Westbrook Season 2

[RayPurchase]

Lamar Reynolds - 17 - Senior

It hadn’t taken long that was for sure. 8 days to be exact, including weekends. That’s how long Lamar had been able to ‘endure’ Eastbury High. Principally how long he’d managed to handle his new Coach, he still wasn’t sure how that man had obtained his position. Nude photos of the Principle maybe? It clearly hadn’t been down his tactical mastery, footballing knowledge or even just the ability to let those with the god given talent to play ball to be allowed go out there and win for him. He’d been given a gem, a fucking gem. ‘Generational Talent’ was the headline of the newspaper clipping he had at all times carefully folded into his back pocket, an old piece from the Black Mill Gazette from 3 years ago when he’d hit High School Football. Those had been more steady times, the path was clear and the weather was fair, a proper coach, proper equipment, proper team mates. In the days after Black Mills Academy, the dark clouds had descended on him, the dreams of College slipping away, he was never going to get in without the medium of Football. His parents weren’t dirt poor, but they weren’t rich enough to help him get through college, that scholarship was his only way in. He had to get back to what had been working, to what had got the crowds pumping, screaming his name, and most importantly, the scouts turning their clipboards towards him. It just so happened that in order to go back to the old, he’d have to go somewhere new.

The sun was beginning to set, sending long twisting shadows along the road. Lamar was lazily pedaling, one hand on the handle, the other on his phone as he scrolled through the twitter-sphere. So this would effectively be home for the next year. It was a good hour's cycle, but he wasn't complaining, would be his commute and a warm up rolled into one, as long as the weather stayed like this he would be alright. The streets were quiet, a lack of kids for a standard friday night. He'd been combing through the local Twitter, lock in at the school. Must be a local thing, Black Mill hadn't had anything like that, the old janitor would have thrown a fit to imagine a bunch of kids running along his immaculate floors. Hell he'd nearly crucified Lamar when he walked through most of the school after practise, taking a good amount of the water logged pitch with him off his shoes.

He came to a skidding halt in the carpark. It was rapidly getting dark now. A couple of cars came and went, ferrying passengers, but it definitely seemed to be the last few people arriving. Fashionably late it was, who the hell turned up to any sort of social event early, quickfire way to end up having to become the assistant caterer getting everything ready. Clipping a chain round his bike he smoothed down the collar of his jacket,

“Showtime,”

He muttered to himself, a grin creeping into place as we flung the doors open and entered the halls. The soft soles of his trainers squeaking against the polished floor. There were groups milling about here and there, laughter and conversation echoing down the corridors. An occasional glance was thrown his way, His natural swagger and a flash of pearly whites was enough to throw off the looks, the addition of a wink in the direction of a couple of the ladies added a few smiles back in direction. He let out a cackle of laughter as he swept round one of the corners.

“My time people, my time,”

He strode through the gymnasium doors, they swung behind him, almost like saloon doors proceeding the arrival of the hero of the piece. Well he was wasn’t he. If you didn’t consider yourself the hero in the story of your own life you definitely have yourself some self esteem issues, and Lamar didn’t have time for those. It was busy, but the figures he were after were clear before him, the groups of students near enough parting before him like the Red Sea. The one set of familiar faces in this whole joint. He strode towards them, arms outstretched wide, almost as wide as the smile on his face. They still hadn’t noticed him as Gus’ voice wafted over.

“Leaving already? I heard this part was just beginning, something about a celebrity in the making being spotted in the halls, better hang around, maybe you’ll get lucky and meet him,”

He let out a cackle of laughter, slapping River and Gus on the shoulders. He was back baby.

(Interaction: TheFool River, Hypnos Gus, Pretty much anyone else in earshot, he's pretty bloody loud and out there)

 

[Winona]

Zander

Had the queen of bitchiness just called him difficult?

Oh yeah. Zander was definitely ready to get rid of JJ and drop her on his stupid, lovesick brother. Then maybe Zander could actually enjoy the evening instead of being some stupid third wheel to his brother and Westbrook's stupid queen. And he was well on his way out the door and down the hallway towards where Toby was heading, when JJ tried to kill him.

She grabbed his hood and yeah, she stopped him for a moment because the tightening of the fabric against his throat did cause him to come to an abrupt halt, and cough. Zander spun around quickly, ripping the hood out of JJ's hand, a look of horror on his face as he rubbed a hand against his throat. Girls were crazy.

"Did you just try to choke me?!" Zander yelled, looking at JJ in horror.

"Oh I'm telling Toby."

Zander turned again and headed down the hallway, with JJ trailing after like a worried puppy. He turned down one of the hallways, and was more than relieved to see his brother there, with some kid that Zander didn't recognize. "Toby! Get your girlfriend before she kills me." Was he being over-dramatic? Absolutely not.

Soap PenguinFox 0k_mang0​

 

[Elf_Ruler]

Tatum was startled when she heard Colby’s voice, she hadn’t been expecting anyone to follow her into the auditorium. She had kind of expected to be alone and to just have time to collect her thoughts without any prying eyes or minds. That’s all most anyone did anymore was pry into her thoughts and put her in a box of what they believed about her. She was tired of being seen as the shitty cheer captain, the drunk blonde, the drunk captain, a bimbo, a slut, and every name under the sun she had heard. In the auditorium alone she could be Tatum a confused teenager but now she had Colby. It was like the world loved to laugh at her misery. She knew he was just trying to be a good friend and make sure she was okay, which not many people had been doing for her. It was always checking in on Ash or taking care of Ash, or all Tatum’s problems were her fault and she was on her own. Really not many people had been concerned about her in the recent days so Colby’s presence though frustrating was more welcomed than others.

She stood up and brushed herself off to join Colby on the bench, “You know, I’m pretty sure I told you to leave me alone. Can’t say I really wanted to talk with you in person, kitten.” Of course, she had to use the nickname she had given him over the course of their friendship. Really, she only did it because she hated his nickname for her, but she wasn’t going to let him know. “Why did you come? You could’ve acted like it wasn’t your problem.” She let her hand just glide over a few keys, but she couldn’t play any song on it. Colby was a nice distraction from her life at least on Twitter for a little, he had become sort of like an anchor for her, keeping her from completely going too far off the edge, even though they had just met and just become friends. He was one of the better parts of her life after she had royally fucked up everything else at least she had one friend who didn’t completely suck.

0k_mang0
--

Brayden looked over to the pink haired boy unsure of what to do. All he could do was stare at Dita and feel stupid because he didn’t know how to help. He couldn’t just leave her in the hallway alone, “Maybe we should call you an uber or something to take you to the hospital.” He was trying to make a decent suggestion, but he really had zero understandings. Hell, he really had only dealt with his own injuries and Tatum with her small injuries. He had never once had to deal with someone who was actually hurt. Who would do this to anyone, a girl no less? He would beat up the asshole who hurt a girl and left her bruised and blue. No girl should ever look like her and if it had been another girl, well he probably wouldn’t hit her, but he would sure make sure to get that girl in serious trouble. Lie to the cops about her or something because no one should ever beat anyone to such lengths as how Dita was.

He sat quietly with her still not sure what her plan was, but he needed to make sure she didn’t die or pass out and if she did at least that she could get help quickly rather than having someone stumble upon her. So, there her sat watching as Dita curled herself up, she looked like she was in the worst pain of her life and it broke him just a little to watch this happening in front of his eyes.

dendygar
lion.
--

Cam had really enjoyed his date with Milos it had been everything he could’ve hoped for and he only liked the boy more following it. Of course, he was playing it mildly cool because he didn’t want to seem too clingy or too attached to fast, he didn’t want to push Milos away, he wanted to keep Milos as close as possible. Every small detail about Milo he noticed when they had talked or the way Milos’ face lit up when he spoke of something he loved; the small details were the cutest things that Cam noticed. He had wanted to kiss Milos, but he also wanted their first kiss to be magical especially for Milos. He wanted it to be a great memory for him and he was going to do it right. He was going to take things slower with Milos than he would have with someone else. Milos was already important to him.

