W3 🛸 PLAYER CYOA: SEVENTEEN AGAIN (JAN) 🚀 ARTHUR & GREGOR

[dropoffs]

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DAY 1

[riverbeans]

[Good morning, isn't it a beautiful day today?

As Arthur wakes up, he will know this about his life: he is an only child, raised by two loving parents. While he had a rough start, being a withdrawn and reclusive child, he finally took a leap forward in high school by joining the Eudora Swim Club. As a result, while still perhaps not the most socially adjusted person, he's learned to make friends and enjoy his life a little. All thanks to the power of swimming...!

As Gregor wakes up, he will know this about his life: he has a younger sister and a loving mother. His younger sister is still in the carefree phase of her life, while Gregor himself has been fortunate that his mother has always encouraged him to pursue whatever he wants, free from unreasonable expectations. His childhood passion is swimming, which led him to joining the Eudora Swim Club in high school. Gotta love swimming!!

It's another day at Eudora High for the both of you, where you're lucky to both be on the swim team and classmates. (Of course, you also have various other friends in your class.) You're in your final year, meaning that graduation looms in the horizon... but you know what's also coming up? Swimming nationals. Your team has never won yet, but this year is your year. You can feel it—and you hope so, since this is your last chance to win.

---

For reference, both characters will be fully AU'd here; that is, they truly believe this is their life and they are normal high school students. They will not question why they are physically grown men. It's fine. Maybe it's genetics.]

MORNING

[riverbeans]

[Today, in class, the teachers passes everyone handouts. With graduation coming up, it's important to seriously think about university and, with it, what you want to do with your life in the future. To assist with that, you'll be filling out this sheet to help narrow down potential career choices.

NAME:

SKILLS:

ASPIRATIONS:

Otherwise, it is a free period. Feel free to chat with your classmates, including each other—whether about the handout, swimming, anything else going on in your life, etc.]

SUBMISSION

[riverbeans]

[Please have your character ICly fill out the form and individually submit their responses under this TL.]

<font face="courier new"><B>NAME:</b> <B>SKILLS:</b> <B>ASPIRATIONS:</b></font>

[verminous]

NAME: Gregor Samsa

SKILLS: Athletics, networking

ASPIRATIONS: Joining the university team, maybe going into coaching later?

[riverbeans]

[GREGOR HAS A LAST NAME?]

[expiries]

NAME: Arthur Starling

SKILLS: Swimming, art, botany

ASPIRATIONS: Being able to make more friends

[riverbeans]

[help this man. i mean high school student.]

CHAT

[riverbeans]

[Chat among yourselves, wander the classroom, etc. This will be a FFA, by which I mean that you may get mod tags from your fellow classmates to talk to...]

[verminous]

[bothers jan while eli is out

he's just leaning over to the closest person.]

Hey, how much do you think grades matter for this kinda thing...

[riverbeans]

They can't be that important, riiight...? I mean, some people have way more stuff going than them than how well they did on a test. [has rodya been getting good grades? mystewy. but another classmate speaks up, having overheard.]

Grades still tend to be pretty important for getting into university, though. Why, did you fail the last test, Gregor? [so says the class's tiniest high schooler.]

[verminous]

N-no, of course not! Come on, it's not like I'm failing anything, just... had more important things to focus on. More stuff going on for me, like Rodya said.

[stuff like swimming which he has a completely normal high school passion for.]

[expiries]

[it's time to awkwardly chat]

What are you, um... Thinking of writing?

[verminous]

Not sure yet. Writing out your own skills is always hard, right? Like... you put it down, and then you wonder if that's one of your best skills, and what really counts anyway...

LUNCHTIME

[riverbeans]

[After submitting their forms, they will get responses back by lunchtime:

They both really didn't aim high here with aspirations, but working with what they put down for skills:

Gregor's recommended careers... Well, he already seems to have decided. Coaching doesn't sound like a bad idea.

Arthur's recommended careers: Environmental scientist, florist, farmer.

But that's enough thinking about serious things! It's the most important time of school (besides swimming practice), which is lunch.

Arthur, you have a homemade lunch from your parents, who make sure to pack you one everyday. Gregor, you understand that as a single, working parent, your mother doesn't always have time to prepare you a lunch, so you often buy one from the cafeteria. With that said, as an extra snack, you do have misshapen cookies from your sister, who's recently picked up baking as a hobby.

The two of them head to their lockers with their lunch buddies, aka their classmates Anise and Charles. Upon opening them, though, Arthur will notice something in his. It's an... envelope? With a heart sticker sealing it shut? Peering over his shoulder like a shameless busybody, Charles speaks.]

Wow, is that what I think it is? [He looks to Gregor like ???? he's right, right?]

[Besides him, Anise stage whispers,] I really want to see how this plays out...

[verminous]

[looking back at charles like Oh Shit]

C'mon, open it-

[expiries]

[glancing between the letter and the both of them...]

I - no way. I mean, it can't be, right?

[looking at this letter like the very embarrassed high school student he most definitely is]

[riverbeans]

[Anise chants from behind Arthur,] Open it, open it... [Will Arthur open it? Other students are starting to glance their way because what are you all doing.]

SWIM PRACTICE

[riverbeans]

[And now it's time for the actual best part of the day... swim practice! You're on a team with Lovelace (the captain, who swims freestyle), Sinclair (breaststroke), Arthur (butterfly), and Gregor (backstroke). I need to clarify I know absolutely nothing about competitive swimming. I've never even watched Free.

You can just roll to see how well you do in this practice, but for the record, Gregor will think... as they prepare for their upcoming nationals, he hopes senpai (Dante) is watching him. 🥺]

[verminous]

[i rolled a fucking one tell me how disappointed senpai is in me now. senpai is not answering my calls. senpai doesn't want to be seen with me in public.]

[riverbeans]

[Senpai would be so disappointed in you, Gregor... Thankfully, Senpai is getting an education and does not see Gregor promptly start to drown in a school pool.]

Gregor!? What the hell are you doing in there?

[verminous]

[DROWNING, APPARENTLY?!]

[expiries]

[i also know nothing about competitive swimming shakes your hand. i rolled an eleven so he's very mediocre.]

[riverbeans]

Boo, Arthur, you suck! C'mon, you can do better than that! [Lovelace is an extremely encouraging captain, as you can see. At least Arthur is doing better than Gregor, who currently can't even swim.]

[expiries]

Sorry, sorry! Can I give it another shot?

AFTER SCHOOL

[riverbeans]

[After school, Arthur and Gregor decide to hang out for a bit, which will hopefully take Arthur's mind off of his mediocre swim practice while Gregor can continue to live off the high of his enrichment.

In the gentle bustle that comes with students coming out of school, they wander the streets. They pass by their classmate Kazuki, playing his guitar for tips as Ichiban dances next to him. If they decide to stop by a cafe for a snack, they'll spot Temenos and Throné hanging out. Familiar faces, enjoying their youth.

Eventually, they part ways, going back to their homes and families. Arthur, to his parents; Gregor, to his mother and sister. A peaceful dinner, followed by studying and homework, and then bed.

And then, that night, they dream.]