Room 223, Early Monday Evening

[whenshewasnice]

It was already the evening when Natalie made it back from Montreal. Leaving had been harder than it should have been, somehow. Being sure of the basics of how the world functioned provided a kind of comfort she couldn't help feeling. And maybe clinging to, just a little. It had been a good weekend, by her standards. Reading, music, a few walks around the city that happened to coincide with a phonecall or two back to Fandom.

And now she was here again. She'd dropped her bag on her bed and taken off her jacket, and right now... She was standing in the middle of the room, looking around and wondering whether there was room for a keyboard, and whether Tara would mind, and whether she'd actually play even if she did get one. Her parents had offered to pay for one, after an idle mention of having played something on the Fall Break. Privately, she thought they were offering mostly so she'd keep the skill up and keep playing songs for family at Christmas.

Regardless, she was considering it. She just wasn't coming to any sort of a conclusion.

[ooc: Open door, open post, I'm on Fall Break now myself, whoot.]

Comments

[necroslacker]

Sam's eyebrows arched up but he looked pleasantly surprised more than anything else. "Get nostalgic for it when we were in Canada or something?"

[whenshewasnice]

She suppressed the urge to roll her eyes at that wording. "My parents offered to get me one."

Of course, they hadn't offered that just out of the blue for no reason.

[necroslacker]

"My mom's offered to get me riding lessons before but that doesn't mean I wanted them," Sam said, happy to point out the flaw in her logic there.

[whenshewasnice]

This time, Natalie did roll her eyes. It had been inevitable. "I mentioned something about playing piano during the break."

[necroslacker]

"Was it really so hard to admit that?" Sam wondered, raising an eyebrow. "I don't think it was. So, why don't you have a keyboard now? I thought you'd jump on the offer."

[whenshewasnice]

"I wasn't sure one would even fit here," she claimed with a one-sided shrug, as she finally moved to come closer to the door. "I wouldn't have wanted to lug one through the portal, anyway."

[necroslacker]

"You think you're gonna say yes to the offer, then?" Sam wondered. "Seems like a keyboard would fit and it'd give you more to do than just reading and homework. The books would get jealous but I bet you can handle that."

[whenshewasnice]

"I also watch stuff," Natalie pointed out, like that made any difference. She stopped once she was at about an arm's reach from him, and shrugged again. "I haven't decided yet."

[necroslacker]

"Well, let me know when you do?" Sam requested, smiling briefly at her. "I'd like to come down the hall and listen to you play if I can. I liked it in Canada. I really liked it."

[whenshewasnice]

"I'm not going to get an instrument just because you like live music, Sam," she replied. Just ignore the smile she was sort of trying to hide. "You have your records."

[necroslacker]

"Come on, I know that," Sam said, crossing his arms and shaking his head. "You're gonna get an instrument because of me. You'll get it because of you but I can't like the combination of you and an instrument? I liked watching you do your thing back in Canada."

[whenshewasnice]

"We'll see." And that was all she'd say about that for now. "How was the weekend?"

The parts where she hadn't called, anyway.

[necroslacker]

"Eh." He shrugged a shoulder. "I didn't go to the dance. I wandered around the mainland, finished the last book you assigned to me, and did a lot of skateboarding. I just laid low. I did go to the carnival but only to get a funnel cake and check out the booths."

[whenshewasnice]

"How was the book?" No, she wasn't going to have a pop quiz on it, either. Just pure curiosity that made her tilt her head slightly. "Like it?"

[necroslacker]

"Yeah, actually, but I like fairy tales like that," Sam said, shrugging. "I'd seen the movie but didn't even know there was a book. It was a good, entertaining read. I liked it. It was fun."

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie had so many comments to make, but she kept them to herself because they were all far too revealing for right now.

"Good," was all she'd say. "I would've hated to have bored you."

Not really.

[necroslacker]

Sam didn't believe that but he shrugged and didn't say anything. "Well, I wasn't bored. So, good choice on the books. None of them made me want to go jump off a building."

[whenshewasnice]

"That would've been interesting reaction to either." That much, at least, was honest. "And it might've made me unhappy."

[necroslacker]

"Might?" Sam asked, sounding amused. "Only might?"

[whenshewasnice]

"What's wrong with 'might'?" Natalie asked right back. "Did you want something more forceful?"

[necroslacker]

"Maybe more definitive," Sam clarified, shrugging. "Might sounds like there's a chance you wouldn't be unhappy if I jumped off a building."

[whenshewasnice]

"And saying neither of my books made you want to do that implies there's a chance some books out there might," she retorted. "You can exaggerate but I can't do the opposite?"

[necroslacker]

"Hey, I never said any book might make me jump off a roof," Sam pointed out. "I said your books didn't make me do that but I could have added that no book would make me do that because I don't take books that seriously."

[whenshewasnice]

"And I could have just said that you jumping off a building would make me sad," Natalie returned, "but I don't always like to spell things out."

[necroslacker]

"Yeah, but wouldn't it have been easier to just say that?" Sam wondered, tilting his head until it almost rested against the door jamb.