#hangs up and immediately tries to call leslie but the line is already cut

[wreckedhoney]

a really fun thing that they probably didn't want to overutilize about forrest's character is his ability to do impressions. he does at least 2 in game but i imagine he's the sort who can get out of an awkward or bad situation in a pinch if he just switches up his voice and misdirects someone. if ever he gets phonecalls from people he doesn't want to hear from or who sound out to get him, they'll suddenly get the news that forrest isn't in town anymore from a random old man, a cowboy(?), someone from the uk for some reason, or a pleasant lady. another situation successfully dodged.

[batgurl1989]

The Other Lane

Summary: You are visiting your sister in Metropolis, and you find yourself in need of the Man of Steel

Word Count: 2194

Warnings: None. Just Fluff

A/N: I could never see Superman with anyone but Lois, but I was tempted to write a Superman fanfic. If you want to be added to my taglist, let me know :)

Taglist: @rmtndew​ @henrynerdfan​ @cynic-spirit​ @princesssterek​

Panic surged to life inside you when you opened your eyes to take in the view. The view would have been beautiful, with all of Metropolis stretched out underneath you. It would have been, that is, if you weren’t dangling over the edge of a building with not much stopping you from falling. As you spun, hanging from a single cable attached to a crane arm, you got another glimpse of your captor. The maniacal Lex Luthor stood at the controls for the crane, laughing as his eyes searched the sky.

So, this is what your parents had always been worried about. They had always seemed so nervous when you suggested visiting your sister in the big city. They always made it seem like she wouldn’t have time to see you because she would be busy with work. That was the Lanes for you, dedicated to their work to the point of missing out on family time. Of course, you had seen the news and learned it was because of the high crime rate in Metropolis. Even innocent bystanders were likely to be injured by falling debris as Superman defended the city from yet another villain.

You knew this was possibly the end of the line for you. You snorted at your unintended pun, doing another rotation on the cable. You refused to scream, which at first annoyed Lex, but he soon gave up on trying to get you to. Thankfully. If he had kept up his antics of pretending to let you fall, you would have unleashed the scream that had coiled in your chest when he first strapped you to the crane arm.

You refused to give him the satisfaction.

Facing out to the city again, you caught sight of a tiny dot on the horizon. Hope leapt in your chest, but you stamped it down. It was night. Anything could be causing a blip on the horizon. It could be as simple as a plane coming in for a landing at the airport. If it was daytime, you could have convinced yourself it was a bird. It could be just a light on the top of a skyscraper, blinking.

But it was shooting closer at an alarming speed.

“Let’s see if he can get here in time.” Lex’s voice rang out as he caught sight of what you were looking at. “I hope Lois mourns you, and it throws him off his game. I have big plans.”

Bang!

And suddenly you were weightless. The scream that had been waiting to be released ripped from your throat as you went into an unstable free fall, your feet flipping over your head several times. You struggled to stabilize yourself, but since your arms were still tied to your side, you had no control. The wind rushing around you was deafening, adding to your disorientation. The ground was rushing toward you faster than you anticipated, though you didn’t know what else you had expected when you started your fall. As you caught glimpses of it making its way closer and closer, you laughed as you realized ‘they’ were right, and the falling wasn’t so bad, as odd as the sensation was. It was the last foot that was going to suck.

Abruptly you stopped and were making an ascent. So abruptly, in fact, that the lunch you had had hours ago threatened to come back up. You were extremely glad you managed to keep a hold on your stomach’s contents when you realized why you were not dead on the sidewalk, another statistic to horrify your parents with. You were cradled in Superman’s protective arms against his chest, the logo emblazoned on the front of his outfit catching your eye immediately.

He flew you a safe distance away from the building you had just been dropped from, setting you down in a park. He kept you steady while you got your land legs back, concern written all over his face. He made quick work of the rope that still wound around your torso, freeing your arms. Before you could think to thank him, he was gone again in a whoosh that messed up your hair worse than it had already been.

Stunned, you stood there for a moment, staring at the spot where he had been. It took a minute for you to come back to yourself, trying to sort through everything that had just happened in the matter of minutes. Lois was going to freak.

Lois!

Frantically, you patted your pockets, surprised and grateful that the rope that had been holding you had stopped your phone from falling out of your pocket as you fell. You ignored the missed calls from your parents; they didn’t need to know what had just happened to you. Thumbing your sister’s name, you waited anxiously until she answered.

“Leslie?” Lois could finally breathe now that she knew her little sister was safe. Then the anger set in. “Where have you been? Clark and I have been looking all over for you! When you say you are just going to run up the street for a Starbucks, that’s what I expect you to do!”

“Lois… Lois…” You tried a few times to interject, but decided it was best to just let her run out of steam. You knew she wasn’t actually mad at you, and that this was coming from a place of love and concern. You waited a moment after she stopped ranting to see if she was finally done, before you spoke up. “Lex Luthor wanted to test Superman’s reflexes and decided to use me as bait. He was trying to see at what height Superman wouldn’t make it.”

“WHAT!” Lois’ shrill voice echoed around your skull, and you realized you probably could have delivered the news a little more gently. You winced as you heard her panicked breathing on the other end of the phone. “Where are you?”

You looked around. You weren’t from Metropolis, and you had been too busy when Superman had dropped you off here to ask him where you were. There were trees and a nice bike path, if you listened hard enough you could hear a fountain splashing somewhere to your right. But that was it. It seemed like every other park you had visited in the city on your trip.

“A park.” That was the best you could come up with, spinning around in a circle, trying to find anything that might give Lois a clue. “I don’t know which one.”

“Leslie?” You spun, on high alert, toward the person saying your name. You supposed you would be jumpy for a while after what just happened to you. You took a deep breath when you saw your sister’s boyfriend on the path, concern written all over his face.

“Is that Clark?” Lois asked, straining to hear what was happening on your end of the line. “Put him on.”

“It’s for you.” You hold out your cellphone to Clark as he steps closer to you. He takes it from you, glancing at the screen before putting it to his ear. You shrug, still looking around the park. It seemed odd that Clark would happen to be in the same random park as you.

You eyed him suspiciously while he talked to your sister in a quiet voice, obviously trying to keep the conversation private. He looked vaguely familiar, but you couldn’t decide if that’s because Lois had sent you a million pictures of him since they started dating, so you were used to his face, or if it was something else. You had always thought he was good looking in a dorky kind of way, and always wondered what he would look like without his glasses on, but this was the first time you had met him, so you didn’t want to be too forward and freak him out. He was good for your sister, and you didn’t want to have a bad relationship with him if he was going to stick around. And if the looks those two shared were anything to go by, he definitely would be sticking around.

“Lois is ordering dinner. You up for Chinese?” Clark drew your attention from your inner monologue and back to what was happening around you. Your face broke out in a huge smile at the mention of Chinese food. You loved spring rolls. Clark chuckled, speaking into the phone again. “I think that’s a yes.”

“So how did you find me?” You asked when Clark handed you your phone back. He adjusted his messenger bag that was slung over one shoulder. If you didn’t know any better, you would say he was slightly uncomfortable.

“The apartment is just on the other side of the park.” He pointed through the trees where you caught a glimpse of an apartment building lit up in the night. “I was taking a shortcut through the park on my way back from looking for you.”

“Oh.” You looked around again. Now that you knew where you were, you realized the park was familiar as you had spent a couple hours earlier that day sitting on the bench to the side of the path, enjoying a coffee. “I guess it looks different in the day.”

Clark chuckled again as you both turned to head back to the apartment building. You fought the urge to tease him about his shy smile. You didn’t know him well enough for that yet. You wiggled your arms, still trying to get the feeling of the rope out of your mind as you followed the winding path through the darkened park.

“This shortcut isn’t really safe, is it?” You asked, eyeing the bushes lining the path. You couldn’t help it. Your safety felt violated after how easily Lex had taken you from that Starbucks. Clark shrugged as you continued down the path. “Clark, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.” Clark nodded, pushing his glasses up his nose. He didn’t look too uncomfortable with your request, so you decided it would be okay to ask.

“Am I too trusting?” You bit your lip, not sure you wanted to know the answer now that the question was floating in the air between you. When he didn’t respond right away, you panicked and began ranting. “It’s just Lois has always been the braver one and has always been willing to do whatever it takes to get to the bottom of things. I like to believe people are who they say they are. And I worry that that is why Lex was able to get a hold of me so easily. If that’s the case, I need to know, so it doesn’t happen again.”

