Realistic or Modern Silver Oak Academy: Season 1

[lion.]

Zachary Lee​

“I care about you.”

It was frightening how four words could be so deafening.

What to do with you, Tatum Browne? What do I do with you? Zachary Lee deliberated to himself.

He shouldn’t have had an Eureka reaction when her pacifying fingers skirred over his chin and his eyes set on the empress of browns, but he did. Oh, how drunk those eyes were. How drunk his own were. To fend off drunk would be hopeless, but not when they clashed together like this, not when the blue and brown had their agendas full of vendetta so consonantly similar to the fall out that shaped Pangea and the world thereafter. The night was overhead of them, enchanted to darling cicada hymns and Monte-Carlo nature springs.

“You can’t say that,” Zachary Lee long last droned, vocals scratchy,“You should take that back right now.”

Liars..Liars everywhere.

His hands knotted through her blonde hair, his palms a premising presence on her face. “You are playing a game, Tatum. You are. You only know how I feel in one way. How could you even know me?”

He gave a rough, embittered masculine laugh down his sore throat.

“Do you? I mean I don't know about you, but sleeping together and screwing- well, those talks...those talks are pretend. You know my favorite color, congratulations! But we-”

Snaring her hand, the one which visioned itself at his chin, he gave the hostage fingers an microscopic squeeze, dividing his severe consciousness to them. “You only know this,” he punctuated, modeling her hand down the dash of his neck to his chest. Turning her hand side to side in the milky moonlight, he crumpled her fingers back into his fist, one at a time with fragility, “So, Don’t. Give. Me. That. That shit that I’m criticizing you and that I seem upset and all that -”

Opening his fist, he apathetically let her hand fall to her side. Disoriented, he jabbed his foot into the ground. His neck yawed towards the party from afar, and his tongue lolled at the side of his cheek.

“Because if I’m going to be honest with you, Tatum, you’re basically a stranger to me. Strangers that f***, and nothing more,” he came clean with a notorious slur.

A drunk caller would have made a better son of a bitch than Zachary Lee. Solo in his arrogance and wasted, he inched closer once more, up to the mark where he could feel the broken drub of her heart. He cornered into her till the flux of her eyelashes on the verge of salty tears stroked his jowl, and the soft rise and fall of her chest tamed against his rapidly beating one...

“They’re all right. You’re just a spoiled, bribing, little brat that didn’t have any friends so made up your own teenage life movie where you like to whore around and cast yourself in different personalities. You could ask the boy you ditched for me,” He verbalized, his mispronounciation expanding. He plundered his blame on her, probed by the alcohol that stuck to his taste buds.

“But, for someone so selfish,” he acknowledged losing the border of humanity, the faintest blackhearted smirk with a stint delighting his lips, ”You are one pretty mess up.”

Elf_Ruler

 

[Elf_Ruler]

Tatum had tried to keep hold of Zach though she knew she couldn’t hold him for long. Why did it matter if she cared? She couldn’t grasp why it seemed to bother him and she could only give her head a shake in disagreement with him. She thought he was going to talk with her and then histone began to change, and she could feel the hurt rising in her chest as he told her she was playing a game with him. She knew she could toy with emotions, but she wasn’t toying with him, her talks had always been honest with him, she had always been open with him. Sure, no strings but that didn’t mean everything was pretend that didn’t mean she didn’t care, or that she wasn’t honest with him. She would never want to date him, but that didn’t mean she didn’t want the friendship that she thought they had developed.

His words became harsher and she felt the tears pricking the corners of her eyes and she tried to blink them away, blink the pain away, the crushing feeling in her chest as he called her a stranger. It hurt her more than she wanted to admit. The names that followed were only more pointed jab at her. She felt one single tear fall at the end of all his criticisms of her and that was when she looked at his blue eyes, “Fuck you, Zachary Lee.” She pushed him away with all her strength before walking off and then she let more tears escape. He had hurt her more than she wanted him to know. She wasn’t going to cry in front of him. She would never give someone like him that satisfaction.

She felt the crushing weight still in her chest as she pushed through the teenagers, all she wanted was to escape the crowd, to escape the criticism, to escape the fact that she was lonely sometimes and having a warm body sometimes eased that loneliness but it hurt more because she had believed he was her friend and he wasn’t.

As she pushed through the crowds, she wasn’t paying attention, the tears were clouding her vision and she ran headfirst into someone. She stopped to look up and saw Elias. She needed someone to comfort her and she wrapped her arms around him and buried her face into his shirt. She didn’t know what to say to him, how could she explain the names that she had been called? How could she explain the hurt that was coursing through her whole body? Instead all she could do was hope he would let him use his shirt to soak up her tears. This had been the worst back to school party and she wished it had never happened.

lion. fin

 

[Dede]

Stu from England

‘O--oh, you do?’ Who would ever like a stick-in-the-mud name like Stu? Judging by the apparent novelty of the name to her ears, perhaps some qualification was needed: ‘It’s, um, short for Stuart. You know, like Stuart Little, the mouse?’ he said, adding a chuckle at his own expense. ‘...But I reckon that’s even worse... Anyway, nobody’s ever said they liked my name. Like, ever.’

His soft eyes shied from hers while she scrutinised his appearance. It was a good thing he had made an effort to look smarter than usual, picking through his wardrobe for a matching pair of socks. As if he had the sense that he was going to be talking to a girl tonight!! Although in retrospect, having that nacho bag over his face like a circus seal balancing a beach ball on its nose was a mistake... he hoped it didn’t break the illusion of his English 'gentlemanliness' for Meera too much. Sure he might have looked like a seal, but pray he didn’t also squeal like one!

He had retracted his flipper – arm, rather – little expecting the girl to close the distance to shake it away, before it could be safely tucked into his pocket. After this nervous handshake, utterly embarrassing for the amount of nacho dust involved, Stu dared to meet her beautiful eyes briefly, without melting to the floor like a glob of butter on a hot piece of toast.

Now the invitation to the dance caught him off guard, and before he could profess his dancing disability he’d become a rag doll bouncing and trailing after her very firm grip. He immediately regretted not having paid more attention to Graham when he tried to show off his dancing moves. For being such a lousy friend he was paying the ultimate price!!! Worse, everyone on that dance floor would bear witness to his humiliation. In a hundred years, historians would be writing about the greatest dancing disaster of our time; they’ll say it was how the third world war started; how a boy danced so poorly the world order plunged into disrepair; they’d be teaching it to kids in classrooms all across America!

Despite this, either Meera’s endless positivity or the sheer strength of her arm evicted him from his shell. And he bit the bullet, saying, ‘Alright – Meera from Surat… we’ll dance!’

The music had barely crescendoed when Meera pointed out that his zip-zip was not so zip-zipped, a sign of greater embarrassments to follow. Stu either blushed the deepest red, or a beam of light of that same colour timely struck his face. In any case the zip was stuck to the metal teeth and took great effort to dislodge, which had him hopping a little in circles – yes yes, like a seal.

Stu changed the subject best he could: ‘...So – um – did you– ‘ With a grunt he got the zip-zip sorted. ‘I mean – did you come here all by yourself, or with your family?’ he said. ‘It must be difficult, being so far away… from home.’ At least he assumed it was far away, since he still had no idea where in the world Surat was.

He didn’t have to wait long for another embarrassing situation to manifest itself, amid the awkward turns of a dance that defied classification, his shoelaces had come undone for the second time tonight. Stu always thought that his life was a series of unfortunate events, and you could understand how he got that impression. At the risk of Meera thinking he was a complete loser, he excused himself and stooped to the world of shorter people and half-persons, where he sweated over the chaotic tapestry of his shoelaces, and tried to put Humpty Dumpty back together again – if only he could remember how.

lion.

 

[LittleWolfie]

Madi Lexington-Montgomery


Madeleine shook her head, but only slightly so the glasses didn't fall off her face since they were so precariously balanced. "No... I can't say I know him. Freddie might but not me." She held still as Hayden adjusted the glasses on her face, unknowingly blushing slightly when he said she looked nice in them, "Thanks although I feel like I should give them back if I can find him again..." Chances of that in this crowd though.... slim to none really especially since she'd never even seen him before so had no clue who he was.

