the lights to flash and indicating to which car they were headed. "And don't say anything," he said a hint of annoyance in his voice. "I'm from Washington and I drive a Silver Volvo - to be fair, I had it before those stupid books came out," he hissed. He referred of course to the recent Twilight mania that had taken over many teenage girls. It was annoying and several of his friends back home had found him akin to the novel's main character - a vampire. For awhile he'd used it to his advantage, but now had little interest in the subject. "Not to offend, if you're a fan of course," he added, not wanting to come off as a total asshole.

[Hero McLaghan]

Hero smiled a bit, as she followed Jim out of the school and towards the student parking lot. And don't say anything. At this, Hero raised an eyebrow in confusion as he unlocked the door to his silver Volvo. I'm from Washington and I drive a Silver Volvo - to be fair, I had it before those stupid books came out. Hero's eyebrows almost raised into her hairline. What books was he talking about? "Dunno which books you're talking about, to be honest," she said, hesitantly.

Hero's eyebrows remained raised, her mind utterly confused as to what he was talking about. Was it those vampire books that all American girls seemed to be obsessed with? Twilight, or something. She'd had friends that tried to make her read them, but Hero was never into those cheesey teen novels. She liked real novels. Ones that weren't so predictable. "Twilight? Or whatever it's called?" she asked, still a bit confused.

[James Kent]

Jim made no attempt to hide his cringe as she said the title of the book series. "That's the one," he sighed. Having approached the car from the passenger's side, he reached forward and opened the door for Hero. "Here, let me take that," he said, offering her assistance with her backpack. Evidently old habits died hard, but this kind of behavior had always been a part of Jim and he wasn't about do change it now. In Seattle, he hadn't seen anything wrong with it but he wondered if it was too stark a contrast for Arizona. He was just a nice guy; what was wrong with that?

From his pocket his phone made the tell-tale chirping sound of electronics on their last life. His phone would need a charge sooner rather than later; so it was a good thing that they were heading home for the day. Most normal people now had some kind of attachment to their cell phone, but Jim's was bordering on obsessive. He had the thing out all day and night and with his own little tweaks and hacks it had become so much more than a device for mobile telephone calls. His most recent tweak seemed to be having a negative effect on battery life; he would need to work on it more this evening.

[Hero McLaghan]

Hero managed a small smirk. Apparently Jim had something against the book series, but she wouldn't really know why, seeing as she hadn't read them. "Oh, thanks," Hero said, a bit surprised as Jim helped her with her things again. Seeing as she was still pretty new in town, it was nice to see that there were still guys with manners. It was a comforting fact. Especially a guy like Jim, who had looks, and probably had girls all over him, still had a sense of chivalry. Even opening a door for someone, it was just a nice gesture, and Hero appreciated it.

Hero ducked into the car, setting her backpack and other miscellaneous things either on her lap or on the floor by her feet. "So what grade are you in?" Hero asked, trying to strike up a conversation that didn't involve teenage novels. She figured the car ride back to her house, which was at least 10 minutes, depending on how fast of a driver Jim was, would be a lot more comfortable if they talked casually during the drive, as long as they didn't get side-tracked and Hero forgot how to get back to her house. She was pretty focused, though, and didn't really think that would happen.

[James Kent]

He de-shouldered his messenger bag and slid it behind the driver's seat into the backseat. Checking his pocket for his phone and taking it out he grinned.Sliding into the driver's seat, he plugged his cell phone in the car charger that waited. How it could be dying after a day of sitting in his pocket doing nothing was beyond him. It was probably about time for a new cell phone anyway; maybe even one with an Arizona area code. Jim slid the keys into the ignition as he shut his door, roaring the car to life.

He was a better driver than most for his age; but as a seventeen year old guy, he took things a little faster than his parents at least would like. With no other cars in the parking lot, he turned a quick circle finding the exit and heading down the road. Tapping a few buttons, he added music to the ambiance as he answered Hero's question. "I'm a senior," he told her. It was a weird thing to be a senior finally, but the stark contrast in homesteads made it easier. Having to start all over made him feel like a freshman. "What about you?"

[Hero McLaghan]

Hero nodded slightly. She guessed that he was a senior. "I'm a sophomore," she shrugged. She was basically a freshman again, being new to the school and all. She didn't know anyone, until she met Jim about 20 minutes prior to the present. She missed Scotland. A lot. Just something about the country, and thinking about it, made her incredibly homesick. She missed her parents. As much as they gave her a hard time since her brother died, she missed them.

Snapping back into reality, Hero glanced over at Jim as he drove. He seemed to be pretty safe on the roads. Maybe a bit of a leadfoot, but other than that he was a pretty good driver. Much better than she imagined she would be whenever she got behind the wheel. Honestly, Hero would be surprised if she could see over the dashboard properly. She smiled a bit to herself, brushing a stray strand of wildly curly hair out of her face. She looked out the window, recognizing a road sign. "You're gonna wanna make a left at the next sign," she said calmly, looking over at Jim.

[James Kent]

Her being a sophomore didn’t seem too far off the mark; he would have been surprised if she had been a freshman, though she had that sort of dazed and confused, lost look about her. But he attributed that to her sort of fish out of water circumstances. Scotland was a long way from Arizona and drastically different when it came to things like environment, temperature and humidity. Jim could probably talk to her about any one of these subjects, but it seemed sort of odd – out of place. Instead, he kept his eyes on the road. There were a few moments of silence before she directed him, which he obliged.

Slowing at the intersection, he flicked the turn signal and completed the left hand turn she had requested. This was the same way that he went home and his interest was now piqued to her home’s exact location. “What do you think of the school?” He asked simply. He had his own opinions which he would be more than happy to give breath to, but since their current subject was school he figured it was the next logical question. There were few cars on this particular road; probably all still at the office, he figured. That would never be a problem with his parents anymore. They were doing their best to get involved in the community; the local country club was helping significantly.