Rip Tide {Alex}

[ROSEMARY NERISSA MARINO]

Rosemary had never been the kind of person to run home right after her classes, but after Claire had... well... disappeared, so to speak, Rosie avoided heading home like the plague. Infinity College was also convenient enough to offer her plenty of distractions. She had a perfectionist personality and could always be doing something better. It didn't matter whether it was up to her hair, her violin music, or anything else that might arise. Everything was held to the same specific standards, although those standards had risen after the traumatic encounter that she had experienced only a week ago.

A week after finding out that she was supposed to be some mystical senshi sent to save Earth? There was no way she could do this alone and she definitely didn't want to carry this kind of secret by herself. It was too much to handle. While she had never been amazingly brave before, she had been forced into a situation where there really was no choice. As much as she hated the idea of battling some unknown disease for some superior cause, the disease had taken Claire and there was no forgiving that one.

Despite the chink in Rosemary's mental armor, none of her classmates had bothered to notice the significant decrease in noise coming from Rosie's general direction. Even in face to face conversations, her companions (if you could call them that) had been too caught up in their own lives and issues to notice the sad look in Rosemary's eyes nor the absence of her best friend since elementary school. Then again, she hadn't really expected anyone to when it came down to it. That was the drawback of keeping everyone out of her personal life.

All these factors had led to her finding her way into one of the smaller gardens just inside the Infinity College grounds. It was only just barely off the main walkway, but usually contained enough privacy for Rosemary to be by herself. Most of the Infinity College students acted like zombies with their studies anyway. As always, Rosie had her violin, a one of a kind Stradivarius, right by her side. She unlatched the clasps on the side and pulled out the polished piece of wood and strings that had become so much of a major part of her life. After tuning it, more out of habit than actual necessity, she slipped the bow out of the case and set it against the strings.

It was incredible what kind of sound could emerge from such a simple instrument, but it always took Rosemary to a different place. She forgot about the pain and suffering of her present life and put herself completely into the piece of music she was currently practicing. It was a simple piece, but one that could only sound remotely good if emotion was put into it. That was Rosie's specialty. Although she didn't express her emotions anywhere else, if someone paid attention to her music keenly enough, they could tell her life story. However, she never got caught up in her music so much that she completely lost her surroundings. Once she sensed another presence in the general vicinity, her bow hit a sour note and Rosie's eyes sharply opened, looking around the garden opening for the intrusion.

[ALEXANDRIA ELIZABETH O'NEIL]

Alex casually walked around the Infinity College campus afternoon class had ended, holding a rather thick, paper backed book in her hands. Her blue eyes darted across the pages as she strolled around campus, bobbing and weaving through people without really looking at them. The book she held in her hand was actually the Infinity College Catalog. Alex had recently started her third year of college and was getting close to finishing off her general education courses and was feeling more pressure every day to pick a major, and figure out what she was going to do with her life. But how was she supposed to know what she wanted? Sure, she could continue racing and make an even bigger name for herself, but eventually she would have to stop that and join the real world and get a real career.

The unusually tall, androgynous woman continued walking along campus, wearing a white button up shirt, suspenders, and a pair of dress pants. Most people thought she was a boy, sure it was annoying, but she felt comfortable when she dressed as a boy. There were the occasional times when she liked to dress up in a skirt or something, but those times were few and far in-between. Lex continued walking across campus, her face in a book, when she heard the soft dulcet tones of a violin. She stopped for a moment to listen, but continued walking as she started to read about the Aviation program offered at Infinity College.

Without paying attention, Alex started walking towards the sound of the violin. The short haired blonde entered the small garden off the main path and looked up when she realized that she was much closer to the sound being emitted from the violin. A smirk formed on the blonde’s face when she realized who the infamous violinist was. Rosemary Marino. Alex had heard about the girl. She was somewhat famous for her violin playing, and she had noticed how pretty the girl was from a pamphlet that had been passed around announcing one of Rosemary’s concerts. Alex closed the catalog and held it in one hand and slid her empty hand into her pocket just as the screeching note from Rosemary’s violin pierced Alex’s ears. Wincing slightly at the sound, Alex peered at Rosemary with her ice blue eyes. ”Hey, Rosie. No need to snap a string. I was just taking a lovely stroll when I was distracted by the lovely notes you were producing.” she said with a quick wink and another smirk.

And there it was. The infamous O’Neil charm that Alex definitely possessed.

