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Post by lanie on Nov 26, 2008 3:01:44 GMT -5
Alice nodded to Parker, smiling a little. As the group grew, she stepped away, though gave Kyo a sweet, friendly look. "Oh, thank you," she said, and while the words could have turned out humble, there was a hint of arrogance there, probably due to whatever her accomplishments were (as she wasn't about to talk about them now). She peeked over her shoulder at Christian who remained the uninterested observer, and gestured a finger for him to come over. "So have you skated before?" She said this mostly to Kyo.
He sauntered closer, giving both Kyo and Nicholas an apathetic once-over. While Christian looked like he didn't care, he had a shuffling sort of posture even though he was so tall; it was obvious he was just quiet and probably shy to boot, at least amongst new people. He bobbed his head to the new arrival, at least.
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Post by Angela on Nov 30, 2008 2:58:14 GMT -5
Danil grinned at everyone, and paused when he heard a familliar voice.
"Hey."
Danil turned and smiled. "Niholas! Good to see you! Just hee for practice. You remember Ms. Ordway, Mr. Dwight, and of course Parker."
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Post by Kyo Suzuki on Dec 3, 2008 3:31:51 GMT -5
"So have you skated before?"
Kyo shook his head honestly, as much as he wanted to be able to say something impressing, like he'd done it all his life. "No, this would be my first time doing skating. I am looking forward to it very much." He peered around Alice to get a better view of the rink. "The ice is so big, so much ice. I guess it will be tricky to learn. But I cannot go on until Danil has practiced anyway, so...it does not matter."
Following up on what Danil had said, he gestured to Nicholas with a grin. "This is my buddy Ni-ge-las. He is so friendly. You should get to know him better. I bet he is secretly the master skater!" He looked at Nicholas and winked. He didn't know the young man all that well just yet, but he felt a special connection to him. The pair of them weren't all that different. In fact, their situations were very much similar in Kyo's eyes. He secretly wondered if Nicholas would hang out with him while Danil practiced.
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Post by lanie on Jan 26, 2009 2:10:13 GMT -5
"So," Alice said, glancing to Danil, "what're you here to work on? We're trying to figure out pro-am programs but nothing is happening." She frowned a bit, disappointed that they hadn't come up with anything, and it was something they needed to do now. "Do you follow skating at all?" she asked both Kyo and Nicholas, smiling sweetly at them, speaking slower than she usually would. "I'm sure Danil could give you a lesson."
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Post by Nicholas Wu on Jan 26, 2009 3:17:01 GMT -5
Danil was the first to greet him.
"Nicholas! Good to see you! Just here for practice. You remember Ms. Ordway, Mr. Dwight, and of course Parker."
Nicholas had met all of these people much earlier than Kyo. He nodded his understanding. “Nice to see you again,” he said quietly. At that moment, Kyo broke in.
"This is my buddy Ni-ge-las. He is so friendly. You should get to know him better. I bet he is secretly the master skater!"
Nicholas turned red, as he felt the eyes of the others turn towards him. He held up his hands. “No, no, not at all. I…can’t really skate.” He saw Kyo wink and felt a little more comforted. Obviously, he didn’t need to impress Kyo to gain the younger boy’s approval. He felt a little better about his situation. "So," Alice said, glancing to Danil, "what're you here to work on? We're trying to figure out pro-am programs but nothing is happening." She frowned a bit, disappointed that they hadn't come up with anything, and it was something they needed to do now. "Do you follow skating at all?" she asked both Kyo and Nicholas, smiling sweetly at them, speaking slower than she usually would. "I'm sure Danil could give you a lesson."
Nicholas noted that Alice was speaking much slower than the average person, and he knew why. He was used to it by now. But, knowing that she was only doing what she thought was best for him and Kyo—neither of whom she knew well enough yet—he didn’t have the heart to tell her that he could understand her when she spoke in a normal manner.
He was going to wait for Kyo to respond to Alice’s question, but then decided he’d better speak first. He didn’t want to clock in late for work. “I…I haven’t seen much of it,” Nicholas admitted. “But,” he added, trying to make Danil’s friends feel a little better, “I am hoping to watch more of it, now that I’m living here in Pennsylvania.”
