birds_n_bats (birds_n_bats) wrote in rrinitiative, @ 2012-11-02 15:38:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | day seven, eric, eric and violet, violet |
and because i say so, a dance competition
Characters: Violet and Eric
Setting: the kitchen, afternoon
After all of the work that morning with Caroline, Violet realized kind of absurdly late that she’d failed to eat anything that day at all yet. The warning came with a pinch of a headache and loud growling of her stomach. Assuring Cal she’d return after a little break, she left the clinic to seek out sustenance, and maybe check in on Becka while she was at it. She was glancing back and forth then heading in the direction of Block A, hoping she could just grab something quick so she didn’t have to be gone that long.
It was all too easy to get lost in the music, and Eric did just that, more than happy to push aside the heavy thoughts his talk with Charlie had drummed up. He could think about it another time, or just keep on taking things as they came. He was good at that. There was one thing that did manage to pull him away from the music room eventually, though, and that was the loud growling of his stomach, a reminder that he hadn’t bothered to go get food before heading there. So it was with the thought of food that Eric finally left the music room, heading for the elevator that would take him down to the basement level.
As he left the first elevator and headed down the hallway, noticing a cute redhead heading toward the other elevator. A flirtatious greeting was on the tip of his tongue, but he held back as reality came flooding back, the things Charlie had told him about the woman who’d died. Have a little respect, he told himself. “Hey,” he went with the simple greeting as he neared her instead.
Violet looked around when she heard the voice, and she smiled at the man who occupied the corridor with her. "Hi." she greeted in return, waving slightly. "Um...going my way?" she asked, since it appeared as much, and as she got to the elevator, she held it for him. "I'm Violet, by the way. I just got here. I'm still sort of finding my way around, and then there was the tragedy this morning, and I've been helping the doctor." she rattled off, apparently not adverse to giving out information.
Eric smiled at the greeting, giving her a nod. “Looks like,” he said by way of an answer, stepping into the elevator when she held it for him. He was about to introduce himself, but she beat him to the punch, and he grinned a bit crookedly at her as she seemed to ramble just a little. “That’s really good of you, to help the doc,” he said first. “And I’m Eric, also a newbie here. I just got here yesterday morning. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he said, tone ringing true, leaning over to press the button for the first floor. “Oh, you heading up to one?” he asked, hand hesitating near the numbers to press the two if she was heading further up.
"Oh, I'm a nurse, so I have that going for me. I was going to be volunteering to be at the clinic as much as people need me to be." Violet told him with a smile. "And yes! One! I'm kind of dying of hunger? I forgot to eat today. So, I should do that before I faint." she said with a little self deprecating laugh. "Pleased to meet you, Eric."
Eric’s crooked grin turned a little more smirkish when she said she was one of the nurses. “A nurse, huh? Bet that makes it a bit easier to deal with what happened earlier. Not sure I could’ve done it. Don’t really have the stomach for all that,” he admitted with a little self-amusement. He’d seen a lot of shit in his life, especially in prison, but he didn’t think he’d ever be able to stomach seeing the dead very well. “Ahh, you and me both! Well, other than the fainting,” he added cheekily. “So what do you think of our new home?” he asked curiously as the elevator went on it’s short journey to the next floor up.
"Are you squeamish?" Violet asked, head tilting to the side slightly as she regarded him. "And I wouldn't say it makes it easier? More just...it's a kind of different mentality. I'm thinking of things in a different light. That's all." she explained, knowing it probably wasn't that fabulous an explanation, but it was all she had. She pondered for a long moment at his question, giving it proper thought. "Honestly, right now I don't think I can even give a proper opinion." she said, giving him a sheepish look. She stepped out of the elevator when the doors opened, but was clearly waiting for him to come with. "It's been a pretty all over the place ride so far? So, I think I need a little longer to even begin sussing out what I think. What about you?"
