[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/QIUSezo.png[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/ycOCuCr.png[/img] [img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjEwNi41MWNlMGUuU21GemNHVnlJRmRwYkdSbC4w/millaysia.reg.webp[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/Oraz6ho.png[/img][/center] [right][code]Luca’s Place [/code][/right] [hr][hr] Jasper wished them a good night before he and Luca drove back to Jasper’s place. He spent a total of fifteen minutes inside, emerging with various painting supplies, canvas, fresh herbs and other food items, and a backpack filled with his clothes and other hygiene supplies. After another drive, and three trips through the elevator, Jasper finally fell down onto a chair and exhaled. [color=98FB98]”Bro,”[/color] he paused as he slicked back his hair with the sweat that covered his forehead, [color=98FB98]”I need to pack lighter for the boys slumber party.,”[/color]. Jasper looked over to Luca and smiled. [color=98FB98]”So, I brought stuff to make us something for food, what’s your protein of choice? I got beef and chicken,”[/color] [color=6B8E23]”It’s all the art supplies, you gotta be less creative,”[/color] Luca laughed. Thankfully the livingroom was large enough that Jasper would be able to set up in there, while Luca would still have his little corner to work in while avoiding damaging anything. [color=6B8E23]”Hmm… Beef! Olivia once made this chicken thing thay [i]looked[/i] amazing but gave us both food poisoning. I’ve never been able to look at chicken the same way since.”[/color] [color=98FB98]”Beef it is,”[/color] Jasper paused as he grabbed the raw meat placed it on the counter. He went over to the sink, rolled up his sleeve, and washed his hands. [color=98FB98] “We’re going to work with what I had, and you have, and from what I’m seeing I can whip up some mean enchiladas. Not spicy, but tasty,”[/color] he paused as he looked back over towards Luca. He flashed him a quick smile. Jasper wanted to avoid anything that could be too rough on the stomach, and he did not know if excess spice would hurt him. [color=98FB98] “Unless spicy is okay, and I can up the heat [/color] [color=6B8E23]”No spice is better,”[/color] Luca nodded. As much as he loved spicy food… His stomach couldn’t handle it anymore. He had to be careful with it, otherwise he’d spend the whole night throwing up or in intense pain. It sucked a lot, but at least he could still eat. [color=6B8E23]”I can’t wait! I haven’t had enchiladas in a long time. Uh, if there’s anything you need help with, just let me know?”[/color] [color=98FB98]”Oh of course,”[/color] Jasper started as the memory of the day rentered his mind. [color=98FB98]”I’ll tell you what, we both need showers after all that tear gas. You want to catch the first, I’ll prepare the food and get it in the oven and then we’ll switch, you’ll watch over the food in the oven and I’ll get clean? You’ll just need to take it out when it’s ready.”[/color] [color=6B8E23]”Oh yeah…”[/color] Luca had honestly forgotten he was still coated in tear gas, because the light burning sensation wasn’t much different from normal. But it’d be good to get it off. [color=6B8E23]”Sounds like a plan, I’ll jump in then!”[/color] With a grin, Luca went into his room. He came back out with a plastic bag, which he’d stuffed his towel and change of clothes in. With a, [color=6B8E23]”I won’t be long,”[/color] he went into the bathroom - situated between his bedroom and Olivia’s. The sound of the shower turning on spilled through the door, followed by some very off pitch singing. Luca took a bit longer than he’d expected, having to carefully scrub the tear gas off his skin without tearing it along with washing it all out of his hair. He’d taken almost half an hour by the time he came out, changed into a baggy t-shirt and sweatpants riddled with holes. [color=6B8E23]”Shower’s all yours! Just be careful, there’s a few loose tiles in the wall. Wouldn’t want them falling on you or anything.”[/color] [color=98FB98]“Perfect,”[/color] Jasper said as he closed the door to the oven, [color=98FB98]“I have the timer on there microwave set for thirty minutes, and that clock starts ticking now.”[/color] he paused as he returned to the sink to wash his hands. [color=98FB98] “I’ll be out in a second,”[/color] Jasper finished as he grabbed his backpack and headed for the shower. The shower was already hot and he could have stayed under the torrent of warmth forever, but the sound of the timer going off back in the kitchen drew him back to the time constraints. He finished his shower, dressed himself in a baggy Nike sweatpants and a v-neck t-shirt before he exited the room and rejoined Luca. [color=98FB98]“How’s are we looking?”