He paused, then said quickly, “Uhh, but I have to go now. I’m sorry. Don’t want to be late for work.” He looked at Danil for confirmation. “I’ll be behind the desk for skate rentals…if you need me.”
Bowing his head politely, he turned to leave, heading for the locker room. When he got inside, he found the room empty. Perhaps it was a little too early to be skating, save for the dedicated skaters. Plus, there were very few staff, considering how big the place was. It was common to be alone when he first arrived.
Heading to his locker, number 608, Nicholas reached into his pocket for the key to his locker—there were both lockers with combination locks and lockers with key locks. Most of the employees had the key locks—because very few people wanted to steal the rink’s standard uniform.
Having passed several rows of lockers, he finally reached the end row of lockers and found his own. He opened the locker and pulled out the standard red and white uniform. The outfit consisted of loose red pants (with which Nic needed to wear a belt to keep them up) a red and white T-shirt, and a zip-up jacket, bearing the logo of the skating complex. On the upper right side of the jacket, Nicholas’ nametag was pinned. The outfit was comfortable enough, but what he greatly disliked about it was how much it made him stand out. The red was so bright that it hurt just about everyone’s eyes just to look at it. Still, he couldn’t complain. This place wasn’t all that bad a place to work at, especially on the good days.
Of course, he had a long day ahead of him, and he realized it. Even though Danil and Peter were sure to have set a wonderful meal out for dinner by the time he got home, he’d still have several essays to write and myriad math problems to solve. If he was lucky, he’d be done with everything three days from now.
He sighed, suddenly rethinking his idea to go to Penn State, and began to shrug his way out of his sweater top, in order to exchange it for the T-shirt.
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Post by Angela on Jan 26, 2009 14:33:10 GMT -5
The remainder of the group continued their conversation and eventually dispersed so they could get to work. Nicholas went to the employees' locker room so he could change into the DeVito Park red and white uniform. The locker room was empty, save for Nicholas. There were no windows, and no air vent near where Nic was standing, yet somehow he felt a cold draft as he took off his shirt. Then, the strangest thing happened - stranger even than the draft itself.
A giggle. A high-pitched, happy giggle. Nic turned, and saw a flash of light blue. In an instant it was gone. The giggling stopped. When Nic had calmed enough to continue dressing, the giggle came again. Nic looked and saw a young girl of twelve standing beside him.
"Hi!" she said cheerfully, with a big grin.
She was short, even for her age, thin, wearing a baby blue dress. She had dark brown hair, and deep blue almond-shaped eyes. If Nic knew Evgeni well enough he might have recognized those eyes: they were the same.
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Post by Nicholas Wu on Jan 26, 2009 22:32:21 GMT -5
As Nicholas shrugged his way out of his sweater, he suddenly felt cold. He was used to the cold, of course--especially because this was an ice skating rink. It was naturally cold here. Yet, the cold he felt now was somehow different than the one he was used to. He shook his head, trying to clear it by dismissing the seemingly unnatural cold as his body's reaction to the temperature change when he'd taken his shirt off. Setting the sweater aside, he reached for the T-shirt and began to pull it over his head.
That was when he heard it. Heard it. Something that sounded very much like a laughing child. He'd become so used to the sound of silence after 10 years that the giggling he heard now was piercing. Nicholas froze. A lump formed in his throat, and suddenly he felt it very hard to breathe.
The giggling was coming from behind him. He spun around quickly, just in time to see a flash of light blue, but it disappeared immediately. When the light blue form had disappeared, the giggling stopped. Nicholas took a step back, feeling colder than ever and short of breath. He had no clue what had just happened, but he was scared.
He stood silent and unmoving for a few moments, waiting--listening--for the sound of the laughing child...That light blue form. It seemed an eternity that he stood in silence, waiting for something that was no longer there. After such a long time without any return of the giggling, Nicholas decided that he must be going insane. There was no one there. And how could he have possibly heard anything? Perhaps he was seeing things because he'd been getting so little sleep recently. Still, he could somehow not shake the feeling of uncertainty and fear that remained inside him.