When Cam had made his way to Westbrook for the lock-in he sighed a little because who really wanted to be at school overnight? But it was a school wide event and a lot of his classmates were going so he figured he would show too. He hoped he might get a chance to see Milos again. Of course, as soon as he walked into the gym it was like the gods had heard his silent prayer. He set his belongings down and made his way over to the boy, “Hey” he gave a large grin, “I’m glad you’re here.” He wasn’t sure what to do, hug him? Take his hand? Why was he so confused? “You uh, wanna go see what the gaming competition is?” he finally asked. He had never felt more stupid then at that moment.

Winona

 

[lion.]

Ronnie "Blue Nile" Kane​

Gone strangers. That's what she was supposed to be. But as soon as he sucked in a breath in the same distance as her, he was in retrofilm, spinning back to his stone-cold, jumbling memories. More than often, they had crossed paths, thrown around different pills and hit different drugs in damp cellars and hitched forests-smoking and smoking till they forgot their names and they became laughing, crying, and roaming ghosts. He recognized the jagged deep brown canyons in her eyes that now leaked with streaked tears. He remembered the plane of her face, the way her small nose aligned symmetrically to her russet lips.

“Before you say anything..”

There were marks on her face, valleys of cuts and trenches of bruises that seemed pricely. Gravely pricely.

There didn’t need to be things said.

Blanking thoughts yawed over his mind strings as she let her fingers skim over his hair. She was a whisper away from telling him something eminently important, when another person joined him. He was a greater source of energy, perhaps greater good than all the optimism and empathy that lay in his damned sinew and bone. Watching him expand his arms and comfort her, there was a glimmer of an unexplainable friendship.

Or he was just slightly high and everything was too much like a sad musical.

“You’re stupid,” Ronnie scoffed, when she told him to leave. Pulling off his backpack, he rummaged for some ibuprofen. He heard the other kid insisting on the hospital.
Smart golden boy. Too bad he wasn’t the same type of guy.

“No, really. Do you always find time to push people away when you need them?” He asked, stretching his legs out from under him as he settled in on the cold hallway tile. Rummaging through the compartments of his bag, he found a half-emptied bottle of water.

Complacently placing down the bottle of pills in center front of her with the water, he joked, “Here's something. Don’t overdose, screwy.”

dendygar
Elf_Ruler

 

[BELIAL.]

Norah Walsh
location: WHS, Roof mention: Winona ​

"My mom died a month ago from an overdose."

She could have choked, or spat, had she anything in her mouth. Her fist suffered the blow, getting pinched by her teeth a little harder than she would have liked. Her eyes widened and she looked over at Mason. God, a month ago? She felt a special brand of foolish for openly suffering when Mason had lost his mom a lot more recently, to a similar occurence. Norah remembered when it was a month after her mother's death. She was a lot more of a mess than Mason looked like. She envied his strength in the face of familial death; but part of her wondered if that's why he acted so prickly. To avoid the hurt, the feeling. It explained River, and she had no issue applying the same bandage to Mason. The circumstances were too similar.

Norah let the silence hang, not daring to say anything. She had her moment, and the selfish opted to change her tune and let Mason speak. She looked back at the sky instead, noting a particular cloud that ran over the moon. It plunged the roof into a darker silence.

"I... worry the same about Drake. He uhh... has a bad history with drugs. He's overdosed a couple times, but he used to joke that he was born addicted to drugs, and that's how he'd die. It's not funny -- it never was, and that... fear of losing your brother. It doesn't go away." She nodded, listening to him. God, it didn't go away. Riona was a bit easier to handle, since she could be the big sister to the younger girl. River was eldest, and he toted his title like a trophy. It held him above them in times of turmoil-- he could shut off and you weren't allowed to do a damn thing. The prospect made her bite her tongue more times than she'd like to count-- the blonde instead wishing she could rip her brother a new one. He never listened, anyway. It'd be in vain, and they'd be a whole lot more angrier at each other than they usually were.

It was a fucked up cycle.

"Sorry," he breathed and Norah shook her head. She sat up, crossing her legs and playing with the fabric on her jeans.

"No, don't be. It's okay. No one can hear us up hear being all gross emotional and sentimental. I won't tell if you don't," she whispered with a small smile, casting him a glance. A secret space. The idea was alluring, but he'd probably reject it. She wouldn't expect any less from the guy who pushed her into the pool.

"You can go if you want. I won't hold you hostage up here to listen to me moan and whine. But then again, it's just gonna be people getting drunk down there and I'm not ready to deal with a drunk River. Fuck." She buried her head in her hands, audibly grunting a loud 'ugh'. She mused beneath this curtain how nice it was that someone really understood her, in this moment. This infinite breath of space between purgatory below, Mason and Norah could relate on the eternal struggle of children worrying about their siblings; all on account of a drugged up dead mother. They came from different walks of life, Norah was painfully aware of that in the ragged nature of Mason's flannel, but there was a common ground. A middle ground.

She peeked out between her fingers back at him. Waiting for his response.

 

[dendygar]

Tadita

She looked up at Brayden and smiled softly at him. "I uh, I appreciate-" She coughed and sniffled, "You helping and making sure I'm okay.. really.. you don't have to stay out here if you don't want." She told the other boy quietly. Her voice was haggard from crying all night- practically all night anyway- and she didn't want to worry anyone else. "You're a good person, Brayden." She told him truthfully.

She turned her attention back to her.. friend, and she leaned into him and hugged him lightly, incredibly thankful for his help as well. The memories she shared with Ronnie were hazy. They mostly had hung when the weather was still warm and nights quite humid, when there were a million stars in the sky and the sun set at 10. She remembered they would go hiking and canoeing a lot, trying to find the most desolate and beautiful places to get stoned off their asses and just talk about the synchronicities of the universe.. and then about nothing at all, making goofy faces and stupid jokes until they were rolling in the grass and dirt laughing.

He made her feel like a kid again. Tadita had never told him about the people she ran with, the horrible things she'd done, the immense guilt for a death she felt responsible for.. She didn't tell him about her family. In all honesty, they didn't know much about one another, but they'd sewn a tight bond during those summer nights. She remembered the two of them struggling to build a bonfire and set up a tent, and then the weed, and then after that it became hazy. They danced together and she thought she tried swimming- but that was a failure and Ronnie had to toss her over his shoulder and carry her back to shore. Tadita remembered the mornings after, sometimes they'd just stay outside and wake up next to one another and laugh about morning breath and try to recall the night before, watching through the videos they'd taken on their phones. Sometimes some of the videos and pictures seemed a little.. different than the others. The times where they'd managed to get home, she'd text him the next morning seeing if he was good.

God, she would do anything to feel that again. She watched as he put down the tylenol in front of her and the bottle of water, and she glared at him, "Screwy? Shut up, pinhead." She playfully nudged him with her foot, downing four pills and chugging the last bit of water. That helped a lot.. "I think I might just be really dehydrated.. Brayden," She dug out a dollar from her wallet, "Can you go to the vending machine and get me a bottle of water or coke? I think my blood sugar is low."

lion. Elf_Ruler​

 

[BELIAL.]

Malachi Verreau
location: WHS, gym mention: RayPurchase TheFool Hypnos ailurophile (black mill) ​

This lock-in seemed like fun, at least. Were it not for the marijuana already drowning Mal's eyes in a reddened haze, he might have contested with that statement. He was content to drink a bit of the water that Gus bought, or maybe a bit of the pinot noir he'd slipped into a flask in his boot. Mal was classy in his endeavors, opting not to drink carelessly with shitty vodka and even shittier beer but to instead dine like a king. He would be surrounded by his friends, and that made Mal feel better about it all. If he weren't there to watch him, he'd make it so. He was not too keen on letting people he cared about be alone when they dabbled with the illegal, bare necessities.

