2007-04-19: Wishing You Weren't Here Again

Starring:

Niki_icon.gif Micah_icon.gif Karoliina_icon.gif Gene_icon.gifEliana_icon.gif

Summary: Micah meets his idol, Niki and Gene have a talk, Eliana looks at someone wierd, and Karoliina meets the true chaos of New York City.

Date It Happened: April 19th, 2007

Wishing You Weren't Here Again


Central Park

"Wishing you were somehow here again …
wishing you were somehow near …
Sometimes it seemed if I just dreamed,
somehow you would be here …"

A operatic soprano's rings out across the small grassy glade of Central Park, and the voice singing the nearly-famous lyrics to Wishing you were somehow here again…" is attached to a young woman who has her hands in her lap, eyes closed, and a small recorder. People stop to stare and gossip, many referring to the Broadway performance that happens at the Majestic. However, Karoliina doesn't notice her audience as she continues through it.

Music and musicians in Central Park, especially on a warm spring afternoon, are hardly uncommon. Eliana is here, fresh from a shift at the Pink Pony, for a similar reason - to create. She sits on a bench, the heels of her sneakered feet resting on the curve of the wooden slats, with a moleskin notebook against her thighs and a pen in her hand. The pink-haired girl's bicycle is propped against that same bench, and it's not very far from where Karoliina sits singing. The voice tickles Eliana's attention, and she lifts her gaze to look across the grass at the other young woman.

People staring is something that Gene has grown used to since he started moving around in the Big Apple. It isn't what he does necessary, but who he is with, the critically acclaimed R2-D2, friend of the children and defender of cool. Standing out with one of the few fully working robotic replicas of the famed fiction drone, Gene makes his way through the park, just doing his best to enjoy the fresh air and get some exercise. Clearly he isn't in peak condition, as he pauses for a moment to take an inhaler from his pocket.

Looking around as he takes a couple of puffs, Gene notices a woman with pink hair and someone singing loudly. Maybe he'll stick around here… Between the two of them, he won't stick out at all.

Mother and son stroll through Central Park, side by side. The former of the two is a trim blonde woman with her hair pulled back, wearing a wine-coloured hoodie to fend off the light spring chill - though the weather is pleasant overall, this evening - along with a pair of jeans. Pretty typical mom-gear, boots notwithstanding - cowboy-styled, they're a bit out of place in NYC, but they beat the high heels when you're gonna do a lot of walking. Like today. Niki and Micah are returning from the Central Park Zoo, taking the scenic route back, so to speak, and she, for one, is taking her time and enjoying the casual stroll. "Do you hear that, Micah? Someone's singing." It's the singer, not the … the /robot/ that capture her attention. So far.

"R2D2!!!!

It's obvious who Micah spots, and the young child is soon bolting ahead of his mother with a wide grin on his face. His dark, curly hair bounces up and down upon his head as he runs, wearing a new shirt with a lion on it, and a small backpack strung across his shoulders. "Hey! Hey! Is that a real robot? That is awesome!" He practically giggles out as the geek in him begins to shine. It's like he's meeting his robot hero.

"Passing bells and sculpted angels,
cold and monumental,
seem, for you the wrong companions -
you were warm and gentle …
Too many years fighting back tears …
Why can't the past just die …? "

" Wishing you were somehow here again …
knowing we must say goodbye …
Try to forgive, teach me to live …
give me the strength to try … "

Karoliina is still singing, through the climax of the song to the harrowing end - and guaranteed, right as everyone groups up, she'll finish, and be embarresed.

With her eyes at last on something other than her book, it doesn't take long for Eliana to be distracted by /other/ things in the park. Namely, Gene and his robot. She can't help but smile when she sees the little boy running excitedly toward it, and her eyes narrow then with a thought. Eli taps her pen twice against the edge of her notebook before she starts to slowly write.

GAME: Gene has rolled PERCEPTION and got a result of GREAT.

The young man pauses for a second as he sees someone coming toward him. Well, actually, Micah is heading toward R2, not Gene. Considering how happy the kid is, Gene just gives a smile. "Looks like you have another adoring fan, Artoo. Wish you'd teach me how you do it."

The Astrodroid turns its head toward Gene, giving an eager and seemingly cheerful, "Bweep bip."

As he waits for the kid to come over, he notices the woman with the pink hair narrowing her eyes and writing. Is she writing about him? Gene's paranoia kicks in a little, but he keeps his cool. After all, no one is really out to get him, right? Turning toward Micah, he nods, "Hey, kid… Take it you know who my bud is?"

