That new paper smell | Open

[Deidra Tamren]

The University bookstore wasn't an uncommon place to find Deidra wandering. She had more friends in the Uni than she had friends around her own age anyway, so it worked out for her. Of course, very few of them knew much about what she did, or a whole bunch of things really. They just thought she was some high school student who cut class and hung out there for kicks. Which, for the most part was pretty accurate. If she had stayed in school she would be a high school student. And she did like to hang out there just for kicks. 'Course, there were plenty of other secret things very few people knew about her, and she preferred it that way.

The bright eyed girl was perusing the books and pens in the store, looking for a new journal. Her latest one had finally been filled with her cramped sharp writing and little doodles, as well as desriptions of everything in her life. She had several of these books that outlinedd her life since her touch tell abilities ha come to light. If she didn't her entire history might be lost before she could learn enough control not to forget everything everytime she touch things soaked in emotion.

Today she was looking for a thicker journal, seeing how quickly she had gone through the last one. [Which was ridiculously fast]. She also wanted a new good pen, because everytime she started a new journal she got a new pen. The old one's were kept neat immortalized and labeled in a little jeweled box, in case she ever had to go and write something in her old journals.

The book she was looking at now was a good inch thick. It was lined very lightly, and she supposed it was meant to bea field study journal of some kind. Light lines for writing but not so much that they would be in the way of drawings. This will do nicely She thought to herself, turning to go look at the selection of writing utensils. As she did so she bumped into someone, taking in a few stray emotions and impressions but not more than she could handle since that's not what she was concentrating on.

" Oh! Sorry, I hadn't meant to be such a ditz!" She said to them, grinning.

[Jeremy de Luz]

Jeremy was running an errand for the chief librarian. It wasn't unusual. He had to go fetch a laptop that had made its way from the library (where it belonged) to the bookstore (where it distinctly did not). He procured the netbook and then, on a whim, wandered over to scope out notebooks, because you could never have to many.

Particularly not with what his life had bec-

"I'm so sorry." He stammered out, realizing that he had tripped into some. He adjusted his glasses automatically and offered a smile to the young woman he had walked into. A prospective student? Probably. "It...it's my fault, I should have been watching where I was going."

[Deidra Tamren]

Deidra smiled, open and friendly at this new person. Hadn't she seen him before? She racked her memory, wishing she had her face journal with her. But she'd started leaving that at home after it had almost been badly damaged. Still. She'd remeber to draw him in later if he wasn't already there.

"You're alright! I was just caught up looking at the pens. Trying to decide on a new one. Have to have a new one for a new journal." It was getting to the point where if she didn't have a new journal and pen she'd explode. A few days had gone by where she hadn't written anything, and it worried her. She'd been getting better, but it meant her memory lapses, when they happened, were worse.

" I had just finished my last Journal, Stained glass. She was a nice one, but much too short. Only about a month. All those drawings . Still, I'd have not remembered elsewise. " She studied his face closely for a moment. It was a sort of kind, open face. Where are you from, oh where oh where do I know you from?

[Jeremy de Luz]

The girl was staring at him, as if trying to place him or maybe remembering why she was out shopping. It made Jeremy slightly uncomfortable.

"W-well..." He took a breath and decided to be helpful, "If its a sketch journal you might want one of these softer tips, but they've also got a good selection of art supplies. Otherwise, one of these?"

He listened to her talk at a million miles a minute and was instantly reminded of Erin and the friendship that he was going to blame on stockholm syndrome. He suppressed a small shudder at the memory.

"Why don't you get several journals so you always have one ready?" He asked, sticking one hand in his pocket and fiddling with his neck with the other, "I do that with books."

[Deidra Tamren]

Deidra raised her eye brows at him. More than one at a time? What ridiculous idea! Of course, the girl didn't think of it from the perspective that not everyone poured their entire existence into journals so they wouldn't forget who they were. She shook her head wondering if he had bee's in him ears.

" That's silly! More than one? What would the other do, just sit around?" She asked him. But then she shrugged it off, as was her way. As she looked at him for a moment longer something clicked. The library! That's where she knew him from!

" Hey you're....uh, Jeremy? Right? You work at the library!" Her voice took on delighted jewel tones, happy she had finally remembered him.

" I'm Deidra." She added a moment later, as if her own name wasn't even that important.

[Jeremy de Luz]

Jeremy wasn't sure why it was silly, but hey, to each their own. Mostly he just wished she would stop inspecting him. He shifted his weight awkwardly, feeling very put in the spotlight.

Then she said his name.

"Er...yeah...I do..." he nodded with a bit of a smile, "Pleasure to meet you, Diedra."

He looked down at his watch, and remembered that he had been running an errand and should probably be getting back, "Actually," He chuckled shyly, "I had probably get back there or Mrs. Withers will have my hide." He gave her a small wave, "I'll probably see you around Ms. Diedra."

He collected the laptop and started back across campus.

[Deidra Tamren]

Her smile was one of a delighted child. Although, he looked uncomfortable. His sort of shy smile was sweet, and made her immediately like him. He was unconsciously upped in status from person-whom-she-saw to Friend. But then he checked his watch and chuckled softly, saying he had to go. But she'd only just started talking to him! Jeremy started to walk away, and Dei panicked a bit.

" Wait, wait! I'll come with you." She ghosted her way over to the checkout, bored lady sitting there. Picking out a random pen she put that and her new journal on the counter to be rung up. As quickly as she could she payed the price [which she thought was nothing short of exorbitant ] and then ran after him.

