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 Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 1:15 pm
Ripley let him cling and expected the tears, which he listened to in silence. He merely held onto him tightly, rubbing his back to soothe him, but made no noises to try and urge him to stop. It was better to let it out. It wasn't until Otto began to calm down that he even tried to speak again.
"I didn't know her very well." He admitted; he had only really interacted with her twice one-on-one. "But I'd like to hear about her, when you're ready to tell me." Then, slowly, he loosened his grip on Otto. "Maybe when you reek less, though." This time he allowed his grin to seep into his voice, trying to off-handedly tease the boy.
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 1:22 pm
Otto nodded, though his face went sour as Ripley teased him. "I don't smell that bad..."
He paused. He then became a little sheepish.
".....okay fine." He did smell kind of bad. It was unlike him, actually. He'd been too miserable to bother with a shower aside from the initial one after the incident. The teen sniffled, rubbing his nose on a sleeve again and sauntering off to the bathroom to get clean again.
~~~
It was a shower that took twenty minutes. It was like showers were new again. It felt like heaven, washing away the dirt of his misery. He'd showered, washed his hair clean, brushed his teeth in what seemed like ages. He felt fresh and new. For now.
He came back out a while after wrapped in towels. He'd neglected to get himself clean clothes beforehand, slinking into his bedroom to change.
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 2:24 pm
Ripley watched him leave and, once he was gone, went to take his seat again to wait. He continued to watch the movie (though it was still on silent) until Otto's return, though he never remembered seeing this particular one. Then again, he didn't often watch movies, and his current situation made it even more difficult to accomplish.
"Feel better?" Ripley asked, tilting his head back to look at Otto as he returned. "You certainly smell better." He teased lightly.
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 2:33 pm
Otto, now in clean clothes, walked out of the bedroom and sat with Ripley. He lightly shoved him for the comment before running his hands through his damp hair. "Yeah.." He replied in a murmur. "Thanks." He'd not have gotten himself cleaned up until days later, if left unattended. Stewing in his misery, he'd hardly noticed.
The pain remained, but at least he felt clean again.
"I've seen a lot of people die here... some of them have been close to me, but.. nothing like this."
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 2:45 pm
Ripley grinned at the shove, and casually elbowed him in return. "You're welcome." It was important to take care of oneself while grieving; it was something many forgot to do, and it was something Ripley wasn't going to let Otto forget, no matter how traumatic.
"How was it different?" He inquired, honestly curious.
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 2:47 pm
"Because I had to watch her die." He replied grimly, letting that stay in the air for a moment before he spoke again.
"When.. Clerise died.. she was like a sister to me.. or what I guess would qualify as one. She died, but I never saw it happen. I just... never saw it coming. It hurt.. and I was upset. But it was easy for me to pretend it never happened. I never even visited her grave."
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 2:54 pm
"Ah." So. The rumor was true, then. "And Nevada? Will you visit her grave?"
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 2:56 pm
Otto took a moment to consider this. With Clerise, he'd not visited her grave so he could continue to deny her death had happened. He'd been scared to go. Nevada had died before his eyes. He'd carried her lifeless corpse back to Deus. There was no denying it.
"I.. might.. but I dunno what I'd do there.. It's just a rock with her name on it. It's not her."
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 3:02 pm
Ripley shrugged.
"It's proof that she existed, at the very least." Amber eyes slid away, focusing on an empty space in the distance. "And it's a space that will always be hers, if you ever wanted to talk at her." Graves had multi-uses, after all. Even if there was no body underneath, it still meant something. It was symbolic.
"Was she always so...flirty?" Ripley asked, switching tactics a little bit.
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 3:29 pm
Otto bit his lip in an attempt not to smile.
"Yeah." He said with endearment, rubbing his neck bashfully. "It's one of the things I liked about her." She'd been the first person to ever show romantic interest in him, even if it was something she'd done for others as well. She hadn't treated him like a child, or a little boy. He never had to chase her. She was always there.
"Why? Did she flirt with you when you met her?"
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 3:42 pm
"Yep. I don't think anyone's ever used 'handsome' as a way to describe me before." Ripley chuckled, waving a gloved hand in dismissal. "The first time I met her, We talked more about you than anything else." Well, Otto, and the way Ripley himself was the apparent worst at the training courses. Even the ones that were made specifically for his division.
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 5:01 pm
Handsome. He could still her her voice repeat that word in his head. With her smile and the twinkle in her eye.
It hurt.
"Me?" He asked, sniffling and trying to keep himself calm. "How come?"
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Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 9:13 pm
"Because someone gave her the name Ripples." The pale trainee levelled a heavy, unamused stare at Otto, as if to say thanks for that, by the way. "It went naturally from there."
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Posted: Fri Apr 18, 2014 11:41 am
"Oh." Otto went quiet. He smirked on the inside, even if outside he still looked unhappy. He was glad he'd made some misery for the man.
He stared at his lap, fiddling with his fingers.
He reached for his bottle of Southern Comfort again.
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Posted: Thu May 01, 2014 10:06 am
He lightly slapped Otto's hand. "Drinks and bread first, then booze."
"So, come on, tell me about her. How did you two meet?"
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