Look Around {Tyler}

[PICKLE ABREY]

Pickle hadn’t actually been up to much that day. Mostly the day consisted of eating the left over baked goods she had, and trying to figure out what to do with her day. Her mind’s eye glided over each face of her friends, trying to decide who wasn’t busy, or who she wanted to hang out with. Though, her mind kept coming back to Tyler. Tyler, Tyler, Tyler. Something about Tyler. While she bit down into a cookie, she tried to think about it. Her mind also lead her to Addison, but not just Addison. Addison and Tyler. While she chewed her cookie slowly, she remembered the way Tyler looked at Addison. The way he acted around her. She had seen that somewhere before. Before she could swallow the bit of cookie in her mouth, she went flying to sit up. That was it! That's where she remembered it from! She looked at RJ the same way, she was aware that her body went all kinds of funny when he talked to her.

The realization made her nearly choke on her cookie while she stumbled off the bed and stuffed her feet into her favorite polka-dotted converse and rushed out the door, cooking between her teeth. She hurriedly crammed it into her mouth while she hurried down the steps, the beads clipped into her hair rattled with her speed as she rushed into the courtyard. She could run across to the boy's dorm, but she couldn't remember which number that he resided in. Dang it all to heck!

Pickle rushed down the courtyard, and ready to run at the boy's dorm, ready to pound on every single door--until she spotted him. She went skidding across the green grass, "Tyler! Tyler, don't--don't move! I know! I know!" She yelped, tripping over her own feet. Pickle was not an athletic pickle, and that explained why she went tumbling through the grass. When she finally rolled to a stop, it was right at Tyler's feet, leaving a wake of laughter behind her, a few people pointing at the strange girl that had just rolled straight down the tiny hill.

Pickle lay in the grass, staing up at Tyler with those absurdly large eyes of hers, grass tangled in her blonde hair. Her chest rose and fell rather quickly, and she pointed at him, "I know...I know how...you feel about Addison." She said quietly, only for his ears. She knew, because she looked at RJ the same way. She was almost certain that Tyler's heart raced each time Addison said his name. It had to be, it had to be what she felt. She grinned brightly, "You love Addison, don't you?"

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[TYLER CARTER]

Tyler breathed in deeply, tossing his baseball into the air and catching it again. He could barely stand being inside when he could be outside, doing something else. So he had come outside as soon as he could get away with it (homework finished, of course), just to breathe in the fresh air and smell the grass. He wondered briefly what the others were up to.
He almost had decided they were friends, but he wasn't in the loop like the others were. He wasn't cool and smooth like Freddie and RJ were. Willow was always active and funny. And Addison. Well, who couldn't love Addison? She was curious and attentive and kind and every beautiful word that Tyler could think of. She fit into their group like a piece of a puzzle. She belonged there. He didn't quite connect to the others like he connected to her. But that was just fine with him, as long as he had Addison. Tyler thought that out of the whole group, the only one he had really felt similar to was Pickle.

And suddenly, as he caught his ball again and looked round, there was Pickle!

She yelled for him to stay put, and he did, although he was quite unsure why he must stay there. Pickle ran towards him clumsily and soon tripped and tumbled down into the grass. Tyler scowled at the laughing students and leaned down to her, extending his hand to help her up. How could people just laugh at someone like that? He was sure they would feel differently if someone pointed and laughed at them.

However, all thoughts of the injustice were wiped from his mind as Pickle's round eyes locked on him, a knowing glint hidden there. Tyler opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it again. A dark magenta color tinted his tanned cheeks as he tried to nonchalantly brush off the question.

"What? N-no, I don't! W-why would you think I..."

Now that he thought of it, it wasn't as if he really hid it. After all, perhaps Addison just ignored it, or simply didn't spot it, like an optical illusion that you had to see from a certain angle to believe it.
Tyler pulled Pickle to her feet, dusting the grass off her gently.

"Well.. I.. Okay, maybe I do. So what?"

His cheeks burned as his voice became defensive.


TYLER'S CLOTHES: www.polyvore.com/tyler_carter/set?id=44507014

[PICKLE ABREY]

Pickle remained on the ground for a few moments, before looking a little startled at his hand. She reached up, her thin, skinny hand grasping his tightly as she was pulled easily to her feet. She simply grinned at him, holding onto his hand for a second while he tried to deny it, before releasing his hand still giving him that toothy grin while he brushed her off. Grass was not important right that second.

