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| Dead Men Walking | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Nov 28 2014, 02:20 AM (70,979 Views) | |
| Make-7-Up-Yours | May 10 2015, 11:41 PM Post #1456 |
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Is that so?
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"I..." Randall didn't know what to say. A part of him was concerned; he wasn't entirely sure he wanted to find his son. The sight of what he had become might have been too much to bear. If he went down there and couldn't find Nolan, it might be easier to just imagine he had gotten away and was living in a community somewhere far away. Of course, despite that concern, he still wanted to know. Even if it hurt, he wanted some form of closure on the matter. "Thank you, Eli." Randall said simply. "That... that means a lot to me." |
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| DoctorYerishi | May 11 2015, 12:08 AM Post #1457 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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“Don’t worry about it ’mano,” he said. He gave the last word more weight than he usually did. “Seriously. I know I say it a lot and don’t always mean it, but I consider you family. So whatever you need. Like I told you after the heist – I’m here.” He patted Randall on his good shoulder, and then figured that was as mushy as he was comfortable getting. He headed outside to observe the rest of the training. * * * Annie stepped forward and helped Brandon with the lesson, as he requested. On the dead body, she identified some of the most deadly places to cut or stab – the carotid artery, the brachial artery, the ventricles of the heart, the femoral artery for Kelsey and Connor, and so on. She had never had to dispense with that kind of knowledge in that kind of context, but she pushed through. The worst part was almost the necessary – it was having Connor in the audience. He knew she killed Ethan, but that was in self-defence, and he only caught glimpses of the aftermath. Being taught by her how to kill might have been an even tougher experience. It might have changed her image in his eyes even more. Brandon was right to bring them all out there, though. This was stuff they needed to learn. And after the fight under the freeway, she knew that they couldn’t afford to wait to learn it. When the teaching was over, night had totally claimed the area, and everyone returned to the interior of the hotel and picked out rooms in the same wing. Randall shared one with Kelsey, and Annie shared one with Connor. He had fallen silent again since the lesson. Annie was worried. “You want to talk about today?” she asked him. She sat on the edge of the bed. He was curled up at the top of it, his arms around his knees. He shook his head. She debated pressing the issue, but decided to give him a little bit of space. Today had been a lot to take in. “Okay,” she said. “I’m just gonna check in with Willow, and I’ll be right back.” She got up and headed for the door. She did want an update on Willow’s condition, and to see if there was anything she could do to help. That was one of the main ways she had pitched her value, after all. When she got to the door, though, she stopped. “Mom,” Connor said. She turned around. Maybe he did want to talk. |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | May 11 2015, 12:52 AM Post #1458 |
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Is that so?
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In a room that she had chosen for herself, Jen sat alone on the amazingly comfortable bed. Back at Flint, she had shared a house with four other women. The house sometimes felt a little cramped and the beds were hardly anything special, but she had gotten somewhat used to them during her time there. That made this bed feel like a bed fit for a queen. She never would have been able to afford a night in a place like this before. Still, the fact remained that she was alone. She had been at Flint too. She got along with people, but she never really had any friends there. The last of her true friends had died before she arrived at Flint. But this group here was tight. Really tight. It was a part of why she had ultimately decided to leave Flint behind her and move on with these guys. Apart from the whole 'saving the world' and 'Flint got fucked up real bad' reasons. Those were fairly convincing as well. And yet here she was; she felt like she wasn't even trying to get along with them. As soon as one of their own got bit, she was already trying to remove herself from them. She wasn't sure if it was because she didn't feel like it was her place to get involved in their affairs because she was still kind of an 'outsider' or if she was afraid of getting close to them for fear of losing them too. "It's all so stupid." She reminisced to herself out loud. She was here now, so she might as well make the most of it. She psyched herself up to go back out there and try to integrate herself into the group. She knew it was something she had to do eventually, and during a rough time like this was probably the best. Besides, she already knew she wasn't going to sleep for a while anyway and she didn't want to just lay down in a dark room by herself. As Jennifer left her room, she saw the blonde girl who had dyed her hair pink sitting down in the hallway. She looked like she was thinking about something. "Willow, right?" Jen asked as she took a seat across from her. "Y-yeah, that's me." Willow snapped out of her thoughts and glanced up at Jen. "What's up Jen?" "Your... boyfriend is the hot guy, right?" "You mean Brandon? Yeah, he is pretty fuckin' hot." Willow quickly agreed with a smirk. "Not sure how I landed that one. But that means you can't get any ideas with him." Jen couldn't tell if she was serious or not. "No, no, no." Jen deflected. "I just wanted to introduce myself properly. Maybe talk a bit, if that's okay with you. Still getting a hang of everyone's names and trying to get to know everyone. I was one of the guards on duty at the gate when your crew arrived. Of course, you look a lot better now than you did back then." "Thanks, I guess." Willow accepted the compliment somewhat hesitantly. Shit, it was feeling kind of awkward now. Jen had hoped she could break the ice a little, but she realized that she didn't really know what to say. She didn't know this woman. She thought fast back to everything she knew. Unfortunately, all she knew was that she had gotten shot badly, and that didn't seem like the best thing to discuss right now, and she had a hot boyfriend. It might be awkward to ask too much about that. "So, uhh... what did you do before all of this?" Jen finally asked. |
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| Strompy | May 11 2015, 03:34 AM Post #1459 |
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More posts, more Busey.
