Oh, Universe, hold me up

Noah Ellison || 24 || Clairvoyant || 0905

[noahfensebut-blog]

sebflxres:

Lunchtime with Noah had become a weekly tradition–sometimes Seb even worked plans around it. He wasn’t sure Noah had the same appreciation for their meetings as he did, but he’d gotten pretty good at forcing people to care about his problems. And, at any rate, it was cheaper than getting a therapist. Noah’s advice was rarely good, but Seb had himself convinced that the simple routine of meeting up and talking with him for at least twenty minutes a week helped him sort out some of his problems.

This week, he’d picked up some tacos and headed over to Noah’s place with the food and plenty of built-up personal issues. Upon arrival, he bombarded their text messages and knocked incessantly–mostly because bothering Noah was a fun game to play. Noah might not realize it, but the annoyance was good for him. 

Seb greeted him with a smile as the door opened. He shrugged in response to the question. “I have a lot to talk about. Plus I thought you might be lonely. Do you even have family to hang out with?” Seb asked the question in passing, pushing his way past Noah and into the apartment. He looked around momentarily before commenting, “Nice place. How come I’ve never been here before?”

       “Yeah, I’ve got family. But I didn’t want to leave town and drag any of the Clair drama I’m toting around to their doorstep.” He didn’t particularly hide the fact that he’d been one of the people to experience a blackout. Mostly people didn’t comment on it to his face. A couple people had even asked him what he’d seen, but Noah had learned to deal with it just like he’d learned to deal with all the other questions people asked him. He always had his answers ready.

       “And the reason that you’ve never seen my place before,” he said, shutting the door and turning to guide Astian into the small, cramped kitchen. There was a tiny bar that separated it from the living room, with a couple of bar stools placed as out of the way as they could be. “Is because I have two roommates who don’t like surprise guests.” Noah pulled up one of the stools so it was on one side of the bar and left the other on the other side for Astian. “Actually, it’s more like I don’t like subjecting people to them. One of them is like, allergic to wearing pants and the other one keeps leaving his fetish manga on the coffee table.”

       The smell of greasy Mexican food was quickly becoming more than his willpower could handle, so Noah started poking around in the box Astian had brought. “But anyway, tell me about your week. Have you fucked that Lion King dude yet? I can’t remember.”

[noahfensebut-blog]

deliacruz:

Del didn’t feel like to feel sorry about herself too often- she rarely had any reason to- but this occasion seemed to warrant a bit of self-pitying. Not only had her father scheduled her on Christmas Eve, but Noah Ellison had to come and bother her on her treasured lunch time. As if she hadn’t had enough of that in high school.

But if he wanted to do this, then so did she. Del could do fake (oh, man could she do fake).

“Noah! Wow, don’t you just look wonderful?” Del’s voice rose at least two octaves and she shot a wide smile back at him. He did actually look quite nice, to be fair.  “Yes well, our work never stops being important up there, you know?” That was a lie if she’d ever told one, because hell if she could remember even a word of the last proposal she had read.

”What’s up with you? Aren’t you a like, teacher now or something?”

       It made Noah feel a little nostalgic as he listened to Del’s voice go up a pitch. Maybe an outsider wouldn’t be able to notice it, but to Noah, her smile seemed as plastic as the credit card she was likely going to use to pay for her latte. And that line about how important her work was? It was almost enough to make him roll his eyes. Did she think he was going to buy that?

        “Me, wonderful? Look at you! If there’s anyone that can make a corporate dress code look good, it’s you.” It was a boldfaced lie of course. Really, Noah thought she looked uncomfortable and slightly frazzled. Again, it was almost enough to make him feel bad.

       “Just a TA actually. I’m working under Professor Webber right now, trying to get my Masters. You know how it is in academia. Once you really find something you’re passionate, you never want to leave.” He paused, cringing a little self-deprecation for effect. “Or maybe you don’t know. You were always on the fast track, Del.”  

[sugarless-gum]

[noahfensebut-blog]

@sebflxres

       It was around noon when he got the text from Astian. He was still in his pajamas, lounging on his couch, catching up on some reading he’d been putting off between episodes of Cake Boss, and generally enjoying his winter break. But apparently, none of that meant anything to Astian. Holiday or no holiday, he was going to get his weekly lunch/therapy session with Noah. Maybe that was why he’d been affectionately referred to as Asstian in Noah’s phone.

