𝖓 𝖊 𝖒 𝖊 𝖘 𝖎 𝖘

    go figure, the one night he gets to fall asleep, he’s woken up only a few hours later at super early hour by some… fucking earthquake that no one seems to be talking about. for a while, he kept trying to tell himself it was part of some intense dream he had, but dreams don’t feel that fucking real. and when he heard his first voice that wasn’t really there this morning, he knew that there was something up today — the last time this happened, it was the night of the pink moon. so what the hell was it today ?

   though, he wasn’t trying to run from it this time. he listened — he hasn’t done anything about it yet, but he listened nevertheless. he listened all the way to books and crannies, and listened to them even more while he was waiting for dora. he was so distracted, that he hadn’t even noticed that she was late.

   he gives her a weak yet soft smile. “ pretty shit, too, actually. solidarity, innit ? ” he says with a small laugh, giving her a quick hug hello before they began to head inside. “ — so what’s up ? what’s keeping you up at night ? ”

          alex  went  in  for  a  hug  and  she  mentally  screamed.  she  didn't  want  to  peer  into  most  people's  emotional  baggage,  never  mind  actually  going  through  it  along  with  them  like  some  sentimental  leech,  but  one  of  the  names  nearing  the  top  of  that  list  was  his.  dora  had  guessed  for  a  while  now  that  alex  liked  to  keep  things  surface-level.  if  was  deflection  or  distrust,  she  didn't  really  care.  she  didn't  push  –  she  wasn't  that  type  of  friend  in  this  scenario  –  instead  keeping  faith  he  would  let  her  know  the  important  things  when  the  time  was  right.

          she  stiffened  as  they  made  contact.  her  eyes  scrunched  together  over  his  shoulder,  expecting  the  rush  to  come  flooding  in.  then...  nothing.  nothing  at  all.  dora  thanked  all  that  was  holy  to  her  as  they  parted  and  walked  into  the  cafe  together.           "the  birds,"  she  lied  in  response.  "the  gift  that  keeps  on  giving  when  you  live  in  what's  basically  a  treehouse.  i  thought  i'd  gotten  used  to  it  but  i  guess  not."  the  pair  came  to  a  little  nook,  not  far  from  where  they  served  drinks.  "what  about  you?  why  the  shitty  start?"

        “ Well yeah ? “ he starts to question what she means by ‘ you felt it too ? ‘ but stops at the urgency of her touch. Nerves swirling in his stomach at the contact he forces himself to stay sturdy for her though. he has trouble keeping the concern from flowing through. He’d been so concerned by dora that the noise in his head had all but lessened, finally. Returning her hug laughing under his breath as they part. “ Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that ? You had me quite literally worried.” he states softly not exactly avoiding her question because he was genuinely concerned. Dora had conquered her way into his inner circle and he cared fiercely for them. “ I’m hearing their voices awake it’s just very loud. “ it’s a small whisper and he prays that he’s coming across nonchalant rather than unnerved despite how much he was. “ Though they’re quiet right now.. What’s happening ? “

          dora  was  about  to  begin  apologising  for  making  him  worry,  a  reflex  of  politeness  despite  not  feeling  particularly  sorry  for  it  in  the  moment,  but  she  held  her  tongue  and  listened.  while  she  was  thankful  for  his  calmness  —  she  knew  he  was  playing  his  state  of  mind  down  for  her  benefit  the  moment  he  mentioned  the  voices.  maybe  if  she  shared  what  was  going  on  with  her,  matty  would  feel  more  comfortable.           "i...  i  can't  stop  the  thing.  you  know,  feeling  people's  feelings."  her  fingers  tangled  around  each  other  from  nerves  and  she  stared  down  at  them.  "i  think  i  might  have  even  changed  someone's.  i  didn't  know  i  could  do  that."

         she  popped  the  spiked  cherry  in  her  mouth  and  pulled  the  fruit  from  the  stem.  her  teeth  bit  down  until  they  hit  stone.  with  the  sweet  juice  hitting  her  tongue,  dora  expertly  excavated  around  the  seed  for  what  was  edible  and  gently  spit  it  into  the  fingers  resting  on  her  lips.  moving  the  remnant  from  there  to  a  napkin  on  the  table,  she  rolled  it  around  slowly  and  watched  as  the  remaining  liquid  blotted  the  white  pink,  then  red.  it  reminded  her  of  blood  on  a  bandage.

