[Log] Jackal's talk with a teacher (Sakaki/Jackal)
Who: Jackal & Sakaki
What: Jackal's worried about his roommate, so he goes to talk to one of the teachers.
When: Backdated. November 2nd
Where: Sakaki's office
Rating: G
Fun Fact: I don't think Sakaki ever calls or refers to Jackal by name, nor does Jackal ever introduce himself I think.
It had been a while, now, since Jackal had noticed Atobe acting strangely. Not going to class, sulking around, spending way more time in his room than he had previously. Jackal had attempted to talk to him, without pushing too much, but it hadn't gone so well. Mostly, he'd seemed to have just irritated Atobe more.
Short of being really insistent about it, Jackal didn't know what to do. Would pushing harder be the right way to go about it? Or would it just make Atobe snap and turn him into a Jackalsicle?
He'd decided it might be best to talk to another person, and from what he could remember of Atobe from before the mood switch, he seemed to have always enjoyed his music classes...so it was Sakaki that Jackal had come to for a little help. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the teacher's door.
Hearing the knock, Sakaki looked up from his laptop and frowned. Checking his day planner revealed no appointments scheduled and it was too early for any of the other teachers to drop by to talk about this or that. “Come in,” he called, assuming it must be a student seeking his assistance. He closed his laptop and slid it into a drawer of his desk, so he could give this student his undivided attention.
Jackal opened the door and peeked in, feeling a little bit shy. It was the first time he'd gone to a teacher for....pretty much anything, really, that wasn't strictly related to a class. "I'm not interrupting anything, am I, Sensei?" he asked, just to be sure. A glance around told him there wasn't anyone else there, so he was probably clear. "I was hoping I could talk to you...about my roommate..."
Sakaki cleared his day planner off his desk and gestured to Jackal to sit in one of the upholstered loveseats near his desk. “Your roommate? Of course. You will have to refresh my memory, I am not familiar with the dormitory assignments this term.”
Jackal went ahead and sat, and took a breath as he tried to relax. He shouldn't be nervous around teachers. Talking is what they were there for, right? "Ah. Atobe Keigo...is my roommate. And...he's been behaving kind of oddly, lately. It's got me worried about him." He leaned back against the seat. "It's been going on for a little while now. I thought at first that he'd sulk for a few days and then bounce back...but he hasn't bounced yet."
Though he tried to hide it, Sakaki paled slightly at the mention of Atobe. If this was Atobe’s roommate, then this boy’s bed... his eyes widened. He coughed somewhat awkwardly. “Behaving oddly? What do you mean?” He knew he would have to be careful with how he phrased his answers and his questions, as he knew full-well he was likely the cause behind the sudden change in behaviour.
"Well, he's...become kind of a recluse, lately. He almost never goes to class - or leaves the room at all, for that matter. He's not dressing like his usual flashy self. He hardly talks, and I think despite not going to class, he's doing his homework...but like. I dunno. It seems like he's doing an awful lot of homework. More than he did before." Jackal tried to think of anything else that he could mention, other ways that Atobe had been a little...off... He was fairly certain he'd covered most of them, though. "I've tried to ask him about it. Gently, because I don't want to be the nosy, obnoxious roommate, but...he doesn't really answer anything, if he responds at all."
“That is problematic,” Sakaki agreed, “Has he changed his basic habits, eating, sleeping, etc.?” he asked, trying to mask the worry creeping into his voice. He needed to know how badly this situation was before he really got scared. “Atobe-kun sometimes needs a little prodding before he will express himself. If you’re worried about him, you should be the nosy, obnoxious roommate. He might just need to discover there are people around him who care for his well-being and do not want him to begin a self-destructive spiral.” He just so happened to be one such person who did not want to hear about Atobe hurting himself.
Jackal nodded. "It's a little hard to tell, since I'm not in the room all that much, but...he doesn't seem to be eating much, and I don't think he's sleeping." Actually, the sleeping Jackal was sure of. Since his discovery a while ago that Atobe shivered in his sleep, Jackal had taken to sleeping next to him for at least part of the night to keep him warmer, but he never went over before Atobe was asleep, and he always made a point of getting out before he woke up. Lately, Atobe had been awake when Jackal fell asleep, and either awake again or still up when Jackal woke. "I wondered if that might be necessary. He does seem stubborn... But I didn't want to be annoying if all it was going to get me was frozen solid."
