[PRP] Hit the Boooooks (Kaleb & Horace)

[The Semblance of Unity]

So maybe he'd gotten a little too into the spirit of the holiday. Horace was decked out in a leather jacket with studs, all black clothing, and a a double-walled mask. When he squeezed a small pump, blood dripped down it, behinda loayer of clear plastic. It was pretty kick-a**, he thought, and easy to slide off when he actually needed to be in a class or talk to someone important. Halloween, however, just happened to be a day off for him, so he was at the university to study and to just have somewhere to wear his costume.
.
He should be studying right now. Horace had taken the chance to eat at the cafeteria until the sheer amount of people made his skin itch, and those same people had seemed to filter into the hallway. Right now, however, he was trapped in a crowded hallway behind a boy who was moving at about a snail's pace. Antsy from the press of people, yet still loathe to tap the boy on the shoulder, Horace leaned in.

"Excuse me," he said.

grey dragon

 

[Grey Dragon]

At hearing the polite 'excuse me' from behind him, Kaleb deftly stepped to the very side of the corridor with a practiced swiftness. This was one of those situations that repeated itself often enough, needing to get out of the way in a hurry while otherwise still caught up in whatever printed words lay in front of him. Usually he could pull away without even making eye contact and continue on with his day, a brief, polite, and faceless interruption for whomever needed to pass.

Unfortunately he was in the process of learning better social habits.

"Sorry!" He replied as he slipped out of the way, glancing over his shoulder towards the person who needed to pass. Yet instead of a slightly disgruntled expression on an otherwise entirely human face, the visage that greeted him was staggering. Kaleb's own physiological response to the blood that oozed down that skeletal face was immediate, even the lightness in his head and the blurring of his vision didn't give him time to prevent the faint.

Thankfully the wall he had pressed against kept him from falling backwards, instead he seemed to drop straight down in a crumpled heap.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Horace watched, his mouth opening in distress as the boy simply crumpled dramatically. Well, he wasn't going to be getting anywhere soon; he couldn't just leave him! Kaleb being mostly unconscious actually made him easy to touch and Horace checked the back of his head for any bumps before propping him up. Working at the funeral home had made Horace able to touch non-moving bodies as well as endure some touch when he was in control of it. It was the element of non-control that truly bothered him.

Sighing, he flipped his mask up, on top of his head, and shook the boy gently. His skin twitched anxiously and he seemed poised to move back if Kaleb made any too-sudden movements.

"Hey, hey, you okay?"

grey dragon

 

[Grey Dragon]

Thankfully the blackout itself was a relatively brief thing, even as Horace began to shake him he stirred sluggishly. Then the hazy disorientation snapped back into full awareness and Kaleb quickly covered his pale face with his hands. If anyone asked, he didn't want to risk seeing so much blood again, just thinking about it made him feel slightly dizzy. But he also didn't want to see the lingering students in the hallway who had paused to spectate the unusual situation, didn't want to risk seeing concern or ridicule in the face of the individual who was trying to help...

Mostly he didn't want them to see his face. Kaleb didn't want to be recognized after this, he wanted to just keep his head down and avoid as much attention as possible, so he could just fade back into peaceful obscurity as quickly as possible.

"I'm so sorry," he said through his hands, afraid to look up.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Not what I asked, dude." Horace watched the guy worriedly. He'd been in a rush, but fainting people took precedence over that - he wasn't an a*****e most of the time. Luckily, Kaleb didn't even make any sudden movements. Horace kept his hand on the boy's shoulder for a moment before letting it slide off. (He was getting antsy.)

Then, a thought struck him. "Hey, uh, if it was the mask, it's gone now. Or rather, it ain't on my head, okay?"

grey dragon

 

[Grey Dragon]

Kaleb just nodded, words caught nervously in his throat. He was okay, nothing hurt aside from the sting of embarrassment. Even that would recover with enough silent anonymity.

It all made sense then, that ghastly expression and oozing blood had just been a Halloween mask. It was Halloween... And this poor guy had probably just been enjoying the holiday. A little noise of dismay slipped out from behind his hands. Just a mask! Not even real blood or anything, just a visual trigger hastily (and incorrectly) interpreted by subcortical areas of his brain, inducing a physiological reaction. The freckled student hesitantly lowered his hands from his face, pulling his glasses down slightly on his nose in the process.

"I'm sorry, I did a terrible job letting you past," Kaleb said. He struggled to smile and make light of the faint, but his tone was wrapped in self-depreciation like it was his only protection from whatever might come next.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Horace sighed in relief. No life-threatening concussion or anything. "Nah, you're fine - I was just in a hurry. I didn't mean to startle you." He moved to stand then paused. "Um, can you get up?"

grey dragon

 

[Grey Dragon]

"Yes, sorry," Kaleb replied quickly, and against his better judgement, grabbed his book in a hurry and scrambled to his feet so he wasn't causing such a disturbance in the hallway. A swirl of residual dizziness passed over him, but with one hand on the wall he was able to pretend it was all okay.

After a moment of awkwardness, he forced himself to look up at the taller student in order to thank him for his help... but looking that far up turned out to be even more awkward than the silence for the shy teen. Kaleb was used to maintaining a downcast gaze, and lifting his head anywhere near what resembled confidence was difficult, even if it was only for observational reasons. He barely maintained eye contact for a full second.

"Thank you," Kaleb said, clutching the book to his chest in personal reassurance.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Thank me? For what - nearly making you faint?" Horace chuckled. The guy was shy and he'd just given him a fright and it should be awful and it did feel awful.. But it was also kind of funny. "You still don't look good. There's a room near the student union where you can catch a quick lay down if you want? I can show you." He gestured to his left. It was sort of in the direction they'd already both been headed.

"I'm Horace, by the way... sorry."

grey dragon

 

[Grey Dragon]

"For making sure I wasn't dead or anything," Kaleb replied shyly. Horace's laugh seemed to diffuse some of his anxiety, reinforcing the thought that maybe, just maybe, the situation wasn't as bad as it seemed.

"I'm Kaleb, it's nice to meet you," he replied to the introduction, even managing a small smile. The whole situation was a bit funny now that he thought about it, the actual meeting part had been rather terrifying. But it wasn't like he was lying with his pleasantries either, Horace seemed really friendly, and it was always nice to meet someone who wasn't impossibly intimidating.

He gave a small nod. "That would be good, I think... I didn't know there was anywhere like that on campus." He might have been able to point out a dozen quiet reading spots in the large building, but he tended to avoid places involving human interaction.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Alright, Kaleb, let's go." And Horace grinned and started off. "There's tons of odd places on campus. You gotta schmooze up to the right people and you can learn anything." He began to chatter on a bit about various hideaways and which ones to never use. How the library was haunted, but there was a study room no one really used, keeping up an oddly steady flow of chatter.

grey dragon

 

[Grey Dragon]

As they walked, Kaleb spoke little, but put in attentive noises where it was appropriate, encouraging the chatter in his own quiet way. There was something kinda nice about being talked to, without being poked for information about himself or being expected to contribute equally to the conversation. By the time they reached their destination, he had gotten so lost in tales of quiet places that he almost forgot about the embarrassment of fainting in the hallway.

In the end it was a bit easier to look up at Horace with a smile. "Thanks again, for everything. I really appreciate the help."

The Semblance of Unity

If you are good, I am good for a wrap! <3