[CT] Cold Water

[Everett King]

Erika Bellefonte

In the early morning hours of the day, Everett found himself gravitating towards the water. There were canoeing and fishing activities planned, but Ever wasn't too interested in either that morning. He was incredibly keen to show some students how to properly prepare and eat the fish they caught later in the week, and canoeing would surely be relaxing provided no one drowned, but neither had brought him down to the water that early morning.

He had decided to go for a swim, not deterred by the supposed fish swimming about or the quality of the water. Surely there was nothing swimming around that would kill him and really, he wouldn't have minded so much if there was. It'd make an interesting story. The main thing he recognized as he pushed through the brush was that he needed quiet, and he needed to get away just a little bit. He didn't particularly dislike any of the men he had been hooked into a cabin with, but he was also an individual that preferred his personal space. Awoken by loud snoring just before dawn, he'd struck out on his own for the water.

He was floating around on his back, paddling the water absently. He'd spent a good half hour actually swimming quite furiously. He'd needed to in order to keep warm. Something he accounted for, but really should have, was the freezing temperature. Now as he floated he could feel a cold tightness in his chest but was so incredibly relaxed that he really didn't want to leave the water's embrace. He was that immature, to consider hypothermia for just a few more moments of relaxation. Clearly a wonderful choice for chaperone.
Eventually he was driven to shore by the cold and pulled himself out of the water, shaking himself with a shiver. He headed for the towel he'd packed, stored under a tree with his drawing journal and a light breakfast picnic. He pulled to a stop, eyes wide with surprise and toned body lightly shivering as he realized there was someone coming out of the treeline, recognizing the figure almost immediately. "Erika," he smiled teasingly, reaching for his towel. "Bit early for skinny dipping, isn't it?"

[Erika Bellefonte]

Once again, the young telekinetic found herself wanting a break from the hustle and bustle. As much as she enjoyed the annual camping trips, she too needed a little break from her fellow students and the staff. Though, from what she had gleamed from between the trees, she wasn't the only one. Curiosity edged her forward until she reached the lake. Arms crossed, she leaned against one of the trees and tilted her head, amusement coloring her expression.

"Well, not unless you want to end up with a severe case of various health issues." As much as Erika loved swimming or water in general, she wasn't brave enough to take a dip into the icey lakes of the national park. February wasn't exactly the month one would expect anyone would want to.

"So, they roped you in as a chaperone? That must suck," she mused. She didn't envy any of the chaperones for having to be here. She knew for a fact that the students of Bellefonte had a tendency to get a little wild once free from the school's clutches. What better way was there to release such a wild side than being  a part of a truth and dare game?

[Everett King]

Everett pulled his towel up over his head and left it to sit there like a shawl, falling over his shoulders. He crossed his arms over his chest, half to conserve a little body heat and also because....well there was an attractive woman staring at him half naked. He wasn't decent and it certainly wasn't proper. "Various health issues?" He repeated with a smirk. "Boy you know how to make me sound bad-ass. I'm going to have pneumonia by the end of the day." And it would still be totally worth it.

He used the towel to rub his neck dry, then started tussling his hair roughly. It had grown longer without him noticing and when he lifted the towel it sprung up in blonde, haphazard clumps. "Not at all," he replied voice muffled as he dried his face. "I get to cook and I get the equivalent of a holiday. Where's the downside?" He was out in a national park, swimming at dawn. He'd never taken a holiday for himself but this was what he imagined it would be like. Sure he had to cook, but that wasn't exactly a negative in Ever's book. "You make it sound like these trips are designed as torture camps." He laughed, gently patting his scarred forearm.

A chill wind blew through the trees and his shivers became more violent. Ever glanced to the tree where his spare change of clothes lay, then he looked back at Erika, an awkward expression appearing on his face. "Uh...Can you...?" He twirled his finger in a circle with embarrassment, indicating for Erika to turn around so he could quickly strip.

