Gatherings and social anxiety [Goliath]

Travis adjusted the tie conservatively, remembering that his father had wanted him to attend this party that a female by the name of Arianna Hale was throwing. He had made sure to research about this female and who she was, seeming matriarch of a strange family with assets that seemed almost limitless. His father Ryan Masters had taken an interest within this family and soon enough they had an alliance, and enough of one that he would be invited to a personal party of theirs. While his father was busy with his own thing, he would send Travis to deal with this and to interact with everyone that was going to attend. He was dressed in a clean white suit with black lines running along the seams to add a certain flair, looking into the mirrior with an amused expression. He was wearing on one wrist a watch and on the other a few metal bands, while weaponry was not needed he had to be prepared.

Gamma stood behind him in a clean white body suit, mostly there to be sure that he was ready for the party but she would not attend it. She would not speak and that was how Travis liked it, seeing as how her voice tended to grate upon his ears. With hands crossed over his lap he would turn around and look to the female with an expression that basically said “how do I look” and she only nodded, letting Travis move on with his night. Next came the limo, him stepping into it and letting it drive him to the large mansion that belonged to the family known as The Hale’s. His dirty blond hair was slicked back and the strange grey orbs within his head scanned the front of it with interest.

The low thrum of music could be heard from where he was parked and stepping out from his automobile, Travis would take a deep drag of the air before making his way in through the front door past what seemed to be some manner of body guard. He would be lead to a large room, large enough atleast to allow a person to walk around and yet it still had a certain casual feel about it. He could however tell who the hostess was, from the strange blond female in a rather extravagant dress greeting guests as they appeared, with a rather dopey looking male chatting with a male similar in appearance, both forgoing the formal dress code by wearing casual clothing. They had the appearance of brother almost. ”Hello…..” The hostess Arianna hale would greet with an extended hand.

”Travis Masters, my father sent me in his stead. He had rather important business and sends his regrets at being unable to attend.” He would say shaking her hand with a friendly demeanor. She smiled and did not seem too disappointed.

"Well I hope you enjoy yourself. If there is anything that is not up to your standards, please let me known.” She would say before trailing off, Travis fetching himself a small glass of sparkling wine and sipping on it, finding himself standing next to a male similar to the blond he had seen earlier but dressed differently.

Aaron Hale was not happy. Not in the slightest. The only thing he hated ore than social gatherings, was social gatherings that involved him having to wear formal clothing. He was just wearing a simple black suit, with a white shirt and tie. He made sure that his hair looked at least reasonable. Aaron was in a particularly sour mood because his wings had been aching all day. Ideally, he'd be out flying. He knew the soreness was almost completely from neglect, and the stuffy suit was confining his wings even more. He vaguely recalled one of his relatives saying that he would have to schmooze and socialize, which caused a queasy feeling to bubble up in his stomach. He wished greatly that he had his brother's socialization skills, but mostly he just tried to fade into the background and go unnoticed. He was perfectly fine with people ignoring his existence. He had a duty to protect others, and that was it. He didn't really see the need for all the recognition. Aaron looked into the mirror and wiped a smudge of dirt off his face. He briefly looked into his own emerald eyes, giving himself a final once over before bending to tie his shoe, and grunted, his wings hurting. He knew someone would probably be mad at him, but he slipped out of his suit, and pulled on some dark blue plaid board shorts, and a blue polo. It was casual but not sloppy, which Aaron deemed acceptable. Aaron tied his boat shoes and made his way downstairs into the large room where the party would be hosted.

Aaron looked around the room and found a familiar face. He was glad that his little brother had also decided to wear casual clothing. Maybe they were more alike than Aaron thought. He pushed that thought to the back of his head and approached his twin brother. He made some casual conversation with Ryan, mostly griping about how much he hated parties and would rather be fighting a group of thugs, or a blood thirsty creature, than have to endure a night of pointless conversation, and later, drunken party guests. Aaron did not like alcohol. He didn't see the point of willingly ingesting poison to lose control of one's person. It didn't really make sense at all. But he was rather ungifted at social graces, and having fun, so he just observed. At least that would be mildly interesting. People tended to say interesting, sometimes comical things when drunk, so at least there was that.