Sakaki nodded. The constant threat of freezing had always been something of which to be perpetually cognisant. “I understand Atobe-kun has been making his homework assignments a minimum of three times too long. If what you say is true, that could be part of what he does at night. Does he ever leave your dorm room that you’re aware of?” He interlaced his fingers, trying to appear deep in thought, but really trying to stop his hands from shaking. Keigo, what are you doing to yourself? he thought, What I can do to make this better?
"Well...I assume he goes to the bathroom and showers....but I haven't seen him do it." Showering, Jackal assumed, was done during a time when Jackal was out of the room for a while. The bathroom thing...well. It wasn't the sort of thing a guy paid attention to. "That aside...no. He's always in there." Jackal reached up and scratched his head. "I really just don't get it. I mean...I know bad things happen and they can knock a guy on his ass for a while, but... Nothing should be able to keep a guy down..."
“Atobe-kun is...” Sakaki paused for a moment to consider this response, “Delicate.” He didn’t want to hear the things Jackal was saying, but they were all consistent with Atobe’s behaviour, particularly the distance the boy was keeping from him recently. “I think... he’s gotten it into his head that he’s... alone somehow. I’m afraid I don’t know what got him thinking such a thing as, as far as I know, the claim is incorrect... but I think you know how Atobe-kun gets when he convinces himself of something, even in error.”
Jackal chuckled a little at that. "Atobe is one stubborn S.O.B, that's for sure. But...if you're right and he thinks he's all alone...even that's the kind of thing a guy can get over and change." He pinched the bridge of his nose, remembering. "My parents pretty much disowned me when they found out about my power. I spent a year with nobody to talk to, nobody I considered friends or family...But there was this senpai, at my last school... He helped me realize you're only alone if you let yourself be alone." And maybe, what Atobe needed...was someone to be to him what Jackal's senpai had been. Part of which included being twice as stubborn as the person in question...
“It sounds, then, like you already know exactly what he needs,” Sakaki said, steepling his fingers as he thought about Atobe and everything, good and bad, that had happened between them. “He still blames himself for his parents’ decision to be insensitive twits and effectively removing him from his own family,” he said, “Once he gets the idea he’s meant to be alone in his head... it took two years for m....” he stopped suddenly, not knowing how much the boy in front of him knew about his dalliances with Atobe, “...for him to be convinced to let someone in.”
Jackal had to smile. "I might. I really might...and when I thanked my senpai, for being there all that time...the only thing he asked was that if the chance came around for me to help someone else...that I do it." Apparently, it'd been a long chain. Someone, years ago, had been helped out of feeling lost and alone. That person, in turn, helped another, and then another, and another, and so on, until Jackal's senpai helped him. And really, Jackal thought, it was a good chain to keep going. Who knew? Maybe someday, Atobe would be able to help someone else. "And I guess having some similar circumstances might help...because at least I realize now that my parents are insensitive twits, and don't think it's my fault anymore." It would take time, he knew. It wouldn't be an over-night thing that comes about after one conversation. It wasn't that easy. But Jackal was patient, when he needed to be, and at least as stubborn as Atobe, if not moreso.
“Though they may be polar opposites, both fire and ice can be a useful tool when controlled, but a danger if misused,” Sakaki mused, “...and they can both hurt terribly,” he added cryptically. “He needs someone around him to, if you’ll pardon the language, ignite within him the desire to surround himself with people whom he knows care about him a great deal. Still, he will likely push you away at first, fearful of letting anybody past the walls he has carefully built up around him, but do not let that dissuade you. He needs to be convinced he’s not alone, there are those around him who care deeply about him.” He stopped suddenly, afraid he was opening himself up too much. “I think you already have everything you need to help him. You must simply make him see he wants to be helped.”