He was sure that the Black Mill kids weren't going to be the only ones drinking either. Better the impression to make when he swoops to the safety of another. Mal would do it in a heartbeat.

His first week at Westbrook had been relatively good. Nothing to write home about, but it was what he expected anyway. A couple people interested him but schedules conflicted and he had missed many an opportunity to talk or make friends with him. Unlike the Walshes and the Windrifts, Mal liked floating about between the social structures. Him and Theo bonded over this, in their complacent natures.

Yet, with the way that the sets of siblings were making a name for themselves already, he worried a bit about the associations that would evoke in the others. Would they judge him entirely for being from Black Mill? From hanging out with the Shakespeare-esque drama-bombs that bled out of the upper echelons of society?

Eh. Mal didn't care.

He smiled and nodded, encouraging convo with those around him. He snuck off to steal a sip of his flask when Tadita and Tatum had come over to invite them to dance games and to partake in goodies. Had he been he would have gleefully agreed to both. The opportunity was missed however, but the dark haired man did notice the tensions rising with the girls.

He drank again, anyway.

A sudden booming voice echoed through the gym and Mal looked over his shoulder. In all his stunning glory there strode Lamar. He knew him not quite as well as the other football champs, but he appreciated a lively personality when he had the chance.

"Well look at what the well-suited cat dragged in," Mal said with a small drawl, smirking at Lamar. "You've been a stranger Lamar. But it's good to see you pal." He came from behind and clapped the man on the shoulder.

He looked around to the remaining Black Mill. "Enough loitering. Let's find a classroom and indulge in some healthy habits, non?" He grinned like a cheshire cat to the others.

 

[BELIAL.]

Dana Jameson
location: WHS, on way to gym mention: TheFool dendygar Twin Fantasy ​

It felt like an eternity had passed between Westbrook and Dana. It had been only 9 months, closer to a year maybe, but it felt like she hadn't been in Westbrook for decades. Centuries maybe, like a wizened old veteran stumbling back onto the city streets. It didn't help that for the majority of her youth, from middle school to high-school, she had sought out whatever exchange, abroad or intern programs they provided for kids like her. Smart kids. Talented kids. She recognized her talents and did not flaunt them in words, but in experiences. To be hand-selected to stay a term in Prague and learn among masters of their craft, to the most recent adventure to Australia with her current best friend, Dana accomplished a lot.

Drifting in and out of Westbrook had taken a toll on most of her friendships however. She remained in the background, a cloud to the JJ Jameson name that perfumed the halls. She didn't mind, however, because whenever she returned home the eyes were on her. Juliette, bless her soul, had no choice but to bow to the unwavering hospitality of her 'older' cousin. Where Juliette had pedigree within Westbrook High, Dana had charisma. Charm. She didn't do this things with an ulterior motive, but simply thrived with being the center of attention. She floundered beneath it, as one should, but she liked being recognized for her hard work.

Yet, she remained in the closet. Trapped with a door locked from the inside. It was not a fault to her character, but a fear bigger than remaining useless-- rejection. She brought it up never and pouted about it often, but never to anyone but Arlo. She confided in the boy, and he remained as close as glue to skin. She loved her friend for that.

It was no wonder she did the best she could to show up on time for the lock-in. A TV show had kept her in bed a tad longer than she would have liked, damn those Amazon originals, and she had scrambled to throw an overnight bag together and at least try to look presentable. Nevertheless she made it, riding her own bike alongside Arlo's.

"Big man back on camps, Lo. How ya feelinnn?" She said, twirling a smile between her lips. They parked their bikes, locking them off to the side. "You know, I figure that tonight's the best night to really get to know people. Westbrook needs a smile on its face, ya know?"

A familiar sight caught Dana's eye and she grinned wildly. Excusing herself she burst through the school doors and sprinted across the hallway. Reaching out she scooped up the dark-skinned girl in a big hug, giving her a bit of a spin. Dana giggled loudly, "Oh my lawd if it isn't Sh-ayyyyy!"

 

[dendygar]

Shay

May was almost totally forgotten about when Sha'nay heard the familiar voice. Her heart soared, her eyes widening as she hugged her best friend back, squealing and screaming with surprise and pure delight. She laughed loudly and hugged Dana over and over, looking back and touching her hair in disbelief, screeching again and jumping up and down.

"Oh my god, oh my god my love!" Shay said over dramatically. "You've returned home to me! Girrrllll lemme see you!" She cupped Dana's face and looked her over. "Not a blemish on your perfect face, I wouldn't expect anything less. I thought I was gonna see you Sunday!" Shay laughed and flipped some of her black hair over her shoulder. "I have so much I have to tell you, sis."

BELIAL. Twin Fantasy​

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Tatum Elf_Ruler​

“Well, yeah, I could’ve acted,” Colby said, pressing the weighted keys to play the F Blues scale slowly with his left hand. “But you see, Tater-tot, when a friend tells me to leave them alone, I hear the opposite. I’m not a neuroscientist or whatever, but that’s just how my brain works. Weird, right?”

After stretching his fingers for a short moment, he played a C7 chord with his right hand, pressing down four white keys, making a slightly low melodic sound. “So... you like jazz?” With just five-octave notes, two keys each, he placed a short medium-tempo riff that lasted for, maybe, 10 or 11 beats. It almost sounded like the 30 Rock theme song. It probably was.

And then he put his hands down. “Yeah, that’s all I know,” Colby said with a dry chuckle at himself. “I sort of know a couple of songs, but I can’t remember it all right now. My mom’s much better at this than me. I’ve never really seen her perform on stage, though.” His eyes suddenly became pensive. Because he did wish he could’ve seen her perform.

When he realized he paused for a few seconds, he quickly blinked the look away and said to Tatum, “So, what do your parents do? C’mon, tell me your origin story. We got all night.”

 

[Elf_Ruler]

As Colby spoke Tatum only rolled her eyes, he was definitely something else and sure, she could have been angry but where had that gotten her before? Coffee thrown on her a bruised face, an angry best friend and a slew of other problems so this time she just chose to roll her eyes but listen to the boy sitting next to her. It couldn’t hurt right? She let her body shrug, “More of a blues person than a jazz but you’re not the worst, heard better.” She teased a little giving a playful grin. “You’re better than me but that’s not really saying much.” She really wished she had taken her chance to learn but that was then, and she was in the present, she was living her life now and she couldn’t go back and change anything. Did she want to? Some aspects she wanted to change and others not so much.

Her eyes looked away from him when he asked about her family, she wasn’t ashamed of them she loved them, but she had always had a hard time getting along with her father and she didn’t talk about those aspects. She just fiddled with her hands for a bit trying to process how to start, “With all my issues you would think I have shit parents, but I don’t. Honesty both of them are really great and supportive of my dreams even though I don’t know what those are. My dad was a marine for years, so we always moved around so I don’t know a constant home or friend group. My mom was always a secretary for some big office and her and I get along great.” She paused for a moment to think how to explain her father and what really caused her to be as screwed up as she was.

She looked back at Colby, “You ever feel like your parents expect the world of you and when you don’t deliver, they get upset? That’s me and my dad and I guess over the years him and I disagreeing took its toll. He wanted me to make more friends, be more social, be this perfect daughter. So him and I fight because I’m kind of a screw up in his eyes even though he doesn’t say it.” She just shrugged at her comment trying to keep her mood light even though deep down she had wanted his approval on her life. To be able to take photos, have fun with hair, just to figure herself out and she had always felt the need to do what he wanted. So, she joined cheer, she became friends with popular people, she gave up her hobbies in hopes he would give her just a little more approval. He was always supportive of her but that wasn’t the only thing she needed, “Tell me about kitten boy. His hopes, his dreams. What makes him tick? Besides me” She tried to make even just a small joke to lighten the mood.

