Dead USA (DrTrollinski and Elwin)

[Elwin]

Luna sighed a little and squeeze his hand. She slowed down a little, which forced Greg to slow down as-well. "I can't determine whether it has anything to do with this.." She hushed her voice, biting her lip. "But Phil broke down to me about half a year ago. He told me so many things about his past life..his treatment when he was a child. I mean..I can't quite put two and two together but it could have something to do with that."


Keeva got to the door. Phil had managed to walk way ahead of her, despite her own hurried step. She paused outside of the door and pulled out a cigarette, popping it into her mouth and lighting it with a match. Everyone seemed so distressed here. Same as her, but she didn't want anyone to know about what she had seen. It was gruesome, but private. Keeva twitched a little, remembering the lifeless eyes of the dead woman.


~~


Coden scanned the paper, squinting a little at the childish writing. "Da..Daniel! Oh hello Daniel!" He said, happily. Coden suddenly felt a great sense of achievement and his eyes started to produce tears, which he held back valiantly.

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. Jesus Christ..." He sighed and started to speed up once she'd told him. That explained everything. ".. He's trying to recreate the childhood he never had, isn't it? The one where the child in question didn't get abused, and whatnot..." He sighed and rubbed his forehead. ".. We'll have to keep an eye on him. I trust Phil, but... If this drives him insane, we'll need to make sure he doesn't do anything he'll regret." He said, looking down at the ground as they finally started to come close to the station.


--


"You'll have to put that out." Phil said to her, but calmly this time. He didn't seem as angry as before. ".. The cigarette, I mean... Seeing as we've got kids here, Greg doesn't like it when people smoke inside. You have to either stay outside or lean out a window... As a smoker, trust me, I suffer from it, but it's a rule I've gotta' follow." He said as he stepped into the doorway. Suddenly something dawned on him; he poked his head back out and looked at her. ".. And Keeva..." He sighed and waited, once she looked at him. ".. I'm sorry." He mumbled. She could see that he meant it, but he didn't really know what else to say. He disappeared into the station.


--


Daniel simply smiled up at him, and what would have been a giggle escaped his mouth, but it was merely air. He looked up at Coden with joy - he was already starting to view Coden as an older brother or a distant relative, of some kind. Coden and Greg had been super nice to him so far, but he understood that it was essentially Phil who saved his life - he didn't like it when Phil cried, and it made him feel sad, but he was going to try and thank him in whatever way he could.

 

[Elwin]

(Keeva is outside c

 

[DrTrollinski]

(I know. He was just pointing it out, just in case she thought about going inside with it )

 

[Elwin]

Luna sighed, using her free hand to scratch her head. "Yeah..It is quite tragic really, It is weird what you don't know about people. That is why I was defending Keeva..I might she could have just been rude as heck..but you never know." Luna stopped walked and turned to Greg, looking straight at his face. "We are all in this as a group, okay? Stop worrying about everything as if its all yours to deal with. Everyone is here to help you and each other get through this as a team." She smiled at him, warmly.


Keeva took a deep drag and burnt out the cigarette, tossing it to the floor. She nodded at Phil respectively, allowing him to go in before she followed on behind a few minutes later. She felt a little unusual, as nobody would know who she was. But they didn't need to, as long as she kept her distance.


Coden turned a little, as he heard the door and footsteps. He gently took Daniel's hand and smiled at him. "I think everyone has come home.." He spoke, softly. Coden felt proud and couldn't wait for everyone to see how much better Daniel had been doing whilst they were away.

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. Yeah, I guess so... I suppose I was sort of the same... I was very... Cold. And reserved... when I lost my wife, I mean." He sighed a little and continued walking with her, only to see Phil disappear into the station after talking to Keeva. They just got to the ramp that lead down to the building when Keeva walked inside as well; Greg quickly lead Luna forward and lead her inside, only to see that the young boy had vanished from the seat he was once in.


--


Phil walked into the kitchen and saw the young boy sitting there, holding Coden's hand. He looked at Coden, and Coden could see how proud and thankful he was. He could smell smoke, and it was evident that someone had been smoking in here not too long ago, and the ashtray on the table sort of gave it away as well, but he didn't say anything about it. He slowly placed the clothes on the table and looked at the boy up close. Clean and dry, warm, bandaged, and fed. He felt tears come to his eyes and he quickly turned around and hugged Coden tight - this was different. It was the first time he'd shown affection like this to Coden.


