ɪᴠᴇ ʙᴇᴇɴ ʙʀᴜɪsᴇᴅ

“Yes, I do know the Heimlich maneuver!” Ollie said, bouncing a little on the balls of his feet, looking quite proud of himself for that. “When I was in middle school all the little kids in my building wanted me to babysit them because I was so cool. So, I was like hey, why not get paid for this. So, I took those babysitting classes that they offer at like community centers to people who want to babysit kids, and I learned the Heimlich, and CPR, and got certified for all of that stuff.” Ollie knew a lot of stuff, but he also usually had reasons why he knew things. He got bored a lot, looked into a lot of different things, or like this had learned it for one reason or another. There was always a story to go along with why he knew something, even if it was just ‘got bored and looked it up one day’. “Bro, sports are where you’re gonna get me but you gotta ask me about a sport that I haven’t fucked half the guys on the team before. I’m the teams biggest fan,” he snorted, pulling out his vape pen, and clicking that on, “but in an Olympic sized pool is 50 meters long, so It’d be about 30 laps, I think.”

birdie !!

Conversation had always been difficult for Pippa. People always expected something from a conversation, be it to learn something about the other or connecting to another individual. She had never been one of those people that were good at giving away information about herself and connecting with another person. Using less words, while making her feel cold to others, always felt more natural to her. “Yeah, same,” she replied, simply. To her, it seemed like he kind of wanted to fill the space with something. She had no idea what to actually talk about; Pippa would leave that up to him. “I wouldn’t be out here if smoke bothered me. I cannot imagine how this would be the place to hang if someone is bothered by smoke.”

birdie !!

     link matches the grin on birdie’s lips with his own. “ you’re right, i do have quite the awful taste in the latter. but you really know how to stick, don’t you ? ” they tease, knowing fully that they might have gone a little insane if birdie wasn’t in their actual close circle of friends ( not the one that he fabricated for other goals in mind. ).  at the mention of the obvious scares that have been plaguing ogden college as of late, link looks away, and then shrugs his shoulders slightly. “ if someone was going to murder you, they’d have done it before campus filled up again… when you were all alone, smoking your shitty cigarettes. anyway, how was the stay alone here ? i’d have stuck around like every year, but this christmas i decided to put away the grinch costume. ”

birdie !!

     birdie  shrugged  with  his  hands  lifted  in  the  air   .    the  act  itself  was  eerily  similar  to  a  child  sitcom  character  who  just  got  busted  by  his  parents  for  something  ridiculous   .  were  this  a  television  show   ,   he  probably  would  have  looked  into  the  camera   ,   adorning  a  whatyagonnado  face   ,   and  applause  would  erupt  from  the  planted  audience   .   but  this  was  no  tv  show  and  birdie  was  far  too  deadpan  to  fully  commit  to  the  bit   .    “   yeah  ,   what  was  that  about  anyway   ?   how  very  conformist  of  you   ;   doing  what  they  do  instead  of  exactly  what  i  do   .  ”   he  smirked  before  taking  another  drag  of  his  mini  cigar   ,   letting  the  smoke  slowly  cascade  from  his  mouth  as  he  considered  their  question  .   “  it  was  actually  really  fucking  nice   .   i  definitely  got  bored  from  time  to  time   ,   but  it’s  not  like  i  couldn’t  just  drive  somewhere   .  honestly   ,   i  miss  it   .   go  back  home  .  ”   he  paused   ,  eyes  moving  to  stare  at  nothing  in  particular  .   “   i  tried  calling   ,   you  know  ?   heard  what  happened  a  while  back   .   wanted  to  know  if  you  were  alright   .  i  mean   ,   you  were  there   ,   right   ?   ”

It wasn’t actually too in-often that Ollie could stun a person into silence. Actually it happened quite often now that he was thinking about it. Whether it was because he was just so incredibly stunning by nature, or said something really fucking crazy it happened. He wasn’t quite sure what had done it right now with Birdie, but he’d never been a terribly chatty guy (on his downtime), so Ollie just shrugged his shoulders. “Oh, no. You’re not choking on the smoke and can’t breathe at all now, are you? I don’t think the heimlich maneuver works for something like that, but I can definitely try if you want me to. Here let me just get behind you,” he said, reaching out to put his hand on Birdie’s shoulder, as if to turn him around. “I swear I’m not coming onto you. Y'know unless you’re down, in which case I would be totally down as well. Up to you.”

