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 Posted: Tue Oct 08, 2013 11:06 pm
After a brief interlude of short texts, Robert was calling Shiloh in on his offer. There was no way he was going to be able to get everything he needed out in one go. But he had to. He had no right to linger. So he waited at the end of the hall on the second floor, for the man to show up where he asked him to. He was ill prepared - holding nothing but several plastic bags. This was how Robert moved, apparently. And why the man should never be allowed to be alone, despite his best efforts to do so.
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Posted: Tue Oct 08, 2013 11:56 pm
Robert had needed his help, and Shiloh was glad to give it. He wasn't aware of the circumstances of the move, only that Robert needed to gather his things, and for some reason, relocate them to the basement. Shiloh didn't know why anyone would willingly move to the eerily dark and dank floor. He'd taken a moment to peer down it, but it's general dungeon atmosphere hadn't made it particularly appealing to exploring, and Shiloh was glad to stay where the sunlight reached. He climbed the stairs to the second floor, and found his way down the hall to where Robert stood, armed with plastic bags. Shiloh stared, he wasn't sure how they were going to move an entire room's contents within a few measly bags but if Robert thought they were decent enough to do the job, then he wasn't going to worry about it further. "Hi, Robert," he said brightly, smiling. "Ready to get a move on?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 12:09 am
Shiloh's question felt like a punch directly to the gut. Instinctively, he answered. "No." But he handed the man some of his plastic bags anyway, and pushed off the wall, moving forward down the hall. It was a surprisingly long walk, complete with a turn down into another hallway, but eventually they reached room 257. He unlocked the door, opened it a crack, and listened. He already knew the answer, but in order to spare Shiloh some discomfort, he had to check to be sure. Confident that the room was empty, he opened it up and let him inside. The room itself was lavish compared to the first floor. Walking in had them standing in the full living room, complete with a couch and flat screen; though the flat screen was flat on the ground, face down. The couch had no pillows on it, and the location of the missing pillows was a mystery. "Bathroom first." Robert whispered - his voice only hushed due to his reverence for a place that held his past like a broken bauble fallen from a Christmas tree.
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Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 12:32 am
Robert's demeanor had seemed to plummet considerably over the recent weeks, and Shiloh had no clue why. But he didn't know the man well enough to ask, so he took the bags Robert handed him, and followed him down the winding hall. The second floor was certainly more spacious than the first, and, Shiloh could see after he waited for Robert to open the door, so were the rooms. His own room seemed like a plain box compared to the large room he was standing in. Oh, he thought, as his gaze swept the room, there was the couch that the Reid fellow had mentioned. Shiloh glanced at it, then back at the doorway - he still wasn't sure it was going to fit. It definitely wasn't going to fit in the bags, that was certain. The television on the floor was an oddity, and stared at it a moment before trailing Robert to the bathroom. "You, uh, know your T.V.'s on the ground, right?" he asked, his voice having dropped to the same level of whisper. He wasn't sure why they were whispering, it made it feel as though they were sneaking around. This was Robert's room, right? Shiloh looked around quickly, wondering vaguely if they were looting someone. But then, he supposed, it wasn't likely that they would loot someone's bathroom.
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Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 12:52 am
He was already halfway into the bathroom when Shiloh mentioned the television, and Robert backed up just enough to look at it, his expression flickering with pained mourning. "It's broken." He eventually said. "It doesn't matter." Then he disappeared into the bathroom, where he started to fill his bag with men's toiletries. The bathroom itself was clearly used by two people, and it was the only room that seemed untouched by whatever storm had taken the place. Robert was only taking things that he knew belonged to him; things he actually needed to survive. His electric shaver and cream, the body shaver, the hairdryer, they were all dumped into his bag unceremoniously. "Here, you take this, it's gotta stay clean." He threw several rolls of toilet paper at Shiloh. Apparently, he didn't think toilet paper was found in all rooms. "You see anything else in here that looks like it was owned by a man?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 11:38 am
"Oh, I'm sorry man," Shiloh said, as though comforting Robert on the loss of a loved one. Judging from Robert's expression, it was entirely possible he was. He followed him into the bathroom, and looking around, it was clear Robert had a roommate. Or had a roommate, Shiloh wasn't entirely sure of the circumstances anymore, not that he had had any clue in the first place. He watched Robert gather things into his bag, looking up only when the other hunter shoved some rolls of toilet paper his way. Tucking them under his arm, he glanced at Robert, before doing another sweep of the bathroom at the man's request. "I think you got it all..." he trailed off, a little unsure. "Did you get your toothbrush?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 3:30 pm
Toothbrush. Robert opened up the mirror above the sink, and found his toothbrush, and a few other things he'd forgotten. "Thanks." He murmured gratefully, dropping them into his bag and turning to the door. Shiloh was in the way, so he patted the mans shoulder and led him outside. The living room was ignored once more, and he moved to the second door, opening it and taking a step inside. But a step was all he got. The sight of the room hit him like a wall, stopping him from any further movement. This was not how he'd left it - but he knew he shouldn't have been surprised. The bed was absolutely destroyed. From top to bottom, it had been ripped open and systematically torn asunder. Stuffing was everywhere, along with the tiny feathers from ripped up pillows. Clothing was strewn all over the floor messily - but that was as he had left it. He turned his head just enough to mutter over his shoulder. "Sorry. It's a mess." He felt embarrassed, and guilty, for bringing Shiloh. This was a fallout from an event that no one else in the world should have ever seen. He felt like he was betraying Petra just by bringing the man into it. But he hadn't known. That did not assuage his guilt. "Just pick up all the clothes on the floor, shove them in the bags." He finally headed inside, and opened a closet, disappearing within.
