wishing away

Etta Bennett; Nineteen. Waitress at The Hungry Bear Diner, Student at the local college. Frequently writing, more frequently wishing she was writing. Watching her life become something she never wanted it to be. Little match girl.

[kasiyalau-blog]

"So a headless murderer is riding around somewhere on horseback… just a normal day in Hollowshire, right?"

[ettabennett-blog]

"With the way things have been going lately... apparently, yeah. The new normal of Hollowshire is murderers and death-bringing vines." 

[dinahcalder]

Dinah was instantly relieved when she realized that she was in the presence of her sister. Her friction assuaged to self-reproach, knowing that Etta wasn’t at fault. “I’m sorry for snapping at you, kiddo.” Dinah sighed. “Didn’t know it was you.” She paused in her collecting to turn towards her sister and give her a warm smile. She didn’t have it in her to chide about the time Etta was coming home. She was safe, which was more than Dinah could ask for since a murderer on the loose.

[ettabennett-blog]

"Well, it's dark, who can blame you?" Etta replied, trying to make light of the situation. She wondered what had been on her sister's mind that she hadn't seen her; it didn't seem likely that she was simply neglecting to look two feat ahead of her, but then again, it was hard to say in these situations. These situations. As if a murderer on the loose was something people dealt with often. She chose to ignore the progression of her thoughts and the urge to deeply reassess her casual approach to the reality of her current life, deciding instead to return Dinah's smile. She was glad to have run into her sister out here, knowing it meant she wouldn't be alone in their home, that they might even be able to spend some quality time together before Emerson arrived back. That was assuming that Emerson had stayed later than Dinah at the theatre -- but that was a pretty safe assumption. After a few moments of shuffling up documents, Etta gave the papers she'd collected in her hand a brief wave. "What is all this? Work stuff?" 

[ettabennett-blog]

etta, in order to somewhat co-ordinate with dinah and emerson (in police outfits), decided to dress up as an arsonist for halloween! she's carrying matches, a bottle of gasoline (empty, but sh), wearing a top with "burn holes" and has "soot" on her face. 

[jason-gunner-blog]

Jason laughed, picturing a broke version of himself working at a place like this while attending college at Ole Miss. Strangely enough, that was easier to envision than him writing papers or sitting in the library. 

"Sounds a bit depressing, but doable." He reasoned. Jason looked around at the diner. From where he was sitting, they didn’t seem too busy. But still. "I’m not gonna get you in trouble with your boss or anything, right? For chatting with some dumb kid instead of busting tables or whatever?"

[ettabennett-blog]

"It'll only be five-odd years of your life, right?" Etta said, an edge of her dissatisfaction trickling into her tone. She wanted more than anything to be done with her studying, to have a sensible degree under her belt that was applicable anywhere, so that she could pack up with her sister and find somewhere that felt a little more like home, perhaps find people that she could call home. She snapped out of this evermore recurring thought pattern, however, when he spoke. She even smiled, looking around the near empty diner, at all of the regulars that often set up camp for hours at a time, happily entertaining themselves. "Not at all. Should be my break right around now, anyway. You're probably just saving me from spending a quarter of an hour feeling guilty about slacking off." 

[dinahcalder]

Though she was in no haste to return to an empty house, Dinah traversed the pavement quickly, a slew of loose papers tucked under her arm. As she tried to readjust her hold on her belongings so that they were more secure, she neglected to pay attention to her path, knocking into someone. The impact was enough to send her items dispersed onto the sidewalk and instantly sour her mood. Dinah knelt down to begin to gather her belongings, choosing not to release a stream of obscenities to the stranger. However, she wasn’t going to let them just walk away.

"Aren’t you going to help me?"

[ettabennett-blog]

Etta had barely spared a look up on her entire journey home from her work, too preoccupied with the frustrating task of attempting to get the already low on ink ballpoint pen from the diner to work on her skin. Her writing was coming out in smudges, barely readable, but despite the dissatisfaction it caused in her, she kept writing, painting herself a vivid picture of a house with a long driveway and trees littering the backyard. This was why she hardly even noticed when her own sister was feet away from her, and why she didn't think to swerve out of her way before they collided. Finally looking up from her arm, Etta started, looking down at the mess of paper at her feet, and then at Dinah, who was already crouched on the ground. "Oh, God, sorry," She muttered, tucking the pen into her back pocket and kneeling down to assist in assembling the stray documents. "I didn't even see you."

