Swing Set {NicoletteKyerin}

[Kyerin]

Kyerin waited a moment, then looked over at the girl, surprised that she hadn't said anything. However, she did appear to be... what was she doing? Crying? Why was she crying? That worried him quite a bit; did he make her cry? Dammit, and after all of the stuff he went through post-dance to make things up with her. He wasn't that good with people, especially girls. This was why he couldn't have nice things!

The young man forced himself to take a couple of deep breaths, looking once again at her mind to realize the amount of stress she was under. He placed his feet down to stop his swing, not moving for a moment, before getting up and walking over, sitting in the swing next to her. Another brief moment, and he reached over, lightly patting her on the back. Maybe he should talk to the Headmaster when he went back; the adults really needed to do more of the work around school.

[Nicolette]

Nicolette tried to keep herself calm, but the moisture kept building up in her eyes, and a few drops made their way to her cheek bones. She quickly brought her hands up to wipe her eyes, trying to hide the fact from her rival that she was, indeed, actually crying. She took a few deep breaths, attempting to calm herself.

She heard Kyerin take a seat next to her, but that didn't stop her from tensing a little at his first touch. However, she felt that his touch wasn't all that horrible, and slowly started to relax as he gently rubbed her back. She wiped her eyes with her long sleeves before letting out a sad, little laugh.

"I am sorry you had to see that..." she said, her voice still a little weak.

[Kyerin]

Kyerin felt a bit awkward about doing this to anyone, especially a girl that he somewhat knew, but he felt like it had to be done, and continued to rub her back as she calmed down. He really shouldn't have brought up everything that was on her... though he had seen, though Haruka's talents, that the Student Council had expanded. Maybe they would do something useful.

The young man forced up a small smile, trying not to look completely out of it and awkward around a crying girl. "It happens," he said, trying not to sound too cold. "You're pretty amazing for doing all that you do. I mean, everything's been great the first quarter." He left it there, not sure what else to say without repeating himself.

[Nicolette]

Nicolette let out a small laugh, this one filled with a little bit of emotion. She wiped her eyes again before she gave Kyerin the best smile she could.

"Thank you."

Nothing else could really be said. She couldn't jinx anything, and she couldn't worry about what second quarter might turn out to be. She had to focus on the present, or it was going to eat her alive.

[Kyerin]

Kyerin gave the girl a genuine smile, partially glad that she was feeling better, and partially glad that she had stopped crying; he was no good with comforting people, so fortunately for him, that worked. If it hadn't, well... plan B that came to mind now was to walk away and leave her alone. Good thing it didn't come to that.

The young man nodded, speaking again. "You're welcome," he merely said, moving his hand back to holding the chain attached to his swing. There was nothing else he could really say in this situation without ruining the moment, and to continue rubbing her back would be... weird. It was already weird that he did it once, much less a second time, or continue it when things seemed better.

[Nicolette]

Nicolette sniffled a little, the left over of her tears disappearing. It wasn't long before she finally rose to her feet, stretching a little bit as she looked up at the sky, which was beginning to turn orange. Her eyes suddenly lit up and she turned around, a child-like expression coming to her face for the first time.

"Do you have anywhere you need to be in the next five minutes?"

[Kyerin]

Kyerin chose that time to sit on the swing and stare off at the sky... which was beginning to have a sunset. Wow, had they really been there that long? Well... at least him. He wasn't sure when she had gotten there; as far as he knew, she got there last night and camped out. That would be rather weird... but it would happen.

He was debating whether or not to go back to the dorm and at least get some work done when Nicolette spoke again; he turned to look at her, and was shocked to see that she looked positively... vibrant, like the crying never happened. It did make him nervous though. "No...?" he replied, giving her a definate answer, though it sounded like a question. Why did she want to know?

[Nicolette]

At his response, her smile grew and she reached out to take his hand from the chains of the swingset. She held it and tugged him to his feet before turning and leading him across the playground. She didn't let go of his hand, in fear of him not following fast enough for her liking.

The jungle gym was just ahead. As they approached it, she stepped up the little stairs and moved up until she came to an area that was just out of reach for a little kid, but it was a flat surface made of steel, that could easily hold the weight of the two teenagers. Nicolette used the side of the junglegym to climb up it and she turned, waiting for Kyerin to join her.

And just as he did, the sun cast a bright orange glow on them, causing Nicolette's eyes to brighten with joy. Such a beautiful sunset...

[Kyerin]

Her silence confused the young man; her grip and tugging confused him even more, though he did let her pull him off of the swing set. Oh, but it didn't stop there; she didn't let go of his hand, causing him to move faster than he would have liked to to keep up with her as she almost ran across the playground. Why would she be doing this, especially to him? Oh no... maybe she was planning to murder him. He thought that they liked each other more than that!