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Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 6:58 pm
"Not a problem!" Robert gently ushered him out of the bathroom once he'd finished collected all that he needed, and Shiloh followed him dutifully through the living room and towards the second door. He had been about to dutifully follow him into the second room, when Robert stopped dead in his tracks, and Shiloh bumped into him, backing up a step with a quick apology. It was then that he peeked past Robert's large form, and into the war zone that called itself a bedroom. Everything was torn apart, as though someone had decided to massacre the bed. Shiloh stared, curious as to who, and exactly what sort of species, his roommate was, but he said nothing, waiting for Robert to speak first. The apology he issued was entirely necessary, and Shiloh assured him as such. "Don't worry about it, messes happen." Grizzly attacks happened too, and Shiloh still wasn't sure which of the two had taken place here. He watched Robert disappear into the closet, and, setting the toilet paper down for a moment, went about retrieving the floor strewn clothes, depositing them in one of the plastic bags.
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Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 7:43 pm
Robert was deep in the closet, invisible behind the racks of clothing and darkness. The shufffle of clothes being picked up off of hangars and shoved into a bag was the only sound that came from him, for a few minutes. But eventually, when he realized that there wasn't much in the closet he owned, he'd slid down into a corner and clutched a garment bag, holding it in a hug and crying silently. Shiloh didn't need to see him suffer, but he was sure the man could keep himself busy while Robert had himself a good old fashioned meltdown.
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Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 9:35 pm
Something crunched underfoot as he sorted through the clothes, and Shiloh lifted a shirt that clearly would have never fit Robert, nor have been his choice of color, to reveal bits of broken glass littering the floor beneath it. It was clear, and sharp, and he found the broken frame not far away, peeking out from just under the corner of the bed. Still curious, Shiloh reached for it. He had to know, was Robert rooming with a grizzly bear? But when he lifted the frame, the pretty woman standing next to Robert in the picture was definitely human, and definitely wearing a wedding dress. Robert had his arms wrapped around her, and he looked happier than Shiloh had ever seen the man. At least, happiest he had ever seen Robert. He'd seen a similar look on Trebor once, but it hadn't surfaced since. Shiloh was confused. Who was the woman? Was she his roommate? Was she his wife? He'd never seen her around Deus, but that didn't mean she hadn't been here. Or judging by the state of the room, wasn't still here, somewhere. The questions only made Shiloh more confused. Wasn't Robert with Mimsy? He stared at the picture a moment longer, before returning it to the place he'd found it. It wasn't any of his business, he decided. He was here to help Robert move, not pry into his personal life.
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Posted: Thu Oct 10, 2013 2:43 am
It took some time, but eventually Robert exited the closet, with a bag half full of now crumpled clothing, and a clean face only marred by red eyes. He checked Shiloh's progress, which was almost complete, and then moved to open up one of the drawers in a chest. He emptied it with one sweep of his arm, dropping all of the underwear and socks out into his bag. It was the only drawer he opened. "I guess that's it." He grumbled, his voice scratchy. He cleared it, and looked around the room. "I thought.. well I guess I was wrong." Somewhere along the line, Robert had convinced himself that everything in his home was his. But when it came down to actually splitting, he realized he never used his own money on himself. A scant 10% of the items and clothing in the house were his. The rest of the stuff there were things he considered 'theirs' and therefore refused to take for himself. He cleaned off the floor with his foot, to make sure he left nothing behind, and he found the broken frame Shiloh had discovered moments before. His hand reached down to pick it up, and when he turned it over, fresh tears fell without any chance to hide or hold them back. He put the frame down on the bed, pulled the picture out through the broken glass - disregarded the way it cut his skin - and folded his wedding picture. Once, twice, and it was put away in his pocket. Some things he refused to leave behind.
