take it easy

"It's cliché to compare life to a rough sea, but don't be swept away!" marlon finn, guidance counselor&swim coach

[mellowtide]

Blind leading the blind? | open post

[academydirtbag]

"WH-WHA—" He swallows hard, eyes wide in panic. "It’s. Monday?"

As the counselor reads the file, Fire scrambles to dig his phone out of his pocket. He hastily flips it open— why yes, it flips, of course, being a scuffed up red Motorola RAZR V3™— and feels his stomach sink to the floor. Monday, the display reads. 2:45 PM. He missed all his classes and was now eligible for a detention for breaking the dress code. Great start to the year, Fire.

He groans and for lack of a better word, facepalms. Ugggggggggh. “No, I. Just. I failed algebra and chem, and then I withdrew from a bunch of other classes when my grades got too low.” Withdrawing helped keep his GPA high enough to stay on the basketball team.

[mellowtide]

Heh. The panicked look on the kid's face humbled him, brought him down from Planet CoolDude. Marlon was ready to be more agreeable and cooperative. 

"It's all good. We'll work somethin' out, yo. You got options," the counselor assured Fire with an easygoing smile before focusing on his monitor and typing all serious-like. In reality, he was replying to a Facebook message, but the student didn't need to know that. For all intents and purposes, Marlon was pulling up a copy of Fire's transcript. After a few minutes, he actually did his job and printed one out. 

He also typed up a note to pardon Fire from his absences. The appointment certainly wasn't slated to take all day, but what the teachers didn't know would't hurt 'em.

"Lesse...you need credits for algebra II and chemistry, like you said...  Huh. You're missin' a couple fine arts credits too. C'mon, dude! Get in touch with your sensitive side!" 

He belted out a laugh, whether Fire considered it funny or not. 

[mellowtide]

Blind leading the blind? | open post

[academydirtbag]

"Oh," he says. "That. Sucks."

Fire hated that fart. Every visit to the office over the past few years had not gone his way no matter how valid his points, and it always ended in a long, annoying lecture about being a contribution to society. He especially hated when the old guy would threaten to call his mother, like he was still a kid or something.

To Marlon, he cracks a half-smile in return, but it’s rather derisive. He talks slowly, as if explaining to a moron. “No… It’s the weekend. I can wear whatever I want. Do you have a problem with my shirt?”

He clears his throat. “Actually, uh. I was told I needed to make an appointment because I can’t graduate, apparently… It’s probably in my file.” While speaking, he pulls his hat off and punches it into shape repeatedly. His hair flops over his eyes.

[mellowtide]

"Huh. How 'bout that! Back home, Mondays were part of the work week, but shoots, bro. Guess things are different here on the mainland."

Marlon's grin spread as Fire talked to him with the condescending tone of a grown-up speaking to a child or small animal. 

Oh yeah. The kid was givin' off some vibes all right. 

"Sure, dude. Gimme a sec." 

The previous advisor--may he rest in peace and let him forever hang ten on the big kahuna we call the afterlife--left behind a few things. A stash of granola bars, nearing expiration in the desk drawer. A well-loved Jiggypuff mousepad, perhaps passed down from his predecessor. And a file cabinet stuffed with the students' records and transcripts.

Smiley swimsuit wondered if the old counselor left him any notes about this swagged out teen. There was probably an email sent to his new staff inbox, which was yet to be checked. Woops. Thankfully, Samsung Galaxy® Note III comes with the new Samsung Galaxy Gear Watch, which Marlon was sporting on his left wrist. The watch was bound to be broken at some point, likely to meet its demise after an unintentional dip in the pool. But for now, Marlon used it to log-in to his email account and figure out who the h*ll this punk was. 

Marlon swiveled over to the cabinet (the novelty of the wheeled office chair still fresh), opened the top drawer, and skimmed through the manila folders. 

"Himura, right? Lesse...Yeah. You're some credits short, yo. Did you transfer in late?" 

[mellowtide]

Blind leading the blind? | open post

[ceadless]

Jasmine heaved a small sigh as the latter began skimming through the papers she’d printed out. If only she was as good at being assertive as she was with tedious tasks like research — she wouldn’t of even needed to come here.

