Our Hearts Stop -- PARCHY

[Sandy]

The girl tapped her fingers against the table before quickly stopping herself to turn a page in her book--Marked by the Moon by Lori Handeland. She was by no means a girly girl, but she did enjoy romance novels. Especially ones with shape-shifters, in this case werewolves. Dark brown hair was draped over her shoulders, blocking her face, mostly, from the rest of the coffee shop.

She had no where to go so early in the day so she had chosen to stop by Starbucks with her book for a coffee. The workers didn't mind her being there. They were used to her presence most mornings--Annaika loved coffee--and sometimes she would even help them clean up at night if she remained late enough. She usually didn't, though, because she would prefer to spend her nights in the forest, or if she had to at home, doing homework.

She was just happy her parents didn't give her much of a curfew.

They knew that she was a Shifter, though they weren't themselves, because Annaika's grandmother had been on, before she'd died. Annaika's only sister didn't understand, because for some reason she wasn't a Shifter, but she wasn't much of an issue. Most days she spent time at their aunts' or with her boyfriend or friends.

Annaika took a long sip of her coffee, it's aromatic scent wreathing around her. It was hot and her taste buds were more sensitive to the heat then a humans but she loved it. Just like she loved the rich smell of Starbucks coffee, much stronger to her senses then it was to a humans.

Bright green eyes left her book temporarily to search around the coffee shop. She wore ear buds with music playing softly, none of that heavy metal crap for her, but she could still hear the conversations going on around her. Most of the words she heard perfectly, while others were blurred. It was another benefit of being a Shifter and if she were to shift her hearing would be ten times better. People were milling around, and talking, and some were studying and reading the newspaper, or else working on a laptop. A lot of college students were there, like Annaika was, and she knew the names of a few of them, though she didn't actually know them personally.

And she wasn't paying attention to her drink, until she splashed some on herself. Annaika hissed, a feline sound, and quickly set down her cup and dabbed at her chin and a few spots of her shirt with a napkin. The coffee barely showed on her dark tank top, for which she was thankful. All it looked like was a darker, wet spot, and it would soon dry and disappear.

words;; 452
song;; not ready to make nice
tagged;; n/a
muse;; great (:

[Parchy]

MOVE YOUR BODY WHEN THE SUNLIGHT DIES
EVERYBODYHIDEYOURBODY
[ F R O M T H E S C A R E C R O W; E V E R Y B O D Y H I D E ]

Jeremy walked into to Starbucks, this air of masculinity around him, though he usually wasn’t very manly. Sometimes he acted like a stereotypical gay guy, and other days he acted very manly and tough. Not because he had a bipolar disease or because he was having trouble deciding who he was. He knew who he was. He was Jeremy, a bisexual human in a confused world.

Jeremy knew more than he should about Shifters and about other things going on in the world. But that wasn’t because he was out to kill them all, but because he wanted to learn. His father and grandfather had both been Shifters. His grandfather was a Human Shifter and his father an Animal Shifter. Jeremy could remember when he was a little boy and he was grandfather would shifter into his form, and it would just make Jeremy so pleased. It was really quite magical. And as he got older he became more aware, ready to learn about the different Shifters. He had even dropped out of school to just get to know them. But today, he was not studying, looking or bothering any Shifter. Today was a day off from what he called “work.”

Perhaps, today the reason why he felt so masculine and manly was because he had been playing basketball at his parents’ house with his two younger brothers. Perhaps, it was because he was all sweaty and wearing nothing but some baggy shorts. So why would he end up at Starbucks? Because his parents had asked him to pick up a tin of coffee for them. No he didn’t live at home or anything, he was twenty three. But when he visited home, it was like he lived there and his parents made him do tons of stuff for them. This was fine, considering his brothers weren’t old enough to drive. So there he was at Starbucks, a little sweaty but he didn’t smell bad, no shirt, and buying his stuff for his parents.

He pushed open the door and walked into the store, the smell of coffee filled his nose. He walked in and saw her sitting there, head phones in her ears, a book on the table, and a coffee. He smirked. She was cute. No, not cute. Really really pretty. He wiped the smirk off of his face and gave her a genuine smile as he walked up to the counter.

