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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 24, 2011 0:40:18 GMT -5
Mason didn't see anything "different" about her. He knew why people thought he was strange, with his stuttering and his love of books and learning. And maybe Aislinn was a little shy, but it was obvious that she had a lot to say for herself.if one could only get her talking. He supposed she was like him in that way. But that didn't seem like a reason why anyone should have made fun of her, and he felt the odd urge to find these people and give them a piece of his mind.
"I-I've seen her," he said. "I-I'm g-glad you had a best friend to help you with that. E-even if I th-think that th-they were crazy for not seeing how great you are."
He wondered, for just a moment, what it would have been like if they had known each other when they were younger. Would they have been friends? Would she have shared his interest in books and poetry? Would they have spent hours together discussing the classics? It was a pretty picture, and for a moment, he longed for it. But maybe what he had now was better.... because she was really here and she was really talking to him and they were enjoying each other's company. Maybe fate had brought them together at just the right moment.
"I....I d-didn't h-have a lot of f-friends when I was growing up," he admitted, although it was a lie. He hadn't had any real friends when he was growing up. There was a group of kids he would sit with--the outcasts, such as the boy with the lisp, and the nerdy kids from the science club, but they hadn't really been friends... just bonded together in their isolation.
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 24, 2011 0:53:31 GMT -5
The pink on Aislinn's cheeks remained. She wasn't even sure why Chase had really stood up for her the first time, other than the fact that little kids were so mean and that someone needed to step in every once in awhile. Whatever the reasoning behind it, Aislinn was extremely grateful.
"Well, you don't have to worry about not having friends now." She smiled warmly once again. Aislinn knew why kids would pick on Mason but now he was all grown up. "Now those people who picked on you will more than likely regret the fact that they picked on you. I'm more than positive the majority of them are not getting their doctorate in some sort of subject." Mason was a really good guy. People just didn't take the time to talk to him. Maybe it was perfect timing that Aislinn talked to him since it wasn't really that busy in the coffee shop by the time he reached her this morning.
"Things change when you grow up. I think you've probably changed a lot since you were little, and not in a bad way."
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 24, 2011 1:12:52 GMT -5
Mason had definitely changed, at least physically. As a teenager, he'd had an odd growth spurt that made him look tall and gangly, and he often tripped over his own feet. In addition to his glasses, he also had braces on his teeth, which certainly hadn't helped his self-confidence. He'd been a sickly child, too, always out sick with a sore throat or an ear infection. And when he did go to school, the harsh words of the other kids often meant that he went home at the end of the day and cried. To his credit, though, even the teasing and bullying by the other kids did not diminish his love of learning. His parents had supported him and helped him to get through the worst of it.
"Y-you mean.... I-I'm your f-friend?" he repeated, surprised. They had only just started talking, but yes.... he did sort of think of them as friends. It was strange how things could change in a matter of minutes. When he walked in, he was just another customer. He would be leaving as a friend, and he hoped that things would not change the next time he walked through that door.
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 24, 2011 1:25:41 GMT -5
"Of course," she said with a smile. Aislinn didn't think she made friends that easy, but Mason became a friend easy enough. Chase came over to her to save her from all the teasing from the kids at Hogwarts, now she was becoming friends with Mason. He was the type that slowed down and took a look at the small things. Maybe that was why she found it easy to connect with him.
"There's not that many people I call a friend, in fact, there's only two people that I really call friend. That's you and Chase." Aislinn didn't like to trust that easy, but Mason made it very hard not to. He was sweet and pretty innocent. She didn't have to worry about him trying to hurt her. "I don't trust too easily," she admitted. "But you seem like you're fairly trustworthy."
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 24, 2011 17:28:18 GMT -5
There was something about the way Aislinn admitted that she didn't trust easily that made Mason's heart ache. He thought in that moment that something must have happened in her past, something that made her shy and quiet and afraid to reach out to other people. That made it all the more special that she had chosen to reach out to him. He had no such excuses--his family was loving and supportive and there had never been any real trouble in his life, aside from the teasing from the kids in school. But even though Aislinn was smiling, there was a sadness there under the surface, and Mason desperately wanted to make it go away.
"Th-then I am honored," he said, smiling gently. He had a sudden urge to reach out and take her hand in his, and his hand twitched slightly. But he didn't have the nerve to do it, and instead gripped his coffee cup again. "I-I'm g-glad to h-have you as a friend."
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 24, 2011 18:15:21 GMT -5
It really was very rare that Aislinn reached out to people. In fact, this was really the first time she reached out to anyone. Chase came to her during school. This time, she went to Mason. Aislinn was sure that there wouldn't be another person she could just talk to, the way she was talking to Mason. In a way, it was almost like they had known each other for a little while, and not just since today. Sure, there was still a lot of stuff that she didn't know about him, but she was comfortable talking to him.
"I'm glad we're friends too." She wasn't aware if her father had been keeping an eye out or not. Knowing her father, however, he probably was. She wasn't sure if he was going to say anything to her or not, but she wasn't thinking about any of that right now.
