xp_logs | Fred and Yvette: Saying Stupid Things

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Fred's brain is dumb, and his mouth is apparently an dull-witted accomplice

Fred sighed as he slogged into the hallway, removing the tattered remnants of his gray trainee jacket to the corner of a far door. He thought he'd understood what was going on: Mr. Summers had told him to traverse the length of the Danger Room as quickly as he could while low yield explosives launched and crisscrossed the area.

As it turned out, the point of the exercise was to learn to dodge the attacks while still trying to complete the objective. Not, as Fred had done, to lumber stupidly across the gauntlet and get hit by nearly every single projectile.

While everyone had seemed more amused than angry at his misunderstanding, Fred had still been flushed with embarrassment as he left. He sighed, and looked down at his tshirt, trying not to curse; the charred and postmarked remains of his favorite Gamera tshirt had more holes than fabric at this point, and Fred futilely tried to scrape some of the blackened soot off of one of the few in tact pieces...

A slightly smothered giggle caught his attention as Yvette approached, tucking her gloves into the small pocket she'd had added to her belt for just such a purpose. "You look a little the worse for wear," she remarked to the trainee. "A difficult run?"

Fred looked up, ready to bark at whoever was giving him a hard time, but his retort caught in his mouth when he noticed it was Yvette talking. He smiled as best he could, and shrugged as he pulled the tattered remnants of his shirt from himself, "Difficult? Not at all, especially when it was the easiest thing in the world tah mess it up, apparently..."

"Wait until Mr. Summers gives you one of his impossible scenarios," Yvette replied, somewhat sympathetically. "He likes to see how long it takes us to realise it cannot be solved."

Fred threw shirt aside, and picked up his gray trainee jacket, looking at Yvette through one of the giant holes in it, "Ah'm starting to suspect that our leader is ah damn sadist, Copper Top..."

She poked at the jacket with one long finger, the damage already so severe another cut or two from her bare hands wouldn't count. "Either that or he has the shares in the leather company, yes?" she joked with another giggle. "Just what was hitting you, Fred? The jackets can usually take up to the gunfire..."

Fred slid his arms through the jacket and sighed, shaking his head as he looked at it. He thought for a moment, and checked the pockets, smiling when he found his lighter and cigarettes safe and sound. When Yvette asked about what hit him, he balked at her, "Jeez, I dunno. They burst into flames and sounded damn awful, though. I think he cranked it up cause otherwise Ah, uh, may notta noticed at all..."

She burst into laughter, the mental picture of Fred shrugging off everything Scott was throwing at him without even noticing hilarious to her. "Oh, Fred," she said at last, shaking her head fondly. "Why do I get the feeling Mr Summers and Mr. Kane and Miss Paige are going to make you the special project?"

"Special project?" Fred looked forlorn, "Ah'm barely keepin' up with their normal schedule! Ah got no idea how you people get up so early, especially when all that's waiting for yah is exercise an whatnot..."

"If it would help you, you could come exercise with me?" Yvette suggested, always eager to help her friends. "I have some paths in the woods that are good for the cross country running, and it is always easier with the company." She gave him a hopeful smile, eyes glowing softly.

"Totally. So long as Ah don't have to wear these damn things." He shook the remnants of his trainee jacket, then pointed out Yvette's uniform, "Seriously, how do yah manage tah be comfortable in these things...?"

"It, how do you say? Grows on you," she replied with a small shrug. "The more you wear the uniform, the more flexible it becomes. And..." she lowered her voice, a little embarrassed. "It helps to use the baby powder on your skin before you are putting it on. That is what I do for my body suits also."

Fred pulled a gnarled, almost destroyed cigarette from the pack and lit it, looking at Yvette's outfit and chuckling a little bit, "Baby powder or not, at least you look hot in your uniform. Ah doubt the same's ever gonna be true for me." Fred took off the ruined jacket and took one...two...three drags off his cigarette before he mentally reviewed what he had just said. Just said to YVETTE. Like right to her face. Out loud. The slow realization made him balk and he tried to say something, but all that came out was, "Uh...Ah, uh..."

For her part, Yvette was standing there, open-mouthed and wide-eyed with astonishment. "You think I look..." she stammered, sounding both pleased and embarrassed. If she'd been able, she would have been blushing neon red. "I, er, that is, um, thank you?" Then thankfully the ready light for the Danger Room door went off and she looked up at it. "Oh, that is for me. I should..." She gestured towards the door, still not sure what to actually say.

Fred put his hands up, as if trying to hold back a flood, "Nah, wait, Ah, uh, dammit, Ah meant...nah, Ah mean what Ah meant tah say wasn't tha...not that yah aren't..." Fred Duke's skin was incredibly thick; somehow, though, he was managing to flush bright red, "That, uh, didn't mean tah come out tha way Ah said something that didn't mean tah out loud...?" Fred was going for a World Record: Most Incomprehensible Apology.

Despite her own confusion, Yvette couldn't help a giggle at Fred's gibberish. "It was... nice?" she managed at last. "I do not think anyone has every said that I am hot before. Thank you?" She wasn't sure what the protocol was for this situation, but it seemed a good idea to be polite and save Fred from exploding. "I should be going. I will see you later, yes?" And with that, she slipped into the Danger Room, leaving Fred in the hall with his shredded uniform and equally shredded composure.

Fred continued babbling at the empty air for a good long moment before sighing and crushing his cigarette under his foot. Why in God's name had he said that? Yvette was a friend, and one of his closest. Friends were not hot. And 'hot'? Really? Well, Yvette was kind, yeah. Sweet, of course. Like, sweet almost to a fault. She was one of the most caring people he knew. And funny, in her own weird quiet kinda way, but 'hot'? Fred had never really thought about it, but after giving it another cigarette's worth of thought, Fred chuckled a little to himself. Well, yeah, sure she was attractive. He'd just never really thought about it before. Fred knotted his eyebrows together for a moment. Why was he thinking about it now, though...?

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...'Oh', He finally thought to himself, and the terrified look was back on his face. 'Oh...crap...'