Suddenly feeling a little light-headed, he realized he had been holding his breath and quickly let it out. He rested an elbow against the locker, his forehead pressed against his hand, and tried to wait out the dizzy feeling that had suddenly overwhelmed him. Closing his eyes, he inhaled and exhaled slowly. He didn't open his eyes again until he felt completely calmed down again. What was wrong with him? Why was he acting so strange?
Lack of sleep, he reminded himself. Lack of sleep.
Somehow, he managed to convince himself that this was his only problem. He had not heard any more of the strange giggling, nor did he see any flashes of light. He pulled the T-shirt on, then zipped up the uniform jacket. He had become used to this simple routine of changing into his uniform, locking his own outfit in the locker, and then heading out to greet customers at the skate rental area.
He reached down to unclasp his belt buckle, then unzipped his pants and began to shrug his way out of them.
It was at this moment that he heard the sound again. The giggling. He turned, expecting to see a flash of blue from a distance. But instead, he was greeted by the sight of a grinning young girl right beside him.
"Hi!" she said cheerfully, with a big grin.
Nicholas cried out and tried to back up. But, still tangled in his pants, he ended up tripping and crashed backwards to the floor. He felt his elbows smash into the cold tile and yelped from the pain.
When he looked up, he saw that the girl was still standing over him. He immediately backed up, crab-walking backwards as fast as he could, until his back was pressed against the nearest locker.
What was going on? Who was this girl, and why could he hear her? It only occurred to him now that, though he had screamed at the sight of her and had even crashed to the ground, he had heard neither his own voice, nor the sound of his fall. In fact, the only thing he had heard was the girl's laughing, and then her greeting. It seemed her words were the only things he could hear. And that frightened him.
"Wh-wh....who are you?" Nicholas asked, shaking with fear. Though she was only a little girl, he was genuinely afraid.
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Post by Angela on Jan 26, 2009 23:37:38 GMT -5
Nadya fanned her hand dismissively, trying to comfort him.
"I'm one of the skaters here," she said with a grin. "My name is Nadya!" She laughed. "Oh, don't be so frightened, silly, I'm not going to bite you." She took Nic's hand and helped him up. She had a solid form, as if she were a real human being. But as anyone who had a history with the rink would say, she was not human... not anymore. That might have explained her pale features and cold hands. She looked almjost like a porcelain doll, she was so pale.
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Post by Nicholas Wu on Jan 27, 2009 1:23:41 GMT -5
Nadya fanned her hand dismissively, trying to comfort him.
"I'm one of the skaters here," she said with a grin. "My name is Nadya!" She laughed. "Oh, don't be so frightened, silly, I'm not going to bite you."
Nicholas could only stare at Nadya in shock as she spoke. Yet, despite his apprehensiveness towards her, he allowed her to help him up. As he was getting to his feet, he realized—now somewhat embarrassed—that his pants were still halfway down his legs. Blushing, he bent down and pulled his pants back up, quickly buckling the belt once more. If he had to stay in his own pants instead of change into the uniform ones, so be it. He was willing to take the rap for it later.
As he looked at the pale, pretty little girl, her words ringing in his ears, he felt silly. He had been acting foolish. She was only a skater here! And yet…that could, in no way, explain why he could hear her. In fact, there was nothing in the world that could explain the bizarre feeling Nicholas felt from this situation. What was going on here? There seemed to be so much more to this girl than her just being a skater…
Suddenly, he felt sorry for Nadya. If she was who she said she was, then it was he who was acting strange, not her. Maybe he had gotten his hearing back after all! Maybe it wasn’t just her, and maybe he was just scaring some little girl he didn’t know by acting so strange. He decided to apologize.
“I…I’m sorry,” he told her, feeling his heart sink when he realized he could not hear the words coming from his own mouth. So, his hearing hadn’t magically come back. He was still deaf. “I…I guess I just haven’t seen you around here before,” he added softly, trying to mask his dismay. He paused, then rubbed the back of his neck with one hand. “But, I mean…this is a men’s locker room…”
Suddenly, he looked up at her, a confused look on his face. “Can…can you hear me?”
