InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "KNEEEEEEL!"

Jack Montgomery (manchildish) wrote in zenithrp,
@ 2016-01-10 17:43:00

Entry tags:

#day 016, avram, cecilia, chase, damon, evie, jack, jim, juno, kiley, lennon, madison, marco, oliver, owen, pam, tobias

Who: EVERYONE
When: 5:30ish (about half an hour into eating)
Where: The Dining Room

Jack and his motley crew had been working their butts off for most of the afternoon, and the bounty they'd created was absolutely glorious. The spread in the center of the table by the time people had started to arrive could probably have fed a hell of a lot more than they'd planned for, but Jack doubted anyone would complain about leftovers. The burgers were split into three plates based on how rare or well done they were, and just about every type of roll the house made available was there. Bacon was cooked crisp or fatty, depending on which end of the plate you took it from, and both mushrooms and onions had been sauteed on another. Tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, and every other condiment and type of cheese you could want was there for the taking. Sides of beer batter french fries, fried green tomatoes, grilled corn on the cob, portobellos and eggplant sat front and center, alongside a fresh green salad and two kinds of potato salad (he hadn't been able to decide between the two, so why not?). Juno and Lennon had been a great help, and there was enough time that he actually got a chance to properly teach them a few things in the midst of it all.

All in all, it had been a great afternoon.

He and Avram had managed to pull in the kitchen table and set it up with a few chairs, elongating the already impressive dining room table to accommodate everyone. Or, at least, for twenty-four. He still had no idea how many new people they were going to have today, aside from the one big dude Pam had brought in for introductions earlier.

Said big dude, Oliver, was now sitting next to him close to the entryway of the dining room. Jack had picked that spot specifically so he could get up and get anything needed from the kitchen for anyone. That had lasted all of one trip before the big guy clamped a gorilla-sized hand on his shoulder and politely told him it was the chef's turn to relax, then got up to grab the container of home made relish that had been left behind. He paid close attention to the kind of burger the guy made for himself later (mushroom swiss, light on the fixings, sun-dried tomato on the burger, bacon on the side as if he didn't think he'd have room for it), and told himself that someone was gonna be getting lunch later on in the week.

His own burger was a monster, toppled high with bacon, mushrooms, caramelized onions, bleu cheese and barbecue sauce. He'd thrown a tomato on there just because he thought a proper vegetable might stave off any disapproving looks from Evie, though he wasn't entirely certain she'd care. It was better to be safe than sorry.

He caught Cecilia's gaze down the wide expanse of the table, around the chattering group enjoying the food all around. He smiled at her, trying to relay how great it was to have everyone in the same place together without being forced.

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manchildish
2016-01-13 01:57 am UTC (link)

Well....this was starting to get a little tense. Jack had been very happily eating his burger, and letting the group talk out whatever ideas they had as he started to turn his own mind toward dessert. He hadn't done anything fancy, considering all else that had been going on in the kitchen for the duration of the day, and he shifted a little in his chair to pull his phone out of his pocket to check the timer he had counting down for the brownies. It was getting to be that time.

He sighed and slid the phone back, looking up toward the table and leaning his head out so he could look down the expanse of it. Shit, he should have started drinking hours ago for this.

He liked that everyone was talking, discussing, planning, but what he didn't like was this new turn of topic that likely meant people were going to start prying. The word "damaged" made him wince, because he didn't think that anyone really was. Shit happened. Shit happened to everyone, but to call someone that, even refer to yourself as that, seemed so self-deprecating that it kind of annoyed him.

"Well," he sighed conversationally, loud enough to be heard. He leaned his elbow on the table to the side of his plate, and his chin on his upraised fist as he considered everyone seated along both sides. He was mostly looking for a way to lighten the mood, but really, he just wanted the topic to move away from how some people were more fucked up than others, and how fortunate those who weren't must be. "We could look at this from a purely aesthetic standpoint." He paused, glancing around pointedly before he continued, his eyes closing for emphasis in the middle of the sentence as a small smile crept over his face. "We're all so very pretty." He paused one more time before his eyes moved again, as if waiting for a chorus of groans or denials. "No, really. I mean, that's an obvious common denominator. Statistically speaking this is kind of unbelievable." As stupid as it sounded, it was also fairly damn true. "Seriously. Look around this fucking table. No one else finds that fucking weird?"

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thatdarnoctopus
2016-01-13 04:16 am UTC (link)

"Sí, y un buen montón de gente blanca aquí en esta maldita mesa, " Marco muttered, looking to Juno with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. "Right, so, we're all pretty. Some of us are... what Kiley said," he paused as his eyes rolled back momentarily, "and we can keep naming things we have in common, but maybe we should work on questions for a second census. Unless you all want to go around the table, do the whole "hi, I'm Marco, and I'm an alcoholic" thing. I know someone's gonna say otherwise, but I think we should figure out what we want to ask each other, and we can do another survey, and talk about that shit over a second dinner. With more food. Seriously, dude, this shit's delicious." He punctuated his comment by shoving a few french fries into his mouth.

