Chris was sitting on a chair. His new apartment had an amazing view of the brick wall on the other side of the alley.

He leaned back and stretched out his legs, looking around at the room that now was his. It was small - the whole apartment consisted of this room, a bathroom and a small kitchen. But he didn't have much stuff anyway - when he came to NYC two years ago he had brought nothing with him but the clothes on his back and his old backpack. He briefly thought about going back to his old home in Wisconsin to see if it was still standing, but... not yet.
Anyway, during his time at the mansion he hadn't collected that much stuff.

He had been lucky to get this place. Sure, the rent was abnormally high for such a small apartment and it definitely had it's flaws, like roaches, mold in the bathroom and a weird smell in the kitchen that didn't leave. But it also had a lot of cons, like that it wasn't positioned in the worst part of town, it was fairly soundproof and it was on the second floor. His knees wasn't made for longer stairs and he didn't like elevators.

Chris walked up to the window and looked out - the sky was gray and it almost looked as if was about to start raining. He still wasn't sure it hadn't been a mistake moving away from the Mansion, it probably had been safer to stay there. But living together with that many people... it wasn't for him. He had thought he would get used to all the noise and the bustle, but he never did. Instead it just seemed to get worse - lately he had had insomnia and spent most of his time inside his and Saphirus's room anyway.

Even though the main reason he had moved out was that he felt the need of being alone he was going to miss his roomie. Even though Saphirus was loud, noisy and overly idealistic, he was kind and had really believed in Chris which somehow made Chris believe more in himself. He was also going to miss Locke - his study buddy who from now on would have to wrestle with equations and derivatives on his own.
And he would miss Henri too - although he was also kind of glad that they wouldn't see much of each other. Every time they met in the corridors or in the living room he felt he had to come up with something clever and witty to say, and always ended up feeling like an idiot.
Other than that he really didn't have many friends, he realized. He hadn't told anyone he was moving out, except the Mansion staff of course, and would probably have to have some kind of moving in party. God, he hated parties.

He went to the door and pulled on his coat. He needed to go to the grocery store and buy some fish before they closed. The street was nearly abandoned because of the threat of rain, but he kept a wary eye on those who passed by.

Henrietta had been longing for warm weather and was annoyed that it kept fluctuating. She was supposed to be able to frolic in the flowers in some short, cute dress. Instead, here she was wearing a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, and a light jacket over it in the middle of a bunch of concrete. None of this was how her mind’s eye always pictured spring. Spring was supposed to be the opening for summer! Summer was the season that almost all longed for. Summer was the season that Henri had always loved most. Back in Illinois, the brunette had loved summer because it made it much simpler for her to isolate herself away from everyone else. She had hated her classmates, or rather, they had hated her.

What had brought the moping girl out of her Bedroom of Solitude was the fact that her mood had kept getting worse in the small space. At this point, Henrietta figured that being grumpy in and out of the Mansion wouldn’t make much of a difference. In fact, she was already starting to feel less irritated as she walked past a jungle of apartment and other types of buildings.

Her dark brown hair was up in a ponytail and bounced with every step she took. She was smiling slightly now and her blue eyes took in her surroundings. Sure, New York wasn’t the most beautiful of places, but it sure had a lot of stuff to do. Henrietta was bored sometimes, which was to be expected considering how short her attention span could be at times. For the most part however, Henri was usually entertained. That, and she had made so many friends. And a boyfriend. She had never had a boyfriend until she came to New York. She had never even been asked on a date before New York because she was so shy. Henrietta had really came out of her shell.

Apartment building after apartment building were past until she saw someone familiar come out of one. “Chris?!” The brunette grinned and ran the rest of the way toward him. “I didn’t know you had an apartment!” She looked up at the tall building and then back at the boy. “I didn’t even know you left the Mansion.” A skeptical look crept onto her face and an eyebrow raised in question. As if a storm cloud had passed across her face, she grinned again. “So how’s life here? I’m going to miss you at the Mansion, but I guess now I know where you live and can always visit.”

