CatBee

SinfullSkills & CatBee

Not quite finished, still have three more days! :( They're so tough, but they'll be done soon! And no problem, take your time! (:

SinfullSkills & CatBee

After my finals are over, I'd be willing to maybe start another one on one up with you! Also, did you get my PM? ^^

SinfullSkills & CatBee

I'm just mixing them together XD Like some elements of a small town but we could also have some elements of a large city!

SinfullSkills & CatBee

Monica forced a smile as Gray told her they could leave if she had to. "No need, I'll be fine," she didn't want to admit it, but she was still a little shaken up. The whole side of her body that the explosion had effected was nearly trembling, and she was afraid to look down at her cast for fear that the wound would open itself and she would come close to bleeding out once more. She instead forced herself to focus on Gray; his smile, his messy hair, his sparkling eyes. With each breath she felt herself coming back to her current reality. She was sitting in Sergio's with her best friend, and she was happy.

Monica let Gray take the first slice, and soon after watching him start it she realized just how starved she was. The woman smiled as she grabbed a slice and chuckled as the gooey cheese stretched from the slice to the whole pizza.

"Mmmm," Monica covered her mouth with her hand, "This is just as good as I remembered it!" She took another couple bites, and chased the pizza down with a sip of the drink in the cup. She looked at Gray with a smile in her eyes, "You remembered my usual! Cherry Coke," she chuckled, taking another drink. Monica almost spit out the liquid as she laughed at Gray's suggestion.

"Boyfriend?" She patted her lips with the napkin before continuing, "I haven't had a boyfriend since Jason Maize during the second half of junior year. Remember him? He was a jerk," she smiled. It was easy to joke about it now, but back then she had been heartbroken. Jason had been incredibly handsome, tanned and tall and athletic. He had also broken up with Monica through his friends, and had cheated on her with some of the other girls. Gray had helped her through that, just like he had helped her through every other breakup.

"I only had a few relationships while serving that could be considered deeper than just the bonds you form when you're suffering together," she stirred her straw around in her cup, "There was a man named Dan Brown," she continued, "He was around our age, and he was a really great guy. He was selfless and kind," she took another drink, "There was one village we were in, and he made a scared little girl a doll out of straw. It was touching how happy it made her. Those people have next to nothing and here everyone's complaining about whether or not leather shoes are Italian," she leaned back and crossed her leg over the wrapped one.

"Dan and I were in another small village when a roadside bomber drove a car and detonated it just beside the building we were in," she sighed, "I got off easy," she continued, "At first the doctors thought I'd be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life, but I proved 'em wrong. Dan, well, he took the blunt of the blast and was killed instantly." She stayed silent for a moment, thinking back into any other relationships. Her squad leader had been kind to her too, a man by the name of Austin O'Connell. She wasn't sure what had happened to him; she hadn't heard anything from him since she returned to the states.

"Long story short, no boyfriend," she repeated with a small laugh, "I'm still surprised you don't have a girlfriend or a fiancée or whatever yet," she teased him, "A good looking nerd like yourself," she smiled.

The two had demolished the pizza in a fairly short amount of time. Monica met Gray's gaze and with a smile, "Let's drive around the town! I want to go to all our old spots," she said, "The lake, those old hiking trails," Monica sighed at the wonderful memories.

SinfullSkills & CatBee

“Harvard, huh?” Monica chuckled. She knew her friend would do big things, but it all just seemed so surreal. In high school she had joked with him about the “nerd-school” he’d go too, but she couldn’t believe that it all had actually happened already. He had moved on with his life, and she had moved on with her own. She told herself as they drove that she couldn’t just go back to the way it had been, just her and Gray. It was nice to see him again, but it was just that: seeing each other again. Nothing was going to happen, they weren’t going to stick together or become best friends once more. Gray had been living his life just fine without her. He had already moved on, and she would have to as well.

“Sounds like you had a wild time,” a small smile crossed her lips. Had she gone to college, she would’ve loved to move into a sorority house. In high school she had been a bit of a partier, but her loyalty to her parents and her want to stay on good terms caused her to leave before things got too crazy. That would’ve changed if she had left the state for college, but it didn’t really matter now. She smirked as she listened to his story about the woman he had been paired off with.

“It sounds like she was just out of your league,” she playfully teased him as she grabbed her crutches from the back. Her mouth nearly dropped open as she listened to his degrees and his explanation of his project, “You really are something, Gray.”

