Last Lesson of Term

[Frozen Smoke]

The last day of school before the end of term should by all rights, be the most enjoyable one. After all, most of the teachers didn't particularly try to impart some last fragments of wisdom in their mostly disinterested classes, and did whatever they could think of that took the least amount of effort to put together and would hold the class's attention for the requisite hour. But with the promise of freedom from the drudgery that was school so close to being fulfilled for a whole 5 weeks being dangled in front of him, Dan had always found himself staring at the clock and willing it to hurry up during every lesson. That was what Dan was continuing to do as the final class of the final day of the final week rolled around. He found his normal seat near the back of Geography class, and glared at the clock which sat prominently on the wall across from him, watching the minute hand slowly creep closer and closer to 3 o'clock.

A few minutes after class was supposed to start, their teacher arrived. Mrs. Harris was a short, rotund woman, who seemed to consciously do everything she could to destroy the notion that fat people were jolly. However, it seemed that she was in an unusually good mood as she addressed the class, and informed them that they would not be suffering through a regular class, but instead watching a movie to pass the time between now and the end of term. Apparently it was something related the geography topics they'd been working on, but Daniel had already stopped paying particular attention to her as a quiet murmur of joy rippled through their class, bored expressions replaced with smiles all around. He added to that with a soft "Yessss" that he pushed through closed teeth, as to not draw attention to himself. Drawing the ire of Mrs. Harris was not something he wished to do, especially when being given a reprieve from being lectured to about how Global Warming was bad.

With the movie being set up on the overhead projector, the class began to shuffle around, as students who were interested in the movie moved closer to the screen and tinny speakers that would hold their attention for the next hour or so. Dan on the other hand stayed where he was. He'd had Mrs. Harris last year, and she'd shown the exact same movie at the end of the first term then too, and whilst it had been passable, he had little desire to watch it again. So, he simply sat at the back, and watched everyone else move around. He tried to catch the eyes of a few people he recognised from last year, and silently signal to them to come hang out at the back with him too. Chatting for the remaining hour probably wouldn't get them in trouble if they kept it quiet, and would likely be better entertainment than that being offered to the rest of the class.

[Primrosette]

Kian was leaning back in his seat as he staring at the movie and he noticed out of the corner of his eye, that Daniel Newhouse was trying to get the attention of some people who weren't interested in learning. He got the feeling, geography was one of those subjects that could bore you or intrigue you. For Kian...?

It was average at best. So he felt himself listening to the movie more than watching it. He felt the corners of his mouth form into a slight smile as he continued to watch Dan out of curiosity and mild interest. It looked like he suddenly catch Dan's attention for a moment there.

Kian gave Dan a small wave and a relaxed smile, then he wondered if he should talk with the guy. He did love making risks after all. He glanced back at the teacher, realizing that her full attention was on the movie as well as a few other students.

Perfect.

[Frozen Smoke]

Dan tilted his head up in a half-nod in recognition of catching someone's attention, a goofy, warm smile on his face. It took him a few moments before he could put a name to the face, Kian. He wasn't exactly friends with him, but he'd seen him around every now and again, and quite frankly he'd talk to his worst enemy right about now if it made the time pass a little faster. Still, seeing as he wasn't moving over just yet as the movie began to start up, dry exposition and establishing shots serving to establish the plot of the wholeheartedly mediocre film, he'd have to make his point a little clearer.

He considered just straight up telling him to come over, but decided that Mrs. Harris would probably hear that and probably force him to stay and watch the whole thing, and he really didn't want to have to do that. Instead, he gestured towards the screen with one hand, and mouthed "This. Sucks." silently to him, exaggerating the motions to ensure that they could be seen in the dimmed lights of the classroom. He continued to wear the same goofy grin as he gestured with his head as best he could that Kian should come over to the back so they could do literally anything other than watch this thing.

[Primrosette]

Kian couldn't help but almost laugh aloud, but he didn't because of the risk of Mrs. Harris catching him in the act. As much as Kian would love to be the centre of attention, he was not in the mood to have his possible conversation with a guy get spoiled by his ownself.

Besides, it seemed like Dan was begging to have anyone talk to him. So why not Kian? This was his chance to make a friend with a guy that he barely knew. It was totally worth the risk for him.

Kian glanced towards Mrs. Harris to make sure that she was not looking towards the students in the classroom. Nope, it definitely looked like she was staring at the movie as well as some of the students, so this was his chance to move.

Kian shuffled his seat backwards until he was basically seated right beside Dan, still having a smile planted on his face. "What's up?" He asked quietly, feeling good about what he had just done and he felt himself relax a little.    

