long story short, i survived

The timer on Milo's watch beeped, and he slowed his jogging pace down into a walk. It had been tough going from not able to really work out much at all during the summer due to his struggles breathing, into getting back into the swing of things. He couldn't slack off and let things get even worse though. Luckily he was feeling well enough that he still felt like he had to hold back. He pulled his water bottle out of it's holder and took a drink as he was approached by Meliha.

maybe this had been a bad time for meliha to approach milo. maybe she should have waited until they were in class again to start talking about details of their upcoming assignment that they were partnered for. she tried to keep up with him, walking ever-so-slightly behind him as she adjusted the notebooks in her arms. "i was wondering if we could talk about a schedule for this assignment." mainly she wanted to make sure to categorize her day.

Reina was sitting, enjoying her green juice from the juice bar and flipping through her new planner she got for the school year. She noticed someone come up to her and at first didn't acknowledge them but when there wasn't any getting she looked up. Seeing that the other person seemed nervous she gave a friendly smile. Her mouth opened as she was about to ask what they needed but when she heard them speak she instead took a sip of her drink and waited patiently for them to say whatever it was they wanted to say.

meliha could appreciate the friendly smile - the smallest bit of patience that the other had already given them. they placed their notebook on the table as they took the seat across from reina, letting out a simple sigh as they sat down. meliha probably would have asked their question and bolted by then, but reina had always been a friendly face. both in study groups, queer alliance, and passing each other in the hallway. "so, i'm trying to think of a fun math related game that students could use to get interested after coming back to school from the summer. would you have any ideas?" meliha rushed their speaking, hoping to get all of the sentence out in one breath.

She's tucked comfortably at the far end of one of the couches, her right leg folded beneath her and the left propped atop it, body angled so that her eyes can scan over the book resting beside her. The building provided a plethora of seats to choose from but it's clear that Carmen had left enough space that someone else could join her — always leaving room for interaction, for a conversation. It's not long before she's granted just that. Hazel orbs lift the instant she hears a voice, appearing none too troubled at having her reading interrupted, offering a smile and a brow lifted in curiosity. She doesn't pressure the other, doesn't force more talking until she's ready for it and when she does speak, Carmen merely nods. "Of course." A bookmark is tucked between open pages, hands easing the cover shut and tucking the item closer to her, nodding towards the space beside her should the girl wish to sit. "Hit me with your best shot."

the patience works wonders for meliha's comfort. feeling their shoulders relax as carmen gave them a comfortable amount of time to be able to ask a question. usually meliha would just figure it out herself, but she needed to open up to receiving and giving advice. or, at least her advisor felt that way. meliha had no trouble working alone - she was used to that. almost would rather than the opposite. she followed the social cue to sit next to her, placing the notebook filled with various answers from other's she had asked on her lap. "i'm trying to think of a... fun and interactive way to introduce high school math student's into the new school year. i have the lesson down, but i'm.. unsure of a way to intrigue them."

the look that ronan gave meliha was one of disappointment — one that says, dammit, i really wanted to spray some water in your face. though, it probably wasn’t best to begin a relationship with an assignment partner by drenching them in water or holding a toy gun to their face. so ronan lowers the water gun, and gives her a shrug. “i was just testing your level of intelligence. you know, if you got it wrong, i would have to ask professor mckenna to change partners.” not that ronan even knew math like that — the only reason he knew this is because he used his calculator beforehand. "i guess you passed this time." he adds with a grin.

cue meliha pursing their lips at their reaction. should they have pretended to not know the answer? hell, math was their best subject, how could they not know the answer? was meliha reading more into it than she needed? yes. a soft smile rose to their lips at his statement, relaxing her shoulders that she didn't know was tensed. "i wouldn't blame you if you asked for a different partner, though. improv is..." meliha paused. "different compared to math." one of her advisors had suggested for her to take an improv class, to try and get her out of her shell before she would be student teaching.

He opened his mouth very briefly to ask 'Meliha- what?' but didn't. Feeling like the opportunity had passed, and he would come off like an asshole, who clearly only wanted to know if she was related to someone he would have heard about one way or another. Instead he let them continue on with their question, giving a thoughtful frown. "Well, aren't the first few days of school the easiest to get students to pay attention?" He asked, perhaps he was just a nerd. "Everyone is tired of summer, and excited to talk to their friends. You could use that," he suggested, "educational games, or something like that. Though it really depends on the grade, and class, I guess." He'd never considered other majors, or any other sort of career, especially not teaching, but he'd just graduated for High School, so maybe he had some sort of insight. "Are you going to be student teaching, or something?"

meliha quickly clicked her pen and wrote down what the other was saying on a blank page, making sure she wouldn't forget what he suggested. "educational games," she hummed, that being the last thing she wrote on the page. she nodded when he asked about student teaching. "yes, um. i'm supposed to start either next week or the following week." she had finished her class observations the previous fall semester, but she was feeling reluctant towards the start of her student teaching. "thank you for your suggestion, though." she would be student teaching a high school math class schedule. she'd probably spend the rest of the night figuring out how to begin her class.

