The human stomach is an amazing thing. In childhood the size of a stomach depends entirely upon the dish that is being served. It contains an entire universe of space for something desirable such as ice-cream or an extra serving of strawberries or potato chips, yet is only the size of one microscopic portion of the broccoli being served. No wonder kids are said to have eyes bigger than their stomachs. There is no accurate way to measure how much food there is room for. Adults have a rather dull stomach, though it has problems with foods that in younger years went through the system without hesitation. Suddenly a pizza loaded with pepperoni, sausage, onions, and green peppers sounds less like a food and more like a digestive bomb. Perhaps the most unusual, and amazing, stomach of all belongs to teenagers. It will gladly accept five star cuisine food or peanut butter, jelly, and hot sauce sandwiches. It has the capacity of a child stomach in a candy store, but the flexabilty of an Olympic gymnast.

So it was almost to be expected that shortly after dinner had ended Locke had made his way back into the kitchen for a snack. He set a pot of water boiling and poured some elbow macaroni. Next came out blocks of cheese. Locke's little snack was turning into more of a second supper. Perhaps he was part hobbit. His stomach was growling though. Even he was a little amazed at how quickly he digested his meals and snacks. Heaven forbid he grow anymore. As was Locke was getting pretty close to six feet. The voice changing part of puberty was over, though aparently not the growing part. "If I was a cheese grater, where would I be kept?" he rhetorically asked the fridge. Since it gave him no answer he simply opened it and took out an apple, shoving it into his mouth. He was starving.

Living in a school full of teenagers was going to do horrible things to Kealey’s figure. She hadn’t realized that hungry could be such an intense feeling. For the most part, the blond was able to restrict her binges to the seemingly endless supply of fruit and vegetables the Mansion supplied. Unless Shin was making waffles in the kitchen…then it was peanut butter, whipped cream, and blueberries. Yummm.

Twinges of hunger had pulled Kealey from her room, which was actually not a horrible thing considering the fact that she had missed dinner in lieu of working on her costume. Tonight’s wandering was a little more focused than the previous night had been, though. Kealey had made it to the kitchen on accident that time, this time was on purpose.

The thing about a house the size of the mansion, which housed as many people as the mansion did, was that privacy was something of a commodity. Kealey looked down at her sweats and shook her head, this hermit thing was going to have to change. A pony tail and t-shirt were not the type of thing a fashion designer should be seen in at any time of the day. She’d change after she got some food…really, she would.

Into the room the blond went, heading straight for the refrigerator and digging around a bit before coming out with a head of lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, capsicum, an egg to boil, and an avocado. This salad was going to be awesome, and she’d go back for the dressing later.

Confusion, curiosity, and uncertainty suddenly washed through Kealey as she made her way to the counter and she turned to find a teenager she’d never seen before boiling water. ”Oh, hello!” she said, Irish accent lilting pleasantly as she dropped her ingredients on the counter and tried to figure out exactly what they were confused about, ”Are y’looking for somethin‘. Y’seem a little baffled.”

She smiled, "I'm Kealey by the way. I don't think we've met."

He knew that they were coming, he could sense it, but there is a difference between knowing that someone was their and seeing them. When Locke turned around he nearly choked on his apple, eyes bulging. His hand moved to catch the apple just in time as it tumbled out his mouth and towards the floor. Hot. Girl. What she was wearing was not the important thing. The fact still remained that an attractive girl, with an accent, was talking to him. One hand went to pounding his chest to clear the airway, still holding the apple, while the other got to work making sure every hair was in place, meaning that the left side of his face was hidden well. Don’t screw this up again.[/i]

Oh come on. He already was looking like a total idiot who was incapable of the simple task of eating and moving at the same time. There was no way in hell he wasn’t going to screw this up like he had in the laundry room, or when he first arrived. Chris had been the only person he had been able to talk to without there being some moment of discomfort or too many forbidden words and thoughts slipping out. He needed to think fast about what to say. Don’t say cheese clamp. For the love of all that is good in the universe don’t say cheese clamp. “Hira momph…” Dang it! The apple was still in his mouth. Not only did he just mumble what might have been a normal response, but he also talked with his mouth open, and… oh great, he was drooling slightly too. If not for that cursed apple in his hand he would slap himself in the face for looking like an ill mannered Neanderthal.

