Realistic or Modern Riverbrook Academy For Talented Juveniles

[sox]

The spectacle of Kailo running out of the auditorium stunned June out of his inner monologue, eyes widened as they followed her figure dashing away. Despite her tendency to talk big and act even bigger, it was abundantly clear that she was still a scared teen at the end of the day, just like the rest of them. No one seemed to know what to do as they all watched her burst through the line of guards, not daring to break the silence that had fallen over them.

June's initial thought was to do the exact same and let his new friendly acquaintance fall apart in front of them, because really, this wasn't his problem to deal with. But then he thought back to the pep talk he had literally just given himself, promising not to let this place break them apart, and he swore under his breath. Ah, fuck. Okay. Fine. Here fucking goes. He stood up and shot the principal an apologetic smile, meeting her eyes in a way that he hoped conveyed his intentions, before jogging after Kailo and slipping through the doors. The guards tensed up and began to move towards him, but stopped once June held his hands up and jerked his chin towards the crying girl in their arms. With a disgruntled sigh, the guard holding Kailo back let go and stepped away, still remaining within arm's reach in case the duo tried anything.

"Hey," he breathed, crouching down next to her. She didn't seem to be in any state to have a conversation, so he did the first thing he could think of; scooting so he was in directly front of her, June gathered her in his arms and pulled her into a hug. His protective nature took over as he made sure she could cry into his hoodie if she wanted to, but he didn't hold on too tightly in case she wanted to get away. "Breathe, Kai. Cry if you need to, but keep breathing."

tortellini

 

[tortellini]

(Way too lazy for a bbcode, I’ll edit this in the morning)

Kailo’s breath broke slightly as June hugged her. She was tired, so tired, and she missed everything so much already.
“I’m sorry...” she mumbled into June’s hoodie, not audible to the guards, barely audible to him.
“I’m so, so, sorry...” she raised her arms and aggressively rubbed her eyes with the heels of her palms.
“You didn’t have to come out here, I’m fine on my own...”
But she regretted her words, so she spoke again.
“Thank you.” She wrapped her arms around herself again, still crying, even if less now. And she wiped the tears from under her eyes and scooted slightly away from June, her arms wrapped around her knees, her chin resting on them. Her eyes were red and bloodshot, her eyelashes clumped. She probably didn’t look the best, she thought. But it was fine.
“I Just miss back home a lot... really one person in particular, it’s a long story.” She rubbed her eyes again and kind of just stared blankly into the distance, her eyes shiny with tears.
“I’m sorry.”
sox

 

[sox]

June met her eyes in understanding. He was curious about this person causing her so much anguish, but the middle of a hallway in front of eight security guards didn't seem like the right place to ask her about it. Instead, he opted for giving her hand a small squeeze before shoving his hands back in his hoodie pocket.

"Once we're done with orientation, I'll make you some of my signature microwaved hot cocoa, and you can tell me all about this mystery person, yeah? Long stories never fazed me," June reassured, hoping she would share the burden on heart so she didn't have to bear it alone. In a softer voice, he continued, "Please, don't apologize. You didn't make me follow you. I came out here on my own."

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[tortellini]

Kailo chuckled a little. A small smile crossed her face for a moment, her eyes brightened a bit.
“Sounds fun.” She talked quietly. The guards seemed... strict. She didn’t want them to overhear personal conversations. They still could, of course, but she didn’t exactly enunciate her words.

“Thank you.”

sox

 

[sox]

"Of course." June glanced up at the guards, whose eyes were boring into his skull in order to make their impatience known. It probably wasn't a good start to be missing out on orientation, but he didn't really give a damn about any of that. The boy glared at the guards, narrowing his eyes and mouthing back a pointed "fuck off" with a jerk of his chin to the left. Their faces contorted at his jab, but they still didn't intervene, probably more so out of not wanting to deal with the situation rather than having trust in June's judgment.

Not knowing what else to do, June got comfortable next to Kailo and rested his chin in his hand, tilting his head as he studied her. She had a lovely face, even through the tears streaking her cheeks and the hair blocking her eyes. "Your freckles are, uh, really nice," he commented genuinely, not looking her directly in the eyes. "They're pretty."

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[tortellini]

Kailo blushed lightly. She was used to sad, middle aged men wasting their life on vodka and poker complimenting her, not boys her age.
“Thank you...” she mumbled. She had broken down in front of June, yes, but honestly she didn’t even care anymore. She just wanted to go home.
“Can you tell me more about you traveling?” She tilted her head to the side and closed her eyes, her cheeks resting in her knees now. Normally she straightened her hair, but some tears had gotten in her baby hairs and they had sprung up in curls. “I don’t wanna go back in yet.”

