damn rough night [prince]

Giant pgymy whales?

That was an oxymoron if she had ever heard one. Jaime resisted the urge to snort while she remained prone on the side of her bed. Last night's house party had been a hit, with a well-stocked selection, great music for those physically coordinated and drunk alike. A handful of her cohort had persuaded her to come with and she obliged, an easy decision. Either way, she had gotten separated from her friends and gotten a little tipsy (read: drunk enough to have gotten into a bed with a stranger after shucking her jeans).

Ugh, she really needed to drink some water and find a toothbrush. Sleeping in last night's clothes hadn't been a great idea, Jaime wondered if she could sneak out without startling anyone— Then she heard the sheets rustle and the covers being pulled back frantically. It was when she turned towards the other, peeking out from one eye, hair mussed but still half-clothed. No private bits hanging out.

WHOOHOO! One for Team Modesty!

But she couldn't say the same for the guy though. He was cute. And horrifically traumatised, judging by his expression. Eyes wide and lips parted in shock. From the looks of things, he was naked under the white sheets and on the edge of a panic attack. Yum. Anywho, it was even too early for her to be a pervert right now after the previous night's shenanigans, drinking games were a bitch. She probably avoided a banging hangover by the skin of her teeth. But that didn't mean she was at 100 percent capacity.

Stretching leisurely, her tank top rode up slightly, revealing black panties, Jaime yawned and shot the russet-haired male a lazy smile. Wow, she could practically hear all his thoughts by just his expressions. He was broadcasting, leaking confusion and panic.

"Morning, sunshine. Did you sleep well?"

Somehow, even if she didn't quite do any touching, this kid made her feel like she had just wrongfully sullied his pure innocent soul. Or just scared the shit out of a puppy. Where was this guilt coming from? But she had to go the distance, since she was already here. So what if she was twenty-four? Jaime kneaded a shoulder, sighing.

"Man, I'm so sore."

Oh dear, maybe she had taken it too far. Jaime watched as his entire face flushed crimson, the color spreading down to his neck and across the wing of his collarbone. That guilt she mentioned just now? It just came back twice-fold but it was too damn funny.

Especially when he had blurted out a clumsy apology that was just so sincere.

She wouldn't even be too surprised if he used "gosh darn it" instead of "fuck" to swear. Or well, try to. This was just too precious. He felt like he belonged to the 1940s. Jaime took a long sweep of his current situation and expression, and just couldn't take it anymore.

The med school student threw back her head and laughed, a little too hard because she subsequently fell off her side of the bed, long legs akimbo as she still continued her cackling fit. The way this was playing out, she might as well have been the one who had 'corrupted' him, so to speak.

It was a while before she could even pick herself up, raucous laughter trickling into chuckles. Jaime wiped a few tears away and settled back on the mussed sheets, sighing as she gave him another glance.

He was the textbook case of utter bewilderedness.

"I—" Jaime had to clench her jaw to stop her urge to giggle from bubbling over, "I'm just screwing with you." The ensuing reaction on his face told her that it had been a bad word choice and she raised both of her hands, palms facing him, in a peaceful gesture.

"Nothing happened, okay? You didn't sully my 'innocence' as you obviously thought you did." A grin tugged at her lips. The afterthought that she probably wouldn't mind that at all was kept to herself. She didn't think he could take anymore shocks. Med school came in handy sometimes.

"We just slept in the same bed, that's all. You were knocked out by the time I came in, I was tired, so I climbed into that side. That's all. I swear." Jaime crossed over skin where her heart thumped away and rearranged her features into the most solemn expression she could manage.

Which wasn't really the most trustworthy, if she had to be honest.

This one was definitely a sweetheart, Jaime mused with a grin; she almost felt bad for whatever she had done. He had reached over to help her up but he seemed to have realised that he was completely buck naked under the sheets and that he was going to expose himself if he moved anymore.

Damn it, it's a pity that she's not being shown more but she'll let him have a moment to recover before his brain melted in his head. The shade of red on his face is literally reaching dangerous levels of saturation and tone.

It wouldn't be good to have a death by embarrassment on her hands and she had already explained everything!

She then looked around and realised that there wasn't any article of male clothing anywhere. Oh. That could be another reason why he's sitting there, unmoving, and praying for a miracle. Or maybe even a time machine. Jaime guessed that the preservation of his innocence now fell in her hands. Well, she wasn't that bad of a person.

Straightening, she unabashedly located her jeans and dressed herself, before turning around to size him up again. After a few moments, she grinned and then issued an order of sorts.

"Stay here. I'll be right back."

The door shut behind her with a soft click and then she tiptoed across the hallway, familiar with the interior since it wasn't her first party in this house. Jaime sneaked into a room, knowing that her friend was going to be out like a light with the amount of alcohol he consumed to impress a couple of giggling freshers despite being a Ph.D. student. Anyways, back to what she was here for.