"What would you like to have today sir?" The teenager asked him at the counter. The girl at the counter was cute, not pretty. She was probably only fifteen years old. He leaned forward on the counter and rested his arms on it. He winked at the girl and said, “I would love a tin of your dark roast coffee, and I would also like to have a dark roast cup of coffee. Black please.” He said smiling his charming smile at the girl who just nodded and walked off to get him his order.

A few minutes later, she was back he dropped the dark roast tin in a bag and grabbed his coffee. Then he walked over to the girl who looked the most interesting, and smiled again at her. “Can I sit here?” He asked, and before she responded he slid into the seat across from her. He smiled again, though he didn’t get comfortable, because he wasn’t a jerk. If she asked him to leave, he would.

( WORDS :: 575 ) ( TAGS :: Annaika ) ( OUTFIT :: [url=■fuck buddy ■ I'm on the ledge, I'm calling out]here

[/url] ) ( CREDITS :: lyrics from "S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/" by my chemical romance, template by THROUGH THE TREES of caution two-point-oh ) ( NOTES :: )[/blockquote]
[/center][/size][/color][/font]

[Sandy]

The boy smiled at her and she scowled back, though he'd already turned away towards the counter. Annaika looked back at her book without really seeing the words. She knew his type. A 'lady's man' they called themselves. Really they were just stupid assholes who thought they could have whoever they set their eyes on. Well, wouldn't he be surprised to find a girl not fooled by his stupid acts.

“Can I sit here?” Annaika's gaze flicked to the boy, eyes narrowed and darkening slightly. She relaxed herself just in time to stop them from slitting and becoming the dark, glaring gaze of her mountain lion. He sat down before she could reply and Annaika had to sternly remind herself to not go looking for any trouble--despite the jerk sitting across from her.

I don't believe I could stop you, could I? Though she knew, even if he didn't, that she could stop him. Oh yes. She was stronger then him, though she didn't look it. She could give her mountain lion instincts rule and then walk away with not a glance back. But she wouldn't. This was Starbucks, for God's sake! The territory of humans, not Shifters. If they were in the forest, however, and he annoyed her, that would be a different story...

But no, they weren't in a forest and when Annaika looked around there weren't really any other tables left that wouldn't constantly get surrounded by a crowd. Whatever, she finally said, without removing the headphones, But let me warn you, I'm not very good company. Unless she wanted to. Many Shifters bore a resemblance to their creatures, either physically or emotionally, and Annaika was no exception. For her it was mostly internal, though she did move with the grace of a mountain lion, if she didn't control herself, and was slim like one.

Like a mountain lion, Annaika wasn't big on company. She liked her personal space, to observe and to just be on her own, doing whatever she wished. Even with that, though, she could be good company. She could laugh, and be playful and fun. Given the proper surroundings. She didn't believe that this man across from her was a such a surrounding. She didn't like men, or woman, like him. Or like how she guessed he was. Sluts, the whole load of them, thinking they could get who they wanted when they wanted. And the worst part was that most people would give them what they wanted, if only because of their popularity and good looks.

Annaika was proud to know that she was no such person. Or Shifter, anyways.

word count - 433
listening to - not ready to make nice (still)
muse - good

[Parchy]

MOVE YOUR BODY WHEN THE SUNLIGHT DIES
EVERYBODYHIDEYOURBODY
[ F R O M T H E S C A R E C R O W; E V E R Y B O D Y H I D E ]

He didn’t question her judgement on her being not good company. By the looks of her, sitting alone at a table with music in her ears and a book, she seemed like a loner, or just someone that didn’t like meeting people at Starbucks. But that was fine with Jeremy; he didn’t have to talk to her. He didn’t have to have company; he just wanted to drink his coffee before he started driving back to his parents place. He put the bag of his of coffee on the floor, and then placed his cup of it on the table. Jeremy leaned back in his chair and stared at her.

He took in her beauty, her eyes, her nose, her lips and the parts of her body he could see. She was beautiful. And not the normal beauty he saw everyday walking around the streets, she had genuine beauty. She seemed smart, not that he could really tell. But he thought by the way she wasn’t trying to flirt with him or how she wasn’t melting into his arms, he assumed she had a very solid head on her shoulders. And although, he still didn’t know this girls name, he felt like he knew her.