Micah's shout comes completely out of leftfield as far as Niki's concerned - are-two-what? The mother is left standing in the boy's wake, about to say something but coming up short. Because she's staring in the direction Micah ran off to, which leads to a robot. …huh? Her gape turns into a curious smile at the peculiar sight, made warmer by Micah's obvious excitement. Glancing once in the direction of the songstress, she heads toward the young man with the toy that's entranced her son. "That's … not something you see every day," she slips her less-geek-knowledgeable comment in.

"Of course I know who it is! He was inducted into the robot hall of fame in 2003!" Micah exclaims as he claps his hands, then kneels down to get a closer look at the robot. "Wooooow. He looks so -real-. How does he move, remote control? He even makes the same noises!" Is it sad that he even knows about the hall of fame for geeks? Most likely. "I -love- robots. I so want one too! How much did it cost to build him? How long did it take? Is it yours? Are you a scientist?" He rapid fires off a million questions at once, practically babbling

"No more memories, no more silent tears …
No more gazing across the wasted years …
Help me say goodbye.
Help me say goodbye!"

Hitting the final note, Karoliina pauses afterwards to savor that note, then she turns off the recorder, and opens her eyes - and promptly squeaks. "Oh my…" At the sight of Micah, Niki, Gene, and R2-D2.

If being a geek is sad, then Micah is in the perfect company. The questions are given a swift response, considering that he's answered all of this questions over and over again in the times he's been with his odd traveling partner. "Some of the functions are remote control. I've been able to get him to do a lot through voice command, mostly by taking out voice recognition models on various toys and stuff." 'Stuff' being voice recognition security equipement. "He moves through the wheels for the most part, but through the a mirco-piston I helped make, he has some movement in the legs. I haven't gotten the rockets working, but considering those were in the new movies, I figure I get ten years before people expect him to be able to fly." Gene may or may not be trying to figure out a micro-propulsion system, but as usual for robotics, energy usage is the main concern. "I've been working on Artoo for about Hrm, how long as it been?"

R2-D2 glances back from Micah to Gene, giving a "Bweoooooo Bip Bip?"

"Yeah, three years. He's taken at least ten thousand bucks to make, but people gave me money for gifts to help build him. You know, like people do for restoring old cars." Except not nearly as cool (or way cooler, depending on your preference).

Pulling out the remote that's sticking out from his jean pocket, Gene shows it to Micah, but doesn't let him touch it. It's about 1.5x the size of your usual remote, but with twice the number of buttons, you'd have to be skilled with it, or you'd likely press the wrong thing. The buttons have one or two letters to identify them, likely just enough to jog Gene's memory as to what they do. As he lets Micah look, he glances around to see that Niki is coming over as well as Karoliina. As the attractive ladies seem to be in his mist, the young inventor gives a smile. R2-D2: Chick magnet.

"Don't overwhelm him, Micah," his mother reminds him - but it's gentle, good-natured. If a guy's going to walk around Central Park with a robot, he's gotta expect questions. She's on the verge of adding 'and we're not getting a robot', but holds off and settles on folding her arms casually across her chest and watching the interchange with amusement. Even if Niki had caught most of that lengthy explanation, this is definitely Micah's forte. She'll just stand back and let the boys do the 'robots are cool' thing.

"Getting the jets to work is /easy/." Micah says, practically analyzing Artoo as his eyes narrow a bit, picking apart the machine as his powers trigger nearly instinctively out of his excitement. He can 'feel' the robot, practically calling to him, dying to reach out in conversation with the robot. Reaching out, he presses a finger to the little guy, then pulls up the schematic blueprint in his head. ".. Wow. He's.. amazing." He breathes out. "You have like.. top notch encryption, and.. thermal couplers, and.. and.." He pauses for a moment, pulling his finger back as he clears his throat. "Does he learn? He learns, doesn't he? His software is designed to capture, and reference information as he processes it?"

No, Eliana isn't writing about Gene, but she is writing about a little boy and a robot. As the outline of the story progresses, it becomes too much like /other/ stories for Eliana's taste, and with a frown, she scratches violently at the page with her pen, crossing out the the writing. It's still readable, of course. With a slightly frustrated sigh, Eliana stands and pockets the moleskin before she reaches to set her bike aright.

