Marius stretched his arms up and leaned back, not caring that he was exposing his chest for everyone who was left to see. His eyes wandered the room and landed on Courfeyrac’s curly hair. he made his way over and flopped next to him on the couch, pressing his forehead into Courfeyracs hair.
Marius knocked quietly on Courfs door. He adjusted his backpack and rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet waiting for his friend to answer the door. His nerves were built up, just thinking about the question he was going to propose to Cosette later. Marius was horrible at asking people things but luckily, that’s what Courf was there for.
He realized belatedly that he should have texted Courf before heading over, just in case he wasn’t actually in his room. Marius fiddled with his phone and opened snapchat. He quickly sent off a quick selfie with the caption “outside ur room” to Courf and waited for some form of response. A few more seconds passed and Marius turned to leave just as the door flew open.
Notes: While Artie’s studying to his finals, Tina, who is finaly on her summer vacation, passes her time on New York before goes to Lima with him and start make a conversation.
Warnings: (Mentions of past rape)
Artie and Tina is preparing to go back to Lima. But first, Artie need to finish his finals essays to enjoy the summer vacation. Tina is already done and she decided to stay in New York to go with Artie at Lima. When Artie's finishes his essay, Tina's looking at her computer. She starts to glance her boyfriend before he ends the article.
Artie: Well, is done! Finally. I took two hours to do this! Why do you look at me like that? You're too serious...
Tina: Nothing. *smiles and scoots near him* you know what, sometimes, I wonder what I have done to deserve a guy like you. Like, even though I really do have fucked up a lot of things in the past, here I am, sitting next to the biggest blessing that I have ever received in my life.
Artie: You made me blushing, thank you. Well, I don't know. Sometimes it's hard to explain the reason of love. Sometimes I don't know either how my heart still waiting for you. Because I never thought that you're come back to me. But why do you start to think about that? That's something specific do you want to tell me?
Tina: *sighs and pauses* ...Is it bad that I still haven't forgave myself? For...for hurting you??
Tina: *shrugs* I dunno why...but I still blame myself for that. *looks at him* But...you've already forgiven me, right?
Artie: Tina, nobody blame themselves for something and doesn't know why is still blame themselves. It's something that annoys you that you don't tell me. Also, if wasn't forgiven you I'll never come back to you.
Tina: *smiles faintly* Thank you, my love. *intertwines her fingers with his* Don't worry, I'm already working on that. Sorry if I never really opened up about that before, I promise it won't happen again. *smiles* Artie, can I ask you something?
Artie: Anytime, my dear. *smiling* sure, okay... what do you wanna know?
Tina: What was the worst thing that your ex has done to you? I mean, aside from me, duh. *giggles*
Artie: Well, that's a good question. Maybe, tell me that lesbian make out it's not cheating that Brittany did. I got hurt a lot as she did with my angry words, but this is my second worst thing I guess.
Artie: Well, Sugar,it's okay with, honestly I still don't know her past feelings about me. Probably we don't develop some strong feelings between us. About Kitty was more complicated. She really truly loved me after you. Even more than me. So, hurting her with the end of our relationship wasn't easy to me. Even more to her. I talked to her for being friends again and she refused for the first time. But, then she gets over me and we start to being friends again. Now, she's dating Ryder.
Tina: But how about Jess? Do you still talk to her until now?
Artie: Well, it's hard. Jess and I broke up for jealousy and she will move her scholarship to Los Angeles. I know that she lives great. She still talking to me as a friend but we did a good choice to break up before she goes to there. It wasn't worked out anyway, so.
Tina: ....Jealousy?
Artie: Yeah, because she will move to Los Angeles and after that she's starting being paranoid with me. Because she knows that I’ve came from a distant relationship and we fought a lot.
Tina: Paul was like that to me also. He would always become so jealous and over possessive of me that's why we always fought a lot also. But did Jess become jealous because of me? I mean, she knew that we've been best friends for a long time, right?
Artie: Not about you, because I told to her that you don’t love me anymore. I told her that you were my first girlfriend but I was a long time ago so, she never looked at you as a thread. She was more with Kitty. But Jess never /beat/ me, you know?
Tina: Well that's a good thing that she never saw me as a threat. *laughs* But...Paul always considered you and Mike as a threat to him. Like even when I told him that there's nothing to be jealous about, he would always argue with me...and I would end up beaten as hell after... *sighs* He's the worst. I wish I never knew him...
Artie: Hey... This is new. You lied to me. I asked you when you was dating him if he was okay with me and you said that he only had a problem with Mike...
Tina: I'm sorry, Artie. I just did that so you won't worry that much. *sighs* I'm so sorry...
Artie: But why he could think about me as a threat? I mean, Mike, I understand cause you was dating him for more two years and he was his last boyfriend. But why me? even you are my best friend, we start to talking less because we live on different cities.
Tina: ...Because he saw how happy I am whenever I'm talking to you.
Artie: But you usually talked to me on the same tone that you usually talk with Mercedes, Kurt and Blaine, how he could be feel jeaulous?