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"Haha! Yes!" Brandon said triumphantly. He'd found several large candles in the receptionist's desk. They were citrus scented which was a bonus. It would be a nice change from the ever present vague smell of dead people. Candle light. Luxury suite. Big bed. Brandon practically sprinted back to his suite. He was getting laid tonight for sure! This was too good an opportunity to pass up. Julie was weighing on his mind. They still hadn't recovered from Glenda's death. They had no vehicle. They were down some supplies and the majority of the group was either wounded, or inexperienced. It was a fucked up situation but he was determined to make the best of it. Willow was the best thing he'd ever had in his life. His face fell as he rounded a corner and found Julie standing in front of him. She eyed the bundle of candles in his arms and a knowing smile crept over her face. Brandon grinned in return. A wordless exchange, but a good one. They walked past each other and Brandon paused. Everyone deserved a chance to enjoy something. Candle light was warm and comforting, they smelled nice. "Julie." he said, holding out one of the candles to her. She took it with a grateful smile. Now Brandon just needed to find everyone else and make sure they had one too. It's better in the dark anyway. ... Julie was a lot more focused on what she was doing than Brandon. As soon as she found Eli she took his hand without a word and lead him back to her suite. Her last night was going to be a good one. "Talk after if you want." she said simply as she pushed open the door. |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | May 11 2015, 10:28 AM Post #1460 |
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Is that so?
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"Look, Jen..." Willow said after a brief silence. "I know you're being to be nice, and I'm not trying to be intentionally cold or anything. Things are just... difficult for me now. That's all. I'm sorry." Jen frowned. Definitely awkward now. "You and Glenda were close, weren't you?" Jen asked before even thinking about it. "... yeah, we were." Willow opened up a little, but avoided direct eye contact. "Like a mother to me. Having her die so quickly like that... I wasn't even there. I feel like I was robbed of my goodbyes. And now I get goodbyes with Julie and I don't even know what to say. I just... I treat her normally and hope that gets the message across, but I feel like I should be doing more." Jennifer sympathized with what was going through her head. The past 24 hours were weighing down on her. No matter how strong and used to the outside world you were, losses like this were still hard. She didn't even mention Maxwell's betrayal in all of this, but it would be impossible not to have it on her mind. And that was before she got to watch a friend of hers die right before her eyes. It was emotionally tough, not just on her but on everyone. "My mom died in the early days of the outbreak." Jennifer thought this story might help her. "She worked as a nurse in a hospital and got bitten by one of the first corpses they brought in. That was before how they knew it was transmitted. They tested the wound and it tested negative for any diseases that they knew of, so they sent her home when she started feeling ill. She called me and told me about all of this, how she felt like she was dying. I had literally just finished moving up to my college dorm, so I was a good hundred miles away. But as we were talking... she died on the phone." She shook her head at the memory. It still stung when she talked about it. But half the reason she was talking about it now was because she wanted this particular memory off her chest. "I thought she just fell asleep, but I listened to her transform on the phone in terror. I didn't know what was going on. I later found out from the news reports what was going on... but as crushed as I was by the experience... I was able to take some solace in the fact that I made her last moments warm by treating her the same as I always did. She was just having a nice conversation with her daughter. Whether it's because we're teenagers and don't know any better, because our skin is black, or because we're dying, I think we all want to be treated the same. And if you can do that now of all times... she appreciates that. I know she does." Another awkward pause. "And that was a much more long winded explanation that I was planning on. Sorry, I do that when I'm nervous, I tend to talk because-" "Jen." Willow raised a hand to stop her, but her worried features softened into a smile. "You had something really good going on there and then you almost shot yourself in the foot." "Getting shot in the foot or leg seems like something we're both good at." "You're not wrong." Willow retorted. "But thank you, I do feel better. When you put it that way, I think you're right. That actually helped me with two problems tonight." "No problem." Jen assured her. "Glad I could help." Willow pushed herself up from a sitting position and back to her feet. She rolled her shoulders as she eyed Julie pulling Eli into her room by the hand. With a candle. Jen and Willow quickly met each other's gazes and broke into knowing grins. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what was going on there. "Guess I'll go find Brandon. We are in a luxury hotel after all, gotta take advantage of the opportunity." "Oh, rub it in more, why don't you?" Jen teased with a smile as Willow left. Seemed like everyone else was retiring for the night. She wasn't tired quite yet, especially after that somewhat awkward conversation with Willow. Maybe she would check this place out a little bit before going to bed herself. |