".. Well done, kiddo... Well-fuckin'-done." He whispered into his ear, quiet enough for no one else to hear it. He rubbed his back for a moment and then turned away with a shaky deep breath, looking down at the young child. ".. I think it's high time we got you into some nice warm clothes, don't you think?" He said. Daniel smiled and nodded, but then slid the paper to him. "Daniel...?" He smiled and then turned back to Coden, giving him yet another smile of appreciation; he looked back to Daniel and then chuckled as he gently ruffled his hair. ".. Yeah, you look like a Daniel to me." He laughed a little.

 

[Elwin]

Luna heard voices from the kitchen. "I think everyone is in there.." She said pointing towards the doorway. Nobody seemed to be stressed or angry, so she assumed the little boy was okay.


Keeva approached the lobby, looking around, gingerly. She walked through the room and headed down some corridors, looking for somewhere quiet to sit down. At the end of one corridor was an office, that had a desk chair she could sit on. She sat down, taking off her coat and put up her hood, wrapping her arms around her legs. A tear dripped down her cheek, but she was silent.


Coden felt surprised with the hug but happy Phil was proud of him. He really did work hard at trying to help Daniel as much as he could. Coden frowned a little, remembering Clayton. "Um Phil..I think Clayton is super ill or something..we should stress to Greg.."

 

[DrTrollinski]

"Yeah, we'll check him in a sec--"


"Is everything alright?" Greg asked as he walked in, spotting the young boy in the chair. He smiled down at him and then smiled at Coden, giving him a nod to say 'well done'. He walked over with Luna and stood in front of the boy, and then saw the paper on the table. ".. Are you Daniel, big man?" He asked. The boy grinned and gave a quick nod. Greg ruffled his hair, and then looked around. It was nice to see the boy was happy, warm, and apparently had eaten something, too. ".. You know me, Coden, and Phil... This is Luna." He put a hand on her shoulder. ".. She helped us get you clothes." He explained.


The boy shakily stood up and walked to Luna, hugged her, and then Greg, and then Phil, and then Coden, and for good measure, just because she smiled at him, he hugged Beth as well and then went back to his seat, smiling around at them all.


Greg had his eyes locked on the ashtray. He gulped, bit his bottom lip, and then turned towards the exit of the kitchen. He'd been ignored, and that hurt him. ".. I'll be upstairs..." He choked; he went up to his room and woke Jackson up, and then went and sat down at the desk and buried his head in his arms.


".. Leave him." Phil said before anyone could leave. He sighed and looked at Luna. ".. Coden... Show Luna where Clayton is, eh? You guys might have to be the ones to help him out here." He said as he picked up a pair of flannel PJ's from the pile, and then looked at Beth. He knew what had upset Greg, and she probably knew, too.

 

[Elwin]

Luna glanced as Greg left. She wanted to follow him, but Phil was probably right about leaving him. She smiled at Coden and they both hurried away to look for Clayton. He was in the room where the four of them slept, curled up on his bed. She couldn't tell if he was asleep, so she went over and sat on the end of his mattress, gently patting his shoulder. "Clay?"


Keeva pulled down her hood, once she had finished with her thoughts. She felt overwhelmed and didn't know what to do with herself. She pulled her backpack to her front and unzipped it taking out a folder with various documents and papers inside. Keeva pulled out a photo, that was ripped and yellowing. On the photo was a picture of a coffee colored man, with his arms wrapped tightly around a little girl with light skin and the same thick dark hair. She grinned, showing her childish gums where baby teeth had dropped out. On the back was a message. It was messy and badly written but it read.


Wherever you are, Blair, I am right behind you. Distance is no measure for my love. My love stretches as far as the space between us. We will meet again, find me when you come home.


Keeva grit her teeth, shaking as she held the photo. Her gap toothed smile burned a whole in her heart. She didn't want to experience anymore pain. What if she didn't find him? She wasn't sure how much more she could take. Not after what had happened that very day.

 

[DrTrollinski]

"Mmm..." Clay groaned, rolling over to face her. He kept his eyes closed tight, though. He felt dreadful, and he felt like he'd just lost half of his body weight. He was very pale, too.


-


Phil slowly got the young boy dressed in some nice PJ's, and then he picked him up and sat him in his arms. Daniel held onto his shoulder and looked down at Beth - he felt much better and he was nice and warm, too. Phil gently rocked him from side to side and took a deep breath - it was nice to feel him so warm and well, as opposed to what he was like when they first found him. Phil looked down at Beth and smiled, but also sighed through his nose.


