The cold was making Theo uneasy, and being that he didn’t want to be out here in the first place he was already annoyed. Hell if Rory really did know where they were going but he wasn’t thrilled with the topic of conversation being his body compared to that of an otter. He was going to have to agree with Romeo though because to a degree they aren’t built for any of this. “Whether or not Romeo or I are strong enough is not the issue here. We’re traveling in the freezing cold for god knows how long because of you-” Shooting a look in Rory’s direction, “And not even you will be strong enough when hypothermia sets in.” Wrapping his arms around his own chest Teddy was not comfortable with how angry he was and he most certainly did not like the look of this river they were now stopped at. 

“What are the chances we’re going to be able to cross this anyways?” Nodding his head to the obvious stop in their journey. 

@pinotromeo​

@groundctrlaltdelete​

Romeo stomped his feet in an effort to keep himself warm, teeth chattering like a cartoon beaver as he shot furtive looks at their surroundings. He instinctively gravitated towards Teddy and Rory, attempting to huddle like he’d seen penguins do on the Discovery Channel. “Do we have any other choice? We could probably go back, but–” He gestured sharply at Rory instead of finishing the bleak thought. To be honest, he was still on the fence about this whole escape thing, but he’d also witnessed enough atrocities at Belmont that he was willing to be swayed. The icy river of death wasn’t very convincing, though.

“I think we’re just going to have to use the rocks as stepping stones,” Romeo announced with an air of finality. It was way too cold to be spending so much time deliberating when they needed to be on the move. Teddy was right– if they didn’t do something soon, the hypothermia would get them before the guards did. 

“Presumably you took a job at Belmont because you wanted to help people, right? Well you’re gonna get to help us a lot more out here than you would in there, since, ya know, we’ve all left.” Rory argued with Teddy. “Besides, I was under orders from the boss.” He pointed towards the sky as if it had been god himself who had commanded it.

He was flattered that Teddy seemed to think that he was on a different level of resilient than he and Romeo, his own soft upbringing only masked by the years of hits he’d taken at Belmont. “Works for me.” He nodded as Romeo suggested trying to cross using the exposed rock surfaces that were scattered throughout the river. He gestured for them to wait, unzipping his jacket and shrugging it off to reveal the rope that he had looped several times across his torso. He’d never been a boy scout, but he was certain that so many summers spent at space camp was just as good. “Here,” He tossed one end of the rope towards Teddy. “In case one of you slips.”

What brief delight Romeo felt at seeing Rory’s face was snuffed out seconds later at the sight of blood. He looked shocked by the splatter and dropped his shirt in the sink, rushing forward to examine the other’s face. “What happened? Why are you coughing up blood?” His eyes narrowed, either concerned or suspicious (it was hard to tell). “It’s not internal, is it? Did you just eat too fast and bite your tongue again?”

Rory gagged on the blood, spitting up another glob of gunk into the sink even as he tried to ignore Romeo’s potentially condescending tone. “Don’t blame me for my appetites.” He wheezed, bracing his hands on either side of the sink as he tried to catch his breath. He reached to turn on the faucet, hunching over it to splash water on his face and press his palms into his eyes before finally leaning back. He turned towards Romeo, looking very pale and possibly high. 

“You’re a very beautiful man, Romeo. I’m gonna miss all of this.” He admitted wistfully, deciding to let Romeo believe that he was dying if it meant getting a hearty farewell out of it. 

“I mean, if I was really wiggly, I’m not sure it matters how strong you are.”  She explained, before his next comment piqued her interest.  “She has not.  I didn’t realize there even was a before-”  Kendall had to stop to laugh at his next comment.  “Was that a Kardashians reference?  What does that even mean?”  

“Come on, Kendall. I need teamwork.” Rory insisted jokingly, though in reality he was terrified of what Mac might do with his before-and-after-and-after photos if he let himself slip at this point. “It means I went from zero to hero. And I’m trying to stay a hero, so work with me. Nobody likes a backslider.”

“Then I’d say you more than likely have a concussion but let me go get your file and we’ll take a look at you.” A deep sigh releasing from his mouth as he turned to go grab one of the iPods on the desk.  It was a wonder that Rory was still alive after quickly pulling up his file and seeing the long list of things he’d come in for just over the time he’d spent at the facility. Theo himself was starting to wonder how many were too many. 

“Long term it can be bad since a concussion hurts your brain and while we know a lot about it, we don’t know enough yet.” Turning back around and shaking his head at the latter question, a slight smile formed on his lips. “I’m afraid it doesn’t work like that. This isn’t a math equation Rory. But why don’t you tell me what happened and I’ll do a few tests.” Bringing out the penlight from his front shirt pocket to check his sensitivity to light.

Rory’s nose crinkled, even though he’d known enough to expect such a response by now. At least Theodore seemed willing to help, which was more than could be said for some of the other staff members at Belmont. 

“Bad how?” He asked, unsure if was supposed to stare into the light or shy away from it. “How bad is the worst it could be?”

