#pantherbound

“and i’m looking for the hand wraps,” sean insists, digging through one of the gym’s buckets of supplies. he’d waited until way after school to mosey to the punching bag corner of the gym with the intention of not running into anybody. of course that doesn’t go to plan. he sighs a chuckle. “fine, i’m trying to train a bit, if you really wanna know.” shoulder shrugs, he pushes some gloves out of the way still looking for the tape. “got power, not so much skill. just wanna try it if that’s cool with you.” even despite working out religiously while he was away from degrassi - not to mention the couple more fights he’s managed to rack up in that time - sean thinks he could use a little more discipline. eyes flash to juliana, raises some curiosity of his own. “what, did spirit squad or whatever run late?”

“please,” ellie’s eyes roll amiably toward sid, black mesh-covered arms crossing tightly over her chest. “i cut through this park on my way home all the time.” granted, rarely is it ever at night. the junglegym stands abandoned, the swings creaking softly in the breeze. her jaw thrusts upwards, trying to hide a lingering feeling of regret for taking this path. “or we can just take the street,” ellie offers with a sidelong glance. “if you’re scared.”

theater club vs the hallways : both locations pumping out drama like incense. the difference? one was fun, especially for molly, who was far from an actress and closer to a stagehand whenever she wants to put her crafts on display. the other? could make you feel like there’s an anchor wrapped twice around your throat, holding you into the water long enough to make your life and all your troubles flash through your eyes. and as much as molly day likes to pretend she knows how to hold her breath for an eternity, there’s only so much her lungs could take. that’s when she spots her, femme with unfamiliar face, but eyes that could see more than molly currently could. and she can use that. disinclination has her threading lightly, selective words marinating on her tongue before … “ fuck it. “ lips blow out air, the squeak of boots meeting rubber tile as she spins. “ yo, new girl. “ step, step, step. arms fold so close against herself, a bruise wouldn’t be surprising ----- an unspoken barrier between them, molly v everyone. “ you live next to the delons, don’t you? “ // @pantherbound

if she closes her eyes, takes in a moment of temporary peace and solitude — she can almost detect his whiskey scented breath against her sunny skin again. could feel the pads of his calloused hands imbedding into the flesh of her hip bones as if to say MINE! but then his lips part, arrogance in work and madison is reminded of the empty bed, the blank text, the far too platonic and brief words in passing after that night. the night that she had foolishly enjoyed, naively allowed her walls to crumble and become infatuated. forbidden desire lurks solely under the shadows of their encounters, especially now with her relations lying with another, and her knuckles turn pale with the grip she has on her locker. chin turns, eyes squint into narrowed strips of blue as if to say: seriously? “ and you’re a headache when you’re you. ” she quips with a shake of head, closing her locker shut. “ did you need something? ”

she’s confident as ever, holding it together based on sheer will alone. no matter what she wanted or where her mind had wandered, she wasn’t going to give up. & she certainly wasn’t going to let him win. not even in the smallest battle of wits. what most people would have taken as a stupid comment & moved on, she had to turn into a full out war. & she’d blame him too. for being the one who got under her skin. for starting it by merely speaking in the first place. tori blamed sid entirely for the way he made her feel, & if there was anything she could do about it, it was push back harder & try to make him regret trying to toy with her. “ are you secretly the sappiest guy in toronto ? ”

spinner fixes her with a look. lips pursed, lids flat, head cocked just-so. if it had subtitles, they would read are you freaking kidding me? “okay, can we rewind to ten minutes ago when i said it’d be freezing outside and you should grab a jacket?” granted, he was the one who’d insisted she pause her dot-closing duties to come out to the main street with him and watch them light up the place with all the freshly adorned christmas decorations. in any case, he’s shrugging off his hoodie and passing it off to her. t’is the season, or whatever. “dude, i kinda love the holidays.” his eyes manage to tear away from the green and red bulbs stringed over the buildings to land on jackie, a grin ripping over his mouth as he jostles her shoulder. “c’mon, scrooge, you know you’re into it.”