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future_dust
2016-01-13 10:11 am UTC (link)

Juno was not into the way this conversation was going. She had hated filling out the census the first time around on principle, and while she thought Cecilia and Daphne were right in that they had to have something in common as well as a reason why they were here, Juno was not keen on talking deeply about her 'damage'. Nor was she wanting to hear about everyone else's. But Kiley had a point, despite what Pam insisted on - or maybe she didn't have trauma, wasn't damaged; maybe a lot of them weren't. Juno, however, could only speak for herself and she could cover for at least three undamaged people, she was fairly certain.

After Kiley's insistence Juno wondered how long before Pam got offended, and she wasn't sure she could blame her. Leave it to Jack to defuse the situation, which made Juno crack a bit of a smile even though since this line of discussion had been opened she had tensed up in her seat and stopped eating. She did look around and found that he might be joking, but he wasn't wrong. Every face her eyes fell on was conventionally or unconventionally good looking, and she supposed hers was too. Despite it all, she did have good hair at least.

Marco's interjection earned him a raised eyebrow right back, barely there smile turned to a smirk. "Mesa blanca como montañas nevadas." She agreed. Well, he wasn't wrong. A lot of white people on that table. When he seconded doing another census her smirk fell completely, and she sighed. She really didn't want to do this, and she couldn't be the only one. After how well her other forceful revelation had gone, Juno was hard-pressed to ever say anything specific about herself to any of these people again. However, if she piped up about it, that would only bring more attention onto herself. Like so many things in her life Juno decided to just keep quiet and deal with it when the time came. All the same, she snorted humorlessly at Marco's request for another dinner. "You just wanna eat shit you didn't cook don't ya." She whispered.

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_burnbabyburn_
2016-01-13 10:20 am UTC (link)

Meanwhile, Madison had quieted down to watch this all unfold - or devolve. The girl's insistence that everyone was damaged was most likely right, and it was funny to her how Pam had to assert that she wasn't with such urgency. When Kiley continued, actively countering the statement, things seemed to be getting a lot more tense. Madison pretended not to be anxious for some blood (not literally), but did deflate when Daphne diffused the situation. Then there were jokes, then a stupid suggestion of doing it like in a support group which, while said in jest, someone would surely think was a good idea. You just have to lie, she told herself, nibbling on a french fry.

"This is assuming everyone's so ready to expose the arguably worst moments of their lives out to everyone else. I don't know, tends to be the kind of thing people would really rather not talk about, doesn't it?" She commented, hesitance all over her voice. Only part of it was faked. Another fry down the hatch, and she continued. "Though I guess from what I've been told it won't be long until They expose that kind of thing to everyone else if one but steps over some line they established anyway. So if you say it out loud, it kind of loses power, doesn't it? They can't hold it over you. So. What kind of things do you guys think we should cover that haven't been covered before?"

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hidingfromview
2016-01-13 12:32 pm UTC (link)

Tobias was having a good time. The food was really good, and it was kind of cool being included in the whole "let's get dressed up!" thing with Chase, Lennon and Kiley. For most of the night, people were chatting and seemed to be in good moods. Then Cecilia began to talk, and things got quiet. And then sort of tense? He didn't know. All he knew was once the discussion got serious, he fell silent and sort of slouched in his chair, not wanting to be drawn into talking about things. Mostly because he had no real opinion and if he had, he was sure he would have just made an ass of himself trying to explain.

So instead he focused on his food, glancing around the table at whoever was speaking at that moment, content with not actively being involved in the conversation.

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takingaim
2016-01-13 05:28 pm UTC (link)

Owen wasn't about to agree to some pseudo-therapy session where everyone aired their dirty laundry, or deeper, most-inner feelings. No, he wasn't on board with that, although he didn't think that was what anyone was suggesting. At least he hoped not. He took another pull from his beer bottle, feeling a mixture of amusement and exasperation. Were they all damaged? Was he? Sure, why not. Anyone could look at the last five years of his life and see that. Just like he could look down the table at Marco and apply that same description to him. And maybe a handful of others at the table. Nobody there was perfect, no matter how wonderful they thought their lives back home were.

But were personal issues the thing tying everyone together? Owen wasn't so sure. But he sure as hell knew it wasn't something so simple as their hometowns or their jobs.

"Maybe it's just a quality," Owen said, speaking up for the first time since he'd sat down to eat. "Either something we all share, or just something they saw in each of us as an individual. As far as I can tell, there ain't much connecting any of us in an obvious way." He paused and glanced at Jack. "Beyond physical attractiveness," he added dryly.

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thatdarnoctopus
2016-01-13 06:31 pm UTC (link)

Marco held what was left of his burger up to Juno. He smiled. "Of course I do," he said softly. "Have you tasted this shit?"

