i am sixteen going on seventeen

[lucked]

Claire can't quite remember when birthday parties got to be a pain. It's probably, she thinks, balled up with all of the other stuff that started losing its luster once she made it into high school, once Jackie told her clearly that high school was Claire's chance to make something out of herself rather than just sit idly by and daydreaming,

Comments

Claire, please <3

[arrownomore]

Jogging had seemed like a good idea when she'd first thought of it, but she hadn't considered how incredibly boring it would be to go by herself when she didn't even have any music to distract her from all the stuff she didn't want to think about.

Catching sight of Claire was a welcome distraction and she veered over to greet her and her charge. "Hey you guys! What are you doing?"

[lucked]

With Nate still squealing and doing his best to try and escape his cousin's grip, Claire turned to catch a glimpse of Cissie; as she raised an arm in greeting, the three-year-old managed to slip away and ran in Cissie's general direction, but stopped upon realizing that this blonde was not nearly as familiar. Although peaceful times on the island had resulted in Nate usually trusting those he was introduced too, being of a naturally shy personality (much like his father, Claire thought fondly), he still toddled all the way back to Claire and hid behind the girl's back.

"Hey Cissie," Claire greeted, still laughing lightly as she reached around to pat Nate's head. "We were just engaging in a tickle war. I think I was the victor, but I also cheated." Her nose wrinkled as her fingers ruffled Nate's brunette locks.

[arrownomore]

Cissie smiled warmly at Nate and waved. He was a cute little kid, she thought though she had to admit she was glad someone else was looking after him. The last time she'd babysat hadn't exactly ended well and while she was sure that the Hugga-Tugga-Thuggees weren't here and wouldn't have power even if they were, she didn't put anything past this place.

"A tickle war, huh? That's definitely more fun than jogging," she said as she sprawled on the sand. "I wish I had headphones or something like that. Singing out loud just isn't working, you know?"

[lucked]

"Singing out loud seems like it'd conflict with the whole running thing," Claire agreed with a nod, still beaming from cheek to cheek as Nate wiggled about on her lap. "Seeing as how, I mean, running kind of requires the whole breathing regularly thing, but singing also requires the use of your windpipe, so. But hey, the island's been giving out presents and stuff this year; maybe it'll give you an iPod or some mp3 player to make running more fun."

Letting the toddler run off to where Eden was sitting some distance away, Claire sighed contentedly, then pat the space next to her. "Sit. I feel like we need a girl talk."

Both (adventurous, woo)

[first_pink_lady]

"I ain't picky or anything," Rizzo said to Claire, eyebrow playfully raised, hand on her hip. "But shouldn't you be flirtin' with someone closer to your own age?"

Her gaze slipped to the dark-haired chick nearby. She'd seen her with Claire before, but didn't think they'd ever met. "This bun from your oven?"

[lucked]

Leave it to Rizzo to ask a question that threw Claire off for several seconds, the blonde staring in slight disbelief before she dissolved into laughter, shaking her head before pressing her nose against Nate's cheek. The toddler squirmed, shrieking as Claire continued to tickle him, then finally catching his breath as his cousin pulled him further onto her lap, his wide eyes staring up at the new girl who'd made her way over. Claire sneaked a kiss in on Nate's cheek.

"Am I flirting with you, Nate? That's what people do with each other if they maybe want to get married someday," she told him conspiratorially.

The toddler's nose wrinkled. "But I don't wanna get married."

Claire beamed up at Rizzo, resting her chin lightly on Nate's head. "I don't think we have to worry, see? Nate doesn't wanna get married. It's all in great fun."

[wishesandsmoke]

Eden laughed in turn, shaking her head. "Besides, I don't think marrying your cousin's something they do even here," she said. "He's not mine, no. We're just borrowing him for the afternoon." The idea of her having kids was at once appealing and somewhat ludicrous, given her completely lack of opportunity, but then, there was no way for Claire's friend to know that.

[first_pink_lady]

"You're gunna get a gal in trouble some day." Rizzo told the little boy dryly, and she was far from the knowing how to act around little kids. She'd been an only child, and as far as she could tell the little snot-machines were more trouble than they were worth - and was daily fucking thankful her false alarm hadn't rung true.

She snorted at the brunette's comment. "Shoot, honey, the council'd let you do and screw just about anything you got your hot little mind on." Which probably wasn't entirely fair to the norms around this place, but hey, they were far more godddamn looseygoosey than what she was used to. And if she didn't miss the boundaries, she did kinda miss being able to flout them.

[backward]

Effy recognizes Eden at once, the recollection of their first and only meeting in the snow one that brings a surprising amount of peace to Effy's mind, even a month later, also she still can't quite put her finger on why. It was interesting conversation, certainly, but also surprisingly deep for two near strangers, which tends to invite a certain level of uneasiness. She does worry about having exposed too much of herself, but once Effy spots the other woman, it's difficult to turn around and head in the opposite direction, particularly when she knows she has more than likely been seen in return.

It won't hurt, she decides, to stop and say hello. Eden is with company (she vaguely remembers meeting the blonde before) which means the conversation is bound to be cut short. Mouthing her greeting, Effy raises her fingers in a wave as she comes to a half before both women and a small boy, offering the latter a small, rather painfully forced smile.

[wishesandsmoke]

Eden waves in kind, smiling. Their conversation might not have been particularly happy, but it was pleasant in its way, the kind of honest talk that, for Eden at least, lightens the burden of that honesty a little. "Hello, Effy," she says. "Care to sit?" All she has to do right now, after all, is be present to make sure Nate's okay, and she's certain he's in good hands with Claire. After sand cakes, it'll probably be time for castles and that she can do, but for the moment, she's more intent on making time for Effy, too, if she wants it.