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Post by Angela on Jan 27, 2009 1:57:12 GMT -5
"True, I'm sorry. It's also an employees' locker room," Nadya pointed out. "My brother's an employee too. I'm just here with him." She did not tell him who her brother was on purpose.
“Can…can you hear me?”
"Of course I can," she said.
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Post by Nicholas Wu on Jan 31, 2009 1:19:46 GMT -5
"True, I'm sorry. It's also an employees' locker room," Nadya pointed out. "My brother's an employee too. I'm just here with him."
Nicholas nodded, seeing as this was a plausible response--though he still found it a little awkward that she had been in a men's locker room. What if one of the skaters had been in here changing into a skating costume?
To his question, he received an even more obvious response.
"Of course I can," she said.
Nicholas sighed.
"I'm sorry. That was a stupid question," he told her, running a hand through his hair again. He sighed again and decided to move back to the locker, picking his stuff up off of the bench and putting it all back into the locker. After he'd locked it all in, he turned back around to face the little girl, finally deciding to say what it was that was weighing down on his mind. He knew that saying something like this could sound insane, but...He had to know.
"Nadya...? I have a question." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "I'm deaf. But...for some reason, I can hear you... Does that make sense? Do you--" He turned around, opening his eyes, but he found that Nadya was no longer there. "--understand?" he added, though he had now forgotten about his question.
Frowning, he looked up and down the row of lockers, but the little girl had disappeared.
"Nadya?" He called again, the sudden silence after Nadya's presence weighing heavily on him. He stood still for a moment, expecting that Nadya would pop out again, maybe scare him a second time. But nothing happened.
Looking at his watch, still confused, Nicholas' eyes widened. He was ten minutes late! How could so much time have passed already?
"Oh no," he moaned. Grabbing the water bottle he'd brought with him to tuck behind the skate rental desk, he rushed out of the locker room to begin working.
ooc: For now, I guess, my character is written out. But if anyone wants to go pay him a visit at the skate rental desk (or if he's doing any other job, like cleaning the floor or something, lol), then feel free to do so. I'd love to write him back in!
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Post by alexanderdupont on Feb 2, 2009 2:25:48 GMT -5
(OOC: I'll take a stab at it. ) Gaetan leisurely walked down the length of the quiet hallway, his steps occasionally slowing to look upon and kiss the baby he was holding in his arms. "We are going to see your father skate, mon petite petite cygne," he explained softly in French, a smile on his face, his finger tenderly stroking Mitya's cheek. Despite the fact that it was his grandson wrapped up in the thick, fluffy pale blue blanket, the way that the two interacted, coupled with looking much younger than his 47 years, many would have assumed that he was actually the boy's father. As he paused outside the door that opened into the observation area for the main rink, he noticed an unfamiliar face wearing a slightly flustered expression. "Good morning," he greeted Nicholas in English, his deep voice thick with a French accent. While he wasn't necessarily expecting a response, he hoped that a friendly face would help to put him at ease.
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Post by Nicholas Wu on Feb 3, 2009 3:30:35 GMT -5
ooc: Hahaha, okay! Thanks very much! ;D
ic:
Nicholas was rushing to get to the skate rental desk as quickly as he could. He wondered if perhaps his boss was never coming and if he had already put someone else in charge at the desk. If that happened, Nicholas would probably be reprimanded and then assigned to cleaning the ice...he hated that job.
As he was jogging, he noticed a man older than him up ahead. The man was holding a very cute little baby, who was tucked inside a pale blue blanket. Nicholas did not know the man, nor had he seen him around before. But when he saw the man looking at him, he stopped jogging, wondering if perhaps the man had said something to him and he hadn't noticed.
"Good morning," he greeted Nicholas in English, his deep voice thick with a French accent.
Nicholas found it a little harder to read this man's lips. He could tell by the way the man formed the words in English, he was native to a different language. Still, it was very obvious that the man had said good morning to him.