Jackal listened, and nodded. It was true, and sounded exactly what his senpai had done for him, years ago. "And make him see that no matter how hard he tries, I'm not going away." Even if only for the term, Jackal lived with the guy, after all. Atobe could try to avoid him, but that would mean going out of the room...and Jackal considered even that a step in the right direction. A small one, but still a step. "Thanks, Sensei. I really think this helped. And I'll be able to help him better, now." By being a stubborn pain in the ass.
Sakaki smiled. “You’re welcome. I would feel bad if Atobe continued this self-destructive behaviour. Please bring the old Atobe back to us,” he said, standing to walk the boy to the door. “This school somehow just isn’t the same without him.”
Jackal smiled, letting his teacher walk him out. "I can't promise any results, but...I will do my best. With any luck, I can at least give him the kick to the pants he needs to get started." Maybe more, but only time would tell. At this point, any progress was good progress.
“Best of luck,” Sakaki proclaimed, setting his hand on the boy’s shoulder reassuringly. He knew there would be little he could actually do to help Atobe now, the boy had practically made an effort to avoid him. He only hoped his roommate was as stubborn as he says and can bring Atobe back from the pits of despair. “We’re all counting on you.”
"You say that like the fate of the world rests on my shoulders, Sensei," Jackal chuckled, although as soon as he said it, he realized that...in a way, it could. Who knew what any of the students at the school were capable of when they weren't in their right minds or full control of their powers? ".....Well. Hopefully it won't come to that, anyway," he grinned wryly. "Thanks."
Not the world, just one blindsided teacher, Sakaki thought wryly. “You’re welcome.” He opened the door to allow his guest to leave. “If you would be so kind as to let me know if your efforts have helped Atobe-kun, I would appreciate it. I worry about him sometimes.” More than you know, he added to himself.
Nodding as he stepped out of the office, Jackal smiled. He felt better, now, and less reserved about being the stubborn, nosy, pain-in-the-ass roommate he was going to have to be. Maybe he'd make a friend out of it, maybe not. As long as Atobe got back to being more himself, it didn't matter. "I will. I promise." With any luck, maybe Sakaki would even start seeing improvements in Atobe with his own eyes...if Jackal could talk him into going back to class...
What: Jackal's worried about his roommate, so he goes to talk to one of the teachers.
When: Backdated. November 2nd
Where: Sakaki's office
Rating: G
Fun Fact: I don't think Sakaki ever calls or refers to Jackal by name, nor does Jackal ever introduce himself I think.
It had been a while, now, since Jackal had noticed Atobe acting strangely. Not going to class, sulking around, spending way more time in his room than he had previously. Jackal had attempted to talk to him, without pushing too much, but it hadn't gone so well. Mostly, he'd seemed to have just irritated Atobe more.
Short of being really insistent about it, Jackal didn't know what to do. Would pushing harder be the right way to go about it? Or would it just make Atobe snap and turn him into a Jackalsicle?
He'd decided it might be best to talk to another person, and from what he could remember of Atobe from before the mood switch, he seemed to have always enjoyed his music classes...so it was Sakaki that Jackal had come to for a little help. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the teacher's door.
Hearing the knock, Sakaki looked up from his laptop and frowned. Checking his day planner revealed no appointments scheduled and it was too early for any of the other teachers to drop by to talk about this or that. “Come in,” he called, assuming it must be a student seeking his assistance. He closed his laptop and slid it into a drawer of his desk, so he could give this student his undivided attention.
Jackal opened the door and peeked in, feeling a little bit shy. It was the first time he'd gone to a teacher for....pretty much anything, really, that wasn't strictly related to a class. "I'm not interrupting anything, am I, Sensei?" he asked, just to be sure. A glance around told him there wasn't anyone else there, so he was probably clear. "I was hoping I could talk to you...about my roommate..."
Sakaki cleared his day planner off his desk and gestured to Jackal to sit in one of the upholstered loveseats near his desk. “Your roommate? Of course. You will have to refresh my memory, I am not familiar with the dormitory assignments this term.”
