hustler for death, no heaven for a gangsta

Midday - Early Evening Day 6; Private Until People Show Up, Then I'll Open It Up

The woods themselves are still lush and green, with copious amounts of vegetation. Due to all the foot travel over the years, paths are still present even as the ferns start to grow. Despite this, it is still easy to get lost if one was to venture off the path as the woods are quite densely packed.

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Buko
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hustler for death, no heaven for a gangsta

#1

Post by Buko »

The late night had turned to early morning and then to midday with the requisite sluggishness and Ace’s own journey mirrored the sun’s around the earth. He was slow, he was dehydrated and most of all his head still pounded. He had choked down some of the ibuprofen in his first aid kit, a lot of it and he had drank most of the water Meilin had left him—a fucked up but useful inheritance as any.

He knew in the back of his mind that the seventh day and sixth announcements would bring more truths—no doubt Jackson’s name amongst them, but also the identity of Jackson’s killer and thusly his own attacker. He felt concerned about that. What was the rule there? Was he bound to hunt the scared kid down in bloody vengeance, just, y’know—because?

Because?

Because Jackson died for you asshole.

Because homie took out more than a few brain cells when he thwacked you with that fuckin tire-iron.

Don’t you get it? You’re here for a real reason—cuz he got hit like you got hit but he ain’t fuckin’ breathin’!


Rap line for everything.

The laws he used to hold true thrown in his face once again. By none other than his truly.

[ Ace Beats Continued From: They Didn’t Make It ]

He had been lucky, in a sense, for those two a days spent in football running in the hot sun. He had been blessed, in a sense, for his own natural ability and honed athletic skill. He was a lean, mean machine and although he had been hit hard by Justin—he bounced back.

The swelling under his eyes and that bumping headache aside.

He thought of Brockman and #Swiftball because when your glory days are limited, you always go back to the same stories. Maybe swallowing the ibuprofen wasn’t enough, maybe snorting it was the way to go. Would at least save him on water.

All this self deprecation and self guilt…you don’t need a sense of responsibility, what you need is a sense of fuckin’ direction.

That had been Ivy’s job, he couldn’t read a map for shit and so while he had tried to stay low and stick to the roads , somehow he had ended up on the other side of the island according to the map. On top of the concussion, he couldn’t tell you how long it took for him to get there or how he had gotten there. He had ended up in the woods all the same. He tried his best to pay attention to the announcement, but he had kinda faded out after hearing Meilin’s name again. He remembered hearing Bret’s name over the intercom, it was familiar, but he knew it wasn’t for an interception.

He kinda felt bad for wanting it to be the opposite of what was the real reason Bret's name was called. He felt selfish for wanting his friend to be among the killers and not the killed. Death was so permanent--but how many had been killed at this point? Close to half, right? Was it inconceivable that Bret be among them? He could picture the more serious Carter twin now, stoic as ever, shaking his head telling Ace that he wasn't that special. Ace wouldn't have believed him even if he had really heard him.

Even poor little Nathan Coleman, by Connor’s girlfriend no less. It was fucked up. But what else was new? Not like Nathan had a shot anyway. Not like she had one either.

Anyway, maybe that's why he was lost and he couldn't tell you how he ended up in the woods from the infirmary. He had ran a lot and cried more. He had thought about what had happened to Meilin and Jackson a lot.

He couldn’t think about that shit no more, all he could think about was getting the fuck out the woods before dark. That was the smart thing. He had to do the smart thing. He never did the smart thing.

The brim of his cap kept him safe from the waning sun. The freshly fully loaded BR-18 supposedly kept him safe from the world at large. He had stolen that as well, just as much as Jackson had stolen the bullets intended for him. Ace was just a better thief. Was that something to be proud of?

A good thief could prolly read a map.

He couldn’t read a map, but he could still see far ahead, a clearing in the distance. He made his way out of the brush towards it before fumbling with the map again, his gun pointing towards the ground.

He muttered and cursed to himself and thanks to the migraine headache courtesy of TireIronPM and lack of sleep, he didn’t give a fuck who heard it.
"My man got too familiar and I’d ended up having to whoop his ass, man, you know. Because he would step across the line. Habitually. He’s a habitual line stepper.” -Charlie Murphy
[+] Ace of Hearts
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V8 Relationship Thread

Slidin'
Lookin' for the opps, they been hidin'
I grew up 'round drugs, sex, and violence
We turnt off they street, we heard sirens
Since a juvenile, I been wylin'
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Ruggahissy
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#2

Post by Ruggahissy »

"Be cool."

