Atlas Silva

OOC: Hello everyone! My name is Aria and I am beyond excited to bring Atlas to this group! If you would like to know more about this little bean there is plenty of info below !

“When you have the chance to be right or be kind, always choose to be kind,” Lavender quoted Dr. Wayne Dyer, an American writer, smiling friendly at the other. “My nanny used to tell me that, still think she’s right. As your mom is. I agree with you,” She chuckled softly, shaking her head. Besides, you could never know what the other person was going through. “Oh, nice! I’ve been to museums there. I still need to visit the Queens Botanical Garden. I’m from California. Los Angeles. Cliche, I know,” The blonde told him, nodding her head gently as her lips turned upwards. “I don’t really look like a cheerleader, do I? But, yes.”

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     “That! That;s the one...wow. She told me so many times and somehow I can never seem to remember the whole thing” Atlas shook his head, a smile growing. “Kindness goes a long way, even further than we probably realize in the moment” he nodded, happy to hear that she felt the same way. “It’s beautiful” he sighed gently. If he hadn’t been a little homesick before, he sure was now. “I used to love to go and draw there sometimes. It’s just....so peaceful” he chuckled, knowing it would be hard to understand unless a person was seeing it with their own eyes. “I didn’t mean to sound like it was surprising, sorry, I was just curious to know more about you”

“Or Aquaman. I’m sure some iteration of him was a surfer,” Kenzie pointed out. She didn’t know too much about the comics and stuff, but she was sure it had probably happened at some point. “You could be a way better Aquaman though I think. I mean, swimmer’s bodies are supposed to be lean, not super bulky. So it works for you,” she joked, poking his arm. She sighed deeply, knowing he was right and she couldn’t save anyone. It didn’t mean she would stop trying though. “Yeah. I’m on Tinder and do all the swiping and stuff. And Bumble, where I get to flirt with the guys first and use my best pickup lines. Doesn’t always end up successful though.”

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     Atlas’ face lit up like a small child’s on Christmas morning at her comment. “I can live with Aquaman” he nodded eagerly, even if it was amusing to even him considering their different builds. “Different universe but just as awesome. Did you know he could fly?” Atlas rose a brow, not necessarily expecting Kenzie to humor him but wanting to tell her anyways. He had gotten into a habit of doing that; telling her all of the cool things about the things he liked that he was certain nobody else cared about. Even if she didn’t care she at least listened to him and it meant a lot. “Oh, thank you? I think” he laughed, nudging her back. “You know what we should do? Maybe if we ask they might do one of those, like, roulette things? The one where you change chairs and stuff. That could be cool and talking face to face is different, right?”

Nova scrunched up her nose at the mention of hard candies. To say that they were her least favorite would be an understatement. “I’m sure her heart is in the right place, but also, my grandfather always seems to find those weird strawberry candies? The ones that would somehow end up in the Halloween candy when you’d go trick-or-treating as a kid. I literally don’t know where or why they sell those, because they’re disgusting.” She laughed. “Oh you aren’t saying it? Well, I’ll definitely be saying it. If I don’t get sweet treats, I don’t want to be someone’s friend,” she replied equally as jokingly. Truthfully, it was difficult for her to make friends, but not for that reason. “It’s been a good minute since I’ve set anything on fire, thank god. I’d be horrified if I did that here.” Which was saying something, because she wasn’t the type to be easily embarrassed. “Oh absolutely. I, for one, am for the prevention of people drowning. I mean, yeah, that I also get. There are definitely certain sea creatures I prefer to avoid.” 

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     Atlas chuckled as he watched her visible distaste at the thought. At least he wasn’t alone in his preference for, well, anything but those hard boiled candies. “Oh, God, now there’s some nostalgia...It’s not one of the things that I miss, that;’s for sure. I did always wonder where they got those candies from, though, I’ve never seen them in stores anywhere. Perhaps there’s some kind of club we’re not old enough to be in or something” he chuckled, shaking his head. A lot of the adults in his neighborhood had liked to give out fruit in place of Halloween candies but Atlas couldn’t say that he minded that much He actually rather enjoyed fruit, even as a kid. “Well, damn. There goes my shot at being your friend. I can’t bake all that well, I’m sorry” he grinned, playing along. “Ramen is a gift from heaven...literally foolproof” he chuckled again. “I’ve always kinda wanted to see a shark but I don’t think I’m quite cool enough to get in one of those cage things...no way”

“Oh good, I’ll take amusing.” She told him with a smile, happy to indulge him on the topic of surfing. “If only that were true for me, I’ve had to perfect it…I’m kind of jealous.” She teased, laughing a bit since the differences between them were obvious. “I used to do it all the time, I’m kind of been slacking ever since we left New York.” 

