In Need of a Subject Sari tag Felipe, Open to any

[Sarissa Zouvelekis]

Sari was in need of an art subject. She had a project. Her final exam for her art class was to make a sculpture, painting or do something else artistic in the human form. Females had to choose a male form and males had to choose a female form. Either way Sari needed a guy. She would have asked Christophe, but she figured she would not burden him again. He had been so nice so far.

So she needed someone else. But who damn it. She could not just ask anyone. It was a weird request so she was particularly looking for a male who had art. To bad there was no guys in her art period. Or none she felt comfortable to ask anyway. Sari was only at school until Lunch and thats when she would take off. She had a bandage on her knee, cause it was sprained, but it would be fine. So she had a slight limp.

Sari was at her locker before school. She had until next week Friday. So she had one week basically to find this guy. Sari closed her locker when she turned and spotted him. Of course,why didn't she think of it before. He only shared the locker right next to hers. Felipe was the perfect choice. The art teacher kept talking about Felipe's projects in class. Apparently he was a silver art student in a different period. It did not matter odds are he had the same project. She just prayed he had not found a subject either.

Sari smiled and looked at him, "Hey, Felipe right...I'm Sari. We share an art teacher." She said smiling. "If in need of a subject. Care to be him?" To anyone passing by it sounded weird, but Felipe should understand. Sari was just lucky that Felipe had the locker next to hers. It was convenient really.

[felipe]

Government. God, how he hated that lesson. And to start the day with it? Whoever had designed the school curriculum had a sense of humour! Felipe rummaged in his locker for the books he'd need for that class plus trigonometry and English. That would see him through until lunch time. "Filho da puta!" he swore benath his breath. He'd felt sure his text book for his first lesson had been left in the bottom of his locker and beneath his PE kit... but no. He fought to remember who he sat near... Graham something. Or that other boy... Mac... "What was his name...?" He could hardly ask to share the book of anyone he couldn't recall the name of... could he?

"Ah! There you are you little fu..."

"Hey Felipe... right?"

He smiled and turned to face the dark haired girl.

"I'm Sari..."

"How could I fail to know you from art?" he replied. She was impossible to overlook! "Subject?" He grinned. "You have the same assignment as our class, heh?" ... and he needed a model as well.

He would have asked LizBeth but she wasn't taking art... and it was hardly fair to take up even more of her valuable homework hours in helping him with his. No, this arrangement with Sari would work out well. "I am happy to be your subject in return for you being mine... Do we have a deal?" he asked.

[Sarissa Zouvelekis]

"Sorry I am bad with names and naturally I assume not everyone knows my name despite the fact we have been locker maters since the school started." Sari said with smile, "But you are a busy boy to get a hold of, always having some cute girl hanging on your every words. It's nice to see you finally have some spare time. Unless some girl is going to jump out of your pocket and latch onto you arm right now." Her voice was playful as she smiled laughing at the comment.

"Oh I don't know if I can be your subject. Long hours alone with a man i barely know. i mean we just met...so how can I say yes to being your partner..." Sari's voice trialed off, but not for long and it was easy to tell she was being sarcastic and joking around. "How can i say no is the better question of course I will be your subject. We have a deal. And don't be shy, about showing a little skin," sari winked. She was a flirt and she was kidding. Her playful smile should convey that. If not, oh well.

"You are a life saver. it's due next week and I won't be able to start on it until Sunday evening or Monday morning, cause I won't be in town after lunch today and I get back Sunday evening." Sarissa explained. "So can we have out first artistic date one of those two dates to begin with?" She asked. "If you pick Monday you can come by my place before school, unless you want to spend the night..." Sari said laughing. "Kidding. I swear. I am kidding." She told Felipe just in case he took it seriously. "Your accent...Portuguese right..." cause those words sound a bit Spanish but not exactly Spanish.

[felipe]

"Ok a deal it is then!" Felipe replied with a smile. He knew she had no option but to agree to sit for him in return. They had both left the assignment far too late and so would have to take the first opportunity they had... And this was it!

"Monday after school would be better I think," he went on. "It is the prom Saturday and I have an early surfing lesson the following morning. I am sure to be asleep by supper time!" Plus LizBeth would want to hang out on Sunday, he felt sure. Then again, she knew homework came before anything else...

"Maybe we should exchange numbers and then if we are both free Sunday evening then we can alter outr plans and at least make sketches ready for Monday. I'm not all that sure I admit if I will be able to make it on Sunday though." Already the day was starting to fill. Monday would be a far safer bet!

They swapped mobile numbers as Sari asked her question about his accent.

