Chemistry class was one that Soleil usually enjoyed well enough. The professor for it usually spoke in a kind of vaguely sinister monotone that implied to the Wrean's imagination a prior career as a saboteur, but they did plenty of actual lab work. He memorized formulas and things well but was still challenged by practical usage and application. Plus he had a window seat and lab partners could talk as much as they want without getting interrupted so long as they didn't blow anything up. Win-win overall.
Class was going to start soon and Sol was copying the board notes down along with time and date. He'd just finished and was doodling a shark on his paper when the professor spoke up from the front. He looked up and immediately noticed an unfamiliar face. Well, not unfamiliar as in like he'd never seen it before. Just not in this class or, in fact, on Drommund Kaas. Sol blinked at least a half-dozen times, as if to make sure he wasn't hallucinating and straightened a little in his chair.
"This is Ailis Drast. She's recently transferred to the Drommund Kaas academy from Taris," the professor announced in dead-even tones. That was awesome, good for her on getting out of Taris' entry program! Then Sol recalled in vivid detail the last time they'd met, cringing internally.
Last he'd seen Ailis he'd been watching to make sure she didn't fall off a skyscraper's scaffolding right after she'd yelled at him, followed by him skimboarding away. He was pretty sure he'd made things uncomfortable by not taking the situation seriously enough, put shortly. Not to mention a poor choice of words he'd only noticed was kinda horrible mid-rant. He'd felt really bad about it. Point was that he figured he'd fucked up and, even if he hadn't been planning anything weird, he should apologize for being enough of a jackass for her to think he had.
Somehow without also making it worse by ambushing her at a totally different school from his own. Sol was luckily not that dense. The problem was how to handle the talking part. Well, at least he'd have the entire class period to think of something now that they share a class!
Not. It was lab time fifteen minutes into class. Given Sol's note-taking, his low incidences of problem-causing, and Ailis' file including sign language, guess where she got assigned to on her first day? Next to Soleil, who was not prepared. Silently he pondered sinkholes and wistfully wondered if one would be so kind as to open up beneath his chair. None of which showed on his face, expression approaching true tranquility despite being hyperaware of their proximity this time around.
It cracked with sheepishness as Sol signed a halting <Hello>, keeping his chair an arm's length away from hers. Being shoved together in chem class was not his ideal solution.
@Arcangel