”.. Maybe we should bring them in for a conference..” she said, though her words did not sound very confident. She weighed the options in her mind; on one hand, it would be good for them to feel the iron fist that was the academic system and the zero tolerance for bullying. However, she was worried that if they were punished, they would only continue the abuse in secret. Teenagers could be relentless, especially when rebelling against ‘The Man’.

Calling their parents wouldn’t seem all that effective either, now that she thought about it — weren’t they at a boarding school? Were they going to come all the way to the region to smack them with a Pokeflute?

"That sounds to be the best option," she decided, sounding a bit more brave then she had a moment ago. To do this task alone would be an awful hardship, but with Marlon at her side.. they were sure to get through to the students! It wasn’t like he was going to drown them in Tentacruel Ink, right?

"I think.. you would be wonderful at it," she turned her attention back to him, smiling gently. She felt a little more comfortable now that she’d explained the situation. The surfer seemed much easier to talk to then she’d imagined.

"Er.. Jasmine alone, is fine.. by the way."

Miss seemed a little stiff — not to mention that she heard it all day long in the classroom.

"Should we.. plan a day and time..?"

[mellowtide]

"No time like the present--"

Uh, not quite. He couldn’t exactly round up the bullies immediately. Jasmine provided proof of the harassment, but Marlon figured he should talk to the victim of their torment as well. That’s what he was supposed to do...right?

“We should bring them all together for a conference, yo. Soon--within the week, soon. You’ll be there, right Jasmine?”

Marlon could notice Jasmine’s increase in confidence towards the situation. Hell, if she’d never came to his office, the bullying could’ve carried on for a while. The Unovan wasn’t one to play dumb and ignore kids being shoved into lockers, but he wasn’t exactly the most observant berry in the bunch. It was easy for Marlon to lose himself in his thoughts (or lack thereof), entering a stage of chillaxin’ so radical that it’d take something big--like a spreading fire, a thoroughly-whelming gym battle, happy hour on tequila and tacos--to bring him back to reality.

“You gotta be there, ya know? For ‘good-cop-bad-cop’.” The counselor chuckled aloud. "I'm gonna be the good cop." 

[mellowtide]

Blind leading the blind? | open post

[academydirtbag]

Fire breezes in, looking sleepy and strangely devoid of his usual enthusiasm. While no one has more school spirit than this senior, the guidance office— wait, the entire administrative building— was not his favorite place to be. No fond memories here.

He sits down and takes a second to readjust the Supreme snapback (with its official sticker still on) perched atop his head. He’s also wearing unwashed basketball shorts and a marijuana leaf print tank, which I’m telling you just because I feel like it’s relevant. And he hasn’t showered, but it’s whatever because he’s b-balling later.

"So," he says with a defeated breath, "Where are we now—"

"…Wait… Wait a second. Hey, what happened to the old guy? Is this the counselor’s office?"

[mellowtide]

"He croaked!"

Marlon probably sounded a little too chipper about that, but after all, you would be too if you'd just beaten level 28 of the notoriously challenging Candy Crush. Setting down his Samsung Galaxy® Note III in triumph, he greeted the kid with a smile. 

Haha. Oh boy. The swag was just emanating off of this guy. He reminded Marlon of his younger years--a simpler time, an era of frat parties and fake IDs. Freshman year was a wild ride.

"What's up? Sent here 'cuz of your shirt?"

[mellowtide]

Blind leading the blind? | open post

[ceadless]

Jasmine lifted her head up and drank in the appearance of the tanned male sitting beside her. His features took on different emotions as a small silence overcame then. The intensity in the air hung thick and her anxiousness only grew as she noticed he furrowed his brow. Of course she knew that this task wouldn’t be easy. It was particularly tough to deal with teenagers as they usually were going through rebellious stages around this time, but the seriousness in his eyes made her feel as if maybe this was more then she’d thought.

She debated averting her gaze like she had done previously, but then she took into account that his face suddenly softened. Oh, good! Maybe he had come up with an id—

"You think you made things worse? Hah, maybe, for now at least."

The lump she had growing in her throat fell through, grabbing onto her heart as she nearly dropped to the floor at his casual exclamation. She felt the hairs stand up on the back of her neck and she clenched her fists, lunging forward a bit in the seat.

"I-I-I really.. really.. di-didn’t mean to.. I just couldn’t.. erm.. you know! Stand seeing them.. push him around and everything..! They even threw him into a l-locker..! And I couldn’t just —"

"But really, prolly not." 