Jeremy picked up his cup, and brought it slowly to his lips. After taking a sip, he placed it back down on the table and stared at the girl that sat in front of him. He smiled at her, and adjusted his position in his chair. Then he leaned forward, and said in his smooth gentle voice, “I’m Jeremy, and you are?” He held out his hand for her to shake. He hoped she would accept his first gesture of being a nice guy. He hoped she would shake his hand and tell him her name. Not because he wanted or needed a conversation, but because she looked like an interesting person and he wanted to get to know her.

With his arm outstretched and the large possibility that this girl would simply turn down the nice gesture and completely ignored, made him loose some of his ego. He continued to stare into her eyes, though he knew she wasn’t looking at him. He just wanted to make a point. That he was a nice guy, not some egotistic jerk that just wanted to get in her pants. Not that that wouldn’t be nice, but simply because in all honesty he wasn’t like that. He valued girls, he knew what kind of assholes men could be, and he knew that certain gestures could really upset people. Which was why, he was just sitting there. Hand outstretched, eyes locked on hers, and a smile on his lips. Because he wanted to seem like the good guy.

( WORDS :: 460 ) ( TAGS :: Annaika ) ( OUTFIT :: here ) ( CREDITS :: lyrics from "S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/" by my chemical romance, template by THROUGH THE TREES of caution two-point-oh ) ( NOTES :: not much muse)

[Sandy]

He was staring at her, she knew that. He wasn't even attempting to hide the fact. He was just sipping his coffee and openly staring. Annaika's fingers twitched and wondered if she should snap at him to stop staring and to leave her alone. Then she started wondering if he would leave her alone, if she told him to. If he would walk away or just sit and finish his coffee in silence. And then leave.

Damnit, why wouldn't he stop staring? Annaika glared down at the book, her eyes reading though she wasn't really absorbing what it said. She'd have to go back and read it all again. She could feel him staring at her, just as she could hear what was going on around them even with her music. For an instant she was tempted to look up, to meet his gaze. The glance she had gotten of him when he entered wasn't nearly enough. She wanted to study the way he dressed, wanted to see the color of his--

No! He's a human, she reminded herself. A human, forever trapped in the same form...Annaika shuddered at the thought. Shifting was her solace and she'd Shifted every night since she was...what, ten? Before that her parents hadn't allowed her to leave the house at night. Until they realized she'd discovered she could jump from her second story window with ease, in her mountain lion form. And now the only times she didn't Shift at least once a day was when something super, super important happened.

“I’m Jeremy, and you are?” Annaika jerked her eyes to his face. He had blue eyes, she noticed immediately. It suited him. And his hand was reaching across the table to shake her hand. Annaika sighed and her fingers twitched again, this time ready to take his hand. She fisted them, furious with herself. She'd been taught manners since she was young but she disobeyed what she'd learned constantly every day. But now, confronted directly, everything that she'd learned screamed at her to be nice back.

Finally she took his hand, shaking it and then letting go quickly. She didn't like touching people in human form any more then she liked crowds. I'm...Annaika, she answered slowly. Now she allowed herself to study him. He was human, yes, but she couldn't deny that he was attractive as well. Still, eternally stuck in a single, mundane form... Is there anything you particularly want? Her voice didn't come out harsh and she couldn't decide if that made her glad or not. She didn't particularly want to be mean to someone who was being polite to her but she also hadn't wanted to be interrupted.

words - 444
listening - porn star dancing
tagged - jeremy
muse - good
other - sorry it took so long. I was eating every other sentence xD

[Parchy]

MOVE YOUR BODY WHEN THE SUNLIGHT DIES
EVERYBODYHIDEYOURBODY
[ F R O M T H E S C A R E C R O W; E V E R Y B O D Y H I D E ]

Jeremy smile widened when Annaika shook his head. Annaika, was her name. Wow, what a beautiful name. A beautiful name for a beautiful face. He smiled happily as they shook hands. But the brief skin contact was over very quickly. He sighed as she glared at him, he picked up his coffee and sipped on it. But her next question was kind of intriguing it made him have to think. "Is there anything you particularly want?" Anything he wanted? Anything that would really interest him? He had to think about it. He leaned back again in his chair, and folded his arms across his chest. He smirked at the girl.

