When The Night Falls You Wonder If You Shouldn't Find Some Place
Greetings from the sunshine state! I am enjoying the hell out of a 'nothing' vacation (i.e., a vegging vacation, a vacation that is meant for eating, drinking and napping in the sun).
I finally tacked my 'The End' onto Come Away To The Water, now I just have to edit it. (Ha!)
Also! This happened!
Yep, we're going to be going with John and Taylor, for the Big Bang. If I can get that written into a Little Bang (because brevity is always my biggest problem, rather than output), I will attempt to write the Ethan/Kristina/Johnny one (because it is really overtaking me this past week or so) as another Little Bang, and in between, as my 'escape' this summer, I have my Spartacus Everyone Lives AU (which was what the Diona/Gannicus idea was all about). Because that's not really a 'story' so much, just a world where everyone is alive and living happily in the forest until the end of time.
Happy to answer questions if you're curious. ^_^
Speaking of E/K/J, I'm still really enjoying working through last year's BigBang, even if it's just for me.
Previous
Kristina is lingering over the last bit of her vanilla ice cream sundae, and she notices that Ethan is also milking his second cup of coffee. She grew up in and out of her father’s restaurant and her Uncle Jax’s five star hotel, but she doesn’t think she’s ever had a better meal than the lentil soup and iceburg salad she had here, at Carmen’s Roadhouse. It’s such a relief to sit still for a few hours and especially to have Ethan rest for a bit. She hates what this is doing to him.
She hates that he feels the need to take care of everything - but at the same time, she knows that she doesn’t have much to offer on this...thing, whatever it is. And it doesn’t escape her, the widening of his eyes when he opens his wallet to pay the bill. “We’re running out of money, aren’t we?” she asks. He doesn’t answer, but he doesn’t have to. Neither one of them thought they would be gone for so long.
“I’ll figure something out,” Ethan tries to reassure her, but his tired smile is a sad imitation of his old mischievours grin. “You trust me, right?”
“Of course,” Kristina answers, though trust has nothing to do with any of it. “I’m going to go wash up,” she says with a sigh, as she rises from the table. They can’t put off leaving forever.
On her way back to use the restroom, she passes a big guy counting out a fat wad of bills, so distracted that he almost knocks her over. “Sorry, sweetie,” he says when she jumps out of the way at the last second. He takes the time to leer at her up and down in a way that makes her skin crawl. She quickly darts into the bathroom to avoid him, hoping he’ll be gone when she comes back out. After doing the best she can with the last of the industrial soap in the ladies’ room, Kristina peeks her head out the door to check that the coast is clear. But she hears loud, raucous laughter that drew her to a backdoor.
Hiding behind the doorway, she looks into the backroom to find what is definitely a card game in progress, with a hefty pot in the center of the table.
The man from before is sitting in the powerseat, and Kristina jumps in when he looks up and catches her eye. “Can we help you out, sweetie?”
She stiffens her spine as she quickly formulates a plan. “Maybe,” she answers back with the smile that had never failed to get her exactly what she wanted from her father.
***
Johnny barely looked up when Ethan thumped the thick brown envelope down in front of him. “All there?” he finally asked, leaning back in his chair.
“Of course,” Ethan replied. Wordlessly, Johnny pulled a few bills out of the envelope and held them in Ethan’s direction. “Thanks, man,” Ethan tried to hold back his grin as he pocketed the cash. Johnny didn’t make it a habit to trust too many people and it meant something that Ethan was one of the chosen few. He knew that it paid to have friends in low places- it paid to have friends period, Ethan knew that for sure after all this time. Even with Luke gone and Lucky and Lulu wrapped up in their own troubles and heartaches, he had Johnny at least.
“So,” Johnny began, resting his head in his folded hands. “Any big plans for payday?”
“Nah, I think I’ll just take it easy,” Ethan ran a hand through his shaggy hair. He needed to have it cut. Badly. His mum would have been horrified if she were there to see it.
“Now that doesn’t sound like you,” Johnny studied him. “Do you already have another lady waiting in the wings, trying to make an honest man out of you?”
Ethan laughed. “Hardly.”
Johnny cocked an eyebrow. “Speaking of which...how is Kristina?”
Ethan rolled his eyes, trying not to take the bait. “I’m sure she’s fine now that Lisa’s leaving her alone.”
The teasing glint left Johnny’s eyes. “Good.”
“But...I’ll tell your ex-girlfriend that you said hello,” Ethan returned with a wry grin. No need for the room to go to tombs completely.
