Bozo
ApollosarcherEverything in this post takes place between late Sunday night and early morning on December 31st
It's late at night when Nori next opens her eyes, blinking up at the ceiling to try
and peer through the darkness. Kyle had gone to bed after their make out session, leaving her alone and bundled up under the blankets on the couch. Tiredly, the blonde reaches out a hand and feels around on the coffee table for her cellphone. When she finally managed to find it, Nori pulls it over so she can see it as she unlocks the home screen.
It's 2:13am and there are no new messages from Detective Holland.
Nori opens a new message and starts to type, 'Are you okay?', before erasing it and instead putting, 'How goes the stake out?'. Her finger hovers over the send button but she deletes the whole thing instead, still concerned that sending him a text might compromise him. 'Please let me know you're alright,' she thinks blearily, staring down at the screen and willing Olivier to send her a message.
She falls back asleep with her phone still clutched in her hand, but the text message never comes.
---
When Nori makes it back to her apartment the next morning, it is still smoldering and surrounded by yellow tape and police officers and no one is listening to her.
"Wait, wait, please, there was somebody in there!" She pleads as Officer Saiko stands in front of the charred remains of the door to bar her passage.
"There wasn't anyone in there Miss Haywood, we searched the whole flat. You're just in shock," the ginger informs her, his tone slightly kinder than it was yesterday.
"No, you don't understand, Oliv--"
"I'm telling you, there wasn't anyone in there," he interrupts her gently, placing both hands on either of her shoulders and trying to get her to look at him. "I went on one of the sweeps myself and it was completely empty, I promise."
Hesitantly, he reached out, and placing a hand on Nori's shoulder, tried to offer the girl some solace.
"I'll protect you, Mrs. Haywood. Nothing bad is going to happen; I promise."
Nori flinches, visibly recoiling from both the memory and the police officer. He lets her go, nodding towards an emergency responder who brings a pink shock blanket over and carefully arranges it around the girl's shoulders. "Now," Officer Saiko continues, fishing his notebook and pen out of the breast pocket of his uniform. "Let's have another look at that picture of yours, hmm?"
---
Nori texts Kyle to let him know what happened before buying a train ticket. Then she goes home.
---
She's been back on the farm for two days before she finally tells her mum and dad about her apartment catching fire, purposefully leaving out the disappearance of Detective Holland and that it may have been set by the Weatherman. Nori calls Olivier's phone every night, but it always goes straight to voicemail and she never leaves a message.
There is a knock at her bedroom door before her mother comes in, her silvering hair pulled up into a messy bun as she sits next to her daughter on the bed. "Hey cupcake," her mum says, nudging Nori's shoulder with her own. "Aren't you gonna come have some supper?"
"No thanks," The younger girl answers, giving her mum a watery smile. "I'm not very hungry right now."
"Hm," the woman hums, raising an eyebrow at her daughter and giving her a pointed look that says, 'I know better', but she lets it slide. "Your father and I were talking, and we've decided to sell Penelope so you can have enough money for a deposit on a new place."
"Mum, you can't sell the cow, she's the only one you've got!"
"We're a wheat farm, sugar, we don't really need a cow. Plus, the old bird tries to bite me every time I go to milk her. I mean, I get it, I'd be ornery too if someone was trying to yank on my ti--"
"Focus, mum,"
"Right," the elder Haywood coughs, before continuing, "We want to do this for you, Nori. Your father and I weren't able to send you to college, but we can at least do this much. Please," her mum asks, reaching out and covering Nori's hand. "Let us help you."
"Okay," the blonde relents, her eyes growing a little hot as she looks back up at the older woman. "Thanks, mum."
"Anytime, dumpling. Anytime."
---
Later that night, Nori stares at her phone and whispers, "I hope you're okay."
The phone remains silent.
---
Nori is standing at the platform of the station with two duffle bags stuffed full of new clothes as he dad frets with the green scarf he'd just bought her, making sure it was laying just right for maximum warmth. "You'll call if you need anything, won't you?" He asks, smoothing down her hair with his small, calloused hands.