0k_mang0

 

[TheFool]

Arlo

His bicycle was almost aviating,
He was going that fast. A crisp, cool wind danced through his hair - making the feeling that he was about to take flight even more real. He half expected the bike to grow fucking wings or something. He was currently on his way to school, though the sun was half set. It’s dying orange glow bouncing off of store windows. Making Westbrook light up like a parade of fireworks. He waved at a woman who he thought was his neighbour, Mrs Tully. But,
On a second glance. She didn’t look too much like her, and she definitely did not reciprocate his greeting. Dick it. Whoever it was, he didn’t care. Arlo Davis was just happy. Happy to finally be back home in Westbrook. He bobbed his head along to the music blaring loudly into his eardrums. Mark Ronson. Old school Mark Ronson, not his newest stuff. Though that wasn’t because Arlo didn’t enjoy his… newest stuff. He just preferred things to be a little old school. He braked his bike at the corner of an empty street. He was about a block from school. He shot her a quick text on his phone. The music influencing the way he typed his words. He was happy to be back, yeah. But, Arlo didn’t want to walk into Westbrook for the first time in what felt like forever without her. His best friend. His Dana. He could feel it.
The anxiety gently creep up. Threatening to put a dampener on his supposed happiness in being back here. Being back home. He could see the school down the pavement. Or at least a smaller scaled version of it. He was still a tiny bit away.

And that’s when she appeared from up behind him. On her own bicycle. Arlo felt his heart beat normally again. His anxiety washed away like one of those fake kiddy tattoos he used to buy in bulk with friends. “Crikey. You awright?” He said,
In his best ( and worst ) Australian accent. He smiled at her, his hands tightening around the bike’s handlebars.
“I’m not ready for this.”
He looked up towards the sky, now almost completely dark. He liked the colour some of it was. An evening shade of purple. He took one of his earphones out,
So he could hear and talk to her properly.
He did lowkey hate that she showed up just as La Roux started singing. Dana always had the worst timing. Totally.

He listened to her talk as they peddled down the street. The crazy wind from earlier seemingly having stopped. He didn’t feel like he was flying anymore, no. Just biking. Regular “I want to ride my bicycling”. He gulped,
“I’m real nervous, to be honest. Like… really. Feels like I’ve changed like so much as a person since we left for Oz.” They stopped outside the school’s gates. “And if lil’ old me feels like a completely different dude… so will everyone here.”

Arlo wasn’t looking forward to that.
At all.
But, he’d do what he always did do. Smile and nod and wave and laugh. Blend his ass in. Cheeks painted the greenest of camouflage. As they locked up their bikes - it happened. Something that he knew was most definitely ( at some point tonight ) happen. Dana excused herself to run off and say her heys.
Arlo let out a short sigh, finishing the locking of his bike. “Shoulda’ made a freaking bingo card.” He looked in the direction she ran. Towards the main doors. In through the main doors. He did the things best friends did. And simply followed Dana inside.

Shay.

Shay?

Yeah, it was Shay. She looked different. Different hair? Or something.

“Hey there Shay-o.”
He spoke, in a quiet but pleasant enough manner. Cracking a small smile as he stood behind Dana. He didn’t really know her that well, so he didn’t really have much to say. Dana and him barely knew each other before they went away on the program. He was afraid that now that they were back…

Well,
Things would go back to that way before.

Dana would go back to her friends, like Shay. Arlo would go back to his, like Matt and Milos and Sean and Alex. And Lena. He hoped they’d be here tonight. He could only take so much DMing over instagram and twitter and discord.
He folded his arms as his attention was pulled back to Dana and Shay.
And he waited.
Patiently.



dendygar
BELIAL.



​

 

[TheFool]

River

He scoffed,
“Music room sounds good.” Replying to Gus, whilst rolling his dark brown eyes at his little sister. There was no way she was getting even the smallest sip of any of this shit. She was supposed to never not be sober. And River would make sure of that as long as he was hanging around with her.
He didn’t really care what she did in her own time.
Or he did.
But he cared less.

Then,
They were interrupted by voices. Annoying voices.

River had had e-fucking-nough of this fucking pussy fest. Really. He was ready to fucking go. Get the fuck outta here as fast as fucking humanly possible. Inhumanly, even. Fuck these guys. Fuck them. He was fed the fuck up.
Fuck.
Within a matter of moments - they were invited to play video games, they declined to play video games, and some blonde skank insulted Ri. And just when said skank begun to walk away, Tadita ( who’d been staring into him like he was some fucking telescope ) joined in. Insulting Ri some moresome. River’s jaw tightened. Clenched completely. His grip on Z tightening. Pulling her closer to the warmth of his body. As a final little fuck you.
As the bimbo stormed off looking like some petulant little junkie - he called out after her, “Hey.” He began. She didn’t look back. But that didn’t stop him from continuing.
“Next time ya don’t wanna be a bitch - why don’t ya actually fuckin try not be fat fuckin bitch, dumbass.” His eyes squinted.
His brow furrowed. Fuck her. Whatever the fuck her name was. He was sure she introduced herself, but after the shit she just threw at them -
Her name could be Dogshit for all he fucking cared.

Tadita finished off the insults and then followed her friend. But River bit his lip. He’d already said enough to her tonight, and she was a firecracker. He didn’t want to set her off.
“Fuckin sluts, dude.”
He mumbled to himself. Though Z would’ve heard. And Ri. And Gus. Fitz too, maybe. He was fed up. He was done. This lock in was already old fucking news. He needed to get wasted. “You ain’t drinking.” He said to Ri,
Still clinging to Z. Holding her close. Surprised a teacher hadn’t come in to give him a warning for his act of PDA. “But I ain’t leaving you here with these fucking spastics. You’re sitting in the music room with us. No retarded ass Mario Kart for us.”
He wanted to shout it.
But he kept his voice down. He had that urge though. That urge that he’d often get on the field. To roar and scream and do something drastic - that’d end up getting him the win. This wasn’t football though. Even though it sometimes seemed like it.

He looked at Gus,
“Yeah-”
His eyes widened at the sight of him. Lamar. As well as Frenchy, who seemingly just floated into the gym like he always floated.
River gently took his arm away from Z and marched over to his buddy. He almost slammed his fist against Lamar. Playfully, of course. Though Lamar could definitely handle a proper punch. He’d seen it first hand.
“What the fuckin fuck are you doin’ in this slum, man?”
They fist bumped.
A huge grin on his face. “And yeah, we’re leaving. Gonna go find a room away from the dork exhibits and get shit faced. You know how it be, Reynolds.”

He looked around the gym.

At all these fucking specimen. These poor, unwanted fucks. He could fucking rule over each and every one of them.
And they’d thank him for it.

He walked over to Gus and opened his backpack. Taking out the bottle of supposed water. Taking off its cap. And giving it a chug. Straight. It slid down his throat like tar, before he put the cap back on and quickly putting it back.
Zipping up the bag before any teacher supervising them could even see.

“Let’s go fuckin music room. Pronto, bitches.”
He said.
Putting his hand through Ri’s hair to annoy her, and then placing his arm back on Z. He looked at her and smiled.

That classic River Walsh smile.



ailurophile
Braddington
dendygar
Elf_Ruler
Hypnos
RayPurchase
BELIAL.



​

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Tatum Elf_Ruler​

Colby mouthed an exaggerated Wow. “I show off my mostly novice skills to you and I get ‘you’re not the worst’? How rude. And to think I was gonna try teaching you how to play Pure Imagination or some chords from Golden Slumbers. And for free, too.” He ended the sentence with a disappointed scoffed, feigning offense to her comment. He may have felt a tad insulted, but he still laughed.

