[ The girl is still very much trying to process the first thing he's sitting when Alec is already hitting her with the second - which makes her promptly forget about the first, since this one feels way more important.
Especially when it makes her eyes grow wide in surprise the moment she realises just what Alec is saying here - and its implications. Olympia does realise in this moment that her behaviour definitely might have seemed off, but it seems that Alec has interpreted it in the exact wrong way. The last thing she'd ever want is to make anyone else feel like their powers make people react to them differently when the very thought of that happening to herself makes it feel like a deep void is swallowing her from the inside.
So she quickly shakes her head, looking startled. ]
N-No! No, that's not--
[ Olympia pauses, biting her lip. She folds her hands instinctively together in front of her in fretful worry, only to quickly release their hold on each other when it still stings. ]
I'm not sucking up to you. [ Well, you know, not on purpose, anyway. ] It's not that I'm scared of you, or your power, not at all!
[ It's a tough decision here. She knows that denying this without any explanation is going to make it seem like Alec was definitely right, and he's not. But telling the truth is.. scary. Even if Alec might seem to be in a better position than most people to understand, there's no telling how he'll react. And something about the idea of telling anyone about this in general feels so daunting in a way she can't explain, not even to herself.
.. but.. she knows. She can't put her own comfort above someone else's, not when she owes Alec in the first place.
So despite the anxiety gathering in her chest, Olympia forces herself forward, a little closer to Alec, if not just so she can lower her voice so what she says is only audible to the two of them. Sharing it with one person is one thing, but the whole town definitely does not have to know. ]
It's.. I have something similar. A power that's more like a reflex. One that could hurt other people pretty bad. [ The girl looks very much like a guilty puppy as she confesses this, but she continues to speak. ] And I understand that when it comes to that sort of thing, there-- um, there can be a lot of things that are hard to deal with. And you hurt yourself so bad because of it, on top of that..
[ Her gaze momentarily drops to his arms, but then she shakes her head and looks back up at his face. ]
I just didn't want you to feel bad about it, so soon after showing up here. [ Granted, there's no true telling if Alec showed up only today, just like her-- but on the other hand, he was here by himself. No one else was helping him. ] Or for you to be all alone.
[ Surely he'd have friends if he had been here for longer than her, right? ]
.. I'm sorry. [ There was a smile on her face - like trying to be tough despite nerves, or maybe wanting to soothe him a little, but it keeps mixing with other things. Worry, guilt, nerves, maybe even something deeper. ] I must sound really meddlesome right now..
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Especially when it makes her eyes grow wide in surprise the moment she realises just what Alec is saying here - and its implications. Olympia does realise in this moment that her behaviour definitely might have seemed off, but it seems that Alec has interpreted it in the exact wrong way. The last thing she'd ever want is to make anyone else feel like their powers make people react to them differently when the very thought of that happening to herself makes it feel like a deep void is swallowing her from the inside.
So she quickly shakes her head, looking startled. ]
N-No! No, that's not--
[ Olympia pauses, biting her lip. She folds her hands instinctively together in front of her in fretful worry, only to quickly release their hold on each other when it still stings. ]
I'm not sucking up to you. [ Well, you know, not on purpose, anyway. ] It's not that I'm scared of you, or your power, not at all!
[ It's a tough decision here. She knows that denying this without any explanation is going to make it seem like Alec was definitely right, and he's not. But telling the truth is.. scary. Even if Alec might seem to be in a better position than most people to understand, there's no telling how he'll react. And something about the idea of telling anyone about this in general feels so daunting in a way she can't explain, not even to herself.
.. but.. she knows. She can't put her own comfort above someone else's, not when she owes Alec in the first place.
So despite the anxiety gathering in her chest, Olympia forces herself forward, a little closer to Alec, if not just so she can lower her voice so what she says is only audible to the two of them. Sharing it with one person is one thing, but the whole town definitely does not have to know. ]
It's.. I have something similar. A power that's more like a reflex. One that could hurt other people pretty bad. [ The girl looks very much like a guilty puppy as she confesses this, but she continues to speak. ] And I understand that when it comes to that sort of thing, there-- um, there can be a lot of things that are hard to deal with. And you hurt yourself so bad because of it, on top of that..
[ Her gaze momentarily drops to his arms, but then she shakes her head and looks back up at his face. ]
I just didn't want you to feel bad about it, so soon after showing up here. [ Granted, there's no true telling if Alec showed up only today, just like her-- but on the other hand, he was here by himself. No one else was helping him. ] Or for you to be all alone.
[ Surely he'd have friends if he had been here for longer than her, right? ]
.. I'm sorry. [ There was a smile on her face - like trying to be tough despite nerves, or maybe wanting to soothe him a little, but it keeps mixing with other things. Worry, guilt, nerves, maybe even something deeper. ] I must sound really meddlesome right now..