Brain, body, work together![/i] How could he keep a person made out of sand together but not remember that he had food in his mouth?

Needless to say, Kealey had not been expecting the response she got from the boy in response to a simple, ‘hello’. The panic and embarrassment were nearly overwhelming and Kealey had to spend a moment simply sorting things out before she could figure out how to proceed with the conversation. Those confusing and uncomfortable emotions got pushed to the side, as strong as they were it was no small undertaking, and Kealey tried to figure out what else was going on inside the strange teen’s head.

A smile, amused, smile crossed her features and she blushed slightly when she realized his other subconscious feelings. There was no reason to get up in the air about it, though, he was so young. There was no way he could help what he was feeling…and Kealey had learned to take such things as a compliment after being around teenagers so often in recent times.

Speaking was apparently a problem too, and Kealey could suppress the giggle that escaped her as he juggled the apple that had fallen from his mouth. It was a nervous giggle, and Kealey shook her head slightly as if that would clear away the heady emotional mixture emanating from the teen.

She looked away to try and break the odd silence and noticed that the pot of water the boy had been heating up to cook was starting to boil over.

”Y’might want t’check that.” Kealey said, turning to pull a bowl down from one of the cabinets and retrieving a knife to cut the veggies. ”The water’s goin’ t’make a mess.”

She waited to see what he would do, head tilted to the side as she started working on the veggies while trying not to mirror his nervous, slightly panicked state. ”I didn’t catch your name before.” she said softly. Maybe small talk would help.

Rather than coughing up the bit of apple that was floating part of the way between his mouth and his throat, Locke forced himself to swallow. If the apple hadn’t been as juicy as it was he probably would have rubbed his esophagus raw doing so. Now with his mouth clear of fruit Locke could actually make sounds that were more like words rather than alien gibberish. ”I’m… oohhh…” he started, swearing as he lunged towards the stove. He should have been keeping an eye on the macaroni instead of de-evolving. He turned the heat down, hissing and pulling his hand back. The stupid thing spit on him.

“I’m Locke,” he managed to say without too much complication. He was not sure what to say afterwards afterwards, so he simply stared at the pot of noodles. Should he say something? Probably. The problem was just figuring out what to say. Locke squirmed a little, then pointed at his would be meal. “Mac and cheese, not the Kraft kind.” What else could he say? It wasn’t as if he was doing anything particularly fascinating. Not that he ever really was a source of great entertainment.

The young man looked to the boiling water on the stove and his shock and surprise made Kealey hide a small smile as she started pulling lettuce from the head and tearing it up. Into the bowl it went as he took care of the problem and Kealey’s head jerked up as pain flashed across his emotions.

”Are you alright?” she asked, half reaching out across the counter towards his hand, then pulling hers back to rub at the spot on her hand correspondent to the one on Locke’s. He gave his name then, and Kealey nodded her head. ”Nice to meet you.”

He pointed out that the Mac & Cheese wasn’t the brand name variety and Kealey looked at his assembled ingredients with a nod of the head. ”I missed dinner and I’m not that ambitious. Besides…all of you teenagers and your appetites have me hungry all the time. Where’d y’learn to make the homemade stuff?” she said, looking at it with a sideways tilted head, ”Whenever I try it turns out like concrete.”

The level of awkwardness in Locke went shooting through the roof, like a rocket finally cleared for launch when Kealey reached across and almost touched his hand. He didn’t really do well with the touching thing, let alone someone that he thought was hot. Ok, so she was older, like Ms. Csendes, but Maya had been a comrade in the darkness, and then there was the whole incident with the Danger Room. Still, an older woman doesn’t make all that much a difference if you’re sixteen.

Thankfully she asked him a question that had nothing to do with attraction. Talking with Tarin, and therefore talking with his dad, had helped a little bit with the pain that still ran very deep in Locke. It was still there and for a moment he was reminded of it. A flash of that dull ache, and then the carefully constructed apathy used to handle some of the common conversations that had something to do with his father. “My mom’s not a part of my life, she hasn’t been for years, so my dad taught me some basic survival skills. Cooking, laundry, sewing. After he re-married I just sort of took over the meals with my little brother and sister.”