Monica sighed and shook her head with an almost sad smile before thanking Gray for holding the door and clambering out of the car, “My story isn’t much compared to yours, you nerd,” she ruffled his hair.

Monica was about to follow Gray into the building when the squeal of breaks and the loud revving of an engine from the street caught her attention. Her mind threw her back to Deir Atiyah, to the vision of a car approaching fast and the sight of one of her best friends glassy-eyed beside her once the entire building had been blown apart. She glanced down at her throbbing, bloody leg only to see the cast that she had been in for weeks. Monica had broken out into a cold sweat, and with a quick “excuse me” to Gray she pushed past him and into the single bathroom at Sergio’s. She gripped the edge of the sink until her knuckles were white and tried desperately to bring herself back to reality. She was home, not in battle or in pain or in some mobile hospital in a tent somewhere in the desert.

Her face was flushed of color and her eyes puffy when she returned to the main room of the diner, and she quietly sat down across from Gray at the booth, "Sorry about that. Sometimes the memories," she struggled for the right word, "They're a little strong."

SinfullSkills & CatBee

Repeat Post

“Harvard, huh?” Monica chuckled. She knew her friend would do big things, but it all just seemed so surreal. In high school she had joked with him about the “nerd-school” he’d go too, but she couldn’t believe that it all had actually happened already. He had moved on with his life, and she had moved on with her own. She told herself as they drove that she couldn’t just go back to the way it had been, just her and Gray. It was nice to see him again, but it was just that: seeing each other again. Nothing was going to happen, they weren’t going to stick together or become best friends once more. Gray had been living his life just fine without her. He had already moved on, and she would have to as well.

“Sounds like you had a wild time,” a small smile crossed her lips. Had she gone to college, she would’ve loved to move into a sorority house. In high school she had been a bit of a partier, but her loyalty to her parents and her want to stay on good terms caused her to leave before things got too crazy. That would’ve changed if she had left the state for college, but it didn’t really matter now. She smirked as she listened to his story about the woman he had been paired off with.

“It sounds like she was just out of your league,” she playfully teased him as she grabbed her crutches from the back. Her mouth nearly dropped open as she listened to his degrees and his explanation of his project, “You really are something, Gray.”

Monica sighed and shook her head with an almost sad smile before thanking Gray for holding the door and clambering out of the car, “My story isn’t much compared to yours, you nerd,” she ruffled his hair.

Monica was about to follow Gray into the building when the squeal of breaks and the loud revving of an engine from the street caught her attention. Her mind threw her back to Deir Atiyah, to the vision of a car approaching fast and the sight of one of her best friends glassy-eyed beside her once the entire building had been blown apart. She glanced down at her throbbing, bloody leg only to see the cast that she had been in for weeks. Monica had broken out into a cold sweat, and with a quick “excuse me” to Gray she pushed past him and into the single bathroom at Sergio’s. She gripped the edge of the sink until her knuckles were white and tried desperately to bring herself back to reality. She was home, not in battle or in pain or in some mobile hospital in a tent somewhere in the desert.

Her face was flushed of color and her eyes puffy when she returned to the main room of the diner, and she quietly sat down across from Gray at the booth, "Sorry about that. Sometimes the memories," she struggled for the right word, "They're a little strong."

SinfullSkills & CatBee

Monica thought back to the time when she did indeed beat him in every video game, and almost every normal game that they played. The girl had been incredibly athletic; she even played football on the team her freshman year. She would've kept playing had there been other girls on the team, but being on the field everyday after school for months with a large group of completely unhygienic boys was enough to drive fifteen year old Monica into quitting. The days when herself and Gray would spend time playing catch and capture the flag in the park near her house, and would come home to a warm mug of hot chocolate (or a cold glass of lemonade, depending on the season) were some of the best memories she had. She thought back to her parents; she hadn't seen them in years, and had only occasionally called them. They hadn't been happy about her decision, and her plea for them to keep quiet about it. They'd listened it seemed, but she was still a little afraid to go home.

"I still don't think you can beat me," she grinned slyly, "In Mortal Kombat or in anything else!" she motioned to her leg, "I could beat you in a race with this cast on," she teased. She most definitely could not in fact beat him in a race in her present condition. She nodded at his remark, "I'll keep that in mind next time," she smiled. She didn't know what she was going to do in the future, but disappearing again wasn't in the plans.