Eric’s expression turned thoughtful at that, considering the question before answering. “Don’t think I’d say squeamish. More that I just wouldn’t choose to be around all that if given the choice,” he finally answered. “But I could see how that might help - having a different mentality about it, I mean. What’s...” He paused, lifting a hand to rub over the back of his neck as he wondered if he should even ask. “Do you guys know what’s going to happen with her body now?” he finally couldn’t help but ask. It was more than a little disconcerting that someone had died, and he couldn’t help but wonder how that kind of thing would be handled by those in charge.
That sheepish look was pretty cute, and it made Eric have to fight harder not to flirt with the girl. It just wasn’t the right situation for it, which he reminded himself again. He stepped out of the elevator as well, motioning for her to go ahead and falling into step next to her. “Yeah, I could see that. Still trying to figure things out, myself. Only real opinion I’ve been able to come up with is that whoever’s running this place has been kinda crap at handling things,” he answered. “Nothing wrong with holding out on coming up with a proper opinion till you really get a chance to settle in, though.”
"We don't." Violet answered, looking down for a moment as she slowly walked with him. "Not yet. I know Cal's contacting the administration, and we're sure to hear back, but still. We aren't exactly positive just yet." she admitted. When he said he didn't know what to make of things either, she had to smile. "So we're in the same boat? New and kind of looking around not knowing what the heck to make of this mess?" she asked, sounding like she liked that. It made her feel less alone.
And that was enough of the depressing talk of the dead, Eric thought as he gave a little nod at her answer, acknowledging it even if he didn’t comment on it. He grinned a bit more when she smiled, thinking that she had a very pretty smile. “Looks like we are, so we should stick together, Nurse Violet,” he suggested with a cheeky wink, only half joking.
She laughed at his little tease there. "Nurse Violet, how formal." she said, batting her eyelashes at him. "Next thing you know, I'll be asking you about your blood pressure, and if it feels hot in here to you or not." she teased in return, a little blush flushing her cheeks, but she didn't look scandalized or anything.
Eric laughed at her response, encouraged by it. “Well, sweetheart, you feel free to check my temperature anytime,” he continued on with the teasing, wiggling his brows at her. He opened the door and gave an exaggerated little bow as he waved her through ahead of him.
She gave a cute little giggle and did a little curtsey to him before she did head through the door. "Why thank you, sir." she told him with a grin. "And don't tell me things like that. I'll be showing up checking vitals before you can say 'hey I was sleeping'. You know we do that, right?" she asked, mock-seriously. "We creep around, and wait until patients are juuuuust about to fall asleep then bam!" she clapped her hands. "I'm here to check your vitals!"
Well she was just way too cute, Eric thought at that giggle and curtsey. It was still a little odd to be around women again, to be able to flirt with them, especially chipper, adorable ones likes Violet appeared to be. “Oh, is that what you guys do? That’s just sneaky. But you wouldn’t hear me complain about having such pretty company,” he assured her, heading toward the kitchen door next and opening it for her as well.
"We're diabolical." Violet said with a grave tone and serious nod, the effect only ruined by the little glint in her eyes. She was glad he knew where he was going, and she walked into the kitchen, doing a little spin as she got in there as thanks for his being a gentleman again. "And thank you." she said. "Though I'm sure I'm not actually all that much to look at." she added, glancing down at herself. "There are a lot prettier princesses in the world. And ones that never got the nickname 'thumbelina' in highschool..."
Eric smiled widely, laughing a bit at that grave tone, enjoying that glint in her eyes. She was fun, and he decided that if he was going to be stuck in some freaky place where people were put in stocks and fell to their death trying to escape, at least there were some fun people here. “‘Welcome,” he replied easily, following her into the kitchen. “Oh, but you are,” he disagreed, eyes skimming over her, though he tried not to be completely lewd about it. “Thumbelina, huh? Cause you’re short? Nothing wrong with being short.”
"Oh, I'm not short." Violet told him, peering into the fridge skeptically. "I am a sawed off little tiny person. Like, three inches shorter and I'd be a dwarf." she explained. Tilting her head to the side, she wasn't sure she liked anything she saw in the fridge, and abandoned it to start looking through cupboards. Only they were a little hard for her to reach, so she merely climbed up onto the countertop to do so.
