Realistic or Modern (OLD) The Five Steps

[smolfluffball]

Tired of being alone? Want to make some new friends? Looking for romance? Well, look no further! The Five Steps are here to help!

Developed by TIES, The Five Steps help you form that connection you want in your life. What kind of connection are you hoping to make? Romantic? Platonic? Friends? Lovers? Whatever you want, you can have (so long as it's legal)! The Five Steps were created by various professionals and have been proven to help various different people form those connections that they were missing!

All you have to do is sign up, and then set aside time to go through the steps with a group of other people on an island in the beautiful Pacific ocean. It’s really quite a simple process, and there are already many people who have found success with our experiment! Do you think that you could be the next one?


CAST
smolfluffball ♡ Jasper Reinhardt (#4d9cd1), Trenton “Trent” Kearns (#dbb107), and Telltale (Telly) (#00dbdb)
Chione ♡ Elijah “Eli” Visser (#8db600)
Kidzait ♡ Boone Balago (#bb00d8)
AniMANIA7983 ♡ Thomas “Tommy” Erald (#e25041)
cadence ♡ Garrett Lindberg (#99cccc)
Zufaix ♡ Blakely “Blake” Caldwell (currently inactive)
Letai ♡ Mae Belle Yang (#b8312f)
mindheist ♡ Yohan Singkham (#65ccbb)
Sage Orion 0312 ♡ Jupiter Orion (#1abc9c)
MokkaDrip ♡ Akemi "Kemi" Vega


RULES
↠ All RPN rules apply.
↠ Reply length must be at least two paragraphs long, and please be semi-lit/lit and grammatically correct! You don’t have to use coding and I would prefer if there was minimum coding, but if you want to use coding, then make sure it’s mobile friendly!!
↠ There is no post order, but I don't want anyone to be left behind. I don't want characters to be left in the dust, so try to not move the plot too far along without everyone. There will be moments in the roleplay where characters will be talking privately or in a group situation, but I'm going to make sure that every character has something to do even if other characters are doing something else!
↠ You must let people know over the Discord server when you are writing a reply. This is to let others know to wait to reply, so that way no interactions are missed, and to avoid people having to go back to edit their replies because of posting too quickly.

↠ Be respectful to everyone in this group. If you have a problem with another person, notify me so that I can reach out to them and try to figure out the situation and come up with a solution. It is very important to me that people feel included and welcome in this group, so try not to exclude anyone!
↠ One character per person. If, in the future, you want to switch out characters, you can ask me for a way to switch for a different character and I’ll help ya out. This rule might be amended in the future, but for now everyone (but me) is allowed one character.
↠ Romance is more than allowed, and ships can be formed, but don’t push a ship onto somebody. If they don’t want their character to have a romantic relationship with yours, don’t continue to push them about it. If I see any of this forced shipping around OUT OF CHARACTER, I will ask you to stop, because I don’t want anyone to be uncomfortable. In-Character is okay, as long as it's within what the character would normally do.
↠ Ask over the Discord server before you hurt another character - consent is important!
↠ Talk to me if you have any concerns or anything you need to tell me, like you’re going away on vacation or something in your life has happened and you need to take time off. We’ll work together to figure out what to do with your character, and I’ll address any concerns you might have!


Step One: Introductions
Have fun, everyone! :>​

 

[smolfluffball]

[ Trent, Jasper and Telly | The beach | No mentions or interations ]
THE FIRST POST........ VANISHED. WHERE'D IT GO? who knows! :3c

 

[AniMANIA7983]

Earlier this morning:

Tommy’s morning was one like any other. Wake up to a 3 course breakfast made by his fantastic chef Estaban. He enjoyed it thoroughly and then prepared for the boat ride, making sure that everything had been packed as he had for the last few days.
One could tell he was anxious for this whole trip. As he walked out of his home, his butler grabbed his massive suitcase and huffed as he carried it towards the limo that Sir Thomas would be riding in. They took the lengthy route so Tommy could view the city of Los Angeles for one last time before getting on the boat. His mothers were in the car with him so he got to listen to his mom say how much she would miss him one last time as well.

As it turned out, he was still the first one to arrive.

Now (30 minutes have passed): tommy is sitting in the seating area using his suitcase as a bench (its big enough) he is twiddling his thumbs and regretting being there so early. He looks up and sees a face he hadnt seen before, “Hel-lo sexy”

 

[Kidzait]

A cloud of hot dust billowed around the long haired man as yet another tractor trailer roared past the shoulder where a medium sized Winnebago sat. Around the back, a lanky and disheveled man was approaching with a armful of assorted objects. He dumped what he recovered into the back of the camper. Another truck kicked up a new wave of dust, causing Boone squinted to defend his eyes from the grit.

Boone had to pulled over quickly when the back door of his camper was suddenly thrown open by a sudden jolt of a pothole. It was a miracle that the junk heap was even moving. The past two days has been the most it's moved in over a year and she was starting to show her age.

Case in point, the newly discovered broken lock on the back door. The little metal catch flipped uselessly and Boone let out a frustrated puff of air, in inhale allowing his lungs to fill with fresh Montana mountain highway dust. He coughed with gratitude.

His fix was messy and temporary but hey, it's only stupid if it doesn't work, right? He eventually settled on a six foot bungee stretched to his side door handle from the broken back door handle. It was a hazard to the eye if it got lose on the road but it would work till he got to his next destination where he could do some real repairs.

Boone walked through his kitchen area and climbed into the driver's seat. he snagged his new phone off the charging cradle mounted to the dash with a few screws. It had been blowing up for the past few hours with the chat system installed. The other subjects were happily chatting about their hopes and expectations so much that Boone had to step away. he tapped the icon for the chat app and waited for it to launch. he smirked to himself and leaned against the window to catch up from last night. he had been lurking while Tommy and Blake pestered Jasper about his personal life. it rubbed Boone the wrong way and he had snapped at them all over chat.

hey guys, just getting back on the road...

Boone shook his head and backspaced the message. it felt weird being casual now. was he over thinking this?

have any of you been thinking that maybe signing up was a mistake?

Of course, he deleted that too. No use letting them know he was doubting himself and the experiment. Especially since telly was reading everything behind the scenes. It didn't seem like a fun thing to share with a new group.

it was then that he noticed that each person he had been speaking with had their own category within the app's menus. he clicked on each blank chat page, lingering on a few to bring up the keyboard. The reality was that he had nothing to say. Why was it that he wanted to say that nothing to them.

In the end no feelings were shared or deep questions asked, for now he just turned off the ringer again and locked the screen. He caught his reflection in the black screen and frowned. his hair, pulled back in a tight bun, was sticking out in all directions from the wind and his face was clouded by a thick, scraggly bread. he would have to shave before the trip. He sighed and slid the phone back on the mount. he needed to get moving if he was ever going to make it to his destination in time.

driving always made Boone's mind go to strange places. one man (terrible) concerts were sang. deep sessions of thought about abstract concepts like the creation of language or the first guy to figure out what milk was. he won arguments that have been dead for years and hyped himself up for the upcoming experience.

The 5 steps. Sounded more like a program to kick illicit substances than a social experiment. especially since it was just a printout of an add posted on the house fridge. Boone was sure that every single guy at the ranch applied for a position on what most of them assumed was a dating show. Boone was unsure how that mix up was made now that he was looking back.


The sun had long set by the time he pulled into the Apache rose campground in Joshua Tree California. Here is were he was going to meet up with Ray. Boone still had day to kill before he had to report to the boat so he thought reconnecting with a friend was the prefect detour.

Ray had left SW ranch about a year prior when he fell in love with a local biology student doing a research trip near the ranch. They had been roaming the country until they fall into a place they like. This week it was Joshua Tree State Park

Boone gave the bulky man a quick hug as the met on the lawn of Ray's camper.

"Booooone! My man! You look like hell! Whats with the hair, man. Hey Dot, you still got those clippers you used on the dog?"

The man was unstoppable once he started going. Boone rolled his eyes but was actually shocked with the lack of swearing. Guess that meant Dottie was the one. Speaking of, a short curvy woman stepped from inside the camper. She was delicately wiping lipstick from the corners of her lips and trying not to call attention to it.

