/ weightless.

“Hm…” Faith pressed her lips together as she assessed her surroundings. She then noticed a familiar face across from them, one of the guards who would monitor her in the detention centre. “See that man over there? He has a Swiss army knife in his pocket. How do I know that? Well, let’s just say I’m observant. Anyways, I’m a telekinetic, want me to fetch you a free and useful knife?” Offering help was a kind gesture and he sounded like he was in need of it since she wouldn’t want to be without her belongings when you’re trying to settle in. “Patience is a virtue, but no problem.” She knew there was a 50/50 chance he’d answer his own question and once he had done so, Faith tilted her head and became intrigued by his insecurities. “Dully noted. From the looks of it, Your physical appearance seems to matter most. Can’t make promises, but I’ll do my best not to bruise your ego.”

Last year, hearing those words, Raleigh would have laughed and deemed the girl insane. This year, it left no impression as if hearing about an ability as casual. “What do you get out of it?” he asked before answering. A few exchange of words with this girl, he felt as if she wouldn’t do something just for the good of it. “Inspirational. Other quotes or motivation advice to provide?” A cheeky smile graced his lips at her observation, not sure if she caught his sarcasm on it or not. “I don’t have the brains, so what else can I rely on? Looks get you places nowadays.”

Warren, giving up (a little too soon) on studying the map he was given, was told that the cafe is in the West Wing of the second floor.  And so, totally engrossed in the book he’s reading, he doesn’t realize that he’s walked into a place that’s entirely different from what he’s looking for.  Supposedly a peaceful and relaxing room, he quite literally stumbles upon a place with drinks that are a little too colorful to be coffee, and lights too dim for proper reading.  Finding it too awkward if he leaves so soon, he sits at the bar, resting his face in one fist, contemplating his life choices and means for existence.  When the other calls upon his attention, he looks up with ever-stoic eyes, attention quickly towards the drinks between them. “I… I-uh, I think that’s a bad idea.  Y’see, we might end up drunk before we even settle our conclusions, a-and uh, um, h-how–how do I put this…”

“I-it’s um… illegal for minors to drink.” 

Raleigh was ready to throw out his defense of Warren’s prior comments before shutting his mouth at the mention of the legal age of drinking. “Is there even a drinking age here? I didn’t see that in the rules book. If you’re old enough to handle powers, then I say you’re old enough to drink.” Grabbing two glasses from the bar, he set them on top of the counter. Grabbing an unfamiliar bottle and poured it into the glasses, filling them up halfway. “Lambanog. From the the Philippines,” he read from the bottle tag. “Ever had some?” Raleigh wasn’t going to pressure the other to drink, but it was on the table and available for him if he chose to. “Are you planning on reading here? You’re going to strain your eyes.”

“Seriously ?” SoHyun was never the one to turn down a drink, and when he was being asked to try out this variety before him, why would anyone in their right mind refuse ? He looked around; it wasn’t like the bar was bustling on a school night. “Are you sure it’s cool if you’re drinking while on duty ? I don’t want you getting into trouble for being curious.” He was the nicest bartender they had yet, so SoHyun didn’t want to risk or jinx that. 

“Sure, why not?” It wasn’t like he was breaking the rules, not unless he gets super drunk that he was unable to properly do his job. “It’s not like it’s busy here. I think I’ll be fine. They won’t fire me. I’m the cutest bartender here. And think of it this way, I’m helping the bar out. I have to be nice and social with costumers, and that is exactly what this is,” he said, nodding towards the bottle of drinks behind him. “Great customer service, yeah? So which country first?” 

- ,` RALEIGH CALTHORPE `, -

Ever since he had discovered his ability to project, Fraser had attempted to explore his father’s other family’s house. – Well, the only actual Calthorpe family home. They always said there was room for a Price, like himself, but Fraser had been doing just fine with his Grandmother. Especially because his own mother, Jocelyn Price, wasn’t ever made welcome into that family while she was alive. –  every time he did try to project, he always went back to an empty house. Fraser would have liked to believe that his planes of projection weren’t aligned, or that he was somehow making a mistake in projecting. Or that his timing wasn’t right. But every time that he did attempt it, he never saw anything that would assure him of their wellbeing.

A couple of days ago, recently, he attempted another astral projection during training. It had its risks of getting lost in limbo, especially without anyone to supervise him until he got complete hold of how to use the ability to its full potential, so he was advised to refrain from wandering away on his own. So while he was exploring the grounds on which MPP stood, Fraser thought he saw his half brother. It couldn’t have been though, he would’ve known sooner if that were the case. So he didn’t think much about the younger male in his projection. It could be his own subconscious tricking him. But he couldn’t know for certain.

