No romance. More of a friendship fic than anything. Kind of inspired by a line from a song that just kind of resonated with me. Hope you like it.


"Why are you always listening to music?" The question came from out of the blue and Rachelle paused for a moment from her work to look at the boy next to her. She couldn't quite remember his name, though they'd sat next to each other for the better part of a semester. Was it Ryan? No. Roy? No. When she was honest with herself, she found she didn't really care what the boy's name was.

"I'm not always listening to music." Her voice was dull, practically monotone and Richard couldn't help but wonder if it was always like that or reserved for people she didn't like. He got the distinct impression it was the latter, although who did she like? He'd hardly seen her talk to anyone.

"You know what I mean. When you're not doing work, you're listening to music. You hardly talk at all," he clarified. "And I'm curious as to why."

"I like music more than most people." She answered simply, as if he were a small child that needed something completely obvious explained.

"I understand that music has a certain allure to it; I know lots of people who love music, but that doesn't mean they shut out the world." His tone was sharper, more accusatory than he'd intended and for a half-second, he was scared that he'd been too harsh with her.

But then she answered. "You misunderstand my meaning, I think. When I say I like music more than most people, I mean I like music more than most people do." He looked confused for a moment before she continued, "However, I also mean that I like music more than I like most people."

He looked at her, his mouth forming a small 'o' of surprise. "Why?"

She looked at him, a sideways glance that almost made her look cute. "Aren't you the curious one? I don't really wish to have this conversation with you, but if we must, can it wait until we're out of the classroom?"

He spent the remainder of the class shooting her subtle looks every now and then, wondering about her response. At least, he thought they were subtle, but he was proved wrong when she whispered fiercely, "Would you stop doing that? It's making me very uncomfortable."

She finished her work before him and was out the door the next second. Vaguely panicked, he rushed to turn in his assignment so he could follow her. He found her sitting on a bench outside Slocum Hall with her damned headphones stuck in her ear again. He sat down next to her and she stood. "I have to go to class. Sorry." And turned and headed into the building.

He doubted she was really sorry, but that was ok. Eventually he'd get an answer; he was very persistent.

He didn't have class with the girl (was her name Rachelle?) for two more days, but he was determined to catch her sometime before then. As it turned out though, he didn't see her until then. They had a lab that day, so he convinced her to go to a late lunch with him after it was over.

As they sat, him eating a sandwich, her drinking tea, he started awkwardly, "So…" He got no conversational help from her; she merely raised an eyebrow. "You never answered my question," he elaborated.

"Oh, didn't I?" She was feigning ignorance and they both knew it. "What question was that?"

"Why do you like music more than most people? I mean, don't you know life's too short to hide behind a shitty pair of headphones?" He wasn't sure if she picked up on the forcefulness behind the questions, but she looked at him wearily.

"That's where we obviously don't agree. Life's too short to bother making bonds with people. Bad things can result. Life's too short to bother with it. At least with my music, it's safe. I know what to expect. There's no drama in it at all." She surprised even herself with her answer; she hadn't intended to be so forthcoming.

Her words made an odd sort of sense, yet he still couldn't understand how someone could choose a life without emotional attachments. For some reason, he wanted her to experience the joy of friendship, so on impulse, he said, "Meet my friends."

"Fine. I'll meet your friends," she agreed, "but that doesn't mean that I'm making friends with them. For that matter, it doesn't even mean that you and I are friends. Just…acquaintances. Distant acquaintances."

"Rachelle, meet Victor, Garfield and Kori. Guys, this is Rachelle. She'll be hanging out with us from time to time."

Kori, in typical Kori fashion, immediately stood and engulfed Rachelle in a hug. Sensing Rachelle's discomfort, Richard intervened, "Uh Kor, I don't think she can breathe."

"Oh friend Rachelle, my apologies," Kori exclaimed, "It is just so joyous to meet you."

"Right," Rachelle said, drawing out the word, clearly unsure of how to react.

"Hey, nice hair." This comment came from Garfield. She looked at his; it was green. "Too bad I can't say the same," she replied.

A loud booming laugh. "This girl's funny," Victor said. He noticed that she looked at him almost expectantly. He smiled, "Don't look at me like, I'm like the only sane one around here."

And that was how it began. The formation of the less than likely group Rachelle now called friends. She knew that since she'd met them, she'd spent less time with her headphones in and more time smiling. She ate lunch with this odd group almost every day. She must have smiled at the memory, because Richard asked her what she was thinking of. Her response: "Oh, I was just recalling the day that some nosy jackass begin heckling me with questions." And though the nosy jackass statement was almost true, she found that she didn't regret their meeting, not for a second. Not that she would tell him that.


I still have a problem with ending things. Not sure if this one quite covered it. If you would like to offer advice of any form for anything really, I am always open to suggestions. Hope you enjoyed it.