The guy lived her, and this was his room, plus he was kind of the same size as the adorable naked puppy she just left in the other room. She sneaked in, smirking when she spotted a messy head of blonde hair beside a close cropped brunet peaking out from the duvet.

They were sleeping rather soundly, she doubted an earthquake would wake them.

Jaime crept to the drawers and grinned to herself when she found what she was looking for: T-shirts and jeans. The would-be thief grabbed a selection and fled. Then it occurred to her that Ryan had sex without locking his door. Living on the edge, that one.

The CIT student quickly made her way back and dumped her loot on the bed.

"I wasn't sure what you liked, so I grabbed a bunch. Don't worry, the owner's a friend of mine and he owes me a couple of favours. He wouldn't even notice these missing. Take your pick!" Then she grinned unapologetically, "I didn't get you any underwear because I don't think you'd wear his anyways."

Without a warning, she walked into the adjacent bathroom to rinse out her mouth and to give him a chance to get dressed. As much as she would have liked to stay and watch but eh, she didn't think the puppy would allow.

Sad times.

Puppy. Puppy.

Jaime resisted the urge to pinch his cheeks but she didn't think that it was going to be anymore appropriate than pulling his pants down in their current situation. It didn't take him long to get dressed and she came out of the bathroom feeling better. He looked alright in the looted clothes but she preferred him naked.

A troll face meme right here would be great, thank you very much.

But she kept that little tidbit to herself once again and shot the male (very much a fresher, she could smell it) a bright grin. She was hungry and no one was gonna stop her from getting waffles from Roscoe's.

"Be very quiet... everyone is still dead to the world."

The boy nodded at her and the two of them slipped out without much fuss. The house was in a mess, a logical situation after a successful gathering but she really didn't pity the people in charge of cleaning up later. However, it wasn't her business so therefore adios! It had been a pretty good night. They walked to the car park and it was then she realised her bike wasn't with her today when they began to spilt their ways to different sections, him to his car probably and she to the motorcycle area.

Oops.

Well, looks like she was going to spend some more precious time with this boy. Jaime turned back and gave the kid a crooked grin.

"Hey, could you do me a favour and give me a lift? I didn't bring my bike along with me last night. I'd really appreciate it—"

Her stomach choose that particular moment to rumble and growl in reminder. She checked her watch. Crap, those waffles aren't going to wait for her. It was almost noon and that place was going to teem with people after they didn't get there quickly enough. So she dug her heels in and shamelessly held out a hand.

"Since we're going get to know each other a lot better, I'm Jaime. Nice to meet you. The grin didn't leave her face. She was just too hardened against embarrassment after all the shenanigans she'd pulled thus far in her life. So she turned her hand to have her palm face skywards.

"This is a little unorthodox but since we're on a good start," Another grin made an appearance on her face, "Can I have your keys? There's a promotion with Roscoe's today, they make the best waffles, I swear but we have to get there soon if we want any. And I promise you we'll stop over for a quick underwear purchase for your sake."

Jaime injected a lot of sincerity in her next words, eyes pleading, "Pretty please."

"Weird is just another way of saying 'storytime worthy', in my opinion," Jaime grinned, fingers closing over the keys. "You're not going to regret this, those are going to be the best waffles and chicken you'll ever have. You up for it?"

That had been a cute sheepish grin; did he usually turn everyone around him to Asian grandmothers, who puttered around exclaiming skinniness and good looks by pinching everywhere. Jaime took that expression as an affirmative and they got into a black Accura MDX, not too flashy but still nice. V6 engines, 3.7cc, and hardy. All in all, not too bad.

Be careful? Jaime nodded, twisting the key and she felt the car come to live under her hands. As much as she would love to hit the gas on this baby and pretend to be in an F1 race, Jaime respected property (some) and so she stayed within the speed limit. She didn't think he would appreciate another probable heart attack, even if she was a med student and CPR with this dude wouldn't be too much of a chore.

And because she's nice, she strikes up conversation as she shifted gears.

"So what are you studying and in which college?"

The answer she was going to get was not something she had expected.

Starting in September—

Jaime paused and ignored the little voice in her head that accused her of being a cougar. Six years' difference. Well, that's something new. Either way, it's not a crime to appreciate from afar. You just can't touch, that's all. Besides, waffles are all she's capable of being interested right now.

"I'm in CalTech as well," The med student recovered with a smile, eyes still firmly kept on the road. It wouldn't be a good idea to give him another opening for a heart attack. She wondered if she should tell him exactly what she was studying but before she could even continue, the radio was switched on and Nicki Minaj's distinctive rapping came onto air.

Again, that was something new.

Plus, she didn't need to see to know that the kid was probably blushing his ass off and a side glance told him that she was right, the tips of his ears red as he buried his face into his hands. Adorable, really.