"Come on in man. I'll grab some beers and some smokes and we can catch up before your little sleep away camp"

~~~~~~~~~

Boone sat back against a dusty tan rock in a thin patch of shade, panting and wiping the sweat from his forehead with a red bandanna. He decided to take the rest of the day to walk up a particular rock that had been calling his name. He only had one more day before they were packing up to head to port. Ray was heading to L.A for a job interview and Dot's parents agreed to keep Boone's house safe in their back yard while he was on the island. At least that was one less thing to worry about.

Boone took a drink from his water bottle and looked out over the park. At first glance, the state park just looked like a flat expanse of desert with a few large rocks. Now that he was atop one of those large rocks, Boone could see the beautiful detail the desert had to offer. Game trails cross crossing under the shade of the stout Joshua trees created a complex pattern stretching as far as he could see. When measured as it's parts, the park seemed like a wasteland but once you can see it as a whole you truly begin to appreciate the beautiful vastness of the Mojave desert.

Boone found himself thinking about the day to come. The day him and nine other people will take part in a social experiment on a private island. A social experiment he didn't know the rules to at that. he found himself taking out the phone and opening the chat app again.

It wasn't the first time he had opened the app today. After he helped Ray finish packing up his camp, Boone had began typing once again.

hey guys. Tomorrows the day right? Anybody else ready to finally put faces to names?[

Boone hesitated, his thump hovering over the send button. Something didn't feel right still. He had been maintaining radio silence for most of his trip to California so popping back in felt strange. Boone deleted that message and tried again. This time in the chat directly to Telly

hey, Roobit. what happens if we aren't really a good fit for your experiment?

Boone deleted the message and closed the app. Lurking was a normal thing to do in a situation like this, right? He was going to see them they next day anyway, why ruin the suspense he is building? Boone lied to himself several more times to make himself feel better.

With no messages sent Boone started down the boulder to make his way back to his camper. The sensation of live butterflies beating themselves to death against the inside of his stomach would not subside. What if his match ends up being someone that turns out to be incompatible? From what he has read in the chat, everyone was falling into step with each other and Boone felt his spell of silence has left him at a disadvantage.

That thought gnawed at him with every step he took across the desert floor. He knew they probably had their own things to deal with and hadn't noticed his absence. Boone stopped under a small patch of shade and pulled the phone back out.

"Hey folks. Excited to meet you tomorrow"

That was all he wrote before hitting send. He locked the phone and put it back in his pocket. He resumed hiking towards camp. Other than a few things he needed to throw into his camper, they were ready to roll out. For now the setting sun was telling him to hurry home and, just maybe, a little excitement added a spring in his step.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning started quickly and in the dark. Boone, Ray and Dot rolled out of the campsite around 4 am and they had been eating road ever since. If the radio display in his camper wasn't broken he would have noticed that it was about 8 am by the time they reached Dottie's parent's house where he met the straight to business father of his friend's wife. They lived in a very well off neighborhood in The Heights and Boone felt like an eyesore as his bucket of rust rattled past endless manicured lawns. Dot's father directed Boone where he could park his camper in their backyard behind the large boat shed. Boone couldn't help but notice that you couldn't see the camper from the back door but decided it wasn't worth mentioning. After he stashed his framepack in the trunk of Dot's car they were on their way to the city.

Boone wasn't very talkative on the road. Dot and Ray chatted in the front seat about their plans after Ray's interview and Boone just sat in the backseat looking out the window. Boone had shaved and made himself presentable the night he got back from his hike. With his face shaved and his hair tamed, he was feeling a little better than he was the past few days. He tuned out his friends and the radio and lost himself in his thoughts.

The first thing Boone noticed was how busy things were. He quickly realized that he hadn't been around this many strangers in a very long time. Living on a ranch means you only interact with a couple dozen people. The parking lot was absolutely bustling with cars and pedestrians filing in and out of the port office. As they parked, Boone quickly realized he had no idea where to go. Guess he would burn that bridge when he got to it.

Boone shouldered his bag from the trunk and shut it with a slam. Ray wrapped him in a tight bear hug and said his goodbyes,
"Best of luck to you, Cody" he said, slapping him on the shoulder, "Your gonna knock em dead out there. Bet they never had someone from up in bumfuck northern nowhere on their fancy tv show."

Boone laughed and returned the hug,
"Alright, Bozemen. Just make sure you stay out of trouble. This is gonna be your first big boy job" He shot back playfully, "You take care and good luck on your interview"

Boone turned and started to walk away when Ray suddenly yelled for him to stop,
"I almost forgot. You have never been on a boat" The man shook his hand and walked back towards the car, "I doubt you have sea legs, Boone"

Boone opened his hand to find a small tube of dramamine left there from the handshake. He raised an eyebrow at the man,
"Take one now, and be extra careful with the last one in the bottle" Ray winked and got back in the car.

Boone shook his head and waved them off as they pulled away. He sighed and turned to the door of the port office. He realized he was at the bridge he needed to burn. He didn't know which dock was his dock. He only had a few moments to worry before his phone buzzed twice. Thinking it was the chat app, he opened the phone. TO his surprise, a little Telly face was blinking on the screen with a text bubble, "We see that you have arrived, please follow the red arrow to the ferry". The face lingered for a few more moments before morphing into a 3D arrow pointing off to his left. His gaze followed and sure enough, there was a boat bobbing gently in the marina. Boone couldn't help but glance skyward, suddenly very aware that they were tracking his location. That was most likely brought up in the fine print on the contract he signed. He shook his head and started towards the ferry, it wasn't really worth thinking about.


Boone made himself comfortable in a quiet corner on of observation deck of the boat. For the time being, his bag was propped up against the aircraft cable safety rails. The ranchhand was leaning against the railing and keeping his eyes on the horizon. He was grateful that Ray gave him the motion sickness medication but he wasn't sure if it had kicked in yet. The second the boat started moving, his stomach dropped. Ray had mentioned something about sea legs. Boone honestly thought that was just a saying. Luckily he was one a empty stomach so he wasn't chumming the water. He still felt like the entire boat and ocean was trying to make him vomit. Boone had never been on anything bigger than a lake and this was an experience that he didn't want to repeat. He refused to think about how he was suppose to get back to the mainland. That was another problem for a different Boone. Unfortunately he was unable to take his eyes off the horizon so mingling with the others wasn't his top priority.

 

[Chione]

ELIJAH

Ah, California. The Golden State. A melting pot of cultures, filled to the brim with starry-eyed go-getters as they blindly stumbled after the American Dream with nothing but the fire in their hearts. It was like a siren’s song, seducing romantics with its glittering nightlife and sweeping coastlines. To sit beneath the swaying palm trees and watch the sky melt into rich shades of violets and indigo blues, chasing after the setting sun, was like savouring your own slice of paradise. It was a place for hopeful daydreamers and night thinkers.

Elijah Visser was both.

He loved dear old Blighty, he truly did, but it had never taken his breath away like California. Then again, maybe it wasn’t a fair comparison considering the only nice beach he’d been to back home was Blackpool - even describing it as ‘nice’ was a bit of a stretch. Unfortunately, Eli was too pressed for time to go off on an exciting tourist adventure and drink in all the sights as his short stay at the hotel was spent recovering from the eight-hour jetlag. Even now, there was still a persistent weariness in his bones, sinfully beckoning him to close his eyes and doze off.

As if he could. The twisting, nervous butterflies in his stomach were doing a swell job at keeping him awake and alert. Eli was generally a shining ray of charismatic confidence but even he wasn’t invulnerable to the nerves that came with meeting a group of strangers and having to live with them for God-knows-how-long in a foreign environment. However, he was determined to make the most of this experience. It was just a social experiment, so he knew that there was nothing to really worry about. Probably.

Initially, he’d applied to The Five Steps due to Coach Ian’s gruff encouragement, but he hadn’t actually expected to pass the screening process and find himself a spot in the sixth batch. It had been Coach’s way of looking out for him. He was far too perceptive for his age, picking up on Eli's spiralling well-being almost instantly. The old man’s parting words to him were orders to seize the opportunity and enjoy himself. To relax. He wasn’t exactly sure how the last one was going to work out considering conversations on the messenger app had already made his heart jump out of his chest. Feeling like he was fourteen years old again was the furthest thing from relaxing. Even so, he’d enjoyed getting to talk to the other participants and he was feeling positive that they’d all get along like a house on fire. Or at least, he really, really hoped so.

Elijah was perched precariously on the gunwale of the boat when it finally pulled away from the harbour, looking like he’d been ripped straight from the front cover of a magazine. The ocean breeze playfully teased his tousled locks, rewarding him with a windswept look, and he could feel his skin baking under the glare from the hellish ball of flames in the sky. He’d been in California for a little over forty-eight hours and already he was beginning to tan with a healthy, golden glow. Eli stretched his arms over his head with a yawn before moving his hands down to pull at the collar of his unbuttoned navy-blue polo shirt. He was partly kicking himself for not going with a plain t-shirt, but he was a firm believer that first impressions were important. Hey, he could find his "perfect match" during this experiment, right? So, he had to dress to impress – just in case.

Eli slipped his sunglasses back over his eyes and pulled his gaze away from the churning waves, glancing at the open deck. He blinked, finally noticing a guy leaning up against the railing but he had no name to match to the face. The guy looked a bit uncomfortable, to be honest. Was he seasick? He thought back to the time he and his father took the ferry across the English Channel for a week away in France a couple of years ago, remembering how his dad babbled away the whole time to distract himself from his own motion sickness. Well then. Eli was good at distracting. He drew closer, dead set on roping the man into a conversation.

“Alright there, mate?” he cocked his head to the side slightly, “Let me guess. First time at sea? You’ll be alright, I think the trip across is only like half an hour or something.” Eli grinned before holding out a hand, wrapped up in a black neoprene wrist support, for a friendly handshake.

“I’m Elijah though, but friends call me Eli.”

boat deck

nervous butterflies

navy polo shirt | shorts | white trainers | sunglasses

Kidzait

coded by natasha.

 

[Letai]

Mae​

Waves pushed lightly against the outer walls of the boat, rocking the ship back and forth peacefully within the water. The sun was beaming down upon Mae as she had boarded the boat. Luckily she had prepared and had already donned a wide brimmed beige bucket hat and pushed nearly all of the artificial golden tendrils up under the hat, hiding all but some of her hair. With her black roots having grown out more than a few inches the top of her head got overly hot without some sort of sun protection.

Quickly sitting down in the nearest seat as to maintain her unstable centre of gravity that was thrown off from the consistent swaying of the boat. It didn’t help that she has chosen today to wear heeled sandals, albeit chunky { her desperate attempt so as to not look like they had let accidentally allowed a child into the experiment } they still off put her balance although she was still clumsy without heels so she could hardly blame it on the footwear.

With her suitcase threatening to roll away from her she grasped it tightly within her grasp before reaching within her circular straw bag and digging out a pair of large rose-tinted thin-framed circular sunglasses and swapped them with her usual glasses. They looked very similar with the only two differences being her glasses had black frames and her sunglasses were slightly pink tinted with rose gold frames. While her sunglasses were non-prescription meaning they gave her no benefit to her horrendous eyesight they were better than squinting because of the sun and seeing nothing.

She had struggled with what to wear today as this was a huge opportunity and she had to make a good impression. Her mother was practically praying everyday for ‘her little girl’ to do well and Mae had not even known she was religious. She wasn’t fashionable and at first thought a dress but soon her insecurities had gotten the better of her and she had decided on a loose fitting multicoloured striped t-shirt tucked into her once high waisted skinny distressed jeans. While they were still distressed they were not skinny on her and they now hung just resting on her hips. They were baggy along her legs and were now ‘mom’ jeans. Well that is what Mae thought they were could, she was unsure.

With her balance now fully restored, she decided to take a walk around. Deciding to leave her bags there she placed her suitcase on the seat so as to not roll away. The ocean was a bright aquamarine and Mae started into it as if it drew her in as she walked around. The distraction of the water and the fact that Mae had no aid in vision due to the sunglasses along with the added instability of her shoes and the boat, meant Mae had just bumped into someone and those factors and her size left her to topple to the ground her sunglasses falling of into the process.

“Oh, I am so sorry. I-I was distracted, a-an-and I wasn’t looking and it-it’s all rocky with the boat an-andd the water and I-I’m clumsy especially with these shoes… Ahh sorry.” Mae babbled peered squinting, hand in front of her eyes as she struggled to get off her bottom after being sprawled on the deck of the boat.

 

[mindheist]

y o h a n​

interactions: tommy ( AniMANIA7983 ), boone ( Kidzait ), elijah ( Chione ), mae ( Letai )​

Today wouldn't be the first experiment Yohan had ever participated in, but it was certainly the most elaborate. He'd traveled before for conventions and competitions before, sure — but a tropical island? For a social experiment? Excitement bubbled through his veins, mirroring the eagerness he'd felt that first day he'd first heard about and registered for the study. Despite Yohan's firm work-hard-play-hard life motto, his entire academic semester just this previous year had been booked with exams and assignments and those seemingly endless laboratory shifts for an engineering research project he'd recently joined, and to say the incoming junior deserved time to recuperate would be nothing short of an understatement. A tropical vacation was exactly what he needed, even if this so-called vacation had a few strings attached. He was an outgoing guy anyway, so why not enjoy the beach and get to know some people while he was at it?

Peering out the passenger window of his sister's SUV, Yohan relaxed back against the leather cushion of his seat, gaze lazily falling on the asphalt road below and cerulean sky above. The whole car ride had mostly been his banter with Aaliyah, as always, light chatter that somehow morphed into typical sibling bickering filling the air as a playlist of today's top hits accompanied their voices, flowing from the car speakers.

"You're gonna send me one of those thirty-five cent postcards?"

"I'll send you a fish."

"You're going to send me a fish . . . in the mail?"

"Yeah. Freshly captured."

It was always like this, their random and playfully annoying exchanges that usually ended up with Yohan narrowly dodging her fury.

"I hate you. I really do. This is why you're still single, talking about mailing people fish. I feel bad for the experiment people having to endure your . . . your everything."

"Um? I'm single 'cause people can't sea the greatness in me. Haha, get it? Sea? Because we were talking abo— Ow! Hey, focus on the road!"

It wasn't like his sister ever had any incredible tolerance for his shenanigans, but fortunately the drop-off lane for the harbor emerged into view before Aaliyah had to stop the car just to toss him into the bay herself. Slowly, the vehicle pulled over into the shoulder and carefully came to a halt. With a quick sweep outside, Yohan swung open the door and hopped out just to poke his head back in, one arm propped onto the car roof to support his weight.

"Don't miss me too much," he chimed. When his sister glanced back with a playfully disgusted snort, the younger feigned a look of hurt. "Wow. Harsh."

"At least try not to be annoying while you're there? And send me a souvenir that's not gross?"

"Honestly, your lack of faith in me is disappointment. I was kidding, okay? Not even the fish of the sea can compare to the amount of salt within you."

Truth be told, there was something gratifying about seeing an Ivy League graduate flick him off from the driver's seat. Yohan gestured back a cheery thumbs-up before shutting the car door and setting off to locate the meeting destination.