"Beth, would you mind coming upstairs with me? I still wanna' talk to you for a few minutes about some things, if you don't mind." He said.


-


Jackson went out of the room once his father abruptly woke him up. God, he'd slept in for a long time. Jackson went to the bathroom and then went for a wander around after; he heard the rustling of paper in one office room and frowned. Who was that? Was Jacob in there? He was the only person he hadn't seen this morning.


He walked up to the door and gently creaked it open, looking a little shocked when he saw the woman sitting there. Oh, god. Was she friendly?


".. Uh--.. H-h-hi..." He stuttered, putting on the best smile he could manage.

 

[Elwin]

Luna gasped, her forehead creasing. "Jesus, Clay. You look sickly.." She rubbed his arm, concerned. "Have you had any pills or medicine? How are you feeling?" Coden sat beside Luna, tapping his legs. He didn't really know how to help, as he had managed to get nothing from Clayton that morning.


Beth smiled at Daniel and nodded at Phil. She was worried it was about the smoking and knew she should stop. Her depression did make her irrational at times. "Now or soon?" She asked gently. She didn't want him to be angry at her.


Keeva jumped slightly, rubbed her eyes and turned to the little boy who had walked into the room. He looked a little like Greg, the guy she had argued with. She took a deep breath and force a smile, shoving the photograph into her bag. "Oh..Hello.." She said, awkwardly. She had never had any experience talking to kids. "Um, I'm Blai-Keeva.." She said, slowly holding out her hand. "I'm going to be staying for a bit.." She said this with slightly hesitation. She wasn't sure whether it was a good idea to hang around anymore when she needed to find her Father.

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. No--.. No medicine..." He spluttered, shivering as he snuggled up under the blanket and coughed a little. ".. I feel like I'm dying, Luna..." He whimpered, his eyes watering as he squirmed a little. The sickness had absolutely terrified him, and he wished that it would just pass by and leave him alone. He hoped that no one else caught it, either.


--


Phil propped Daniel up a little and smiled at her. ".. Now. We'll get little man off for a nap, and then we can talk." He smiled as he turned and walked off to the stairs, followed by walking up them and going down the hall. With Beth hopefully trailing behind, he went into his bedroom and went over to his bed; he placed Daniel down under the blanket and tucked him in.


"Take a nap for a few hours... You deserve it, kid." He smiled and ruffled his hair. Daniel frowned but then looked up at him, smiling back. ".. If you wake up and you need anything, let any one of us know, okay?" He brushed his hair with his hand and then stood up, walking out and leading Beth over to a separate office that wasn't occupied. He walked to the window and sighed.


--


Jackson stepped forward and shook her hand. ".. I'm Jackson... How did you get here?" He asked softly, inspecting her from head to toe. She didn't seem too bad, and she didn't seem aggressive either - that was a good sign. He smiled at her as he pulled his hand away and then rubbed his eyes.

 

[Elwin]

Luna rubbed his body soothingly and ruffled his hair. "Clay.." She bent down and squeezed him affectionately. "Do you want more blankets? You look so cold.." Luna looked at Coden and he jumped up without her having to say anything. Coden ran through to where storage was, blankets and other warm things. He grabbed a blanket, the coziest one he could find.


Beth shuffled behind, Phil feeling nervous. She felt awkward that she knew what he would ask, he was probably sick to death of asking it already. She patted her own hair, that had lost its bounce of the coming months and had now turned into more of a haystack blonde mess.


Keeva pulled down her hood, as not to intimidate the little boy and fully faced his way, smiling slightly. "I met some of your friends in the town.." She wasn't sure of the relation between any of them. In-fact she had no idea about anyone at all and who else was even living there. "Greg, Luna and um..Phil? Yeah.." Keeva paused for a moment. "So, Jackson. Who else is living here?"

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. Yeah... More blankets..." He whimpered as he weakly took hold of her hand, some tears forming and eventually breaking through his closed eyes. ".. I feel funny, Luna... Something--.. Something bad's gonna' happen... I'm scared..." He choked in a whisper, his face flushing of color once again. He really did look ghastly, but he had a terrible feeling. Something was plaguing his mind, but he was just as delusional because of the sickness. He wasn't sure if it was worth worry about or not.


