Little Bluebird Came Looking

[Sophia Night]

Sophia had found one person on her delivery list so far, but it had almost been too easy. She was sure locating the rest of the students would be much harder. The fact was proven to her as she began making her way up the corridor, stopping to ask people here and there whether they might know where any of the people on her list were. No one did, or only answered in vague terms that didn't satisfy Sophia at all. 'Outside' was a very large place after all, as one person had suggested. Nevertheless, she continued repeating the list of names as she moved up the corridor, falling into a sort of rhythm as she did so. "Excuse me, sorry, but do you know...?" "Sorry, excuse me, but have you seen...?" "Sorry to bother you, but where do you think...?" It was going to be a very long day.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob had been talking to his brother when he heard a girl pass him by and mention his name. He'd had his back to the corridor so perhaps the person hadn't seen him, though it was pretty amusing. Telling his brother to hang on, Jacob jogged to catch up and cut in front of the girl. "I'm Jacob Kingsley" he said, his hands hanging on to the straps of his backpack. "Have I got another rose?" he asked, a bit surprised. He'd been given one from Lavinia this morning which had been a huge surprise.

 

[Sophia Night]

Perhaps Sophia hadn't thought of the best way to approach this, but she couldn't give up in the middle of the responsibility she'd been given. It just wasn't in her nature, even if sometimes she wondered if her life would be easier if it was. Pausing to give herself a small break, a very tiny one, Sophia was startled to find someone actually approach her on their own. "Oh, hello," she said, hastening to make sure her posture was straight after having slumped slightly against the wall. "Um, I suppose so. Your name is definitely on the list." Sophia flushed a little once she had said it, hoping he wouldn't think she was being rude in her reply. Turning her face away to focus on picking his rose out of the bunch, she silently reprimanded herself before feeling able to return to polite conversation. Holding the rose and note out, she didn't quite know what to say next. "Um... have you had a good day?" she asked awkwardly.

Spoiler: Note

Hey,
Thanks for the candy cane, it was delicious. Maybe we should meet up somewhere?
Jacob.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob waited patiently until she'd handed over the rose and note. He glanced at it, then smiled as he realized who it was from. He hadn't seen Jacob around much, and an invitation to hang out was always welcome. Jacob hadn't really known what Jacob two thought of him. "Yea, this is my second one today so I'd say " he grinned. "You?" he tosses the question back to her, wondering if delivering flowers was as fun as delivering candy canes had been.

 

[Sophia Night]

Jacob seemed pleased with his delivery, which made Sophia happy, and he hadn't reacted at all to what she had thought might have come across as a rude response, which was even better. She felt like there was something in this delivery business that made the challenges of the task all worthwhile, and she found herself nodding at the boy's question. "Oh, yes actually, I did get some from my sister, she -" Sophia stopped, suddenly aware that Jacob was probably asking if she had also had a good day, not if she had had any roses herself. She flushed at her mistake. "Sorry, I mean... yes, it has been good. My sister, um, sent me some roses..." Aware that she was now repeating herself, Sophia trailed off. She was embarrassed, but her manners wouldn't let her suddenly run away in the middle of a perfectly polite conversation.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

"You have a sister here?" he asked, a look of genuine interest on his face. Jacob liked meeting other people with family here, and there seemed to be a lot of them in the school. He'd seen her around in classes, but they'd never spoken, and now he just found out they had something in common. "I do too. Well, not a sister but a sibling. My brother. Noah. Kingsley" he chattered on. Jacob was a talker once he got going, and he knew he shouldn't. She obviously had other roses to deliver. "Sorry, I'm being rude. You probably want to get to those" he nodded.

 

[Sophia Night]

"Oh, um, yes." Sophia responded. Jacob looked excited by this piece of information, though she didn't really know why. "Her name is Aurora - oh, but, if you ever meet her, you have to call her Rory," she added quickly. Her sister was quick to correct anyone who tried to use her real name, usually in loud tones that sounded like she was trying to start a fight with them. Sophia wanted to spare Jacob from such a situation if she could. She nodded in response to being told his brother's name, but was struggling to think of something interesting to say in reply and so latched onto the boy's last comment gratefully. "Um, yes, I probably should continue delivering. But it was nice to meet you," she said with a smile. It was the truth, after all.