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 Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2014 1:16 pm
Oliver's entire life since recruitment had been full of ups and downs. He had finally developed a passable routine that at least let him sleep at night, only to be completely disrupted by recent events. Between the terrifying 'zombie mission' he had been present for, and the destruction of his first round of minipets in the name of Science, the young trainee was a mess.
It was only the third day after he had put down those minipets, he had lost track of how many days since the mission. His periodic nightmares of zombie hunters had been invaded by themes of loss, and Oliver wasn't sure he wanted to go to sleep at all that night.
While many of the island's inhabitants began making their way to the cafeteria for dinner, Oliver was not interested. He returned to his room instead, pushing the door closed behind him, kicking off his boots, and curling up on his bed. Working with the new minipets all day was hard, they were just so dumb and innocent... There was a soft click of the door latch to tell him it had not been closed all the way, but the sound was lost in the beginnings of sniffling.
Even if the door was cracked open, he was always quiet in his despair. Nobody would bother him when he gave way to tears.
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Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2014 4:29 pm
Molly was also skipping dinner in the cafeteria tonight. Since being promoted to full Hunter, she found herself using her hot plate a whole lot. She was eating grilled ham and cheese sandwiches like they were going out of style, but that was alright! They were so good, it wasn't bad to have a lot, right? Her hands were clasped over her stomach as she moved down the hallway at a casual pace, looking to get to the staircase. A sight of a cracked open door in the other wise routinely pattern of closed ones caught her eye though, and she slowed before she came to a stop. Oh...! Molly blinked, staring at the cracked door. It was curious, and Molly usually wasn't known for sticking her nose into matters that didn't involve her, but...maybe someone had left their room in a hurry and didn't close their door? The thought made her gasp. Goodness! That'd be awful! Comfort of mind came with closed doors! Maybe she'd just go look to make sure! Molly moved over to the door, and while she didn't mean to exactly, she did happen to peek in the crack, and it was then she caught sight of a trainee curled up on the bed. Oh! She almost gasped, but covered her mouth with a hand. Oops! Maybe this one was...sleeping? In that case, she should close the door and turn off the li-- She was picking up on a soft sound now, which once again had her pausing. She listened for a moment, and though it was been years now since she had heard it, there was no mistaking the sound. Sniffling. Crying. Looking at the curled up figure on the bed too, she started to notice the jostling of his shoulders... Molly immediately felt her heart go out to the poor trainee. "...Um...excuse me?" She uttered in a concerned tone. Soft, but loud enough to be heard. "...Are you alright?"
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Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2014 5:52 pm
Oliver remained unaware he was under scrutiny, at least at first. He was too lost in his misery, wanting to sleep and rest his aching head and tired, teary eyes, yet not daring to try for fear of waking up again before the sun was up. But his misery wasn't so loud as to miss the soft question. The boy jumped to a more upright position, and for a second he could only stare. His eyes were pale, pretty if that was ever appropriate for a young man, but they were red from crying and his eyelashes were heavy with tears. He certainly hadn't expected a female hunter to go peeking into his room! Embarrassment soon had him rubbing at his face with the sleeve of his coat, trying to scrub away the telltale dampness on his cheeks, and the growing blush with it if that were ever possible. "I-I'm o-okay!" Oliver replied quickly, it was an answer that had been used for years to brush off concerns. He tried to give the hunter a smile to accompany it. The attempt to reassure might have been successful had the smile not broken down with an unavoidable lip quiver and a fresh wave of heartache. The boy quickly rubbed his face again and choked back a sob.
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Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2014 6:14 pm
Molly started a bit as Oliver suddenly sprang up, though it was obvious she didn't seem convinced. Her expression didn't waver from concern. Her brows were knitted and her lips were pulled into a soft frown. Molly hesitated in the doorway, where she was still peeking through the crack at the trainee. A freckled hand reached for the door knob and she placed her hand on it, opening the door a few inches, but pausing once again. "Is it alright if I come in?" Because even concerned, she was nothing, if not, courteous and mindful of another's space.
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Posted: Sat Oct 25, 2014 7:45 pm
The embarrassed, tearful boy sniffled loudly into his sleeve, wanting nothing more than to be left alone. But like any friendly Canadian, he couldn't say no. Instead he nodded, welcoming the stranger into his room. Oliver's pale eyes glanced up only for a second before he turned his head, lowering his chin and letting his bangs fall across his face. He might not be able to say no, but the tears were not an image he wanted to present to the world, especially not this world. Life on Deus was too cruel to tolerate tears.
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Posted: Sat Oct 25, 2014 8:03 pm
Now with permission, Molly pushed the door open quietly and stepped in. She shut it gently behind her, all the way, this time, and slipped out of her boots. She left them by the door, and then approached the poor trainee on his bed. "Ah..." She opened her mouth like she wanted to say something, but then promptly closed it. She stood there, a bit uncertainly, for a few moments, before she finally reached out for the boy. Her fingers stopped above his head, like she wanted to lay her hand upon it, and then moved to his shoulder. Her fingers tentatively slid onto his shoulder, and there she rested her hand. "What's the matter...?" She asked, her voice soft.
