Better Than Dodgeball

Who: Peyton and Alexis
When: Afternoon
Where: Gym class

If there was one thing Peyton was looking forward to, it was the end of the semester. Because that meant no more gym class. She wasn't by any means athletic, and she hated sports when she had to dress up and play them in front of class mates, so she had put off taking the damn class until she absolutely had to. The t-shirt and shorts she was forced to wear made her feel awkward, but she couldn't get away with playing volleyball in jeans, so she learned to deal.

After changing, she pulled her hair back into a ponytail and sat on the wooden bench in front of her locker to tie her sneaker. She was tired after having Isaac over the night before and... well, doing that, and then Geo showing up late to use her computer and... she hadn't gotten much sleep. Not that she was complaining about it really. Spending time with two of her favorite people was never going to put her in a sour mood. Gym, however? That was another story.

Alexis wasn't all that keen on taking gym herself. She'd avoided it her first two years, but when putting together her schedule for her junior year, her counselor had pointed out that if she didn't take it now, she'd still have to take it later. The only thing worse than taking gym would be taking gym as a senior, so there she was. The cotton gym shorts and t-shirt made her self-conscious, but she knew she shouldn't let it bother her when everyone looked like a dork. Taking a seat on the bench, she began to pull her hair back as well. "Anyone know what we're doing today?" she asked. She hoped it wasn't outside. She'd much rather be in.

Peyton glanced over at the blonde girl. It registered in her mind that the girl was new this year, but given so many students were new, it was hard for Peyton to really keep up with them all. "Weight room," Peyton told her with a pained, apologetic expression. "There's a lot of indoor volleyball, dodgeball and weight rooming when it gets colder." Personally Peyton preferred to be outside. She loved track days because then she could just walk around the track, lost in her thoughts rather than trying to avoid getting a large plastic ball thrown at her face. "Which means the guys'll be grunting and showing off their muscles, or lack thereof, and most of the girls will be sitting on the benches gossiping about homecoming, or complaining about broken nails." Peyton grinned brightly. "It's an extremely productive way to spend a school hour."

Alexis was relieved that she wouldn't have to run in the cold-- she'd be fine with gym outside if she had warmer things to wear, but she'd yet to pick up a sweatsuit appropriate for gym class. "That's not too bad," she said, trying to be optimistic. While she didn't enjoy the weight room herself, sometimes the view could be nice. "I'm not all that worried about my nails, and I don't really know what's going on with homecoming. Is it a big deal around here?" Everywhere she'd been, it'd been different. And always the new girl, she'd never had a date.

Peyton shrugged and stood to tug her t-shirt down. The hem almost brushed the bottom of her shorts. Ugh, she felt hideous in these things. Hopefully Isaac would never ever wander by the gym while she was wearing them. "Most dances here are big deals, only because there's not much else to do. The sports teams usually have really good turn out too. It's really more of what happens after homecoming that people like. Someone usually has a party or two or whatever." And then she figured she ought to introduce herself before she talks the girl's ear off for the entire period. "I'm Peyton, by the way. I'm sorry we've had gym all this time together and I've never come over to say hello."

A party was something Alexis could look forward to, even if she wouldn't know anyone there. Once she got out there, she did a pretty good job of meeting people. It was just putting herself out there in the first place that seemed hard. "I'm Alexis," she smiled. "And don't worry about it. It's been a distracting year so far. What year are you?" she asked as she crouched down to tie her shoes. It was actually nice have a class that offered a little variety, even if it was gym. Other than choir, most her classes were with juniors.

Distracting was an understatement. "I'm a senior," Peyton replied with a smile. "Thank god. I'm just ready for the year to be over and it feels like it's just started. So I guess it's nice that homecoming is coming up, because I think it'll probably be fun and the kind of break everyone needs at this point. I'll walk with you to the weight room if you want," she offered, not really focusing on the abrupt change of topic. "Would be nice to have someone to hide behind should I need to." She pointed to her outfit. "Not exactly the most flattering uniform, is it?"

"Glad I can be your shield," Alexis laughed. "I don't think anyone looks good in these things, but sure, I'm ready," she said, shutting her locker and rising to her feet. "Maybe if we took some scissors to them-- are we allowed to alter them?" When she'd lived farther south, she'd seen the girls do it all the time, as well as the girls. Of course, they were sometimes dealing with hundred degree heat, so maybe that made more sense. "So, are you going to the dance?" she asked, jumping back and forth between topics as they headed to the weight room.

"We bought them, so I would say yes to alterations, though I bet the teacher would probably disagree with me." She could just picture the gym teacher's face if she and Alexis walked into class wearing cut up gym uniforms. It might actually be worth the detention. "Me? Yeah, I'm going with my boyfriend." And there was the pleasant, happy glow she always got when talking about Isaac. God, she was so pathetic. "Isaac St. James? I don't know if you've met him yet..." He was personable and popular. Most people, if not everyone, knew who he was. Not that she was bragging or anything. "I think we both agreed a dance would be a nice change from the past couple of weeks."

