J.J. turned to the sound of her voice, blinking a couple of times in surprise. Christ, she actually came. She had hardly changed, which made sense. She was probably too damn stubborn to allow anything in this world change her.
"Um….yeah," he said, reaching out and taking the coffee as if it was a bomb. He wasn't tired at all and he doubted the caffeine would do him any good, but he didn't want to be rude. A small, awkward smile graced his lips as well, but it was hesitant, faltering after a few moments. "I….um….how are you?"
“Tired, irritated, and overworked.” Manon answered, linking her arm through his and starting off. She wasn’t about to waste time, and they were running just a bit late of her schedule. “But glad to see you.” Adjusting her shirt with one hand, she took a drink of her coffee in the other hand, arching a brow at him. “And how are you? Relieved to be back, or wishing you were gone?”
His eyes bulged out of his head for a moment, the feeling of being dragged around once again new for him. The amount of words she flooded him with washed out every thought in his brain as he tried to walk and think at the same time. A daunting task for someone who worked on instinct for 5 years.
"Um…..a-mix of both," J.J. admitted, taking a sip of his coffee. He winced at how hot it was, but the taste of it was welcomed. "I…it's a weird….I don' know what I'm tryin' to say."
"I believe I get what you mean, do not worry." She assured, glancing over at him. "My coffee is cold, if the heat bothers you, I can hold yours and you can drink mine." She offered, looking forward once again. "Our train is arriving in fifteen minutes, according to the schedule, though conductors in America seem very keen on not arriving on schedule." That was a common thing, mentioning the occasional thing she missed about France, or differences she noted. Usually, though, those differences were in America's favor.
"Yeah, sure, I guess," he said, although he didn't reach for the cup. J.J. was so happy she was here, even if it didn't show on his face. For one, she could guide him around and keep him from getting lost in the crowd of people. And, of course, just her presence alone made him happy. "S-….so you made it to that school you applied to?"
"No." She shook her head, shoulders falling slightly for a moment, before returning to their rigid posture. "I was originally attempting for Yale, but….I do not have the money for tuition. And even if, for some reason, my parents offered to pay, I am done accepting that. So I found a different school, and received a…scholarship." She explained, as she led him through the crowded station. It escaped her mind that she'd cut ties with her family after he'd gone missing, leading her to talk as though it was normal to him that she wasn't accepting any financial aid from her parents. "I believe part of it may be the allure of having my family name in their graduation records, but it benefits me, so I do not care."
"What about your parents?" he asked, raising an eyebrow over at his former girlfriend. He knew they were a bit of a touchy subject, but they still seemed to care about her enough to pay for her tuition.
Her face hardened, and she shook her head once, grip on her coffee tightening briefly. "No. A couple months after the crash, I cut ties with them completely. I have not heard a word from my father, and only received a couple of pleading phone calls from my mother. And wherever Jean has run off to, I do not care. Look, this is our boarding platform."
J.J. blinked a couple of times at the news, honestly shocked. Never would he've thought that she'd ditch her parents. I mean,they'd been dating for almost a year, but as soon as her dad found out, she called it off immediately.
"Tickets, please!" one of the train operators called as the people on the platform began to fall into line.
(What if the reason why she broke ties, other than the whole over-controlling shit, was that her dad said something along the lines of "good riddance" after J.J.'s disappearance)
Manon released his arm temporarily, reaching into her bag and pulling out the tickets from the pocket she'd put them in. "Hopefully, we should have our own compartment. At the most, one other person will be with us, but I highly doubt that."
"People have been…..different, needless to say," he said, scratching his jawline idly as they fell into line. They were relatively close to the front, so it shouldn't be long. "But, I don't really care. I'll probably end up sleeping, anyways."
"Mm, that will make it easy on you, then. I have work that needs done, so I will be doing that." It was always go, go, go. She'd been like that in high school, though for different reasons. Surfing had been her only leisurely activity, and even that sometimes had turned into sort of work, when it came to competitions. "Speaking of. You will be staying in my dorm room. My room mate practically lives with her girlfriend, so she has offered to let you use her bed."
"Oh?" he said, unsure of what else to say. "That's….nice of 'em."
They finally made it to the front of the line, where the train worker waited with his hand out. His smile was very obviously forced, which was to be expected for a man who had to deal with this many people at once.