The meeting location, as he would've guessed, was among one of the boats bobbing along the docks. A group of unfamiliar faces was already settled in upon his arrival, and Yohan greeted everyone with a cheery smile and friendly 'hey' as he happily boarded the vessel with his luggage, silver-dyed locks rustling gently with the light costal wind. Among the group, one person was already expressing visible signs of discomfort from what Yohan presumed to be either the sway of the boat or the heavy scent of salt from the ocean breeze. Seeing that someone was already extending a hand of assistance though, Yohan instead headed over to the lesser crowded side of the boat, passing by another guy who, glancing up, completely caught the former off guard with an unexpected, "Hello, sexy."

Yet, the rather interesting first-time greeting came off as more amusing to Yohan than anything, and with a small laugh he passed by the other and plopped down onto a seat about a feet or two away from the somewhat blunt stranger.

"Well, hello to you too," replied Yohan casually, unfazed with a smile. Then, addressing the broader bunch on the boat as another individual — a petite girl, this time — boarded the vessel, Yohan added, "Didn't realize some of you guys came so early. Nice day outside though, so guess I can't blame you."

 

[Kidzait]

Boone swayed uneasily and out of sync with the pitching motion of the ferry. The stupid ocean wouldn't slow down for a second to let him catch his breath or footing or stomach. It was pretty rude considering this was the first time they had met. The ranch hand leaned heavily against the railing of the boat deck, refusing to move until he was sure solid ground would be in the immediate future. He was only half aware of the man that approached.

The brown haired boy cocked his head and studied his face with concern. Boone was sure he was some shade of green that gave away his physical ailments,

“Alright there, mate?” he asked,
“Let me guess. First time at sea? You’ll be alright, I think the trip across is only like half an hour or something.”

The man's words were reassuring, even if it was in the slightest,
"Thanks, friend" he said, not taking his eyes off the horizon, "an half an hour? might as well be tomorrow" he grumbled.
out of the corner of his eyes, he caught the movement of an outstretched hand. After a near strikeout, Boone's rough hand closed around Eli's and shook once. Boone noticed he was wearing something. A brace of some kind? Boone wasn't going to risk a glance to check.


“I’m Elijah though, but friends call me Eli.” he said. Boone glanced at the man, an action he regretted an instant later when a new wave of nausea hit him. Finally, FINALLY he had his first face to a name. Eli's icon on the chat system flashed across his memory. The blue name finally had a voice to match with the conversations in his mind.

"Nice to finally meet you Elijah" he said, dropping the man's hand and turning his full focus back on that line of sea and sky, "I'm Boone" he replied, “I’ve seen you in the chat. Good to finally get a face to the name.” Suddenly, he felt very aware of the silence between them. The awkwardness intensified with the lack of eye contact,

"uhhh, have you ran into anyone else?" he asked, trying to make small talk. Boone assumed that all the people on the small boat were subjects, he just hadn't had a chance to make his rounds. He desperately wished his medicine would kick in and ease his discomfort.

 

[AniMANIA7983]

Tommy’s smiles at yohan, “yeah, my moms wanted to see me off, but they had somewhere they needed to go. They’re making plans for their anniversary which is soon.” He stretches and cracks his neck, “I’m glad I took the medicine for seasickness before I got on the boat, that guy over there isn’t looking too good“ he points over to Boone.

he spots someone with one leg, “hey, that must be Garret”, he waves, “hey gare bear!”

 

[Sage Orion 0312]

Skateboarding Music~
Location: Hotel Room ➤ Boat
Mentions: Kidzait AniMANIA7983 mindheist​

"Onward!" Kimiko cried, fist raised in the air.
"Failure is NOT an option!"
She and Jupiter were in the middle of a battle royal. Choosing a pair of dragons as their steeds, the two grinned at each other all while floating a few hundred feet in the air. It was their duty to prevent the dreaded Gummy Bear regiment from attacking the town of Chester Cheetah.

"General Miko! What are your orders?" Jupiter laughed, excited by the turn of events.

Kimiko smiled, a dazzling array of sparkling white teeth. She opened her mouth, her expression nothing but heroic.
"W- WAKE UP!"

Jupiter winced, shock crawling its way across her face. Never had she expected her friend to shout at her... let alone in a voice other than her own.

"Wake. Up. Stupid. Sleeping. Sister."

Slowly the dream around her began to melt. The candy cane mountains in the distance turning into a sad puddle of syrup. The dragon carrying her suddenly vanished and before she knew it, Jupiter was falling. Descending into darkness.

"Come on! I'm hungry!" A disembodied voice whined. The source of the sound nudging Jupiter's side.

Gasping, Jupiter shot up from her sleeping position. Her eyes wide as she assessed her surroundings.
It was just a dream. She thought numbly.
I'm still at the hotel.

"Jesus Bruce Lee Christ. It's about time you woke up."

Groaning, Jupiter turned to see her little sister Nova standing by her bed. The 16-year-old had her hands on her hips. An annoyed expression plastered on her face. The entire family had driven to California in order to see Jupiter off. That, and they wanted to explore what California had to offer. Making this trip like a mini family vacation. They rented two hotel rooms for the occasion, one of which the two sisters were currently sharing. A yowl sounded at the foot of the bed. Glancing over Jupiter noticed Chimera, her black cat, glaring angrily at Nova. If there was one thing he hated, it was being woken up from his nap. His owner was the same way.

"What's your problem Nova?" Jupiter grumbled, wiping the crusties from her eyes. A sure sign that the Sandman had visited during the night.

"I'm. Fucking. Hungry." She reiterated slowly as if her elder sister had the mentality of a child.
"And I can't go swimming until you leave. So get outta bed."

Before Jupiter could respond, Nova turned her heal and headed towards their parent's room.

She rolled her eyes and glanced over at Chimera as she kicked off her blankets. The black panther yawned and entered into a big stretch before leaping off the mattress. He took his time sniffing around the room but eventually made his way to his owner's side. As she walked toward the closet he began to weave around her legs. A daily morning routine between them. Before browsing through her selection of clothing she made sure to ask Google what the weather would be like. Grimacing she noted the high temperatures forecasted for the day.

Shit. I can't wait for fall to get here.

After getting ready she glanced at the mirror to assess her reflection. The outfit was simple. Well-worn Converse high-tops paired with white jean shorts and an old Queen t-shirt she transformed into a crop-top. Under which she made sure to wear her black bikini. The experiment was on an island after all. Having never liked makeup, the only accents to her face were her piercings. Her black-brown hair was swept up into a messy bun, a few wavey tendrils framing her face. As usual, her arms were covered with multiple bracelets she had collected over the years. Her eyes landed on one in particular. The one Kimiko gave her where the beads were made of Tiger's eye.

Welp. This is as good as its gonna get. She thought taking one last look in the mirror.

Impulsively she gathered the clothing that hung in the closet and without folding anything, proceeded to shove the pile into the gym bag at her feet. Making sure to include necessities such as toiletries, a Bluetooth speaker, her phone charger, etc. With great effort, she managed to zip up the bag and sling it over her shoulder.

"Little panther." She crooned.
Chimeras' response was to leap back onto her bed with a playful chitter. He rolled onto his back, exposing his belly. A true sign of trust from a cat. Leaning forward, she scratched his tummy causing the feline to purr loudly.
"I'm going away for now. Please don't forget about me while I'm gone." He stared at her with his large yellow eyes.
"Be a good noodle while I'm gone. I'll call you when I can." She smiled slightly before booping his nose and kissing his forehead.

Without looking back, she exited the hotel room.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"There she is!" Atlas Orion grinned as Jupiter entered the room.

He sat at the small table near the kitchen along with the rest of her family. Three bowls of fruit salad sat in front of them. The fourth bowl near an empty seat at the end of the table. Nova already had a slice of watermelon in her mouth. Manners be damned, the younger sister always got irrationally angry when she was hungry.

"How'd you sleep, honey?" Luna asked, sympathy showing in her gaze. Her mother had always had this innate ability to correctly guess what someone was feeling.

"Fine." Jupiter replied leaving no room for discussion. She walked over and sat in the empty seat, immediately digging into her meal.

Her father cleared his throat, the same smile plastered on his face.
"I think I'm going to try to learn surfing today."

Jupiter didn't respond. Instead, she stared at him pointedly, refusing to make small talk. To be honest, she was still angry at her parents for goading her into this whole thing.

"You're going to have a great time sweetheart." Atlas sighed setting his fork down.
"Trust me. You NEED to have this experience. Locking yourself away from the world for so long... it isn't healthy."

"I'm going aren't I?" She said sounding resigned.
"I just wish you had mentioned the 'no pets, no phone' policy before I agreed to sign up."

An impish half-smile formed on his lips as he took a sip of his orange juice.
"But if I brought that to your attention you never would have agreed to go."

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

After a lengthy farewell, Jupiter had finally convinced her parents to allow her to travel to the docks alone. The distance wasn't that far away and her family tended to avoid driving the car when they could. On her skateboard, she expertly maneuvered around pedestrians milling about the California area. Her swiveling movement mimicking the melody pouring out of her scarlet headphones. Slung over her shoulder was the bag filled with few possessions and in her right hand, her cell phone. Even though the experiment stated that any and all devices brought to the island would not receive signal, Jupiter brought her cell phone anyway for a few reasons. She needed GPS in order to get to her destination, her photo album would remind her of what her family looked like, and she NEVER went anywhere without her music. Thinking ahead, she remembered to download her entire playlist just in case.

Thirty minutes had passed when her "island phone" notified her of a text message from Telly.

"We see that you have arrived, please follow the red arrow to the ferry".
The animated avatar of the robot lingered for a few more moments before morphing into a 3D arrow pointing straight ahead.

"Thats... not creepy or anything." Jupiter murmured pulling off her headphones.

She looked toward the direction the arrow was pointing to see a decent-sized boat bobbing in the water. A few people were already aboard. One of which seemed to be hanging over the edge, his face pale.

"Poor guy." She said to herself as she tucked her skateboard under her arm. Hesitantly she walked towards the ship.
"He's probably just as freaked out by people as I am."

She stepped off the platform and onto the amphibious vehicle, immediately feeling the give from the water below. Once doing so, the reality of her situation became all too real. Her chest constricted as anxiety began to set in. Keeping her eyes on the floor and her head down she carried her few belongings towards the back corner of the ship. Unfortunately, the boat was not that spacious, probably on purpose. A way for the men behind the curtain to promote human interaction. Setting her bag and skateboard down, she chose a seat next to two guys who appeared deep in conversation.

Good. Maybe they won't talk to me.

She was about to put her headphones back on when she remembered something.

As they said their goodbyes, Luna swept her daughter into a tight, lingering embrace.
"Sweetheart... please try. For me? I'm just... I'm so worried about you." Her mother whispered, voice breaking.

Fuck.

"Hey guys. I'm Jupiter." Her voice cracked, making sure to get the sentence out before she lost her nerve.
However, her gaze remained glued to the horizon as she spoke. It was hard enough talking to strangers, let alone making eye contact with them. Having had little experience in social interaction, her mannerisms made the situation all the more awkward. The boys paused for a moment, probably stunned by the sudden introduction. The short moment of silence hung in the air for only a second, but to Jupiter it felt like an hour. Her heart racing, she blurted out the only thing she could think of.
"Do you like fruit?"

Do. You. Like. FRUIT?!

 

[cadence]

GARRETT LINDBERG

"And you're 100% positive you've packed everything? I don't want to hear that you forgot your underwear or something when I reminded you over and over to double check."

"Ma!" Garrett couldn't help but blush at her words despite it being just him in his hotel room. "I didn't forget anything. I've done this, like, a hundred times." He assured, lifting his arm so his mother could see his face better. He'd been a nomadic traveler since he was eighteen, after all. It was difficult to forget something as obvious as underwear - much less anything else - when packing up all of your belongings into a single suitcase was already an ingrained habit. Nonetheless, Garrett was hardly able to resist the stare she gave him - stern and persistent but undoubtedly worried. She was always a worry-wart, his mom. She'd been particularly worried for him since the accident; even more-so after he moved out. Garrett couldn't exactly blame her. So, to ease her mind, he let out an exasperated sigh, carefully propping his phone up on the microwave so the camera still focused on him.

He flopped onto the bare sheets of the queen-sized bed with a quiet grunt, immediately unzipping his bag to expose the contents towards the camera. "See?" he asked, facing his phone with a cocked brow. "I got some clothes, medicine, my bathroom bag... I'll be all good. I think they have stores and stuff on the island, anyway. If I need anything, I'll just buy it." He zipped the suitcase back up, making sure the box of souvenirs he planned on sharing with the others was most secure on top.

When he looked up at his phone with a smile, he had expected to find his mother with a look of relief. But, if possible, she only looked more worried. His warm smile quickly melted into a pout of concern, brows furrowed. She was hardly this concerned for him during all of his other travels. Of course, all the other times, he was able to call her everyday. All the other times, there was less at stake. The Five Steps promised to find his Perfect Match. His Soulmate. It was a bold promise. Even he was starting to feel nervous, though he wouldn't admit it. Exhaling through his nose, he moved his suitcase to the floor, scooting towards the end of the bed so he was closer to the camera once again. "It's gonna be fine, Ma. I think the terms said something about us being able to call family after every event or something. I'll call you whenever I get the chance. And I'll write letters if I get the chance. Either way, though, I promise I'm gonna be fine. This is... Good, even. It's gonna be good." He was rambling now, convincing himself he was making the right choice just as much as he was convincing his mom. She seemed satisfied enough with the answer, and Garrett sigh in relief.

"D'ya really think you'll find your soulmate or whatever?"

"I don't know," he admitted, shrugging. He pushed himself off of the bed the next moment, disappearing out of the camera's view as he grabbed some dremamine and water he had set aside. A quick glance at the watch around his wrist told him it was time for him to get going soon, but Garrett really didn't want to leave so soon. "I'm just gonna see what happens," he said with a slight lisp, the pill balancing on his tongue before being washed down by the water. He glanced at his phone when he heard the chime of a text, pouting when he realized it was his Uber. He really needed to get going. He groaned, moving so he was back in front of the camera. "I really need to get going, Ma," he pouted, the disappointment clear in his tone. "My Uber's here. Can't make them wait on me too long. Besides, the ferry's leaving soon anyway. I don't wanna miss it, they'd probably make me swim all the way to the island!"

His mom snorted at his lame attempt at a joke, something of a forced smile making her way onto her lips. He was sure she was just as disappointed about him having to end the call as she was, but it was the only option at that point. If he didn't make it to the ferry in time, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to go to the island at all. "Bye, Mama, I love you soooo much! Tell Dad and Gabbie I love them, too!" he gushed, purposely drawing out the words while he blew her kiss after kiss after kiss."I'll call you as soon as I can!" He promised, grabbing his phone to end the call as soon as she returned the words. "Love you."

The moment the call had ended, Garrett exhaled a breath he didn't realize he had been holding. For the first time since he had signed up for the experiment, Garrett was finally starting to feel nervous. His hands felt clammy. His heart hammered in his chest faster than usual. Butterflies danced around in his stomach. Meeting your perfect match... That was a pretty big deal. The realization that he could potentially meet The One was just starting to dawn on him. And honestly? He couldn't tell if he was more excited or terrified. He inhaled a breath of confidence before once again standing up, pilling all of his belongings onto the wheelchair he brought along in case of emergencies so he could bring everything to the Uber in one trip.

Garrett was pleased when the driver got out to help him. With the two of them working together, they were on the road in under five minutes. A particularly chatty person, Garrett usually spent most of his rides talking, but he was silent for this one. He stared outside the window the entire ride and lost himself of the bright golden light that covered California like a blanket and the more and more palm trees that appeared the closer they got to the docks. Time seemed to move faster in the car. In what seemed like only a minute, the GPS was announcing that they had arrived and the driver was nudging his arm, pulling him from his distracted daze. He blinked once, surprised they had arrived so quickly, before he stepped out, immediately pulling out his phone to give the man a five star rating and pay for the ride.

