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Post by Jazmin on Mar 3, 2011 20:43:46 GMT -5
All Eric could manage was a strained chuckle, memories flickering before his own eyes.
He fished into his pocket and pulled out his own pack of cigarettes and pulled one out. He handed it to her. "Here, you need this more than I do. And I owe you one," he said softly. He turned his head away as she lit up, letting painful memories dance before him.
The time when his father came home so drunk after being fired was the wost one. He had always only hit Eric in private, away from his mother. But that night he struck Eric so hard that he spiraled to the ground and hit his head on the wall, right in front of his mother. She had screamed in fear and anger, helping Eric as he already was trying to stand.
"Uh, we can go now," he suddenly said, realizing that he had probably been spacing out for a while. "He's gone."
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Post by {Fawn} on Mar 3, 2011 21:00:46 GMT -5
The girl took the cigarette and lit it. "Thanks." She plopped it in her mouth and took a long drag in, then let the smoke out of the corner of her mouth on the side where Eric wasn't.
Thinking back, she remembered one time when her anger had gotten so bad at 'tea time', as her mother used to like to call it, she had tipped the table and throw her chair. She had fled from the garden in tears of fresh hatred. Her mother had also been in tears, but from fear of her daughter. That was right before she left. She had seen her mother once after that, hours later, when she had been leaving. The only words she had said were, "Good-bye. I don't belong here."
Fawn was jolted back into reality when Eric said they had better get going. He was right, the school was still about 4 blocks away, and her apartment was 10 away from there. Eric probably wouldn't want to walk that far to make sure she was safe.
She ran her hand through her messy hair and said, "You sure you want to come with me? My apartment is pretty far away from the school and it's getting kinda late..."
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Post by Jazmin on Mar 3, 2011 21:12:15 GMT -5
Eric took another long drag. "'Course I can walk that," he told her. "I'm not gonna go home until my dad has had a couple glasses in him and gone to bed. That'll be way after you go home."
Eric smiled a little and gestured for the woman to follow him. And he wouldn't yank her back this time. He put his hands back in his pockets let her lead the way, keeping a step behind her.
"So, hey," he finally said as something dawned on him, "what's your name?"
He flinched as he heard a loud bang from one of the alleys, knowing that he had gotten her out of there in time. The guys were hitting trash cans, signaling their excitement as they prowled about looking for prey.
Eric didn't look back, but he kept his body tense just in case. "I'm Eric Kane."
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Post by {Fawn} on Mar 3, 2011 21:32:00 GMT -5
"Oh yeah. I'm Fawn Lancer. Sorry I never said anything before. Kinda forgot." She smiled and then noticed he was walking behind her.
Shoving her hands in her jacket pocket and said awkwardly, "Hey, not trying to make this weird...But can you please walk next to me? It's like my OCD...Plus people might think I'm like talkin' to myself..." She had been glancing around when she had been asking, and she turned around, smiling weirdly at him. She walked backwards so she could continue to talk to him, not expecting what happened next.
Since she was walking backwards, she couldn't see the jut in the sidewalk. Her DC shoe caught on the edge, and she tumbled backwards, thinking, Oh shit! I'm gonna die!!
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Post by Jazmin on Mar 3, 2011 22:21:23 GMT -5
Eric felt his heart flutter in panic, and he swooped forward, catching Fawn by the shoulders before she could hit the pavement. He quickly lifted a hand to catch her head, keeping her from dropping it back to hit the sidewalk as well.
After his heart had stopped pounding, Eric felt himself break into a cocky grin. "Pleased to meet you, Fawn," he said breathlessly, "but I like to get to know the people I meet. So I would very much like it if you didn't bleed your life out on the sidewalk."
Eric helped Fawn to her feet and kept his hands on her shoulders until he was sure she wouldn't trip standing still.
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Post by {Fawn} on Mar 3, 2011 22:44:08 GMT -5
The girl sighed. "Ugh! I'm such a fricken' klutz!! Thanks for saving me though." Shaking her head, she turned and walked away towards the direction of the school, hoping Eric would follow. But the real reason she was turning away was because her hormones inside were going crazy. She was starting to think she had a crush on Eric. He was sweet, saved her from killing herself or getting seriously injured, and cute. Not at first glance, but once you get to know him... Every spot where he had touched her tingled. Fawn had never known this feeling before.
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Post by Jazmin on Mar 3, 2011 22:55:59 GMT -5
Eric smiled, striding up to walk at Fawn's side. "I can't walk backwards, either, if that makes you feel better," he said. "But you just can't walk."
Laughing, Eric gently patted Fawn's shoulder to show he was kidding. "Sorry, couldn't help myself."