          her  dominant  hand  reached  for  her  foamy  cocktail  so  she  could  have  a  sip.  after  an  eventful  day,  she  had  been  rather  looking  forward  to  her  night  out  with  bellamy.  this  was  a  regular  thing  for  the  duo.  even  so,  tonight  felt  special.  something  was  electric  in  the  air.  she  valued  their  friendship  for  several  reasons  but  one  of  the  highlights  –  for  her  at  least  –  was  that  he  saw  straight  through  to  her  'negative'  traits  and  valued  them.  dora  had  a  gift  for  manipulating.  she  didn't  change  faces  so  much  as  she  made  others  take  a  different  view  and  see  another  angle  of  the  one  she  already  had.  she  made  her  audience  pliable  and,  most  importantly,  persuaded.  bellamy  put  this  to  use  for  all  it  was  worth.  this  evening  she  felt  more  seen  by  him  and  more  capable  than  ever  before.  she  felt  charged.

          the  day  had  allowed  her  to  learn  the  switching  on  (and  off)  of  her  abilities.  if  she  hadn't  worked  it  out,  she  probably  would  have  rain  checked  on  this  whole  event.  bellamy  appeared  to  be  fully  engrossed  in  conversation  with  a  portly  man,  his  plump  cheeks  blushed  from  a  glass  of  wine  too  many  at  some  point.  with  faintly  stained  fingers  of  her  own  dora  tapped  her  companion  on  the  shoulder  from  behind  and  spoke  over  to  the  kris  kringle  lookalike. "i'm  afraid  i'll  need  to  steal  mister  charter  here  from  you,  sir.  a  friend  has  just  walked  in  who  we  must  say  hello  to."  she  lied,  suspecting  their  conversation  had  gone  on  long  enough.

deathsrites·:

           was that really an earthquake or was he actually starting to lose his mind were the first thoughts that invaded matthew’s head after them it didn’t take long at all before the whispers began. luckily he found that they became almost mute with the help of his headphones until his phone alerted him to dora’s texts. concern coating his features as he readily texts her back to get her location before he’s out the door of his apartment; always ready to jump for another’s troubles. they weren’t far from another, but that didn’t mean his steps weren’t heavy and faster than usual. ever since alex’s birthday party dora had become a confidante and close friend. she was the only one to know of his dreams, and now he had to tell her that he could hear them now. “ Dora ? Are you okay ? Did you feel the earthquake too ?” he inquires softly resisting the urge to touch her just in case she was experiencing something as well.  

          "did  i  feel  it  too?"  she  repeated.  "so  you  felt  it?  it's  not  just  me?"

           by  this  point,  she  wasn't  leaning  against  the  traffic  light  for  a  break,  it  was  entirely  for  support  as  the  numbness  travelled  her  body.  matty's  immediacy  was  appreciated.  dora  looked  up  at  him  at  last. "i'm  not  okay  and  i'm  sorry  to  do  this,"  she  reached  out  before  he  could  question  her,  begging  to  feel  anything  else.  concern,  confusion,  relief.  their  skin  met  and  his  energy  felt  sturdy  by  comparison  to  the  others;  more  involuted,  thicker  to  penetrate,  though  not  impossible.  

           involuntarily  her  eyes  closed  and  she  sighed  as  the  stupor  eased.  for  someone  who  ran  from  her  own  emotions  most  of  the  time,  dora  sure  didn't  like  their  absence.  she  reminded  herself  to  cling  to  the  small  sense  of  respite  she  had  stolen  from  him.  she  could  hug  him  now,  having  already  made  contact,  and  so  she  did.  dora  squeezed  tightly  around  matty's  shoulders  before  letting  go.  "what's  wrong?"

          it  was  quarter  to  two  and  dora  was  running  late.  the  catch-up  with  coffee  had  been  on  the  books  with  alex  for  a  few  days  now  but  after  the  morning  she'd  had,  dora  did  wonder  to  herself  if  she  had  the  energy  to  make  it  through  the  afternoon.  after  the  quake  that,  as  far  as  she  knew,  only  she  and  matty  had  felt  in  the  early  hours  of  the  morning,  she  had  tossed  and  turned  trying  to  sleep.  the  aftershocks  of  her  strange  ability  lingered  in  her  bones  and  demanded  her  attention.  with  enough  time,  the  intensity  dropped.  that  didn't  stop  her  from  replaying  the  moments  and  feelings  in  her  head  and  experiencing  them  anew.  she  tossed  them  over  and  rendered  judgement  on  their  purpose.  they  mingled  and  mashed  with  her  own  mood  until  she  was  a  ball  of  questions.  after  what  felt  like  days,  she  finally  got  up  and  decided  rest  wasn't  on  the  agenda.  that's  when  she  realised  the  day  had  started,  the  sun  was  up  and  it  was  already  the  afternoon.