“I find your trust endearing.” Clark admitted, cutting off any further rant from you. He adjusted his messenger bag again. “It’s nice that not everyone out there is pessimistic and cynical. The world needs people like you, who believe in the good of others.”

You stayed silent as you kept walking, trying to digest his words. They made you feel a little better about yourself, and what had happened. But you didn’t want to always rely on Superman to save you. You wanted to know how to stay safe, so that the predicament you were just in didn’t happen again.

“Lex Luthor would have just figured out a different way to get you.” Clark’s voice was low as though he didn’t want to startle you. “I know that isn’t the most comforting thought, but there wasn’t anything you did that made him pick you as his victim. You mean something to Lois, which means you mean something to Superman.”

“Does that bug you?” You asked. The question had been floating around in your mind for months now. One of the news clips you saw while at home, had shown Superman saving Lois. There was no denying the look on his face when he looked at her. Nor could anyone deny she felt the same about him. But here was Clark, and Lois was very much smitten with him. It was weird.

“It used to. But I’ve come to terms with it.” Clark shrugged.

“You are a better man than most, Clark Kent.” You laughed, offering him a genuine smile. You could see the park exit up ahead, relief flooding you at the sight. “I don’t think you have anything to worry about. Lois is over the moon about you.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Clark laughed, taking his glasses off to wipe a smudge off the lens. He caught your eye, making sure you understood what you were seeing.

Your mouth fell open as you realized what Clark just admitted with the seemingly innocent move. You snapped it closed just as quickly, looking around to make sure you were alone. Clark replaced his glasses back on his nose, attempting to wink at you.

“Don’t worry.” You promised. There was no way you were going to tell anyone and ruin what he and Lois had. You loved your sister too much to do that to her. And Clark deserved his anonymity in a city that would never give him peace otherwise.

[grasscorpse]

The Starry Sky and Leslie’s List: Chapter 4

*From Ynntranslations

At 6 am, with the clanging sound of the bell, the children began to get up from their beds.

“Good morning!”

“Isabella, I can’t tie my shoelaces!”

“Put my hair in pigtails!”

One of Isabella’s little brothers, who had taken a liking to her, came up to her, displaying his shoes with the shoelaces still untied. A little sister approached her carrying a brush and a ribbon.

“Good morning. Give me a second and I’ll do it for you.”

Having woken up before the bell, Isabella had already gotten dressed and braided her hair. She skillfully helped her little brother get his shoes on, and did her little sister’s hair.

She liked taking care of the little kids, but today, she wanted to hurry up and go see Leslie.

Exiting into the hallway, Isabella searched for Leslie among her siblings heading for the dining room. On confirming that he had already left the second floor, she rushed down the stairs. On the way, her siblings, one after another, wanted to talk to her, and Isabella was forced to halt each time.

Scanning the hallway that lead to the dining room, she finally spotted Leslie walking next to the wall. Taking a deep breath, she dashed toward him.

“Leslie!” Isabella called out to him from behind. She did her best to sound casual, saying his name the same way as always.

“I’m sorry for getting mad yesterday.”

She gave an honest, direct apology. She didn’t want to make excuses or try to justify herself.

Leslie, who had been staring down at the notebook in his hand, jerked his head up and said, “No, I’m the one who needs to apologize!”—or so Isabella expected.

“… Okay.”

Doing his best to stick his face in his notebook, Leslie sped up to pass Isabella, who had been beside him.

“Oh…”

Isabella wanted to call out and stop him, but her voice trailed off. Left behind in the hallway, Isabella was unable to pursue him.

She had never even imagined that he would react like that. She stood there, stunned.

I really did hurt him…

Isabella hung her head, thinking that he was so angry that he didn’t even want to speak to her. She had been so sure that everything would be okay as long as she apologized, Leslie’s reaction had left her visibly shocked.

“…”

Isabella had never even seen Leslie get angry before. Even when the little kids played pranks on him or talked back to him, he would only smile awkwardly. If you apologized to him, he’d fall all over himself trying to accept, to the point it was hard to tell who was apologizing to whom.

She had come to take his kindness for granted. That was why she had run her mouth without thinking.

Isabella snapped back to reality on hearing her siblings call out to her.

“Heeey, Isabella! Come help out!”

“O-okay,” Isabella quickly replied, and ran to the dining room. She joined her siblings setting the table, smiling as though nothing was wrong.

“Thank you for the food!”

All of them clasped their hands and said grace, then began their meal.

As she scooped up a bit of soup, Isabella stole a glance at Leslie, who was sitting at a distant table. Normally, he had a gentle expression on his face, but today, he was unsmiling, with a stiff, brooding look.

During their morning tests, and then laundry time after that, and at lunchtime too, Leslie refused to meet Isabella’s eyes. As time went on, the expression on his face seemed to grow darker.

At last, their free time arrived, but Leslie immediately disappeared.

“Isabella, where’s Leslie?”

“Where’d he go?”

“It’s his last day, right? I wanna play with him!”

Her younger siblings tugged at her sleeve one after another, and Isabella smiled awkwardly.

“… Good question. I’m going to go look for him.”

From the doorway, Isabella scanned the yard. The youngest were playing next to Mama, and a little further away, a few children were racing one another. Leslie was not among them.

Isabella spun around and reentered the House.

Was he in the music room practicing the violin, or maybe reading in the library? Because the weather was so nice, everyone else had left the House as soon as the bell announcing their free time rang. The interior of the House was dead silent, but even listening closely, Isabella couldn’t hear the sound of a violin.

Isabella ran up the stairs.

There’s only a little time left…!

Leslie was not in the library or the bedrooms. On his bedside table, the books that Isabella had brought in were carefully lined up. She checked the music room just in case, but it was deserted. Wanting to be absolutely sure, she looked and found that the violin he had played was still in its case on the shelf.

“…”

Isabella paused in the second-floor hallway. She had the strangest feeling, as though the future, when Leslie would be gone, had arrived a day early.

And when the day ended, it would become reality.

The sadness welled up in her, seeming to rise from beneath like a freezing wind.

When the day of Leslie’s departure from the House had been set, she had wanted to celebrate for his sake, but at the same time, she felt hopelessly lonely.

When she had found out about his “list of goals” while he was packing his things, she had pushed him to work on it less for his own sake than because she wanted to spend time with Leslie doing something before the end.

But that had backfired.

If they hadn’t tried to tackle his list, Leslie wouldn’t have lost his confidence and decided that he’d never be able to do any of it. She would never have been so harsh with him, either.

And yet Isabella couldn’t bring herself to think that it would have been better if she’d never given him the push to try. Leslie might say that he can’t do anything right, but that wasn’t true. No matter what anyone else might say, Isabella knew it wasn’t true.

Leslie had given her so much in the time they had spent together.

Pleasant times and gentle songs.

That was why she wanted to help him, to do something in return. Once he left for the outside, she wouldn’t be able to do anything for him anymore.

“I don’t want to let him leave like this…”

The words escaped Isabella’s lips.

That’s right, they had so little time left to do anything together. She didn’t want to say goodbye to Leslie while he was still hurting from what she had done.

“Then I’ve got to apologize now and do it right.”

Raising her head, Isabella took a deep breath, determined. She raced down the stairs, jumping over an entire set of stairs at once, and threw the front door open wide.

“Isabella?”

“Where are you going?”

On seeing Isabella come running out, her siblings, who had been playing, called out to her, but it only took a moment for their voices to grow distant behind her.

Isabella ran for the forest.

She quickly reached the hill where she had often found Leslie, but she didn’t see him in the shade of the tree there.

Breathing heavily, she stopped and looked around. There was no one within sight, only a butterfly slowly fluttering away.

Then the only place left is…

Isabella’s gaze shifted to the trees of the forest crowded together.

Suddenly, she thought of number 8 from the list.

“‘I will go see what’s on the other side of the forest.'”

“…”

Consciously slowing her breath, Isabella turned it over in her mind. If Leslie had decided to challenge some of the items on his list that he hadn’t gotten around to yesterday, then he might have tried to go past the fence by himself.

The instant it occurred to her, she began running. Isabella descended the hill and turned toward the forest, her boots striking the grass beneath. On entering the woods, she was surrounded by the familiar scent of the greenery that filled the suddenly cool air. Without any hesitation, Isabella followed the trees and rocks she used as landmarks.

