the red things connected to my, wristwatch [OPEN]

[JULIAN ALEXANDER MASTERS III]

The sun was shining brightly above the shadows of the city, warmth encouraging nearly everyone outside to move and play around. All of them willing to scream and carry on in a manner that made Julian's jaw clench slightly in frustration.
"People. Can't see I'm working." In recognition of his speech, Megabyte's body gleamed briefly, seeking commands before dulling again and continuing to focus on Tera's gently floating body beside Julian's computer. Barely flickering his eyes towards the two Pokemon, Julian's eyes remained fixed on the gently glowing screen. Line after line of coding scrolled past as his fingers ran along the keys at almost alarming speeds, but Julian barely seemed to even be focusing on that.
"Tera. Cease movement." Abruptly, the Porygon-Z ceased all movement, dropping to the ground and shuddering briefly.

"Why the hell does that happen? You always shake..." For a split second, the cold researcher's expression softened, and his hand reached out to rest briefly against the Pokemon's head. He didn't know what the Pokemon thought, though there were times when he wondered what his partners thought of him, and his messing with their coding. Or if they thought anything at all, despite the intense sleepless nights that had come with the attempts to give them all a personality, with only slight success. Every day he went back over that coding for a little while - right before he went back to hacking into security systems of multi-million companies just because he could.
"I'm sorry, Tera. I'll fix it." That shaking couldn't be normal, it just couldn't be. The Pokemon was so full of glitches and bugs that perfecting it would take a long time... But it was the kind of challenge Julian had always enjoyed.

For another moment, the playful shouts of people around him continued to throb in his ears, distracting him briefly before he refocused on that judgemental cursor. Why couldn't people realise that he needed to work and just be quiet forever a little while? He'd always hated crowds, but the large expanse of ground didn't really make this place a crowd and no one was touching him or even talking to him. As long as he stayed quiet and focused everything would be alright, no one ever noticed researchers. They were always the quiet ones, away in their studies. It was simply that... Julian personally had more of an interest in studying Porygon and its abilities than other Pokemon.

"Alright. That should fix that coding. Tera, initiate movement." Once again the artificial pokemon beeped and rose to the air, lacking some of the shuddering before as it snuggled up against Julian's side. For a few moments, Julian felt a rush of pleasure in his abilities, in the way his brain moved... and then Tera began shuddering again. With a quiet curse, the young man returned to his work.

He was going to fix this code. If it took him until he was sixty.



TAGGED
WORDS
NOTES

[HAYLEY ANDERSON]