While Tatum answered his question, Colby kept quiet and listened. His expression didn’t show, but he was partially surprised that she didn’t have an extremely tough family life despite her current problems, and he was glad that she didn’t. He understood that even if someone grew up well off with a decent family or home, they would still have some personal issues eventually. He couldn’t say he had the feeling of parents’ high expectations weighing him down. His mother just wanted her only child to be happy, grow up to be a good person even while they didn’t always have much. Nothing more, nothing less. She would’ve understood how Tatum felt. His mom’s relationship with her parents was basically nonexistent for similar reasons.

Colby lightly drummed his fingers on his kneecaps, considering his words to the personal question. How open should he be? He did ask her for an origin story first, so might as well return the favor.

“I was born in prison, in New York,” Colby said, folding his arms over his chest casually. “Don't have a cow. I don’t remember what it was like being there during my first year, thankfully. If I’d been born anywhere else, I would’ve been put into foster care and probably never see my mom again. Other than that, I’m not as interesting as I pretend to be,” he admitted, copying Tatum’s dismissive shoulder shrug. ”If it makes you feel any better, Kitten Boy still has no idea what his dreams are, too.”

Hovering his right hand over four white keys that he hoped was an A minor 7 but most likely not, Colby said, “For what it’s worth, I don’t think you’re a screw-up.” He bumped his shoulder against hers lightly and gave her a reassuring half-smile. “You’re just human, and a decent one. That’s much better than perfect.”

 

[Hypnos]

Gus Windrift
​

The night was off to a rocky start, a very rocky start, and if it were not for the iminent promise of alcohol and a good time, it honestly might have been worth leaving in shame.

Only about five minutes had passed since they had entered the gym, yet already the group of Black Millers were starting to be regarded as public enemy number one.

As if their reputation wasn’t already pisspoor as it was.

Gus considered himself an optimist. The sort of person who could quite happily see the best in a poor situation, and find a bit of joy in the little things in life. Right now, those little things seemed to be fleeing faster than a teenage girl who had just spoken to Walshy.

It wasn’t that he didn’t love hanging out with River and his Black Mill peers. Nor was it that he was particularly offended by any of the words that the Westbrook students had thrown at them, he had pretty thick skin, or at least, so he thought, but he could still feel an underlying discomfort as they continued to make a name for themselves with the Westbrook locals. Above all else, Gus craved the approval of others; craved it like a starving man craved a good meal, and right now he could practically feel his favourability levels dripping away with every passing second.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Why did all of his friends have to be such assholes?

Such lovable, perfect assholes?

Watching as the Black Mill group was finally left in solitude, he winced a little as he heard the harsh words that River had for Tatum, though he didn’t say anything in disagreement, merely shaking his head in mock disapproval, the genuine nature of which was hidden behind a thick mask of irony. Another cute girl that was gonna avoid him like the plague. Thanks River.

At some point since their arrival, Malachi had joined their group, though Gus had been too absorbed in his own self-pity to notice, offering the Frenchmen a quick grin and a single lone finger-gun in greeting. The two of them weren’t close. Not as close as Frenchy was with Fitz, at the very least, but they were still on pretty friendly terms.

And Frenchy could get you fucking anything.

As he opened his mouth to gesture for the group to move forwards, his words were drowned out by another voice. Louder and more bombastic, with a characteristic confidence that could only come from one man.

Gus’ arch-nemesis.

Gus’ second best friend.

‘Fucking Lammy? Who let you in here? I thought you weren’t allowed within a hundred yards of schools anymore. You fucking ugly bastard’ He cracked a smile, feeling Lamar’s hand against his shoulder and offering his own playful clap on the back. ‘I hope you brought some good stuff. Cause you ain’t stealing any of mine.’

Lamar was an old friend. A good friend. Even if they were not perhaps as close as Gus was with River. Another member of Black Mill Peacocks, and the Wide Receiver who was quite honestly far more qualified for the position than Gus had ever been.

Of course, he’d never say any of that to Lamar’s face.

‘Guess Eastbury kicked you out already. It’s okay, from what I’ve gathered so far, Westbrook has no standard. I mean… They let Walshy in.’

Whilst he was talking to Lamar, River had nabbed a few gulps of Vodka from Gus’ bag downing practically half the bottle before they’d even settled themselves down. ‘Save some for the rest of us, greedy git.’ Gus muttered under his breath, though he maintained his jovial tone, eyes looking around to make sure that none of the faculty had seen River just down several gulps of hard stuff, though it looked like they were in the all clear.

‘I guess we should fucking scarper before we make any more new friends.’

With one hand resting upon his bag, Gus took the lead in guiding the group away from the gym, and away from any more potential damage that they could cause, looking around for where he thought the music room was supposed to be.

Keeping Riona at an arm's distance.

Even though his initial tour had never stretched as far as the music department, he was fairly certain he’d be able to deduce its location in a pinch.

It wasn’t far from the gymnasium, and even after taking a wrong turn down into the art department in a detour that lasted almost five minutes, he was eventually able to guide them towards the right place.

Unfortunately, it seemed that the room was already occupied.

Respecting people’s privacy had never exactly been one of Gus’ strong suits, nor did he think to knock at all, given that he assumed that the majority of the school’s classrooms were gonna be vacant with the big competition going down in the gym, so he was surprised when he barged in the door to see two people already sitting around.

What’s more, with alcohol in hand, it seemed that they had the same idea as the Black Mill kids.

‘Hey, you’re Hospital Boy, right?’ A spark of recognition. ‘Alex is it? Hope we’re not interrupting anything saucy in here.’

TheFool ailurophile Braddington BELIAL. TYPE geminiy

 

[TYPE]

A L E X - S H A R P
@sharpattack

TheFool ailurophile Braddington BELIAL. geminiy Hypnos
Mention : dendygar

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Between sipping at the drink and slowly nudging the genre from jazz to classical to what can only be described as drinking songs, Alex kept a smile on his face, willing himself to enjoy the time with Ryan. The boy had clearly chosen not to discuss the lingering elephant in the room... and Alex could be happy with that. It was his business. Not Alex's. And no matter how much enthusiasm Jay had... a week was not enough to trust someone with something you have kept hidden for years. And whatever Ryan was stuck with, he has been keeping it to himself for a long time. Even Alex, who normally prided himself on his attentiveness only noticed it a good few days past their initial meeting.

When Tadita started messaging him, he took the phone out and frowned at the DMs and then the texts. Could he have been so wrong? Was he being a fool? She had her problems. He got that. She was... a lot. Especially for someone who tended to be low energy like Alex. He could understand that. She pried. She was expressive... she did not always think things through... but... Surely whatever she did could not have justified... He needed to figure this out for himself. Misunderstanding or no... he could not just afford to write people off. He had so few left. So few connections. Placing the phone down, he returned to the music, smiling at Ryan, the smile not really meeting his eyes.

Come on. Get back into it. Just... have fun. How hard could it be?

He missed a beat and flushed when Ryan looked over at him. "Sorry... just... thinking." He shook his head. "I will stop now."

The moment he said it, the door opened and he looked up, noticing that Ryan had not noticed. He gently bumped the guy on the side, his eyes taking in the group.

They moved like a pride. A few girls that looked like they were from swimwear catalogs hung off some of the guys that might just as well have been from those overly sexualised Men's Health magazines. Fuck... he would have loved to think it through before. Considered what was being said. Maybe trolled Twitter for any sort of clues.

Noting how they were walking. Talking. Hanging... there was clearly quite a few interesting relationships here. Some looked familiar. Some looked sexual. Some looked political. Some beneficial. Some more exploitative than others.