Narrowing her eyes, Karoliina wanders up to next to Niki, peering at R2-D2, Gene, and Micah." The cute kid yours?" She wonders aloud, eyes straying to wave at Eliana as she notices the other woman. "Star Wars… I never go tinto it." She admits. "I preferred Star Trek." Ooooh. -Direct Challenge!-

GAME: Gene has rolled CHARISMA and got a result of MEDIOCRE.

<OOC> Niki says, "… fierce, Micah."
The young man is flabbergasted. This kid isn't even 12, yet he knows what this thing is made from? Something is special about this kid, Gene figures. Or maybe he's just lying. It was a hell of a guess though. Niki gets a small smile, "It's okay, I like a kid that asks questions. He reminds me of how I was when I was his age."

Turning his attention back to Micah, Gene coughs before saying, "He has basic video and audio capturing abilities, but it's mostly to figure out people and determine living from non living things using motion sensors. It's not the greatest, but be better sensors suck a lot of power which has been my main restraint with this guy since I don't want to have to recharge him every three hours.." As Eliana gets up to go, Gene figures he should say something to her. This is the time to impress Gene, all women want to be desire, show her the animal desire that burns within so you aren't stuck eating Chinese take-out as you watch Enterprise alone at night!

"Um, hello? Hello…" he says to Eliana in a voice barely above a whisper. He gives a small wave of the hand to try and get her attention as well, which won't do much if her back is turned. Aw well, back to those that are around him. "I like Star Trek a bit too-" he says as he smiles over toward Karoliina in a slightly goofy way. "-but Star Wars always seemed more epic to me. A young kid ends up saving the universe? Doesn't get much better than that."

Niki's brows raise the more Micah babbles on so intelligently (and excitedly) about things like jets, encryption and thermal couplers, until, finally, she quirks a silly look at him. His smarts never cease to give her wonder. "Yeah," she answers through a laugh as she looks over at Karoliina. "Somehow." There's a hint of pride in her eyes as she watches Micah talk to Gene, although it's less over his cuteness and more over his intelligence. Because /she/ certainly has no idea what they're talking about. And this gal, for one, stays out of the Star-show conversation.

"The power thrusters could have their own power source you know. Also, if you were to reroute about thirty percent of the power from the speed connectors and re route it, you can get enough juice to boost the visual, and audio quality within the motion sensors. That way, Artoo can differentiate between different types of shadows, blacks, and grays. It seems that his ocular input is designed for low resolution color, but, if you can heighten it so that he can find his way around the dark better, he wouldn't bump into things as much. Because, when he does that, he has to build a new learning algorithm. That also drains power, and adds to his database. You can totally save time and energy by just adjusting that. And.. and.. I bet you can find a way to make an ATX power supply backwards compatible to…"
Wait. What did she say?
"No way! Star Wars is /way/ better than Star Trek!"

Eliana would have simply mounted her bike and ridden away had it not been for Gene's greeting. Instead, she looks at him, confused at first. Then, like the true New Yorker that she isn't, Eliana narrows her eyes in skeptical puzzlement. "Yes?" she asks in a slightly chilly tone. "What is it?" Random people don't often talk to random other people in the park, even or perhaps especially if they have robots. Eliana glances at Micah and Karoliina, but her gaze soon returns to Gene.

Karoliina stares at Micah. "How the heck do you /know/ that?" She wonders aloud, shaking her head. "Good job." She murmurs to Niki, shaking her head at both her and Gene. "He certainly deserves to be alive, with that brain." Or certain amount of -talent-.

Eliana is gunna kill him. Gene is gunna die unless she goes away happily. Or that's what Gene thinks meekly as he gives her another wave. "WasGunnaSeeIfYouWantedToHangOutWithUs, ButISeeYou'reBusySoHaveANiceDay, Bye!" he says in a very hurried tone, clearly not wanting to dare confront the Chilly Look (tm).

Gene's attention goes back toward Micah as he gives his long speech. Gene considers it for a moment or two. It's plausible to do so, but "Well, if you do that, then I'd have to modify the lens. Right now, I'm going for a higher resolution image, so I can run face recognization. Maybe I'll build a second R2-D2 that is more of a 'fancy trick' droid. This one is mostly for show and being handy for a few things like carrying groceries or charging my cellphone." He turns up from Micah to Niki, giving the simple question that she is sure that she gets all the time, likely with the same hint of uncertainity to it. "This is your kid, right?"

