Arthur wasn't new to insomnia or late night head-clearing walks, but the long streak of restful sleep had been nice. When the thoughts of things he couldn't change or what the future held captured him in the twilight hours, he would take a solitary lap or five around the Institute, pack of Marlboros in hand. It was the only way he could get real thinking done, tossing and turning in a bed until exhaustion took over had never worked.
This night was no different, until he got closer to the barn. The beautiful silence of God-Only-Knows o'clock had ceased. In it's place was an incessant tap, tap, tap and the faint sound of a TV playing. Curiosity got the better of Arthur, ignoring his instinct to continue his walk and avoid unnecessary human (probably) contact, he walked inside. There he saw a girl he was unfamiliar with, a student he assumed, tapping her foot on the ground at breakneck speed and writing in a notebook, though what she was writing didn't seem to matter much to her.
As soon as he entered, the inner conflict popped up. "Do I say something? Introduce myself? Ask what she's doing here? Back out slowly and hope she doesn't hear?". Unfortunately for Arthur and the decision he was contemplating, she noticed him first.
Arthur handed her another cig, he found it funny that she just put her hand out for one but wasn't bothered by it. This was the first time he ever had a real conversation with an empath, he hadn't considered the confusion that can come with the ability.
"I guess I'm happy, I tend to avoid long conversations with people because the majority don't say what they really want to say. I always prefer to hear what people have to say straight from their mouth instead of having to read them." He took a drag and noticed the first rays of sunlight peak over the horizon. "Talking to you is refreshing. Having no filter means you always say what you mean, some might find it annoying but there's no guessing games, or in my case, deciding whether to read your mind or let it go. We can just... talk."
He chuckled at the X-Men reference. When he first started developing telepathy, he fancied himself a regular Charles Xavier (though with more hair and working legs). "Not entirely bullshit, I've only met a few psychics who've had their ability since birth. If you've always been that way, it might be hard to imagine life without powers. My telepathy didn't start until I was 21, so I was fairly 'normal' until then. I found it hard to relate to others and the world seemed lonely because I was by myself in my head. For me the development of my powers was a blessing, because I could finally see why people made the decisions they made, and like I said it removed the guessing games in personal relationships. I didn't have to waste my time with someone who was just humoring me and didn't actually enjoy my company." He took another drag as he recalled the time before his powers, something he hadn't thought about for a long while. Even with all his mistakes, he was happy he had this gift, and happy he was with someone he didn't need to use it on.
A poet, ha. He supposed his description had been a bit flowery, but at least for her it was decently close to the truth. "Definitely not boring. I haven't truly enjoyed talking to someone for a while. I'm honestly glad I couldn't sleep tonight."