Grabbing his cane, he got up, patting Ryan's shoulder. Then he started limping towards them.

"Hey, Gus. If you guys wanna come in, you better come in quick and close the doors." He peered past them, looking into the hall. "The teachers will lock us out if they see the room occupied." He smiled, not sure who the lot were. There was Gus. And... who would be Gus's brother. A few other popular looking kids. He waved at them all with a polite smile. "And... nothing saucy here. While Ryan over there is cute.." He smiled over to Ryan, talking with his face towards him so the other could see his words. He would not talk about him without at least giving the guy the courtesy of knowing what he was saying. "...He and I are just friends. And even if he was interested, he could do so much better than this..." He gestured to himself with a self depreciating smile."Plays piano like no one though, so if you are into that..." He chuckled... god... don't make this awkward.

Could he ignore it?

No.

Dammit.

"Gus... might I... have a word. Just quick. Nothing..." He looked the other's over. "Nothing untoward. Just wanna check something with you." He limped to the side, giving the other's enough space to jumble in. As the other neared, he lowered his voice, a faint blush on his cheeks as he tried to suppress his shame and his uncomfortableness with the situation.

"Sorry man... just... You know I have massive respect for you. But... someone else I trust has contacted me. And I..." He sighed loudly. "I don't want drama. She... Her name is Tadita. I know she can be much. Heck... I get tired because of her high energy. She said to me that you guys attacked her verbally. Called her out for things..." Fuck. He sucked at diplomacy. "I don't wanna take sides here. I just... was it with malicious intent? Did she do something that... made you feel she deserved it? That is, if you did anything at all. I just.... I wanna hear your side. Cuz... I have respect for you. And I know you guys have been having a hard time... acclimating. Fuck... I have as well. I want to give you the benifit of the doubt, yeah? I know you are decent. I know she is as well." He cleared his throat. Looking over to Gus's friends. "You can send me a message later if you want. We don't have to do this here. Yeah?"

He stepped back, giving Gus some space. "No... hard feelings? I just wanna understand yeah?"​

 

[Elf_Ruler]

Tatum was quiet as she listened to Colby speak, she hadn’t expected him to be open with her, or really tell her anything about his life but he was and honestly, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes at him once he had finished speaking. He was something else to say the least, but she felt happier after all the Ash drama going on, “I’m rude? You just took away my chance at learning piano. Way ruder, kitten.” She shoved him back just a little smiling as she did so. For the first time in weeks she was actually smiling a genuine smile and enjoying her time, “So you’re a hardened criminal, a musician, and fix cars? What else don’t I know about some who thinks they are so boring?” she stuck her tongue out just a little. She was confused for a moment as to what she was feeling. Her stomach felt small knots, was her anxiety kicking back up? She shoved down the thoughts and tried to relax in order to relieve her stomach.

She looked back at the door, “You’re not as boring as you think. You keep saying you’re boring, but I don’t think you hear yourself when you talk or see the hobbies you have.” She kept fiddling with her hands, she was never quite this open with anyone new, she didn’t like letting people in because it always ended up as hurt. Yet here she was with Colby who she had only known for a few weeks, but she felt like she had known him longer, their friendship was so easy like breathing air. Everything felt so seamless when she talked with him, she felt comfortable with him or at least less stressed out. He was the only person who didn’t seem to put her in charge of other people’s problems or mistakes, he just listened. That was something Tatum had needed more than she had realized.

0k_mang0

 

[mogy]

Dante Novello

​

Dante smiled, showcasing her bright white teeth when the other girl said she looked 'sharp' and called her 'ma'am'. Dante felt kind of proud of herself because she could understand the girl when the British obviously couldn't, and English wasn't even her native language. This just made her feel even better, like a super weird ego boost she didn't actually need.

And before Dante knew it, the whatever sense of normalcy went by quickly because now, the three nerds were talking about bugs. Like bugs were somehow even worse than random country facts, but this was America, and people here weren't as cool as her friends back home. Like where her friends back home would be talking about some random topic which actually interested Dante, the only topic she could talk about here would be boys, and she would only discuss them with Noah. In this group of weird-ass people, there wasn't a topic which interested Dante in the slightest, but she needed to be a wing woman to her little boy who had a gay crush on the tall little boy. How cute.

"I'm Dante, you know, like the writer?" She was sure little boy knew about Dante, but for the girl in the glasses, Dante wasn't so sure. She looked like she knew a lot of things, but at the same time like she knew nothing.

Interactions: Dede (Tom, Stu), Twin Fantasy (Pixie)

 

[Twin Fantasy]

.

Vered Demsky

Vered wasn't sure why he chose to come here. Sure, he had no friends, and sure, making friends would be good, but this wasn't the ideal setting, in all honesty. He just felt kind of jittery and uncomfortable, most of the people in Westbrook seemed to hate each other and he really didn't want to touch that stuff. He was here quite strictly for an education, and drama would just get in the way.

The library was open, and seemingly, nobody was in there. The lights were on, the chairs were pushed in, almost like he arrived after closing time. Shuffling to the shelves, he began picking out some neat new books to read.

His favorite kinds were the science books with the enormous, full-color pictures in them. One on space, one on animals, and a book on the art and film of Harmony Korine. As well, a reproduction of Basquiat's journals, which Vered may check out of the library at a later date, and a book of Shakespeare plays -- get this -- in comic form. Setting his stack next to him, he pulled out a chair and began flicking through the NatGeo animal book, which was thick and hard-cover.

// CLOSED //​

 

[Soap]

Grace

White.

It was all she could make out at first. Voices pierced her ears but she couldn’t tell who it was, some sounded familiar and some weren’t anyone she recognized. Something— someone came into her field of view, everything was so blurry Grace would’ve been satisfied if someone had told her it was just a moving spot on the ceiling. “Grace? Can you hear me?” Yes. It’s what she thought, and it’s what she tried to say until she realized she couldn’t open her mouth to say it. Slowly, her vision started to normalize. It was clear that the person in front of her wasn’t an old water stain on the ceiling but ask her to make up the facial details and she wouldn’t be able to tell you.

Her next course of action was attempting to move.

That failed as well.

Now that Grace’s initial instincts were out of the way. Where was she? What was happening?

And why did it suddenly get so bright?

She could feel hands on hers, hands near her face, touching the lids of her eyes before she realized the light was a flashlight. “Grace?” The light passed from both eyes, side to side more than once. Finally, the most she could let out was the smallest grunt. At least she understood them. But these few seconds were feeling like hours and with each one passing by, she felt more confused and frightened by the second.
—
She was in a hospital. That much was clear— very clear. The lab coats, white walls, glass doors and reflection clean tiles. She realized that after her vision cleared. Grace was also introduced to doctors, nurses. Maybe in a attempt to help her feel more… comfortable?

She could move now.

Kind of.

She was weak. It didn’t hurt persay, but it felt almost exhausting to move any part of her body. Grace didn’t want to take the chance to walk as of yet. And to talk? Well, her mother’s concern was written all over her face when an hour went by and she hasn’t spoken a full sentence. It’s not as though Grace hasn’t tried. She has. A few words had slipped here and there much to her mother’s relief— it was only when they had her take tests. Many tests was when Kate’s concern returned.

Grace used to be good at those. Yeah.

“Do you know what this is?” Dr. Kirk asked, eying Grace intently as she lifted the blanket, pointing at an… what was that called? “It’s… a bug.” Wasn’t it? Dr. Kirk nodded and urged her to continue.

“Do you know what it’s called?”

Grace caught her reflection in the mirror and her gaze stood there. Many moments passed by as
They waited for her reply, she knew what it was. She just needed a second.