Monica followed Gray out to the parking lot, and laughed as he ran over to his pride and joy, Lucky. Lucky had to be the ugliest car Monica had ever laid eyes on, and it still was. However, the thing was worth more than a Porsche to her friend. She climbed into the passenger side, thanking him for holding the door. He always had been a gentleman.

Monica nodded, and stuck her crutches into the back. She reached out and touched her friend's hand, "You still haven't told me what you've been up to for the past seven years!" She sighed to herself as she spoke the last words. Seven years. It was an eternity. The woman let go of Gray's hand quickly when she realized she was still holding it.

SinfullSkills & CatBee

I was wondering what kind of city we should set this in! Like a big city like New York City or something a little smaller, or just a small town?

SinfullSkills & CatBee

Monica peered into the microwave as Gray spoke. The stupid thing wasn't cooking very quickly, and she hadn't stopped to eat in over a day. She laughed out loud as she listened to her poor friend's tale, "Sounds just like you. You haven't changed a bit. You're still scaring off all the ladies," she gave him a playful punch in the arm. Monica had dated boys left and right in high school; she had tried desperately to find someone to care about more than she cared about Gray, but it hadn't worked. After a couple of dates she was either dumped or did the dumping. And his mom, she was naturally trying to set him up with a woman of fortune to continue the family legacy. Monica knew Gray was rich, very rich, but she had never let that bother her. She had him over to her house, which was of course dwarfed by his own when they were younger, but she couldn't quite bring herself to tell him about the situation they were truly in financially when they were in high school. Her stupid pride had gotten in the way, and that same pride was most likely going to cause her to do foolish things for the rest of her life.

"I haven't had pizza in ages," Monica smiled wistfully, "Is Sergio's downtown still open? That place was great!" She smiled. Many an afternoon had been spent at the place by her and Gray, "I remember when we tried to eat their extra extra large by ourselves," she beamed, "We were sick all weekend!"

Monica stopped laughing at all the memories as Gray asked the sobering million-dollar question. She searched his face, leaning in to hold his gaze as she prepared her answer.

"I didn't know what to tell you. My parents couldn't send me to college. I was embarrassed. I joined the military, and I've served ever since," she hobbled out of the kitchen, and grabbed her jacket from the hook on the wall, "Let's get some food now, okay? It'll be just like old times. Plus, I'm starving."

SinfullSkills & CatBee

Monica perked up from her position on the couch as she heard the knocks, and ran her fingers through her hair before standing when Gray entered. She supported herself with an arm on the end of the table, "Mon," she tasted the name to herself. It had been awhile since she'd heard that name. To her fellow enlistees she had been called simply "Grey". It was nice to hear her friend call her by his own, special, made-up nickname once again. She had only tolerated Mon from him, to her teachers, parents, and other friends she was always just 'Monica'.

The woman limped over to Gray, a smile spread across her face, "I know I do. But first, let me just look at you," she grinned, her eyes roaming up and down her friend. She ruffled his hair, "You're such a mess," she teased. He always seemed to be a little disheveled, but it was alright. It was one of the things that drew her to him. She was organized, quiet, and calm. He was wild, funny, and carefree. They had been a perfect pair. She wrapped her arms around him in another hug, this time she was able to use both arms instead of just a hand. The warm, fuzzy feeling was nice, it had been far to long since she'd had a proper hug.

The woman made her way back over to the couch, "Take a seat. I was just about to get some food going," she pretended to think, "Let's see, I have some gourmet instant macaroni," she snickered, "Or some microwave lasagna. Your choice. You're the guest, after all," she teased. The woman turned and headed toward the kitchen, just so Gray didn't have to see her face as she winced in pain. Occasionally, a piece of shrapnel that was buried too deep in her flesh to remove would irritate her, and combined with the dull, throbbing pain that was always present in her healing muscles and tendons she almost had to sit down.

"Hand me one of those," she motioned to her crutches, and when he obliged she tucked it under her arm and entered the kitchen. Two or three people was the very max the small island could fit comfortably, so it was a good thing Monica hadn't planned on having much company.

"I know you're curious," she popped the food in the microwave before leaning back against the counter, "Fire those questions away," she sighed. It was time to come clean.

"But hey, I also want to know what you've been up to," the woman smiled, "Got yourself a nice pretty wife, maybe some kids?" She half-teased. She expected him to at least have a girlfriend, he wasn't a bad-looking guy and his personality was flawless.