There were a lot of people to talk to once the main meeting was over. Mal was finding it a bit more difficult than shaking hands and chatting at church for some reason. Maybe because these people knew who he really was. What he really was. Toby’s brain continued to be full of annoying porn, and Mal almost told him he didn’t have to do that, but he refrained from mentioning it, just tried to block it out as much as he could. He talked with a few of them, glancing every so often at the two gay Latinos and their teenager. Mal knew some very interesting things about Oliver now, things he wasn’t yet sure should be revealed or not. But Haisley interested him in a completely different way, and when Oliver and Diego went inside the house with Shane, Mal made his way over to the girl. “Hello,” he said, giving her a warm little smile. Mal offered his hand out to shake, if she would take it. “I’m Mal, it’s nice to officially meet you.”
Despite the rocky start, Haisley was enjoying her time at Shane's. Jane was awesome, being the only other girl there besides Vex's friend, and no one was speaking down to her just because she was a teenager. It was a little weird for Haisley because she felt like she was the only one there who realized just how hot everyone was. Even Jane was super pretty. Haisley had occasionally found herself staring at various people, feeling that tug in her brain to maybe feed off of some lust like she had at Jules's house, but Haisley had managed to rein that in for now. This was serious stuff and not everyone at the house would have responded favorably to that particular sin eating.
After Diego and Oliver went inside to talk to Shane and Reza, Haisley wondered if she could dip her feet in the pool for a bit. But before she could do it, Mal was at her side, talking. Haisley blinked and instantly felt her cheeks warm at the attention. Mal was a pastor and a telepath, both of which were oddly intimidating to her, but he was also hot-hot and Haisley suddenly wished she could teleport home before he started reading her thoughts. Maybe he didn't do it unless he had permission. "Hi." Haisley took his hand. They were touching now and his grip was warm and strong. "I'm Haisley. Obviously. Um." She smiled. "You're not like, reading my brain right now, are you?"
Mal didn’t even have to dig to hear that Haisley found him attractive, it was right there on the front line of her thoughts. Hell, with the way she was blushing he barely even had to glance. He squeezed her hand gently before releasing it, not wanting to hold onto her too long to keep her comfortable. Her question made him smile and chuckle in a more genuine way than he usually did. “I’m not,” he assured her, even though that wasn’t precisely true. “And I won’t, if you don’t want me to.” That also wasn’t true, but it came out easy enough. “I try not to pry into people who I want to keep as friends. And it sounds like you and I will be working together soon, so I’d like us to be friends.”
The relief she felt was palpable and Haisley was sure it showed in her expression before her smile came easier to her lips. He wasn't in her head. That was good! She could relax a bit now and talk to him without struggling to keep certain thoughts from fluttering through her head. "I don't want to sound mean by asking you not to, but I mean, there's nothing interesting to hear anyway." Haisley was still feeling flushed all over, not entirely used to attention from grown men who weren't her dads. Or guardians. Whatever. This all had to do with AIR more than anything else, but she was okay with that. "It's gotta be like, a relief to be able to shut it off, right? I think I would go crazy having to listen to people's thoughts all day. I'd probably lock myself in a room by myself forever."