Heath was one hundred percent the wrong person to bring this hypothetical brain-teaser to. He stared at her with a confused frown, eyebrows knitting together as he tried to answer the simple question of: what would I do? Well, not be a teacher, for one. "I… don't know," he finally replied, giving a baffled headshake, aware that he wasn't being of any help. "Sorry, but, like --" Heath interrupted himself with an awkward chuckle, the uncertain wrinkle of his brow not lessening any as he offered the other a sympathetic smile, "are you already doing coursework? 'Cause that's insane. My classes haven't even started back up yet."

meliha sometimes could not pick up on social clues, to know if someone was the right or wrong person to ask a question. she would ask and then form back into her shell when she realized that she had embarrassed herself. meliha blinked, staring at the other for a moment before responding. "oh, yeah. i went ahead and got an early start." she would sit in her room later that night, earphones placed in each ear while all of her attention would be placed on assignments and assigned reading for her classes. it was just the usual for her. "i just.. like being prepared for the first day of classes."

“Her eyes said more than words can say.”

“I am not used to being held by good hearts, soft hands never did take to my soft skin. I was convinced that to love was to be torn apart, but this healing tells me otherwise.”

Ambrose liked to explore. He was a curious person. He liked to know where he was, and where everything was in relation to him. So, he was out on a walk by himself, something that was not often offered to him without personal security following him around, but his family agreed that the campus of Ogden College was safe enough that he didn't need it. Considering everything that he heard happened the previous year he wasn't sure if that was true, but he wouldn't complain. It did leave him open for random people to approach him and speak with him though. The nervous person in front of him hadn't been the first, but he was patient. He wasn't going to be rude when he didn't even know who they were. They could be the child of someone important. So, Ambrose stood in front of her patiently waiting for them to speak up after approaching him, nodding his head slowly along with their words. "Yes, of course," he replied to the question, a polite smile on his face, "ask me anything." And then after a brief pause, "uh… and you are…?" He asked, prompting for a name at the very least.

meliha knew that they needed to work off this nervousness about them, knowing it wouldn't work so well with the future that they had planned for themselves. somehow it was a bit easier in front of children than it was to their peers. to be able to just walk up to someone without wanting to retreat back into the safety of their dorm room. they were just glad that the other had been patient with them to start. "oh, i'm.. sorry. my name is meliha," they spoke softly. "i'm an education major, and.. i am working on this assignment and i need a way to engage a classroom of students after their summer vacation had just ended. would you have any ideas of how maybe you, as a student, or even in the position of a teacher would engage them for the lesson?"

"You just asked me a question, didn't you?" 'Can I ask you something?' was a linguistic quirk that'd been precisely excised from Heath's vocabulary at a young age, considered a redundancy in his household and guaranteed to not earn you any answer, no matter how grave the inquiry. But, being leveled with the brunette's silent, nervous stare, he figured he could cut her some slack. It was move-in week, after all, with the annoying buzz of confused freshmen flocking to campus. Who knew, maybe she'd gotten lost and needed directions. Heath shook his head before genuinely replying, "What is it? Are you doing some kind of survey?"

they were technically correct. that was a question that she asked without realizing it itself had been a question. meliha had already been working on their class's assignments, knowing that orientation week usually settled between getting to know where their classes were and meeting their teachers than assignment heavy. they were ready to retreat when they heard the other asked what kind of question it was. "um," they spoke up slightly. "it's not a survey, just sort of a question for an assignment. if you were to be teaching a class right after summer, how would you engage them into the lesson of the day?" they weren't sure if the other had been the right person to ask, but at this point, they would take anything as an answer.

birdie had been stuck on this level of toon blast all day, failing yet again and using their last life. they were staring at their phone, highly contemplating purchasing that toon pass or whatever it was that kept popping up to get them more advantages, a presence neared. looking up, ready to ask if they had any idea of how to beat this level, a wide smile spread across their lips. "oh yo! what's up meliha." they nodded, shifting in their seat to face her completely. "yea shoot, can't promise i'll give you the societal 'right' answer, but i'll give you the best answer for sure."

they let out a sigh of relief when they recognized it was birdie. it was always like meliha to get right into assignments that weren't due until the following week, almost always being a week ahead than most of their class. "well," meliha spoke, a small smile rising to her lips. "you might be the perfect person to ask." did they know that? no. did they hope? somewhat. "if you were still taking some sort of math class, or were still in high school," their voice went soft as their mind went off the track it was on. shaking their head lightly, they finally spoke. "what do you think would make it easier to engage students of today's world? i have the lesson plan down, but i'm not sure how to engage the audience." this was probably the most they've talked in a single setting.