[Frozen Smoke]

Dan let his posture slip as Kian sat down next to him, going from bolt-upright in order to look over the top of everyone in the class and find someone to sitting in the normal, semi-slumped manner that would probably destroy his back long term but made the cheap plastic chairs that filled the classroom something approaching bearable to sit in. The fact that it'd help him blend in at the back of the classroom was a nice bonus to pile on top of that.

He answered Kian's question without really thinking about it, keeping his voice low, but the anticipation was clear in his voice. "Probably the same as you dude, looking forwards to getting the hell out of here and enjoying the shit out of the break." he said, smile still wide as he contemplated his options for that. There'd probably be a party this weekend, all the time he needed to chill out and play some games, a few rugby matches. The dream, basically.

After a little pause as he thought about all that, he realised that he should probably say something to keep the conversation going. "So, uh, you got any plans over the break?" he asked, now wondering just what Kian might get up to. He was pretty sure he had him on one of his friends lists online, but didn't really know what he played, and he didn't remember seeing him at any parties. Come to think of it he really didn't know much about him at all. No time like the present to find out, he supposed.  

[Primrosette]

"Plans, huh?"

Kian leaned back in his chair slightly and he actually thought about it for a moment with a thoughtful smile. He had made some plans to just chill with his buddies at the skate park, maybe playing some games and of course.... do a bit of studying. And his favourite thing at night.... He had found some good abandoned, crumbling and worn-out buildings to do some art. Not that he would tell Dan that. That was his precious little secret.

"I'd probably just hang with my mates at the skate park and just relax in general, you know." Kian said, even if it sounded boring to Dan, Kian didn't care and he had wanted to be a bit honest about what he did. Even if it was a bit vague. "So what about you, man? Got anything good coming up for you?"

[Frozen Smoke]

Dan watched him think for a bit, much as he was himself. If he was honest he hadn't quite figured everything out yet - he was just completely checked out at this point in terms of plans. That included like, long term too, now that he thought about it. He was going to finish his GCSE re-takes, hopefully get a few C's, then just see what happened. He was honestly feeling pretty good about that, looking forwards to it even. Being able to take a break from working towards shit and just chilling out for a few months. Kian's answer was a solid one too, hanging out with friends was exactly what he was thinking of too, though probably in someones house and with a few beers rather than the skate park.

"Yeah man, a week of freedom." he replied, looking over that break in mandated responsibility to try in his life he had stretching out in front of him. "Gonna be living it up, you know?" He paused at that as he remembered something else he had to do this break though. Oh, yeah, they had a game on Wednesday, not a big one, but one they needed to win. Didn't matter that they were bottom of the league, you never let your guard down around the people with nothing to lose. "Oh, uh, and a game of Rugby coming up too" he added, trying not to sound like he was making a huge deal of it. A lot of other people on the team tended to brag about it, and he felt that gave a bad impression when he tried to talk to other people about it, which he wanted to avoid. Plus it just wasn't a good look to act like that, made you look like a swaggering bell-end, not the kinda guy that'd hang out with you.

[Primrosette]

Ah, freedom. Freedom was a word that Kian had always liked ever since he was a little kid and he loved that he could still have time for freedom. He would always take advantage of every second of it without a care in the world. Although, he could get a bit carried away sometimes and getting trouble for it. But still, it was worth it.

"Rugby...." Kian murmured the word softly and then he nodded his head slowly. Rugby wasn't his kind of sport; but if someone else liked it, then he was not going to judge them for it and say that he hated it like some kind of asshole. "Sweet! Do you want me to come along and cheer for you?" He asked with a genuine smile. He would definitely do something like that. Even if he did barely know the guy.

[Frozen Smoke]

Dan broke into a grin at that, Kian's suggestion seeming unusually supportive for someone he'd just met. He liked that though, probably said a lot about who he was. He couldn't lie, the image of Kian trying to lead a cheer in the crowd like one of the dumb, American Football style cheerleaders they'd seen used as symbols of American Culture in the 21st century. History sucked, but at least with the air raids, that bit of history had felt kind of important to know.

"You're welcome to come if you want, man." he said, keeping his voice welcoming, but not trying to pressure him into coming all the same. He did like having people in the crowd, if he was honest. He always felt it made him play better, knowing he had someone to make proud by taking home a victory.

[Primrosette]

Kian was leaning back in his seat more and he was trying not to make it fall. To be fair, getting in trouble over a chair falling over with him on it would be completely hilarious. Well, if anyone else in the room laughed, of course. He decided to be a normal guy and he sat his seat back up into a right position. No problem now!

"Why not? I want to see you in all your glory. Besides I've got nothing better to do on that day." Kian said cheerfully. That was a lie. He had wanted to play some video games, but still he wanted to get to know Dan more and become good mates with him. So what if Dan had different hobbies to him? It wasn't a big deal to him. "And if you ever want to hang out with me, feel free to do so."