Niki looks over her shoulder when another voice is added to the fold; the person robot-guy was apparently trying to call to. The pink-haired girl is given a polite smile for the brief second she looks before her attention is on the others. She laughs a bit at Gene's question of clarification, smiling brightly all the while. "Boy wonder," she murmurs in answer both to him and Karoliina. "He's… really good with computers. And, apparently, robots." The blonde steps ahead to wrap an arm lightly over Micah's shoulders. "Hi, I'm Niki, by the way — and this little genius is Micah. You know, for the record," the latter part is definitely for Micah, "You're not getting a robot unless you can build one yourself out of kitchen utensils ad your laptop."

"Uhh.." Micah says to Karoliini as she asks the question, unsure of how to answer. "Well.. I mean.." He gets distracted as Niki puts his arm around him, scooting in close to slide his arm around her waist, giving her a hug, and a bright, winning smile. "Hi." He says, a bit shyly now as he sways side to side on his worn down sneakers, stealing another look to Artoo. ".. I could go to the junk yard and put him together, I'm sure."

Eliana's eyebrows go up at the flood of words, and one corner of her mouth actually tugs upward into a smirk. Heh. She shrugs then, and smiles a little brighter as she swings a leg over her bike. "Suit yourself!" Eliana calls as she peddles away. Weird.

Karoliina shakes her head as Eliana runs off. "Some women, I swear…." She mumbles before she gies Gene a sincere smile. "You should just ignore types like her. Most of the time their grumpy." She adds on, before she shakes her head at Niki and Micah. "Could you really, now?" She wonders, bending down to look at Micah. "How long would it take you?"

The departing woman doesn't get much attention from Gene, likely to avoid making her mad at him again (if she was honestly mad at him to begin with). "It's good to meet you, Niki," the young man offers before looking down to her son. "Awesome to meet you too, Micah. I'm Gene. You know Artoo already…" he says before looking toward Karoliina. "It's alright, I'm used to that kinda stuff in the big city. As for the junkyard? That's the best place to get the stuff for the chassis for a lot of stuff. I know when I did Battlebots for a couple of years that's where everyone went."

Gene pauses for a moment as he rests his eyes on Micah, seemingly lost in thought. Then he decides whatever he was musing and looks up toward Niki. "Um, Miss Niki, could I talk with you over here for a second?" he asks meekly, pointing over toward the bench where Eliana once was.

Really? The junk yard? Niki gives Micah a questioning look, but at the same time, she half-believes it's possible that he could do it. He's just that smart. By the way she looks down at him with a half-silly-smirk, half smile, it's clear that she wants to hear the answers to Karoliina's questions, too. "Um — sure," she answers Gene, uncertainty over why the guy wants to speak with her obvious in her voice, but she obliges, squeezing Micah's shoulder and stepping toward the bench.

Well, maybe, at the junk yard. Depends on how many spare computers, and stuff Micah can find about laying around. "Ah.. I dunno.. I mean. I don't know if I could /really/ do it in a junk yard. I probably need to go to a few electronic places too. You ever watch Kill Bots? It's a cool show on G4. People make robots and they battle each other. It's /awesome/. Artoo is like… on a different scale though, but, the concept is fairly the same." He watches Niki head off, then turns back to the Artoo unit, giving it a broad grin. "Hey.." He whispers to the robot. "I know you wanna be so much more. Maybe one day."

Karoliina continues watching Micah for a few moments, eyes sharp. "Hmmm." She drawls. "I'll have to look into it." She drawls, amused, taking a seat on the ground to watch Miacah and Artoo, chin propped up in one hand.

Micah's words gets a "Beweep Reeip Reip" from the droid. Did it really say that on his own, or was there some hidden prompting from Gene or the remote still in his hand? Who knows save Gene himself.

"I know about Kill Bots. I participated in Battlebots, a show that was around before Kill Bots. I guess it was just before your time," Gene replies with a smirk before he glances back to R2. "Take care of the two while I'm gone, okay Artoo?"

"Beeewoooo." With that, R2-D2 moves right up to Karoliina's side and just parks himself there.

Moving toward the bench, Gene takes a seat. "So, um… Huh. How do I begin?" he says looking to the woman. He seems a little nervous now, but the guy seems skittish rather easily, so it might not been seen as anything but normal behavior.

Niki looks back at Micah, Karoliina and the beeping 'bot before she sinks down onto the bench beside Gene. The questioning look she's giving him is a lingering one, having started when he took her aside and trucking right on through. Still, that pleasant smile is still there, though more scarce now that Gene is skittish. … Okay, /more/ skittish. Still skittish? The point is, she's not sure what he's trying to ask. "You could begin at… the beginning…?"

