4918/The L Word

The L Word
Date of Scene:	14 July 2018
Location:	Xavier's School - Music Room
Synopsis:	Andrea and Mason have a DTR
Cast of Characters:	Mason Steele, Rage

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Mason Steele has posed:
    It's evening, Mason finally moved in to Xavier's. His mom wasn't happy, but she was able to be convinced that it'd be safe for him there, and given the recent incident, she was as concerned about his power becoming a problem as he was.
    There is a room that is pretty predictable for him to be found in, of course, and that's the music room, though it is late, he's decided to play some music. For a change it's not his own, it's actually Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin. He taps the pedals with bare feet, a tank and a pair of red gym shorts on.

Rage has posed:
Now that Mason has moved in, there has been a new rush of excitement within the student body as gossip has started to fly all about the halls of the school. Andrea has been bombarded with questions here and there, though she has kept tight lipped for the most part. With all the violence she has encountered lately, she is hoping to shy away from attention and just keep to her studies.

It's the music that draws her to this particular room, having a feeling of who is already here. Dressed in a pair of skinny jeans and a sun dress, she peeks into the room, then heads inside after closing the door behind her.

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason doesn't look up, though he should be able to see her peripherally. He's about 2/3 of the way through the movement. He glides across the 88 with his usual stride, looking content, something he hasn't been for a while.

Rage has posed:
As she listens, Andrea has a smile on her face as she rocks on her feet, clasping her hands tigehter as she moves in a bit closer, then takes a chair.

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason's gaze shifts toward Andrea briefly, and he gives half a smile to her. It's an acknowledgment that is split by his focus on the piece. Not many people know the entire piece by heart, but this is one that is particularly close to him. He doesn't generally play it in front of others. It's the piece he plays when he wants to just relax. Soon enough, the final chords are struck, and he releases the pedals and keys, letting the piano echo the final stroke. He lets out a breath. "Hey," he says. "You get as many questions as I have?"

Rage has posed:
"Yes, a lot of questions. I don't answer many." Andrea says as she gives him a grin, shoulders lifting upwards in a shrug. "I don't need anyone's social media to cause drama or whatever. At least none I can't control." She leans forward, placing her hands on her knees. "I love listening to you play the piano."

Mason Steele has posed:
    "Yeah?" he smiles, "I hadn't noticed. That's my favorite piece of music of all time," he says. It's not public knowledge, and he's likely never actually told her that. "It's really weird," he says. "Living in dorms? It'll take a little getting used to.

Rage has posed:
"I don't mind so much. I have a nice room. No roomie." Andrea says as she taps along the floor with her foot, then gives him a grin. "I'm glad you are here though. So I can finally ask you a very important question."

Mason Steele has posed:
    "No, I don't think Brazil will win the World Cup this year," he answers. A clear deflective humor device. There's a bit of apprehension in his eyes which he is trying to hide.

Rage has posed:
"France all the way." Andrea giggles as she gives a bit of a stretch, then says, "You wanna go to Prom with me?" She ticks her brow upwards at him.

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason is caught still off guard, despite having braced himself for something difficult. He was just closing the lid of the piano, and the surprise causes him to drop it on his thumb. "Ow! Wait, what?" he asks. "It's summer. They have a prom here?" He apparently hadn't expected such a thing. "I mean, it's a school I know, but...I didn't think they would have stuff like that."

Rage has posed:
"Hey, I'm just making sure I ask first so I can scare off any competition." Andrea laughs as she reaches out to take his hand to inspect his thumb. "If they don't have a prom here, we will. I'll put together a committee. We have social activities here and other groups. I'm sure we have dances and social events. Sides, Prom is important for kids. It's a rite of passage into adulthood. One last party before you graduate. Mutants deserve the same experiences."

Mason Steele has posed:
    "Mason shakes his head once with a smile, looking down at the floor. "Well, I guess I can't argue there," he admits. "You might not like me by the time it happens though, I seem to screw things up lately an awful lot."

Rage has posed:
"Mason, you and I have gone through a lot together. If I can take a rock in the head and forgive you, I'm sure any other dumb thing you do down the line will be a piece of cake." Andrea's hands slide over the one of his she is holding, giving it a squeeze. "And I'm not perfect either. I screw up plenty as well. But we have a ton of support here and it's okay to make mistakes as long as we learn from them and become better people afterwards."

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason doesn't move away, but there's a certain uncomfortableness still that he has at the touch. "You are just about as close to perfect as they get," he counters. "You are witty, you make friends, like...real friends, you're generous, you are forgiving. Your only fault is being pushy, and even that is like...a good thing usually."

Rage has posed:
"I'm not perfect, Mason." Andrea says with a soft sigh. "I have a ton of flaws myself that I can't control. I'm impulsive. I'm definitely pushy. I'm too laser focused and sometimes I don't see the bigger picture. I put myself in danger recklessly." She gives his hand another squeeze. "But there is a ton of good qualities you have as well. You're charming. You're good at influencing people and making them smile. You're very creative. You have a good work ethic when you put your mind to something. You make the room laugh when you open up in conversation."