He opened his mouth a couple of times, but nothing seemed to come out. Then he finally thought of something to say, so he smiled and leaned forward on the table and said in a quiet voice, “I don’t want anything, except,” He paused and sipped his coffee before whispering, “To get to know the beautiful lady in front of me.” He said and then leaned back in his chair again.

He didn’t really care if she told him to leave, if he was asked to leave he would go. But he did somewhat want to get to know Annaika. He wanted to know why she was alone, he wanted to know why she was so isolated from the rest of the world. He wanted to know why she was so … different.

“So, speaking of that.” He said, and leaned forward, he put an arm on the table and rested his head against his hand. “Why are you here alone? Waiting for some?” He asked curiously. If she didn’t answer him, or if she slapped him for being so forward, it didn’t matter. He was a very straight forward person. He was open, and Jeremy didn’t even care anymore what she thought of him. He just wanted a random conversation with this random woman.

( WORDS :: 325 ) ( TAGS :: Annaika ) ( OUTFIT :: here ) ( CREDITS :: lyrics from "S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/" by my chemical romance, template by THROUGH THE TREES of caution two-point-oh ) ( NOTES :: Still no muse. It's terrible.)

[Sandy]

Annaika pursed her lips to stop herself from smiling when his mouth opened and closed several times. She couldn't help but imagine a fish when he did that, and the thought of that aroused the mountain lion in her. As a human she didn't like seafood of any kind, but as a mountain lion, when she let her other side take over, she could eat seafood as well as raw meat. The boy, Jeremy, was lucky he wasn't acting scared of her, which the mountain lion loved. Prey was scared. If Jeremy was scared that would make him prey too, not that Annaika would ever let herself kill and eat another human. The thought made her cringe.

Annaika had heard of some Shifters, rogue ones, that had completely given up to their instincts. They weren't humans anymore, and they weren't Shifters, nor were they completely animals. Real animals wouldn't eat humans but a rogue Shifter would, with no sense of right or wrong. Their sense of the world became skewed.

So he wanted to get to know her? Well, she just might let him get to know her, but not the real her. She wouldn't tell him she was a Shifter, if she could help it. She wouldn't tell some stranger, or even some friend. Especially not a guy. Annaika had experience with that. Get a boyfriend, sleep together a few times, and then tell him. Never worked out good.

Why? Because the man had been fascinated by the idea of sleeping with an animal. He had asked her if she would ever show her her animal form--maybe--and then if she'd ever had sex as an animal--a definite no. She should have known it would be a stupid idea to tell him. He was into weird things and if she'd let him do what he wanted from the start she'd wind up most nights chained to a bed.

Well, too bad he was dead now.

He'd thought that her being a Shifter made her like his weird fetishes, and made her virtually indestructible. When he got carried away one night, to the point that Annaika was terrified, she'd given up to her instincts and killed him.

Annaika licked her lips guiltily, almost missing Jeremy's words, due to her memory. Ah...No. Not waiting for anyone, she answered, her voice odd until she cleared her throat. I enjoy my privacy, that's all. What about you? Don't you have better things to do then hang out with a loner at Starbucks? A handsome guy like you must have a girlfriend. Or ten, she added silently, not probing for information just talking. She said he was handsome, yes, but that didn't mean anything to her. It was merely a fact. Besides, he was a human.

words - 455
tagged - jeremy
listening - the good stuff

[Parchy]

MOVE YOUR BODY WHEN THE SUNLIGHT DIES
EVERYBODYHIDEYOURBODY
[ F R O M T H E S C A R E C R O W; E V E R Y B O D Y H I D E ]

Annika’s words made his mind flash to the things he could be doing. If he was smart, he would have just left and got in his car and drove back to his parents place, given them the coffee, maybe played a little more basketball, but then he would have left. And then he would be at home, all alone with literally nothing to do but watch tv and possibly call a friend and go to a bar later in the night. But that was hardly fun. Jeremy was not one of those guys that liked to get wasted and then wake up in the morning with a weird girl clinging to his neck. Naw, that was not what he liked to do. Sure, random hook-ups were fun and he was not completely riding them off, but he still didn’t want that to happen.

