[IC] Edenridge

[Venus]

December 4, 2016, The Sinclair House
_{A @Venus & @LovelyComplex Collaboration
Featuring: Natalia Belmonte & Niles Sinclair}
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Gingerly, Niles cracked open his sisters’ bedroom door to peek and see if they were up. Carrie was out like a light so that was good. Autumn, however, had her headphones in and was deeply staring at her phone, which lit her face. Since she was laying on her stomach, she didn’t notice her brother being a creep, making sure the coast was clear.

After steadily closing the door, Niles pulled out his phone to glance at the time before shuffling to his bedroom. Once he was in his room, he placed his backpack by his desk and went to the bathroom to freshen up. Deodorant. Mouthwash. A splash of water to his face. Bending over the sink, he stared at his face, giving himself an internal pep talk to throw all the negativity out for one night.

He was tired, tired of it all. He struggled with this bullshit everyday and he felt like he was lying to himself by staying alive. If he could just say out loud he didn’t see a future for himself and that he was a rat trapped in a maze, if he could just say he wasn’t okay and that he didn’t know how to be okay, maybe, things would start feeling better.

His dad told him that he needed to make more friends and surround himself with positive energy, but where could he find that other than through Natalia? That didn’t seem good for anyone and wouldn’t that mean he was bringing down anyone he brought close? Especially her. He was a heavy weight that no one deserved to carry.

Why did he keep stressing? Why was it so easy to waste time and make excuses? He didn’t jump. That was a good sign, right? Even if it wasn’t right to put all this pressure on her, Natalia was his reason. His reason for still being here. That was something to be proud about, right? She wouldn’t forgive him if he died. Even if he didn’t see the good in his actions right now, he hoped this only meant good things for him and his best friend.

Niles knew he may never escape himself, his own monster, but he could pretend that he wasn’t falling apart, only if it meant that she was happy. If that was his only saving grace, he would cling to it, cling to her. Selfish, yes, but that’s all he had and at least it was better than pushing the one good thing he had in his life.

Taking a moment to stretch his body and crack his joints, Niles loosened himself in preparation. When he was done, he dried his face with his hand towel and went back to his room. Pulling his socks and shoes off, he tossed his socks in his laundry basket and placed his shoes in the closet. By then, his phone went off with a text message.

Instead of going to it to check, he left his room and went downstairs to the back door, attached to the sunroom that was connected to the kitchen. It was quicker to get upstairs through the backdoor. And, if Natalia actually wanted the snack he promised, they would conveniently walk through the kitchen, where there were homemade double chocolate chip cookies resting on a decorative snowflake plate, on top of the island. He and Carrie made a bunch as emotional therapy for her.

Barefoot, he made his way to the back and tacitly opened the door. When he saw his best friend, he gave her a half smile, which was the best anyone was going to get from Niles. “Hey.” He whispered, not wanting to make a sudden loud noise to alert the sister with an attitude. In his head, he did continue talking, by saying sorry for asking you to come so late, but nothing actually came out of his mouth. What he did do instead was hold the door open and gesture for her to come in.

Natalia had been in the middle of celebrating her and Mika’s third beer pong win in a row when her phone vibrated in her pocket a few times. Normally, she would've ignored the device, dismissing the whole thing as text messages from the family group chat. But a nagging feeling in her chest prompted Tal to verify who was reaching out to her instead. Frowning, she pulled out the device, and grew nervous when she saw that the notifications were from Niles.

After excusing herself for a moment, Natalia ran outside to listen to his voice-mail. Ever since his mother's death, her best friend hadn't been himself. His grief had driven him to unhealthy coping mechanisms to survive, which Nat had been unable to help with no matter how hard she tried. She worried this was one of those times.

After listening to his voice-mail, Nat was partly relieved he was safe, but was also worried sick considering how vague he had been and how the last time Niles had asked her to come by this late was when he'd gotten into that fight some weeks before. With no question that she would go assist her best friend, Tal quickly ran back to her partner in crime for the night, apologized profusely and explained to him that she needed to take care of a sudden personal issue. Fortunately, Mika didn't seem bothered by this (though maybe a little disappointed their fun had come to an end), and after exchanging numbers, the Belmonte girl caught a ride to Niles' place with one of her volleyball teammates.

When she had carefully snuck around to the back of the Sinclair home, the green-eyed girl texted Niles to announce her arrival. She didn't have to wait long for her friend to open the door and give her a greeting and a half-smile.

"Hi," Natalia replied with a smile of her own. She took a second to study Niles’ face, looking for any signs of distress and finding nothing. Mentally letting out a sigh of relief, the dark-haired girl quietly walked into the still house and stepped aside, waiting for further instructions from her best friend. "Kitchen or bedroom?" she asked him, knowing that those were the two options of places they would usually be going to whenever she snuck into his house this late.

“First,” Niles backpedaled to the kitchen with Natalia following him and grabbed the plate of sugary goodness, “Cookie?” The lights in the kitchen were dimmed and since Niles wasn’t making his way to the switch that meant he wasn’t planning on staying in this room for too long. His green eyes were soft and inviting, not necessarily unblinking but slowed. Flirtatious even.

He wasn’t the same Niles that had given Natalia an attitude hours ago when she tried one last time to drag him to the party. As he waited for her to grab a treat or not (the cookies weren’t going anywhere) he casually and curiously inquired (or perhaps it was more like probing), “So! The party. How was it? Meet any cool —” Boys “— people?”

"Oh yeah, I did!" Natalia replied brightly as she grabbed a mug from the countertop, opened the fridge and poured herself some milk. "Did you know that Big Rey’s got a white son?" she asked Niles, grabbing a cookie from the plate he was offering and taking a bite, choosing to stand beside her best friend. "I know I personally had no idea. His name's Mika, and he's a pretty fucking cool dude."

Snorting, Niles dumbfoundedly looked at Natalia, placing the plate back on the island (now that she’s taken an offering), before realizing she looked convinced, “You believe that shit? Come on, Tal. Seriously?” Whoever this Mika kid was, was lying to her face, which only showed him that his best friend had poor taste in boys.

Amused (and annoyed), Niles let out a sigh of disappointment. She trusted people too easily and this Mika kid, yeah, he didn’t like him already. Who the hell uses Big Rey as a pick up line? The fuck. Instead of waiting for her to reply, he started strolling to his bedroom upstairs. If there was one thing about Niles, his walk had an understated swagger, in a nonchalant, cool kind of way.

Honestly, if it wasn’t for his damage, he and Natalia, together, would be a really fucking cool combo. Most people didn’t notice because he chose to stay in the sidelines, purposely avoiding the limelight, which in return dragged Natalia in the shadows. When he did get noticed, he was cussin’ a teacher out or playing hooky, his seat being vacant. Yeah, he didn’t want to hear anymore (completely over it) because he knew she was going to gush about Big Rey’s “white” kid.

Nah, man.

To say that Natalia was completely surprised by Niles' reaction would be a lie. He was normally unamused and nonchalant about most things. But she couldn't deny that the upset way her best friend had reacted when she brought up Mika had thrown her for a loop. For as long as they had been friends, Nat had been the one to be jealous and possessive of her friendship with the curly-haired boy, while Niles wasn't normally bothered with her fraternizing with others. What made Mika so different from the rest of them?

Before Tal could finish savoring the last bite of her cookie, Niles had already trudged away, but not before expressing his (unwarranted) displeasure with her. "Why are you being such an asshole about this all of a sudden?" she asked him with her mouth full, abandoning her milk as she rushed down the hall and up the stairs after her friend. "You asked me about the party, so I was telling you about it. What's your deal with anything I said?"

“What? My deal? I ain’t mad, just didn’t take you to be the gullible type.” Entering his room, not looking back to see her expression, he cracked his neck before warning, “Try to keep it down, my sisters are sleeping.”

Before she heard Niles' warning about his sisters, Natalia had been ready to go off as she normally would've. But because the last thing she wanted was to bring attention to her presence in the house this late, she chose to save her reply until she was inside his bedroom with the door safely closed and locked behind her.

"Gullible?!" Natalia repeated loudly as soon as she'd locked the door, turning to Niles with a look of disbelief. "What do you mean, gullible?! You don't know this guy! For all you know, Big Rey fucked a white girl back in the day and he had this kid with her! That doesn't make me gullible!"

Yeah, she was really doing this right now. He didn’t call her over to talk. The whole ‘party’ question was a courtesy thing. In a smooth, swift movement, he covered her mouth and pushed her up against the door, “You really trying to get us in trouble, huh?”

Ever the defiant Belmonte, Natalia merely glared at Niles and shrugged her shoulders. She didn't really care about what trouble they could or could not get into, as long as he heard everything she had to say loud and clear.

“I said what I said,” Niles muttered, still not freeing her. He wasn’t one to express himself well in words. He looked at her, visibly conflicted, and knew the moment he pulled away, she would give him shit, and Autumn was likely going to pry. Whatever. If his dad found out, he’d deal with that later.

Freeing her, he backed away and rolled his eyes, “Whatever. Do what you want.” It didn’t help that he smelt the cologne right off her body, already assuming exactly what she did.

Being friends with Niles for as long as she had meant that Natalia could tell when something deeper than what he was expressing was bothering him. He had plenty of tells if you knew where to look-- like right now, when he abruptly ended conversations for seemingly no reason. Tonight seemed to be one of these occasions that he was troubled by something, and Tal mentally kicked herself for not asking about it sooner and jumping in to gush about other things instead. How stupid and selfish could she be?

With this now in mind, Natalia's demeanor softened significantly with concern. "Niles? Are you okay?" she asked him gently as she closed the distance between them but making sure to still give him his space.

“No.” He honestly admitted, but was quick to add, “But, that’s on me. Shitty night, it’s fine.”

"No, it's not fine." she quickly interjected, taking his hand and guiding the both of them to sit on his bed, still keeping her hand locked with his. "What's wrong, Skittles? What's going on? What can I do to make your night any less shitty than it already has been? You know you're my best friend in the whole entire world, right? I can't have my best friend ever be sad or upset on my watch."

As always, Niles diverted from answering. It would take him at least a night or two to tell her any of the facts of his night. She knew him long enough to at least have an idea of what might’ve happened. This wouldn’t be the first time he hit an all time low and displayed it through short tempered responses. Though, the last time he had a bloody face to show for his grief and eventually, she did find out he got in a fight where he was outnumbered, that almost got him killed. “This.”

Grasping her head, holding onto her hair with his free hand, he roughly pulled her into his lips. Unlike any other kiss he’s ever given her, this one was more out of desperation, steeped in heat and passion. He was tired of dancing around this game with her. He needed a distraction and he needed to feel something that wasn’t just pain.

Sure, tonight of all nights he felt extremely vulnerable, but that only brought out the animalistic side in him. His primal senses were going off, which only made him want her more. No longer playing it coy, he forced his tongue into her mouth, releasing her hand and laying her on her back, with his body hovering over hers. It didn’t take long until they both fell into a nice rhythm with one another, with Natalia locking the fingers of both hands into his curly hair and matching his level of passion and intensity.

Obviously, this wasn’t their first make out session. It was just the first rough, intimate, and extremely lustful one. Well, his kisses were all filled with lust. He was a horny teen after all, however, he was good at holding himself back. Not tonight! Tonight, he went out of his way to make his intentions glaringly obvious, making sure to watch her body language and feel her body in all the places that made her shiver... When he was ready, he released her to breathe and asked, “Can we?”

Even under the circumstances of being dizzy and drunk with lust and desire, Natalia knew that there was no coming back from the path they were about to embark on if she consented for them to move forward. Since the summertime, a mutual curiosity had led her and Niles to start exploring each other's bodies and pushing the boundaries of physical affection with one another. It had started off with a few shy kisses here and there that had increased with intensity, their actions growing bolder with each week that passed until they had reached third base. Mentions of the homerun had been made here and there, with both of them agreeing that it wouldn't happen until they were both ready.

It seemed tonight was the moment they had been waiting for. All the signs were pointing out that Niles was ready: the way he kissed her, touched her, in all of his verbal and non-verbal queues.

But what about Natalia?

Niles wouldn't have to wait long to hear her answer.

"Yes," the girl replied breathlessly, locking her determined green eyes with his as she sealed the future of their fates together.

“Good.” was all he whispered back before the two got lost in the moment as one.

[BrutalBx]

December 4, 2016, The James House
_{A @LovelyComplex & @BrutalBx Collaboration
Featuring: Penelope James & Charlie Decker}
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Conflicted, Penelope James looked at herself in the mirror as she slowly wiped the lipstick off with a cotton pad and water. She couldn’t decide if she was sad, angry, or a bit of both. When she saw herself, she saw someone who was weak, pathetic, and undeserving of love. When she saw herself, she saw someone stupid, insignificant, and full of wordless spite. Spite at the world, spite at herself. Spite. She was a fool to believe today would be any different. All she wanted was for him to notice her and that never happened. It never would happen.

It was stupid... these feelings.

From her lips to her eyes, Poppy grabbed her sister’s makeup wipes and gingerly started removing her eyeliner and eyeshadow. If she was disappointed in anyone it would be herself and not Charlie. She was too scared to share with him how she felt, she was too scared to take the first step, because she was too scared to be rejected by him.

The idea of losing Charlie completely terrified her. She knew him all her life, they grew up together, and having him at her side was something that came second nature to her. She couldn’t imagine a future without him because all she wanted to do was be there for him. All she wanted to do was love him.

At this point, the tears started sliding down her cheeks.

No, don’t. Don’t cry. Don’t do it.

With no control of the ache in her heart, and her teardrops turning into a waterfall, Poppy could barely see her reflection. Her deep breaths began to rapidly pick up. She felt like a shallow shell and she was having a hard time making it stop. Dropping the wipes in the sink, she covered her face and wailed.

All this she kept locked up because she wanted to be strong. The reality was simple, she was a hot mess, who would never be anyone’s rock. She didn’t know how her father could do it so well. She didn’t know how he could support the town, especially the southside that was tethered to a harsh reputation, and still make time to check up on her friends, like Decky and Jade, and his family.

All her friends, they were incredibly lost and constantly falling into the repetitive patterns of Southside history. They each walked to their own sad song and had no means of changing the rhythm to something more uplifting. Her friends had their own ships in a storm, but no one had a sail. As she watched them struggle, safe on land, she wished she could be their sail… but no one wants a torn sail. No one wanted her.

Penelope knew she should be grateful that her father worked his ass off to be where he is today. That her cards for a Southie was better than mostly everyone else’s and her family were breaching the line that would finally get them recognition with the northside. She should be grateful that her parents drowned themselves in work in order to make a difference. She should be grateful that her only issue was…

Loving Charlie.

But how could she? She was selfish, incredibly selfish. All she did was think of herself. She didn’t even visit Decky today because she was too busy thinking about Charlie asking her to be his girlfriend. She was stupid and probably would’ve been more happy if she visited Mordecai instead. Yet, all she wanted was Charlie. She just wanted Charlie. She just wanted Charlie. She just… no, she needed Charlie. She loved him so fucking much, it hurt.

Realizing her crying turned into hyperventilation, Poppy tried to steady her breathing. She needed to stop. What if Charlie visited? She didn’t want him to see her crying. Rushing to the bathtub, Poppy turned the shower on, still fully clothed in her red dress. Hopping in the shower, she sat under the falling water to let it blend with her tears. Closing her eyes, leaning against the wall, she let the water take over, absolutely soaking her. Calming herself, she breathed in and out. Breathed in and breathed out. Breathed in and out. In her meditative state, she lost track of time and felt her body finally relaxing…

Everything hurt.

From his head down to his toes, every fibre of his being was either stinging, burning or aching. Charlie’s face was a crimson mass of dried blood from his nose and mouth and a nasty split on his forehead. ReyRey had really given him a beating and if he was honest, he was surprised that he escaped with his life. Other people weren’t so lucky. A girl was dead and it was his fault. Charlie Decker was a murderer now just like his old man. He may not have tainted the drugs himself but he dealt them and that was enough. He killed Allison Davies.

He looked up at his house, decrepit as it was, his home. The lights were off of course, his mother would be well asleep by now and lucky for him she slept like the dead so he wouldn’t wake her. She had already been through too much and her seeing him in this state, considering it may be one of the last things she ever did see, that was just a notion that Charlie didn’t want to face. He had spent the evening telling himself it was all for her. The money was so that she could medicate and hopefully sometime soon be able to afford proper treatment. Charlie did make bank tonight but Rey made sure to take every penny away as he hit him with that crowbar.

Dark eyes wandered across the driveway to the house next door, the James house. He was supposed to be with Poppy now. Tonight was supposed to be the night he finally told her how he truly felt, how he had felt from the moment they met. Yet that didn’t come to pass and now there they were. After pulling his aching body down the small divide between his and Penelope’s homes and bedrooms, Charlie began to climb the trellis outside her window. It was a climb he had made a thousand times before but this time it felt more difficult and just that little bit longer than normal. Finally he climbed through the open window and into her room. He could hear the shower running and thought better than to disturb her, so Charlie simply sat himself in a chair and hung his head back.

What a night.

What broke her out of her daze wasn’t anything from outside but her own sneezing. She didn’t know how long she had been there in the tub but now she was cold. Penelope did feel a little better, after giving herself a good, long cry. Sometimes, a release like that really was all you could do to stop the painful thoughts. With a fuzzy head, she turned off the shower, stood up, and reached for her towel.

A couple minutes passed where she was drying her body and her hair, her dress touching her petite frame ever so tightly. After drying herself to the best of her capabilities, shivering while doing so, she made her way to the bathroom door. She needed to warm herself up before she caught a fever. Or maybe she already had one. She didn’t know. A fever would be better than the heartbreak she was filling.

Like the walking dead, she opened her door, with a gorgeous yet incredibly damp tiny red dress on, and went to her dresser to get a tank and pajama pants. Barely registering how exhausted she was, she did find the boy, beaten and bruised, on her office chair, lit by the moonlight peering from her window. Still, she needed to change, so he could wait.

Rather than address him immediately, she went back to the bathroom, taking note that she needed some lotion on her skin, before it dried out. As she took care of business, behind the closed door, she offered in the highest octave she could muster this night (her voice was barely audible and can only be heard if you were actively listening), “I’ll bring the first aid kit,” before sneezing again.

Charlie flung his head forward, a spec of blood falling onto Poppy’s carpet as he watched her enter the room. She was still clad in that beautiful dress she wore earlier but now it had been drowned in sadness. He didn’t say a word as she moved around the room. This was an all too familiar feeling. Charlie had developed a habit of entering Penelope’s chambers with some sort of wound. Genuinely, if Decker didn’t have bad luck he’d have no luck and by extension, so did Pops.

As the small girl went back into the bathroom, Charlie leaned forward and painfully began to pull off his leather jacket, letting it drop to the floor. He heard her sneeze and managed to smile, even just the sound of it was cute to him. “Bless you.” He glanced out of the window from which he had entered and the sound of sirens had begun to fill the night; they were close by and Charlie had no doubt in his mind where they were headed. When Edenridge woke up tomorrow, things would never be the same again; for anyone.

There was a light “Thank you,” on the other side of the door. It was deprived, lacking energy and emotion. Even in this state, Penelope mustered enough courage and strength to talk to the boy that hurt her. Unintentional or not. His plights caused him to forget about the people that mattered the most to him.

Still, she wouldn’t be the “Street Angel” of the Southside, as Mordechai would call her, if she didn’t push her burdens aside to lift others up. After a couple of minutes, pajama-clothed Poppy came out with a bowl of water, soap, a wash cloth, and a first aid kit with antiseptic lotion and bandages. Not saying another word to her beloved friend and after she placed everything on her desk, she grabbed his chin with her cold hand and examined his wounds.

Sadly, this wouldn’t be the first time she cleaned him up and she was sure this wouldn’t be the last. This, however, was the worst she’s ever seen him beaten and bruised. That cut… it might need stitches. She was no doctor but she could at least prevent his wounds from getting infected. Quietly, Poppy let a sigh slip out of her lips, trying to contain her concern and sadness from the boy that was watching her. First, she would need to clean all this blood. And so, the young girl began the process of…

Biting the bottom of her lip, feeling that growing sensation in her throat, of wanting to cry again, Penelope tried her best to not let it get to her, to not cry in front of Charlie, and instead started washing his face, avoiding the eyes, and applying pressure to his visible wounds. His stare made it hard for her to focus so if she just avoided looking at his eyes completely she could focus on making him feel better.

He didn’t know if it was the lack of sleep or if it was the multiple hits to the head that he had taken that day but Charlie was beginning to feel drowsy. He didn’t allow his increasing in weight eyelids to close or his gaze to leave the soft delicate features of Poppy James. He gently placed his hand atop her free one, as if reaching out for dear life; she was his lifeline, she always had been. “There was once a man who became unstuck in the world – he took the wind for a map, he took the sky for a clock, and he set off with no destination. He was never lost.” Charlie leaned forward and pressed his head against Penelope’s, holding her close in his embrace and stopping her in her tracks from healing him. “I got lost tonight.”

Being pulled in a hug, Penelope didn’t fight it and let him hold her close, their foreheads touching. She listened to him spill his heart out through a quote, as he usually did, and her heart continued to break. She remembered hearing this poem from the documentary, Castles in the Sky. With the hand that wasn’t holding the wash cloth, she grabbed onto his shirt, clutching it. “No. You’re not lost,” she whispered back, trying to remind him that no matter how bad things got they had each other, “You’re home.”

As much as she wanted this moment to last forever, she knew his condition was not good, so she pulled herself away from him and asked, “Are you sure… you should be here? I…” Grabbing onto his hand, kneeling down so she was looking up at him, she frowned, “I don’t know how bad you are… if you sleep, what if you have a concussion?” Oh, there they were. Her watery eyes started to tear up. “I don’t want anything bad to happen to you, Charlie.”

“As long as you’re next to me, nothing bad can ever happen and if it does, it’ll just be our next adventure.” Charlie pulled himself groggily to his feet, climbing out of his boots as he did. As he took several steps forward, every painful step forced his mind to remember the beating he had endured from the vile ReyRey Gonzalez. He could feel the thud of every fist, the sting of every boot and the crack of every belt whip. Falling down onto the bed that he had shared with Poppy so many times, Charlie reached out to a photo of them that sat on her bedside table. Happier times. He was much smaller then, he had less bags under his eyes and he was decked out in stripes rather than flannel. “Till Kingdom Come.”

Against her better judgement, Penelope put the bloody rag in the bowl and made her way to the bed. Going on the side with the least space, she crept on it, laid down, and turned her body to face him. She positioned herself in a way where she was close to him, but not where she was hurting any of his bruises and wounds. As he lay there exhausted and on his stomach, she reached out to him, the back of his head facing her.

The night felt incredibly long and for the first time this whole night, she could feel how heavy her eyes were. Curling up beside him, in her own little area, she grabbed onto his hand and pulled it close. Sluggishly, her eyes closed and she breathlessly muttered, “Always.”

Always, at his side.

Always, together.

Till Kingdom Come.

[NeoAJ]

It felt as if one more ghost had joined the army floating around Edenridge High that night. At least, that's how Jillian felt. Well aware of just how pathetic she looked curled up on a floor that heralded the bloody end of so many dreams lately, floating above a body that for all intents and purposes was already dead to the world. Jillian wanted to scream at herself to stop feeling so god damn sorry. To stop letting the past continue to bury her under everything it put her through, even as it continued to pile on. But it was a futile effort.

Brains are assholes like that after all.

So she sat there, tears in her eyes as more fighting broke out, another remnant of the past as her ride clashed with her nemesis. Again. The bad blood between Kylie Grimm and Natalia Belmonte was very well known, and it didn't take a lot of arm-twisting on Kylie's part to get Jill to side with her in that battle. From when they were kids, Natalia had been nothing but an absolute bitch to her whenever she visited Danny's place. Jill learned how to give people the side-eye because she was on the receiving end of countless glares from the twin. As much as Jillian tried to put olive branches out there, Natalia only wanted to break them and use them as kindling. So it wasn't surprising that the sparks from that fight reignited in this pressure-cooker situation.

Also not surprising that Danny and Lanie went to try and quell that instead of paying any attention to her at all. They had well and truly abandoned her. Jill contemplated for a second asking Decky to just put her out of her misery since he probably had experience...

Then she was reminded of the force that brought her here.

She could almost feel her essence sucked back into her body through the warmth on her forehead. It seemed to have healing properties that would make the Catholic Church call in its panel to determine its status as a miracle. The tears stopped as she looked back up into the eyes of Miss Midnight. How appropriate she led Jill away from that harsh light, if only for a moment.

”Come on, baby. We’re gonna end this.”

The vigor was renewed, stronger than any fortification vodka would provide at this time. As Mei turned to address the assembled masses in the hallway, Jillian shakily pushed herself back up to her feet. Her fellow former cheerleader was marshaling the forces to head back to Carlisle Street. Just one thought was going through her own mind at that moment, overriding everything else.

I would follow this woman to the gates of hell and back...

---

The twenty-minute walk gave some time for the redhead in the group to think. She still held onto the now empty vodka bottle, content to have something to hold onto during the walk while indulging herself in the latest discussion to take up real estate in her brain.

Do I really want to ask her that? I mean, we spent the whole day together with time flying by. So many days. Like they're nothing. She wasn't sick of me, even like this. She pulled me out of this. But she's my best friend... Heh, all those people who thought I would end up sleeping with my best friend but betting on Danny would have been completely wrong. She wouldn't go for that though. I can't imagine. I mean, how would we discuss the headlines from the previous night if we already knew what happened? As the familiar fallen remains of the Sinclair house came into view, she had to come to some conclusion and her conclusion was...? Are you sure this isn't the booze talking, Bean? You know damn well how you get when you're drinking. Think about this tomorrow maybe and see if you still want to go to that spot.

The presence of ReyRey Gonzalez made it a lot easier to table the conversation with herself. Jillian knew that if Hailey was going to get her in at the Edge, she was going to have to go through ReyRey, so she did her best to maintain some level of presence that didn't invoke pity. ReyRey admitted it wasn't him writing the letters but he started to take the ex-students of Edenridge back to the day that Allison Davies breathed her last breath. It wasn't hard for Jillian to join him. The reason she made so many trips to this house was to go back to that night...

---

December 4, 2016, Edenridge, MA, 13 Carlisle Avenue, ReyRey’s Party House

"I'M THE QUEEN OF THE WORLD!!!!!

"You're going to be the queen of the emergency ward if you don't get back in here! C'mon, Red!" the male in the Edenridge letterman jacket beckoned.

Jillian pouted and climbed back in off the roof of the awning that overlooked the house that served as the staging point of the celebration of what would be a long line of Pinehurst defeats. It was proving to be a night of firsts for her. The first victory in cheer competition over those Pineheads. Her first (and second, third, fourth and fifth at that point) alcoholic beverages. And not 10 minutes ago, the first time she got to third base with a boy. "I'm sorry! I'm just... really freaking happy right now, you know?"

"I wish all the other girls were as happy as you are after what you just did. Would make my life easier."

"As fun as that was, it's not just that. It... I don't know. Just feels like things are really falling into place. Like this is who I'm meant to be. Even... doing that. By the way, how was I? I mean, for a rookie and all. I know I've been exceeding expectations tonight, so I'd love to keep that streak going."

The boy ran his hand over his hair to slick back the beads of sweat while coming up with a diplomatic answer. He didn't dare say that Jill wasn't quite up to the levels as her more practiced sister. In fact, mentioning Grace at all seemed to be a bad idea. "You kept it going, all right. If that's your first effort, I'd say you're going to be going places in that regard." Jillian beamed and went to kiss him, but he held up his hand. "Easy there! Go down another couple Breezers, wash the taste out, then you can go ahead and do that."

"Sorry! Still new to this whole process. Duly noted though. And your feedback will help improve this service in the future."

"Any time you need feedback, girl, let me know." He snapped the fly on his jeans and stood up from the meager bed that served as the staging grounds for their endeavor. "C'mon. We should clear out and get back down to the party so someone else can have their fun... Jill, right?" He knew damn well it was Jill, but she didn't need to know he knew that.

Jillian nodded affirmingly. "You got it! I'll probably get back to my friends, so maybe I'll see you around... um... sorry I don't know why I'm blanking right now. I'm usually so good with names! I swear I have a memory like an elephant!"

The boy laughed and dismissively waved his hand. "Don't worry about it. It's Mike. Mike Barrie. I'll see you around, Jill. Don't go practicing too much without me, all right?" Michael turned and left with a more positive wave as he faded out of sight.

A giggle escaped Jill's lips as she gave a quick glance in the dirty mirror, fixing the straps that had come askew during her time in the room. "I don't know what could make this night better," she said softly to herself as she went to rejoin the party.

[Venus]

A @BrutalBx & @Venus Collab
Featuring Roddy Callahan & Lanie Lancaster’s First Ever Meeting
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What was he doing here?

Roddy wasn’t a party guy by any stretch of the imagination. Yet somehow there he was in the midst of it all. Francis had dragged him here in a thinly veiled attempt to get his brother out of his shell and get him some friends. He had tried a few drinks to loosen up but he didn’t finish a single one of them. His heart had been trying to beat out of his chest for the last few hours. Fran had left him and he hadn’t seen him since they got there. On his own with no back up and in enemy territory, Roddy wished that he had just said no, gone home and played Call of Duty or something.

He had found himself a home in the corner of the living room. It was out of the way and nobody seemed to be bothering him there which was nice. Rod had a view of pretty much everyone and everything so he could people watch, it was a shame that his only friend Kylee wasn’t there to help him out. He wasn’t sure where she was in fact, probably up to some mischief knowing her. Glancing into the kitchen, he could see the cheerleaders all pepped and hyped up thanks to their victory at the competition in Pinehurst.

They were the stars of the show.

Winning the Shining Star cheer competition had been the perfect way to close off Elaine Lancaster’s first semester as a student at Edenridge High. When she had first arrived to town, she had worried about not being able to fit in a place where families had known each other for generations. She should have known, though, that when you had a face that beautiful, a smile that bright and the sweetest, friendliest demeanor, everything good would simply follow. Lanie had met her first friend in Marco Brady-Castillo less than five minutes into her first day of school, which had led her to find a new mother figure in his mother Marlena. Her acceptance into the cheerleading team had opened up a world of interactions, and she'd found loyal, trustworthy friends in the likes of fellow teammates Jillian O'Brien and Mei Ramsey (or, as they liked to joke, the Blossom and Buttercup to her Bubbles). And, of course, thanks to the team she had met her favorite big sister: Allison Davies, the one who had brought their champion team down here to celebrate.

Lanie had been at the party for some time now, walking around and making conversations with her teammates while dodging the vast amounts of drunk upperclassmen pathetically trying to make a move. During her rounds around the event, she had come to notice a tall, lanky boy standing in the corner of the living room, consistently alone even with all the people surrounding him. The girl had tried to ignore it at first, dismissing her concerns with the thoughts that maybe he was just taking a break from it all. But when she noticed just how lonely and overwhelmed he looked, Elaine decided to do something about it. She wasn't about to let this person continue to have a shitty night, so she momentarily excused herself with her friends and set out on the task of trying to save the boy's night.

“Hi!” Lanie greeted the lanky boy as she approached him, a timid smile on her lips while she gave him a small wave. “Are you okay? Not much of a party person?” the blonde asked him after arriving at his side, truly concerned about the young man and wanting to make him feel included.

With his skeleton almost jumping out of his skin, Roddy leapt up to his feet as he was greeted by the blonde bombshell in her cheerleading uniform. Why was she talking to him? Was this a bet? Did Francis put her up to this? Either way, the young boy was just surprised that she even knew he existed. ”Not really” Roddy responded as he nervously scratched the back of his head. ”My brother kind of dragged me here. What about you?”

"Oh, I'm sorry about that!" Lanie told him with a small frown, rubbing the young man's shoulder for a brief second in a quick attempt at comfort. "I came here willingly, with the girls," she admitted, pointing back at the group of cheerleaders behind them with a thumb over her shoulder. "I've been to a couple of smaller parties before, but this is my first official big high school party," Lanie declared with her customary bright, inviting smile before extending her hand out to the boy. "I'm Elaine Lancaster, but everyone calls me Lanie. How about you?"

“Roddy. Roddy Callahan” Even just saying his surname out loud almost made Rod cringe. Everyone knew his brother. Everybody knew his father. Hell, his family helped found the damn town. He was a waste of space in the grand scheme of things. He offered his hand in return and shook with the cheerleader. Roddy didn’t know much of Lanie Lancaster. They were most certainly not from the same world, but she was ridiculously gorgeous and made his teenage boy mind think stupid shit. Of course, within nanoseconds he had talked himself down from planning their wedding and remembered that she was likely just being courteous. ”It’s nice to meet you, Lanie.”