Eric let out a short laugh at that. “Okay, so you’re a tiny, little thing, but still - there’s nothing wrong with that. You’re still pretty,” he countered persistently. He grinned a bit crookedly as she climbed up on a counter. “I’d be happy to grab something for you. Not that I’m minding the view or anything, but...” It couldn’t hurt to offer, right? She didn’t seem the type to get all bent out of shape at the offer of help, but that was all based off a first impression. He could be wrong.
"Aww, well, thank you." Violet said, looking back over her shoulder at him with a smile. There was a little blush on her cheeks, and she reached up to tuck her hair behind her ears before she went back to exploring the contents of the cabinets. "If you want to accept a possibly dangerous mission..." she told him, turning to look back at him. She had her serious face back on, and she clasped her hands like she was in a business meeting. "I do have something you could try to acquire for me. Now, it's entirely up to you, if you accept this mission or not. But I do require..." she leaned forward voice lowering for dramatic effect. "....Goldfish. The cheddar kind."
That little blush suited her, Eric thought, and it just made him want to see how far he could push it before she told him to shove off. He stood up a little straighter at the talk of a possibly dangerous mission, trying to school his expression to something appropriately serious, though he couldn’t quite keep the grin off his face. When she finally got around to telling him what she was after, he smiled widely. “I accept the mission. I won’t let you down,” he promised, turning to head into the pantry. He thought he’d seen that kind of stuff in there yesterday.
Violet beamed at that, giving a little pleased laugh. "Godspeed, agent!" she told him, looking back in the cabinets to see if anything else looked like she wanted it. So far, she was having a little trouble figuring out what might suit. She got like that sometimes. Hungry, but not for anything. "Want me to pour you....er...something liquid?" she asked, going back to the fridge to see what they had. Even if she'd just looked, she couldn't have said what was in there to drink if there'd been a gun to her head.
Eric was poking around bags of chips and other similar things trying to find that package of Goldfish when she asked that, and he called back, “Uhh, yeah sure. Coke or whatever’s there. Am not picky.” It took moving a few things around before he found one lone bag hiding in the back. Apparently they were popular. “Aha! And we have found the treasure, m’lady,” he said as he came back out of the pantry, holding the bag up for her to see and shaking it a bit. “But seeing as how neither of us have eaten anything today, I don’t think Goldfish are going to cut it. Anything else sound good? Might just end up making a sandwich or something.”
Violet had found soda, and was pouring them both a glass, absolutely beaming at him when he showed her the crackers. "Thank you!" she said brightly, pleased. "Now, to compensate you for your clear bravery during your mission..." she squinted one eye shut as she regarded him, humming as she thought.
Eric came closer as she seemed to be thinking about how to finish that sentence, leaning against the counter next to her and setting the bag down next to the glasses. “Hmm, and what will my prize be?” he asked after a few beats.
She kept considering, then she smiled, and stood on her tiptoes to plant a little peck on his cheek. "There you go. I know it's not a medal of honor or anything, but it's all I got. I mean, I don't even have a sucker to give out after shots or anything." she told him, smiling.
That little peck to his cheek had Eric pretty much rooted to the spot, grinning a bit stupidly. “I’d say that’s fair compensation, but hell, no suckers? You gotta fix that. I’m pathetic when it comes to needles,” he lied, though there was a bit of a joking tone to his voice so it wouldn’t seem in a devious way. “I only suffer them if I get some kind of sweet after.”
She laughed. "Well, I'm sure I'll come up with something." she promised. "I'm really resourceful." Violet picked up his glass and handed it to him, liking the kinda silly grin she'd gotten out of him. He was a cutie, really. In a kind of 'younger Joaquin Phoenix' sort of way.