[Frozen Smoke]

Daniel had to force himself not to roll his eyes in Kian as he leaned the weathered plastic and steel back onto its hind legs, trusting the object paid for by lowest bidder in his fight against one of the few rules Dan knew applied to everyone. What went up, came down. Normally with a painful crunch. He was almost ready to try and catch him if the thing broke or he lost his balance, though he was more likely to simply laugh his ass off if anything actually happened. After all, it'd serve him right, taunting Einstein or whoever invented gravity like that.

Still, he felt a little bit of pride swell in his chest as Kian suggested seeing him and the team in their full glory. It was a nice gesture from him, and made his smile widen across his face, a creased line that wrinkled up his face a little without showing his teeth. Hearing that other people had heard about the rugby team's current run of good form and considered it 'glorious' was a great piece of news too. Kian probably had no idea where it was though - but he could sort that out. He nodded to show his understanding to both parts of what Kian had said, his slouch continuing to deepen as he pulled his phone out under the table, quickly checking if he had Kian on Facebook as he spoke.

"Fair play man, I appreciate that. I can send you the location on Facebook if you need it - do I have you on there?" he said, his voice low but earnest as he continued "And, I'd be down to hang out some time, yeah - Think I have you on PSN as well". There was a small pause there as Dan tried, momentarily to judge what Kian might play, before just deciding to ask the obvious first question whilst he was talking. "You play FIFA at all?" he added, his interest showing through in the slightly sharper tone of his voice as he kept a slumped, relaxed posture. Couldn't let the teacher know he was on his phone during class, even if they weren't learning anything.

[Primrosette]

Kian give a quick cautious look towards Mrs. Harris. Nope, she was not looking towards them at all and Kian was glad that they have not been caught yet. Kian then got out his own phone and he glanced through his list of friends on Facebook. Shit, nope, Dan was not on there. Huh, he thought that he would have been. No harm in adding him on the list.

"Nah, don't have you on my page, mate. Here." Kian said, while sending him a friend request and his eyes widened with pride as Dan mentioned PSN. It was strange for Kian to get excited about something like that, but he didn't really care if it made him the weirdest guy in the whole world. "FIFA? I've played it a few times, I totally suck at it tho. Think you can give me some hints at being better at it?"

[Frozen Smoke]

Daniel saw the notification of a friend request pop up, and jammed his thumb onto the accept button. Bam, contact established for later. That was all he needed, really. He couldn't help but smirk at Kian's profile picture, it being fairly recent, all things considered. It was him on his board, looking particularly skater-y, hat on backwards any everything. He hadn't known Kian skated, that was a good fact to keep in mind. He'd have to ask him about it some day, after all, he'd shown a lot of interest to his hobbies - returning the favour only seemed natural.

His gaze went back to Kian as he spoke again though, and his phone went back into the pocket of his trousers, making sure to keep within the acceptable limits of the "No phones in class" rule, that really meant "do it under the table where I can't see it and quickly". He smiled in regards to him admitting he sucked - Not many of his friends would do that, all so competitive and trying to convince themselves they were the best. He didn't get it, the point of playing games was to have fun, not to win. Doing your best was good enough, as far as he was concerned.

"Yeah, I'm not great myself - Bet it'd be great fun with the two of us playing against each other though!" he said, imagining all the shenanigans that would happen between the two of them. Playing against other people who were trying to have fun with it was always the best. He thought for a bit longer, wondering about the context. "Still, only a few times - You got games you play more often man?" he asked, curiously. Somewhere in the back of his mind he imagined Kian playing skating games, like Tony Hawk, because he was a skater. That seemed to fit, to him, at least.

[Primrosette]

Kian was glad that he had accomplished managing to make a friend out of Dan and he give himself a pat on his own back - in his mind, of course. Kian didn't want to be an embarrassing dude. No way! Still best teaming up with Dan would be totally awesome. They could just chill, chat and play at their own pace without getting into yelling matches. Although, it was mostly Kian's friends who got pissy over games too easily.

"Well, for a first, you'd probably think that I would play skating games.... But you would be wrong as I prefer to go out and doing the skating myself." Kian said with a cheerful smile. "I prefer first-shooter games. Simple as that, dude."  

[Frozen Smoke]

Dan's smile took on a tinge of embarrassment at that suggestion, knowing full well that Kian had caught him dead to rights with that one. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly as he tried to figure out what to say in response to that.

"Gotta admit I did kinda peg you as the kinda guy who played a lot of Tony Hawk." he admitted, before continuing in a tone that didn't sound halfway towards an apology. "Fair play though, I'm always down to play a shooter. They're good fun, even if playing against someone really good at them is no fun"