* anxious like the ocean in a storm.

჻░     𝐛𝐞𝐱﹕     that     is     so     hot.

჻░     𝐛𝐞𝐱﹕     maybe     we     should     bring     it     back.

჻░     𝐛𝐞𝐱﹕     but     great!     i     need     you     to     meet     me     outside!     your     dad     knows     what     to     do     so     you     don’t     look     until     i’m     ready.

* ｡ ･ carson:   thank u i try

* ｡ ･ carson:   outside ??  why does this feel bad why does this feel like you’re gonna jump me

             ❝     if     we’re     being     that     honest,     i     quite     frankly     believe     that     all     boys,     any     age,     can     be     gross.     ❞     and     in     need     of     further     educating.     after     all,     the     fae     dealt     enough     with     them     at     the     bar     to     know     what     she     was     talking     about.     there     is     a     smile     on     her     lips,     pride     adorning     her     features     as     carson     spoke.     frankly,     only     some     were     on     her     not     nasty     list.     her     ‘would     never     punch’     list     was     more     like     it.     finally,     finds     some     further     contentment     in     glass     being     taken     from     her     by     carson.     knowing     that     it     was     likely     she     was     recalling     what     would     come     if     she     argued     with     her     about     it.

             at     mention     of     a     certain     boy,     amorette     perks     up,     though,     to     her     defense     there     was     an     attempt     to     hide     it.     ❝     i     actually     do     agree     with     you     on     that-     kayds     is     one     of     the     few     men     that     has     never     made     it     onto     my     bad     side.     ❞     interest     is     nearly     lost     with     what     follows,     allowing     self     to     dramatically     sink     into     the     couch     at     mention     of     movie     (     expression     bleeds     defeat     ).     ❝     if     you     insist     that     we     must     watch     it     then     yes     —     however,     i     am     going     to     make    lunch     and     you     will     eat     while     we     do     so     or     it     turns     off.     deal?     ❞

   “ that,  madame,  is a valid point. ”     yeah,  carson herself had dated some truly horrific specimens,  all of whom earned glares from quite literally everyone.   (  bex and layla knew she was only dating them out of boredom,  but that didn’t earn any extra stamps of approval.  )   the glass is tilted back until its empty,  and carson groans when she finally comes up for air.     “ oh,  god,  i can hear my blood in my ears.  i truly despise that shit. ”

˗ˏˋ     𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫     𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐟     /     𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧.     @carseer​.

჻░     𝐛𝐞𝐱﹕     good     afternoon,     my     love.

჻░     𝐛𝐞𝐱﹕     just     need     to     make     sure     you     are     not     in     pjs.     i     am     coming     over     soon!

* ｡ ･ carson:   hi hiiii

* ｡ ･ carson:  *jake from state farm voice*  i’m wearing khakis

* ｡ ･ carson:  i’m just kidding no one has worn khakis since the early 2000s

LIE. 

It slides off her lips easily, “no..just me. I was just walking by and then you collapsed.” Nicole studies her momentarily, looking for other signs of injury on her. The girl had been writhing only moments ago, and now she was fine. It seemed strange to Nicole. She wasn’t sure if her hunter instincts were just in overdrive, or if there was something about the other that was just a tad bit strange. Then again, many people were strange. Nicole was strange. Things could seem amiss, even if there was nothing odd to be found. 

It had looked like a seizure, and so the description fits. “They must happen a lot.” It was an assumption, but the girl was acting so casually that they must. If this was the first time wouldn’t she seemed more alarmed? What had she seen? Had she seen Nicole? “Do you need help up, or anything? Is there someone I can call for you?” Her voice was kind, although her mind was racing. 

   “ yeah,  that . . . sounds about right. ”   wouldn’t be the first time.  as if being the town crazy wasn’t bad enough,  it wasn’t exactly helpful that seizures were peppered in there.  sometimes they’re at school,  sometimes they’re around town,  sometimes they’re at home ---- regardless of the location,  something always feels off before one hits.  not necessarily wrong,  just . . . off.  like she’s on the cusp of something without even knowing it.  like something’s on the tip of her tongue and she can’t think of the word because it doesn’t exist.