“Oooh, pretty and resourceful. That’s a dangerous combination,” he teased her, taking the glass with a ‘thanks.’ He took a drink of it even as his stomach let out a soft rumble, and he chuckled as he set the glass back down on the counter. “All right, we gotta figure out something real to eat. Now, I can’t promise to be any kind of master chef or anything, but I’m pretty sure I can still remember how to make a mean sandwich. Unless you want something else?” Though why he was offering to make her anything to eat to begin with, he wasn’t sure. Maybe it was because she was cute and fun to be around so far. Whatever it was, though, he really wasn’t thinking on it too hard, just going with it.
Violet winked at him to his first comment. Then she nodded, agreeing that they probably needed food with more substantial calorie content. "A sandwich would be great." she said honestly. "So if you didn't mind, sure! I'll take a sandwich." she said, opening up the crackers and she dumped a few out onto the counter, where they could both take a few.
“I don’t mind at all,” Eric assured her, pushing away from the counter to gather the ingredients. “What kind? Meat and cheese or PB and J?” he asked as he grabbed the bread and went to the fridge, waiting for her answer to get the rest.
"I know it's a little 'kindergarten', but pb and j sounds really good." Violet said, slightly sheepishly. She pushed herself up to sit on the counter again, swinging her foot back and forth slightly as she watched him. "So, what's the most interesting thing about you?" she asked. "And what's the most mundane?"
Eric grinned widely at her answer. “Well, nothing wrong with a good old PB and J. That’s what I was leaning toward, anyway,” he admitted, setting the bread aside to get the rest out. It took a little poking around to find plates and knives. He considered her questions as he started putting together the first sandwich. “Those’re pretty broad questions. After all, those things tend to be subjective, don’t you think? Most mundane, though. Hmm. I’m a middle child. Nothing exciting there. And most interesting... Well, I think you’ll just have to get to know me and decide that one for yourself,” he suggested with a little smirk.
Violet merely smiled when he spoke, a little bit of a sly bent to her expression. She didn't interrupt him, however. Instead, she sipped her soda, and bounced her heel against the cabinet beneath her quietly. "Guess I'll have to." she told him, that sly expression still in place.
Eric grinned, curious about that sly expression and what mischief might hide behind it. Violet could be a whole lot of fun, he was thinking. He pushed a plate with the first sandwich over toward her. “So, how about you? Most mundane and most interesting?” he tossed the questions back at her, already trying to think of others he could ask if she was as evasive as he’d been about it.
She took the sandwich and took a bite, swallowing before she answered. "The most mundane would be...." she thought about it for a moment, head tilting as she did so. "I'm blind as a bat without my glasses or contacts." she told him. "The most interesting...most people would say it's these." she said, holding her hand out towards him, wrist up so he could see the birds tattooed there. "I have a lot of them."
Eric set the knife down and took a step closer to her, reaching out to hold her hand lightly as his eyes skimmed over the birds tattooed along her wrist. “Nice. A lot of them, huh? So birds are your thing?” he asked curious, grinning at her as he let go of her wrist and went back to making his sandwich.
"In a way." she answered. "I like what they represent to me, a lightness, freedom, rising above." she added. "But most people don't peg me for a tattoo person." she added. "I'm more a...nerdy secretary person, I think." she said, then paused to reach up with one hand, pulling her hair back tight for a moment. "These books are overdue, young man!" she said in a nasal voice.
That made Eric wonder what a tattoo person was supposed to be, but he’d been in for so long that he was just used to being surrounded by people with tattoos. He chuckled, shaking his head at her librarian impersonation. “That voice? Not so much, but I bet you could pull off a sexy librarian real easy. And you said you wear glasses, so yeah. Could definitely see you as the sexy librarian,” he said decisively, smirking at her.
Violet let her hair drop back down, laughing at herself. "I said secretary then jumped to librarian, didn't I?" she asked. "Clearly, I'm organized in thought processes. Total secretary material." she said, shaking her head at herself. Then she arched a brow at him. "Okay, what goes into 'sexy librarian' other than glasses?" she asked. "And why do you see me for the part? Don't you need like, really high heels for that, and like, height? I'd need stilts."