Then she asked about a girlfriend. And his smile faded for a minute, his last girlfriend had gone missing. She had been the love of his life, his high school sweetheart, but she had gone missing. He had no idea where she was, and the cops couldn’t even find her. She had been gone for so long that they had unfortunately declared her dead, but Jeremy was sure she was still out there somewhere. Thinking about her brought back all the pain that had come with losing her, and so he thought of something else.

His more recent relationship was with a boy. It didn’t last long a month or two. It was a sad break up for Jeremy; he had thought that they were in love. In fact, he loved that boy with most of his heart. The break-up had happened so suddenly, because the boy had found a hot girl to leave Jeremy for, it was quite sad.

So no, he was single now.

Jeremy remembered that he was in a public and that she had asked him a question, so he brought back his smile and shook his head. “No, nowhere to go and nothing to do.” Then he laughed a bit and winked at Annaika, “You think I’m handsome? That’s a good thing, ‘cause I am currently single.” He smiled though and laughed, hopefully she could tell that he was joking and not trying to hit on her. Jeremy had a strange sense of humour, but that was because of his dad.

“If you enjoy your privacy so much, how am I going to get to know you?” He asked her raising an eyebrow and sipping on his coffee.

( WORDS :: 426 ) ( TAGS :: Annaika ) ( OUTFIT :: here ) ( CREDITS :: lyrics from "S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/" by my chemical romance, template by THROUGH THE TREES of caution two-point-oh ) ( NOTES :: Teehee, I like this thread. )

[Sandy]

He was obviously thinking, Annaika could see that much. From the way his smile faded for a moment, the thoughts weren't exactly good. She couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking. Perhaps a bad relationship? Or a current relationship that wasn't doing well?

Not that she cared. She didn't care about anything but herself and her family, and those were who she tried to separate herself from. She was dangerous. She'd almost killed her mother and sister then she'd killed her old boyfriend. Dangerous. Not that she had to be. She'd been out of control when she nearly killed her family. No more then eight years old. She couldn't stop herself from Shifting then when she was angry. And then when she'd killed her boyfriend, he'd been about to hurt, probably kill, her as well.

“You think I’m handsome? That’s a good thing, ‘cause I am currently single.” Annaika raised her eyebrows and lean forward without really realizing it, resting her elbows on the table. Her dark hair draped on either side of her, hiding her face from the rest of the world, except Jeremy, who was in front of her. Don't burst your ego, honey, 'cause I'm just stating a fact. It's like saying that Ian Somerhalder is hot--and he is. As for the rest of that, I'm not looking for a boyfriend.

Uck. The thought of having a boyfriend again disturbed her. She enjoyed her privacy. She didn't want someone calling all the time to ask if she wanted to hang out, or if she wanted to go to dinner or a movie. Boyfriends were a hassle and equaled company. The company of just a boyfriend...well, she might be able to agree to that, but getting a boyfriend also meant getting his friends. His stupid, obnoxious, smelly friends, though you could never really say that if you want to stay on good terms.

Get to know me? Hm. Annaika leaned back again, completely abandoning her book this time, and studied Jeremy. She flashed a smile at him, the first real smile she'd shown him. Or actually the first time she'd smiled at all. Well, if you're determined enough I guess you'll just have to put up with me and my enjoyment of privacy. The smile disappeared except for the slight tilt of her lips and her fingers drummed on the edge of the table as she waited for his decision.

He could either realize that she wasn't going to be an easy lay, and she still believed that's what he wanted, despite his actions, and leave or he could decide that and he would keep trying. But whether he knew it or not, she wasn't just going to not be an easy lay--she wasn't going to be any kind of lay. No one night stand or anything. She wasn't that kind of girl. She hated that kind of girl. She couldn't be that kind of girl.

words - 484
tagged - jeremy
listening - colder weather
muse - goood
other - I like it too (:

[Parchy]

MOVE YOUR BODY WHEN THE SUNLIGHT DIES
EVERYBODYHIDEYOURBODY
[ F R O M T H E S C A R E C R O W; E V E R Y B O D Y H I D E ]

He watched her move in that seductive way until she was leaning on the table, her eyes locked on his, and then she told him off. He laughed, he knew that was coming. With girls like this, those sort of comments don’t really go over well. But he didn’t care. That was his joke, and she had not found it funny. So he leaned back in his chair and lifted his hands in the air as a sign of surrendering. “I am sorry. Did not mean to offend, just making a joke and conversation.” He said smiling at her. He picked up his coffee and took a sip, he could feel that the drink was emptying and if he intended on staying here with this girl, he would need another one.