She'd heard him swear...! Thank god she didn't appear to understand Portuguese!

"Yep, I'm from Brazil... We speak Portuguese there. Some of the words are close to Spanish but not many. In fact I struggle to understand Spanish I have to admit but I'm trying to learn it. What of yourself...? Are you North American born and bred?"

[Sarissa Zouvelekis]

"Woah, you mean to tell me you are crazy enough to have to wake up early the morning after prom. You have one brave soul. i hope your date is as understanding. You do have a date don't you." Sari asked. Someone like Felipe had to have a date. It wouldn't sway her choice either way. Sari was still leaving after lunch to head to the reservation to prepare for Sunday morning. She just found no enjoyment in prom> That and she went last year and didn't see a reason to go a second time. She didn't think she would win prom queen so.

"Monday after school is fine by me. We should exchange numbers regardless. Cause now I can bother you with random texts." She said smiling. Sari was like that. "If your schedule does open up please let me know. We don't just have to meet up for school work. I don't mind adding in breaks. " She told him> besides if she only did school work she might go insane.

"Prazer em conhecê-la." Sari said to him after he said he was from Brazil. "I think that means nice to meet you. I hope." Sari gave him a sheepish grin. She knew a few phrases but not many. She probably knew that one, hello, goodbye and a few adjectives. "I read a lot. Now I am thinking you need a nickname. How about gostoso." Sari said with a grin.

"I think that name suits you." She said. "I mean in a strictly friendly sense of course since I am sure you know what it means." Gostoso was one of the few words Sari knew and it was sexy in Portuguese and that one she learned from a guy who hit on her in a bar. "Thats about all I know of your language. "I would have a better chance speaking french."

Sari nodded, "Born and raised right here in the lovely state of California. But I like to consider my self an honorary member of the Native American race. even though I am Caucasian. I am very into the study of other cultures. Particularly Native American cultures, but I like to study the amazon, south African, Brazilian... I like to learn about other peoples' way of life. what about you, besides having impeccable taste in a model for your project, what are you into?"

[felipe]

“You said it perfectly,” Felipe assured her when she told him in his native tongue that she was pleased to meet him. He laughed at the nickname. “Gostoso?” Felipe laughed again. “You think gostoso suits me?” Sari had even more of a sense of humour than he’d first thought! Gostoso... It had many meanings... attractive, charming, delicious (delicious?), lovely, tasty... sexy. He had to wonder which one Sari thought applied to him! Hopefully not the delicious one!

“I know some French,”he replied, still grinning at the gostoso comment. At least she’d just more or less admitted that she hadn’t understood his cuss... Thankfully! “Ah... Native American. We studied that subject in our history class. It is... vast! Which tribe are you most associated to?” Felipe knew there were several... Sioux, Cheyenne, Blackfoot, Lakota... many, many more.

He threw her a grin at her self compliment but she did have a point... She would make a great model. “I fence,” he stated, holding up one hand to forestall the usual reply. “Swords. I love to fence. I am working towards my next level and am hoping to be entered into the regional finals next month.” That would involve a hell of a lot of practice, though.

“But you have a name for me... and so I now need one for you.” He thought hard as he looked at her. “Coração... Yes... you shall be Coração. It suits you.”

[Sarissa Zouvelekis]

"Good, then that means the only Language I seem to butcher is french. Please don't tell christophe. He would have ammo to make fun of me for days if he knew that although I will pass the class I can't speak the words." Sari sounded like a kid trying to say its first word when she spoke french. "I can understand the language and read the words, but I cannot speak it for some reason. You would think since I can obviously speak Portuguese and some Spanish I could do french but nope." Sarissa laughed. She was able to admit her faults to a certain degree, she just didn't care to see the smile on Christophe face if he ever found out.

"You speak some french..oh well you are definitely my new best friend. You might have to teach me how to say some words. So I can at least sound as if the class did its job." She joked. "My french teach sucks, just so you know." She smiled. "There is an Indian reservation about an hour from here. The Apache. I identify most with them. But I am very familiar with the other tribes. I do a lot of reading and studying. There are reservations all throughout the world. I have visited a few but there are many more I would like to see."

Sarissa knew what fencing was but she had never tried it or anything. "Could you teach someone fencing?" She asked. "Or can someone watch? I am always interested in learning new things. I also tend to ask endless questions so you might as well just tell me now you can teach me or I can watch or suffer my endless questions." She said to him smiling. Sari lightly bumped Felipe. A friendly tap. "Just kidding, about the questions part not about the learning part. I mean you would be my second victim with that. although I am still working on getting Christophe to teach me sailing. He will agree..."Sari said as she started to laugh. She hoped he understood she was not serious.