Jackal went ahead and sat, and took a breath as he tried to relax. He shouldn't be nervous around teachers. Talking is what they were there for, right? "Ah. Atobe Keigo...is my roommate. And...he's been behaving kind of oddly, lately. It's got me worried about him." He leaned back against the seat. "It's been going on for a little while now. I thought at first that he'd sulk for a few days and then bounce back...but he hasn't bounced yet."
Though he tried to hide it, Sakaki paled slightly at the mention of Atobe. If this was Atobe’s roommate, then this boy’s bed... his eyes widened. He coughed somewhat awkwardly. “Behaving oddly? What do you mean?” He knew he would have to be careful with how he phrased his answers and his questions, as he knew full-well he was likely the cause behind the sudden change in behaviour.
"Well, he's...become kind of a recluse, lately. He almost never goes to class - or leaves the room at all, for that matter. He's not dressing like his usual flashy self. He hardly talks, and I think despite not going to class, he's doing his homework...but like. I dunno. It seems like he's doing an awful lot of homework. More than he did before." Jackal tried to think of anything else that he could mention, other ways that Atobe had been a little...off... He was fairly certain he'd covered most of them, though. "I've tried to ask him about it. Gently, because I don't want to be the nosy, obnoxious roommate, but...he doesn't really answer anything, if he responds at all."
“That is problematic,” Sakaki agreed, “Has he changed his basic habits, eating, sleeping, etc.?” he asked, trying to mask the worry creeping into his voice. He needed to know how badly this situation was before he really got scared. “Atobe-kun sometimes needs a little prodding before he will express himself. If you’re worried about him, you should be the nosy, obnoxious roommate. He might just need to discover there are people around him who care for his well-being and do not want him to begin a self-destructive spiral.” He just so happened to be one such person who did not want to hear about Atobe hurting himself.
Jackal nodded. "It's a little hard to tell, since I'm not in the room all that much, but...he doesn't seem to be eating much, and I don't think he's sleeping." Actually, the sleeping Jackal was sure of. Since his discovery a while ago that Atobe shivered in his sleep, Jackal had taken to sleeping next to him for at least part of the night to keep him warmer, but he never went over before Atobe was asleep, and he always made a point of getting out before he woke up. Lately, Atobe had been awake when Jackal fell asleep, and either awake again or still up when Jackal woke. "I wondered if that might be necessary. He does seem stubborn... But I didn't want to be annoying if all it was going to get me was frozen solid."
Sakaki nodded. The constant threat of freezing had always been something of which to be perpetually cognisant. “I understand Atobe-kun has been making his homework assignments a minimum of three times too long. If what you say is true, that could be part of what he does at night. Does he ever leave your dorm room that you’re aware of?” He interlaced his fingers, trying to appear deep in thought, but really trying to stop his hands from shaking. Keigo, what are you doing to yourself? he thought, What I can do to make this better?
"Well...I assume he goes to the bathroom and showers....but I haven't seen him do it." Showering, Jackal assumed, was done during a time when Jackal was out of the room for a while. The bathroom thing...well. It wasn't the sort of thing a guy paid attention to. "That aside...no. He's always in there." Jackal reached up and scratched his head. "I really just don't get it. I mean...I know bad things happen and they can knock a guy on his ass for a while, but... Nothing should be able to keep a guy down..."
“Atobe-kun is...” Sakaki paused for a moment to consider this response, “Delicate.” He didn’t want to hear the things Jackal was saying, but they were all consistent with Atobe’s behaviour, particularly the distance the boy was keeping from him recently. “I think... he’s gotten it into his head that he’s... alone somehow. I’m afraid I don’t know what got him thinking such a thing as, as far as I know, the claim is incorrect... but I think you know how Atobe-kun gets when he convinces himself of something, even in error.”
Jackal chuckled a little at that. "Atobe is one stubborn S.O.B, that's for sure. But...if you're right and he thinks he's all alone...even that's the kind of thing a guy can get over and change." He pinched the bridge of his nose, remembering. "My parents pretty much disowned me when they found out about my power. I spent a year with nobody to talk to, nobody I considered friends or family...But there was this senpai, at my last school... He helped me realize you're only alone if you let yourself be alone." And maybe, what Atobe needed...was someone to be to him what Jackal's senpai had been. Part of which included being twice as stubborn as the person in question...