She knew the forest on the grounds of the House like the back of her hand, but even Isabella couldn’t easily locate Leslie within such a large area.

This is just like playing hide-and-seek…

Isabella giggled.

But I will find him, no matter what!

Isabella followed the same route they had taken when playing tag yesterday. If Leslie had tried to go deeper into the forest, it would make sense for him to take the same path as yesterday, until he reached the spot they had gone to.

Leaping over the undergrowth and never losing speed, Isabella made her way there, where she discovered footprints in the soft earth. On top of the footprints she thought were the ones the two of them had left the day before were a fresh set.

“Are these Leslie’s…?”

As Isabella glanced around, she heard faint noises, and a voice.

“Agh!”

She rushed in the direction the voice had come from. The footprints on the ground led there, as well. Making her way through the trees, she found a large branch sticking out.

It belonged to the tree she had climbed to hide yesterday, and Leslie was there, on its very lowest branch.

“Leslie?”

“Oh, Isabella! What are you doing here…?”

In his surprise, Leslie accidentally lost his grip on the branch and fell from the tree.

“AHH!”

Fallen flat on his backside, Leslie gaped openmouthed at Isabella’s sudden appearance.

“Isabella… how did you know I was here…?”

Isabella extended her hand to Leslie, who was still lying on the ground. Leslie hesitantly gripped her hand, and she pulled him to his feet.

“You had ‘see what’s on the other side of the forest’ on your list, so I thought that you might be trying to do that one…”

“Oh, I see… I got stuck on number 5, though.”

Leslie suddenly let go of Isabella’s hand. Seeing him hanging his head, Isabella opened her mouth to speak, though she seemed to be having a difficult time getting the words out.

“Um, Leslie, I—”

“Isabella, I’m sorry about yesterday!”

Cutting off Isabella’s hesitant words, Leslie bowed his head forcefully.

“What…?”

Isabella, who had come all that way in order to properly apologize, widened her eyes at hearing Leslie apologize to her first.

Leslie, his hair shifting as he bowed his head deeply, spoke in a sudden burst.

“When you said that to me yesterday, Isabella, I… I realized that I’ve only been thinking about myself, and I regretted it. All I was thinking about was my own doubts and lack of self-confidence, and I never noticed that you had your own worries to deal with.”

Leslie said “I’m sorry” once more.

“So… I knew I couldn’t do all of them, but I wanted to at least accomplish the things on my list that you helped me with, and then apologize to you.”

Leslie slumped his shoulders pitifully.

“But of course, I couldn’t do anything… After what happened yesterday, I tried to read as much as I could, but I fell asleep. Then I thought I’d try to get a perfect score on my last test somehow, so I spent the morning reviewing everything you taught me, but I couldn’t do it after all.

“But I did get the best score I’ve ever gotten!” Leslie added, with a broad, happy smile.

“I came here so I could practice climbing trees during our free time, but…”

Leslie glanced at his hands, smeared with dirt and covered in little cuts and scrapes, and smiled bitterly.

Isabella simply looked at him.

He must have fallen from the tree over and over again. Not only his hands, but his once white clothes as well, had gotten dirty and torn. The freckles on his nose were also smudged with dirt. Leslie raised a hand to wipe at the sweat that had left his hair matted to his face.

“I got as far as that branch, though I still had a little ways to go before I made it to where you climbed yesterday.”

He looked up at a branch above his head and pointed. He had determined that if he could reach the branch Isabella had climbed to, that would certify that he was able to climb trees. Leslie again grabbed on to the tree. Bracing his feet, he tried to pull himself onto the branch, awkwardly extending his legs.

He began to slide back down. He held onto the branch so hard that his face turned a deep red, but lacking strength, he fell back down to the ground. Leslie staggered to his feet and gripped the branch, muttering to himself, “One more time.”

“You won’t get anywhere if you put your foot there. Use this branch to climb up,” Isabella said abruptly to Leslie, walking up to the tree.

“What…? Oh, uh, okay!”

Leslie was a bit startled to hear her voice from below him, but he moved his foot to the branch Isabella had indicated, and found himself in a more stable position.

Still holding on to the branch, he sneaked a glance at Isabella standing below.

He had thought that Isabella must be disillusioned with him, that she wouldn’t help him challenge his list anymore. But she had come all the way here searching for him, and was still encouraging and supporting him.

Isabella rested her hand on the trunk of the tree.

“Climbing a tree isn’t just a matter of strength or agility. You also have to think about where to put your hands and feet, and what route you can take to get up to the branch you want to reach. If you can figure that out, climbing is really easy.”

Listening to Isabella’s advice, Leslie blinked. He’d never thought that way about tree climbing. He’d always assumed that he just wasn’t suited to it due to his lack of athletic ability and strength, but strangely, looking at it this way made it seem like it might not be so difficult. The way Isabella talked about it made him think of chess or puzzles. At that thought, Leslie chuckled.

“That’s just like you, Isabella.”

“What?”

“Oh, nothing.”

Feeling calmer, Leslie gave the tree a good look. He would need a foothold near the branch that was his goal. If he were too far away, then even if the branch were within his arm’s reach, he wouldn’t be able to climb onto it.

“Let’s see…”

Leslie carefully chose his footholds, on branches and in hollows, and made his way up the tree.

“All right… I made it here.”

At last, he stood on a branch he had never reached before. He was high up enough that, with some effort, he would be able to touch the branch he was aiming for. With his hands still against the trunk, Leslie looked down at Isabella.

“Leslie, don’t look down!”

“Ahh! This is… r-really high up…”

Leslie had never experienced being at such a height before, and he froze up. His hands suddenly began to sweat, and his heart pounded like a drum. As though it were deliberate, the wind began to blow, causing him to wobble.

Leslie whimpered and grew pale, and Isabella yelled to him from below.

“Keep at it, Leslie!”

When he heard her trying to encourage him, Leslie shook his head, shivering. Pressing his body against the trunk, he slid down until he was sitting on the branch, and closed his eyes tightly.

“I-I can’t do it… I’m going to come back down.”

“Don’t give up!”

Slowly, Leslie opened his eyes just wide enough too see, and he was met with Isabella’s sincere gaze.

“You made it that far! Everything will be fine, just keep going!”

Leslie kept his eyes on her face, although it felt like trying to look into the sun.

At that moment, it hit him that today would be his last day there, the thought filling his mind.

The time he was spending with Isabella, here in the forest, would come to an end. The afternoon sunlight shone through the leaves of the trees, illuminating Isabella’s face.

Her dark eyes reflected the light.

“Okay…”

Leslie poured his strength into his shaking arms and drove from his mind all visions of falling and thoughts of how high up he was. His legs still felt weak from fear, but he managed to slowly stand up. He looked for a branch he could use to continue climbing.

“Just a little farther, Leslie.”

If he had tried this alone, he would have given up and walked away long ago. Mustering all his courage, he let go of the trunk and moved to a branch that was within reach. He planted his foot on it.

And then at last, Leslie arrived at the spot that he had thought was impossible for him to reach. Standing atop the branch, he looked down. By now, he no longer felt any fear.

“Ha ha ha, I climbed it! I did it, Isabella!”

“You really did! That was amazing, Leslie!”

Isabella cheered and jumped, looking up at him the whole time.

“Ah, Isabella, look out!”

Looking down from above, Leslie had noticed a broken branch lying right where Isabella’s foot was about to land.

It was the sort of tiny obstacle that she could effortlessly dodge, normally, but because she had failed to look down, Isabella tripped. Leslie, still at the top of the tree, could only watch.

“Huh?”

“Isabella!”

Her ankle bent at an odd angle, and she fell backwards.

[reno2ndgun]

Rewritten Character History

i rewrote Reno’s character history entirely. It now includes Rude from a young age instead of Ruluf and alas, the origin story with Fifi and Andrea Rhodea is no more.

the usual warnings apply. child abuse and gang violence.

Rookie Reno would be any time before the game “Before Crisis”, so 15-20 range

Before Crisis: 22 and already 3'rd ranking Turk after Tseng and Veld

Crisis Core: 26

Final Fantasy 7 Remake : 28

Advent Children: 30

His early childhood was dogshit. His parents were always violently fighting until his father left when he was five and his mother turned her anger towards him instead. His mother got hooked on drugs and When Reno refused to go visit her drug dealer anymore to pick them up for her, he was thrown out at 9 years old.  (he wanted her to quit and get better. He had been trying to be supportive.)