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     “You’re probably more dedicated to it then I am because of it though” Atlas mused, always trying to find some good in the bad. It was how he always pulled himself through everything. “Well we do have pretty much unlimited access to a beach...and there is this rather scrawny kid that would be happy to come down and surf with you and definitely won’t laugh if you fall...I’m just saying. Might aw well take advantage”

“huh,” parker noted, glancing up at the building. no wonder she hadn’t been near it, she’d made sure to get practically every general education course out of the way before she’d transferred to luxor. now she spent her days inhabiting the theatre, if not the arts buildings of the various worldly campuses. a situation she was more than pleased to find herself in. “oh, super dorky,” she echoed after his explanation, moving to step under the umbrella. then, throwing a warm smile in his direction, she quickly added, “and i love dorky.” her elbow lifted to give his arm a gentle nudge. “i’m actually really impressed. i probably couldn’t put together one of those complex lego sets if i put in my best effort. i’m, admittedly, a lot better at using my imagination than my hands.”

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     “You weren’t on your way to join the club then?” Atlas teased as he noticed the way that she looked up, taking the building in. He could understand why, as beautiful as this campus was, the buildings did all look very similar. Atlas still got a few buildings mixed up every now and again. “Oh” Atlas’s smile faltered slightly until he realized that she wasn’t taunting him. “Oh? Well then you’ll love me. I’m about as dorky as they come” he snorted. “Probably shouldn’t advertise that so loudly, huh?” Atlas rose a brow, beginning to walk once she was under the safety of the umbrella. “I just read a lot as a kid” he explained with a shrug. “Picked up things and I don’t really forget things, most things anyways, so..”

Luca gave a small raise of his eyebrow at Atlas’ mention of his father, and he couldn’t help but notice the other’s expression fall. But it wasn’t any of his business, and he had no interest in delving into this dude’s daddy issues. “Not worth all the hype they get, huh?” they joked lightheartedly. He cleared his throat and followed Atlas’ gaze to the ground. “Holy fuck,” Luca explained at Atlas’ point. It was as if an epiphany struck him, and he slowly began to nod his heard. “You might be onto something, dude. Maybe they call it a deck for a reason,” he hypothesized. “Yeah, exactly. Balance. It’s what everyone’s trynna achieve, man.”

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     “You could say that” he chuckled, actually rather appreciating the lighthearted joke that eased the tension in the air. Luca didn’t pry and Atlas was grateful for it. He liked to be selective when it came to talking about his father as if it would allow him to also control the feelings that came with doing so. That was something for him to unpack on another day, however, and he swallowed it down quickly, laughter tumbling from him at how seriously the other had taken his question. “Yeah, maybe - ho knows” he nodded gently. “Right?”

“You seem to be a sweet guy. Can’t picture you not being humble, to be honest,” They didn’t know each other well, but the times they talked he was sweet, and nice to talk to, she enjoyed his company. “Where did you grow up?” She asked him curiously. “I like art, food, calmer stuff that don’t require balance, besides cheerleading.”

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     “Yeah, well you know what they say. ot’s better to always be kind - Or at least my Mom says thst. I think she has a point, though. You never wanna add to a person’s shitty day, y’know?” Atlas chuckled, shrugging weakly. Most people thought thst he was sweet so it wasn’t exactly a compliment he wasn’t used to hearing, and yet he flushed as if it had been the first time anyways, “Queens. How about you?” he asked, raising a curious brow,. Lavender was so easy to talk to that it felt like he’d known her a lot longer than he actually had. Atlas had to remind himself that he still needed to actually get to know her properly. “Cheerleading, huh?”

“I don’t mean to sound so surprised about it,” Olivia retorted. “I grew up on the coast of California. Back when I was a teenager, I went surfing pretty much every summer with my old group of friends.” The brunette plopped down on the sand, leaning back on her arms and making herself comfortable. “How long have you been surfing for?” she questioned curiously.