Nicolette finally released his hand to scale part of the jungle gym, sitting on a spot that probably wasn't intented to be used as a chair, but would probably not kill them both. Kyerin sighed a bit, but knew she wanted him to join her, so he carefully ascended, pulling himself up onto the spot. Just as he settled and looked ahead, the sun seemed to align and glow an amazing orange, a shade and intentsity he hadn't seen before. "Wow," he murmured slightly, forgetting about the girl for a moment. It was... incredible.

[Nicolette]

The sunset was gorgeous. She loved the view of it, and she remembered the countless times she had stayed here to watch the sun set before. The nostalgic memories were comforting, reminding her of the wonderful relaxation that the T'zenshin Institute really gave her. It was somewhere that she was glad to be taking care of, and glad to take charge of.

She was determined to be the best president that T'zenshin had ever seen.

"It is just simply amazing..." She whispered softly. "Just wait until summer, when the sunsets are even longer due to the longer days."

[Kyerin]

The boy glanced over at Nicolette, thinking a bit. Maybe that was his problem; considering that the Student Freedom Force was suppose to support the student, and she was being a damn good Student Council President and helping students out, he couldn't really just mess with them like former SFF leaders did, since she wasn't being a roadblock or a dictator. He'd just have to work harder, and if it came to it, make some sacrifices. For the good of the students all across the school, some individuals may have to suffer.

Kyerin looked back out at the sunset, absentmindedly nodding. "I bet," he replied, before glancing at the platform they were sitting on. He lifted one hand gently, then reached over and placed it on top of her hand, making sure to look back at the sunset before he did so it didn't seem like he was a complete dork and couldn't just do it.

[Nicolette]

Nicolette smiled at his response and kept her eyes locked on the sunset. While it was showing the end of a day, she had come to accept it with open arms. It was worth ending the day with a beautiful sunset and a friend by her side.

Yes... She didn't care if they were supposed to be blood-rivals who wanted nothing more than the fall of the other. She truly believed that Kyerin Saito, leader of the Student Freedom Force, was her friend. And that thought led her to wonder if other SFF leaders had befriended the Student Council Presidents of the past.

Her thoughts were completely broken when she felt a warm presence gently touch her hand. She turned her gaze down and found that his hand had been placed gently on top of her's. She felt her cheeks warm up and her heart-beat pick up just a little, but when she glanced up at him, she found he was focused on the sunset. Had it been an accident?

Well... Accident or not, it felt... comfortable. And so, she let a smile slide across her lips as she turned to face the sunset once more, turning her hand over in order to close it around his.

Just for this moment... They could pretend that the Student Council and the Student Freedom Force didn't exist.

[Kyerin]

Kyerin was surprised when Nicolette turned her hand to hold his, and instinctively held hers back. Now that he thought about it, he had never asked the prior SFF leader about things with the Student Council President. Maybe they had been friends, considering that from a base level, both groups were working towards the same thing. Maybe it was just everyone else who was mucking things up. But still, there had to be some tension and conflict, else the school would get too lazy and people would find other things to complain about. But for now, it was just the two of them.

The colors in the sky changed as the sun descended, adding a few hues of purple and red to the view. The boy couldn't help smiling a bit; even though it was the end of today, and tomorrow was more school, and he still had the same problems that he had when he came here, things seemed better. Maybe it was talking to someone that was his friend... yeah, a friend. He didn't have many, but Nicolette was one of them. Though that did make him wonder, how did she think of him? Nah, that was a different problem to worry about at some other time.

[Nicolette]

Soon, the sunset was over and the two leaders were left with the cool evening. They would need to get walking home from the park and head back up the trail that led to the school. And, given their positions, they'd likely have to go separate ways.

Nicolette moved herself so her legs dangled over the edge of the platform, though she kept her hand in his for a moment longer. Her eyes gazed out to the playground and she smiled before she let go, hopping down from the platform and turning to wait for her male companion to join her.

[Kyerin]

Kyerin watched as the last rays of sunshine faded from view, leaving only a warm aura on the horizon, and a growing darkness throughout the town. This had been a really good time, both spending it with Nicolette and getting away from everything. If the girl didn't mind, he would have to come out here again sometime.

As the warmth left his hand, he glanced at Nicolette to see her smile before hopping down from where they were sitting. The young man opted instead to place his feet on the jungle gym, taking a couple steps down instead of just one big jump. He did make it to the ground next to her, and smiled at her, placing his hands in his pockets. "Guess we should head on back," he said, a bit wistfully. It was nice to just have this time together not having to worry about things.