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Post by {Fawn} on Mar 3, 2011 23:04:33 GMT -5
Fawn instantly felt a wave of heat off Eric's body when he stepped up next to her. She was smiling about that, but as far as he knew, it was from what he said. She let out a little giggle just in case.
Turning and looking at him, she asked, "So how come I've never seen you in school before?"
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Post by Jazmin on Mar 3, 2011 23:20:28 GMT -5
Eric felt his smile break in a heartbeat. He didn't want to tell her everything that would answer her question. "I skip school a lot," he told Fawn. "And sometimes I get so high I forget that I even go to school."
And when I am at school, I'm usually cornering some girls and doing what I want, his mind added darkly. Eric wanted to shake himself, but he figured it would be too weird for him for do that out of nowhere.
"I think I've seen you around," he finally said. "But I'm usually around my gang, so you wouldn't have seen much of me. I kinda get trapped in the middle of all them, since I tend to run off a little too much." He flashed her a small smile, but he knew the reason behind that.
Eric was a runner. He never liked to fight unless he was the one who started it. If a gang fight went down, Eric would split. So he was usually trapped between everyone like a wild dog in a cage, and he was hardly ever allowed to run and... play.
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Post by {Fawn} on Mar 3, 2011 23:32:17 GMT -5
Fawn nodded. "Oh. Well I don't think I've ever seen you." Thinking about her school days, she knew why she hadn't. She blended in with the crowd, and minded her own business. She had no friends, she was a loner. She didn't usually eat lunch, so she sat in the library and did homework or read. She was taking some college courses so her senior year wouldn't be as stressful. Her grades weren't horrible, mostly B+'s and A-'s, but that was better than most of the high schoolers.
Trying to think of another subject, she asked, "So how many members are in your gang?"
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Post by Jazmin on Mar 4, 2011 13:42:48 GMT -5
Eric thought for a few moments before he shrugged. "People come and go," he said, remembering the faces of others that he no longer saw, whether the reason be for them moving away or getting their lifeblood smeared on the pavement. "I only know a couple people personally, the others are just people in the background."
Eric glanced over his shoulder again, but the banging of trash cans had stopped. He couldn't see anyone, so he guessed that the Shade Blades had found someone to torment for the hour.
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Post by {Fawn} on Mar 7, 2011 13:27:57 GMT -5
The girl nodded slowly. She noticed after he spoke he looked behind him, as if expecting something, but she decided to ignore it.
They reached the school and Fawn headed straight to the door, ahead of Eric. She opened it and was about to head inside when she remembered Eric. Turning around, she asked with slight hesitance, "Are you gonna come with or wait here?"
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Post by Jazmin on Mar 7, 2011 13:43:54 GMT -5
Eric had stopped cold in his tracks, staring up at the massive building. He blinked a few times before he realized Fawn had spoken to him. "Uh, yeah," he said as he hurried to her side. "Sorry," he muttered, "This place isn't safe for anyone after school hours. I'm way out of my turf here."
This was Drip territory. Eric could practically smell them. He stuck close to Fawn, ever so that his coat would gently brush her arm occasionally, his sharp hazel eyes sliding back and forth, checking every shadow for a dark figure. His stomach tightened with unease.
"You ain't gonna take long, are you?" he asked quietly, trying to distract himself from the shadows that seemed to move.
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Post by {Fawn} on Mar 7, 2011 14:05:03 GMT -5
"It won't take long. Just gotta go to my locker and grab it, then we're outta here." She continued through the door and started towards her locker. After going through the longest hallway, she took a right, towards the high school. They passed multiple classrooms before taking another right towards the upperclassmen's hall, containing their lockers. Reaching hers, number 69, she dialed her combo and kicked open her stubborn locker.
Bending down, she picked up her science binder and opened it, spotting the assignment instantly. She instantly wanted to hit herself.
"Oops....I forgot...I must've already finished it." She looked up at Eric timidly and smiled dumbly.
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Post by Jazmin on Mar 7, 2011 14:16:59 GMT -5
Eric's jaw nearly dropped.
"You... finished it already?" he asked dryly. "So you came here for nothing?" He slapped himself to keep from slapping her. Truly a brilliant woman, he thought.
A soft chuckle made Eric's blood run cold, and he reached out to Fawn, grabbing her arm and pulling her close to his side. A dark figure loomed at the end of the hall, leaning against the lockers.
"A pointless stumble onto Drip land, huh, Shade?" the person called. He was twirling a knife in his hand.
Eric fished into his pocket and drew his switchblade. His heart was hammering in his chest as he flicked the long silver blade out, the faint light overhead glinting off of the intricate swirls that were carefully scratched into it.
"You're the nervous one, Shade," the Drip continued. "Neither of you look like fighters, and you're way out of your element."
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