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     “I learned from my Dad but we didn’t really live by a beach or anything so I would surf on and off each summer during high school. I’m definitely not super amazing at it or anything but being able to comes down here and do it whenever is pretty helpful for practice, you know?” Atlas explained, inviting himself to sit a little away from her in the sand, raking a hand through his curls to push them out of his eyes. “How about you?”

“Oh I wasn’t saying it in a bad way, honestly it’s good to see someone else out here.” The blonde laughed a bit in his direction, moving some of the hair from her face before meeting his eyes directly. “A sense of balance goes a long way.” Lennon nodded. “I can surf, yeah, it was something I was able to pick up when I was younger.” 

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     “Oh, I’m not offended. I just find it kinda amusing, that’s all” he assured her with a small smile. It was a lot easier to talk to people here than it had been back at home. Perhaps college truly was a place of reinvention. “There isn’t really a lot of me to balance so I’ve got that down” he chuckled. “I haven’t done it in a while so I did fall a few times earlier. I learnt when I was a kid too”

“not really,” parker replied, eyes immediately betraying her as they fell to her rainboots. a small pause followed, a bit of a grin taking hold of her mouth as she looked back at him. “well, maybe just a little. but i definitely didn’t think it’d be this bad.” her gaze flit to what was now becoming quite the downpour. “thank you, really,” she picked up, refocusing her attention to the boy, his backpack, and the emerging blue umbrella. “you’re probably saving me from a nasty cold. true heroics.” once the umbrella was up and the kind stranger seemed ready to go, parker hugged her bag to her side and took a step underneath. “—parker. and just back to the dorms, which i hope isn’t entirely out of your way.” she offered him a thankful smile, fully aware that he’d offered his help and only asked for the details after. an admirable reaction; one her sudden ask likely didn’t deserve. “where are you coming from? i don’t actually think i’ve been inside this building.” parker momentarily glanced over her shoulder, then ventured to take their first step forward and out from under the oning.

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     “The weather here is super unpredictable, I totally get it” he offered a small smile as he noticed her boots. Atlas wasn’t judging in the slightest, the only reason that he always carried an umbrella was because he hated being lumbered with a coat if it got too warm, after all. “It’s nothing” he shrugged it off modestly. “I’m sure you’d have done the same had the roles been reversed”. He had no true way of telling if that was true or not, but he liked to see the best in others. even if it did lead to disappointment at times. “That’s me, a real modern day hero” he joked, shaking his head as he made sure the umbrella was going to shelter both of them from the rain. “It’s a really nasty season to be getting a cold in, anyways. So hopefully you do avoid that” he told her sincerely. Atlas was a bit of a baby when it came to getting sick and so he avoided it wherever possible. “Oh? This is the science building, it’s where the robotics club meets..” he smiled thinly. “It’s super dorky, I know”

“I feel like everyone knows that grandmothers make the best cookies. I have no idea what mine was putting in hers either, but they were addictive and I could not get enough. But also, that’s fair. Maybe if I’m feeling nice, I will actually buy you a cookie later because all this talk about sweets is making me want them,” she admitted with a chuckle. “Yeah, same. Or, you know, I set things on fire without meaning to, but we don’t talk about that.” She winced, as she wished that she was joking, but she was not. “Right? I’m a little bias because I’m a swimmer, but even if I wasn’t, I think I would still like being in the water. I can’t imagine why anyone wouldn’t– unless they don’t know how to swim, in which case I would get it.” 

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     “I wish that all Grandma's baked, my other one would always just fish out hard boiled candies from the bottom of her purse and they were always lemon flavored” he wrinkled his nose. “I never dared to ask how long they had been in there either, it was sweet of her to always give me one even if they were gross” Atlas admitted with a weak shrug. It was the thought that counted, right? “Now I’m not saying my choice in friends is at all swayed by sweet treats but I’m not not saying it” he teased, shaking his head quickly. “God, yeah. Thankfully there haven’t been any fires to date” he chuckled, understanding entirely. Recipes were confusing. “I think we can agree that keeping the people that never learned how to swim out of the water is the best thing for everyone involved...I do understand being wary of sea life, though”

“Well, that’s part of it, isn’t it? Falling, I mean. Even the greatest ones do, and that doesn’t mean they’re worse because of it,” Lavender told him with a friendly smile. “How are the waves here in New Zealand?” She asked him after taking a  quick glance at the sea and the waves. “And my things definitely don’t demand balance over a board on the waves for sure.”