Somehow it felt like the conversation had stalled slightly so she took an awkward sip of her drink to try and fill the seconds that seemed way too long for seconds. "So...umm... Brayden, are you going out for any sports this year?" Madi asked, biting her lip a little. She was cold and feeling more that a bit out of place right now. Her free hand rubbed at her arm, trying to get some warmth back into it and get rid of the goosebumps that had appeared. So sure, the flat shoes were a good choice, but a lack of jacket with a strappy dress was not the best decision she had ever made it had to be said.

Interactions: Dazzle (Hayden) Elf_Ruler (Brayden)​

 

[Dazzle]

Graham Moore

Graham was easily distracted, in a number of different ways. Despite that, he was still surprised that Stu had snuck off without him noticing. Graham looked over his shoulder just in time to catch Stu, the Stu. Dancing, now Graham had to be seeing things. This just didn't make sense. Graham's eyes went wide and his mouth dropped a bit. Graham closed his eyes tightly and opened them again blinking a few times. "That son of a...." Graham thought about his choice of words before finishing his sentence. "Such a." He looked over a Lulu and let it go rather quickly.

He couldn't believe that all this time Stu had made fun of him for dancing and then Stu had snuck off and went dancing by himself. How could Stu do such a thing, how was Stu such a liar. "Come on Lulu." Graham took Lulu's wrist in his hand as he marched towards the bonfire. Stu never wanted to be seen with Graham when he was dancing. Of course that never stopped Graham, but Stu made it obvious that it wasn't how he wanted to be scene.

As Graham reached the bonfire he release Lulu from his grasp, as quickly as he saw Stu he lost him. Graham raised his chin high, trying to see beyond the crowds. He even went as far as to stand on his tippy toes, he was still pretty annoyed that Stu had left him and Lulu high and dry, he didn't even have the decency to invite them to come and dance. Stu knew it was Graham's favorite thing and Graham knew Lulu wouldn't have turned down the chance to dance either. They could of been the one's the the school was clapping for, not the random blonde and guy who just lamely spun around the fire.

Alright, maybe Graham was being slightly full of himself. They weren't that bad at dancing and having the school clap for him was a stretch, even if he was a good dancer, he's sure he wouldn't have anyone clapping for him.

But, the idea of having someone clap for him distracted him for a moment, his feet continued to move through the crowds. Graham had gotten rather lost in his own mind, thinking of one day being famous or at least actually liked within school. Graham began to bounce to the music, it was hard for him to ignore it for long. Graham was swaying to the music before long, the beat of it called to him, it called to every nerve of his body. Most of the groups moved out Graham's way, but it wasn't until Graham walked into a small figure that he was brought back to the real reason he was out in the crowd. He was supposed to be finding Stu.

He shook his head. "I'm so sorry." He stopped to help the small figure to their feet. "I.. I wasn't paying attention." He looked around again trying to get an eye on Stu. It wasn't until he looked back to see the girl standing in front of him, and all thoughts of Stu and dancing left his brain. The beautiful girl standing in front of him. Graham was close to speechless and that was rare for him. "Hi.." He smiled, pulling his hand away and running his hand through his hair. "I'm Graham." He smirked ever so slightly.

Interactions: PenguinFox lion. Mentions: Dede​

 

[fin]

Elias​

To say the party had fell into full swing would be an understatement. As usual, even Silver Oak's finest new how to get down and enjoy a good party. Elias was the odd one out though, and stood awkwardly in the center of it all. He'd finished the last of his gin and lemonade mix, and was robbed of his flask by intoxicated members of the football team having a go at him. Of course he teased back, feigned some punches here and there, but eventually the drunk athletes made off on their alcoholic crusade, along with his precious tin flask. Elias couldn't blame them for getting bored of him though. He'd chosen to abstain from alcohol at the party (asides from his little drop of gin), and learned the hard way that being sober was no fun. Still, his relationship with Coach Alo was ass and he hoped to be in top condition when trying out for the teams this year. He was a stellar athlete, yes, but his short flare often got the better of him. His verbal outburst the past season had been... less than flattering, and in spite of it being a championship game, Elias was quickly benched.

Elias sighed, eyes scanning the ocean of kids. It was dark, and difficult to make out anyone amidst the dancing, and make out. He was tempted to head back to his dorm, all before he felt a force in his back. It wasn't anything close to being lined in football, or shoved in basketball, but it was a noticeable one nonetheless. Upon turning around, Elias almost gasped in shock at the sight of Tatum below him. Tatum. It took a moment for him to register who it was that'd just bumped into him, and another to see that she was distraught and in tears. "Oh, Tatum..." Elias said quietly, though that wasn't what she needed. Upon her embrace, Elias brought his arms around her waist, and clasped her tight in the night. In any other circumstance he'd have passed out with sheer adrenaline, but right now a standing, hugging Elias was all she needed.

Elias made sure to stay quiet, and allow the silence to aid Tatum to cop with her emotions. He could feel the quick beating of her heart against his, her soft hands around his shoulders, and smell the sweet lavender of her hair from how close they were. Elias was never a professional in dealing with emotions, especially those of other people, and was surprised at just how instinctual his next chain of actions would be. Having removed an arm from around Tatum, Elias brought it over to her cheek. Gently, he brushed the hair from her eyes, and wiped away the tears that slid down her face. Mentally, Elias made a note of finding, and hunting down whoever'd done this to Tatum. To make them pay for pushing Tatum to this point. Currently though, he just focused his eyes down on the blond below him, softening his features the best he could in hopes that she'd open up to him.

"I'm so sorry, Tatum. I-I don't know what happened to you, love, but it's going to be okay..."

Elf_Ruler ​

 

[lion.]

Meera Desai​

“By myself,” Meera proudly, remarked, bandying her chin skyward towards the swirls of gemstones in the sky, “I went on the plane, you know? Did not sleep a blink! Or a wink. There was no leg room, and pillow no soft. But, yes, just me.” She felt a twinge within her of a memory of her home country. With sweet music fiddled around them, she could see the dusty streets and cerise sunsets, smell turmeric and motorcycle gasoline, and hear the chortles of laughter emitting from mischievous children playing cricket. Without realizing, she narrated, “Yes. Yes, I do miss home. It is very strange here.”

Unthinkingly, her eyes flittered to Stu, and a broad, hip smile gained on her foolhardy mouth. His performance at dance was far from perfect, but it was the venturesome moves that made her heart feel like an open door. Give or take, Meera couldn’t dance herself. She had contriveably erratic definition for a wave, and became a whistling hippie crossed with a junkie on the occurrence of getting it down with the notes.

“Do not forget me,” she joked, when Stu pardoned himself from her. In an axle of a spin, she shortly found herself crashing into someone like an unhinged door to a wall. Meera yelped an acute, hyperintense shriek. With the jabber of vocals, she bowled over into the emerald grass. Hearing an apology over her stampeding heart rate, the soap opera queen let her hand clasp into his as he helped usher her back to her feet.

“Actually, this is all my fault,” she attested, rubbing her elbows and brushing out a blade of grass soldering to her dress, “I am clumsy-”

She half-screamed again, when she looked up to his face.

Who let someone so good looking bulldoze right into her?

Introducing himself as Graham, Meera’s instinct was to say her name back, except when she parted her mouth, it squeaked instead.

“I’m Meera.”

Following the less than smooth greeting, Meera was shocked to see how time flew by with him. In fact, it shocked her that she even gave him his number.