birdie !!

      his  brows  furrowed  as  he  debated  his  options   ,   feeling  a  bit  unsure  of  how  to  react  to  the  effervescent  creature   (  because  ollie  always  seemed  a  bit  too  otherworldly  to  be  considered  human   )   .   he  could  rise  to  the  challenge   ,   or  he  could  continue  being  birdie  bishop   .   rising  to  the  challenge  would  involve  matching  ollie’s  playful  nature   ,   much  like  he  did  when  on  the  air   ,    and  being  birdie  bishop  would  involve  more  complete  silence   .   it  was  ironic   :   silence  and  sound  were  both  his  super  power   .   “   you  know  i’m  not  choking   ,   ”   he  replied   ,   swatting  away  his  hand  without  any  intended  malice  .   “   ya  damn  shit  disturber  .   ”   taking  a  drag  as  if  he  hadn’t  just  had  a  coughing  fit   ,   he  tapped  away  the  ash   .   “   do  you  really  know  the  heimlich  maneuver   ?   like  the  actual  placement  and           fuck  off   ,   of  course  you  do   .   you  know  everything   .   ”   it  used  to  annoy  him   ;   however   ,   now  he  made  it  a  point  to  test  his  knowledge  at  random  intervals   .    “   how  many  laps  in  a  mile  ?  swimming   ,   olympic  sized  pool   ?   ”

          Pippa didn’t smoke, but it was the easiest way to get away from most people. She could pretend to need a smoke break, hide away for a bit, then rejoin society as if nothing had happened. Sometimes she just needed a change of scenery, sometimes she needed to scream, but not as many people smoked these days and Pippa found comfort in not wanting to socialize with the ones that did. She wanted to be alone these days more than ever and more than ever, finding the time to be alone was near impossible. She was waiting for the day the police came to interview everyone about Penelope and Pippa still hadn’t figured out what she was going to say to them. 

          She had always been quiet, the only indication she was walking was the chill she seemed to bring with her when she was around other people. Pippa had hoped that there wasn’t anyone smoking around the corner, but she stopped in her tracks as she saw someone else already there. “No, you can’t,” Pippa shrugged. “I was looking for a quiet place.” 

birdie !!

       a  woman  of  many  words   .   he  could  respect  that    .   giving  one  final  cough  and  leaning  back  on  the  bench   ,   he  shrugged  and  motioned  to  their  surrounds   .   “   no  one’s  around   ,   i  hate  small  talk   ...   sounds  like  the  place  for  you   .   ”   placing  the  prime  time  between  his  lips   ,   he  pulled  his  phone  from  his  pocket  before  swiping  on  the  notification   (   reminder   :   guest  star  interviews   ->   30 minutes   )   .   he  fought  the  urge  to  groan   ,   the  radio  personality  not  at  all  excited  to  spent  several  hours  listening  to  the  same  speech  presented  ten  different  ways   .     “   unless  the  smoke  bothers  you   ,    then  that  sounds  like  a  personal  problem   .   ”

smoking kills, that’s what she’d been told her whole life while her father chain-smoked off the back porch, her meemaw’s house was littered with ash-trays, and her older sisters kept all their nice dresses at the neighbors house to attempt to keep them away from the cigarette smell. you’d think that ida would have turned away from the habit like many of her siblings, but maybe she never outgrew oral fixation, or it was an easy way to pass the time, or a great excuse to leave conversations and people she hated. but cigarettes, vapes, all of it littered the bottom of her bags and desk drawers.

and so ida was pleased to happen upon another smoker, looking over at birdie with a curious smile. “oh, sorry didn’t mean to startle ya there darlin’.” she stepped forward. “actually i was wonderin’ if i could bum you for a smoke? i’m fresh out.” not really, but why use your own when you can use another’s? as he coughed she reached out and tapped his back. “be careful there, don’t want ya passin’ out on me now.”