And Johnny had to laugh at that, throwing his head back, and Ethan joined in, broken up by Johnny’s cell phone buzzing on the desk in front of him. “Speaking of which...” his voice registered mild surprise and Ethan mentally checked his gut. He knew it was time to go back to work. “It’s Lisa,” Johnny said, holding up his phone so that Ethan could see the message.
Need to see you- it’s important. Come alone, back entrance Warehouse 19.
***
Ethan is not used to sharing his space with anyone. For almost a decade, he had been alone, and he’d always thought of himself as the kind of person who would go stir-crazy without a good dose of solitude every now and then. That was before.
There will always be a before now.
He is a madman during the brief interludes when Kristina is out of his sight. He knows he can’t literally hold her hand every second of the day or start following her into ladies’ restrooms but it doesn’t stop him from counting the seconds until she comes back. He grinds his back molars and clenches and unclenches his fists and after sixteen minutes and forty-two seconds, he mutters, “What the hell is she doing?” and gets up from the table his heart starting to beat fast with adrenaline.
He knocks softly on the door of the ladies’ room, and starts to feel the beginnings of a panic when there’s no answer from inside, but then he hears something else from at least a good room-and-a-half away. Merry, tinkling laughter that calms his soul. And another sound he would recognize anywhere, the whisper-soft shuffling of a deck of cards.
What the hell is she doing?
Following what should be the two most comforting sounds in the world for him into the back room (these things are always happening in back rooms), Ethan fights the knot of dread twisting in the pit of his stomach.
Seated among men at least twice her age and at least three times her size, Kristina is holding court like a tiny princess with a sly smile he knows only too well and a considerable load of crumpled bills in front of her. Ethan has to fight the urge to toss her over his shoulder and carry her away from this room that stinks of thick cigar smoke, and away from these men with their leering eyes.
Ethan knows that at times, just to relieve boredom, a bunch of blokes will just continue to let a pretty girl win to keep her at the table, but still -- she is really cleaning up. He can’t help but feel a glimmer of pride for the best student he’d ever had. But she’s off her damn rocker if she thinks he’s going to let her get mixed up with this crowd.
He takes a step further into the light and clears his throat to get the room’s attention, arms crossed in front of his chest. “Well, this looks like quite the party,” he grins, letting his drawl seep out twice as strong as usual. He knows it makes him sound friendly and laid back, two things he’s far from feeling right now. Kristina catches his eye and there’s a flicker in her pretty smile just for a second. “Can anyone join in?”
“Full table right now,” says the largest of the men at the table, clearly the idiot leader.
As Ethan slowly makes his way around the room, they all pull their cards in close to their chests, except for Kristina as he comes to rest behind her, placing his hands on the back of her chair and gripping tightly to distract himself from putting them on her. She subtly cocks her head ever so slightly so that he can peak at her hand over her shoulder. Three aces, and two red three’s. Son of a bitch. Only years of practiced professionalism keep his face calm.
But the idiot leader notices their interaction, and fixes him with a hard stare. Clearly they’re not as welcoming to visitors who are six foot tall and bearded as they are to pretty little brown-eyed girls who look like they should be at a high school prom. “This isn’t a team sport, brother. Your girl asked to join us, not the other way around. Maybe she prefers our company.” Gross, guffawing laughter goes around the table, and Ethan can feel Kristina go tense in her chair. He rubs the pad of one thumb across the nape of her neck and can feel her relax.
I am here. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.
“Well why don’t I take her spot then?” Ethan says, jerking her chair back and pulling her up from the seat without being given permission. There’s nowhere else for Kristina to go so he plops her down on his lap, sitting on one thigh. Not ideal, but better for his peace-of-mind. And man, does he need peace-of-mind now.
The idiot leader glares at them suspiciously and it takes every ounce of his Aussie surfer boy persona to muster up that false, friendly grin. “Just a little gentlemanly game. What can one more hand hurt?”
***
Kristina pulled on the heavy metal door at the back of the warehouse with all of her might. This one had always stuck, no matter how many different ways her father had it fixed. This loading dock was empty. Kristina knew that her father and Jason moved their workers around every few weeks, using different dock locations to move their various products. She didn’t know exactly at what age she figured out that it wasn’t just coffee beans, but she still wasn’t sure what the rest was. She wasn’t sure she ever wanted to know.
She had never been here without her father and though it had never been a favorite place of hers to go (not like his restaurant with its rich tiramisu and creamy canolis), she found she liked it even less without his familiar presence. She shivered. Time to get this over with, once and for all.
“Lisa?” she called, jumping slightly when her own echo came back to her. There was no other answer. “Dr. Niles? Are you here?”
She made her way over to the lightswitch a little ways down the wall from the door and flipped it on, flooding the room with harsh, unforgiving fluorescent light.