"Nice song," her smile turned into a shit-eating grin but hey, music's music and each to their own. Why give a shit what others thought about your taste when the very notion of music choice is such a personal thing. "Nothing to be embarrassed about, honestly. So tell me, what are you expecting your way in college?"

While she enjoyed amusement at others' expenses rather often, the kid's had a rough day and could probably use a break. Besides, what freshman wouldn't be full of expectations and excitement? God, it was a while ago when she began her post-high school education but she did remember the anticipation, the churning at the pits of her stomach as her first day drew closer.

At least the kid was going in with some sort of grounded expectations, general, yes, but all in all, vague and up in the air was the right approach. Especially if you didn't really know what you wanted to do, not everyone was lucky enough to know exactly what their calling was. For Jaime, it took a vehicular accident and a loss of a relative to attain that, but that was history.

She wasn't going to regal him with her stories, not when he's got his to write soon. Sometimes, you just have to give a person their space, for personal growth and whatnot. The whole 'I can show you the world' shebang was a little overrated; if you've got all four functioning limbs, what's stopping you?

Though a little spontaneous adventure must be had every so often.

Jaime quirked a corner of her lips when he brought up his uncertainty regarding his ability to cope, as they turned a corner left into another street. How did you think she came across the best waffle and chicken store in all of LA without looking it up on the internet? The whole process involved some drag queens, lost heels and three am bitch sessions about wigs and how some men knew make up better than a woman could ever hope for.

"It's one thing thinking that you can, and another knowing that you will. Have a little faith, you got accepted, didn't you?" She wasn't unaware of their mutual college's national and international ranking. "The hard part's over and you'll see the wonder of pass/fail classes."

After this one last bit, she swore. "You've got the right opinion- at least the one that I'd agree with. Not expecting anything when it comes to college, besides the academic requirements. The best things that happen usually announce their arrival with the force and speed of a professional NFL side tackle. Now those are fun. Try everything once and you'll be set for epic uncle/father/grandfather hood. Plus, it would save you a lot of heart attacks in the future when it comes to your kids because you'll always know that you didn't die from your college shenanigans and so they shall survive too. But that's just me looking into the future."

This one was a character. For once, Jaime was at a loss; she wasn't quite sure whether to make fun of him or just take him home. As a puppy, of course, get your minds out of the gutter. And at the reverent tone of his voice when it came to revealing the extent of this mysterious Leon's knowledge, Jaime was also inclined to believe Hayden, purely from the sheer awe she could hear.

"You're on the right track," Jaime made a left this time, "And honestly, no one expects you to know everything. The term 'college student' comes with a little leeway, especially when it comes to making mistakes. You're going to be a freshman! Reinvent yourself, make a promise to do one new thing everyday-- whatever you want. But enough rambling from me."

A wry smile graced her features as he asked about the House system. Judging from what she's seen so far, he was going to be a Lloydie, the house where everyone was pretty much super nice and sang Kumbayah whenever appropriate or not. After all, the motto was "I live and die for those I love".

Intense stuff.

Completely avoiding the question of her House or her lack therefore, Jaime distracted the boy with a little more general knowledge. "You get a chance at trying out every House for a week each. Rotation. It really does depend on the person, on how you feel in the House, and not what others recommend. Great opportunity to meet even more people. You'll have fun."

How did she go back to being Yoda again?

Oh my, even more questions and here she thought she was boring him. By the look of things, the kid's getting comfortable, grinning as he settled into his seat. "Hey hey, don't be a stranger now." Jaime returned the grin, "If you want to ask questions, by all means do. It's the least I can do for you since you lent me your car and all."

Well, now Jaime knew where that physique came from, all that swimming and tennis. She could always appreciate a well-maintained body and a cute face. Who wouldn't?

"I'm not exactly a club kind of gal but I do know for sure that we've got a swim club... not so sure about tennis though. Frankly speaking, we've got a pretty good range of clubs ranging from the usual to the weird to the cool stuff. Paragliding could be a trip. If you want to do something related to entrepreneurship, that's not difficult either. So it's, once again, a matter of trying things out. I tinkered with cars and bikes during my freshman year, it was partially a job but I had fun, good break from college days."

Finally the sign of the eatery was in sight and Jaime quickly parked the car in the lot a few buildings away. They got out of the car quickly and the doctoral student could hear the angels sing because she can finally have her waffles. It's not a joking matter when it came to certain things with her, and waffles was one of them.

"You never know," she shot him another cheeky smile, "You might even end up creating your own club."

Jaime would have tacked on a teasing "Nudists Association" but reducing him to a blubbering blushing mess would mean more time between her and her first bite of waffle. Which is a big no-no.

"I don't know about you but I'm starving. Come on," she waved him on, "You can put me through the Spanish Inquisition over some food. I promise I won't run."