Dazzle

 

[TexasKingPin]

Armand Baptiste Virgil



Armand always felt a certain… elation that came over his body when the sun began to dip below the horizon, when the colors of the fiery sun painted the sky an array of glittering golds, bright oranges, and deep reds. He was delighted this evening as he changed from his more formal attire, his day had been filled with meetings that were always staple in the weeks before school was set to start, to an outfit that was more comfortable on his skin. It was almost a sigh of relief that slipped past his lips when the knot on his tie was loosened, discarding the article in a half-hazard way on the growing pile of dirty laundry that he kept promising himself that he would deal with. His crisp, creased chinos were replaced by jeans, the faded denim was fraying at the ankles but he still liked how they fit him so it would take an act of God to have him replace them, clothes held sentimental value to him still and it was always hard for him to just go buy something new. His similarly crisp and creased white button down that had been paired with the red tie that was now on floor was also replaced, the shirt finding itself in the same position as the tie, an old Navy shirt that was a mute dark blue with the white letters that spelled out “U.S Navy” on the back were patchy at best now but you could still make out the outline. The last change was shoes, beautifully polished black leather, replaced with a worn out pair of box toe cowboy boots that were probably older then every student on campus grounds. “You ready?” His dark eyebrows raised up in a questioning manner, the Great Dane who had been politely sitting at the door exploded in a flurry of barks and jumps, crashing into the half open door to run around Armand before darting out the bedroom door. “Guess I got my answer…” The Cajun Man just shook his head and sighed, a smile dancing on his lips as he followed after the beast who was crashing through the living room.


Boudin was a very happy dog who didn’t know the power of his size because he ended up knocking down the screen door when Armand opened the back door of his house, the dog skittered away like a frightened rabbit and raced down into the yard. “Ahhhh...Fuck…” The sigh was long, weary sounding when it came out of Armand’s mouth, this was the upteenth time that Boudin broke the screen door and he was doing the calculations to see if it would be worth the aggravation to attempt to fix it or just get one of those “Seen on TV” magnet screen doors and call it a day. “I love you, but you are just too big for your own body sometimes… Did you know that?” Armand shook his finger at the dog, Boudin didn’t care though he just rolled around in some dirt that made his brindle coat look dirty. “You’re an ass.” Armand grunted and picked the screen door up, tossing it off the side of the deck and onto the grass below, it would stay there until it was time to get rid of the trash that had piled up that week.


The walk to the barn wasn’t that long, his dog was leaping ahead of him to dart in and out of the woods, smelling everything and likely pissing on everything too. Armand couldn’t do anything, just shake his head at the animal that he loved so dearly. The barn came into sight, it was ugly and needed new coat paint, something Armand would do on a weekend when he wasn’t dealing with a school meeting or function. Beyond the barn was a pasture where the ten horse herd was grazing happily, munching and crunching on the vegetation beneath their hooves. Boudin learned his lesson early on when a chestnut mare had almost given him a solid kick to the head and stayed out of the pasture while Armand clambered over the fence, sitting there for a moment on the creaking boards. It wasn’t long before his horse, Raphael, finally noticed him from across the pasture and began his daily race to get over to his owner. Armand grinned as he watched, feeling nothing but pure delight as thundering hooves came closer and closer to his place on the fence. “I didn’t even have to call for you today?” His voice was a murmur, soft and loving, as he placed the halter on Raphael's massive skull, hopping down from his place on the fence to take a firm grasp on the halter. Leading his little band of animals away from the pasture and back into the barn, Armand took note that as the sun dipped lower in the sky that it became a dark crimson that danced across the white clouds in the sky.


They exited the barn twenty minutes later with Armand in the saddle and Boudin leading the charge, Raphael breaking into an easy canter to catch up with the dog as they disappeared into the sparse forest of the Silver Oaks campus….


Red sun at night, sailors delight
Red sun at morn, sailors best be warned


Even when the red sun crumbled below the horizon and darkness shrouded them, the trio kept going as they rode across campus in every direction, galloping across open fields that were overgrown and walking along hard asphalt roads, enjoying the time before another busy school year would take over their lives again.


Honestly? It was the music that got his attention, it was too loud to just be a small group of teenagers screwing around in the woods, and if had just been like… a small group of teenagers then he would’ve rode off into the night blissfully ignorant to everything because he was also once a dumb teenager that liked to party in the woods. When he crested over a small rise, blended deep into the shadows and trees so that he was an invisible statue, he wanted to smack himself in the forehead with the heel of his palm. It wasn’t a small group of dumb teenagers, but a herd of them that had had to have been half the student body all standing around and dancing to music and drinking to their liver’s content. “I’m gonna have to call now that I can see it.” He made a face, he was mad more at himself for looking instead of just riding off into the other direction because he couldn’t leave this place in good conscience and hope that someone didn’t get hurt while they were drunk or even worse. Boudin and Raphael looked at each other, both seemed to snort on cue with the understanding that they weren’t gonna get home any time soon and resigned themselves to wait patiently with curious eyes. Armand peeled the ball cap off his head and hung it on the horn of the saddle, the fraying yellow lettering spelled out “Retired U.S Navy Chief" as he dug into the front pocket of his jeans for his phone. The number pad beeped and he heard the rings, waiting for the click, “Hey, get out of your comfy pajamas, we’ve got a party to bust up…” Armand spoke softly into the receiver, his eyes still peering down from his place on the hill as he watched the party continue on… ​

Mentions: @AllOfYouLittleShits,WrapItUp
Interactions: Dede ​

 

[0k_mang0]

kekoa

with Harper Dazzle , mention Flo Moonshadow​

“A lanyard would be great, thanks. I used to have a Hello Kitty lanyard, but it got lost during the move-in.” Or it could’ve gotten stolen, she wasn’t sure. Maybe it wouldn’t have happened if women's clothing had more jeans and pants with bigger pockets.

When Harper suggested a movie night, Kekoa responded with an appreciative smile. “Yeah, a movie before sleep sounds awesome. I can get out the snacks I’ve packed from home while you pick the movie, yeah?” Halfway to their dorm building, Kekoa heard her phone chime a new text message from her dad, and a sort of uh-oh expression appeared on her face for a second while reading it. The previous message before the new one said he was going home, but then a minute later, he mentioned going to break up a party near the lake and hoped Kekoa was safely in her dorm having a goodnight's sleep.

“We should probably, um, walk away from the party a little faster. Y’know, so a teacher doesn’t see us, like my dad if he’s here...” Knowing her dad, Kekoa had a feeling she wouldn’t get any special treatment if her dad also caught her at the party or walking away from it. The loud music and such would’ve caught school faculty attention sooner or later. Sure, Kekoa heard the school usually turned the blind eye to these things, but she still doubted the school would tolerate the party forever when there was a bonfire created by unsupervised teenagers.

“Maybe you should text Flo just in case. I don’t want her to get in trouble if teachers show up at the party. She seems really cool.”

 

[Dazzle]

Wyatt Baker

Wyatt's had settled in quite easily back into the days of Silver Oaks, it was different though, different now that he was a teacher rather than a student. He was rather grateful that Kaufman had supported him coming back to the school, despite all of the nonsense he had gotten into when he was a student. Wyatt was about to settle in for the night, watch a movie, have some dinner, and go to bed early. 'Wow had things changed' He smiled, shaking his head as he thought about his college days and high school days of staying up late and partying.

Wyatt walked over to his window, taking a look out as the sun disappeared behind the trees. It would of made a really nice painting, but Wyatt had been in a bit of a funk and lost motivation to paint.

That was when he saw Kaufman leave his own house, storming out of his house, slamming the door behind him. Wyatt chuckled to himself as he walked to the door. "Hey! Kaufman." He smirked.

"What got you out of your silk pajamas tonight? Big date?" He wiggled his eyebrows, smiling wickedly. He knew that he was asking for it, but for the first time Kaufman wouldn't be able to throw him in detention for it. Wyatt leaned against the door frame crossing his arms.

Kaufman starred him down and Wyatt felt like the high schooler being punished for harassing a teacher once again, Kaufman stopped walking and waived Wyatt over. "Welcome to being a teacher. Now you can come and break up the party."

Wyatt really needed to learn when to keep his mouth shut. He should of pretended he was sleeping, rather than getting involved. Wyatt remember all too well, it was tradition to have a party the first weekend back at school. He did and didn't understand why the teachers had to break it up. Kids could go too far yes, but at the same time, at least they weren't driving and realistically were safe on campus. He wasn't happy having to be the bad guy, when he had only been legally drinking for a year at this point. But he wasn't going to fight with Kaufman, and they could really get in trouble if something happened to a student..

