Closed After Practice

[Soren Gates]

Soren was frustrated. He felt like he was losing his mind. No matter what he tried, it didn't seem to matter. He just couldn't feel content. He was agitated, more on edge these days. Why was he even in Quidditch? After what seemed like an eternally long practice, he stormed into the locker room, throwing aside his gear with a frustrated groan. Gods, why was everything so hard? He fell down onto the bench, running his hands into his hair and holding his head in his hands. Maybe he should drop out of the team, hell, maybe even drop out of school entirely.

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora was frustrated with a lot of things, the practice had been long and hadn't exactly been the best that she'd ever had, and Soren. Well, Soren was just being frustrating. She knew he was pulling away, being friendly on the surface and then not talking to her when it was just the two of them. He was hanging out with her less, spending time with Kiara and going to dance with her instead of at least mentioning it. So as she followed him into the changing rooms after the practice and watched him chuck the gear aside she had had enough. "What is going with you?" she said, turning face him with a sharp and frustrated expression. ​

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren snorted when he heard Aurora snap at him. He didn't bother looking at her. It wasn't as if she saw him. "Like you care," He snapped back, getting up to gather his things out of the locker so he could start heading back. "I'm just one of the group, you don't have to bother pretending otherwise." He complained, trying at least a little to hold back some of the bile he felt churning in his gut. He didn't know why he was so angry these days, and he hated it, but he hated the thought of her pitying him, too.

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora frowned at Soren as he spoke. Like she cared? They'd been friends for four year, she cared about him, cared about him deeply. ”One of the group?” she repeated with confusion, did he dislike spending time with them. ”You're my best friend…or so I thought. What are you talking about?” she asked with slightly less snap in voice than before but concern and frustration bleeding into it. ”I care about you a lot,” she added, wondering if perhaps he just thought that she only cared for him because the others did.​

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren shut his eyes, biting back a frustrated sigh. "Really? You could've fooled me," He countered, grabbing his things and shoving them roughly into his bag. "When was the last time we did anything one on one, huh? I'm nothing more than another face. One of a set of three. One of the chasers. Just part of group after group after group." He slammed his bag on the bench and looked up, his hair in his eyes and frustration in his voice. "You don't know me, no one knows me. I'm always just included with the package, aren't I?" He sighed, tossing his bag over his shoulder. "Forget it, it's fine," He lied, turning and trying to leave the locker room.

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora frowned at his reaction, she thought it was funny that he would say all that, when he'd been icing her out, when he had been friendly when others were around but barely talking to her when they were alone. "It's a two-way street, Soren. You've been cold to me all semester," she replied with a little more desperation in her voice than she wanted. Soren was her friend, Aurora didn't want to no longer be friends. "That's ridiculous, I know you, I like you for you, whether or not it's 'with the package'" she replied frustratedly. "Rosie and I are just…are a package deal sometimes," she hoped that he wasn't frustrated because she was with Rosie a lot. She wondered if he was feeling this rough, how long he had been feeling like this.

 

[Amodeus Jones]

Amodeus is about to be put in timeout I swear

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren bit back a growl. "Really, Aurora? Really?" He snapped, tangling both hands in his hair a moment before turning back to look at her with frustration and a deep sadness in his eyes. "Then why is it that I'm only ever an option when you have no one else left?" He asked her, shoulders slumped. "You care soooo much but you don't bother with me until Rosie's busy with someone else. I'm sick of fighting for attention everywhere I go." He sighed in frustration and shook his head. "Just forget it." He snapped, turning and trying to leave again.

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora moved to be in front of the door preventing him from leaving the changing room. "What about you seeking me out? When was the last time you sought me out to hang out just the two of us," she replied a little hotly. She knew that she tended to seek out people when Rosie was busy, but not always and she just was very close to her twin sister. "Rosie's my sister, she's the person I've known all of my life...we spend a lot of time together, and when one of us is busy we also spend time with others, but if you wanted to hang out with us, we never would've said no. I would never," she said hating that as she spoke, thinking he didn't want to be friend anymore because she spent too much time with her sister instead of him, she could feel her eyes welling. "You don't need to fight for attention because I can pay attention to two people. Why didn't you just talk to me?"​

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren dropped his head back, staring up at the ceiling for a moment and taking a few deep breaths. "And say what, Aurora? Be the jerk that told you to stop hanging out with your sister so much?" He countered. "If I'm not worth the time I'm not going to go begging for it," He threw back. "I'm sick of being lost in the crowd. Rosie is always going off to see Xinyi, I see them around all the time. I'm not going to go running to chase you down anytime I think you're alone and I'm not going to make you ditch your sister because I'm sick of feeling invisible." he dropped down to sit, leaning back against the lockers. "I'm tired of being lost at home, lost in the crowds, lost on the team, always a tag-along,"