[luis-adell]

I am so pumped for this Halloween thing. It’s about time we got some excitement around here. Of the “no risk of death by vine” variety, I mean. 

[ettabennett-blog]

"You seem pretty lighthearted about it all." 

[thegreatkingtitus-blog]

"It’s pumpkin shaped pumpkin bread. You’ve got to take a bite. You’ll just instantly be filled with Halloween cheer."

[ettabennett-blog]

"Delicious," She said in a flat tone, without trying the bread. "Why is pumpkin the symbol of Halloween, anyway? Is it really significantly creepier than all other fruits?" 

[jason-gunner-blog]

He smiled back, thinking how much he wished they made it easy to forget leaving, rather than the opposite. “You’re probably right. Sounds like a high school thing for them to do. Clean me out before I even get out.”

[ettabennett-blog]

"Oh, naturally. They probably think it's character building -- a part of the student experience; scraping for cash to buy toothpaste." Etta quipped, before moving to fill the empty glass in front of him with the pitcher of water she carried. "It's not as bad as it sounds, though, really. Between studying and working, there's no time left over to spend your money, anyway. It has a funny way of working itself out." 

[emersoncalder-blog]

   It was out of the ordinary for Etta show him concern. In fact, on any given day, she would’ve given him a resentful glare or disregard his presence altogether. Perhaps it was merely politeness, but something made Emerson curious. “I’m touched,” he smirked, before raising an eyebrow. “You actually worried ‘bout me or did ‘ya want somethin’?”

[ettabennett-blog]

She narrowed her eyes at his words, frustrated by just how much he could annoy her, seemingly without even trying. "God, you're so rude," Etta muttered, picking up her pace somewhat in the hopes that his injuries would make it uncomfortable for him to match her stride. She nearly scoffed as she considered his words; did she want something? The very question was ridiculous to her -- Etta was always wanting these days -- but the idea that Emerson could give her any of the things she wanted was damn near insulting. She almost turned around and told him that actually, the top of her list of things that she wanted was for him to leave, but she wasn't so far gone that she couldn't see the repercussions of that. Even with Dinah and Emerson arguing so much lately, Etta knew a statement as loaded as that getting back to her sister would only cause disharmony in her family, and that was the last thing she wanted. "In case you've forgotten, you and Dinah run a business together. If you have to keep ducking in and out of the hospital all the time, then it's all on her." She purposefully left out their business partner, knowing her sister's distaste for him. "So I'd rather you stop breaking bones, for her sake." 

[silasblackwood-blog]

"Can I help you?"

[ettabennett-blog]

Etta looked up from the notepad she was scrawling in, staring at the woman in front of her for a few seconds before she realized that she'd neglected to order in all the time that she'd been there. She glanced back down at the story she'd half-written in haste, confusion filling her. She could hardly remember feeling the impulse to start writing, let alone letting it fill the time it'd taken for the busy cafe to have trickled to a comfortable hum of service. Tucking the notepad into her bag quickly, Etta smiled apologetically. "Oh -- yeah, sorry, I didn't... didn't notice." She muttered, brow furrowing for a moment. "Actually, can I just -- can I just get a water, please?" 

[keiraofthelake-deactivated20150]

It was her intention to crash on the bench, since she needed the nap, though when she did eventually wake up early in the morning, it was then that Keira realized she had been sleeping on the bench for the whole night. But it wasn’t until Keira sat up that she noticed someone standing over her. “S-… So—orry..” She managed to say, a muffled yawn squeezing in between words.