"Enjoy your trip!" His driver - Jorge - had stuck his head out of the open window, giving him two thumbs-up. Garrett smiled at the words, pulling the last of his belongings out of the trunk.

"Thanks, man! You too." He shot him a thumbs-up as well before his face fell, realization striking him. You too? You too? Jorge wasn't going on a trip. "Wait! That's not what I meant. Have a nice... Safe? Ride..." But Jorge had already rolled up the window and started to drive away. Garrett just stood there, cheeks flushed. He'd told the group... his mom... That he wasn't nervous, but here he was, blabbering on like an idiot. He groaned, removing the Smoky Mountain hat he had bought the week before to run a hand through his hair before moving on. A golden egg of opportunity falls into your lap this month. That's what his daily affirmation (which was really just one of many fortune cookie sayings he held onto) had read that morning. This was his golden egg, he was sure of it. He'd repeat it over and over again until he believed it, at least. "A golden egg..." He said, inhaling sharply. "A golden egg." Exhale.

Well, it couldn't actually be his golden egg if he was just going to stand there talking to himself like some kind of lunatic. All he had to do was figure out how on Earth he was going to manage carrying all of his things by himself. The trip from his hotel room to the car was one thing but this? All the way to the ferry, especially on those boardwalks that were far too narrow for his own peace of mind? He scratched his head, trying to figure out his course of action. Everything stacked on top of his wheelchair? Suitcase on wheelchair, crutches tucked under his arms?

Lugging around a big, obvious wheelchair was embarrassing enough. It made him something to gawk at; a sore thumb in the sea of the physically-able. Lugging around a wheelchair and crutches and a big suitcase (and utterly failing to do so) was understandably far more embarrassing. He groaned as one crutch slipped from beneath his arm and then the other, letting go of the wheelchair to keep them from falling only for it to start rolling away as well. Damn California and all those hills. "Crap, crap, crap."

The teal-clad woman who came to help him was truly a godsend. He didn't know how he'd manage until she came along, carrying half of it for him. He wondered if she knew he'd need help before he even arrived, judging by the "TIES" written across her shirt. They already knew far more about him than most other people did, he supposed the fact that he'd be coming with more stuff than the others was nothing in comparison to everything else they already knew. Nevertheless, he was grateful, which he was sure she knew due to the exasperated "thank you" that left his mouth.

The short walk after that went much smoother and Garrett found himself being distracted, once again, by the beauty of California. A smile graced his face as he looked at the sun that shone on the beautiful Pacific Ocean; the seagulls that perched on the stern of the ship; and then eventually, when he was boarding at last, the faces of all of the people he'd be spending the next couple months of his life with. He moved his suitcase to one hand so he could wave, eager to finally put a face to the names. In the process, however, he hardly noticed someone toppling his way, bumping into him before falling to the ground.

"Oh, gosh, I'm so sorry. " he apologized, leaning his crutches against the side of the boat so he could help her up. "No need to apologize, it's all good. You should've seen me in the parking lot just now. A total mess, that's for sure." He handed her her glasses before reaching out for a handshake. He was more of a hug type of fellow, but a handshake would do for now. "I'm Garrett. But you can call me whatever you'd like, honestly..."

"Like Gare-bear, apparently," he said through a laugh, returning a wave to the man who had just called out to him. There was only one person Garrett could think of who'd be bold enough to call him Gare-bear right off the bat. "I'm assuming you're Tommy? Nice to meet you, brother." He reached out for a handshake with him as well, grinning from ear to ear. Tommy was quite the character. He'd been looking forward to meeting him. He turned to the young man beside him next. Again, another arm reached out for a handshake. "And I'm assuming you're... Yohan? Nice to finally put a face to the name. I'm Garrett, or Gare-bear, as Tommy so affectionately put it."

He might've kept talking had another young woman walked in, introducing herself as the one and only Jupiter. Garrett couldn't help but smile sympathetically at how nervous she seemed, voice cracking over a simple introduction. He'd been nervous as well but he, thankfully, had been able to hide it. He didn't mind the unusual question that stemmed afterward, the smile on his face only growing more. "Nice to finally meet you, Jupiter. I'm Garrett. And I, for one, happen to love fruit."

mentions: mae, tommy, yohan, jupiter
interactions: Letai AniMANIA7983 mindheist Sage Orion 0312 ​

 

[MokkaDrip]

Akemi Vega
Location: Lyft --> Boat | Mentions: None specifically just yet since the scene will be moving forward
Wearing: Panda Onesie over red swimsuit + Red Supra Skytops| Listening To: BLACKPINK - 'How You Like That'​

While there were plenty of out-of-towners who flew into town and were instantly enamored, Akemi could honestly say she hated California.

It might have seemed unfair but there really was no other way to say it. Oh sure, there was plenty of beauty, bright lights, flashy things, and blah blah blah... but when it came down to it, setting foot in this damned state only reminded her of the past. A past that she really didn't want crowding up her head and distracting her from the exciting new adventure that she'd agreed to embark on starting today. True, her Grandmother would likely call her up specifically to glare disapprovingly at her through the phone when she found out that Akemi had flown in and hadn't had the decency to show her face but, if you asked her, that was actually preferable to taking the chance to go and visit only to be glared at in person. Or held hostage.

It hadn't been any kind of surprise to her parents that Akemi had been very deliberate about booking a last minute flight from Miami out here, leaving her to arrive only a few hours before she was scheduled to board the boat that would take her to this little fantasy island experiment. The mother might have wished her daughter got along better with her mother but the woman was strict with old school views that didn't truly fit into the modern American culture. Or any modern culture really. Plus, she'd never really approved of Akemi's father and somehow that had only made things worse for Akemi. Her mother might have been able to deal with the woman on a weekly basis but she barely survived their twice yearly phone calls. She most certainly had no desire to purposely subject herself to the woman on yet another occasion. Ugh.

Narrowly avoided unpleasantness aside, after Akemi had collected her luggage and rather flippantly ignored everyone staring at her, she'd gotten herself a Lyft from the airport and gone to a Denny's near the harbor to enjoy a delicious order of pancakes and some soul soothing hot chocolate on her own hard earned dime.

"You promise you'll pick him up? You won't just leave him?"
"Yes, I promise."
"You better, Fathead. You leave my Beastie and I'll come back and beat you up right in front of your fiance. Then they'll know what a big wimp you really are!"
"Umm... excuse me?! This is harassment! I'm being bullied."
"Ya damn skippy! I will be your worst fucking nightmare if you don't get my car out of that godforsaken lot. Especially since you couldn't even come see me off."
"Damn, girl. I said I was sorry. I promise I will go pick up your baby, okay? I will even wash him and wax him and make sure he is super sexy for you return, aiight?"
"Mmmm.. okay. Miss you already, papi. Be good while I'm gone."
"Love you, gorgeous."
"You better!"

After smiling to herself and possibly looking like a crazy person over the remembered conversation with her one and only close anything outside of her parents and the overly exaggerated air kisses they'd traded--the TSA agent had given her a very weird look--the sprinter had then traded pointless conversation with the waitress assigned to her table and passed the remaining hour sending cat videos to her papa and listening to another bit of the A Game of Thrones audiobook she had downloaded on her phone. She'd listened on the plane too but had fallen asleep so she'd rewound and tried again. All too quickly, however, another Lyft had pulled up for her and after tipping her waitress a little more than usual she'd dragged her stuff out to find a driver fairly close to her age in a Civic.

Who'd have guessed the pair would roll up to the load/unload area at the harbor bumping music loudly? Probably a few people that at least knew of Akemi actually. Those same people would have also known not to question her choice of travel attire because girlie had absolutely no shame. Being relatively tall, in a panda onesie and red sneakers, with oversized stereo headphones around your neck and a sucker in your mouth tended to draw attention. However, Akemi was not the least bit concerned about people she'd likely never see again. They could kick rocks. Though the small, brief flutter of butterflies in her gut suggested she might have been at least a little concerned about the opinions of those she was supposed to meet but that was different. She was going to be around those folks for a significant amount of time going through what still sounded to her like one of those crazy reality shows. Not that that would subdue her any as she mimed the words to the song still blaring out into the morning air.

"Now. Look at you ,now look at me? Look at you, now look at me? Look at you, now look at me? How you like that?! Eyyyy!"

She laughed along with her driver and offered the girl a fist bump once she had her suitcase and backpack out of the car. She was still rocking to the fading music as she tapped in her payment and tip on the app but within a few moments the music was gone and she was left to make her way onto the boat that would take her to her... perfect match? soulmate? future baby-mama/daddy?! Akemi wasn't sure exactly. She'd gone through the application process, with some prodding, but in the end the only thing she was sure of was that the island would be a drastic change of tempo for her. She'd lived her life always moving, always working toward one thing or another, buzzing around like the happy little bee life had tried to make of her but if she was being honest she was tired. So fucking tired.

Heh, she was only 21 and tired. How did that work?!

"Guess is time to relax for real now, eh?" Her lips curved as her phone--not her personal phone but the other one--pinged and pointed the way.

Minutes later her arrival onboard was announced with a colorful. "Akemi has arrived. The party can start now y'all!"

 

[Chione]

ELIJAH

"I'm Boone."

A single beat was all it took for realisation to dawn on Elijah. He pushed his sunglasses up, perching them on top of his head, and a delighted smile blossomed on his face like a flower unfurling its petals. He clicked his fingers, the dots connecting.

“Ah! The quiet, mysterious cowboy! Le bouvier. I was really curious about what you looked like but...” his brows furrowed as he looked Boone up and down, expression unusually studious, and he stroked his non-existent beard, “something’s missing. Where’s like... the hat? And the spurs? I mean, now that I think about it, you don’t even sound Southern.” Eli sucked in a shocked gasp with brilliant theatrical flair, eyes widening in exaggerated horror. His voice dropped an octave, melting into a hushed stage-whisper.

“Don’t tell me... you’re not actually a cowboy.”

Eli commendably managed to maintain the faux serious air for a solid three seconds before dissolving into bubbling, cheery laughter. He clapped a playful hand on the older man’s back, his easy-going grin as blinding as the sun itself.

“Sorry, I’m taking the piss mate. I don’t really doubt your cowboy-ness, your firm grip says it all.” He sincerely hoped that his amazing (debatable) performance was enough of a distraction, he genuinely felt bad for the guy – plus, he was standing within range of any potential projectile vomit, so really, it was in his own best interest too to help Boone out.

“Have you eaten?” Elijah reached into his pocket and pulled out a couple of hard-boiled wrapped sweets, dropping them into Boone’s hand, almost forlornly. “Here, these are mint humbugs. They were in some novelty section at the airport... five dollars fifty. Absolute daylight robbery. I can get ‘em back home for 75p.” He looked very pained by this fact but settled by casually shrugging his shoulders. “Those should be alright on your stomach though. I’m not great in cars unless I’m driving or sat upfront so my Nanna would tell me that I needed something to suck on and give me one of those.”

Elijah unwrapped one and popped it in his mouth.

“To answer your question, nah I haven’t yet. You’re the first person I-”

A heavy thump and an explosion of apologies snatched his attention, his head turning to face the source of the sound. Typical. He’d looked away for five minutes and he completely missed seeing someone fall over. If this was British Lad Culture the thunderous war cry chant of “she fell over” would be heard for miles. Alas, it was not. Everything was fine though as the tall ginger in shining armour helped the girl off the floor and made his introduction rounds which Eli listened in on before snagging onto the tail end of the conversation.

“Hey guys!” he called out, giving a friendly wave. “If you couldn’t have guessed already, I’m Eli and this is our beloved cowboy.” The young athlete patted Boone on the shoulder as he nodded sagely. “Fruit is nice. Fruit is good... except maybe avocado, get that shit outta here. I think my favourite are strawberries though.” Eli’s lips quirked up slightly, as though there was a private joke in there somewhere, and his green-eyed gaze curiously jumped from person to person, matching the names he’d come to know to these new faces. Garrett. Mae. Tommy. Brohan. Jupiter. Shouldn’t there be...?

"Akemi has arrived. The party can start now y'all!"

Eli couldn’t help but gape a little as a young woman bounced in, completely drawn to the fact she looked very cosy in her panda onesie.

“I am so fucking jealous.”

boat deck

at ease

navy polo shirt | shorts | white trainers | sunglasses

Kidzait cadence Letai AniMANIA7983 mindheist Sage Orion 0312 MokkaDrip

coded by natasha.

 

[Kidzait]

Boone

Location: boat deck, gripping the rail, port side

Mood: nauseous and nervous

Interaction: Elijah ( Chione )

Boone practically heard the light bulb snap on in the man's head the second he said his name. He hoped that he wouldn't be weird about it.

He was wrong.

Boone's ears flushed red when Eli started bringing up the cowboy persona Jasper had given him in the chat system.

"Ah! The quiet, mysterious cowboy! Le bouvier. I was really curious about what you looked like but...” the man said with dramatic thoughtfulness.
Boone could feel the look he was giving him, he had been dreading getting this part over with.

"something’s missing. Where’s like... the hat? And the spurs? I mean, now that I think about it, you don’t even sound Southern.” he said after giving Boone a once over.

Boone was dressed simply. He had a pair of faded blue jeans on and a purple logo-less tee. His shoes were plain trail runners and his green jacket was currently hanging off the top of his frame pack. It was a mistake to wear it onto the boat. In no way, shape, or form, did Boone look like a cowboy. Boone didn't even own spurs...or where to buy them.

“Don’t tell me... you’re not actually a cowboy.” he said with mock surprise. Eli couldn't hold it together long. It was only a few seconds of silence before he dissolved into giggles.

Boone smirked and shot Eli a half-hearted finger gun, Bingo Dingo" he said without much enthusiasm, "just a guy that worked on a ranch". Boone should have known that the titles and first impressions made on the chat system in the week before would be on the forefront of everyone's mind. He was guilty himself. Boone found himself making assumptions about the other passengers based on his bias formed in the chat. He needed to remember that everyone is different behind a screen.

The thing that had him taken aback with Eli wasn't the outgoing personality or the instant familiarity he exuded, it was the accent. Boone wracked his mind trying to remember if Eli mentioned he was from across the pond. After he apologized in a weird way and reassured Boone that he was being playful, Boone was beginning to relax. He wasn't sure if it was the medication or the distraction of his new friend or both but he was beginning to feel a little better.

Or he would think that if the damn boat would stop moving.

He was still locked on the horizon, anything different threatened to ruin everyone's day. He was grateful when the man started to speak again,

“Have you eaten?” Eli asked.
Boone shook his head sheepishly. In his arrogance, he thought he knew better than to eat before doing something that could bring motion sickness. Days of hitting the Tilt-a-Whirl one too many times in his youth came to mind. Slushies were a bad choice. Without waiting for an answer, Eli fished something from his pants pocket and popped it into his hand,
“Here, these are mint humbugs. They were in some novelty section at the airport... five dollars fifty. Absolute daylight robbery. I can get ‘em back home for 75p" He said with confidence in his nonsense that made Boone jealous. He inspected the candy quickly. It was black and white striped and twisted up in a clear piece of cellophane. He glanced at the man as he popped his own piece of candy in his mouth.
"I....I know what some of those words mean separately..." he said, unwrapping the candy and putting it in his mouth. He was sure it was the placebo effect but Boone swore that it made him feel one hundred percent better the second he tasted the minty sweetness.

Eli tried to answer Boone's question but was interrupted by a sudden clamor by the shaded seats towards the back of the boat. One of the subjects had fallen onto the deck, someone else not used to the sudden movements of the boat, no doubt. Luckily someone was close by to help her back up.