[atrb=style,background: url(http://i54.tinypic.com/29z4k7l.png); border-top: 10px solid #000000; border-bottom: 10px solid #000000; width: 460px; padding: 0px 20px 20px 20px;,bTable][atrb=height,1px,true][atrb=border,0,true]
[cs=3][STYLE=text-align: center; font-family: times; font-weight: 100!important; font-size: 80px; color: #000000; font-style: italic; height: 75px; overflow: hidden; letter-spacing: -1px; margin-top: -10px;]I'll keep you[/style]
[atrb=style,width:320px; border-top: 5px solid #000000; padding: 5px 0px 0px 0px;][STYLE=font-family: times; font-weight: 100!important; font-style: italic; font-size: 30px; letter-spacing: -2px; color: #000000; margin-top: -5px;]my dirty little secret[/style] [STYLE=margin-top: -15px; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 10px; text-align: justify; color: #000000; line-height: 16px;]Hayley could hardly believe her rotten luck. Today was easily one of the most beautiful days of the year and she was on her way to tutoring. Pages of notes about microprocessors, storage devices, and memory filled the pink notebook that she clutched protectively. If anyone knew that Hayley had been forced to go to a tutor it might ruin her reputation. Why? Hayley was quite infamous at the Pokemon Academy because of her "I don't care what you think of me" attitude. Of course underneath it all she cared very much what others thought of her, so much that it could be considered a fault... None-the-less if her peers knew that she was being forced to care about her grades they might not think of her in the same way. They might not fear her. Or even worse, if they examined her too carefully she feared that they might see the cracks in her disguise. And if caring about her school work wasn't enough to tear her from her throne, the pen she'd tucked behind her ear and had forgotten would certainly do the trick. "Come on Val we're late." Val gave Hayley a curious look and sped up a bit. Despite the girl's words her pace was quite leisurely. "Juli is going to kill me..." She mumbled. This was the first time she had been late to one of his lessons, and she was quite sure that he wouldn't be very happy with her. So why not enjoy the nice weather? After all she was sure Julian would growl at her if she was two minutes late or twenty minutes late so why not make the most of her freedom? But as the building rose into sight she realized that her independence was short lived and that Julian was probably waiting for her. At the thought Hayley felt a tiny blush grow over her cheeks. Ugh. Why him? It could have been anyone. She would have even preferred Jace over Julian. She just didn't understand what it was about the blue haired boy that made her heart want to leap out of her chest. She closed the door quietly behind her and stepped toward Julian with a curious look. Hayley was certainly no stranger to Pokemon. In fact training was the one activity that she actually put work into at the Academy, but she'd never seen anything like Julian's Porygons. The idea of a Pokemon that could be programmed to act especially loving or grumpy simply fascinated her. What if she could program Val and Stella to be more work oriented. Could he give them new attacks? She couldn't wonder if a Pokemon like Porygon even had a moveset. Val stepped in front of Hayley, crossing his stubby arms protectively. "What are you doing nerd?" Hayley could hardly contain her curiosity any longer, but as soon as she had opened her mouth she wondered if she'd made a mistake. Perhaps she should have stayed quiet so he couldn't be angry with her. Maybe she should have just stayed home and played sick. [/style]	[atrb=style, width: 5px;]	[atrb=style, width: 120px; text-align: center; border-top: 5px solid #ff4b93; padding: 5px 0px 0px 0px;][atrb=vAlign,top] [STYLE=width: 100px; height: 100px; border: 5px solid #c4c2c2;][/style]
[cs=3][STYLE=background-color: #c4c2c2; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 9px; text-transform: uppercase; font-weight: bold; color: #000000; text-align: center; padding: 2px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: -10px;]WORDS - 516 // NOTES - SORRY IT ISN'T VERY GOOD // CREDIT - KONYA❊[/style]

[JULIAN ALEXANDER MASTERS III]

At the sight of Hayley, Megabyte's body gleamed again, an action that Julian merely took as him searching for a command again as he glared at the text on his computer. He was already fighting the urge to slam his forehead against the computer screen since Tera's shaking had simply gotten worse with the last section of coding. Porygon's were complex creatures, incredibly complex, and it was the challenge that Julian thrived on. His mind wasn't even on the time as he glanced up at Terabyte. It was hard to tell what the Porygon was feeling, if he was as bothered by Julian's failure as Julian himself was. If he could only fix it.. if only he'd noticed the dubious disc when it could have made a damn difference... Sighing with frustration, he pulled his glasses off to rub at his tired eyes. Hours. He'd been doing this for hours.

Rather than the anger Hayley might have been expecting, the look Julian turned on her was tired. Sure she was late, but he'd hardly noticed. It took a moment longer to realise she'd said something, and instantly, Julian's cheeks swarmed with colour, forcing him to look back at his computer.
"J-just... Um.. working." He finally managed to get out, one hand waving at the two Porygon's beside him, both looking at Hayley curiously. Mega, at least, was happy to see her. Beeping quietly, the artificial Pokemon's whole body brightened as he shuffled towards the girl, barely even noting that Julian's eyes flickered to him scoldingly.
"You're doing a wonderful job of paying attention, Mega." Was the eventual reprimand, and Megabyte instantly beeped apologetically at his trainer, moving back towards the computer.

"I was trying to fix the glitch in Terabyte's systems, but I can't seem to find it-- Oh Arceus. I'm sorry, Hayley. I completely forgot the time, I've been doing this for about six hours.. How late am I? I didn't mean to miss your lesson, did you have to look far?" More worried about apologising for his lack in noticing the time, Julian's shy stutter disappeared under his efforts to reassure his.. his girlfriend... that he hadn't forgotten her. One look at her face and Julian was inwardly panicking. She was mad, probably really mad. He'd just gotten distracted with the coding, he hadn't even looked at the time. Not even as a break from the glowing screen.
"S-sorry.. Hayley.."

Julian's blue eyes watched her worriedly from over the top of his glasses, struggling to make out the look on her face. Why did people have to be so.. complicated. If only she was a computer, he'd be able to work things out better. Pushing his laptop away hurriedly, Julian leaned up to kiss her cheek lightly, the worried expression remaining caught on his features.
"I really am sorry.."