Tina: ...I don't know. He's THAT possessive, Artie. *sighs*
Artie: Hmmm *sighs* Can I aky you something, Tina?
Tina: Sure, love. *smiles*
Artie: When do you really realize that do you still love me? I mean, on details? What did happen for make you think about me again like you're thinking about me right now?
Tina: Erm, do you still remember the night when you slept at my hotel when I visited here to interview Rachel?
Artie: Yeah... I remember. We watched 9 songs. I passed all the movie laughing cause you watched all movie talking: "It's a porn stuff" *smiles* I slept before the movie ends so I don't know the end of this story.
Tina: Yeah, you slept early, grandpa. *laughs* I'm just kidding, love. *smiles and kisses his cheeks* Well, I couldn't help not to stare at you while you were sleeping and then I suddenly had a flashback of us, dreaming of living here in NYC together one day. And then I suddenly remembered when we all went here for Nationals the first time, Mike told me that he was planning to settle here with me. But I swear, when he told me that, I really couldn't picture me settling down here in NYC with him because I...I never really saw myself settling down with him. All I could picture was...you.
Artie: *smirk* you're such a stalker with guy sleeping, aren't you? I'm kidding *giggles* but you told me that you had sex with Mike and thinking about me. I mean, what do you think later after this happened?
Tina: ...That was when we did it the first time. I dont know, but you were on my mind when we...you know, because to be honest, I was willing to give it to you when we were dating before but things got in the way, I guess. *pauses* And also the night when I got raped. I was hoping for you to come and save me, but that was the time when we weren't talking to each other... *sighs*
Artie: I'm sorry for I'm not here to save you. *sighs*. So, did you never thought to come back to me on high school, even when was you single?
Artie: I'm sorry for I'm not here to save you. *sighs*. So, did you never thought to come back to me on high school, even when was you single?
Tina: It's okay, love. *holds his hand* To be honest, yes. I thought I had a chance with you during senior year...but you were already with Kitty.
Artie: Hmmm but only when you are single. You never thought... break up with Mike and stay with me?
Tina: You know my mom, Artie.
Artie: But your mom never control your thoughts. She controlled your actions but never your thoughts.
Tina: ...I already fell in love with Mike at that time, and my parents loved him that’s why I didnt left him. *sighs* …sorry…
Artie: Don't be. I also loved Brittany and Kitty. So, if you felt in love with him, why did you think about me in your first time? Why did you picture to go to New York with me if it was Mike your boyfriend in that time?
Tina: I was willing to give my virginity to you, Artie. But a lot of things happened, and when I gave it to Mike, I was thinking what if I couldve gave it to you and not with him at that moment. And with the New York thing, I really dont have an answer for that. It just...happened. I guess it's because I never really stopped loving you after all these years...
Artie: *shyly smiling* Thank you for asking. That's the answer that I've waited for. I passed through these years believing that you stopped to love me, Tina. So, I've tried to live well without you but something inside makes me believe that you could come back to me. But the reality shows me things that make me hard to believe. That's why I make these questions to you. For make sure. Not because I didn't believe on you, but I need to erase this thoughts that I've created in my past. I passed so long as "Artie: the crippled worst boyfriend" that It's hard to believe that I could be good for you.
Tina: Look, I know also wasn’t a great girlfriend to you in the past either, that’s why I couldn't help not to be paranoid now. I’m so afraid that maybe if I'd say something that would hurt you, you would leave me. But hearing all those words from you, Love, makes all my anxiety go away. I promise that I won’t be too paranoid anymore. *pauses* Hey, since we're going back to Lima, let's have a picnic at the park! You know, some you and me time while we reminisce. *giggles*
Artie: Picnic at the park? I'm mean, Lima's park?
Tina: *nods* Yeah. There's no other park in Lima aside from that, right?
Artie: Well... Yeah, that could be cool. So we can go. I never go there, so let's go.
Tina: You've never been there, like, EVER??
Artie: Not for a picnic.
Tina: ...but why?
Artie: Well, because... I've never had a opportunity. My family doesn't had this tradition and I'm not quite a child that usually go to a park for my own. But the park is beautiful and I saw some people there, especially couples to doing a picnic on the park.
Tina: ...oh. ...well we can go somewhere else if you want...
Artie: Baby, I didn't tell you that i'm not going to go. We can discuss this later. *yawns* baby, it's almost midnight and I need to sleep. *peck her lips* goodnight, love.
