Never Forget a Face

[Taylor McCarthy]

It felt weird stepping into Bellefonte Academy's gymnasium again after such a long time away.  Winter sports were in full swing now and Taylor had, unfortunately, missed too much of the football season to be able to do anything save for participate in practice and scrimmages but he had made it back before the basketball team started league play giving him a chance to play for a spot on the team considering he could shake off the rust quickly enough to earn a role within the roster rotation.

Once practice had ended Taylor opted to remain in the gym if for no other reason than to avoid the thoughts weighing on his mind.  He was back in the US and once again enrolled in college at Bellefonte.  So little had changed within the nine months he'd been away and yet it felt as though so much was missing.  He'd been on campus for over a week now and had all but avoided his younger brother, an act he was certain would end up biting him in the ass, and a certain someone he'd hoped would still be around had been nowhere to be found.  The halls of Bellefonte should have felt familiar and comforting but without the unstable foundation he'd attempted to build the place just seemed hollow and empty.

Time had passed well beyond the scheduled block where the gym was off limits for the basketball team.  A handful of others looking to get some activity in before it got too late in the afternoon trickled in driving the usually social young man to the bleachers where he'd left his duffel bag.  He took a seat and looked out over the steadily filling gym with little desire to mix with any of them.  After giving a resigned sigh Taylor decided to pack up and leave until a strangely familiar face caught his attention.

Taylor paused, watching the young woman from a distance.  She was tall, lean and it went without saying even if he hadn't be struck by a wicked case of deja vu she would have stood out among the rest of the students.  Even though he couldn't tell what she was doing or where she was going and he was hardly in the mood to socialize, Taylor found himself making his way across the gym.  Never the shy one, Taylor approached the source of his curiosity with a calm, almost practiced ease.  When he was just a few paces away from revealing to the young woman he was drawing closer with the intent to speak to her it hit him.  He remembered exactly where he remembered her from.

"Excuse me."  Taylor said politely.  Just because he was overcome with curiosity didn't mean Taylor would forget his manners (for now).  "Didn't you used to go to St. Bethany's?"  He asked, his brow furrowing in thought then.  "Clara... Carrie?"  He gave a bit of an embarrassed grin and shrugged his shoulders.  "Sorry, I'm shite with names."

[Cora James]

Cora had only just arrived to Bellefonte, but she was also making herself busy from the get go. She had spent her first few days checking out all the offered sports and enrolled into both swimming and gymnastics. She was planning on digging her fingers into more, but curiosity had drawn her to the gymnasium in an attempt to check out the competition.

One could never really be too prepared.

With pursed lips and a hand lazily resting on her hip, Cora stared at the crowd that was quickly gathering. She took it all in, every little detail. People here really didn't look much different from back home, which she supposed, wasn't all that surprising. The major difference was the accents. Some slurred and lazy and some clear and straight forward. 

Green eyes moved to an approaching figure, eyes scanning the brutish male from top to toe. She tilted her head curiously as he spoke, turning slightly so that she could properly face him. Opening her mouth to reply, her words were cut off at the male's obvious failure at remembering her name. Despite knowing that it wasn't done on purpose, Cora couldn't quite help the narrowed glare that met the boy's own curious glance.

"St. Bethany's finest and smartest, I presume?" she countered, one eyebrow arching in slight vile amusement. Yes, she too remembered the boy's face. "Boy, must they've been heartbroken to see you go." Straightening, the brunette was never one for holding a grudge for very long. "Cora."

[Taylor McCarthy]

Even though the relatively cold response he got wasn't quite what Taylor had expected it didn't come as much of a surprise. There was a brief flash of recognition in the girl's eyes but only enough to lead him to believe she hadn't remembered his name either. Again, he wasn't surprised. They'd attended the same school for years yet never really crossed paths. He could recall her being an athlete, same as him, but little else since they weren't in the same grade. No matter. It was never too late to get to know someone.

"Cora." Taylor repeated with a nod. At least he was close. Probably a lot closer than he imagined she would get if given the chance to try and recall his name. "Right, see?" He said, shrugging off any sign offense from her thinly veiled insult. "I was close." It wasn't as if the two of them were friends or even shared any classes before. Their recognition was simply residual from having attended the same academy for years.

A bit of a smirk touched Taylor's features that carried more than a hint of mischievousness. "I'll make you a bet that I remembered your name better than you remember mine." It may have been a peculiar way of breaking the ice between former schoolmates but Taylor was nothing if impulsive and a little bit odd himself. His previous romantic encounters were a testament to that. "And I'm even willing to place a wager on that."

[Cora James]

It was probably a good thing that Cora wasn't one to hold onto a grudge. Then again, it wasn't as if it had actually made her mad. Sure, it had stung in places she wasn't about to admit to, but she could hardly blame the boy for not remembering her when they'd likely never interacted.