The lettuce went into the bowl and Kealey went to work cutting up the assorted vegetables she’d gathered from the fridge. While she did that, Locke got more and more uncomfortable and awkward. Kealey shook her head slightly, as if it would slough off the feelings. This was why she kept away from the students as much as possible. The hormones at this age did things to them, and she wasn’t thinking about physically. Emotional swings were commonplace, and something that had a tendency to get Kealey reeling.

What she hadn’t expected, though, was the rush of emotion that surfaced when she asked a seemingly innocent question about the macaroni and cheese. That was a deep and raw pain she’d felt, ultimately muted to a dull ache, but still hiding just beneath the surface of the apathy that overshadowed it. It made Kealey curious, as emotions so often did, and she found herself staring again, the knife hovering over a piece of green pepper. She forced it to move again and the rhythmic sound of the vegetables being slaughtered continued.

”I didn’t mean to bring up anything painful.” she said, responding to the emotions instead of the verbal conversation. Realizing what she was doing, and how odd it would sound to the young man, she shook her head, curls bouncing around her shoulders. ”I didn’t mean to eavesdrop on your emotions. “ she said, tapping the side of her head, ”It’s something I can’t help.”

There had been something else Lock had said, something about his family, cooking for his brothers and sisters. ”That was nice of you, doing the cooking, that is. I’ve heard that children often prefer homemade food to the alternative.”

Ohmanohmanohmanohman[/i] Locke thought frantically. Hearing that she was an empathy was a bit like having someone tell a little kid not to cry, it just made the situation all that much worse. He had no idea how much she had sensed before hand, but he knew that there had to be some stuff he didn’t want her to know he felt. Of course this bit of knowledge was making things all the worse. ”I’nnm…uh…”

Locke shifted his weight, glancing back and forth from Kealey to his pot. ”I think people just say that. I know my brother and sister would rather have McDonalds than a grilled burger.” He already knew that he was going to have to think out what he was going to say and do, but to now have to think about his emotions? Even his dad couldn’t really get him to think or express his emotions. Most of the time they were locked so far away and so tangled up upon themselves that Locke hardly noticed if he wasn’t happy when he was suppose to be, or that he was really angry about something. He pulled a drawer open, looking absentmindedly at the contents for a cheese grater. “Makes it sound like our country is less screwed up.”

Kealey sighed at the reaction she got from revealing she was literally empathetic. It was fascinating how often people did that…panicked at the fact that she could tell what they were feeling. Emotions weren’t public domain by any means, but Kealey had always been of the opinion that a person shouldn’t hide their feelings. Wearing them on one’s sleeve mad matters easier for all the parties involved, after all.

Apparently Locke didn’t agree. Now he was unsure, and even more awkward. Kealey set down the knife, trying to cut something up while she felt like this was only going to lead to blood and tears. She settled for leaning on the countertop instead, and laughed softly as Locke pointed out that she was probably wrong about brand-name food.

”Well, you’re definitely the expert here. I don’t know anything about kids, other than their either hungry or sad about ninety-percent of the time.” A truer statement had rarely been spoke, Kealey usually avoided children like the plague. Yes, their emotions were clear cut and simple, but they were usually very intense as well.

He commented on the state of the country, and Kealey had to shrug her shoulders, ”There are problems in every country. Believe it or not I think this one has less than most…and I say if a child wants a McDonald’s cheeseburger…let him have it.” It was a moot point, and one that they probably weren’t going to agree on. Kealey was having trouble concentrating on anything at the moment, though and she sighed, running a hand through her hair and rubbing the back of her head.

”You know. I could make this a lot less awkward and confusing if you wanted. It’s going to take us both a while to finish making our food and I can’t handle what’s going on in your head. I’m not sure why I’m so unsettling t’you, and I’m not going t’ask you t’explain, but I need t’concentrate t’cut these things up.”