Lanie had excitedly half-opened her mouth to pipe up 'you're Francis' brother!' before she noticed the way Roddy's face had slightly contorted after mentioning his last name. While she couldn't possibly relate to anything this boy was feeling, she could understand why admitting a potential biological relation to the most popular guy in school could be a negative for Roddy. Living in the shadow of the town's star athlete was probably something he'd been struggling with all his life, with everyone around them not being able to shut up about Francis Callahan for longer than five minutes (and Lanie not understanding the why behind it, considering she found Fran ordinary in terms of looks). So instead of becoming another one of the older Callahan's groupies, Lanie chose to focus on giving Roddy the singular, individual attention any person deserved.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Roddy," she said brightly, letting go of his hand but making no motions to end the conversation. "If you could be anywhere else in the world right now: where would you go, what would you be doing, and why?"

Wow.

An actual cheerleader was trying to hold an actual conversation with him; this might actually be a miracle. Kylee definitely wouldn’t believe this. Then again, she wasn’t here and Roddy was pretty much fending for himself in the shark filled water tank that was a high school party. It was an interesting question that Lanie had posed; where would he want to be at that moment? The safe option was of course his room but that wasn’t really where he wanted to be after all, it was where his life had pretty much dictated he be. So then where would he go? What would he do? The butcher's boy mulled over a few thoughts in his head before finally answering her.

”Austin. It’s a weird place with great architecture and a great vibe. Plus, nobody knows me there…what about you?”

His answer piqued Lanie's interest. "Ooooh, Austin? I love Austin!" the blonde declared, her demeanor brightening up even more than before. "My cousin Diana, her husband Dusty and their kids live in Gatling, a small town near Austin. I've gone to visit her down there on vacation a couple of times and she's taken me to Austin, and I have to agree with you on that one!" she told Roddy with a smile.

"As for me? Let's see… Hmmmm…" Lanie mulled it over for a few seconds before ultimately coming up with her answer. "Oh my gosh, I would kill to be in Bora Bora right now! My favorite YouTube couple Tatum and Brodie made a vlog about their vacation there last week, and it gave me major FOMO! The crystal-clear waters, the little cabins right in the middle of the water… Ugh, so beautiful!" she trailed off, her mind drifting off to a fantasy land where she was swimming around the waters of French Polynesian island in her new lavender bikini, accompanied by a tall, lanky, shaggy-haired Callahan son…

Stop it right there, Lanie.

This was surprising; he was having an actual conversation of substance with somebody at a party. Maybe this was what his brother had planned for him all along? Either way this brief conversation had been the highlight of his evening and he wanted it to continue. "I have no idea who they are; not exactly going to find them in my YouTube search history.”

Before Roddy could say anything else, the host of the party, one ReyRey Gonzalez, came rampaging down the stairs, calling for the party to be over. There were many things in the Edenridge arcana that were taken as gospel truths. The south side were dangerous; Pinehurst was the enemy and ReyRey was the baddest motherfucker on two feet and pissing him off was a death sentence. It seemed like somebody had done the latter and anyone willing to outstay their welcome at the party would be next. "I guess that’s our cue”

Elanie, who had almost had a heart attack when the bulky Latino came trampling and yelling down the stairs like an angry bull, turned to her new friend with disappointed eyes. She didn't want the conversation to end yet! Roddy appeared to be a really cool guy, and she wanted to spend a little more time with him. She'd been seconds away from asking her new friend if he wanted to walk home with her when a movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. And when she realized it was her teammates beckoning for her to join them, pointing at ReyRey and making frantic gestures that they were leaving, the blonde's heart sank.

"I guess so..." she lamented with a sad shrug, gesturing back to her friends to give her a second before turning back to Roddy. "But at least we got to talk a little, right? I just hope I made the last few minutes of the party enjoyable to you."

Hoping she could finish this interaction on a positive note, the young woman closed the distance that separated her and Roddy and planted a kiss on his cheek. "There. Something for you to remember me by."

Smiling widely, the blonde shot the now blushing Roddy a conspiratorial wink. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Roddy. I'll see you around school, okay? Byeeeeeeee~!" And after one last parting wave to her new friend, Lanie turned on her heel and pranced back to her cheerleader friends.

Neither of them had any idea that, a few years later, they'd become Mom and Dad to a beautiful little cherub with Roddy's smile, Lanie's golden curls and sparkling green eyes.

[Aces Away]

December 11, 2016, South Boston Juvenile Detention Facility
_{A @LovelyComplex & @Aces Away Collaboration
Featuring: Penelope "Poppy" James & Mordechai "Decky" Boaz
Also featuring: Danny Boaz, Sonny, Prof, Creed, & Jokes}
________________________________________________________________________________

“ReyRey just gave me a call about Charlie boy,” Sonny says, nodding at Prof who had cut off his reading of Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse upon the other's entrance into the cell. The third boy makes no move to respond, just grunts a bit and tries not to shift too much. They had let him out of the hospital wing too early- just a day and a half after being stabbed- and everyone knows it. There’s blood in the water and his crew taking shifts to watch him in his cell was the only thing saving him right now. Fuck Hatchet, his shiv, and his weird interest in Decky.

But Charlie hasn't been by since just before it happened, and thoughts of the usually communicative boy had kept him up last night. No one’s heard anything from outside for the past three days. With steady eyes, Sonny walked over and put his forearms across the top bunk, just close enough for Decky to grab if he wanted. "He fucked up, Mob, got some Northie cheerleader dead on a dirty cut."

Decky tensed, one arm still slung over his face to keep the harsh light from piercing his still sensitive eyes. "He what?” He whispered through clenched teeth. “Bullshit, he knew my rule; always confirm your stash. Bullshit!" The words were a sharp hiss of rage and denial, but before he could push himself up, both Prof and Sonny were there keeping him down.

"Relax, twerp, or you'll pull your stitches," the older boy warned, hand tightening on Decky's shoulder for just a second until the other's shoulders relaxed. He kept steady eyes on the injured boy as he ordered, "Sonny, give the man details."

"Right,” Sonny replied warily, intertwining his fingers with Decky’s free hand. “so…"

---

“It’s visitation day, asshole, let me the fuck up,” Decky growled at his other half, white knuckle grip practically creaking the metal of the top bunk. Sonny rolled his eyes and gently shoved Decky’s chest, grimacing at how harshly the usually strong boy fell back. “Bitch.”

“Ya have a fever, asshole, stay the fuck down,” He retorted in kind, stretching up on his tiptoes and giving the other a quick kiss to convey a guiltless apology. “Jesus, Mordechai,” Sonny whispered, knocking his forehead against Decky’s sweaty and feverish one. The use of his full name got the stubborn boy to rest his glazed eyes on his Sunshine. “you’re stab wound’s infected ‘n’ they didn’t give ya any treatment or meds. Fuckin’ rest and heal up the ol’ fashioned way. ‘M not ready ta lose ya.” The last part was said in a broken whisper, his hand gripping Decky’s tight so the other boy could feel his shaking.

Studying Sunshine’s worried but determined face, Decky felt his own tense features relaxing as he ceded to his other half. He was about to reply when a snort broke its way through the silence, causing both boys to crane their necks to get a look at Prof, once again sitting in the corner of their cell with a book in hand.

“You’re real name’s Mordechai?” He asked in a monotone, but the twitching smirk on his face gave him away. Decky’s already feverish face turned even redder as he glared at the older boy, any gratefulness for his constant guard forgotten.

“Shut the fuck up, Xavier!” He snapped. “The fuck’s wrong with my name? Don’t go fuckin’ usin’ it like ya got the right, no one fuckin’ calls me that you here me?” he ranted, getting more riled up as Prof continued to snicker as though he was a lion being yelled at by a mouse. He was going to continue, but suddenly he realized how out of breath he was, and that his vision was swimming. Did it get hotter in here?

“Relax you little punk, I’m just surprised I’ve never heard it in the past four years,” Prof spoke up, hands up in a placating gesture. “fuckin’ hell, are you trying to make yourself worse? Take a breath.” He walked over to the little sink on the cell wall opposite the bunks and grabbed the white t-shirt hanging over its side, turning on the faucet and dunking the cloth under before ringing it out and heading over to Decky and Sonny. He rolled up the shirt and laid it over Decky’s forehead, lifting his head gently to wrap it all the way around while the younger boy grumbled and flexed his hand in Sonny’s grip.

“Seriously, Mob, we all need ya ta relax and get better,” Sonny spoke up again, his voice low as he tried to soothe the raised hackles of the injured boy. “Creed’s gonna be here in a second ta watch ya, and Jokes, Prof an’ me are gonna field your visitors for today, yeah?”

“...Yeah,” He breathlessly replied after another moment of silence. “Just...if Danny’s there... tell ‘im I love ‘im, yeah?”

“Of course, dummy.” Sonny reassured, turning at a knock on the cell bars. Creed and Jokes stood in the open doorway, and after a few quick words Creed took up Prof’s recently vacated seat and the others filtered out towards the visitation area. Decky was asleep before they’d even left.

Danny Boaz was indeed there, alongside Penelope James, his token babysitter, who was dressed by her mother in something cutesy. With a loose braid to her side and her face void of any sadness she felt the week before, Poppy watched the guard check her backpack filled with the classics like Treasure Island, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Of Mice & Men. He glanced up at her, the bag, and back at her, as if he was debating his next move.

“Here, I’ll help you,” Penelope reached for her bag and took out one of the many books she stuffed in it. Opening The Outsiders in front of the guard, she flipped through the pages, “I’m not going to let my friend get bored in there and you should know, reading is fundamental.”

For a moment, her green eyes became sharp like daggers and the guard gulped, thinking of another James who had shown him that same kind of glare. Even if this girl didn’t get involved with those kinds of people, she certainly had it in her blood. She was the child of an infamous legend in the southside. Whether Sly was reformed or not, getting on his bad side was a recipe for disaster, or worse, death. The man in uniform was here trying to make a paycheck, not be a target to snakes.

Turning away from the guard to look at the young boy clinging to her, she grinned, “Isn’t that right, Danny? Wouldn’t you like your big brother to have all the cool books to read?”

Gripping her sleeve tighter and moving to hide half behind her from the large guard, a twelve year old Danny nodded meekly and spoke up in a small voice, eyes glued to the ground. "Decky can read a year above his grade. He reads stuff to me before bed. I don't always understand it though…"

“That’s okay, we’ll keep practicing so you can grow just as smart! You’re already so smart to even understand these books, Danny. Trust me. If it wasn’t for Charlie and Decky, I would’ve stood back a grade.” The guard was quick to zip the girl’s bag, giving her clearance to pass, not even patting her down. “Thanks so much. Come on, little rascal. Don’t want to lose any second of our thirty minutes.”

The younger boy blushed at her praise, fingers still twisting in her sleeve. The fabric was definitely stretched out at this point, and it's also not the first time one of her sleeves fell victim to the boy's nervous habit. Still avoiding looking at the guard, Danny lifted his head and directed a small grin her way. "He's gonna be sad Phil's still sick, but I'm making sure he gets soup." He stated proudly, following just behind Poppy as they passed through the double doors and into the visitation area.

When they entered the cafeteria, her green gaze searched the room for one face and one face only. When she didn’t see him, she made a subtle frown, making sure Danny didn’t notice her disappointment. With no Decky in sight, she surveyed the room for his friends. Sighing, she caught sight of Sonny, Prof, and Jokes. Masking the twisting gut feeling of worry behind a smile, she softly and warmly spoke, “Oh look over there, maybe Decky is using the bathroom or something? Let’s go say hi.” After a deep breath in and out, she led her ‘little brother’ to the junior serpents.

When they got close enough, Danny melted away from Poppy slowly before leaving her side all at once, running the last few feet to the three Serpents and slamming into Jokes' stomach, wrapping his arms around the older boy's waist as he returned the hug with a small smile. Prof pulled Danny into a quick hug before stepping back and ruffling the young child's hair with great affection. Had it been anyone else but the Serpents, he would have been flinching left and right; even with Poppy, Charlie, and Jade he sometimes forgot himself and flinched if he caught something coming at him in his peripherals, but not the Serpents.

"Where's Decky?" Danny asked as he moved in to hug Sonny, a little more life to voice after the positive physical contact. Sonny's arms around him tightened a bit possessively, and Danny leaned into it as he always did. Why was he angry?

The guard on the wall closest to them cleared his throat, glaring at Sonny and tapping his nightstick in warning. Sonny let go of Danny but kept his glare on the guard.

"Oh so now ya wanna do your fuckin' job?" He sneered. "Where the fuck were ya last week, huh?"

The guard scowled and took a step forward, but Jokes and Prof beat him to it and pulled Sonny down into his seat, whispering harsh words into his ear until he calmed down. When he regained his composure, and with another glare at the guard, Sonny answered Danny's question.

"Mob's back in his cell with a stab wound, infection, and fever because someone wasn't aware of their fuckin' job title." He explained, never one to sugar coat things. He was still glaring daggers at the guard as he raised his voice on the last part. Jokes winced at the harsh description, and Prof rolled his eyes while kicking Sonny's ankle. "What? He asked."

"Is he gonna be ok?" Danny asked back, not even seeming to flinch at the listed issues his brother apparently had. He'd had worse. Their whole lives were worse. Of course Danny hated hearing Decky was hurt, but he was realistic and experienced enough to know that right now the important thing is if he'll fully recover.

"It's touch an' go right now," Sonny admitted, nails scratching at the plastic tabletop. "They barely kept him in medical for a day before tossin' 'im out, but we got a sentry on him at all times an' we're keepin' him cool with a wet shirt on his forehead." Danny sat back, going silent as he absorbed the information. He'd be back in the conversation in a moment, but the boy always seemed to check out completely as he processed new things, coming back into chats like he hadn't gone unresponsive at all. "He said ta tell ya he loves ya, bud, he's sorry he couldn't make it but we enforced bed rest."

With the sudden news of Decky’s condition, Penelope’s heart sank. If she didn’t wait for Charlie all day Friday, she could’ve made time to visit her friend. The guilt of her carelessness and prioritizing her foolish, dumb crush over a forever friendship caused her to bite the bottom of her lip. Even the fact that Danny could take this information in, without batting his eyes, without losing his cool, deeply saddened her. All she could do was be a constant for the Boaz brothers, Charlie, and Jade. Their lives kept moving in ways she had no idea how to protect them.

Their lives kept moving…

In this moment, Poppy realized how fortunate she was. She didn’t need to work a corner to pay for her mother’s medical bills. She didn’t need to house hop to stay away from abusive parents. Her parents weren’t drunks or junkies or just pure evil. Her life never led her to the point that she needed to rely on a gang because she was constantly protected. Poppy was put in a position where she had no choice but to make everyone else proud for having parents that worked their asses off to give her and her older sister a better life.

And yet, she couldn’t help but find herself magnifying everyone’s issues and her own. She couldn’t help but carry all this weight on her shoulders and feel tongue tied. Trapped inside her mind and suffering from all the sins of her friends, all who needed saving, she wished she could say fuck it all. Fuck it all to hell. Why was she the one that everyone decided to break the southie curse? Why was she the one that everyone believed in? Why was she the one kept safe when everyone was hurting? Why?

Tightly, she clenched onto the straps of her backpack. Not only was Charlie getting blamed for the death of Allison Davies but Decky was bleeding in prison with little to no medical care. The last thing any of the serpents needed to hear was how Charlie was doing. She wasn’t dumb. They probably already made up their minds with one side of the story. Not even she was confident of the rumors and the words being twisted in the streets. She left the party early and she didn’t even know Charlie was there. Charlie wasn’t the type to explain himself when it came to things like this, so this would be one thing she would never have an answer for because that’s just the role everyone wanted her to play— the southsider left in the dark because they thought she deserved better.

Gritting her teeth, she took the backpack off and slid it on the table to Sonny, “Give this to Decky when he isn’t knocked out. You’re all free to read any book besides Hard Times by Charles Dickens. I want him to have that one first.”

All three Serpent's eyes lit up in vague understanding as they stared at the hardcover novel Sonny pulled halfway out the bag. The snakes had never had the best relationship with Penelope James, as Decky didn't bring her around like he did with Danny, or even Jade Taylor and Charlie before the boy had joined the Serpents himself. There had never been much conversation between them, just the jagged edges of two separate worlds catching and chipping at each other.

"We could probably read all these by the time we get out," Jokes said, a gleam in his eye that had the other two snakes wary and Danny hop a bit in his seat in anticipation. "You know, if we really book it."

Danny unleashed a torrent of giggles at the stupid pun while Sonny and Prof groaned in dismay, far more exposed to the wordplay than anyone ever deserved to be. The rest of the visit was spent talking about Danny's school, time with Phil and the others, and going over all the safety protocols and options for when Danny ends up anywhere near alone, be it walking from school or being tossed out by his parents.

"How'd you like that little science experiment I told you about?"

"It was so cool! The clean up was a little hard so it made sense ya told me to do it in an abandoned area!"

"your parents give you another back eye? I'll fuckin' kill 'em."

"Sonny there's a guard right there-"

"Do I look like I give a fuck? Look at 'is face, Prof, tell me you're not thinkin'a murder too."

"Hey let's change the conversation! Guard's lookin' twitchy."

"Ya still have your knife on ya right? Mace in your pocket?"

"Every time I go out, never leave without 'em just like you said."

"Have you been keeping up on your reading?"

"Mhmm! Poppy's letting me read ta her ta help! I just finished Outsiders, and we put it in the bookbag for Decky."

"Did you know that bees will even sting other bees?"

"Really?"

"Mhm, bee-lieve it."

"Jesus Christ Jokes shut the fuck up-"

And just like that, their thirty minutes were up, and the Serpents were each yanked up from their seats and shoved harshly towards the door, not even given a chance to say goodbye as the two free Southies were left at the table.

Watching Decky’s friends get pulled away, Penelope looked at their backs, dropping the strong mask for a moment. She yearned to be accepted by her neighborhood but knew they were light years away. With a weakened smile, she glanced back at Danny and asked, “Where do you want to go next?” Once she and the young boy left the building, she would bring up the discussion on what they should bring Decky next.

Maybe she could get Danny to practice his writing for the next week and together they can write letters. Maybe they can give Decky more toys to keep him entertained. Maybe they can make a practical joke pop out of the book. But one thing she knew for sure she was putting in the next book, it would be a switchblade. He had something now to get in contact with whoever if he needed anything specific but she’d be damned if she found out he was harmed or dead. Maybe she should tip her father… “Anywhere you want! We still have the whole afternoon ahead of us.”

"Can we go to Lyon park? Decky was showing me how ta do a flip off’a the swing before everything." Danny asked, his more timid side returning without his big brother snakes around. He hated watching them get manhandled by the guards, and he didn't even get to say goodbye! Why were they so mean?

---

"Delivery from two very small and pale children!" Sonny chirped cheerily as he traipsed through the cell door, dropping the books from his arms to the bed right next to Decky's hip. The copy of Hard Times stared up at him and Decky scowled at the reminder of Charlie Decker. He was still sore over the boy. "You've been ordered to read this first."

"Was he here?" Decky asked as he carefully propped himself up with help from Creed, the older boy stuffing both Decky and Prof's pillows behind his back for support. Sonny replied in the negative, explaining their visitation and that only Poppy and Danny had showed today. Decky grunted in acknowledgment and opened the only hardcover of the books.

As expected, the inside of the book had a hollowed out pocket with contraband inside. Slowly, he pulled out a small burner cell, a picture of him and Danny that Poppy had taken of them at Lyon park almost two whole years ago, a battered yo-yo they use to all share and try to learn tricks on, and a pair of beaten up and scuffed old dice that he had taught them how to gamble with. Beneath all these, each of which he carefully placed to his side on the small bed, was a layer of Mary Jane candies, making Decky's eyes light up.

"I know that look, there's something disgusting in there."

"They're delicious," he snapped back, picking one up and trying to unwrap it. His hands were still too shaky and just as his frustration was beginning to grow, Creed yanked the candy out of his hand and handed it back unwrapped within a second. Decky popped it in his mouth happily and practically melted back into the thin pillows. He began slowly toying with the Yo-yo, practically feeling the memories flood his mind.

"Just 'cause it was the first candy ya ever had doesn't mean it has to be your favorite. The only reason Mrs. Digari gave ‘em to us is because they had finally expired after years of ‘em sittin’ on the shelf. The crackheads won’t even try ta steal ‘em, dude.”

Jokes began laughing behind his hand and Creed walked over to stand at his side, smirk of his own on his face. They all laughed as Decky sputtered angrily for a second before going to cross his arms, catching himself from the painful move at the last second.

”None of y’all are gettin’ any, ya fuckin’ traitors!”

”In case you didn’t notice, ain’t nobody here that wants one, Boaz.”

[BrutalBx]

_{Rhonda Decker & Victoria James
@BrutalBx & @LovelyComplex}
________________________________________________________________________________

“For the longest time, he knew he was not of this world. Yet when he awoke every morning and he walked out into the daybreak, he turned his head left and he saw her and his life had meaning. She gave him purpose and something to work toward. When they walked side by side, their rhythms together as one, the music and art and the joy of the world made sense.”

Rhonda’s fingers travelled over the braille words that her son had written so long ago. It was a tragedy that most of his words were lost and the ones that remained were now being used for ill. The warm July evening felt like a gentle touch across her cheek. It was late and although the south side was known to be dangerous, Ronnie felt completely safe; Why? She was the mother of the notorious Charlie Decker, no one would go near her with a ten foot pole, not even the worst of the worst.

“I can’t thank you enough for having this converted for me, Victoria.” Her empty eyes drifted to the shuffling sound and the woman that sat on the other end of the porch. “I think we both know who he was writing this about.”

“Please, don’t thank me.” Victoria James rested her elbow on her propped up knee, using her hand to support her chin, as she sat on the stairs. Beside her was an ashtray with a cigarette resting in it, burning itself out. “... Yeah, of course it’s about her. How could it not?”

Ever since that tragic day that took a lot of children away from their parents, the time Vicky spent with Rhonda had become her most cherished time. A time where she could drop the pretense, relax, and be completely honest with herself. With Rhonda, she felt like a better person. That for once, she was doing something right.

Victoria couldn’t help but think about that fateful day and how chaotic the town was. She had found herself waiting outside the school, being prevented by her husband’s co-workers from entering. All she wanted to do was find her last surviving daughter and the man that was her saving grace. Her everything.

All the uproar. All the tears. All the pain. That didn’t matter when she was here with Ronnie. Her friend. They both suffered from heartbreak and outliving their children. The only difference was Victoria had one more child to still care for, until her dying day. There was no map to parenting. If anything, Victoria pretended as she went, not knowing what was right and what was wrong.

The scary truth for her was she didn’t know if she was a good mother. She failed Maxine, her delicate jewel, and she failed Charlie, her son not by blood but by faith and hope that one day it would become true. “If only I realized when they were small, in just a few years… it would be completely different. And— ”

Adjusting her posture, she shook the depressive thoughts out of her head and cleared her throat, “—And I just know, in my heart, he would’ve treated my little girl so good. I just know, he saw the world in her.”

“My Charlie saw too much of the world I think,” Rhonda sighed as she placed the book down and reached for her tea. She was under no illusion, she knew what her child had done, what he had become but regardless of the fact, he was her child, her flesh and her blood. When he was younger, he was always questioning, always watching and learning, he was so perceptive. Something obvious in the words he expressed on the pages he loved so much.

“I remember this one time, I had saved up some money from the diner and I promised Charlie we’d head into the city for a day trip. We went over the bridge and God we had such an amazing day. It was winding down. I gave him five bucks and I sent him into the market, you have five minutes Charlie to bring back anything you like. So off he went and when his time was up, you know what he came back with? On the Road by Jack Kerouac. What eight year old reads Kerouac? I knew then that Charlie’s head was wired just a little different to everyone else. He was meant for more…”

“Mm, yeah. He was brilliant, impressing everyone in the neighborhood. Such wisdom I never had when I was his age.” Vicky thoughtfully responded. Charlie was destined for greatness, she knew it, her husband knew it, even his teacher Beau knew it, but it was cut short, like it was for her own daughter. Changing her position, Vicky leaned back on the porch stairs, glancing up at the stars in the sky. Sometimes, she wished they had the power to rewrite the stars in a different sky. If they could change their circumstance, if they could change their hand, would they be happier?

Sighing to herself, Mrs. James looked away from the fated stars and glanced over at her friend, “As awful as it feels right now, his words are making a difference. He is causing a ripple effect…” Her eyes softened as she looked at the empty eyes of Rhonda Decker, who was intently listening to her. “I don’t think whoever has his journal realizes this town will never be the same. It’s scary to see how much your son knows and that someone is using it as a weapon. Even so...”

Briefly her voice trailed off as she absentmindedly grabbed her cigarette and forcibly pressed it in the ashtray, “There isn’t all bad coming from this. Penelope left the house, she went. She hasn’t left the house willinging in months. I know it’s only a matter of time when that pain becomes fuel to her. I truly believe that and that’s thanks to her love for Charlie.”

“I’m glad to hear Poppy is getting out, I worry for her.” Rhonda could hear the chorus of sirens in the background, a near constant ambience in the Southie neighbourhood. “That said, whatever is happening out there, with those things that my Charlie wrote, I can’t see any good coming from it,” the dark haired woman let out a soft chuckle. “Haha, see. I can’t see anything” Ronnie had learned to live with her situation and found some humour in knowing that even though she was blind, she could still see the world for what it really was. In response, Victoria could only frown, glancing at her friend with saddened eyes.

“Everybody has secrets. Everybody lies. Charlie carried it all somehow, alone and afraid. Now we’re all going to have to carry that weight and I worry not everyone can handle that. The thief who stole my baby’s journals will have to live with the consequences of unleashing hell.”

“Maybe,” Vicky drawled, having released the old smoke into the ashtray before adding, “That’s exactly what they want. Maybe,” With one cigarette done, she was quick to reach into her pant’s pocket for another. Penelope’s mother pursed her lips, annoyed at herself, as her hand clasped onto the pack. “Some people just want to watch the world burn.” When she pulled a cigarette out her mind began to drift into far away memories.

It was silly to think the truth would lead to years of problems being solved. That Charlie’s ghost could make a difference in this doomed town. See, as much as Vicky wanted to be the optimistic type, and sometimes she convinced herself she was, Rhonda reminded her that optimism didn’t work in this town, especially not for the Decker and James family.

Shakily placing the cigarette in her mouth, Victoria noticed a patrol car passing by. She waved at the man she knew all too well, giving him a knowing smile, before lighting her cancer stick that rested in between her lips. He did a quick honk so that Rhonda knew he was passing by. After one short moment of him and his wife looking at each other, both tired, both with purpose, both with heavy hearts, he was off down the street to work until he couldn’t work anymore.

“Sly?” Ronnie questioned despite already knowing the answer. She recognised the sound of his patrol car anywhere. Despite having to look after an entire town, he still made a point of driving down Carlisle and checking up on the locals. “I remember in high school when he dated Shannon Ling and we were all like, yo he needs to be with a Mooney. Funny how it all turns out huh? Lives predetermined; a future imperfect.”

Age usually begets thoughts of the past. Rhonda was stuck there. With no way to see the present or the future, all she had was days she recalled being both wonderful and horrific at the same time. The tragedies of Eden were not deserved for their children but for everyone, sometimes they were just hidden better. As time had passed, Rhonda found herself leaning more into a bygone world, dwelling in the secret labyrinth that was Edenridge's rich history. There were too many coincidences, too many serendipitous happenings. Destiny was an invisible hand in Eden and it controlled everything.

Once the smoke seeped out of her lips, Victoria rested her elbow on her leg and thought about her husband, thinking about the time before they got entangled with one another. He wouldn’t have truly noticed her as a lover. He was four years older than her. Vicky was the little sister across the street who he felt compelled to save. They weren’t supposed to be together, at least not in Edenridge. When she was sixteen, Vicky made him see her as a woman and then nine months later, a little after her birthday, she had Maxine.

If only Rhonda knew how much hurt Shannon went through because Vicky wanted Sly all to herself. She wanted Rocky, the boy that could fight his way out of anything and everything, the boy with an indomitable spirit, extreme tenacity, and ferocious attacks, with fists alone, like the real Rocky Balboa. Maybe it was the idea of having a savior at the time that called her to action, but her twisting the fates set everything in stone, causing a domino effect she could never take back. “If only we went about things differently... maybe O’Hara would still be alive. I always wonder, if Sly and I took a leap of faith earlier with one another, would we have paved the path for him and his secret lover?”

“If there’s anything I’ve learned since Charlie, it’s that we can’t live in what ifs. What happened, happened and we just have to live with it.” Grabbing her walking stick, Rhonda pulled herself to her feet and felt her way towards the front door of her home. “Thanks for keeping me company, Vicky. You should get home. It’s late and I’m sure your girl will need you.” Disappearing into her house, Ronnie turned off the porchlight, another day in Eden over.

[AlteredTundra]

December 4, 2016, The Streets
_{A @metanoia & @LovelyComplex Collaboration || Featuring Danny Belmonte & Marco Brady}
____________________________________________________________________________________________

As scary as ReyRey seemed, Danny was too drunk to process anything he was saying. When Marco went to retrieve his coat, the young jock wondered if they could stop and get some food somewhere. He was kind of hungry. Was anything even open? Since being drunk wasn’t really something Danilo was used to, the best parts of his brian, which were minimal to say the least, had turned completely off. Unbeknownst to him, the rest of the night would be led by a fool and the next morning, he would not remember anything.

Nothing. Nada. Zip.

After thinking about greasy diner food his mind went to the fading music and how he didn’t get to dance. Weren’t parties supposed to have dancing? Why did it all stop? He could’ve gotten a pretty girl and showed off how smooth he was. He could’ve become like an uncoiling rope, one with the music, one with the girl, and let the adrenaline shoot up his veins like some hardcore drug he’d never experienced before. He missed the part where people were feeding off each other’s energies… he got too caught up with impressing his team that he had forgotten to have fun.

Sucks, man.

In his stupor, deep in thought, Danny hadn’t realized he already left the party house and beside him was the boy he randomly befriended tonight. Trying his best to push all the negative thoughts aside, he threw his arm around his new friend, dropping a lot of his weight on him, but also pulling the acquaintance close, as they walked down the sidewalk. “Did I ever ask you your name? I feel like if I did I would know what to call you right now… the name’s Danny! Well, Danilo. But pleeeeeeaseeeee, call me Danny. You probably knew that already because I was great tonight. You said it yourself! I was great. I like being great.”

“Oh yeah! You definitely were!” Marco said in a sudden rush of excitement when he was pulled close to Danny.

He didn’t know if it was his lack of muscle on his own body or if Danny was just physically stronger than him or if being so close to Danny in general made him physically weak from...whatever it was that he might be feeling at this moment, Marco let it happen and now he found himself trying to support the full weight of this boy who smelled awfully a lot like the top shelf booze that he remembered his Granpappy always kept when he lived in Ireland for a time. He didn’t know why he thought of his Granpappy Sheamus, but the fact that the scent was the same made Marco smile.

Grunting, Marco yanked on Danny’s arm as he struggled to keep both of them up. “You totally killed it out there tonight!” Somehow he said that without a gut-punching grunt in-between.

There were a lot of compliments thrown at him which put a goofy grin on the freshman jock’s face and then he blinked a couple of times, realizing he still did not know a name. How could he be friends with someone with no name?! Well, Danny could always give him a nickname. A nickname. His acquaintance was small, kind of energetic, and cute.

Cute like a…

“Puppy!” Danny shouted out, deciding this was good to do so in his drunken state, which probably sounded like he saw a dog from afar, but really, he was referring to the boy holding him up. “Besides X-Men, what else do you like? I like strawberries.” Seeing a stop sign, Danny let go of the boy and latched onto the pole and started spinning around it like a kid. “Strawberry milk. Strawberry shortcake. Strawberry fields foreverrrrrrr. Do you know Cece? Or, uh, Caitlin Cleary? She makes the bestest strawberry cupcakes. Oh man, the more I think about them the more I want to eat…”

”Uhm…”

Marco looked at Danny with a confused expression as he hugged the pole the stop sign was drilled to and how he went on about his fondness of strawberries. That wasn’t why he was scratching his head like he was right now and it certainly wasn’t why he took a few glances behind him to see if anyone else was around.

