Logs:Misery Competition

Misery Competition
Dramatis Personae Naomi, Sera	2021-03-05 I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting to cheer someone else up who's having a hard time.
Location <XAV> Music Room - Xs Second Floor
Wide and spacious, seating in this soundproofed room comes largely on the sweep of gentle risers that afford the teacher an easy view of all the budding performers, and add another dimension to the acoustics of the room. Instruments of all types are carefully stored around the room, and a grand piano, immaculately upkept, takes the position of prize near the back. In a nod to the eclectic studies of the students, digital mixing equipment and turntables rub shoulders with the classical instruments. Music stands sit in front of most of the seats, and the only windows look out out over the side of the school grounds. It’s an ad-hoc, optional rehearsal; with the end of exams and the beginning of break, it was apparently too much of a mess to require notes from everyone planning to be absent. Most of the band is here, crowded with their instruments awkwardly pushed together on one side of the risers. On the other - the singers, drilling harmonies and tempos from loose-leaf sheet music. Ostensibly a general “music” rehearsal, towards the end of the hour it has become a vocalist rehearsal. The pianist has been kept quite busy. The rest of the band - less so. Naomi hardly notices that rehearsal has been dismissed at first - the flutter of irritation when the a cappella rendition of “Bring On The Monsters” stops doesn’t connect with that thought. She’s dressed in skinny blue jeans and a dark green crew-neck sweatshirt, one foot crossed onto her knee at the drumset, phone resting on the edge of her high-tops as she scrolls Tumblr with one silver-painted nail. The rustling of bags causes her to look up, slightly surprised by the sudden exodus from the music hall. Naomi is slow to extract herself from the drumset, her mind still fluttering with hints of irritation. The feeling slides quickly into disappointment and a touch of envy as she watches other teenagers filter out the music room door. In the ensemble, Sera has been singing her heart out (mostly on-key) through the latter part of the rehearsal, dressed today in a blue-and-purple stripped henley, blue denim overalls, and black-and-white low-top sneakers. In all her farewells to her fellow background singers she takes a while to gather her things. At length she hefts her iridescent purple backpack over one shoulder and heads for the door. Her lively steps slow and curve toward Naomi, and as she nears the other girl's irritation and disappointment fades, joined by a pure and quiet joy. "Hi," she says. A slight delay later, she adds, "Are you alright?" There’s a slight shift in how Naomi holds herself - a quick straightening of the spine, an ease of tension in her hand - as Sera draws closer and the negative emotions become displaced. “Hey,” she offers, the corner of her mouth quirking up into a smile. “You sounded good today.” When she answers the question, the reply comes with a spiky flare of frustration and embarrassment, poking up through the joy. “I look that miserable, huh?” She doesn’t sound mad about it, just resigned. “I’m jus' - gettin' sick of watching everyone else go home for breaks, is all.” Another flutter of joy from Sera spills over to Naomi at the complement. "Thank you! I seem to be getting better, at least." Though she subsides after that, hope and doubt alternating in her. "You don't --" She bites her lower lip. "Well, you do, a bit. I'm sorry, though." A wave of genuine sympathy and profound sadness inundating them both. She swallows, blinking away her tears, and the feeling fades -- for Naomi, at least. "Why can't you go home for break?" Naomi starts a self-deprecating laugh, led on by the new edge of joy, but the first sound gets choked out by the sudden wave of sadness barreling through her brain. She doesn’t tear up, but the girl does take a second to rub at her eyes, finger pads pushing up into the roots of her scales. “Ugh. Uh. It’s expensive, for only a couple weeks. Too expensive.” Naomi lifts her bag onto her shoulders with a shrug, her own sympathy twisting around more shame. “Not as shit as your situation. I shouldn’t be complainin’.” Sera nods, slowly. "That still sucks, though. I guess not too many kids stay here over break -- your brother, at least?." She smiles, though wanly. "Anyway, you can complain. It's not like being miserable is a competition, and even if it were I wouldn't win all the time. Brains are weird, like that." She hesitates. "Have you got any plans?" Something complicated spikes in Naomi’s mind at the mention of Lael - overwhelming love tied tightly to fear and layered with just a touch of anger. She swallows, shrugs again. “Yeah. Wouldn’t wanna head home without him anyway.” Sera’s statements on brains gets an approving nod. “For break? Nah. Maybe day trip to the city sometime. Nothing set though.” A ripple of teenage embarrassment - but just a ripple this time. "I get that," Sera replies softly, though this time she manage to keep her sorrow in. "There'll probably be less competition for the good seats in the rec room, anyway." She brightens again, with an effort. "If you wanna hang out while you're in the City, I know my way around --" She breaks off, cheeks flushing faintly pink. "Not as well as I used to, I guess, but still." This time Naomi gets to finish her laugh, a small soft chuckle that eases into a small soft smile. “Oh maaaan that big armchair is mine all week.” She shifts her weight from one foot to the other, considering the offer. “That’d be nice, if you ain’t busy. An’ you actually wanna hang out — like, you don’t gotta hang out with me just ‘cause I’m throwing myself a lil pity party.” A touch of suspicion is weaving through Naomi excitement and hope. Sera smiles, too, pulled along with Naomi's mirth. At the other girl's hedging she blinks. "I do, actually, want to hang out. My -- house is nice and all, but with the warm weather coming I definitely don't want to be cooped up all break long. Wandering the city is always better -- together." Her thin shoulders hunch slightly, "And anyway, I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting to cheer someone else up who's having a hard time." The thread of suspicion doesn't completely unravel, but it is pulled partway out of Naomi's mind at the reassurance. "You right, I jus' --" Naomi shakes her head, heat rising a little in cheeks. "Ionno. I would really like that, though. I ain't seen much of the city yet. Or much of you, I guess." "There's an awful lot of city to see." Sera is still determinedly, if quietly, cheerful. "As long as you don't mind me doing stuff like, 'and here's the Captain America statue' at an empty space." Though here she frowns suddenly uncertain. "At least, I assume you don't have one of those." Her smile returns, still a little thin, still a little haunted. "C'mon, let's go see what treats are in the rec room before they all get eaten up." "Oh, that sounds fun though," Naomi says, smile spreading into a grin. "Get a whole tour of other-New-York that way, missed it when we were over there." Her stomach quickly knots, then untwists again, but she's well cheered-up now. She rushes down the riser, head twisted around to check that Sera follows. "Hell yes. Maybe there's chai cookies left."