[/color] [color=6B8E23]”Good!”[/color] Luca was crouching a little bit away from the oven, squinting to look through the glass on the door. He very carefully opened the door, immediately bombarded by the hot steam. He grabbed a nearby kitchen towel and, concentrating hard on keeping as much of his decaying under control as he could, he pulled the dish out. He very quickly put it up on the counter and backed away, before he started decaying any vegetables in it. [color=6B8E23]”It smells amazing, wow, I should’ve invited you to stay over way earlier.”[/color] Jasper laughed as he sat down on a stool and spun himself the rest of the way to face Luca. [color=98FB98]“You’re too kind. So! While that settles, what should the itinerary for the boys slumber party be? I know! After we eat I’ll paint your portrait. Nothing too fancy but I noticed you don’t have a lot of photos around. A nice painting or two would liven this place up. Then, we can just see where the vibes take us.“[/color] Jasper paused as he smelled the aroma coming off the food. It did turn out well from what he could tell by the smell alone. He wasn’t the best cook in the world but he’s learned to be at least a decent one, and he knew that fresh ingredients made the difference. [color=6B8E23]”If I'd known you were gonna paint me I would've worn my Sunday best,”[/color] Luca laughed. He got out a couple of plates, a spoon for server and cutlery - normal metal stuff (kept in a plastic bag) for Jasper, and plastic for himself. The good smelled amazing, and he couldn't wait to dig in to a proper meal. [color=6B8E23]”I never bothered to decorate the place because paper doesnt tend to last long around me… but if you put the painting up high enough I probably wont affect it!”[/color] [color=98FB98]“No this is perfect, it’s a character study into the man that they called..”[/color] Jasper paused as the evilest grin he could summon spread across his face, the moment finally arrived where he could use the best thing he had ever heard, [color=98FB98]“baby.”[/color] Luca froze, forkful of enchilada near his mouth. Thank god he hadn’t started eating, because he would have choked. His cheeks turned red and he dropped his fork, a little bit of him dying inside. Since nobody had commented about it before he’d hoped they hadn’t seen, or had somehow forgotten it! [color=6B8E23]”Pleassseee, no, that was so embarrassing! I have never, in my life, been called baby until today and… ewgh… it was so fucking weird! What kind government agents are they hiring nowadays?”[/color] [color=98FB98]“I don’t know, I don’t know, but all that I know [i]baby[/i] is that it made the situation feel so weird, like she was baby bottle feeding you,”[/color] Jasper paused as he began to eat some of the food, [color=98FB98]“don’t worry [i] baby [/i] I’ll keep my use of that nickname limited.”[/color] [color=6B8E23]”You’ve already called me it twice,”[/color] Luca shook his head, putting on an exaggerated upset expression. He wasn’t actually upset, of course. Embarrassed, sure, but it wasn’t like he’d been the one to initiate the whole thing. He shovelled some food into his mouth… and it was fucking amazing. Freshest thing he’d tasted in months. [color=6B8E23]”It felt like she was bottle feeding me, honestly- but fuck, this is amazing.”[/color] [color=98FB98]“Anything for you, [i]baby[/i], anything for you.[/color] Jasper chuckled as he took another bite and he realized that it truly was amazing. [color=98FB98]“Oh fuck it came out perfect.”[/color] Luca fake gagged at that, before eating like he’d never seen food in his life. He had to eat quickly, before the food started getting affected by his aura - though what happened to it inside of him he didn’t want to know. [color=6B8E23]”Mm’sho good…”[/color] He stuffed another piece in his mouth. [color=6B8E23]”You willing to cook dinner every night?”[/color] [color=98FB98]“Always willing to, I’m not the best but there’s only one way to get better,”[/color] he joked as he scarfed down the last of his food. Each bite appeared better than the next. [color=98FB98]“Maybe the secret ingredient is tear gas…[/color] [color=6B8E23]”Better than anything I can make,”[/color] Luca sighed contentedly, leaning back and holding his stomach. He’d eaten a shit ton - way more than someone his size normally could, but he needed to eat double just to process the normal amount. [color=6B8E23]”Shit, maybe we should get tear gassed more often if it makes stuff taste this good. How do I call in a tear gas raid on my house?”