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason frowns. "Yeah, you didn't see Josh deck me the other day," he says. "Don't think anyone was laughing then." He shakes his head, this time squeezing back. "How come you come after me so hard?" he asks. "I mean, you could have any guy you want, and you keep coming for me. You know I'm no good for you."

Rage has posed:
"Josh shouldn't have hit you. He was just.. upset .. " Andrea winds her fingers through his, then presses their palms together. "I know I could have.. probably a few guys if I wanted. I don't know .. Mason .. you're .. " She takes in a deep breath, then lets it out. "Come on, why do you always do this for? Stop putting yourself down. We grew up together, since we were kids. You are my best friend. Really one of my few true friends .. and I know we had a lot of time wasted due to the crap that was not within our control, but .. can we just move forward? Go back to how we used to be?" She brushes her fingers over his. "I miss the way you used to look at me. I miss your laugh. The real laugh. Not the Mason Steele celebrity laugh. I miss ignoring an entire movie because we were too busy staring into each other's eyes the entire time. You always made me feel alive."

Mason Steele has posed:
    "I do to," Mason answers. "I just know what you want in life, and I don't really meet up with the rest of it. I'm not a good Christian guy that wants to settle down and get married with 2.3 kids. I like partying, I like...recreational stuff, you know?" he shakes his head. "We just are different."

Rage has posed:
"Mason." Andrea sighs as she gives his hand another squeeze. "I'm not asking you to go to church with me. We can party together. We can do recreational stuff together." She punches him in the shoulder with her free hand. "Can you stop putting me on a pedestal and just see me as a normal girl? Your girl?"

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason laughs, "You don't even know what I mean when I say 'recreational,' Andy." He shakes his head. "Pot?" He doesn't mention any others, but continues. "I can't bring you to those parties. You don't deserve that."

Rage has posed:
"Oh, like I haven't smoked pot before." Andrea rolls her eyes upwards. "Mason, just because I'm not a stoner doesn't mean I haven't dabbled." She gives him another squeeze. "But you don't have to go to those parties. You can have fun with us. Imagine our parties as mutants. Way more fun."

Mason Steele has posed:
    "Yeah, I was using a mild example," Mason says. "I don't know how to be anyone else, Andy. It's fun, I... I don't want to stop them. I know that's not the right answer. I don't know how to explain it, you wouldn't understand." In a word, he's addicted.

Rage has posed:
"You're an addict." Andrea says bluntly. "And being here, you can have that help. Have someone like the Professor help you. Go into your head maybe? Figure out the demons and help put you at ease. I don't know.." She says as her hands squeeze his and, then brushes her fingers along his arm. "If you /know/ it's the wrong path, then don't walk it. You don't have to. You don't. Let us help you. Let me help you. Please?"

Mason Steele has posed:
    "I'm not," Mason weakly protests. "I have had enough people in my head, thanks. I'm not strong like you, Andy. I care about you a lot, I just am afraid that I'll undo all the great stuff about you, ya know? When we were together, I didn't have that stuff, a lot has happened since then. I'm not the same guy."

Rage has posed:
"You're not an addict? You practically admitted it's not good for you and that you can't help yourself." Andrea says with another frown on her face. "And you don't think I'm strong enough to help pull you up along with me?" She steps in closer to him, pushing her forehead against his. "Everyone is the same person inside, Mason. They sometimes just need a bit of help finding themselves. It's okay to ask for help."

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason gets quiet at the statement. "I don't want to hurt you," he says. "I lo- I care about you too much." He gets up from the piano bench, and walks over to the wall. The nice, boring acoustical tile to stare at. He places both hands on it, as if he was somehow going to hold it up.

Rage has posed:
"You can say the L word, Mason. It's not going to kill you." Andrea says as she watches him for a few moments. With a sigh, she heads over and curls her arms around him from behind, dropping her chin on the top of his shoulder. She leans in to whisper against his ear, "I love you. See, it's easy."

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason slides around in her hold, and leans back against the aucoustic tile, draping his arms around her. "It's easy for you," he says. He doesn't look down at her, but instead stares up at the ceiling, petting her head affectionately, somewhat like a brother might do.

Rage has posed:
"It's not easy for me." Andrea says as she softly sighs to him. "It's not easy for anyone, Mason. I need help like anyone else. I ate my neighbor's cat when my powers first manifested. Know what that is like? To know that your wolf ripped outta you, went full instinct and chased a fat tabby down and chomped him up? I was a wreck. This hasn't been easy for me. Remember my mom getting deployed and I stood up all night sobbing on the phone to you and afraid she was gonna die?"

Mason Steele has posed:
    The ticking of a clock out in the hall becomes audible in the following silence, but after what might seem like an eternity, Mason finally answers. "I do." Three more ticks go by. "I do love you." His loose hold tightens around her into a rather forceful squeeze.

Rage has posed:
Hugging him a bit tighter, Andrea leans her head in against his shoulder. "So you'll go to Prom with me?" She asks after about a minute of silence between them, followed by a muffled giggle.

Mason Steele has posed:
    Mason laughs. "Yeah, if we have a prom, I'll go with you."