---

The walk didn't take more than 5 minutes, where they met up with Armand, the dean of students. Wyatt had never interacted with him much when he was at school, and doubted Armand remembered him, even if Armand had chased Wyatt off on the horse numerous amounts of times when Wyatt and his then girlfriend would hide out by the stables.... Studying...

The party was loud, and honestly Wyatt was surprised he and Mr. Kaufman hadn't heard it from their own houses. Most of the school seemed to be there, and it was obvious most of the students were drunk of their asses. His eyes went wide at the size of the bonfire, they had never actually set anything on fire in his four years, it was obvious that these students likely were more outgoing or maybe destructive than his grade had been.

"Uh..." Wyatt stammered.. "So what do we do now??" Wyatt had always been on the other side of it, the side that ran when the teachers arrived, he scanned the crowds of students and most of them were too preoccupied with their surroundings to notice or even care that the teachers had shown up. Granted, Wyatt could of fit right in with the rest of them, and no one would of even noticed.

Interactions: Dede TexasKingPin Mentions: @allofthestudents​

 

[Dede]

Peter Kaufman

Dr. Peter Kaufman was cosying up in the bath with Adam Smith. No – not the man, pervert! Rather he was mulling over a passage from the fifth book of the Wealth of Nations – ‘On the Revenue of the Commonwealth’ – that marvellous magnum opus of economics which he had read from cover to cover a dozen times over. Yet every turn of the page offered crushing epiphanies, as though he were coming to the book anew. Adam Smith had aged as well as the fine wine Dr. Kaufman held in his other hand. Château Rieussec. 2007. The spitting image of rural France. The rolling hills of the Ariege. Nature and beauty unsurpassed.

In the background was the leitmotif of the Ride of the Valkyries, of German conception like Kaufman himself. Conducted by the legendary Toscanini, it soared to the tinniest heights from his most unworthy radio resting on the toilet seat. Unflattering appearances aside, it was the perfect soundtrack for a man destined for greatness. No lesser a man than the Führer had enjoyed the operas of Wagner. Which is not to suggest that Dr. Kaufman shared sympathies with the Third Reich, before anyone should think to report him to the authorities.

Amidst the Wagnerian bombast he was clueless to the silent buzzing of his phone. It had been balancing precariously on the edge of the tub, that the slightest nudge now sent it flying into the bubbling abyss. ‘Oh, for the love of cock,’ the au naturel teacher mumbled at the splash.

Capitalism triumphant, he closed the book and tossed it aside for later perusal. Hauling himself from bathwater, he rescued his phone from the depths and discovered the meaning of this rude disruption. The man who owed him his peace was none other than wannabe John Wayne, Mr. Armand Virgil. ‘That bearded bastard,’ he groaned. The righteous and humourless face of law and order nobody asked for. Gone was the age of anarchy, outlaws and gunslingers. America was becoming a land of laws… Even Silver Oak had mostly been tamed.

Armand had been nothing but trouble for Kaufman ever since he appeared on his damn horse, a handsome silhouette against the glowing sunset. For Kaufman, apart from teaching the sophisticated science of economics, was an entrepreneur at heart and a practitioner of his own trade. His personal experiment in money-making was a little drug empire which had long thrived under Longford’s gullible nose. He wasn’t quite operating at Gus Fring’s level (as he didn’t yet have a meth lab to boast of), but over the decade Kaufman had amassed enough wealth from such secret ventures to buy himself a PhD – absolutely fake but unprovably so – so that he could call himself ‘Doctor’.

Armand’s constant policing of Silver Oak and his habit of sticking his nose where it didn’t belong was an obvious threat to Kaufman’s operations, and the fact that he was about to make a sweep of this secret ‘party’ sent the Doctor packing. For whatever contrabands this self-proclaimed sheriff might find poking round the party could show a breadcrumb trail back to the criminal mastermind. Kaufman was about to set off in a hurry, but not before his pesky fly of a neighbour, Wyatt Baker, intercepted him on the porch. Perhaps having the kid there could be good. He could annoy Armand to death with boring tales while Kaufman mopped up the evidence.

They got to the party soon enough, and Kaufman wasted no time to barge in with noisy intent. ‘Alright, EVERYBODY CLEAR OUT! Party’s over!’ He seized the nearest drunk kid by the collar and shoved him down the steps of the observatory, narrowly missing the bonfire. ‘And take your things with you. I’d better not find anything illegal here, or there’ll be trouble!’

@ everyone

 

[Dazzle]

The Following Monday Morning

Hayden Anderson

Hayden scratched the back of his neck, Hayden knew Madi well but he was just starting to get to know Brayden and he did feel a bit bad for conversing with only Madi. But, Hayden liked Brayden and he wanted to be friends with him. It just wasn’t going as smoothly as he had hoped, and he was sure that if he was feeling slightly awkward, Madi was feeling at least three times as awkward as he was.

Hayden noticed as Madi rubbed her arms as if she was cold. Hayden furrowed his eyebrows, “Did you forget to wear enough clothes Madi?” He chuckled lightly, peeling off his leather jacket. “Here.” Hayden hung the jacket on his fingers reaching out to her.

He tilted his head as she first refused the jacket, he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Madi gently removed the jacket from his fingers. Wrapping the jacket around her shoulders.

Hayden smirked, but when he heard Kaufman's voice he reacted. “Shit. I guess the party’s over.” He shrugged. “We better get out of here before we are all benched this fall.” Hayden took off, running off in the opposite direction. He did not need to be caught by the football coach today. Hayden had already heard he was a hard ass, and didn’t want to start the year on his bad side.

Interactions: Elf_Ruler LittleWolfie
------

Hayden’s weekend went relatively normal, he took Sunday to recover and hung out with Madi and Hayden in the afternoon. Even after having a whole day to recover, Hayden was not ready for the first day of school. He felt groggy the next morning, and even though music was his first class, he did not want to go. Despite how much he loved music.

Hayden loved to play the guitar, and only really ever got a chance in music. He didn’t have his own anymore, so he took every chance he got to play. His father had sold his guitar the summer before they moved to Colorado, and without a job, Hayden wasn’t able to save up for one. Even if he did, his father would take the money from him to support his drinking habit.

Hayden’s alarm clock went off again, Hayden rolled over hitting the clock on his side table. Audibly grunting, he sat up in his bed leaning back against the wall behind his bed. He ran a hand through his hair and finally convinced himself to get out of bed.

Hayden quickly changed and got ready for the day, class started in 15 minutes roughly and Hayden still had to get across campus to the music room.

--

Hayden was happy to be back at Silver Oaks, despite the party being broken up, they still had a great new year kick off. Luckily, Hayden made it to class in record time with five minutes to spare. He took a seat in the back of the choir chairs. He was tired and was hoping he could catch a few extra minutes of sleep.

Interactions: Open Mentions: Elf_Ruler LittleWolfie
​

 

[Dazzle]

Harper Anderson

Harper had never expected that her new year would start so.. So rough. Harper really believed that she was finally on her path to get where she wanted to be in life. She was finally happy, but maybe she wasn’t meant to be happy, maybe there would always be hurt in her life. Harper hadn’t bothered to tell anyone what happened, but she was pretty sure it would have gotten around school by this time.

Chase and Noah were probably happy, probably didn’t even care how she felt. She knew she never crossed anyone’s mind, she didn’t matter to anyone.

Harper wanted to go back to before everything, before she met chase, before she moved, before she lost her mom.

Harper hadn’t bothered to get up Monday morning. She wrapped herself up in a blanket and stared at the corner of the wall. Harper had told Keoka she wasn’t feeling well, but Harper just wanted to get her out of the room. Harper hadn’t had a chance to be alone, and she knew that her teachers wouldn’t miss her. It was the first morning back, who cared where she was.

She skipped her whole first week last year. The teachers never even noticed she was missing. She had no problem catching back up either, the classes were a joke the first week back anyways.

Harper couldn’t lay still any longer, she pushed into her left arm lifting herself up. She breathed out heavily, running a hand through her hair.