Reno was far too reclusive at that age to open up to people or he likely would have just been adopted. He blamed himself for a long time and had thought about going to the orphanage but decided against it. At the time he wasn’t wise enough to know that everything that had happened up to that point wasn’t his fault and felt that if his mom and dad didn’t want him no one else would either. So to earn money to eat, he went to his mother’s drug dealer and asked for a job. He was shown how to use a gun and lo and behold the start of his Drug cartel career!

Naturally, no one is the nice sort and Reno becomes easily agitated by touch and avoids people as much as he can. He doesn’t trust people to be nice unless they want something from him and he’s thrown full tilt into the world of gang violence.

Reno meets Veld on accident when he’s 10 and shoots the man twice, mistaking him for someone trying to steal the drugs he was carrying somewhere because Veld had been following him through two whole sectors. Truth be told Veld had seen Reno outrun three guard hounds without the aid of materia and had been impressed at Reno’s ability to think fast on his feet. There was no way a 10-year-old was fast enough to outrun guard hounds, but Reno’s wit alone had saved him. Lo and behold the start of a change in Reno’s future.

You make a Turk bleed, you’re either an enemy or a new Turk. For the Next five years, the Turks pursued Reno as a candidate for recruitment by slowly eliminating those higher in the pecking order of the Red Tail Cartels. This hadn’t been their first plan to get him. Eliminating the Cartel one by one to put pressure on Reno and stress him into making a mistake was plan B, it also fell in line with the mission to hunt down someone within the Red Tail Cartel who was embezzling money from ShinRa.

Plan A failed simply because Reno had proven too clever to catch and just pluck up off the streets. They tried for MONTHS and every time Reno would get away by the skin of his teeth using nothing but his wits, even with three Turks on his ass and traps laid out. At one point he stole Tseng’s AND Veld’s Lightning materia right off of them in a blatant mockery. The senior Turks had taken to calling him “Cactuar kid” at work.

At 12 years old, he meets Leslie and Rude. His first friends. Both of them are messenger boys for Don Corneo and they get a Hold of Reno to tell him the Don wants a cut out of the business or the Red Tails have to leave Wall Market. Reno convinced the Cartel boss it’s good money to stay in Wall Market because everyone comes for pleasure and there’s always lots of foot traffic. The Cartel boss agrees and sends Reno back with a message for Corneo of the agreement to share some of the revenue. As a token of friendship, Reno gives Rude a lightning materia and Leslie receives a Fire materia.

The three are fast friends and become close. Rude and Reno hang out the most and start doing drug runs together. The two of them become Notorious for their inventive use of lightning materia and become known as “the Dual Shocks” among many of the Cartel’s running in the slums.

By the time Reno is 13 he runs the Red Tail Cartel, and Rude is his right hand. The Turks had either arrested or gunned down everyone above Reno by then and the boys were making good enough money to hold some real sway within Wall Market back streets. Corneo, being greedy and wanting no competition, arranged for them both to be killed later in the year. Rude was promoted to bodyguard so Corneo could keep a closer eye on him, as well as use Rude’s reputation as one of the deadly Dual Shocks to extort his way into lucrative business deals until the time was right to off him.

Nearing the end of the year, Don Corneo hired seven people from another street gang to find and kill Reno and Rude.The lads were in major trouble from staying out a bit too late on a delivery run.  They had taken a detour to deliver some stolen medicine to Leslie. Reno and Rude were in rival cartel territory and the hired thugs had recognized them and cornered the boys knowing they ran the Red Tail Cartel. They separated the two of them and beat Reno to hell and Reno fought back until his knuckles were bloody. It took two adults tackling him to actually take Reno down and even then He didn’t stop fighting and lashing out. Neither had Rude, even with broken ribs and a fractured arm he refused to go down even against 3 men twice his size.

((Note: Barker is an OC Veteran Turk and close friend to Veld who has been with the Turks Since Veld founded them. Bear of a man, salt and pepper beard and hair, long ponytail and a bright smile. He’s a mixed martial artist and uses fighting gloves augmented with materia.))

It was Barker, working undercover on a long term assignment that found the boys and rescued them. He took the both of them in and mended them. Back at his undercover job working the Blues bar “Folk Blues”, both of the boys learned to refine their fighting skills, bar tend, as well as play an instrument. Reno took up Piano, and Rude chose Saxophone.

When Reno was about 14, Rude had saved up enough gil and gained enough influence that he could ditch Corneo without immediate backlash. This enraged Corneo who knew that if the boys were allowed to continue the way they were he’d be deposed as the highest influence in Wall Market. Rude had gotten Sick of Don Corneo’s ways and life as Corneo’s Bodyguard no longer appealed to him despite the money it put in his pocket. Rude also took up Shelter under Barker's roof to Avoid Corneo.  

Right around this time, Trouble struck for the "Folk Blues" and Don Corneo threatened to burn the place to the ground if Barker didn’t hand over Rude and Reno. Reno was willing to take on Corneo alone out of loyalty to Rude, but Barker talked Reno out of that idea as it potentially brought harm to the bars other employees.  The Folk Blues Bar didn’t quite have enough influence to hold off Corneo at the time and was in quite the bind as the owner wasn’t willing to give up Rude so easily either but also saw no way out of the mess Corneo had started. Veld caught wind of this through Barker and moved fast to take advantage of the situation and recruit the boys.

 Considering how sly and resourceful Reno had proven to be over the years in evading capture, and Rude had proven himself just as skilled and resilient, Veld asked Barker to set up a meeting. He planned to offer Reno and Rude a job with the Turks and Thus a way out from under Corneo’s thumb as well as keep the Folk Blues Bar safe. Veld gave Reno Gil to give up the names of the rest of his cartel along with the job offer and offered the same amount to Rude to give The ShinRa Company all the names of Corneo’s spies.  Reno took the cash and the job at 15 years old and Rude joined the same day at 16 years old.  Most of the money Reno left with the owner of the Folk Blues Bar as repayment for helping him out.  He’s been a Turk ever since.

Rude took the money and opened a bar on the Upper plate. The rest he gave to Leslie.  It’s become a popular watering hole for the Turks. The bar was named “Dual Shock” as a nod to the bond He and Reno had formed on the streets and their notoriety for using lightning materia. Reno and Rude have been roughing it up as Turks ever since. Barker put his name down for the property of the Dual Shock Bar, but he let the boys run it.

[revisionaryhistory]

It’s All Art ~ 89

Wrapping her ankle was no big deal. Charlotte hadn’t complained about it once, so Oscar thought it was going to be more of a walking issue than anything. Adam’s words before leaving had meant a lot to Oscar. He couldn’t help but remember how good she’d been with him and his grief in Miami. He’d wondered if he would be the same for her. He’d thought he was, but Adam’s confirmation was good. Not that any of this was about him, but in the spare moments he wasn’t caring for her he couldn’t help but check himself, to make sure he was doing everything he could. There was nothing he wanted more than to be there for her in any way he could. He’d meant what he’d told her, her hurting hurt him.

Leslie fluffed the pillow under her ankle before turning to Matt and Abby, “I’m going to wrap her arm and then send her up to her room. You two can go on up to 309. Maybe get them something to eat from the cafe?” She looked at Charlotte, “Much better than the tray they’d send up for you. Nothing after midnight.”

 Matt looked a little flustered, but agreed. He and Abby kissed Charlotte’s cheek then left.

 Charlotte glance between the two left, “This is going to hurt isn’t it?”

 “I’m afraid so, honey.” Leslie grimaced, “No more than the x-rays. I’m going to move your arm onto the splint then wrap it around and bandage it up. This time you’ve got him to hang onto.”

 Her arm had been supported where there was no pressure on the broken bone. Charlotte remembered vividly how the transition from supported to resting on something felt. She wasn’t looking forward to doing that again. She closed her eyes, “Give me a second.” She took several deep breathes then nodded, “Ok.”

 Oscar had her hand, “Remember our first date.”

 “Your version or mine?”