[Erika Bellefonte]

"Well," she laughed, "Not everyone would take a swim in the beginning of February," she pointed out, trying to force the smirk down. "I'd say that either makes you badass - or a fool." As much as she too enjoyed the water, she wasn't nearly brave (Or foolish) enough to take a dip. She much enjoyed the warmth rather than the cold. She would never have survived in Alaska. Ever.

She had to admit that his positive outlook on everything surprised her. Perhaps she was far too used to people seeking out everything negative. She also realized how truly depressing that sounded. Shrugging, she couldn't quite keep the sheepish smile from glazing over her plump lips. "Yeah, well," she gestured around her. "You don't have to attend as a student," she pointed out. "But I guess it could be worse. One year, we had a couple kids go haywire. They almost burned one of the cabins down." Erika might or might not have been part of that group.

The same awkward expression the man carried was mimicked in the telekinetic's own face and she quickly swirled around. "uh, yeah, of course." She was far too used to living in the co-ed dorms to really be bothered by people being half naked. She had seen far more than she cared to admit. She hadn't realized that he might have found himself in a less than flattering position.

[Everett King]

He accepted her logic easily enough, giving a lopsided shrug. It would be nice to simply accept the title of badass and be done with it, but the word just didn't seem to fit with the image he had of himself. 'Fool' seemed to fit so much better. "I think to be badass you need a reason to do what you're doing." His smile broadened, teeth flashing. "I was just bored. Pretty sure that makes me an idiot for not choosing knitting, or something less hypothermia-inducing."

He looped the now soggy towel over his shoulders, slightly warmer after the vigorous rub-down he had given himself. The blue swim trunks were still suctioned to his form though, pretty much destroying any of the warmth he'd managed to gather. "That's true," he conceded, even thinking that attending as a student would have been just as much fun. If with a little less freedom. "Did they lose control?" The concern in his voice evident, even if the situation had happened years back and had nothing to do with him, and held absolutely no relevance now. He was a sucker apparently. "Or just teenagers being teenagers?"

His relief was evident when Erika turned around, his face likely as red as hers. Seizing the opportunity he quickly dacked himself and tossed the trunks away, pulling on his underwear and oversize grey tracksuit pants. No wait, he only pulled on his tracksuit pants.....Shit. After a furtive search it was evident he had forgotten a rather crucial piece of clothing and sighed in defeat, not at all surprised. He stood and subtly tried to hook his fingers into the hem of his pants holding them up over his hips. "Ok, ah...done." When Erika turned around he offered her a smile of gratitude. "Didn't think you'd fancy a show this early in the morning. Thanks, dove."

[Erika Bellefonte]

"Knitting," she repeated, immediately amused by the image. Though, she also caught herself, realizing how sexist saying something like that was in 2017. Still, she could be inwardly amused, right? "Well, I'll hold off the judges to see how you fare onward," she said instead, smirking.

"That depends," she began, head tilting. "Do you really want to know?" She'd come to know that a lot of Bellefonte's school staff now refused to attend because of the various tricks the students had pulled over the years. She wondered if anyone would do anything similar this year, though decided it was better left untouched for the time being.

When Erika turned, her brown eyes automatically fell towards Everett's poor attempt at, well, keeping himself somewhat decent. Quickly, she lifted her gaze. "You'd be surprised at what goes on in the cabins at night," she shrugged easily. After all, from what she'd heard, quite a lot of virginities had been lost in these woods.

[Everett King]

He realized it wasn't a common skill for most people to brag about, but it had taken Everett quite a while to learn the basics of knitting, and he rather enjoyed it. He was quite good at sewing too, though that had been something his mother had taught him years ago. So he wasn't really embarrassed by Erika's surprise and likely amusement. He just chuckled. "I can sew too. Single man living alone has to know these things. Either that, or get used to walking around with holes where they shouldn't be."

His gaze steadied, expression steeling slightly in the face of Erika's teasing. It wasn't a closed-off expression, really he was trying to be as earnest as possible. "I wouldn't ask otherwise. Questions of futility, and polite small talk don't really interest me," he said, even and serious. He'd always been incredibly direct, and generally made a point of not engaging in things that didn't interest him. Burning down cabins seemed eerily familiar, and definitely interesting.

