[ Awesome. Bennett gathers up the book, cookies, phone, etc. and heads off! He'll go for the lecture hall and let himself in, then pause and look around for someone who looks like they're in charge. Is there a professor or TA around? ]
[ there is an authority figure here, all the way at the front, and it looks like everyone else presently sitting in the classroom's getting some last-minute studying in. ]
[ While Bennett waits he has time to think, and while he's thinking he comes to a realization. This school... is really weird!
But not weird like a dream, where everything is indistinct and wobbly. Weird like showing up here in the first place, or the phantom pain and emotions he's been feeling all week. It's weird in ways that follow a kind of logical track. This is a puzzle to solve, not an obstacle to bust through. He needs to play along.
So when Sage shows up Bennett responds like this is normal, even though he doesn't have any idea who she is. ]
[ Oh. The hurt settles in the pit of his stomach has him looking away, unsteady and uncertain. He swallows, then forces himself to grin and look back to Sage. ]
Oh-- yeah! Lead the way.
[ Hopefully he can find out what a karaoke is along the way. ]
[ she lists the names of people, though what bennett interprets is different from what she actually says. he hears the syllables, the words, but his brain just kind of converts it to: ]
Ace, Tamamori, and Ryouma. That's okay, right?
[ hearing tamamori's name in particular makes bennett feel weird, but it's not as bad as the hurt he felt from earlier, at least. ]
[ cool! they're gonna just chill on the way to the karaoke bar.
strangely enough, as bennett starts heading there, something about the atmosphere starts to feel...thick. hazy. like it's feeding off of bennett's feelings of loneliness, perhaps? and quite possibly making it linger longer than he'd like. god knows what sage is feeling or thinking, but things don't feel right.
either way, they're at the karaoke bar now...and bennett will see a familiar face. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[ a reaffirming nod from the stranger! ]
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Hiya! I'm trying to figure out who owns this phone, and I think they're supposed to be in this class.
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Oh, uh...
[ they see the phone case and squint at it. then they look back at bennett. ]
Isn't this supposed to be yours?
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Uh... I-I don't think so! Um...
[ He fumbles for a minute, and then: ] Uh, do you know where Sage is, actually?
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"Sage"? We don't have a student by that name in this class.
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Um... well, if they come looking, can you tell them I was here? I'm gonna...
[ ... slide out into the hall, pull up the message from Sage, and v e r y s l o w l y text back with: ]
where are you
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[ the reply comes quickly, at least: ]
lower campus
want me to come meet you @ lecture hall? are you done with finals already?
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yes im done
ill wait here
in front of the hall
[ And then maybe he can figure out who this belongs to! ]
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ok. be right there.
[ the person at the front keeps staring at him in confusion. student, what are you doing... ]
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Steps into the hallway to wait for Sage. ]
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a girl will approach bennett at 2:45 with a wave and a little smile on her face. ]
Hey. Sorry if I kept you waiting. [ an awkward pause, then: ] You...still down to hang out? Post-finals celebration?
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But not weird like a dream, where everything is indistinct and wobbly. Weird like showing up here in the first place, or the phantom pain and emotions he's been feeling all week. It's weird in ways that follow a kind of logical track. This is a puzzle to solve, not an obstacle to bust through. He needs to play along.
So when Sage shows up Bennett responds like this is normal, even though he doesn't have any idea who she is. ]
Yeah! You ready to go?
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Yeah, you got it. We can chill in the room for a bit while we wait for the others? Is that cool?
[ she takes out her phone really quick. seems like she's got a message, too. she reads it, lets out a little laugh – ]
What the hell? ████████ just sent me a picture of a lla–
[ and then she stops, like she's said something terribly wrong. she shakes her head.
yeah, that hurt from earlier, bennett? you're probably feeling it now, too. ]
Never mind. Let's go to the karaoke bar.
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Oh-- yeah! Lead the way.
[ Hopefully he can find out what a karaoke is along the way. ]
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anything he'd like to talk to her about? or would he like to do something before they get there? ]
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So, who else is coming?
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Ace, Tamamori, and Ryouma. That's okay, right?
[ hearing tamamori's name in particular makes bennett feel weird, but it's not as bad as the hurt he felt from earlier, at least. ]
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It's fine, though, because it means he's making progress. ]
Yeah, of course! I bet it'll be a lot of fun.
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[ she sounds sincere about that, at least.
any other actions you'd like to take, bennett? (their conversations can be handwaved unless they're things you'd like direct answers to!) ]
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redirecting
strangely enough, as bennett starts heading there, something about the atmosphere starts to feel...thick. hazy. like it's feeding off of bennett's feelings of loneliness, perhaps? and quite possibly making it linger longer than he'd like. god knows what sage is feeling or thinking, but things don't feel right.
either way, they're at the karaoke bar now...and bennett will see a familiar face. ]