Alexis was sure she'd heard the name, on and off since she arrived and in more detail the day before. She'd seen Isaac from afar, but hadn't actually met him yet. Still, she knew a bit about him. "I haven't met him, but I know who he is. Plays in a band with Thom, right?" she asked, already knowing it to be true, unless there was more than one Isaac. "Do you have a dress yet? A dance would be nice. Normal, compared to everything else that's gone on." It felt funny for her to say so, since the abnormal seemed to follow her, or her it.

Peyton nodded at the first question. "He plays bass, yeah. My brother Tyler plays drums in the band too, which is how I met them initially. Well, not initially, I've known them since like, forever, I guess. My brother grew up with him, and I sort of was just there." Peyton tugged a bit at the hem of her shirt. She remembered when Isaac had been young and chunky. He'd been adorable even then. "But no, I don't have a dress yet. We just decided to go yesterday, so I've got to sort of do some last minute shopping." Peyton shot Alexis a glance. "You know Thom, then?"

Everyone seemed to know everyone. It was a concept Alexis has seen, but never experienced for herself. She wondered what it must be like to stay in one place for over a year, then wondered if she could make that happen, once she turned eighteen. It seemed a long way off. "Short notice," she laughed softly, leading them into the weight room. "I met Thom yesterday, in the music room. He was playing the piano. I've never seen anyone play like that." Alexis bit her lip, thinking. She'd considered going by the music room again today, but had decided against it. She didn't want to seem like a stalker or anything, but he'd been nice and... yeah, better not to think about it.

Piano. Jeez, Peyton hadn't touched her piano in days. Her fingers suddenly itched and she realized what she would be doing after school. Generally she came into school early to play, but she spent most of the moments these days with Isaac. "Thom's pretty gifted as a musician. Pfft, okay so Thom's pretty gifted at a lot of things," Peyton said. "How much did you get out of him? Conversation wise, I mean."

"We talked for most of lunch," Alexis said, remembering the conversation well. "He could play and sing, and he mentioned the band, Promise Theory, and Isaac, that he lived next door. And we talked about horror movies for a while, zombies and vampires and-- I swear there was a connection between the two," she laughed softly. "He pointed me towards a bookstore I'm gonna visit today. Seemed like a really cool guy, not one to be hanging out alone in the music room during lunch. Is he always in there?" she asked, not fishing for information. Really... just curious... maybe.

"Wow," Peyton said with a wide grin. "That's some serious Thom conversation. I've noticed guys love talking about zombies and stuff like that for some reason. It's all about the zombie apocalypse." Reaching up, Peyton tightened her ponytail. "He's in there often, I think. At least when he's not eating lunch with Isaac and the others. And Thom is... he's popular, but like, not in the constantly surrounded by jocks and everyone else popular. He keeps to himself, but people tend to like him anyway."

Alexis hadn't even been concerned if the conversation was girly or not. She'd just been talking, comfortably, without too much thought over what he might think of her. Afterwards, though, with the input of others, she wondered just what kind of message she'd conveyed. "So, do you eat lunch with Isaac and them?" she asked, not sure who the others were. If her brother was included, that might be a no. "It was cool-- we theorized on the probability of a zombie apocalypse and the best way to handle it." She had to cut herself off before delving into the conversation again, remembering that not everyone wanted to talk about monsters. "I think it'd be hard not to like him," she said as casually as possible.

"Sometimes I eat lunch with them. Sometimes I eat lunch with a few of my other friends. I guess it depends on the day." Like today she had eaten with Sammy, which had been nice since she hadn't really talked to him much lately. Given Sammy's brother was practically her best friend, she really needed to remedy that. Peyton glanced briefly at Alexis, arching one eyebrow curiously. "He's a likable guy. Random question, but do you have plans Friday night?"

"Not that I know of," Alexis said, taking a seat on one of the weight lifting benches. "I know the game's Friday night, but I didn't want to go by myself. Why? What's up?" Any plans other than staying home sounded good to her. A social life of any sort was what she wanted, but it'd been slow to come by with the chaos that seemed to come and go in Marquette. Maybe she'd finally find her nitch. It would be nice, should it happen.

Peyton debated for about half a second. She knew the party at Gabe's was suppose to be small but surely one extra person wouldn't hurt, right? "There's a party at a friend's house Friday night. It's like... small. Not like everyone in the school is coming, or anything. But Isaac and Thom are going -" At least she assumed Thom was going. "And I'll be there, if you wanted to tag along. Might be a good way to meet some more people?"