Aaron noticed a peculiar looking blond boy enter. He seemed a bit younger than the other guests here, which meant that he was probably special in some way. When he stood next to him, Aaron felt awkward. He turned to the boy and tried to plaster on some kind of smile “Hello, welcome, my name is Aaron Hale. It is a pleasure to meet you. Thanks for coming out tonight,” He hoped that sounded gracious, and not creepy. His wings twitched in his shirt, which happened when he was anxious. Aaron let his thoughts wander to some of his past battles. With a longing sigh, he waited for the other blond to respond.

Travis slowly sipped on the glass of wine, enjoying the feel of the bubbles bursting as the liquid would slide down his throat. The taste was amazing and he could not deny that this was high quality, and so he would softly sip on it as he considered everyone that was there. Something about functions like this bored him, yet he could not quite find himself avoiding things like this with the life that he had. His eyes would scan lazily over to the male that was standing with the other one, both seeming to playfully flex as the party went on. His persona dictated that he smile amused, and so he did, letting white teeth peer out from between pale pink lips as someone seemed to approach him. He would turn to see the male standing next to him trying to spark up conversation, raising an eyebrow curiously.

”Well hello Mister Hale.” he would start to greet with a small smile, friendly as anyone would expect and took another conservative sip of his wine. ”The pleasure however is all mine, I’m Travis Masters.” He would say with all the niceties that one would expect of a charismatic son of a rich CEO, leaning ever so gently against the wall and considering the male that had spoken to him. Well kept hair, a polo shirt and plaid boarding shorts, looking somewhat casual, and yet managing to seem professional at the same time. If he were a lesser person he would find himself interested, enamored even by the beautiful blond hair and green eyes. Yet Travis was not the type to fall for anyone that he saw, though that ws just how he was.

”The party is wonderful, the selection of wine is…” He paused and took a sip of the wine in his hand. ”Excellent.” He would add.

Aaron figured that it would probably be some kind of faux pas not to have some wine, so he grabbed a glass from the table and took a long sip of the bubbling wine. The taste was sweet...yet oddly tart. He wasn't really sure how to explain it. He didn't know anything really about wine, so if this were good wine or bad wine, he would have absolutely no idea. It tasted well enough, so he took another sip. He also hoped that it wasn't rude to drink while someone was talking to him. Life was so much easier when all he had to worry about was his brother, parents, and keeping people safe. Stuff like this didn't make sense to him. He looked into his wine glass again, humming a tiny bit to himself before taking a large sip of his wine, careful not to drink the whole cup.

“You flatter me,” Aaron chuckled softly, feeling the softest trace of a blush flow into his cheeks. He hoped that he wouldn't notice. He had to admit that the other boy was good looking, but Aaron would never say it. It would be vastly inappropriate, and they didn't know. He felt like he had heard the other boy's surname before, but he wasn't completely sure. “What brings you to our little gathering tonight?” Aaron said with a slight Irish lilt. He could at least try to be charming for his family's sake. Plus, the one known as Travis seemed nice enough. Aaron let out a soft, slightly musical laugh and looked at the wine glass again.

“Honestly, I've never tasted wine before, so I couldn't really tell you if this was any good. Guess I'll just have to trust ya” Aaron smirked and leaned a bit against the wall.

Flattery was not the intention but it seemed that he had managed to do just that with the strange male, swirling the bubbling liquid within the glass while considering the expression of the male. There was a small flush of color within his cheeks, but nothing that any that would really be noticeable by the average person. ”I guess that’s a good thing.” Travis would say with a chuckle and a flash of white teeth in a smile, sipping upon his sparkling wine as he watched the male sip on his own glass. ”You could say my family are friends with the Hale’s, I got the invite and could not turn it down.” Travis explained to the male, wondering who he was and his position within the family. Some had said that they were some form of magical family, though his disbelief in magic tended to dampen his belief in that whole thing.

The male would let out a musical laugh, one that had caught his interest, eyes absently scanning over the crowd that had been gathered within the room once again and then sighed. ”Its your first taste of wine? Well, I guess you could have gone for worst on your first taste. Like some kind of cheap wine.” Travis explained noticing that his glass was nearly empty and finishing it off with a single sip. ”So, am I the only one that does not want to be here, or…?” He would pose the question still within his friendly persona.