[keiraofthelake-deactivated20150]

[ettabennett-blog]

"No need to apologize," Etta said, even as she weighed up whether or not she should stick around to converse with the girl. She'd stopped initially out of concern, worried enough by the sight of someone passed out on a bench to double check that they were still breathing, but the morning was cold and she was beginning to feel antsy. Still, her mother had raised her to be mindful of others, and so she stayed rooted to the spot, concern colouring her facial features. "Are you, uh, alright? Do you want me to call someone?" 

[emersoncalder-blog]

   "So I got a damn hair cut. That all you wanted ‘ta tell me?"

[ettabennett-blog]

Etta pursed her lips at his appearance, not reproachful for her past obvious statement, but surprised that it had been the first thing that grabbed her attention now that she really looked Emerson over. She felt a pang of regret, maybe, for being so abrasive with him. But it went away as quickly as it had come as she remembered that this -- living with someone who got into fights and came home bruised and battered -- was not what she'd envisioned as her life. "No. I also wanted to tell you that you should stop moving so much, or you'll break another rib." 

[jason-gunner-blog]

"Why do they even make you pay to graduate? Like four years wasn’t enough? Now you want me to be broke before I even get to college?" He grumbled to himself, a little louder than he had meant to, as he leafed through the papers provided by his school.

[ettabennett-blog]

Etta caught the sound of the frustrated words as she made her usual rounds, and offered a sympathetic smile -- although she was sure he was too busy looking at the papers to notice -- before she shrugged her shoulders. "Probably just to make your departure extra memorable. No forgetting where you came from when it left a huge dent in your bank." 

[briar-weiss]

"I’m not sure how far the vines go, and I’d rather not get close to them again."

"They had the most beautiful flowers in town. The reddest roses I’ve ever seen."

[ettabennett-blog]

"Why, what happened last time you got close to them?" 

"Surely there are red roses to find somewhere around here. Even redder than the ones from this place." 

[hewillfall-blog]

He stared at her a moment, not replying right away, as his customer service abilities left the room, “Did I forget to put the lights on or something? And I hope you have a good reason on why you’re here before the rest of the town’s even opened their eyes.” The tone wasn’t softened by her apologetic tone. He’d help her, but she would know clearly that he wasn’t too happy about the events of the morning as they passed. “Is the car outside or on the road?” He continued after a pause, already assuming why she was here so early, as it almost always seemed the same.

[ettabennett-blog]

Etta's mood changed quickly from apologetic to affronted at his tone, and she lowered her brow at his words before folding her arms across her chest in defense. "Well some of us try to start work on time." She said, ignoring the fact that he was her only chance of actually achieving that goal. She allowed her feelings to simmer for a few seconds before she responded, "It broke down just a little down the street, and I thought, 'well, hey, at least it's convenient!', but maybe not." 

[ofdruids-deactivated20160531]

He smiled at her last words, “Firsthand when I was in college, second once I become a teacher and then I finally knew what I looked like without sleep at that age. Just know what is worth risking your health.”

[ettabennett-blog]

"I don't know, I think the zombie look suits my generation." She said in a dry tone, before returning his smile. "Does anyone get enough sleep these days? I feel like everybody's so busy being... restless." 

[emersoncalder-blog]

   Emerson merely pursed his lips in acknowledgement to her words. It was a long walk home — he didn’t feel like ruining it right off the bat. He absentmindedly glanced over his shoulder, checking the theater one last time before humming, “Hm?” It was a few seconds after he matched her pace when he answered, “Mostly got new shipments today. Made a few deals with the suppliers and.. yeah,” he trailed off, knowing the topic never interested her. He didn’t necessarily feel like speaking to her about the business, either, so he was at a lost for words.

   Etta reminded him of his younger brother, sure, but at least his younger brother didn’t irrationally hate his guts. He found himself lapsing into a silence, with only the crunch of leaves filling the atmosphere. Oh well.

[ettabennett-blog]

As the conversation faded into awkward silence, Etta resisted the urge to sigh, knowing in the quiet night there'd be no mistaking her frustration. Emerson wasn't exactly helping, and usually, she would have simply allowed the quiet to remain, but the lapse in conversation made her uncomfortable Now. She realized that she hated silence and the isolation it inferred. And so she tried again. "Shipments? What'd you get?"