Harper threw her covers to the end of the bed before swinging her legs to the edge of the bed. She picked up her phone off of her side table.

Harper scrolled through a number of notifications, most just likes on the instagram post she had posted when she had gotten back to school. Of her and Chase. This broke her heart all over again. Everything she had known was different now, she knew she couldn’t delete a memory by taking the photo down..

As much as she wanted to press that delete button, she didn’t. Harper just archived the photo, it was gone from everyone’s eyes. But at least it wasn’t gone forever.

Harper still loved Chase, but she didn’t want to, she wanted to forget it all. She wished she never met Chase, or Noah for that matter.

Harper needed to get out of her own head. She threw her hair up into a ponytail, and changed into a pair of jeans and old tee shirt. Sitting back down on her bed she put her headphones in sighing before forcing herself to stand back up. She didn't want to leave her room, but Zach was right, she was wallowing in her own self pitty. Staying in her room would just make everything worse, she needed a clear head, and she knew exactly where she needed to go to find that.

Harper swung the door to her dorm open and made her way through the courtyards to her favorite place on campus. The stables reminded her of her of home, she missed owning her own horse but this was second best.

She wandered into the stables, walking over to one of the stalls as one of the horses hung their head over the stall door. Harper reached out and patted the neck of the bay horse in front of her. The horse pressed his head into her chest and Harper melted. Her anxieties felt irrelevant, she breathed evenly and quietly into the horses neck as she wrapped her arms around him. The gelding nickered quietly into her chest and Harper felt fully relaxed. This is where she truly belonged, in the stables.

Interactions: @Open Mentions: a z u l a mogy 0k_mang0​

 

[Dazzle]

Graham Moore

Graham had the /best/ time at the party. Even though it had gotten broken up by the teachers, Graham had managed to get off pretty easily because he hadn’t drank anything that night. However, he was far from sober. He was high off of meeting Meera, her beautiful long hair. The way she smiled, her whole face lit up, her genuine happiness sparked something in Graham.

Graham had never felt confident around girls off the bat, they were too confusing. But, being around Meera felt.. Easy. She was so kind, and Graham almost couldn’t believe that she had given her number to him. His heart fluttered and she had been texting /him/ since Saturday, most girls usually left him on read so he would get the point.

Graham was rather drawn into his phone since Saturday, and Stu had definitely noticed. But, Graham didn’t tell him about her, he didn’t want to tell him about her just yet. Graham didn’t want to get his own hopes up about Meera.

Graham wandered into his science class without taking his eyes away from his phone. He pulled out a chair and sat down, almost missing the seat, he quickly caught himself before he fell to the ground. Now normally Graham would have been very focused on the worry of making a fool of himself for the first day of classes. But his own fear was ignored by the distraction of Meera and thoughts of Meera.

“Mr. Moore.” Graham squinted his eyes, he couldn’t focus on the voices around him. “Mr. Moore.” Graham heard more clearly that time but still wasn’t pulled from within his own mind. “MR. MOORE.” Graham finally was pulled from within his own mind, looking up to see his teacher standing over him.

“Phone. Now.”

“Uh” Graham stumbled on his words. “I’m sorry. I’ll put it away, can I just keep it?” Graham clutched his phone close to his chest. But the teacher kept his hand out and Graham knew that it wasn’t a question. He regretfully handed the phone to the teacher. Sitting back against his chair he crossed his arms and scowled for a moment, before dropping his face. He didn’t want to get in even more trouble.

Interactions: Open Mentions: Dede lion.


Carter Zigmond

Carter had spent the rest of Saturday and most of Sunday chilling out between Beck and Tatum’s room. Carter knew something had happened at the party between Tatum and Zach, but Tatum wasn’t going to talk about it and Carter wasn’t going to pry and she needed to focus on classes. Carter was just as good at dealing with feelings as Tatum was, and that wasn’t saying much. Carter kept everything to herself, so she understood Tatum’s reasoning on not wanting to talk about it.

Carter had slipped her laptop into her messenger bag and made her way across campus, passing the memorial oak. She ran her hand through her hair, bringing it all to one side of her neck. As Carter walked into the building she took off her sunglasses and placed them on top of her head.

Carter wondered how Eli had made out over the rest of the weekend. She hadn’t heard from him much, but that didn't necessarily worry her. He always turned back up, probably spent the night at one of the sorority houses nearby.

Carter plopped her bag down on the ground next to her chair, she pulled out the chair and sat down. Crossing her legs before reaching down and pulling out her laptop. Carter rested her chin on her hand as she scrolled through facebook. She rarely used it for much more than keeping up with her estranged family. They looked happy, happy without her, but that was no different than anything else.

She sighed and closed her laptop, leaning back against the chair. She shouldn’t show up to class so early, it was always boring. If it hadn’t been the first class of the day, she would've likely been stuck outside waiting for the previous class to end.

Interactions: @Open Mentions: High5ives Elf_Ruler LittleWolfie


Wyatt Baker

It was the first day of classes and Wyatt was unusually excited for school, maybe because for once he wasn’t the one in the chairs. He didn’t have to study to pass, and there was no worry on whether he would get into college or not. He was the teacher, and he hoped that he would give the students a break from day to day life. Art had been an outlet for him, and he knew it wouldn’t be for all of his students. He still hoped to make a change for a few students.

Even though he was in a bit of an artistic funk himself. Wyatt had decorated the art room with paintings he had worked on in college, along with a few of his favorite famous artists.

Of course with everything that had gone down the past weekend, he was sure he was going to have quite a few students who didn’t let the party end on Saturday. He had no judgment about it though, he would have done the same thing had he been in their situation. He might have actually gone out to the bars if he still had any friends in the state.

/Maybe he could convince Kaufman to come out with him next weekend./ He knew Kaufman would likely refuse, but it still would be funny to ask. Just to see his reaction.

Wyatt pulled out his attendance list and read it over to see if he recognized anyone from when he was a senior. The list was full of sophomores, juniors, and only a few seniors. He unfortunately didn’t recall any of the names on his list. But, that was likely for the better. It would have been more awkward if he did remember them.

Having to tell people he might have once been friends with what to do, and having to grade them would have just been rather awkward.

Interactions: @Open​

 

[0k_mang0]

Bernard Alo

@ all you punks at the party​

Master Chief Bernard Alo wasn’t in his pajamas when he heard about the party raging on at the school observatory. He had been on school grounds since midmorning, rechecking his lesson plans and coaching preparations all day for the school year. Now it was sometime in the evening, and while Coach Alo was getting ready to go home and get some sleep, he noticed music echoing somewhere in the distance, and a short moment later he got a call about students having an unauthorized party by the lake.

And now, he was shoving his way through the crowd of drunk and/or high teenagers. He brought a mini fire extinguisher with him after spotting a pillar of smoke coming from a bonfire—he would take care of that after making his announcement later. When he made his way up to the DJ, who moved away the second he saw the coach’s stern expression and a nod from him to move out of the way. Then, Bernard turned off the music and ordered the DJ to give him a microphone.

Scratching his goatee for a bit, the football coach cleared his throat and his deep voice rumbled through the speakers, making his tone clear for everyone to know that he wasn’t taking any nonsense from a bunch of teens:

“This is Coach Alo, newest addition to the physical education department this year. If you don’t get back to the dorms, I will make every one of you here run around the entire school property ‘till you’re on the verge of puking your guts out now and for the next three weeks, whether you’re in my class or not.” (He wouldn’t actually make his students puke their guts out, but he could still make them feel like they would.) “And if any of you are trying out for the football team or already in it, there’s gonna be hell to pay if you don’t get your ass out of here right now.”

He heard many grumbles and whining echoed through the crowd. Nonetheless, the partygoers began making their exit. They didn’t even clean up after themselves. Dumb kids, no respect for the environment.

 

[Dede]

Stu

The sun was straining through the window, morning birds chirping in the trees. Stu got up earlier than his alarm, all thanks to his roommate Alexander the Great who was noisily gearing up for his Persian campaign. As for Stu, he was as enthusiastic about the start of the school year as he looked – half-awake, half-naked, and wishing he were dead.