Tina: Oh, okay, love. *pecks his lips back* Good night, love. Sweet dreams. Here, let me help you fall asleep. Cmon, lie down here. *pats her lap*
Artie: *smiles* You spoiled me so much... I love ya... *put the heads on her lap* Goodnight. *yawns and start to sleep*
Tina: *giggles* Anything for my Love. You know that I love you more, baby. *kisses his forehead and starts massaging his temples and starts to sing* They said, I bet they'll never make it, but just look at us holding on, we're still together, still going strong, you're still the one I run to, the one that I belong to, you're still the one I want for life...You're still the one that I love, the only one I dream of, you're still the one I kiss goodnight...Looks like we made it, look how far we've come my baby... *gently fixes his position on the bed and kisses his cheeks* Good night, my Love. Sweet dreams. *lies down next to him and sleeps while her arms wrapped around him*
Alistair sat below a tree with his back against the trunk. He looked up towards the sky, luckily there was an overcast today no rays of sunlight were shining through. He wasn't a fan of the sun, never has been even in his human life. Despite the fact that during his human life it would mainly rain or be constantly cloudy. Never the less it was a decent day to be outside, even if there was a couple of feet of snow on the ground. The cold wasn't something that bothered him in this life.
He closed his eyes and drew in a breath of air, the smell of the cold air, trees, surrounding nature in general. The peacefulness didn't last long as he sensed that someone was coming closer. Unsure which direction or how far away they were-- let alone what they are. He stood up then jumped to one of the higher tree branches that were out of view.
Alistair was by himself walking along the edge of a trail. He hadn't run into anyone so far mainly because it was night. The sky was dark, the moon was full and there wasn't a cloud in sight. To one side of the trail was a river and on the other side was an open field. If anything happened a safe bet would be to jump across the river or up into one of the trees.
A few minutes later he sensed that he was being followed, whatever it was was obviously on the move and it made it difficult to pin point how far away it actually was. Not knowing what it was he turned around quickly and stopped in his tracks. He waited silently for whatever it was to show itself.
Music. Ah, Ethan loved music. His tastes varied, wildly, but they all carried in them the sheer power that attracted him to music in the first place. He had been delighted to hear,then, that Camden had a music shop with an extensive collection, and had resolved to visit as soon as possible.
The time had come and he now stood in the aisles browsing with delight as he looked at the variety. Foo Fighters, Bon Jovi, the Beatles (he wasn’t old fashioned, but he remembered seeing a live show of theirs, once, and loving it), Linkin Park (he loved their early albums with a passion), Three Days Grace (ditto), Eminem (who said he was only for the young generation?), Iron Maiden (he held a special respect for them; relics of a previous generation, who surfed the wave of progress and came out better than ever), Metallica (he used to like them,but after Master of Puppets, it was all downhill)…. He had been madly in love with them all at one point or another. He still held appreciation for them, but he had moved on, quicker than the cold breeze. He still searched for classical CDs, though he had given up on finding them in the average store. Just as the power of modern music attracted him, Western classical music had an elegance and beauty that he was in awe of.
He had a system for choosing his music; he purchased two CDs, one of his current favourite, which was in this case Dark Tranquillity, and one other, completely random, that he had never heard before. Sometimes he spun around and picked a CD at random, sometimes he juggled a pile of them and bought the last one left in his hand, and sometimes he asked the manager to show him music that no one else ever liked. When he took them home, if he liked the unfamiliar artist, they became his new favourite. He couldn’t count the number of people who had criticised him for his ephemeral taste, but he didn’t care. Loyalty to taste was constricting. If he wanted to experience every sort of music in the world, was that so bad?
He also liked to chat with other customers about their music tastes. He had learnt that sometimes it was unwelcome, but often, they were friendly.
"Hey," he said, approaching a figure bent over the music racks, browsing quickly. "Whatcha looking at?"
Ethan had agreed to meet Roxy by noon. They were meeting at Camden’s cafe. After a raging debate as to the merits of coffee at different temperatures, they had decided to settle it by actually drinking it. Roxy would try cold coffee, and he would try hot coffee. He was firmly on his guard, ready to defend the honour of his beloved cold coffee from all who would impugn it.
He sat at a table outside, under a bright pink parasol, and tried desperately to ignore its colour. He looked away, he closed his eyes, he closed his eyes and looked away, but nothing worked. Eventually, disgusted, he stood up, ready to sit inside the cafe. He looked at a clock on the wall. It was 11:55.
He went inside, pulling up a chair and sitting down. A pretty young waitress approached him, opening her mouth to ask him what he wanted, but he cut her off with an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, I’m just waiting for a friend,” he said, grinning. “Could you come back in five minutes, please?”
She grinned back at him. She probably wasn’t used to customers being very nice. He had met plenty of barmaids who suffered at the hands of wealthy, spoiled, arrogant and drunk customers, and though this wasn’t a bar, people were the same everywhere. He had once waited tables while he was alive, in misguided attempts to stay on the straight and narrow. It had been a hard first lesson in human nature.
He was jolted from his reverie by the tinkling of the bells on the door, as it swung open to admit someone. The ‘someone’ in question was a gorgeous blonde who turned the heads of every man in the room, and some of the women, too. She walked confidently, like she knew full well the effect she had on people. She noticed him and made a beeline for his table. Ethan felt the glances following, and nearly flinched at the death glares sent his way. Then he smiled, basking in it. “Hello, Roxy,” he said, smiling lightly. “Ready?”