All these terrible thoughts came to mind, but he would often brush them aside for when he’d have the time to think. What if they couldn’t escape the effects of radiation ? And what if Raleigh really is here ? Then what about their sister, Raleigh’s mother ? They were his only remaining family, even if Fraser hadn’t talked to them in years. It was quite shameful and regretful. He could’ve been there for them after his father died. He should’ve.

Fraser did what he thought was the right thing to do. The first thing he did that morning, after a night of sleeplessness, was that he made his way to the public relations office. This would be a sure way to find out, right ? “I need to know if a Raleigh Calthorpe ever signed in ? That’s C-A-L-T-H-O-R-P-E.” 

When it was confirmed, a pit in his stomach hollowed as he asked for the primly dressed old lady to call for him so he could see him with his own eyes to believe it. So, he waited. His leg anxiously tapped away at the ground as he waited outside the offices, in the small lounge area close by.

It was quite an adjustment being at the program. It was similar to going to college, having to meet new people and get used to being away from his family, but circumstances were different this time around. If it was only him whose life was in danger, he would not hesitate to go back home and take care of his mom, but his presence at home was also putting the other two at risk as well. For the first time since his arrival, his mind was finally off them as he stood at the bar, being trained on how to mix drinks. It was things he already knew how to do, considering he was also a bartender back home before he came here. Even though already knowing what was being told to him, Raleigh carefully listened to the person directing him around, showing him different areas and what drinks called for what, attempting to learn the new drinks he hasn’t heard before. 

His training was cut short when an old lady walked into the bar, requesting for Raleigh and that a ‘Mr. Price was asking for him’. Hearing the name, Raleigh froze, trying to see if he heard that correctly. There was only one Price that he knew, and he wasn’t one that Raleigh has seen or talked to in a long time. His half brother had always been welcomed into the family, but he guessed it was Fraser’s choice to distant himself from them. Raleigh had tried to reach out a few times after their dad died, but there wasn’t much of a response from the other end. There couldn’t be a chance Fraser was there too, right? Excusing himself from his training, Raleigh slowly made his way to the lounge on the other floor. Trying to not get lost, Raleigh didn’t have time to think of what he was going to say or do if this Mr. Price had the same face as Fraser. But he did. And the recognition was amazing as if none of his features changed, still strikingly similar to their father. “Fraser?” Eight years of silence and he ends up in the one place where the smallest population would be found? “What are you doing here?”

“Maybe don’t sit on that ass of yours all day and you probably wouldn’t have a knot in your back.” She hummed smiling looking up at him as their hands swung by their side, her fingers extremely loose around his in case he was to pull away at any moment. But the physical human contact felt oddly relaxing. It was something that she hadn’t had in years. “Good, it’s good that you’re new, at least I’m not the only one. That way we can get lost together.” She said as she glanced down at their hands as they entered the kitchens and she pulled away from him instantly looking for the alcohol cabinet in the drawers, standing up on her tippy toes to reach the high ones. “You think they guard this place? It’s just a kitchen. What are they hiding in here? Dead bodies and not actual food? Why would they need to guard this place? Besides, a lot of the guards here are old cranky men, we can probably outrun most of them if we did get caught.”

“My ass likes to sit down all day, so I’m going to have to side on my ass over my back today,” Raleigh mused as if the conversation was a typical one. “But what if we lose each other? Being clueless about this place won’t be helpful for the both of us then if that happens,” he declared, letting his hand slip from hers as they entered the kitchen. He went immediately went to the fridge, opening it up and finding what he possibly can that would fulfill his needs. “If they guarded this place, we wouldn’t have you walked into here so easily. -- Oh shit, there are crepes.” Raleigh pulled out the plate of fruit crepes along with a bottle of whipped cream. “Free food for everyone? This place would go bankrupt. Or there are dead bodies in here. Check the freezer. Maybe there’s a head in there,” he ominously said with a quirked eyebrow. The atmosphere he set up dismissed when he sprayed the whipped cream onto the crepe. “I totally understand wanting to hide these food. Look at how delicious it looks!”

“You here for training? Because I was just about to take a break, but if you need to train my break can wait.”

He didn’t realize that someone would be in the room he walked into, but then again, Raleigh just assumed he could freely walk into any place without care. “No, I was just exploring this place. Also wanted to see what training entails. I was expecting some fire balls to be thrown around or arrows flying from every corner. Some type of Hunger Games shit. Now, I’m quite disappointed.”

Huffing softly, the other shook his head. Cameras seeing it didn’t matter to him. Just other mutants and mutates. It scared him. He didn’t want to be seen negatively because of it. Blushing heavily, Damian shook his head. “I-I was trying something new and it didn’t work…”

“It’ll work soon enough,” Raleigh assured him with a shrug. “Once I tried to make myself float and then landed on my face. Luckily, no one saw it,” he mused, comparing their situations. “If it ends up getting bruises, just tell people you got in a fight. No one will hear the truth from me.”