       A free lunch was a free lunch though, and he didn’t exactly mind hearing all of the drama that Astian had accumulated every week. The guy was like a magnet for the stuff, probably because he was a compulsive liar. So, Noah texted him back a couple poop emojis that Astian would most likely take as an affirmative and got up off the couch to put some real pants on. Once he got some deodorant and then a shirt on, it was only a matter of waiting for Astian to show up. Usually they did this in whatever classroom Noah was in at the time and not at his apartment so he couldn’t help but feel a little put out by the whole thing.

       Then Noah’s phone chirped again with a few more texts, interspersed with someone knocking on his apartment door. It could only be Astian. No one else was that obnoxious. “I’m coming, hold on,” he called, as he made his way to the door and opened it. “I guess you don’t have anyone else to bother on the day after Christmas, huh?”

[noahfensebut-blog]

@carmensummcrs

       The room was eerily quiet as the sun set outside and the temperature dropped along with it.  Not even the buzz of florescent lights was there to accompany Noah as he entered the classroom. It was the one Professor Webber was usually assigned and Noah hadn’t stepped foot in it since classes had ended. Webber preferred it because it was one of the only classrooms on the first floor that didn’t have any windows in it, but was still big enough to accommodate his classes, which were always packed thanks to his popularity. He’d told Noah once that he didn’t like windows in a classroom. It gave the students something else to look at when their attentions should have been solely on him. Now, as Noah moved through the rows of seats, he couldn’t help feeling a sense of unease as he remembered that statement.

       The seat he was looking for was in the middle of the entire classroom, at the very center, just where an instructors line of sight might fall naturally. Noah gripped the back of the seat for a moment, staring down at it, before he sat down. Before him, beyond the rows of seats, the chalkboard stretched wide and empty, a blank slate of black. He stared at it as the seconds ticked by into minutes and his mind wondered.

       When the door opened behind him, it had been ten whole minutes since Noah had sat down. His head snapped around to look at the new person coming into the room. There wasn’t supposed to be anyone in this building at a time like this, let alone someone in this classroom. But then he saw who it was coming through the door, and time seemed to spin a little bit slower. It was her. The girl he’d seen in his vision.

       “You’re here,” he said without meaning to. His voice was filled with wonder and confusion. “How are you here?”

[noahfensebut-blog]

alex-cassidy:

If there was one thing Alex liked about the holidays, it was the spirit of giving it inspired in people. Sure, it was saturated in consumerism, but the underlying spirit was still there. And if this could be Alex’s last Christmas, he wanted to do the holiday justice, even if it hurt his wallet. He hadn’t seen Mr. Webber in a while, not since he’d graduated, really, but he remembered how kind he had been as a teacher. Alex had wanted to drop in to say hello, and seeing as he was already going to be dropping off gifts there, he had picked up something small for Mr. Webber in the spirit of the season. It was his last stop to hit before he left the school, and he made his way there cheerfully. Although it was cold, it wasn’t raining for once, and good weather always put Alex in a good mood.

The last thing he’d expected was to find someone else in Mr. Webber’s room, but when Alex knocked on the door, that was exactly what he saw: Noah in his desk, hands hovering over the keyboard of Mr. Webber’s computer. “Oh, I’m sorry, I can come back another time.” Alex said, quickly retreating a step away from the door. “Unless, could you give this to Mr. Webber when you have the time? I was just passing by the school to drop a few things off for people.” 

Without really waiting for an invitation, Alex stepped into the room with a smile, not at all suspicious at Noah’s presence there. He was Mr. Webber’s TA, after all, Alex was sure he was just going over assignments or something of the sort. “How are the holidays treating you?”

       The sudden voice from the half open door made Noah startle so badly he nearly knocked off one of the family photos that sat at the corner of Webber’s desk. Fumbling, Noah caught it just in time and his gaze shot up to look at Alex. For a moment, his mind had supplied the worst possible scenario and it had been Professor Webber standing there in the doorway. Noah’s heart was hammering in his chest as he stared, slack-jawed and eyes wide, for a few seconds, before he pulled himself together. Alex didn’t seem to be suspicious at all, and even went on making small talk, so the game wasn’t up just yet. Noah placed the framed photo back on the desk where it belonged and straightened up as he tried to calm his racing heartbeat.

       “Of course, come on in. I was just… uh, finishing up some stuff here. Professor Webber’s gone home, but I’ll make sure his present makes it to him. I’m sure he’ll really appreciate it, Alex.” The pleasant, welcoming smile he was going for felt tight and awkward on his face, though it didn’t seem to be bothering Alex much. It was probably the luckiest break Noah could get, having him show up instead of anyone else. Noah was a pretty terrible liar, but Alex was even worse at suspecting anything but the best from people.