There wasn’t.

But that seemed to help the feeling go away. Truth was, as much as he was enjoying spending time with Danny and probably would have been filled with nerves about what to say, Marco was clueless on what to say while the star athlete of today’s game against Pinehurst was acting like...well like how he was right now. ”Yeah, I know CeCe. She was, uh, the first person I met and became friends with…” It was strange because Marco, as well as his family, had fit in so well with the town and everyone seemed to love his parents, that it was strange he had only been living here for less than half a year. And as much as he felt anxious around Danny (for different reasons than he had in the past), he was now thinking about Cece's cupcakes. ”I have actually tasted her cupcakes. They’re quite yummy!” For some reason, Marco patted his stomach for emphasis.

“Cece forgot me today,” Danny’s demeanor became somber as he let go of the pole only to tumble backward on his feet. Oh man, he drank way too much tonight. With hardly any body fat to store his alcohol, Danny could feel he was past the point of no return. He was truly and deeply feeling it.

Looking around him, he searched for a frosted looking grass patch and found himself dramatically dropping on the ground, laying backwards and staring up at the starry night. “It’s kinda’ crazy, huh? You grow up with people, you go through so much with these same faces, and then you think… wow, one day, I’m going to have to graduate and become a star, like my parents want me to be.”

”Uhh, maybe we should—”

With loose lips and no restraints, Danny got lost in his thoughts, on someone’s lawn, in the cold, with this boy he barely knew, “I know it’s too early to think that far ahead, but don’t you just wonder… what if all these faces start to disappear? Life continues to move and I just want it to stop, right here, right now. In time. I don’t want to grow up.”

What seemed like one of those ‘against your better judgement’ moments, Marco took a seat next to a laid out Danny.

God, the grass was cold. And of course it was because it was winter. In Massachusetts. Why on earth was he not trying to help Danny up? Maybe because he didn’t feel like that’d be an okay thing to do while he was talking and some of the things he said. They felt foreign to Marco. He never thought of those things. Never thought about the day his parents would never be around or that he’d never see people he went to high school with. And maybe he was confused why Danny was.

“I guess I never really thought about it.” Marco would say after a few moments of silence and trying to figure out what he could say. “I figured that if my friends go away, I’ll see them again soon. You know, kinda like how we grew out of our playing-with-our-toys phase when we were younger—” You say that as if you’re out of that phase.. “—And you develop other interests and play with other things that are better suited for us. But like, at some point, you might find yourself wanting to go to a toy store and indulge in the latest X-Men figure with the money you saved up from your allowance.”

“You really like X-Men, huh?” Danny found himself no longer laying down. He didn’t know when his position changed, but he was now sitting up, as he intently listened to Puppy. Getting closer and closer to the back of Marco’s head, as if the Leaning Tower of Pisa was actually falling, Danny went forward and rested his forehead on the geek’s back, “You’re very optimistic.” And smell nice. “You know that right?”

When Marco felt the touch of Danny’s forehead on his back, there was a rush of adrenaline that made him jerk his entire body slightly that was almost immediately followed by a foreign hotness coming over his cheeks. And when he complimented him, Marco didn’t know what else to say than “y-yeah, I know--” as if it explained why he was like that. “I mean, I guess, like, I don’t know it’s just who I am. I’ve always been a lot more hopeful than most in my family.” Thinking about it, Marco hadn’t realized that he was literally the only one who was like this. Between him and his younger siblings, he was the only one that didn’t see the bad of any situation.

Danny’s head felt foggy, the alcohol having taken him to oblivion. His eye lashes weighed more than they should and gravity was pushing him into a sweet, drowsy dream. Absentmindedly, he nuzzled his face to the warmth in front of him. His chest rose and fell to the sedative lullaby of the night. His breathing was calm, gentle, and close. He felt at peace, even if other people in the town of Edenridge were not. Danilo Belmonte had fallen asleep and it felt good. For once, he could relax and be himself, with this boy he barely knew.

And as Marco looked over, he didn’t pay Danny any mind because he seemed like he was just resting his eyes at first.

Yeah, at first.

But then a minute went by and Marco grew concerned on the face as he turned around, shaking Danny as he tried to shake and wake him. When the first, albeit gentle, attempt produced no results, Marco tried again, this time he went faster and started to exert whatever pathetic strength he had in him.

And still there was nothing.

And Marco’s concern increased still.

He grabbed the larger boy’s shirt and tried to raise him up, but if you have ever lifted a hundred and something pounds of dead weight with a shockingly low amount of muscle (and in the cold at that), then you might be able to understand Marco’s difficulties. His lack of strength wasn’t the only issue because it was butt-freezing outside and the fact that Danny was asleep spelled bad things for both of them if he couldn’t think of a way to lift the soundly asleep hunk.

“Yes yes, he’s very cute sleeping like that. And this is the most you’ve spent with him since you started to drool over him. But this is not the time for that.”

And of course, Marco considered that it was next to impossible that he would be able to lift him up.

“But ma didn’t raise a quitter--” Marco stopped himself with both a lightbulb-over-the-head-worthy idea as well as a frightening realization. “Ma. She could help. But is it really that bad that I’m left with no outcome but to call her?”

Marco stood up, brushing the cold grass blades off of his pants and looked down at sleeping beauty. On one hand, maybe if Marco really dug deep, he might be able to drag this boy the few blocks it was to his house. But on the off chance that he collapsed from the overexertion of what remained of his physical strength, or ya know, he died form hypothermia, there was the other hand to consider.

Calling his mother.

Both presented a scenario Marco wasn’t keen on experiencing. The latter would expose Marco’s interesting situation to his mother and the former meant they’d both probably die.

“God, why did this have to happen? Why couldn’t Kylee just let me gawk from afar?” He shook head and decided that one problem was enough for him.

As he stepped onto the sidewalk, there was a tense, almost dramatic moment that led up to Marco pulling out his phone from his jacket pocket. With a deep breath, he called his mother. And as the dial tone ended, he didn’t hesitate. “Ma? Yeah, it’s me. Listen, can you come pick me up? Oh, where am I? Uhh…” Marco put his hand over the bottom of it and whispered a Catholic prayer to himself. “I’m about three or so blocks away from the house. Ya can’t miss me. I’m on the sidewalk with sleeping beauty.”

[LovelyComplex]

Present day... late Friday night... 13 Carlisle Avenue...

_{A @BrutalBx, @LovelyComplex, @Aces Away, & @metanoia Collaboration
Featuring: Penelope James, Mordechai Boaz, ReyRey Gonzales, Jade Taylor, Mei Ramsey, Sonny Cernis, & Xavier "Prof." Booker
^{(small bit of Jillian/Roddy at the end)}}
________________________________________________________________________________

Penelope felt an overwhelming inferno, fuelled by frustration, hatred, and sorrow. She was frustrated, looking back at the past and realizing how quick people used Charlie as a scapegoat. She hated the man that was looking at her, and everyone else, acting like he didn’t play a part in Allison's death and Charlie’s demise. She felt incredible despair realizing how little she could do to help Charlie at the time and even Decky, since shortly after the party, a week later, she found out he got stabbed.

Her father, her friends, the boy she loved, chose to shield her from this side of her home, yet it trickled into everything that was Edenridge. No one could avoid those that didn’t want to be saved. Those that just wanted to see the world burn. Those that brought the good down with them. This town was cursed and it was all because no one wanted to change. They conformed to the role given to them, denying their pursuit of happiness due to fear and isolation.

Her muscles tightened, her jaw clenched, and her fists balled to the point that her nails were deeply piercing her skin. This sensation that usually broke her down and made her anxiety so encompassing that she could barely breathe was pushing her to her boiling point. No longer creeping inside her — ready to escape.

Part of her knew most of these people wouldn’t take her seriously. Part of her knew there would be serpents protecting their kingsnake, even though he really didn’t need protection. Poppy knew. You’d have to live under a rock to know nothing about ReyRey Gonzalez. Part of her knew this could all be for naught. Even so, she couldn’t stand here idle and pretend this was okay.

It wasn’t.

Show your anger and they’ll drug you into compliance. Her mother had told her once. Although she didn’t know the memory her mother had learned that lesson from, Poppy did understand the truth behind the reality. Still, why should she conform? Why should she let society control the way she thought and acted? Why should she give anyone that satisfaction when she knew by simply fighting the system she had a better chance at surviving? If she didn’t survive? Well, that’ll just be her next adventure.

Closing her eyes, Penelope saw all the ghosts in her heart. She glided her bandage hand, now with small blood marks from the cuts she just made by her sharp, ungroomed nails, up her chest to grab her teardrop necklace of Maxine’s ashes. Simultaneously, she pulled her hoodie down, followed by her face mask (yes, believe it or not). She wasn’t going to repeat herself, so it was necessary for her to project her voice. Tunneling her vision to focus on Reyrey, she broke the silence, “What the fuck is wrong with you? You are a grown ass man. Charlie… We were all children.”

“Poppy, I—” Jade went to say something but then she saw a rare ire in Poppy’s expressive eyes, something that reminded her of that night.

Glaring at everyone who stepped up to interrupt her, Penelope growled, unintentionally and inadvertantly coming across harsh to her best friend, “I’m not fucking finished. So let me get this straight, you were screwing two best friends - I'm sure even before they were of age. One of those girls was depressed, but your head was so far up your ass to see that. Instead you enabled her addiction. Then, when shit hit the fan, you put all the blame on Charlie. What? Because he was the one you picked to deal that night? Because that’s the easiest answer to this?” For a crime “king”, ReyRey’s deduction skills sucked. “His face had a big gash, going from here to here.” She ran her finger down her own face, showing how large the cut was.

“Watch your fucking mouth. You may be a baby snake but I got no problem cutting that pretty little head off.”

“Please. Do it. You’d be doing me a favor!” Penelope yelled back. Her blood rage made her feel invincible and if she had things her way, she’d join Charlie in his grave. For a moment, she drifted into her memories, seeing Charlie’s face from that night, as she cleaned him, before continuing, “His lip was busted and his body… Nevermind that. You didn’t see the Charlie I did. You didn’t clean the blood off of him, I did. I know he didn’t mess with those drugs. I know he would’ve tried to stop Allison because I know Charlie. How many of you can say that about Allison?”

Decky- and at the moment he was Decky, not Mordechai. He was that angry and confused little kid again, feeling betrayed by someone he’d trusted and getting lost without a light to look towards- stayed silent through ReyRey’s story, knowing he couldn’t speak out without breaking whatever spell had come over the Edenridge Class of Tragedy and the King of the Serpents. His loyalty was already feeling split the closer they had walked to Serpent House, his mind running through all the reasons he shouldn’t be part of this little detective crew and how it was stupid for him to have spoke up and led them straight into Serpent territory, answers be damned.

But when ReyRey threw that polaroid down on the table and began his tale, all he could focus on was that it had all been personal for ReyRey. The man had been a big brother to him. A provider and an older presence that understood his rage and his feelings of uselessness and molded him into something better. He took Decky under his wing and back then the battered and abused boy had assumed he took Charlie in with similar grace. All the issues ReyRey had with Charlie had been assumed to be because Charlie kept fucking up, not because the man had a personal grudge against the younger boy. Flashes of his parent's adult fists on his adolescent body shot through his mind, but his parents faded into ReyRey and he himself into Charlie; cowering against a wall with his hands up defensively as he was bloodied by someone he could never hope to beat at his size.

It made him sick.

All this fuckin’ time it’s been about that cheerleader. Every time he fucked up even a little, that’s all ReyRey thought about. He must have wanted him gone from the moment that shit happened but he kept him in. Another thought struck him as he stood a little ways away from the group, and it made him even sicker. Fuck, he kept him in because of me, didn’t he? I already knew so much shit was my fault but...did I make everything worse by beggin’ ReyRey to keep Hard Times? I just wanted him ta be able ta help his mom…

A light tap on his shoulder had him whirling around, fist ready before he caught sight of Sonny and Prof’s disturbed faces. He didn’t know how long they had been there in the shadows but they had obviously been hearing this version for the first time as well. Sonny silently pointed down and Decky followed his gaze to Sonny’s bat still gripped tightly in his hands, his knuckles white and whole body shaking visibly. Sonny slowly reached for the bat and removed it from the distressed man’s vice-like grip, dropping it to the grass to his side.

“I didn’t expect your adventure to lead back here,” Sonny whispered to him, the three snakes in their own bubble away from the group. “Y’know I would’a warned ya.”

Prof went to add in his own two cents when the tense silence was broken for the second time that night by one Penelope James. All three Serpents went white as sheets when they heard the way the girl spoke up, and Sonny and Prof went to step forward before her glare froze them in place and she continued her, well...scolding. When she got to describing how Charlie had looked after ReyRey beat him, he finally seemed to break out of whatever spell kept him quiet until now.

“I didn’t know that,” he spoke up, his voice strained. “No one ever told me you beat him ReyRey!” his fists were clenched and, despite feeling genuine fear about ReyRey’s reaction towards him for the first time in his life, he moved to stand next to Poppy, violently shaking off Prof and Sonny’s hands on his shoulders as they tried to hold him back. “I listened to you over him. I let all my anger about him tarnishing my Vouch out on him because I thought he was stupid enough to forget to check the drugs for one night. But now, after it’s all too late I’m finding out that all the shit he went through ‘til we jumped him out was some personal vendetta from you?” tears sprung to his eyes, uncaring of the onlookers to such a rare sight, as Decky stared down the one man he’d always thought he could put his trust and faith in. The first person to show him comfort aside from Sonny and Danny. Voice thick with emotion, Decky choked out one final thought that had immediately clawed its way into his skull with the same force of Hatchet’s shiv to his side on that fateful day.

“Were you using me to fuck with him more? All those times you made me discipline him as Captain? Making me the deciding vote on jumping him out? You told me I wasn't allowed to pull my punches either, you watched to make sure! Was I really just a trained bitch to you like everyone thought I was?”

“You’re goddamn right you were!” ReyRey hissed, making Decky flinch back and visibly shrink in on himself. The split lip ReyRey had given him earlier that day broke open as the younger man bit his lip harshly and dropped his gaze to ReyRey's feet submissively. “What did you think this was Decky? We take care of our own, of course we do but you work for me. You’re good at what you do, Boaz but at the end of the day you’re a tool just like the rest of them.” He towered over most of the angry mob that had surrounded him. He was not afraid, he was irate. “Decker fucked up and Allison died. That’s literally all there is to it. No big conspiracy, no big cover up.”

The mere thought of Charlie was making R2‘s blood run hotter than Vesuvius as he slammed a hard fist down upon the picnic table. “What your boy did? He killed an innocent person. I would put a bullet in any fuckers head but Allison was pure, delicate and he poisoned her and took her away. Did I beat the shit outta him? Fuck yeah I did. I should’ve fucking killed him and buried him in the Blue Hills. Half the town wouldn’t be dead right now.” Grabbing a chair, Rey swung it round and launched it at a nearby fence where it would break into multiple pieces.

“I’m not the villain in this fucking story.”

Jade felt as hollow as she did five years ago. Nearly half a decade ago when she tried to help Charlie, tried to help him out of a situation that was out of his control, she failed him. When ReyRey had found them and acted out of the same anger that was now being directed back unto him as the perfect example of karma, that same feeling of helplessness crawled up her skin like the very serpent whose house saw the birth of two tragedies. She could still hear the wails of agony through the shed door. Those walls were thin and the beating was...brutal. It was cruel and unforgiving, but it didn’t surpass the despair Jade felt not being able to do anything.

All because of ReyRey’s stare. All because she didn’t have the courage to help Charlie. All because she wasn’t strong enough to help him.

She wasn’t confident she was strong enough now. But something she knew was that she couldn’t remain silent. “He’s not the only one to blame…” As much as Jade wanted to just throw the blame on ReyRey and as much as he was at fault, he wasn’t the only one who messed up that night. “I was there. I mean..” A ping of fear crawled up her back like ReyRey’s gaze that night had paralyzed her and she looked at him. It was almost as if Jade was afraid to mention anything, but if Poppy could show the same absence of fear towards him, then she could too, right?

As she kept her eyes locked on ReyRey, she continued, “Before the beating, before everything went to shit, Charlie told me about the drugs. He told me that someone had messed with them and I wanted to help him. You know, I wanted to protect Charlie from you, ReyRey. I wanted to protect him from what you were going to do — what you did — to him, but I couldn’t. And I just…” Jade’s heart was beating so hard and so fast in her chest that she felt it was going to burst and she felt a wave of emotion crawl up every inch of her body, tears forming at the edge of her eyes and her voice cracking each time she took in a breath. Shaking her head, she tried to regain some control of her composure. Jade looked around at the others and frowned. “But as much as I wish we could just blame you for it, the truth is I’m as guilty as ReyRey is.” Remnants of her despair lingered and the sounds of it could be heard between every cracked breath Jade took.

Having remained silent throughout the wicked tale that Kingsnake had spouted, enough was enough. Mei clambered over the picnic table, fist clenched and punched ReyRey in the mouth. The Priestess’s dark make up was smudged with tears as she followed her strike with a swift push to the Latino man’s chest. “You call yourself a man? You’re a coward and murderer and I’m gonna watch you burn in hell for what you did”

With his saviour complex suddenly kicking into gear, Roddy hurried behind Mei and wrapped his arms around her from behind, dragging the kicking and screaming girl away from the incredibly dangerous Serpent who she had just pissed off. He glanced towards Jade and his heart felt pain and grief. How could she have kept this secret? It truly seemed like this night, four years ago, was the night that everything changed. Innocent blood soaked the Earth and Edenridge was cursed from then on. Maybe Mei’s legends were true after all?

Jill wanted to leap in after her best friend and get some physical justice of her own, but watching the big man barely stagger after that shot, and with Roddy Callahan pulling her away, she let herself just seethe instead. She’d tell Mei how proud she was after.

“I’ll give you that one, you’re upset and this is hard to hear but…” Rey reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun, aiming at the Scooby crew, including his own guys: Decky, Prof and Sonny. “….that’s all you get.” He spat blood onto the floor, a small dribble dropping onto his white vest. “I said my peace, you know what happened. Now get out of here before I bury you all next to Decker.”

[Aces Away]

Present day... late Friday night... 13 Carlisle Avenue...

_{A @BrutalBx, @LovelyComplex, @Aces Away, & @metanoia Collaboration
Featuring: Antoine "Beau" Beauregard, ReyRey Gonzales, Mordechai Boaz,
Penelope James, Jade Taylor, Sonny Cernis, & Xavier "Prof." Booker}
________________________________________________________________________________

“Put the gun down, Reynaldo!” A soothing, booming voice called from behind the gang. Entering from the shadows, his own pistol raised, Beau moved towards the assorted group of his former students. “You know how much of a headache you’ll give your old man if you go down for these kids? Huh? What about your sister? Ain’t she got enough heartache right now?” The teacher slowly moved his way in front of his students, the two weapons in play now aimed between R2 and Beau respectively. “It's a tragedy what happened to Miss Davies and it’s a tragedy what happened to Decker, let’s avoid more bodies if we can. We’re gonna walk away now and this is night done, savvy?”

Goddamn Beau. Rey didn’t like him. He never liked him even when he was a teacher. So holier than thou. So damn hard. He hated him but he’d be damned if he didn’t respect the man. Beau’s word held a lot of weight with Big Papi Rey; R2 wasn’t sure why his father held the man with such esteem but ReyRey would never go against his old man, at least not in this particular way. Lowering his gun, the serpent ruler turned his back to the crowd, his eyes locking onto the shed where he had beaten Charlie all those years ago.

“Get these kids outta here, Beau before I change my fucking mind. All of them”

Beau kept his finger eased on the trigger as he turned his head ever so slightly to the group. “Kids, go home. You did what you set out to do. Go be there for each other, tonight. You’re gonna need it.”

Taking the man's dismissal to heart, Sonny and Prof quickly grabbed Decky by his jacket and dragged the shaking man back to their previous spot behind the group, and once they had got him there he shook their hands off with much less vigour than the last time.

"Get the fuck off'a me, you shady assholes," he growled half-heartedly, his eyes distant and still filled with tears. His whole body was shaking with fear rather than rage like ReyRey's had been, and he felt like shooting whatever it took into his veins to get this night out of his head. Even the arrival of Beau to save the day hadn't broken him out of the blank state he'd fallen into the second ReyRey had replied to him.

"We're sorry Mob," Sonny said, having more understanding of just how much ReyRey's words towards the former corner captain had affected him. "if ya'd said anything else I think he actually might'a shot ya. We were just lookin' out for ya." he then crouched down, continuing to meet Decky's height as the other roughly slid down to the ground with his back against the fence. Prof took up the spot next to him, and suddenly Decky was feeling suffocated. The world seemed to tilt on its axis and he was having a very hard time breathing all the sudden, the air tearing through his throat like he was trying to swallow sandpaper.

He had been so stupid.

"Come on, twerp," Prof spoke up after another silent exchange between him and Sonny. "let's getcha home and you can get your rest." he hadn't even gotten out half the sentence when Decky shook his head vehemently before letting his face fall into his arms, his whole upper body basically propped up by his knees. Sonny gave a nervous little hum before resting his hand on the back of Decky's head, wincing and giving him a forlorn look when the other simply flinched and shrunk away again. Sonny hadn't seen Decky like this since they were kids, before ReyRey had come into the picture and given the broken boys meaning and a chance at a future. Another look at Prof had the two exchanging grimaces.

"Mob, come on, the Edge is just a few hundred feet away, let's go-" he'd grabbed one of Decky's hands to try and pull him up, but the slightly larger man lashed out with his hard earned speed and shoved him away, causing Sonny to over balance and fall back on his ass.

"No!" he yelled, uncaring of his noise level as he glared at his friends through red, glassy eyes. "'M not goin' back there, I'll go back ta sleepin' on the fuckin' streets first!"

"Don't be stupid Boaz, y-"

"The fucking streets, Xavier." he hissed sharply, chest heaving and glare leveled on his two friends.

Silence fell between them as they sat at a stalemate, Sonny and Prof refusing to leave Decky to the streets, and Decky refusing to be under the roof of someone that just destroyed any confidence he had had left in himself. His parents had used him too. In different ways, for different people and reasons. But he had thought once he became a serpent he was done being a puppet to be passed around at someone else's whim. ReyRey had hugged the boy more than anyone else after Danny and Sonny, he had consoled him when he broke down and Decky had felt safe and loved.

And it was all a lie. He'd been locked in another room under someone else's roof, only ever let out when it pleased his owner. The room was just so much nicer he had never noticed.

you’re a tool just like the rest of them. you’re a tool you’re a tool you’re a tool.

"Just another fuckin' tool again, huh…"

No matter how much more Penelope could say to ReyRey, deep down she knew none of her words would reach him. As everything escalated around her, she could feel that fire dying out. The fire that gave her so much courage to break the silence felt non-existent at this point. She had her moment and even though her words didn’t come out as well as she wanted them to, she said enough for the night. When R2 chimed in, all she could feel was immense hatred for the man. The new revelations from Decky and Jade… well, that broke her heart.

Maybe she didn’t know Charlie as well as she thought she did. The spite turned into hurt and she realized something about herself. She saw R2 as the easiest person to blame for her guilt and lack of attentiveness to Charlie. ReyRey manipulated Decky and he pushed Jade between a rock and a hard place. He was not a good person and nothing would change her mind on that matter. Even so, as much as she wanted to tell herself he was the villain in this story, deep down she blamed herself wholeheartedly.

Saying he was more wrong than her was an easier pill to swallow than the truth. Really, did it matter who did what? People were dead and they couldn’t make that go away. Charlie, Allison, Maxine, Danny Boaz, and so many more. No one could turn back time. These unsolved mysteries… would the truth actually accomplish anything or would they just give this town its final blow?

With watery eyes, she wiped the tears trickling down her cheeks. When she saw Beau, her heart stopped. She couldn’t believe this man was risking his life for such broken people. He cared so much about them… and she didn’t understand why. They weren’t his children. They only gave him grief. He’d go miles for them, but who would do the same for him? She would never understand Beau… all she could say was she knew she loved him dearly, like family, and so did Charlie. In all honesty, Penelope believed that would be the death of him… he was too good for this town.

Good people don’t last long here.

Turning to look at Jade, Penelope reached and grabbed her hand, interlocking her fingers with her best friend, “If you’re to blame, so am I.” Blaming people was easy, finding where you went wrong took strength and Poppy knew she had a part to play in this, like everyone else. She saw Charlie fall apart behind closed doors, yet selfishly kept that to herself. There’s so many times where she should have handled herself better. There’s so much she knew, that she could’ve let someone else know but didn’t. She could never be mad at Jade. She could never be mad at Decky… they were all children.

They didn’t know better.

Gently, she started walking, hoping Jade would not pull away from her. Part of her expected it because of where Jade was emotionally. If it did happen, Poppy would let her go but she held her as tight as she could to show her she wasn’t alone and that she shouldn’t be alone. None of them should.

To think all this time… Penelope took Jade for granted and had no idea this was one of the things she was bottling up inside of her. Making a beeline through the small crowd, Penelope could see Decky on the ground, his back against the fence, with Sonny and Prof beside him. Prof was crouching and it seemed Sonny had tumbled back on his ass.

Choosing not to pop their bubble, staying a distance away, Penelope offered her free hand to her other best friend, ignoring his “protectors”, “Want to take a walk?” She softly spoke, hoping Decky felt like he had power over his own choices, not aiming to take that away from him. Weakly, she smiled at him, understanding if this is where he felt he needed to stay. If this is where he felt more safe and home at, beside his serpent friends, she would understand.

Decky's eyes landed on Poppy's outstretched hand and his heart clenched. He'd just admitted to being one of the people that had to beat Charlie, to being the core of his Serpent problems by following everything ReyRey said. Poppy loved Hard Times, she always had, so how could she be reaching out to one of his tormentors right now?

"We don't need your help Sweetheart, Mob's just fine with u-"

"Shut the fuck up, Sonny." Decky growled shakily, the lack of personal nickname making the other man rear his head back as if he'd been slapped. Prof, seeing this, put a steadying grip on Sonny's shoulder before whispering into his ear so low no one else could hear. The usually comedic man's face twisted up something awful as he switched his gaze between a shaky Decky and Prof at his ear. Lip wobbling for a second before getting caught between his teeth, Sonny took Prof's offered hand and let the older man get up, pulling him with.

"We'll be here, when you need us." the chemist offered soothingly before leading a lost looking Sonny out of the yard and towards Edge of Sin.

Decky, finally able to breathe, began to reach his hand out to Poppy's before pulling back with a whimper.

you’re a tool you’re a tool you’re a tool

"Do you really want me anywhere near you right now?" he asked in a tiny voice, barely louder than his heaving breaths.

“Yes,” Penelope said matter-of-factly. Watching her friend retract his hand back, all she could see was a scared child. It wasn’t an unusual sight for her. When you come from the southside, most battered, broken, and burdened individuals have this soft, vulnerable facet residing in their soul. Some chose to hide it better than others, some, like now, had no willpower to keep fighting the pain. “Believe it or not, I need you right now and I think you need me too. You’re my friend, actually no, you’re my family and…”

She thought back at all the unsaid words between her and Charlie. As she stepped forward, releasing Jade’s hand briefly, bringing herself down to his level, her eyes red from fighting back the tears, she spoke in a hushed, warm tone, “... I want you to be okay because I fucking love you.” There was a pause after that, because up until this point, she never said those words to Decky, ever. She never got the chance to say those words to Charlie either.

Penelope was someone that showed her affections through actions, rarely words, but in this moment she felt like he needed to hear it. He needed to hear that at least to someone he meant something more than just… something disposable, something to use, and something to abuse. “I don’t care if you’re fucked up. I’m fucked up too! But wouldn’t you say it’s better to be fucked up together?” She playfully stuck out her tongue, really trying to emphasize that she wasn’t mad at him.

She couldn’t be.

“Now come on, Decky, let’s get out of here. You, me, and...” Penelope glanced back over her shoulder and smiled at the blonde vixen who had been there for her through thick and thin, “... Jade.”

Decky let out a wet chuckle, shoulders relaxing from where they'd been hunched up to his ears. It was a line Poppy had used a few times when they were younger, and Decky would always reply that the fuck ups had to stick together. It was bittersweet to hear the lines again, especially without Hard Times' reaction thrown into the mix. They used to cheer and fist bump like the stupid children they were afterwards, and those lines usually precluded either a southie slumber party or them all getting into trouble as a group. Sometimes it was both in one night.

Well, this night was certainly trouble, and it looked like his Street Angel wasn't going to let him sleep in the streets any more than Sonny and Prof were, so there's probably a sleepover in his future as well. This time, his hand made the full path to fall into Poppy's, and he gripped it as tight as he felt he could without crushing her. She helped him to his feet, but he didn't let go of the small hand in his grasp.

I want you to be okay because I fucking love you.

God, was it really that easy to say? Or was it really that hard? She'd never said it before. Always showed it, of course, much like Decky himself she was one for action over words. But she also knew when words were necessary much better than Decky did. His attention turned to Jade, the girl having practically faded into the background with her silence.

He wasn't the only one that had been holding in a lot about Charlie Decker. He hadn't even been in Edenridge at the time, him and most of the Haze/Carlisle crew had been in Juvie or the Massachusetts Correctional Institution, but Jade had literally been right there and been unable to do anything to help Charlie from his fate.

Just like Decky had been powerless to help Danny in the end.

"Hey, Harley Head?" he paused, flexing his fingers around Poppy's hand while he waited for the blonde to look at him. "I... I'd really like ta have ya both with me...tonight...if, uh…" shame clogged his throat and he looked down at his feet. Just because Poppy had said she needed him, said she loved him, didn't mean Jade felt the same way. She might absolutely hate him even if she does claim blame as well. Blame's not evenly distributed, and Mordechai Boaz did a hell of a lot more than just stand by.

Looking at both Decky and Poppy, Jade felt conflicted. There was hesitation in both her gaze and how her arms clenched closely to her chest, her fingers bent and balled into weak fists. They were shaking and she only bit her lip to hide the fact she was on the edge of...something. ”I can’t..You shouldn’t..” She struggled to even get a solid thought out. Despite what they said about who was or wasn’t to blame, that didn’t change who Jade was blaming most. She looked away from them and down at the ground and said, “Why don’t you guys hate me? You should hate me. You shouldn’t want anything to do with me.”

"You? Fuck, J," Decky croaked out, running his free hand through his hair in nervous habit. "you didn't fuckin' do nothin' wrong. You tried ta protect," dammit, he still couldn't say his name out loud. The hesitance was obvious and he licked his bloody lip for another second of time. "him. All you did was try ta protect him. I beat him. I hurt him. Outta the three of us, I'm the one that shouldn't be here." he gave her a small, shaky smile, swallowing past the lump in his throat.

"You tried for him. It's more than I can say for what I did. Don't push that aside like it don't matter."

“And look what that got him? He was beaten and I didn’t do anything!” For a moment, Jade stunned herself at how loud she spoke, her voice cracking from the intense emotion she was feeling. And because she didn’t hold anything back, she felt her entire body start to break down, streams of tears flowing down her eyes. She tried to shake it off, but that didn’t help anything. Just like she didn’t help Charlie when he needed her most.

"I…" Decky didn't know what to say to help her. He never knew what to say to help someone, but it felt a lot worse when that someone was breaking down right in front of you and all you could do was lose your voice. With panicked eyes, Decky looked over to Poppy for help.

Well, no help coming from there, Poppy herself was silently crying from her spot next to Decky, and the man found himself gripping her hand tighter. When she noticed him looking at her, though, her face was almost immediately covered up again, so once more all he could see were her sunken and red rimmed eyes.

Jesus, he really needed to get blitzed.

"I...w-we...it's still- fuck, Harley Head, I don't know what the fuck ta say. I got no thoughts in my head but my failures and puppet strings but I know that I need y'all and I'd be terrified all fuckin' night not knowin' if you were safe. I just need a fuckin' Southie Sleepover an' sorry if it's selfish but I just can't keep functioning for more than maybe an' hour or so," he gave her a broken stare and reached his free hand to her. "can we figure out where we're goin', an' can we all do it together? please." the last word broke from his lips like he was calling for a lifeline, all croaky and shaken. He didn't know any other thing he could do to get through to her.

Fuck.

