Alexander Littlewood | R/E | Reggie, Rena, Viktor

Alex leaned against the wall, listening to the others in silence, except for the occasional nod or short interjection. His gaze shifted between first Katarena - Rena, he reminded himself - and her friend, Viktor, and then the new additions: a man who looked a few years older than he was, who introduced himself as Reggie; and the gelding whose reins Rena very quickly took with a tight-lipped smile. After the bare-boned introductions, he sank back into his still spectatorship. Whoever had coined the phrase silence was golden had certainly had someone like Alex in mind.

While they were exchanging names, the young man took his time scrutinizing each one. Rena - he'd already had a first impression of her. She was comfortable to be around, seemingly content with minimal involvement from whoever she was with - one of the best traits, in his opinion - and overall an intriguing character. Slightly too inquisitive, but wasn't everyone? Alex would've been satisfied if everyone could keep to their own damn business and stay out of his; but that wasn't completely true. It could be pleasant, to know someone well enough that no words were necessary, but he'd had enough or too little experience with close bonds and wasn't particularly interested in figuring out how to create one again. They'd leave him eventually, anyway.

Viktor seemed like an agreeable man, judging from the three minutes Alex had been around him. The language barrier was almost a blessing - silence was necessary, there. Too physically affectionate, and very amiable. Reggie, on the other hand, reminded him of himself, in a strange, distorted way. Rather, he reminded him of the person he could've been. He came across as in control in an endearing way, able to make coherent decisions for himself - as much as that sounded strange even to his own ears, Alex knew from the year spent at White Oaks that it wasn't necessarily a given.

"Hmm?" Jolted out of his thoughts by a prod from Viktor, Alex glanced up questioningly. He searched his mind to figure out what the laidback Romanian had said last - assuming that was what had happened, by the expectant look on his face - but came up blank. You're multitasking like an amateur, Alex. "I - sure. Whatever." His tone was nonchalant, hiding his frantic thoughts as he tried to figure out what, exactly, he had just agreed to.

-After a few minutes or more of peace and quiet in the pasture, Heather managed to catch Storm with a lead rope wrapped around the gelding's neck before getting his Grey nylon halter on then clips the lead to it before getting the rope off his neck. The red brunette patted the gelding's neck, giggling to herself before leading Storm out of the pasture, towards the barn to go get him cleaned up while her German Shepherd followed right behind them but Toby would be giving the horse some room since the dog is quite wary of the hind quarters-

-Storm let out a few snorts from his nostrils before playfully tossing his head, starting to prance a bit as he held his tail up. Acting like a typical stud even though he's been gelded for a month or so now- "Oh knock it off, ya show off." -Heather playfully said to the colorful gelding, his blue eyes focused on her before he playfully snorted at her with his pink muzzle in her face which caused the young woman to lightly but playfully push the horse's face away before booping his snoot with her index finger-

-The red brunette looked around a bit while making their way to the barn, she started to wonder where Tim and Emily are at as they or anyone could be anywhere on the property while being successful in avoiding Samantha so far but knowing her luck, that'll shortly run out at some point. Once they've entered the barn, Heather lead Storm over to one of the wash stalls before turning him around, attaching the cross ties to both sides of the colorful gelding's halter after talking the lead rope off in the process to hang it up on the wall behind her-

-The red brunette lightly patted the Roan Gullo Tobiano Splash White Frame gelding's neck- "I'll be right back, I just need to go grab the grooming box kit from my locker." -Heather softly said to Storm before playfully messing up his black forelock, going under the cross tie that was on her left before heading off with her large Shepherd trailing right behind her again as she heads over to the tack room to go grab her grooming kit box-

Alexander Littlewood | R/E | Rena, Viktor, Reggie

"Well, this is exciting. The Three Musketeers with a tour guide." Shit.

Alex didn't register the other man's following sentences, his mind fixated on those words. Tour guide. Good job, Alex. He might be able to feign some semblance of health for a short chat - although admittedly, he hadn't been doing a great job at that either - but a tour of some sort, long enough that a backpack might be necessary? There was no way he'd keep his demons at bay for that long. Shit.