With her narrowed glare still intact, Cora tilted her head and watched him. Then, her expression relaxed into an easy-going smile and she shrugged. "Guess you've got me there." She had no way of knowing the boy's name - nor was she stupid enough to place a losing bet on her skill for guessing either.

She was, after all, a sore loser.

"I'm not in the business of handing out free money," she continued, placing both of her hands on her hips.

[Taylor McCarthy]

"Money?" Taylor had to laugh at that one. He was hardly a rich man but money, of all things, was pretty low on his list of priorities. All he had to do whenever he saw anyone get stressed over careers or money was think about one of his uncles back in Ireland who was broke, never did a damn thing, and didn't seem to care.

"I don't want your money, luv." Taylor continued, his head shaking even though the gleam in his eyes had yet to fade. He wasn't a calculated schemer by a long shot but Taylor was well adept and forming plans on the fly. He also had enough of a devil-may-care attitude to not give a second thought as to the results or consequences of these sometimes randomly generated ideas.

"It's rare to find a friendly face around here. Not many of us bother to hop across the pond to the States." There was a certain sincerity to his voice as he spoke. He'd been back in the US for about a week and hardly seemed to recognize anything (or anyone) anymore. Thought they'd never been friends or even casual acquaintances just the simple ties to St. Bethany's offered a sense of familiarity. "A buddy of mine's having a party tonight. Just a little get together to ring in the new year. You wanna come?"

[Cora James]

Tilting her head, Cora pursed her lips. "What else is there to bet for?" she asked, honestly. Of course, there were a few others thing she could think of that'd make a wager interesting, but money was usually the fairest and simplest way to go about it.

She nodded in agreement to that. She too, hadn't been very lucky in terms of finding people she recognized from back home. "Well, you know the ol' people," she shrugged. "Buncha snobs," she added with a wink.

His invitation, however, had Cora thinking of other things than the ghosts of her pasts. "Yeah, sure," she replied with a simple shrug. Parties were usually the best way to get to know people and she was still lacking in that department, though, she was working on it. Albeit a little slowly. "When and where?"

[Taylor McCarthy]

The abrupt agreement almost surprised even Taylor. His head tilted just bit and a brief glimpse of curiosity flashed across his features before his familiar, almost oafish grin returned. It was apparent Taylor didn't have much of an agenda when it came to all but asking Cora out after two sentences. What he'd told her was the truth even if he did leave out a few variables to the equation.

"Yeah?" He asked rhetorically, though he didn't pause long enough to let Cora reconsider. He hadn't been particularly invested in the answer, as her declination wouldn't have sent him into a depression, but it was obvious he was pleased with the outcome. "A couple buddies of mine were going to ride into town together." Taylor explained. "Meet in the courtyard at, say, eight tonight?"

[Cora James]

Perhaps it was odd agreeing to something a stranger (well, somewhat of a stranger) had suggested, but Cora saw no harm in it. After all, she could take care of herself if something were to happen and besides, the big brute didn't exactly strike her as someone who'd fuck someone over for the shits and giggles.

Lifting her hands to her head, she slid her fingers through her hair and formed a tight ponytail that dangled restlessly down her neck and upper back. "Sounds like a plan," she replied with an easy going smile. A free party and a likely free ride? Well, she'd obviously struck gold.

"Anything I need to bring?" she asked, though before allowing him to reply, she continued, "Other than my ever graceful and charming company, of course," she grinned.

[Taylor McCarthy]

The logic seemed flawless in Taylor's mind. He was (mostly) harmless and largely interested in simply having a night where he could find a distraction from his troubles, hence his plan to attend the party in the first place. Cora's agreement to tag along was just the icing on the cake and all he had to do was ask. It was almost enough for him to wonder why so many of his peers had trouble talking with girls.

"I think your charming company will be more than enough." Taylor replied with a bit of a smirk and a shrug. He wasn't about to ask a girl out and then have her provide anything. He may not have been the most chivalrous and courteous of guys but he knew how first impressions usually worked, especially in these situations.

"Oh, by the way." Taylor paused right before he turned to head to the locker rooms to shower and change. He looked to Cora, studying her a bit and feeling a strange sense of deja vu. The feeling was met with a hint of curiosity. He already knew where he'd met her before, why did he have the odd sensation there was something... else? No matter. He would quickly shrug off the feeling and move on. "I'm Taylor, in case you didn't remember."

---

---

He may have been the one who presented the idea of the party but it was Taylor who nearly forgot about it.  The clock was just passing 8pm when the plans flashed into his mind.  He jumped off his couch and and quickly pulled on a clean shirt and a hoodie to stave off the cold before bounding out of the dorms and heading for the courtyard.  Thankfully he was only a few minutes late.  The messages on his phone told him it was too late to catch a ride with his buddies, but hopefully the girl he'd asked out hadn't headed along the same path and made her way out of the cold, leaving him to spend the rest of the evening alone.