“It sounds, then, like you already know exactly what he needs,” Sakaki said, steepling his fingers as he thought about Atobe and everything, good and bad, that had happened between them. “He still blames himself for his parents’ decision to be insensitive twits and effectively removing him from his own family,” he said, “Once he gets the idea he’s meant to be alone in his head... it took two years for m....” he stopped suddenly, not knowing how much the boy in front of him knew about his dalliances with Atobe, “...for him to be convinced to let someone in.”
Jackal had to smile. "I might. I really might...and when I thanked my senpai, for being there all that time...the only thing he asked was that if the chance came around for me to help someone else...that I do it." Apparently, it'd been a long chain. Someone, years ago, had been helped out of feeling lost and alone. That person, in turn, helped another, and then another, and another, and so on, until Jackal's senpai helped him. And really, Jackal thought, it was a good chain to keep going. Who knew? Maybe someday, Atobe would be able to help someone else. "And I guess having some similar circumstances might help...because at least I realize now that my parents are insensitive twits, and don't think it's my fault anymore." It would take time, he knew. It wouldn't be an over-night thing that comes about after one conversation. It wasn't that easy. But Jackal was patient, when he needed to be, and at least as stubborn as Atobe, if not moreso.
“Though they may be polar opposites, both fire and ice can be a useful tool when controlled, but a danger if misused,” Sakaki mused, “...and they can both hurt terribly,” he added cryptically. “He needs someone around him to, if you’ll pardon the language, ignite within him the desire to surround himself with people whom he knows care about him a great deal. Still, he will likely push you away at first, fearful of letting anybody past the walls he has carefully built up around him, but do not let that dissuade you. He needs to be convinced he’s not alone, there are those around him who care deeply about him.” He stopped suddenly, afraid he was opening himself up too much. “I think you already have everything you need to help him. You must simply make him see he wants to be helped.”
Jackal listened, and nodded. It was true, and sounded exactly what his senpai had done for him, years ago. "And make him see that no matter how hard he tries, I'm not going away." Even if only for the term, Jackal lived with the guy, after all. Atobe could try to avoid him, but that would mean going out of the room...and Jackal considered even that a step in the right direction. A small one, but still a step. "Thanks, Sensei. I really think this helped. And I'll be able to help him better, now." By being a stubborn pain in the ass.
Sakaki smiled. “You’re welcome. I would feel bad if Atobe continued this self-destructive behaviour. Please bring the old Atobe back to us,” he said, standing to walk the boy to the door. “This school somehow just isn’t the same without him.”
Jackal smiled, letting his teacher walk him out. "I can't promise any results, but...I will do my best. With any luck, I can at least give him the kick to the pants he needs to get started." Maybe more, but only time would tell. At this point, any progress was good progress.
“Best of luck,” Sakaki proclaimed, setting his hand on the boy’s shoulder reassuringly. He knew there would be little he could actually do to help Atobe now, the boy had practically made an effort to avoid him. He only hoped his roommate was as stubborn as he says and can bring Atobe back from the pits of despair. “We’re all counting on you.”
"You say that like the fate of the world rests on my shoulders, Sensei," Jackal chuckled, although as soon as he said it, he realized that...in a way, it could. Who knew what any of the students at the school were capable of when they weren't in their right minds or full control of their powers? ".....Well. Hopefully it won't come to that, anyway," he grinned wryly. "Thanks."
Not the world, just one blindsided teacher, Sakaki thought wryly. “You’re welcome.” He opened the door to allow his guest to leave. “If you would be so kind as to let me know if your efforts have helped Atobe-kun, I would appreciate it. I worry about him sometimes.” More than you know, he added to himself.
Nodding as he stepped out of the office, Jackal smiled. He felt better, now, and less reserved about being the stubborn, nosy, pain-in-the-ass roommate he was going to have to be. Maybe he'd make a friend out of it, maybe not. As long as Atobe got back to being more himself, it didn't matter. "I will. I promise." With any luck, maybe Sakaki would even start seeing improvements in Atobe with his own eyes...if Jackal could talk him into going back to class...