Jonathan spoke up, “Grace, honey, it’s easy. Just look right there on the blanket.” Kate glared at him from beside the hospital bed, distracting Grace momentarily, she tore her gaze away from the mirror and towards a boy she didn’t recognize. He reminded her of someone, she just couldn’t place who. The blonde’s attention fell on the person who it was originally seeking, narrowing her eyes slightly. Who was that? Why did he seem familiar?

Oh.

Photos?

Yeah. Old photos. She knew who that was.

Something wet dripped onto her skin she could feel it, Grace just didn’t understand where it was coming from. “Grace? What’s wrong?” Kate placed a hand on her face, Grace instinctively tried to flinch but it seemed like everything she was trying to do, wasn’t working the way she intended it to. It took a moment for her to understand, eying their faces and then her own in the mirror across from her was when she spotted a tear.

Oh.

Why was she crying?

She wasn't sure why, but she was. Was it him? Was it his fault? Grace’s gaze fell onto Jonathan once again and a few moments later, Kate deemed it was necessary for him to leave. “Grace, can you try to answer this question for us?” Dr. Greenvale asked instead, almost as if he was waiting for a response from his tear-filled bed ridden patient. “What kind of bug is this?”

Hmm. What kind?

It’s pretty.

The colors felt comforting to her. There was something about the blanket that
to her.

“A fly.”

Yes, she was sure of it. Dr. Kirk smiled almost pitifully, “You’re not wrong, kid. It’s a butterfly. Can you remember that word for me Grace?” It helped to repeat things in your head to remember right? People did that? Grace decided to do that. That should help.

“Okay.”

Butterfly.
—
Butterfly.

Many things happened in this next hour. That familiar man and boy walked in again, and her mother introduced them as her brother and father. Grace wasn’t sure how to feel about that. By now, she knew who Jonathan was. Even if it was the slightest bit hard to place it all together. Grace understood everything a little more clearly.

Speaking of understanding. Grace didn’t understand that she was in a coma. She was told that much— but why? She didn’t have to ask the questions, her mother… and father was seemingly on the case. “What about the infection? How’s that?” Kate asked. “The antibiotics seem to have done their job by now.” Did they, though? Or did they just not understand any of it at all? “It’s difficult to say why she’s woken up now. New studies say—“ The doctor’s words were cut short by Kate pulling the woman into a hug. And Grace watched everyone with a weary eye. None of this felt
It was all too weird, confusing and in a way… hurtful. Emotionally, she means. Why did she feel bad?
—
Butterfly.

“Ash?” Her hoarse voice cut through many of the people talking in the room. Before Grace could even comprehend what she was saying, words were coming out of her mouth. But it made sense. Ash… was in the other person in the car. Her friend. “She’s okay, Grace.” The boy said. What was his name again? Huh. Her brother, Maybe he reminded her of herself? Maybe that’s why he seemed familiar.

Familiarity wasn’t something she wanted. Grace wasn’t sure what she wanted, but this wasn’t it. Her mind was spacey, as if she was trying to place current events. But what more could she try to remember? Four months is a long time. She missed summer, birthdays, and so on. Maybe that’s why she was upset? Maybe that’s why there was almost a hole-like feeling in her chest. Why? Was it because she missed out? Or was it because she was afraid? ... Afraid of what though?

“Can you tell me what you remember last?”

Could she?
—
Butterfly.

“Dresses.” Well, she wasn’t wrong but there was more to the story. Grace just wasn't sure if it was all a dream or not. “Getting dressed you mean?” The doctor asked, earning somewhat of an unsure nod from Grace. “Okay, what else?” What else was there? “An accident.” Yes, there was an accident. Her heartbeat started to raise significantly. There’s not a lot she remembers. There was a lot of smoke? Right? Oh. And pain, she remembers that too. Where did she feel the pain? And— why? The blonde racked her brain, looking more worrisome by the second. It was clear the room picked up on it by the looks she's gotten.
—
Grace used most of her strength to lift one arm to her stomach, raising the grey shirt slightly only to see a scar much to her confusion… Glass? Maybe that’s why it hurt. No one noticed her movements, at least not the people on that side of the room. So her thoughts went unanswered. “We could continue more tests tomorrow. Take a breather, you all could use some rest.” Dr. Kirk said, walking towards the door with her other colleagues before stopping at the doorway. “Can you tell me what’s on your blanket, Grace?”

Oh. That was easy.

“A bug.”

 

[KingofAesir]

Layne Elliot
​

It was so soon. So terribly soon. A new place. New faces. Too soon after that terrible change. She hated change. Why couldn’t things just...stay the same? Why couldn’t he be alive? Layne could deal with her father and mother if he was just still alive. Layne’s entire life had been ripped out from under her, torn up from the roots like a weed. She had nowhere. Nowhere but this strange new place, with its cold and unfamiliar walls. Filled with people she didn't know and faces that looked at her like she was an alien. A Layne might as well be an alien. She'd lived her entire life in rural Louisiana and it showed. It showed in practically everything that she did. From the way she talked to the way, she said ma'am to everyone and their dogs. Maine might as well have been an entirely new planet and Layne had just landed here in her Ford flatbed spaceship. The people she lived with were alien too. After her parents had passed, the system had just tossed her to the next available family member. Layne had never met her aunt and uncle. It wasn't too much of a surprise though, as she knew her father had never had a very good relationship with his brother. She could tell why the moment that she stepped into their cookie-cutter house with immaculately clean everything that seemed almost impossible with the twin toddlers they had running around. They were picturesque. Her Uncle Tommy was a fisherman. Literally the most cliched thing a man in this town could do. Her Aunt Allie was an accountant. They literally had a picket fence. This was so much different than the run-down old place she was used too. Tommy's eyes were so much brighter than his brother's, his words were so much more comforting. Allie was so much more gentle than her mother, the way she rocked her babies and cooed them to sleep. Layne couldn't imagine what it would've been like if they had been her parents.

They tried to get to her. They really did. And Layne had to give them credit. It had been a long time since anyone had tried to really get to know her. Layne doubted they would stop. But she just wasn't ready. She wasn't ready to move on. When your whole life, no matter how bad it was, gets ripped out from under you that shit hurts. Sure, her parents were mental, sure she had a few scars, but they were her parents. And now she didn't have any. Her brother had been her rock amongst the chaos that was their parents and now...he was just gone too. She had no one to lean on now. Layne should've gone with them on that damn boat. All of this would be so much easier for everyone if she had died too. But she'd been so scared of what might happen, locked away on a boat for two days with them. She'd been a coward and now she was suffering for it.

The house was too strange. Too foreign. Too nice. Layne needed out. Her Aunt and Uncle were great, the twins were adorable, but Layne needed some space. So, she decided the lock-in would be an okay thing to use as an excuse to stay out of the house. Layne never really slept anyway so she could survive a night in the school. She'd be too paranoid to sleep in the school anyway. She was almost too paranoid to sleep in the house. She'd been here for two weeks and was already beginning to mistrust this place. But at least the school was big. She could find her own little corner to lurk in. The library. Layne had never really seen anyone in there during the school day even. So maybe it would be empty.

She moved down the hall quietly. Silent like a shadow. A skill she had picked up from years of creeping out of her house in the middle of the night to avoid her rampaging father. She looked like a shadow too, in all black, long tresses for dark hair spilling down her hoodie. She was the picture of sketchy. Her silence didn't fade as she stepped into the library, letting the door slide quietly shut behind her. Layne made a beeline of the stacks, peering through shelves in search of any occupants. There was only one. A boy. Curly headed. His nose buried deep in some wildlife book. Her reminded her of her brother. Layne felt her heart twinge as she watched him flip through pages for a moment. The library was completely silent, so silent that she could hear him breathing. She wondered if he could hear her. No matter. Layne moved from behind the shelves and made her way behind the boy with long, quick strides. She peered over his shoulder for a moment before speaking suddenly.