 

[sox]

A relaxed smile blossomed on June's lips as he nodded, stretching his arms in a show of getting comfortable. "What do you wanna hear about? I've got, 'Almost Kidnapped by a Horse on a Beach in Karachi', 'Snuck into a Club in Madrid that was Actually a Sex Hotel,' and 'Made Out with a Girl who Apparently Just Escaped from a Cult House in Rural Copenhagen'. Take your pick, ma'am." He raised an eyebrow as a grin overtook his features, knowing how ridiculous all of those options sounded despite having lived through them all. None of them were awfully unpleasant experiences, but they definitely stuck out in his memories.

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[tortellini]

“A club in Madrid. Sounds fun.” Kai smiled warmly and closed her eyes again. She didn’t mind this. This was nice. She had to go back to orientation soon, but she had plenty of time... plenty of time.

 

[sox]

"Good pick, good pick. Pretty self explanatory, to be honest, but still a good laugh," June commented, lacing his fingers behind his head and laying down on the ground since he didn't have anything to lean back on. "This actually happened when I was staying in Madrid with my parents. We had different hotel rooms, so I snuck out at two in the morning and walked all over the city to find a club that didn't look like it would ID me. There was this one place that looked a little shady, but I didn't see a bouncer and there were a bunch of really pretty people coming in and out of it, so I took my chances." He shrugged, and then continued with a wicked gleam in his eye. "Big mistake. Stepped foot in the lounge area past the lobby and... yeah. Dicks and tits everywhere. I probably turned every shade of red in the book." He closed his eyes and shuddered at the memory, already blushing a bit again as he pictured it.

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[tortellini]

Kailo couldn’t help but laugh now, raising her head up from her knees.
“Don’t even lie, you know you liked it in there.” She teased. Her grin had returned. She had calmed down a lot, which she mostly owed to June.
“God, it sounds like you had so much fun. Wanna hear a crime ring story?” She brushed her baby hairs down with her palm but they sprang back up. She blowed towards her forehead, but it didn’t work. Oh well.
“I’ve got some good ones, with Jaxon and Buster and Lewis and...” there was a very small, almost unnoticeable falter in her words here “... Donte. We did some dumb stuff.”

 

[sox]

"Oh, hell yeah. Loved getting a quickie from someone's grandma," he joked casually. June caught the falter when she said the name 'Donte', but for her sake, didn't point it out. So this is our mystery man of the evening, he deduced. He'd bring it up once they were all situated after orientation, if she was open to it.

"Go for it. Only if it tops my story, though," he teased. "Ain't got time for no weak shit."

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[tortellini]

Kailo snorted. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” But she was laughing uncontrollably now, until one of the guards gave her a laser glare.
“Ok, i gotta think of a good one... Oh! This was actually just the other month.” Kai cleared her throat and sat up straight, criss cross applesauce (yes I still say that fight me) and began.

“Alright, so. Jaxon he has phone out, right? And we saw that we had tinder. So we were messing around, making fun of him and stuff, right? But then Buster gets an idea.
‘Hey, guys, how bout we catfish somebody?’ And like, this is perfect. It’s perfect! It’s like 10 and we’re all wasted out of our minds and so we find some pictures of my friend Kayla -she agreed that we use her photos, she doesn’t care- and edit it real fast so it looks less stock photo-ey and we make a new profile on Donte’s phone. So we swipe right... or is it left? I can’t remember, I haven’t been on that wretched app since... think It was right... and so we swipe right on everybody and get a few matches. And we put our age range as mostly like older men, because we wanted to get some sad old dude. It sounds really mean, but we’re mean, ok? And so this dude... Robert or Roger or something... we match with him and we set up a meeting that. Same. Night. At like 11 or something. And so my dad runs this thing, it looks like a normal bar, we schedule to meet there. And we ask my friend Kayla to lead him to the back and Lewis is tiny so he was hiding in a closet and he pops out like “This is Chris Hansen and this is To Catch A Predator!” And I swear this dude had a heart attack and he was like 40 50 some but he ran out of there, man, he was fast. Which makes me suspicious that he was doing other stuff on that phone of his but that’s not my deal.” And Kailo was laughing now, remembering this story. “It was honestly so funny. Lewis has really long curly hair so he was wearing like a bald cap and a wig we found in the back and he looked great. Maybe it was a ‘you had to be there’ thing but I thought it was hilarious.” Kai was smiling warmly now, and she sprawled out on her stomach next to June all flopped everywhere.

