#coolerthanthis

[pete-spankoffski]

[Cal sauntered down the road to Pete's house, fueled by the first full night of sleep they had gotten in a long time. They practically skipped on the way to Pete's house, picnic basket in hand. It was still fairly early so just to be on the safe side, they send him a quick text.]

Hey you awake? Today's the day!

-@calaverage

> Course im awake :)

> When r u getting here?

[pete-spankoffski]

[ Pete gives Richie a soft smile as he sits down, waving back. ]

Hey.

[ His voice is much more quiet, a bit raspier too. ]

[ Pete sits at an empty table in beanies, his headphones around his neck while he mindlessly taps his finger on the table. A cup of hot chocolate nearby. ]

- @pete-spankoffski

— ` 🗨️ ; richie waves hesitantly at pete, walking up to the front and ordering an apple juice. they walk over to pete with it in hand and sit down.

[pete-spankoffski]

[There's a frantic knock on the front door. Cal stands on the other side, slightly out of breath. Their body looks slightly different, the sweatshirt hanging differently than it would've before. Their hair is its natural brown and the scar on their temple is gone.]

[ Pete rushes to the door, he doesn’t have this glasses anymore and there are lined marks/scars around his head. ]

@calaverage

[pete-spankoffski]

[Cal knocks on the door, a DVD case in hand.]

-@calaverage

[ Pete opens the door, looking down at Cal. ]

Hi.

[pete-spankoffski]

[Cal knocks on Pete's door. Their usual blue hoodie is traded out for a rainbow that is tied around their waist.]

-@calaverage

[ Pete opens the door, wearing a green vest with his sleeves rolled up, pants with a black belt and a rainbow bracelet Ruth gave him. He yawns. ]

Hi!

[pete-spankoffski]

stree ts. VHtach bete gfiekd alley way

[ his hand trembled while holding his phone, his journey back home just beginning and he could only take a few steps before feeling another sharp pain. ]

[ Pete texts Ted, struggling to push down the pain he’s fucking in. ]

hye imgonan head bh ome late tdoay okay lo ve uou

- @pete-spankoffski

[ teds texts back immediately. ]

where are you

[pete-spankoffski]

[Cal stirs slightly in the morning. The first thing they feel is the soreness in their face from that fucking swan. A few dark bruises pepper Cal's face around their nose. They wince, laying their head on Pete's chest so he doesn't see it first thing.]

-@calaverage

[ A moment after, Pete wakes up. He glances around and looks down at them, chuckling. ]

Goodmorning.

[pete-spankoffski]

[Cal jolts awake, wincing. Great...the nightmares were back. They try not to move anymore to not disturb Pete, wiggling their fingers slightly just to make sure that they could still move.]

@calaverage

[ Petes eyes fluttered open later on, looking around. ]

[pete-spankoffski]

oh,, okay..?

why??

@ring-ring-its-pete @alyssa-hill if bailey asks, you were at my house yesterday, studying all night.

[pete-spankoffski]

[Cal is practically skipping down the street, bleach and developer in a grocery bag as they reach the store.]

@calaverage

[ Pete looks over at them, smiling. ]

Excited?

[pete-spankoffski]

[ Pete heads towards the bench the two were previously at, gun in his pocket. He looks at Cal, pacing and his phone was slightly shattered from what happened earlier. His eyes had a glimmer of purple in them. ]

@calaverage

[pete-spankoffski]

[It took a little more coaxing on both sides, but Cal eventually goes to sleep. It was inevitable after all. Their nightmares take them exactly back to where they expected: Watcher World staring down the barrel of that gun. The purple in Pete's eyes wasn't there, but the cold, remorseless stare remained. When they eventually stir, Cal can feel the tears running down their cheeks. They move their hand to wipe them away, but stop half-way through from the stiff soreness coursing through their arm, the constant pressure from last night finally having fully caught to them.]

@calaverage

[ Pete blinks, looking down at them before realizing they’re crying. He frowns and wipes the tears from their cheek soothingly. ]

[pete-spankoffski]

[ Pete passes by Rue, stopping once he recognizes Rue. He takes a step towards her, carrying his backpack filled with not only his school stuff. ]

Hey!

[ rue holds a cardboard box in her hands, earphones buried under her freshly cut hair as she empties out her locker. the contents are a bit of a jumble; she wrinkles her nose up slightly as she finds a very old portion of fries hidden behind some notebook as she continues to pile things into the box. ]

( ooc - feel free to interact !! )

[pete-spankoffski]

[ Pete sits at an empty table in Beanies, the coffee shop now closed. Moonlight beams down and inside, he spins in chairs in the back, walks around, explores the area behind the counter here he wouldn’t be able to see. ]

[ Pete pulls the two puppets out his jacket pocket, putting in a show no one would watch. He doesn’t have anything else to do anyway. ]

[ @calaverage ]

[pete-spankoffski]

[Cal scrambles around the apartment, trying to make it look like a tornado didn't come through it. Tony was out, luckily, and probably would until later that night. Cal pauses at the lock box in the fridge. It's not very full right now, the pounding headache they're fighting off a reminder of why. They grab the box out, shoving it under the bed where Pete won't accidentally see it.]

-@calaverage

[ Pete walks up to the door, pulling his case with him. He knocks on the door slowly, nervous. Glancing at his watch, he fiddles with it. ]

[pete-spankoffski]

[Cal knocks on Pete's door. The bags under their eyes are even larger than when they left. They smile sleepily, leaning on the door frame.]

-@calaverage

[ Pete opens the door, once seeing them he pulls them inside for a hug. ]