But there's something about her//cont'd//closed

[red]

Blaine looked up in surprise when he heard the door creak tentatively, and suppressed a little sigh as Trae's double walked in the door. It seemed that this occurred often; when he was faced with the tantalising prospect of some time alone with his best friend, something appeared to stand in the way, often in the form of her sickly shadow, Taiya.

It wasn't that he didn't like Taiya, of course. She was lovely enough, and on the days when she wasn't so ill, Blaine thought she could be just as pretty as her sister. Well, almost. She lacked the self-assurity and the confidence that made Trae truly beautiful in his eyes, that was for sure.

"But that would scare all your girlfriends away, and we wouldn't want that. It sure would be a party, though."

He wasn't quite sure what to make of that. He let it slide; it'd be far too difficult to analyse every word she said, much as she confused him.

"Oh, it would be. You should consider it sometime." He smirked, a little flirtatiously, almost forgetting that Taiya was in the room. "What would I need with girlfriends if I had you here, hm?" He winked at her, laughing.

"Hear that? Everyone wants a piece of Ol' Blaine."

He laughed, looking round to Taiya to appeal to her. He didn't want her to feel left out, even if she had interrupted his time with her twin. "What? It's true!"

"You've ben awfully busy, then. I'm glad Ol' Blaine could fit time into his schedule for us."

He laughed as she reached out to him, good-naturedly nudging against her hand.

"Always got time for you." He infused his words with a comedic tone, ensuring that she thought he was joking, despite the fact that he was actually much more sincere about this statement than he would ever let on. Heaven forbid that she might, one day, take his flirting as seriously as he intended it to be. Yes, he was sincere in his comments, but he was happy enough that she believed he wasn't. He could only imagine the mocking she would bestow on him should she realise his true feeling.

"Taiya felt better today. She came to work and everything."

Blaine smiled, shooting a congratulatory glance at Taiya. He was pleased for both the twins; he knew that Trae worried sick about her sister, and sometimes even he became unhappy at how ill she was. It was a comfort to see her looking well. "That's great, Taiya!" he said, happily. He couldn't prevent his characteristic optimism shining through, and so added, "Maybe soon enough you'll be completely better. You could hang out with us so much more!"

[/color] Okay, so the last few words weren't completely sincere, but he wanted to keep everyone happy. It was the kindest thing he could think of saying.

"Oh, and we stole these!"

He grinned immediately at the sight of food. "Food. Trae, I love you. You brought me food. Oh my. I love food." His eyes shone with greed as he reached for the apple and began munching happily. "Trae, you are the best." He paused, before adding, "You two, Taiya."[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

Words//521
OOC Comments//This is kinda thrown together xD sorry about my stupid internet DDD:

[Alyssa :)]

Taiya was slightly discouraged when Trae was the first one to speak to her, but the feeling quickly went away when she saw Blaine's smile, meant for her.  She gave him a kind smile back before rethinking what Trae had said.  It bothered her that Blaine would hop from girl to girl like that, but she fought back a frown and decided to go along with the joking mood.  That's why when she spoke she said, "I can see why.  Who doesn't want a try with a homeless prostitute?"

She was trying to be funny, more like her sister, but when she said this it made her blush a little.  It wasn't that Taiya wasn't the joking type because she definitely was, but she just wasn't used to this kind of joking.  It was weird being someone other than herself, and she definitely wasn't ever going to be as bold and hilarious as Trae.  So why bother?  She knew the answer to this before she had even thought it through.  Because if Blaine liked something about Trae, she was going to act like Trae.

"Always got time for you."  Taiya knew by "you" he only meant Trae.  He didn't know her nearly as well as her sister, so why would he always have time for Taiya?  It made sense, but it still hurt to know Trae was more special to him than Taiya was.

She didn't like the way Blaine kept looking at her sister.  Could he honestly make it any more obvious that he had feelings for her?  Certainly Trae could see this, but then why did she seem to be teasing his affections?  It didn't matter really, Taiya just didn't like that he had affections at all, unless they were for her and she knew they weren't, probably never would be.  But she wished they weren't for her sister; it only made it all that much worse.

Realizing she all she had been thinking about was Blaine and how she wished he'd like her, Taiya decided to quit thinking about that and to pay attention to the conversation and just enjoy the company instead.  She quietly made her way over to the sitting area so she could do so, and she took a seat on the couch next to Trae across from her friend.