 

[sox]

The way Kailo talked so affectionately about her friends brought a warm smile to June's face, his heart happy to see the girl reliving the fun times she had with her friends. When the story ended, June laughed at the absurdity of it. "That's the dumbest Tinder story I've ever heard," he joked, no actual malice in his voice. "So dumb, in fact, that I respect it. Your friends sound like a blast. Also, I hope that gross old guy twisted his ankle or something on the way out." His nose wrinkled at the thought of a group of kids meeting up with an actual predator.

tortellini

 

[tortellini]

Kailo gasped. “Rude! I think it was a great story. You just don’t have any fun. You go into sex hotels on accident. I mean, that’s just boring. And my friends are a blast. Maybe when we get out of this dump, you can leave your life of traveling and fun behind and go back to Chicago with me and my friends and start a new To Catch A Predator show.” She smiled and rubbed her eyes, yawning. “I’m tired. When do we have to go back in?” She mumbled as she rolled over onto her back.

 

[sox]

June glanced over to where she laid down beside him and raised an eyebrow. "Uh, probably soon. Whenever you're ready." They had only been gone for a little bit, but he knew they'd get an earful later regardless. What difference would a couple more minutes make? "I hope our beds are comfortable. Rather not sleep on a rock if I can avoid it."

Were they laying in the middle of a hallway in prison, chatting about life? Yes, yes they were. Was it weird and not something June would ever do on his own? Yes, it definitely was. Did he care in the slightest? Nope. Not one bit. Life was too short to not get away with whatever he could while he was young. He'd flip the bird to anyone who gave him shit about it.

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[tortellini]

“I like you.” Kai said.
“You’re fun.” She smiled and placed her arms under her head. She enjoyed his company, for sure. It was nice to know that she would have someone who was kinda like her here. She didn’t want to be lonely. Really, if she had someone to talk to, she would be fine no matter what. Kailo cracked her knuckles.
“Hey, wait a minute-“ She said, her brows furrowing as she remembered something.
“I don’t think I know your full name! Just June. Unless June is your full name? Or is that just a nickname?” She tilted her head to the side.
So here she was. Laying in the hallway of a school for troubled children, advertised as if it was for their talents (it wasn’t) talking about child predators and naked grandmas with a boy she barely knew. She didn’t even know his full name.
“And I’ve talked too much about me, too. So where are you from? I know Pakistan, but do you have any siblings? What got you into making fake ID’s?” She had so many more questions. Those could be discussed later, though, over a cup of microwave hot chocolate. Like he said.

(Got too lazy to make a long post oops)

 

[sox]

June whistled, low and drawn out, at the sudden barrage of inquiries. "Whoa, there, captain. Slow down. One question at a time." He turned on his side to face her, folding his arm underneath his head as a cushion. "My full name is Junaid Malik, which actually means 'warrior king', but don't get me started on how goddamn pretentious that shit is. Westerners always butcher it anyways, so I go by June." He ran his hands through his hair, tugging at a few of the strands absentmindedly. "I got into forgery after taking a history course on it in England. It seemed like a useful business idea, so a friend helped me build all the machinery and get all the supplies I'd need and I taught myself how to fabricate everything from French birth certificates, to Egyptian passports, to famous antique documents. I only commercialized regional ID's, though. Anything more valuable than that got traced back to me and my case would be put on a federal level. I'm just trying to graduate while I'm young, you feel?"

The guard that had been keeping an eye on them finally broke his silence, seemingly tired of their little moment. "Alright, that's enough. Return to the auditorium. The consequences of this will be discussed by the faculty once orientation is over. Get up!" He stepped towards them threateningly. "Now."

June shot him another glare, this time more of a scowl, before sitting up with a groan and hopping to his feet. "Looks like the rest of my autobiography will have to wait." He held a hand out to Kai to help her up, suddenly far more tired than he already was. It had only been about 15 minutes, but it definitely felt like much longer.

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[tortellini]

Kailo had been listening intently, her eyes half-closed.
“Awww...” She mumbled when the guard said they had to go. She took June’s hand to help her stand up, even if she didn’t need it.
“Junaid....” Kai rolled the name around her tongue. “Junaid Malik. That’s really pretty. Did I get it right?”
As they entered the auditorium, the guards watched them very closely. Her tone dropped to a whisper and she leaned towards June so they wouldn’t overhear.
“You will tell me more, right?” She asked hopefully, rubbing her eyes. Her eyelashes had unclumped, but her eyes were still red and bloodshot. “Later, after the orientation?” He had some great stories, and they took her mind off of some of her own.
sox

 

[sox]