He leaned over the table, trying to look at people as they spoke. He shoved another french fry in his mouth, which was still there when he spoke up again. "If it's an individual trait for each of us, we're never going to figure out why us. Plenty of people do plenty of shit a lot better than us." He frowned and shook his head. "It'd be nice if they gave us any hints other than Hey, we've been watching you since childhood." He snapped his fingers. "I bet it was just that they chose us all when we were babies. Maybe we've had this thing in our necks since we were little. Maybe that's why there were no, uh, stitches."

He wished Lennon had been sitting closer, so he could ask if that sounded crazy. It didn't feel crazy. Well, not any more crazy than their situation.

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pumpkinbutter
2016-01-13 06:45 pm UTC (link)

Pam was oblivious to that tense feeling that everyone else seemed to be getting. Kiley had made some good points, she felt, and Pam had made some good points in return. Was she damaged? No, she didn't think so, but she knew that being so attached to her husband and her family made her weak, and that she was just as easy to manipulate as someone who had been beaten by an evil stepmother or whatever. Maybe it made her weaker. She had something to lose, after all. It was just like Daphne said, with breaking points, and whatever (she'd lost focus after Daphne Evergreen had touched her shoulder and said her name.) But it made her stronger, too, didn't it? She had something to live for.

But then they were stuck on talking about things that were supposed to be connecting them, and she sighed, dramatically. "Okay, can I say what I think, though? I think knowing what we have in common is only part of what's going to help us here. Shouldn't someone smart be trying to figure out how to do something with the pain barriers? Evie, Avram, you're, like, nerdy, computer and math stuff. Can't we split into groups or something, and people can look for a way out and others can figure out what someone like Lennon could possibly have in common with someone like Walt? Or whatever it is we're doing? I just want to figure out how to get back to Fletcher. You guys are nice, but it's been over two weeks already."

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movedthrough
2016-01-13 09:51 pm UTC (link)

So far the dinner was fantastic food-wise-- as he'd expected it would be-- and fine as far as conversation went before Cecilia had started talking. He was sitting next to Chase and Kiley with Marco and Juno not far across the table from him, and he'd been trying to talk to the people he was near but hadn't spoken with before. It really wasn't that bad of a way to spend an early evening even after the talk of house things they might need to work on started.

In all honesty, Lennon had been rather enjoying Kiley telling Pam she was full of shit... in a more diplomatic way, of course. He was also amused by Jack pointing out that one thing they all had in common was the attractiveness level. Fairly true for most of them. Personally he thought that they might never figure out what the main common denominators were; he didn't feel that it would have much to do with a basic thing like looks. He didn't much like Pam mentioning his name in what sounded to him like an insulting way, although to be fair, he tended to take anything Pam said or did with a bigger grain of salt than he would most people. He gave her a deadpan look and said, "We're both attractive and debonair as fuck... what else could it be?" Then he snorted softly and settled back in his chair, repressing the urge to tell her that he'd be cool with her getting back to Fletcher as soon as possible, too. He could be reasonably mature. Sometimes.

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bloominsnow
2016-01-14 03:08 am UTC (link)

Pam actually had a point. Kind of. "The pain barrier is something else worth talking about," Cecilia spoke up. "Owen and I hit them our first day here in a couple different places. We know they're there, but it might be worth it to try and map out where exactly they are."

In all honesty, Cecilia didn't actually believe it was possible to get past them. If there was, they wouldn't be allowed to. She'd almost entirely lost hope in that possibility. At the same time, she thought it was a good idea to know where exactly they were, and test the limits anyway. Who knew what would come of it? If nothing else, it was a way to spend the time that felt constructive, even if it wasn't. A mental placebo, which Cecilia didn't actually think was a bad thing. "So, if we could just agree on a plan for that, maybe we could put a pin in the rest of the conversation until next time. Jack did a really great job, and I know you all want to get back to the food."

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alephnull
2016-01-14 04:09 am UTC (link)

"Yeah, I was talking with—it's Chase, right?" Avram said, glancing down the table towards the guy that Pam had fingered earlier as being the one who'd made the map. "We were talking on the network about collecting some more data to make the map more accurate, anyway. If people want to volunteer to help survey the edges of town, that'd be cool. Bad news is that with no technical instruments for measuring electric fields, and not knowing where the sources are, and since the terrain around here is so uneven...I can only think of one method for figuring out the limits of the barrier and that method is gonna suck. Like I might be guilty of linear thinking there, someone else might come up with a better strategy," he admitted. He'd been turning over the problem in his head for awhile, but mathematicians weren't known for practicality and he was sure that there was some obvious method that he just wasn't seeing. "But people should probably assume that they're gonna get shocked if they volunteer, anyway. All the fun of measuring things, with the added bonus of pain, what's not to like?"

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