Private Finished A Day Away From School

Hal walked down the streets of the city, fussing over his hair along the way. He'd been messing with it the whole morning, trying to decide if he should go with his default and tying part of it so it wouldn't mess up when the wind blew through it, find a way to tie it whole or just leave it for the wind. Right next to that was finding a presentable set of clothes. He told himself he didn't need to be too picky but the greater side of him said he always had to look a little above decent.

In the end, he went with his usual hair, a pressed dress shirt under a cardigan with a comfortable set of pants and still he didn't appreciate his own efforts. He sighed, then tried to place a calm smile on his expression as he made his way down to the meeting place.

He didn't know if Caspian had arrived before him but she wasn't there when he did. That was fine -- at least he knew he wasn't late. A moment later he heard his voiced getting called out from behind, catching his attention.

"Hey Caspian," he greeted her, a shy smile on his face. "So-so; school hasn't been too hard so I guess it's been good. How about you? Did you just get here?"

Normally, Hal wasn't very perceptive to people's expressions, but he'd learned quick with Caspian's honest expressions that she was easier for him to read. By the way her smile dropped, he already got the feeling something didn't seem to have gone well while he had his attention away. He felt a little bad, even more so when she had to give him a smile Hal had a feeling was a little bit forced. For a moment his brows furrowed with concern.

He tried to keep it out of the conversation for a bit, giving her a slight smile -- the most what he could for the moment. "I was afraid I'd be late. I had some... stuff to fix back at the dorm." Stuff referring to his entire appearance. "I'm glad to hear school hasn't been rough on you," he added. Hearing her laugh didn't seem to convince him at all and not helping himself, he ended up asking. "Edward's been bothering you again, hasn't he?"

Hal gave her a wry smile, hearing her answer. "Lucky guess," he replied to her. "Figured he's kind of the number 1, most likely reason you looked kinda down." Hal always thought she was a little more cheerful but anything else that had to do with that guy and the things that connect him and Caspian always brought her mood down.

A sigh left him, sounding pretty exhausted more than anything. "When will that guy quit at all, really?" he muttered quietly as though he was asking it to himself than to anyone else in particular, shaking his head along with. He'd only encountered him once face to face, but he was pretty tired of the guy already.

When Hal looked back up to Caspian, he'd fixed a smile onto his face; it wasn't so much as a fake smile, but it hid more than anything his thoughts."But sure. We can forget about that for now." The blush on her cheeks seemed to go over Hal's head, possibly due to the fact his attention was partially elsewhere. "Sooo... did you want to try the park first? Though I hear there's a new cake shop down the street, too. Which one do you want to go first?"

When Hal recognized her smile seemed more sure, his grew a little more sincere to match hers, and partly of relief as well. "Ohh, might have thought you haven't tried there yet. What else did you have in mind?" he asked curiously, trying to peer at her face as they both began to walk forward, heading towards the city's park.

Seeing Caspian struggle with her bag, Hal had to stiffle a chuckle, quietly speaking to her, "Want me to carry your bag for you?" he offered and while mildly in jest, he wouldn't have minded at all.

Now when she turned back the question to him on the other hand, he seemed thoughtful for a second, looking forward as he dwelt in his recent memory. "Yeah, it's just... so-so on my part. Haven't really done anything interesting -- other than some powers practice, I guess? My other friends are kinda getting busy with their own thing now too -- not really surprised; maybe they're taking college more seriously than me."

Hal's thoughts drifted for a moment wondering how his friends have been doing -- mostly his longer friends. Things hadn't quite gone the same since his little disappearing act but... everything was fine, he told himself. Nothing to worry. A beat passed after the thought, and Hal turned back to Caspian, smiling to her as if the thought hadn't crossed his mind. "Tried anything new lately?"

For that one moment, Caspian's rection seemed to go over his head, falling into a curious thought of wondering what could have made her flush when he only asked a simple question. Had there been anything else or was he reading on too much? Regardless, he only kept the smile for her. "Well, progress," he said casually as they entered the park grounds.

Hal was mildly curious that a soon as they got there, Caspian suddenly looked a little shifty, looking around and all, then starled when she made a grab for his arm and pulling him along. He didn't ask where she'd meant to go, only muttering a quiet "Okay," as she tugged him along after her to an enclosed area in the park.

Ever so dense, Hal failed to catch on anything at all, casually following after Caspian idly as he looked around the trees, as if he was looking for something that he wasn't seeing.

Hal found his way to the bench Caspian picked, missing her quiet words to herself as he stepped closer to her. Hesitating for a moment to take the seat next to her, he mused aloud, "Huh, I rarely go to this area; I almost forgot how it was nice and quiet around this part."