Aaron was intrigued to learn that Travis' family was friends with his own. He didn't remember the name from the future, but then again, he didn't really pay attention to names or anything like that. Maybe Ryan knew who his family was. Aaron made a mental note to ask his brother at the end of the night. He knew that his own family was more than a bit eccentric, so it pleased him to know that someone as composed as Travis seemed to hold his family with some kind of regard. Aaron rustled his wings again, wanting to just let them out of his shirt. As soon as the party was over, he was definitely going to go for a rather long, and high flight. It would be the perfect way to destress after a taxing evening filled with socializing. He could feel the other's eyes on him, and it was a little unnerving, but Aaron wasn't going to say anything. He sipped his wine again, nearly finishing the glass.

“I know it's hard to believe, but I'm not really one to get drunk. I like to be in control of my body. Which probably isn't that normal but eh” Aaron shrugged and finished off the glass. When the other male spoke again, he let out a small laugh. “You're definitely not the only one who doesn't want to be here. I was seriously considering not coming and finding something more productive to do” Aaron sighed and got himself another glass of wine “I'd rather be lifting or sparring or anything...”

”Always something more productive than just sitting around and drinking, right?” Travis would pose the question with a smile pouring another glass of wine and swirling it slowly. The fact that this male lifted suggested that he was some manner of body builder or a metahuman with immense strength, either seeming like a likely thing but he would not jump to conclusion. ”Part of me is heavily considering ducking out of this party but I would have nowhere to go.” He noted with a shrug looking up to the high ceiling and then the hostess that was still entertaining guests with that jovial expression that would always accompany a person like her. Granted he could respect someone like that, with charisma that seemed to hold no end.

”So about lifting, you some kind of body builder?” he would then ask, crossing his arms over his chest and waiting for some manner of answer while EVE would chime off some figures within his head. Mostly stock figures and things that he would normally obtain from the ai that was implanted within his head. Now all he needed to do was wait for the male to answer, and then take note of the male that looked just like him watching the two talk.

“Yep. Sitting around and drinking is probably the most unproductive thing that I an think of,” Aaron nodded and took another glass of wine, taking a long sip of it. “We could go out to the yard or something? Or somewhere else in the house?” Aaron suggested. He had no desire to really stray at this party. It made him feel very awkward, and knew that he was probably sticking out like a sore thumb with his casual clothing. He knew a few people were staring at him, and that was annoying him. Aaron didn't like a lot of attention, and the gaze of others was annoying him. Aaron didn't really know if the other boy wanted to hang out with him, but he seemed to share the same desire to leave the party, so that was good enough for Aaron.

“Some kind of bodybuilder is one way of putting it. I can bench eleven tons,” Aaron said with just a slight tone of bragging. “I lift at least once a day. I'm preying to eventually be able to lift more than my dad, but I'm not sure that's even possible. He's extremely strong,” Aaron nodded and chuckled a bit. “Do you also lift?” Aaron inquired quietly.

The male seemed to have the same desire to leave the party as he did, which was good because he legitimately did not want to be here. Granted he could have not come anyway, but that would have required an argument that he was not in the mood for, so he simply put on a dutiful front and did as he was told. ”Somewhere else sounds good to me.” Travis would answered with a nod and another sip of his wine, pleased with the whole physiology and how it seemed to take wine. Otherwise he would find himself experiencing a buzz, which would be no good in the long run. A muddled mind tended to say stupid things, even if one had an advanced one much like his. ”I’m willing to go anywhere, so long as it’s not here.” He admitted looking around to the crowd once more, taking stock of everyone looking their way.

However the bit about lifting did mildly interest him, as the male said something about being able to lift eleven tons, something that the average male of his build could not typically lift. A curious expression bloomed across his face for a moment, as he tried to figure out how to go about this, seeing as how the male was more than open about their metahuman status, though he had to remember that his public persona was just your average human. Brilliant as he was, there was supposed to be nothing else about him, otherwise his activities might be compromised. His next statement about strength seemingly running in his family was also interesting, not that he would make note of it. ”Eleven tons? Wow you’re pretty strong Aaron. Sadly I don’t think I can lift eleven tons, maybe my body weight or a little more, but nothing excessive.” He lied with a smile sipping more of his wine.