Chris jumped when someone on the street suddenly shouted his name, but when he turned around he noticed the familiar brunette running towards him.
"Henri?" he said, his surprise clearly showing in his voice. Speak of devil... except he hadn't been speaking, he had rather been thinking, and Henri wasn't exactly a devil.
Henri's grin was infectious and Chris greeted her with a smile, his pointy teeth glinting. It was a surprise seeing her there, but it was a nice surprise.
"Fancy seeing you here!"

When she looked up at the building he turned and looked at it too. It looked pretty shoddy from the outside, with graffitied walls and metal bars over the windows on the bottom floor.
"Yeah, I just moved in," he admitted. "I haven't really told anyone yet, I stumbled over this opportunity last week and it felt like I had to do it before I changed my mind."
When she asked how life here was and then mentioned that she was going to miss him at the Mansion he turned back to her and smiled wistfully.
"Thanks. I like the Mansion, it's not that... it's probably the nicest place I will ever have lived in. But... I didn't like living there. There were always so much people, so much noise... It just felt like I wasn't fitting in, like it wasn't for me. But... I'm going to miss you too, Henri."
He cleared his throat nervously: this suddenly had started to sound way to personal. Chris clasped his hands together and adapted a somewhat lighter tone.
"But, yeah, it's not like we'll be living in different states or anything. Besides, I don't have a TV so I'll have to visit the Mansion if I don't want to miss The Mentalist."
He took a few steps to the left and pointed up the street with his thumb.
"I was just going to the grocery store, it's not far from here if you would like to tag along for a bit..."
He kind of hoped she would. The last time he had been there everybody in the store had stared at him - he doubted it would be any different now, but at least he wouldn't be alone. Besides, it was nice talking to Henri. Most of the time.

“I always seem to run into people I know when I’m just wandering around.” The girl smiled and was glad to see he was too. She knew that he could get uncomfortable quite easily, but he seemed to be doing okay. They had known each other for a while now and she considered him one of her friends and the feelings seemed to be reciprocated.

Chris started to explain to Henrietta how he acquired his new home. When he started to explain why he had done it, she shook her head and grinned. “You don’t have to explain yourself to me. You should do what makes you comfortable and feels right.” He said he felt like he didn’t fit in, and it made her a bit sad. If she had known he felt that way, she would’ve tried harder to hang out with him and introduce him to new people. Though, Henri had a feeling that just would’ve made him more nervous. She touched his arm lightly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were having a hard time there.”

The boy said he would miss her too and she felt her face flush slightly, but luckily he changed the subject. He asked if she wanted to walk with him to the grocery store. Henrietta nodded. “Yeah, that’d be great. I’m just kind of pouting about the poor weather and I bet that would help me cheer up. Actually, just seeing someone I know has helped me get out of my funk.”

It was a relief when Henri assured him that he didn't have to explain himself. Somehow it had felt like a betrayal to leave the mansion (or perhaps the feeling of betrayal lay in leaving the mansion like a thief in the night without telling anybody) but he feared the first mansionite he told about his new place would cross his/her arms, frown in disapproval and say something like: "So... our company's not good enough for you now? Explain."
But Henri seemed rather okay with it - in fact, she seemed to be delighted for his sake. This strengthened his resolve and made him even more sure that he had made the right decision.

She seemed a bit sad when he mentioned that he never really had felt like he had fit in. Chris immediately regretted mentioning it; here she had been congratulating him for his new home and what was his answer? Whining. It wasn't as if she'd asked for his reasons to move.
He was unprepared when she suddenly put a consoling hand on his arm and withdrew as if he'd gotten burned, but immediately started to talk and pretend that nothing had happened so that she wouldn't see how flustered he was.
But he actually felt both annoyed and ashamed over it. Was it always going to be like this? Would he ever be able relax enough to not have a twitch-fit every time someone touched him? He even reacted like this around Henri, whom he had known for almost two years and was one of few people he actually trusted and enjoyed hanging around.
"No problems, I'm probably making a bigger deal out of it than what it was."
He waved with his hand in a sort of dismissal wave - the universal sign for no biggie, I don't mind, really.
"But mostly I just felt the need to be on my own for a while, you know? Try my wings and all that."