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Posted: Thu Oct 10, 2013 10:14 am
“Huh?” Shiloh asked, wondering a little too eagerly what Robert had thought. Mentally he chided himself; it was absolutely none of his business. If Robert wanted to tell him, he would, and if he didn’t, then that was that. The latter seemed to be the case as Robert found the wedding photo, the only sound coming from the large man the sobs that wracked his body. Shiloh’s heart went out to him, confused though he was. It was hard seeing anyone so upset, regardless of the situation. And whatever had happened here had been something terrible. It seemed as though Robert had suffered a profound loss, and Shiloh wondered sadly if he’d lost his wife. Deus was a dangerous place, and missions even more dangerous still, their life expectancy wasn’t the greatest. Maybe that was why Shiloh had never seen the woman in the picture. He frowned, it was very sad. He picked up the bags of clothes, and the toilet paper and looking at the few bags they were taking to the basement, and all the stuff that remained, he wondered why Robert was trading all of this in for a dungeon. Couldn’t he have stayed with Mimsy? Surely she would understand the circumstances, they were dating, weren’t they? Shiloh forced his brain to stop asking questions, and somehow still managed to pat Robert awkwardly on the back despite all of the things in his arms. Then he made his way to the door. “Do you, um, need a minute before we go?” If he did, Shiloh was definitely making a second trip to the bathroom for bandages.
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Posted: Thu Oct 10, 2013 11:38 pm
Shiloh made his way to the door alone. After Robert had folded up the picture, he never moved. He just stood there, like a big, dumb statue, and contemplated his life with melamcholy agony. But when that question came, Robert looked startled, turning his gaze to the man at the door. Did he need a minute? It would have been better to do as he'd planned - get in, get his necessities, get out. Rip it off, like a band-aid. That would have been best. He slumped down to sit on the broken bed, which sagged under him with the effort of holding him. "Yeah." He breathed out. "I think I kind of do." He waited, as if assuming Shiloh would come back to him, but if he didn't he would gesture to get him to return. And then he just sat, and stared, at nothing in particular. Sat, and stared, in silence. A few moments later, he turned to Shiloh again, as if only re-realizing he was there. "You're probably so damn confused, aren't you." Robert's unsteady voice huffed out in a breathy, half-formed laugh.
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Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2013 3:34 pm
Shiloh wasn't aware of what exactly Robert's inner turmoil entailed, but he assumed that the man would want a minute alone, so he was surprised when Robert gestured for him to return, instead of waving him out the door. Shiloh eyed the cuts on Robert's hands, and cast a long glance at the bathroom - but Robert only needed a minute, it would be fine. Stepping back towards the bed, Shiloh knelt beside it, careful of the broken shards of glass, and began ripping off bits of the toilet paper and wrapping them over Robert's hand. There was nothing fancy about it, and in the end it looked like Robert had gotten into a fist fight with his razor, but it made Shiloh feel a little bit better about things. He felt better until Robert turned to him, and aptly described his feelings towards the whole situation. "Ah, no it's okay," Shiloh assured him. "It's none of my business, even if I don't understand why you're moving into a dungeon." He shot Robert a good-natured grin, and gently patted his knee before straightening up. "Are you okay though?"
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Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2013 8:54 pm
Without any fuss, Robert let Shiloh have his hand. He chuckled, biting back a laugh as Shiloh tried to help a shard covered bleeding hand with toilet paper, and simply let it happen. He hadn't met someone as kind hearted as the man in a long time, and it was nice to know people like that still existed. It gave him a warm feeling of hope that not everyone good in the world was bound to die. "Thanks." He murmured, both for the discretion, and the attempt to help. "No." He answered with honesty, but when he looked at Shiloh, he was smiling a weak, grateful little smile. "But maybe one day I will be." He pulled his sticky red toilet papered hand away from him, and stood up. "Glad I asked you to come help me, though," He murmured, picking up one bag with his good hand. "'Cause now I can only carry one of these. Hah!"
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