The way she felt like such a failure, she wanted them to say that to her. At least then it would make it easier for her to just...walk away and retreat into the hole that she was in before. That hole that had the scent of burnt wood from all the bridges that were set ablaze in the past two years -- hell, maybe it all started five years ago. But between her seeing Poppy cry and Decky practically begging for that sleepover, she didn’t know what to do. What was she supposed to do? Just forget the way she was feeling and go with them? She wanted them to stop feeling sad but she didn’t want to.

I want to..

She swallowed a breath in her dry mouth and sunk her head in defeat. Slow moments passed and her eyes rose up and she took Decky’s hand. Then her other hand took Poppy’s and she met both of their gazes. Though her hands were shaking, she squeezed both onto theirs almost for dear life. “I’ll go. Just no more crying. Please.”

^{“I’ll try…”} Poppy inaudibly whispered back. ^{“S-sorry… sorry… I can’t… I... I’m... sorry... c-can… can w-we go now?”}

"Yeah," Decky whispered, the void in his chest partially satiated. "Le-let's take a walk and then…I don't know Street Angel, your place or...maybe Beau's?"

^{“Beau’s.”} As much as she would love to keep Decky at her home, with it being next door to Charlie’s and her room being a disaster (filled with painful memories), she knew it would be best if they all stood somewhere they all would feel safe and away from it all. Away from their families and anything that could trigger them.

Beau’s was their safe haven. Now and even before. He understood them even more than their own parents did. Penelope loved Beau and knew he would be exactly what the doctor prescribed. She didn’t know what she would do without him.

And just like that the trio, forever missing a link, started walking.

[AlteredTundra]

_{December 21st, 2016 || Edge of Sin, Southie}

_{A @metanoia, @Aces Away & @BrutalBx Collaboration || Honey Badger, Boa, and ReyRey, featuring Prof, Sonny, Danny}
____________________________________________________________________________________________________

The night the Haze/Carlisle crew got out of Juvie was the night that a Serpent Party broke out in the Edge of Sin's parking lot in celebration. There were fires lit in barrels spread out across the lot, with plenty of tables piled high with food and drink, and dozens of Serpents and Serpent adjacents roaming around and already getting started. The large van pulled into the lot to the cheers of everyone there, and one by one the boys stepped out of the back and took their first breath of home in over a year and a half. Decky had stepped out first, followed by Sonny and then the others. The first thing he did was scan the welcoming faces in search of one person: ReyRey. Charlie could wait, but Decky's big brother and veritable leader (barring only Big Rey himself, of course) would probably kill him if he greeted anyone else other than him first. Once he'd done that he could find whatever Serpent was watching over Danny until they'd gotten there.

Trailing past snake-patched jackets and receiving claps to the back and shoulder as he looked for the familiar imposing figure of ReyRey, the other freshly freed Serpents followed right after. When the other boys noticed how stiffly Decky received the friendly welcomes, they quickly made sure to bracket him from the onslaught, explaining in low tones that he was still healing from Hatchet’s attack two weeks prior. That allowed Decky to breathe and for their whole group to move a little quicker. And there, at the back of the lot near the Serpent entrance to Edge of Sin, was the man they had been searching for. Decky walked up to him, waiting on the edge of his personal boundaries as always, right hand pressing into the injury on his left side as if it were the only thing keeping him up. As always, he kept still and waited for the man’s conversation to end and to be acknowledged.

His fever had broken two days after Poppy’s visit, but the infection had been in constant flux, and unfortunately, it was not a mild day for him. He felt aggravated and a little dizzy, and he hasn’t been able to stomach anything for the past day. He just wanted to greet ReyRey, find Danny and keep him at his side all night, and maybe do a damn line or two to forget about the fact that he felt like a warmed-over pile of shit on a hot day.

Maybe he could even avoid seeing Hard Times altogether tonight. He wasn't sure he could keep his cool with his already short fuse.

Cigarette between his fingers, drink in hand and girl on his lap, ReyRey glanced past the whore and at the small crew heading towards him. He spat on the floor and shoved the girl off of him "Go find yourself a pole to ride, mami. I got business” R2 pulled himself up to his feet and opened his arms wide to greet the newly arrived Decky and his boys. ”Well well, it’s the juvie boys. Tell me guys, which one of you dropped the soap the most? I reckon it was lil Sunshine over here. Lord knows you been just waiting for Decky to give you an Eiffel Tower. Get in here, you little jerk offs.” He embraced all of them with a hug and a kiss to the cheek.

There were laughs had throughout the group as they received their welcome, Sunshine with a little more of a blush than the rest at ReyRey's words. While luckily none of them had dropped the soap- at least not with other Serpents around to watch their back- that didn't mean none of them had gotten any action on the inside either. Aside from a very dedicated-to-Findley Prof, all the Serpents had managed to keep themselves busy but that didn't make hearing ReyRey's depiction of Sunshine any easier on the boy's ears.

"All safe an' unmolested, if not unmarred," Decky finally replied for the group, grinning at ReyRey past the pain the hug had caused. A welcome back was a welcome back, no matter your current wounds.

"I'm certainly scarred from sharin' a cell with you two Energizer bunnies." Prof muttered from behind Decky, receiving a middle finger directed at him from behind the younger's back.

"Least ya didn't get stabbed, bitch!" Decky singsonged in response, generating a truly impressive eye roll from their chemist. "So R2, wa's new?"

ReyRey returned to his “throne” and for a brief moment became lost in thought. Whispers of sweet nothings, and the image of green and white… Snapping out of his trance, he looked at his amassed underlings and let out a hearty laugh. ”You mean besides you ass bandits being home? Well, let’s see. Profits are up but our rep is way down, wanna know why?” the kingsnake sprung to his feet and slapped Decky hard in the face, with enough force to knock the youth to the ground. ”Cos your boy Decker killed the fucking Queen of this stinking town. He fucked up, kid.”

Decky stared at the ground for a hot second, his side burning from the twist to the ground and breathing short as pain flared from his hip to his ribs. Sonny had lunged toward Decky on instinct, only to be grabbed back by Prof and Ransom as the two pulled him to the back of their little group. Everyone knew that ReyRey barely stood Sonny, that the boy's natural attitude seemed to personally grate on the man for reasons unknown. Having him jump in the middle of something between him and Decky was like asking for a beating.

Decky was grateful for that. At least the second of lively distraction allowed him to regain his breath. The slap had been hard- R2 never did things half assed after all- and Decky had definitely bit into his cheek when the hand had connected. He pushed himself back up to his feet and squared his shoulders, eyes void of his swirling emotions as he met ReyRey's similar browns. Nobody needed to know what he was feeling right now, emotions had no place here. They needed their captain, not some kid who chose the wrong replacement but still felt loyal to him as a friend. But he was always more loyal to ReyRey, and that had to show. He pulled his hand away from his wet side, the stitches once again torn and wound leaking blood and infection, and spoke up.

"I'll take care of it. He could avoid me before by not visitin' me inside--" he spat a glob of blood to the side to show his opinions on that cowardly move. "--he ain't 'boutta skirt away any longer. His shady ass needs ta gimme some answers." he kept his gaze on ReyRey, no shake in his voice as he asked, "Til I see 'im, what's my punishment for the bad Vouch?"

He'd beg later. When it's just him and ReyRey alone he'll get on his fuckin' knees and beg ReyRey to allow Charlie to stay on as a Serpent. If only to help his mother, if only on a low-ranked basis. He may be pissed at Hard Times, but Momma Decker didn't deserve to suffer for his stupidity.

Behind him, his crew held their breath.

”I haven’t decided yet” Rey adjusted the rings on his fingers after the slap. ”At least not in full but to start…” the serpent monarch glanced at Decky’s crew, his support bubble, his familia and grinned like a rattlesnake. "To start, you get ten lashings. You are going to get on your hands and knees like a dog, begging and your boys are gonna hit you, one by one, with my belt. Then some pledges are gonna hit you some more, then I’m going to tear you up and you will say thank you, ReyRey, may I have another?. That, that’s where we start”

The older man picked up his beer from the side and took and downed it in one. His face was tired and he looked like he hadn’t slept. The night was beginning to wear thin on him. ”You be at the Sin tomorrow. In the meantime, enjoy your first night of freedom. Get your hole, get a drink. Make peace with the fact that after tonight, you got ground to make up. My boy HB is around here somewhere, find him. Show him the South Side way. Welcome back, Boaz.” Rey turned away and headed off into the crowd of people, soon disappearing from view.

Once he was gone, all the statues behind him came back to life, his crew murmuring worriedly as they closed around him again. His head was pounding, his side was burning and bleeding, his mouth tasted like copper and he was in for a beating in less than 12 hours. He deserved it, anyway. First, he let his guard down in Juvie and got jumped, and then Hard Times fucked up under his vouch. Now after tomorrow he's gonna be walking funny in the least enjoyable way possible. Decky's staring past all the faces of his crew and in the direction ReyRey had left.

He'd still brought him into his arms and kissed his cheek in welcome. He'd just entrusted him with someone he called HB- and who the fuck was that that he's so important to ReyRey?- so it wasn't like he was getting dropped to the side for his failures. ReyRey was giving him leeway: a rare thing for the man.

"-ain't gonna fuckin' belt ya Mob, yer still fucked up from Hatchet!" Sonny's words cut through his thoughts, bringing him back to the real world. As real as it was while gray tinted the edges of his vision and each breath felt like embers flying within his lungs. He blinked at Sonny slowly, still trying to process what the other said as all the stimulus of the night started filtering back into his senses.

"Yes...you are." he finally replied, spitting a glob of blood out of his mouth and shakily wiping his mouth with the back of his arm.

"No I ain't!"

"Then he'll put you on the fuckin' ground next ta me, Sunshine." Decky growled weakly, pinching the bridge of his nose as if it would help the headache at all. The others were watching on as though it was a fatal tennis match.

"So let 'im do it then!" Decky flinched back violently at the words, the final twist in his stomach's coffin as he found the nearest fire-less barrel and emptied the meager contents he had been able to take in in the van. Jokes and Creed fell into place on either side of him on instinct, and he could feel and hear other partygoers' attention on him despite it already being well known that he wasn't in the best of health.

“So do it!” Decky yelled, making his father jerk back in surprise before the scowl retook his features and another sharp crack! was heard through the room as Beni left a hand shaped mark on his cheek.

“You wanna take his beatin’,” Beni replied with a poisonous glare.
“that’s just fine. Lana, keep the other watchin’.”

"Wait wh-”

CRACK!

“You didn’t think he’d get off that easy did you? You taking his punishment doesn’t teach him anythin’ unless he fuckin’ sees it!”

CRACK!

Decky picked his head up from the edge of the barrel and reached a hand back, blindly reaching for Sonny's jacket. The other boy didn't disappoint, stepping into Decky's space so he could latch hold.

"Never take a fuckin' beatin' for me, 'specially one ya c'n fuckin' 'void," he half slurred, half pleaded as he finally turned around and buried his face in the crook of Sonny's neck, the familiar scent of his Serpent jacket helping him to relax a fraction. Sonny stared at the top of his head as he tried to figure out his violent reaction. Suddenly, his arms tensed around the dark eyed boy as he remembered the night they joined the Serpents.

“They kept Danny in our room,” Decky let out with a broken sob. “They made ‘im watch and now he’s in there ‘n’ I’m stuck out here. They made him watch, Sunshine.”

"Okay, Mob," Sonny finally replied, kissing the top of his head as the other still wouldn't leave his spot. "Okay, I'll…fuck idunno, I'll pretend we're doin' some exhibitionist crap or somethin'," they both chucked weakly while the rest of the crew exchanged hushed conversation around them, creating a bubble of privacy for their Captain and Lieutenant. "We always figure it out, us two."

Decky finally pulled away from Sonny, and at this point the rest of the crew had glared away the curious partygoers. Prof looked over his shoulder and gave Decky a stern glance, eyes tracing over his now very red tank top.

"To Fins. Now."

---

Decky stepped back out of the Edge feeling more grounded than he had in two weeks. Prof had stayed behind so he and Findley could celebrate his return. Ransom had disappeared with Prof's cousins and fellow Serpents Ducaleon "Duke" and Dolce "Dutchess" Booker, and wasted no time in pulling his literal partner in crime away to dance after the siblings had been properly reunited with their cousin. Jokes and Creed had gone to their dorm as soon as they were sure Decky was in Fin's safe hands. Molotov had broken off halfway to the dorm in order to indulge in the Edge's bar, muttering something about wanting to get blitzed and stay that way.

Sunshine stepped out behind him, sucking obscenely on the lollipop Fin always gave them as a joke. Decky gave him a rough grin in response to the noises he was making, rolling his eyes and taking the lollipop out of Sonny's mouth and giving him a bruising kiss before keeping the candy for himself, popping it into his own mouth. Fin and Prof always made great pills, and luckily Prof wasn't the only producer for the serpents. But since she had been helping him make pain meds for her MawMaw since they were kids it was something Fin did completely on her own while the crew was inside. They worked damn well too, the pain in his side was still there, but it was as if there was a layer of softness over everything. She had cleaned out the infection as best she could before stitching him back up, and told him to take it easy in that long suffering tone that meant she knew he wouldn't. Pain no longer flared at every step and while the world was a bit muted along with it, he felt he was ready to actually experience the party.

"Go find Danny for me, will ya Sunshine? I'm gonna go find this HB kid ReyRey spoke 'bout." Sonny nodded and headed off into the crowd, Decky doing so in the opposite direction. He spoke to a few of the groups milling about and after a few minutes was finally directed towards a guy about an inch taller than him with dark brown hair in one of the corners of the lot. He approached slowly but confidently, his walk still stilted from the wound but much smoother than before Findley had gotten ahold of him. His cheek was already bruised from ReyRey's hit, but he couldn't feel it at all.

"Oy, yer HB yeah?" he asked, leaning against the brick behind him as he settled beside the other boy. "'parently I'm a new tour guide for ya." he popped the lollipop out of his mouth and gave the guy a sharp, toothy grin. "'N' I've always got somethin' ta show."

Mika rolled his eyes as soon as he heard someone whose voice he didn't recognize call him by his street name. And when he turned around, he met this boy's gaze with something in the neighborhood of boredom and unamused. "Were you now? And lemme guess, you're supposed to be the cure for my apparent need to loosen up, right?" It was clear in the way Mika spoke that he wasn't in the mood to do anything that even resembled what this Urban Justin Bieber knock-off had in mind. "Just go tell Rey I'm fine. Or whatever ya need to that'll make him happy."

Realizing he had approached this guy the wrong way, Decky released his playful air and came back with an eyeroll of his own. "I'm not goin' back to ReyRey ta tell 'im anythin' but the truth," he said blandly. "don't think my side could handle another smack if I lie to 'im. He told me ta show you the way an' I'mma do that whether or not either of us likes it." He frowned as he stuck the lollipop back in his mouth, watching the rest of the party from their secluded little corners. "Just 'cause I can be a lil' fun don't mean I'mma be your personal fleshlight or some shit, I'm not some hanger-'round. Besides, looks like your ass is already occupied by that stick up it."

He barely registered his last words, and had to suppress a flinch when he did. He still had almost no idea who this kid was, either. He had been half worried that HB was meant to be his replacement before some of the party goers' gossip had reached his ears. HB was favored and taken in by the snake royalty, and he was from outside Edenridge. That's all he could go off of right now. The pills were working too good if he was going to be running off at the mouth like Sunshine always did. Speaking of, he couldn't see Danny or Sonny in the crowd and his shoulders were tensing the longer there was no sight of either. It was a damn parking lot, how hard is it to find one twelve year old in a sea of serpents?

“Excuse me?” Mika raised a brow at this guy at that last comment he threw at him. “Who the hell says I have anything south of the border?” He asked, clearly offended at this presumptuous asshat’s words.

He was already in a bad mood. He told Rey Rey he didn’t want to come. He even told Big Rey that he didn’t want to come, but it wouldn’t be until it came at the behest of Ley, that fucking viper who Mika found himself having a soft spot for, that he had been convinced to give it a chance. Ley, the only person who thus far had been getting through to Mika ever since he was forced to live in this shithole of a town. Not even that brief moment of understanding with that Belmonte girl a few weeks ago had any lasting effects on him. He still hated this place. He still hated that he was forced to live here for whatever reason.

And he hated whoever this fuckass was and his inability to take no for an answer. “Are you hard of hearing or just a balvan? Because I said I don’t need any tour guide and I'm already in a pretty bad mood.” Mika turned away from him. “So go find one of your butt buddies or whatever it is you need to do to leave me the fuck alone.”

"Jesus, I'm just tryina do my fuckin' job here," Decky growled out, staring up at the heavens like they would help him just once in his life. "Yer over here actin' like sayin' no to R2 is a common thing 'round here. I dunno if that's privilege or ignorance comin' from you but if it's the latter it'll change fast enough." He wiped a hand down his face and took a deep breath. "Look, I got a hole in my side and a brother to find, I don't know how ta talk to ya and I don't actually fuckin' wanna but yer my assignment now so-" he was cut off as someone collided into his side, and suddenly the painpills seemed nonexistent once more. His breath-and the lollipop- was punched out of him all at once and he half crumpled over the small figure of Danny, who had wrapped himself right around the elder Boaz.

"Decky!" He called in excitement before he saw how white his brother's face had gotten. "Ohmygod! Your wound, I'm so sorry!" He went to lurch backwards as if his touch was poisonous, before throwing himself right back in place as Decky began to collapse.

"W-were ya that mad 'bout me goin' insi-ah-inside, Boychik?" Decky attempted to joke, but it all came out much more strained than he had wanted it to. At Danny's distressed face he huffed and dropped a hand onto the younger boy's mop of curls, pushing his forehead to his own. "'M kiddin', know it was 'n accident. 'M fine"

"The slurred speech says otherwise, lekish!"

Sonny stumbled out of the crowd then, eyes wild in his search for the young Boaz boy. His shoulders relaxed when he saw the two brothers, despite the fact that Decky had obviously taken another hit to his wound judging by his curled posture and pale face. He grinned weakly at the sight before calling to Danny.

"You should join a fuckin' track team you lil' speedster," he said with an eyeroll before reassessing something in his mind. "Or maybe I'm outta shape…" he trailed off as he watched the brothers, taking in the moment for a second before turning his gaze to the outlier of the little group. Decky had completely lost interest in the other boy in favor of his brother, but he still knew he was there. It was evident in the way that even though Danny was fluttering around his brother like an excited puppy, Decky always made sure to remain between the young Boaz and the unknown player. Jeez, the guy seemed to take brooding lessons from ReyRey.

"...'Sup?"

There was a lot that happened in the past few minutes and Mika wasn’t sure what to focus on. Seeing hearing something about a wound reopening or something along those lines wasn’t the sort of thing Mika could completely ignore. He witnessed the whole ordeal when a younger kid hugged Urban Biebs, or Decky but Mika was still going to call him Urban Justin Bieber and then when that hug made all hell break loose. But amidst the chaos, there was something else Mika fixated on.

Growing up in the house he did, Boychik was a term used so often from a few of his uncles that visited. Mika knew it and, maybe it was just him being homesick, but he kind of focused on that. They might have not seen it, but Mika half-smiled at everything. Even Decky, the Urban Justin Bieber, was getting some kind of reaction from him.

“Hey,” Mika finally said to one of the guys who decided to acknowledge him, “So, Decky is that guy’s name, huh? He gonna be alright? The fuck is up with his wound, anyway?”

"Mob's fine, it happened two weeks ago," Sunshine tilted his head, tracking the boy's small smile. "They didn't treat him in juvie so it's been gettin' infected on an' off." He answered easily. Decky had allowed himself to slide down against the brick so he was sitting against the wall, Danny immediately curling up under his arm on his uninjured side.

"'Tis but a flesh wound 'n' all that shit," Decky gasped out. "I'll get more pills from Fins an' I'll be all ready ta go. Gotta be, for tomorrow."

"What's tomorrow?" Danny asked, eyes wide. "You shouldn't be working again already Decky, you couldn't even get out of bed last week to see us at visitation."

"Nothing's tomorrow bubbe." Decky replied quickly before Sonny could put his foot in his mouth. "Just Serpent business, gotta get my corner back in order after a year an' a half away."

"An' I get to sit in the dorm waiting for you, right?" Danny pouted, expecting to be left to his own devices until Decky would return to him. His brother winced slightly before rubbing at the back of his neck.

"Nah, sorry bubbe but you're either gonna be with Pops or Phil tomorrow, I'll pick you up once it's all over."

Danny frowned at his older brother, but kept his mouth shut. He could tell something was up, but there was a lot that his serpent family wouldn't tell him. Always for his own safety, they'd say. Decky tilted his head up towards HB, unsure if the boy would be part of his punishment in the morning as well, or if he had known about ReyRey's ideas for punishment before Decky had.

"So, since we ain't got much choice in seein' a lotta each other: this is my baby brother Danny, he's almost always around with one of the Haze/Carlisle corner crew," his voice was coming back a little stronger now that he was sitting down and taking in enough air. "I'm Decky, newly returned corner Captain, and that's Sunshine over there, my lieutenant."

Mika gave the little kid a soft smile. He reminded him of his younger sisters. Stacy specifically came to mind. They both had soft eyes. “Sup--” Mika said as he looked at Sunshine for a few seconds and then drew his eyes back to Decky. “I’m Mikhail, but everyone calls me Mika or whatever the fuck you want.” Mika didn’t know how to do this...pleasantries thing. Even when he didn’t have a ‘stick up his ass’, he wasn’t sure how to be friendly, let alone with people he barely knew. But maybe it was the fact there was a sense of familiarity with Decky and his friends, it almost reminded him of his own crew back in Brooklyn.

Decky quirked a brow at the boy's change in tone, catching his gaze on Danny and slowly putting things together. So he had a soft spot for kids, huh? Danny remained buried in his side, but pulled his face away when Mika had spoken. The black eye Sonny had mentioned after visitation was almost completely healed, the coloring a light yellow and brown instead of the angry purple and black it had been when it was fresh. He was watching Mika warily but curiously, and Decky nudged the younger boy in his side.

"You got a question or some shit?"

Danny mumbled under his breath in response, and Decky could barely hear him when he was right next to his ear.

"Speak up Danny, he ain't gonna hit ya-" he sent a glare towards Mika in warning as if he would be able to stop the boy from hitting his younger brother in his current state. "-an' I can't understand yer mutterin'."

"Mikhail Krutikov has really good books," he spoke up, eyes shifting anywhere but Mika's eyes, but at least now facing the older boy. "There's one with Yiddish kids tales, That's the one I'm reading. And then there's one called Yiddish Fiction and the Crisis of Modernity 1905-1914 that Decky was reading me before he got pinched." His eyes were wide as he recalled the information, a spark of excitement alight within them. Decky was staring at Danny like he'd grown another head. Danny loved reading, but he didn't realize the boy memorized the titles that Decky was reading to him, especially when it had been almost two years since the book had been cracked. And who pays attention to the author like that? Given Decky had told Danny about him and they'd watched his lectures, but Decky didn't even remember until Danny mentioned him!

Damnit, his brother was probably some genius and no one even knew because he's been left behind by anyone that would be able to help him forward in that regard. He was wasted potential in human form, and Decky didn't have enough foothold or good grace to propel him forward the way he needed to.

Danny seemed to notice Decky's bewildered expression, and shrunk a bit before his brother caught the action and threw him a reassuring grin.

"I...uh...just wanted to know if you ever wanted to read him maybe? No one else around here does…"

Mika had just looked at Danny for a few moments and briefly did the same with Decky. “I’d be honored, Danny,” Mika said sweetly, kneeling down to Danny’s eye level. “You know, my mom told me that my father named me after that very author. Said it was one of the few authors that he enjoyed. And I kinda just grew up on stuff by him and others like him.” Danny's eyes practically had stars in them as he stared up at the new boy. This had been the first time Mika actually opened up about his parents or anything. Since coming to Edenridge, Mika had shut himself off and hated the fact that he didn’t feel any sense of familiarity or belonging despite him living with his godfather. But he was starting to feel that with Decky’s crew. “--If that’s okay with your brother, that is,” Mika said, looking up at Decky.

Decky stared at Mika with as much bewilderment as he had Danny, wondering briefly if Findley had slipped a hallucinogen into his meds. What a fuckin' attitude change. The thought made Decky grin, knowing that with masks like that the other boy would do just fine with the Serpents. He gave Mika his first genuine smile, approving of his actions towards his baby brother.

"Danny could always use more readin' buddies," he offered in response, giving a shallow shrug with his right shoulder. "He can read the kid's tales on his own but Krutikov's heavier shit is a bit too wordy, he needs some runnin' commentary for it."

"I like the running commentary," Danny corrected with a pout, causing Decky to turn his grin on him. He blushed and crossed his arms muttering, "I like the way you explain things."

Decky laughed, catching Sonny with a relaxed grin as he took in the scene before him silently. Even he knew when not to kill a moment every now and then. He turned his attention back to Mika.

"We caught one of his free lectures usin' one'a the library computers a couple years back. Lotta it went over my head but I did what I could."

Mika watched in silence, a small curve of a smile on his lips as he watched the brothers talk about Krutikov and how Decky couldn’t handle the heavier stuff. When he mentioned that they caught one of his lectures, Mika heard himself chuckling before the others would. “Don’t blame yourself too much, Decky,” Mika said, placing a hand on his shoulders, smiling at the boy. He made sure not to press too hard because of his fragile condition. “I’ve been reading his stuff for half my life and I still have a tough time comprehending it on a literary basis. My father was so intent on grilling some aspect of literature in me -- at least whenever the govnosos was around.” Thinking about his shithole of a father always made him feel sour, but right now, he couldn’t help but think of Ivan fondly. Even if he wasn’t always around and Viktor always seemed to be his preferred son, especially when it came to showing any sign of affection or acknowledgement, Mika wasn’t completely ignored by him. Or at least in those early years he wasn’t.

Decky and Danny had both flinched slightly when Mika had raised his hand, relaxing once all it did was fall onto Decky's shoulder. The other boy even maintained a gentleness to his condition that only his crew seemed to before. The way Mika spoke of his father seemed to be with a bit of yearning and a hint of bitterness. Decky only understood one of those emotions in regards to parents, but he wasn't going to begrudge someone for not getting their body beat or sold every day of their childhood. From behind Mika's crouched form, Sonny nodded to Decky and slowly melted back into the crowd, most likely to find the parts of his crew that wasn't fucking each other's brains out and give them an update on this Honey Badger character. Sonny could run information with the best of them, so long as it's not required to go Northside to deliver it.

Looking back to Mika, Decky smiled and gave a mock-pompous sniff. "Well, I guess ya ain't so bad if Krutikov is in your library." He said, keeping his nose in the air until Danny started giggling uncontrollably at the face he was making. He then broke down with laughter himself before grabbing his aching side and taking in a sharp breath through his teeth. "Motherfucker, this is bullshit. Over two week and this thing's still actin' like it's new."

"It's because of the infection, Decky. It basically keeps everything from healin' 'cause it's irr-irritatin' everythin'." Danny stumbled a bit over one of the words, blushing as he did so. He was always so embarrassed when he pronounced a word wrong or used it in the wrong context. Decky would always respond that he learned everything through books alone and that it was nothing to be ashamed of. One of his few lessons that never stuck. He was about to give the same speech anyway when something at the edge of the lot caught his eye. Charlie Decker had arrived, and with him all the bitterness and anger Decky had pushed aside. ReyRey and the others were gonna beat him tomorrow because Hard Times fucked up. Some chick was dead because Hard Times didn't check his batches right. He was Decky's responsibility.

"Watch boychik for a sec. Got someone ta...talk to." His eyes were stormy as they latched onto Charlie and didn't let go. His adrenaline was already pumping as he stood up and pushed himself off the wall despite Danny's protests. His unoccupied crew seemed to melt out of the woodwork behind him as he watched, as if they'd felt their Captain's rage. As he got closer to Charlie, he masked his face with a large smile, arms wide as if he were greeting an old friend for the first time in a while. Which is what he should have been doing. Instead, once he got close he called out, "Hard Times!" before darting into his space and giving him a full force right hook to his jaw, sending him to the ground. Decky then crouched over him, grin still on his face as she stared his friend down with cold eyes. "Ya stopped visitin' me!" The smile finally dropped to a scowl as he glared. "Any particular reason?"

Once again, Charlie Decker had found himself in a situation he didn’t want to be in. This time; he was at a serpent party but this wasn’t just any party, it was a serpent welcome home party. He didn’t want to be there, he had no right to be there considering what had transpired over the last few weeks but yet there he stood or at least, where he now lay after a punch from his friend, from his brother, Decky. He spat a glob of blood onto the floor and looked up at the visage of the elder Boaz glaring at him with rage.

”Deck I…” As Charlie raced through all the words that he could say, all the things he could do to try and convince Decky that he had nothing to do with the bad batch and Allison’s death he reached an epiphany of sorts. It wouldn’t matter if he managed to prove to the Carlisle crew his innocence; the town had already judged him. They had judged him from before he was even born, a bastard, a criminal born; he was guilty as charged before there had ever been a trial. Decky's narrowed eyes were watching his every moment.

The boy stood up to his full height; he was always the tallest in class and now they were in high school a lot of people confused Charlie for a senior. He towered over Decky and the rest of his boys, his deep set dark eyes staring almost blankly at them.”Life isn’t always what we want it to be, Decky. You should know that more than most” He placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, the smaller's flinch was more violent than it has been in years. ”Welcome home buddy, enjoy your party” He turned away from the crowded group and walked back towards Lyon Park.

The crew watched the distance between him and Decky grow, which just seemed to make Decky's face redder with each step. His blood was practically singing and he couldn't tell if the pounding in his head was blood rushing or just a damn fine migraine in the works. His vision tunneled in at Charlie's retreating back. The boy had barely glanced at him before taking his leave, barely stood his ground.

"Decky Boaz!" Danny's voice called out, making Decky turn and wobble as he caught sight of his brother again, the boy has dragged Mika through the crowd by hand and was looking at him with confusion and alarm. "You're bleeding again! Just to punch Charlie?! Why'd you punch Charlie?"

All the words hit him but didn't process. He did indeed tear Findley's new stitches with the twist he threw into his punch- and she would make him pay dearly for that later no doubt- and Charlie's quick retreat had practically taken all the wind out of Decky's sails to make way for confusion. He stared at Danny as if waiting for the words to process. He took one step towards his distraught brother before his world tilted and went black.

[Venus]

_{A @LovelyComplex, @Venus & @metanoia Collaboration || featuring Niles Sinclair, Caitlin “Cece” Cleary, & Mikhail “Honey Badger” Zima}
____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Up until this point, Niles and Caitlin had only video chatted and called one another. They never sat in a cafe together to talk about their daily woes. They never went to each other’s houses for family gatherings. They never spent more than a minute or two in the hallway to talk about their shared classes. Hell, they didn’t even have projects together. True quality time with one another was not in their fates, at least not until now.

Usually, at school, when Cailtin approached Niles, she was passing out a flyer or waving him to buy one of her strawberry cupcakes. When she opened up her mouth to say something, anything, even a small hi, Natalia barked. That’s just how things went and at the time, Niles didn’t have the mental space or energy to act on it. At the time, Natalia was all he really had and he didn’t want to compromise that with a girl he didn’t know.

Niles truly believes he and Caitlin connected right when they needed to. If they had crossed the bridge any earlier to bond, he doubts she would’ve been as open with him. He sure as hell wouldn’t have been honest with her, so why should he expect the same?

Even so, it was phenomenal how distance, being states away, is what brought them together. He felt like she was the closest person to him — the one that understood how he felt, without saying much. All she did was look at him in a way that showed she too lived through a painful journey.

They absolutely did talk about plenty of topics, from his love for motorcycles to her fondness for baking. They couldn’t stop talking, which is impressive for him because he used to hate conversations because more often than not they felt incredibly artificial. But that’s not what they had. He knew she wasn’t like most girls and that deep down, there was something behind that beautiful smile that told him: it’s going to be okay. We’re going to be okay. Let’s get through this, together.

This.

Whatever this was.

Made him feel whole.

Strange how they grew up in the same small town, didn’t live too far from one another, a couple blocks apart, and never got to know one another until after graduation. Caitlin was a Cleary: she was a legacy to one of the great founding families of Edenridge, and everyone knew the faces and names of the big four. Niles? Niles was the doctor’s son. They were known for better or for worse. It took them growing up to find each other, her, in Boston, pursuing pre-pharm and him, in Chicago, embarking on the long journey of becoming a doctor. An OB/GYN doctor specifically.

Here they were on their first date, before they headed to the 5 star luxury hotel, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, that Niles booked under his father’s name. Damn right he was going to make this a night to remember. He had to set the bar high so she didn’t want to leave him for anyone else.