"Really?" Alexis said, feeling like a dork when she broke out in a smile. "I'd love to go. I swear I won't be clingy." Alexis was sure she could be personable, given the right situation. It just hadn't come up yet, so maybe this would be a good chance. "You sure you don't mind?" It seemed crazy to her that a senior would invite her along, the new girl that had nothing else to do on a Friday night. What luck!

Peyton grinned at Alexis's enthusiasm. "If I minded I wouldn't have invited you. And please, be clingy... I have a feeling it'll be hard for me to be too clingy on Isaac with all his friends there, not to mention beer. It'll be fun. If you want, we can just meet up beforehand and I'll go with you. I'm sure Isaac won't mind if I just meet him there."

"That'd be great," Alexis smiled. Maybe she was unreasonably excited, but it was her first party of the year and... well, it was probably all she'd think about till Friday came around. "Where would be a good place to meet up?" she asked, already thinking of the story she needed to tell her dad. She could always say she was staying out with Peyton, even if he hadn't met her. He had no reason not to believe it, and it'd always worked before.

"I can come by your house, if you don't mind walking." Another downside to not being able to get her license. Walking everywhere in the fall and winter. Thankfully it wasn't bitterly cold yet - though that didn't mean that it wouldn't be by Friday. "I would get my brother to drive us, but he'll probably already have a carful." Peyton scratched absently at the small bandage on her neck covering her stitches. Itching meant healing right? "Does that sound okay?"

It was nice to hear that she wasn't the only one without a car. While she'd been saving, she still had a good bit more to go before she could even start looking for one. Maybe she'd be able to convince her dad once it got really cold... "That sounds good," she agreed. "I'd offer to drive, but I don't have a car. Might be better anyways, if there's beer." She was such the light-weight; even riding her bicycle would be dangerous after a few drinks.

"That's okay." Peyton waved her hand dismissively before reaching to pull open the weight room door for her. A ton of other students from class were already inside. "I'm used to walking everywhere anyway. And Gabe doesn't live too far from my house, so if you drink too much or something you can just crash at my place if you want. I try not to drink too much. Usually I'm happy after the first or second... after that I don't remember much. Which is a bit embarrassing, actually, and makes me sound like a lush, but I'm really not. My brother is like... drink enough until you're dancing on the table with a stupid lampshade on your head, so I try to stay sober enough to make sure he doesn't start stripping and stupid stuff like that. I think it's much more fun to be able to remember all the stupid things your classmates did the next morning anyway."

Alexis laughed at the imagery, thinking that this was working out perfectly. With an offer to crash at Peyton's, she didn't have to lie to her father; she could be much more convincing when there was a half truth to work with. "That'd be great," she laughed. "I really don't think my dad would appreciate me stumbling drunk after midnight-- not that I'm a huge lush either, but it doesn't take much, you know? If I start to do any table dancing, I hope to God you'll pull me down. That is not how I want to get noticed around here." It was one thing for a local, who everyone knew prior to the experience, and another for someone like her. First impressions stuck, and she preferred hers to be good.

"I promise to stop you before you even get up on the table," Peyton said with a small giggle. "But it'll be a good way to meet some people outside of school. With everyone liquored up, they'll be a lot more friendly and outgoing, I can promise you that. If you want I can come by around seven thirty? That way most people are there are already and I can tell you who to steer clear of." Though Gabe didn't seem like the type to invite Chrissy Chapman type assholes, but that didn't mean people wouldn't try and crash.

"I'd really appreciate it," Alexis said. "Some people it's obvious, but you never know." If everyone was drinking, she was sure she'd see the wild side of her classmates, but it did mean everyone would be a little more laid back. "Seven thirty is fine. I might have to tell my dad I'm staying with you-- is that okay? He's kinda over protective." Usually it was vampires and werewolves and other supernatural beings that he wanted to protect her from, but high school parties could easily be on that list.

Peyton nodded. "That's totally fine. My dad's Dr. Marsh at the hospital, if your dad wants to check up on him, or something. You can give him my number and everything, if that makes him feel better." She could understand overprotective dads. Her dad was fairly protective, though with his vigorous work schedule, he left a lot of that to Tyler - who really she didn't see much now that school had started.

"I don't think he'll go that far, but it's good to know," Alexis grinned. Her father came and went as well, but she couldn't get away with not coming home one night without a reasonable explanation. "I might give him yours, just in case, but he should be able to call me. Hopefully he won't, since I won't be taking calls at the party."

Peyton smiled at her, thankful to see not all pretty blondes were bitches. "Awesome. Feel free to give him any number you need. I'll give you my cell number once we're done with class." And since Alexis was still fairly new, Peyton wanted to make sure she stayed out of Chrissy's claws. Maybe she'd get the girl to have lunch with her and the others this week. "Come on," she said, nudging Alexis lightly with her arm. "I'll spot you."