I could Break Away(Amri)

[Amri Dukhkin']

Well, that sure what a sudden change in her attitude. She had gone from irritably defensive to charmingly amused. Maybe she was bipolar or something...or maybe she had just succumb to Amri's endless charms. That seemed like a likely explanation. After all, so many people who had thought themselves impervious to his good looks and smooth words had eventually fallen at his feet and begged him for just another chance to be in his interest. And maybe, just maybe, this was was just interesting enough to in fact deserve a second looking-over from him, a second consideration.

This time he took a closer look at her. She wasn't the standard "hot" that usually seemed to gravitate towards him, but she wasn't the sad ugly fat girl who desperately threw themselves at him either. She was pretty, but something about her looked incredibly young, and she also seemed sort of book-wormish...which wasn't always a bad thing. Smart girls often had a whole lot repressed that they would unleash on him and it could be quite fun. So yes, this would be worth it to try. With a smirk on his face he put his feet back up again. "Maybe it's just the shoes, they might be repressing the coconut goodness."

[Claire Anette Underwood]

"Quite possibly." She said, attempting to be serious, but failing and smirking anyway. She started a laughing a little bit, feeling kind of stupid as she prepared to smell someones feet. Her cheeks reddened.

"Sorry," she giggled nervously while hesitating, "This is just so weird..." But she said she would do it, and good little Mormon girl in her wouldn't let her go back on her word, even for something as stupid as this. She leaned in, suddenly hyper aware of how she must look smelling some guy's shoes. She inhaled, and...she actually did catch a faint whiff of coconut.

"Alright then, " She leaned back in her seat, nodding and trying to hold back the smirk. "Is there a reason why your feet smell like a tropical fruit? Because it's kind of...unusual." Was this some weird trend in the States that she had missed out on, guys who made their feet smell good? maybe it was just new York, or just Amri. Not that it mattered really, how your feet smelled really didn't say much about you.

she smiled, random tangents about feet were the best tangents out there.

[Amri Dukhkin']

She sure seemed to be settling down. His natural charms had a way of doing that to people. Ce could make anyone fell at home or amused or like he was an old friend or an old flame. He had a talent of getting people exactly where he wanted them to be. And now she was starting to relax and forget that she'd probably thought he was an asshole just a few minutes or even moments ago. Not that he knew where he was going with this, but it was always fun to have a new toy to play with, and maybe she was more fun than she looked.

“My feet actually smell like pecans, but my sister hates that smell so I put coconut lotion on them,” he said with a chuckle. That's right, he was going for the down-to-earth act, even though he was anything but. He was a star-studded firework compared to everyone near him, but he could make her think he was just another guy who liked to play basketball and called home on the weekends and put lotion on his feet so his little sister wouldn't freak out. “And I don't really mind it myself.”

[Claire Anette Underwood]

Claire turned her head slightly to the side and squinted at him, trying to decide if he was lying. She'd never been very good at that, and he struck her as someone who could lie exceptionally well.

"okay Then." She said, pressing her lips together to avoid bursting out laughing like she totally felt like doing right now. And he had a sister, she hadn't been expecting that. But she had this theory that people with sisters had a better grip on how to treat women, and he was so—entitled—that she pegged him as an only child. But clearly he wasn't, and she was wrong, at least in this case.

She picked up her cup, but then remembered it was empty, so she slammed back on the table. She wondered if he was jerky with his sister, she hoped not. Actually, she decided he must be exceptionally sweet with his sister and like, super protective. She didn't know if that was true, but it made a cuter story and gave him more redeemable qualities, but maybe she'd better check it out anyway.

"So, You have a sister?" She asked, "older or younger?"

[Amri Dukhkin']

He was struck by her sudden change in attitude...or maybe it was something more to do with him. No, it had definitely been her, she'd gone from scolding him to asking him questions. Maybe something he said had actually gotten to her...that was a rare thing. Was this a person who was genuinely interested in improving themselves and how they were perceived? It was a strange turn from the usual people he knew from school, self-entitled only children whose parents had spent their whole lives telling them how wonderful they were. His parents had once told him they were proud of him, but looking back, he realized it was probably only in relation to Yuliya. At least Amri didn't scream when people tried to talk to him.