Sure, Niles had months to plan and most of the money being spent was his own, having worked overtime at his uncles’ firm as a part-time legal secretary. All he needed his dad to do was give him a copy of his ID and make the hotel reservation. Luckily, his girl had a fake ID and since this was a Friday night, the Seaport District was lively, which meant a busy night for any food place. As expected, their waitress only glanced at their IDs and brought out their wine. Moscato for Cece and Chardonnay for him. He was likely going to get Chilean sea bass and oysters, so a dry, white wine paired well with both.

Sitting at a private table, on the second floor, the floor dedicated to intimate experiences, at Legal Harborside Restaurant, Niles held Caitlin’s hand from across their small table and absentmindedly grazed his thumb back and forth on her skin. He watched her smiling while looking out at the Boston Harbor-- observing her sweet honey lips, her sun kissed hair that tumbled over her shoulders, and her sparkling blue green eyes, lit by the candlelight.

He chose this restaurant because the design took full advantage of the harbor view and is reminiscent of a ship’s dining room. While the bottom floor was for casual dining and the top floor was for the bar and snacks, the middle floor was extremely romantic and gorgeously scenic.

Engrossed, Niles contained all his excitement with a half smile. The night felt absolutely perfect, not only was there good weather, but her presence, her soul, was like sunshine to him. He hoped this meant a good omen. He hoped this meant there would only be smooth sailing for them from here on out. He hoped this meant…

Niles wasn’t the optimistic type. Honestly, he leaned more toward being a cynic than anything else. With Cece, though? He wanted to be positive. He wanted to believe because he wanted her. “Thank you again for picking me up. I hope this isn’t too much,” he wondered out loud, breaking the silence and going against his desire to continue and take in the view.

While her thoughts had ventured away with the breathtaking sight of the sparkling waters of the Boston harbor, it was Niles’ velvety voice expressing his gratitude at her deed that pulled the redhead back to reality. Caitlin flashed her boyfriend a sweet smile, and reassuringly squeezed the hand holding hers a few times. “You don’t need to thank me, love. After this beautiful evening you've planned for us, I should be the one thanking you," she said with a laugh, her eyes sparkling even brighter as she felt the weight of her nervousness start to fall off her shoulders. Beaming, she took both of Niles' hands in hers and locked her eyes on his. "Thank you so much for everything, Niles. Truly. I'm sure we're going to have the most wonderful night."

“Oh, isn’t this just sweet?” From behind Cece’s side of the table, a lone Honey Badger with the expression of someone who might’ve been listening in on the two lovebirds talk about how much they meant to each other and blahblahblah.

The sound of a familiar deep, masculine voice sent chills down Cece’s spine. Out of the many scenarios she had pictured about things that could go wrong during this date, the presence of Mikhail Zima was certainly not one of them. During the spring of their sophomore year of high school, the unlikely pairing had begun a friendship that eventually blossomed into a sweet, yet passionate romance with no official label on it. It was something neither one of them had been looking for, but that they welcomed all the same. They had chosen to keep things under wraps, of course; each of them with a valid and particular reason of their own. For Mika, it had been in hopes of not getting his new lover involved with the dangerous side of his life. For Cece, it had been to prevent garnering herself unwarranted attention and to avoid conflicts with her family. Their time together was an exhilarating rollercoaster that had not only taught Caitlin so much about herself, but that had made her feel hopeful and alive again after difficult challenges she’d had to face in the past.

Unfortunately, their entanglement was abruptly cut short. A few days before she began her college journey nearly two years previously, the Cleary girl had confessed her feelings to Big Rey’s adoptive son, hoping that the feelings were mutual and they’d make things official before she left. Instead, what she got was a definitive end to their involvement: with each of the words Mika had used stinging her like a punch to the gut. After this painful goodbye, the two had thankfully not crossed paths during any of the times she’d returned home.

What were the odds that their first encounter after that awful day would be tonight?

The young woman could only stare between the newcomer and her boyfriend with wide, anxious eyes, swallowing hard but unable to even make a sound. There weren't many secrets that Cece held back from Niles. During a conversation they'd had about past entanglements, she had told Niles the story about how she’d gotten her heart broken by a Serpent before she’d gone to college. But given the bad blood between the two men because of Natalia Belmonte, she had purposely omitted disclosing the identity of said royalty gang member. Clearly, the secret lover would no longer be a secret anymore.

Mikhail skipped over Niles intentionally, though there was a small moment where he glared at the constant thorn at his side. Instead, the young Russian turned to Cece. He intentionally looked at her — all of her.

“Yeah, you still look good.” He’d say with a smirk. The girl’s body visibly stiffened at the way he looked at her, and her freckled cheeks blazed up immediately after his suggestive comment.

Niles, on cloud nine from being called love, was not bothered by the new presence. Mika and him, they never did hit it off because it was clear that Natalia entertained fantasies with this Russian boy when she was involved with Niles. Still, that was all in the past and he hadn’t spoken to his ex best friend in years. All Niles cared about right now was making Caitlin comfortable and so he kept his half smile on, as he stared at Mika, who 'coincidentally' found them at a restaurant an hour and so away from Edenridge.

Niles wasn’t dumb, he knew how to find someone. He knew how to do a lot of things that most people didn’t know he knew. Well, aside from Natalia. She knew him inside out. He wasn’t naive, he wasn’t innocent, and he certainly wasn’t incapable. “Doesn’t she?” Niles’ green stare went from the unwelcomed party to his girlfriend, intertwining their fingers with one another, “And she’s all mine.” He gave the petrified Cece a reassuring glance, before turning his attention back at Mika, “It’s good to see you, Mika. I hope life’s been treating you well. It certainly has for me seeing how now, I get to call Cece my girlfriend.”

He didn’t bother taking his gaze off of Cece even after Niles, who bear in mind HB wanted nothing more than to punch that self-righteous look off of his face (he was assuming), had so graciously offered a tidbit of information that he found interesting. And let it be known it was the fact itself that he found interesting, not the person whose lips it had originated from. “Is that so?”

And there was a moment where HB was gritting his teeth that, of all people, Cece was actually with this inferior beta male. “That’s...fantastic.” It caused him almost-visible pain to say that. “Just fantastic. And how...lovely it is that you two decided to go on a date.” Paaain. So much pain.

“And how lovely for you to be in Boston with us! Please, join us. I insist.” Before Mika or Caitlin could oppose, Niles had already called a waiter and asked him to grab a seat, mentioning an ‘old friend’ had randomly come to visit. How surprising! They didn’t argue because a paying customer was a paying customer. In a matter of seconds, Mika had a chair.

As he sat there, HB was mulling over what seemed like a good idea in the beginning. He followed them and decided to make himself known. And now a real live Uno reverse was in play. In the time spent almost pouting about it, HB refused to acknowledge Niles. The only time he looked at him was when he was forced to when the waiter came over. Looking up at Cece, HB asked, ”So, how long you staying in town?”

Why was he talking to her like this?

Caitlin was quiet for a few heartbeats, a little confused frown on her face. Why Mika was talking to her as if she was an old friend he hadn’t seen in a while and not the girl who’s heart he’d broken, she would never understand. But that didn’t mean she’d have a lapse of good manners and ignore him, either.

“I’m not sure yet,” she somehow managed to croak out, grabbing the wine glass in front of her and downing it in one big, panicked gulp. The redhead wasn’t much of a drinker, but in moments like this she wished the faint tickle in her throat from the moscato would be the burning sensation left behind by a warm shot of something stronger. Even now, with Mika sitting beside her and directly addressing her, the girl kept her stare down on her lap. “Mom’s not doing too well, so I decided to stick around for a little bit until she feels better.”

“And I’ll stay in town for as long as you need me,” Niles addressed, ignoring the third party and focusing on his girlfriend, tightening his grip on her hand. While he couldn’t relate with watching his mother go through a slow death, he knew the fear behind it. He wasn’t given the courtesy to prepare for his mother’s death. It happened suddenly and abruptly. He was forced to accept that reality, immediately and without a choice. Even so, it did help prepare him to support Cece for whatever was to come for her and her mother.

“Why does it matter to you?” Niles once again glanced away from Cece, his green gaze locking with Mika’s brown eyes that tried to look away. While there was a welcoming gleam on Niles’ face, his eyes were clearly challenging his competitor, knowing well enough what his gain was.

HB laughed as he turned and finally looked at Niles. ”Whoa, what’s with the hostility, huh? I’m just curious is all. I haven’t seen my old friend in a while. So, I wanted to know how long because, obviously I don’t want to miss out on catching up with her when she’s not busy.” He’d return to Cece’s gaze. “And clearly we have plenty to talk about.”

“I’m sure she’ll find time to pencil you in. Y’know, after she meets my family and I, hers. We have a busy summer ahead of us.” Niles divulged, completely ecstatic to introduce her to his father, who couldn’t stop mentioning her for the past few months now. “I really do have someone so good. I can’t imagine keeping her secret, she deserves to be shown off and I’m going to do exactly that.” Leaning forward, Niles pulled her hand close and kissed it deeply.

A wave of shock ran through Cece’s previously paralized figure, and she whipped her head up to stare at Niles in panic and disbelief. She should’ve known that he’d put two and two together fast, but she hadn’t expected him using what she’d disclosed to him in confidence as a weapon in their war of words. Other girls would probably smirk and snicker at this display of loyalty: relishing in the fact that their current partner was getting revenge on their old one for breaking their heart. Caitlin, on the other hand, found it hard to do so. Hurting people, whether directly or indirectly, was not something she enjoyed partaking in. And judging by the way Mika’s breathing had become heavy and his fists were balled up, she knew that Niles’ words had struck a sore spot (even if she knew he would deny it if asked).

Did that mean that, in the end, he had actually cared about her, then?

Interrupting the love triangle, a waitress appeared with all the seafood the couple ordered and cleared her throat, “Excuse me…” Trying her best to avoid the tension that felt sharp and could cut her swiftly like a knife, the waitress began placing the food in front of the two that ordered, which was a lot. When she was done, she addressed the newcomer, “Can I get you anything?”

Without missing a beat, HB glanced at the waitress, who was looking as fine as any Southside girl he’d encountered, ”I don’t know - what’s the most expensive thing y’all make?” He asked her as one of his eyes fell on Niles.

“Hm, if you want to order from our raw bar, I’d say the shellfish platter but you can always go with the classic fourchu lobster!” The youthful blonde chirped, hoping he’d reply quickly so she could run away.

“Tell ya what, sweetie--” HB turned his gaze directly on Niles, smiling at him “--I’ll take them both.”

“Great! I’ll get right to it.”

Instead of showing any signs of annoyance, Niles let it be. He was already expecting to spend a lot tonight, and this was just going to make sure he did exactly that. “Well, if you’re so hungry, you are more than welcome to have some from the table.”

“Would you like to try one of my shrimp?” Caitlin nervously blurted out, looking up at Mika for the first time since he’d sat down beside her while offering up her plate. She was desperate to find a way to end the cutthroat, nerve-wracking exchange soon, so she leached onto the first impersonal subject that came up.

“So, she does speak!” HB teased as he happily took Cece up on her offer. As he stabbed one of it with a steak knife, HB fearlessly ate it without missing a beat, eating it all but the tacky tail at the end. He intended to emote his reaction vocally to piss off Niles, but what he didn’t anticipate was how delicious it was, which prompted an unintended “whoa” from him. “Man, this is some quality shrimp. Sure beats the dump back home. Nevermind the roach infestation that it’s known for, the shrimp isn’t even close in terms of taste.” HB looked at Cece for a moment, smiling at her as there was a piece of shrimp in his teeth, which he instantly dug out with his knife. “Yeah that’s good shit.”

As anxious as Caitlin was and as serious as she wanted to remain in this situation, there was no hiding hint of a smile that played around the corners of her mouth for the slightest of seconds. The way Mika had just behaved reminded her of the way things used to be between them: when he was the sweet, dorky, affectionate guy who snuck around Edenridge with her just so they could have a few stolen moments together... Not the chest-banging macho man he was pretending to be.

Instead of indulging in conversation, Niles grabbed his wine glass and gingerly took a sip, in silence. He watched the past lovers in front of him with dull eyes. He glanced at all his untouched food, having not eaten all day and now suddenly losing his appetite. Standing up from his seat, he dismissed himself to go outside and take in the view, “I’m sure you two have plenty to catch up on. Don’t let me get in the way of that.” Taking his beverage with him, he walked out to the second floor balcony room before Caitlin could even react. Leaning against the railing, reserved, he gazed at the horizon where the night sky met the reflective water and deeply sighed.

It might’ve seemed like Niles barely registered Niles’ departure, especially with how invested he was in glancing at Cece, but he could multitask. He wouldn’t have made it this far in Edenridge if he couldn’t read the room as well as juggle other things at the same time. And the fact was that Mika knew what he was doing. Most of what happened might’ve been improvised, because who the hell could anticipate Cece offering him her shrimp? Or Niles not acting like a little bitch immediately. But eventually, true colors showed. Like Mika had always intended on making their date a literal hell, typical Niles couldn’t handle the heat.

“Man, that’s lame,” he muttered under his breath. He watched Cece with one eye and Niles out on the balcony on the other, hunched over the edge of it as if he’s some brooding hero out of some novel. Well, this wasn't a fairy tale, Prince Melancholy.

As he stood up, Mika grabbed a piece of bread from the middle of the table as an excuse to step away and opened the door, though he wouldn’t step completely outside. “That was kind of rude, don’t you think? I mean, you left your incredibly attractive date--” Mika’s eyes went to Cece and he made sure she saw him, “--all alone to what? Sulk? Where’s the backbone? Where’s the fight?” Mika’s voice rose to dramatic levels as if trying to both hype and egg Niles on. “You’re honestly so anticlimactic, Niles. And disappointing. I really don’t get what she sees. You’re not even a man, are you? You’re a boy trying to be a man, but you fall so short.” Again, his gaze fell on Cece and lingered as he said, “Maybe in more ways than one, eh?”

“Is that so?” Niles turned himself, leaning his back against the railing. With bored eyes, he brought the glass back to his lips and took another sip. His expression was void of any emotion. Funny really, how self righteous Mika was acting when he was the one that broke Caitlin’s heart and he is the one clearly stalking her. Where was this man when she needed him? Honestly, he didn’t need to say or do anything more. He was doing enough himself.

By this point, the visibly furious Caitlin had reached her breaking point. It was one thing for Mika and Niles to exchange petty remarks due to the dislike festering between them for years. But it was quite a different matter when her ex was insulting her new boyfriend for no good reason (even if the lack of trust from mentioned boyfriend stung her).

Without warning, the redheaded girl suddenly rose from her chair and stormed towards the Russian boy with clenched fists. Once she had reached him, she stood straight in front of Mika, glaring hard at her ex-lover. "I don’t understand why you're so upset and determined to raise hell all of a sudden. When I went to you with my heart in my hands and told you how I felt about you a year ago, you blew me off. You just stood there and told me, straight to my face, that I was fooling myself about being in love with you, and that this wasn’t a fantasy where I got to be in a relationship with you. That I either accepted that truth or I didn’t, because you honestly didn't give a rat’s ass," she hissed at him, her voice breaking for a split second as she remembered the parting words he had said to her back then. Meanwhile, her blue-green eyes teared up at the still-painful memory. "Mika, I wanted to be with you. YOU were the one who chose to let go. So instead of sitting around feeling sorry for myself, I did what you told me to do: I accepted the truth, and I moved on with my life. I need you to do the same thing for me now. Please respect my decision, and leave us alone. I’m sorry.”

With one last tearful glance at Mika, Caitlin turned her back on her ex and walked the few steps from the restaurant to the balcony’s railing. The tears she’d been holding back at the plethora of feelings overwhelming her began to roll down her cheeks, leaving trails of black mascara behind. This was the reason why she was so terrified of finding happiness: because any time something positive happened to her, a gut-wrenching suckerpunch of negativity swiftly came along with it.

Frankly, it took every ounce of her little remaining self-control to not start sobbing right then and there.

“Can we please just go?” Cece murmured to Niles as soon as she was within earshot, looking up at him with pleading, heartbroken eyes.

Hearing the past feelings Caitlin had shared with Mika was not an easy pill to swallow. Even with her bravery to put herself in such a vulnerable state it was hard for him to think of as genuine. Niles had incredible trust issues and this made him realize he hadn’t grown as much as he thought he did. That wasn’t her fault. She didn’t know Mika was going to come and ruin their date. She didn’t know how deep Niles’ damage went. She didn’t know in great detail the past he and Mika shared.

How could he still be so heartless and feel absolutely betrayed? Niles knew everything he was feeling right now was all him and if he truly, deeply wanted Cece, no matter the competition, he had to push his selfish feelings aside. Still, hearing her say she had wanted Mika and that she was in love with him hurt like a bitch.

In good Sinclair fashion, Niles chose to stay stoic, absent of any sadness or anger, at least visible to the naked eye. The absence of emotion was his only way of indicating his pain in public. He didn’t like to show the skeletons in his closets nor did he feel like anyone had a right to them.

Trust, though?

He told himself last night he was going to trust her, so the least he could do was try. No matter how much it hurt and how much it terrified him, she deserved at least that. Cece might not be the one — he sure as hell hoped she was — but he wasn’t the type to back down on a decision and regret it.

All his life, all Niles knew was grief, depression, and existential dread. He wanted a chance to be happy. Why would he give Mika the satisfaction to ruin that? Why would he let that miserable soul pull him back to a place he thought he left? That’s the thing. He wouldn’t. Not when he’s gotten this far on his own, ever since Charlie Decker and he…

Turning to Caitlin, Niles broke the awkward, unnecessary long silence with a weak smile. He wasn’t good at reassuring, when he was the weak one in this dynamic but he would sure as hell try for her, especially when she looked like this. “Yeah, sure. Let’s go pay at the front.” Without looking back, the couple were on their way out of the restaurant and into the Boston night.

As he watched them walk away and saw them head for the exit/entrance, which was so obvious to him that they planned on just leaving him without so much of a word. Yeah sure, Cece went off on him, but he kind of expected that from her. He didn’t expect her to give him the cliffnotes of their break-up, but it was all just so...uninteresting. He heard it before and it was in the past. What he really wanted was for Niles to say something to him, especially when he literally had to carry himself into the guy’s face.

But nope, instead, he just mosied on away from him, saying absolutely nothing. He acted like it wasn’t worth his time. It was like he thought Honey Badger wasn’t worth his time.

This could not stand. What would people back in the southside think if they heard that Honey Badger allowed this to happen?

So he decided to do something about it. HB decided to ignore his ex’s plea. And as he carried himself into a brisk walk, he came up on Niles’ side so that he was pretty much sandwiched between him and Cece. “Man that was kind of rude, don’t you think?” Mika said, coming in front of Niles about a few feet so he could stop them both in their tracks. By this point, they were at the front, that same waitress was there and round two was about to kick off.

“Mika, stop it!” Caitlin tearfully pleaded to no avail. She knew the Serpent wouldn’t give up any time soon.

“And?” Niles didn’t give Mika the satisfaction of showing a rise or drop in emotion. Instead he signed the check and added, “You’re not really one for etiquette so drop the act.”

“Sir, is he…?”

“Bothering me? Yes. Absolutely. He didn’t make a reservation either so you might want to have your boss remove him from the premises.” Niles had enough and based on how he and Cece were dressed in comparison to Mika, the hostess did not hesitate to call security. “If this happens again, I can assure you I won’t be as kind.” Stepping back, he gestured with his finger for Cece to come to him as the security guards made their way and broke the distance between the couple and the unwanted guest.

Something about the lack of a reaction from Niles ticked Mika off -- nay, it fucking pissed him off. What did this asswipe think? That he was better than Honey Badger? That just because Cece chose him, he somehow was above him? That was ludicrous! Nobody could top Honey Badger. Nobody! Nevermind the circumstances that led their journeys here, seeing her with this guy made something in Mika’s stomach turn so much that he felt that ugly head rear back, the same one that truly made him one of the worst people to ever exist.

“Sir, come with me,” the security guard said. He went to grab Mika by the arm and he jerked his arm away.

And that’s when Mika stepped forward, prompting the other security guards to take an assertive stance with Mika. They grabbed both of Mika’s arms and pulled him back, dragging him out. But that wouldn’t happen before Mika got the last word in.

“Enjoy my sloppy seconds!” He shouted out as loud as he could, a sick grin on his face as the glorified Paul Blart cosplayers escorted him out.

[LovelyComplex]

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Having hidden herself behind a trash bin by the shed, a distance away from the group, who surrounded the picnic table, Sofia Belmonte, eldest daughter of Caterina Belmonte, was knelt down listening in to everything, noiselessly chewing her gum. She was curious about the mysterious letters not because she cared for Allison and how she died, but because deep down, she had a few... theories... about members in her family. She hoped to see these theories with her own eyes. She hoped to know things, especially about her family who were all full of secrets. Part of her wanted to unravel these secrets so she could freely live her life. Part of her knew some secrets had teeth and were best left alone. Still... she wanted to know.

If she had answers, especially how involved her uncle or aunt were with the people on the other side of the train tracks, maybe her parents wouldn't care that she had a group of friends here. That she liked someone from the southside. That she felt like her family could make a difference, if they got out of their comfort zone and chose to fight the system instead of play their roles this little town gave them. Sure, her grandpa was understanding but he didn't do anything to make change. Everyone in this town sits idle until shit hits the fan and when shit does go batshit? It's already too late.

As much as she loved her grandpa, he was an old dog, stuck in his ways. There was this boy named Creed that Zia Natalia brought home a couple years back. He seemed to be the only exception, or maybe it was because that southie boy was upfront about his intentions. Regardless of the reasons, Sofia knew convincing her grandpa to think differently was a project and took more effort than not to get his blessings. As a Belmonte, getting grandpa's blessing was everything. He sweat and bled for them, so disrespecting him only led to a series of unfortunate events.

Sofia also knew her grandpa had anger issues, that he kept buried deep down, hidden under "kindness". Nothing good came from lying to grandpa. She felt like it was her duty to keep a watchful eye on the neighborhood, for the safety of her family and because really, any place was better than home right now. Of course, that was likely horseshit because she also just found intrigue in knowing other people's businesses. Blame her mom for that one.

"I spy with my little eye a little girl in a place she does not belong."

"What...?" Sofia turned around, only to fall back out of shock, seeing a person peering from inside the shed. The woman's eyes glinted from the flickering fluorescent outdoor light, hanging above the shed door.

“You call yourself a man? You’re a coward and murderer and I’m gonna watch you burn in hell for what you did!”

Accidentally, Sofia's back hit the trash bin causing it to almost tip over, making the wheel slightly screech. Thankfully, everyone was distracted by Mei Midnight going berserk.

The woman met the sixteen year old at eye level, tactfully slipping out the shed door and crouching down. Out of sight, out of mind. With no hesitation, the strange acquaintance handed the naïve Belmonte child a small coin envelope. "How did I know I'd find you here?"

"I don't know... you're kind of stalkery, Miss A." Sofia felt sweat dripping down from her forehead as her soft, wide stare failed to look away from those sharp, serpent-like eyes. Those terrifying, forbidding eyes. Looking into this woman's intimidating gaze, a woman she only knew as "A", she couldn't help but feel frightened. She brushed these feelings off with protest, "Can you not call me little girl? I'm sixteen."

"I call you little girl because your eyes are still like child. You shouldn't be out with no one," the blonde woman she didn't know anything about never moved from her stance and never looked away. Miss A kept still and rooted to the ground, as if nothing could push her over even if they wanted to.

Without this woman, Sofia wouldn't have discovered quite a few things, like finding out what her father was up to in New York, since her mother for some reason protected his image and yet drank her nights away. When her parents were together, the house felt barren, cold, and unwelcomed. It didn't feel like a home. Not a home she wanted to be a part of. When they were apart, things were simple and she got away with murder. A life she was starting to get used to.

“Put the gun down, Reynaldo!”

Sofia turned her attention back to the crowd, seeing Mr. Beau had entered the picture, trying to diffuse the heated situation.

"You should leave little girl." This was the last thing Sofia heard before turning back and noticing the woman she worked for was gone. Hurriedly, she rushed to a bush for cover, away from the shed, right when Reyrey looked at it, lost in a dark memory. Deeply sighing, she took a peek in the envelope to see a stack of cash. Smiling to herself, she felt satisfied with the information she gathered and crawled her way out of the backyard of 13 Carlise Ave, finding the rip in the wired gate.

Slipping out unnoticed, she walked a few blocks, making sure she left the southside as quick as she came, before grabbing her phone to call her mom. With a twist of truth of who told her about what transpired this night, Sofia was prepared to spill the beans to one of the most gossipy people Edenridge has ever come to know.

The curious Cat of Edenridge.

Like mother, like daughter.

Amiright?

[AlteredTundra]

_{A @metanoia & @NeoAJ Collaboration || featuring Marco Brady & Jill O’Brien}
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There was a growing feeling that Marco felt like he truly didn’t belong here. Not only because he was never the “southside” type, especially since it seemed his problems were from a different one than the ones they faced. While he was more focused on making the soccer team and passing his finals, all of those affiliated with the Southside Serpents were trying to survive life across the tracks. People like Jade Taylor were trying not to completely lose it when a wave of unfavorable circumstances came in full steam.

It just didn’t click with him. And part of Marco’s mind wondered just how...well how disconnected he was. Him being here because he wanted to be there for Lanie could only carry him so far until it lost its meaning. Because, sure there were moments during Rey Rey Gonzalez’s story that he found himself thinking about why he really was here. Danny told him he needed to be here because of what happened. That somehow he needed closure about the shooting. Was that the truth? Or did Marco, in some masochistic way, want to punish himself more by diving headfirst into the very thing that stripped him of his dreams?

He just didn’t know.

As he became so dedicated in trying to figure it out by himself, there was a moment when Allison Davies’ photo was shown and Marco immediately brought his blue-eyed gaze to Lanie. In the moments after, she dipped faster than a series of blinks. In five she was out the door and Marco felt the pressure in both the literal sense and emotionally to follow her. It pained him to walk. It was torture putting any unnecessary pressure on his legs. But Marco did it because he wanted to be there for her.

But then when he got out the door and was halfway down the steps, those steps that were...well, a bitch, to walk up, were even worse going down because the bone-crunching pressure put on them with every step was enough to make Marco keel over.

After the third one, he had to take a breather.

As he sat down, he couldn’t say where Lanie was or even what direction she ran off in. The only thing he knew for certain was how much his legs ached and his genuine shock that there were still some cannoli’s left. Truly the longest battle ever since the old Goku vs Frieza on Planet Namek fight. Or any opening/ending cutscene of a Square Enix video game with Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy in its name.

“I wonder what Ma is doing right now,” Marco heard himself say.

He had zoned out for a few minutes, thinking about an alternate reality where he skipped tonight and stayed home like he wanted to. He only registered back into the real world when someone came down the stairs. He did his best to move over that caused him the least amount of pain. As they walked down, it was only a moment that took Marco to realize who it was.

“Jill?” He called out as she was nearly down the entirety of the stairs. “Everything okay?”

It was going to be tough for Jillian to answer that question, given it had been a long time since she had even seen okay to make some sort of comparison.

If she wanted to talk specifically about the events tonight, absolutely not. Between the continued reminder that few people in her orbit during her high school days even cared what happened to her, similar to Allison’s treatment tonight by other members of their traveling party, the mental breakdown in the hallway, the gruesome reminders of what had happened to her idol on the last night of her life, Mei taking a swing at one of the most dangerous men in town and getting carted away by Roddy in the process, and now staring down a long wait in the hopes that Kylee would pick up and be able to give her a ride outta this place, even by recent standards, it seemed like things were not OK.

And she did nothing about it. All that bravado she was spouting at the start of the night had long since evaporated. She couldn’t even bring herself to defend Allison’s honor while that fucking stalker Poppy James kept trying to defend that absolute monster Charlie Decker. There were so many things she wanted to get off her chest, but she couldn’t do it. She wanted to yell at Poppy that Allison had more people that cared about her than Charlie ever would, and that she needed to shut her face. She needed to know how hard it was for those who lost so many people when Charlie took the actions he did. Jillian knew how hard it was to be in that position that Allison was in and what that stress does to your head. She wanted to defend the fallen.

But Jillian couldn’t say the damn words. Someone who had taken the lead in the face of all the adversity in the past couldn’t say a damn thing to anyone. It was like she was swallowed up by the moment. It was sad.

She didn’t even have her empty bottle for comfort anymore. After what happened, she abandoned it with the remains of parties not cleaned up and snuck underage beverages. With Mei tied up, of course no one wanted to check on her. No one gives a damn about fallen queens.

Except Marco, apparently. That he bothered enough to ask got Jill to halt her march off the premises. She rattled a couple of thoughts around in her brain, a couple of responses that would serve to deflect and end the conversation. She had gotten enough practice with her mother in recent months to be an old pro by now.

But there were so many thoughts and emotions in there. The anger at Poppy daring to throw Allison under the rug to glorify a thug who had already taken away so many in her life. The sadness that she couldn’t do anything to go back and change anything about that night, and there was a lot that could do with some changing. The fear dredged up by the trail blazed during the evening.

And the happiness when Mei’s forehead kiss pierced through all that mess for one shining moment.

Maybe it was time some of those thoughts got out of her head. There was no alcohol available to shut them down for the moment, anyway.

“Not really, no,” Jill finally answered after what seemed like an eternity but in reality couldn’t have been more than 10 seconds. She turned around, eyes still bleary from her various outbursts of the evening, and looked over the stoop to see if there was enough room for her to sit without blocking the main exit out of the building.

It looked like there was something closer to the bottom step, so she slowly made her way over and plunked herself down in front of Marco. A weary sigh escaped her lips as she settled on the rotting wood. There was another bit of doubt as to what she was about to engage in. She didn’t know Marco that well anymore. Sure, they were in similar circles given he was an athlete and she was a cheerleader. They were friendly enough at parties that they could share a beverage and not look awkward.

That was a lifetime ago, and Marco arrived with two links to that lifetime that seemed to have no interest in showing any semblance of contrition for their prior crimes. Who was to say he wouldn’t just follow Danny and Lanie’s examples and offer up nothing but scorn and icy indifference?

Maybe Jillian needed a reason to believe this conversation could be different. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to try. It couldn’t go any worse than most of the things that happened tonight.

“Tonight has been a lot. In more ways than one.” The slurring that had dominated her speech for the majority of the night seemed to be fading away without any reason to yell and spit. “I knew it was gonna be, and yet, here I am. With no answers, no friends and nowhere to go from here. So I don’t think I’m OK, Marco, if that answers your question.”

Right, so that was a stupid question. Marco should have figured that if Lanie wasn’t handling the Allison thing well, especially with how she darted out of the house not even a moment after her picture was out, Marco should’ve had the awareness to assume that Jill wouldn’t be in a great state about it, either. Yet another reason why he wouldn’t make a great detective like his father. But it wasn’t a total loss. As he sat there, looking at Jill with a slight frown, though most of it was the uncertainty of what to say, some of it faded when Marco realized Jill wasn’t completely right about something she said.

“Well, that’s not exactly true--” In typical Marco Brady fashion, he started with a misleading statement. “--I mean, you said you had no friends, but you have one sitting right in front of you.” He offered her a smile and opened up the box of lonely cannolis in his hands. A few still remained. Well, by a few, there were still about seven left. ”And I can say with confidence that this friend comes bearing gifts!” He lifted up the box. “Go on, take one. You won’t regret it!”

There was a lot of hesitation on Jillian’s part. Cannolis had once been a staple of her diet thanks to her hookup in the Belmonte family. However, she practically swore off them by proxy when she cut Danny out of her life for what he did. She knew they still were coming into the household and that it wasn’t hard to guess the source. She caught Grace scarfing down a not-so-mysteriously sourced cannoli more than once, and that was an image she did not need burned in her mind given why she wasn’t eating them anymore. She looked at the offered dessert and knew they were one in the same to the ones she previously enjoyed. Sure, the dappling on the crust was a little different, a little rougher, but the flecks in the filling indicating the presence of finely chopped almonds was definitely a Belmonte touch. It felt like she was betraying herself for even thinking of taking one of the symbols of what was lost in high school.

But this was a night of going through the past, and there were so many things that couldn’t be saved and couldn’t be brought back to life. Wasn’t it worthwhile to try and grab something that was able to be retrieved? Besides, those Hole in the Wall chicken wings seemed like eons ago.