          𝐇𝐄'𝐒  𝐍𝐎𝐓  𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐄  𝐇𝐎𝐖  𝐓𝐎  respond  to  her  quip,  so  chase  resorts  to  an  eye  roll.     ❛  well,  it  wasn’t  at  first,  but  now  that  you’ve  brought  it  up  .  .  .  ❜     head  cocks  to  the  side,  mischievous  grin  tugging  at  his  lips.  it  falters  just  a  little  at  he  question,  not  because  he  was  upset  but  rather  because  she  had  a  point.     ❛  because  i’m  not  a  shitty  person.  doesn’t  matter  if  you’re  the  biggest  pain  in  the  ass.  ❜

Alaric smiles when she says that he is one of the things that she would take. It fulfilled him to know that he was able to reach his students, that they may even ENJOY his teachings. He chose to believe that this is the reason she said that she would bring him along, and not because there weren’t enough other things that she could come up with to choose. His smile only intensifies and fills with a small amount of pride when she chooses an alternative to a profanity. It felt just as good when his students listened to him, when they respected him as much as he respected them. He knew that Carson was a bright girl, and regardless of her tendency to speak the first thing to come to her mind he believed she would go on to do great things. The brightest students are always more deep than getting good grades, and they are certainly more deep than those who always choose to brownnose their way into his good books. “Ah yes, while you are ahead of MUCH of your peers, and while Woodcreek does have a dang castle, there are good things about this school too, as you have articulated. Perhaps some of those students even wish they could go to school here. I’m sure that your friend wish they were here with you.”

             good     points     made     all     around,     amor     raising     an     eyebrow     at     being     known     so     well;     however,     how     could     she     not?     was     just     who     she     was,     no     one     could     force     her     to     do     a     thing.     amorette     softens     for     a     brief     moment,     before     nose     wrinkles,     she     happened     to     still     agree     with     said     statement     from     past     her.     ❝     i     was     so     right     about     that.     all     the     boys     your     age     were     gross     and     needed     more     health     courses,      probably.     ❞     there     is     a     giggle     about     it,     a     hand     reaching     out     to     brush     carson’s     hair.

            ❝     it     will     not     be     a     set-back     at     all.     one     day     off     and     you     can     pick     up     what     drops     tomorrow.     which     i     will     be     here     for     maybe,     but     only     if     you’re     good     today.     ❞     moves     to     grab     previously     left     glass     of     water     from     table,     holding     it     out     to     carson.     ❝     besides,     it     is     a     rare     day     when     you     have     me     here     willing     to     watch     whatever     movie     you     want,     so,     you     must     take     advantage.     ❞  

    “ all the boys my age are still gross and need health courses.  sometimes things get . . .  fuzzy for me after seizures,  but i’ll be damned if i ever forget that men are nasty. ”   nose wrinkles as if the smell were in her nose now --- she thanks every god that her pops showers twice a day.  the glass of water is accepted reluctantly --- carson loves surviving solely on dr.  pepper and vodka,  but she knows there’s no fight when it comes to amor.   (  she's just as stubborn as carson,  but much more persuasive,  and carson doesn’t exactly want to have to explain to her dad why amor had to sit on her to make her drink a damn glass of water.  )   

❝ are you fucking kidding me, carson. ❞ the words come out angrier than intended, and worriedness plasters layla’s face. she got her brother to drop her off as fast as possible so she can be by her friend’s side the moment the news alarmed her and honestly she had no plans on leaving carson alone.  ❝ it’s not like you had a headache and can just brush it off. seizures are serious ❞ layla is terrified of why the seizure happened to carson, the girl was healthy and always seemed fine. 

❝ can i do anything to help ?? like do you need anything ?? ❞ there’s a voice in the back of her mind wondering if something did this to her friend, some people in this town more savage than others. a human like carson would be the perfect target for someone to take advantage of.  ❝ do you remember anything ?? before, after, or even during it ?? ❞       

   “ no,  i’m not fucking kidding you,  layla,  i have calculus homework that someone’s gotta do,  someone meaning me. ”   her voice returns the edge in layla’s,  as if they were playing a game of tennis with rackets that were razor sharp.   (  she knows layla’s tonality is only out of worry ;  it’s the same way her father gets.  it’s the same reason he isn’t here right now.  because carson volleys it right back at him.  )  

  in all honesty,  she’s glad to have layla here.  she hadn’t expected her to come -- she had a life outside of their friend group too,  it wasn’t like she could just leave everything at the drop of a hat for her.    “ i know they’re serious,  ‘s not my first rodeo,  little lassie.  i just ---- i’m still kickin’,  so i try not to think too much of them. ”     besides,  it was better to not scare people with them.  there’s a reason she’s kept her prior history of seizures quiet,  there’s a reason bex is one of the only people who knows just what the extend of them are.  the fear in everyone’s eyes that never seems to go away,  that always waits to see if she’ll drop dead . . .  carson just can’t deal with that.  