Taiya smiled, maybe a little bashfully, when Trae bragged about her feeling better and going to work, earning a congratulations from Blaine.  Taiya was about to snort when he inferred that she might get completely better, but she stopped herself.  She really needed to be more positive if she wanted to get better, and she could be getting better for all she knew.  "Yeah, I'm hoping this means I'm on the uphill swing now," she finally replied.  And to the second part, "It would be nice to do that.  It's fun chatting with someone other than Ma and this bothersome girl here."  At the last part, Taiya lightly elbowed her sister, smiling at her joke because Trae was anything but bothersome to her.

She happily took the apple from her sister's hand and took a bite, listening to Blaine speak.  But she was barely able to swallow the bit of fruit after hearing what he said.  She looked down at the apple and rolled it around in her hand, though it didn't work as well with a piece of it bitten off.

Taiya knew he wasn't being too serious when he said he loved Trae, but what bothered Taiya was that she wasn't the one doing stuff to make him happy.  Why hadn't she thought of bringing food?  And when Blaine said she was the best too, Taiya kind of doubted he meant it.  But from now on, she was going to give him reasons to think she was the best.  And she was determined to go through with her decision.

( that got really long! XD)

[/size][/blockquote]

[night]

"I'm sure your friends will manage. It's mine that I'm worried about." Trae insisted, grinning and giggling as she spoke, then reaching up with both hands and running them through her long, mocha-colored hair. Or, rather, attempting to. She brushed her hair only so often. There wasn't much time in between working from sunrise to sunset and trying desperately to have a little fun in between. "Who doesn't want a try with a homeless prostitute?" Trae laughed at her sister's comment. No, no, it was more of a guffaw -- a surprised sort of one; her twin usually wasn't that blunt.

"Always got time for you." Trae grinned widely, "How sweet of you," She said, rather flirtatiously but still in a joking manner at the same time, "That's only the way it should be." Trae was only just kidding, of course, although a kernel of truth came along with her words. She never got Ma's or Dad's or even Taiya's full attention, it felt like, and besides, Trae liked to think of herself as important or noteworthy, when in reality she was less than neither to the vast majority of District 11. It was even worse to think about the fact that nobody in the rest of Panem would ever think she was of value, either. And she was twenty, now, currently. Two years ago, on the day of the reaping, had been her last chance to be someone important. Now, Trae Melody Ryerson would be known as an apple-picker in district 11. And that would only be until her family eventually ran out, forgot her. Essentially, Trae would take what she could get where she could get it.

"It's nice chatting with someone other than Ma. And this bothersome girl here." Trae grinned and elbowed her sister back, considerably more gently. Although she knew her sister was joking, she kind of fancied herself a troublemaker, which she was both at home and out in the rest of the district. "Hopefully healthy forever." She said in a grandiose manner, taking a big bite out of her reddish apple and chewing it loudly.

Trae laughed at Blaine's reaction to her bringing him one apple. It seemed that a single apple could make anyone's day in District 11. "Anything for you, handsome." She grinned, batting her eyelashes, in a manner of which it was difficult for even her to tell whether or not she was serious in her flirting.

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[red]

"I'm sure your friends will manage. It's mine that I'm worried about."

Blaine laughed. "Of course you are." He snorted. He supposed that her 'social' life might suffer if she had to bring home all her potential mates to a home which she shared with a potentially intimidating man. Not that he considered himself intimidating...but he was a couple of years older than Trae, and if she were to bring back blokes her age or slightly younger, he could imagine how they might be discouraged as his presence. Blaine knew from experience that any man at all was at his most vulnerable, and practically anything or anyone could be considered a potential threat. A couple of years age difference could seem to make all the difference.

"I can see why. Who doesn't want a try with a homeless prostitute?"

Blaine paused a little, glancing at Taiya. An expression of confusion clouded his face. That wasn't like her at all. He wondered if she felt a little out of place here amongst all this talk of sleeping around, and was trying to compensate for it by being crude...or maybe just being so close to Trae had rubbed off on her. He shrugged, and smiled in appreciation of the comment. In all honesty, what went on in Taiya's head didn't interest him that much. He liked her well enough, but unfortunately for her, when Trae was around he bothered with little else but trying to decipher her thoughts.

"How sweet of you,"

He smirked. "Sweet. That's me." He gave Trae a little wink. He had to remind himself that they were in the presence of a member of her family, and therefore that it was necessary to keep all flirting to a minimum, despite the fact that it was harmless and she never took him seriously anyway.

"Yeah, I'm hoping this means I'm on the uphill swing now,"

Blaine smiled at Taiya's words. It'd be a good thing if she were to get better; it would make Trae happy. Trae wasn't the type to wear her heart on her sleeve in regards to her deeper emotions, but Blaine knew well enough that she was just as human as any other girl, and as such she cared worried about her sister. An improvement in Taiya's health could only be a good thing for everyone, especially Trae.