“Aha! I can help you, actually.” She folded her arms behind her back, and teetered back and forth on her feet excitedly. “I know the kind of sweets that Addison likes, you could…maybe make her some and ask her to that Masquerade? Or tell her how you feel about her? Or at least get her to see you in a different light.” Something, anything had to give. However, she knew the pain of rejection. Addison didn’t look at Tyler the way he looked at her, or the way she looked at RJ, but she had faith that with a little bit of a good natured push, Addison would see dear, dear Tyler in a different view.

“I can help you. We can go back to my dorm, and I can teach you how to make Apple Pie. I also can teach you how to make my Chocolate Explosion muffins, and she adores those!” Pickle’s hands pressed together, almost looking like she was praying. She pressed them to her lips, still rocking excitedly, her eyes twinkling up at him. “You’re a nice, smart guy. And I think Freddie may like her, and I don’t want her to be with a jerk like that. So given a nice guy, and a jerk,” Here was the kicker. She bounced a little on her feet excited, “I think I know which one Addison would go for.” She murmured with a sing-song tone. She held out her hand for Tyler, “Well, whaddya say? I’ll help you win over Addison through baked goods!”

If there was anything Pickle had any talent, any grace, any gift at—it was most definitely baking. Though, a while back no one would eat them except for Addison. It took a lot of tears, a girl’s night in, and a formulated plan to trick Freddie into eating some of them. Which resulted in others trying them, which resulted in people realizing that Pickle was indeed a little chef.

Clever Pickle was clever.

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[TYLER CARTER]

She could help him? Tyler raised an eyebrow, curious and suspicious. He would certainly love some help in the relationship department, as he had rarely dealt with such things before. And Pickle was very sweet, she wouldn't tell a soul.

If Addison agreed to go to the Masquerade with him, he would eat his own boots. There was no way she would consider going with him, let alone Tyler plucking up the courage to actually ask her.

He looked a tad uneasy as Pickle explained her ideas, which were actually very good ones. But Tyler, a shy young lad, was a bit wary of how he was to express his feelings to Addison. After all, where he had come from, guys played sports, fixed cars or worked on the farm. Being wishy-washy wasn't tolerated.

Pickle folded her hands, eyes pleading as she made her case. Tyler's stomach rolled sickeningly at the mention of Freddie. He couldn't compete with that, no matter what Pickle thought of him. What mattered was Addison's view of Freddie. And Addison was kindhearted. She didn't think very badly of anyone.

He looked down at Pickle's outstretched hand and gave a weak smile. If nothing else, he could try for Pickle's sake. Right? His warm fingers laced with hers and he sighed.

"Alright. You teach me to bake, and I'll make you my family's special hot chocolate."

[PICKLE ABREY]

Pickle waited, rocking on her toes with her hand out while she waited for Tyler to decide. He had to decide yes--there was no other option. Addison had helped her so much, and this was the least she could do. Addison deserved a sweet guy like Tyler. When his warm hand laced with hers she let out an excited squeal, and quickly turned on her heels, running back up the hill with Tyler in toe. "Addison loves pie, and my chocolate explosion muffins! So if you wanna make those, I think she'd be in heaven. They'd be good snacks while she's studying!" And out of her mouth did the ideas begin to pour.

The blonde ignored the laughter and the jeers that the nearby people shot towards her and Tyler. Then again, she may not have even noticed them. She was typically oblivious to the teasing people sent towards her way. Or at least she pretended to be oblivious to them, while in reality--she heard every single one. They stored away in the back of her mind, and crept to her in the form of nightmares. However, she was always able to wake up in the morning with a smile, because no matter how horrible the nightmare was--it never failed that a giant crocodile swept out from nowhere and ate the cause of her nightmares; protecting her. Keeping her safe.

"I love hot chocolate! Hot chocolate goes great with muffins, so we can sneak a few of them for ourselves. Addison doesn't need an entire dozen of muffins if she's getting a little pie too." Pickle tugged Tyler up to her dorm, pulling out a key to let herself in, before yanking him in as well. "Okay, so." Releasing him from her grasp, she walked to the kitchen, snatching her favorite apron off the back of a nearby chair. The dorm itself was a suite for two, however Pickle was currently all alone in it, and it made the place look that much bigger. "What kind of pie do you want to make?" She pulled open her fridge and peeked in. "I've got...strawberries, blueberries, apples, and I think I have pumpkin and cherry filling in the pantry."

