Blood meets Stone on a Sunny Day (Maron)

[cartertcat]

Art sat on the metal railing, shrugging off his zip up jacket. Today he was wearing a shirt that said 'blood? no it's ketchup!'. He'd designer that shirt himself at the institute. It was very sunny today so he'd decided to wear lighter colors. Some yellow skinny jeans sufficed. His hair was almost completely white today, but had a touch of blond. It was edgy on the ends but completely straight.

Swinging his feet back and forth as people passed him by. There were girls in bikinis, fake spray tan girls, blonds, and brunettes. He wasn't looking for any of them though, just one girl in particular. One extremely pretty, fiery redheaded, girl. This girl he'd met the night before, and almost had dinner with. Before getting jumped, that is.

He was tightly bound with white bandages, keeping his ribs in place. He couldn't run or jump yet, but walking was no problem. He also had a black eye and split lip. Not to mention healing gashed on his arm, wrapped in gauze. Phoenix had also had to sneak out today. It was not as easy as he had expected. He checked his phone, twelve o'clock exactly. Training as an x-men had taught him not to be late.

[maron]

Maron had had a much tougher time sneaking out then Art had. She'd had to leave early in the morning so she'd make it to the pier in time, and even went as far as stealing the motorcyle of a certain Runaway. She'd learned out to drive it some time ago, so she had little trouble controlling the metal beast. The best part of all? Most of the Runaways were nocturnal. She'd waited until most were asleep before escaping. Conner and Nelly were on their honeymoon, so she didn't have to worry about Conner chasing after her. Xenthron wouldn't be able to chase after her until the sun was down, not to mention he wouldn't have his bike...

She smirked. That was the plan, after all. Xenthron would be the one having to bring her back to her cage when they realized she was gone. With his bike gone, he'd have a damn blasted hard time finding her, let alone reaching her.

Now, she was on her way to meet Art, and she was grinning like a fool. After texting him so much the previous day, she couldn't help but be eager for the meeting.

She parked the motorcyle out of sight, tucking the key in her small white purse, and quickly making her way to the pier. She was dressed simply, a dull green tank top with tight deep blue knees. Tall brown boots covered her jeans to her knees, a cute brown hat covering much of her head, and shielding her eyes from the sun... and everyone else's eyes for that matter.

Soon, she was at the pier, half jogging to make it on time. Ugh. Stupid traffic had slowed her. How horrible would it be if she was late?! A minute past twelve, she finally found Art, the guy she was looking for. It hadn't exactly been easy with his hair being a completely different color then the last time they'd met, but he stood out from the rest of the beach goers. "Hey!" She waved, trying to get his attention as she picked up her pace, racing to the spot Art sat. "I'm here!" She grinned... Full on grinned.

[cartertcat]

Art hadn't been expecting to hear the voice behind him. Let alone turn around to see Maron actually grinning! He grinned in return, relieved. He had some under lying insecurity that she would stand him up. Texting him to never bother her again. He spun around on the railing, jumping down to greet her. He felt really tall compared to her.

"You made it!" he exclaimed, resisting the urge to pick her up and spin her around in a circle. After all, they were both just friends, right? What if she actually despised him? Then again, she was actually smiling so maybe that meant that he had scored some points with her.

"So, what do you feel like doing today?" Phoenix asked her, cocking his head in one of those cute, curious ways. He was probably just as eager as she was. So much for hiding it. Art didn't really care what they did. SO long as there was a 'they' in that equation.

[maron]

"Course, I made it!" Maron had reached him by then, bringing herself to a standstill only a few feet from where he landed from his jump. "Took me a little longer then usual, but." She shrugged, smirking a little. Why had she been so excited to meet with him again? Was it because he was cute? Was it that he was her first true 'friend' in so many years? She had no idea...

Then he was asking her a question, barely even recognizing the question in his mind. God, why did he have to tilt his head like that? "I dunno. I rarely get out as is." She paused, thinking. "What do you usually do in you're free time? You're probably a lot better at this then me."

[cartertcat]

"Hmm," Art said, thinking. He bit his lip, another one of his cute mannerisms. Usually he would run into the waves and boogie board. Though they were lacking boogie boards and bathing suits. He looked up at the sky, as if it would have all the answers. Surprisingly, it did. He saw cliff gliders.

