Group: Acting
Posts: 20
Member No.: 45
Joined: 8-December 08
(Well, here is my first post on the site. Please join…I won’t feel so lonely if you do. *Big Smile*)
Laundry. If there hadn’t been anything she had grown to hate at Owen’s it was doing laundry. Not because she hated how long it took, or that half the time she ended up mixing up loads, it was that the place wreaked of detergent. It was sickening, so flowery and strong. If she inhaled too sharply, she could taste the soap at the back of her mouth. If she stayed too long, the scent would drive her into a migraine. That was why she didn’t like doing laundry.
Lidia sat on top of a humming dryer, the load circling about in the machine thumping loudly whenever a pair of overall buckles hit the edge. Her legs dangled over the edge of the warmed metal, kicking back and forth lightly as a magazine laid open across her lap. Lidia was completely sucked into the story about some Black Metal band. In some strange way, these metal had it right. When it came to music, Lidia could see the theatrics vividly. In Jazz the adventurous young couple out on a wild ride. In pop the heart broken girl scorning her love by tossing the television out the window while he was down below swearing he hadn’t cheated on her. And in this brand of music, she could see the hatred and the betrayal of it all. How one day, they would storm the world by surprise and be the overlords for their master, Satan. It was written all over their faces as well. The black and white makeup meant to make the members appear scary and full of authority. Each was adorned in black leather with steel spikes poking out on their ankles and forearms. They reminded her of how the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood looked in her mind. Evil and scheming an up rise. There were those that simple went with torn up black shirts and leather pants though, more modern. Those were the ones that Lidia had a hard time figuring out.
A loud buzzard sounded next to her. Not prepared for such a disturbance so soon, Lidia jumped up and sent her magazine fluttering to the ground. “ Damned it,” she cursed, sliding smoothly off the dryer ,” I hate that sound. Why not make whistling birds…or OH maybe music! But noooo, got to have the annoying buzzer. Got to feel like I’m at a basketball game,” normally, Lidia wasn’t a complainer, but being stuck in the stuffy, ill scented, white washed room forced her to.
Lidia ripped the door opened to the Washer and began to threw it contents into an empty basket. It was her last load of colors before the whites had to be washed. A flood of relief washed over her. Almost done, just two more loads and time to go back to the dorm. Another month of laundry down, one more to come.
Lee had been sitting in a chair a few dryers down when he heard Lidia cursing. He'd been listening to his Ipod on full volume, but still heard her bitching about something. Lee looked up at the girl.
Nobody liked doing laundry. Lee hated doing it. He only did his laundry about once a month, and it was only because he needed more boxers to wear, or something like that. He could wear the same T-shirt five times in a row without feeling bad about it. That's just who he was.
"Can you stop bitching?" He called over. "Nobody likes doing their damn laundry but we're all down here doing it."
He put his ear buds back into his ears and hit the play button. The sounds of Linkin Park rang through the thin ear buds and into his ears. Hopefully there would be no more distractions. Linkin Park's music many times inspired Lee for his next great "masterpiece." He was museless right now, and wanted a boost of something for his paper due on Tuesday. People cursing the washing machine was the last thing he needed.
Group: Acting
Posts: 20
Member No.: 45
Joined: 8-December 08
(Thank you for joining! Oh and no insult meant towards Linkin Park)
Lidia was just about to toss the washed clothes to the side and put in her load of whites when she was interrupted from her ritual of hating the experience. It wasn’t as if being in there was already annoying enough, but add in somebody else butting into her business, and that turned into a bad experience. She turned her head slowly towards the guy, glaring all the more. The fact that he didn’t even bother to hear her retaliation to his ignorant suggestion unnerved Lidia. Of all the people she got stuck with, she had to get the guy who couldn’t simply ignore her random outbursts of anger towards the machines. Why couldn’t he be nice? If he shared the hate of laundry washing then why didn’t he just shut up and let her seethe over the task that even as a little kid she had refused to do?