Every move she had made was making Jeremy extremely confused and intrigued. At first when he sat down, he had thought she was just another pretty face that he could attempt to woo. But now, now he wanted to get to know her. Now she was-still a pretty face-but one with an interesting story and someone he wanted to remember. She was Annaika, and though he didn’t know anything about her except for her name and the fact that she liked her privacy, he felt quite close to her.

Jeremy placed his coffee cup down on the table and studied her solid figure. He watched her fingers tap on the table and he smiled to himself. He didn’t know the thoughts that were running through her head, but he thought that she was agitated that he wouldn’t leave her alone.

" Well, if you're determined enough I guess you'll just have to put up with me and my enjoyment of privacy." Jeremy simply laughed at her comments. But then the most serious expression played on his face. He nodded to her and leaned back in his chair. “I understand the rules and terms of getting to know you. I accept them, and your privacy, but I’m not leaving here until I know more about you, Miss Annaika.”

Sad part was, he wasn’t kidding. Now that she had made it into a challenge. Jeremy was never one to turn down a challenge; he was one of those guys that needed to always win or whatever. So she had made getting to know her with all her boundaries a challenge for him to comply too. He smiled, and said, “ Where should we begin? Childhood? That sounds good.”

( WORDS :: 417 ) ( TAGS :: Annaika ) ( OUTFIT :: here ) ( CREDITS :: lyrics from "S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/" by my chemical romance, template by THROUGH THE TREES of caution two-point-oh ) ( NOTES :: bloopy doo )

 

[Sandy]

Annaika could lie to herself and say that it didn't surprise her that Jeremy chose to stay, but she wasn't big on lying. Not to herself and not to others. Well then, I suppose I have no choice but to agree, though I warn you that you might be here for a very long time. Because as much as Annaika didn't like company she didn't like speaking of herself more. The present wasn't too bad but the past haunted her. She didn't like lying but speaking of the past involved a lot of carefully crafted lies. After all, how was one to tell another what a hard time her parents had with handling a baby that couldn't control herself and changed, frequently, to a mountain lion cub?

And then of course it just figured that he would ask about her past, what she wanted to avoid the most. Annaika crossed her arms over her chest and pressed her lips together, trying to decide what to say. Carefully crafted lies were a necessity, yes, but it was hard to come up with such lies in a short time. She hadn't been asked about her past recent enough for it to matter that she know the lie well.

Obviously she couldn't say how she'd spent most her childhood alone with her parents. Home schooling only for her, as she Shifted whenever she got upset or excited. How when she was four years old, her little sister was born and for over a year she had barely gotten more then a quick glimpse of her, because her parents feared she would hurt her without meaning. They didn't realize that they'd made it worse, made Annaika jealous of her sister.

Now Annaika pitied her sister for being a mundane human but then she'd only known that her sister could go to daycare, a place Annaika had only ever seen through the window of a car. That her sister had been allowed to go to school with other kids. To go to sleepovers that Annaika was strictly forbidden from.

By the time she was nine she'd started sneaking out at night to run in the forest as a mountain lion. She'd had more control then but still couldn't control herself if she got too excited. Her parents hadn't know that and the night they'd discovered her sneaking off she got so angry when they grounded her.

She hadn't been allowed around her sister too much then, still, but that night her sister had been at the wrong place at the wrong time. Annaika had Shifted out of anger and her anger allowed her instincts to consume her. She, young but full-grown as a mountain lion, would have killed both her mother and her sister if her dad hadn't been there to calm her. It was he that had Shifter parents and he'd learned better then her mom how to calm her in her rages.

But she couldn't tell Jeremy all that.

