keep me cold

Meeting 1

the room slowly becomes more crowded with bodies filled to the brim with the energy of careless adolescence. people gather around the desks as groups separated themselves from one another and chaotic chatter starts to boil. my chin digs uncomfortably into my forearm where I rest it. my eyes already start to droop and the thoughts of a soft, warm bed fills my mind. i sit up suddenly, not actually wanting to fall asleep in front of a bunch of teenagers. with my back against the wall, I have a perfect view of everyone in the room. they all look the same. well, they don't. some have brown hair, some blonde, one or two ginger. some have skin as pale as the crisp winter air just beyond the window. some of their completions resemble more the light brown desks that their legs tuck neatly under. but they all look like teenagers on the verge of not being teenagers anymore and you could see how it lit a spark in their eyes. the clock above the door ticks methodically, showing the time that we had arranged the meeting to be. Pete, an older man who's sarcasm tried to hide the fact that he was a huge dick to kids, stands up from where he's seated facing the much younger group. he claps his hands once, bringing everyone's attention to him, the silence taking over the room immediately.

"Welcome to Duke of Edinburgh gold." there's a small muttering throughout the groups before it dies down again to let Pete continue. " I recognize some faces from faces from silver but some of you I don't know so I'm sorry if I get your name wrong once or twice." he's not sorry. i can hear the lie evidently in his monotone voice. "now, to start-" he's cut off by the door to the classroom opening abruptly. everyone's eyes to dart to the figure standing within the door frame. average height with lanky limbs he stands awkwardly with so many eyes pinned on him. under the mass of brown curls, his deep set eyes flick around the room, meeting the faces and under the color of his red t-shirt, a pink glow starts to rise to his cheeks. "you just gonna stand there?" Pete's snarky comment breaks the silence, and most peoples eyes drop from the new arrival. Pete's steady, deep, droning voice continues as the boy walks around the edge of the room before coming to lean casually against the back wall, his eyes are trained on his feet as the colour starts to fade from his cheeks. his black jeans hug his legs as he shoves his fisted hands in his pockets as his eyes start to wander round the room. i watch as his dark eyes scan over the back of the various heads, clearly ignoring whatever Pete is now talking about. he nonchalantly yawns, covering his mouth with one hand. the action seems to fit with his appearance. his hair, curly and unkempt, lies in a pile on his forehead shadowing his eyes which large gray bags hang from. a over sized navy jacket is thrown over his red t-shirt which, in turn, is tucked into a pair of slightly too big black jeans. a series of chairs, tables, and people obscure the view of his feet but I could assume that whatever shoes he was wearing have reminiscences of mud on them. just as Pete concluded his introduction, Micheal-call-me-mike stood up and walked to position himself next to Pete and immediately took over.

"now you have to understand that this is a great honor to be contributing to our great city of Edinburgh in this program." Micheal-call-me-mike is patriotic through and throughout and anyone can tell just by talking to hi for more than thirty seconds. I cant help but roll my eyes at his words and a quiet snicker escapes from the back of the room. looking round i scan the crowd for the owner of that quiet laugh. I'm met with blank faces before finding a pair of glimmering deep under curls of brown. his lips quirk up slightly in a mischievous smirk as he holds my gaze. subconsciously my mouth mirrors his grin, both of us appreciating the little moment. 

...

the meeting comes to a close just before 9 and soon after, the room is empty of all those energetic teenagers. 

"good first session. wouldn't you agree?" Micheal-call-me-mike asks, looking round to where i, along with three other volunteers, sit purely uninterested. i nod, standing up abruptly. "leaving so soon?" Micheal-call-me-mike asks, in an almost offended tone. i look around the now empty classroom, what else did he expect me to do? stay overnight? "well, i just thought since were all new colleagues and will be spending a lot of time together in the near future, i thought maybe w could all hang out. maybe go get a pint?" he looks round expectantly at the rest of the group who have similar expressions of distaste on their faces. 

"i would love to but..." i struggle for an excuse. "i don't drink." landing on a statement that couldn't be further from the truth. 

"well you don't have to drink." i can feel him becoming more desperate as i slowly start to slide my jacket on. 

"well, i- um-" 

"a pint sounds like a great idea Micheal." a low voice grumbles from behind Micheal-call-me-mike

"call me mike, and thank you Pete i agree!" he turns to an older woman, probably in her mid thirties. "Becca?" 

"the babysitter has the kids till ten so i have some time." all three of them look back to us. 

"id love a beer mate!" says the boy standing on my right side. he is a couple inches taller than me and its intimidating. his build makes him look like the sort of person who has gotten if far too many fights for his own good, but his face is calm and friendly. throughout the session i had picked up a smell off him that i couldn't quite place until thirty minutes in. it was weed. Micheal-call-me-mike smiles and turns to the girl on my left. 

"what about you love?" i see her cringe at the nickname but she quickly turns it into a smile. 

"i don't have anywhere to be." she is significantly shorter than me and has a petite figure. her hair is long, dark and tied up in a messy bun revealing her tanned face. her dark eyes flit towards me and she smiles encouragingly. she's very pretty and in the session i could see some of the boys glancing over at her and sharing whispered vulgar jokes.

"then its settled! were all going fro a pint, and you don't have a choice." Micheal-call-me-mike's finger is pointing at me, and he's grinning at my displeasure. 

fuck.

{authors note}

so, the duke of Edinburgh leaders are

Micheal (call-me-mike )

Becca

Pete

Daniel (the pov)

Sam (the tall boy)

Ana (the shorter girl)

hope that's all not too confusing.