"Cliff gliding... If you'll trust me, that is," Phoenix said, grinning again. He had a license for the sport and everything. Taking summer classes on it during his time at the institute. He pulled out his wallet, taking out his cliff gliding license. Back then his hair was shorter, about to his chin, and electric blue. It was also spiked downwards.

"It's really fun, you know," Art told her in a sweet, friendly voice.

[maron]

God, why did he have to do that? She already knew he was cute! He didn’t have to keep emphasizing it! But as soon as those words left his lips, she was yanked out of her own little reality, her eyes widening under the brim of her hat in sheer surprise. Cliff Gliding? What on earth was- Oh…. NOW she remembered what cliff gliding was.

She fixed him with a suspicious look, making sure to avoid his eyes. “Are you sure that’s a good idea with your ribs?” She couldn’t forget that attack a few nights before. How he’d fought off near all their attackers when she’d frozen up after ‘stoning’ one of them. In a way, she felt like she owed him for that. If he hadn’t done what he did… Their attackers probably would have beaten her to death.

A few moments passed, before she smiled shyly. “I think after what happened last time, trusting you is second nature.” She paused. “Yeah, let’s go Cliff Gliding.” Maron was even excited for it. It sounded so exhilarating and fun, not to mention she’d be with her newest friend…

[cartertcat]

"My ribs..? Oh, right. I'll manage," Art said, blushing a very small blush. Against his pale skin though, it looked a lot brighter then it would be if he was tan. Mentally he scolded himself for blushing in front of Maron. It was just too damn adorable though. How caring she was, or when she was upset, or confused. He wasn't used to liking someone the way he did Maron. He would hate himself if he screwed this up though.

He played with a strand of his hair. Looking down at his license for cliff gliding. Slowly his hair changed from bleach blond to electric blue. Shortening the length to alittle past his chin and styling it so it spiked downward. Even if she didn't want to go sky gliding, this look seemed fun for today. The anticipation was killing him. Was she going to say yes?? When the words finally did come out, he sighed in relief.

"Well, then let's go cliff gliding..." Phoenix said, excitedly. He'd never told anyone his real name, except for Xavier. His license just said Riley Art; his full name was Phoenix Riley Art. He wasn't embarrassed of his name at all. Just scared that if he did tell someone his real name, he would be letting his guard down. So for now he would just stay Riley Art. "
"allow me to lead the way," He smiled, taking her by the hand and walking with her toward the cliff gliding site.

[maron]

Maron giggled softly. Had he completely forgotten about his injured ribs? And was he… blushing? He was! She almost gapped, but quickly got her surprise under control, unable to help a small smile. Served him right. He saw her blush the other night, now she saw him. They were even now.

Oh, she’d never get used to him changing his hair in front of her. It was just so… odd to watch. How his hair seemed to come alive and just… change! Like there was nothing to it! Scowling a little, she did her best to look as if she might be sulking. “You can’t imagine how jealous I am of that power. You never have to fix your hair!”

She hadn’t noticed the difference of names on his license. She hadn’t exactly been paying attention to that, after all! She might have gotten a look then, but he’d chosen that moment to take her hand in his and lead her off. Trying to hide her sudden blush she quickly followed after him, keeping her hand in his, and smiling sheepishly. “Anything I need to know about Cliff Gliding before hand?”

[cartertcat]

"Ha.. I wish I had normal hair. I am like the king of bad hair days." Art said, chuckling as he lead her along the paved path to the cliffs. It wasn't that far away at all actually. Even though he wished that is was farther away. That way he could continue leading Maron, hand in hand.

"Just two.. don't let your hat fly off, and" Phoenix left some time in between the parts of his sentences, to build suspense.
"whatever you do, don't let go!" he exclaimed, giving a devilishly handsome crooked smile as they reached the cliff. After signing a few documents they were ready to get started.

Both of them were strapped securely into a harness under the glider. A steel handle bar was there for the both of them. Now all they needed was to wait for a nice updraft and drop off the edge of the cliff.

[maron]

Oh great, why couldn’t it have been a bit farther? The walk was almost too short, cutting her mood off at the knees. But hey, she was going Cliff Gliding! And she did basically have the whole day to spend with him…. She was sure she’d get another chance to hold his hand. That is, if one of the Runaways didn’t come to crash the party.

Chuckling softly, she pulled her hat off her head, stuffing it in her purse and running her fingers through her hair. “No chance of losing my hat now.” She smiled sheepishly again. She wouldn’t need the hat up there, no way to make eye contact with someone when you were Cliff Gliding, or so she hoped. “And I definitely don’t plan on letting go! I’m not that suicidal.” She grinned, but felt her heart just about skip a beat at that crooked smile of his.

