runtowardsomething | (no subject)

It's a nice change of scenery, at least. A nice change of crowd, too, if Beverly is honest. The kids in her class in Darrow aren't as bad as the ones at home, at least — no reputation has followed her, the nasty nicknames that occasionally get thrown around less so than the ones she's used to — but things have been uncomfortable lately to say the least, and she could use the break. Of course, that's not why she's here. Come September, she'll be starting high school, and it's customary, apparently, for kids to visit at some point during the school year to get a feel for what it's like before being thrown into the deep end. She doesn't have to do much, just sit and watch and keep her head down, not even bothering to take notes because she's not going to need to know this shit yet anyway. That's probably a good thing, though. Her attention has largely been elsewhere, the Home making it difficult to focus on much of anything except waiting fearfully for what will go wrong next, and getting to mentally check out for a few hours isn't anything she can complain about.

The last bell rings, and she instinctively starts to bolt for the exit before remembering that she's supposed to stop by the office before she leaves, to check in for whatever reason. She reroutes herself, then, before she's gone too far, lingering by the doorway like she's not supposed to be there, when she spots a familiar face inside and starts to smile, a little surprised. "Hey," she says, rocking back on her heels, one hand on the door frame. "Buffy?"

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"Good," Buffy nods, pleased that Beverly seems keen on the idea. She returns her slightly crooked smile with one of her own, hoping that she can help make as much of the time Beverly has here as pleasant as possible. She can only imagine how frustrating it must be to have to be stuck at the Children's Home, treated like a child even though you were a teenager. She hopes Beverly is at least making friends with the other kids her own age there.

"No, very much not," she says, shaking her head. "They usually end with people wishing they'd never attempted them in the first place."

She looks at Beverly and considers for a moment. "Do you have plans for after school today? If not, would you want to come out to dinner with me, once I get off work? It'll be my treat."

"No, I don't have plans," Beverly says, her smile widening just a touch. "That sounds great." She means it, too. While she might not know her very well, she likes Buffy, something that running into her here has only driven home. They'll have more of a chance to talk that way than standing around the office provides, anyway, and in the meantime, it's not like she has anywhere she has to be with any kind of urgency. As long as she's back by curfew, it won't matter, and after being shoved in her bag all day, her phone is mostly charged in case anyone tries to reach her before then.

With as weird as things have been lately, it wouldn't surprise her if they started trying to keep something of a tighter leash on the residents of the Home, but that's also all the more reason why she thinks it should be understandable that a lot of them don't seem to want to spend more time inside than is necessary.

"What time do you finish here?"