Slamming the lid to the washer shut, Lidia began to mock the guy. What ever his name was. He had never been in any of the same classes, nor had they ever spoken to each other that came to mind. “ Can you stop bitching?” her voice was crude and nasally, trying to make it as snotty as possible. It’s not like he could hear her anyways, with that music blaring in his ears ,” And Linkin Park can suck on cock for all I care,” This was Lidia at her most childish stage. Twisting the knobs roughly and pressing start, she took her perch and the magazine that had fallen to the floor,’ One more god damned load and I’m out of here,’ the thought ran through Lidia’s head and pulled a smile across her full lips.
Lee laughed at Lidia. As if her words meant anything to him anyways. As long as she wasn't distracting him, he didn't really care what she thought of his taste in music. She was entitled to her thoughts and he was to his.
He looked down at the pad of paper in his lap. He'd written several different things down on there, mostly story concepts but some were just little doodles when he couldn't concentrate. "So what do you prefer to listen to then?" He quietly said. There was no need to raise his voice or anything. She was already riled up and he thought she was probably ready to fire off another strange insult.
Lee looked back up at Lidia. He awaited a response as he drew a picture of her face on his notepad.
Group: Acting
Posts: 20
Member No.: 45
Joined: 8-December 08
Did he just really laugh? Lidia buried her nose further into the magazine, not really taking in the text about uprising bands and concert reviews. The page was clashing together in a violent way, the little black figures fighting each other, blurring into one single blob upon the page. Anger had an odd way of playing tricks on eye sight.
Finally giving up, she set the madness of fighting words to the side. There was no use pretending to read if your eyes didn’t know which way to go. She sat there for a second, a little out of place before Lee spoke up again. This time, with no harsh request or rude come back. Lidia was still on guard though, this could be a trick. Draw her in a little bit and then the insult would be more damaging. Most people were like that, Lidia had noticed, even to their own friends. She knew her response would be a little out there, since here she was, in a Purple vest, a white undershirt, and blue jeans. Taking a moment to deliberate the right words she said ,” Depends. Mostly just Heavy Metal, but I have a soft spot of orchestrated music as well. Like Apocalyptica,” her hand gestures were nearly wild and flowing with her words. It was a trait she had picked up from her father,’ Talk with your hands, it’s more expressive,’ he had always said.
“ And you?” she pointed briefly to the note pad on his lap ,” That's for art or something?” He had been sitting there the whole time with it, scribbling whatever on the pages. She figured it would be nice to ask to keep this somewhat peace treaty going.
"Everything," Lee replied. "I like everything from the Beatles to Muse." He liked all types of Rock and Roll and alternative stuff. He wasn't really picky. "Just none of that pop shit or musicals," He said. "I couldn't listen to that stuff if my mother paid me."
He looked down at his notepad. It now had more doodles than actual concepts. "I'm a writer," He said. "The music helps me think of things to write about. Nothing is really coming right now." His muse wasn't there right now, and talking to Lidia wasn't really helping. Most of his fiction had come from stories about his brother going to war. He needed something new though, something fresh.
Group: Acting
Posts: 20
Member No.: 45
Joined: 8-December 08
Lidia nodded and started to pick through the washed clothes, paying attention to his words. She had to try to hide the fact that they actually agreed on something. He hated pop and musicals. Lidia loathed pop to it’s very core of existence, and as for musicals, she only enjoyed a choice few, the rest she wished would have stayed in the author’s mind. But Lidia didn’t comment on it, figuring that would open up too much friendliness, and as far as she was concerned, she wasn’t done being mad.
Turning a pair of florescent orange socks outside right, Lidia looked up at Lee, staring at his notebook for a minute before his face. A writer coming up blank, now that was a problem. “ Well, I may be the twit that just acts out what writer’s write, but I know a few things about literature. Maybe I could help a little…sort of,” she said and set the pair of socks down. She heaved herself up on a dryer and scratched her forehead before saying anything further.
“ Maybe music isn’t the key this time. Maybe a painting or scene of unwritten words is the key,” She wasn’t sure if she was making any scense at the moment, but if there was one thing that Lidia knew, it was that there was a connection between writing and plays. She was in theatre after all, she forced words into emotion and an idea into reality. Perhaps it could work the other way around ,” Instead of listening to someone else’s work, maybe you should try to find it yourself,” At that moment, Lidia wanted top hit herself over the head with a dryer door. In two seconds she had turned from raving hating bitch, to counseling fortune cookie.