Pickle was an excited pickle.

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[TYLER CARTER]

A shrill squeal of excitement met Tyler's ears and he was suddenly being pulled back up the hill, with Pickle talking a mile a minute. Tyler nodded absentmindedly as she spoke, unsure of exactly what she was planning to have him do. He was never one for cooking. His mom was a great cook, but he himself had never learned.

He couldn't help but glare at the nearby students, feeling that they should be minding their own business. Being from Minnesota was both a blessing and a curse, in the way that you came to expect the best of people. "Minnesota Nice", while not always applicable, was certainly true around the area he grew up. Usually, if teasing was done, it was done after the victim had been out of earshot, not right in front of them. Pickle was definitely different, but she was a very nice girl.

He smiled as she talked about how she loved hot chocolate. He was a bit wary of trying Pickle's food, but Addison liked it, so it must be fantastic. She pulled him into her dorm suite.

Dang. If only he had one like this.. It looked huge, but then, it was just him and little Pickle standing in the kitchen. He shifted nervously.

"Well.. I've never actually baked before. So.. I don't know. What would you suggest?" He threw her a little grin, "You are the expert after all. Teach me, master."

Being alone with a friend was much easier. He came out of his shell more, and definitely smiled more.

[PICKLE ABREY]

Pickle walked over to the sink, and washed her hands while she thought over what they could make. Using a clean paper towel, she dried them, then patted the front of her frilly, cupcake-covered apron, “Well, first thing's first. It’s prolly gonna get messy.” She walked over to the pantry, and tugged open the door, and gestured at the four aprons hanging off the back of the door. They were shamelessly cute, and painfully girly. Depending on her mood she switched them out. However, looking at them, she glanced back at Tyler apologetically. “It’s that or possibly risk your clothes. Some of the ingredients turn into kind of a paste. And the strawberries we’re gonna use will stain.”

The lanky girl swept her hair into a ponytail, pulling the blonde strands away from her face. Almost instantly, she seemed to transform from awkward, strange Pickle. She started pulling put the pie trays, and ingredients, laying them all out on the counter. “Okay, so we’re gonna make Chocolate explosion muffins and a strawberry pie.” She smiled, and pulled open the fridge, pulling out a little baggy with dough inside of it. “It save a bit of time to have a pie crust ready.” She set it down on the counter, and peeled back the plastic wrap, and pointed at the roller. “Tyler, what you need to do is start kneading the dough, be gentle ‘cause it’s cold. When it’s nice and stretchy, use the rolling pin to roll it out to about this size.” She leaned over the sink, putting the pie tray in front of him and smiled.

Leaving him to that, she turned to the oven, checking inside before starting to preheat. “We lightly bake the pie-crust first. Then we put the filling inside, top it, and bake it again.” She stood on her toes, reaching up to pull out the cherry filling, while grabbing the strawberries from the fridge. With a knife in her hands, she began slicing the strawberries tediously, glancing over at Tyler to see how he was doing. “I hope this works. Addison is my best friend.”[/b\ She turned her head down back to the strawberries to resume slicing. “And you’re a really nice guy. I think you two would be really good together.”

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[TYLER CARTER]

Pickle opened her pantry door and glanced over at him. There were some aprons hanging in the doorway and they were all quite certainly meant for Pickle. He went over, trying to hide his distaste for the color pink.

Pickle threw him an apologetic look as she explained the need for the aprons.

Tyler sighed and turned to the aprons. She was helping him, after all. The least he could do was make her smile in the process. Taking the very pinkest (if that was a word) apron off the hook, he tied it on with minimal difficulty and went to Pickle's side, listening carefully.

She pulled her hair up and started taking out everything they needed. Tyler smiled a little, watching her intelligently explain the need for everything and how they would do it all. He wondered if Freddie had ever baked with Pickle. Probably not, or he'd never have another unkind word to say about her. Shy, clumsy Pickle was graceful and on top of her game. Here, she ran the show.

Pulling out a bag of dough, she instructed him on what to do and he eagerly set to doing what she told him as she continued to talk.

Soon, she fell back on the topic of Addison, glancing over at him as she sliced strawberries.

Tyler's blushed, continuing to knead the dough, just for something to do.

"Thanks, Pickle.." He looked over at her, a little shy.
"You're an awesome friend, to do this, you know. Addison's real lucky to have you as a best friend."