When she agreed to follow him to the store he smiled again.
"Neat. It should go pretty fast."
He turned left and started to walk down the block towards the store - it was still out of sight, perhaps two blocks away.
"So... what have you been up to lately?"
It probably sounded as regular polite small talk, but he was actually curious. It had been a while since they talked.

Chris acted as if his leaving the Mansion wasn't a big deal, so she let it drop. However, when she put a hand on him, he instantly recoiled. She was a little surprised, but he quickly changed the subject. Henrietta nonchalantly looked at the palm of her hand. He acted like it burned, but she was pretty sure that it just had to do with his shyness. Still, she still felt slightly offended. She thought they were friends, but of course she didn't know what all her friend had been through. She was sure there was some reason he tried so hard to distance himself. Henri assumed that it came from people distancing themselves from him. She knew how that was and glanced at the boy out of the corner of her eye, but quickly looked forward again.

When asked what she had been up to, Henrietta laughed a little. "Where to start?" She kicked a rock that was on the sidewalk. "Well, first off, I was kidnapped a while back. They took my blood for some reason." The girl shivered at the memory and for a moment, she had a distant look on her face.

She shook her head rapidly from side to side. "But I'm fine. No worries. Let's see...Oh! I joined some group, but I'm going to quit. I think they're more than I bargained for. Van and I are going out, which is nice, though my friends don't like him much and that makes it difficult. My most recent event was getting an arm injury while trying to help some girl. In the process, I discovered my mutation has evolved to an extent. I didn't know they could do that." Henri glanced at Chris and smiled. "How about with you?"

As they talked they were moving away from the living area, and the apartment buildings were slowly being replaced by different stores and restaurants - a pizzeria, a dingy Internet café, a closed-down video rental shop with plyboards nailed over the windows. There were also more people out here, and more cars and bikes passed them.
Usually Chris felt vulnerable when there were so much going on around him, but this time he was listening so intently to what Henri was saying that he barely registered their surroundings.

Kidnapped? And they had taken her blood? How could she be so casual about it? Except for a small shiver she barely showed any reactions at all. He didn't interrupt, though; just continued listening.

He didn't interrupt when she told that she and Van had been going out, either. In fact, he had no idea how to react to it. Everything felt so mixed up - he had problems sorting out what he was thinking from what he was feeling. What he was thinking was that it was good, she seemed happy about it. Actually, this was probably for the best anyway. Which didn't stop him from feeling like he'd just gotten a punch in the gut.

He heard what she said about that group she'd joined, her injury and how her mutation had changed, but was to busy thinking about what to say to react to that straight away. What did you say in situations like these?
Think, think, think.
He finally got it and smiled broadly at her.
"Wow, so you're together now? That's great, congratulations!"
He was proud about how natural and relaxed he managed to sound.

Then she asked what he'd been up to, and he started to think about what he'd been through lately.
"Well... Locke and I went to San Francisco a while ago. And Saph dragged me with him as some sort of sidekick during one of his crime-fighting episodes."
Chris couldn't help making a face when he remembered the tights and that ridiculous nickname Saph had given him: the Barracuda.
"And then I almost got shot by a junkie when I went to a convenience store," he said glumly. "That was fun."

Then he shook his head, as if to clear his mind from the unwanted memories, and turned back to Henri.
"How's your arm now? And what did you mean, your mutation has evolved?"
He remembered when they had met and how her hair had moved around when they had been harassed by a gang - it had moved around like coiling snakes.