Jillian finally took one of the offered cannolis in her hand. The lightweight pastry felt like a bowling ball on her palm. Her solution was to quickly take a bite to lessen the load and instantly, the memories came flooding back. The flaky crust, the sweetened cream whipped to perfection, the hint of almonds peeking through. It had been long years without the taste, but right now all it was doing was offering her a reminder of the good times. Long before high school, when things were simpler and the pressure hadn’t gotten to her yet. It was divine. Now the only regret she had in regards to taking Marco up on his offer was turning away all those peace offerings when she could have stayed mad at Danny and still gotten her fill.

Damn it Danny. How could I let you take this away from me…

Savoring the flavors as long as she could, she finally swallowed and looked up at Marco, clearly pleased with himself seeing Jillian go into the Italian specialty. “Well, you were right about at least one thing. Gives you a pretty good chance of being right about the others.” She licked a bit of filling that looked like it might have given in to gravity’s wishes for a taste. “So, tell me friendo. How are you dealing with all this shit? I’d have to eat all the cannolis you got to feel anywhere near as chipper as you look.” I also don’t need to instantly gain 20 pounds. Especially not if I’m actually serious about making a run at the Edge.

Marco was not only happy to see that Jill didn’t hesitate to take him up on the offer, but there was an improvement of sorts on her face. Again, Marco wasn’t observant like other people he knew, but the difference was noticeable. She didn’t seem as hesitant and he would take that as a good sign. Even despite all that was revealed, there was a glimmer of hope and he took comfort in that. But suddenly the roles were reversed somehow and Marco was the one who found himself hesitating. Not because he didn’t know how to respond, but he just didn’t know what to say specifically.

“Not sure what you mean.” It was partially the truth. Marco was struggling to come up with an answer for Jill, but he knew he had to speak candidly with her. Not only because of the terror revelations they all had to bear witness to, but Marco considered Jill a friend; and she seemed to consider him as one, too. He owed her at least something. “I’m just trying to stay strong for everyone. I mean, I guess I’m just here to help my friends get through this. I mean, my relation to Alison wasn’t as close as maybe yours and Lanie’s were. I know that not only do I want to be, but I need to be that shoulder any of you guys can rely on.”

That kind of hurt. Jillian knew she wasn’t strong anymore. Tonight, she had to rely on Mei to pull her out of her depressive spiral, Danny to pull her dumb ass towards the locker triggering the depressive spiral, and now Marco to pull her away from what was more than likely going to be another lonely trip to scrounge up whatever drugs she could find to take her mind off everything. It was hard to be a pillar when everything kept getting knocked out from under her.

“At least one of us might be able to do that,” she said with a melancholic tint. It was tough to fight the waves of self-pity that were coming with this current train of thought. Her mind continued to roll all over the place, but right now sadness was taking the lead. “Feels like I’ve had to try and fuckin’ do that for so long.” Jillian didn’t look up at Marco, instead staring out into the street while her hand held onto the remaining half of the cannoli. “I can’t do it any more. I don’t have the energy. I don’t have the strength. I don’t have the fuckin’ space left in my brain to be able to add any more weight. I’m just a damn failure now. A glimpse of what awaited Ally if we actually saved her that night. I’ve got nothin’ left to give, Marco, and I don’t even know who’d want it if I had it.”

“I feel that to my core.”

Hearing Jill speak and the words that came from her mouth, he felt that familiar taste of self-sabotaging poison come back at him and it transported him back to a time when he was more than just the shoulder to cry on, but rather the friend that could do more than just that. Marco was the guy who, when he was in his best shape, he’d entertain, he would do imitations -- sometimes physical ones -- just to bring smiles to his friends’ faces. Now, however, he couldn’t do much of anything. His glory days were behind him and being here at a house where the worst thing that happened to him was being forced by Kylee Grimm to talk to Danny, he just didn’t feel like he belonged anymore.

And maybe he hated that Danny forced him here because his ex thought he needed answers. “You know, I used to be more than this.” Marco took a moment to look himself up and down. His gut curved and his legs were shaking slightly. Even when sitting, he was a mess from the waist down. “You probably remember during foot--soccer season--” The boy laughed, forgetting for a moment that what he was so used to calling football wasn’t actually that. “I mean, I was the star player on the soccer team. I don’t like to brag about it because, well given what happened cause of him, I just...well it’s not a memory I’m fond of thinking about, but before then, I know people said I could go pro. But it was more than that. I could actually be somebody to people who thought the world of me. They used to tell me that I didn’t need to be more than who I was; that somehow just me being happy was enough for them.”

Marco’s smile faded, thinking about how his parents often told him that over and over. He might’ve believed it at one point, but after the shooting and he went through hell at rehab, Marco didn’t know anymore. The pain he went through didn’t even compare to the constant pity party he has been throwing himself since then. In moments when he wasn’t around his family or people in his life who could see right through the facade -- like Danny -- he just couldn’t fake it anymore.

“So, trust me, I know what that’s like, Jill. And I don’t have any answers that will make it easier, but..” For the first time in a while, Marco smiled and took Jill’s free hand, “I’m here. And no matter what happens or, well regardless of anything, you can always rely on me if you just want to talk or anything, really.”

This was weird. Given the doubts that Jillian had been having recently about ever being able to trust a man, why was this situation working out so well? Was it the old "misery loves company" axiom at play?

It made sense Marco could sympathize given what happened to him post-Edenridge. Jillian did cheer at her fair share of soccer games. She knew what Marco could do before… well, before he couldn't any more. She kind of forgot about that when just seeing him on the stoop. Like she was forgotten. Life in the south was mean to those who couldn't sustain a pathway out.

As Marco's hand embraced her own, the first masculine touch since Mike's final one, more thoughts emerged, thoughts long dormant. What was this? Sympathy? Empathy? It wasn't sexual or anything, it definitely didn't have that energy. It was nice though. Something she hadn’t had since Danny went and fucked up. Jill let out another sigh, one with more relief behind it than anything else. Knowing there was someone out there that had a feeling of what she was going through on her side of the window. Especially if she needed a friend more than a love-… no. Mei wasn't… not yet. Was there a yet? Was that a thing?

Would Marco be able to understand that question?

"You know, I was gonna take pre-law at BC?" she started. "Because I was so calm and composed in the face of the shooting, people thought I would be a shoo-in for being a lawyer or a politician or something. But that shit took so much out of me, having to try and pretend like everything was all right and that we were gonna make it through. Maybe Ally could have done that. I don't think I did. And then when Mike came back… maybe I just fucked myself into this spot. And I don't know what to do to unfuck it. I have an idea, maybe, but…" Jill trailed off at the end, still unsure if she wanted to say the things she thought she was feeling. "I don't even know if that could be a way. If it's even possible." She stopped abruptly, unsure if she even wanted to continue down this lane of thought with someone who wasn't Mei, but Mei wasn't an option in this case.

For the longest moment to exist in the history of moments, Marco found himself staring at Jill with a weird mix of confusion and curiosity on his face. The boy’s blue eyes were narrowed slightly, head tilted to the left only by a few centimeters, and lips partially opened. Whenever Marco was trying to process something, this was the face he made. It wasn’t a great poker face, but every time he gamed and tried to figure out something that was throwing him, he made that face. “What do you mean, Jill?” He asked, trying to read her face. That’s what his father did, right? As a detective, Colin Brady had to judge the face, so Marco was trying to as well. He had a thought of what she might be wanting to say, but Marco had been wrong about things like this so many times, so he didn’t state it. Instead, he said, “I’m not sure I follow.”

Jillian’s eyes were darting around as if trying to find the words to lead this boy where she herself was trying to get to. Am I fucking sure about this? I mean, I know I told Mei I couldn’t do it, but… fuck that night. Fuck that stupid night with Mike. Would I have just been happier if I never bothered with him? Or any of those other randos in high school? Would I have been able to save Ally if I wasn’t busy slurping that piece of shit? That last thought brought a grimace to her face that she tried to hide with another bite of cannoli. Maybe the sweet treat would buy her some time. … Fuck. It just… Fuck…

She swallowed and while her face pointed at Marco, her eyes still looked away, as if to make sure that no one else was in earshot to hear her. “I… I think… I think I’m done with men… and I’m in love with a girl… and I don’t think it matters anymore to anyone except me and her… but it’s the only good I can see in this stupid life right now…” Now her eyes were locked on to Marco, with the difficult part out of the way. “And I dunno if it’s actually something, or just a product of this shit, but, I dunno. I just feel it more and more lately.”

“Damn..” Marco couldn’t find the words he wanted because, honestly, that was something that he remembered saying to himself when he was starting to feel things for Danny. That sort of doubt and various ‘could he’ -type of questions that crept into his mind and had him lay awake at night thinking of the various scenarios. Anything from the best case to worst case, Marco remembered entertaining every single one of them. Of course, it was different from Jill’s case, but he couldn’t ignore some of the similarities to them, either.

“Sometimes you just have to follow your heart. I mean, I won’t pretend to know Mei inside and out or anything, but she sounds like she’s pretty damn important to you, now more than ever.” Marco bit his lip, trying to find the right words. “You know, it’s kind of funny. You and I have similar experiences with love. Not the same circumstances, but I found myself doubting if I was in love with someone. It was complicated and not traditional, but there was a time that we were together and, I guess what I’m trying to say is that life is short. So if you really feel strongly for her, you should see if there’s anything there.”

The red had spread to Jillian’s cheeks now. She didn’t realize that her friend had such a bead on exactly who she was talking about. “That obvious it was Mei, huh?”

Marco laughed somewhat nervously, a smile returning to his face. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to assume. Just seemed like an obvious thing, y’know? Kinda like how Wolverine and Jean Grey were hot for each other. Or.. ya know something like that.”

The reference went a little above what the O’Brien girl could remember at the moment. Vague memories of seeing an X-Men movie with Danny back in the day, although she knew Jean Grey was in it because Sophie Turner was goals. But that was besides the point. If even Marco could see what was happening from a broad overview of the situation, what was stopping Jillian from actually acting on it? Mei’s feelings? The redhead could still feel that kiss underneath her bangs from earlier. There was obviously some level of care there, especially given how their relationship had grown from that first night here up to tonight.

Jillian’s reputation? What fucking reputation was there to worry about? She had nothing. Just a tragic figure, drifting like a lazy ghost through the south side. She could still hear murmurs about her lost child from time to time when she dared venture out during the day. It’s why she didn’t do it very often anymore.

Her financial situation? Not like it would damage that any worse than it was now. As far as she knew, her mother wasn’t prejudiced against same-sex relationships. How could she be given the parade of people across the gender spectrum Grace brought home on regular intervals to this day? Her dad might have had some questions, but he wasn’t around to pass judgement anymore. Besides, she was probably going to end up at Mei’s tonight anyway. She spent a lot of time over there. If they lived together it would probably make things easier and…

Fucking hell. Simmer down, Jill. Stop planning the patio layout when the house isn’t even built yet.

At least Marco seemed to have an idea on how to handle it. She didn’t know who he was talking about with his experiences. She didn’t exactly pry into his love life during the high school days and she had no idea who he would be after now. She figured Lanie dragged him out. Was that a thing? No, no it couldn’t be.

She gave the impression that she was still debating the Mei question, but that was now answered. This was going to have to be something she pushed on in more lucid times. But she wanted to know. “How did that story end between you and that unconventional lover, Marco?”

“That’s...not a simple answer…”

And suddenly, like a flick of a switch, Marco’s entire body felt tight. He hadn’t thought about Danny nor their breakup (if you could even call it that) since it happened. Truth was, Marco had been running away from a lot more than the shooting and everything that seemed to come with it. He had been running away from his feelings about Danny, and maybe if he was being honest with himself, his feelings for Danny.

He secluded himself in his room under the guise that he was still recovering from the shooting. And after he finished PT with Roddy, sure that held some truth, but there was a lot more. Deep down, maybe it was that Marco hadn’t faced the other traumatic event in his life that happened. “I mean, I never really thought about it since it happened. We weren’t out out or anything. I mean, things for him weren’t like me. Or at least I don’t think they were.” Crap, Marco realized that didn’t make any sense. “Sorry, I just haven’t talked about it with anyone, really.”

And he hasn’t truly faced it, either.

Jill wasn’t expecting a simple answer, but she was going to take an answer from Marco one way or the other, and the one she got wasn’t satisfactory. Not for someone who may be the first person she just admitted true feelings to that wasn’t Mei for the first time in over a year. “Well, maybe it’s the time to talk about it,” she countered. “I mean, I just talked with you about shit I haven’t told anyone else, in the world, and you know what? It actually felt good for a change. To actually talk about that shit instead of hoping there was another bottle of Smirnoff kicking around my room to try and drown it out instead. I don’t know if the vodka’s still talking now, but if it is, it might actually be making a good choice for once. So here’s what we’re gonna do, Marco. I’m gonna sit here, I’m gonna eat the rest of this cannoli that I have fucking missed dearly, and while I do that, you’re gonna talk about it with me. Fair is fair, right? If I’m having big personal revelations and shit, then you should too. So start talking about it.” She took a fairly big bite out of the remaining cannoli to emphasize her point.

Marco didn’t speak for a while. Ten seconds, twenty seconds...twenty-five seconds of silence and thinking about what she said. In that allotted time, Marco heard Jill crunch on the cannoli. And even though he missed Danny, missed...just missed being around him, maybe for the first time he couldn’t think about Danny in a positive light.

And that gutted him worse than getting shot. The fact that he was thinking about the man he loved and not every thought that came pouring out was a good one. Maybe Jill was right. She wasn’t close to Marco but she confided in him. Maybe it was time for Marco to talk about it with someone. “Well, I guess since you’re not leaving me with much of a choice…” Marco let his words fade off into a low chuckle. “So, there was this boy. You know, I met him in freshman year. I wasn’t even out then, but he was all I could think about. And through whatever series of fortunate events, we had moments where we’d just hang, ya know? And then we’d hang out some more, eventually being together. But he was so deep in the closet, I don’t think he even knew that’s what it was. So we dated in secret. Met at Lyon Park, met at my house when nobody was home. Basically did everything we could to be out of public view. And it was nice. We had each other and that’s all that should have mattered, right?”

Marco fell silent and looked down. He fiddled his thumbs together and he felt the tension in his shoulders increase even more. Even as his arms started to shake, he continued: “But junior prom came and we got into it. I wanted to go public. I didn’t want to hide anymore but he just...well, I guess he just didn’t feel the same way.” The silence took over yet again and Marco bit his lip. This had been the first time he’d told anyone this. He didn’t even think about it as much anymore. Thinking about it and what came after was too painful. Nothing would change but sometimes, when Marco found himself feeling he needed a good dose of pain, he let himself relive that night over and over again to remind him that he wasn’t as strong as his parents like to believe he was.

As the cannoli shrunk to a bite, Jill had to pause and concentrate on what Marco was saying, especially in regards to the secrecy that was required. She should have figured it was a little harder for guys to enjoy their love freely in public than girls. But apparently Marco had to pull some deep cover back in the day. Jillian had no idea Marco was gay back then. He certainly hid it well enough. It’s a shame high-school bullshit had to go and apparently wreck things. It was good at doing that. She couldn’t remember much about junior prom. Kat was excited that she had locked down Lucas Hayes as her date, much to Liv’s dismay. Danny showed up with… actually she couldn’t remember who he showed up with. It was a little bit before he fucked up their friendship, but it had to be some bimbo given the lack of decorum he had in regards to everything. Thinking back, these would be painful memories of friends lost, but Jill had relived them so often she was usually numb to them at this point. Marco, however, didn’t appear to have that particular ability.

Seeing the boy clearly in a state trying to recall those events, twitching like he just shotgunned 12 cups of coffee, it occurred to her that maybe some comfort was needed. Some of the old sweetness long thought erased by tragedy and cocktails might just have been drawn out of the darkness after all this time. Jill popped the last of the cannoli in her mouth and turned around to grab both of Marco’s hands in her own in an effort to ease the worries. “I’m sorry you had that done to you, Marco,” she offered. “High school is fucking awful. I’m sorry you gave your heart to someone who didn’t treasure it and treat it with the respect it deserved.” Yet another painful subject that Jill had to dull with her efforts of the past year. “I know how fucking difficult it can be to feel like you have that trust with someone, and then just have it broken because… well… because they suck. But you know what? Someone out there, someone you may know now, someone you may not have met yet, that someone wants to be with you fully and completely. Someone wants to be able to go to the park with you in broad daylight. Someone wants to meet the people you care about. Someone wants that shit. I can’t tell you they are coming soon. I can’t fucking tell you if they are right in front of your face and you just don’t see it. But someone is going to find you, and appreciate the fuck out you, pain and all. They’ll be able to make you laugh and cry and give you that dance you didn’t get at junior prom. They will support you at your fucking worst. And if you’re lucky, you’ll be able to do the same for them for as long as you both want.” This was rambling a bit, but in Jill’s mind this was every pump up speech she ever remembered from the movies rolled into one. “So, I don’t know who this guy was, but he must have been a fucking idiot to not want to be seen with someone as sweet and nice as you, and I hope he feels that regret every day. But you don’t deserve that shit.” She tried to lean in for a friendly hug, but her aim still wasn’t great and it turned into more of a one-handed wrap. “And thank you for telling me that. Couldn’t have been easy, but hey, maybe I’m still a good leader by example when I wanna be.”

Marco found himself giving Jill’s hands a gentle squeeze. He couldn’t let himself smile much, though. Not because he didn’t appreciate her support and, honestly, her company as well. But what she said about Danny. Even though it’s been more than two years since all of that, Marco couldn’t bring himself to hate his ex or even feel anything negative in that regard. Honestly, he didn’t know what he felt. And maybe Jill was right about a revelation coming to him. He knew the only person who could help him sort...whatever it was he was feeling might just be the very cause of his complicated tornado that were his emotions.

“I know you will be. I’m glad we had this chance to talk. It was nice being able to talk to someone who didn’t show pity on me and who I used to be, ya know?” He softly smiled at Jill.

She snorted softly at that. “Would be fucking hypocritical if I did that, wouldn’t it?” She leaned back up, still not sure if that snort really came out of her. It was something younger Jillian did, but hadn’t really made itself heard in a while. “Honestly, this may be the best thing to come out of this whole fucked-up evening. Well, that and realizing I’m probably coming out soon. But hey, at least I got someone who can navigate all this shit for me. Or with me. Whatever. Think we both got some crap on that path to deal with.” At least there was now backup in the 1% chance something did go wrong with her confession to Mei. Would it come tonight? Jill was going to spend the night at the Ramsey place one way or the other. Maybe there would be a moment. Least I know this big moment is coming. One way or the other. No surprises. Just a shot at the dark. I’ll be ready.

Marco couldn’t help but chuckle. Not to mock her, of course, but just that he couldn’t help but think about Lanie. He had come wobbling out of the house because he wanted to find her. She darted out of the house so fast that he didn’t even get past the stoop. And now he was thinking about Lanie back when he first came out. The situation and circumstances were different for him than Jill, of course, but he couldn’t help but think about how Lanie was there for him, giving him strength and the assurance that he couldn’t give himself. She was the person who made him feel confident when he finally came out as bisexual to his family and even to some others close to him.

As he tried to stand up, Marco gripped the handrail for support. Stiff limbs cracked with the kind of sound one heard when they’ve been sitting too long. He grunted and grimaced and made sounds of mild discomfort, but he did it. As he held his hand out for Jill, he’d show her at least some strength that he knew he had in him to help her up too, though he probably didn’t need to. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, friend!” He just smiled at her. Jill was definitely right about one thing: this new closeness they had, it was probably the best thing that could have happened. A surprising light in the darkness.

[Venus]

_{A @BrutalBx, @Venus & @LovelyComplex Collaboration
Featuring Roddy Callahan, Lanie Lancaster & Danny Belmonte}
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There was a suffocating heaviness permeating the air surrounding the now infamous 13 Carlisle address. Ever since she’d stepped foot inside the property, a sense of dread had begun to settle in the pit of Elaine’s stomach. Although she hadn’t been present when Allison’s body was discovered, her subconscious seemed to sense that this was the awful place where it all had gone so terribly wrong four years previously. It was a wretched, cursed place-- haunted by the memories of what could’ve been.

Yet not everything regarding this location was surrounded by darkness. 13 Carlisle had been where she’d first met the father of her child. It had also been the last place Lanie and Ally had shared their last exchange together: a long bathroom conversation in which the older girl told the blonde how proud she was of her, and that she wholeheartedly believed that she would go far in life. Using this bittersweet memory as her fuel, Lanie pushed her issues with Mei, Jillian and Decky aside to gather the strength to face the truth about what happened to her best friend.

Of course, this was not a sugar coated fantasy.

Danny listened to the story in the back of the crowd and all he could focus on was the fact that Vivia was heavily involved in this, yet kept it all buried. She hid the fact that she was with Allison until her dying breath. She hid the fact that she spent more time in the southside than not. She hid the fact that she was screwing the current leader of the SSS.

Was she still with ReyRey?

With the questions coursing through his mind, he opened his mouth to ask about it, to get some clarity on the affair, but was quick to stop himself while he was ahead. His heart sank at the mere thought that Natalia may have known this whole time but chose not to tell him anything. He shouldn’t make assumptions. He shouldn’t take this personally. He shouldn’t jump to conclusions, as if everyone else wasn’t already dealing with enough grief tonight.

And yet, he did.

It was believable.

Natalia was the type of girl to ghost someone heartlessly and pretend she never had any care in the world for them. She was the type to push her own twin brother away, without explaining what he did wrong. She was the type to not let go and choose her pride over anything else, including family. She was the type to keep secrets, even from the one person she shared a womb with.

As the saying goes, hurt people hurt people. All he wanted was her to see him like she did before Allison died, before he joined the basketball team and she the volleyball team; before they grew up and had their roles to play in Edenridge. All he wanted was his twin sister back but that was a distant wish that may never come true. Not tonight, at least.

The thoughts in his head were stabbing his heart, making him realize how terrible of a brother he was, on top of being a poor friend to Jillian, and a terrible lover to Marco. Still, he would selfishly look away from Reyrey to check on his companion that he dragged here. This whole time he knew Marco was forcing himself. Danny wasn’t dumb and had been around injured athletes more often than not to know when someone wasn’t fully healed. Especially someone he was extremely intimate with. Still, his ex stubbornly walked through this nightmare, keeping that weak, stupid smile on his face.

Just when Danny started slowly making his way to the boy he emotionally broke, like a magnet forcibly pulling him closer and closer, begging him to comfort and carry, his green eyes darted past Marco to the blonde sprinting away. Crying and in pain. Devastated and in need. Hopeless and overwhelmed.

Lanie! was his final thought before all thoughts escaped him. Danny chased the girl who soothed him during a time when she and he needed someone the most. He chased her, like he was chasing a basketball, when he was eager to play and keep up with Francis. His feet had a mind of their own, as he bolted past his ex, Lanie’s baby’s daddy, and everyone else. “Lanie, wait! Don’t go alone!”

Although Elaine could hear Danny’s voice calling out to her, it sounded eons away. If the harrowing tale of Allison’s death had been enough to shock her, the sight of the crude polaroid with Allison’s lifeless body had effectively traumatized her. For the last four years, Lanie had been led to believe that Charlie Decker had been at fault for the cheerleader’s death: that he had given Ally a bad batch of drugs with no care or regard to her well-being. Four long years of harboring a burning hatred towards Decker, glaring at him across the halls and cursing his name at any arising opportunity, because he’d somehow managed to take away anything that was important to her. To have this inconceivable truth come out-- that Allison had knowingly taken a batch of drugs that could kill her-- shattered every image the blonde had of her friend… And it made her realize that, by contributing to Charlie’s descent into madness, she had unknowingly ruined not only her own life, but the lives of so many others around her… Including Mordechai’s.

It was truly a sickening feeling.

By the time Danny had reached her, Lanie was doubling down behind some bushes vomiting the entirety of her stomach’s contents: just like she used to do back when she couldn’t cope with Danny dying and Decky leaving her. Her chest felt tight and heavy, being suffocated with the overwhelming wave of emotions. No matter how tightly she squeezed her eyes shut, the details of that gruesome photo and the revelations that came along with it were now branded into her memory forever-- holding her hostage in a nightmare she didn’t think she could ever forget about. The sound of her desperate gasps interrupted the stillness of the night as Lanie struggled to find a balance between trying to sob and trying to breathe. Before she knew it, the blonde was feeling lightheaded, and she wrapped her hand around the chain-linked fence next to her to keep herself steady.

“Hey, hey… breathe, Lanie.” With quick reflexes, Danny tenderly grabbed onto her, leaning her small frame onto him for support. He stood there with one arm wrapped around her, as she latched onto the fence. Monitoring her, he looked for any signs of her going for a second round, making sure if she were to pass out he was there to catch her.

“Do you have enough energy to walk?” He softly spoke, making sure his voice didn’t overwhelm her or give her a headache. The blonde girl faintly shook her head. “I can carry you, El. At least to my car.” He sincerely offered, thankful that at this moment he remembered his gym bag was in the trunk of his vehicle, which had a large bottle of water. If there was anything Lanie needed right now, it was fluids. “We got to get you hydrated.”

Although she was trying hard to follow Danny’s advice to stabilize herself, Lanie couldn’t seem to find the way to do so. Her Italian friend’s voice still sounded distant, drowned out by a faint buzzing in her ears. Still lightheaded and gasping for breath, Lanie nodded feebly at his offer to be carried to his car, and released her grip on the chain link fence to completely surrender herself to Danny’s voluntary support instead. Maybe stepping away from this cursed property would help her calm down somewhat.

Placing his arms around Lanie’s knees and back, Danny held her close and protectively. He could only gauge she was still struggling to breathe. Other than that? He didn’t want to assume anything. It didn’t feel right to assume how she was feeling and act like he knew what she was going through. He didn’t know Allison like she did and he certainly didn’t cry when the head cheerleader died. Instead of saying anything, yet staying attentive to his friend, Danny gingerly made his way to his car, silently.

To Lanie’s surprise (although it shouldn’t have been), Danny’s presence was like an oasis when she felt stranded in the middle of the desert. There was an aura of protectiveness around him that served to finally ground her in this storm of feelings she was facing. Without realizing it, the young woman’s hyperventilating slowly began to subside. A deep breath followed every step he took away from the building-- and by the time they had reached his vehicle, Lanie was no longer lightheaded or dizzy.

With a night like this, so full of surprises, twists and turns; Roddy wasn’t sure how to feel. He wasn’t close to Allison; even when Francis was dating her, he rarely ever brought her to the house. Now that the truth had been revealed he understood a little more of the reason why. He had only decided to venture out on that evening to be with Lanie and maybe, just maybe, understand the mind of Charlie Decker a little better so that he could get closure. Yet that’s not how it went. He did not understand the school shooter any better and Lanie, poor Lanie, she was struggling and it was all his fault.

Once Mr Beau had begun to intervene, Roddy slipped out the back to catch up with the mother of his child and the boy who he now understood had a much deeper connection to his older brother than just being on the same team. He made his way down Carlisle Avenue, a place he had spent a lot of time avoiding until he reached where the Scoobies had parked their respective cars, arriving just in time to see Elaine and Danny.

“Lanie, babe I’m sorry,” The shaggy haired man took a step forward, closer to the pair. “Thanks Danny, for looking out for her. I gotta take it from here. You understand right?”

Respectively, Danilo handed his vulnerable friend to her ex-lover, the father of her child. He didn’t know where those two stood romantically but he knew at least one side of their story. Lanie still cared about him. Truth be told, he wasn’t sure if this was the right thing to do nor did he know if Lanie was comfortable being in the arms of Roddy on this day but he also did not want to get in the middle of them. “Yeah,” he responded firmly before gesturing with his finger for Roddy to not walk away. Swiftly he opened his trunk, went into his gym bag, and pulled out a water bottle. Making his way to his friend and Roddy he handed it to the more stable of the two, “She’s calming down a bit, but definitely take it easy. I don’t think she should be alone tonight.”

“Thanks man” Roddy took hold of the water and nodded his head towards his once and former classmate. He unscrewed the cap and handed it over to Elaine. His baby blues turned to glance once again at Danny and he smiled. “Belmonte? Marco shouldn’t be alone either” He turned away and returned his attention to the blonde girl in his arms.

“I shouldn’t have brought us out here tonight, Lanie. I’m so sorry.”

But Lanie wasn’t listening to any apologies at the moment. All she wanted was a plausible explanation for her friend's demise, because Ally couldn't have done this on purpose… Right? Even if the story she'd just heard proved the opposite?

"Why would she do that?” Elaine asked Roddy, tears running down her cheeks like an overflowing river once again. She placed a shaky hand over the left side of her chest in an attempt to ease the pain she was feeling-- when her heart hadn’t ached this badly in years. “She had a family that loved her, friends that adored her… I mean, everybody loved Allison. Why would she have wanted to do this to herself?"

“You never know what’s going on in someone’s head, Lanie.” Roddy replied, placing a hand onto her shoulder. “If there’s anything I’ve learned whilst living in this town, it’s that nothing is ever as it seems” In some way, he felt a kinship to Allison Davies; the most popular girl in town. She was battered and broken on the inside and if they were to believe the serpent's tale then she was much more damaged than anyone realised. Did she kill herself? The story made sense. After the shooting, Roddy too had considered that option as a viable way out of his nightmare life. Then Lanie made him whole again. It seemed as if Allison never got that opportunity. ”We should go home. I really wanna see Rylie right now and tell her that I love her.”

Lanie vigorously shook her head. "I can't let her see me like this…" she tearfully murmured, looking up at Roddy with heartbroken eyes. "I can't see our baby right now and pretend like everything is fine when I'm falling apart. I can't do it. I can’t. I just want to be alone tonight."

“I don’t really want you to be alone, Lanie.” At this point, Rod had no sway over her decision making. He had given up that right when he decided that he wasn’t good enough for her. Everybody knew it was a foolish decision, even he knew it was a foolish decision but at the time, Roddy’s mind was made up and now here they were. “You shouldn’t be alone but if it’s what you really want, at least let me be in the other room just in case?”

The young woman nodded silently. As much as Lanie wanted to be left completely alone, she had enough awareness to understand why this couldn’t be. Being left to her own devices on a night like this could lead her to a relapse. With her past history of self-harm by purging during emotionally distressing times, she had been going to therapy to find better ways to handle her emotions. Part of his advice had been to lean on those who offered comfort-- like Danny had done moments before, and how Roddy was doing now.

Funny how she had come to this place hoping to help Roddy fight his demons, and had been left to face new ones of her own instead.

[Venus]

_{A @Venus & @Aces Away Collaboration
Featuring Creed, Puff & Jokes}
▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Although she had portrayed the attitude of someone without any involvement with either Allison Davies or Charlie Decker, Natalia Belmonte was far from being free of guilt. The young woman had arrived at 13 Carlisle with a plan: to discover the identity of whoever had been sending the letters to everyone, and seize the opportunity to persuade the person to not release everything inside Charlie’s journals. She hadn’t read the contents of the books, but she was certain that somewhere within the pages there were details of her involvement with the infamous Serpent. She had hoped that, by doing this, she could protect herself from reliving the memories of that fateful day at Edenridge High.

What Natalia hadn’t expected was to find herself listening to the haunting truth of Allison’s death, and how Charlie hadn’t been the one at fault. Frozen and silent with shock, she had listened to the unfortunate tale with wide-eyes, growing sicker to her stomach with every detail shared. Yet it wasn’t the star cheerleader’s story what had sent the Belmonte girl spiraling out of control. It had been listening to the strong emotions the other Southies were going through when it came to Charlie through their voices: the hurt in Decky’s at being misled to cause Hard Times harm by those he trusted the most, the remorse in Jade’s for being helpless when trying to aid her friend, and the agony in Poppy’s over knowing all along that her love was blamed and hated for something he had never done.

A stabbing, gut-wrenching pain settled in Talia’s chest when she listened to the James girl’s recollection of the night in question. Her love for Charlie was everlasting and clear as day, ringing loud and clear through her every word. How would Poppy feel if it ever came out that Charlie and her had spent a night together? The poor girl had been through so much hell already, what with her sister dying and her beloved being murdered in front of her eyes, that it made Tal sick to know she could soon be the cause of more pain and heartbreak for Penelope.

But it’s not like she could turn back time and un-sleep with Charlie. She couldn’t wave a magic wand and erase what had happened between the class pariah and the queen bee. It had been a mere moment of weakness, occurring one night where they found comfort in each other at seeing their loved ones moving on without them. And yet Tal knew the explanation would mean nothing. What was done was done, and the harm this secret could cause Poppy when exposed would be entirely on her.