 He snickered, “Mine, of course. We’ll let Leslie decide.” Charlotte kept her eyes closed so Oscar could shift between her and what Leslie was doing. “I was doing a favor for a friend by letting his future girlfriend interview me. Charlotte was doing a doing a favor for the future girlfriend by taking pictures. I completely forgot about the interview when I saw her. She was so beautiful and so alive. She made me smile immediately and I had to get to know her. We flirted, subtlety and not so subtlety, through the photo shoot. Ignoring her friend completely. And then she tortured me.”

 Charlotte broke from concentrating on her breathing, “I did not torture you.”

 Oscar looked at Leslie, “She undid my jeans, tucked my shirt in the front, and had me leaning against a column.”

 Leslie laughed, “I’ve actually seen that picture. Might have been torture, but you were enjoying.”

 “Now, I have never said I didn’t enjoy. Just that it was torture.” He winked at Leslie. She was almost done wrapping.

 “I don’t know, Charlotte, but that sounds like a date.”

 “I never win this. If I hadn’t conceded to his view we’d be eighty years old and still arguing about this.”

 Oscar kissed her hand, “Yeah, but I’d rather argue with you than make love to anyone else.”

 Leslie smiled, “Now that might be the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard. He’s a keeper, Charlotte.”

 Charlotte opened her eyes to look at him, “I know.”

 Oscar leaned in and kissed her, “Me too.”

 A few seconds later Leslie took a step back, “All done. Not too bad, I hope.”

 “Better than they did in x-ray.”

 Transport was ready and they headed upstairs. Abby and Matt were already there with food. The smell made Charlotte and Oscar instantly hungry. Once she was settled in the bed Oscar laid out their food. Oscar updated Abby and Matt with what the plastic surgeon had said and the time frame for tomorrow.

 The new nurse came in and introduced herself, “I’m Susan, I’ll be taking care of you tonight. I have about a hundred questions to ask you, vitals to take, and making sure you’re already for surgery in the morning. And, unfortunately, visiting time is over.”

 Oscar raised his hand, “I’m not leaving.”

 Susan smiled, “Leslie warned me about you. You can stay, but, sorry, the rest of you need to go. Charlotte’s had a rough day and needs to rest.” She waited until Matt and Abby were gone before getting on with. Lots of health history questions before she checked on all the current injuries and gathered vital signs. “I’m going to go out and get all this charted and check your Doctor’s orders again. You can have more pain meds in half an hour or so. I’ll bring that back. Hopefully that will let you get some sleep. If you need anything call. You can move to the chair for a bit if you want, but you are not to try and get up or walk by yourself. No weight on that ankle and your concussion may make you dizzy.” She looked at Oscar, “I’m leaving you in charge. If she’s not in the bed, she’s not alone.”

 Oscar crossed his heart and nodded. The door closed and looked at Charlotte, “I need to brush my teeth.”

 “Abby packed a bag.”

 “I’m sure that’s all your shit, but toothpaste will work.” He pulled things out and found a change of clothes for Charlotte, “Hey, looky here. She grabbed me stuff too. She’s good people.” There was a change of clothes for him and toiletries for them both.

 “You know that means she was in your underwear drawer. Might want to check ebay.”

 Oscar shrugged, “They need money for the baby.” He stuck the back of toiletries on the shelf in the bathroom. When he turned back around she was sitting up and turning in the bed, “Hold up, what are you doing?”

 Charlotte hung her legs off the side and reached for her IV pole, “I’ve got to pee.”

 “Ok.” Stepping to her he grabbed quad cane they’d brought for her. With her broken arm crutches were out of the question.

 “You’re kidding, right? I can hop that far by myself.”

 He frowned, “One, you can not hop because that will jar the fuck out of your arm and your balance sucks. Two, nurse said nowhere alone. So it’s me or her. Your pick.” He glared at her playfully, “Is this the type of patient you’re going to be?”

 “Maybe.” Still, she let him help her. When she got to the bathroom door she used the sink as a crutch. He noticed her weave a little, “Are you dizzy?”

 “A bit.” She looked up at him with a smile, “Fine, you are right.” He crossed his arms over his chest and wiggled his eyebrows. “You’re serious about staying in here aren’t you?”

 “Due to the possibility of your dizziness causing you to fall over and having no way to catch yourself . . . you bet your slippers I am. In another fifty years you’ll be changing my diapers, might as well start working up to that.”

 She tried to glare at him, but all she could do was smile. “So humiliating.”

 When she was finished he helped her stand at the sink to wash her hands, “Don’t move.”

 Charlotte watched him move to the toilet and start unbuttoning his pants, “What are you doing?”

 “Evening the playing field.” He looked over and she was staring at him. “It’s bad form to look at the dick of the guy next to you. Eyes forward. Always.”

 “But I like your dick.” She shifted her eyes up to his, “I’m sure we’ve crossed a relationship line.”

 He laughed as he zipped back up, “I didn’t think there were any left.” He kept a steadying arm around her as they brushed their teeth then got her back into bed. “Want to call your parents?” She nodded and he handed her phone to her. “I’m going to check in with Adam and production.”

 Charlotte’s call to her parents went well. They were relieved hearing her and she assured them there was no need to take the kids out of school and get someone to cover the hotel for this. She’d much rather see them at her gallery opening. She figured she wouldn’t be much fun the next several days. They agreed to wait as long as she promised if she needed them she would call or have Oscar. Making sure she was ok came before school or the hotel. After hanging up with them she called Kelsey and explained what had gone on today. Kelsey was in tears for her friend and after being told visiting hours were over, she promised she’d be there first thing in the morning. Charlotte didn’t feel up to multiple phone calls and trusted Kelsey to tell Beth and Jane. Charlotte had barely hung up when her phone rang. It was Amy. Oscar had called Jeff, filling them both in. Amy had needed to hear for herself that her friend was alright.

 Oscar was off the phone first and busied himself kicking off his shoes, changing into the sweat pants Abby had packed, and pulling the lounge chair closer to the bed. He checked his texts, finding several from cast members who’d seen him run out, and responded quickly, stopping when Charlotte hung up, “I will keep Amy and whoever else updated while you’re in surgery.”

 “Amy said you’d promised. Kelsey, Jane, and Beth will be here in the morning.”

 Seeing her smile made him happy, “They’ll amuse you.”

 ‘Always.”

 Susan returned with another bag of saline, a small bag of something yellow, and a syringe, explaining as she changed and added bags. “This is an antibiotic. Just precautionary. Don’t want any of your cuts to get infected and wind up in your incision. You’ll stay up here tomorrow until surgery is ready. I’ll give you something to relax you and something to keep your stomach settled. You’ll probably be asleep before you’ve fully settled on the table down there. Next thing you know you’ll be waking up and heading home.” She looked at Oscar, “There’s family advising rooms off the main waiting room, like in A & E. You’re welcome to wait in there.”

 Oscar nodded, “Thank you.” He rubbed his hand on his head, “Feel like I’ve said thank you a dozen times today.” He smiled at Susan, “I appreciate the allowances you’ve made for us.”

 “You’re welcome. Thank you goes a long way. We can’t have you being badgered for movie secrets. Those should only be given to close nurses who’ve taken really good care of your girlfriend.” She held up the syringe, “I’ve brought you the good stuff.”

 ~*~*~*~

 Charlotte flipped through channels on the TV. Stopping for a few minutes or until a commercial and then she’d be off again. She was distracting herself. It was quiet now. No more tests. No more procedures. No more visitors. Her mind kept wanting to wander, but she fought back. Wandering back met with a road block of not remembering. Wandering forward led to surgery. The pain meds made it more difficult to control her thoughts. Sluggish. She felt more than saw Oscar beside her. She didn’t want him to be any farther away than he was, frustrated with the inability to hug him, have him hold her. He would do anything she asked. If only she knew what it was she needed.

 Oscar sat with his feet on the bed by her knees. His hand was under hers, occasionally moving his thumb over her fingers or giving her the lightest of squeezes. This was the first quiet in a very long day. His mind was fighting to process everything and he knew she was too. The endless channel changing might be soothing to her, but it was maddening to him. He didn’t let this go on for long. It wasn’t what she needed, but he wondered if she even knew what she needed right now with the trauma and pain from an attack she didn’t remember. Part of him didn’t want her to remember. It was violent and ugly. Nothing in him could understand hurting a woman like that. He couldn’t imagine hitting someone hard enough to break ribs or yanking and twisting their arm in a way to break bones. Thinking about a trial where she had to see the monster made his stomach turn. Hell, her seeing his face from the CCTV was a nightmare. The police would be back with questions and a picture, he knew there was no stopping them. He was torn between wanting to protect her from the ugliness and wanted the monster put away. Protecting her was first.