((Tirzah Foss continued from The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived ))

Tirzah emerged from the brush holding her gun, both hands on the weapon, arms outstretched but not locked, with a slight bend in the elbows.

She was wearing the cultist's robe, made off-white to a stale yellow with time. Her blonde hair was slicked back, wet and somewhat pinkish. She had done her best to make herself not look like the complete nightmare she was before when she'd been covered in blood. All she'd had available was sea water though. Her damp clothes were drying in her bag. Speaking of that bag, it bulged a little. It was stuffed with both her supplies, Wyatt's and whatever the hadn't used from Ron and Toby.

She heard him muttering out in the woods and kept closer to see who was there. Tirzah had gotten the drop but she eyed the gun Ace had.

"You be the good boy I know you are and we'll be peachy fuckin' keen."
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Mimi
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#3

Post by Mimi »

Seven days ago, sharing a room with Lori Martin was the end of the world. Listening to the other girl toss and turn and snore and sputter loud enough to wake even the sleeping dead like Madison was a living hell.

Seven days ago, watching Wyatt Carter down four bowls of cereal in just as many minutes at the continental breakfast was the most repulsive thing she'd ever seen, enough to turn her stomach and take her own appetite.

Seven days ago, all it took for Connor Lorenzen to find himself in the doghouse was to be right about her outfit, to be correct in assuming she'd find her dress to short and catch a chill, to offer her his own warmth so she wouldn't have to dig through the luggage for her own jacket. And his clarity was his downfall, because even if he was right and even if she appreciated his sacrifice, she couldn't possibly look weak by admitting it.

A week wasn't that long in the grand scheme of things.

168 hours out of 8760.

7 days out of 365.

1 out of 52 weeks.

But it felt like an eternity.

Seven days ago, she couldn't imagine herself fighting Kelly Nguyen. Couldn't imagine watching Mercy Ames die alone in a corner. Couldn't imagine dragging Nathan Coleman through the jungle for days on end just to kill him at the end of it. Couldn't imagine hearing a man on a loud-speaker call her a murderer.

It felt unreal for awhile, like she'd eventually wake up to Lori screaming.

But the bruise on her forehead and her nails that were bent backwards from digging and the foreign blood that stained her clothes all argued otherwise.

And seven days ago, Ace Ortega was peripheral. Someone who was around, one of Connor's teammates, but not someone she ever gave a second thought. He wasn't loud enough, not boisterous enough or offensive enough for her to form any strong opinion. Maybe she figured he already felt a certain type of way about her and didn't feel particularly strong about proving herself otherwise, if she even could.

But seven days on, Madison found herself trailing behind him. Not because she wanted anything from him, not his weapon or his supplies or even just to talk, but merely because he was the first living person she'd seen since Nathan. The company was enough, even if he didn't know she was there and even if she never got close enough to hear just his labored breathing.

She wouldn't even know what to say to him.

So she just followed him, from the razed road into the woodland for what felt like hours, stopping only when he did, resting only when he rested, drinking only when he drank, traversing the same brush he did.

Until she couldn't anymore.

Until Tirzah Foss crawled from the bushes with her gun drawn. Tirzah Foss, whose name had been on the announcements just as hers had been.

And Madison could have run, but she didn't.

And she could have intervened with her own gun, but she didn't.

And her heart wasn't racing and her palms weren't sweating, because it was hard to imagine this as abnormal now and because if this was the end maybe she was ready for it.

And all she did was sink further behind the trees that had been hiding her thus far and watched.
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Buko
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#4

Post by Buko »

He heard her before he saw her.

And when he saw her he couldn't take his eyes off her.

He had been thinking about this moment for days. He had thought about finding her and confronting her for so long that he had forgotten--or maybe that was another symptom of Tire-Iron therapy?

But there she was.

So what did he do?

“I'm cool.”

Cool people never said shit like that.