TAGGED Hayley
WORDS wordthings
NOTES

[HAYLEY ANDERSON]

[atrb=style,background: url(http://i54.tinypic.com/29z4k7l.png); border-top: 10px solid #000000; border-bottom: 10px solid #000000; width: 460px; padding: 0px 20px 20px 20px;,bTable][atrb=height,1px,true][atrb=border,0,true]
[cs=3][STYLE=text-align: center; font-family: times; font-weight: 100!important; font-size: 80px; color: #000000; font-style: italic; height: 75px; overflow: hidden; letter-spacing: -1px; margin-top: -10px;]I'll keep you[/style]
[atrb=style,width:320px; border-top: 5px solid #000000; padding: 5px 0px 0px 0px;][STYLE=font-family: times; font-weight: 100!important; font-style: italic; font-size: 30px; letter-spacing: -2px; color: #000000; margin-top: -5px;]my dirty little secret[/style] [STYLE=margin-top: -15px; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 10px; text-align: justify; color: #000000; line-height: 16px;]The tired expression on Julian's face caught Hayley completely off guard, she tilted her head slightly trying to better understand. Why was he tired? Was it his work or was he tired of her being late, or worse...? The girl had expected frustration, or even anger if Julian was having a bad day, but this had her a bit worried. Taking a little step closer she flashed a very brief smile. "Anything interesting?" Her brown eyes flickered over Mega and Tera quietly. With all of the wires she was certain that he'd been running experiments on them, perhaps his exhaustion wasn't directed at her at all. In fact, in their few months together she'd found that when his Porygon were involved, Julian got most sucked into his work. Val wriggled happily when Mega came closer. It was no secret that the tiny turtle Pokemon enjoyed Mega's company, perhaps more than he enjoyed Stella's even. But when Julian recalled him Val resumed his protective stance, Hayley rolled her eyes and gave the little Pokemon a nudge with her foot. "Give it up would you? He's not going to hurt me." The little Pokemon shot her a dirty look but she ignored it, focusing instead on Julian's words. Ah, her assumption had been correct. She glanced at Terra again with a little frown. Hayley wasn't sure that Julian's Pokemon had emotions, but she had to admit she wondered if the glitching hurt him. She was certain it would be bothersome in a fight, but was there more to the error than just a delay in listening to commands? Perhaps the effect was like that of poison and made him weaker and weaker throughout a battle. Hayley shook her head. As badly as she felt for Terra this was certainly a way out, if Julian hadn't been paying attention to the time that meant he didn't know she was late. Hayley was an opportunist, and though she adored Julian she'd do anything to get herself out of trouble. She certainly wouldn't make him feel guilty about being late, at least, not too badly, but this way he couldn't growl at her for making an error. "Only a little bit, I figured you were busy with your work." Val shot her another dirty look, which she ignored once again. "Jules, you've really got to learn to take breaks, starring at a computer screen for that long isn't healthy... But I guess my lesson will break up the monotony of it a bit." She paused briefly, or maybe his work with Terra was more important, and it was such a nice day out. "Unless of course, you'd rather continue. I could come back another time." A charming grin stretched over her lips, "I don't mind, maybe I could even come back later with a snack." Okay, so that was a lie. If she left there was no way she'd be able to get herself back here, but it was worth the try, and she'd honestly bring him food next time. It wasn't until he kissed her on the cheek that she started to feel guilty for lying to him. Hayley had always been a selfish girl, and though she would blame it on her parents or her rich lifestyle if it was pointed out it was just another on a list of character flaws. She couldn't be like that with Julian though, despite their rocky start he'd been nothing but good to her as their relationship grew, and he deserved the same in return. "Really, don't worry about it. I may have been a little bit late anyway." So what? It wasn't a full confession, but it was the truth. She'd been late and he'd forgotten about tutoring her, Hayley wouldn't take all of the blame for this. She reached up to readjust Julian's glasses so he didn't have to look over them to see her, and was flooded with the realization of who she was talking to. This was her Juli, she couldn't lie to him or treat him badly like she could with the others, and she certainly couldn't leave him alone in the library on such a beautiful day. "Or if you think you can afford to take a break we could have our lesson outside." Hayley's tone was a bit more hopeful this time, it was a compromise, Julian got to do his work and she got to spend time with her boyfriend out in the sun. [/style]	[atrb=style, width: 5px;]	[atrb=style, width: 120px; text-align: center; border-top: 5px solid #ff4b93; padding: 5px 0px 0px 0px;][atrb=vAlign,top] [STYLE=width: 100px; height: 100px; border: 5px solid #c4c2c2;][/style]
[cs=3][STYLE=background-color: #c4c2c2; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 9px; text-transform: uppercase; font-weight: bold; color: #000000; text-align: center; padding: 2px; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: -10px;]WORDS - 746 // NOTES - NONE! // CREDIT - KONYA❊[/style]