June nodded, giving her hand another squeeze before letting go. "You got it! And sure, whatever you wanna know," he guaranteed as they made their way back in. He shot the principal another apologetic look before plopping back down in his seat, gangly legs spread out in front of him as he tried not to interrupt anymore.

tortellini

 

[tortellini]

“Mk, thank you.” Kailo mumbled, squeezing June’s hand back. She sat beside him, criss-cross applesauce, and gave the principal a “white people when they see eachother out and about” smile. You know the one. She licked her lips nervously, listening to the principal but thinking. She had mentioned something about computer rooms. Sure, this was an outlet for talent, but surely they had email. If they had no phones, she could totally email Donte. And Jaxon and Buster and Lewis. But mostly Donte.

sox

 

[KokichiLove]

The principal continued. "The rules of this facility are simple. Everyone is to be in their rooms by 10:30 PM, no illegal activity including destruction of property or violence towards other students is allowed. Respect your elders and your peers. There will be a few more rules in the student handbooks you will recieve shortly, but these are the bigger ones. Remember, you are all here as an alternative to jail and/or foster care. Expulsion from this school will lead you down that road. Now, if you will follow some of my staff members, they will give you a tour of the school, starting with your rooms."

 

[tortellini]

Kailo frowned at the mention of foster care. Lewis was in foster care. It was awful. She was honesty glad that she was here, if it was an alternative to foster care. Her father was in prison, so that’s straight where she would go. She nudged June with her elbow.
“We get to see our rooms soon! Which means the whole orientation thing is almost over. Thank god.” But then Kai remembered that they had to be in their rooms by 10:30.

Whatever.

sox

 

[Lizy]

Victoria didn't notice June leave and later come back in with Kailo. She was a bit preoccupied with mentally sorting out her life. Since the school did have computer rooms it was less of a personal hell for her. Although she wouldn't be able to hack, which was her main form of entertainment at home, there was tons of legal stuff she could do with a computer. That made keeping herself sane a whole hell of a lot easier. She assumed there would be normal school classes at this school, which was cool by her, only meant more stuff to keep her busy.

She began to wonder, what would she really need people for? Sure, she'd talked to June a bit and expressed more emotion to him than she'd expressed to anyone, besides her aunt, in which case the emotion was extreme anger, in two years. But, why would she bring herself to become closer to him? He was really nice, someone Victoria could stand being around. But it was all too risky. In what was way less than an hour of talking she told him exactly how she felt and was ready to tell him her life story. That was dumb. She felt so dumb. What made her feel the most dumb was that it felt good to be an open book for once, which wasn't logical at all. If she wanted to get through this place without breaking she'd have to be distant and cold. She couldn't afford to make friends so she'd try and do what she always did. Give cold stare downs to people she could tell were about to talk to her and if they did end up talking to her she'd shut the conversation down, give short responses and act uninterested. It's what got her through the last two years and it's what will get her through the next.

 

[sox]

June smiled in response to Kailo's enthusiasm, leg ticking anxiously as he waited for orientation to be over. The day had been packed and exhausting, and the hit he had taken from his pen that morning had long since worn off. While he didn't really enjoy being labelled a drug addict, that was essentially what he was. He had initially begun smoking as a recreation back in middle school, not thinking it could ever become a problem. Now, several years later, the mind-altering substances were so ingrained in his life that he couldn't remember how it felt to live without them.

Not really paying attention anymore, June clung onto the knowledge that he'd soon be able to retreat to his room with his luggage, where he had snuck his dab pen into his pencil case. It was truly the most convenient form of weed, in his opinion. One solid hit was enough to get anyone with a normal tolerance totally baked, it camouflaged well enough as an actual pen if you didn't look too closely, and it only gave off water vapor rather than smoke. While it was one of his most worthwhile investments, it had definitely fueled his addiction throughout the last few years of high school.

With a sigh, the drained boy rested his chin on his palm and let his eyes drift shut, hoping there wasn't anything else planned between now and their curfew. He could use the time to gather himself and explore his new home.

 

[tortellini]

Kai watched June as he appeared to slowly drift asleep, a small smile on her face. He looked lovely. She looked around, seeing very few students. That wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
At least some people are less idiotic than we are. She laughed internally. She was looking towards hearing some stories from June, but also sleeping. And emailing or calling Donte.
Mostly the part about Donte.
She knew she would basically never get over him. He had made her into the person she was today (did an awful job). He was vital to her personality- the way she lived her life- what she did with her days- basically everything about her. She bit her lip and tapped her fingers against the back of her hand nervously.
sox
(Finna be some short replies, kinda busy making a CS, def gonna be longer sometime tho)