"Coração..." Sarissa repeated. "What does it mean?" She asked. "I you seem to have found a word I don't know. Then again thats not too hard since I only know a few." She said. "This is just going to make me want to learn your language more." She said her voice soft. "You hungry? We still have a little time before class to run a cross the street for food. The stuff is already made you just pick it up and pay then we will head back over here."

[felipe]

"Sure, I can teach you a few words in French. Something that will surprise your boyfriend, heh?" Already he had a few ideas of what to teach her and maybe after she'd moved past being pissed at him for what those words meant she might see the humour in it all! This Christophe probably would at least! "Ah... Apache... A noble tribe indeed," he replied. "We have many similar tribal people in Brazil," he continued. "There are the Tapirajé, the Kaiapó, the Kapirapé, the Rikbaktsa and the Bororo-Boe and still inhabit the northernd and central western areas of my homeland. The Tapirapé women in particular are known for their beauty and their full body paintings. Have you read about our Brazilian indigenous people?"

He smiled when she went on to ask about fencing. "Of course I can show you. I am more than happy to take you as my guest to the school where I am training and show you some moves. We shall make a date for when it suits you. With graduation soon upon us I am sure we shall have all the time we will need!" The summer break stretched gloriously ahead!

"I am indeed hungry so let's go find something to eat before classes begin." He'd been late this morning - as usual - and so had missed out on his breakfast.

Sari nudged his side as they wandered outside. "So...?"


Felipe feigned confusion but he knew what she was referring to. "Ok," he said on a laught and he grasped his shirt on the left upper side of his chest. "Heart. It means heart. You have a lot of that and even I can see it after our short chat. Heart and a passion... so.... Coração," he finished with a dip of his head.

[Sarissa Zouvelekis]

"Oh he is not my boyfriend. Just a really close friend. Whom I flirt heavily with and have avoided kissing for a while now." She admitted. Mostly cause she didn't think Christophe would ever find out, cause if he had she might be embarrassed. The thought of kissing the Frenchman had crossed her mind a time or two, even if she though nothing would be returned. "I kind of burned that bridge a while back. I doubt anything would ever happen. But i will settle for impressing him."

Sari nodded, "As far as i know my summer will be spent split between here and the reservation." She told him. "So we will have plenty of time. Before school is over and over the summer." She was excited. Something new. Maybe she would pick up a new hobby, "How long have you been fencing?" She wondered.

She waited for the the explanation. "Heart and passion. I like that. You are a smooth operator you know that." Sari commented as she smiled at him. "I might have to watch my self around you." She joked. "Come on we got to hurry, this light doesn't stay red for long." Sari grabbed his hand and pulled him as she darted across the street while the walking sign was still on. But the moment they crossed is when the light changed, "Told ya."

[felipe]

“I see,” Felipe replied when Sari clarified her friendship with the French boy. There was more to her story than she was revealing but... as it was none of his business he didn’t push her to continue. Still, wanting to impress him seemed... strange if they were merely friends as she’d claimed.

Interesting.

‘No... nosy,’ he mentally berated himself and he pushed his curiosity aside. “You summer plans sound good. For myself I am taking things as they come as I’m not sure if LizBeth intends going back to England at any time to visit her relatives.” Did she even have any there that she cared for enough TO visit? He couldn’t be sure of that. “Great then! We shall schedule some lessons at the school once we break for the holiday. It would be good to have at least three... That way you can try out each of the blades. Foil, epee and sabre although... not sure the last one would be all that comfortable. It’s the heaviest of them all. The foil is for beginners so we shall try that first but I am more adept with the epee. All three, though, It will be fun!”

“I first picked up a foil when I was six,” he replied. “So I suppose I have been fencing for almost twelve years now.”

Felipe laughed when she called him smooth. “I only speak the truth, Coração,” he replied with a grin.

They sprinted - literally - across the road and only just in time. “Puta que o pariu,” he exclaimed. “You were not wrong!” The cars had zipped past them no sooner than their toes had touched the far pavement. “Now, where is this cafe...?”

* * *

Two minutes later they could be found hunched over a menu card whilst standing at a high counter, the middle-aged server waiting as patiently as she could behind it. “Don’t have all day, kids,” she told them with a wink.

“Nor do we, minha senhora encantadora,” he replied with a smile and a wink. As hoped that seemed to appease her and she laughed back.

“Take your time,” she said and she moved on to deal with the other waiting customer. So if a little flirting got them some better service where was the harm in that?

“What shall you have?” he asked his companion.