          after  quickly  throwing  on  some  clothes,  dora  doddled  for  a  few  minutes  wondering  if  she  should  take  her  car.  on  one  hand,  it  would  be  the  fastest  way  to  get  to  the  cafe  at  books  and  crannies.  it  would  also  severely  reduce  her  contact  with  others  and  therefore  any  more  weird,  out-of-body  emotional  interference.  she  was  barely  hanging  on  as  it  was.  on  the  other:  what  if  there  was  another  quake?  when  it  first  hit,  on  her  walk  home  from  work,  she  had  been  sure  she  was  about  to  have  a  seizure  for  the  first  time  in  a  long  time.  there  was  a  moment  when  she  went  over  on  her  ankle  and  fell  to  the  pavement  that  she  wasn't  sure  she  was  getting  back  up  without  paramedics.  that  hadn't  happened,  thankfully.  the  anxiety  stuck  all  the  same.  what  if  it  was  actually  an  absence  and  she  had  a  fit  behind  the  wheel?  it  wouldn't  make  sense  that  her  one  confidante  had  confirmed  he  was  experiencing  similar  strange  occurrences,  she  rationalised.  but  what  if?

          her  doubt  forced  her  to  compromise  and  she  called  a  taxi,  spending  money  she  didn't  really  have  right  now  and  risking  a  brush  with  the  driver.  better  than  the  worst-case  scenarios  she'd  waste  more  time  on  with  indecision.  after  a  careful  exchange  of  cash  and  a  brief  thanks,  dora  made  her  way  out  the  car  to  see  alex  already  standing  outside  the  bookstore  come  coffee  shop.  "i'm  sorry,  i'm  sorry,  i'm  sorry,"  dora  started  as  she  closed  the  hinge  of    the  taxi's  back  door.  "you  won't  believe  the  day  i've  had  so  far.  i've  not  even  slept.  please  tell  me  september's  started  better  for  you."  she  stood  a  few  feet  back,  wary  of  any  touch  he  might  make  unwittingly.

          dora  has  already  felt  the  quake.  it  didn't  occur  to  her  that  perhaps  it  was  all  in  her  head  until  she  bumped  into  a  passer-by,  robbed  of  any  grace  in  walking  as  she  went  over  on  her  ankle  when  the  rumbles  hit.  they  placed  a  hand  on  her  shoulder,  asking  if  she  was  okay,  and  suddenly  concern  washed  over  her.  it  was  edged  with  a  nasty  suspicion  and  dora  jumped  back,  spooking  the  middle-aged  woman  away.  fuck,  she  thought,  not  this.  she  had  to  test  the  theory  and  brushed  her  hand  on  the  next  person  she  walked  past  -  receiving  a  big  hit  of  emotional  numbness.  it  wasn't  a  good  sign  her  freaky  skill  was  going  haywire  but  at  least  this  time  it  was  neutral.  coming  to  the  next  set  of  traffic  lights,  dora  stopped  to  lean  against  the  pole  and  sent  out  a  text.

     the feeling of fingers digging into his shoulder caught his attention out of his haze — that tipsy feeling you get once you figure out you drank too much and are currently spinning in your own head. but once he turned and focused more on dora, he was a lot more concentrated. and with that, he gives her a lazy grin, putting his hands up in the air.

    “ what the hell am i getting arrested for ? i’m having a pretty good time. you want me to have a better time than this ? ” he says with a small laugh, slowly putting his hands down as he was about to spill his drink all over himself. “ do you have handcuffs on you ? i’ll only accept pink fluffy ones. otherwise, i reject this arrest. ”

        "oh  yeah,  just  carry  them  around  with  me,"  she  rolled  her  eyes,  full  of  silly  energy,  and  laughed.  dora  dropped  her  finger  guns  finally  and  reached  over  to  the  table  they  were  currently  beside.  when  she'd  first  arrived,  she  had  placed  a  golden  wrapped  box  with  a  big  bow  there  for  alex,  and  now  she  had  him  captured  it  was  the  opportune  time.  "here!"  dora  handed  it  over  enthusiastically.  inside  the  rather  large  package  was  a  handmade,  customised  and  sparkly  baby  blue  cowboy  hat.  it  was  a  ridiculous  birthday  present  and  done  with  humour.  above  the  band  it  read  

B  I  T  C  H  F  A  C  E

 in  gold  with  a  star  above.  

‘ i just don’t remember asking for yours. ’, gigi turned to face the other , raising her eyebrows for a moment. ‘ so maybe stop wasting both of our precious precious times and keep your righteous opinions to yourself. ’ the girl was just about to remove herself from the conversation by leaving the room when the other started speaking again. ‘ dora. ’, gigi started, letting out an irritated sigh and giving the other a suspicious look. ‘ how do you rekon i do something about it ? ’

         matthew tries all of five seconds to stay serious after her confession, but folds shortly after. drunken giggles tumble out as he shakes his head. did he seriously just giggle ? enough bubbly for him. setting the bottle beside him before settling further into the tub. “ Uh –  I mean I guess they could be, but most of the dreams are of people that I know have passed. When I was little I saw my mom, during my time in the service.. “ his voice trails off as he remembers his fallen comrades. “ Let’s just say that wasn’t the best time for them. “