[/color] [color=98FB98]“That’s easy,”[/color] Jasper chuckled as stood up, walked over to food, before he grabbed seconds. The first round of food was barely enough to calm his hunger. [color=98FB98]“the PRA is in our phones, yeah? Anytime we want to get gassed again you can simply send me a text that says something about Father Wolf. They’ll come and tear gas us for free,”[/color] he paused as he frowned, [color=98FB98]“This is America, it can’t be that hard for us to find either.[/color]. Jasper turned his focus down on the food and devoured it faster than he should have. As he finished his last bite, he realized that he too was full. And he still had to do all the dishes, put away leftovers, and clean the cooking areas. He wasn’t a quitter, though, but first he had to ask a question. [color=98FB98]“You want any more food? I can grab it for you!”[/color] [color=6B8E23]”Oh yeahhh, I bet they’ll be knocking on my door if I use the wrong buzzword in a text now. Like this shit was the bomb or something,”[/color] Luca laughed. [color=6B8E23]”Hey I’ve never tried buying teargas… You really think it’d be that easy?”[/color] He shook his head with another laugh. [color=6B8E23]”I’m good for now! Will probably need to eat again with some medication later, but that filled me up. Think I’m going to need a moment before I can move!”[/color] Jasper stood up and grabbed all the dirty dishes that needed washed. He first washed the dishes, then he put the leftover food and their container in the fridge after wrapping it closed. The, he washed all the utensils, and ensured there was nothing that was dirty left in the kitchen. As he finished, a slight groan escaped his lips. He was full. There would come a time he would need to sit down and take a rest. That time would come. Instead, right now, he knew he had an important goal. [color=98FB98]“Alright,”[/color] Jasper spoke as he moved back over to his stuff and grabbed a blank canvas square and his trusty paintbrush. He got his oils ready. He quickly painted the canvas black, and used his power to dry it instantly. Once it was finished, he looked back to to Luca and smiled[color=98FB98]“Pose,”[/color] he whispered as he readied himself. [color=98FB98]“do note you’ll have to hold it for like ten minutes…”[/color] [color=6B8E23]”Alright,”[/color] Luca nodded, taking a moment to think of a pose. What could he hold for ten minutes? That took out anything holding his arms up, because he’d end up in pain after five. So he just turned around to face Jasper and leaned against the breakfast bar with a wide smile. [color=6B8E23]”Alright, I’m ready!”[/color] Jasper went to work. As soon as a layer was done he flipped his paintbrush to use his abstraction to dry it completely. He did not channel any intent into the magic, but it did allow him to advance at a raid pace. Several minutes would go by very Jasper smiled and used his spell one final time, before he put the paintbrush down completely. [color=98FB98]“That should be enough for now, I got enough of it down and now I can add some more detail as the night goes on!”[/color]. Jasper flipped the canvas and it looked a lot like Luca. In fact, it appears that it was the second time tonight that he was able to make a miracle happen in thirty minutes or less. [color=6B8E23]”No way,”[/color] Luca's eyes widened as he looked over the painting. It really looked like him. He'd never been painted before, and rarely took photos now that Olivia was gone but… it looked nice. Wow. [color=6B8E23]”Its amazing… thank you, Jasper. I don't know what to say! I mean whoa, it really looks like me.”[/color] He laughed, still looking at it in disbelief. He knew Jasper was a talented artist, he had been ten years ago but wow… [color=6B8E23]”Uh, since the art's done for now, what should we do? Oh, why don't we watch a movie? I have a ton on my computer we could watch!”[/color] [color=98FB98]“Yes, yes a movie! Tis the season for something horror themed, what do you have?[/color] Jasper finished with a smile. [color=6B8E23]”Heh, I have a whole selection,”[/color] Luca grinned. He got off the stool he'd been sitting on and stretched out, before going over to the far side of the room. He pulled a wooden stick out from beside the work couch, with one end visibly rotting, and used it to hit the power button on his desktop computer. It flickered to life, large screen booting up. He plopped down on the couch itself and pulled a small coffee table towards him. On it was a keyboard and mouse with a very long cable, plugged into the computer. It was the way he worked around the problem of a constantly decaying aura - keeping the more difficult to replace things far enough away from him. Once his computer turned on he clicked through some folders, before finding his movie collection. [color=6B8E23]”Hmm, let's see… I've got the Blair Witch Project, Hereditary, the Exorcist, the Conjuring… I can easily download another too if you have suggestions!”