Her brown hues instantly grew wider and she shut her mouth tight, a bright scarlet washing over her face and down her neck. W-What?! Was he teasing her?! How could he think to say that she did — even if it might of been true! The Olivine Leader suddenly felt dizzy and as she glanced at the grin he wore on his face, she felt more exhausted then she had before she’d arrived. 

”.. I.. uhm.. already printed out what I could..” she managed to get the words out a few moments later, seeing as Marlon had moved on from teasing her. She cleared her throat softly, arms outstretched as she handed him the papers. 

"I-It looks like the two boys were.. uhm.. in a fight last year.. but that was about it.." she motioned to the highlighted sections on the printed paper. "T-They’ve never been a.. disruption or anything before.."

She furrowed her own brow, wondering if maybe there was a reason behind the bullying and the acting out. Maybe something had happened over summer break that they were doing this.

[mellowtide]

Shoots, did I really embarrass her?

Marlon felt a little guilty; seems like Jasmine was a little more sensitive than he thought. No prob. He reached for the documents and thumbed through them, nodding and 'hmm'-ing all official-like and what not. In reality, he was quickly trying to figure out what to do next. 

"Clean record or not, they got a beef with this kid. According to your reports, they're guilty now." Marlon skimmed the sheets again, reading the highlighted deeds on the page. Repeated physical altercations and verbal abuse ... yeah, that's some serious shit. 

"Well, we gotta do somethin', Miss Jasmine. We can call their folks, dish out some discipline ourselves, call 'em in here and have a conference. Think I can play a good mediator?" 

[mellowtide]

Blind leading the blind? | open post

[ceadless]

Before she even had a chance to excuse herself for so rudely barging in without making an appointment, the tanned male she saw posted at the desk quickly moved to greet her. Like a tidal wave, he washed over the space between them and took her hand in his — a steady shake that caught her off guard.

"Erm.. I-I’m Jasmine," she greeted, obviously taken aback by the sudden chatter and exuberant atmosphere he gave off. ".. P-Pleasure.. to meet you.."

She didn’t even have time to properly return the gesture before he retreated back to one of the seats in front of his desk. She was beginning to notice a familiar pattern with that staff employed here; very lively and outgoing. She almost envied how easily he had been about approaching her, but his next inquiry brought her back to reality and she shook her head free of other thoughts.

”..It’s not… directions, but maybe…”

Jasmine paused, unsure of how she wanted to begin the subject she’d come to discuss. Had she come seeking advice for the situation or maybe it would be better for her to just explain to him and have him take care of it?

Honey-glazed eyes glanced over him as she shuffled to the seat beside his. He wasn’t exactly what she had been expecting when she’d showed up at his doorstep, but she could see why he was chosen for the position. He had an air about him that made you feel comfortable, as if it were alright to discuss your feelings openly.

"I-I’m new here.. as well.." she began again, nodding at his mention that it was his first day. She took into consideration her options again before continuing. "A-Actually.. there’s .. uhm, a pair of students… in my third period class. They’ve been… teasing another boy… and I’ve asked them to stop.. but.."

Her words trailed off into the silence of the room and she glanced down at the papers she’d positioned in her lap. No wonder she wasn’t able to help the poor teenager — she couldn’t even properly discuss the situation with one of her own peers. How in Great Arceus was she going to be able to set straight a pair of rowdy kids if she couldn’t address someone in her own age range?

The Leader nibbled on her lower lip before looking back up at Marlon, obviously distraught about the situation.

”.. I may of only made it worse for him.”

[mellowtide]

Another new teacher? Cool. Good to know someone was on the same boat. However, unlike Marlon, Jasmine appeared to have a grasp on her profession.

She may be a fresh catch, but at least she knows what she's doing. Knows more than me, I bet.

With a furrowed brow, Marlon listened to his co-worker's account of the bullying. He recalled his own grade school experience; kids teased other kids, and when things got serious, some teachers didn't do a damn thing. Maybe they didn't want to deal with parents, perhaps they excused behavior with adages of dismissal--"kids are cruel" and "toughen up" came to mind.