birdie !!

          as  his  coughing  finally  subsided   ,   a  tired  sigh  left  the  man’s  body   ,   his  hand  waving  in  dismissal  of  her  kind  words   .   she  was  sweet   ,   but  birdie  felt  older  than  his  body   ,   and  couldn’t  find  the  means  to  say  thank  you   .   instead   ,   he  reached  into  his  jacket  pocket  and  pulled  free  the  carton   .   “   take  two   .   you  saved  my  life   .   ”   his  reply  was  mumbled  as  he  attempted  to  keep  the  prime  time  between  his  lips          his  words  both  sarcastic  and  genuine   .   really   ,   take  two   .   without  being  asked   ,   he  also  pulled  out  his  lighter  and  sparked  a  flame    .     “   anybody  ever  tell  you  you’re  kinda  quiet   ?   ”   he  asked  in  subtle  amusement   .   “   if  school  doesn’t  work  out   ,   you  might  try  espionage   .   ”

     “ see, i would do that.. but that’s all the way across campus, right ? and i kind of enjoy not running back and forth for a pencil. especially when my good friend, old buddy old pall bridie here can provide one for me. and i’ll bring it right back, of course. ” they will not. not because they’d wanna keep someone else’s pencil… but because alex knew they will forget all about it the moment they throw it back into their bag at the end of the class, and possibly lose it ( most definitely lose it ) at some point. but hey ! if he’s ever reminded of it one day, he’s willing to compensate it with a free drink, maybe a joint ? which sounds like a good deal to him, when you compare it to a pencil. everyone’s a winner ! “ plus i’ve got other plans before class… like buying myself a coffee loaded with sugar and milk. ” then alex makes a face, like a lightbulb just appeared over his head. “ — how about you come with ? if you find me that pencil, i’ll exchange it with a coffee on me. or tea, if that’s what you fuck with. equality for all. ”

birdie !!

Jacqui glanced at Birdie with an amused expression as they coughed out smoke, having a nose like a bloodhound when it came to people smoking. They had figured the scent was masking something a bit more fun, so the discovery of him with a cigar was a bit disappointing. “Are you seriously just hiding over here smoking a cigar?” they asked in a lilting tone, tipping their head to one side as they considered Birdie, ignoring his apparent displeasure at being interrupted. “How old are you?” they teased, nudging his side a bit. Though in reality, Jacqui sorta respected the art of smoking a cigar - especially as a college student. It was the type of quirk they could absolutely get behind. They had just been hoping to find someone with a spliff or a new flavor of vape or something more their speed when they had picked up on the faint scent of the smoke.

birdie !!

            he  wasn’t  sure  how  they  could  tease  him  for  smoking  a  mini  cigar  when  they  could   ,   surprisingly   ,  tell  the  difference  between  the  two   .   and  immediately  ,   too   .  cigarettes  and  prime times  were  practically  the  same  shape  and  size   .   shit   ,   how  old  were  THEY   ?    “  twenty-two   ,   ”   he  answered   ,   knowing  damn  well  it  was  a  rhetorical  question   .   his  deadpan  expression  shifted  slightly   (   almost  imperceptible  to  the  anyone  not  explicitly  looking  for  the  change  )   ,   the  ghost  of  smile  appearing  as  he  lifted  the  carton   .    “   you  wanna  try   ?   you  gain  a  couple  cool  points  when  you  hide  in  corners  and  smoke  cigars   .   just  try  not  to  cough   .   i  hear  it’s  embarrassing   .   ”

After the very much unexpected turn of events at the ski resort, Inés had been turning herself inside out to be everywhere at once. She didn’t mind. She liked to be distracted. If she was working on things for herself then everything else would fall into place. Damage control was very much necessary after Penny’s untimely death and she took charge. Things were only going to get worse from here so she had to prove herself. The undergraduate student council was missing their president after all and if anybody were to fill in, well, she was definitely the most qualified. 