[/color] [color=98FB98]“What about Talk To Me? I heard that one is pretty spooky, and my friends were telling me about another one called The Ritual,”[/color] he paused as he thought, [color=98FB98]“let’s do Hereditary first and we can see where the vibes take us,”[/color] he paused as he sat down, [color=98FB98]“baby.”[/color] Luca shot Jasper a mock glare, quickly setting it up to download the other two before opening up Hereditary. [color=6B8E23]”Should we grab some snacks before we start? Dunno if we'll be able to get out of our seats during it…”[/color] [color=98FB98]“What’s a movie without movie snacks,”[/color] Jasper got up and grabbed the snacks he got for himself, and the ones he got for Luca. He brought them over, sat down nearby, and braced himself for the night to come. [hr] About half way into the movie and Luca was at the edge of his seat, mouth ajar and fingers digging into the couch beside him. It rotted away underneath his hand and he jumped when objects began to fly around the screen. [color=6B8E23]”Shit this is scarier than I thought it would be,”[/color] Luca whispered, glancing over at Jasper, and then back to the screen. Light tapping echoed through the room as the mother got possessed on screen. It grew louder, followed by sharp nails scratching against wood. [color=6B8E23]”The sound effects are really good too,”[/color] Luca said, shivering. It really sounded like something was trying to get into the house to possess them. [color=98FB98]“Really, really good,”[/color] Jasper said as he shoveled another round of popcorn into his mouth. He listened for a second and the hairs rose on the back of his neck. He figured the movie would be scary, but not this immersing. He looked over to Luca and back to the screen. [color=98FB98]“I feel like it’s in the room with us right now.[/color] [color=6B8E23]”Yeah, like we could be possessed too,”[/color] Luca shuddered. A door creaked open, syncing up with a door opening in the movie, and the sounds of scratching against the walls grew louder. At the same time the temperature began to gradually drop… Fuck, the heating must have turned off. He grabbed some chocolate and shoved it in his mouth. A low, echoing snarl rang around the room and set his heart racing. An acrid odour filled the air… Shit was there something nasty rotting that he hadn’t noticed? [color=6B8E23]”This is the most realistic horror movie I’ve ever seen,”[/color] Luca pulled his legs up to his chest, trying to calm his ragged breathing. It was just a movie. [color=6B8E23]”Heh, you don’t think there’s actually an apparition in here with us… Just kidding.”[/color] He laughed. Jasper tilted his head as he side eyed Luca. The movie was scary but Jasper didn’t realise that it affected him this much. Jasper made a mental note to check in on him after the movie and see if more horror movies were okay or if they would need to switch to something else. [color=98FB98]“I bet you there is an apparition in the room with us right now,”[/color] Jasper let out a laugh, joining Luca. And then something behind them joined the laughter. Luca froze, laughter dying on his lips. The creepy, not quite human laughter from behind them continued. That wasn’t coming from the movie. He could hear more laughter echoing in his mind as the Rot joined in taunting him, his whole body tensing. Slowly, surely, Luca twisted his head to look behind them. His stomach dropped and he nearly stopped breathing. [url=https://i.imgur.com/VS8TMhN.jpeg]A towering, skeletal creature stood behind the couch, its glowing eyes focused on Luca and Jasper and its barely existent mouth open in laughter.[/url] A disembodied arm reached towards them, sharp claws bared. [color=6B8E23]“HOLY SHIT!”[/color] Luca screamed, automatically jumping towards Jasper and wrapping his arms and legs around him. Jasper caught Luca instinctively, and the sheer shock of what was coming towards him was almost enough to completely mask the sense of rot, he wrapped his arms around Luca and joined in the screaming, his shirt and exposed skin rotting away as he did. [color=98FB98]“FUUUCK”[/color] Luca continued screaming, tears spilling from his eyes out of fear. He realised he still had the chocolate in his hand and lobbed it at the creature. It smacked it right in the face and fell to the floor with a thud. It stopped laughing, eyes somehow seeming even more terrifying. Luca hugged Jasper even harder, yelling, [color=6B8E23]”I DON'T WANT TO DIE LIKE THIS!”[/color] [color=98FB98]“SAME,”[/color] Jasper shouted back as he put Luca down on the couch and grabbed the small coffee table and swung it at the apparition.