It was ReyRey pointing the gun at the group what pulled Natalia out of her head long enough to fear for her life and do what she was told by Beau. She exited the property and boarded her car in stunned silence, looking and speaking to no one along the way. As if on autopilot, the dark-haired girl drove to Lyon Park, taking desperate pull after desperate pull from her vape and filling her car up with smoke. She parked her Navigator in the most secluded parking space and proceeded to take action to numb the guilt and remorse threatening to suffocate her. From the SUV’s glove compartment, the green-eyed girl pulled out a navy blue makeup bag containing her assortment of “medications”: a half-empty prescription bottle of Valium (prescribed to her by her doctor, of course), a gram of weed inside a small Ziplock bag, a galaxy purple glass pipe and a Zippo lighter.

Without hesitation, Tal opened the medication bottle, popped a handful of her Valium pills onto her palm and swallowed them with the help of some water from her hydro flask. Once the pill bottle was closed and safely placed back in the bag, she prepared her THC station and took a few long, deep drags of weed from the pipe. She tilted her head back and closed her eyes after each pull, hoping that the combination of the pills and the marihuana would make the numbness kick in faster.

When she finally felt like her chest wasn’t about to cave in with guilt, Natalia grabbed her cellphone and scrolled through her text message threads to find the name of the one person she knew she could trust to see her right now: at her most vulnerable. Although her eyes were now blurred by tears, the Northie girl somehow managed to type out the SOS messages to her ex-boyfriend.

I'm really fucked up Liq
Meet me at our spot?
I really need you right now
Please 😔

Once the texts were sent, the young woman carelessly threw her phone on the passenger seat, grabbed her pipe and lighter again, and allowed herself to take another long drag of cannabis. Maybe if she smoked enough weed her memories with Charlie Decker would blow away like the clouds of smoke she was exhaling.

Creed showed up at their spot about twenty minutes after it was sent, tank top soaked in sweat and breath labored from jogging here from his last drop. He saw her car and slowed as he approached, giving the girl as much warning of his presence as possible. She looked a wreck through the smokey driver's side window. He tapped lightly on the glass, leaning into the opening when she rolled the window down for him.

"Hey there, Puff. You're lookin' like someone stole your magic," he greeted quietly, a soft, crooked smile on his lips. "what say we get ya somewhere with a bed, yeah?"

"Hey, baby," the Belmonte girl greeted her ex with a hazy smile. Even in her current morose state, there was no denying that the sight of Creed and his perfect crooked smile lifted Natalia's spirits a little. Her bloodshot eyes scanned his figure, and she soon found herself frowning when she noticed his damp clothing. "Did you walk all the way down here?" she asked him, a hint of guilt peeking through her voice at the idea of Creed having gone through the trouble of interrupting whatever plans he had going on in order to jog to meet her.

Creed gave her a look that said he knew exactly what she was thinking and she better stop that line of thought right now. "When I said you call an' I'll come runnin' after we split I wasn't jokin', y'should know that by now. Now move over, you ain't 'boutta drive and we ain't leavin' this here."

While Natalia quickly nodded and clumsily moved over to the passenger seat without exiting the vehicle, the young man opened the driver side door. He couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow as even more smoke spilled it's way out of the car like demons escaping hell. Creed quickly hopped behind the wheel of her and started them out towards the Lost Souls Homes. They drove in silence, with Natalia now holding his hand and comfortable knowing that it was a rather short ride. Soon enough, they pulled into a parking spot, and Creed pulled out his phone from his pocket with that small crooked grin of his.

"Jokes has the blanket nest all ready and Kill Bill set up. You won't be alone tonight, Puff."

An overwhelming rush of love and gratitude for both Creed and Jokes suddenly came over Natalia, and she couldn’t help the way her eyes filled with tears and her bottom lip trembled. Because she was too choked up to speak, the Belmonte girl could only nod once more, while squeezing Creed’s hand a few times to let him know how she felt without words. Frankly, all she wanted to do was wrap her arms around him in a tight hug, but with the way he was smelling it would be a bad idea for all of the parties involved.

When they got through the apartment door, Jokes was standing there with a blanket held open in his arms, and he wrapped her in both the blanket and a hug before he led her to the couch where the movie was already up. Creed disappeared into their room as Jokes pressed play, coming out around five minutes later in a fresh pair of clothes, steam from the shower rolling out behind him. He sat on Nat's other side and the two boys kept her snuggled between them, safe.

Whether it was the handful of pills, the weed or just exhaustion from keeping the emotions bottled up inside her for so long, Natalia didn’t know. But the moment she felt the safety of the arms of both Jokes and Creed around her, the dark-haired girl’s tough persona dropped and she began to sob.

“I feel so fucking guilty right now…” Natalia in between sniffles, unable to get the image of her and Charlie tangled up in bed together out her head and how horrible Poppy would feel. "Decky, Poppy and Jade keep blaming themselves for what happened to him, but I keep thinking some of it is my fault too. After Maliq and I broke up, Hard Times and I ran into each other at a party. We were both really fucking sad and going through it… And we hooked up that night…" the girl admitted, pausing for a minute to sob and little more before calming down enough to continue. "I slept with him knowing he was in love with someone else. That shit makes me wonder whether the guilt he had about it was one of the things that sent him over the edge that day… If it's also my fault that he killed Danny and everyone else…"

Creed and Jokes exchanged slightly alarmed looks over her hunched form. Her having slept with Decker was definitely news to them, but it explained the visible weight Natalia walked around with since the shooting. Guilt can be a dangerous thing. It was almost a given the Southies would have huge and unresolved guilt over Charlie Decker. Natalia and Charlie had seemed like two ships passing in the night; they got a glimpse of each other due to their circles, but no one really knew if they'd ever said a word to each other. That could all be addressed later, however.

"...It was gonna happen eventually," Jokes spoke up, finally breaking eye contact with Creed and ending the silent conversation to lift Natalia's chin and make her meet his eyes. "None of us here Southside, especially Serpent-wise, were there enough for him. His own side'a the tracks rejected him harder than the Northies did, in some ways."

Creed was nodding along, running sure fingers through her tangled hair and slowly clearing it of knots. "'S a series of unfortunate events, but taking out one or two wouldn't have changed the outcome, there was still too much stress on 'im." Finished with the knots, he plastered himself against her back and side, leaning her into Jokes' chest. "No more your fault than ours, or anyone else that crossed his cursed path."

"Puff, what brought this up?" Jokes asked, confused at the girl's sudden breakdown. "Was it the letters?"

Natalia nodded, shifting around in the bed so she could stare at both young men before she spoke. "They had asked us to meet at the old school building. I was hoping to confront whoever was sending those letters and convince them to cut it out, because something tells me Hard Times wrote about us in his journals, and I don't want that to come out. What we found instead was some fucking disgusting scavenger hunt that ended up with us at 13 Carlisle staring at a photo of Allison Davis fucking OD’d and dead on the floor the night that she died, listening to the story of how it happened and how Hard Times was actually innocent before ReyRey pulled out a fucking gun and pointed it at us."

"You went south without a Serpent?"

"ReyRey did what?!"

The two exclamations overlapped as both men stared at her incredulously. Neither of them had known nor cared for Allison Davies, but her ghost's presence has haunted this town longer than Charlie's has; for many people, her death was the beginning of the end for Edenridge.

"Why the hell would ReyRey point a gun at you over the cheerleader? I mean yeah she died at a Serpent house but she certainly wasn't the first or last. Hell, Decky's parents almost OD'd at one last week and aren't allowed back," Jokes rambled out. "He doesn't just swing that thing around unless he means it. Who'd you go with that would piss 'im off like that?"

"Because Poppy James was screaming in his face, Decky went off on him after he called him a tool, and Mei Ramsey punched him in the face," the girl explained. "So, technically, he wasn't pointing it at me only, but it doesn't change the fact that I was almost fucking shot dead by my best friend's cousin over something I didn't even do."

The two men could hardly believe what they were hearing. Poppy? Decky and Charlie's Poppy was active in this? Decky had not only yelled at ReyRey but had the gun pointed at him as well? Why the hell was this town going crazy all over again? But the fact that he waved it not only at the Southies and Serpents, but also Natalia, Honey Badger's best friend and someone with and overall high favor with most of the snakes she'd met? They might just have to call Mika about tonight. Later.

"He's waved guns around us before-"

"Plenty'a times."

"But he never had the…intent behind it." Creed shared another look with Jokes, a whole silent conversation between the both of them as the previous one tapered off. "What else can we do for you?"

Because that's all that matters right now. All the other crazy could be put to the side. All the anger and confusion at ReyRey pointing a fucking gun at the people they cared about could be dealth with at a later date. But Natalia Belmonte, sandwiched in a blanket nest between Jonie and Maliq- and the fact that she could call them that at all showed their dedication and love for the girl- could be dealt with now, taken care of now, and protected now. They could make her safe for the night, at least, and any other nights where she needed someone there to chase away the demons and nightmares.

A small smile crept up on Natalia’s lips for the first time since she’d left the old high school building what seemed like a lifetime ago. “You’ve done more than I could’ve ever asked or hoped for,” she told them softly, wrapping one arm around each of her ex-lovers and pulling them into a tight embrace. She let the hug last for a while, hoping she’d be able to express her affection and immense amount of gratitude without words. Allowing herself to be vulnerable was not something the young woman did often. Tal had always prided herself in being the Belmonte child with unwilting strength when faced with adversity. Yet even the strongest of people couldn’t carry their burdens alone for too long. And when times like these came, she felt blessed to be able to count on Jokes and Creed to share the weight with.

“If anything ever happens to me, I just want you to know that I love you,” she told Creed with nothing but conviction in her voice, locking eyes with him for a moment before briefly pressing her lips to his, turning the other way and doing the same with Jokes. “And I love you too. And there’s not enough ways for me to ever say or show you both just how damn thankful I feel for having you in my life.”

Creed stared intently at Natalia as she kissed them both; worry seating heavily on his mind at her words. She wasn't going to be alright for a while yet, and whether others would have noticed or not it was definitely going to be an uphill battle. Jokes looked at him again and nodded. The wind was out of her sails and she was adrift in the waters. Maybe they couldn't get her to dry land, but the could offer to help paddle.

"We can't promise you'll never get hurt, Puff," the long haired man declared, continuing the Southside tradition of not making promises they can't keep. "But that don't mean you gotta try an' go at anything alone. We'll be there every step we can, if you want us there."

Creed smiled, placing a reassuring kiss to the back of her head.

"Can't have anyone stealin' your magic, right?"

And, once again overwhelmed by emotion, Natalia Belmonte tightly embraced Jonie and Maliq before bursting into grateful tears. She didn’t know what she would ever do without them.

[AlteredTundra]

_{An @Aces Away, @LovelyComplex, & @metanoia Collaboration
Featuring The Lost Trio, once a loved quartet, with the littlest warrior beside them}

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Decky stared up at the ceiling of Beau's garage from in between Jade and Poppy, his heart and mind still in turmoil. Somehow though, he felt an odd calm falling over him the longer he heard Jade's even breaths, felt her chest expanding telling him she was still here. All he could think about was that the last person he trusted that held a gun on him was Charlie, and while ReyRey had waved his gun around Decky before, it had never been pointed at him. ReyRey's words had been echoing in his head all night and that mixed with the older man's actions had had Decky practically mute the whole walk to Beau's. But now he was with his girls. Well, his Southie girls, because he actually had others to think about now too. With that in mind, he sent off a quick text before he twisted his head a bit to look down at Poppy on his right and saw that she was still awake despite her silence. He wanted to talk about Hard Times but at the same time...he might not even be able to. He still couldn't even say his damn name out loud. He gave himself another second to reply to his text from Allegra before turning his attention to her and garnering the will to speak.

____________________________________________________________________

To: Bambi With a Gun
12:19AM

Hey…
I need to see you guys.
Can we do a vid call soon?

From: Bambi With a Gun
12:21AM

Of course, we'll call in the morning. but for now get your rest.
Nochada Buena.

To: Bambi With a Gun
12:21AM

A Gute Nakht

____________________________________________________________________

"Pops?" Decky asked quietly, almost afraid to break the silence. "Do you wanna...meet my friend and kids tomorrow? I don't think," he bit his lip, once again feeling selfish for asking for his friends by his side when he hadn't done the same after the shooting. He'd just taken off. But...he really couldn't do this alone, and Chaim looks just like Danny did as a baby so maybe it would make Poppy feel a little better too. Every time he looked at the boy it was like he had gotten a bit of his baby brother back. Maybe she needed that too. "I don't think I can explain this alone."

At first, Penelope did not respond. Her body was slightly turned away from Decky, not intentionally, but because she was stuck in her own imagination. Completely and utterly exhausted, yet unable to sleep, her mind wrestled with the good times she and her friends shared in this room. She was staring in the darkness at a memory of Charlie reading a book in one of the fold up chairs that surrounded a small game table. The place where Decky taught her how to gamble for the first time. The place where they played that stupid oreo challenge. The place they had both philosophical conversations and intense arguments. The place where they were happier. When everything was simple. The place where they could be a family together.

While the image of Charlie’s ghost ate at her on the inside, she gradually registered Decky’s words, only delayed by a few seconds.Turning her frame fully toward him, resting her hand on his chest, she lifted her head slightly to peer down at him.“Your kids?” she wordlessly said back.

There wasn’t much light to show Decky’s features, but she could make out where his eyes were and his lips. It felt like only yesterday when she found out Decky had left town without a word and yet, all that, all that pain and shock she went through, didn’t matter. Penelope could feel how thin he had gotten. She had noticed fresh track marks on his arms when he gave his jacket as a gesture of comfort. She could hear in his voice how much he needed her. This was such a bittersweet feeling. Charlie's letters brought them back together, all grown up and more damaged than before.

Trailing her hand up, she rested it on his cheek and whispered, “You won’t be alone.” After a calming, deliberate break, she continued, “I would love to meet them, Decky.”

He sucked in a sharp breath, throat closing around his next words. Poppy was the first one to use that name on him after ReyRey. He hadn't heard that name for almost two whole years, having severed ties with it when he left. Sure, the nickname was used by damn near everyone close to him that wasn't a Serpent, but it had always been the nickname Danny gave him, and to be hearing it- knowing it would never leave his little brother's lips again, knowing it was the last thing to tumble from his mouth before Charlie shot him- it was torture. He may feel like he's reverting to Decky, but he'd long since buried him.

"M-Mordechai, j-just call me Mordechai, please," he stuttered out after finally releasing his breath. He wrapped his arm around Poppy and hugged her close to his side. "Only the baby is actually mine, but Legs' daughter started callin' me papa so it stuck." He let a small smile come over his face as he thought of his own little family. He looked down at Poppy as she nestled down into his chest, head rising and falling a bit as he breathed. "Thank you, Pops."

He let his head fall back onto the pillow, letting his eyes slip closed as he finally relaxed.

Instead of responding, Penelope kept quiet contemplating his request to call him a name he used to never like being called. Clearly, times had changed and none of them could go back. She knew that… she knew they could never go back… she knew she needed to let go… but she didn’t want to. The moment she let go would be the moment Charlie disappeared and that feeling she couldn’t bear. She couldn’t bear losing him again. Even if right now he was only a memory, she wanted to cling to it for dear life. That’s all she had left of him and she just wanted it to stay.

She wanted him to stay.

Finding Jade’s hand in the dark, resting her hand on top of it, Poppy’s breathing steadied. “Don’t thank me…” Her words were inaudible at this point, and could hardly be heard, especially to the barely conscious. “... I didn’t do anything.”

Jade lightly tightened Poppy’s hand.”Being here isn’t nothing.” She’d say in a low voice. The kind of low voice that gave the impression she was too mentally drained to speak any louder. As she mustered all the strength she could, Jade turned her head to the right, looking at both of them. “And you don’t need to thank her.”

“Jade… I’m pretty sure Mordechai passed out.” Poppy didn’t realize Jade was even up and wondered how much of the conversation she heard. Did she hear how the nickname Decky stings for their friend? Did she hear he had a child? Did she hear the tone of Poppy’s voice and how something as simple as ‘I didn’t do anything’ had layers of meaning? Like how she couldn’t save any of her southie family.

Instead of saving them, Penelope watched them embrace their demons or worse, go straight to the grave. Maxine. Danny Boaz. Charlie. She was useless and tonight confirmed how little she did for anyone she loved. All she wanted was to be with Charlie and still to this day, all she could think about was him. What was wrong with her?

Burying her face in Decky’s chest, Penelope squeezed Jade’s hand and pathetically whimpered for Jade’s ears only, “I miss him.”

Those words echoed into her head like a gentle whisper that brought a soothing calmness to the storm raging inside. The blonde terror didn’t look at her sister and she didn’t turn her head, yet words slipped out so low that the only person who could hear them was the one they were meant for - just four words: “I miss him too.”

[BrutalBx]

---

---

”Deviants and desirables; tonight was a hard night for your demon dream girl. I chased a real life mystery through some narrow corridors and I was not a fan of what I found. I won’t say much more than that but what I will say; guys if you truly and I mean truly care for someone: pay attention. Watch them. Make sure they’re ok and if they say they are, don’t believe them until you’re sure they are. We live in a society that poisons the souls of men, a society that looks down upon the working class and ignores them. Open your eyes. Don’t let the world whittle away the heart of someone you love. Preach your love. Save your love. Look at the world, pry their eyes open and force them to watch. Love your love. Never let them fade away. Tonight, this one goes out to you Allison…”

Mei hit play on her device and as the late nineties classic began to play over the station, she made her way to her closet, glancing at the green and white cheerleading outfit that still sat there. For the first time, she felt as if it was stained with blood, Allison’s blood. After slamming the closet closed, Mei didn’t really know why but she felt the need to send her older sister a message. Allison had always been more of a sister to her than Reagan ever had. The girls were close so it only made sense right? She picked up her phone and typed a few words before climbing into bed next to her Jill.

Wesley sat on the steps of Edenridge High. He took a sip from his root beer before throwing it into a nearby trash can. He reached into his cream coloured jacket and pulled out a god forsaken Polaroid. Glancing down, the image was clear of course. It was a self portrait, a younger, slightly more curly haired version of Wesley Silo taking a snap of himself in the mirror, wearing his Pinehurst sweater. The date on the back read 12/4/16…

ReyRey sat broken on the floor of his bedroom, glaring down at the tattoo of a sunflower on his ankle. His white shirt was stained with blood and tequila with tears streaming down his face. He looked up as the girl in the green and white cheerleaders outfit looked at him with such sadness. She offered him a quiet smile which did not represent the rest of her as she faded away; back into a memory.

Hearst blew the smoke from his lungs, illuminated only by the street light as he stared out at the small pond. It was quite an awe inducing sight; the trees that crept up the sides and a single small mass of land in the middle, said to be the site of Edenridge’s first murder, the home of the very curse that forces angels to become devils. They say that when the tree dies, the town will burn. In Hearst’s mind, it was already ablaze and no one could put the fire out. Edenridge was a town of myths and legends. He came home to seek truth, not listen to ghost stories.

Poking his head into the converted garage, Beau looked upon the lost trio of Jade, Mordechai, Penelope with a subtle smile on his face. He did not say a word before turning his back away from them and moving into his living room where his darling Colleen had wrapped herself up in a blanket and fallen asleep waiting for him to return. The image of the three of them curled up together was not an uncommon one in years prior. Too often they’d get themselves into some kind of trouble and they would find themselves in his hostel for lost souls. Many a night he recalled opening the door and finding the three of them wrapped up together; with one exception. As the others slept, Charlie sat in the corner, watching over them; he always did.

Colleen was a fine woman, a good woman though she’d be pissed at him in the morning when she realised there were three kids asleep in her garage. Luckily for Beau, it would only last a few minutes before she ended up cooking them all a hearty breakfast. He quietly reached for the book that sat on the coffee table before heading out onto his porch; the familiar site of Officer James’ patrol car slowly creeping by the houses. The two men’s eyes locked and they shared a nod as Beau moved his eyes down to the book."For what are we born if not to aid one another?”

Cradling his sleeping young daughter in his arms, Roddy stared out from his bedroom window at the dim city lights of Edenridge. His heart ached for Elaine and he felt such sorrow that their night ended the way it did. The blonde was in the other room, sobbing loudly; he could hear her through the wall. He glanced down at his computer screen, tickets to Texas. Maybe tomorrow. Tonight was about closure, about understanding the darkness. Instead, all it did was open old wounds and allow said darkness back and not their lives to poison their blood. Who would survive? And what would be left of them?

In a night of strangeness, somehow Kylee Grimm and Tiffanie Taccone ended up sharing the only Lyft in town together--- and it was not a pleasant experience. Their driver, a Serpent named TNT, couldn't control his rude, dismissive demeanor, or hold back the angry remarks spewing out of his mouth after any attempt from the girls to strike up a conversation. Fed up with his behavior after a rather harsh comment directed towards Tiff, Ky gave the driver a piece of her mind before both girls decided to ignore him and focus on each other instead. After making it back to the safety of the north side, the two girls exchanged numbers, and perhaps a friendship began to blossom. A light in a night full of terrors.

The dark blue Quadrifoglio cruised from the neglected slums of the southside to the well kept neighborhood of North Edenridge. A neighborhood that reminded the driver and passenger how privileged they were. For the first few minutes of the car ride, the ex lovers sat in dead silence. When they crossed the railway, Danny found himself glancing at his ex in concern and awe. When he tried to strike up a conversation, Marco brushed him off, explaining he was tired instead of admitting what was truly bothering him. Rather than push his ex to talk, the Belmonte boy accepted the silence, respecting his ex's wishes. No music. No talk. Just the sound of their breathing. All the clutter left Danny's head, feeling the companionable silence, as he pulled up to Marco's house. All he could think about was the boy beside him and he was content with that.

And there, in the familiar silence on his street, in front of his house, they sat. The engine was still running, the low breeze of the AC hitting Marco's face. He just...let the cool air hit him as he sat back in the passenger seat. He couldn't help but think about the conversation he had with Jill. Of all people, he had confided in her about the person sitting next to him without giving any names. And she had some choice words, saying that Danny didn't deserve him. Marco couldn't stop himself from letting those words play on repeat during the car ride. Maybe it was the truth, but it was a lot more than that. Deep down, Marco had a lot to consider.

After enough time had passed, Marco opened the door, Danny helped him walk up the path leading to the house. Even during this slow series of moments, Marco didn't say anything. Or at least, he didn't say anything that would lead to any comments. When they got to the door, Marco first gave his mom a hug, smiling at her as much as he could. He took a half step inside and soon after, she pulled Danny into a tight embrace. Mrs. Marlie kissed both his cheeks and forehead, smothering him with kisses with how much she missed him, clearly taking his breath away with how tight she was holding him.

There was a moment when the two ex lovers looked at each other, neither aware if this was a clear distance between them or a step closer to understanding one another. After Danny pulled away from Marco’s mom, he watched the boy he let go enter the house with his mother, being left alone at the doorstep. Shuffling away, he contemplated Roddy’s words, worried if this was yet another mistake to add to his list. Once he entered his car, he sat there for what felt like minutes, even if it was only seconds, before driving off. The moment he was no longer near Marco the guilt crept back up. As much as Danny wanted to sit and wallow, he knew he needed to make his wrongs right, he just hoped it wasn’t too late.

Wrapped up in a soft blanket, the sleeping figure of Natalia Belmonte could be seen inside one of the bedrooms of the Lost Souls Homes apartment complex. The Northie girl's most trusted confidantes held guard around her: with the dark-skinned Creed gently stroking her hair as she lay snoozing in his lap, and the dark-haired Jokes tightly holding one of her hands in both of his. Concerned expressions were mirrored in each of the young men's faces as they stared at their former lover in silence, ready to sprint into action at a moment's notice if Puff showed any further signs of distress. Years before, the two serpents had sworn to protect her forever-- and they meant to keep that promise.

Under the covers of a cozy king bed inside the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, the nude figures of Caitlin and Niles were wrapped around each other in the dark, passionately coming together as one as they properly celebrated the start of their relationship. After so many years spent suffering with sadness, loss and grief in silence and loneliness, their healing hearts were happy to have finally found someone else out there who truly understood.

Mika spent a few minutes in his truck, slamming his balled up fists against his steering wheel and dash, cursing himself, cursing Cece, and cursing Niles. He made a fool of himself because he allowed his emotions to get the better of him. He made a fool of himself because he thought he had any right to being angry when it was he who broke Cece’s heart. Self-sabotaging was his middle name and self-sabotaging was his nature.

Once his pity party was over, Mika went to Edge of Sin for an hour. He went to Edge of Sin to drink and drink and drink until he could no longer feel the mistakes of his past creep up and that he could go back home with the peace of mind that tonight never happened. Only, when he got home, instead of the solitude he thought he’d have, a surprise waited for him. A visitor that he thought he wouldn’t see for a long time.

---

A lone figure walked down the sloped hill of Carlisle Avenue, whistling Sweet Transvestite from the Rocky Horror Picture Show. The street was dead and an air of despondency hung like a dark cloud. It had been three years since he had walked these cobbled driveways and by the looks of it nothing had changed. Everything still looked and smelled like shit. Was he surprised? Absolutely not. With the Gonzalez clan still in charge, nothing would ever change. Some days, he wished that he was raised in Pinehurst. At least the grass was green there.

He approached the familiar door at the end of the road and climbed up the small steps towards it. Once he stood directly outside of it, he took out the headphones he had “borrowed” from his parole officer and stopped playing the Midnight Frequency on his phone. He hadn’t considered what he was going to do or say, it just was going to be what it was.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

After a few moments, the entryway swung open. It had been Mika Zima who had answered the door, and upon realizing the identity of his guest, a look of sheer shock settled upon his face. Meanwhile, Hyde began to grin like a rattlesnake as he put a hand on the smaller man’s shoulder.

”Hey, little brother.”

---

[AlteredTundra]

_{Late Friday Night}

_{A @metanoia & @BrutalBx Collaboration || Featuring Honey Badger & The Devil}
____________________________________________________________________________________________________

”Hey, little brother.”

In the moments after the fact, a cold stillness passed through the Honey Badger of the Southside. It was like a ghost had passed through his body and sent chills down from his spine to his Achilles tendon. It paralyzed him for what seemed like a few minutes — hours even. That kind of paralysis that one felt when the worst-case scenario that one had played out in their head had been made into a reality.

Words were exchanged and Honey Badger acted as if things were normal. He turned when The Devil had walked further into his somewhat tiny apartment, setting the duffle bags that were hoisted over his shoulder on the beat-up, old couch along the way. It was the worst kind of surreal reality moment that seemed to play out in real-time.

And then, as if it was a normal thing to do, The Devil occupied the only bathroom/shower in the apartment and that paralysis faded, forcing the Honey Badger to adjust. It was like a bad fever dream and his worst fears truly were here.

But why?

That’s the question he heard himself ask over and over again, playing out all of the potential what-if responses he might get from that man.

But he shouldn’t be here.

Yes, that’s right: he shouldn’t be here. Honey Badger was certain he wasn’t due out for a few more years. Hell, sometimes he’d frequently check online to make sure that his brother’s sentence wasn’t going to end prematurely. So what happened? Good behavior? Overcrowded? What?

In the midst of his questioning of the only person in the room who could respond: himself, like a switch, the ambiance of the creaky showerhead clicked off, as it always had done. The silence took residence in the apartment, but HB’s mind made a mental note to get that fixed...eventually.

And as his brother came out walking, a towel wrapped around his waist, they stood facing each other. He wasn’t frozen like last time, but HB didn’t say anything.

Or, at least he had intended to remain quiet. Before he could stop himself, his mouth had made the decision for him, “what are you doing here?” Honey Badger asked almost as if he had forgotten the dread he was experiencing no more than ten minutes ago.

”Well, I couldn’t exactly go to Aleyda’s could I?”It was so A-typical of Hyde to respond with such…smarm.

The man didn’t care about anything. It was the nonchalantness, the effortless cool, that was how he survived so long. He was James Dean; a rebel without a cause. It was almost endearing. Almost. Behind the handsome face and crooked smile, there was a monster: one whose name had not been spoken by the lips of anyone for a very long time. He was his namesake. He was what dwelled within every man, manifested in corporeal form; Jekyll and Hyde, Cameron and Hyde; the truth of which Robert Louis Stevenson wrote oh so many years ago.

Walking towards his brother's old fridge, the blue-eyed battler opened it up and scanned it for some form of sustenance. He settled on a bottle of Edenridge’s local beer and popped open the cap before he even took it out of the unit. He took a swig before closing the door of the fridge and returning his attention to his little brother.

”I’m assuming you’re asking how I’m out of jail? It’s really not that difficult. I was a good boy and there were too many bad boys; ergo your big brother is here. You spoke to our darling sister lately?”

There was another bout of silence as HB watched his brother make himself home, rolling his eyes at his explanation. The Boston Department of Corrections didn’t even know what kind of monster they had locked. As he did his best to not visibly cringe, he shrugged at Hyde’s comment. “Well, I didn’t wish her a happy Sunday, if that’s what you’re asking.” His brother wasn’t the only one that could be sassy. “Besides, I’ve been a tad busy. But next time she makes herself available, I’ll be sure to give her a big hug for you!” HB followed his comment with a small thumbs-up gesture.

“Busy stalking the Belmonte girl?” Hyde put his beer down onto a table and looked back towards his brother “I’ve got to admit, she’s a bit of a babe” He took a step forward and clapped his hands together “Don’t let her trap you though, Mika. That’s what they do. They get in your head and they twist you around their fingers until you can’t see straight and you do shit you don’t wanna do” He took a step back and began to breathe just a little harder; letting it become rhythmic in a way. Hyde could feel his blood getting hotter and his muscles tensing so he felt the best thing was to remember his breathing, remember all the work he had done on the inside to learn to temper the monster beneath his skin.

Well, he wasn’t stalking her, but ever the observant one, his big brother had deduced there was indeed someone he was watching more than he should have. There was no way in hell HB was gonna allow Hyde to know about Cece, though. But as he watched Hyde, he felt that old familiar sensation crawl up his back like a goddamn snake. It was the same feeling he thought was six feet under, but looking into his brother’s eyes, he saw it. It was only for a second, but the Devil was there and HB froze, but then he wasn’t.

“Relax. I know not to get shacked down. But maybe you should? Obviously not with some bimbo, but maybe taking a breather would do you some good.” Against his better judgement, Mika approached Hyde. All cursed memories aside, the history between Honey Badger and The Devil wasn’t all bad. Mika’s fucked up sense of self couldn’t turn off the part that this brother of his was at least an improvement on the other one he had.

A breather? A BREATHER?

“I’ve just spent the past few years locked up in a damn eight by four cell with nothing but time. I ain’t taking no more breathers, Mika”. Hyde turned away from his approaching brother and moved over to the clothing bag he had dumped on the couch. It was fairly empty considering he didn’t really have the time to prep for his trip away and no one cared enough to drop him any clothes off. He could feel the all too familiar feeling bubbling in his head; that distinct sound that rattled in his ear like titanis. He pulled on some clothes, with every new item, a pause for a calming breath.

Without provocation, Hyde spun on his heel, grabbed the dinner table and flipped it as hard as he could onto the floor. He raised his hands up, almost in regret and placed them against his head. “Listen, all I want is to move on with my life. Tomorrow you and me and our darling sister are going to have breakfast together, like an actual fucking family” He dropped down onto the couch and looked upon Mika with the cold blue eyes that were synonymous with the devil himself “And that’s not a request, M. You send what we code you guys have and you get her here first thing tomorrow. Am I clear?”

He froze. Not when the table was flipped or even when it seemed like Hyde was losing his mind. No, it was the calm that came after. The way that his brother glared at him, that cold stare was enough to remind HB just how much things haven’t changed. Prison didn’t change Hyde. He said he had nothing but time and something in those words painted a clear picture for HB. His brother was worse now than he ever been, but he didn’t know exactly how. There was a gut feeling and, almost always, he was right on the money about these.

As he glanced at the table that had wedged itself in a right to left diagonal angle, he shook his head at it. “Fine whatever. I’ll make it happen.” God really loves to test him. First Cece and Niles and now this.

“Good” Hyde got up to his feet and patted his younger brother across the face. “This town has taken enough from me, it’s not taking my family” He walked towards the front door and cracked it open a touch. “Now, grab your wallet. We’re going for a drink and you can tell me all about this spooky letter business. Big brother is here to save the day”

[BrutalBx]

---

Featuring Mei @BrutalBx and Jill @NeoAJ

---

Mei had long thought about the words that now hung around her lips like a noose.