[lucked]

Although she can't place a finger on the name (and wonders if she should be able to, with the way that Eden waves, clearly familiar), Claire's seen the other girl before. It takes her a while to figure it out, her brow furrowing in confusion and probably not at all polite while she waves back, before her eyes suddenly widen in recognition. The house party. This girl is just another of many people that Claire met at the house party, and the very memory of it makes Claire's cheeks flush a bright red, wondering if this girl saw. Wondering if her first impression of Claire was... blonde floozy, or some other equivalent.

"Hey, Effy," Claire chimes in, grateful for Eden's name drop and keeping one hand gently wrapped around Nate's wrist as he starts walking around them all in circles. "I'm Claire, I don't think we've properly met."

[backward]

Wordlessly, Effy bows her head in a nod and lowers herself onto the sand, taking Eden up on the offer of a seat. She finds herself somewhat helpless in such a situation, not quite knowing what to say or how to act, but doing her best not to let it show. It involves more smiling than is usual, for Effy, as she attempts to play the part of someone far more pleasant and social than herself. (There was a time, months ago, when she wouldn't have given a single fuck how she came off to these people. A time before Tabula Rasa, when she was afforded the luxury of being a solitary spirit, when she had all the drink and drugs needed to dim the loneliness to a minimum. That time is gone, now, and she has to make due.)

"Claire," she repeats with another small nod, "yeah, I've seen you round before."

Claire <3

[quileutejacob]

The kid was new. Claire, of course, Jacob was familiar with but he hadn't seen the kid before. There were a handful of kids on the island, some that showed up from home and some who were born here, and Jacob didn't know which category this one fell in.

"Someone conned you into babysitting, I guess?"

She looked like she was having fun so maybe it wasn't a con job after all.

[lucked]

If Nate had felt Claire tall, he stopped completely in his struggle to stare high, high, and even higher up at the new man who was standing in front of both of them, his lips parting a bit. This man was even taller than his dads.

Seeing the wondrous expression on Nate's face, Claire only laughed, rubbing at the corner of his mouth to keep any drool from sliding down the side of his face and pulling him closer to her. With her chin resting peacefully on Nate's shoulder, Claire grinned widely up at Jacob.

"Not a con. I actually asked to borrow him for the day," she explained, beaming. "He's my cousin. Nathaniel Petrelli, who is the cutest kid I've ever seen. Nate, this is Jacob."

Still marveling at Jacob's height, Nate failed to react with anything but a stare.

[quileutejacob]

"Hi kid," Jacob said, bending down a little to be a little less intimidating. Bonus, he was closer to Claire's own height and felt a little less like he was booming down from the clouds.

Jacob never really felt that way with Belle even though she was still a good deal shorter than him. Maybe it was because Claire had the whole gymnast thing.

"Cousin Claire treating you right?"

[lucked]

Claire glanced at Jacob with quiet approval at the way that he was engaging Nate in conversation, even if the little boy was still rather shy, wrapping his small arms around Claire's neck and murmuring something unintelligible against her cheek. With a soft laugh, she ruffled her cousin's hair and kept him held close, brushing some of the sand off of his pants as she grinned up at Jacob. (Slightly glad for the way that he'd lowered himself enough that her neck wouldn't hurt from the strain.)

"He's a shy one," she whispered conspiratorially, receiving a yank of her hair from Nate in turn and yelping just a tad. "Okay, okay, not shy. Just needs time to put himself together, that's all."

Smiling toothily, Nate finally emerged to give Jacob a small wave. "Hi," he greeted, before burying his face in Claire's shirt.

Giving up on trying to get the toddler to talk, Claire leaned back slightly. "So, what brings you over to this part of the beach?"

[giftless]

"You two look like you're having a good time," Edmund observed with a chuckle as he approached them on the beach. He also looked good, better than he had with snow on the ground. Then he'd had an almost artificial glow to his cheeks, brought on by the cold and heat and hot cocoa. He hadn't looked bad, but he not looked particularly good. Now he glowed.

"May I ask what's so funny?"

[lucked]

"That's because we are," Claire replied in turn, gaze glancing appraisingly over Edmund, who seemed to be sporting just the slightest bit of a tan now that the sun and warmth had returned. She knew well how much the winter had probably affected him, surely more than it did Claire herself, who could only claim feeling a bit like a fish out of water in weather that wasn't typical for Odessa. "Quality time between cousins on a beach in the middle of the tropics; I think that totally counts as a good time."

Wrapping her arms around Nate's waist and pulling him close, Claire hugged him and waved for Edmund to sit. "The funny thing is that he just called me tall. Not funny to him, of course, but... well, you see how I am. Tall is definitely not the word for it."

[giftless]

"It's all relative," Edmund said, laughing as he sat down as directed, crossing his legs Indian style. "I'm sure a dwarf from back home would consider any human being as tall, even you." His tone was far from teasing though, just warm and amused.

He frowned slightly as he looked at the child, who he had definitely seen before, but even before he knew Claire. This Claire. "Cousins?" he repeated. "Did you know him before the island?"

[lucked]

Immediately thinking of the seven dwarfs (she had a thing for Disney), Claire had to admit that of course, from Nate's point of view, she was probably practically a giant, in the same way that boys like Jacob Black were far too tall for her. "Don't call him a dwarf," she joked with a soft laugh, ruffling Nate's hair as he stared over at Edmund with an easy smile.

But she took a deep breath to manage the rest, feeling her skin tingle a bit. "But yes, cousins, and no, I didn't know Nate before I came to the island. He won't... ever even exist back in my world, because he was born here. But that doesn't make him any less family to me, right? Especially when he looks just like my uncle, only shrunk a bit."