Her next words confirmed his thought. "Hopefully healthy forever." He smiled. He had a lot of respect for Trae in the way she cared for her sister. Having an ill sister had to be a burden sometimes, but Trae bore it well.

"Anything for you, handsome."

Again, Blaine was a little thrown. Trae's flirting was always a little too convincing. Just convincing enough to confuse Blaine to the point where he wondered whether or not she was being serious. He had two options here; he could respond jokingly to her comment, or make it clear that he believed she was serious. He eyed her for a moment, before settling on the easy option.

"Oh, of course." he laughed, rolling his eyes.

Words//507
OOC Comments//I apologise for this dreadful post DX

[Alyssa :)]

Taiya grinned and watched her sister as she laughed at her joke, but the smile disappeared and her blush deepened when she saw Blaine giving her a confused look. Perhaps acting more like her sister wasn't a good idea after all. All she had done was embarrass herself and make her look strange in Blaine's eyes. But the confusion in his eyes disappeared and he replaced it with a smile, which lifted a lot of the upsetting thoughts off Taiya.

She giggled a little when her sister elbowed her back. This surprised her because the reason she laughed was because it tickled. Taiya was very ticklish, but usually (since she was sick all the time) she would notice the pain more than the tickling, and would flinch instead of smile. She was happy the tables had turned, and she was hoping this meant she really was getting better.

Her smile turned to a serious line as she looked down and pretended to adjust her shirt while Blaine and Trae flirted with each other. She wasn't very comfortable being in the same room as them when they were like this, much less sitting in between them. She wished they'd just stop, but she knew flirting was in both of their natures, and that probably wouldn't happen. Taiya sighed unintentionally, showing how exasperated she was with the two.

However, she felt a little better when they both seemed to be very happy that she was getting better health-wise. Blaine's smile made her especially pleased. Then there was more flirting, and she couldn't help herself. "You people," she tsked. "Flirt on your own time, please."

She managed to say it jokingly, but it really did bother. Not just because it was extremely and incredibly awkward for her, but also because she saw it was messing with Blaine. And this, in turn, was messing with herself. She was happy that it was confusing him because she thought maybe it would push him away from Trae, or maybe he would eventually realize she was joking and that would tell him off. But she also hated that it because if he did figure it out, she knew it would cause him a great deal of pain. Also, it saddened her to seem him falling head-over-heels in love with her, while her sister was just joking around. All of this was a big mess of confusing emotions, and Taiya figured it was best if the whole flirting thing was just called off.

(my huge text was annoying me so i made it smaller X) also, i figured it would be helpful if i bolded Taiya's speaking, so i did that for you guys too ^.^)

[/size][/blockquote]

[night]

"Oh, of course."

Trae flashed a wide grin at Blaine, taking another bite of her apple, waggling her eyebrows as she did. After she chewed and swallowed her apple, she leaned forward and though the smile was still on her face, her eyes were serious, "But really, love, I'd steal you an apple anytime." Trae stated, using the term of endearment Ma had always used to use to address Trae and Taiya when they were younger. "Maybe even one from the 'Good' basket." It was silly, but Trae only stole the ones that she couldn't decide were good or bad, mostly because she irrationally believed that maybe if she was caught she wouldn't be punished as badly if the apple wasn't a good one, one that was going to be sent to the Capitol. Trae leaned farther basket in her seat, sighing when the muscles in her tired back finally relaxed after the entire day of work.

"You people. Flirt on your own time, please."

Trae wasn't fazed by her sister's words. Instead she just laughed, happily, making a point of winking at Blaine. "Don't be ridiculous, Tai, everything we say is adorable." She said, still giggling.

OOC: SORRY this is awful ajhskfdjska;l

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[red]

Blaine laughed at Trae's comment, although secretly a little pleased. It was a throwaway statement, but still. He was special to her. She might not admit it plainly...but he knew he was. He just knew it.

At least, that was what he kept telling himself. It would be both painful and difficult to give up hope, so he opted to choose the easy option and keep his hopes alive and kicking, even if that meant inventing things to regularly tell himself.

"That special, am I?"

He was so oblivious that he barely even recognised Taiya shifting awkwardly near the edge of the room, toying with her clothes as he and Trae exchanged flirtatious quips. He didn't even take much notice of her sigh, although he heard it well enough. He supposed that for someone so sick, it would be quite usual to sigh regularly. His brain, tuned in only to Trae-related matters, seemingly did not have the attention span to dwell on the matter any longer, and Taiya's feelings were left unconsidered.