       “Oh, you know. It’s been stressful, what with everything going on. First time I won’t be with my family for the holidays in, well, practically ever. But they’re all the way in Florida now, and I don’t want to drag any trouble down there with me.” As Alex came closer, Noah tried to subtly turn the computer screen away from his view. There was still a chat box up informing him that the password he’d used was incorrect. “What about you? Busy spreading good will and holiday cheer?” Noah nodded towards the present in his hand, his smile slipping into something more genuine.

[noahfensebut-blog]

deliacruz:

[@noahfensebut]

Delia had an hour long lunch period, the longest she’d had in forever, and she had all but sprinted out the door when the chance presented itself. Her father had requested that she come in early, because ‘there is just so much yet to be done, Delia’. She had to disagree, because every proposal that’d crossed her desk so far today lacked any form of logic.

There were a lot of them, she had to admit. All she really had to do was approve what she felt warranted approval, then pass it onto Greg who’d pass it onto Terry, who’d pass it onto Rebecca, who’d pass it onto Marcus, who’d pass it onto her father. Her presence in the chain was wholly unnecessary, but that wasn’t surprising. Her job, after all, had been created almost exclusively due to nepotism.

But, eh. She’d take it.

Delia hadn’t had the time for coffee earlier, so her she was, in line and beyond eager to get her fix. She wasn’t sure how she’d even made it this far into the day. The line wasn’t as long as normal, and she was so, so close. She scanned the shop around her, something to pass the time, when her eyes landed on him. Her heart dropped, and she looked down at her feet as quickly as she could. She did not need this right now. She needed coffee.

       It had only been fifteen minutes since Noah had gotten comfortable at a table by the window, his laptop opened in front of him as he stared at the word document, typing, erasing, and then re-typing his transfer request to Professor Webber. The rest of the faculty in the history department knew he did good work, he wouldn’t have any trouble finding another professor to work under. But everything about it felt so off. Transferring would just be a way to escape what he’d seen and Noah had never been very good at running away. With a sigh, he took a sip from his cup of quickly cooling coffee and looked up.

       That’s when he saw Delia, intensely studying her shoes while in line. He couldn’t help the smirk that played across his face. A distraction is just what he needed, and from the looks of it, just what Delia was fearing. He didn’t make it a habit to kick people when they were down, but that only applied to people that Noah knew couldn’t take it. He stood up from his table, making his way over to where she stood in line and ducking his head to get a good look at her face.

       “Oh, Del, it is you,” he said, a bright smile spread across his face. She was wearing her usual worker-bee outfit, which meant this was probably her lunch break. It was almost enough for Noah to feel sorry for her. “You’re working today, huh? Guess your dad didn’t get the memo that it was a national holiday.”

[noahfensebut-blog]

@alex-cassidy 

       As Noah walked quietly down the hall, the lights overhead flickered on. There was practically no one in the building now. Everyone had gone home for the holidays and the few people that remained were over-tired graduate students and over-worked professors. None of them had met Noah’s eye as he took the stairs up to the third floor and made his way towards Professor Webber’s office.

       He wasn’t used to this. The sneaking around. The snooping. It wasn’t the way he liked to do things and so, when he slipped the key he’d stolen into Professor Webber’s door and silently slipped into the office, he couldn’t help but feel guilty. Noah knew he shouldn’t. What he was doing was the right thing. He had to know the roster for Webber’s classes next semester beforehand so he could see if she was there. If her name was on the list. Noah moved towards the desk, turning on the computer but leaving the rest of the room dark.

       The screen lit up and then prompted him for a password. Noah paused, his hands hovering over the keyboard. “Damnit,” he muttered to himself, before typing in Webber’s birthday. A dialogue box popped up. Wrong. He tried his wife’s birthday. Wrong. Noah sat back in Webber’s chair and glared at the screen. He was going to be here all night if it continued on like this.

[noahfensebut-blog]

schuylermckenna:

To Schuyler, there was nothing more nauseating than the Christmas rush. This was the first time he’d been a postman, in his many, many careers, but he’s worked in lots of places — diners, retail, head shops, strip clubs — and for some reason, business picked up around Christmas. Find him. Sky himself hadn’t celebrated the holiday in about seven years, since he left home. It’s not that the holiday was ruined, specifically. There was just never a point. He hated the consumerism, he hated the crowds, he was always too broke for Christmas dinner, and there was never anyone to celebrate it with. He tried once, two years after he got kicked out, but tinsel decorating a broke-down van in some unnameable town in Missouri didn’t exactly scream Christmas. After that, he quit.