She just needed a moment. A moment that was swiftly interrupted at that. Why was it impossible to have a second alone on this campus? “Yes, actually. You can put out that rancid smelling cancer stick. I suppose you like the way it lingers on your clothes.” Inés hardly hides her irritation until she realizes who she’s talking to. “Birdie.” Crap. “That was rude of me.” The brunette eyes him. “I needed to talk to you about your show. I was pawning off ideas to help Penny’s family and wanted to ask if you would be willing to do some advertising. I was thinking a fundraiser to pay for the funeral expenses.” 

birdie !!

           “  well  aren’t  you  li’l  miss.  philanthropic  ?  ”  he  arched  a  brow  in  her  direction   ,   his  face  otherwise  devoid  of  expression  as  he  allowed  his  eyes  to  leisurely  wander  over  her   ,   assessing  her   .   it  wasn’t  that  birdie  disagreed  with  the  idea             far  from  it  ,  actually  .    more  than  anything   ,   he  was  bothered  by  her  manner  of  delivery   ,   which  was  both  obtrusive  and  unwelcome   .    let’s  insult  the  man  and  ask  him  for  a  favor  all  in  a  single  breath   .    he  would  laugh  if  the  situation  wasn’t  so  damn  sad   ;   the  situation  being  how  little  her  behavior  surprised  him   .

     he didn’t expect to startle birdie like that, although his sudden presence and quiet shuffling towards certain people was definitely a jumpscare to them. just ask anyone he’s ever wronged ! but birdie ? birdie had no reason. though, it did bring a smile and a small chuckle to link to see him jump like that. link puts their hands in the pockets of their jacket, “ well i was going to see if i could bum a cigarette off of you, but i keep forgetting that you’re obsessed with these disgusting flavored ones. ” link makes a face. they were definitely being dramatic, but it was a little true — though, link’s been smoking cigarettes since he was fourteen, so it may be that he just got used to the shitty and cheap cigarettes. they lean back against a wall, “ anyway, what’re you so jumpy for ? ”

birdie !!

          finch  had  become  so  accustomed  to  being  alone  on  campus  that  his  brain  still  couldn’t  accept  the  presence  of  others   .   he  was  often  offended  by  the  realization           how  dare  someone  walk  around  HIS  college  campus  .   long  story  short   ,   birdie  was  genetically  predisposed  to  complain  about  things  that  didn’t  make  sense   .   had  he  not  liked  link  so  much   ,   he  might  have  even  admonished  them  for  breathing  his  air   ,    looking  at  his  bench   ,    and  speaking  his  language   .   “  i’d  be  offended   ,   except   ...    well   ,   you  have  shit  taste  in  everything   ,   ”    he  shrugged   ,   tapping  away  the  ash  as  he  continued   ,   “   cigarettes   ,   clothes   ,   friends  .   ”  birdie  offered  a  smile  that  was  reserved  for  a  rare  few    ;    the  ones  that   ,   if  asked   ,   he  would  actually  admit  to  enjoying  the  company  of  .   “   link   ,   i  was  all  but  haunting  this  campus  for  that  last  few  weeks   .   it  hasn’t  exactly  been  busy  .   plus  there’s  the  other  things             murders   ,   disappearances   ,   amnesty  international  recruiters   .   ”    his  response  was  serious  and  accompanied  by  a  distant  look   ,   almost  as  if  the  man  was  truly  concerned  by  the  presence  of  the  clipboard  wielding  altruists   .

“No?” Ollie said, blinking a few times at Birdie, and looking around. Had he interrupted something? He was just coming outside. His eyes moved back to the other student, arching an eyebrow. Like he’d never pegged Birdie for being such a light weight when it came to smoking. “You know if you take smaller hits you won’t cough so much,” he suggested. Like he hadn’t been the one to cause the coughing fit or something. “Also you have to remember to inhale like immediately until you’re used to it. If you hesitate because you’re not used to it and are scared you’re just going to end up looking like this. A lightweight.” He waved his hand in Birdie’s direction and smiled bright. “But everyone starts somewhere, bro! Don’t worry about it. Do you need some water or something? Usually that helps too. Also you know, any other tips you need just ask me! I’m here to help you out…” Mostly he was teasing by this point. Just wanting to playfully get under his skin of the other man. For fun.

birdie !!