He nodded appreciatively. "Uh...good morning," he responded, giving a small smile. If this was a prospective skater--though he couldn't help thinking that a person coming to practice skating would not bring a baby with them--he didn't want to scare the man away with a depressed attitude.
"Are you here to skate?" he asked the man. At least, if the man was, he could lead him over to the skate rentals desk, since that was his destination anyway. He couldn't help looking down at his watch, though. Nearly 15 minutes late now. He was in so much trouble!
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Post by alexanderdupont on Feb 4, 2009 2:01:54 GMT -5
(OOC Note: Here is Gaetan's profile, in case you wanted to know more about him. ) anyaangie.proboards61.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=nonskaters&thread=134&page=1)"Actually, I am just here to watch. I know a number of the skaters that have come to participate in the open session. In fact, one of them is my son," the Frenchman explained, as he walked with Nicholas toward the rink's pro shop. He offered the younger man his hand. "I don't believe we have met before. My name is Gaetan Dupont, and this is my grandson Dmitri. Are you a new member of the staff?"
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Post by Nicholas Wu on Feb 12, 2009 23:55:13 GMT -5
Ooc: Sorry for the late response! College has been...well, really troublesome recently! I'll try to stay more on top of things from now on! Ic: "Actually, I am just here to watch. I know a number of the skaters that have come to participate in the open session. In fact, one of them is my son," the Frenchman explained, as he walked with Nicholas toward the rink's pro shop.Nicholas read what the other man said, then nodded. So he was here to watch his son. He couldn't help thinking that it was nice to see how close this man was to his son--he even came to watch him practice! They seemed like a good family. The other man then extended his hand, and Nicholas reached out to complete the handshake. "Idon't believe we have met before. My name is Gaetan Dupont, and this is my grandson Dmitri. Are you a new member of the staff?" Nicholas had just been about to ask if the little boy in Gaeton's arms was his other son, and he was surprised to hear that it was his grandson. Though Gaeton was obviously older than Nicholas, he looked fairly young. Nicholas nodded. "Yeah. I...I just got a job here. My name is Nicholas Wu. Nic is fine," he added, as the two of them continued walking. While they were walking, Nicholas had a random thought. He was certain now that Gaeton was speaking with a foreign accent. He could simply tell from the way the other man formed English words. For some reason, he found that he was very interested in where the other man was from. "Um...are you from Pennsylvania, originally?" Nicholas asked, hoping his question made sense. He watched Gaeton for an answer, though he would completely understand if the other man didn't want to respond and thought Nicholas was being too pushy. Finally, they reached the skate rentals desk. Upon seeing that a fellow employee was working behind the desk, Nicholas paled. They'd already replaced him! "Uh, I'm sorry," he said softly, turning away from Gaeton for a moment to speak with the other worker. "Um, am I still supposed to be working behind the desk today?" The other employee, who looked bored beyond compare, snapped his gum and shrugged. "I don't know. Manager put me here since no one was here when she came around to check the stations. Maybe you wanna go talk to her yourself." He pointed behind him. "She's in the back." Nicholas nodded, swallowing hard. He hoped he had not put the manager in a bad mood. He didn't like to be on bad terms with the people he worked with or for, nor could he stand to lose his job. Feeling awful when he realized he had simply left Gaeton standing there, he spun around. "I...I am so sorry. It's just...I was already supposed to be working nearly 20 minutes ago." Ooc: I hope there is enough for you to work with in this post! I'll bring the manager in in the next post!
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Post by Angela on Feb 16, 2009 2:06:44 GMT -5
(written by Andy who is unable to post)
Gaetan shook his head. "While I have lived in Pennsylvania since 2001, I was born and raised in Marseilles, France. When I was 16 I moved to Paris to complete my university studies and subsequently medical school. Shortly before graduating, I met my wife, Anna, and five years later we had a son, Sasha, together. I love my country and hope to return their some day," he answered. "Do not worry. These things sometimes happen especially when you are new," he assured him. Meanwhile, Dmitri continued to sit dociley in his grandfather's arms content to play with the small, stuffed swan that was in his hands.
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