He hated Christmas, and he hated the rush, so he was normally intolerable during this season. Noah, however — Sky bore the no ill will towards him. The opposite of ill will, even. So he would grin and bear it, and be thankful from the respite of hand-wringing eighty-year-olds. “Lunch break? What lunch break? ‘Tis the season, Noah, for,” he lowered his voice, soft and conspiratorial, “bourgeoisie abuse of the working class.” This, at least, elicited a chuckle, sardonic and dry. “Believe you me, I’m not happy about it. If it were up to me, we would do snowflakes and be done with it — but Agnes on the decorating committee decided that she would throw a shit-fit if we decided to play a part in the ‘War on Christmas’.”

       Seattle had never been a place that rang with holiday spirit. Even now, the rain fell on to the cold, slick winter streets and couldn’t even find the decency to be snow. What the city was left with was a gray slush that froze overnight and melted come midday. For the years that Noah had lived there, which spanned nearly his entire life, it had never been the cheeriest atmosphere. Maybe that was part of the reason why his parents had moved down to Florida as soon as all of their children had places of their own. Or maybe Seattle just wasn’t a challenge anymore and all four of them wanted to start fighting alligators together.

       And yet, every year up until now, Noah had been able to spend the holidays with his family. That had never changed, except now this whole Clair business was circulating, and people were being killed. His mothers had practically demanded that he come stay with them for a while, but Noah couldn’t take all the trouble surrounding him and drag it to their doorstep. So, Seattle it was. At least he could stick around to see some familiar faces, even if one of those faces was currently doing his very best impression of the Grinch. “Give her a break, Sky. Her name is Agnes don’t you think she’s suffered enough?” He leaned with his elbows on the counter, poking at his various boxes in a fit of boredom. “What about you? Have you got any exciting plans for the holidays?”

[noahfensebut-blog]

@schuylermckenna

       A rush of warm air hit Noah squarely in the face as he pulled the door to the post office open. There was a heater situated on a counter by the entrance, chugging out heat to dispel the chill that lingered outside. Noah slowly inched his way inside the building, carefully balancing a small tower of packages in his arms. It was always just a little emotionally devastating when Noah couldn’t make it home for the holidays, but it was even more devastating to his wallet. His sister and brother both expected for him to make up for his lack of presence at Christmas dinner with twice the number of gifts.

       Once he was done filling out the right forms and attaching the right number of stamps to his packages, Noah slid up to the booth where Sky was waiting. He offered him a smile as he set down the numerous boxes and envelopes. “I hope you weren’t getting ready to take your lunch break,” he offered, his eyes flickering around the room to take in the tinsel and garland and tiny toy elves that perched in the windows. Noah turned back to look at Sky with a lopsided grin. “Couldn’t find any Hanukkah decorations, huh?”

[zacharysummers-blog1]

you've got bail // noah & zach

[noahfensebut-blog]

zacharysummers:

To: [email protected] From: [email protected] Subject: i am actually the worst

bro i’m so sorry i missed the last couple of lectures ))): things have been kinda stressful man like with all the tension in seattle and stuff :/// i’m super sorry

i swear i really liked your class and you were like the coolest TA ever this was totally not a reflection on you in like any way dude

zach

ps: did i like pass the final y/n i feel like i did but u can never rly ….. be sure …… pps: i hope you’re having a good holiday season and stuff!!!

To: [email protected] From: [email protected] Subject: Re: i am actually the worst

Zachary

I understand that recent events have taken their toll on some students throughout the semester. Because of how things have escalated, I also understand that some students found it harder to make it to class. However, obligations are obligations and because you didn’t choose to email either myself or Professor Webber beforehand, the absences you’ve accumulated have affected your grade negatively.

As for how you did on your final, since grades will be coming out in a matter of days anyway, I can tell you that you did very well. I especially enjoyed your essay portion analyzing how the Red Stick War correlated to the War of 1812.

Happy Holidays,

Noah Ellison

P.S. If you find yourself having any more trouble making it to campus in time for classes next semester I’ve found a few shuttle services that might interest you. I’ll attach their schedules and contact information to this email.