--


".. There were two things I wanted to talk to you about. Three, actually." He said with a sigh as he pushed a chair gently towards her and then pulled his own one over to sit opposite her. ".. Maybe four. I don't know, just whatever I can think of that's important enough to talk about." He cracked a very faint smile as he looked up at her, but then looked back down at the ground as his smile faded. There was something in his eyes, something that told her that something was badly troubling him.


--


"Greg's my dad." He smiled and then pulled a chair over to sit down opposite her. His hair had grown immensely over the last five months, and he was in dire need of a cut. It was still medium-length, but it was usually a lot shorter. Phil had trimmed it once for him, and it didn't look good at all. In fact, Phil had cut Clayton's, and Coden's hair as well, but he only managed to cock it up somehow, and it took a week or so so that it didn't look so deformed. ".. Luna's our friend, but she's pretty much family. Phil's our friend, too. We've got Jacob, and there's my older brother who's twelve... His name's Clayton, but I think he's sick right now." He scratched the back of his head and looked down for a moment, then he looked back up at her. "There's Coden and Beth, too. Beth's his mom. Coden's older than me and Clay. Fifteen, I think... there was some little kid here today, too... I don't know who that is, though."


He smiled simply at her and then looked around the room she was in. It was cold. Almost freezing, in fact - he was still in his PJ's, but he didn't complain.


"We've been with each other for, like... almost six months." He grinned. "Apart from my dad and brother, of course... We've been with each other forever." He laughed a little. Jackson's logic and explanations were so simple that it was cute and laughable. "Do you have any friends or family here?" He asked.

 

[Elwin]

"Clayton, You're not going to die okay.." Luna said, a little sternly this time. "Just..try calm down..I don't know what the problem is yet. But we will find out I promise. When we find out we can make it better.." At this moment, Coden ran up to the room, tripping on his own feet. The blanket launched at Luna and she caught it. Coden scratched his head and mouthed 'Sorry' at her, before pulling up a chair and sitting down. Luna took the blanket and tucked it around Clayton, tightening it around him. "Stay warm, kiddo.." She mumbled, cuddling him.


~~


"Yes?" Beth asked, concerned and sat down on the chair. She was confused now. She hadn't been caught that many times smoking so surely she had done something else wrong. God why did she always do everything wrong? She looked at him and frowned a little. His expression didn't seem like he was about to tell her off for smoking.


~~


Keeva smiled at Jackson. He was a sweet kid. His hair was ridiculous though, she wondered how he could see with it floppy allover his face like that. "Yes, don't tell anyone. This is a secret between me and you." She leaned over a little and her deep brown eyes looked into his. He had a similar shade, they were her favorite color of eyes. It reminded her of her Dad. "I'm here lookin' for my Daddy. I used to live in Georgia, but..I left him behind so he is waiting for me." She smiled at him. "When we are reunited it'll be all okay I think."

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. It's--.." He cuddled up to her, his whole body was shaking. ".. Something really, really bad is going to happen." He whispered into her ear, holding her tight. His body and legs were going absolutely crazy. He was either incredibly sick, or incredibly terrified, or both. ".. We are all... going to die..." He added in another whisper, the tears from his eyes going crazy as they bounced down his cheeks.


--


"I wanted to explain some things... I... I was speaking to Coden a lot over the five months, spending time with him, and you probably noticed that I wasn't really bein' an asshole like I was before, and--.. I realized something..." He sighed and shook his head. ".. I shouldn't have compared, because me and him are more alike than I first realized." He quickly rubbed his face with both hands. ".. I'm just gonna' admit it, Beth." He gulped. ".. When I was younger... growing up... I... My father--.. He... He beat me, beat my mom until she OD'ed, but that was when I was young... I never really knew her... And--.. He..." He shook a little and stared down at the floor, his eyes wide and traumatized. ".. I was molested a countless number of times... and it was all by my own father..." He explained in a whisper. Some tears filled his eyes and his lip quivered a little. ".. I'm sorry for how I treated you and Coden." He choked. ".. I gathered that his father probably wasn't the greatest guy, and I don't know if anything he ever put him or you through was... sexual... like it was for me, but... I'm sorry..." He choked. Then he quickly covered his face. Oh, god... It was all coming back to him. Not again.


--


".. Aww..." He smiled warmly at her. ".. Well--.. I won't tell anyone if you don't want me to, but... everyone we have here's real nice, and someone would help you if you wanted it." He smiled. ".. I know Jacob would definitely help, he's cool and taught me how to use a bow. He's a master." He laughed a little. "If you don't want anyone else to help, I could help you instead." He smiled. "Do you know where to find him?" He asked. "Is it near here?" He asked again. God, he had no idea.