[Jeremy de Luz]

Jeremy kept his pace slow enough for Diedra to keep up easily. She was, at least on the surface, a nice, normal human girl. Also, she seemed to have an interest in books and writing. And it wasn't like he was doing anything important.

He checked the laptop back in and grabbed his shelving cart, somewhat confused as to why she was still following him, but willing to accept it because he was working.
"So..." he started, trying to fill the silence with quiet conversation so he didn't look like an ass, "Are you thinking about attending UOM after highschool?"

[Deidra Tamren]

She was quiet for a moment, as she wasn't exactly sure how she should be answering that. High School. She hadn't gone at all this past school year. If she had it would probably make it easier for someone whom she didn't want to find her, find her. Besides, she was plenty smart without school. She was steadily working her way through the books in the library, and felt they would be more useful than a classroom full of people who usually didn't want to be there.


" Umm, sure?" There was a definable question in her voice, like she was asking "is that what people are supposed to do?" The girl had honestly never given a single bit of thought to it. What was she supposed to be doing with her life? She liked the way things were right now. Working for Silly, speeding her days treasure hunting, her afternoons skating, and her nights getting into trouble.

[Jeremy de Luz]

Jeremy winced inwardly with Deidra went quiet, worried that he had offended her.
"I...I didn't mean to pry..." he apologized, fidgeting with the spine of William Gibson's Spook Country, "It's alright if you don't know. I mean...you should think about it...but hey...college isn't for everyone."

He tucked the book back into the shelf and continued down the aisle with the cart.

[Deidra Tamren]

She winced inwardly. Deidra didn't want him to feel uncomfortable around her, because she didn't think that was fair to him. And she didn't like the idea that she was basically lying to him. With a little bit of a sigh she gave a sort of half smile.

" I uh.....I don't really go to school. So I don't really think University is part of my future." The girl admitted to him. She hoped he wasn't the kind who would tell on her, because that would be bad. She might have been 18, but she knew there had to be some kind of rule about school and all those wonderful things.

" I mean, I'm plenty smart! I spend a lot of time here doing work and stuff, but I just...I hate school. People there are cruel and they don't understand, and when you have no parents you're weird and freakish and they just make fun of you! I figured learning on my own was a lot better." Her words were a rushed fountain of syllables, and there was a hint of worry in them, and pleading. She actually was surprised with herself for telling him, because rarely did she say why she didn't go to school. Oh, she sometimes said she didn't, but not why. Never why.

[Jeremy de Luz]

Jeremy gave her a concerned look when she told him she didn't go to school. She was all of what, 15?

"Oh...I didn't...I'm sorry." He apologized, "I didn't...I didn't have parents either so...yeah...I can relate to the bullying." He fiddled with his glasses, "I mean, you should still go, you learn...well, you learn other things. And you meet people but...er...hey...it's your...it's your life."

She looked almost ashamed of it and Jeremy remembered what that was like. His heart broke a little bit for her.

"Well...the library is pretty neat and...hey.. .if you're...you know, not busy, you could learn how to re-shelve..."

[Deidra Tamren]

She felt bad all at once because she'd managed to make him uncomfortable. She hadn't wanted to! She thought it was better to tell the truth. Maybe not. Not...not lie, no. Slant. No, not even slant. Just not say anything. Maybe that would be a better option in the future.

" You didn't have parents either?" She asked, slightly suprised. She'd always been under the impression everyone had parents. That's why they had shuffled her around so many families, trying to make sure she had a family, or as close as one could get. Not that it had worked, but they were well meaning in the action.

" I probably would have stayed, but the last family I was with was.... not nice. None of them had the Sight, and they didn't understand my touch-tell things. I don't understand it most days, but it really made school hard. I just, I knew things I wasn't supposed to. It got me in trouble a lot." Deidra shrugged and just kept following Jeremy.

"Re-shelving books would be cool. I know a little, but not much. I just keep my books organized in the way back in my little corner. I don't bother with the bit organized part of the library to much anymore."

[Jeremy de Luz]

Jeremy nodded, "I had my Gran but she...she died a few months ago." The lump in his throat wasn't as bad as it had once been, "She took care of me." He offered Deidra a sad smile, masking his surprise at someone one else sharing in his 'gift', "You can see them too?" He asked, adjusting his glasses, "I got beat up a lot for it."

He slid the book back into place, "Were you...ah...born with it?" He felt awkward asking, but wasn't sure what else to do or how better to phrase it.

There was an uneasy kinship blooming, he could feel it just below the surface, "I mean...it should be easier now...people are starting to accept things but..." he shrugged to demonstrate the uncertainty, "A-Anyway, re-shelving is easy enough. It's mostly alphabetical, and the decimal system makes it all really straight forward."

Back on comfortable ground.

[Deidra Tamren]

" Guess I was born with it. It didn't do much when I was younger. A thing here, a shine there. I was twelvish when it and the other thing just sort of..." she wiggled her fingers in front of her, spreading them in an arc meant to imitate an explosion, "...kablookie." It was the best way she could explain what had happened. Things that hadn't been real became real. She saw all the un-people hiding. It was...not good. And the Sly-man, all the sly-folk with their slanted words...

not now. The girl clamped down on those feelings and tucked them away. She refocused on the things at hand, like Jeremy and the books. With a sort of non-commital shrug she answered the second part of his question.
" It seems easier sometimes. Be nice if it didn't leave me with the self-memory of a sieve."

" I can do alphabetical. Not sure about numbers all the way. They've always been a bit swimmy for me. Don't want to calm down and cooperate. I'm not the best at all that mathy stuff." Although she didn't really know what was needed to re-shelve books as she'd not done it before. It sounded more complicated than it actually was.