He rubbed his bleary eyes and bumbled through his morning rituals like he was one of George A. Romero’s creations. While brushing his teeth, he was thinking about Meera from Surat, the girl he met at the party. He had looked Surat up and read about it on Wikipedia. It looked a big city and not quite the Indian equivalent of his own hometown of Chipping Campden, where there were more sheep than people and watching paint dry counted as one of his actual hobbies.

Even the thought of Meera brought a smile on his face, which made him accidentally stab himself in the gum with the toothbrush. ‘Ow!’ It was a shame he never got her number... She might have given him her last name, but he was too busy being a clumsy idiot to remember. Sure, there weren’t many kids from India here, but Silver Oak was big enough a school and for a moment he thought he might never see her again.

It was Murder Monday, and in keeping with tradition, the mascot had to make an appearance at assembly at lunch time. The great news was that a successor grizzly cub had been found and Stu would not have to embarrass himself in front of an audience which might have included Meera. Snatching the bear costume from his wardrobe he scrunched it up under his elbow and trailed it upstairs to Room 28, hoping to catch his replacement before they left the nest. He suffered a minor setback when the head fell off and rolled down the stairs, and he had to chase after it.

He knocked, waited for an answer, then pounded some more for lack of one:

‘Hey! Open the door!’

Silence. While he waited he took out his phone and checked if Graham had texted him -- he hadn't. Graham had been on his phone a lot lately, almost suspiciously so. But he was probably just chatting with Lulu; maybe the two of them had finally hit it off at the dance.

Stu looked up at the door and hammered it a third time:

’Come on mate, I ent got all day!’

Was the kid asleep or what? Or had he already left for class? Stu sure hoped it wasn’t the latter, because he didn’t want to have to drag the costume around school while he spent the rest of the morning looking for him!

Twin Fantasy mentions: Dazzle lion. KingofAesir

 

[Elf_Ruler]

Tatum couldn’t help but cling to Elias, he had always made her feel like she was better than she truly was and for once she needed the comfort. She had let herself press into his palm and she felt like all she needed was his presence. She couldn’t help but gaze into his eyes and in that moment, she heard the loud voices of the teachers. She was pulled from her thoughts and dragged Elias away, “You can’t get in trouble.” She mumbled as she dragged him away from the party. It hadn’t been a long walk but at the end of the night she placed her lips to his cheek, “Thanks for the comfort.” Tatum was still hurt but she was at least going to pretend like she was okay. Sure, it was a lie, but she was strong, and she knew she didn’t need someone like Zach around at least not after the way he had treated her. Before she left Elias, she took one glance back and gave him a small smile.

The weekend passed relatively quiet she had spent some time moping, but Carter had pulled her out of it never questioning or prying about what went down. She wasn’t willing to discuss or repeat the words back that Zach had said about her, those words stung more than anything. She had spent some time with Brayden in his room just to feel some semblance of normalcy in her life.

When Monday had arrived, Tatum had opened her door to a thing of flowers and she was more than annoyed with Zach, she wasn’t giving him the satisfaction of accepting his stupid half-assed apology. She had plans to show Colby around mostly because the school had told her to. She hadn’t really wanted to go but she had to be strong and act like she was the queen she had convinced others that she was. She had applied her makeup and put on her makeup before she left the room. She hadn’t really said much to Grace, but she hadn’t really known what to say to her roomie, so she had mostly just been silent.

When she arrived at the main building, she sat just outside the entrance so she could catch sight of Colby and have the chance to give him the tour of the school. This meant she was excused from her morning classes, not that she’d miss much. She got good grades and was good at sucking up to the teachers, if anything she knew how to manipulate her way through a lot of situations and if that didn’t work well money spoke louder than anything at this school.

Mention(s): fin , lion. 0k_mang0 Dazzle
--

Brayden hadn’t really gotten a chance to respond to Madi when the teachers and other authority figures cleared out the party. He had left quickly after Hayden and the rest of his weekend had also been quiet. Minus when Tatum had come over and he had listened to her talk and complain, though she hadn’t told him much. He just let his best friend complain it out and then let her sleep it off in his bed. Otherwise he had a weekend not full of much adventure.

When Monday had rolled around Brayden didn’t really know what to expect of his first day. Sure, his cousin had gone to the school and Tatum had been there for a year, but he really didn’t know what to expect. It wasn’t like he hadn’t visited the school before and gotten a tour from his cousin but that had been years ago, and he hadn’t been paying attention.

He knew he wouldn’t be at the school if he hadn’t made one screw up but now, he was in a new place and he felt a little alone. Of course, he wasn’t going to admit that to anyone and he knew he would eventually make close friends. He had just been feeling the overwhelming guilt that had landed him at Silver Oak. The best he could hope for was to try and stay on the straight path. He made his way to his first class, some art class that he didn’t really remember asking for, but it could be worse. So he made his way and sat down somewhere in the class as he waited for others to arrive and for the class to start.

Mention(s): LittleWolfie Dazzle

 

[Twin Fantasy]

Vered Demsky

Last night probably wasn't one of Vered's proudest moments. He had no idea. He couldn't remember a darn thing. He knew enough to recognize that his drink must've gotten mixed up somewhere with the liquor being passed around, unidentifiable in the confines of an opaque soda can. He was beyond embarrassed that he'd done the one thing he said he wouldn't do, even if it was a mistake. Hopefully he didn't do anything too foolish. That's that. No more parties. We're being responsible for the remainder of the year.

Sometimes, when one wakes up, they have crusty eyes. Vered felt like he had a crusty brain. Sluggish. Half-speed. Not really feeling it. He was beyond upset that he couldn't properly enjoy his first day at a new school. He didn't want to make a bad first impression. What if his teachers thought he was a lazy deadbeat student? What if they thought he was stupid? Intellect and curiosity were Vered's only two positive traits, and to lose his grip on them was terrifying and devastating. If only he was conscious enough to have a panic attack, he very well might. And oh, his reflection was awfully rude to him, with those dark circles under his bloodshot eyes. He felt like the scum of the earth.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Vered was spontaneously excited that it might, possibly, be his still-absent roommate just running a bit late. He needed someone to keep him in check, lest this ever happen again.

"One second!"

He very quickly brushed the bile taste out of his teeth and threw on some decent-looking clothes, only to find his third-favorite yarmulke had gone missing. He must've left it at the party. Sure, he could wear his first or second-favorites, but they didn't really match the color of the polo he was wearing. He went with one of his less interesting ones, but wasn't very pleased about it. Hopefully nobody was using it as a fabric frisbee.

Checking himself in the mirror to make sure he wasn't displaying any glaring imperfections, he scampered to his door and was prepared to greet someone around his age. Instead it was, well, one of the older kids. Maybe he's a sophomore, too. Or maybe they're just letting me bunk with someone older?

"Uhm, hi." Vered peered down to the giant armful of brown fuzz the other boy was carrying. "...Is there something you need?"

// Dede //​

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Tatum Elf_Ruler​

The weekend felt like it went by in a blur. Colby spent most of his time nursing his slight hangover, while also trying to work a shift in Sleeping Hedgehog Cafe from midmorning to afternoon. He might've had a bit of more whiskey from his inconspicuous metal water bottle before sleeping. Whiskey helped him feel relaxed and he was already half-drunk, so why not. There was nothing wrong with a little something to drink to ease his nerves.

And now, today was the start of the new school year. Colby woke up way too early before his alarm, exactly 4:52 a.m. At least it gave him a lot of time to teach himself how to tie a necktie from YouTube videos for his school uniform and style his short hair in neat swept-up spikes, which he often spends an unusually long time fixing. And after dressing up, Colby used the extra time to take advantage of his employee discount and buy two large blueberry muffins to-go for breakfast at Sleeping Hedgehog before heading to the main building.