“Yeah, she's younger,” he said, calm and casual smile sliding onto his face. Yuliya was always a strange topic for him to talk about, because it always made him happy, but he always avoided the whole diagnosis issue because it wasn't something other people had a right to know about. So even though he was smiling, there was a little ball of stress under it all, always wondering what was the next question they were going to ask and how he would turn it into something normal. Maybe he should just distract her, and then she wouldn't think of anything. “Do you have any siblings?” he asked.

[Claire Anette Underwood]

She paused, she had wanted to ask him more about his sister, but he had already asked her about her own family. Was she just reading too much into it? Or had he purposefully quickly changed the topic? She wasn't sure, and she was dying to know more about this sister of his and his relationship to her, but she decided not too push it. Hopefully she'd find a way to meet him again and she could question him again, and maybe he'd be more comfortable with her then. Yes, that was it, she would wait until he was ready, and now she had to make sure she saw him again, only she had no idea how to do that without awkwardly asking for his number, which she was only sort of against. Ah well, she'd think of something, hopefully...

"I'm the baby of a family of four." She said brightly, "and my oldest brother is married and he has two daughters and my older sister is married and she has a baby boy, so I'm an auntie." She said this all rather quickly and probably in one breath. She couldn't help it though, she loved talking about her family almost as much as she loved them, and she considered have two nieces and nephew a source of great bragging rights.

She giggled, "Sorry, I get kind of excited about all that."

[Amri Dukhkin']

Amri found himself doing one of those weird things...he was starting to like her now. Amri had often been an advocated for not judging people based on first impressions, due to how many people treated his sister, but really, he had rarely put that value into effect. Perhaps she'd been judge mental of him because she couldn't think of another way to get him to notice her...ah, girls and their ways to get him to notice them. Sometimes the things they did were outright crazy and Amri wouldn't be able to do anything but throw them a bone. Maybe being judge mental was the way to go.

But as she talked about her family, he realized that she seemed like that rare species of girl that wasn't into him. He'd met a couple of those in his life and it was always a bit strange for him...a female who wouldn't do whatever he wanted. It'd be interesting to see how it went though. Her talk of her family made him a bit jealous though...it sounded...functional, and it made him wonder what it was like both to be the youngest and to have more than one sibling. God, would he have had the energy to protect multiple Yuliyas?

“No, it's okay, I get it,” he said with a genuine smile. The topic of family was always complicated for him. On one hand, he loved his sister more than anyone else in the world and would do anything for her, and on the other, he hated his parents more than anyone else in the world and would be the first to throw them off the cliff if he was given a chance. So when he was asked if he liked his family, he never quite knew what to say. “I'd want to be an uncle if it didn't mean my sister would have to get married.”

[Claire Anette Underwood]

Claire smiled a bit at their new topic as she reflected why they'd started talking in the first place. Who'd thought she could've had a decent conversation with the guy who'd come looking all bad-boy motorcycle dude? It was proof! Proof that you really couldn't determine who you'll get along with when you first meet them. It was great learning experience, and she couldn't wait to share with all her fellow ward members back home. It would make an awesome inspirational story for sure.

Actually, the whole thing kind of made her want to laugh, only she didn't think that would be appropriate. So she pressed her lips together and tried to keep her face blank, only it kind of wasn't working and so she probably looked ridiculous and this guy was probably like, "what the heck is wrong with her?'
Sigh.

"Wait, you don't want your sister to get married?" She said with a sort of cute little pout. It was kind of a strange concept for her, since to her family marriage was like the best thing that could happen and her brother's were always telling her they couldn't wait to see who she ended up with. Granted, they also promised to introduce said guy to their shotguns, but all brothers said that.