Eli called to get the rest of the groups attention and introduced Boone and himself loudly to the rest. He wasn't going to acknowledge the other cowboy remark in his introduction. They would learn that he wasn't nearly as cool as they thought he was. Boone was right thought. After hearing some of the other subjects talking and joking he realized that his silence over chat was a disadvantage. People seem to already know who they like and That Robot told them that the first step was introductions. Boone gave a wave with low battery but didn't turn fully around. He was scared he would make a fool of himself, the seasickness was just a nice cover for his shyness.

He was grateful that Eli changed the subject to include the woman obviously having issues in her own head about the silence being shared between some of the subjects. Boone took a wild guess that was Jupiter. He thought about the messages over private chat they had the days before they got on the boat. She seemed unsure of herself. The moment she would start to talk about herself, she would leave him on read for hours. He assumed she was in the same boat (ha) as him.

He was brought out of his thought by a sudden interjection by another loud voice that announced that some party could start because Akemi had, in fact, arrived.
Boone assumed this was Akemi's way of introducing herself. All and all, this group didn't seem too bad. Then again, no one can keep a mask up forever.

As the conversations behind him continued and morphed into one that included them all, Boone remained gazing over the water. The nausea had returned but without the vengeance it had earlier so he was keeping an ear on what was being talked about. Trent had been pushing Boone to be more active in their interactions but like always Boone didn't feel like he could really add anything. He always had been more of a listener than a talker.

For example: right now Jupiter was asking everyone if they liked fruit and everyone was answering with all the seriousness of surgery. Boone didn't feel like anything he could add would be new or interesting information. Maybe living off grid in a small group did more damage to his social skills than he expected. Boone pushed that thought out of his mind. That was a later problem for a later Boone.

As for right now, Boone caught a dark smudge on the horizon out of the corner of his eye. He glanced towards the front and sure enough, he could see the island off the bow of the ferry. Boone stood up straight to get a better look. Sure enough, there was the pure white ribbon of the beach they would be landing on and through the curtain of the heat shimmer off the sand, he could have sworn he caught sight of two figures sitting in the sand.

 

[AniMANIA7983]

“Im Tommy alright!”, he says to Garret, he turns to Jupiter “and girl do I! (like fruit) I eat it all the time. Though not as much as I enjoy my meats”. He gives a wink before turning to eli, with a quizzical expression “ ‘get that shit outta here’? I for one love avocados. Though, I do have to agree with you on strawberries. They are one of the best fruits in my opinion.“

He notices Akemi on the boat, “if it isnt the flirt master herself!” He gives a quick wink before turning to a usual excited expression, “you know what this boat needs... Music!” He opens up His suitcase and pulls out a round Bluetooth speaker. After a couple seconds of fiddling with his phone, music starts blasting “I LIKE, BIG, BUTTS AND I CAN NOT LIE” he starts slowly twerking to the beat as his arms spin around each other in front of him. He just kinda dances around doing random things like that for a few minutes until he notices something in the distance, “I think i see the island!” He says in a gleeful singsongy tone.

Location: the boat

Interactions: Chione MokkaDrip cadence Sage Orion 0312

 

[Letai]

Mae
interactions: garrett cadence mentions: tommy AniMANIA7983
​

Mae peers up at her helper, the light of the sun shining behind him. With his help, Mae makes it back to her feet, spluttering out various thank you's, before reaching to take back her sunglasses from his hands. Reaching out and giving a small handshake. He is very tall, towering over her, to the point where she almost strains her neck looking up at him.

"Hi Garrett. I'm Mae. Nice to meet you," she says slipping back on her glasses and smiling brightly back at him. Her attention turns to the cluster of people interacting. She quickly and quietly introduces herself before stepping closer. Mae widens her eyes and tries to take them all in trying to remember each of their appearances and match them to the names flying around the conversation.

Mae smiles seeing the variation of personalities. Some people seem more similar to her and keep to themselves more. Others seem more open and a select few seem to almost make Mae cringe with their apparent extroversion. As the conversation flows, Mae stays quiet, nodding, waving and smiling politely at everyone when it is called for.

When someone name Tommy, pulled out his phone and put an interesting song on, to say the very least, a grimace nearly made it on to Mae's face but slowly a giggle sneaked out between her lips. Realising that the boat was approaching the island, Mae carefully went back to where her suitcase and her little bag and grabbed them before returning to near the group. Leaning against the railing she stared at the island in the distance seeing figures waiting for them on the shore.

 

[MokkaDrip]

Akemi Vega
Location: Boat | Mentions: Elijah, Thomas, Jupiter, Mae, Garrett
Wearing: Panda Onesie over red swimsuit + Red Supra Skytops[/FONT]
​

Akemi could be hella loud. She knew this. In fact, there were specific times when it was almost guaranteed that her voice would rise over others in some random exclamation or other as she jumped about with way too much energy for whatever time of day it was. GUARANTEED! However, despite her apparent love for volume (and movement), she was not actually given to demonstrations of prolonged obnoxiousness. Meaning: the girl did absolutely know when to shut the hell up. Which she herself was thankful for as no one really wanted to be the one missing the social cues. In any case, with her greeting at least partially well received--she'd shot Eli honest to goodness finger guns and a lopsided grin full of blindingly white teeth, and given her erm... signature wink (read: blink) to Tommy--Akemi felt the butterflies in her stomach settle. The hard part (for now at least) was over and done with and she was content to let nature take its course.

Choosing a spot out of the way, Akemi perched easily, displaying an easy and altogether unconscious sturdiness upon the bobbing boat. Her suitcase, sporty and bright as hell, was dragged along with her and secured beside her while she let her sea darkened gaze roam. Admittedly, she had not engaged in as much pre-game chatter as she might have been expected to within the group chat and in text messages with the other participants but she'd held herself back, choosing to focus on work as much as possible up until departure time, for a reason. Without proper context much of her personality would come off just plain wrong and she'd rather avoid the headache of trying to counter poor first impressions amongst people whom she was expected to engage with while trapped on an island. Hell, just speaking casually as she normally did had caused some... interesting reactions. Still, she had managed to form some general impressions of the others and she found herself very curious to see whether each individual would match said impression in person.

Sadly, the sprinters attention span was a fickle thing at the worst of times but luckily she'd had the forethought to bring along a few useful tools. The first of which was a rather touch worn yellow yoyo that her father had gotten her some years ago. Without much fanfare she shifted her Tootsie pop in her mouth and reached into her pocket to draw out the toy, her hands going through the motions while her gaze skipped around randomly.

Okay, lets see... faces and names... faces and names...

Usually she was pretty good at this sort of thing but she had to admit it was a bit tougher this time around. Maybe she really hadn't interacted enough? She considered that while her hands ran on without her, performing basic tricks that were more muscle memory than anything by now. The various commentary, reactions, and replies gave away little in the way of clues but Akemi figured she was able to successfully pick out Jupiter and Eli. Though hopefully her thoughts had not been written across her face at any point while noticing either of them. The other girl, Mae, was named through process of elimination rather than any true details, and she guessed the cutie with her could be Garrett? Maybe? The others she wasn't too sure about and though she took a few guesses she'd have to await confirmation.

Oh snap?! When had 'Tommy Too Turnt' cued up the jams?!

Akemi's body was swaying along with the music automatically which had caused a trick to go awry. The painful knock to her knuckles had sort of shook her from her near trance to look over at Tommy, a lopsided grin immediately overtaking her features as she proceeded to hype him up from her seat no too far away. "Eeeeyyyyy!"

It was an excellent distraction really. Akemi kept herself seated because one glance at the faces on the boat said quite clearly they were not ready for her to go there this early into things but time at least passed rather quickly. One moment her gaze had settled on Jupiter and the next it had skipped away to the land mass coming into view in the distance. They'd passed the point of no return!

 

[Sage Orion 0312]

Location: Boat
Mentions: Kidzait AniMANIA7983 mindheist MokkaDrip Letai cadence Chione​

Jupiter felt a blush creep across her cheeks as she stared out to sea. A result of the mortification she felt by asking such a lame question. She was about to tune out the world and put her headphones back on when a cheery voice surprised her instead.

"Nice to finally meet you, Jupiter. I'm Garrett. And I, for one, happen to love fruit."

Slowly the brunette turned to face the origin of the voice, amazed that someone actually took it as a serious inquiry. Garrett was exactly what she pictured from their brief chats. His blue eyes shone with kindness and a huge grin painted the lines of his face. She had to crane her neck to look up at him, he was a pretty tall kid. He stood leaning against a crutch, his expression reminded her of a puppy.

"Wha-"

“Im Tommy alright!” A pretty boy with an impish smile interrupted.
Swiftly he strode over to where the group stood. His gaze swiveled around only to land on Jupiter. A sudden motion that caused her to flinch.
“...and girl do I! I eat it all the time. Though not as much as I enjoy my meats.”

Jupiter's mouth formed into a thin line. An expression that hinted disgust as she finally identified the man in front of her. The incorrigible flirt of the group. Before she could make a sarcastic comment however, Thomas's attention once again changed subjects. But not before adding a wink with his emerald green eyes. This time his focus was on a passenger located on the other side of the boat. Someone who volunteered to assist the male hanging over the railing of the ship when she first came on board.

“Hey guys!” he called out, giving a friendly wave.
“If you couldn’t have guessed already, I’m Eli and this is our beloved cowboy.” Fondly he patted the back of the friend beside him.

Cowboy?
"I used to work on a ranch..."
Oh. He must mean Boone.

“Fruit is nice. Fruit is good... except maybe avocado, get that shit outta here. I think my favourite are strawberries though.”

Eli had a nice voice. His English accent was slightly hypnotic, a nice change from the usual dialect in America. Opening her mouth to speak, Jupiter barely held back a groan when Thomas interjected once again. Giving up, she decided to ignore the rest of their conversation and attempted to try talking to Garrett again. Making sure to put on a small but polite smile, she braced herself to do her best and try to be social.

Fate seemed to be laughing at her struggle, however. When a short girl with glasses and freckles splattered across her face accidentally bumped into Garrett. Her clumsiness caused her to fall over and a string of apologies to escape her lips.
Jupiter jumped out of her seat. Her first inclination to help them both, seeing as how Garrett was struggling to stand in the first place. She reached her arms out only to see that the faux pas had already resolved itself. In fact, the young woman seemed to be just fine... albeit a little embarrassed. With a shy smile, she waved timidly at each individual in turn.

"Akemi has arrived. The party can start now y'all!"

Jupiter's face snapped towards the entrance of the boat. Blue-Green eyes widening in absolute shock as she registered what appeared to be a panda clamber onto deck.

Thats gotta be Akemi. She thought to herself. For a moment she recalled a conversation about kidnapping a giant stuffed animal.

With its last passenger aboard, the boat began its journey out onto the water. For a moment Jupiter stood where she was, simply observing the people around her. Almost everyone seemed to be smiling as they each exchanged introductions. It took her a second to realize that other than the gentleman hanging over the side of the boat, she was the only person keeping to herself. A fact that made her feel a little awkward and out of place.
Glancing around the area she spotted an unoccupied segment of the ship near one of the railings. With her head down she walked over. After reaching her destination, she leaned forward placing her hands on the railing.

The sight and the sound of the waves around her soothed the worries building in her stomach. Time seemed to stand still just for her in finding peace on this otherwise stressful experience. Seagulls cawed in the sky above her, their formation headed in the opposite direction.
She sighed, a content expression melting into her features.

This is nice.
Maybe... maybe this won't be so bad.

“...you know what this boat needs?" Thomas called from behind.

No, no, no...

"... Music!”

Jupiter turned her head just as the music blared to life.

"I LIKE BIG-"

DAMMIT!

After getting an eyeful of Tommy twerking around the ship, she groaned and immediately turned her gaze back towards the ocean. She tried and failed to tune out Sir Mix-a-Lot and his rendition of massive proportions. It wasn't long until she spotted a speck of land on the horizon.

Here we go...

 

[cadence]

GARRETT LINDBERG

"You don't like avocados?" Garrett dropped his jaw, feigning a look of disappointment. "I have to side with Tommy on this one. Avocados are so good." Despite the look of disappointment, he was smiling again the next moment, shaking Eli's hand and anyone else's hand he hadn't shook yet. They'd all been talking, what, about two weeks now? Finally meeting them in person was just as exciting as it was terrifying. He was going to say his favorite fruit, but Tommy made a comment about meat, causing him to perk up a brow in curiosity. "There's not some innuendo in that sentence, is there?" Knowing Tommy, there probably was.

His head turned towards the entrance to the boat when a young girl announced her arrival, stating that the party could start. He couldn't help but giggle when he caught sight of her bright red sneakers and panda onesie. "That's amazing," he said to nobody in particular, unconsciously giving her a thumbs-up of approval. He prided himself on being someone who didn't care too much about what other's thought of his appearance, but even he wouldn't have been able to pull of that. "But how are you not hot?" He was sweating despite wearing short-sleeves - both because of the summer sun and the fact that he was nervous. How she managed to even get this far in what he could imagine was a hot attire was beyond him. He did suppose it would cool down a bit once the boat started moving - which, judging by the boat horn, would be any second.

He was lucky enough that he wasn't like Boone. As in, he wasn't already feeling the toll of seasickness while the boat was still, but he knew it would be a different story once the trek finally began. He'd traveled by boat countless times in his life but he couldn't get rid of the nausea no matter how used to it he was. With a groan, he laid his crutches on the ground, opting to lean against the side of the boat instead, his back towards the water. He knew it was best to keep the horizon in sight and he really did want to watch the water, but at the moment, he was more interested in getting to know the group of people he'd more or less be living with for the next few months. Distraction was a good enough solution anyway, he figured, and Tommy, at the very least, was proving to be a good enough one.

Tommy dug in his bag some, pulling out a Bluetooth speaker and saying the boat needed music. "Oh no," was all he said, a concerned but nonetheless intrigued look on his face. He wasn't sure if Tommy had mentioned the type of music he listened to, but he had a feeling he was the type to play something... Raunchy? With Sir Mix-a-Lots' Baby Got Back blaring the next moment, his assumptions were pretty much accurate. Watching him twerk around the boat and spin his arms in circles did not help in distracting him from the seasickness that grew worse the more the boat went on, but he found himself smiling anyway, bobbing his head along to the song.

Still laughing at the other's antics, he turned around, deciding watching the horizon was a better plan after all. He supposed his face had that unpleasant green hue to it by now. His stomach, at least, felt like it did, and the nervous butterflies dancing around his stomach were doing no favors. He sighed, leaning so his chin was on his hands before noticing Jupiter just a little ways beside him, noticing how content she looked staring at the ocean. He wasn't sure why watching people enjoy themselves put a smile on his face... but it did. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" He glanced at her briefly before staring at the horizon once again, the content look she wore reflected on his own face. He'd practically grown up on the ocean for nearly six years but had never once grown tired of it. "You mentioned not travelling much..." He started, recalling one of the few private conversations they had. They hadn't talked much, so he could easily recall most of their conversations. "Are you excited to finally be here? Experiment part aside, of course. I'm pretty sure everyone is nervous about that... Except maybe Tommy."