Alex took a couple steps toward Rosemary. ”I didn’t mean to interrupt. I was just doing some…light reading.” she said as she flicked her wrist lightly, gesturing to the catalog she held in her hand. ”I’m Alex O’Neil.” she said simply, extending her right hand out to shake Rosemary’s. ”And sorry if it’s creepy that I know who you are. I recently got a pamphlet about your last concert. You’re quite popular around here.” she said, ending with another wink.

More charm, but it was to be expected. Alex was a charmer, and Rosemary was a beautiful girl. The two went hand in hand.

[ROSEMARY NERISSA MARINO]

Rosemary's eyes landed on the short blonde that was standing just off to her side. Although she didn't immediately recognize the other individual, she eventually realized that she had seen her from the news before. She was the racing prodigy. Alex.... Alex O'Neil, that's who she was. Rosie could half remember one of Alex's races just last weekend. The girl was the talk of Tokyo, especially since she competed against men with twice her experience and made them seem like children. Oh, it had raised quite the ruckus, but Alex didn't seem phased at all and it didn't really surprise Rosemary much to find the prodigy in an Infinity College uniform. The school had a tendency to attract individuals with extraordinary powers, after all. Rosemary knew she was an example of that.

The sour note from her violin made even Rosie wince and she placed the instrument on her lap out of embarrassment. She very rarely let surprise get the best of her, but there was something about Alex that made Rosemary a bit nervous. She wasn't sure exactly what it was, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to stick around to find out. After all, instinct was telling her to run and get as far away from this other girl as possible, but her heart was telling her to stay. After all, Alex had used a nickname usually reserved for Rosemary's closest friends but it had seemed so natural coming out of her mouth.

"Oh trust me, you're just as popular around here. After all, I don't think you'd be able to go anywhere without causing a ruckus. The woman that surpasses all others in her field? Trust me, you don't exactly slip under the radar, either." With her violin placed in her lap, Rosemary traced over the engravings in the surface of the wood without even really knowing it. She had quite a few subconscious habits that gave away her true restless feelings, but she would never admit to it. There was a small matter of pride that got in the way there.

"What kind of light reading are you talking about?" Rosemary asked, training her eyes to Lex's college manual, "If you'd like, I could help. I've probably been there before and if the rumors are true, you're fairly new to the college, is that correct?" There was something about Alex that made Rosemary want to stay with her and protect her no matter what happened. She felt like she had known this woman before, but she wasn't sure exactly where and with all that had happened within the last couple days, she wasn't completely sure if it was a good idea to be letting Alex in. However, there was a feeling deep down that told Rosie that Alex may be an asset in the near future and Rosemary was willing to go off of her gut for once in her life.

[ALEXANDRIA ELIZABETH O'NEIL]

Alex’s eyes widened slightly when Rosemary announced that she actually knew who Alex was, and even admitted that she was quite popular herself. Alex wasn’t one to brag, but Rosemary was right. Alex was one of the youngest members in the racing league, and not only that; she was a woman. This added to her popularity. It wasn’t every day that a woman broke into a field completely dominated by men and actually beat them at their own game. It was just surprising to Alex that Rosemary had actually heard of her. Racing and the arts were two different worlds entirely; it was just surprising that Alex’s existence even made a blip on the violinist’s radar.

”Oh, you think so? I never noticed.” she stated, another infamous smirk forming on her lips. Alex looked into Rosemary’s eyes and found herself entranced by them. There was something about this girl, something different. Alex had the strange urge to know everything about this girl, to constantly stay by her side, and to protect her. Alex closed her eyes and lingered for a second, before smirking again. ”You really give me too much credit. I just drive a car faster than others. What you have is true talent.” she said as she motioned to the violin which Rosemary was currently tracing the etchings in.

Alex couldn’t help but smile as she watched Rosemary casually and delicately trace the markings on the violin that rested upon her lap. But Alex couldn’t tell if she was making the girl nervous or if it was just a habit for her to do such things. Alex was thinking of a way to try and gracefully dip out and leave Rosemary to her violin. After all, it was Alex who had entered the garden and interrupted her practice. But right as she was about to say her goodbyes, Rosemary asked what type of light reading Alex had been doing and something about a rumor that Alex was new to the school.

”Well, Rosie. You probably shouldn’t listen to petty rumors.” Alex warned as she took a seat on the bench next to the violinist. ”I actually just started my third year here at Infinity College, so I’ve actually been here for a while. People just only recently noticed when I started making a name for myself in the racing world.” she admitted. ”But anyways, I’ve just been browsing the school catalog. I…haven’t exactly picked a major yet.” It was hard for Alex to admit things like this to other people, but she felt like she could tell Rosemary anything and the girl would understand. ”It’s a little embarrassing…” she admitted, turning her head away from Rosie for a moment. ”I got a full ride to come here and participate on the track team, and I figured along the way I would know what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. But no such luck…”

”Recently I’ve been looking into Aviation and Dietary Science, but nothing seems right, you know? And I don’t want to just blindly make a decision…” she cut herself off and chuckled nervously. ”I’m sorry, I’m rambling…”

What was this girl doing to her?