"Yes dad, I'll call if I need you," she reassures, giving him a lop sided grin as he runs his thumb over the tattoo that adorns her left cheek and scowls.
"I don't know why you did this to your beautiful face."
"The boys like it," she teased, laughing as he scowled further. "They think it makes me look sexy."
"Smart ass," he shoots back, running a hand over his haggard face before dropping it at his side. "You're not doing drugs, are you? I know there is a lot of temptation in the big city, but you have to stay strong. And don't let those hippies tell you that weed is okay, it's a gateway drug!"
"Nothing stronger than alcohol, dad, I swear."
"That's my girl," he says before pulling her into a bear hug and dropping a kiss on her forehead. "I love you, pumpkin."
"I love you too, dad," she answers and there is a lump in her throat, but she just swallows it down.
---
When she gets back in the first thing she does is visit Detective Holland's office, but the door is locked and the lights are all out. Nori knocks three times just to be sure, but no one answers.
---
It's late at night on December 30th and Nori is standing in the kitchen area of her new apartment. It's a tiny little bedsit in a shadier part of the city, but it's more affordable than her old place in Shine Junction and it's not like she has a lot of stuff anymore, anyways. At least she doesn't have to share the bathroom with her neighbor, which is a blessing in this building. Nori only has to take two steps before she's standing next to her new bed and she pulls out her linens to set about making it up.
When she's finished the the task, she runs her hand over the patchwork quilt her mother had made her for Christmas, her fingers trailing over the golden stitching. It's made up of scraps of red material in all different shades and sizes and Nori thinks that it's beautiful. The blonde turns out the lights and crawls into bed, burrowing under the blanket.
She pulls her phone out and hesitantly starts a message to Detective Holland, her thumb hovering over the send button for a split second before she mashes it down.
Please don't be dead.
Then she turns over and tries not to think about it anymore.
---
The next morning the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and there are still no new messages from Oliver.
---
@BeastofDestiny @Bozo
It's late at night when Nori next opens her eyes, blinking up at the ceiling to try
and peer through the darkness. Kyle had gone to bed after their make out session, leaving her alone and bundled up under the blankets on the couch. Tiredly, the blonde reaches out a hand and feels around on the coffee table for her cellphone. When she finally managed to find it, Nori pulls it over so she can see it as she unlocks the home screen.
It's 2:13am and there are no new messages from Detective Holland.
Nori opens a new message and starts to type, 'Are you okay?', before erasing it and instead putting, 'How goes the stake out?'. Her finger hovers over the send button but she deletes the whole thing instead, still concerned that sending him a text might compromise him. 'Please let me know you're alright,' she thinks blearily, staring down at the screen and willing Olivier to send her a message.
She falls back asleep with her phone still clutched in her hand, but the text message never comes.
---
When Nori makes it back to her apartment the next morning, it is still smoldering and surrounded by yellow tape and police officers and no one is listening to her.
"Wait, wait, please, there was somebody in there!" She pleads as Officer Saiko stands in front of the charred remains of the door to bar her passage.
"There wasn't anyone in there Miss Haywood, we searched the whole flat. You're just in shock," the ginger informs her, his tone slightly kinder than it was yesterday.
"No, you don't understand, Oliv--"
"I'm telling you, there wasn't anyone in there," he interrupts her gently, placing both hands on either of her shoulders and trying to get her to look at him. "I went on one of the sweeps myself and it was completely empty, I promise."
Hesitantly, he reached out, and placing a hand on Nori's shoulder, tried to offer the girl some solace.
"I'll protect you, Mrs. Haywood. Nothing bad is going to happen; I promise."
Nori flinches, visibly recoiling from both the memory and the police officer. He lets her go, nodding towards an emergency responder who brings a pink shock blanket over and carefully arranges it around the girl's shoulders. "Now," Officer Saiko continues, fishing his notebook and pen out of the breast pocket of his uniform. "Let's have another look at that picture of yours, hmm?"