Tommy, as if on cue, made it known to everyone that he saw the island. He glanced back at the water, watching as the small speck of land grew into a much larger island the closer the boat got to it. Already knowing he was going to have a hell of a time trying to get all of his belongings off of the boat, he went on and planned ahead, gathering his things into one pile so he could get it out sooner. Maybe.

mentions: eli, akemi, tommy, boone, jupiter
interactions: eli ( Chione ), akemi ( MokkaDrip ), tommy ( AniMANIA7983 ), jupiter ( Sage Orion 0312 )​

 

[smolfluffball]

[ Jasper, Trent and Telly | The dock ➜ The play area | Interactions: Open (all three) ]
The play area had been set up for the first activity, and after the boys had eaten their breakfast muffins, they had moved over to the dock to wait for the boat to arrive. It wasn’t what either Trent or Jasper wanted to do, but it had been a suggestion that the floating robot had made. Well, that, and he also reminded them that they would be giving everyone the bracelets that they, themselves, were already wearing on their wrists.

Telltale floated near Jasper, but he was busy rubbing at the black strap. The robot could sense how rapidly his heart was beating, and he knew the exact reason why it was racing. Trent’s heart was also beating faster than normal, but Trent hadn’t flirted so overtly with a participant like Jasper had. Telltale thought that it was nice to see Jasper open up to some people already, but he just hoped his friend wouldn’t be too abrasive when he met everyone. He knew Trent would be able to cover for anything Jasper said, and he, too, would assist as much as he could. The little robot bumped against Jasper’s shoulder and beeped once, and both Jasper and Trent glanced at him. “The boat’s right over there,” Telltale said, turning to face the boat. It was coming around the curve of the island, and the boys could see all the people on the deck.

Jasper let out a startled laugh and took a step backwards, but he kicked the box of bracelets on accident. He reached down and picked the box up, then handed it to Trent, who frowned. “I think that you should put these on everyone instead. I really can’t fucking do it.”

“Too afraid of meeting Eli?” Trent asked, cocking an eyebrow. Jasper smacked his arm, cheeks red, and Trent laughed. “That’s a yes.”

“Shut up. I'm not afraid of meeting some dorky British dude. I'm not pathetic.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Jasper! I think that many people are excited to meet you,” Telltale said cheerfully, laughing slightly. “But some might be more keen than others, from my observations.”

“Not helpful, Telly,” Jasper muttered, moving behind Trent as the boat got closer to the dock. He pushed the sleeves of his dark-colored flannel up, already regretting putting on the stupid shirt (he wished he had worn something more light-weight and airy, like the blue shirt Trent was wearing now), and tried to figure out who on the boat was who. He and Trent had been told what everyone looked like, but it was different now that they could see the faces of all the new participants.

Trent picked four bracelets out of the box he’d been given and handed them to Jasper, who simply stared at them, aghast. “Don’t look at me like that, Jazzy. You have to also give everyone their bracelets. It’s a team effort.”

“I really don’t want to though, Tree,” Jasper said quickly, eyeing the boat as it pulled up to the dock. “Can’t you do me a favor, Trent? Please?” The shorter boy snorted, and Jasper bit his lip. "I’ll buy you a Kitchen Aid stand mixer if you put the bracelets on everyone for me. That’s, like, an expensive thing, ya know. Like, I am so magnanimous and benevolent, deciding I will buy that for you and gift if to you if you do this one thing for me.”

“I already have one of those back home.” Trent shook his head, and Jasper gasped. “Nice try. Here.” He held his hand out to Jasper, who stared at it. “Just take these and go meet everyone.” At the mention of everyone, Telltale moved away from the boys and went to go meet all of the new participants.

“Who do I have to put them on?”

“Well, obviously-”

“Hello everyone!” Telltale beeped a couple of times at the new humans standing on the boat, and he twirled around once. “I’m Telltale, your host! It’s so nice to meet you all officially!” He saw a human with one robotic leg and automatically knew it was his cyborg ally, Garrett. He saw a girl he recognized as Akemi with a panda outfit on and wondered if the costume was soft, because it looked like it would be soft. He quickly noticed Garrett struggling with all of his belongings, and wished he had arms, so he could help his ally out. He sent a message to the TIES guys, as Jasper called them, asking them to come gather everyone’s belongings soon. “As you get off the boat,” he started, floating back toward the two guides, who were still bickering with each other, “please collect a bracelet from your wonderful guides!”

“No,” Jasper said quickly, shaking his head. “Just this one.” He pointed to Trent, who offered a smile. “He’s the nice one.”

“Well, that's not entirely true.” Trent waved as people got off the boat, and once everyone had managed to get onto the dock, he decided to approach them. He had wanted to wait near the end of the dock, by the beach, and by Jasper, but he also wanted to get a better look at everyone. Sure, he had butterflies in his stomach, but the feeling was familiar to him. He just hoped he could manage to keep his nerves down. “Jasper and I agreed to split up the bracelets, so you actually do get them from both of us. Oh, also, I completely forgot.” He let out a laugh, feeling his cheeks warm. He glanced back at this blond friend. “That’s Jasper,” he looked back at the eight people in front of him, “and I’m Trent. Kind of obvious, maybe, but hi.” He waved. “We’ll have all of you introduce yourselves to us later, at the play area.”

Jasper stayed back, not bothering to wave, even when Telltale beeped at him. His eyes darted between all of the new people. He already could pick out a couple of people from description alone. Garrett was obvious, and so was Mae, and Yohan, and he could see one of the guys had a brace on his hand, and he knew that was the guy who kept calling him cauliflower and strawberry. But in French. The flirty quadrilingual boy that Jasper had, stupidly, decided to talk to. He knew he’d have to meet Eli eventually, but he still had no idea what to say to him. Or to anyone. He also did not see a cowboy hat in the crowd, and he felt rather saddened by the fact. Maybe Boone had lost his hat on the boat ride over.

“I think Jazzy’s feeling a little shy-”

“I’m not!”

Trent looked back at Jasper, frowning, and Jasper narrowed his eyes. The nice guide simply shrugged and turned back to the new arrivals, pulling up a gentle smile. Jasper scoffed behind him. “Well, whatever the case may be, I, for one, am kind of excited. And nervous. But I’m trying to be excited.” He held a bracelet up to everyone, showing them both the front and back of it. Both sides looked similar, except the back had a couple of white dots in the middle of the band. “This is something that you guys all have to wear while you’re on the island. It helps Telly keep track of everything, and it also helps him know whenever there’s an emergency or when people are bonding. Supposedly.” He glanced at the bracelet, then scanned the faces in front of him again. “I have to put these on your wrists, so would Jupiter, Yohan, Garrett and Tommy please hold their wrists out for me? And everyone else has to go get their bracelets from Jasper, sorry.”

“I’m going to throw them at anyone who comes near me,” Jasper said, loudly.

“He won’t really,” Telltale chimed in, laughing when Jasper nudged him away. He floated toward the new participants and beeped happily at them. “Once the bracelet is put on your wrist, then Jasper and Trent will show you to the play area! Your stuff will be collected by members from the TIES Committee, so please leave all your belongings on the dock! Don’t worry - you can find your stuff in the room that you picked when you get to the house!”

------​

After the bracelets had been given to everyone, and the suitcases had been whisked away, Trent and Jasper did, indeed, lead everyone to the play area. It was covered in the five colorful blankets the boys had spread out earlier. No blanket was the same color; there was a red one, a yellow one, a green one, a purple one, and a blue one, all various shades of vibrancy. The bright blankets were being held down by rocks on all four corners, so as to not be blown away by a stray breeze.

Jasper had walked in front of everyone on their trip over to the play area, because he didn’t want to talk with anyone yet. He was still trying to figure out what to say. He could barely maintain eye contact with anyone, and some might believe he was acting shy. Truthfully, he wasn't. He was actually processing the situation, and all the new people, and how he'd be around them now. His plan had already started to fall apart, and that was not what he wanted, at all. He'd have to make amendments, try again, and work with the new variables. A.k.a all the new people who'd be living on the island, in the same house as he and Trent, for the next six months. It'd be great.

Trent, on the other hand, had walked with everyone, and with Telltale. They were not dealing with the same predicament that Jasper was dealing with. Yes, Trent was still feeling nervous and antsy, but he wanted to try to be a good and helpful guide. It was an interesting challenge, and it'd push him outside of his comfort zone. The little robot had told the new participants on their short walk that he’d make an announcement whenever they arrived, and in less than five minutes, they were at the play area. Jasper took a seat on the edge of the wooden platform and watched as everyone came to stand in front of him. Trent went and sat on the opposite end of the platform, then looked at Jasper, then looked at the blankets.

The activity, both boys knew, was going to suck.

“Okay, we’re here!” Telltale floated over to the platform and turned to look at everyone, then twirled once more. “Ooh, how exciting! Well, I mean, some people might already have guessed it, but…” He sighed, but then shook his whole self, as if to shake off the sigh. “But! The first step has already started! The first step is called Introductions, and you’ve all been participating so well. Thank you for your cooperation!” His screen flashed with a bright red heart, and he laughed and looked between Jasper and Trent again. “Would you two do the honors?”

“Pass,” Jasper mumbled, and Telltale let out a quiet beep. “Ugh, I mean, fine.” He cleared his throat and scanned the faces in front of him again. “I’m pretty sure I already know who some of you are, but since the first step is introductions, you should probably introduce yourselves to, like, Trent and I. Or each other. Or whatever. I don't really care.”

“And tell us a fun fact,” Trent added, and Jasper looked at him. “If you don’t mind.”

“Trent’s fun fact,” Jasper looked at the group again, “is that he’s a math nerd. He’s like a human calculator.”

“And Jasper loves Christmas time.” Jasper’s cheeks warmed, and he averted his gaze. “He’s obsessed with eggnog. Last year, he asked the TIES guys to order it for him, and-”

“Anyway.” Jasper threw a look at Trent, who laughed. “After introductions and, I guess, any questions, the TIES guys want us to start the first activity. Don’t ask about the island or anything, since you guys will get to explore it soon.”

“Any other questions are fine, though. We’ve done this before, so we do know a fair bit. And you can ask Telly anything, if you want to.” Telltale beeped, and Trent looked back at the group. “Unless no one has any questions, which… um. I mean, if there aren’t, then that’s nice, and we can start the first activity, but...” He dropped his eyes to the sand, and Jasper cut in.

“So do you nerds have any questions about anything?”

 

[Kidzait]

Boone

Location: with the group, doing the group thing. On there way to *checks notes* the play area to do Lookie-Loo.

Mood: less nauseous and still nervous

Interaction: Jasper ( smolfluffball ) and everyone, eventually.

Boone was ultimately unaware of the conversations that were cropping up behind me. He was lost in his own thoughts.For starters, Boone had some kind of radio jingle stuck in his head that would not relent. It was for...gum? maybe? It was always annoying to have an ear worm, it was worse when it wasn't even a real song repeating in your mind.

Boone tried to push the jingle away and focus on the task at hand; not vomiting….actually, now that Boone was harnessing the trifecta of horizon staring, Dramamine, and eli's nonsense word candies, his seasickness was beginning to subside. However, it was being replaced by raw nerves. The feeling was only intensified as the boat drew closer to the island.

"Oh, my, God Becky, look at her butt…"

The all too familiar opening to Sir Mix-A-Lot's smash hit began to play behind him. As the break began, Boone's curiosity finally got the better of him and he turned around . He could only assume the man slow-twerking
and wiggling around the deck of the boat was the culprit for the sudden declaration for the love of big butts. Boone only watched long enough for him to make a guess at the man's name.
Tommy, He guessed silently then turned around again. Boone remembered the amount of raw cringe that man could pump out when he was really trying. At least it took care of the jingle in his head.

Like almost everyone involved in the experiment, Boone was forced to guess people's names based on their impressions they gave over the chat system. So far, Boone has assigned and reassigned names to almost everyone standing around him. At this point, the only person he knew for sure was Eli and himself.

As the ferry approached the dock, Boone could feel the excited energy in the air as the others gathered their things. Boone shouldered his frame pack and unconsciously clipped the hip belt around his waist. He was suddenly feeling very self conscious about the amount of stuff he brought. The others seemed to be sporting suitcases and in a few cases, several suitcases. Boone was running his inventory over in his head. He had about a week's worth of regular clothes, a few occasional articles, toiletries and a couple of personal camping gear items he assumed he couldn't get on the island. He was used to traveling light but maybe he should have thought harder about it before he left his camper. He was supposed to be on vacation after all.

The front gate on the ferry opened wide and fell flush with the railings on the dock. A small hydraulic ramp dropped to create a subtle decline to the dock. Boone appreciated the presentation and stepped off the boat with the others.


“Hello everyone!” a little white, floating robot said in a electronic voice,. “I’m Telltale, your host! It’s so nice to meet you all officially!”
It twirled happily in the air and Boone narrowed his eyes. This was the part he had been dreading the most. In the past six years, he hadn't been in contact with anything more complex than a smartphone and now he was looking at a robot that could think for itself and defy gravity. Boone would be lying if he said he wasn't a little weary to interact with it.

“please collect a bracelet from your wonderful guides!” it beeped over the sound of petty argument. Ever since their wonderful guides came within earshot, Boone couldn't help but notice the two men on the dock were arguing about something. He couldn't make out what it was but it seemed distressing.

It was easy to see that the blonde was uncomfortable with interacting with them so early on.

That's gotta be Jasper He thought as he deflected the responsibility as the nice one onto the other man. Boone felt safe assuming the other was Trent.

Trent informed them that they would, in fact, be getting their bracelets from the two of them then introduced them both.
“I think Jazzy’s feeling a little shy-”
“I’m not!”

The exchange was short but telling. Seems that the plan that Jasper mentioned was already falling to pieces since he was forced to welcome them onto the island. If the week leading up to the trip was an indicator, Boone had a feeling that would put him in a snippy mood.

This is something that you guys all have to wear while you’re on the island. It helps Telly keep track of everything, and it also helps him know whenever there’s an emergency or when people are bonding. Supposedly.” Boone felt his heart rate already beginning to rise as Trent explained how the bracelets were going to be monitoring them. Boone was...a touch paranoid about being watched at all times.

Trent called the names of four subjects that he would be administering the bracelets, leaving Boone and three others to head to Jasper...
“I’m going to throw them at anyone who comes near me,” he announced, stopping Boone's approach. Even with Telly reassuring that he would not be throwing them.

Boone held his head up and strolled up to the blonde. He was half expecting Jasper to exclaim "go get it!' and fling it over his head. Boone held out his fist to give him access to his wrist.

"howdy"
Boone smirked slightly, hoping him caving into the joke would make him feel a little better. The last conversation they had over private chat didn't end the best.

Jasper snorted at the simple introduction, but that confirmed his suspicions. "I'm sad you don't have your hat," he wrapped the bracelet around Boone's wrist, "but it's nice to finally meet the famous cowboy." He tapped Boone's wrist when he had secured the bracelet. "I'll find a cowboy hat for you, Boone. Go on now, pardner."

Boone smirked and didn't correct Jasper this time. The man seemed like he needed a friend, even if he didn't want it. Plus, Boone might get a free hat out of it.
Boone gave the sleek bracelet a once over and a shake. It was noninvasive and light, he could already tell he would forget about it like a watch. He didn't feel much better about it though. He hoped that his paranoia would subside enough for him to have fun.

. “Once the bracelet is put on your wrist, then Jasper and Trent will show you to the play area! Your stuff will be collected by members from the TIES Committee, so please leave all your belongings on the dock! Don’t worry - you can find your stuff in the room that you picked when you get to the house!” Telly said in it's cheery, digitized voice.

Boone was unsure where the men and women that materialized to take their stuff came from but they definitely spooked Boone. He narrowed his eyes at the man asking for his bag and looked him up and down. With reluctance, he unclipped his hip belt and handed his pack over. With his burden lifted, a new problem grabbed his attention.

"did that robit just say 'play area'? he asked to no one in particular.
"what did I expect?" he said to himself, following his guides off the dock to show them their new home.