Manon smiled politely, handing the tickets over and giving the conductor a nod. Once the tickets were deemed real and handed back, they were allowed to board and find their compartment. "The business reminds me of a mall, during Christmas season."
"People got places to be," he said with a shrug, following her as they weaved between people standing in the isles. People gave them odd looks at they passed, mostly because Manon was a full head above almost everyone, making J.J. even more awkward. "A-are you sure the university's alright with me bunkin' with you?"
"I have sent an email requesting the okay. At the worst, I will just have to hide you while you are staying. Which would mean only in the dorm itself, whereas you would be able to walk with me around campus and things without worry, because they do not question visitors or people 'interested in the school'." She said, eyes flickering from number to number above the compartments they passed, completely unconcerned with the eyes on her.
"What number is our compartment?" he asked, eager to get into relative privacy. His face was skewed in an uncomfortable expression as he tried his hardest to not touch anyone but Manon.
"17B." She said, motioning towards the numbers with her coffee until stopping. "Right here. Come, come, let us get you out of this horrid mess of people." She said, wrinkling her nose as she ushered him into the compartment.
J.J. stepped in happily, letting out a relieved sigh until he saw how cramped the space was.
"Fuckin'-" he turned and nearly his head on the side of one of the beds. "Christ. I feel like Harry Potter in the fuckin' cubboard."
"This is what I get for buying the slightly cheaper tickets." Manon grumbled under her breath, accent thickening until it was nearly indecipherable. "Next time I use the train, I am finding a much better one. Double?"
J.J. sat down on the first bed, his entire upper body slumped over so that he could actually fit. He blinked a couple times when she said 'Double,' momentarily forgetting it was his name to her. I wonder if the corn I planted sprouted yet. They were so close to ripening when I left. It sucks I couldn't have them.
Manon studied him for a moment, before stepping over, crouching gracefully between his knees and looking up at him. "What is on your mind, mon coeur?" She asked, golden brows furrowed just slightly. Her hair was down, gilded waves falling lightly onto her shoulders and framing her face.
"Corn," he admitted, then realized how weird that sounded. He couldn't really look her in the eyes while he spoke, but he found that looking at her nose made it much easier. "I planted corn about a year ago, but it was during a dry season, so they were just starting to grow a few months back. Now I'm wondering if the deer on the South End are gonna eat them."
She couldn't decide whether to find that amusing or serious, but stuck with a sort of mix leaning towards the latter, placing a hand on his. "Maybe they will. But now that you are back, you can have all the food you would like, and you are leaving behind something that will help other creatures. Do you want to eat corn?"
His eyes snapped down to their hands, repressing the urge to pull it away. Typically, if another live thing touched him, it meant he was about to throw hands. But this isn't the island. This is America. And that wasn't a wild animal. That was the one girl that managed to worm her way into his life.
"Not really," he admitted after a few moments. "I'm not hungry, to be honest. I only had one meal a day on the island, so I won't be hungry for a while."
She noted the look he gave their hands, and debated pulling away. After a moment of thought, she didn't, instead leaving her hand where it was. If he pulled away, that was that. If he showed any more discomfort, she would move herself. But until then, she was going to leave it there. Baby steps. That is what you had to do, and he will too. "When you do get hungry, tell me. Immediately would be appreciated. Getting you back on a normal eating schedule will be difficult and take time, but it will happen eventually. Though, you will fit right in with college students, for sure."
"I doubt it," he mumbled, spinning his hand around so their palms touched. His fingers gently came around and gripped her hand. It was awkward, but it was progress. "Not many college students have gotten bitten by a crocodile."
"I meant dietary wise." She said, arching a brow at him. Him holding her hand like that brought back that same warm feeling, even if she was still worried about him. "And while you may be right, who knows. You may meet one. Would that not be strange, to meet someone who has experienced as unusual an event as you? Even if under differing circumstance?"
J.J. nodded slightly, his bottom lip poking out slightly. He always did that whenever he agreed with what someone said. After a moment of contemplation, he leaned forward even more and set his head on her shoulder, letting it rest there for a few moments before pulling away again.
"I think I'm gonna take a nap," he mumbled, giving her a soft but genuine smile.