[ROSEMARY NERISSA MARINO]

Why was she trying to make conversation? Rosemary had never been one for chit chat and usually only attempted a personal connection if she was being forced to. Alex, however, seemed to make her comfortable, although Rosemary couldn't quite put her fingers on it. She could feel that there was something different with Alex, some kind of unique aura, that Rosie had never felt before and she wanted to know more.

Alex's modest comment about not really having talent made Rosemary smile a little, although the expression was still tainted with sadness. "Trust me, if you saw the way some people drive, you wouldn't think it's so easy. Let's just say that my mom wasn't necessarily the best driver when I was growing up. Not crashing when you're going that fast around a turn with twenty other cars around is definitely a talent." Thankfully, Rosemary hadn't inherited her mother's driving skills, but she wasn't a huge fan of driving on her own, anyway. She'd rather walk if she was able to contrary to being behind the wheel.

"And I guess I've learned my lesson with the rumors although I find it fairly odd that we've never seen each other before. I'm a third year, too, but I guess we don't run in the same circles." Either that or it might have been because Rosemary made it a point to avoid her classmates. Most of them just gave her the creeps. Sure, they were talented. There was no doubt about that because the faculty didn't accept anyone who wasn't going places fast, but there was something off-putting about them and Rosemary's gut had never led her wrong before. There was just something completely wrong about Infinity College.

Mostly everyone had gone through the stress of trying to choose a major at some point in their life. Rosemary, however, had never had to deal with that. Her life had been made up for her, partially by her parents, but partially because she could never imagine herself doing anything other than playing violin. "Well I'm a heavy believer in doing what you love for the rest of your life. My violin's almost like a part of me so I wouldn't be able to part with it. That's why I'm music performance. Figure out what you truly love in your life and think about what you can do with that. I know it's clliche, but it's true. Don't let the faculty make up your mind for you, either." Rosemary had heard stories of the faculty steering students in directions that they didn't want to go. Sure, the student ended up excelling in that field, but it wasn't what they truly wanted to do.

[ALEXANDRIA ELIZABETH O'NEIL]

Alex couldn’t help but listen to Rosemary as the two sat on the bench. There was something about her that was keeping Alex’s attention. Alex was kind of a flirt on a regular basis and she generally chatted up any and every girl that she found attractive. But something was different about Rosemary. She had Alex hanging on her every word.

Alex smirked slightly when Rosemary questioned why the two hadn’t run into each other more often, suggesting that it was because they ran in different circles. Chuckling softly, she nodded. ”Yeah, that’s probably why.” she said simply. It made sense, actually. Rosemary was obviously involved with the arts, and Alex was one of the biggest jocks on campus. She hated to say it, but college was just like high school, filled with cliques and petty drama.

Alex looked down at the course catalog once again and sighed as Rosemary explained that she believed in doing what made someone happy. It made sense, really, but Alex had no clue what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. She still had a semester left to decide on what to do, but the deadline was getting closer and closer and she needed to make a decision. ”Thanks for the advice.” she said with an appreciative smile. ”But I really have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life. Forever is a really long time…”

[ROSEMARY NERISSA MARINO]

Although the conversation wasn't completely what Rosemary would have described as "deep," there was a something intriguing to it in her mind and it seemed like Alex might be feeling the same way, too. Either that or Rosemary was beginning to imagine things and with how odd things had been lately, that was completely a possibility. Rosie decided to keep quiet about her feelings for the time being. Not only that, but after what had happened to her and the new awakening, dragging someone else into her life was the last thing she wanted to do.

There was a brief moment of rare vulnerability where Rosemary had the urge to reach out and touch Alex's hand for some sort of comfort when just as quickly, her emotions turned around completely and all Rosemary wanted to do was push Alex away and build up her emotional barriers again. There was no room for letting someone new into her life right now, especially not someone she was drawn to as much as she was to Alex. She was absolutely torn, both wanting to get to know Alex better and keep her as far away as possible. She wanted so badly to say something to Alex and opened her mouth briefly before shutting it and slipping her violin back in its case.

"I have to go," she said abruptly, getting up from the bench.

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