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The Raven Calls
Drake “D” Edwards, Sally Hendricks & Nikolai Markov
Nik sighs, tired as he makes his way back from a brief visit to the gym. Sweat glistened on his forehead, and he checked his watch to see it was getting relatively late. He figured he had enough time to get in a quick film before passing out for an early start. He reached his room, placing one hand on the door handle while knocking with the other. He didn’t exactly wait for an answer as he opened the door and began moving towards his own bed to collapse from exhaustion...
Drake's eyes flew wide open at the sound of the door opening. He laid in the bed, covered, but unclothed while trying to execute the dinosaur rule. If I don't move, maybe he can't see me. Realizing the stupidity, he went to plan B and forcefully pulled Sally's pillow out from under her head and placed it on top of her, hoping the darkness of the room shrouded her enough for the play to work. He wanted to whisper 'Sorry' to Sally, but it would ruin the deception. Instead, he said overly loud "Hey, buddy! Good night?" while patting Sally's shoulder, trying to tap out a silent distress signal.
As soon as she had heard the knock, Sally's eyes widened comically and she went to roll out of the bed. This was not happening. Before she could move though, Drake had yanked her pillow out from under her head and put it over her. At first, she was a little shocked, but the more she thought about it, the funnier it became. She had to put her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing. Squeezing her eyes shut, she shook her head from under the pillow as easy as she could, fighting not to laugh at Drake's overly eager sounding welcome. And then he seriously started patting her shoulder? What the hell was she supposed to do!? For now, she'd stay hidden. Maybe Nik would go to sleep relatively quick.
Nik plopped onto the bed, twisting in mid-air to land on his back. He reached down towards the side of his bed, where his backpack leaned against the bed frame, and pulled out his laptop. Within but a moment, he was able to stuff his pillows against the wall to sit up as his laptop laid open on his lap, Netflix already open. Nik’s eyes turned over towards Drake, the faint glow of his laptop preventing him from seeing much of his roommate who was shrouded in darkness. ”I suppose...”
He turned his eyes back towards his screen before pausing and looking back. ”Ok... so I’m in a tight spot. I... never mind. It’s nothing.”
"Aw yeah? I hate being in tight spots," Drake admitted, scanning the room for possible escape routes. This was going to be tough. Drake shifted the way he was laying, moving to his side to allow for his shoulders to better hide the person buried behind him as he looked toward Nik, seemingly giving him his full attention. "Hit me with it."
Are they serious right now? Sally felt the bed shift, Drake obviously moving around. They were going to have a conversation right now? Drake, knowing she was there... under a pillow... was going to start a conversation? Well, even though she had briefly been around Nik, she was actually, genuinely curious, as to what was going on. So, hidden under the pillow, Sally slowly removed her hand from her mouth and rolled her head to the side so that she would be able to hear a little better. Might as well get comfy, she thought to herself with a heavy, but silent sigh.
Nik shifted uncomfortably, closing his laptop and setting it aside as he turned to face Drake. ”Alright... so you know how you just look at someone and know that there’s just something about them? I had that moment with... someone today. But she kissed another guy and that guy seems into her. But she seems to like me AND him. He needs the confidence boost... but... I don’t know what to do man.”
"Well..." Drake started, with a huff of laughter. "I get what you're saying. If it were me," Drake paused to find the words. If it were me, I'd get liquored up and grab the bull by the horns, apparently, he thought. "If it were me, I'd do what's best for you. It's cool that you're empathizing with this other dude, bro, but if you want her, get her. Don't gift her to some schmo with confidence issues." He let a moment of silence pass before ending with, "If she means anything to you, explore it."
Nik leaned back, nodding slightly. ”I don’t know man... wouldn’t just being friends work first? Like... we just got here. And I’ve got classes to focus on, and we have to train to be actual heroes... I just don’t want to rush it.” He pauses for a moment, trying to think how to work it. ”I think she could be like... someone very special. Not someone I would just hook up with on day one, ya’know?”
Drake 's eyebrow began to raise and a grin formed on his face. Is he fucking with me? He gave a cursory look over his shoulder, just to see if anything was obvious. He returned his gaze to Nik, undecided. "I suppose it depends on your endgame," he said finally. "If you want a new lady friend while your skittish eskimo brother gets in some quality time, then laying low may be the way to go." His eyes scanned for any sort of reflection on any of the walls or objects, trying to see if there was a tell that Sally was here. "But if you don't want this speciel girl spending her time with Captain Confidence, I would suggest doing something about it early."(edited)
Nik gave a slight nod. ”Right... I... didn’t think about that. I need to at least... stop him from getting too close to her. Make him jealous, make him act out...” Nik immediately reached for the laptop. ”I’ve got a few ideas, but I need to do some research.”
As Nik’s fingers cracked against the keys of his laptop, he turned his gaze to his roommate. ”You have your eyes on anyone yet?”
"Eh... yeah..." Drake began to answer. How the hell do I play this? "There's a surprising amount of great people here. Um... what a day, right?! Soooo... anywho," Drake turned, rolling to the opposite side. "I'm pretty tired," he called back, a look on panic on his face, now looking toward the lump named Sally. "I think I'm gonna call it a night, bud. Good luck with the research and let me know if there's anything I can do."
Nik gave a nod, popping in a set of wireless headphones as he began to play a film, turning the brightness down to be considerate to his roommate.
While Sally laid there, she thought alot about what was being said. Nik, was clearly having trouble with a girl that he liked, liking another guy, as well as him. But at the same time, was hesitant to make any moves. She understood this, as this was how she normally was. Apparently not tonight, she thought to herself as she squirmed a bit. His attitude towards the whole situation with her and Drake irked her, but she understood where he was coming from nonetheless. Drake however, seemed intent on trying to get Nik to go for the girl. The pair were quite different when it came to women and relationships. Her thoughts continued to race as the conversation continued, until Drake finally mentioned going to sleep. Of course, she knew it was bullshit. Finally
After a moment, Sally turned her head in the opposite direction, and lifted the pillow just enough for her to see Drake. He had turned to face her, and the look on his face made her snicker. She slapped her hand over her mouth, glancing over his shoulder. A few moments went by, and she felt confident enough to remove her hand. As she did, her eyes met Drake's, though they were hard to see in the dim light coming from Nik's laptop. Seconds later, she quickly leaned up and planted a quick kiss to Drake' s forehead before slipping out of the bed. She surprisingly, found her clothes rather quickly, and put them back on as quick as she could, her eyes never leaving Nik's form. Just in case she needed to drop suddenly
As soon as she was dressed, Sally slowly slinked to the wall, walking along it and staying in the darkness. Still, her eyes remained on Nik. Jesus, please don't see me, please don't see me,, she kept thinking over and over as she continued moving along the wall. And then, she fuckin stumbled on something. There was a low thump caused by whatever she hit, and it clattered on the floor. She froze, her eyes widening, looking up at Nik. He never looked up from his laptop. Sally's brow furrowed in thought. Whatever he was doing, he was really into. And then, her lightbulb went off. Headphones.
Probably one of the most amazing inventions ever at this moment. Sally sighed in relief, then continued making her way to the door. It wasn't long before she found the knob, and as soon she felt it in her hand, she grabbed it and turned it. Sally opened the door just enough for her to slip out, glancing in Nik’s direction one last time before slipping out and closing the door. Sally release a heavy sigh of relief mixed with a chuckle. She ran her fingers through her tangled and tousled hair, then broke out in a speed walk, heading towards her own room now.