GAME: Gene has rolled CHARISMA and got a result of POOR.

GAME: Gene has rolled WILLPOWER and got a result of MEDIOCRE.

"Your son's a genius." Pause. "So am I." It's an awkward start, but Gene figures it's better than nothing. He has no idea how Niki is going to react. Is she defensive of her child, worried about him or is she looking for chance for him to grow and flaunt him as truly proud parents do from time to time.

Gene looks toward Niki and deciding that her attractive nature would be distracting, pulls a classic move of the geek: Talking while looking at one's shoes. "I know when I was his age There wasn't many outlets to really learn. I had to use the Internet for a lot of it, but it wasn't that great when I was his age. Few teachers in the public school really had much for me of worth and even going to private school, I was more advanced than them in the first year of high school." He glances over to Niki, preparing to go on, but first he wants to make sure she isn't mad or upset. After all, if she's upset now, no telling how she'd be if he went on. Of course, his eyes drift to her chest for a couple of seconds before moving up, but she's used to it, right?

Karoliina moves slightly, getting ready to block Micah's ears and eyes from Niki and Gene when Gene speaks, and with a hard *thump*, Karoliina takes her seat back on the ground, staring in amazement. Amazement from what isn't sure, it's just… wow.

Niki turns to face Gene a bit more on the bench, legs angled toward him - at a respectable distance - when he gets to the meat of the matter. He has her full attention, and there's nothing about the woman's expression that suggests she's upset. If anything, she looks pleased to be talking to someone who seems to understand her son's situation. … Granted, she tips her head down and searches out Gene's eyes to try to draw them /up/ so that they'll maybe stay there. "I've never gotten the chance to talk to anyone who was in Micah's position before. I mean, you read things, but it's never the same when you actually /have/ a kid who's smarter than all his classmates. Sometimes he has the teachers running in circles. It's just… it's hard, you know? Well… I guess you do." There's a pause. Blue eyes soften on Gene as she considers, perhaps wondering where he's going with this.

Niki isn't yelling 'Get away from my son' or 'what the hell are you talking about?'. Happy to dismiss all the negative reactions possible from the woman, Gene eases a bit, looking up toward the woman. It's a lot easier to make eye contact when the person is looking at you with gentle eyes. He still struggles with his speech, clearly not one designed to be a public speaker as he talks slowly, sometimes pausing between sentences.

"I'd likely be as smart as he at his age… maybe smarter if I had the proper resources. He's at his learning prime. My home life was pretty much a joke too so that didn't help me learn as best I could… But that's not important. ANYWAY, everyday, I'm still learning, improving, bettering myself."

Gene pulls out his remote, taking a small pouch from his jean pocket as well. Must be massive pockets or something to hold all this stuff. Removing a small screwdriver from the bare bones mini-hardware set, Gene takes off the back to show Niki the interior. It looks incredible for those that haven't seen modern science at its best. But then again, this goes beyond modern science. "I still do most things on my own, considering that I'm a leading pioneer on a lot of things. You'll see chips like these in about… six months to two years, depending on how declassification goes," he whispers to the woman, putting the remote backing on once more. "For the record? You didn't see anything right there." Gene pauses from his words to look toward the fallen Karoliina, giving a simple "You okay?" as he pushes a button or two on the remote.

R2-D2 merely turns to the woman, a small panel opening up from his 'chest' so a small appendage can come out and seemly offer to assist the fallen singer back up.

Looking over at Artoo, then the woman, Micah squints his dark eyes a bit as he looks the robot over once more. As he angles his stare towards his mother, he subtly slips a hand over, placing it against the robot, as if he was just giving it a pat. Instead, he's practically absorbing every bit of the robot's internal programming. This is completely fascinating, and he has never seen stuff like this before, at least, not on the internet. "So.. Artoo. Where's your C3PO? Maybe I'll design him for you to have a buddy, huh?" He asks, sending his conversation from lips, to fingertips, to robot.

Karoliina takes the proffered hand from Artoo, and Karoliina pulls herself up with a sigh. "Thank you." She says quietly tto it. However, her eyes are full of… well something as she watches Gene and shakes her head. "I'm fine. Just… lost my breath for a minute. Occupational hazard."

Niki can't help but glance away from Gene, off toward Micah et al, just about the time the man mentions his home life - and her open expression darkens for just a second. Soon, though, she's looking down with interest (slightly confused interest, but interest nonetheless) at the device he shows her. "He's been in and out of a lot of schools. He's back in private school now," she says after a moment. Gene telling her about himself and his intelligence is great and all, but… with a subtly furrowing brow, the woman adds, "I'm not sure I follow…"

GAME: Gene has rolled WILLPOWER and got a result of GREAT.

