1 May 2023, 12:03
Get Better Standards
15 . 4 . 23
“ Are you dating Opeila Winters?”
What happened to, ‘Hello’? , ‘How are you doing?’. It became irrelevant when it came to the confirmation if Alec was dating the person Hanako trapped in the chamber of secrets overnight.
Alec might have been surprised at the sudden questions. Or perhaps he was used to Hanako’s out of the blue memorable ‘greetings’. If one would call it that. It was a bright and sunny day. A good day for a simple confrontation. They were out in the grounds. Alec’s purpose of being here was pretty obvious from the books and notes that surrounded him. Ah, to care about your grades. Hanako could not relate that much. He on the other hand had just been on the way back to the comfort of his room before he spotted Alec. In the spur of the moment, he just went ahead and decided to talk about what’s been bothering him for the past few days.
Hana’s relationship with Alec was… okay friends. They had not gotten to the point of spilling their darkest secrets and whatnot, but they did enjoy each other's presence at the very least. It would be more accurate to say that Alec possessed the rare ability to be able to handle Hanako’s personality. The first thing Hanako did when he saw him was ask him out on a date. And proceeded to try and find red flags in him so he could warn someone else about him. The fact that Alec knew all that and they still managed to keep a pleasant relationship, says something. And to Hanako, that just automatically meant he had no choice but to admit he hold some form of care for him. How much? He was not sure. But it was enough to get anxious when he heard rumours of Alec getting cozy with Opeila Winters.
Winters on the other hand, Hanako had so many things to say about her, and so little. Long story short, he gets along better with cats. They’ve been memorable characters to one another, and none of them for good reason. First was his awful reaction to her when he found out she dated Rainwood during their 1st year. Second, was his absurd jealousy in 2nd year that made him accidentally ( key note: accidentally! ) trapped her int he Chamber of Secrets overnight. Causing her some.. Mental distress the morning after. 3rd, well - he wasn’t exactly sure where he stood with her now. But he could only guess she had more than one reason to dislike him. He wouldn’t care less if that didn’t mean she also didn’t have more than one reason to tell Alec Mason about why she dislikes him.
It was a silly fear, really. He had never talked with her about their little umm tussle. But the thought of her sharing anything to Alec sent him into a worried state. First things first, he had to make sure Alec was still unaware. Gotta assess the situation before he could do anything else. Thus, he was here. Tada.
“ Yea, I learned my lesson.” he said quickly after saying his greeting “ Do compliment me for coming up to you to confirm this instead of assuming you dated her off the bat. You’re not..actually.. Dating her right? Or or, even like like her, right? “
Uncertainty laced in his tone, but it was clear he was not so keen on the idea of them dating. Thank god Alec wasn't hanging out with Winters now. Considering she was nowhere to be seen. He had to make this talk quick.
@Alec Mason
and soon to join: @Opeila Winters
1 Jun 2023, 21:25
Get Better Standards
The snow had melted, and it was a nice day to be outdoors all things considered. Alec had been eager to get outside after being cooped up in the castle all day. Who wouldn't want to get outside in weather like this? On a whim Alec asked Opeila to study outdoors with him and she had agreed. He had little doubt in his mind that this was an invitation she'd reject. From the days of her getting sick it became clear she was persistent in her pursuit of learning and study with her continuing to attend classes despite the fragile state she was in. From the moment he asked her; there was little subtlety in the fact that asking her to study together was more-so an excuse to hang out. They didn't need to be studying together, they didn't really need to do anything. Sometimes it was nice to have someone to sit and talk with. Alec was sure they both studied enough on their own and neither of them really needed to spend the time studying.
While they were studying on and off, Alec aimlessly doodled in his sketchbook. Joking around with Opeila as he did so. Opeila didn't seem to mind his lack of vested interest in studying and it was nice to spend time letting loose for once. He didn't get to let go very often. The flow of conversation felt natural, comfortable. It was nice to be able sit and enjoy another person's company. He liked to think she was enjoying this period of downtime as much as him.
When Alec had gone out earlier searching the grounds for a spot he'd decided on a space under the 'shade' of a tree that had scarcely began to grow its leaves. What little life it had in a time just beyond the harshness of the cold was cherished by the young man. And now there he sat just by it, cross legged on the grass. He intently focused on the open sketchbook in his lap. Alec used his right hand to make sure the sketchbook stayed open. His left hand lazed about in grass; a writing utensil in hand. Opeila had left to grab something, the trip wouldn't take her long and so he waited for her to get back. As he waited for Opeila to get back Alec surveyed the rough sketch he'd been working on in his sketchbook, silently noting what needed more work. There was always something to fix and improve on.
Off to the side of Alec lay various books scattered about on the ground; a pile of several pieces of parchment lay there next to them as well, a book being used as a paper weight to keep the parchment from flying away in the wind. Opeila had only been gone for a few minutes when out of the corner of his eyes he noticed someone approaching from afar. His hyper-focused attention towards his sketchbook dissipated as he turned his head to get a better look at who was approaching him. It was a surprise to find that of anyone who could have been approaching him it was Hanako Tone. For a moment Hana's rapidly approaching presence would have Alec thinking Tone wanted to join in the obviously epic though currently halted study session. Then Alec remembered who he was dealing with.
Oh. Right. Never mind.
If Hana hadn't come to join the awesome totally productive study session; why was he here? Alec didn't mind Hanako showing up out of the blue, it was just strange. Alec would claim Hana would have even less reason as Alec looked busy but he was aware that wasn't a thing that would perturb Hana. As he came closer Alec waited. Waiting until, finally, Alec got his answer.
“Are you dating Opeila Winters?”
What?
'Was Alec dating Opeila Winters?' What kind of question was that?
That was what was so important to rush up out of the blue and ask?
Alec stared at the other blank-faced and blinking. The question caught Alec off-guard, and Alec found himself blanking on a cohesive response. “Uh...” He knew Hana was going to find out eventually. Unfortunately Alec had not prepared for the scenario where Hana would go out of his way to ask Alec about it.
“ Yea, I learned my lesson.”
“ Do compliment me for coming up to you to confirm this instead of assuming you dated her off the bat. You’re not..actually.. Dating her right? Or or, even like like her, right? “
Yes, while asking was admittedly better than making assumptions, there was an even better third option, shrugging what you hear off until someone comes to you and says their in a relationship. He assumed Hana wouldn't need clarification because it wasn't like the situation where Hana thought Alec and Wyatt were dating. He had a reason to ask. Here Hana had less so. Beyond that, Alec was getting the feeling that Hana did not approve of him and Opeila dating, or the possibility of them being interested in each other, more specifically Alec being interested in Opeila.
Alec frowned. To say Alec was not thrilled with the way Hana was reacting would have been an understatement. His words rubbed Alec the wrong way. For Hana's sake and Alec's own, Alec tried to brush Hana's words off. With a sigh Alec closed his sketchbook attempting to shift the conversation slightly. Maybe it was Alec who was taking Hana's words the wrong way. “You know, usually it's supposed to go the other way around.” Alec brought this up though he had the feeling Hana knew that. “The person in a relationship usually mentioning it at some point when their ready, sound familiar?” Alec teased. It had to be him, there was no way Hanako would ever take issue with who Alec chose to (pretend to)date. Especially Opeila... She was good for him.
edit: got the okay from opeila to godmod but forgot to add it in o.o
@Hanako Tone @Opeila Winters