[JULIAN ALEXANDER MASTERS III]

One hand remaining pressed against his eyes to try and lessen the sudden tired burn in them, Julian nearly missed Hayley's question about his work. For a single moment he forgot who he was talking to, and bitterness flashed through his mind. Did she really care or was she just asking for the sake of distracting him? The moment passed and the guilt returned, even worse if it was even possible for his cheeks to get a darker pink than the colour they were currently glowing with. It was Hayley, all logical points led her to asking out of genuine interest. Firstly, because he'd never known Hayley to be good at faking interest, and while he wasn't looking at her, Julian had become adept at reading the boredom in her voice (it was how he knew when to be quiet, or to talk in more technical terms to annoy her).
"Nothing new." The reply was probably shorter and sharper than he intended, but his annoyance wasn't aimed at her, rather he shot a sharp glance of frustration at his computer as he let his hand drop away from his eyes.

"Hurt you?" Startled by the phrase, Julian's blue eyes darted back up to her features, confusion obvious. When had he ever given her that impression? Or... well, Val that impression? A slight frown crossed his features before it smoothed away, as though he was too tired to even hold that in place. As much as he would have liked to keep it there in return for that particular statement about his character.
"You know better, Val." He muttered finally, glancing down at the turtle-Pokemon with just the barest hint of annoyance darkening his usually gentle voice. To think, even the most protective Pokemon in the world had to see that he wasn't like that, that he wasn't a threat in even the briefest sense of the word.

Late. Julian had never been late for a lesson a day in his life, and yet here he was, not only forgetting a student but his girlfriend (the word still sounded so strange, even in his thoughts). Not once had he gotten so engrossed in something... Well he could never say that again, because he had forgotten Hayley's lesson in the midst of the research he was conducting on his Pokemon. Hayley was just as, perhaps more, important than that. His Pokemon would wait, Mega and Tera knew of his dedication to them, knew he'd never waver in that devotion to knowing what made them tick. Hayley... Hayley couldn't have been expected to have that same confidence in his attention. Especially not after the way he'd treated her when they'd first met. No matter how close to a breakthrough on his work he was, Hayley was more important.
"On-only... Only... little... is.. it's still.. late.." The words were hard to get past the nervousness that flooded him when he glanced up, his gaze quickly then returning to the ground near her feet.
"I was... was... going to.. I just.. forgot.." Breaks were another Hayley-introduced habit, he'd never seen the harm in being at his computer for hours before that...

She was like an introduced species into the eco-system that was his life, and he had no control over it.

For a moment, Julian's expression was conflicted. He'd promised when he'd accepted Hayley as a student to teach her well, but at the same time the quiet hum of his laptop was so appealing. There were no difficult conversations, or loud people in a place that was supposed to be silent... Then there was Hayley... and he wanted to spend time with her too... She was important to him, but she was willing to come back later with food..
"You'd... come back?" The hopefulness was back, even as his hand was subtly reaching for hers before Julian realised what he was doing and hurriedly snatched it back to his side.

She'd only been a little late, and she was admitting it... Immediately, Julian's guilty expression returned, his weight shifting on his feet uneasily while he tried - well fought, really - to find the words to explain to her that he was sorry about forgetting, he'd really just gotten caught up. Never noticed the time. They stuck in his throat, unable to move past the blockage of shyness, and then they were gone from his head too. Her touch on his glasses was both brief and gently, but Julian's eyes still widened slightly at the proximity while his cheeks flushed once more.
"I... I could... I could t-take a br-break ou-outside..." When she used that tone of voice, there was really no way he could say no to her.

Not that he ever could.

TAGGED Hayley
WORDS wordthings
NOTES