However, her next statement made her feelings perfectly clear, and Blaine registered them with some surprise.

"You people," Blaine unhappily tore his gaze from Trae to look at her twin. A little sparkle of surprise twinkled in his stomach and he tilted his head, not altogether abashed, but at least curious. "Flirt on your own time, please."

The dashing young blonde frowned a little, confused, although mostly unabashed. He looked to Trae for an explanation. Somehow, he had always assumed that following her sister around was what made her happy. He had never stopped to consider that what she witnessed during this endeavour might make her less so.

"Um...sorry?" he half-smiled, to accommodate the fact that she might, in fact, be joking. Of course, he didn't sound apologetic. Simply confused.

"Don't be ridiculous, Tai, everything we say is adorable."

Appeased, Blaine opted to nod in agreement, and took the opportunity to flash a charming smile at both the girls. However, its intended recipient was, of course, Trae.

"True story."

[/size]

Words//331
OOC Comments//Short post, ah wellll >.>

[Alyssa :)]

"But really, love, I'd steal you an apple anytime. Maybe even one from the 'Good' basket."

At first Taiya seriously doubted this. After all, Trae knew that those stupid Peacekeepers were always in the wrong place at the wrong time. They would probably happen to choose to watch her more closely the one day she decided to steal a good apple. But then again, Taiya figured her sister would do many things to make Blaine happy. She just hoped that Trae wouldn't get herself in trouble one day because of it.

"That special, am I?"

Taiya nearly snorted. Obviously he was special to Trae, perhaps just not in the way he was thinking. But really, how blind can you get? Both sides of the conversation--that is, Trae and Blaine, seeing as Taiya wasn't really participating all that much--were oblivious to how the other side felt. Trae didn't realize just how strong Blaine's feelings for her were, and she teased his affections constantly. Blaine had no idea that Trae didn't feel he was anything more than a friend, and he kept his hopes up for something that just wasn't there. Or at least, Taiya didn't think it was there. At work they had been talking about Blaine, actually, and Trae had told her there was absolutely nothing going on between her and the young man. So if she wasn't lying to her sister, Trae didn't feel the same way Blaine did. Really, this would've been rather comical if Taiya wasn't so concerned about both sides.

After she tried to end the flirting session, she saw Blaine's curious gaze land on her. She realized she was being a lot more outgoing today than she usually was, therefore causing him to look at her this way quite a lot. When he gave her a confused apology and then a half-smile, Taiya gave him a small, shy smile in return. "Thank you at least for apologizing," she said, glaring pointedly at her sister, whose next words were pretty much the opposite of sorry.

"Don't be ridiculous, Tai, everything we say is adorable." Taiya rolled her eyes at this. "Sure, that's what you think," she mumbled, slightly irritated with her sister.

"True story."

This time Taiya eyed the young man, a bit irritated with him now as well. It seemed that she was overruled, so she let out another sigh and leaned back on the couch, just as her sister had done earlier. That beautiful smile Blaine gave her might've been the reason she gave up on the whole thing, but she wasn't going to admit that.

[night]

"That special, am I?"

Trae grinned, "Not just special," She said, raising her eyebrows as if she were telling a juicy secret belonging to someone else, "Especially special." Trae reached up and ran her fingers through her hair again, a sure sign that she was growing bored with the conversation. But she stood up again instead, and began poking around the house once more. It was nice, by District 11 standards. If she were to ever want one of her own, she would have to build it herself.

"Thank you, at least, for apologizing."

As she was standing up, Taiya couldn't see her, so Trae rolled her eyes pointedly at Blaine to convey her annoyance, and Trae then shook her head and inwardly laughed at the thought of how annoyed her sister would be if the girl knew how often the pair engaged in behavior that would be considered rather odd and especially inappropriate for a pair of best friends and how it had, on a few occasions, gone farther than simple flirting. But Trae didn't join Blaine in halfheartedly apologizing -- she simply wasn't and never had been the type to say sorry for the way she acted (unless she knew she had been very, very wrong). She went through life unapologetically and that was, unarguably, her very best trait.

"True story."

Trae laughed, "The truest," She said, and as she passed Blaine's seat to inspect the kitchen she trailed her hand over his shoulder and patted it twice before continuing on her way. "So, anywho, how was your day so far? What did you do?" She asked Blaine.

ooc: sorry i just couldn't think of anything else to add to the conversation

[/blockquote][/blockquote]