 

[Elwin]

Luna gripped Clayton's arm. "Look, Clayton.." She shook her head, it was reminding her of something she didn't want to deal with in her mind. "Stop it okay, you're sick and it is making you not think properly..we aren't going to die. This place is safe.." She looked at Coden, who looked extremely uncomfortable. She nodded at him, giving him permission to get up. Coden sighed and left the room. He wanted to help, but he didn't know what to do at all.


~~


Beth bit her lip. She didn't really know what to tell him, so she would just tell him everything she could. "Phil, Coden was never molested thank god. My husband, I don't think he would do that. But he..he would beat me all the time, in front of Coden, in public sometimes. Nobody gave a damn, it was common in our area. He also drank and did drugs. Coden would copy him from a young age..lash out at school n' stuff. I've never been a strong woman, since a teen girl I was reckless with men, but It was what all the ladies went for - 'strong' men. Or so we thought." She sighed. "He didn't molest Coden. But I can't say whether he would have killed one of us eventually." She felt tears coming to her eyes. "Don't think bad of me, Phil.." She mumbled. She was scared he'd think she was an idiot for bringing Coden up in that kind of environment.


~~


Keeva laughed and shrugged. "It is quite far I think. I'll take your offer and think about it though.." She said smiling at him. She felt better with this boy, she was getting a defense break that she needed quite urgently.

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. They run, now... Luna... They can... Run..." He sobbed, holding her as closely as he could. He was on the verge of passing out. What did he mean by 'they run'? He was slowly sobbing himself to sleep, or into unconsciousness. He looked dehydrated, a little, but not too much. He wasn't really sure if he wanted to keep going, but now he was pretty much unconscious anyway.


--


He broke out into tears and leaned forward and hugged her, his eyes buried in her shoulder. ".. I'm sorry! I'm sorry... I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." He sniffled and sobbed. He was having another breakdown, and he wasn't even done talking to her yet. God, this was awful. He kept crying and hugging her as tight as he could without hurting her.


--


"Okay." He smiled simply and shrugged. ".. Do you want something to eat and drink? I haven't had breakfast yet and I'm hungry." He smiled at her a little.

 

[Elwin]

"They can run..?" Luna frowned and pulled his limp body close to her. She held him tightly, he was still laid down but more or less on her lap. "You sleep now baby, stop worrying.." She mumbled, soothingly. Luna really wanted Greg to help her, she loved Clayton but it was hard dealing with this alone. He seemed genuinely like this wasn't a passing headache.


~~


Beth blinked and tried to hug him back, but she was a little squeezed up. "Oh Phil..why are you sorry? Don't be sorry..we all have past lives that are hard to deal with.." Beth knew this for sure. She still had flash backs from when she had tried to kill herself, but she always blocked it from her mind.


~~


Keeva thought a little, then nodded. "I am hungry actually." She stood up and undid the ribbon on her cloak, dropping it onto the seat. She ran a hand through her hair and looked down at Jackson. She was quite a tall woman and had almost forgot how small kids were. It was quite comical, in a sense. "Show me where your food is then.." She said simply, walking towards the door.

 

[DrTrollinski]

Clayton was passed out, pretty much. He was finally looking a little more comfortable now, and his body wasn't shivering. His breathing started to regulate a little now. His hair had grown quite a bit, too, and he needed to have it cut, just like Jackson did. Oh well, that was something that could be dealt with at a later time.


--


".. Because--.. I've... I've been so cold." He sobbed, finally loosening up his grip a little so she could hug him back. ".. I just--.." He shook his head a little and kept on hugging her. ".. I'm sorry... Will you--.. Would you like to have a drink later on once everyone's in bed? I... It'd be nice to talk about the good times with someone, for once." He said softly, sniffling.


--


"Sure." He smiled and then lead her out of the room and through to the kitchen. Jacob was sitting at the table and nodded up at Keeva as she walked in, after he ruffled Jackson's hair, of course. Jackson pulled a chair up to the counter and stood up on it, opening up the cupboards and digging through the food. "That's Jacob." He smiled.

 

[Elwin]

Luna remained holding him, snuggling her face into his hair. She personally thought the boy's looked lovely with long hair and one of her favorite things to do was to play with Clayton's. Eventually she fell asleep, her arms and legs wrapped tightly around his body. He looked like an overgrown baby, wrapped in all his blankets.