          ❛  𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐘  𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐄  𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐍𝐆  𝐀𝐍𝐘  𝐍𝐔𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑  of  seizures  means  you’re  not  fine.  ❜     chase  protests.  he’s  reasonably  anxious  —  he’s  never  seen  this  happen  to  her  before,  or  anyone  really.  he  wasn’t  sure  why  it  had  happened  but  he  figured  prying  would  do  no  help,  even  if  the  mere  though  of  not  knowing  something  bothered  him  greatly.     ❛  yeah,  now  that’s  where  i  stop  you.  if  you  wanna  be  straight  chillin’,  homework  is  not  the  answer.  ❜

  “ well,  it’s not the first and i’m still kickin’,  so i think my record is lookin’ pretty good here. ”    leave it to carson to feign attitude when he’s being nice.  leave it to carson to make a joke out of this all.  in her defense,  it’s been a shitty twelve hours,  this is her coping mechanism,  and she and chase aren’t exactly notorious for being buddy - buddy anyway.  

             sound     of     protest     from     amorette,     though,     one     of     those     from     her     usually     spelled     out     caution     (     danger,     do     not     disagree     ).     she’s     setting     down     glass     of     water     on     the     table     before     finding     seat     on     the     edge     of     the     couch,     looking     carson     over.     truth     be     told,     the     faerie     wondered     what     had     caused     it,     but     was     not     willing     to     inquire     just     yet.

             ❝     well,     that     is     just     great.     but     i’m     not     about     to     leave     if     that     is     what     you     are     trying     to     get     at     next.     your     daddy     could     not     miss     work     today,     so     he     asked     me     to     stay     and     i     will.     ❞     allows     vessel     to     slide     down     from     edge     of     couch     to     sit     right     beside     carson     then.     ❝     you     are     not     going     to     do     homework     today,     right?     you     need     a     break     from     everything.     ❞  

   “ oh please,  i know you won’t do anything you don’t want to.  remember that time i basically begged you to take me to chuck - e - cheese’s and you wouldn’t take me because i was,  like,  fifteen and you said it smelled like a boy’s locker room ?  lesson learned. ”   she wants to laugh,  but even the thought of the action makes her head throb,  so she settles for a mischievous smile in it’s place.  

  ------------ right.  of course,  she has a seizure and jeremy phillips is needed at work.   (  he’s worried,  she knows or else amor wouldn’t be here,  but she knows his fear is for different reasons.  every day she gets closer to her mother’s fate and he hates it the sight of it.  )   

     he always wondered if she would runoff. carson has witnessed his anger on more occasions than kayden would prefer to admit, the dragon lashing out on others ( in his defense they deserved it ) but carson was always there to calm him down when he sees red and ready to stitch him back up when the bleeding didn’t even really bother him. the look of concern and the way she’s always just cared got him to stick with her. unexpectedly morphing well into the established friend group that they had together, he wouldn’t have any of it without carson. and kayden knows there must of be something that carson could see in him that would make her want to stick around a hot-headed dirtbag dragon guy. he never questioned what it was, just knew he was grateful that his long life led him to her.

       kayden sometimes wonders how he did live without carson. all the frustrating nights of just attempting to thread the needle to stitch himself up, shaking hands, proving only how human he could get washed away with carson’s presence. he hasn’t transformed into fully into a dragon in over eighty years. his human skin decorated with natural freckles, moles, and deep scars that he told bullshit stories about as well as some artistic tattoo modifications, kayden often forgot what his dark scales looked like. sometimes they haunted him in his dream, but even in the end he couldn’t recall how he looks. but strangely didn’t matter because in carson’s eyes she saw the human he’s always tried to be. and that human has never been perfect for as long as he lived but when kayden is walking down the halls with carson, making sure his glare clears the school halls to make sure the traffic keeps up with carson’s get to class walk ( she says it’s a fast walk. kayden says jog ) it just feels right. like everything he has ever done has led him to be by carsons’ side…

     so maybe that is why he let’s himself gaze up at her a little longer. after all, the moonlight highlights her ever so beautifully. the soft purr that escapes his lips as her fingers find their place in his hair is a reaction that he fails to contain. kayden picks up his shoulders dramatically to distract from the sound he made, ❝ i have no doubt in my mind. but the question is are you up for it ??  answer carefully and you may become super-duper special. i’ll give you the passcode to my heard of somethin’. ❞

  there’s something stirring in her chest and she doesn’t want it there. 

  it’s making her face flush with pink and her stomach turn to butterflies and it’s such an odd feeling that carson immediately wants to reject it.  it’s something that she knows will get her in trouble ---- she’s learned to adopt a pretty good trouble - radar these days.  she taught herself which trouble to stay out of,  which trouble to tip - toe the line on,  and which trouble she could perform with special people.   (  that one was exclusive for carson and bex.  they were practically psychic these days,  and it almost went without saying when one showed up at the other’s house with a carton of eggs and dressed entirely in black.  )   

  kayden was always someone she got into trouble with,  or someone she kept out of trouble ----- she’s never wondered until now if he might be the trouble.  after all,  that horrible fluttering feeling in her stomach hasn’t been unearthed in a long time,  if ever.   (  of course she’s had boyfriends,  a select few girlfriends ;  but carson lacks commitment and she lacks emotional availability --- she knows this.  she took dual credit psychology already.  )   and part of the trouble is tip - toeing that line of wondering if she was even allowed to think of him like that ---- like this.  present tense.