[On The Couch] 5.1 - "The..."
Jul. 18th, 2008 04:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
magic_fratboyThe whole thing started with a greeting so quiet, so timid he almost didn’t hear it.
“Hello.”
The soft, steady voice belonged to one of the damn Goth kids that was always out smoking by the front of the school and giving Paul, the dean of students, early onset heart attacks with their bullshit. Coach Herny Casela knew all the boys by name, he’d sent more than one to detention for causing trouble and more besides had been kicked out of his class for the day because they either wouldn’t participate in gym or didn’t dress for class.
He didn’t recognize the tall, skinny young man in black jeans and henley shirt, skin too pale against all that black along with his hair, which hung halfway down his back and away from his face with the aid of a black bandanna, the white patterns the only thing making it stand out.
“Can I help you, son?”
He moved as if shaking, but the boy’s hands were steady as he walked into the office and set his backpack down, pulling a deck of cards from his pocket.
“Yes, sir. If you’re not busy? I was hoping I could try something. It won’t take long, I promise.”
It was pretty clear what was going on, but at the same time Casela was intrigued. With his nod, the boy walked up to his desk, removed his cards from their box...
...and knocked the wind out of him with a simple card trick.
The effect itself was pretty simple, pick a card and find a card. The boy, however, did it as naturally as if he were breathing. His voice never rose above a sound close to a whisper, and it quavered in places, but his fingers shuffled with unnatural dexterity and he spoke with a simple strength. He was clearly nervous, uncomfortable being under scrutiny, but never once did he stammer or lose his train of thought, to say nothing of his focus until the moment he revealed Casela’s card with a sharp, clean snap of his wrist.
“Son, how in the name of all that’s good and holy did you do that?”
There was no real response from the boy, and Casela wasn’t actually expecting one. The answer came from his eyes...those strangely bright, dark depths that were evaluating him like some science experiment...belonging to a scientist that had fallen in love with his work.
“Well, son, that’s a hell of a trick. I’ll give you that.”
A smile then, a nod that felt as formal as a bow. “Thank you, sir. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I appreciate the kind words.”
Then without another word, he quietly packed up his cards, grabbed his bag, and left with a quiet ‘goodbye.’
Casela found out later from another of the boy’s coaches that the kid’s name was Tommy Karras, an otherwise invisible freshman that didn’t even talk to the black-garbed miscreants he so closely resembled. The boy was so quiet, so painfully introverted most of the other faculty he spoke to didn’t remember him. Only during fifth period, when he’d either hit the weight room or engage in games of football he always ended up losing did he leave his mark.
Under the hair and clothes was the body of a dedicated athlete...and behind the soulful eyes was something else that made Casela wonder if Tommy’s visit to his office had anything to do with just ‘trying something.’
Either way, he knew one thing for sure: Coach Casela had just located his new point guard for the basketball team.
Muse: Tommy Karras
Fandom: Original Character
Words: 604
“Hello.”
The soft, steady voice belonged to one of the damn Goth kids that was always out smoking by the front of the school and giving Paul, the dean of students, early onset heart attacks with their bullshit. Coach Herny Casela knew all the boys by name, he’d sent more than one to detention for causing trouble and more besides had been kicked out of his class for the day because they either wouldn’t participate in gym or didn’t dress for class.
He didn’t recognize the tall, skinny young man in black jeans and henley shirt, skin too pale against all that black along with his hair, which hung halfway down his back and away from his face with the aid of a black bandanna, the white patterns the only thing making it stand out.
“Can I help you, son?”
He moved as if shaking, but the boy’s hands were steady as he walked into the office and set his backpack down, pulling a deck of cards from his pocket.
“Yes, sir. If you’re not busy? I was hoping I could try something. It won’t take long, I promise.”
It was pretty clear what was going on, but at the same time Casela was intrigued. With his nod, the boy walked up to his desk, removed his cards from their box...
...and knocked the wind out of him with a simple card trick.
The effect itself was pretty simple, pick a card and find a card. The boy, however, did it as naturally as if he were breathing. His voice never rose above a sound close to a whisper, and it quavered in places, but his fingers shuffled with unnatural dexterity and he spoke with a simple strength. He was clearly nervous, uncomfortable being under scrutiny, but never once did he stammer or lose his train of thought, to say nothing of his focus until the moment he revealed Casela’s card with a sharp, clean snap of his wrist.
“Son, how in the name of all that’s good and holy did you do that?”
There was no real response from the boy, and Casela wasn’t actually expecting one. The answer came from his eyes...those strangely bright, dark depths that were evaluating him like some science experiment...belonging to a scientist that had fallen in love with his work.
“Well, son, that’s a hell of a trick. I’ll give you that.”
A smile then, a nod that felt as formal as a bow. “Thank you, sir. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I appreciate the kind words.”
Then without another word, he quietly packed up his cards, grabbed his bag, and left with a quiet ‘goodbye.’
Casela found out later from another of the boy’s coaches that the kid’s name was Tommy Karras, an otherwise invisible freshman that didn’t even talk to the black-garbed miscreants he so closely resembled. The boy was so quiet, so painfully introverted most of the other faculty he spoke to didn’t remember him. Only during fifth period, when he’d either hit the weight room or engage in games of football he always ended up losing did he leave his mark.
Under the hair and clothes was the body of a dedicated athlete...and behind the soulful eyes was something else that made Casela wonder if Tommy’s visit to his office had anything to do with just ‘trying something.’
Either way, he knew one thing for sure: Coach Casela had just located his new point guard for the basketball team.
Muse: Tommy Karras
Fandom: Original Character
Words: 604
