The Naked Truth (Kate)

[Adrian]

((Directly continued from here. Also, spectating is... allowed, since I don't believe in truly closed threads in open places, but... why would you want to?))

"Kate..."

Adrian spoke to the girl's back, his eyes crestfallen, his butt clad in a pair of working-class jeans. He had quickly gone from the highest of the high, having what he thought was just stupid fun, to the lowest he could go, wearing SOMEONE ELSE'S mid-priced pants and staring at the back of the obviously upset girl that he was crazy about.

He stepped forward, taking her hand from behind, trying to gently turn her around so he could talk to her face to face.

"Kate, talk to me. I saw you walk off like that... what's going on?"

[Kate]

Kate had redressed, in her own clothing once again. The blonde was standing there, her hand clasped by Adrian. He had noticed, somehow someway. In the middle of all that madness, he had noticed. She smirked just slightly, and turned. There was nothing on her face to suggest she was upset, but nothing that suggested warmth either. Her face was devoid of both.

"Someone tried to snap off my bra, I decided not to stick around after that is all."

She lifted an eyebrow at his current choice of wardrobe, which was a simple pair of jeans she knew was not his. He was barefoot, and shirtless. Kate smiled and squeezed his fingers a bit, trying to seem warmer than she felt.

"Go back to having fun Adrian, the population is missing their eye candy."

A chuckle, a little sour but she looked away. Emerald eyes glancing at something else.

[Adrian]

She tried to tell him off, in a manner of speaking, telling him that she was alright and the issue at hand wasn't a big one. Kate seemed to underestimate Adrian's ability to understand women, or at least that type of behavior in them. Any of the girls he had even been attached to in his relatively short dating life prior to Kate had all been snooty, prissy rich girls, and this was the kind of thing they were masters of. The 'oh, it's nothing' line. Adrian knew he couldn't buy it.

"The population will just have to deal with the frightening reality of Mathew's little buddy alone, I'm afraid," Adrian said, unable to resist a joke even in such a serious situation. His hand was still around hers, and he adjusted it so that his fingers were laced in between hers. Instead of pulling her around to him, he would walk over to in front of her, his free hand's index finger curling up and pressing lightly into her chin, using the flat side of his finger to lift her head up to meet his.

"Did I do something to upset you?"

If she were to meet his gaze, his icy blue eyes would be more full of remorse than he ever expected he could have. Sure, girls make boys feel all kinds of things they usually don't, that was to be expected. But, for a Hanlon to actually feel regret for something, now, that was the kind of thing one needed a witness and a sponsor for Guinness book for. And yet, here was Adrian, unsure what it was had gone wrong, considering her earlier carefree attitude concerning the streaking, and still ready to abandon the whole idea forever if she would just give the word.

Damn it, Adrian, you really are crazy for this girl, aren't you?

[Kate]

Would he just leave her alone?!?! Kate felt like punching him in the face. Even as he came around and tried to look her in eyes, her emerald orbs were rather blank. Not really looking at anything, let alone Adrian. That was her fighting anger, at least when it came to him. With everyone else she just lashed out, and with Adrian is was making an effort to hold it in. Why?

"..."

There was nothing to say, because the words failed her. She couldn't lie to him, lie to his face. Couldn't say the simple words "I'm fine stupid" and laugh it off. Because he had upset her. Because while it was all fine and dandy to go running through the school naked, but to flirt with other girls and hip thrust at them??? When... when he wasn't hers. That's right... Adrian Hanlon was not hers. She had no claim on him, no reason to be upset... and that hurt worse for some odd reason. But with that knowledge, there was some life in her emerald eyes. She reached up and grabbed his hand with a smile.

"Nothing is wrong Adrian."

Because he wasn't hers.

[Adrian]

Adrian regarded the girl, who stared coldly out at nothing as he spoke to her. She sat there in silence for a moment, before finally answering him, giving the same non-chalant reaction she had only moments before. There was more life in her eyes than usual, but even so, Adrian was a very stubborn boy, and he wouldn't let her alone until he got the real truth, or she decided never to see him again just to make sure she didn't have to talk.

Adrian was desperately hoping for the former, however.

"Come on," Adrian said, forcing a sad, thin-lipped smile. "Let's take a walk."

The school was a total madhouse, as the streaking sensation had caught on. People were running through the halls nude, and unbeknownst to Adrian, one of the teachers was getting quite involved in the process back at the courtyard. The blond hardly even noticed any of it, his hand in Kate's, as he started to move past the courtyard between one of the buildings. He had no real destination, he just wanted to walk with the girl.

"If there's anything you want to talk to me about it, then by all means, do so. If no, at least walk with me for a while?"

Adrian looked at Kate, his eyes looking a little hurt, and his mouth pressed tight into a straight line. For a boy that was almost always smirking, smiling, or sneering, such a facial expression was quite uncommon.