Taylor all but flew out of the dorms and almost slid his way down the icy steps.  He was thankful his power kept him from face planting on the paved walk that lead to the courtyard.  If Cora was still waiting on him he didn't want to show up with a black eye.  With one last look at his watch which read '8:13 PM', Taylor exhaled sharply at his own negligence and started forward, his eyes up to see if he could spot Cora anywhere nearby.

[Cora James]

Although Cora had never been one for making things on time, she had made sure that she wouldn't be late for her first party invite. Likely the first of many. After all, she did consider herself something of a joy to have around. Especially at parties. She wasn't shy and she enjoyed riling things up. She enjoyed putting some fire onto dying flames and she was more or less all about having a good time.

Sitting on the seats next to the fountain, Cora held one hand in the air to create a force field to shield her from the gentle falling snow and used the other to scroll idly through her phone, looking for something, anything to take her mind away from the boredom of waiting.

It wasn't until she heard the approaching footsteps that she looked up. Green eyes scanned the surrounding area before finally falling upon a semi-familiar face. "Howdy," she greeted him. She put her phone into her pocket and used her free hand to jerk her thumb over her shoulder. "Our ride left almost fifteen minutes ago." Still with the force-field hanging over her head like an umbrella, Cora shrugged.

[Taylor McCarthy]

Taylor paused to study the girl for a moment. She didn't seem upset or even particularly bothered by his lateness, rather taking the bump in the road of the night in stride. He found that a commendable trait and a bit of a sheepish grin spread across his features as he drew closer, hands slipping into the pockets of his hoodie. He gave a nod, eyes flicking up to the clear barrier catching the snow above Cora. "Yeah. So it seems." He replied calmly, as if that had been his plan all along.

He looked up, taking a second to watch the snow falling around them before glancing to Cora. He weighed their options and offered a faint shrug of his shoulders. "It's a nice night for a walk." He said, almost amused at the situation. He gave another shrug. "If we get closer to town we can call a cab." His dark eyes remained on Cora, studying her. "If it's not too cold for you." He added almost teasingly.

[Cora James]

Getting to her feed, Cora rolled her shoulders back while keeping the umbrella-shield nicely tucked above her head, keeping her body mostly safe from the falling snow. "I don't mind," she shrugged. Of course, the party sounded a lot more interesting than a walk, but she wouldn't complain about the company. A walk with someone was better than hanging out in her room alone... Unless Tami was around, of course. That girl seemed nice enough.

"You need some shielding?" she asked, gesturing towards the shimmering surface above her head. It didn't seem like the guy minded the snow, but she could at the very least offer. It was about as much kindness she could offer at this point.

[Taylor McCarthy]

It may not have been the ideal situation but Taylor didn't particularly mind. He rarely planned ahead even for the simplest of events choosing instead to fly blindly into whatever weather happened to be in front of him. It was cold, yes, and the snow wasn't helping but there was no use in crying over things that couldn't be taken back. At least now it gave him a few (sober) moments alone with the current source of his curiosity.

"Sure." Taylor replied with a thankful nod and stepped beneath the unorthodox umbrella. The closeness was oddly welcome even if his intentions were driven by curiosity rather than any other carnal want. He gestured in the direction leading toward the front gate where the two could make their way off campus and head in the direction of Kalispell, hopefully to meet a cab driver before the cold became too unbearable.

"So tell me." Taylor started, glancing in Cora's direction as he slowly walked along. "Why did you end up coming here instead of finishing school at St. Bethany's?"

[Cora James]

Allowing the force field to stretch enough for both of them to be properly covered, Cora's eyes fell forward once more. It was in times like these that her power proved the most useful. Had anyone once told her she'd become a mutant with an ability - and then continued on to tell her she'd be a human umbrella, she would have been extremely disappointed.

"Hmm?" she mused, head tilting. "I'm more of a Starbucks person rather than Earl's Grey," she replied, eyebrows raising in obvious humor. "Much more caffeine." Cora had never been one for getting too personal with, well, anyone. Nor was there few things, or in this case, questions she deemed worthy enough for a serious question.

"You?"

[Taylor McCarthy]

Taylor nodded faintly as Cora gave her answer. He didn't for the life of him actually believe she was being serious but even in her vague, amused response there were bits of information about the already enigmatic young woman to be found. In fact, Taylor thought her answer to be on the wittier side of things. It wasn't every day someone cited caffeine as a reason for moving to a different country.

"I came here a couple years ago." Taylor wasn't quite ready to let slip with his entire life story but he didn't feel nearly as enthusiastic about humor as Cora just yet. "Mostly to be closer to my brother." His eyes rolled at that though, hinting at there being far more to the story than he was going to divulge. "I guess I'm sticking around because the States are just more interesting than Ireland." He admitted.