~~~

The walk to the 'play area' was uneventful. other subjecs were bunching up into pairs or trios while other, like Boone, were hanging on the fringes of the good time. This wasn't a brooding-in-the-corner kind of solidarity, he was taken aback by the scenery.
As Boone had mentioned a few times, he grew up north in a land-locked state, the ocean always seemed like a figment of Hollywood. Now that he was walking in the soft sand, listening the the waves crash and smelling the salt in the air. He would have to admit, he was enjoying it. Boone unconsciously stopped walking for a few moments to stare out over the horizon they just came from. That familiar freefall feeling returned to his stomach and a giddy smile crept onto his face. It reminded him of the feeling of unparalleled vastness he loved so much. He scanned across the water until he was gazing back the way they came. The bone white strip of sand seemed to stretch on as far as the sea. Boone could have stood in that spot for another hour but a sudden flash of self awareness caused him to glance around sheepishly. Luckily no one seemed to notice he had fallen behind.

His stomach had calmed down as soon as Jasper and Trent had created a distraction. Boone was thanking the solid nature of the ground for his returning equilibrium.
The nausea came back when they finally arrived and watched as Jasper and Trent took their place on the edge of the platform. There were blankets of many colors spread out in front of the platform, Boone unconsciously gravitated towards the one of the blankets, a lavender one closer to Trent's side of the stage

The little robot that would be acting as their host/big brother/guardian/instigator drifted towards center stage and began it's introduction into the program. it beeped happily that the first step was already underway and that they had been introducing themselves wonderfully. Boone thought that was strange since introducing himself felt like a given but what did he know? He was not no scientist.
“Would you two do the honors?” Telly chirped to the two men. Boone was wondering if all this help Telly was requesting was just because it didn't have arms.

Unsurprisingly, Jasper tried to reroute his responsibilities to Trent but Telly gave him a stern beeping to,
. “I’m pretty sure I already know who some of you are, but since the first step is introductions, you should probably introduce yourselves to, like, Trent and I. Or each other. Or whatever. I don't really care.” Jasper said.
Boone could have swore he saw a crack in his armor.
Dear me, does Jasper give a care?
"And tell us a fun fact,” Trent added

Boone raised one eyebrow and glanced at the other nervously. Why was this making Boone nervous? He couldn't tell you. Maybe he was embarrassed because some implied that he was 'fun'.
After their two guides explained the details of the first phase of their first activity, they opened the floor for questions.

Boone didn't really have any questions, especially now that he was trying to think of one to ask. He resolved to learn as he went and just go with the flow, even if that was against what his gut was telling him. Boone was trying his best to keep his outward resolve but there was little to be done about the bracelet giving away all his secrets. He conjured a mental image of a group of people in white coats gathered around a computer, snickering at him every time his heart rate rose.
Boone cleared his throat,

"uh...hey all...I'm Boone” he said, falling silent for a few moments too long, "and...and I like to read"
Not particularly fun but most people are surprised to learn that the 'simple ranch hand' would devour classic literature in his freetime.

 

[Letai]

Mae​

Descending off the boat, and planting her feet on solid ground of the part gave Mae a smile. She focused in on the small white robot, stark and standing out against the golden sand and blue water. Telly's voice was clearly robotic but with a cheerful tone.
The two guides, Trent and Jasper stood seemingly bickering to each other, while Telly welcomed everyone to the island. She received her bracelet from Jasper approaching slowing, smiling and saying a small 'thanks'. She stared at the bracelet while walking, flipping her wrist before looking toward the island.

As they reached the sand the heels of her shoes began to sink slightly in the sand, prompting her to bend over, unbuckle her heels and take them off holding one in each hand. She slipped her heels into her small bag where they just fit luckily, as her suitcase had already been taken away by someone in teal, from TIES. Mae dawdled falling behind to the back end of the group admiring the landscape that the island provided. They arrived at the 'play area' which seemed pleasant with colourful blankets spread around, for the first activity.

Jasper and Trent seemed close, teasing each other comfortably. Mae was happy they were guides, as they would be able to explain things for the team. Mae was excited to get to know everyone and especially to enjoy the activities. She had always loved games as a kid and hoped these would be just as fun for her in her seemingly adulthood. Mae waited for her apparent turn and took a deep breath before introducing herself.

"Hi, I'm Mae, yeah... kinda like the month and ...hmm... I am ambidextrous", Mae says with a soft smile waving quickly at everyone.Mae wasn't really sure what was considered a fun fact she just blurted out the first thing that came to mind,

 

[MokkaDrip]

Akemi Vega
Location: Boat --> Beach | Interactions: Telly, Jasper, Open
Wearing: Panda Onesie over red swimsuit + Red Supra Skytops​

Akemi's onesie was in fact very soft. It was also very comfy.