[Kate]

Kate didn't want to walk with him. Kate didn't want to talk to him. Kate didn't really want to see him at this moment. But she couldn't do that to Adrian. Her hand in his was limp, not really doing much other than being there. Which was very different to the way she normally was around him. All hands, touching every bit of skin and hair she could. From their previous sessions together, Kate had pretty much been all over him. Just as he had been all over her. But now? Nothing but a limp hand in his.

Because of the logic in Kate's mind. She wanted to be in a relationship with Adrian. She was falling for him, starting to really care for him, and the things he said or did. But Kate McHallin was scared. That's right scared.

Because of her past. Her father leaving her. Valekin had left too. And Damien raped girls. And Hiroko had raped her too. Farren had flitted in and out of her life as he pleased, toying with her heart. Sleeping with men was the easy part, because she didn't put any emotions in it. Rather, it was a way to hide all of them and forget about them. But with Adrian...

"You know... you boys are fucking stupid."

Just a generalized statement, but at least she was talking. Thinking over her past, and what had just happened. Boys were beyond stupid. Kate felt like smacking her head on something close to end her pent up anger and pain.

[Adrian]

"Yeah we are," Adrian said, not even missing a beat. He shook his head, meaning it when he said it. Her hand was limp in his, but he didn't let go. He also wouldn't move, not unless Kate did with him. Unfortunately, he was also afraid to do anything else. Kate, despite her tough exterior, seemed to be as fragile as anyone else at the end of the day.

Adrian decided instead to, at least for the moment, walk up to her, and take hold of her other hand, so that both of her hands were in his, and look her in the eye.

"C'mon. Let's just walk for a while. If you don't feel better after that... I'll let you beat the crap out of me until you do. Deal?"

[Kate]

Kate snorted in disbelief, but began to walk. One foot after the other, one step at a time. She sighed just slightly, lost in her memories like some old person about to die or something. She walked with him, even as the crowd of people surged backward.

"I dated a boy named Adrian before. Right after I dated Ghiste... I dated a boy named Adrian. We met when he was randomly paint balling people in the streets. He shot me with paint, my brand new outfit... I was so pissed I ran him down and beat his ass. And he smiled the entire time..."

Memory lane much? A ton.

"It was right after he left me that I got kidnapped. They were going to sell me to the slave market, make a killing. Dragged me around in a hummer, driving me to the docks. The bastard who kidnapped me tricked me into thinking he saved me... and I gave him my virginity..."

A harsh chuckle. How stupid had she been?

"He toyed with me until my gang stepped in. Farren... never stuck around long enough. Valekin and I... he left before anything ever happened... and he would have kept me safe. So safe... but he left too. Damien... Damien lost it when he heard about Karel tricking me. Went cooky for cocoa puffs... he raped her... my friend... because he thought she was one of Karel's girls. She wasn't... he lost it..."

She kept on walking, even though there were tears now. That's right, tears. She was thinking on parts of her life that hurt. That were building up to this.

"I couldn't touch him. I made him leave... right after that I was jumped, beat... they shattered my arm, cut off my hair, carved in my back. So angry, I slept with the first guy I ran into. Before I left New York I hooked up with Farren, my old prom date. But I left... and ran into Hiroko... we hung up when I was a freshman and he was a senior. He was a teacher... and we started dating. When I tried to leave he beat me, slapped me across the face, flung me over his shoulder... I woke up with a collar around my neck... and he raped me... I got pregnant... and miscarried."

She didn't care that there were tears on her face or anything. She didn't even notice at all. Kate was past that.

"All because of stupid men in my life. All because... I don't know... I don't know, I don't know...."

[Adrian]

Adrian listened to the girl as they walked hand-in-hand, looking on quite somberly. She began to tell him all about her past life, the things she'd only hinted at or mentioned before now became full-color storylines of the harshest moments of her life, and they all centered around other men. Adrian couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy strike him every time she mentioned of herself sleeping with any of them, but all the more than that, he found himself hating each and every one for doing what they did, and then having the nerve to leave her on top of it, most times.

"Kate..." Adrian began, letting out a sigh. He didn't know what to say. Adrian's past girlfriends had all been brought up in such a way that never necessitated any of this. Of course, Adrian's past girlfriends didn't really exist past a few dates or so before he was bored of them. Regardless, the boy wasn't particularly prepared for such a large drop of emotional baggage right on his toes.

That, of course, didn't stop him from carrying it. He was a gentleman, after all.

He would stop, and pull her into him, wrapping his arms around her and holding her tightly, behind the Science and Technology building. He held her there, whether she hugged him back or not. He whispered in her ear quietly what sounded like a line, but he meant every bit of it.

"Because everyone before me sucks."

He held her there a moment, leaning his head into hers. "Any words I say are meaningless, compared to my actions. And so, I won't say anything."

With that, Adrian, would release his hold on her, pulling back so she could see him. His blue eyes met her emerald greens, and he put a finger out to touch her nose lightly. "So just keep watching."

[Kate]

He pulled her into a hug, arms tight around her. Kate almost broke, almost. But she didn't. Kate still held back from letting go completely. She didn't epically cry or anything else. Just stood there, feeling his warmth. Adrian's skin was so warm, so nice.