“Just as long as they don’t do it to much I guess it’s ok,” Locke said in response to the whole McDonalds thing. Generally speaking he tried to eat healthy, but Locke could not deny the taste of fast food. He was a sucker for Taco Bell, and that couldn’t be good.

Locke squirmed when Kealey said she didn’t understand why she was so unsettling for him. It wasn’t just her. He had problems with interacting with strangers in general. “I’m just a total dweeb around people.” he offered as an explanation. Sadly it was a good summery.

Kealey laughed out loud when Locke pointed out that fast food was alright as long as the kids didn’t eat too much of it. ”That’s a very responsible attitude you’ve got there.” she said, then shook her head and shrugged, ”I’ve got trouble with places like those. If people are enjoying what they’re eating…I want everything. It’s a miracle I haven’t ever eaten myself to death.”

On they went for a short while, Kealey making her salad and Locke continuing to work on his macaroni, until he pointed out that he was a total…dweeb around people. Again, Kealey laughed, then realized he probably thought she was laughing at him. He really did believe it, Kealey could feel the honesty and earnestness in his words.

”I’m not laughing at you. I just find it ironic, and I can relate. You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve made a fool out of myself in public because of what I feel. When I was your age, I couldn’t even be around more than a few people at a time. Trust me, I know what it’s like.”

Kealey looked at Locke over the counter, ”You just need a little more confidence.”

The silence had been comforting. It also made the kitchen feel more like home than San Francisco had in a long time. You have to be heartless not to get the warm fuzzies in a kitchen when a comfort food such as mac and cheese. Memories, mostly pleasant ones, flooded Locke and brought about a great peace. If there was a higher power, then church should be held in a kitchen. He was caught off guard when Kealey laughed, let alone started to talk. Locke put down the cheese grater that he had finally managed to find and the cheese as well. Here was the usual comment about him needing to have more confidence.

The mood was slightly spoiled by this, but it was not as if Locke had been unprepared to hear it. He knew he lacked confidence already. It was just one of the many issues that psychologists had brought up with him. It’s easy to say such things, but not so much to do so. ”I know.”

Kealey tilted her head. The emotions coming from Locke weren’t strange to her, but they gave a distinct feeling that he’d heard all of this before. Teenagers were difficult for Kealey to deal with sometimes…most of the time. Their emotions were so often so contradictory. Aching for comfort while refusing anything that resembled it. Acting completely independent while wanting nothing more than a helping hand. Locke had heard what Kealey said before, but he didn’t believe what she said.

Confidence was something that came with age, age and life experience. Locke didn’t have any of it. Not yet.

Kealey was about to open her mouth and say something about it, when the familiar musical rift that indicated breaking news pulled her attention away from the teen. A clothing store was on fire, Kealey looked closer and her eyes widened.

”Woah…” she said as firefighters tried to douse the flames, pushing through crowds who stood transfixed by the flames. A redhead got jostled aside by the firefighters and Kealey shook her head. Why were people in the way?

Locke spoke, and Kealey pulled her eyes away form the television.

”I don’t expect you to believe me.” she said softly, ”And you probably don’t think you have anything to be confident about.”

He wasn’t going to like hearing that, and it was probably going ot make him even more uncomfortable, ”I’m sorry if I’m making you uncomfortable. I see a lot about people without meaning to.”

Just like Kealey, Locke’s attention was drawn to the TV. That was the way that all disasters or bad events are, they draw your attention in and glue you to your spot so that you simply must bear witness. Locke gave a low whistle, both fascinated and upset about the fire. He was unfamiliar with the area that was on the news, nor did he know who was there. Still the teenager was not cold-hearted and the misfortune of others did in the very least feel sympathy for those involved.

”It’s not just you,” Locke told her, pulling down the chili pepper down from the spice rack. Once he had gone to what was supposedly an African cuisine restaurant which served the strangest things. A chicken sandwich was two pieces of bread and a separate piece of chicken, as if the chef had been to lazy to bother making the most simplistic meal, a sandwich, and for some reason the mac and cheese was spicier than a burrito. “It’s almost everyone. And I know about the confidence thing. They start drilling that into your mind when you’re still being babysat by the TV. The execution is harder than you think.”