Room 522, Wednesday Afternoon

[stars_and_money]

George was dead. Except technically she was probably undead? Jeremy was... still kind of wrapping his head around that fact. It was a complicated thing, even he could recognize that, and he was not the best at complicated things, so he was taking his time with it.

And that was manifesting itself in the fact that, except for his Monday class, Jeremy had mostly been hermiting it up in his room and acting even more absent-minded than usual. (Sorry, Stephanie.) Today, that meant sitting on the edge of his bed, in front of his ridiculously tiny TV (it was actually decent sized for a dorm room) with a PS3 controller in his hand, playing some random racing game he probably wouldn't have been able to name if asked. It was just some game.

It was a distraction. He was taking brain leave until he got this whole thing figured out. Yep.

Mostly, he was crashing a lot.

[ooc: Door half open, post completely so.]

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[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"Want to meet your robot niece?" Juliet asked, opening the door and wandering right in with Winter the droid baby on her hip. Winter had been fed and napped, so she was in as good a mood as a droid baby could possibly be in. "She hasn't bit me since lunchtime."

[stars_and_money]

Jeremy was kind of really in the zone with his game (or his losing therein), so it took a moment for him to draw his gaze away from the screen and direct his attention (goofy glasses and all – come on, he was just hanging out in his room) at her.

At which point he stopped and stared at both her and the robot baby.

"What," he asked, pointing at said fake baby, "is that?"

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"Ethics homework," Juliet informed him, and leaned over to try to see the screen. "Winter's mine until Friday. Oh -- she's just a robot. Professor Skywalker builds them or something."

She ran a hand over the droid's scant hair. "So far it's like having a dog that wants to be held all the time."

[stars_and_money]

The screen was not all that interesting, sadly. Just a big flashing GAME OVER over the remnants of Jeremy's latest crash.

He paused for a bit before he decided, "I'm never taking Ethics." He could just barely take care of himself and he knew that, thank you. "Robot babies are creepy."

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"She's cute," Juliet said, halfway honestly offended. "And I like Ethics. We talk about ... you know. Important stuff. Democracy and priorities and all of that."

Then, considering it as she put the baby down on his bed to wiggle around: "I guess she's a little creepy."

[stars_and_money]

Jeremy shifted a little further away from the mechanical monstrosity. "A little," he agreed, and meant a lot. Or maybe he was just a little cranky. "I'm not letting it call me uncle."

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"She doesn't talk. She won't call you anything," Juliet said, rolling her eyes. "What's with you, anyhow? You seem kind of moody."

That was Juliet's department.

[stars_and_money]

"What? No I don't." That was both too quick and, well, too much of a lie to believable. "I'm... I'm totally cool, Jules."

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"Uh-huh." Juliet raised her eyebrows. "And maybe somebody who wasn't psychic with you" -- or had never met him before -- "might even believe that."

She glanced toward him, a bit more worried. Jeremy being irritable wasn't that big a deal, but he usually didn't lie to her.

[stars_and_money]

Jeremy wasn't so impressed with himself, either. But, he was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to blab about George's... thing, to anyone, when she'd taken so long to even tell him. And he didn't know how he would've gone about it. 'The girl I like is undead or something' was a world away from 'that girl I like? yeah that was her big sister I made out with at the last Hamptons bash and then forgot to call back'.

So he'd panicked and lied and now he looked uncomfortable.

"I'm just -- I have a thing."

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"A bad thing?" Juliet said, absently picking Winter up so she'd quit trying to roll towards the edge of the bed.

She ... probably didn't really want to hear that George was undead. Not yet, anyhow. That would just be creepy.

[stars_and_money]

Jeremy probably would have called them about even since she was holding a robot baby.

But he wasn't going to get into that. "A... thing," he said, because that really cleared things up. "A dilemma. Nothing major -- well, kinda major."

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"Are you in trouble?" Juliet asked, in a low voice that was almost a hiss. "Because ... maybe I can try to help get you out of it, if you are."

"Try" was likely the operative word, there.

[stars_and_money]

"What? No.." He only managed a little bit of indignation.
This was Jeremy Darling, after all. Being trouble was sort of what he did. "No, it's... It's George. Uh, not that I mean she's in trouble either."

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"She better not be in trouble," Juliet said. Seriously, it was a little early for non-robot babies. "Okay, so ... you guys had a fight?"

[stars_and_money]

"It's not like that." He flopped down onto his back, resting the game controller on his stomach and frowning up at the ceiling. "I mean, I don't think it's a fight. I walked her home and everything."

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"So that's good." Juliet sounded, and was, uncertain. "I'm confused. So I don't need to beat her up or anything."

Not that she could, likely, but she'd try.

"But it's kind of ... personal to her?" Which was bizarre. They always told each other other people's secrets; it was just how this worked.

[stars_and_money]

"Yeah," Jeremy replied, after a slight hesitation and more frowning. "And it's, uh, kinda huge."

A pause.

"And I can't tell you."

Even more frowning.

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"I won't tell her you told me," Juliet offered, frowning right back at him. "She can't tell you something huge and think you won't tell me ever."

[stars_and_money]

"I don't know if it's ever," Jeremy replied, a little defensively. "But I didn't ask her if I could tell you and it's sorta... It's pretty big, Jules, like, mega. And, I dunno, I don't wanna hurt her feelings by blabbing, you know?"

It was actually a pretty novel concept for them.

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"Not really," Juliet said, since it was such a novel concept. "Whatever it is, it's true whether I know it or not, right? And I promise I won't tell anybody."

She hoisted Winter against her shoulder. "Is she a criminal?"

[stars_and_money]

"No, she's not even ever been arrested." Which was not all that relevant but Jeremy was really trying, here. "Look, sis, I'm sorry. I just... I gotta deal with this one n my own."

As helpless as that made him feel.

"For now."

[twintuitionist.livejournal.com]

"This is ... really, really weird," Juliet said hesitantly. "But
I guess I have to trust you. For now, anyhow."

A beat. "Is it okay if I still wanna get to know her better?"

[stars_and_money]

"Sure." A hesitation, and he added, "I mean, I can't talk for her and right now is probably, uh, not the greatest time but in general? Sure. Of course."

Assuming this thing didn't implode now.