Lee looked at Lidia. He knew that he could inspire his own ideas. It was just difficult for him recently. Lee could only write about his brother a few times. Any more would be boring the hell out of the readers. He did think that looking at art could inspire something.
Lee made a mental note to run by the art building and look at some of the works of art. "Thanks for the suggestion," he said, turning off his Ipod. He shoved the black box into his pocket. "So you're an actress? What are some of your favorite plays?" He was curious. Lee wanted to understand what made this girl go from ticking time bomb to caring in a matter of seconds. He realized she may have mood swings, but it was a little early to tell. Lee kept that fact in his mind.
Group: Acting
Posts: 20
Member No.: 45
Joined: 8-December 08
Lidia nodded to his thanks, her eyes were glued to the spiraling colors in the washer across from her. On the outside it appeared as if she were watching something intently, but on the inside the mixtures of blues, reds, and greens didn’t matter. ‘ You’ve got to be an idiot. Stay mad! Please?’ she thought, imagining her father laughing at her right now. ‘ Never could stay mad could you?’ she’d hear him say after a fight with one of her friends,’ You’re like you’re mother, so nurturing,” Lidia hated to hear that, hated being an understatement. How could he compare her to a woman she didn’t even know? It wasn’t like this guy knew that. Which she was thankful for. People liked people they knew would forgive them no matter what. Not if they ripped that person’s feeling right out of their chest, or damage their image. Nope. They expected to be forgiven.
Forcing herself from those train of thoughts, she zoned back in on Lee. She didn’t even know his name, and yet, she really didn’t care. Though if he hadn’t asked her to shut up, she probably would have still been seething over laundry. ‘ Score one, Lia!’ she cheered in her head,’ That way you can make it seem you as if you’ll never talk to him again! Good girl! Stay mad!’ Though she did smile at his questions. “ I am,” she lifted her head to beam at him. She knew no other way of life but the stage. It was all Lidia had been exposed to as a child, all that she really cared to know,” I do mostly Shakespearian plays, but there are a few modern ones like Pippin and Tristan and Isolde, that are tolerable. Hate musicals, can’t sing or dance and the music is always ill-written,” she said wondering if he was at all interested. Most people thought Shakespeare was boring, but that was because they went to the dummied down versions,” You ever been to the theatre wing?”
Lee laughed at the thought of the theater wing. He'd dated a theater girl last year. She'd ended up being the first girl to ever break his heart. He couldn't help but think about how screwed up of a relationship that had been. "I've been there plenty of times," Lee replied. "I dated a girl from that department last year." He wondered if Lidia knew that girl. Lee didn't want to ask though. It could make whatever kind of moment he was having with this new girl ruined, and that was the last thing he wanted.
Around then, he had an urge for a cigarette. He spotted a small window that was cranked open to let some air in. "Do you mind if I smoke?" He asked Lidia. He was usually nice about asking if people were okay with it. He pulled his pack of cigarettes and a lighter out of his jeans pocket. The box was slightly crumpled, but the cigarettes inside weren't damaged.
Group: Acting
Posts: 20
Member No.: 45
Joined: 8-December 08
Lidia thought back but couldn’t remember him there last year, she would have been a Freshmen then. He seemed a tad bit older then herself, but most of her life was dedicated to being on stage, she was sure she would have at least heard of him. Then again, the relationship scene was bothersome. So Lidia tended not to pay much attention to couples and who was interested in who. It was all too confusing and repulsive, ” Ah,” she said finally, not sure what else to say. If Lidia did know the girl, they obviously weren’t friends of any sort.
Smokes was a good topic changer though. Lidia shrugged and hopped down, walking over to the window and holding her hand out,” I don’t care as long as I can have one,” Lidia wasn’t really a smoker. Maybe a few every once in awhile. Her father had been a smoker before the cigarette prices went up. It was cheaper to chew gum then smoke,” They’re supposedly bad for you, but who wants to live to be a hundred to begin with?”
"Right," Lee replied as he handed over one of his cigarettes. She was right about that. Lee didn't really care about the health effects. It was just a dirty habit he'd picked up when Joe had left for the war. He clicked his lighter and lit the cigarette. He tossed it over to Lidia, since he thought lighting a stranger's cigarette might be a little awkward since they had just met.