“Yeah, you did,” Eric confirmed, chuckling a bit as he slathered jelly on a slice of bread. He finished making his sandwich as she asked her questions, letting out an amused laugh at her stilts comment. “Nah, no stilts necessary. Don’t you know they make ladders and step stools and stuff for libraries? But even if we’re going with the secretary thing - tight, black pencil skirt, white oxford, hair pulled back in a tight bun... Can’t forget about the tights or whatever. Preferably the ones with the darker line going down the back? They make those, right? And yes, high heels. And glasses. Oh yeah, you could totally pull it off,” he said, looking over her again speculatively as he bit into his sandwich.
"Like the what...nineteen fifties pantyhose? I think they do..." Violet said, puzzling over that a moment. She gave a serious look but couldn't hold it, bursting into laughter. "Oh god, I'd look terrible! I'd be all 'rawr' and fall over. It'd be awful, and as un-sexy as you can get. Despite what romantic comedies tell you, clumsiness? Is not hot."
Eric grinned widely, unashamed as she seemed to puzzle over it. She hadn’t seemed affronted by anything he’d said so far, so he’d keep it up until she did. He pouted just a bit as if she’d poked a hole in his little fantasy with her insistence that she would be awful in such a getup. “Aww, come on! I think you’d look great. And, hmm...” He paused, pretending to consider it for a moment. “Well, I guess you could skip the high heels and go for some cute flats, for your safety and all.”
Laughing, Violet shook her head. "I think I'd look silly." she said. Then she grinned at him. "So. You seem to know a hell of a lot about women's outfits and the like. How do you even know what the hell a 'white oxford' is? Do a lot of costuming?" she asked.
Eric laughed at the question, shaking his head and shrugging. “Six years in, but some things you just don’t forget,” he answered, though he knew it wasn’t really much of an answer. He hadn’t even been sure he was using the right name for it, but it had sounded right in his head, so he’d gone with it.
Violet looked mildly confused, even if she was still smiling. "...okay, I need more than that. Where did you learn in the first place?" she asked, wanting him to expand there.
She just had to ask, didn’t she? Eric looked at her a little mischievous grin playing on his lips. “College, of course. Where else? Pretty sure there was at least one girl back then that did the whole costume for Halloween and detailed it,” he finally gave in, giving her a bit more specific of an answer. “Either that or a Playboy. Always an option,” he joked.
"Ohhh no no no." Violet said, shaking her head and tsking. "You got into detail, and you totally are just gonna give me a blow off 'maybe there was a girl'? No way! If you picked that up, you must've been interested enough to remember the circumstances." she told him, thinking it was a very interesting detail. Most men she knew didn't know shit about clothes, especially not women's clothes. "Playboy I might buy. I don't know what they have in there."
Eric’s smile just went wider at her chiding. He set his sandwich down on his plate and put his elbow on the counter, leaning in toward her a bit. “You want details, huh?” he asked, dipping his voice a little low, raising his eyebrows a bit, his eyes full of naughty promises. “Maybe I’m not the type to kiss and tell.” Because now that she was poking at it, he did have certain memories long forgotten floating to the surface. “Aw, never looked in a Playboy? They have great... articles. Politics and shit,” he said, trying for a straight face and failing.
"So I hear!" she said, laughing. "Men always say the articles are great. Nevermind the naked ladies." she added. "But no, never had that much interest in Playboy. Which isn't to say I'm some innocent flower who's never seen anything ever, but still." she said. "And you are so the type to kiss and tell! Look at that face! You're dying to dish details!"
“Oh, no, the naked ladies definitely don’t detract from the articles. Excellent accents to the articles, actually. Huh, I wonder if they’d give us some. Not like anyone in here’s a minor, right?” he asked jokingly. Eric really had no intention of asking for pornography, but it was an amusing thought. “But still,” he repeated, amused. “So, what, Playgirl more your thing? Or just more into the real thing?” He wondered if she would actually answer that. He really wasn’t any good at that innocent expression thing, and he smiled wider when she called him out on it. “Sophomore year. Went to this really crazy Halloween party, and I didn’t go home alone. I have no clue what her name was, not even sure I knew at the time, which doesn’t really do much for that gentleman status, does it? But anyway, it’d be pretty hard to forget her prancing around in just that white oxford, and I couldn’t tell you how I remembered that’s what it’s called. Just sounded right in my head, so I went with it,” he gave in, giving her far more details than she’d probably wanted.