"Now in the mornings when you come in, even if it seems like I'm busy, you can still talk to me. Or if you come in later, I'll still be here. We're not really busy in the evenings unless it is pretty chilly outside or if its finals week for the schools, so father usually lets me off a little early." Of course just because her father let her off didn't mean she actually left the shop. Aislinn always made sure that she got somethings prepared for the next day.
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Post by Joe Dean on Jan 24, 2011 20:14:09 GMT -5
As it happened, Joe had been observing the interaction between his daughter and the shy young man who he recognized as a regular customer. Aislinn didn't often stop to talk so much to people she didn't know, even ones that were regular customers. She would always give them a smile, and she might on occasion ask someone how they were doing or wish them a nice day. But it seemed that she was having a full conversation with this young man, and it made Joe smile to see her looking so happy.
He didn't want to be nosy, so he made it a point not to watch them or stand close enough to listen in on their conversation, but he did glance over every once in a while to make sure that she was still doing OK. He also heard occasional snippets of their conversation, and it seemed that it was going well.
The shop had gone through a bit of a lull during their conversation, but it was already starting to pick up again. But it wasn't so much that Joe couldn't handle it on his own, and he didn't have the heart to break up their conversation, so he just carried on without her for the time being.
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 25, 2011 0:12:19 GMT -5
If Aislinn hadn't decided to talk to him first, Mason knew he never would have had the courage to talk to her. But somehow, just the fact that she was talking to him and that she seemed to actually like him, gave him a new confidence he'd never had before. His mother was right; he needed to give people a chance and to let people get to know him.
"I-I'd like that," Mason said. "M-Maybe I'll try to c-come in later, a-after my c-classes. I-I mean, i-if you wanted me to."
He could almost picture it, chatting with her as a friend when he came in for coffee in the mornings or sitting with her at one of the tables and talking about his latest project for school.
"C-can I a-ask you a question?" he asked. "I-I come in here e-every day.... wh-why did you decide to t-talk to me today?
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 25, 2011 0:44:49 GMT -5
Aislinn blushed the light pink tint again. Of course she would like for him to come back. She liked talking to him and something about him intrigued her. "Yeah, you should," she said quietly. She let her hands come together.
"Go for it," she said with a smile. Aislinn let her smile fade as she thought about it for a moment. Why exactly did she speak to him? She bit her bottom lip for a moment. "I dunno," she said after a moment's thought. "It just seemed like the right time to finally say something. I'm not exactly the most outspoken person." She had wanted to say something before, she just didn't have to courage to say something.
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 25, 2011 1:17:55 GMT -5
For the first time ever, Mason was already looking forward to the end of the day, when his classes were over and he could come back here and see her again. Usually he came alive when he was in the classroom... but now he felt like he was coming alive here with her. Maybe it was meant to be, that they would become friends.
"I-I will," he said shyly. "Y-you know.... I-I... I always wanted to talk to you before, too. I-I o-only held back b-because I thought you wouldn't w-want to talk to me."
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 25, 2011 1:28:34 GMT -5
"Well now neither of have anything to be shy about." She gave him a smile. It Aislinn feel good that Mason had wanted to talk to her before. "It's okay. I would have spoken to you had you ever said anything, but now is a good time as any." She would have spoken to him, and maybe call her something of a school girl, but sometimes she would give short glances in his direction every day. She liked to watch him sit and read. She thought it was cute how much he would end up concentrating on what was in front of him.
"Now, we can have full conversations whenever you're here. You don't have to hold back now." Naturally there were a couple of topics that Aislinn thought she was going to avoid all together.
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 25, 2011 19:25:52 GMT -5
Mason couldn't help returning her smile. One day, maybe he would tell her that he had always looked forward to seeing her every day and that he used to steal glances at her from behind his book while he was waiting in line. He never would have imagined that they could be friends, but now that they were, it felt surprisingly natural, like they had known each other all along.
"W-well, i-if the shop g-gets too busy, I w-wouldn't want to get in the way," he said. "B-but most days, I c-come in early anyway, and I can s-sit and wait until you have time to talk."
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 25, 2011 22:51:36 GMT -5
Hearing that Mason would just sit there and wait until she had time to talk made her blush and a shy look appeared on her face. She wasn't exactly used to this whole making friends thing but things would just happen they way they should. It had happened that way with Chase. Aislinn couldn't exactly explain how her and Chase became friends except that Chase had stood up for her. After that, it was sort of fuzzy.
"Perfect," she said. "Or maybe one day, when you don't have classes at the time and I have an afternoon off, we could go get something to eat or something." Aislinn wasn't exactly aware if it was too soon to mention something like that or if a question like that could really be taken as something else.
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 26, 2011 0:09:55 GMT -5
It seemed as though they were taking turns blushing. He couldn't help it; he liked the way her cheeks turned that soft rosy pink, and he wanted to do whatever he could think of to make her smile all the time.