”If possible you should show me your…lifting prowess.”

“The house is really big, so there are plenty of places,” Aaron smiled gently. He finished the glass of wine, glad for his Ethereal physiology, which meant it would probably take quite a bit of wine to get him completely intoxicated. He wondered where would be a good, and interesting place to hang out. Aaron would have preferred the library, but he assumed that it wouldn't be interesting to the other boy. Aaron set the cup down and and began to walk. Maybe the courtyard would look nice at this time of night? He didn't know. With a relaxed grace, he sauntered out of the party room, hoping that the other would follow. Aaron tried to disregard all of the people looking at him, and also tried to brush off the harsh looks he was getting from his family members. Whatever. If they wanted him to stay, they could have made the party at least somewhat interesting. Being as that wasn't the case, he was ditching. He didn't know if his brother would notice that he was gone, but he would probably understand.

Aaron blushed a bit when the lifting was brought up again. “I guess I got lucky, and I train a lot” He tried to be modest. He knew that it really didn't have that much to do with how often he worked out, but it was the gift he was born with. He had inherited it from his father. His brother Ryan received their other father's gift, it was an even balance. Aaron walked through the house with Travis. “Oh? What would you like me to lift?” Aaron asked gently. He wouldn't really mind showing proof of his physical prowess, if that's what Travis wanted to see. “You could pretty much ask me to lift anything, and I will do it with ease,” He challenged, taking a turn in the house and hummed a little bit.

He could have told that the home was large from just looking at the exterior, but hearing it would only add upon the knowledge thing. The male would wander off to another section of the house and Travis would follow behind them, doing so until he was walking beside him with a slow and deliberate pace. While there were eyes upon them, he ignored them easily and kept his attention upon the metahuman before him with a renewed interest. Something told him that there was something else that was likely going on with the male, though what he could not quite tell. Maybe strength was not the only thing that was special about him and maybe he had other capabilities that he was not willing to reveal quite yet, not that Travis ever revealed what he could do.

Reaching up for his tie, he would loosen it and undo the tie, removing it and bunching it up within his right hand, enjoying the feel of not having something around his neck. While one could assume that it was him not enjoying being dressed formally, it was more not liking the idea of something being around his neck. ”I assume you could lift a car, or maybe even a minivan. Could you do that?” He asked with a raised brow, making sure to keep up the semblance of interest while walking alongside the casually dressed male. ”I assume you have some sort of weight room in this large house too, correct? With someone who has such interesting physical strength, I think that having weights to test your strength would be useful.” He would say undoing the top buttons of his shirt and making them more comfortable.

Aaron couldn't help but wonder why Travis seemed to be interested in him. Aaron didn't really think of himself as special or anything, but he also wasn't going to deny the chance to actually make a friend that wasn't his brother. Not that he didn't love his twin, but it would be nice to expand his virtually nonexistent social life, if only just a little bit. He wondered if Travis was a metahuman or a normal human. So far, he hadn't mentioned having any kind of abilities or anything, which made Aaron curious. Of course, some metahumans didn't really like to share their gifts, or talk about them, and Aaron could definitely understand that. Not everyone had the same accepting bringing up like Aaron and Ryan were lucky enough to have. A pang of sadness flourished in his body. He missed his parents—from his own time. They were in this time, but not as Aaron knew them. The feeling passed after a few seconds, and he returned to his normal, composed self.

When asked if he could lift a car or minivan, he smirked. “I could lift both at the same time, probably with one hand,” He chuckled “Cars aren't too heavy. Semis can get hard to carry some times, with me being the size that I am,” Aaron nodded when asked about a weight room. He frequently went there to try and increase his lifting capabilities, which so far, have been in vain. “I could show you the weight room if you'd like?” Aaron suggested, making a left turn and heading toward the well-stocked weight room. When they arrived, Aaron easily lifted two, one ton weights and smirked at him “What do you think?”