"I don't see why they wouldn't, if people were desperate for porn." Violet said, shrugging, and she really wondered how more than one conversation she'd had now had involved porn of some description. That was probably not great. Or just incredibly weird. "And not so much, really? I mean, sure, I'm into guys, and some of them look good sans clothes and all that, but it's less a visual thing with me. Or, at least, not in that particular form. Just seeing some guy with his junk hanging out isn't hot to me. I mean, woo, dangly bits, everyone's got them." she said with an eyeroll. "I know for a lot of men, the visual thing is higher up on the list? Like you just described a visual there, which is why it stuck out in memory." she said, latching onto his example. "As for magazine versus the real thing, I think there's a lot more of a sliding scale between the two than just those two stop points! But I'll admit to not having had that many boyfriends. I was a studier at college, not a partier."
The way she said that was so matter of fact that it made Eric wonder just what her real thoughts on it were. It wasn’t that he wouldn’t be against being able to see porn again - after all, it had been six years since he’d been able to look at any, but he wasn’t desperate for it or anything. And he’d always preferred the real thing, anyway. He listened as she went on about it, grabbing his sandwich back up to take a large bite out of it. “Not gonna lie, I like the visuals, but I’m pretty sure you’re not the only girl in the world that the visuals aren’t at the top of the list. But, not many boyfriends, huh? How long ago was college?” he asked curiously, thinking the way she’d said that made it seem like it must not have been that long ago.
"Well, not that long ago, I'm only twenty three." she said, smirking faintly. "And I jumped in directly after highschool. Actually, I was that nerdy girl who took a few courses while I was still finishing up highschool..." she said, giving an eyeroll at herself. "And not many like, er...three if you include Kenny Meyer from ninth grade who kinda turned out later to be gay, which is why he was totally not at all upset about me wanting to wait."
“Ahh,” Eric said when she gave him her age. Not that much younger than him, but then he’d already been two years in by the time he’d hit twenty-three. “Ooh, so you were that type. I didn’t take any college courses in high school, but if you can believe it, I was that quiet guy who always seemed to be studying,” he admitted with a smirk, somehow thinking that she wouldn’t see that as a bad thing. His eyebrows shot up at the elaboration, two or three being a lot less than the ‘not many’ he’d been imagining. “Wow, that really is not many. But even if Kenny Meyer turned out gay, you can still count him. And, hmm, nothing wrong with wanting to wait.” Granted, he’d never wanted to wait, he’d just never really had the opportunity in high school, so college had been a real experience for him. Not that he’d ever advertised the fact that he’d graduated high school a virgin.
"You? Quiet?" Violet asked, looking surprised. "You seem like the loud flirty guy." she told him. "And no, there's nothing wrong with wanting to wait. I just know it was an endless sea of raging hormones in highschool for everyone, which made the decision kinda difficult as well as irritating." People tended to think that it was only guys who had a sex drive, but it wasn't true. Violet was a girl who'd definitely had one. It had been a little shocking, really. She'd been led to believe all of that stuff came from guys. Her family hadn't done the birds and bees talk with her.
Eric chuckled at that, nodding his head a bit. “I came into my own in college,” he replied simply. “Ooh, yes, the raging hormone epidemic. That’s not exclusively a high school thing, though, you know?” he asked teasingly. God knew his hormones hadn’t calmed down into college, which was a big part of what got him locked up.
"Oh, I know." Violet said. "My room mate was...let's say 'dramatic'. She was the type of girl who tended to have raging, crying fits for little to no reason. Every time she so much as kissed a boy it was 'love'. Personally I think she had a sort of messed up view of the world in general, and that really impacted her ability to cope with things everyone else copes with just fine. I got the impression she sort of thought something was 'wrong' if everything was going smoothly." She sighed and shook her head. "So even if I wasn't getting kicked in the teeth every day by hormones? I had to deal with them anyways."