She kept her voice light and happy, "But what if she meets this totally awesome guy who treats her like a queen and she's totally in love with him?" She was trying very hard to stay in safe waters, as she knew this was a sensitive topic for some people, but in addition to being curious about his sister she was super curious about his whole marriage thing and how that tied in to his whole sister—thing. Very Curious.

[Amri Dukhkin']

This was why family was not a good subject…because people always assumed his was normal. Of course, that was an obnoxious thing to say, because no one’s family was normal, hell, she probably had something about hers that made it different. But there was always the assumption that everyone in his family would be able to live a normal life, but that was a lie. His father was the editor of the New Yorker, which meant his life was a mix of meetings, parties, and neglecting his children. His mother was weak and would never be able to do anything without the support of her husband. Amri was pretty much blackmailed into being the family lapdog and charmer at parties. And Yuliya was neglected to the point of never being able to do the things that kids her age were supposed to.

“One, no guy will ever treat her like a queen, and two, she doesn’t even understand the concept of love, let alone feeling it.” Okay, maybe he was saying a little more than he should to a girl who was more or less a stranger, but it always felt like he should have nothing to hide when it came to his sister. He didn’t have to pretend she was different than she was, he was proud of her, so he wasn’t going to edge around the issue. And it wasn’t like this girl seemed particularly harmful, she didn’t go to his school or anything and she’d never meet Yuliya. “She’ll be better off just sticking with me.”

[Claire Anette Underwood]

Claire was super confused—and intrigued— now. What did he mean his sister didn't understand emotions? Didn't everyone understand emotions? Wasn't that part of being human? And why did he think no one would treat her like a queen? Did he think she didn't deserve it—which would be stupid, if he did. maybe its because he didn't treat her like a queen? But no, that couldn't be it. Did he just have that little confidence in humanity?

Grrr... her curiosity was driving her crazy, but she had the sense he'd already told her more than he than he mean too and she wasn't going to get more. She bit back all the questions on her lips. She felt pulled to this guy, like she wanted to help him, even though she had no idea how to do that yet. She had a feeling if she pushed him right now, she'd only pushed him away. But, urgg...she wanted to know!

There was one thing she could say however. "Well, I'm sure you have a pretty good idea what's best for her but, just remember that people have a tendency to...surprise you." there was a lot more she could have said with that, but she had learned that sometimes it was better to keep things simple.

"Hey, I just realized I don't even know your name yet," she hinted with a slightly brighter tone.

[Amri Dukhkin']

He was glad she wasn't prying. People always seemed to like to pry with him, mostly because people had come to the conclusion that all “bad boys” had terrible childhoods and had been beaten and stuff like that and they were just waiting for that one person to come along to listen to their problems and they'd magically be fixed and become a nice person. Bullshit. For on, Amri had never been beaten. Two, if all it took to fix that was one girl talking to him then he sure as hell would've been fixed already because it seemed everyone was looking to fill that position in his life.

So instead he just gave her a smile and leaned back in his chair. It didn't matter that she was wrong and when it came to Yuliya, he'd never been surprised. At least, with how other people acted with Yuliya. Yuliya surprised him all the time. But other people? They just acted the same time. Shy people just looked at her and then read in their own corner, which was better than other people but it didn't help either. People who fancied themselves good with cases such as hers baby-talked her and made her angry. And then there were the people who completely flipped out. No one nurtured her. No one let her be herself while encouraging her to show more of herself.

“I'm Amri Dukhkin', I got to that stupid arts school around here.”

[Claire Anette Underwood]

Okay, so the sister conversation was officially over. She was a little disappointed about this, well, maybe more than a little. She'd been hoping he'd visibly react to her comment, maybe sigh and run his hand through his hair, staring thoughtfully off into the distance. Maybe even a "perhaps you're right" meaning that he wasn't completely convinced his sister was stuck in—whatever it was about her that he thought couldn't change.

But obviously, that wasn't going to happen. She supposed she shouldn't really have expected it too, but she'd always been a little bit optimistic about things she probably shouldn't be. But it was okay, she'd planted the seed, and maybe some good would come of it, but it was time to move on to other things.