---
Nori texts Kyle to let him know what happened before buying a train ticket. Then she goes home.
---
She's been back on the farm for two days before she finally tells her mum and dad about her apartment catching fire, purposefully leaving out the disappearance of Detective Holland and that it may have been set by the Weatherman. Nori calls Olivier's phone every night, but it always goes straight to voicemail and she never leaves a message.
There is a knock at her bedroom door before her mother comes in, her silvering hair pulled up into a messy bun as she sits next to her daughter on the bed. "Hey cupcake," her mum says, nudging Nori's shoulder with her own. "Aren't you gonna come have some supper?"
"No thanks," The younger girl answers, giving her mum a watery smile. "I'm not very hungry right now."
"Hm," the woman hums, raising an eyebrow at her daughter and giving her a pointed look that says, 'I know better', but she lets it slide. "Your father and I were talking, and we've decided to sell Penelope so you can have enough money for a deposit on a new place."
"Mum, you can't sell the cow, she's the only one you've got!"
"We're a wheat farm, sugar, we don't really need a cow. Plus, the old bird tries to bite me every time I go to milk her. I mean, I get it, I'd be ornery too if someone was trying to yank on my ti--"
"Focus, mum,"
"Right," the elder Haywood coughs, before continuing, "We want to do this for you, Nori. Your father and I weren't able to send you to college, but we can at least do this much. Please," her mum asks, reaching out and covering Nori's hand. "Let us help you."
"Okay," the blonde relents, her eyes growing a little hot as she looks back up at the older woman. "Thanks, mum."
"Anytime, dumpling. Anytime."
---
Later that night, Nori stares at her phone and whispers, "I hope you're okay."
The phone remains silent.
---
Nori is standing at the platform of the station with two duffle bags stuffed full of new clothes as he dad frets with the green scarf he'd just bought her, making sure it was laying just right for maximum warmth. "You'll call if you need anything, won't you?" He asks, smoothing down her hair with his small, calloused hands.
"Yes dad, I'll call if I need you," she reassures, giving him a lop sided grin as he runs his thumb over the tattoo that adorns her left cheek and scowls.
"I don't know why you did this to your beautiful face."
"The boys like it," she teased, laughing as he scowled further. "They think it makes me look sexy."
"Smart ass," he shoots back, running a hand over his haggard face before dropping it at his side. "You're not doing drugs, are you? I know there is a lot of temptation in the big city, but you have to stay strong. And don't let those hippies tell you that weed is okay, it's a gateway drug!"
"Nothing stronger than alcohol, dad, I swear."
"That's my girl," he says before pulling her into a bear hug and dropping a kiss on her forehead. "I love you, pumpkin."
"I love you too, dad," she answers and there is a lump in her throat, but she just swallows it down.
---
When she gets back in the first thing she does is visit Detective Holland's office, but the door is locked and the lights are all out. Nori knocks three times just to be sure, but no one answers.
---
It's late at night on December 30th and Nori is standing in the kitchen area of her new apartment. It's a tiny little bedsit in a shadier part of the city, but it's more affordable than her old place in Shine Junction and it's not like she has a lot of stuff anymore, anyways. At least she doesn't have to share the bathroom with her neighbor, which is a blessing in this building. Nori only has to take two steps before she's standing next to her new bed and she pulls out her linens to set about making it up.
When she's finished the the task, she runs her hand over the patchwork quilt her mother had made her for Christmas, her fingers trailing over the golden stitching. It's made up of scraps of red material in all different shades and sizes and Nori thinks that it's beautiful. The blonde turns out the lights and crawls into bed, burrowing under the blanket.
She pulls her phone out and hesitantly starts a message to Detective Holland, her thumb hovering over the send button for a split second before she mashes it down.
Please don't be dead.
Then she turns over and tries not to think about it anymore.
---
The next morning the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and there are still no new messages from Oliver.
---
@BeastofDestiny @Bozo
