[Veronica, Stacy & Webster - Opposite Plot]

[plantfood]

There is something different.

Mathias isn't quite aware of it, although he feels it on some level, he feels brighter and better and just different. He can't name it, can't place it and, most importantly, he doesn't want to. Whatever is different, it isn't bad.

He's headed down the boardwalk with a bounce in his step and a grin on his face, feeling lighter than he has in some time. Nothing can bother him these days, nothing can so much as touch him and he thinks, if he has time, he'll go visit Webster. Maybe they can talk about Veronica, like Webster always wants to. There are stories to tell now, certainly, and Mathias feels like he's in the mood to do some real talking.

Walking along, heading nowhere in particular, he breathes in deeply, enjoying the scent of the jungle around him. Every time someone passes him, he smiles brightly and waves, calling a loud, cheerful, "Hello!" Some people look startled, although he can't begin to understand why, and others greet him in return, looking just as happy as he feels.

Just ahead, he spots a familiar face and he hurries, almost running. "Hey!" he shouts happily. "Hey, hi! It's so good to see you!"

Comments

[plantfood]

"No," Mathias answers, frowning. "We're friends because... we're friends. We were friends before what happened there."

That's not exactly true either, but he wants it to be true. Right now, he can't accept that they're not friends or that they've become friends simply because of the bad things that have happened to them. He doesn't like that.

[saved-the-knees.livejournal.com]

"I'm not sure that's true, but it's not... You're kind of the only person I trust around here, but you're acting kind of weird. You don't need to ask if I want you around, I thought it was kind of obvious that I do," she sighed, "I just wanted quiet, for a little while, that's all."

[plantfood]

Mathias huffs out a breath of air and frowns, trying to figure out what to do now. He thinks he should probably leave Stacy alone, but he really wants her company at the same time.

"Okay," he says slowly. "Do you want me to leave you alone? To be quiet?"

[saved-the-knees.livejournal.com]

She considered it, really considered it, not wanting to just blurt out the first thing that came to her, just to make him feel better.

And in the end, she said, "No, I don't." Because she might not have been herself, but she still cared about him, more than anyone still left in her life.

[plantfood]

"Okay," Mathias says slowly, offering Stacy a small, reluctant smile. "You're my best friend here," he adds quickly, still sort of worried he's saying too much for some reason. It just all wants to come out anyway. "Not just because of what happened to us before."

[saved-the-knees.livejournal.com]

"I know," she said quietly, an apology in her smile, and as she looked up at him, she was suddenly struck by how tall he was, maybe because he seemed so young and so lost right then.

"You're letting me sleep in your bed, and I know it's not because you're trying to get in my pants. Unless you're really, really taking your time."

[plantfood]

Mathias smiles at that, bright and cheerful once again. "It's because I don't know anyone else here and neither did you. Who else were we going to stay with?"

His eyes grow wide and he looks at Stacy. "We should have a hut built. A real place to stay, not just a bed in a room with Draco, who is very cranky."

[saved-the-knees.livejournal.com]

She turned to look at him with a curious frown and asked, "Are you sure you're ready for that?" He'd gotten so much better about the jungle, but he still had problems.

She would've had to have been blind not to notice.

[plantfood]

"I don't want to stay in the Compound forever," Mathias answers, frowning a little as he thinks about it. "The jungle is still... it's not what it once was for me, that much is certain, but the room in the Compound is too small for all three of us. I think he hates us."

[saved-the-knees.livejournal.com]

"I think he hates everyone, it's not just us," she laughed, taking a moment to consider, then finally she jerked her head in a decisive nod and said, "Okay. Let's do it. Let's build a hut."

[plantfood]

A wide grin spread over Mathias's face at Stacy's words and he nodded. "We have to submit some sort of request, I believe, but I can take care of all of that. Near the beach? I think I would like to live near the beach."

[saved-the-knees.livejournal.com]

"The beach sounds... good," she decided after a moment of thought, a wider smile stretching her face as she looked up at him. "Maybe we can even have our own beds this time."