The dock was completely empty- not even a folding chair for the night guard, so Kristina was about to turn to go, when...
“Kristina...”
Next
<<<333
I finally tacked my 'The End' onto Come Away To The Water, now I just have to edit it. (Ha!)
Also! This happened!
Yep, we're going to be going with John and Taylor, for the Big Bang. If I can get that written into a Little Bang (because brevity is always my biggest problem, rather than output), I will attempt to write the Ethan/Kristina/Johnny one (because it is really overtaking me this past week or so) as another Little Bang, and in between, as my 'escape' this summer, I have my Spartacus Everyone Lives AU (which was what the Diona/Gannicus idea was all about). Because that's not really a 'story' so much, just a world where everyone is alive and living happily in the forest until the end of time.
Happy to answer questions if you're curious. ^_^
Speaking of E/K/J, I'm still really enjoying working through last year's BigBang, even if it's just for me.
Previous
Kristina is lingering over the last bit of her vanilla ice cream sundae, and she notices that Ethan is also milking his second cup of coffee. She grew up in and out of her father’s restaurant and her Uncle Jax’s five star hotel, but she doesn’t think she’s ever had a better meal than the lentil soup and iceburg salad she had here, at Carmen’s Roadhouse. It’s such a relief to sit still for a few hours and especially to have Ethan rest for a bit. She hates what this is doing to him.
She hates that he feels the need to take care of everything - but at the same time, she knows that she doesn’t have much to offer on this...thing, whatever it is. And it doesn’t escape her, the widening of his eyes when he opens his wallet to pay the bill. “We’re running out of money, aren’t we?” she asks. He doesn’t answer, but he doesn’t have to. Neither one of them thought they would be gone for so long.
“I’ll figure something out,” Ethan tries to reassure her, but his tired smile is a sad imitation of his old mischievours grin. “You trust me, right?”
“Of course,” Kristina answers, though trust has nothing to do with any of it. “I’m going to go wash up,” she says with a sigh, as she rises from the table. They can’t put off leaving forever.
On her way back to use the restroom, she passes a big guy counting out a fat wad of bills, so distracted that he almost knocks her over. “Sorry, sweetie,” he says when she jumps out of the way at the last second. He takes the time to leer at her up and down in a way that makes her skin crawl. She quickly darts into the bathroom to avoid him, hoping he’ll be gone when she comes back out. After doing the best she can with the last of the industrial soap in the ladies’ room, Kristina peeks her head out the door to check that the coast is clear. But she hears loud, raucous laughter that drew her to a backdoor.
Hiding behind the doorway, she looks into the backroom to find what is definitely a card game in progress, with a hefty pot in the center of the table.
The man from before is sitting in the powerseat, and Kristina jumps in when he looks up and catches her eye. “Can we help you out, sweetie?”
She stiffens her spine as she quickly formulates a plan. “Maybe,” she answers back with the smile that had never failed to get her exactly what she wanted from her father.
***
Johnny barely looked up when Ethan thumped the thick brown envelope down in front of him. “All there?” he finally asked, leaning back in his chair.
“Of course,” Ethan replied. Wordlessly, Johnny pulled a few bills out of the envelope and held them in Ethan’s direction. “Thanks, man,” Ethan tried to hold back his grin as he pocketed the cash. Johnny didn’t make it a habit to trust too many people and it meant something that Ethan was one of the chosen few. He knew that it paid to have friends in low places- it paid to have friends period, Ethan knew that for sure after all this time. Even with Luke gone and Lucky and Lulu wrapped up in their own troubles and heartaches, he had Johnny at least.
“So,” Johnny began, resting his head in his folded hands. “Any big plans for payday?”
“Nah, I think I’ll just take it easy,” Ethan ran a hand through his shaggy hair. He needed to have it cut. Badly. His mum would have been horrified if she were there to see it.
“Now that doesn’t sound like you,” Johnny studied him. “Do you already have another lady waiting in the wings, trying to make an honest man out of you?”
Ethan laughed. “Hardly.”
Johnny cocked an eyebrow. “Speaking of which...how is Kristina?”
Ethan rolled his eyes, trying not to take the bait. “I’m sure she’s fine now that Lisa’s leaving her alone.”
The teasing glint left Johnny’s eyes. “Good.”
“But...I’ll tell your ex-girlfriend that you said hello,” Ethan returned with a wry grin. No need for the room to go to tombs completely.
And Johnny had to laugh at that, throwing his head back, and Ethan joined in, broken up by Johnny’s cell phone buzzing on the desk in front of him. “Speaking of which...” his voice registered mild surprise and Ethan mentally checked his gut. He knew it was time to go back to work. “It’s Lisa,” Johnny said, holding up his phone so that Ethan could see the message.