Before she really knew it, they were both strapped in, her fingers closed tightly around a steel bar, the drop of the edge right at her toes. Oh, God. That was a drop… Maybe this wasn’t such a bright idea after all… But then she remembered that she wasn’t alone. That helped. She just hoped she didn’t panic anytime soon…

[cartertcat]

The drop was a very steep one. Which automatically got Art's adrenaline pumping. He lay his hand over hers, trying to comfort her as best he could. Though the thing that was really comforting came next. The updraft. It sent them both out and up. It was a great feeling, rising towards the warm sun.

"Your safe with me," he chuckled as they caught a downdraft. It made both of their feet skim the water. They were both so close to the glistening ocean. There own shadow was visible on its blue surface. Then, they caught an updraft that was unexpected. It sent them soaring upward. If a ticket had been invented for speeding on a cliff diving trip, they would've eared it.

"Whoa..." Phoenix said, sounding cool and relaxed at the same time. It was mesmerizing being up this high, especially with Maron. Unknowingly though, as they both caught more updrafts, it sent them farther and farther off coarse.

[maron]

When they dropped, two words kept repeating over and over in Maron’s head. Oh, God! Oh, God! Oh, God! Then, an updraft caught them. She didn’t even realize she’d been holding her breath, but finally the breath escaped as a short gasp. If that didn’t get your blood pumping nothing would! She might have fainted if it weren’t for feeling Art’s hand over her own. “Yeah! I know. A little more warning would have been nice though!” She tried to laugh as well, but she was still a little thunder struck from their exhilarating drop.

Then, they were dropping again. Not like they had the first time, but they were gliding right above the ocean water. So close she could have reached down and skimmed her fingers over the surface if she dared let go with one hand. Sadly, her hands were closed so tightly around the steel handle bar, they could have been super glued.

Maron suddenly squeaked when another updraft caught them again, taking even Art by surprise. Oh God! Him being surprised only made her more nervous and terrified! She tried to laugh again. “Were you this terrified your first time?!” He was so calm about it all, as if it was the easiest thing in the world! Right then though, she noticed something. She’d finally started to take in the breathtaking view from up here and realized that the city was getting farther and farther away…. “Are we supposed to be this far out?!”

[cartertcat]

"Maron, breath. Deep breaths, calm." Art tried to tell her in a soothing voice. There was no way they were going to crash. Everything was completely safe, he'd watched them get hooked safely. Even if there was an issue, he would make sure that they didn't fall into the water.

"It's not really up to us, now, but we're safe," he said, reassuringly. Due to that quick updraft there was no way they could bank to land with out flipping. Now they were gentle coasting on the air currents. He breathed a sigh of relief, loosening his grip. Phoenix's own knuckles had turned white, along with his hair.

"Enjoy the view," Art sounded calmer and more relaxed himself now. Though they were getting carried farther and farther out, land had to be close by. It's not like they could get stranded somewhere.

[maron]

Why was it that everyone always said to take deep breaths in situations such as these? But none the less, she did as she was told, deep breaths. Calm that frantic heart of hers. He was so calm about it all, it was almost rubbing off on her! Thank God she hadn’t tried doing this on her own for the first time. She probably would have somehow crashed had probably killed herself.

They were carried even farther out, farther than she was sure they should be. But that was where the wind was carrying them, and you couldn’t exactly argue with the wind at a time like this. Art didn’t seem to care about how far they were going, so why should she? Just as long as they weren’t having to spend hours upon hours trying to hitchhike back to town. “I am.” She paused for a moment, her mind distracted by some instant realization. “Thanks for bringing me. I’ve never had so much fun in my life.” And that, was most certainly true.

[cartertcat]

"I was sort of hoping you'd feel that way," Art said, grinning. So he hadn't totally traumatized her? She didn't hate him for dragging her onto this adventure? So he had made it some what special. That made him happy. Not 'almost' happy but actually happy. It was sort of a new sensation for him. He hadn't been really happy in about four years.

Then he realized something. They were really close to each other. Closer then they'd ever been so far in their friendship; Phoenix liked that. He felt like laughing about himself. Why was he so worried about what she thought of him? He'd never cared so much before. He'd also never talked so much before, or been so out going. He wasn't used to acting this way. By now, his ribs were aching. Some how though, he'd managed to ignore that.