``early |raychel|

[broadway]

Raychel nodded. "That would be good for you. You seem to be very good at translating them." she replied softly. The rain began coming down in heavier sheets than before. She didn't mind in the slightest. Running her hands through her soaked hair, she thought. Thinking always came easy to her when she had nothing more to say. She didn't want Levi to think she was socially awkward, but, he wasn't providing much to the conversation either. She didn't mind this at all. Normally, she would have at least one intelligent thing to say, but even that was hard for her now.

[imadecoy]

Levi gave Raychel a small smile, his subtle form of thanking her for the compliment. He was not quick to grin, his face more often bore a frown of deep concentration rather than the corners of his lips poking upward. This might be seen as stoic, or even entirely apathetic to an outsider, but to those that knew him well, Levi could show his feelings a bit, but rather opted for a Spock-like demeanour around those he was not comfortable with.

[broadway]

Raychel smiled back, nodding her head in a your-welcome sort of way. The rain didn't seem like it was slowing down, and it didn't show signs of speeding up any further. She was content with the speed of the downpour, so this knowledge didn't bother her. She quite enjoyed a good storm, it got her blood flowing. Raychel's hands found their way to her soaking hair. She twisted it in both fists, draining the water from it. There was no real point in doing this, seeing as it gained just as much water as it had lost, but she found it soothing. It was something to do, a way to patch up the silence.

[imadecoy]

Levi came to a slow stop once they had reached the lake. His blue-grey eyes locked onto it, watching the surface unceasingly ripple as raindrop after raindrop collided with the once smooth surface. The giant squid, which usually basked in the shallows in this time of year, was nowhere in sight, most likely frightened by the storm. It must be a pretty good life, being the squid. Nothing to worry about, just floating there.

[broadway]

Raychel turned her gaze that way as well. She watched where the squid would normally be. The squid, in her mind, was misunderstood by most. Almost everyone she knew thought the squid was a stupid monster, who did nothing for the world. Raychel knew that was not true. He, or she, provided elegance to the Lake, and mystery. No one knew where he/she was unless he broke the surface to eat something or to sun himself. Raychel was fascinated by the gentle giant, and someday hoped to see the might creature up close.

[imadecoy]

Levi rocked slowly from the balls of his feet to his heels and then back again. He usually did this when consumed in thought (which was quite often), when he happened to be standing. His thoughts were all over the place, not to say that Levi was scatter-brained, his train of thought just was almost always torn between several subjects, so he would juggle them all at once instead of focusing on one at a time. It might seem hectic to an outsider, but to Levi, it was normal, he could not remember ever not thinking in this manner.

[broadway]

Raychel's gaze was directed to Levi's feet. She smiled, knowing the movement well. She often did this when bored. Normally, this would automatically occur when she was standing still and she hadn't ran in a while. To her, it was almost an unconcious movement, with no brain activity required.

[imadecoy]

Levi suddenly felt the need for a change of pace. He looked over at Raychel, she was absolutely gorgeous, almost breathtaking, even when completely drenched by the unstopping rain. "Do you want to run?" Levi asked her, starting to feel energy building up in his legs, he suddenly couldn't stand still. Not jittery, but just the strong impulse to run at an easy pace for a bit, and then sprint, and then slow back down...

[broadway]

Raychel looked up and met Levi's gaze. He looked rather spectacular on the background. She raised one eyebrow questioningly. Then, she smiled. "Sure." She replied. They began and a normal jogging pace, one she normally reserved for hot weather. She exchanged a quick glance with Levi, then broke out into a giddy sprint. "Catch me if you can!" She yelled, picking up her speed a bit, gaining a half-a-stride in front of him.

[imadecoy]

Levi lengthened his stride and focused on going faster. A small, half-smile came to his lips. Raychel was faster than he was, it was hard to keep up with her. She was like a gazelle, swift and graceful. Levi slid a bit on a patch of mud, but thankfully did not fall this time. He kept going at a fast pace, never more than two steps behind Raychel. This was what living was about, just going, there would be time to take things in later, sometimes you just had to run.

[broadway]

Raychel was no doubt caked in mud. She could feel it fly up whenever she lifted a foot off the ground. She adored the feeling of running in the rain, it gave her power. Slipping in the mud gave her a sense of freedom. She could feel Levi catching up a stride as she rounded the Black Lake.

[imadecoy]

Step step breath. Step step breath. Step Step breath. Levi found himself slipping into a pattern as he ran half a pace behind Raychel. He was surprised at how well he was keeping up, Levi was nowhere near being considered athletic, nor did he run often. Levi was just blessed with an extremely quick metabolism, and he liked to lift weights. He was not bulky in his muscularity, rather he had the lean, toned look of a surfer or a dancer.

[broadway]

Raychel was equally surprised. Levi looked well-toned (in fact, she couldn't stop watching him run) and had the build of a runner, but he didn't look like much of one. He didn't have that gleam in his eyes that Raychel had most days when she had come back from a run. She rounded yet another corner, and Levi advanced another half-a-step. They were now neck-and-neck. Raychel looked over and smiled whimsically, planting a smirk on her face. She let out a high-pitched, bell-like laugh and kicked it up a notch. Levi was right behind her, and within seconds they were stride-for-stride again.

[imadecoy]

After a while, Levi's body that was not accustomed to running like that for such long durations of time caught up with him. He slowed a bit, his breathing a bit more laboured, but not overly strained like someone out of shape. Raychel was now more than five strides ahead of him, but Levi was going to listen to his body and slow down to a more comfortable pace. Raychel could pull ahead if she desired, but Levi was unable to keep up with her anymore.

[broadway]

Raychel noticed Levi slipping behind. She started to slow down and turn. As she did so, her foot caught, whether in a root or in the mud, she did not know. She slipped and fell, drenching herself in mud and water. She sat in the mess, dumbfounded. Then, she burst into laughter. The laughter was so intense that it racked her entire body.