“Okay, first, that is a wicked awesome name.” She paused, making sure her voice didn’t slip into the upper octaves so she didn’t sound like a twelve year old girl. “And second, I totally go there too! How have I not seen you?” It was said almost rhetorically, though in way she meant it completely genuinely. How had she not seen him before? Because she was pretty sure if she did, she would remember.

[Amri Dukhkin']

It surprised him at first that this girl went there also, but then again, it seemed like every person he ran into went there, and it wasn't like he should've expected to recognize her. He wasn't the person who went around recognizing people, they recognized him, he was the big name. Therefore it did surprise him that she didn't know him. She went to Rosencrantz and didn't know who he was? He didn't have a forgettable face or a forgettable name, hell, if there was one thing he could thank his parents for it was being given a name that stuck in peoples' minds. He was about to scold her when he remembered that she'd said something about being new here, so he cut her some slack.

“You're probably not playing attention to who plays the leads in plays, I'm a pretty big deal there,” he said with a wink. Definitely a freshman, he decided, she was too excited and happy, and definitely a stranger to New York. He'd grown up here, the general feel of the city was that if you ignored people, they'd ignore you too, and maybe try to pickpocket you, but if you waved your happiness in other peoples' faces, they'd be sure to make sure it wasn't a problem anymore by handily ridding you of your happiness. He pondered how long it would be before the city and college broke this one, but then again, it wasn't really his problem.

[Claire Anette Underwood]

Okay, first, a wink? Where did that come from? He wasn't flirting with her, was he? Guys didn't flirt with her as a rule. She didn't really give off the hot vibe that most guys went for, and her conservative clothing wasn't exactly an invite. She wasn't bad looking, but she figured her beauty wasn't the kind that really didn't stand out, so to speak. Which was fine with her, she didn't want to marry someone who only liked her face and body anyway.

She had realized that sometimes guys flirted with the nice chick simply because the idea of messing with her or even stealing her potential virginity was a turn on. Could this be Amri? She gave him an inquisitive look. She didn't want to judge but...she'd best be careful from now on. He was hot, and cute, and she was human.

And, second, now that he said that something clicked in her brain. "Oh yeah! You're in midsummer right? Gall I'm stupid, now I even remember thinking how cool your name was." she shook her head, torn between actual embarrassment and just wanting to laugh at herself. "I remember you were a lead...Was it Lysander? Demetrius? I'm in it too, but I'm just one of the faeries..." she said with a shrug, this wasn't exactly bragging rights but she heard it was pretty hard to make it as a freshman, so she'd been pretty happy with her minor role.

And look at that! Not only did they go to the same school, but they had something in common. Theater people didn't always get along, but by being theater kids they'd just opened up a whole new world of things to talk about. And now maybe she'd see him at rehearsals, hopefully...

[Amri Dukhkin']

“Yeah, I'm Demetrius. I tend to get type-casted pretty hard,” he said with a playful sigh. He didn't really mind getting type-casted, it meant he never had to pretend to be wimpy or a coward, the thought of that was just annoying. He'd played Odysseus, and he'd also played the Beast in Beauty and the Beast but it didn't really work out cause he was better looking than the girl, but damn was he good at screaming at her. It also meant people thought he was a really good actor since he played the big angry guys so well. They thought he was acting. He was just being himself. Girls liked to think he was just acting and that he really was prince charming, that was probably how the manwhore thing started.

But he didn't say those things to her, he was actually starting to like this girl, but not in a 'I want to shove my tongue down your throat' kind of way, which was rare for him. Maybe it was that he was impressed that she was in theater but not an arrogant ass, it was a new one. So much so that he did something quite un-Amri-ish, he gave a girl a compliment that wasn't about her looks. “Pretty impressive to be in a play as a freshman and also be new here, must be pretty talented,” he offered. He frowned slightly as the words came out of his mouth, as if he was surprised they were happening at all.