 Pulling his feet off the bed, Oscar leaned his elbows on and brought her hand to his mouth. “Are you comfortable?”

 She looked over, her eyes showing the meds were working, “Everything, but the headache. My arm likes being wrapped up tight, there’s no accidental moving. A little throbbing in my face. As long as I don’t breathe deeply my ribs don’t hurt. My ankle is fine. My head is a steady pressure with the occasional ice pick.”

 Oscar winced, “That doesn’t sound good. I’m sorry.” He kissed her hand again, rubbing her palm with his thumbs. “What do you need, baby?”

 Her answer was quick, “You to hold me. I’ve needed you to hold me all night and with all the broken bits and tubing you can barely touch me.”

 “I’ve had hours to work this one out.” Standing up, he pushed the chair back with his legs. He put his hand on her shoulder, “Sit up.” He lowered the head of the bed a little and pushed the pillows to the top. Putting an arm under her knees he lifted her and moved her a foot or so down the bed making space for him to crawl in behind her. Very carefully he slid his legs on either side of her and got settled in before slipping his hands under her butt and pulling her against him. It took a minute to adjust the bed and pillows back to where she was comfortable. When he was satisfied he wrapped his arms around her, kissing the back of her neck, “How’s this?”

 “Better. Only I can’t see you.” She experimented with which way felt better and wound up leaning to the side with her broken arm closest to his body, it wasn’t perfect, but she could see and touch him. First thing she did was reach up and lay her hand on his face, “There you are.”

 The IV in her hand kept him from put his over hers, but he held her wrist to bring her hand down where he could kiss her palm. “Never far away.” He moved her hand to his chest and kissed her, feeling her flinch, “Did that hurt?”

 “That’s going to piss me off.”

 “I’ll figure it out.” He put his hand on her face and was careful to kiss the side opposite the cut, gently pulled her bottom lip between his, and ran his tongue across. Charlotte made a quiet noise that was definitely not pain. He licked at her lip again, meeting her tongue. They kissed soft and slow. Oscar felt her body relax against his and kept up the kiss until she moved away to lay her head against his chest.

 “They think I scratched him?” She felt his chest rumble before his words reached her ears.

 “Mmmhmm. They have the CCTV. They’re going to want to show you a picture of him.” He felt her stiffen, “Not until your ready.”

 “Ok.” She relaxed again. “Do you know what happened to me? Will you tell me?”

 “Not right now. The doctor told them they couldn’t show you the CCTV. They want to see if your memory comes back on it’s own. It’s not the same as a concussion, but I know making someone remember something before they’re ready is a bad idea.” The more he thought about it, the less he wanted them to show her his picture. At least give her a couple of days. He could feel her breathing grow more rapid. “What’s going on?”

 “I’m afraid. I don’t understand why someone would hurt me, hurt anyone like this. Why me? He’s still out there. What if he comes back after me?” Tears were trickling down her cheeks.

 Oscar squeezed her stomach just enough to show he had her, “I think you were at the wrong place at the wrong time. I doubt he knows who you are. Until he’s caught you’re going to have someone with you. I’m going to protect you.” He kissed her, “You trust me.”

 “Always.”

 He ran his fingers through her hair, “I know you’re afraid. A lot has happened today. Surgery tomorrow. I’d be worried if you weren’t scared. If I could take it all away, I would. Since I can’t, I’m going to do everything I can to keep you safe.” Instead of stopping the tears they got worse. He held her as best as he could, kissing her head, and whispering to her. “I got you, baby girl.” “I’m not going anywhere.” She needed to get the emotions out. “You’ve been so brave all day. It’s ok, I’ve got you.”

 Charlotte’s hand gripped his t shirt. She held on as tight as she could. Wanted to breathe him in. He was everything good and safe. Finally saying the words out loud she felt lighter, but had a sneaky suspicion that might be more about him holding her than the tears. When her tears dried up, she smiled up at him and kissed him before laying her head back on his chest. “What if I’ve lost other memories and don’t know?”

 “Let’s test it. Do you remember your meeting at the gallery today? What was her name?”

 “Tabitha. Oh! I remember right before.”

 “Good. And do you remember after?”

 “I remember waking up on the floor of a parking garage and asking them to call you.”

 “Now for long term memory.” He kissed head, “Do you remember a night on the beach under a full moon?”

 She turned a little more to look at him, “Do you mean our first kiss date or the one in Greece?”

 “Very good. I meant the one in Greece where I promised you forever. You remember that too.”

 “I do.”

 He laughed, “We said that too.” Her smile turned to a yawn. “You’re getting sleepy.”

 “I think it’s the drugs.”

 “Don’t fight them. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

[magic8realism]

Chapter 2: The Dark Corridors of Memory

She could still remember the scene vividly. The burning building, the screaming, the sirens, the hoards scattering out of the building like ants. They were all warning signs blatantly telling her not to go in, but she went in anyways. She had to go in. Anyone in her place would have done so. Every human being with an ounce of humanity would have gone in. She did nothing wrong. That was what she kept telling herself for five years. She did nothing wrong. She imagined the scene so many times in her head, and every time, she would not be able to think of a reason that would have kept her or anyone from going in. The anonymous tip told her that a group of people were trapped in the basement of a building for the purposes of sex slavery. She could not look the other way.

So where was the problem exactly?

She did not expect the building to be on fire. Was it an attempt by the people responsible to cover their tracks? Possibly but not likely. The fire started in one of the top floors’ apartments. If somebody wanted to erase all evidence of human trafficking activities, they would have saved themselves a great deal of trouble by setting the apartment where the victims were locked on fire. It was possibly an accident, a fortunate accident for some and an unfortunate one for others. But all in all, seeing the thick dark plumes of smoke rising out of the building sent her into a state of panic. She wanted to get to those victims and she wanted to get to them fast. She could not wait for her team to arrive. She had to go in.

Should she have waited for the team?

No, that was not it. She was armed. Self-defence was not an issue. She carried a gun. She was actually against guns, but the condition of the city and the rising crime rate kind of made carrying a gun a survival necessity for residents, specifically the women. She needed the team, yes, but it was possible for her to take care of herself until they have arrived.

So when did the problem emerge exactly?

That was a question that needed her to dig deeper into her memory. Walking through the empty corridors in search of the apartment in question was a nerve-wrecking experience. Every once in a while, she would hear the sound of running footsteps echoing from every direction. There were people still trying to evacuate the building before the fire swallowed them whole. She pressed forward despite every warning sign around her, the shattered glass under her feet, the shrill voices ordering people to leave that instant, the cries of children in the distance. Every person with a functioning survival instinct was running in the opposite direction. Why couldn’t she do the same?

Every turn she took through the maze of the gigantic building presented her with an identical scene to the one before it. Her only clues that she was on the right track amidst all that confusion were the numbers on the doors. She was getting closer. There was no turning back. More footsteps echoed. This time they were echoing in her direction, edging closer and closer until she managed to see the individuals responsible for them. In her effort not to get trampled to death, she pulled out of their way and pressed her back against the wall until they have vacated the hallway. Her eyes watched them in dread as they ran past her, almost knocking her to the floor a couple of times in their state of panic. She did not know she was holding her breath until her lungs compelled her to exhale sharply. She carefully left the safety of the walls and stood in the middle of the hallway examining the direction the group ran through until they have disappeared out of her sight. Maybe she needed to backtrack then. Maybe it was not safe to go any further. Maybe those victims were not meant to be saved. Those were the thoughts that ran through her head back then. She wanted to obey them. She did, but the sight she witnessed next kept her from doing so.

She took one last look in the direction she wanted to pursue. There was nothing but a dark hallway barely lit by whatever sunlight that managed to break through the building. There were no emergency lights, no sprinklers, fire extinguishers or any safety measure of any sort. She took a couple of steps back, and just as she was about to turn around, she heard what seemed like a cry for help. Upon examining the hallway one more time, she noticed a shadowed figure limping in the distance. It took her mind a moment to register the scene. That person was possibly an injured tenant in need of assistance. The moment her mind played the possibility, she ran towards the distressed individual without giving it much thought. He fell to the floor seconds before she got to him. His shoulders, neck and head were slightly supported by the hallway wall he was leaning against for support earlier.