Despite her meekness, Jasmine clearly had a strong heart. She wouldn't be here otherwise, especially so early in the school year.  But Marlon caught himself noticing Jasmine's fidgeting. Avoiding eye contact, thumbing the papers in her lap, chewing on her lip. Stong hearted, but nervous. Looks like this incident was a test for both of them. Marlon's hard look of concentration softened, partially in attempt to put his colleague at ease.

"You think you made things worse? Hah, maybe, for now at least."

Uh...so much for putting her at ease?

"But really, prolly not." His lips, pressed previously in a line, broke into a grin. "Now that'cha told me what's going on, we can stop it twice as fast. Two heads are better than one, ya feel me?"

The Klinklang in Marlon's noggin had generated some thoughts fo' sho. Time for some problem solving!

"What are the bullies' names? I can take a look through their records, see if they ever been busted before... huh." Smiley swimsuit became a little less smiley, a little more serious. "Miss Jasmine, do ya think this carried on from last year?"

[mellowtide]

Blind leading the blind? | open post

[ceadless]

Unbeknownst to Marlon, who was casually checking up on his applications, a lone figure was currently lingering outside of his office doors. Upon closer inspection, one could see that the figure was a slender female, a brunette with honey-brown eyes who had concern dancing over her features. In her hands were a collection of papers, neatly shuffled together and stapled in the far right corner. 

"…."

Jasmine, more commonly known as the soft-spoken Environmental Science teacher, hesitated outside of the office for a moment longer. She’d been debating for the past few hours if she should approach the counselor or not on the pressing subject that had plagued her mind — a student being bullied in and outside of her classroom. 

On one of her more braver days this week, she had meekly confronted the aggressive teenagers who had laughed at her and went on their way. Despite her best efforts and exclamation that she wasn’t going to tolerate such actions in her classroom, the abuse had still continued.

Fearing that maybe she had made the situation worse, she had finally managed to convince herself to approach someone who she figured was trained in these types of situations — the school counselor. Surely they would be able to get through to the students and settle matters, right? 

"Erm… E-Excuse me…" the Olivine Leader steeled her resolve as she gently knocked on the office door, pausing a moment before opening it and slipping inside. "I-I’m… sorry to bother you, but.. would you have a few moments to spare..?"

[mellowtide]

The subdued tapping on the door went unheard, but once Marlon caught a glimpse of a visitor, he straightened in his seat and set his phone face-down on the desk. Haha. Who’s playing Candy Crush while on the job? Not this guy. Nope. 

“Nah, it’s nothing! Anything I can help you with? I’ll do my best--if you need directions, I ain’t gonna be the best dude to ask…hah, it’s my first day on the job. You know how it goes, yeah?”

Smiley swimsuit wasn’t sure of who exactly the lady was--he was confident enough in his, uh, brief assessment to consider her a young woman, despite the youthful, girlish look about her. Marlon also figured it was safe to assume she was a fellow faculty member due to the lack of a uniform. and his next observation was her slightly skittish demeanor. The guidance counselor’s office wasn’t exactly home-y yet, but he always thought it should be more less nerve-wracking than a meeting at the principal’s ‘dungeon’.

“Name’s Marlon,” he started, standing from his desk to meet Jasmine at the door. His greeting was personable--both hands cupped one of hers and gave it a good shake--imparting a sort of kindness most others would reserve for friends. Instead of returning to his seat, Marlon plopped down in one of the two chairs across from the desk. The black, cushioned swivel chair was good for pencil-pushin’, but when it came to straight up communication, the Humilau native preferred not to be in a position which made him feel all...authoritative.

Totally not righteous, yo.

“What’s up?”

[mellowtide]

Blind leading the blind? | open post

The start of a term meant that students were moving into their dormitories, and new teachers were settling into their classrooms. Although Marlon wasn't an instructor, he had a corner--more like a modest sliver, really--of campus to call his own. He wasn't going to complain, though; the fact he was working a salaried job was enough to impress the guy. He reckoned that was pretty good for a recent graduate anyhow. Especially since he wasn't exactly the dude for the job...but he was a natural swimmer (as to be expected of someone described as "more marine than the sea"), the school needed a coach, and they managed to find something for him to do while he was on land.

Marlon's Business Bachelor of Arts hung ever so slightly askew in the guidance counselor's office, and while waiting for the first troubled student of the year, his thumbs swiped across the screen of his cell phone. Time to kill what was probably going to be eight hours of nothing.

...Probably.

[califourning]

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[mellowtide]