"Keep watching you strip down nude, flirt with other girls, and hip thrust at them?"

Alright, there. Problem out in the open!!! She looked at him, and the tone in her voice suggested that it wasn't a problem he stripped down nude with everyone else. Because Kate had stripped too. But rather it was the combination of the three. Him naked in front of her and everyone, instead of just her. Flirting with other girls when she was right there, when she had only had eyes for him. And hip thrusting at them?!?! Yeah, she wasn't even going to say anything about that.

[Adrian]

And with one sentence, Kate turned his clever, smart, and sensitive words right back around and rammed them up his ass: Figuratively speaking, of course. Adrian, bit his lip, and looked down in shame. Then, it hit him. What... exactly had she said?

Adrian's eyes widened as he looked back up at the stunning girl in front of him. "I... flirt... ohhh Kate, no no no no," he said, shaking his head, an almost relieved look on his face. When he was dancing on table, he hadn't been flirting, he'd just been being silly. "What you saw wasn't quite what was happening. I didn't even realize that table had any girls on it when I hopped up there. I was just being... well, I don't know, raunchy. I didn't mean to be flirting with anyone, and believe me, if I was, I'd do it with more tact... and with more clothes on."

Adrian looked down again, still rather ashamed of his actions. He paused a bit before looking back at her.

"Now, I realize, I just said this not two seconds ago, that words are meaningless, but right now, they're all I have. I really wasn't trying to flirt. Hell, the girl who saw me, I'm pretty sure she was horrified at the show." Adrian managed a weak grin, and pleaded the girl with his eyes. He was about half a look away from giving poor Kate the 'sad puppy face'.

[Kate]

Kate just looked at him. Didn't mean to flirt? Kate almost grinned, the other girls would probably dream of him for many nights to come. Kate knew she would be. The blonde shook her head just slightly and sighed. There wasn't anything wrong with him flirting with other girls. She flirted with other boys... sometimes. And every single damned time she thought of him. Did he feel the same at all? Kate didn't know the inner workings of his mind. If she did, things would be much easier. Problems would be solved. But that wasn't reality.

"It doesn't matter anyway Adrian, don't worry about it."

She sighed and pulled away from him, standing there with her hands on her hips. Life just couldn't be easy at all, could it? It just had to be complicated. The pale woman didn't know what to say, or what to do. It didn't matter at all. They weren't dating. It didn't matter.

[Adrian]

Adrian looked at her in disbelief. She tugged away from him, and he let her go, willing to give the girl her space. He turned away, his pride really hurt by this. Here he was, trying to explain, and she was giving him the cold shoulder! What the hell did that even mean, it doesn't matter? He shook his head, visibly.

"No, Kate, it does matter..." he said, almost for his own benefit rather than hers. He turned around to look at her again. "It does matter, Kate, because I don't CARE about any other girls, I couldn't even think of them if I wanted to, because all I can ever think about since we met... is you."

Adrian stopped suddenly, realizing he had let the cat out of the bag. He stopped, his mouth slightly open. He had no idea whether or not Kate felt the same way, in fact, he doubted it. He'd heard all about the girl from people at school, and plus he'd heard her entire life story only moments prior. She wasn't interested in just one person, he was just another notch for her... right?

"Sorry," he said, looking down. "I... yeah... sorry."

[Kate]

Here he was confessing to her. It made her happy. It made her sad. It made her... too many damned things. She strode right back into his arms, not caring for two seconds the bad things that she was feeling. She just needed his arms around her. Kate pressed her lips to his, hungry. It'd probably be a fury of things from her, that he had never seen before. Kate was all passion, hot lips, hands roaming passion.

Why?

Because she felt the same. And she had been scared that she was just another notch on his belt. Was she ready to say that? Ready to say "I care about you so much, and I want to be in a relationship with you"? No. Not even. Every time she saw him though, every time she thought about him, it drew her a little closer to Adrian. Even if he didn't know it.

She pulled slightly away from him and her lips trembled for a second. His kisses made her knees get weak. It got worse every time too. Would he understand at all?

[Adrian]

That, apparently, did the trick. Almost as if a switch was flipped, Kate came back into his arms, which he willingly accepted, wrapping his arms tightly around her and pressing his lips to hers, just as she had the exact same idea for him. They kissed deeply for what seemed like an eternity, her hands all over him, his holding her closely to him as if she would disappear if he let go, their lips dancing over each others in nothing short of pure desire for each other's company, and not necessarily just in a sexual way.

Kate finally broke the kiss, pulling away only slightly, as that was all Adrian would allow. Now that she'd come forward, after feeling he almost had lost her, Adrian didn't plan on letting her go again. As she pulled back, Adrian gave her a quick peck on her forehead before leaning his head into hers, nuzzling her nose with his. He smiled that million-dollar smile he never seemed to have for anyone but her, but had nothing to say. Not anymore, at least.

That kiss had said everything he wanted to hear, AND wanted to say. Did he understand? Maybe not quite... but he definitely was getting the gist of it.