Olivia Jensen is on her way to ʀᴇᴀʟʟʏ ғᴀsᴛ (sprinted) wrote in remains_rpg, @ 2017-03-29 20:28:00 |
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Entry tags: | # 2020 [03] march, olivia jensen, shelby thomas |
Who: Olivia Jensen and Shelby Thomas
Where: ??
When: Backdated slightly to 3/7
What: Casual conversation gets Shelby thinking about her past
Despite the fact that Olivia had never outgrown her avoidance of 'unhealthy' foods and she had, unbeknownst to her, anonymously butted heads with the Doughnut Hole's manager several times online, she'd taken to studying at the shop anyway. They had coffee drinks, after all, and she was still a sucker for lattes even if she didn't get the shop's flagship treats as often as the rest of their patrons. Of course, it helped that Maizie's sweet tooth was out of control, too. Today the two of them had taken over a decent-sized table in the corner, leaflets about air travel scattered on the table top along with all of their school things. Maizie was over at a GED-class friend's table, conferring about an upcoming exam, but she hadn't pushed her chair in and it was blocking the way for an employee. "Sorry," Olivia said distractedly, hooking one foot around the chair leg and pulling it closer to the table. “Don’t worry about it,” Shelby replied, only course correcting her path a little bit. “I’ve learned to dodge tables and chairs like a pro.” Something she could include in her list of talents, but wouldn’t do a thing on a resume. Picking up a few empty plates from the table directly across from Liv, Shelby was about to head back to the counter when she noticed all of the travel brochures on the table. “Are you planning a trip?” Sometimes the curse of being talkative was also being inquisitive, and since travel had just become a possibility again Shelby was extra curious. Olivia looked up, her expression her natural sharp defensiveness, before she took in the genial look on the woman's face. "Yeah," she said, relaxing somewhat as she shuffled the papers on the table, looking for a certain brochure. "I, um. I'm going to Minnesota." Her accent, gently faded after five years in Austin, made a bit of a comeback when she mentioned the name of her home state. "In a week or so." “For family?” Maybe that was Shelby projecting, since she’d been thinking about her family lately. “Or fun?” Although her nose crinkled trying to think of what could be considered fun that far north. She hadn’t hated Des Moines, but she hadn’t loved it either. The midwest was just… well, it was the midwest. "Yeah, actually. Family." Sort of, in the barest sense of the word, but Olivia couldn't ignore the facts. Apparently today was another day in which she wondered she was doing the right thing or not. "My, um. My aunt and my parents live there, but I haven't seen them in… a while." “That’s kind of the new mystery,” Shelby mused out loud. “Family, I mean. I haven’t seen my parents since before the outbreak.” She knew she was riding the line of oversharing, but it felt kind of nice to say it. She had told Sasha, but well, Sasha still had his dad, and he knew what had happened to his mom. "Me either." Olivia's lapse had been by choice, though; she assumed that hadn't been the case for this woman. Whatever her name was. There was something sort of freeing about talking to someone who wasn't aware of her baggage, though, and for that reason alone Olivia didn't yet cut off the conversation. "I guess we'll, um. See how it goes." “Yeah, I guess. It’s kind of crazy that we can travel and stuff.” Although Shelby hadn’t taken up the opportunity yet. “I don’t know if I’m even used to it yet, you know.” "I haven't been anywhere else since I came down here." Olivia paused for a moment, then gestured to Maizie's empty chair. Her girlfriend was otherwise occupied, anyway, still going over test prep or something. "I'm guessing traveling hasn't really changed all that much, but who knows." Shelby shrugged in agreement. “We traveled with a military escort when we came south from Iowa, so that was kind of different.” At the time it made her feel safe, but things weren't as scary as they had been. “I don’t think that's really a thing anymore, though.” She shrugged again. Sometimes it was hard to know what would be different. "I don't think I'm going to get a military escort on a passenger plane," Olivia said dryly. "But I guess you never know." “Probably not.” That was good though, right? No military escort meant more safety. “My mom was in Canada just before the outbreak, so I keep hoping that I’ll find her online, but no luck yet,” Shelby didn't really know where to look either. “It sounds like they're doing as okay as the US though, so we're probably not the only people left.” Which would have been strange. "They get cold winters. I guess that's why a lot of Midwestern states made it through." Minnesota and Canada bordered each other, of course, but Olivia had never made it up there. "From Canada specifically, or just happening to visit?" “Work, actually. She’s an environmental researcher,” Shelby explained. “I don’t really know what the project was, but they were up there doing… something.” She shrugged. Her dad’s work had always seemed more interesting to her, so she had a tendency to not pay attention to the details of her mom’s. “I don’t think she would have stayed up there, but I don’t know how hard it would have been to get from Canada to the US with all the craziness.” She hadn’t tried to get back to Boston, as far as Shelby knew. "There might be some Canadian databases, then, if something like Facebook isn't helping you figure it out." Olivia offered the stranger a slight smile, oblivious to the fact that they hadn't even exchanged names yet. "You should look." “I’m thinking about it. I have a friend that could probably help me sleuth around.” Max was so much better with technology than Shelby could ever hope to be, so if she got serious about finding her parents, he was going to be her first contact. “Are you traveling to Minnesota by yourself?” "No, my friend is coming with me. Um, I've known him a while, and he's from Minnesota too, so it'll be nice to have the company." Olivia and Nick's friendship was strained a bit, lately, but the Torrie thing hadn't gotten completely in their way yet. "I guess we'll see what happens once I get there." “I hope everything goes okay for you,” Shelby offered with a smile, distracted shortly after she said it by a controlled, but frantic motion from the counter. How long had she been talking? It seemed like long enough for a crowd to gather. She made a ‘be right there’ motion, then picked up a few more plates from a table to add to her stack. “I should get back, though, before they send a search party.” And she tried to swallow her laughter at the exasperation that was clear on her barista’s face. “It was nice talking to you!” "Oh, um." Olivia sent a small smile in her direction as the woman turned to leave. "Thanks. You too, and good luck." |