”Both at the same time?” Travis asked with a raised brow and a tone that sounded somewhat interested. ”Well aren’t you big and strong?” He found himself chuckling, burying the tie into his pocket and looking to the male as they walked along until they reached the large weight room. It felt more like some kind of gymnasium with a large array of weights waiting for them some of them placed upon racks and the others just on the pristine flooring. Travis considered the place for a moment as Aaron would pick up two rather heavy looking weights and lift both with an insane ease. Travis dat down on one of the benches, crossing his legs and watching the ethereal with an interested expression. ”Color me impressed Mister Hale.” He would say with a chuckle intertwining his fingers.

He had actually never seen a person with true superhuman strength, just psionic augmentations. Now seeing someone lift around four thousand pounds with ease was an interesting thing, one that caused the male to be interested. ”Well this is a nice weight room you have here. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one as large as this was. I bet you could lift aloooot more than that.” Travis would say with a smirk tapping his right foot against the floor.

“Bein' strong is kind of my thing,” Aaron laughed a bit, his Irish accent a bit more pronounced now. The weights weren't hard at all for him to lift. He gently set them down and smirked “Not even close to how much I can lift,” He motioned toward a ten ton weight “There's my limit about,” He shed his shirt, allowing his black wings to spread. With a groan of delight, he walked over to the ten ton weight and bent down to lift it up. Now, he could definitely feel the strain on his muscles. He hated that he could only lift this much, and was hoping soon to double the amount that he could dead lift like this. “Bout 20,000 pounds here” He grunted out before putting the weight back down. A thin layer of sweat made his muscles and face have a slight sheen to them. “Someday I hope to be able to bench at least 40 tons, but who knows if it'll ever happen. All I can do is train, right?” He laughed lightly. He was quite glad that they had ditched the party for something more interesting.

“Some members of my family are quite into fitness, so that's part of the reason it's so big. Pretty much when I'm not out with Ryan, or in the library, I'm in here working on getting better,” Aaron smiled and nudged at him just a bit “How much can you bench, Travis? Or are you not really a big fan of lifting?” He asked, genuinely curious. He fluttered a bit above the ground, figuring that he mine as well work out his wings a little bit, since he was working every other muscle, it seemed.

”So I can tell.” He said with a smirk, watching the male take pride within his own strength, though he had a feeling that he could do far more than just what he was doing with a little enhancement. His mind was already running over formulas that would multiply his maximum far beyond a simple ten tons, but this was not the time to mention things of that nature. The male would remove his shirt to reveal what appeared to be pitch black wings, drawing his interest even more as grey orbs would widen marginally as if distinctly interested in what he was seeing. A metahuman with strange black wings was something that he was not used to seeing everyday, especially when it was coupled with superhuman strength. It reminded him of footage involving a blond that he had seen once before, fighting alongside another with strange capabilities that involved an unknown energy that one could call magic if they did not know better.

”Who knows, maybe before you know it you could be lifting alooot more than just 40 tons. Maybe even in the hudnreds of tons. I’ve read up on metahumans that could do things like that. Their development started off slow, but then it skyrocketed.” Travis would toss out there, letting some research and just general knowledge of the metahumans that worked around the world spill out while leaning forward somewhat interested in what this family as a whole could do. Did they all share some sort of enhanced physicality, or was his more of a specialized thing? His mind was running now, trying to figure out all of these possibilities while trying to appear as interested as possible with whatever the male was likely to say. He mentioned a Ryan and Travis found himself drawing a blank as far as who that was, considering that EVE had drawn nothing as far as information on these two went.

”I do my fair share of lifting. I can’t say I’m able to bench ten tons, but for a guy my size I’m pretty good. I guess I could lift around 250 lbs on a good day, gotta keep my body in shape.” Of course he could lift more than that, but not as if it would seem anymore impressive to the metahuman. ”You could say my specialty is this.” he said tapping his temple softly, showing that his strength was more than anything his intellect. Even without the telekinesis, Travis would have gotten along fine with the powerful brain that he enjoyed sporting. ”I would not be wrong to assume that those wings would allow you to achieve flight, correct? Because they are….rather magnificent.” Compliments seemed to roll off of his tongue with an absurd ease, and so he let them, looking to the male with the same friendly smile.