Need to see you- it’s important. Come alone, back entrance Warehouse 19.
***
Ethan is not used to sharing his space with anyone. For almost a decade, he had been alone, and he’d always thought of himself as the kind of person who would go stir-crazy without a good dose of solitude every now and then. That was before.
There will always be a before now.
He is a madman during the brief interludes when Kristina is out of his sight. He knows he can’t literally hold her hand every second of the day or start following her into ladies’ restrooms but it doesn’t stop him from counting the seconds until she comes back. He grinds his back molars and clenches and unclenches his fists and after sixteen minutes and forty-two seconds, he mutters, “What the hell is she doing?” and gets up from the table his heart starting to beat fast with adrenaline.
He knocks softly on the door of the ladies’ room, and starts to feel the beginnings of a panic when there’s no answer from inside, but then he hears something else from at least a good room-and-a-half away. Merry, tinkling laughter that calms his soul. And another sound he would recognize anywhere, the whisper-soft shuffling of a deck of cards.
What the hell is she doing?
Following what should be the two most comforting sounds in the world for him into the back room (these things are always happening in back rooms), Ethan fights the knot of dread twisting in the pit of his stomach.
Seated among men at least twice her age and at least three times her size, Kristina is holding court like a tiny princess with a sly smile he knows only too well and a considerable load of crumpled bills in front of her. Ethan has to fight the urge to toss her over his shoulder and carry her away from this room that stinks of thick cigar smoke, and away from these men with their leering eyes.
Ethan knows that at times, just to relieve boredom, a bunch of blokes will just continue to let a pretty girl win to keep her at the table, but still -- she is really cleaning up. He can’t help but feel a glimmer of pride for the best student he’d ever had. But she’s off her damn rocker if she thinks he’s going to let her get mixed up with this crowd.
He takes a step further into the light and clears his throat to get the room’s attention, arms crossed in front of his chest. “Well, this looks like quite the party,” he grins, letting his drawl seep out twice as strong as usual. He knows it makes him sound friendly and laid back, two things he’s far from feeling right now. Kristina catches his eye and there’s a flicker in her pretty smile just for a second. “Can anyone join in?”
“Full table right now,” says the largest of the men at the table, clearly the idiot leader.
As Ethan slowly makes his way around the room, they all pull their cards in close to their chests, except for Kristina as he comes to rest behind her, placing his hands on the back of her chair and gripping tightly to distract himself from putting them on her. She subtly cocks her head ever so slightly so that he can peak at her hand over her shoulder. Three aces, and two red three’s. Son of a bitch. Only years of practiced professionalism keep his face calm.
But the idiot leader notices their interaction, and fixes him with a hard stare. Clearly they’re not as welcoming to visitors who are six foot tall and bearded as they are to pretty little brown-eyed girls who look like they should be at a high school prom. “This isn’t a team sport, brother. Your girl asked to join us, not the other way around. Maybe she prefers our company.” Gross, guffawing laughter goes around the table, and Ethan can feel Kristina go tense in her chair. He rubs the pad of one thumb across the nape of her neck and can feel her relax.
I am here. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.
“Well why don’t I take her spot then?” Ethan says, jerking her chair back and pulling her up from the seat without being given permission. There’s nowhere else for Kristina to go so he plops her down on his lap, sitting on one thigh. Not ideal, but better for his peace-of-mind. And man, does he need peace-of-mind now.
The idiot leader glares at them suspiciously and it takes every ounce of his Aussie surfer boy persona to muster up that false, friendly grin. “Just a little gentlemanly game. What can one more hand hurt?”
***
Kristina pulled on the heavy metal door at the back of the warehouse with all of her might. This one had always stuck, no matter how many different ways her father had it fixed. This loading dock was empty. Kristina knew that her father and Jason moved their workers around every few weeks, using different dock locations to move their various products. She didn’t know exactly at what age she figured out that it wasn’t just coffee beans, but she still wasn’t sure what the rest was. She wasn’t sure she ever wanted to know.
She had never been here without her father and though it had never been a favorite place of hers to go (not like his restaurant with its rich tiramisu and creamy canolis), she found she liked it even less without his familiar presence. She shivered. Time to get this over with, once and for all.
“Lisa?” she called, jumping slightly when her own echo came back to her. There was no other answer. “Dr. Niles? Are you here?”
She made her way over to the lightswitch a little ways down the wall from the door and flipped it on, flooding the room with harsh, unforgiving fluorescent light.
The dock was completely empty- not even a folding chair for the night guard, so Kristina was about to turn to go, when...
“Kristina...”
Next
<<<333