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| DoctorYerishi | May 11 2015, 11:40 AM Post #1461 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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Eli let himself be led. If that’s what she wanted, he wasn’t going to deny her. And besides, he didn’t want to talk either. * * * “We… we fell through a hole in the road,” Connor said. He stared forward, at nothing in particular. Annie waited for him to continue. When he didn’t, she returned to the bed, sitting on the edge. “I know, honey, I…” “And those things were everywhere,” Connor cut her off suddenly, and started to ramble. “We had to run and then that girl got bit… And I wasn’t even scared at first. It was like I wasn’t even… like… I was just… I was, like, watching somebody else play me. Like in a movie. Like I wasn’t really there.” Annie pursed her lips. Her heart broke a little watching him struggle with this. She didn’t try to talk again. She let him sort through his thoughts. “And then when I was there, it was like I was waking up from a nightmare,” he added. “But the nightmare…” He trailed off again. Annie wanted to hug him. “I’m trying not to cry or have a meltdown or whatever,” he said. “Everyone else is so calm and strong and I know you want me to be like them, but I just… I just want to go home.” He sniffed. Annie felt her heart break a little bit more, and she went in for the hug. He just melted into her shoulder, breaking down. Tears started falling now. She had to fight back tears of her own. A part of her considered that maybe this was good. He hadn’t reacted much after the chaos at Flint, or after she told him about his dad. Maybe this was a release he needed. After the fight with Kevin back at her house, she had lost it herself and felt better and stronger for it the next morning. Maybe Connor had to walk that same path. “I know, sweetie, it’s okay to be scared,” she comforted him. “It’s okay to feel whatever you want to feel.” A minute or more passed, and she continued holding him. When he started to calm down, she spoke again. This next part was tough for her. Holding her son like this, she was tempted to tell him yes, that they’d leave the next morning and drive back to Flint. She couldn’t give in to that temptation, though. “I’m sorry, honey, but we can’t…” “We can’t go home…” Connor finished for her, just as he broke the hug and laid back on the bed, red-faced. “I know.” “Not yet. Do you know why?” Annie remained sitting, looking down at him. Connor shook his head. “Because we’re doing this to make sure we have a home to go back to,” she said. “Randall has something that might help the world, and we have to help if we can. And we can.” She thought back to earlier today. She wondered if she hadn’t come up with the plan to get out of that swarmed warehouse, would someone else have? Or would they have done something riskier and would more people end up bit? “You can help,” Connor said softly from the bed. His tone was resentful, and the resentment seemed to be directed inward. “We both can help,” Annie said. “You did well today, honey. You kept it together and you did what you needed to do. And you did well outside tonight. You’re learning.” Connor didn’t respond immediately. His eyes went from his mom to the ceiling, and Annie hoped he was considering what she said. “I’m tired,” Connor said, after an extended silence. “I think I want to go to bed.” “Of course, honey,” Annie said. She stood up and moved over to him, kissing him on the forehead. “I’ll be back soon. I love you. Goodnight.” “Love you too,” he said back automatically, his eyes closed. She leaned back again and watched him for a moment, like she did all the time back at their house in Flint. She dabbed away the moisture in his eyes and tore herself away, heading outside. She closed the door gently behind her and bit her lip, thinking and hoping. She hoped that Connor would be okay, that tonight was the painful first step he needed to take on the path to becoming more ready for this world. For the first time, she also hoped that at the end of that path, he wouldn’t lose himself. She sighed and started walking down the hall. She remembered that she came here to check on Willow, but she found herself walking to a different room instead – Randall and Kelsey’s. She found the door closed. She knocked. |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | May 11 2015, 07:07 PM Post #1462 |
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Is that so?