That wasn’t at all what Eric had meant by raging hormone epidemic, but he supposed that was a difference between male and female ways of thinking. “That sounds fun,” he said dryly. “My roommates were usually pretty chill, but fuck that was a long time ago,” he added with a shake of his head, his free hand coming up to rub over the back of his neck. “My ‘roommates’ since then have been a lot crazier. Kinda liking the whole having my own actual room again thing, even if this place is all kinds of messed up.”
Violet made a cute face. "You know, I hadn't even really thought about that. Which I should have. I hope it wasn't too awful for you." she said genuinely. "I wasn't in that long, and I wasn't in a very hardcore prison, either." she confessed. "I mean, it wasn't like it was a picnic or anything, but it definitely wasn't as terrible as I know some places are. I do like that we all have our own rooms, though. I like getting alone time? I'm pretty social in general, but it's always nice to have a spot to kind of retreat to when you need to."
That face was way too cute that it was more than enough to keep Eric from dwelling on what prison had been like the past six years. “Nah, if you haven’t been in that long it makes sense you wouldn’t have thought of that. I know my first few months in were kind of a blur just trying to get used to the system. That’s good, though, that it wasn’t really terrible for you. It could’ve been pretty bad for me, but I found ways to get through it,” he said with a little smirk. “But yeah, I get that, wanting a place to retreat to. But how about getting to wear real clothes again?” he asked, definitely wanting to turn the conversation to something lighter.
It gave her pause, how he smirked at her there. What had he done? It was then that it occurred to her that she also didn't know what he was in for. But she didn't ask, either. Partially because she didn't want to know because it would influence how she saw him, and partially because she was enjoying the company and didn't want to chase him off. But a little red flag went up in the back of her head, regardless. When he spoke about clothes, however, she had to smile. "Oh god, that is just...so so nice." she said with a genuine note in her voice. "I can wear jeans again! And skirts! And stuff with color!"
She really had a pretty smile, Eric thought, though he wasn’t really sure thinking along those lines would get him anywhere. Sure she’d been fun so far, but he’d much rather make friends in this place rather than push a pretty girl to the point where she didn’t want to be around him at all. “Oh, yes! Skirts, I love skirts! Sadly, they didn’t give me any. Maybe I can borrow one sometime?” he asked, though he couldn’t keep a straight face and after a couple beats, he burst out laughing.
When he laughed, she did as well, giggling as she reached up to cover her mouth, picturing him in a skirt, of course. "I'm pretty sure my skirts would do nothing for you." she told him between giggles. "But you could always rock a toga out of some sheets." she added, beaming at him.
Eric played up an affronted expression then pouted at her. “Aww, come on! I’ve got great legs, I could pull it off!” he insisted with a crooked grin. He did chuckle a bit at the suggestion of a toga. “Oh yeah, could definitely rock a toga. Pretty sure I did once before, in college of course.” And now he was thinking it would be fun to do a costume party of some sort, after things calmed down some of course, but Halloween was still a few months away and that was always the best excuse to wear costumes.
"Of course." Violet said, laughing. "I swear, I missed all that fun stuff. My college experience wasn't nearly so crazy. Sounds like you had a movie-verse one, though." she said, slightly wistful.
“Movie-verse, huh? So give me a plot synopsis for your perception of my college experience movie-ised,” he suggested, wondering what she might say and how close it might be to the truth.
Violet gave herself a moment, eyeing him critically, then making a show of thinking about it complete with humming and looking towards the ceiling. Reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ears, she started to speak. "Once upon a time, there was a quiet guy in highschool. He was deep, had a little bit of a darker bent, maybe a bit of a loner. People didn't really understand him and he didn't understand them, and so common ground wasn't really a thing there. Then, he got to college, and the whole world opened up. He met people who he could connect with, learned all about the joys of excessive alcohol ingestion, and that shell he'd had before cracked open. Then there were bright lights, more people than he'd spoken to in four years of highschool crammed into a single night of craziness. There were probably pranks that happened along the way, back and forth, some compelling side characters... And because I say so, a dance competition."