She approached him, hoping to help him stand on his own two feet so the two of them could leave the building.

“Sir, we have to leave now. It’s not safe,” she said as she tried to reach for his arm, but the moment she lifted it, he released an agonized groan that made her hesitant to proceed any further.

She was about to reason with him again when she felt something on her hands…blood. She held her hands in front of her, looked at them to confirm, and shook her head in denial. Her mind tried to dismiss that one possibility so it sent her fishing through her pockets for her phone. She turned on the flashlight and tried to examine him.

He was in a horrendous state. His form was bloodied from head to toe. She did not know at first whether it was his blood or somebody else’s blood, but the stab wound she noticed next sooner confirmed that it was his. He seemed conscious. That much was confirmed by his feeble attempt at keeping himself from bleeding to death, but it did not seem that he possessed enough strength to apply pressure to the wound. It was at this moment that she realized that she needed to do that for him.  

“Oh God!”

Lesly immediately untied the scarf from around her neck and used it to press on the wound while her free hand dialed the emergency phone number. Her voice shook when she was finally connected to the emergency personal. She asked for an ambulance, and just as she was about to hang up, she noticed his laboured attempt at trying to voice something. She leaned closer to him, hoping to be able to hear what he wanted to say.

“Help me.”

He did not say anything else. It did not seem that he was capable of speaking another word even if he wanted to. She examined his wound one more time, wondering if there was anything she could do to ease his suffering until the medics have arrived, but there was nothing to be done. It was not just the stab wound that was the problem. The man had other serious injuries that required immediate medical attention. His face was heavily bruised and cut. A giant gash covered his forehead and oozed blood all over the right side of his face. There were burn marks extending from his neck all the way to both arms and to his torso which was barely covered by the worn out t-shirt he was wearing. The blood and swelling on his left arm were caused by a fractured bone that was now sticking out of his arm, and to top it all his right shoulder appeared to have been dislocated.

Given the severity of the injuries and the current state of emergency that was sending everyone into panic, it was doubtful that he would make it. The fact that she had to sit there and do nothing but apply pressure to his stab wound and monitor him in silence made her feel even more helpless. It was obvious that he was still conscious and in a lot of pain, but there was nothing else to be done. That thought did not sit well with her. There must be something she could do.  Her hand started fumbling with the phone involuntarily. Her team, she needed to call her team again. They must have arrived by now. Maybe they can help move him out of the building at least.

“Come on. Pick up. Pick up. Pick up.”

“Hello,” answered the voice on the other end of the line.

“Charlie, please tell me you’re here.”

“Just a couple of minutes, Collins.”

“I’m inside the building.”

“Have you lost your mind?! You went in alone?!”

“I couldn’t wait,” she clarified. “Listen, there’s somebody here who needs help. He’s been stabbed. I already called for help, but I don’t think he can wait for long.”

“We’re almost there, Collins.”

Lesly was about to give further instructions to Charlie when she noticed the man wincing and groaning in pain. He was trying to move his right arm, so she immediately hung up and tried to calm the stranger down, “Shh Sir, you’re gonna be okay. Help is on the way.”

He did not stop. He was trying to say something, but he could not speak. Then he managed to raise his index finger and point shakily into the direction he came from. She looked, not knowing what to expect exactly, but she did not see anything. She looked back at him again and noticed that his gaze was fixed on her. That look. She could recognize it now. It was fear, and not just fear, but pure terror.

“They’re…after me.”

It was at that moment that everything clicked, the stab wound, the dried traces of blood, the torn clothes, the rope marks around the man’s wrists, the circular pattern to the burn scars that could have only been left by cigarettes. That man was not injured in the process of evacuating the building. No, something else happened.

Ominous footsteps echoed in the distance, a sound that will forever be engraved in her memory.  

“He’s here. I found him.”

She looked at the direction of the strange sound, and noticed a shadowed figure motioning to somebody else she could not see to come. Soon afterwards, the shadowed figure turned towards her and began a steady march in her direction. The more he got closer, the more visible he became by her illuminated surroundings. He was a tall dark-haired man who seemed completely normal in every way, but the look of terror in the injured man’s eyes told her that she should be on her guard.

He came closer wearing an expression of relief, and then started to talk to her, “Thank God you found him. I was getting worried. I’ve been looking everywhere for him.”

“Do you know him?” she asked, not knowing quite well what to make of his statement.

“Yes, he is a friend of mine. He was coming to see me. I live here. He must have been pushed down the stairs by somebody in panic. He called me and told me to come get him,” the dark-haired man explained.  

If there was one thing Lesly picked from her career as a lawyer, it was how to know that somebody was lying. She already concluded that the injured man was not almost trampled to death, so what was this person’s game exactly?

She did not say anything at first. It was not wise to engage with him any further or insinuate that she was aware of the holes in his little story. The best thing she could do now was to wait for medics, but could she keep the inured stranger alive until then?

“We should not move him. We could make his injuries worse,” she instructed calmly as she continued to apply pressure to his wound.

“I can’t leave him like this!” The suspicious man shot back, almost succeeding at feigning concern.

“Medics will be here soon. I already called for help,” she tried to reason.

He went silent for a second as he stared at her with an expressionless face. Then he smiled as he ran his hands to the back of his head in a sign that she could only construe as frustration.

“You called an ambulance? Great!” Then he started shouting, “Hey, she called an ambulance. Get your ass over here. We need to act quick.”

Her mind tried desperately to rehearse every possible scenario that could unfold, but there was no time. Another shadowed figure was coming. Now there are two of them against her. Her gun. She needed to reach for her gun, but was that a wise move at the moment? They could be armed, too. It would be impossible for her given her current skill level to debilitate one before the other attacked her. What if she waited? What could happen then? They would most probably drag the poor man away or finish him off that instant. They may even shoot her, too. Was it better to fight then? Try her luck and see if she could live another day? She had to try. There was no other option, so she reached for the gun stealthily as the two men engaged in what appeared to be a heated discussion. She kept it at her side in preparation for any problem that may arise.

The second man soon turned to her and stared at her long and hard. He seemed less calm and more excitable than the dark-haired one. His tone and the words that came out of his mouth next further proved that, “Step away!”

“Excuse me?”

“Step away! Leave this building before it burns to the ground. You did not see anything. You do not know anything,” the threatening stranger warned.

“Make me,” Lesly retorted in defiance.

Silence hung between the two parties as they both contemplated their next step. When the aggressive man stepped forward, Lesly immediately drew her gun and aimed it at the threatening pair. She summoned every ounce of well power to keep her hands from shaking. She needed to look strong and confident. If they find out that this was her first time using a gun, or that she was terrified on the inside, they could easily use that against her.

She took a deep breath and spoke as calmly as possibly, “Now you listen to me. Leave or I’ll pull the trigger.”

“You don’t know who that man is,” the calm dark-haired man tried to reason.

“I don’t care,” she reasoned.

Silence again. How much longer was it going to take before either the medics or her team arrived? It was obvious now that she was the only armed individual at the scene. If either of the two men had weapons, they would have used them by now. This should have given her a boost of confidence to handle the situation, but their standing there staring down at her was slowly shattering her grip on her act. She did not know how long she could keep on pretending to know what she was doing. Her hand…she must keep her hand from shaking.

“I’ll give you five seconds to reconsider or you’re gonna have to find me a replacement,” the aggressive man warned again.

When she did not respond, the aggressive man tried to speak again, but the sound of footsteps echoing through the hallways and the shouting that accompanied it kept him from doing so. Somebody was coming, her team possibly. Help was on the way, finally. They had to leave. The look on their faces told her that they did not feel safe to stay. The dark-haired man turned over towards his angry companion and tried to explain, “We have to go. We’ll deal with this later.”

The other man would not budge, however. He stood there, his furious gaze locked with hers before he considered his companion’s pleas to leave. He finally relented, but not before he spoke the words that would forever echo in her mind.

“I’ll make you wish you were dead.”

[vivikawidow]

He closed the door of the study over tightly. Leslie never bothered him when he was in there but he couldn’t take the chance. He picked up the old style rotary phone that was on his desk. Leslie loved vintage things which was why she always tied her hair in old school poodle style and why their home looked like the setting of an old sitcom.