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     “It’s humbling” he chuckled, not that he was a particularly egotistical guy anyways. Atlas did take a lot of pride in the things that he knew he was great at, however, like his art. “They’re great. A lot better than the beach I had to drive out to back home. Much bigger waves here” he explained with a friendly smile. “What are your things? If you don’t mind my asking”

“I mean, it could be. You may be saving the world out there on  your surfboard,” she joked with a grin. “I mean, in dire situations where I need to save your life, I may do so. It’s the whole savior complex thing I have.” Of course she would save her friend over saving herself. She couldn’t understand a person who wouldn’t do that. “Yeah well, I’ve been trying pretty damn hard for them for like five years now and only had one semi-successful one. So I don’t know if it will come at it’s own pace for me,” she admitted.

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     “I think that would just be a lifeguard, you know” he teased, grinning over at her. “I will take it, though” Atlas shrugged. It was nothing quite as spectacular as One for All but Atlas always did his best to help others where he could o if he had somehow been gifted with superpowers he would most certainly use them to save people, even if it was on a surf board. “Can’t save everybody, Kenz” he smiled empathetically. He adored her, but he knew that at least some of those relationships hadn’t been helped by her belief that she could change or fix the person. Unfortunately others typically only changed when it felt like it was their idea. “Well....have you tried dating sites? Maybe expanding your search might help” he suggested. 

“I guess this is one of your hidden talents you didn’t feel like telling me about,” she teased, grinning at him. “I mean, I could carry you like a baby with zero strain on my part,” she argued, though she was only messing with him. She ruffled his hair with a smile. “I’m sure you are a great surfer. A super star. But you are wrong. There is plenty of things I can’t do. Like art, singing, learning languages, keeping a relationship…”

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     “You caught me. Peter Parker has Spiderman and I have surfing, it’s totally the same thing, duh” he teased, snorting gently. “That doesn’t mean you should, though” he laughed, although, he definitely meant it. He was very particular when it came to physical touch. Hugs were okay with people he was close to provided that he was asked first but anything else could be a little hit or miss dependent on his mood. “Relationships are a little overrated anyways...it’ll come at it’s own pace” Or something like that. He was hardly one to be giving relationship advice given that he had never actually been in one. 

Luca gave an eyebrow raise to the brunette, and his eyes drifted to the boy’s board. “You don’t really peg me as a sports kind of guy,” he tensed. He dismissed the thought with a shrug, and adjusted his unbuttoned Hawaiian shirt. “Surf? Nah, I skate, though. Kinda the same thing, right? That’s basically, like, a water board,” Luca proclaimed and gestured to surfboard.

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     “Not a sports guy at all, you would be right there. My Dad is, though - Was” Atlas frowned, correcting his own mistake, his gaze dropping to the sand as he composed himself. “I only really started to try and spend more time with him, to be honest” he shrugged, dismissing the subject. “Or is yours a land board? Wait, no, that sounds way less cool. Water board it is. I guess it is essentially the same thing, though. All about balance”

“I’m going to have to call bullshit on that one. Homemade cookies beat store bought cookies any day. You just won’t ever catch me baking any– or anything else, for that matter,” she said with a laugh. “I’m thinking that luck was just on my side this time, but hey, I’ll take being called a natural pro,” she joked, grinning. “Honestly though, falling doesn’t bother me. I could do without swallowing saltwater, but I like being in water, usually.” 

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     “My mom doesn’t really bake but my Grandma? I don’t even know what she was putting in them but I’ve never had a better cookie, so, you got me there. She is also like...very far away, though, so I’d accept a store bought cookie in the mean time” Atlas grinned. “Baking always goes wrong for me. Things rise that shouldn’t, or worse, they sink” he explained, shaking his head. Atlas could probably find a way to burn water if he wasn’t careful which was why he was so grateful for the food on campus. “There’s something kind of refreshing about it, I gotta admit”