“Oh c’mon, Batman.” She said playing along on being his Robin Hood. “I’m sure you’re flexible enough for it. How about this, after we have some fun, I’ll crack that knot in your back?” She said smirking slightly as she led him to the kitchens. It was the first place she found when she got here if she was going to be completely honest. “Maybe I will burn this place down, who knows. Too bad I don’t have pyrokinesis as a power. That would make things a shit ton easier.” She said with a shrug before she giggled and let her fingers linked with his as they headed to the kitchens. “So are you new like me? Or have you been here for a while?” She said humming mindlessly as she let their hands swing as they walked. It almost looked like she was a little kid with her parent.

“If only I was Bruce Wayne. I could easily hire a masseuse to loosen the knot. But if you’re offering and it’s free of charge, I guess I can’t say no,” he match her smirk with one of his own. Walking into the kitchen they were right then seemed to be less like ‘breaking in’ and rather just going straight in. There seemed to be no plan or action of hiding themselves quietly, but he didn’t question it. If casually walking like this was going to work, then it was less effort from the both of them. “Where would the fun of that be if it was easy, though?” It would’ve felt uncomfortable and bit weird with how their skin was in contact right then, but it was almost as if it was his little sister holding his hand when she was younger. “Yeah, I just got here yesterday. Nothing like I expected.”

“A knife I could understand…But scissors? Those may be good points, but that’s like once in a blue moon y’know?” She then tilted her head to the side and said, “Okay, if that’s what you want then no, I don’t have any scissors.” Just when she was about to get over the incident in the caf, the young man decided to bring it up and immediately, Faith’s mood went sour. “Does it really matter now? Besides, I can take whatever gets thrown at me…It’s you who should be telling me that information seeing as you’re all ‘fragile and sensitive’.”  

“Yeah, I realize it was a stupid question, but there has to be someone who is willing to grab scissors for me. If not, unpacking will just have to wait until I can get someone to just make some appear.” Raleigh provided her with a nod of approval. “Took awhile to get there, but thanks.” It was clear she didn’t want to discuss what she was seemingly willing and eagerly to talk about earlier. “Well, if you must know,” he started, looking upwards as if in deep through about this. “Any comments about my weight. Completely off limits. The way I walk should be off the table. My hair if I don’t put any gel in it, it’s Bieber-style -- I already know. And don’t comment on my white t-shirts.” 

Damian had been practicing on his own. He wasn’t in any training rooms, he’d just been in the hallway. He was trying to move into a room he hadn’t been in before. But that didn’t go too well for him. Damian had messed up and ended hitting his head on the wall. He was suddenly aware of the other person in the hall. “…You didn’t see that. That definitely didn’t happen.”

Raleigh was spending his day exploring the building, figuring out exactly where he was staying for the next bit of his life. It wasn’t anything like home. A small, three room house was nothing in comparison to this. Wandering through the hallways, he walked upon someone finding company with a wall. After silently chuckling to himself, he innocently looked up. “Tell that to the cameras.” If this kind of thing was usual, he wouldn’t mind this place too much. “You do that often?”

    “Gottverdammt” he cried underneath his breath while discarding the ‘sausage’ across his plate. You’d imagine a facility like this had better food or more accommodating to their international mutants. “I swear I’ll do someone’s studies for a week if I can get a proper food in my system…”

“Dude, at least offer it to me first before throwing it out. There are people starving out there,” he provided the fact before stuffing a piece of bread in his mouth. Raleigh wasn’t one to say no to food, especially free food. “Do my German assignments, and I’ll steal you food from the kitchen. I already found a way in without getting caught. I can whip some shit up too if you pull a recipe off online.” 

At the request, Faith had an odd expression written all over her face as she was slightly taken back by it. Well this was definitely a strange encounter and for the most part, she looked totally conceited for even making this about herself. “Riiiight…” she immediately replied as her voice trailed off. She then shook her had and quirked a brow after processing what he had just asked for. “What makes you think people carry spare scissors around? That’s a safety hazard to begin with, especially in an institution filled with powered people.” Tilting her head to the side, she narrowed her gaze slightly as she tried to comprehend what he was getting at. “I don’t know, nor do I care. It does sound dumb to begin with, cause either way everyone gets hurt by both actions and words.” 

He had to admit, there was a small chance the girl had scissors on her. It was a small chance for anyone, really. But there had to a pair in this building, and if he couldn’t ask over in the intercom, he was going up to everyone to ask for some. “I don’t know. They like arts and craft? They give out haircuts? Their choice of weapon are scissors? You’d be surprised. Some people might be trying to protect themselves from the other powered people.” It was a silly question, and a silly question must only have silly answers. “You know, a simple yes or no could have sufficed.” He nodded his head in agreement, recognizing the truth behind it. Words and actions hold the same weight. “So what did the other girl say to you? I just need to know what I shouldn’t say to you before you start saying hurtful things to me. I’m fragile and sensitive. You might be sending me to bed crying next.” 