"Um, I -" He tried to cut into the lighthearted discussion Rena and Viktor were now having in Romanian to try and wriggle out of the awkward situation he'd squeezed himself into, to no avail. The pair were unaware of his quiet murmurs, completely immersed in their fast-flowing conversation.

Alex ran a hand through his hair, pausing at the back of his neck to admit defeat. He might be able to drift away without saying anything, but since the trio - the Three Musketeers, as Reggie insisted on saying, he thought with an internal eye roll - already knew his name to his face, it might be a tad awkward if he bumped into them in the yard or in a lesson. He grimaced inwardly at a sketch of how that conversation might go down. _Hey, why'd you disappear last night? Oh, no reason, really. My head just felt like it was about to explode and my legs were about as sturdy as two slices of soft bread, but otherwise, I'm fine. Tea, anyone? He sighed softly beneath his breath, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed. Maybe that wasn't such a great idea.

Lifting his gaze from where it had been very forcefully focused on a spot on the floor as Reggie returned - backpack in hand - he raised his eyebrows slightly. "Ready to go?" His voice was dry, dusting off a piece of straw that he guessed had been stuck in his hair since Rena helped him off of his accidental position on the barn floor.

"Right, so just a basic, quick tour of the place, or the full package with all the frills and shit?" Shut your mouth before it runs itself dry, Alex. He glanced up at the small patch of sky through the barn door, leaning forward a little to properly guess the light, and therefore the time. "I'm guessing we have about an hour or so before it gets dark, but I don't know what your plans are. Condensed or full?" Alex shifted his eyes between them, focusing on each one with alarming force for a moment, before moving on to the next victim of his storm-grey eyes.

Alexander Littlewood | R/E | Rena, Reggie, Viktor

Alex nodded to acknoledge Rena's words, a slight hint of - gratefulness? humanity? - creeping into his face regretfully. "Thanks," he murmured softly, his gaze meeting hers for a moment. Her eyes had a soft appeal to them, their viridescent stare holding a depth that he hadn't noticed at his first glance. Maybe she wasn't as irritatingly inquisitive as she'd first seemed, then.

He zoned out of the small exchanges between the others, his mind quickly focused on the task at hand as they began walking: that process itself. As simple as it'd seemed only a few months prior, it was now a painstaking labour that required all his attention, leaving no room for idle chit-chat. The dilemna, now, was to make it seem as effortless as possible, so as not to secure Rena's worried puppy-dog stare - but that was proving easier thought than done.

Alex trailed behind the others by a metre or so, his jaw clenching slightly as they tackled the stairs. Or rather, they walked, chatting amongst each other peacefully, while he somehow managed to drag his body up the single flight without attracting too much unwanted attention. His vice-like grasp on the banister and the frequent, irregular tensing of his body were the two signals he couldn't manage to mask, his breath catching gingerly with every few steps.

Alex barely disguised his relief when they came to a halt, releasing the agitation that had been mounting in his battle with the staircase. Finally, they'd arrived at the room he guessed to be either Viktor or Reggie's dorm - probably both, by the way they both hovered by the doorway. Rena's voice quickly certified this fact, as she rustled through a few papers to pull out the roommate assignments. Their room was only a few doors from his - he'd shared it with a man, Chester, for a few days, before his roommate was seemingly exhausted with Alex's inconsistent habits and schedules, and moved to a place in town. Kholo appeared to have never removed his name of the list, though, and so Alex was fortunate enough to have the space to himself.

He glanced up suddenly at Rena's voice, eyebrows raised inquiringly. "Probably around a year or so, give or take a couple months. Came here with a friend from England, so I wasn't planning on changing things up too quickly."

"The last month has been - all over the place, you could say. I only got back in the saddle a couple weeks back. I haven't been out and about that much - never really am - so it's understandable you haven't seen me." And I've become practised at escaping notice, he added in his head. But those skills were either rusty, or non-existent, seeing that she'd caught him in the barn. Or perhaps she was just slightly more observant and less self-absorbed than the average White Oaks rider.