Tirzah Foss. His friend from school. Not too long ago they had been together side by side at Prom—her with Toby and him with Meilin (well, her with Meilin first, but whatever!). Tirzah had gone killer day one into this whole shindig. Tirzah had killed his track teammate and her prom date. RIP the homie Toby. She walked out with the gun pointed at him and ready to go. She had gotten the drop on him--and she was both strapped and lookin creepy as fuck due to an old ass cultist robe. When it rained it poured (one of the few lessons of the last few days that had stuck).

So there she was--a killer with a gun who had it pointed right at him.

He should’ve been scared.

Instead he thought about a conversation he had a few days ago—about Tirzah. It had only been days, it felt like months. The time before it felt longer and farther away. Still, he could picture Ivy saying those words and him responding with extreme ease.
Ivy wrote: "How did you know her? Besides that time at the country club.

Not that anyone really knew her, I suppose."
Ace wrote: “I dunno...A lotta times I feel folks don’t really know me either.”


He should’ve been scared.

He wasn't.

He knew who he was dealing with.

Did she?

“You gonna kill me T?"
"My man got too familiar and I’d ended up having to whoop his ass, man, you know. Because he would step across the line. Habitually. He’s a habitual line stepper.” -Charlie Murphy
[+] Ace of Hearts
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V8 Relationship Thread

Slidin'
Lookin' for the opps, they been hidin'
I grew up 'round drugs, sex, and violence
We turnt off they street, we heard sirens
Since a juvenile, I been wylin'
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Ruggahissy
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#5

Post by Ruggahissy »

"I wouldn't do that, Ace of hearts," she said, voice smooth and slightly deeper than usual. "I can't. I just killed someone and if I show up twice on the announcement tomorrow, people are gonna notice and I'm gonna to shoot a few ranks higher on the to-kill list with Quinn and Erika."

She looked him over and saw a gun. Tirzah looked at him with a half smile that said, "Oh, you."

"And because you're so darn cute."

She lowered the gun, but didn't put it away, and walked close. When she was near enough, she pinched his cheek fondly.

"But I do want to talk."
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Buko
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#6

Post by Buko »

He blinked and found his eyebrow raised quizzically as she pinched his cheek after calling him cute.

So much had changed. Tirzah had somehow, someway, in spite of two (apparently three) murders to her name remained the same.

Teflon Tirzah. What had he expected?

She was too familiar with him (with everybody really). Overtly teasing and maybe borderline flirtatious. Tirzah liked seeing people uncomfortable, she was a habitual line stepper—a chaos demon. She had always been nice to Ace though. She had helped him ask out Meilin, pushed him to do so without even really trying. He liked Tirzah and he figured she liked him a bit as well. Their friendship wasn't complicated. That was more than a lot of people could say about a lot of relationships at George Hunter.

They were friends and there was a profound simplicity in just being friends with someone.

She pinched his cheek and outta reflex he playfully shoved her shoulder—not rough or strong, but like brother playing with sister.

She wasn't his sister though. He was an only child. He didn’t know if Tirzah was--never heard her talk about any siblings. She wouldn't talk about that stuff though, not with Ace. Their relationship wasn't like that. Their friendship was simple and fun and it mostly centered around her trying to get Ace to blush and squirm in what she deemed amusing situations. How much did he really know her? Really?

She was his friend.

And she was a multiple-time murderer. Who had murdered his other friend—the guy who she had taken to prom. His teammate. Toby. He had thought about confronting her or what he would do if he saw her for so long. He had taken Angie’s gun for the purpose of using it against people like Tirzah, Blaise and Quinn.

But he didn’t know Blaise and Quinn, not really.

He knew Tirzah.

“Yeah,” he said to her nodding and then placed the map in his pocket, he didn't raise his gun, kept it lowered and pointed to the ground, “I s’pose I been wantin' to talk to you too.”

He wanted to let that rest, have the moment be real dramatic and weighty…but he couldn’t stop himself even when it was a good idea and doubly so when it was a bad one.

“What the fuck you doin' T?”
"My man got too familiar and I’d ended up having to whoop his ass, man, you know. Because he would step across the line. Habitually. He’s a habitual line stepper.” -Charlie Murphy
[+] Ace of Hearts
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V8 Relationship Thread

Slidin'
Lookin' for the opps, they been hidin'
I grew up 'round drugs, sex, and violence
We turnt off they street, we heard sirens
Since a juvenile, I been wylin'
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Ruggahissy
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Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 4:13 pm

#7

Post by Ruggahissy »

Tirzah was pushed and Tirzah shoved back. Her smile faded considerably when he asked her what she was doing.