His eyebrow managed not to shoot up in question upon seeing who his visitor was because somehow Theo wasn’t surprised. He was surprised by being nearly knocked over but he somehow managed to stay upright thanks to his grip on the doorframe. Rory was one of the few people he’d attribute Harry Houdini like skills because he pretty much got out of anything and everything with ease. So to be wandering around unattended after light out was not out of the usual for this one. The question however was another story. 

“Your question doesn’t have a simple answer I’m afraid.” He started, gesturing his hand upwards for the other to move to one of the exam tables. “It all depends on the person and what symptoms they experience with each concussion. We know someone can safely recover from them but we can’t predict what long term effects multiple ones will have on a person because they are so different from patient to patient. Although if you’re experiencing many back to back I’d say not many. Are you experiencing any dizziness, nausea, confusion, or have been hit in the head lately?”

Rory stood awkwardly in the way for several moments before finally moving towards the exam table, pulling himself up onto it with a kind of mundane familiarity. 

“What if I said all of the above?” He asked listlessly, wondering if he was doomed to being an idiot even if they managed to make it on the outside. He’d been so good at what he did before that the idea of being stuck a moron was genuinely terrifying. “Is that bad or do they kinda cancel each other out at some point?”

Kendall wrinkled her nose at his comment – she had not considered that particular aspect.  On the other hand, though, she supposed those sorts of discomforts would arise with whoever she was bound to for the duration.  There were probably worse options than Rory.  He, at least, wouldn’t actively try to make this unpleasant, she didn’t think.  Kendall considered him a friend; it was the real reason she’d picked him.

“You probably could,” she nodded then grinned, “assuming I cooperated.”  

“Probably could?” Rory demanded with an incredulous laugh. “Mac hasn’t shown you my before-and-after photos? She loves that shit.” He muttered, never entirely sure if he was in love or hate with Mac. “I like to think of myself as the Khloe of Belmont.” 

It was certainly going to be nothing like working in her old office, of course. The bustle of it every morning as she rushed in hot on the heels of her latest story, the meetings every day at 11 sharp with lots of coffee and pastries where everyone talked over each other about the most pressing issues– actually, there would probably be coffee and pastries involved in working with Mac and Rory. It would be different, but Tommie had always had an affinity for the new. That was why she liked news so much.

She rolled her eyes skyward but her smile softened, “yes I shouldn’t be surprised you’ll be making sure the rumor mill doesn’t run out of grist. What, exactly, is Mac’s use? Except perhaps threatening other staff to make sure we don’t get put in isolation for doing this.” Admittedly not a bad use. “Yeah, fuck it. I’d never like seeing it happen without me anyway. I’m in.”

“Look, the rumor mill serves an important role around here. What would us lifers have to talk about if it wasn’t half-baked truths about each other?” Rory insisted, not even joking about that one. He’d long run out of finding anything from his old life relevant, and most things seemed pretty pointless by now, but gossip never failed to entertain. 

“Mac knows a lot about people on both sides of the fence. And I was bored.” He admitted, realizing that trying to fully justify his decision to bring in Mac was probably a lost cause. He brightened as she agreed, his face breaking into a smile. “Yeah? Hell yeah.” He grinned, offering her a high-five.

Tommie had never been the warmest of women, too interested in fact and truth to have much time for big shows of emotion or what have you, but that did not mean she never felt. After five years in a prison with people, of course there were those you would grow fond of. Rory could be useful, certainly, but she found more and more her interest in him lay mostly in just wanting a cheerful friend. 

She snorted at the idea that Mac was only off putting- as entertaining as her antics might be Tommie had never held her in very high regard, which was not surprising considering her role in this place. Of course she had seen posters of Rory’s latest little venture dotted about- it was not a half bad idea honestly, to have some kind of news circulating in this place. Would make the whole thing feel less stagnant, and she hadn’t written anything except one solitary story in her time here. “I don’t know why you didn’t come to me in the first place.” She pointed out, one eyebrow raised.”First things first I’m not going to be reduced to gossip, or chattering nonsense about people’s private lives. If I write it’s going to be rooted in fact.” She paused, smiling, “it would be nice to be working on some fresh stories, though.”

Rory held his hands up in front of him, knowing he was entirely to blame for not asking Tommie in the first place. Mac had been a mistake, but at the same time she did make things interesting. 

“That was my bad.” He admitted. “And I would only expect quality journalism from you. Besides, I’ve already got the gossip covered.” He promised, a smile teasing around the corners of his mouth as he watched her with hopeful anticipation. “So you’re in?”

“I know.”  But did she truly understand?  Probably not.  “Well, y’know,” she matched his tone as she replied.  “I’ve just been looking for an appropriately grand gesture.”  After he’d finished adjusting, she went to drop her hand back to her side, only to realize that due to the height difference she couldn’t let her arm straighten all the way.  Well, that would be irritating.

“So, what’s next on your schedule?”

“I respect that.” Rory nodded. “And few things impress like forcing someone to take a piss next to you.” He jingled the chain between them, more curious than apprehensive about this experiment. Five years in this place had made him a glutton for punishment, eagerly throwing himself at whatever would break up the monotony. 

“I was gonna go to the gym. Not to work out, really. Though I guess I could just bench press you now.” 

Pandora: send nudes 👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻

Pandora: 💦💦

R-80085: I don't think the camera on this thing works