LOG oo1; Jasper and Crysta...wherever they happen to be.

[feelingthirsty]

Who: Jasper and Crysta
What: discussing Beowulf in class
When: ...you know, I'm not actually sure
Where: a university classroom in Chicago
Info: In which Crysta is nearly late to class and, Jasper is a grumpbucket, but he could be worse.

Who: Jasper, Crysta, and a very foolish mugger
What: a mugger has a very bad night
When: later that night,

Comments

[feelingthirsty]

If Jasper was going to be honest with himself, he worked on that car so diligently as an excuse to avoid Crysta for the next few days. He didn't consider himself spooked, but there was definitely something going on here, and it made him uneasy. Alice didn't call him about just any human, and he'd known her long enough to trust in what she said no matter how much he disagreed with it; then there was the fact that he kept running into this human, and that he couldn't read her, let alone influence her. It was like Bella all over again, except less...demanding. Less insistent. Less irritating. Thank goodness for that

[crystamaye]

The week was a slow and long one. Crysta found herself in deep thought more often than not. After the weekend it was back to work and school for her, which oddly enough she was grateful for, something she never thought she would be before she met Jasper. Just, thinking so much about him was putting a toll on her peace of mind. Her sleep was restless, when she did sleep. She was distracted when she needed to write papers or do assignments, at work she would find herself putting books away idly, in the wrong places. Why was she so wound up about this

[feelingthirsty]

With the sun still glaring down overhead, Jasper had to stop to pull his jacket hood up over his head before he could climb out of the car. He'd caught sight of Crysta waiting for him on the steps as he'd pulled up, and, as he closed the car door behind him, was still busy trying to remind himself that it wasn't that uncanny for a human to be so perceptive. She had a gift. It had stuck itself on him--there was no such thing as an ability that focused solely on a single person, so that had to be it. She may not be interested in learning how to use what she could do, but neither was Jasper interested in being on a human's radar for the rest of their life

[crystamaye]

His mood wasn't lost on her. She could tell he was happy just from the look on his face and the way his movements seemed relaxed. Jasper liked fixing up the car. "Hey." Crysta stood after she caught the keys, stepping down to look over at the car. "You must be a miracle worker because you drove that thing here without a sound." She looked it up and down, noticing it looked new as well. He was good. Crysta had no idea the amount of money Jasper must have put into it, but she was grateful for it anyways. She turned to him with a full smile then, the sun bouncing off the color in her hair. "Thank you Jasper, really

[feelingthirsty]

Jasper blinked. He had not expected to be hugged, not even a little, and couldn't remember the last time he had been--not by a human. Bella didn't count.

She'd been warm. She'd been soft. Jasper tried not to think about it as he turned to catch up to what she was saying, though it took a moment to process the words. "Well. Yes." He stepped up to the hood beside her and shrugged, as if all that gleaming metal was nothing new. "Don't worry about it. I enjoy cars."

[crystamaye]

"Lucky for me at least." Crysta sighed, taking notice in how shiny everything looked now, how new. And when she said everything, it looked like everything. It might as well have been a new car. She shut the hood and turned back to him, done with her inspecting. "So, ah, thanks again. I'll try to take better care of the car, so as not to induce it's wrath again and have it give up on me."

[feelingthirsty]

"Cars are like horses," Jasper explained. "They don't just run forever with a little fuel and a good brush down every now and again. You have to take care of 'em."

He reached up to tug his hood further out over his face with an absent glance up at the sun; he was pressing his luck out here, without even a little bit of cloud cover to help out. Still, he found himself looking back to Crysta again, curious despite himself.

"What are you doing today?"

[crystamaye]

Crysta arched a brow, wondering if he was cold despite the warm sun. "Oh, the usual you know. Sitting at home seeing as I already finished my shift for the day." She had finished any work for school and had been planning to do what she usually did when she found herself with free time, nothing. It occurred to her from time to time that that was no way to live, but she really didn't know what to do about it. She didn't have girlfriends to drag her out to bars or clubs, not that she was the type to do that. She didn't have family close enough to visit. She really just had herself and that was it.

[feelingthirsty]

"You must be tired."

It was late in the day, too late to go out and enjoy Jasper's usual daytime haunts in a city. The museums would be closing soon, as would the libraries and any other indoor attractions. He would probably end up walking back to his apartment and spending the last hour or two of daylight curled up with a book himself, and then find something else to entertain him for the rest of the night. He wished he could sleep. That would help fill so many of the empty hours in his days.

[crystamaye]

"Not really." She spoke quietly, looking up the street briefly. "I was actually...thinking of going to Grant Park, it's nice to sit by that big fountain at night, all lit up." Really, the only good time to view the fountain was at night, it's true beauty shining to her then. She found that during the day it just didn't have the same appeal. Her eyes flickered back to him, inquisitive. "Would you like to go with me?"

[feelingthirsty]

Again, Jasper glanced up at the angle of the sun. Going out into the heart of the city at this hour was pushing it, and yet he found himself trying to ration why he should go anyway. Although he still had issues with the park's namesake, he hadn't been to the fountain itself since the 70s, and wouldn't mind going to see it again against a modern backdrop.

"All right. Were you walking or driving?"

[crystamaye]

Crysta smiled and looked at the car. "Well, since it's back now, I wouldn't mind driving." And the park was a bit away. She had said she wasn't tired, but she wasn't much up for walking a long distance either. She pushed off from where he leaned against the front of the car, heading for the divers side. "C'mon, maybe if we get there before the sun sets you can buy me an ice cream." The tone of her voice showed that she was only teasing and didn't expect him to get her anything at all.

[feelingthirsty]

Ah. Food. That was something Jasper hadn't considered treating her to. He took a moment to think about it as he climbed into the passenger seat beside her, though with no tinted glass in the car he knew this could be an issue. All he could do was keep his hood up and his hands down, and hope that she didn't glance over at his face during the wrong moment.

"Let me know how she feels. I don't know what's changed, but if something feels off I might be able to rig it up how it was before."

[crystamaye]

The car started up...quietly. "So far so good." She chuckled, pulling onto the street. As they drove on she noticed the ride was smoother, better than before. "If I didn't know any better I would say you just scrapped the old one and bought a new one." She glanced over at him, eyes flickering as she thought she saw something glimmer at his wrist. Maybe a watch. She looked back at the road.

As she drove she pushed the buttons down for the windows, rolling them down and letting a breeze float through, remembering distinctly their last car ride. She propped her free arm in the open window, relaxed as she drove, feeling more at ease than she had in days.

[feelingthirsty]

Jasper leaned toward his own open window as well, grateful for the fresh breeze. If he closed his eyes and angled his nose into the wind it was almost like there was no human sitting beside him. Almost.

"That might've been cheaper," he drawled in response to her comment, allowing a brief glance and a small smile. "But money wasn't an issue. I'm glad you like it."

[crystamaye]

Jasper's voice was smooth and like velvet she realized as he drawled his words in that southern lilt of his he let slip sometimes. It relaxed her when he spoke, his words always flowing easily through her.

She tilted her head. "Jas," She started. "Are you from the south?" The thought of him in any southern state drew a picture of him oddly dressed like a cowboy. It made her lips twitch the slightest with a smile, though she hid it.