Anywhere But Here

Who: Gabe and Leija
Where: MSHS
When: Late afternoon

They'd been told that they were going to have to stay in school. Which was something that Leija immediately did not like. She'd tried calling her dad to see if he could come and get her, but he'd made clear just how bad everything was out there, and that he was going to be sleeping in his office at the university himself. The very thought of being caught at MSHS overnight made the angel kind of queasy to her stomach, and panicky. How closely would they be watched? What if she got called out? Could she sneak away? Would they lock the doors and windows? Marquette wasn't the safest place in the world anymore, after all, and it was going to be dark.

Shit shit shit motherfucker goddammit fuck, kept running through her mind as she hurried down the hall after the last bell had rung. She put her books away and made for the nearest door. Staring out into the wall of white, she chewed on her bottom lip, hard, and wondered if she could even fly in this kind of weather. If she could make it home.

In the past few years of living in Marquette, Gabe had learned what conditions he could bear, and what he could do nothing against. Walking up to one of the exits, he stared out at a sheet of snow and knew that there was no way he could get home, even if he tried. He probably wouldn't even be able to find his car, and even if he did, how could he drive if he couldn't see the street? It had happened too fast for anyone to react properly and now they really were stuck. Any inklings he'd been hoping for otherwise were thoroughly smashed at the sight of all that snow.

"This fucking sucks," he muttered, aware that he had company, even if he wasn't sure who she was. "What do they expect us to do, cuddle up like puppies in the gym?" It wasn't going to happen. He felt too vulnerable at school, especially after all that had happened. He'd have to find a place where he could feel safe, though he didn't have a clue where that might be. Not yet, at least.

It was probably fucked up that Leija very nearly burst into tears when some dude came up mostly behind her and said something. She really really needed to get out of there. And get home. Because she was kind of a mess, and really didn't need to be that way in front of other people. And there was always the chance that she'd be put in a position to give herself away, if she had to escape out a window to go do her duty. It wasn't like she could put it off or anything. "I don't know," she said back, eyes still out the window, and it sounded a lot more hopeless and sad than she intended it to. But maybe he'd go away then.

Gabe wasn't the most perceptive person in the world, but it would have been near impossible not to notice how miserable Leija sounded. Sure, he didn't know her, but he didn't feel like it was right to just walk away. He paused, considering the situation, then looked over at her, concerned. "Are you okay?" he asked. Sure, they were locked up, and it really did suck, but he could live with it. This was Marquette, and things like this just seemed to happen. Now, if the shadows started haunting the hallways again, then he'd have a problem.

She hated that question. She really did, especially coming from strangers. Because they didn't really want to know. Not really. They just wanted you to give them that 'oh I'm fine, thanks for asking' answer. And then they could say 'you sure?' and you could say 'yes, thank you' and they'd feel like they did a good thing. That would be incredibly bitchy to say out loud, however, so she restrained herself. She leaned forward to press her forehead against the cold glass. "I just ... really really don't want to be here tonight," she said, still not looking over at him. "I'm fine."

He could push, but he didn't know her and he wasn't entirely sure if she'd like that. She was cute, but she definitely wasn't in the sort of mood where he could flirt with her. Considering his options, Gabe thought maybe this was a time to let it go and walk away, but he felt like he should at least say something else, just in case. "Okay," Gabe said, his eyes turning towards the white outside. "Well... maybe you can try to make it home." They weren't required to stay, but it was highly recommended. At least, that was his impression.

She could try. She could try and likely get lost in that white blizzard, turned around, and freeze to death. ... god, what the fuck was wrong with her today? Her mood had just gone steadily and quietly downhill since lunch with Porter, and now she was having blizzard-wandering fantasies. "Doubtful," she said, and turned away from the door finally. Leija looked at him. He was familiar, probably from some of the parties she'd been to, but she didn't know his name. "I walked this morning, so it'd probably be a bad idea." Unless she could fly up above the clouds. That might be a solution ....

"Walking... wouldn't be safe," Gabe cringed in agreement. As much as she might prefer to be elsewhere, freezing to death couldn't possibly be a better option than being stuck in the school. "At least we're here with friends," he suggested, since that was the only thing that comforted him. Not that the authorities knew, or that there were teachers trying to take charge, but that Claire was there, and Kyle, and Charlotte, and anyone else he could turn to if he really had a problem. While he wasn't planning on it, Gabe liked to think his friends had his back, just as he had theirs.

'At least we're here with friends.' The statement was almost laughable. The people in this school that she didn't want to hang out with completely outnumbered the ones that she did. Their ranks had been cut down to oh ... maybe two. Leija stared at the guy for a beat, face expressionless. Maybe she could go try to find Porter. But maybe that was kind of desperate-looking and lame, considering she'd spent lunch with him. "Yeah," she said after a beat, because there was no point in arguing. He probably had a million friends. "Excuse me," Leija said, turning away from the door and starting to walk away. If she could get to a door in the back, where no one could see her, she could probably make it home if she went high and fast enough.

Gabe stared after her, not sure what to say and finally deciding he should just let her go. That had all gone over rather poorly and he wasn't even sure how he'd managed it. Generally, he thought he handled himself well with girls, but this time he'd failed, even if he wasn't actually trying for anything. Taking a deep breath, the looked back out at the snow, then headed off in search of blankets. It was bound to be a long night.