Everett unconsciously followed Erika's gaze, then awkwardly cleared his throat. He bent down again to seize his t-shirt and quickly pulled it on, sandwiching his legs together to keep the pants from sliding too far. He generally liked the extra room they gave him, but he felt oddly vulnerable in them without underwear. Funny that. The grey material did slide farther down his hips, but not dangerously so. His bummy shirt also hung loose, stating in large, faded letters, 'I WAS ADDICTED TO THE HOKEY POKEY BUT I TURNED MYSELF AROUND'. Everett shot Erika a speculative glance. "I'm not sure anything could surprise me at this point." His arms crossed and he gave a mock, disappointed glare. "There rounds of strip poker or something going on that I don't know about?"

[Erika Bellefonte]

"Sewing I can get on board with," she chuckled. Studying fashion design kind of meant you had to know how to do the basics of making clothes. It wasn't all about drawing. Erika had come to find herself enjoying using her hands in different ways than holding a pen or brush. It was something entirely different actually making your own clothes.

Making a note of his words, the brunette's teasing expression fell and grew somber. "It was a little bit of both, to be honest. It started out as teenagers being teenagers, but then someone took it too far." She offered a slight shrug at it. No one had gotten hurt and the damages had been paid for. But there had been quite the yelling match afterwards.

Erika made a real attempt to not notice... Well, you know. Chewing on the inside of her cheek, she found the only appropriate place to set her gaze; right above the guy's head. Once he finished getting dressed, her gaze dropped back down. Shrugging, the brunette pursed her lips in contemplation. "Among other things." She furrowed her brows then. "You were a teenager once. You know how these things go."

[Everett King]

He supposed that made sense, what with Erika studied fashion, if he remembered correctly. Patching up holes and adding little embellishments to his outfits were usually left to late at night, where he could curl up in a chair with fuzzy socks and a cup of hot chocolate to work with. It wasn't a hobby he was ashamed of, but he kept it private because of how much he cherished the therapeutic time.

Everett found himself nodding, feeling sympathetic towards Erika even though she hadn't been involved in the accident herself. Something in the tone of her voice seemed so sombre that he couldn't help himself. "That's often the way it goes," he offered in morose agreement. "Was anyone hurt?" He was likely more concerned than he had any reason to be, but perhaps that was just his curiosity shining through. The thought made him feel slightly guilty and he decided to drop the issue.

He chuckled, and offered a slight shrug. "Most of my teenage forays were made alone, unfortunately." It wasn't that offers hadn't come up, and Everett was certainly friendly, but back in his highschool days he'd preferred his solitude. It was only in the recent years, when he had become completely comfortable with himself, that Ever had begun reaching out to people again. Strip poker was sadly something he'd never been involved in. Regular poker though, was one of his hidden talents; and a secret source of pride. He held up his hands in a stop gesture, mock grimacing. "I'm technically staff here. If you're doing the dirty, I probably don't want to know about it, right?"

He gathered the last of his things and made to begin walking back, indicating his head in askance, wondering if Erika would join him.

[Erika Bellefonte]

Shaking her head, Erika offered him an easy smile. "No." At least not terribly so. The worst had been a few scratches and simple burns. Nothing that would leave any scars - emotional or physical. In hindsight, Erika was glad things had gone as well as they had. She wasn't sure her consciousness could quite deal with having seriously injured someone.

"Nothing wrong with that," she offered with a shrug. In fact, solitude was something the young telekinetic often wanted more than anything. Sadly, it wasn't something she thought she'd ever find, unless she somehow decided to run away and move as far away from the mutant community as she possibly could. "Unless you're one of those staffers that participate," she countered, eyebrows raising. He didn't cross her as the type, but he wouldn't exactly be the first staffer who used the camping trip as a way to... Well, you know.

Turning and following him, Erika jogged to catch up to him. "What do you mean by 'technically staff'?"