”I love you”

They weren’t that difficult; easy. Something that a child learns to say when they’re around the ages of two or three. Then why do they cause so much confusion? Why do they cause so much pain? She didn’t know the answer to that question and there was only really one way to find out; to say those three words and mean it. To whom? That was the easy part.

She had long thought about the red headed girl that was currently asleep in her bed wearing a Motley Crue tank top. They had been friends for as long as Mei could remember and beyond all others, Jillian had been the only one to accept her for who she was. When she turned her back on the prissy visage of a cheerleader, Jill was there. Whenever she had a problem with Reagan or with Q; Jill was there. When Charlie shot up the damn school and Mei lay helpless in a pool of her own blood, it was Jillian’s face she wanted to see. Mei had loved her all her life but after last night; after the psycho, his letters and ReyRey…a message was reinforced in her mind; hold on to who you love and hold them tight.

Mei climbed back into bed next to the flame haired O’Brien girl and gently caressed her porcelain skin. She didn’t know who was behind the sadness that had befallen her friends but perhaps maybe something else besides ill intent was at work? Could this be the thing that finally brought her and Jillian together as they should have been all this time? She didn’t know but she was going to find out.

Jillian could have found out last night. Maybe it’s why she was still thinking about finding out now instead of either cuddling up with someone who wanted to do so, or curling up in her room and never coming out. She was stuck in between, somewhere in the quantum state between BFF and GF. She could have figured it out.

She was all set to get an answer, after her pep talk to and from Marco, to which she was going to have to check in with him at some point in the next week to see how his own progress was coming. The sugar rush from the cannoli probably fueled her desire to push the envelope and find out. But she had to wait a while before she was able to get a hold of a Lyft driver able to ferry her back to the palatial Ramsey estate, so she walked around the block a little bit. By the time her chariot arrived, the pump-up speech was wearing off. It didn’t help that by the time she arrived, Miss Midnight had yet to come home.

It wasn’t new for Jillian to show up at Mei’s place in need of aid with her fellow ex-cheerleader not home. She remembered the drill. Get the key from under the flowerpot by off to the side of the door, open the door and prop it open with the brick, return the key, slip in the apartment and get comfy. She even knew where the sleeping tank tops were kept, there were few secrets between them at this point. She worked her way into Mei’s bed and waited… and waited… and fell asleep.

There was a lot done today, it took a lot out of her. She thought at times she could hear Mei talking, doing one of her podcasts, but it faded into the dreams she was having, the usual nightmares of black-and-white tiles and red liquid replaced for now by less fraught visions of the two of them. Together.

It was heavenly. Something Jillian craved but never truly got from previous paramours, who were only interested in her for the status of bedding a cheerleader, or who remembered who she once was. It was a very lonely way to go about finding pleasure. Now, instead of the ghosts of her fallen friends, her own demise, and her vast array of mistakes, she only saw Mei Ramsey. It wasn’t the sunlit field that most people picture for romantic tableaus, but a neon-lit nightclub with music drifting from the band in the corner and an unlimited bar tab for the both of them. There were no worries, no thoughts of what price had to be paid for such an experience, just basking in the glow of each other. It was one of those moments that made Jillian feel like she couldn’t possibly desire anything else in the world. Yet Mei never hesitated to deliver what she needed.

Including the wake-up call to let Jillian know that her dreams weren’t that far from reality. She was aware there was movement in the bed at this point, but she didn’t want to know what it meant. She finally got her answer as she felt the soft hand grazing along her cheek. Passing along to the exposed arm poking out from the black fabric of the t-shirt. Her eyes flickered open, as if to confirm the person offering the gentle touches was exactly who she wanted it to be. A soft giggle escaped Jillian’s lips to be followed by a content sigh. “Mmmmm, morning Mei… or is it midday? I feel like I slept forever…”

“It’s early,” Mei responded; leaning into her pillow next to Jill and looking into her pretty brown eyes. “You were sound asleep but I thought it best to wake you. I’m heading to the dojo for a workout, see if I can’t exercise some of those demons that invaded our world last night.” She didn’t really want to bring up what happened to them last night; it didn’t feel right given what else she was thinking about yet it also was unavoidable. If not for the events of the previous evening, would she have even developed the courage to say the words she so desperately wanted to say?

Her eyes scanned the room; almost looking for the next tragedy that would stop them from being happy. It always seemed to Mei that when happiness was in reach, the curse of Edenridge would read its horrid visage and cause untold pain. Yet in that moment of afterglow, there was no pain. No monster in the corner of the room preparing to eat their souls. It was just Mei and Jill, in bed, a small sunrise light peeking through the black curtains and the dim neon light sliding from beneath the door of her closet.

”Jillybean; I…” Cowardice; something that she was not accustomed to. ”Fuck it. Jillian, I love you and I’m not talking about squad love.” Mei placed her hand delicately onto the O’Brien girl's face. ”Last night just reinforced the fact that you are what I carry around in my heart. It’s not pain or anguish, it’s just love. I love you and I think I always have. You’re my dream girl.”

Now Jillian was wide awake, as her eyes bolted open at the revelation. She didn’t dare move, lest she give Mei a reason to take her hand away from her cheek. The look in her eyes didn’t give away an impression of fear, more of shock.

How...how did she manage to beat me to the heart-pouring confession?!?

After the initial impression wore off though, Jillian’s eyes softened. While she wasn’t the one that got to make the initial confession of love, there was now no reason to be afraid. She didn’t need to get an awkward confirmation from Mei, she got total confirmation. Fuck, Mei said love. Multiple times. Called Jill her dream girl. She wasn’t going to get any stronger go-ahead signals that what she was feeling last night from the kiss, from the fighting spirit, from her friendly chat with the impartial observer who knew even with their distance that Jill and Mei should just be a thing already. It was meant to be. Mei was already her dream girl. It was time to let her know.

“Mei…” she started, unsure of how she was going to continue that sentence. She was so ready to deliver the confession, she had no idea how to receive it. Maybe she could do both. “Mei… you don’t even know… how happy it makes me to hear you say that…” Jillian was struggling. She could feel tears starting to form even if she was certain she would be able to hold off when she was on the other side. “I’ll be honest… I don’t think I could imagine what I would do if I heard that from anyone else but you… I think I would have told them to fuck off in the hopes that one day you would be the one to say that to me… and I don’t have to wait… So you shouldn’t either…

Jillian darted forward in the bed, as quick as she could, and planted a kiss on Mei’s lips. It was soft, it was slightly awkward and it didn’t last very long, but she wanted that first kiss as her girlfriend to be short, sweet and easily remembered. “I love you too, Mei Ramsey. I think I needed a stupid amount of time to make sure of it, but there’s no doubt in my mind, in my heart, in my soul… You’re the person I need in my life. I need you by my side, in the darkness and the light. You are my reason. You… you keep me going… I love you.” The redhead stopped herself there before she said something that would totally wreck the moment, content that despite not being what she rehearsed in her head last night, it would work. It was Mei. Of course it would work.

Mei could feel the heat rush through her body when Jill accepted her admission and proceeded to kiss her. It was like a lightning bolt had struck her heart and empowered her entire being. This was the feeling that all the booze and all the parties couldn’t give her. She had been searching for so long yet it was always right in front of her. Mei leaned forward again to press her lips against Jillian’s. This was a longer kiss, a proper kiss. Something to show her soul mate just how much she felt for her. Her hand moved down from the flame haired girl's cheek to her waist and Mei pulled their bodies even closer together. She broke their entanglement for some air and found herself lost in Jillian’s eyes once more.

”You realise now you can’t take any of that back?” She gave her that signature wry Mei smile; the one that had gotten her into so much trouble over the years. The one that displayed her beauty, her bravery and her foolhardiness. ”When we walk out that door, we’re not just Mei and Jill. Ex cheerleaders and resident bad girls. We’re Mei and Jill, Ex cheerleaders, resident bad girls and the hottest damn couple Edenridge has ever seen?”

Jill had to pause for a moment, since her mind was still swimming from the more passionate kiss that was shared between the two girls. It had been a while since she let herself have a moment just like that, with nothing mattering but the feeling of her pressed against someone’s body as their breaths entwined. It felt nothing like the flings of the past year. It felt nothing like those that eventually hurt her would offer as an apology. She was worried how it would feel to give in completely to someone again, but that was nothing but pure bliss. There wasn’t even a thought that Mei could possibly hurt her in the future to taint such a moment. This was right.

It’s why Jill let out another soft giggle when Mei pressed her to make sure she was all right with everything. It wasn’t the drunken guffaw that dominated her responses while pounding back vodka cran after vodka cran. It was another sign that maybe Old Jillybean wasn’t as dead and buried as she and almost everyone else were led to believe. Marco may have led the expedition to the grave, but of course it was going to be Mei diving in with a shovel to dig her up. The giggle left a wide grin on her face as she let herself bathe in Mei’s cocksure glow.

“Girl, there are so many things I would take back if I could,” Jill admitted as she moved her left hand up to stroke Mei’s face in the same manner that the dark-haired woman started the conversation with. “That was definitely not one of them. And I guarantee if there is some sort of battle royale for the title of hottest couple in Edenridge, we are gonna kick all their asses for those crowns. Along with anyone else who has a problem with it.”

A sign of the influence that Miss Midnight had on Ashes, a far more violent confirmation of her love than the last time she offered it. But it felt right. Mei brought so much out of Jillian during those times of joy and times of darkness. Even if Old Jillybean was starting to come back to life, she was going to keep wearing those combat boots that new Jill had picked up. They still looked good on her.

“Although if I’m going to do that, I might have to start coming to the dojo with you, just in case I can’t use bottle tactics in that fight. But you can’t change what you said either when you see me trying to punch air, no matter how flaily I look.”

”I wouldn’t change anything I said for the world.” Mei pulled herself up to a seated position; looking upon Jill’s smile and couldn’t help but grin from ear to ear. ”If you want, you can come with me now?” She posed to her new girlfriend. ”I work up a mean sweat and I mean…having you there would be extra motivation. Pick out something sexy from my wardrobe?” If for nothing else, Miss Midnight would’ve loved to just stay in bed with Jill, get a different kind of work out and show her new love exactly what they had been missing in all the years they’d spent dancing around each other. Alas the demon dream girl was a creature of habit and ritual; it’s what in reality besides Jill herself what kept Mei sane.

“Hope I still remember how to make sweaty look sexy from high school!” Jillian remarked. However, she was going to have to get up, and getting up was hard. Even with the experience she had at this point with those particular alcohol levels, it was still a challenge to even sit up at this point. She would have loved to just lay in bed with Mei until the afternoon and find out exactly what the perks of taking their relationship to the next level would be. All she had right now were stories.

Still, she had to hoist herself out of bed to do her first official task as Mei’s girlfriend: picking out something to wear this morning. Or maybe she didn't... nah. Not just yet. “Hmmmm… well, you know I’m a sucker for the classics. Something that allows for freedom of movement, but is also very striking.” Happy Jill was drifting into goofiness already. In her recent state, it normally took at least four drinks to hit that point, and even then it was an even chance her personality would land on one of goofy, sad, angry or hungry. But she was stone sober now, just riding the high of their shared confessions. “I think if we pair the tight black tank top with the short shorts I see there, that should do the trick.”

Smiling like a Cheshire cat; Mei sprang out of bed and over to her walk in to grab the outfit that Jill had suggested. Returning to the foot of the bed, she let a sideways glance betray her thoughts as she admired Jillian again. She lay the outfit down onto the edge of the desk and began to slowly peel off the clothes she was wearing. They had seen each other naked; that wasn’t a new thing for them. Having been teammates they had showers together and being friends for as long as they had meant lots of late nights cleaning vomit off of places that had no right to be covered in the violent projectile. This was the first time that said nakedness happened after a declaration of love; it was somewhat intimidating. Mei had no reason for concern: she still had the athletic body that had carried her through high school; it was only now just covered in a few more tattoos. She still trained every day in spite of her hard partying ways and worked hard to stay in top condition.

Once she slipped into the training outfit; she walked over to Jill’s side of the bed; which it would now forever be and took her hand into hers. ”Now you” She pulled the walking sunset upwards, out of bed and into her embrace. She led her to the wardrobe and stroked her face. ”I know just the thing” Miss Midnight took a step into the walk-in and grabbed a few items of clothing before handing them over to Jill. ”What's mine is yours and you would look so, damn, good in this. Much better than me.”

"I don't know, have you seen you?” Jillian innocently asked in response to Mei’s compliment. Still, she now had the chance to return the favor after Mei gave her a taste. Sure, it wasn’t the first time she had seen Miss Midnight in her full glory, but this was the first time she could appreciate it on this level. It almost made Jillian a little gun shy when it came to stripping down herself. But Mei loved her, flaws and all. It made no sense to hide from her in any fashion.

As the redhead started to remove the borrowed sleep wear from last night, the effects of the recent year were more visible. The porcelain skin the O’Brien family was known for bore quite a few nicks and chips as the scars of her attack were laid bare. Her hair covered up the big one where her skull connected with the jutting edge of the third stair from the bottom of the Barrie household, but the smaller ones along her torso were visible. She also still carried a ring of baby weight around her stomach, unwilling to work it off in her alcohol-fuelled spiral so it carried vodka weight instead. It had been a while since she even attempted something as vigorous as what Mei usually had planned for her workouts at the dojo, but maybe now that Jillian had someone she wanted to look good for, it was time to start trying to slim that reminder off her body. Besides, if Mei was going to be designing tattoos to help cover up some of the marks, she needed to know that the canvas wasn’t going to be in a state of flux.

Jill took a deep breath now that she was bearing everything in the room. She didn’t want to move too quickly and deprive Mei of the sights, but she was still methodical in slipping on the sports bra, the pink and black cut-off tank top, the mid-thigh shorts, the things necessary to start fully participating in her girlfriend’s life. Not just as a drinking buddy and occasional podcast guest, but as a partner. Fully invested. Another breath came and went as she turned around to face her girlfriend. “Well, do I look ready enough to kick ass and take phone numbers?”

”As long as it’s only my phone number. Anybody else and I’ll have to kick their ass.” Mei took a step forward with a deep breath. She placed both hands on either side of Jillian’s cheeks and kissed her. God, the electricity she felt when she did that; it was indescribable. ”Come on, baby. Let’s go make our debut.” She took Jill by the hand and led her out of the apartment; into a brave new world.

As the pair made their way out of the door, they were greeted by an all too familiar image; Alonzo Hearst sitting on the bench opposite Mei’s apartment. ”Well, well” The agent pushed up his glasses to get a better look at the two of them. ”If my brother was here now I’m sure he would have a brain aneurysm; his two favourite girls all tarted up and ready to go.”

Mei stopped in her tracks and gripped Jill’s hand tightly. Hearst had been harassing her for weeks. She was almost sure that he believed that she was behind the letters being sent around town. Yet were he any good at his job, the FBI agent would know she had nothing to do with any of it. It was obvious to anyone with half a brain that Alonzo was still sore about what happened to his little brother. Some wounds don’t heal as fast as others. ”If your brother was here now, Lonzo; Q would probably be telling us about how much smarter he is than the rest of us and how he was getting out of this Podunk town…oh wait, that didn’t happen did it? No he was taken from us and what exactly are you doing about that besides harassing me? Huh Agent Hearst?”

Now Jill was taking breaths out of a different kind of fear. Alonzo Hearst had been an annoying presence in Edenridge since that day of dread in senior year. Especially given what happened between her and Quinton once she became firmly entrenched in Mei’s corner after their split. She seemed to have a pattern of making male friends only to have them do stupid male shit which would cause her to cast them aside. Between Q, Danny and Michael, it was a wonder she didn’t fully give in to the other side of her bisexuality sooner.

Still, she felt bad about how that particular friendship ended. Junior year was frosty as hell between the two and senior year, well, Jill lost a lot of past and present friends in senior year. Not with Lonzo though. There were too many sessions at the Hole listening to Mei complain about Agent Hearst harassing her for her to have much sympathy for him. She knew he was acting out of hurt, but there were a million wrong ways to deal with it. They just chose different paths. But she was getting off hers. Possibly. Maybe.

“We both know Q couldn’t handle the thought, Alonzo,” Jillian confirmed, giving Mei’s hand a squeeze back to let her know she was staying put with her. “Shit, the kid had a nosebleed when I did that dance routine on the sideline with Lanie Lancaster in sophomore year. Something about girls gyrating together to the sounds of Cardi B really roused his spirit, didn’t it?” The barb was meant to hurt Lonzo, but Lanie was another name on that list of the lost. It was fine though. Jill had all the support she needed now. “Anyway, you need help with something, Mr. G-Man?”

Alonzo stood up from the bench to his full towering height of six foot five. He was an intimidating specimen if not for his ice cool demeanour. He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out an envelope. ”Just saying hello, dropping off the mail.” He casually walked by the two girls to Mei’s front door and dropped the envelope through the letterbox. ”I know how much you love letters, Mei.” His deep booming voice offered no hint of intent. ”I’ll be seeing you.” Lonzo then stuffed his hands into pockets and began to walk off in the opposite direction.

Mei gripped onto Jill’s hand as tightly as she could. Even in the face of ReyRey Gonzalez holding a gun at her; she didn’t feel fear like she did when Alonzo Hearst was in her presence. Rey was a loose cannon; everybody knew that. Lonzo was a different kind of animal altogether. Trying to get a read on him was like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands. ”Fuck him. He’s not ruining this.” She kissed Jill’s soft lips again; it was becoming a habit already and one she did not want to break any time soon. ”You ready?”

Most people wouldn’t recommend sassing back at a federal agent, especially not by invoking dead family members, but Jillian didn’t care. She was too in her feelings for once. Happy feelings. With every kiss that Mei delivered to her lips, she was more certain she could make the happy feelings actually last without the help of the bottle. As Alonzo disappeared, the tension eased in her mind. Hopefully Mei felt that too. For all the support she gave, she had to know Jill was going to give it right back in a manner she felt befitting.

Or she could keep offering kisses. That worked too. Either way, Jillian was finally ready to do something that resembled productivity as opposed to ready to just forget another day. Even with Agent Hearst’s presence, there was nothing about this day she wanted to lose. If she was right about this, it would be a day to be kept sacred. Maybe the day that she could tell others that her own curse was finally lifted. It felt weird to be optimistic.

Jill looked back at Mei, smiled and planted a return kiss. The feeling of the lip ring pressing on her mouth felt right. “Definitely. Let’s go,” she answered, a tone present that was the clearest indication yet that she was back from her self-imposed exile from society. The hottest couple in Edenridge had to represent, after all.

[Aces Away]

with @BrutalBx

TRIGGER WARNING FOR SEVERE CHILD ABUSE

---

“You think this is a fuckin’ game, boy?” Benjamin Boaz growled from his position towering over a seven year old Danny, eyes bloodshot and nose crusted with white powder as a sheen of sweat coated his skin. Danny was shaking so visibly one could almost worry he would pull a Flash and vibrate straight through the floor. Chest heaving, Beni grabbed a fistful of his youngest’s shirt and hauled the boy off his feet to dangle uselessly as he struggled. “Answer me!”

“I-I don’t know!” The child cried, blood running down from his nose to trickle onto his shirt and by default his father’s hand as well. “I don’t know what I did!”

“That’s the damn problem!!” Beni yelled before tossing the boy to the side, his small body rolling a couple feet before coming to a sudden halt as his back hit his mother’s legs.

“Why’d you throw him at me?” Alana asked before roughly shoving the boy away with one foot, arms crossed. “Throw him in his room if you don’t wanna look at him.”

Before Beni could reply, the front door flew open to reveal a haggard looking Decky Boaz, freshly in his double digits despite his size indicating otherwise. His eyes immediately locked onto his baby brother’s shaking and slumped frame at the other side of the living room. His heart stumbled before jumping right out of his chest and towards Danny, his body only following a moment later.

“Dan-erhg!” The back of his collar was yanked in the opposite direction of his body, cutting off his air supply and making him splutter and cough as he tried to take a breath. Beni dragged his eldest to the other side of the room, far from his brother, before throwing him like a ragdoll against the wall. Decky caught himself palms first before using the force to spin himself around, glaring at his father with his back against the wall. His eyes searched for Danny again, but all he got to see was the ugly, threadbare plaid of his father’s shirt right in front of him. A blow across his cheekbone sent him to the ground before he was hauled back up against the wall.

“You better learn to pay attention to me you piece of shit,” his father growled out, eyes wide and predatory. “Don’t you get between me and your brother when he needs punishment, or I’ll give it all to you and then some.”

“So do it!” Decky yelled, making his father jerk back in surprise before the scowl retook his features and another sharp crack! was heard through the room as Beni left a hand shaped mark on his cheek.

“You wanna take his beatin’,” Beni replied with a poisonous glare. “that’s just fine. Lana, keep the other watchin’.”

“Wait wh-”

CRACK!

Decky’s head whipped to the side, his body following after as he slumped halfway down the wall before pushing himself back up.

“You didn’t think he’d get off that easy did you? You taking his punishment doesn’t teach him anythin’ unless he fuckin’ sees it!”

CRACK!

Decky got lost in the pain soon after, able to focus on nothing but staying conscious.

“DECKY!” Danny cried out, holding his injured shoulder but still reaching for his older brother.

“Nuh uh, you little leach,” Lana scolded, holding the boy’s jaw in a bruising grip and yanking him forward on his knees, making him stumble and- had it not been for the hand holding his jaw- almost crash his chin into the floor. “What do you think you’re doing? You think you can help? Think you can be his little hero?” His mother taunted, nails digging into his cheeks and drawing blood. “C’mon, smile, you just got out of a world of pain. The least you could do is watch.”

Danny whimpered and sobbed in her hold, whole body shaking and tears burning trails down his face as he watched his father deliver blow after blow on his older brother. The entire time, his mother held his face in place with one hand while alternating between a cigarette and a bourbon bottle with the other, not a care in the world as her child’s blood sprayed across the dingy wall with each hit. A few minutes in, she looked down upon feeling the weight increase in her hand and gave out an aggravated sigh at the sight, pulling her hand off Danny’s chin as though it burned her. The youngest Boaz had fallen unconscious, unable to handle the physical and emotional stress of the night.

With all the care of someone dragging a sack of manure, Alana dragged her youngest into his room by the back of his collar before tossing him onto the floor and closing the door, pushing both locks in place before turning the key lock for good measure. She then returned to the living room to see her oldest on the ground with his back leaning heavily on the wall while his chest rose and fell with a few stutters in between.

Decky’s face was a bloody mess, one of his eyes was swollen shut and there were deep splits on his cheeks from where his father’s knuckles had landed. His shirt, already a baggy and threadbare mess, had the collar completely torn apart while the rest of the fabric stayed stretched out from Benjamin's fists twisting into it, leaving the upper half of his chest exposed to reveal the trail of blood running all the way from his nose to his torso. As she watched, more blood poured out of his nose and trickled its way down the path until it got absorbed by the fabric hanging at his sternum. Benjamin was standing over the dazed boy as his shoulders rose and fell with labored breaths, though for very different reasons than her son.

“Looks like he’s still got some fight left,” She mentioned, raising an uncaring eyebrow at the boy she previously thought unconscious as he struggled to lift his head and give his father a one-eyed glare, arm shakily pushing his torso into a straighter position. “Can’t even take a beatin’ right, what a fuckin’ burden.” A harsh thump and gasp rang out behind her as she turned her back to them, making a beeline for the untouched line of coke on the table. With her latest cigarette still between two fingers, Alana knelt down and quickly took in the line, rubbing her nose harshly afterwards. Hopping up from her spot, she turned to Beni and Decky with her eyes blown wide and a sneer on her face. “‘S’all you’ll ever be, too.” She flicked her cigarette butt at her eldest and watched in fascination as it landed on his exposed chest and sat there, causing him to jump and wince harshly as the cherry burned a small gash into his skin before he could knock it off. Decky let out a harsh breath as the pain set in, the exhale wet and rattling.

“Huh,” she huffed out in intrigue, pulling out another cigarette and lighting it, passing it to Beni as she knelt in front of Decky, gripping his jaw the same way she had Danny’s earlier. “Guess we’ll have to make sure you don’t forget.”

In a mock of a loving gesture, Alana slid a hand to grasp the back of his neck as he attempted to steady his glare onto her. She smiled coldly as the cigarette was passed back to her, taking a hit before thrusting the burning end into the spot just below where the other cigarette had hit him. The reaction was immediate: Decky convulsed violently against the pain, and Alana tightened her grip on his neck painfully, holding him in place until his skin put the whole thing out. This continued for the next thirty minutes until both of the Boaz adults had run through their cartons, his father eventually having had to hold him down on the floor by his shoulders because of his struggling.

The end result was an angry, inflamed red word stretching from the middle of his chest, over his left pectoral and across his left collarbone. For the rest of his life, Decky would have the reminder of this night. BURDEN. His eyes were wide and glassy, his arms limply spread out on the floor as he stared at the ceiling without really seeing it, a small whimper making its way past his lip’s defenses every few seconds.

“God, I can’t fuckin’ stand the sight’a ya right now.” Beni spoke up from his place crouched over the boy. With a grunt of exertion, the man got himself up before grasping the dark locks of his eldest son’s hair and dragging him ruthlessly to the door, tossing him out and sliding the locks into place behind him with a final click.

Bruised, battered, and broken, Decky stayed slumped half over their front stoop for the next five minutes, mumbling his brother’s name over and over in a hoarse whisper.

“...Mob…” Decky’s head flew up from where it had been resting against his limp arms, his one good eye falling on Sonny Cernis in all his ragged glory. Sonny had his own cuts and bruises, and the other boy’s face was twisted up into something awful when he saw the state his friend was in, seemingly unable to choose between rage and dismay. It ended up in the most twisted grimace Decky had ever seen on Sunshine, and he didn’t like it at all.

“They kept Danny in our room,” Decky let out with a broken sob. “They made ‘im watch and now he’s in there ‘n’ I’m stuck out here. They made him watch, Sunshine.”

Sonny’s eyes turned stormy, their normal pale green hue darkened to a dull gray with his rage. He dropped down beside Decky and hovered his hands nervously over all his wounds. When the battered boy turned himself over, Sonny’s eyes went wide at the sight of his chest. Catching sight of the other’s stirring emotions, Decky huffed out wetly.

"Don't do that, Sunshine, there's nothing you could do."

"There's somethin' we could both do, actually," Sonny declared, casting his gaze down the street to where you could see a few people camped out on the corner. "They protect their own, right?"

"Can’t stop either of our parents without us ending up in the system," Decky retorted venomously, but Sonny knew none of it was directed at him. “we just gotta wait for them to OD or somethin’. Give us time to avoid it.”

"Maybe," he replied. "or maybe we can make them hurt and scared once we help ourselves first."

And that? That had Decky pausing long enough to really consider the option. It could help him. It could help Sunshine. It could help Danny if he plays his card right.

It...really wasn’t something he had any reason to turn down. So, with a determined nod and a, "Yeah...yeah ok, let's go," he took the other ten year old’s hand and with Sonny’s help they limped their way down to the corner, stopping in front of all the teens that were sitting on overturned crates and barrels. The two stopped at the edge of the group, knowing they needed to wait to be acknowledged. Decky must have looked a sight, all bloody and bruised with torn clothes and nothing but some more blood to poorly cover his new brand.

ReyRey sat on the stoop, a cigarette hanging from his mouth and the golden chains and rings that formed his tanned skin were illuminated by the street light. He glanced over around the strong body of one of his guards at the boys that now stood on his corner. He allowed his dark eyes to track their wounds and the blood that covered them. Do what he did for as long as he did and you gain the sad ability to tell if a beating is for business or for pleasure and judging by what now stood before him, this wasn’t a business transaction.

”Someone get these boys a blanket and something to clean themselves up”

That broke the tableau as several crew members moved to do as their young leader told them. As the blanket was dropped over both of their shoulders, neither boy letting go of the other, one of the women came out of the house with wet rags and a bottle of antiseptic. Decky kept an eye on her as she approached, the warm rags dangling from slender, tanned fingers as a small smile makes its way onto her full lips. She crouches to their height once she's right in front of them, and hands each a rag, frown flickering across her face briefly as Decky takes a physical step back. Sonny looks between the two and carefully takes both rags and antiseptic from her. With a smile devoid of pity- nobody wants pity down here, to be pitied- Tama Kraeter stood back up and headed back to her husband and boyfriend over by the street sign, keeping half an eye on the kids that were even younger than little Jonie and Maliq. The world today was just so wrong.

"Thank you." Sonny called to her retreating back, already grabbing Decky's arm in a gentle grip and beginning to wipe the blood off the other boy. Decky continued to look around warily, barely flinching when Sonny moved to the next, more damaged arm. His good eye settled back on the older boy on the stoop. He had never personally dealt with ReyRey Gonzales, or indeed many of the people in his own neighborhood, but the man had taken one look at them and casually demanded comforts be given. Sunshine was wiping at his neck, working his way up to the sluggishly bleeding cut on his cheek. ReyRey seemed confident in his place in a way Decky had only ever pretended to, and he had the ability to change things he didn't like like Decky never could. Sunshine had finished his face with the rag, the cuts still bleeding but his face as clear as it could be.

”Wherever you boys came from, you ain’t going back, not tonight” ReyRey threw his cigarette down onto the floor as he looked upon the strangers now standing on his corner. He scratched the fuzz on his chin before reaching into his jacket and pulling out a wad of bills. He licked the tips of his fingers and began to count the dollars. He delegated a few from the bundle and handed them to one of his subordinates, whom then offered them up to the tear away teens. ”Go to the Edge, tell them I sent you and you need a bed. We’ll make up a plan for you in the morning”

Both boys now stared at him warily, eyeing the cash being held out in confusion and fear. You didn't just get money to spend. You had to lose something for it, and these two didn't really have anything left to give. Decky hissed and recoiled once the fibers of the rag tugged at the raw skin on his chest, finally revealing the inflamed brand to the cold night air, and every set of eyes on the corner. Sonny apologized to him quietly, still working at the wound while Decky forced the tears from falling. Every swipe of the fabric was like getting burned all over again, and his thoughts quickly settled on Danny. He squared his shoulders as best he could and looked to ReyRey.

"Thank you, uh, sir," he started awkwardly, pleasantries and honorifics never really his thing, and speech slurred by his swollen jaw. "But my baby brother is still there-" 'so I'll just sleep outside the window,' "-so I can't go anywhere yet. We just...wanted to know if you had any spots open…"

”As a matter of fact I do” Rey responded. He jumped up to his feet and placed his hands into his jacket pockets. ”Do what you need to tonight boys, take care of your business and your family. Come see me tomorrow. I’m sure you know where to find me” With that, R2, flanked by multiple serpent jacket clad youths took off into the night.

They watched him go with the blanket left over their shoulders, and many of the crew members following after him. As they turned to leave themselves, the woman that had come up to them with the rags approached again, this time with a lithe man with dark hair and soft, angled eyes. As they approached, the other man they had been with- a tall black man with messy scruff and a wool beanie- broke away and crossed the street, heading for the Edge of Sin.

"Intel is gonna talk to his wife at the Edge and make sure she has a dorm set up for you tw- three," she told them, correcting her count as she remembered Decky has a brother. "Kam'll make sure the sheets are clean an' everything's stocked. Until we see you next-" she held her hand behind her and Slick passed her his beanie. She took her own off as well and secured them on both boy's heads, face neutral but kind as she ignored the flinches. They looked at both Serpents with wide eyes. "-can't have you freezing out there. It's supposed ta rain tonight so find somethin’a stay under, okay?"

"Who said we were-" Sonny went to deny before a sharp look only a mother could give cut him off.

"None'a us are stupid, kiddo, but we also ain't pushy. You've got your business just like ReyRey said. But when you're done, we'll be here." She smiled at them before standing up from her crouch and backing up. "Now go on, we'll see you tomorrow."

The two boys stared at her in mute wonder for a moment before nodding slowly and beginning their trek back down to their houses.

"We should introduce them to Jonie and Maliq, I'm sure Kam and Intel won't mind much." Slick spoke up as the boys disappeared into the darkness of the broken street lamps.

"My man, always knowin' what's on my mind," Thunder turned around and smiled at her husband. "Everyone could use a few friends."

Those boys needed more than just friends, they needed people at their back, and if they continued on their current path then their kids would be perfect for that. They'd treat 'em right.