Eric grinned at her synopsis. Bright lights, single night of craziness - hell, there were a lot more than just one single night, but it had been one particular night of craziness that had sent everything crumbling. It was one night he tried not to think about. “Oh yes, a dance competition! I lost, sadly,” he played along, pouting just a little for a moment before smiling at her. “Yeah, college was kinda crazy, but that’s all right. If it hadn’t been, I wouldn’t be standing here today talking to you, so I can’t complain,” he shrugged it off with his usual nonchalance.
Violet reached out and patted his shoulder. "But I'm sure you learned a valuable lesson!" she told him in consolation for the loss of the dance competition. "You tried! Plus, who breakdances anymore anyways?" she added, defining what dance was involved now. At his last statement, she laughed a little. "You're really free with the compliments." she told him. Which wasn't a bad thing, really. It was much better than being defensive, or sarcastic, or mean. Compliments were a whole lot nicer to hear than anything else. "Though I doubt my being here really makes up for everything else. But, I'm glad you kept your sense of humor, and your laugh." she told him honestly.
He groaned, chuckling when she named the type of dancing this pretend competition entailed. “Oh God, that’s why I lost! I can’t break-dance to save my life!” he admitted, and it was true enough. At that statement, Eric looked at her with a half-smile playing on his lips. “Only when they’re deserved,” he told her in his most charming tone. It was a lot easier, he’d found, to compliment people, to laugh and joke with them. It tended to keep things light, to keep them from trying to look deeper. “You’re being here doesn’t hurt anything, but I’m not one to get sucked into that bottomless pit of depression. Never have been. And you gotta find things to laugh about, right?”
"You do." she agreed. "I tend to lean towards silly, myself, when that sort of thing happens. I like to smile and joke with people too. I find it the better way to go as well, it's nice to see someone else with the same philosophy." she said genuinely. She gave him a smile with it, one that had a soft edge to it.
Eric grinned, reaching out to tug a loose strand of her hair lightly before releasing it and going back to his sandwich. “You and I? We’ll be great friends,” he promised, winking at her before finishing off the last of his sandwich.
She picked up hers as well, smiling at him. "I'd like that." she told him, meaning it. He seemed nice, and she could use a little nice. She hadn't had trip points like she had with Jeremy, either. So that was good. She had the one red flag, but it wasn't enough to put her on the defensive yet. All in all, she was pleased with having met him, and she was happy he seemed to want to be friends. It was a much better note to the day than just the death of one of the others.
It sounded like she’d meant it, and Eric found himself grinning a bit more. He had no clue where this place would take him, but he’d enjoyed the people he’d met so far well enough, and he was pretty much a pro at going with the flow by now. He dusted his hands off when he was done before taking a drink of the soda she’d poured. “Want me to grab you anything else?” he offered. He didn’t really have any plans, but he thought he might do a little more exploring today.
"Taking off?" she asked, before shaking her head. "No, you've done excessively well with getting me things, and making sure I'm fed. You're free! I have to go check on someone else anyhow, so...I'll see you sometime soon?" she asked, a tiny pinch of hopeful in her tone.
“Just got the itch to go... Just, go, now that I’m not confined to a six by eight cell, you know?” Eric replied with a grin. “And it was my pleasure, m’lady!” he insisted, moving to clean off his plate and put it away. Moving back to her, he gave an exaggerated little bow, winking at her. “But of course you will,” he promised. Picking up his glass he raised it up in a little mock-toast. “Until next time, Nurse Violet.”
Violet grinned at him. "Until next time, Agent." she told him with that playful note in her voice. She blew him a little kiss and everything, deciding this was as pleasant as parting ways got. She was all for it. And she had a bounce in her step when she went her own way in search of Becka's room.