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Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2014 5:06 pm
Oliver held everything back but a small whimper, and shook his head. There were a dozen things he wanted to say, like nothing was wrong, or he just needed some time, or he would be okay in a minute. He would have said anything except what was really bothering him had he been able to speak at all without breaking down entirely. He slid over a couple inches, not to get away from the soft hand on his shoulder, but to make sure there was enough room should the hunter get tired of standing around. Oliver's room was not the best for welcoming guests to begin with. The only sign he lived there at all was the clothes haphazardly thrown in one corner of the room and the papers on his desk, his only personal item being the marshmallow-shaped dinosaur plushie on the bed next to his pillow. Not to mention all the tears. It was hard to be a proper host when you couldn't even speak without crying.
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Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2014 5:17 pm
Molly took Oliver's scooting as an invitation to sit down next to him, and she did. Her hand stayed on his shoulder as she occupied where he had previously been, the bed shifting under the addition of her weight. Um...hum...well. Molly's brows were knitted again as she tried to think of a way to approach him. He clearly couldn't tell her what was wrong, and that was okay. Maybe he would in time? The Mist Hunter hesitated for a long moment before her hand curled around from his shoulder to around the back of his neck. The other arm then raised in an offer of a hug. "It'll be okay." She tried to assure, to what, she had no idea, but maybe offering the trainee something was better than nothing.
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Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2014 6:41 pm
Oliver couldn't refuse the comfort forever. No matter how much he felt himself to be undeserving, or how much he loathed his cowardice and strong emotions, there was a limit to how long he could keep his distance. The shift of the hunter's hand to his neck, the way the cheap mattress leaned when she sat down, the offered hug... That was enough. The boy let out a choked sob, and leaned towards her in acquiescence. He couldn't stop the tears this time, and even though he was still reluctant to give in completely, Oliver really did want to believe it would be okay.
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Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2014 4:07 am
Molly's free arm wrapped around Oliver as he leaned in, and she held onto him. "It's okay." She murmured again, leaning her cheek softly against his head. Was it okay though? Asked a voice. She still didn't know, but it'd have to do for now. She continued to hold him, quietly, until he said or moved otherwise.
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Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2014 4:23 pm
It was a long couple of minutes before Oliver calmed down, his silent sobs giving way to miserable sniffles. It might be okay down the road, or it might not, but for now he had cried himself out. And on the shoulder of a stranger at that. " S-sorry," he whimpered quietly. It should have been time to pull back, explain that he was okay after all, and maybe attempt another smile... but he didn't. If there was ever a time he needed a hug, it had been right then. And a part of him was afraid that the minute this kind hunter left, the loneliness and misery would come right back.
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Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2014 4:13 am
At some point while hugging him, the hand on the back of his neck had moved to gently petting his hair, and it was a motion she kept at. She paused momentarily at the soft whimper, before she resumed what she had been doing. Molly shook her head a bit. "Oh, it's alright." She assured him. "You don't need to apologize."
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Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2014 6:54 pm
"S-sorry..." He muttered again, in a tinier, even more apologetic voice. "I-I haven't been sleeping very well... um... I-I'm okay now... I-I think." Although he couldn't look the hunter in the eye, he was reluctant to pull away. Warmth and touch was not something he had much of. Not on the island, and not before the island either, and Oliver felt almost guilty to be hugged so gently. His babbled excuses and apologies were as much a product of his guilt as they were habit. He took a deep, shuddering breath, and reached for the dinosaur plush toy behind him. It received some half-hearted squishing in his lap. Now that he had gotten all those emotions out, he felt a little hollow, and a little embarrassed for being so worked up over things in the first place.
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Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 1:14 pm
Upon hearing 'sorry' again, Molly's lips curled up into a smile. One hand left Oliver to gently wag a finger at him. "Uh oh!" She said. "You can only say 'sorry' a certain amount of times a day!" She informed him, cheerfully, yet her tone was also reminiscent of a mother who was in a good mood, but meant everything she said. "If you go over your limit, there will be consequences." She gave him a fox eyed smile. "There's a quota for 'sorry', and you are two away from filling it, so don't go over, and choose carefully what you want to say sorry too!" Of course, she was just teasing. Jeremy had done this to her so many times, and she found herself in a position to do it to someone else. The finger that had been wagging at him stopped, and out of habit towards someone younger than her, Molly brushed her hand through his hair. "It's alright, really. I'm sorry to hear you're not sleeping well! Um...what's the matter...if I may ask?"
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Posted: Mon Nov 10, 2014 5:52 pm
Oliver's expression made it look like holding back his next apology was physically painful. Somehow he avoided using up one more of his sorries. "I-it's nothing..." he started. There was a pause, and his lower lip quivered slightly. "I-it's... I-I euthanized... the minipets, i-in the lab..." Oliver sniffed and rubbed at his nose with his sleeve. " I-it was time to have them put down, a-and I h-had to volunteer..." The boy squished the dinosaur in a hug, and his next words were lost as he buried his face in it's soft body. Something about zombies, and jogging, possibly also potato chips.
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