He dialled his agent Harvey’s number first. The clinic would have to wait. After a few rings the man himself’s voice greeted him.

“Ah Laurence,” he began in his usually overly enthusiastic way. “Leslie was telling me you were unhappy on MARCH OF OUR TIMES.”

“Scarlett is a nightmare and Mark has no clue how to run a set.”

Harvey sighed sympathetically. “You’re on the soap opera scene now. Things are done a little differently. If it is really that bad I can talk to Finch and get them to write you out. He won’t be happy but your happiness is all that matters.”

Laurence gritted his teeth. “Do you have something else lined up for me?”

“No,” he said simply. “You’ve been working yourself mad lately. You’ll be no good to anyone if you put yourself in the hospital. Why don’t you just take a break? Give yourself time and I’ll find you a great part.”

“Is that play – what’s it called? – Dilemma! Still going?”

He could hear Harvey change the phone from one ear to the other. He was wanting to make sure he had heard correctly. He could sense the frowning in Harvey’s next words. He could imagine the deep wrinkle the agent always got on his forehead when he was preparing to play hard ball. “That’s,” he considered his words carefully, “community theatre.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Laurence decided. “Is it still going?” The actor pressed through the agents disapproval.

“I’m sure it is. They would drop everything to have you in the role but …”

“Good,” Laurence interrupted. “Have them send me a script.”

“It’s beneath you.”

“I don’t care.”

“It’s for charity. There’s no money in it …”

Laurence shook his head. “If they want me that badly they will cough up a fee.”

Harvey laughed. A hint of nerves traced its tone. “Maybe we should put you on the negotiating side. Fine, since you’re feeling charitable I’ll see what I can arrange. Will I tell Mark to do one?”

The call was interrupted. A white tablet on the desk began to rattle as another call was bidding for his attention. Calls to the tablet were kept exclusively for Harbour House.

“I’ll stick with the soap opera. I have to go,” said Laurence to his agent before hanging up.

He flicked open the cover of the tablet and was greeted by a green HARBOUR HOUSE logo. He slid the answer button to accept the video call.

The logo was replaced by the face of a man in his early fifties. He had a long pointed chin that almost hooked. He would have been handsome if it weren’t for the fact he had shaved the moustache he normally wore making his long face seem even longer and sharper.

“DR WINSLOW,” Laurence was the first to greet.

The doctor grinned. “You know for a man who is in the limelight you are rather elusive Laurence. I have been trying to reach you.”

“I’m sorry,” said the actor sincerely. “I have been busy.”

It was then he noticed that the doctor was dressed his agent in surgical gear. One of his surgical team filtered past behind him.

“What’s wrong?” Laurence asked.

The doctor swung the camera around to show a young girl lying on a surgical bed. She was crying out in pain. One of her legs had been removed. Winslow swung the camera back round to his own face again. “As you can see the young lady is in a great deal of pain. I may have been able to save her other leg but you, you naughty man, kept us waiting and we may have missed her chance. I needed to speak to you before amputating.”

The girl screamed like the victim of some cheesy horror villain.

“Just let me go!”

“Are you sure you have to? I mean is it really necessary?” Laurence asked.

Winslow flashed a well polished grin. “If you wish for the young lady to live.”

Laurence couldn’t listen to her crying anymore. That was no acting.

“Fine do what you have to do to help her.”

“Laurence! I will make sure everyone knows about this!” She was screaming in the background as the surgical team began to administer pre med.

Winslow turned away from the camera and called back over his shoulder, “miss you really must calm down. That isn’t a nice way to speak to your benefactor now is it?”

He returned his vibrant stare back on Laurence. “This is going to cost,” he said. “Awful business but business none the less.”

Laurence closed his eyes. “Fine,” he agreed.

Winslow beamed again. “Splendid. Then I’ll be in touch.”

The girl gave one last scream and the video cut off. Laurence dropped the tablet back onto the table. His heart was heavy and emotion was burning in his eyes. He wept unashamedly but the show would have to continue. Some wretched community play was not going to be enough and his wife was expecting him for cocktails on the patio in half an hour.

***

It had been a long night Leslie had gone home to COLDFORD to see her sisters. It seemed her baby sister, Laura, had gotten herself into trouble again. It left Laurence to attend a function for some new production the studio was looking to get up and running alone. Laurence had offered to join his wife but she refused his escort.

“Oh no Loo Loo,” she had said. “It’s just Laura being a brat as usual. Besides KARYN will be there.” Karyn was the eldest of the Doyle sisters and a HIGH COURT JUDGE. Whatever trouble Laura was in, this time if they had called in the big guns. Laurence didn’t envy his young sister in law.

She kissed him on both cheeks as a driver Grant – or was it Gil? – collected the matching LUEN designed luggage.

He had a rare weekend alone. Laurence wasn’t much of a solitary person. Ever since boyhood he liked to surround himself with people. Knowing he was going back to an empty, rambling beach house alone he loaded up more at the function than he normally would have. He noticed the looks on the studio executives faces as he tried to talk to them but made little sense of him.

Around midnight he decided to leave. He decided on a drive through the mountains. A monumentally stupid idea he agreed but alcohol had emboldened him to the danger and impending loneliness made his home seem daunting.

No one took his car keys away from him. He swerved along the road at too great a speed but luckily the roads were empty. It wasn’t until he returned to La Rocha Beach where he lived that he collided with a young girl girl named Gillian. She screamed as Laurence struggled to help her. Her leg was trapped. One of them was completely wrecked.

“I’m so sorry,” said Laurence repeatedly but she was in too much pain to hear him. Laurence called the only person he knew could help him, Dr Gregory Winslow of Harbour House clinic.

She continued screaming.

“Shut up!” Laurence barked at her. “I can’t hear what he’s saying.”

“Why don’t you call an ambulance? Whilst you are at it get the police down here!” Cried Gillian.

“It seems like the young lady is in a lot of pain,” said Winslow in honeyed tones.

“I can’t call an ambulance. I’ve been drinking. They’ll throw the book at me.”

Winslow tutted. “That is terrible. You should know the dangers of drunk driving. Weren’t you already given community service for that sort of thing?”

Laurence was frustrated. He was sobering fast, Gillian was still screaming and before long someone else would come along and see them.

“I don’t need a lecture. Can you help her or not?”

“I suppose with a man in your position I can understand your need for discretion,” Winslow agreed. Bring her to Port Rocha. I’ll have someone collect her from there. She will get the best of care here at Harbour House.

Gillian’s cries stopped suddenly. She had fallen unconscious.

“She’s passed out!” the actor exclaimed as though he was reaching the back rows.

“Calm down,” said Winslow. “She will be losing a lot of blood. Tighten something around the worst of the wounds and get her to Port Rocha as soon as you can. I have a helicopter setting out immediately to collect her.”

Laurence was ready for hanging up when Winslow added. “Oh and Laurence, do drive carefully. We wouldn’t want any more little accidents now would we? You do realise this whole affair could have been avoided if it weren’t for your reckless irresponsibility.”

When he did hang up he struggled to free Gillian from the wreckage of her car and into the back seat of his own. She stirred again and she tried to hit him when she did but she was weak. As he tied a torn bit of his shirt around her wound she tried to escape his clutches.

“Stop it you stupid cow!” He scolded. “I’m going to get you help.”

Gillian’s leg was hanging limply. The femur bone was crushed beyond repair. He wrapped one of Leslie’s favourite picnic blankets around her as she started to shiver with shock. He sped off to the port. This time he navigated the roads carefully. The incident had left him as sober as he would ever be.

He wanted to save Gillian’s life. She would get the best treatment at Harbour House but that treatment cost. He had to replace his car. He had to replace Leslie’s favourite blanket. Then the costs of boarding at the facility came in along with invoices for surgical procedures, nurses time, after care, medication. The cost of discretion and covering up his mistake drew everything fine actor Laurence DuBoe had. It would only be a matter of time before they were drained dry and his wife found out. With the ever imposing JUDGE KARYN DOYLE looming over him who knows what could happen?

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Seasoned Actor Laurence DuBoe has spent all the money has covering his mistakes. Will the pay cheque from a dreadful soap opera be enough to keep the truth from his wife? He closed the door of the study over tightly. Leslie never bothered him when he was in there but he couldn’t take the chance.