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora gave a deep sigh, just looking at Soren, looking at him. Holding his gaze as he spoke. She had had no idea he had felt this way, no idea spending time with them meant that. Aurora hadn't realized that in not always seeking him out that he had felt like she didn't care, when in part she hadn't always wanted to be bothering him. She would've always been happy for him to do that with her, but knew if she hadn't been doing that with him, why would he do that for her. Aurora crossed her arms over her chest, where she then shifted uncomfortable from foot to foot before dropping her arms to her side and moving to sit with him. ”I'm sorry Soren, I hadn't realized it was bothering you so much. I do always want to spend time with you, whether in a group or not. I should've reached out after you didn't come to the Yuleball, but I also didn't want to impose,” Aurora took a deep breath and crossed her legs under her. ”You aren't invisible to me, if that means anything, you never have been.” ​

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren sighed, leaning his head back against the wall and shutting his eyes. He offered out his hand, palm up, his anger turned into exhaustion, tears in the corners of his eyes. "I'm just tired," He offered gently." I'm sorry if I've been cranky." He turned his head, looking to her with a gentle smile. "Maybe... if you wanted, we could meet up for lunch or something? Out by the lake." He suggested, trying to meet her halfway. Despite his whirlwind emotions, he did still care deeply for his friend.

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora could see the way he was shutting his eyes, the way she could see the exhaustion begin to take over. She saw his hand, but didn't take it, instead going to put her arm around his shoulders and bring him in closer. Do as she would with hr sister when she needed company. Though if he rejected that, she would then take his hand. "I'd love to, you can catch me up on your date with Kiara, and I can complain about Monday and Aine always managing to answer all the questions in classes before me," she liked both Monday and Aine, but Aurora hadn't managed to answer a question in class in like a year.

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren let himself be pulled in, resting his head on her shoulder and shutting his eyes. "It wasn't like a date date," He told her. "Or maybe it was, I don't know." He shifted, curling more into her side. "I don't think we'll go again. Or at least I haven't thought to ask her again." He admitted softly. "If Rosie and Xinyi are pairing off maybe we can just hang out on our own," He suggested gently, not looking up at her as he did.

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora was comforted that he didn't pull away. ”Why not? Kiara's beautiful and she's kind,” she asked. She knew she'd been jealous of him and Kiara, that she was trying to figure out her own feelings with it. Aurora would support Soren before she let her own feelings get in the way. ”I'd love to hang out, just the two of us.” Aurora said sincerely. ”Plus it'll be easier to do that than to try to keep them apart,”

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren shrugged. "She is... I just don't see her that way," He offered gently, his arm over her stomach. This was probably the most comfortable he'd felt in ages. He snorted as she said it'd be easier than trying to keep them apart. "Are they like... together together?" He questioned, curious. "I know he's had a crush on her for forever," He laughed lightly. "Is she into him?"

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora didn't know why she felt reassured that Soren didn't see Kiara that way, though she immediately felt bad about it. She laughed lightly at the statement. ”Rosie loves him,” Aurora said, knowing that Rosie had never said it, but she knew. She didn't say anything else, letting a moment of silence follow, and then took a small breath. ”I felt a little jealous…when I saw you with Kiara,” she said quietly. Not sure what she was admitting to or why.

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren blinked, before smiling brightly. "Oh, wow, really?" He laughed. "I'm pretty sure he's over the moon for her, I've seen how he is with her," He offered, thinking of all the little things he'd seen with Xinyi. Though he was drawn out of his thought as Aurora spoke. He sat up, raising a brow. "Jealous? Why?" He questioned gently.

 

[Aurora Archer]

Aurora nodded, "I don't think she's realised it, but I know her as much as I know myself, I can see it," She told him with a little sure smile. Aurora gave a little shrug at the question. Not sure that she really wanted to get into more detail about it, but also knowing that she had opened the can of worms with it. "I guess, I wanted you to go with me, and I wasn't proactive, and suddenly you were going with someone else," Aurora said with a little second nervous shrug.

 

[Soren Gates]

Soren shifted, opening his arm and quietly offering to let her rest against him instead. "Well, why don't we just do this, then? We go to the Yule Ball together, you know, like a date?" He offered with an almost shy smile. "What do you think?" He bit his lip, oddly a little nervous himself now.