"I'm just doing my best," she responded. Tirzah side-stepped, quickly moving so that she was now by Ace's left side instead of standing in front of him. Her pink lips and pink-ish toned hair stood out against her pale skin.

"I didn't kill anyone because I wanted to. Ron was attacking Wyatt. Marco had a fight with Wyatt and they both got super fucked up. I tried to carrying him with me for awhile. It became too hard," she said, voice becoming strained with the last sentence. "I asked him before I did it if there's anyone who he thought might come for me once people know I killed him and, he said you might be one," she said seriously. Tirzah then grinned again and bumped Ace with her hip.

"So?"
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Buko
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#8

Post by Buko »

She was just doing her best?

Yeah. Right. Okay.

That was a very Tirzah response.

And Wyatt was dead? Fight with Marco? Mercy kill. That was…a lot. He had just seen Wyatt a few days ago. He had been butt ass naked with Ivy and Wyatt had walked in on them. They had wrestled a bit. It had been a moment of brevity in a sea of despair and he had been selfish for taking it. He was selfish for looking at it fondly. Wyatt was gone. He didn't even question it, he just accepted it.

That was just the way things was.

Tirzah had killed Wyatt. And Ron. And Toby.

“So,” he began, “He prolly wasn’t wrong to think that…I been thinkin’ ‘bout you and what I’d do when I see you. Been thinkin' 'bout it for a long time.”

He paused. She had killed Wyatt, just like she had killed Toby. Another friend. He didn’t even feel sad or confused. Wyatt was gone. So was Ramsey. So was Mei. So was Dante. So was Toby.

That’s what friend’s did, they died.

“Turns out I don’t got the stomach to do much of anythin’.”

Wyatt was dead.

He was with Bret. That was a small form of solace. They hadn’t been without each other for long.

“So what Toby do to you then?"

He hip bumped her back.
"My man got too familiar and I’d ended up having to whoop his ass, man, you know. Because he would step across the line. Habitually. He’s a habitual line stepper.” -Charlie Murphy
[+] Ace of Hearts
Image
V8 Relationship Thread

Slidin'
Lookin' for the opps, they been hidin'
I grew up 'round drugs, sex, and violence
We turnt off they street, we heard sirens
Since a juvenile, I been wylin'
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Ruggahissy
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Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 4:13 pm

#9

Post by Ruggahissy »

"Asked for it."

Tirzah looked down at her bloodied shoes when she said it, grinding her right foot into the dirt a few times. She sniffled and passed the long sleeve of her beige robe across her face haphazardly.

"Thanks for thinking about me. I think about me a lot too. Sometimes you. 'Cause you're a nice kid and cause people kept mentioning you and that you were too good for your own good."

She sniffed a few more times and with her free hand -- her left hand -- carelessly traced lines on Ace's hand.

"I just wanna finish this, go home, and drink and smoke until I don't remember this bullshit. You know, the dream."
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Buko
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#10

Post by Buko »

“Yeah,” he said with a level of unease, looking down on his own feet, mirroring her actions in many ways, “Me too.”

He thought of a Pusha T song: S.N.I.T.C.H. Rap lyric for everything. Tirzah might as well have just screamed the hook at him. It probably would’ve been better and hit less hard if she had. He would’ve given her a pass, considering the situation.

“Least you got a plan, I guess,” his fingers played with hers, awkwardly and innocently—like two seventh graders at a school dance, “Doin’ better than me,” he felt the cold metal of the BR-18 in one hand, the warmth of of Tirzah’s palm in the other, “Bein’ nice and good hasn’t been doin’ me too much good. I prolly ain't much of either dependin' on who you askin'.”

He shook his head. He was a babbler, he required little prompting. Tirzah had given him a literal hand, he was quite capable of taking her whole arm.

“Saw Wyatt like two, three days ago? Pretty sure Ron had already been killed, so you was with him, maybe? You weren’t when I saw him. Less you were like, hidden or something…I hope you weren’t.”