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Randall sat in one of the chairs idly. A single candle illuminated the room from the desk he was sitting at. He had a pen in his left hand and was trying to draw on one of the hotel notepads with it. It was a silly exercise, but he had heard that something like that could increase dexterity for the recessive hand. He could stab something with a knife, but not with anywhere near the precision of his right hand. It was a small step, but one that needed to be taken. It was easier than stabbing rotters and more economic than shooting bullets. At least for the time being. Kelsey had long since fallen asleep. Randall hadn't even known how tired she was, but as soon as she was on the bed, she was out like a light. Neither of them had slept at all since they were awoken by the gunfire of the raid on Flint; Randall was feeling the fatigue from it as well. But sleeping didn't feel like much of an option with Julie in the condition that she was in. Nobody knew if she was going to make it through the night or not. He knew that he would need to check on her soon to see how she was holding up. If she looked good, he might allow himself to tentatively get some rest for tomorrow. A knocking on the door interrupted his silent contemplation. His heart skipped a beat as his next thought was that it could be about Julie. Something could have happened. But he didn't hear any shouting, so she was probably okay. He placed the pen down gently and looked towards Kelsey. Still asleep; probably would be for a while. Randall got out of his chair and, as quietly as he could, made his way over to the door. "Evening, Annie." Randall greeted her somberly. Judging from her expression, this was probably not about Julie's current health, so that was one concern he was able to put aside for now. He moved aside to make room for her to enter. "Did you want to come in? Kelsey's asleep like a brick right now, don't worry." |
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| Strompy | May 11 2015, 07:34 PM Post #1463 |
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More posts, more Busey.
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Brandon walked with a lit candle in one hand. He didn't have enough for everyone, he figured Eli and Emmett would decline and insist he let others have them so that took care of that. He knocked gently at Annie and Connor's door. There wasn't a reply and he didn't feel like intruding so he simply placed the candle on the ground next to the door with one of the hotels packs of matches. He felt bad for them both. A member of their community had tried to kill them. He knew what that felt like. Connor had also finally lost his father. He knew that feeling too. Then tjey left their home behind. He also knew that. For almost a week it was like he was absent from his body. Connor might be going thrpugh the same thing. Fortunately for him though he still had his mom, and they still had people. The other newby in the group must have been going through some intense things. It was a hell of a first day outside the relative safety of Flint. She'd just left behind not only safety but the familiar. Today was the worst day they'd had since the outbreak at Mount Kisco. Going over the last few days though... there was a lot of competition for that spot. Considering this it only made sense to take your joy where you can find it, even if it was something as simple as the warm light a candle in the cold dark. He knocked at her door but got no reply. So again he left the candle next to the door with some matches. That left him with just the candle in his hand. He sighed heavily. It was such a small thing to give up but when small things were all there was it felt huge. Grudgingly he made his way to Kelsey and Randall's suite. He had Willow, and that was no small thing. |
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| DoctorYerishi | May 11 2015, 08:15 PM Post #1464 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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“Hi,” Annie greeted back. She accepted his invitation inside, but didn’t move much further than the doorway. Seeing Kelsey peacefully asleep on the bed gave her a warm feeling, though. That girl really was tough. It was encouraging to see. “I just wanted to tell you, before I went to bed, that I’m sorry about Julie,” she said. “We talked before about the cure and her, and I think I said it then, but… I wanted to tell you again. I’m sorry. I wish there was more I could do.” She sighed. That said, she nodded to Kelsey. She remembered how much control she showed today, how she tried to help Connor. "She really is something, huh?" |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | May 11 2015, 08:24 PM Post #1465 |
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Is that so?
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Randall smiled. The apology wasn't necessary, but he did appreciate the sentiment. Everyone was taking it pretty hard, all in their own ways. But he felt sorry for Annie more than himself. This was a pretty bad day for them; but for her it was her first taste of the outside world. It was easy to have second thoughts after something like that right off the bat; but there was no way they could take her back to Flint now. Not after they had come so far and gotten this close. "Yeah, she really is." Randall reminisced somberly. "I've given her the tools to survive, but she's closed up a lot since this all started. I think she's been trying to act tough for me so that I don't need to worry about her. That only makes me worry more though." Before he could finish his thoughts, Randall saw Brandon appear at the doorway holding a candle. "Hey Brandon." Randall greeted him. "What's up?" |
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| Strompy | May 11 2015, 09:54 PM Post #1466 |
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More posts, more Busey.