Micah might find something rather interesting about R2's designs that might show a new part of Gene. R2-D2 has a few hidden surprises, but considering that his maker is a genius of robotics, that's not at all surprising. Still, Gene has no idea that Micah has more than just raw intelligence going for him, so Gene lets Micah touch his prized creation, figuring it just another adventure in tactile learning for today's gifted youth.

"I just wanted to make sure that he was getting all he could to encourage his gift is what it boils down to, I guess," Gene replies, getting more comfortable as he speaks more. He clasps his hands together as he rests his elbows on his knees. "If he is getting what he needs from private school, that's fine, but if there is stuff that can be done…" Gene looks up with honest sincerity toward the woman. She looks like a loving mom to that kid. Makes him almost want to cry. Thankfully, he doesn't, sucking it up like he should. "I want to help. I know, it's selfish, wanting to help a kid just because he reminds you of yourself when you were younger, but the offer's there. I know you were talking about how he only had a laptop for electronics… If you want, I have a few old Lego Mindstorm sets. I used them for my early robotics when I was his age. Would it be alright to give them to him?"

Gene doesn't reply verbally to Karoliina, but he does give her a thumbs up, clearly happy to see that she's alright.

Pausing, Micah jerks his hand back away from the robot, then rises up quickly to his feet. "Mom. I wanna go home now." He calls over to the blonde bombshell. Shoving his hands into his jacket, he takes a few steps away from the robot, giving a pointed 'look' over in the pair's direction. Mom. NOW. NOW!

Karoliina giggles slightly at poor Gene and the now-insistent Micah. She does walk over, and smile. "It was nice meeting you, miss." She drawls to Niki. "Your son as well."

"He's … new at this school, and summer's already coming up. It's been a little crazy lately— " Lately? "But we try to encourage him. Give him challenges, you know?" As long as they don't encourage him to steal from ATMs. "It's really nice of you to take an interest like that. Really." It's easy to see Gene's sincerity, but he's still a random person in Central Park, and being the loving mother that Niki is she has to be a /little/ guarded. "That's— " And she's about to say more, but she's cut off by Micah's calling. "Just a second, Micah!" Flashing Gene an apologetic look, she pushes up off the bench and smiles gracious down at him. "I'm sure he wouldn't pass up that offer, it's a good one, but we really don't know you." She backpedals to stand by Micah. "Bored with the robot already?" she asks jokingly of her son. "It was nice to meet you too," she tells Karoliina, "And you have a very beautiful voice."

"Of course," Gene replies, hiding most of the disappointment. He figured it would be the case, but who knows, maybe he'll never meet the kid or his mother again, New York is a massive city. He had to try. But the defensive mother reflex flares up, albeit in a much more gentle manner than the young inventor was expecting. "If you need to talk or change your mind, here's my card." With that, he gives out something for the first time, his business card. It's a simple card with the logo of Lancaster Electronics on it. Gene's name is Gene Kensington, and his position there is stated simply as Research and Development. Vague, but enough to know what he does. "Take care. Later, Micah," the young man offers as he moves toward his robot once more.

"Bye." Micah says quickly as he starts off across the park without waiting for his mother. Something seems to have crawled up his butt. He's sure anxious to get the heck out of there. Aiming for the water fountains, he keeps his head low, eyes narrowed as he bullets for the graceful arcs of water near by. Bored of the robot? Hardly. Not with what he's learned so far.

Karoliina smiles prettily at Niki. "I thank you. If you can, stop by the Majestic Theater- tell them Lii sent you and you should get a backstage tour." She explains. "You look like you need the night out." She adds in an undertone. "Bye Micah and Micah's mom!" She says jokingly before she steps back to watch them go. "I need to go too, actually. I forgot we were doing masquerade rehersal…" She smiles at Gene before she heads off her own way.

Niki takes the card, and the smile she gives Gene is so very friendly that it might give false hope. Maybe she will call him! For Lego! "Sure," she says as the card is tucked into the back pocket of her tight-fitting jeans. "Thank you," is told sincerely to Karoliina. But with Micah's urgent /running away/, her goodbyes are cut short and she finds herself jogging after him. "Hey, what's up?"

Little does she know that what he has to tell her later will definitely make her /not/ want to give Gene a call.

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