“     the   players   are   chaser   ,   beater   ,   keeper     ,     and    seeker     .     it’ll   be   a   lot   easier   to   understand   once   you   see   me   play   it     .     ”     was   this   an   invitation     ?     maybe     .     she   didn’t   know   whether   or   not   to   bring   up   that   she   was   thinking   about   playing   it   professionally     ——     she   could   only   imagine   how   crazy   this   all   sounded   to   him     .

“     hey     !     ”     his   feet   are   fast     ——     she’s   unsuspecting   of   it     .     before   she   can   even   react     ,     he’s   kicked   the   ball   out   from   under   her   foot     .     “     not   bad     ,     freddie     .     maybe   you   could   teach   me   about   this    football    thing     .     ”

freddie     collects     the     ball     underneath     his     feat,     secretly     thankful     that     he     didn’t     manage     to     fuck     up     and     trip     over      himself.     he’s     quick     with     his     feat,     and     he’s     soon     showing     off     a     little     foot     work     that     he     picked     up     over     the     years      at     camp.     he’s     so     focused     on     the     ball     (     &     on     not     looking     like     an     idiot     )     that     he     doesn’t     realize     she’s     spoken     for     a     moment. 

“football…     right.     well,     we     haven’t     got      chasers.     or     beaters.     or     flobbermajiggers,”     he     pauses,     bouncing     the     ball     back     and     forth     from     his     knee     to     his     foot,     “but     there     are     forwards.     they     er—     go     forward.     and     midfielders     in     the     middle.     and     defenders     in     the     back.     and      there     are     keepers     —     to     keep     the     other     side     from     scoring…”  

        calliope knows she will be of no harm today , nor any   other   day  .  preserving the vicinity of herself had long ago become child’s - play magick  .  reality couldn’t fuck with her if it had the consciousness to want to  .  she hears the violent grinding of polyurethane to asphalt ;   whoever this unfortunate person is , they’re in for a world of hurt , judging by the sound of momentum   &   wild speeds they’ve picked up  .  whoever thinks they can skate in bustling traffic deserves it  .  she’ll step to the side with ease ,   &  around if only to watch this train wreck unfold  .

        “    what a misadventure  .  all to save little me  ?   ”    she smiles as warmly as a soul of ice possibly can ;   a side effect to having her favorite sweets sided with a decadent tea , nothing more  .  moreover , so is the hand she extends ;   no regard for the shredded state his own hands are left in  .  if things rolled over smoothly , what she had in store would explain said peculiar disregard  .

freddie     extends     a     muted     groan     as     response.     his     vision     is      temporarily     blinded     by     flashes     of     crystal     clear     &     clean     pain.     he     moves     the     vital     parts     of     his     body     gingerly     to     tests     for     breaks.     he     risks     motion     as     he     grabs     the     stranger’s     hand,     sharply     inhaling     as     he     pulls     himself     to     a      sitting     position.     her     hand     is     now     covered     in     blood.     he     shivers     slightly     from     the     adrenaline     &     pulls     his     knees     into      his     chest. 

“No … Pretty sure that’s worse,” he said flatly, leaning his head back against the wall behind him, letting it lull partially to the side. His toes pointed upwards as he wiggled his feet slightly back and forth, stretched out across the worn floor. A scoff at the idea of free condoms – sure, that was good for someone, but it didn’t interest him in the least. Useless, as far as he was concerned. T’was the perk of being asexual, he supposed – or whatever he was.

Green eyes rolled around wryly before returning to Freddie. “Oops,” he repeated with that same toneless drawl. A beat more and he was smirking, shaking his head in mock scolding. The truth, of course, was that he didn’t care and had no interest in telling on him. He wasn’t raised a snitch, and generally rejected all forms of authority, so that put him on the other boy’s side rather quickly. “You always smoke on school property?”

freddie     leans     against     the     locker     wall,     not     really     concerned     that     the     guy     is     going     on    tell     on     him,     but     not     entirely     sure     that     he’s     gotten     away     with     the     situation,     either.     he’s      been     in     and     out     of     the     principle’s     office     enough     times     to     warrant     a     rather     large     file,     but     never     really     for     anything     serious.     besides,     he     figures     he’s     got     another     warning     for     smoking     on     school     property     before     he     actually      gets     in     any     lasting     trouble. 

          ᴍᴀʀᴄᴜs ᴡᴀs ᴀʙsᴏʟᴜᴛᴇ ғᴜᴄᴋᴇᴅ ᴏᴜᴛ ᴏғ ʜɪs ᴍɪɴᴅ ; ɴᴏᴛʜɪɴɢ ɴᴇᴡ . Same shit , different day . Today was a cocktail of pound beers , and MDMA he got from some chick at the club earlier . If he actually talked to a therapist , they’d probably say he was trying to repress shit . Problem was reminders were etched in ever crevice of his skin .

          When the other dude began to talk to him , he shook Marcus out of his haze . “ Shit dude , are you okay ? ” Primarily asked because , Marcus thought he looked nothing like a bartender , or like someone you’d trust you’re your drink . With a sigh he waved the bartender over .

▶ @bruiisedknee

​

way     too     much     time     passes     before     freddie     realizes     the     unfocused,     blob     shape     in     front     of     his     face     is     actually     human     (     &     a     human     that     is     talking     to     him     !     )     he     forces     his     eyes     to     focus,     shaking     his     head     slightly.     he     is     rather     taken     aback     to     see     a     man     (     boy     ?     )     about     his     age     in     the     seat     across     from     him.     he’s     got     the     same,     hazed     &     kinda     fucked     up     gaze     that     everyone     gets      when     they’re     messed     up.         

          to   be   honest     ,     she   didn’t   really   care   what   she    would   drink   tonight     ——     these   terms   were   foreign   to   her     :     moscow   mule    ,     double   whiskey     ——     she’d   drink   whatever   he’d   order     .     maybe   it’d   help   her   figure   out    whatever    this   was   between   them     ——     never   in   a   million   years   did   she   expect   to   fancy   a    muggle      ,     but   then   again     ,     she   never   expected   to   meet   someone   like    him     .

“     i’ll   take   that     ,     then     .     a   double   whiskey     ”     she   maintains   eye   contact   with   him     ,     lips   curling   into   a   coy   smile     .     him   inviting   her   here     ,     buying   her   a   drink     ,     the   way   he’s   looking   at   her     ——      did   he   feel   the   same     ?     “     thanks   for   bringing   me     ——     i   like   seeing   all   these   new   places     .     they’re   very   different   compared   to   the   places   i’m   used   to   seeing     .     ”     she   glances   around   a   bit     ,     taking   in   the   view   before   glancing   back   at   him   again     .     “     next   time     ,     i’ll   bring   you   to   my   bar     .     ”

freddie’s     stomach     is     in     knots.     ginny’s     hair     is     falling     perfectly     over     the     side     of     her     shoulder,     and     he     wonders     whether’s     she’s     planned     this     moment     in     the     mirror.     he     feels     his     heart     beat     in     his     throat     &     actually     misses     the     first     few     words     when     she     speaks     because     somehow,     his     ears     have     grown     hot     &     he     can’t     focus     enough     to     understand     what     she’s     saying.     but     he     pulls     himself     together,     swallowing     hard.