Er... At least it had been until the boat had stopped moving and the rush of sea air keeping her temperature regulated had disappeared. Almost right away she could tell it was gonna get a little warm but the sprinter honestly wasn't all that worried. She'd spent summers in Miami training out under the sun, run barefoot through burning sand, and survived her coach's two-a-days for years, a little heat wasn't gonna get her down. Plus, if it got bad enough she could always open things up a bit...

The thought amused her enough to have her hazel eyes sparkling with a tinge of mischief as she looked over to the trio waiting outside of their now docked boat. Curious, she eyed each of them, noting Telly right off--and sending the little bit a bright smile--before continuing her little guessing game of who was who. Granted the moment she heard Jasper speak he gave himself away, allowing her to neatly take the win in the bonus round.

“I’m going to throw them at anyone who comes near me,” Jasper said, loudly.

Akemi's lips rolled under as she fought the challenging smirk that immediately wanted to surface, her eyes darting away for a brief moment. Normally she was not the sort to pick at people but even via text something about Jasper had prickled at her. It probably wasn't right but, she really couldn't resist. Noticing Mae moving forward to get her bracelet, she popped her tootsie pop free of her mouth and cooed at him, "Awww, so grumpy! Sounds like you just need a hug, Sunshine!"

Almost skipping up to the poor guy, Akemi promptly ignored the whole concept of personal space just to lean in and hug Jasper, no reservations. Sure, it was largely for kicks in this particular moment but it was still genuine. Of course she felt him jolt slightly and begin to struggle in her embrace, though not violently so, leading her to squeeze him tighter for a second before she let him go and hit him with a lopsided grin.

There was not a single ounce of shame to be found in her as she watched him huff and slap the bracelet on her wrist. “I think you brought the sunshine with you,” he replied, making her chuckle and pat his shoulder before mercifully leaving him be. For now, anyway.

After that, Akemi stepped aside and glanced back to make sure the TIES guys had grabbed her belongings. It wouldn't do to have it somehow get left behind. She was pretty resilient but even she doubted she'd last long on this island with nothing but a panda onesie and a bikini. Thankfully, that wasn't a concern she had to ponder much longer than the few minutes it took for everyone to get their bracelets and watch the guys in teal round up all their things. Satisfied that she would not find herself at the mercy of a cruel swing of fate, the sprinter pivoted to follow Trent, Sunshine, and Little Bit. As they made their way across the sand her fingers slipped into her pocket to edge along the rim of her yo-yo idly. The slight trill of nerves she'd felt briefly earlier kicked up yet again, joining the bubbles of excitement inside her. Yeah, she was perhaps a little more alert than usual given the unique circumstances she now found herself in but there was something about it that she found to be just plain fun. She was so curious about everyone and what lie ahead of them. There was even a bit of pep in her step as she nimbly crossed the sand toward the blankets.

Once they were gathered and had received their instructions to introduce themselves, Akemi politely listened to the others speak, noting her own brief observations before taking her own turn. "Sup everybody," she lifted her hand and fluttered her fingers in a wave that would likely become familiar to them as time went on, " I'm Akemi and I'm probably fastest damn panda you'll ever meet." She popped what was left of her candy back into her mouth with a snicker and looked to the next person.

 

[mindheist]

y o h a n​

interactions: jupiter ( Sage Orion 0312 ) tommy ( AniMANIA7983 ) akemi ( MokkaDrip ) ​

mentions: jasper and trent ( smolfluffball ) boone ( Kidzait ) mae ( Letai ) ​

The group was a rather lively bunch, if Yohan could say so himself. The thought came seconds after he did a subtle double take at yet another interesting conversation starter, this time dramatically different from his seat partner's earlier pick-up line in that the new girl (Jupiter, was it?) who'd just boarded the boat — not that Yohan didn't like fruit, but rather it wasn't always brought about as a method of introducing oneself. Maybe she was just nervous. Perfectly understandable, really.

"Heya, nice to meet everyone. I'm Yohan," he beamed, voice light and cheery and accompanied by a friendly smile. "And yeah, actually. Gonna hope there're a lot of mangos on the island."

As it turned out, some of the other participants here already knew his name, seeming to put one and one together based on his appearance and personality from the group chat they've all been acquainted with. How nice to know his texting persona didn't drastically contrast his in-person image. He recognized a few too, assumptions confirmed by their own introductions.

The boat departed not long afterward with the final arrivals, with one of them sporting a very, very comfortable panda onesie. And so their trip across the ocean waters commenced. As expected, the rowdiness arose with Tommy and Akemi.

"You know what this boat needs. . . Music!"

Yohan laughed as the bluetooth speaker Tommy brought out began blasting out the interesting lyrics of a familiar old song, one that didn't necessarily fall under his music preferences but was still welcomed by him for the liveliness it seemed to bring to the passengers (or, well, at least most of them).

"Damn, guys, you got moves. I'm jealous," the light-haired college student chimed when Akemi and Tommy both wasted no time jumping right in. He'd been to enough parties on campus and if anything, he bet these two would've fit well among the groups he knew. Everyone loved a bold dancer, and to say this was quite the entertainment would be quite an understatement. Was Yohan a bit daring sometimes too? For sure. But this kind of display took an even greater measure of fearlessness, and so rather than hopping in on the fun himself, he instead enjoyed the scene from his seat, offering shouts of encouragement along the sidelines until who knew how long passed. It wasn't until someone noted the appearance of their island that Yohan finally spun around in his seat and laid his sight upon their approaching destination.

The excitement that arose in his chest bubbled from the thought of opportunities for fun adventures and shenanigans, sending Yohan off as one of the first to hop off their vessel and onto the island's dock. Clear blue skies, soft light golden sand, two unfamiliar faces who actually feel familiar, and—

"Telly!" Yohan exclaimed loudly. There was an undeniable bounce in his step as he dashed over to the white, floating robot he'd interacted with and had been waiting to meet since he'd heard of it, and especially after hearing about its presence on the island throughout the entire experiment. An island paradise with the cutest robot he'd ever seen — this was definitely more than he could ever ask for. What an experience already.

After collecting his own bracelet from the guides (Jasper and Trent, of course he could recognize them), Yohan found himself situated in the play area for their first activity and icebreaker session. Jasper and Trent, as expected, already appeared close, taking light-hearted jabs at each other with easygoing interactions and fun teasing. Despite this, the Jasper before them still mirrored the grumpy one in their group chat — grumpy in front of the others, at least, for he was surprisingly very sociable with Yohan in their personal texts — whereas Trent maintained his 'nice, friendly neighborhood kind of guy' vibes.

Next in line for official icebreakers was Boone, who Yohan recognized to be the seasick stranger on the boat from earlier. He too had a nice vibe to him, albeit maybe a little more reserved or nervous. Or perhaps it was just the motion sickness from earlier still having yet to fully release its clutches on him.

Then was Mae who seemed about equally reserved (or nervous), who Yohan recognized to have tripped earlier before the group departed the California docks. Honestly he'd felt bad for her and would've helped, though he hadn't made it in time before another person stepped in to lend assistance.

After her was Akemi, an individual Yohan had already been acquainted with thanks to the boat ride. Now she was fun. It was moments like these when the levity was appreciated.

Regardless, everyone came off as people Yohan would vibe with.

Seeing his turn had come, the silver-haired college student gave the group a leisurely wave.

"Hey, I'm Yohan," he introduced. Despite the lazy smile on his features, his eyes held its usual glint of good-natured mischief. "Let's see . . . Well, I can kinda cook? My parents own a restaurant back in LA so if nobody is bothered by the fact that I may or may not make a mess in the kitchen, I'd be happy to make a few dishes here."

 

[Sage Orion 0312]

Location: Boat ✩ Island
Mentions: Kidzait AniMANIA7983 mindheist MokkaDrip Letai cadence cadence​

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Just as Jupiter was debating on whether she should jump off the boat and swim to shore, a calming voice sidled its way next to her. Momentarily dragging her gaze from the shimmering blue waters below, she saw that it was Garrett trying to initiate conversation.

"Yeah." She murmured, resuming her study of the horizon.
"To be honest, it's more than I expected."

"You mentioned not traveling much..." He reminisced, thinking back to previous conversations they had shared.
"Are you excited to finally be here? Experiment part aside, of course. I'm pretty sure everyone is nervous about that... Except maybe Tommy."

A brief smirk flitted its way across her features before disappearing in an instant. She found humor in the last comment. Tommy's boldness surely knew no bounds, it was evident in the short impression she had gathered. It was odd meeting someone through a chatroom. At first all you saw was an avatar. An anonymous icon and a username. In her opinion, this made meeting in person all the more surreal. You could finally put a voice and a face to the name. Sometimes the person was just as you pictured in your mind... and sometimes the exact opposite.

"I'm attempting to be optimistic at least..." Jupiter shrugged, testing out the words on her tongue. She was still unused to human interaction. It took her a moment to reassess specific social ques.
"This is all kinda new for me. Or- Well..." She moved her hands absentmindedly in the air, a heavy sigh causing her shoulders to slump.
"Let's just say its been a while. You know... people and stuff."

Time passed as the two spoke. During which the boat had drifted closer and closer to shore. Jupiter clamped her mouth shut, feeling as though she was talking too much. Becoming an annoyance to herself and others. Her usual insecurities beginning to rear its ugly head. She needed to end the conversation.
"We should probably start getting ready. The boat is about to dock."

Without waiting for a response, she turned around and walked over to the few belongings she had brought with her. After slipping her navy blue duffel bag over her head and tucking her skateboard under her arm, Jupiter stepped off the boat and onto the warm, soft sand. Her decision to wear Converse had been a poor one. Immediately she felt sand sneaking its way into her shoes.
A slight hum caused her to look up and see a small droid-like figure floating at eye level. It was cute in a way, its' rabbit ears making the cold metal more appealing. Due to the TIES logo and icons she instantly recognized the high tech as Telly.
His voice was, in a way, masculine. The autotune foreign yet soothing. It took her a moment to realize that Telltale had been giving the group instructions as to what to do next.

Behind Telly Jupiter could see two boys bickering back and forth. They spoke like an old married couple, their conversation occasionally interrupting the current topic. Their interaction brought a reluctant smile to Jupiter's face. It was obvious who was who... the dynamic duo definitely stayed true to their personalities online.
As Trent and Jaspur continued to address the group, her attention began to wander elsewhere. The island was beautiful, to say the least. On the horizon she could see a wooded forest that was sure to be full of wildlife. Even now the swaying trees beckoned her forward. Practically begging her to explore.

“Once the bracelet is put on your wrist, then Jasper and Trent will show you to the play area! Your stuff will be collected by members from the TIES Committee, so please leave all your belongings on the dock! Don’t worry - you can find your stuff in the room that you picked when you get to the house!” Telltale chimed, interrupting her thoughts.

Before doing as she was instructed, Jupiter unceremoniously dropped her gym bag at her feet. This careless action opposing the reverent way she placed her skateboard beside the pile.
It was a passing hope that the TIES team wouldn't confuse her luggage with someone else's. But after a brief linger, she stepped forward embracing the experiment in all its glory.

"Hey Trent." Jupiter smiled as she offered her wrist.
"It's nice to finally meet you."

"Likewise!" The brunette chirped, his grin infectious.
"After our first segment, I cannot wait for you to try the cookies I made. I hope I followed the recipe correctly."

Subtly she noted how Trent scratched the back of his head, the small action easing some of her tension. Almost as if the host was just as nervous as she.
"From a renowned baker such as yourself? I'm sure they will be fantastic!"

Offering one last polite smile, Jupiter stepped aside in order to keep the line moving. She noticed a small group forming, the participants who had already received their bracelets. With a little pep in her stride, she moved to join them. After looking over at Jasper as she walked, Jupiter was caught in a moral conundrum. Not introducing herself may seem as a bit rude... but so would interrupting his duties as host. Deciding to meet in the middle, she wordlessly approached him only to boop his nose with her index finger. Without looking at this reaction, she moved away, sure it would be a mix between annoyance and bewilderment.

Once everyone had gathered together Trent, Jaspur, and Telly began leading the group to what they called "the play area." Being the socially awkward girl she was, Jupiter made sure to slow down so she was in the back, trailing along behind everyone else.

A fun fact? Do I have any of those?

Her thoughts raced as she tried her best to come up with some sort of introduction. Mind buzzing with possibilities, she could only nod absentmindedly at every individual greeting. Some she had not been expecting. Such as Jaspers love of Christmas and Yo-Yos handiness in the kitchen. Others were pretty obvious... Ergo the fast panda in the panda suit.
The time finally came for Jupiter to introduce to herself and much to her chagrin she still had not thought of anything. Instead, she decided to blurt out whatever popped into her head.... After all it went so well the last time.

"Fireworks make me cry." She stated bluntly, allowing the awkward sentence to hang in the air for a moment.

Well that wasn't fun AT ALL. Horrified, she stumbled over her words to make a recovery.

"Shit... I mean... I think Grizzly Bears are cute?" The fact coming out as more of a question than a statement.
"Oh yeah. And I'm Jupiter by the way."