Colby was sure the school made him have a tour guide because they didn’t want him wandering campus on his own and somehow finding a wine bottle in a teacher’s desk like the last time. He wasn’t that dumb to do that again, but he felt dumb for being nervous. Just a smidge anxious, and he wasn’t sure why. It couldn’t be that this was his first day at a new school, he’d gotten over that. And it wasn’t because he was going to see Tatum again... well, maybe a little. It was more like, he was nervous to see her again completely sober for the first time. Colby was aware that they had a very flirtatious moment with each other at the party, and that time they kissed a few weeks ago when they first met at the auditorium. Dammit, why couldn’t the school pick someone else?

It was too late for him to turn around and make up an excuse not to show up. He spotted Tatum right away as he jogged up to the main building entrance. He slightly readjusted his tie knot so it didn’t feel like it was pressed against his neck too much, and ran his hand over his hair to make sure a strand wasn’t too out of place.

“Hey Tate,” Colby greeted her, trying not to sound too nervous. “I got the muffins like I said I would. It’s still warm.” He held up the paper bag. Even though the bag was rolled up closed, he could still smell the scent of freshly baked blueberry muffin coming from it.

 

[lion.]

Zachary Lee​

Music room.

How original, Eli.

Zachary Lee had a death wish, which he would not allow to rest in a casket just yet on Murder Monday. Finishing up with unbraiding the rope that coned over a stack of canoes with an unneeded slackening and tightening of biceps, he kept time at bay as he cleaned them individually. A smother of dust coated his palm when he swept on the sidelines of the yellow boat within the stack. Three months of summer abandonment really knew how to show. Lee had purview over this boathouse for over three years now, which apart from the venture of casement windows that let avenues of lake-driven winds in had no resplendent features. Redolent of driftwood and jute, it was a house of decaying, moistened pliers of nailed wood and boats. Somehow, he loved it anyways. Walking outside, Zach trailed beside the trim of the lake, just him and himself, and his marine duplicate, which configured of faint lines of green, swishing at positions when the water rocked forth and back.

The rest of his weekend had been so quiet with just as much silence as the birds on mornings of a coming natural disruption. Saturday numbered in bottles: two shots? Five? Fourteen? But, Sunday, soberness scrubbed his illusions, forsaking just his words.

“That’s why you got her sunflowers,” chalked, in a vanishing murmur, his mind.

By now, they probably were chilling in a trash can.

Tatum Browne must have bought a Cadillac in her lifetime because they were the only girls nobody could figure out. There were only a few of them who drove convertibles with their sandy hair and eyes gone to the breeze and tongue poking out to taste the raging miles on road.

Half-assed apology? Half?

Next, there was Harper Anderson who by the hazards of guessing was face deep into her pillows with a renunciation to the fact that she was not sulking, but rather conducting a very effective experiment to test whether she can survive a day in bed on a school day. Zachary Lee may have not known her, but Chase had. Feeling distraught just by the thought of him and Noah, he hastened up the steps.

“Zach, please,” Harper had pleaded.

"Fuck. You." Noah had shouted.

“Fuck you, Zachary Lee.” Tatum had made clear.

All those voices that didn’t go away led him to the music room. It was coasted primarily empty apart from a couple of students.

“Thought I wouldn’t show?” Zach pegged to the chassis that desponded in wait a few feet away from him, with a gesture to himself, “Because I’m here, Kangy. ”

Breaker of time, that is how Lincoln Elias Turner stood. There was salience to the way he blinked with his tough set of eyes fomenting fires to a path of will, metrically all further clarified with how his lightly, bristly face inclined strongly down to his neck, and how his neck hilled down to harder abdominals and brawny, taut muscles.

He could feel himself edging his roommate, when his tone dropped, “Why don’t you pack the first punch for a head start? I have a feeling you’ll need it.”

High5ives Elf_Ruler Dazzle

 

[Dede]

Stu

‘Yes,’ he said. ‘Catch!’

He was so glad to be rid of the stupid bear costume that he contemplated tossing it at the kid and dashing away for his own dear life, like a mother exposing her baby at someone’s doorstep. The monstrous ball of fur had brought him nothing but misery over the months that he wouldn’t wish it on his worst enemies. It appeared this kid either had masochistic designs or didn't know what he was signing up for.

At the last minute Stu decided not to be an asshole, and to show a modicum of gratitude towards the younger boy who was saving his life by sacrificing himself at the altar of mascotdom. Instead the costume stayed in his hands, and a certain death by falling bear was narrowly averted.

‘Something *you* need, actually. You’re Vered aren’t you?’ he asked. The boy, who already had punching bags for eyes, was the perfect mixture of nerd and loser to inherit Stu's ancient misfortune. ‘You’ve got to be in the bear by 12, you hear? In the main auditorium. They’ll be expecting you, the whole school, so don’t be late.’

Stu invited himself inside so he could unfurl the bear and lay it down on the empty bed like some furry corpse at a funeral home. ‘You’re here by yourself then,’ he said, looking to fill the dead air. ‘Haven’t you got a roommate? You should consider yourself lucky – having the room all to yourself.’

He plopped his backpack on the bed and pulled out a handsome ration of KitKats out of the depths.

‘You put these in the secret pocket. Like this.’ He demonstrated his point by turning the costume, in the manner of Q presenting his prized arsenal to James Bond while briefing him for espionage. ‘If you get ever into sticky situations, just give them the KitKats while you make a run for it. It works... well, most of the time.’

‘That’s about it really. Oh, and I won’t recommend wearing too much underneath.’ Stu stopped short of admitting to have been almost naked in the bear on countless sunny occasions. ‘It’s like a sauna in there, especially since you’ll be running all the time.’

Stu took a step back with a sigh of relief. He couldn’t help feeling sorry for the kid, who was much like himself in bright-eyed youth, imagining what fun it would be to live the life of the school’s official mascot. To throw one’s future away just like that!!

Feeling some sympathy for his replacement, Stu glanced at the time on his phone. ‘Aren’t you going to be late for class then? Do you know the way?’ Silver Oak could be a daunting and unforgiving place for a new student, with all its labyrinthine passageways and heartless bare-brick alleys that seemed to hide perils at every turn of the corner. ‘I’ll take you there if you like. Come on, I’ll show you a few things along the way.’

Stu folded the costume back up and collected it under his arm. He supposed he could carry it one last time, you know, for old times' sake. It was the least he could do for a kid who was likely going to be dead in a few months.

Twin Fantasy

 

[High5ives]

The weekend had hardly been long enough to recuperate from the bonfire’s events. Too much drinking and too much smoking, it had been a night of indulgence, even by Eli’s standards. He’d blacked out before anyone else seemed to even be buzzed; and despite contrary belief, Eli didn’t wake up in some cute little blonde’s bed. He Woke up freezing, covered in leaves, pine needles, and tree sap. More or less forgotten by his friends it seemed. Eli spent all Sunday morning washing the sap from his hair, his precious hair.

The weekend had been bad enough that Eli was actually looking forward to Monday morning. The return to school represented a return to normalcy in a way. Back to being Silver Oak’s shining star, top dog on the social food chain. Like coming home again.

Only it wasn’t.

Apparently Zach had outgrown himself, talking big on Twitter, making Eli look stupid in front of everyone. A year ago, he wouldn’t have dared! No one would have! But it felt like everything was changing now. Despite trying to claw his way into the spotlight, the weekend had left Eli feeing rather unimportant. Not even Carter had checked on him? No one had for that matter. Once the prince of Silver Oak academy, crown and all, now just a background character in everyone else’s stories.

Initially, Zach’s messages on Twitter didn’t really make Eli mad. They just bummed him out. Zach had started it! Why did it feel like everyone thought he was the bad guy!? Suddenly standing up for yourself made you an asshole!? But by bit, Eli turned to silent resentment, and bye the end of the little twitter feud, Eli had become openly hostile towards anyone that dared to look at him sideways.

By the time Eli made it to the Music room, he was practically fuming. Worked himself up into cold anger, not just towards Zach, but anyone really.

Hayden looked half asleep sitting there. “Get up and watch for teachers!” Eli snapped at him. Hayden didn’t deserve it, of course. Aside from Carter, Hayden was probably one of the closest things Eli had to a friend. Granted, Eli wasn’t really sure who counted as a friend anymore...