~~


Beth sniffled a little, stroking his back. "I'd love that, Phil. I really would." Beth didn't often like to drink, because of Coden's Father but occasionally she would loosen up and realize she wasn't the same as he was.


~~


Keeva nodded back, awkwardly. "Hey.." She mumbled and sat down, pulling her hand through her hair. It was extremely knotted. She looked at Jackson who was helping himself in the cupboards. She didn't really want to imitate him as she was knew and probably confusing most people with her presence.

 

[DrTrollinski]

He took hold of her hand and quickly wiped his eyes with his free one, pulling away from her and cupping her hand with both of his. He was actually a really gentle guy, evidently. It was just clear that his dark past was what made him so cold and harsh at first, but getting it all out to now two people was exactly what he needed, and a drink with someone he trusted would completely make his day.


".. That's good." He smiled warmly at her, blinking away some more tears from his eyes. "I used to drink a lot when I was younger, you know... after I got away from my dad, but... I stopped after a while. It'd be nice to drink under better circumstances." He said. ".. Also, Beth... I don't know how you feel right now, but... with the depression and all, being someone who suffered from it, I felt a lot better about myself once I'd managed to help out some other people in the group... And... I had somethin' special planned, if you'd like to help me out... I was gonna' head out tomorrow, gather up some stuff to give people on Christmas Day. You know, I'm sure the younger kids would like that overall, but I think it'd be nice for everyone to enjoy it. If you'd be down for helpin' be choose everything for people, that'd be cool, but I can do it alone if you'd rather stay here." He offered.


--


Jackson pulled out several things. Some dried cereal, being muesli, and he also got some canned beans out. Some canned frank and beans, too. He placed all of the items on the table in front of her and smiled. "We've got everythin' here, kinda' - The powdered milk for the cereal ain't that nice, but it's not too bad." He shrugged and smiled. ".. I think we have coffee, if you wanna' make some." He added.

 

[Elwin]

Beth nodded, with enthusiasm. "Of course, I've never been able to afford anything nice for Coden before. But it isn't like we have a spending limit.." She chuckled at this. "With my depression, I mean. It is a battle..but most days recently are better. They outweigh my bad ones." She sighed. "I know Greg thinks I'm a bad Mom. And others don't respect me..hell I don't even know if Luna does. She looks after me. But I feel like one of the kids sometimes.." Beth looked away from Phil. "I just feel how I used to feel when he used to speak to me.."


~~


Keeva shook her head. "No it's okay, I don't really like coffee." She smiled at Jackson and stood up to help him out. "The beans sound good.." She took the can and looked around for a can opener. Once she found it she got it open and poured it into a dirty bowl on the side. It looked like it had only been used for beans, previously so no big deal. "Thanks.." She said to Jackson and sat down at the table, taking a fork. She was appreciative of the kid, he seemed really grown up for his small size.

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. Greg doesn't think that. I can promise you. He's tryin' to think about everyone... Yeah, maybe Coden shouldn't have seen you in that place..." He sighed and gently rubbed her hand. ".. I respect you. I respected you more after that. They say it's a cowardly thing to want to take 'the easy way out', but... Honestly, from when I was on the edge of a bridge, it's possibly one of the bravest things you can bring yourself to do." He gave a sad and shaky smile, and then gave a sigh. "On Christmas, you'll have the chance to show everyone that you're still here. And all of that's in the past. I get to do the same - it took me a while to get everyone to be friendly with me." He laughed a little.


--


"You're welcome." He chirped and put some frank and beans into a bowl of his own, eating away at them happily. He didn't see anything wrong with Keeva now. She just seemed a little nervous, that's all. Jackson was like that at first, with the new people, but he'd really opened up to everyone now.


"Like Jackson said... I'm Jacob." He said. "It's a pleasure, ma'am." He greeted her with a friendly smile.

 

[Elwin]

"We will have a good Christmas, I hope.." She said, smiling. "It's almost like a family, you know. Me Code, you and Jacob and Greg, Luna and the boys." Beth sighed, but it was a happy sigh. She was imagining everyone sat around candles, singing a song and opening gifts. She definitely wanted to be alive for that.


~~


Keeva spooned a forkful of beans into her mouth. She was starving, but didn't want to act like an animal in front of strangers. She nodded again at the man opposite her. "Keeva.." She mumbled back and gave a faint smile, before eating some more of her beans.