“Maybe you should take yoga then if you’ve got such a bad knot in your back.” She said with a smug look on her face as she crossed her arm over her chest. “Besides, you’re hot even if you do gain a few pounds it won’t be noticeable. Let’s have some fun, it’s boring here.” She said pouting slightly as she gently grabbed his arm and swung it playfully, yet carefully. “Blame me for all of it. I don’t care. Let’s just have fun, Mr. Pouty Pants.” 

“Does it look like I can do yoga poses? I’d rather have this knot than do one of those weird leg position pose,” Raleigh bit back, not being able to see himself do anything that required that much balance. “Don’t be fooled. I gain one pound, and this illusion of hotness disappears. It’s your first day and it’s already boring? What are you going to do on your tenth day? Burn this place down for fun?” He wasn’t one to say to no to the idea, but he had yet to start unpacking all of his stuff. Then again, it was his first day there, and to actually enjoy himself here, he had to start making friends. The unopened boxes can wait. “Fine. I trust you can use your good lucks to get both of us out of trouble. “Alright, lead the way, Robin Hood.” 

“I’m fine.” 

Faith didn’t mean to cause a scene, but sometimes it was difficult to get along with these different mutants and mutates when they all have their own issues going on. “We didn’t hurt each other, just some mean things were said and that’s about it.” Pointing at the cafeteria she then added, “But I’m not apologizing if that’s what you’re here to make me do. She started it and I gave her the chance to take it all back, yet she asked for it. I think she’s still upset cause I kicked her ass in training.” 

If the crinkling of the forehead between his eyes didn’t give away his confusion enough, it would be the words that were to come flying from his mouth that would inform so. "That’s great and all, but I just really wanted to know if you had any scissors on you.” Whatever the other girl was saying, he assumed he must have missed something that happened prior to him coming up to her. “Sounds like an apology is due soon, though,” he added even though unaware and ignorant on the situation. “Sometimes words hurt more than actions. Or something like that. Is that the correct saying?” he questioned to himself after realizing how weird and awkward that phrase sounded. “Eh, I don’t know if that’s right. Sounds dumb, though.” 

“Okay no come on.” She said giggling rather loudly as she looked over at her shoulder so her gaze can meet the others. The girl in clean cut heels and a pencil skirt to her knees with nothing but a black crop top on had seemed so happy, but that’s the thing, she wasn’t. But it was a good game to play for people to keep them thinking like she was. “We should sneak into the kitchens. Y’know, grab a little of that whiskey and stuff. It’s only my first day here and it’s already boring as hell and everyone’s so tense here. You’re tense you need to loosen the fuck up.” 

“Of course, I’m tense. I have this fucking muscle knot in my back that I can’t get rid of.” His hand trailed behind his back, pressing against the area where the stubborn knot was. “If we’re sneaking into the kitchen, we may never leave. I’m going to end up devouring everything in there, whiskey in hand or not. If this goes to shit, you’re taking the blame for all of it. The blame for theft and for causing me to gain a few pounds.”

Being outside with nature had always been one of Charlie’s favorite pastimes, but ever since she had gotten to STEMA and was settling in it had been nothing but stuffy walls and cramped spacing in her opinion. She could already tell she wasn’t going to enjoy actually having to train with her powers, she was a huger not a fighter when it came to them and just the thought of physical activity made her muscles ache. For now the redhead had managed to get her way outside after the many warnings about not straying off too far, which she only rolled her eyes at of course. What? Where they afraid that the grass was going to strangle her or a couple of trees might give her splinters? She laughed at the idea as her feet led her to a nice place to lay down and kick her shoes off. “I could stay out here all day, it’s so peaceful and open. I don’t understand why people can’t just stop and appreciate moments like this anymore, it’s all about rushing around now.”

Raleigh was an adaptable guy. He found it easy to adjust quickly to a new environment, but regardless of how fitting he seemed in a new place, there was always a part of him that urged him back home. Not even a day at the program yet, but he wanted nothing more than to go home and check on his family. His worries and thoughts were too plethora to be contained within the four walls, and that’s how he landed outside, fingers pulling out the beauty that sprouted from the ground. He rolled strands of grass in between his fingers after pulling them from beneath him. The voice temporarily pulled him from his thoughts, the worried demeanor changing once his lips curved upwards into a smile. “Because time is limited. There’s no time to stop and take a look around anymore when everything has a deadline,” he mused before regretting not bringing his camera to take a picture of the view in front of him right now. “Don’t get too comfortable. I’m not going to wait for you to put your shoes on if something dangerous pops out of nowhere. I am running my ass away.”