Zach came through the door, all testosterone and bravado. Ready to fight then and there.

If this were a movie, now was the time Eli would look Zach up and down with eyes like steel and flash a confident smirk. All followed up by some charismatic comment that’d be jotted down by onlookers for future reference, but this was not a movie. Eli was not some Old West sherif, or the hero of some 90’s spy film.

Eli was some eighteen year old kid, terrified that the world would see he wasn’t the playboy millionaire he pretended to be. He didn’t have any catchy one liners, he didn’t have some slick comment to make. He was too mad to think straight. Too scared to hesitate. If Zach beat him in a fight, where would that leave Eli? From playboy millionaire to some lower class man’s punching bag? Eli’s money wouldn’t matter then. He’d be a laughing stock.

The Aussie didn’t say a word before throwing a sucker punch, aiming to beat Zach with a cheap shot before the fight even started...

Dazzle lion.
​

 

[lion.]

Zachary Lee​

Zach’s head turned about the axis—feeling a lick of alkaline savor his tongue.

“That was-” Zach, felt his diaphragm rise, “Much more like you, Eli.”

He had no ploy or tactic, plainly due instinct, which unfurled as he lunged for the Australian. Mitting his hands on his shoulders, he thrusted him towards the bevy of black music stands, which ousted in filmic topples at the carriage mass of his roommate. Mid-way towards him, his hands weeded into fists, and he went for him as promisingly as a round of thunder under miscellaneous skies. Lee was no fighter; nowhere in him was there practice. But, he wasn’t a subsided run-over. How could he be when he had the Machivellian blood of his mother coursing hot through his ears, when he had the same blonde to the tips and blue-green to the spheres of his pupils as her. Head low, half-haunched with proclivity towards his right shoulder, he struck a straight left right under his left pectoral.

God damn it, it wasn’t even Eli.

Noah. Chase. Maybe Tatum.

Himself.

“Don’t go quiet now,” Zach rasped, subsiding to a groan, when Eli retaliated, “You did choose the music room.”

Collecting his fit of breath, Zach tried-and-trusted the art of manning him into the wall where Eli could be vulnerable not strain back. With a piston-like right, he nearly nailed his head into brick, but as per all people, he underestimated Turner. Lincoln Eli Turner could pass for a six-figure suit and tie, even in the pathetic garbs of uniform, and his figure was not all talk.

“You know, I have waited three years to ask you this,” Lee dug at, “But I heard you have daddy problems. And, looking at you…” He felt a grim smile, “Am I wrong?”

High5ives

 

[High5ives]

Zach came at him quicker than Eli had expected, and from there, it all just seemed to go down hill. It felt like he was taking far more hits than he landed on the other boy, and his body ached as proof. For every three times Zach's fists pummeled into his sides, beating against his ribs as relentlessly as waves against the coast, Eli hardly managed to trade a blow back. It was all defensive really, right up until Eli felt his shoulder blades brush up against the wall behind him. Zach's final strike came like a machine, pounding into Eli's cheekbones with enough force to bounce his head off the back wall.

Eli was losing, not just the fight, but motivation. He'd managed to wrestle Zach off of him, away from the wall, but he felt dazed. His ears rung and his headached. The flesh below his right eye was already starting to swell.

"But I heard you have Daddy problems..."

The words cut through the head-splitting ringing bouncing between his ears. Just like that, it was like Zach had woken a sleeping giant.

The close-fitting shirt only hinted at the muscles stiffening underneath. Like the percussion of a cannon, Eli's arms pressed defiantly against the sleeves of his shirt. Shoulders rolled back, head held high, Eli was a bull. He'd brought a sledgehammer to this fist fight, and Zach might as well have shown up empty handed.

An open hand swung out, slapping the side of Zach's head, but then hanging on to that shining blonde hair of his. Eli practically dragged Zach by the hair, right into Eli's oncoming fist. Unstoppable Force vs. the Immovable Object, only Zach was not immovable. Eli watched the boy stumble back before charging himself, using the other boy's own backward momentum to throttle the both of them into the side of a piano place in the corner of the room. The assault didn't stop there. This was Blitzkrieg, Eli should've been named Rommel with how aggressively he moved, swinging his knee upwards into the bottom of Zach ribcage.

Both hands of Zach's collar, Eli pulled him up away from the piano, only to slam him down against the side of it again, followed up by another sharp snap of a fist, exploding into the Zach's stomach in a low uppercut. Only when Zach's body fell limply against the piano, clinging to it for support, did Eli back off, wiping his own blood from his nose and a cracked lip.

"What else you hear, mate?" Eli challenged, forcing the words out over his own panting. "C'mon. Go 'head tell me more about myself. Y'know I fuckin' love hearing about me." He went on, catching his breath and speaking with authority. It was surprising how quickly anger could make his anxiety submit.

Eli didn't give Zach the chance to open his mouth again though, grabbing one of the stands used to hold sheet music and throwing it at the Surfer Boy. "How 'bout I tell you what I heard?" Eli snapped. "I heard Tatum tossed you like trash! I heard you ain't half as tough as you fuckin' act!" The Aussie went on, bull rushing the smaller boy to pin him back up against the piano.

Eli pulled him close, so he was practically talking into Zach's ear.

"I heard if you so much as point in my general direction again, I'll come down on you harder than any fuckin' wave ever has, Surfer Boy." He finished, pushing Zach against the piano with a rough shove and backing off.

lion.

 

[lion.]

Ronnie "Blue Nile" Kane​

Coin toss on heads or tails, it didn’t matter. Ronnie Kane was already prewritten end game. A stereo of soft rock jockeyed the air of his room when he stepped out of the shower, freckles of droplets dewing up his spine. A damp towel clung to his thin waist as he picked up a half-smoked joint from the ash tray of his nightstand, sniffing it and subsequently spoiling it to a lighter. In a backwards panorama-for an enigmatic compliance of a couple minutes- he was retroceded back to the party.
The assumption that the Earth was backwards in itself never occured to Ronnie, but it did the longer his eyes stretched between the party and the prickly tips of Oregon treetops. Perchance they were supposed to walk the stars and watch the cloves of grass from up above. Ronnie ‘Blue Nile’ Kane was pensive of that and all the hybridizing things that drugs did to a man. The lights were becoming onset offensive that he shot them an addled squint. The bonfire blistered hot as if the sun decided to wave in a graphic “hello,” and the people entitled themselves to act like they purged the underworld.

All aside from one.

A party girl would have been too strange of a word to put a label to the girl who stumped herself a vast spatial distance contrary to that of the fire, her willowy arms caged to her sides as she bit down quietly at the quail of her lip. Her fingers rotated around a cigarette crudely, like if by the blues of her eyes she could birth the saturation of a fire.

“Having the time of your life, sun shine? I could tell from the frown,” he had the wit to say, at an archway in which his rawboned silhouette fell over her with turf of grey, and his face wore a gaudy arrow of a smirk, “Here’s the slight thing, though. Staring at the cigarette doesn’t actually light it up.”

“Sun shine?” she had tersely impersonated back, scoffing, and inflating a whiff of air which sprang a few locks away from her face. Her head stubbornly bent a corner away from him.

What a rebel of the year.

“Blondie, then,” Ronnie avered with a limp mouth, “Unless you want to give me a name…” Whether it was the drugs or not, he precariously snatched the cigarette from her fingers, and before her regional protest began, imitated a very high shushing noise.

“Shh,” he poorly displayed a finger on his own moving lips, “You have to trust the process.” He gave her cigarette a bland look, “Just Marlboro?” Shaking himself off his judgment, he inched the cylindrical orange-white roll between her lips. Pocketing out a lighter, his thumb whirred on the metal roller, and a soft glow of light engulfed her face, polishing over her features which were diminutive from afar under his glassy eyes. Then, the lighter turned off and alike to that, so had the night.

It was pure coincidence then, that when he was just about to mount the steps of the main building, dressed and posh, that he saw her singularly on the nearby shortened lawn.

“You really are lonely,” he brashly called to her from the first step, “What’s it? Your hobby? To go everywhere around looking like that?”

mogy