Room 222 | Wednesday Afternoon

[pursuedthestars]

Jim still hadn't seen any sign of Jackson. He spared a few thoughts to hoping the guy wasn't dead in a ditch somewhere but he otherwise didn't care. It still meant he had the room to himself which was always fun. He didn't have any classes today so he'd gone out for a long run. The weather had been perfect for it, not too hot and not too cold.

He'd gotten back a few minutes ago and had gone about getting a shower and getting some pants on. His hair was still wet and his shirt was still on his bed because he hadn't put it on yet. Jim sat down on the edge of his bed and stretched his legs out.

He'd get to the shirt in a minute. Jim was just going to enjoy sitting down and resting for right now.

[Door & post are open]

Comments

[whenshewasnice]

At this point in the week, Natalie was mostly trying to keep from pacing around the dorms. She was not doing a great job of it. It was actually kind of what she getting back from doing when she paused in Jim's doorway.

"... Seriously?"

She meant his shirtlessness.

[pursuedthestars]

"What?" Jim asked, glancing over at her. "What could possibly pull that reaction from you?"

[whenshewasnice]

"Most of us hang out with our shirts on with our doors open."

Not that she was exactly objecting. But still.

[pursuedthestars]

"I just took a shower, gimme a break," Jim told her, shaking his head. He even held up his shirt. "My shirt's right here, I just haven't put it on. Like I literally just got out of the shower."

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie just shrugged.

"Well, you asked."

Although she might have provided reasons for her reaction anyway. But she also might not have.

[pursuedthestars]

"Do you want me to put a shirt on?" Jim asked, raising an eyebrow. "Does it make you uncomfortable that I'm not wearing a shirt?"

[whenshewasnice]

"Really," Natalie drawled. "It's devastating. I don't know where to look."

That was some thick sarcasm.

[pursuedthestars]

"Prude," Jim said, picking his shirt up and tugging it over his head. "Fine, I'll do it. For you. Don't ever say I didn't do anything for you, though."

[whenshewasnice]

"Wouldn't dream of it," she replied as she stepped into the room. Needing the distraction. Any distraction, really. "You'll just have to deal with my prudishness."

[pursuedthestars]

"What're you doing here, anyway?" Jim asked, getting to his feet and shaking his hair out a bit.

[whenshewasnice]

"Walking. Currently standing."

It was possible her mood could have been better, if her dry wit was anything to go by.

[pursuedthestars]

"How literal of you," Jim said, rolling his eyes. "Let me know how that goes for you, okay?"

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie brushed some hair away from her eyes.

"I wasn't sure how detailed a description you wanted."

[pursuedthestars]

"Are you here for any other reason than we live nearby each other?" Jim asked her, leaning back on his hands.

[whenshewasnice]

"Do I need more reasons?"

She probably had them. She just didn't feel like making sense of them or trying to classify what they were.

[pursuedthestars]

"Considering you don't seem like the type to stop by just for friendly conversation?" Jim nodded. "You don't need them but you have other reasons, I bet."

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie batted her eyelashes at him. "What? Don't you just think I missed you?"

Then she dropped that act and shrugged a shoulder. "Don't know."

[pursuedthestars]

"You don't know if you have other reasons or you don't know why you came by?" Those might have been the same thing.

[whenshewasnice]

"Those might be the same thing," even Natalie pointed out. Without really answering the question. "I think you should maybe focus on what I'm going to do now that I'm here."

Not that she was sure about that, either.

[pursuedthestars]

"Okay. So, what are you going to do now that you're here?" Jim asked obligingly. "I can focus on that, sure."

[whenshewasnice]

"Haven't decided that yet, either," Natalie admitted. She reached behind herself to close the door, anyway. "Still think it has a better chance of being positive than my reasons for stopping by are likely to be."

[pursuedthestars]

"Still not having a good time of it?" Jim asked, getting to his feet and wandering closer to her.

[whenshewasnice]

"No." That she was definitely sure of. Without any kind of doubt at all. She watched him coming closer. She didn't move, but she also didn't exhibit any particularly closed-off body language, either. "Can't say I am."

[pursuedthestars]

"Wanna talk about it?" he asked as he came to stand in front of her. He didn't think he'd get a positive answer to that question.

[whenshewasnice]

"If you'd listened to the radio this morning, you'd know that my ex is missing." Sigh, Clint. "And has been for days now. So no. I don't want to talk about it."