I just had a normal childhood, I guess. I was home schooled until eighth grade, when my parents finally allowed me to go to school. They were protective. But not of Annaika. They'd been protecting the other students and themselves. They hadn't realized the harm they were inflicting upon her by separating her. For the first six years of her life the only people she'd ever known were her parents and grandparents, until they died, and her sister. What about yourself? She didn't particularly care but he was being nice so she'd be nice back. And she wanted to change the subject.

words - 591
tagged - jeremy
muse - great

[Parchy]

MOVE YOUR BODY WHEN THE SUNLIGHT DIES
EVERYBODYHIDEYOURBODY
[ F R O M T H E S C A R E C R O W; E V E R Y B O D Y H I D E ]

He laughed as she continued to make it into a challenge. Then she began to speak about her childhood, but it was not long or anything. It made him shake his head slightly. Jeremy watched her expression change, and he watched her sit back in her chair. Just a normal childhood? That’s no fun at all. He thought as she spoke about her childhood that currently sounded extremely boring. He continued to smile at her even though he thought she was lying and that her whole childhood sounded boring in his eyes. He sighed slightly as the question of childhood was turned around on him.

Where to begin and what to really tell her? He had a normal childhood in some sense too. He was the first born in his family, and then when he was seven his twin brothers were born. His parents were normal parents, well his dad was an animal shifter but Jeremy was not going to tell Annaika about that. He wasn’t just about to tell his families biggest secret to a girl he had just met, even though he did want to get to know her and vice versa, still he couldn’t just betray his dad like that.

But thinking of his childhood, made him remember his grandfather and that strung a little pain of guilt and hurt through his heart. His grandfather was the only person in the whole world that Jeremy truly cared about and was closest to. And when his grandfather had died, it had been the hardest thing in the whole world for him.

Jeremy’s grandfather had been a human shifter, and he could only take two forms, his wife and Jeremy. So when Jeremy had been a child, his grandfather would often shift into his form just to put a smile on Jeremy’s face. His grandfather had always been there for him when his parents were occupied by the twins or with their own lives. His grandfather had been there when he graduated from high school and when he got his first job. He was just an amazing person, and Jeremy hadn’t been there for his grandfather.

And when he was sick, when Jeremy was only 18, Jeremy had neglected his grandfather. He hadn’t really visited him in the hospital; he hadn’t really been there for him. Sure, he had still visited his grandfather, but he hadn’t really made an effort. Thinking about it, now that Jeremy was older, when he thought about why he had not really seen his grandfather when he was dying, he could only think of two reasons. The first was that he didn’t want to see his tough grandfather in the biggest form of weakness. And the second was that he hadn’t wanted to accept the fact that his grandfather was dying.

The only good thing was that Jeremy had been there when his grandfather had died. He had said goodbye properly, and they had shared one last laugh. But since the day that his grandfather had died, Jeremy had visited his grandfather’s grave once every month to put flowers down on his grave and to just sit and try to remember the good times he had with his grandfather.

But today, was not the day that he was going to tell all of that to Annaika.

Today, he would simply tell her the brief summary of his childhood. He shrugged at her, and remembered to smile at her. “I guess I had the same sort of thing happen. I grew up like any normal child.” He laughed, a bit, “Two younger brothers, and good parents. You know the whole thing. But I didn’t get homeschooled.” He said smiling at her.

His eyes turned back to his coffee cup, and took the last sip of it. Then he looked back at her, “What comes next? High school years? University? Or do you just want to give me a summary of your life?”

( WORDS :: 657 ) ( TAGS :: Annaika ) ( OUTFIT :: look in other posts ) ( CREDITS :: lyrics from "S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/" by my chemical romance, template by THROUGH THE TREES of caution two-point-oh ) ( NOTES :: well that took a long time. )

[Sandy]

She wondered if he were silently remembering his past as she had just done, or if he was revising it in his head. He wasn't a Shifter--or not an animal Shifter, anyways. He smelled human, though that didn't exclude the possibilities of him being a human Shifter, but he also smelled like more. Like someone who spent a lot of time near a forest, but never in it.

His answer was better then hers. She hadn't mentioned her sister and had only said that her parents were protective. She wasn't ungrateful, just the opposite. Sure, it was their fault, partly, that she was how she was but still, they'd given her a home when others might have thrown her out to the curb.

I didn't grow up normally, though. That was a lie, she thought, smiling a bit sadly. It was amazing how easy the lie was, how easily he believed it. But he was only human. He couldn't pick up on the slight changes of another person when they lied, or at least not the way Shifters could. Annaika wasn't too good at it herself but she was able to get an idea.