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"Sorry, I don't mean to interrupt I just found some candles. I figured everyone might appreciate a little light. Especially after enjoying it so much back in Flint." Brandon explained. He would miss the light. Of course he'd miss the showers even more. Most of all he'd miss how safe they felt there, together. He set the candle down on a counter near the door. "Goodnight." he said simply and backed out of the room. ... Julie stood looking at the tiny flame in front of her. She cupped her hands near enough to it to feel its warmth. There wasn't anything interesting about it. No parallels between the vibrant fleeting nature of fire and life or any cringe worthy poetic garbage. It was just nice, and it was yhe last time she would have a chance to enjoy it. Today was a lot of lasts. She turned away from the candle and was blinded by the darkness. She stared too long and now she couldn't see a foot in front of her. "Where are you? I can't see anything, help me out." she chuckled as she stepped toward where she remembered the bed was. |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | May 11 2015, 10:07 PM Post #1467 |
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Is that so?
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"Hey, Brandon." Randall ran out to him as he left, the candle in his hand. He handed it back to him so he could point back to the room he shared with Kelsey. "Thanks, but I found one tucked away in one of the drawers of our room, so we already got one. I don't know how many of these things we got laying around, but someone else might need it more than us." Randall sent Brandon off on his way and returned to Annie with an apologetic smile; "Sorry about that." * * * * * Willow was laying on the bed in the pitch darkness of her room. She was getting a little restless in anticipation of Brandon's return, but fought off the urge to get up and go look for him. He knew where she was; they had chosen this room for the night earlier. |
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| Strompy | May 11 2015, 11:20 PM Post #1468 |
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More posts, more Busey.
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Randon smiled as Randall handed the candle back to him. He had his little thing after all. He suddenly realized he was fucking around while Willow was in their room. Warm. Soft. Waiting. Brandon broke into a run as soon as he was out of sight. He nearly collided with Jen as he rounded a corner, quickly firing off several apologies and excusing himself, continuing on at a trot. When he reached their suite he passed to fuss with his hair in front of a mirror in the hall. After a moment his breathing returned to normal. Regaining his composure he turned his key in the door and opened it. The candlelight penetrated the darkness and faintly illuminated Willow laying on the bed. His eyes drank up every inch of her, from head to toe. His heart started thumping again and felt wildly desperate for her. He put the candle down absently on the counter edge and strode towards her full of purpose. The candle fell to the floor and went out and that little thing which had seemed so precious just moments before meant nothing to him now. |
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| DoctorYerishi | May 12 2015, 12:07 AM Post #1469 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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Annie shifted in place at Brandon’s interruption. She mustered a thankful smile, though, and then waited awkwardly as Randall chased after him. She brushed her hair behind her ears and looked from Kelsey to the ground. When he returned – when they were alone again except for his sleeping daughter – she let out a nervous breath. “I just stopped by to say that,” she said. “And to say goodnight.” She cupped his cheeks and looked up. She arched her feet enough to reach his height, and planted a brief, soft kiss on his lips. Then she lowered herself to the ground. That was all she wanted to do. Make her feelings known. Unbeknownst to her, they had been building since that afternoon on his first full day in Flint, had grown when she saw him run headlong into danger save Jen and when he had rushed so quickly to her defence against Ethan. They weren’t convenient – he had just lost his wife, and in way she had just lost her husband. They might even be a distraction. But she didn’t want anything more from him. Not now, at least. She just wanted him to know. If there was anything the past few days had taught her, it was that nothing could be taken for granted. What was there today might be gone tomorrow. If she didn’t let people know how she felt while she could, those people might never know. “Sorry,” she said, even if she wasn’t exactly. “I should get back to Connor. Oh, and uh… goodnight.” She turned and left, heading back to her room. |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | May 12 2015, 12:27 AM Post #1470 |
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Is that so?
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Annie's kiss had left a bit of turmoil in Randall's heart. But she was an attractive woman with a good heart; he couldn't deny that she had grown on him over their few days together; he had stirred up trouble in an entire community for her safety. The feel of her lips on his own sent a small smile across his tired face. "Goodnight, Annie." He said quietly, although she had darted off fairly quickly and probably hadn't heard him. It felt wrong to compare her to Elaine, but there were subtle similarities. Small things she did that reminded him of her. And while Annie was not Elaine, there was a unique charm about her that he could not deny and he was glad she appeared to feel the same. He was fine taking it slow for now though; he wasn't sure if Kelsey would approve of him and Annie getting close. Or Nolan, if he was still alive. He closed the door and wearily crawled into bed beside his daughter. He remembered he wanted to check on Julie, but he suspected Eli was with her. If anything happened, Randall would know. |
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7:29 PM Jul 10