He held his hand outside the window as he exhaled the smoke. "You're not all that bad, kid," Lee said looking out the small window. "What' your name?" He figured since they'd probably see each other around school that he'd ask for her name. She'd bummed one of his cigarettes too.
Lee looked over at his washers and dryers. Not too much progress seemed to be made. He couldn't help but think about how long he'd been down there. It was the result of waiting for weeks and weeks to do his laundry. It was one of his least favorite things to do around campus. Having Lidia around made it less boring. At least she wasn't ranting about the machines anymore.
Group: Acting
Posts: 20
Member No.: 45
Joined: 8-December 08
Lidia placed the filter between her lips and waited for him to hand the lighter over. She didn’t understand how people thought cigarettes tasted nasty. From her experience they always tasted alright. Taking the lighter from Lee after he had gotten his own started, she started the flame and sucked in the smoke. Letting the gray smoke leave her lunges. The government was so corrupt about it all. Tobacco had been one of the biggest cash crops of all time. It had been popular among the men of America in the beginning. If it weren’t for the crop, the south would have never flourished.
Lidia handed back his lighter, almost temped to pocket it. Petty theft, it led to car jacking…Lidia mentally flinched at that thought. Taking enough time to stall her answer, she took another drag and tapped the ash out the window. The fact that he had called her a kid didn’t bother her that much. Sure it was insulting since she figured he was only a few years older then herself. “ I’m Lidia,” she answered. What were the chances that he’d ever talk to her again? There wasn’t a chance that they were going to met at the theatre department, or any where else for that matter,” How about you? Got an accursed name?” She looked out the window. The smoke and fresh air covered up the flowery detergent smell. Which eased her headache. It seemed the right blend of conversation, smoke, and scenery had the right calming affect.
Lee exhaled the smoke from his lungs. "I'm Lee," Lee replied. At least he knew her name now. Then he wouldn't have to call her "kid" or "girl" or something like that.
He looked out the small window. Lee couldn't help but wish that he was done with school. Only one year left. "So Lidia, what year are you?" He asked. He figured he'd ask, since she looked pretty young. She had to be at least a sophomore, since she had mentioned something about last year.
The day he left Owens would be a day of joy. It wasn't that he particularly hated the school. He liked the programs there...before the incident last year. When all the new rules started being enforced, Lee was angry. He was no longer able to take girls out whenever he wanted. If he wanted to try to sneak into the local bar, he'd have to ask for permission to go out, and then he'd have to be back by 10:30. After awhile, Lee just started to boycott the rules. Things were better that way. Sure, he spent many afternoons in detention, but he would rather do what he wanted rather than be confined to the campus all the time.
Group: Acting
Posts: 20
Member No.: 45
Joined: 8-December 08
Lee, it could have been worse. Lee was sort of laid back, kind of hick. Yet it could also alternate with being a rich southern kid, but she didn’t see him being either. There was General Lee, though his first name was Robert and a country singer with the name Lee Anne. Maybe it was just because of those people that made it feel like a southern name. Lee, it was kind of simple for this guy.
Though she couldn’t really complain about his name. Hers wasn’t even spelt right. It was suppose to be Lydia, which in Greek meant a maiden. Maiden of what? What drug had her mother been on to name her that? Names were suppose to be special. Native Americans had meanings to their names. Her Norwegian father’s family named their children after dead ancestors. Why couldn’t her mother have done that? What was she? Antarctican? At least this guy’s name meant something like meadow or pasture. Nobody wanted to be a maiden. Maidens were always helpless, open for attack, to be saved by some idiot on horse back.
She inhaled the smoke in deeply before blowing it out the window into dry air,” I’m a sophomore. Second year here,” she responded, figuring that it was better then being Fresh Meat. Not that she knew that hazing was a thing around this school, but back home it had been a big deal. So last year she had spent what time she could off the radar,” You’ve got to be a senior or something right?” he looked like it. More adult and matured in his facial region and he was taller then the guys her own age. At the least, he was a very well aged Junior,” You’ve got to be a senior in order to call any one a kid right?” she laughed slightly and flicked the cigarette butt out the window.
Fresh Pine And Spikes
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