I always wanted brothers, she murmured, partly to herself. It was true. She'd always wanted an older brother, a Shifter like her. Someone who could take care of her when her parents couldn't. Someone who could tease her. High school was...torturous. Too many people, too many sounds. She'd practically had her headphones glued in her ears. She kept the music low but if she concentrated on that sometime she could lessen the outside noise. Enhanced hearing wasn't always a benefit for being a Shifter.

I managed to graduate a year early by taking online classes and, well, now I'm at the University. She was a junior at twenty, having graduated at seventeen rather then eighteen from high school and then headed off to college right away. Are you at the University? I've never seen you before but you're probably older...or younger. Annaika frowned at him, trying to put a definite age on him. She couldn't do it. He looked like someone who could be in his twenties but also like someone who could be eighteen. It was too hard to tell.

words - 371
tagged - jeremy
listening - porn star dancing
muse - eh good

[Parchy]

MOVE YOUR BODY WHEN THE SUNLIGHT DIES
EVERYBODYHIDEYOURBODY
[ F R O M T H E S C A R E C R O W; E V E R Y B O D Y H I D E ]

Jeremy laughed as she mentioned her want for brothers. “Yes, well brothers can be good and bad.” His mind ran over all the many times he had annoyed his brothers, or they had annoyed him. But really, he loved his brothers and wanted only the best for them. “But, my brothers are … pretty awesome.” He said with a smirk.

Jeremy smiled at Annaika as she spoke about high school and where she was at school now. The university? Jeremy had always wanted to go to the University that was just in town, but his parents had thought that it would be the best experience for him if he had gone off to a different state or country for his university years. So off he had gone to Oxford in England. It really was a good experience. He got to learn how the real world worked, and because he wasn’t near his parents all the time except for holidays, it was a really good thing.

“No, I am not at the university.” Jeremy said with a charming smile resting on his lips. He tilted back a bit in his chair, and looked at his empty coffee cup. “I went to Oxford for my university days. Now I am out of school and trying to get by, with little support from my parents.” His face went kind of grim and serious for a moment but then he lightened and smiled at Annaika. He nodded and shrugged, “I am older, most likely anyways. And I hope you don’t think I look younger, cause that is a major blow to my self-esteem. I’m twenty-three. Your what twenty?” He asked, his eye brows raising a bit in curiosity.

( WORDS :: 284 ) ( TAGS :: Annaika ) ( OUTFIT :: look at other posts ) ( CREDITS :: lyrics from "S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/" by my chemical romance, template by THROUGH THE TREES of caution two-point-oh ) ( NOTES :: blah! no muse. )

[Sandy]

Annaika raised her eyebrows at Jeremy. Oxford, huh? That's impressive. She didn't sound envious, or sarcastic, or anything of the sort. Just surprised. Sure, Jeremy looked nice and he was dressed nice but she would never have imagined Oxford. He didn't really look like a rich, preppy kid.

Annaika looked him up and down, or at least from what she could see of him, and tried to imagine him at Oxford. Or any university. It didn't really work; that boy was just too damned good looking at the moment to seem like someone that worried over something as pointless as education. Not pointless to humans, her brain chimed and for once she agreed. Humans couldn't shift and so had nothing better to do with themselves but go to school and get a job.

Of course, Annaika was in school but she wasn't completely devoted to it. She skipped as often as was possible and still pass the classes. It helped that she was majoring in zoology--she'd have no patience with school otherwise.

So I'm assuming you work? Annaika's parents still helped her when she needed it, for which she was thankful, though it wasn't necessary. Her grandparents had left her a sum of money, knowing how difficult it was for a Shifter growing up with humans. It was in case she ever got kicked out or, in the case of what actually happened, to help pay for life after she left her parents' house. She didn't work a steady job, instead picking up odd jobs here and there. Hmm? Oh, yes, I'm twenty. Good guess. And don't worry, I'm a blow at your ego will hardly make a mark. Annaika flashed him another of her sly, rare grins at that. A real grin, that it, not just something out of politeness.

words - 298
muse - horrible at the first paragraph, better afterwards (cuz I left for a few hours then returned) P: Still, not the best
tagged - jeremy
other - bleh super bad sorry.