"You know that's an old edition?"

Twin Fantasy

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Tatum Elf_Ruler​

If Tatum had known him since elementary or middle school, she’d probably think otherwise. He wanted to make it clear that he wasn’t a “hardened criminal”, even though the comment made him laugh a little. Then again, he had been caught a few times for playing Need for Speed in real life. It felt refreshing being able to open up to another person that wasn’t his grandfather. It wasn’t every day that he told anyone that he was born in prison. He never even told Brayden.

“I guess I’m just trying to be modest,” Colby said, gently rubbing his knuckles together subconsciously. “But really, I’ve mostly just been faking it ‘til I make it, specifically since near the end of eighth grade. Believe it or not, I used to be a very quiet kid. Always been this average kid who just likes Star Wars, reading comics and car stuff because my dad did. He died about a year before I could meet him. My Camaro? Used to be his. He never got to finish it, so Grandpa and I did it for him during the summer.” He wasn’t exactly uncomfortable talking about his dead dad. It just felt... odd talking about him out loud. Colby never knew his father personally, and the only way he could make some kind of father-son connection was by copying his hobbies and stealing his car.

He pressed the piano keys for a triad chord, but he made a clunky low sound instead. He hadn’t paid better attention where his fingers were. Yeah, Colby could cross out Musician off his career option list.

“There are maybe several other things I can do, though,” he responded coyly, brushing his fingers on top of the thin black keys. “But you might have to figure them out yourself. It’s kinda fun being a little mysterious. How about you tell me some of your interests? You’ve been to more places than I have, maybe picked up some cool things.”

 

[Twin Fantasy]

Vered Demsky

The invertebrates, in Vered's opinion, were always the most interesting. Not to say he disliked his bulldog for committing the crime of having a spine, but there's something to be said about a creature who has no need to conform to a bilateral stature. Bugs tended to, but things like starfish or corals ignored that stuff. He wondered what it must be like to have no rigid structure, no long pole to grow limbs off of. To be a skeleton shrimp, or perhaps, some sort of obscure, deep-sea comb jelly. They must have no worries whatsoever, no problems, no thoughts to think or feelings to feel.

He was jolted from his reading by a voice, and made a sound somewhere between an "aah!" and an "eep!" which sounded really fucking girly. Vered flushed bright red. Great, now you made yourself look like a little pansy in front of a girl. He turned a bit, then actually registering the comment and peering at the publication info. Sure enough, this one was a couple years old.

"Thanks." He stood, realizing she dwarfed him a solid few inches, and shoved the book under his arm. "I guess I'll go, uh, put this back. Didn't realize anyone else was here... In the library, I mean, I know other people are, in, the building, yeah." Social ineptitude, thy name is Vered Demsky.

// KingofAesir //​

 

[a z u l a]

Ryder

He felt like his heart was going to beat out of his chest as he waited for Ash to answer, the disdain on her face was clear and he honestly wasn't sure if he was hoping she would say yes or no. Of course, if she said no he had his answer and he could walk away and pick up his dignity (hopefully). But if she said yes, well that meant he actually had to face her and try to put into words how truly awful he felt and the way he felt, and everyone knew that the Vaughn's were all bad with words that weren't curses. The jock prepared to speak with his actions, mostly his fists, but when they'd dated he'd tried to show Ash how much he cared about her by protecting her from (or bashing in the face of) anyone who was mean to her, but it had only driven them farther away.

It was a surprise to hear agree to talk with him, the last two times he'd tried to talk to her she'd punched him, and then kissed him with no explanation. One of the things Ash hated the most was talking. When her mother had left freshmen year he'd tried to get her to talk about it, when his dad had moved to New York after the divorce he'd needed someone to talk to, but Ash had bottled it all up and to this day he knew she was still holding it all inside. Maybe that was why she'd run away a few weeks ago.

Knowing that even agreeing to talk to him was a step in the right direction, Ryder wasn't going to waste his chance. He'd had a lot of time to think and he was more sure of his feelings now than ever. Silently, he followed after her out into the hallway, rehearsing what he would say in his head as they walked. He wasn't going to fuck up this time. Even if Ash still hated his guts after he wanted to know he'd tried his best.

Suddenly, she was whirling around to face him and Ryder froze as she surprised him by talking first. He could see how anxious she was and it hurt him to think about how much he'd hurt her when all he wanted to do was protect her.

"I deserved it. All of it, honestly I wouldn't blame you for hating me forever. What I did was incredibly stupid, and I regret it every day." Ryder started, nervously rubbing the back of his neck as he tried to keep himself from pacing, it would only make Ash more nervous. He was so bad with his words, he wished here was some way he could just show her how he felt, but he knew he needed to man up and finally give Ash the apology she deserved.

"I know I don't deserve it but I just want you to know I'm sorry. I think about you every day, especially lately. I know I have no right to worry about you anymore, but I do."

Winona


Chase

Chase momentarily felt bad for accidentally scaring Noah, but then he made a joke and the older boy was laughing shaking his head. Perhaps it was strange to anyone else looking at them to see two boys holding hands in the school parking lot, but he was just helping a friend out. Right? Maybe it was because Noah wasn't a show-off jock constantly trying to impress girls that something felt different about his friendship with the younger boy. It wasn't that his former high school teammates and new college friends weren't nice, it was just that Chase felt like he could really be himself with Noah and that Noah was really being genuine with him.

There was something about Noah that made Chase want to be around him. The dark-haired boy was about the only person in Westbrook that he really liked, not that he hated everyone else, they were just all too much. Noah was interesting without being obnoxious or trying too hard, he was fun and comfortable to be around.

"She left you to fend for yourself? It's a miracle you've survived this long without me rescuing you again." Chase joked, though technically Noah hadn't needed rescuing at JJ's party, the older boy had still driven him home and honestly, he didn't mind coming to his rescue. Helping Noah out was much different than trying to corral his younger siblings and keep them alive.

"I'm surprised you're here, doesn't really seem like your kind of thing. Seeing as you'll be trapped inside the worst place on Earth with the most dramatic people all night." The college freshmen joked, though honestly it did kind of sound like a nightmare to the introvert.

mogy​

 

[KingofAesir]

Layne
​

Layne chuckled softly as the curly-headed boy started at the sound of her voice. She hadn't really meant to scare him but it was entertaining none-the-less. He looked young, younger than her at least, and by his seclusion in the library he had probably thought along the same lines as her. Somewhere to be by himself. She had to admit, books were a good choice. Back home, they hadn't really had access to much TV and a phone was unheard of so Layne had become quite fond of books in those times. They were the only things she could manage to get her hands on. The local librarian always somehow snuck a book or two to her while they were in town. Layne's tastes were more geared toward convoluted tales of adventure that could offer her a bit of escapism, but this boy seemed to have a penchant for more factual stuff.

Layne raised herself up to sit on the table as the boy fumbled around to return his book the to shelves. She grinned lazily and plucked up another book off his stack. Humming quietly she thumbed through the pages. It was obviously a comic book, but the page she stopped on was a particularly dramatic rendition of Hamlet. Layne raised an eyebrow at the rather gory depiction of the kings death. Huh. What a book to have in the school library. She wondered briefly what other kinds of books she might find here. The library back home wasn't particularly inclusive so she could only imagine. It hardly matters though, she was more interested in the boy than books at the moment.

"Quite a few actually." She spoke lightly, her voice airy, almost too soft. She sat down the comic book and picked up a space book instead. A space guy, huh? Funny. "That's actually why I came in here. Needed some space." She indicated the book in her hands and chuckled at her own pun. Again, with a chuckle that seemed a little off. A little too open.

"Anyway, I didn't mean to startle you." She apologized quickly, "I'm Layne, by the way. Layne Elliot."

Twin Fantasy