When she suggested that they go out to eat sometime, it was his turn to blush. Yes, he was quite aware that such a thing could be considered a date. But it was also something that friends did together, right? It was only a date if they called it one. Otherwise it was just two friends getting something to eat together. It was perfectly innocent.
"Th-that w-would be nice," he agreed. "I-I'd l-like that."
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 26, 2011 0:28:09 GMT -5
Aislinn wasn't sure where the invitation to go out to eat one afternoon came from. It had just slipped out. Usually she was iffy around people in general but for some reason, she wasn't like that around Mason. Maybe it was because she had observed him so often that she felt like she was more comfortable around him. Mason was too sweet and innocent, he wouldn't turn out to be some person that wanted to hurt her. It was her childhood that made her wary around people, but she felt at peace with the guy standing in front of her.
"Good," she said a little shyly, but still with a smile. "Maybe we could even go to the bookstore and you show me a few good things to read." It was a way for her to get out. She saw the looks from her father from time to time. She wasn't completely stupid. She knew what his looks meant sometimes. Aislinn knew that her father wanted to get out more often, and well, wasn't that what she was attempting to accomplish with Mason?
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 26, 2011 0:57:37 GMT -5
Mason had finally reached the point where he no longer was surprised by the fact that she was talking to him and he no longer expected to wake up from a dream. He was relaxing more by the second, and he was getting much more comfortable with her and with the conversation. It was strange how easily it had all happened, but he decided not to question it anymore.
It suddenly occurred to him that his mother would be very happy to hear that he had made a new friend. She always wanted him to come out from behind the books and get out more. Maybe it was just in a mother's nature to worry about her son, but sometimes she seemed to smother him with worry. If he hadn't finally moved into his own apartment a year ago, he was sure she would be setting him up on dates every night.
He seemed to brighten even more at the mention of going to a bookstore. He often spent hours at the bookstore, just walking around and looking at all the books. Although he liked the classics, he also enjoyed reading modern literature as well, and he was always looking for something new.
"I-I c-could do th-that," he said. "I-I know a f-few things you should try. H-have you read I Capture the Castle? It's more m-modern, not a classic... b-but it's very good."
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 26, 2011 1:20:04 GMT -5
"I haven't heard of it," she admitted. Aislinn knew how much literature made Mason happy. She could tell there was an extra brightness on his face at the mention of the bookstore. The bookstore was probably one of her favorite place to go to. That was the one place she didn't mind going completely alone. Any worries that she had always disappeared in the pages that she read.
"But, I'll see if they have it when we go." Aislinn couldn't believe that she was making plans to actually go out some place, other than the coffee shop and with someone other than her father or Chase. It was a huge step, at least for her it was. "To be honest, stories such as Merlin and other things like that have always been a favorite of mine." To Aislinn, it was interesting to see how much the muggles got right when they wrote things about magic. One story of Merlin she read was pretty spot on.
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 26, 2011 16:04:45 GMT -5
Of course, for Mason, stories of wizards and magic were only stories. But other than the classics, he had always liked the fantasy stories of wizards and elves and other mythical beings. Such stories were so different from his own ordinary life, and he liked to be swept up into those kinds of stories, especially if the hero was an underdog who proved to have strength no one would have expected. He liked the idea that anyone could be a hero.
He was getting rather excited about the idea of going to a book store with Aislinn and showing her some of the stories that he loved. He didn't even realize that she'd said "when" they go, instead of "if."
"M-Merlin? L-like King Arthur? H-He was a-always one of my favorites.... H-Have you r-read The Once and Future King? Th-That was r-really good. I-I u-used to wish I was King Arthur w-when I was younger..."
He blushed as he admitted that. He had never really told anyone about that before. Every Halloween, he would dress as King Arthur, but no one ever got it.
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Post by Aislinn Dean on Jan 26, 2011 17:13:24 GMT -5
"I have read The Once and Future King." Muggle points of view were interesting and it was amazing how wild their imaginations could run. Aislinn let out a small laugh. "King Arthur is quite admirable," she said, "There's nothing wrong with wishing that you were him." Aislinn wondered what Mason's reaction would be like if he found out Merlin had been real, or that dragons, elves, unicorns, and other magical things were real and not in just some story book. Of course, she thought that his reaction would probably be the same as almost any muggle, they would be shocked and think her insane. She wasn't going to enlighten him that most of the books of wizards and magical things were mostly true.
"Any books about magical things are my favorite." She was careful not to use the word muggle. "It's nice to see how great people's imaginations are."
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Post by Mason Broderick on Jan 27, 2011 0:11:18 GMT -5
Mason probably had a more open mind than many other people would have. His mother swore sometimes that she was psychic and could predict things like when it would snow or whether a pregnant woman would have a boy of a girl. So far, she had never been wrong, and he believed with all his heart that she really was psychic, even though his father liked to laugh about it.
"I-I l-like st-stories of magic, too," he said, leaning one elbow against the countertop. "H-Have y-you ever r-read the Lord of the Rings? Th-there's a gr-great wizard in that one, c-called Gandalf. I-It's o-one of my favorite stories..."
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