He smiled, in spite himself…

“Well, I guess I’m glad you wasn’t with him then—considerin’ that situation and like, I guess this situation…”

She had killed Wyatt, he reminded himself. She had killed Toby. She had convenient and construed reasons for both. Ace didn’t care. The reasons didn’t matter. Toby and Wyatt were his friends. Had been his friends. His teammates. Wyatt, especially was a constant partner. They practiced against one another every day, iron sharpening iron. They talked trash and wounded one another but also lifted each other up through the struggle of competition. His relationship with Wyatt hadn’t been complicated. His relationship with Toby neither.

Nor his relationship with Meilin nor his relationship with Ramsey…

Not his with Tirzah either.

He was a simple guy, so it seemed. So he told himself.

And Tirzah was his friend too, just as much as Wyatt and Toby, in spite of it all.

And friendship was a precious commodity out here.

"It don't really matter much out here, right? We all doin' what we gotta do..."

Yeah, that tire-iron to the dome definitely left you a few brain cells short…

“You always been nice and good to me T,” he finally said, “That don’t count for nothing.”
"My man got too familiar and I’d ended up having to whoop his ass, man, you know. Because he would step across the line. Habitually. He’s a habitual line stepper.” -Charlie Murphy
[+] Ace of Hearts
Image
V8 Relationship Thread

Slidin'
Lookin' for the opps, they been hidin'
I grew up 'round drugs, sex, and violence
We turnt off they street, we heard sirens
Since a juvenile, I been wylin'
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Ruggahissy
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Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 4:13 pm

#11

Post by Ruggahissy »

"Only time we were apart is when he wandered off at night from Bret and I. Had a bad attitude when I asked about it in the morning. So maybe you're not so nice, huh?"

Tirzah grabbed his hand and squeezed as tight as she could, like she was trying to crush it. Then she let go and stood directly in front of him.

"Thanks!" she said in response to the compliment that she'd been an alright friend in the past. "Guess you made me want to be good to you," she said by way of explanation. "So if you've got any of that goodwill for me leftover maybe tell whoever you run into that I didn't shoot you and maybe that i'm cool."
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Buko
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#12

Post by Buko »

"I'll tell 'em you didn't shoot me, sure."

She was right in front of him, so small and yet confident. He still couldn't get over the fact that he was just talking to Tirzah instead of shooting her. He had talked such a big game. It didn't mean anything. There was a pattern there in his time on this island. He had always thought he was strong, tenacious, fast, smart, artistic, all of the above--that thought seemed pretty silly now.

He thought about his anger the first two days of this game, at Tirzah in particular, and in the end--he wondered how productive any of those feelings had been? When Ramsey had died, he had spoken about this grandiose plan and sold it to Meilin and Angie with such confidence. Maybe they had believed him. He wondered if he had believed himself even then? He never could tell in the moment.

If he was really confident or just pretending to be.


He didn't shoot Quinn--she stabbed Meilin.

He didn't shoot that kid in the Infirmary--he beat the shit outta Ace and shot up Jackson with Ace's gun. That Ace had stolen from Angie. Then Ace ran away. A coward.

But wasn't being brave just moving forward--even when you were scared? Fake it till you make it. Life don't come with no instruction manual.

"Stay outta trouble T."

He put his hand on her shoulder and tried his best to say something meaningful, say something that like, would maybe hit deep.

"Y'now how you get."
"My man got too familiar and I’d ended up having to whoop his ass, man, you know. Because he would step across the line. Habitually. He’s a habitual line stepper.” -Charlie Murphy
[+] Ace of Hearts
Image
V8 Relationship Thread

Slidin'
Lookin' for the opps, they been hidin'
I grew up 'round drugs, sex, and violence
We turnt off they street, we heard sirens
Since a juvenile, I been wylin'
User avatar
Ruggahissy
Posts: 1593
Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 4:13 pm

#13

Post by Ruggahissy »

It was a weak first step to spreading some endorsements about her, but it was a first step. Tirzah gave him a kiss on the nose and smiled.

"Best wishes and good luck. Everyone can use those. Everyone needs them."

She walked a few paces backwards before pulling out a bottle of water and tossing it at him.

"Drink it if you think it's not poisoned," she said.

Tirzah turned and walked back into the forest in a direction she hadn't come from, whistling.

((Tirzah Foss continued in Deep Honey Bath ))
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Buko
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#14

Post by Buko »

She had caught him off guard with her entrance...and she caught him off guard with her exit.

He thumbed his nose.

He shook his head.

He looked towards the water bottle and wondered a bit. He thought long and hard.

He was very tired and he was very thirsty.

Poison? It had already happened to him once. There was no prom queen to distract himself with this time 'round. A couple people had died of poison...right? He couldn't remember. His head pounded along with his heart. The BR-18 felt awkward in his single hand. It always did. He never should've taken it. He didn't deserve the responsibility of a gun, not when it came down to it.

Tirzah could, obviously. She had led with a gun--she ended with poison.

She said she couldn't kill him, not now. How long would it take poison to kill him? How long did it take to kill Ramsey?

Was he ready to die? Shout out Biggie Smalls.

He thought, in the quiet of the woods, that the thing people didn't understand about Tirzah was her sense of humor. It was hard to tell when she was joking or not. It wasn't for Ace. With Ace and to Ace--she was always joking.

He opened the bottle with his teeth. He drank the water deep. He felt it dribble down his chin. His stomach rumbled, but felt full with liquid in just the moment.

It felt good. To trust somebody for a small instance. He didn't think he was worthy of that. Tirzah prolly related to that. Birds of a feather. Or maybe he was just projecting. Who knew what Tirzah deserved? Ace couldn't even give her what she asked for.

He thought of the fear in that boy in the infirmary's eyes--poison to a sucker's mind like Ace. He thought of the friendship and kindness Tirzah had shown him--foolish for him to even accept it. He was a fool.

He didn't usually pay attention in school (that came with being a fool). Like, the school parts of school. He liked to fly under the radar and the last thing he wanted to do when he got home was homework. He was smart enough to get by with a little bit of effort. He fancied himself a poet at the end of the day. His English classes held a special place in his heart. He was a foolish fool, but in Shakespeare the fool was the truth sayer.

What truth was out here? Beyond more death and despair.

He thought of Wyatt and the last time he saw him. Joking around. Laughing. They would never do that again.

He thought of Meilin. Who trusted him and stayed with him to the very end. Who sacrificed herself for him even when he didn't deserve it.

Of Ramsey and Angie: one who gave him a friendship and love he didn't earn and the other trusting him solely on the fact that her brother did. How'd he repay her?

He thought of those group of guys huddled over Jackson's dying body. He thought of how they looked like they hated him for running.

He thought of Connor and if the last time was the last time.

There was a lot of death and despair here.

But there was a lot of other stuff too.

He walked for a bit and then he began running until his chest felt tight and his head pounded.

Then he ran some more.

[ Ace Beats Continued In: The Information Paradox ]
"My man got too familiar and I’d ended up having to whoop his ass, man, you know. Because he would step across the line. Habitually. He’s a habitual line stepper.” -Charlie Murphy
[+] Ace of Hearts
Image
V8 Relationship Thread

Slidin'
Lookin' for the opps, they been hidin'
I grew up 'round drugs, sex, and violence
We turnt off they street, we heard sirens
Since a juvenile, I been wylin'
User avatar
Mimi
Posts: 329
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2018 5:56 pm

#15

Post by Mimi »

Long fingers traced familiar shapes into the hardened faced of the tree, dizzying circles and loops that were pulled and caught by broken and dried flesh. The woods kept her from sight, enough so that she could've slinked away back into them if she'd pleased without anyone having been any wiser. But she remained as firmly rooted as the tree before her, maybe from fear, maybe from sick curiosity to finish watching Tirzah and Ace dance around one another. It didn't feel like the interactions she'd had. The words, maybe, from what she could make out, talk of who'd died and who'd killed, but not in action.

They looked like they could've still been back in Chattanooga.

And maybe she just needed to see that.

She could've done a lot of things, could've taken and gun and shot at them, do what she was supposed to and inch her way closer to the end. Could've made herself known, could've been back in Chattanooga, too.

But she waited, and she watched, and she drew the same lines in the tree until Tirzah disappeared one way and Ace the other, before eventually disappearing herself.

** Madison Springer continued in...
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