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 Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2017 9:13 am
Quote: A new candy store is giving free promotional candy to try and attract new customers. At first, it’s delicious; it’s easily one of the best candies you’ve ever had. Only, within twenty four hours of eating your first piece, you begin to have extreme tooth pain that can last for up to a whole day. It feels like a cavity, but a trip to the dentist reveals nothing strange. It just hurts. While the pain eventually fades, you’ll remember how much it hurt. Is your drive for Halloween Candy dented or are you still gearing up for more? Giulia Montgomery loved food. Mostly sweet, mooshy, colorful food- like ice cream! Or white cheddar macaroni with broccoli and three colors of peppers and little chunks of chicken or beef. Or maybe tomatoes or pimien toes. Or mashed potatoes covered in cheese! Or candy. Giulia loved candy. Chocolates with peanut butter or orange or cherries, or macarons, or meringues, or- well. She had inherited her older sisters sweet tooth, and no mistake. When the new candy store opened up, of course, that meant that she had to go! Relentlessly (and remorselessly) the girl had begged and pleaded to be allowed to check it out- free candy! Local candy! Her presence here today made clear that she had won. She had needed to come after ballet class, so when she left the suit man outside, it was already well close to dark. Aidan was probably home already, so she would pick up some things for him. Giulia bounced through the candy store, cheerfully collecting her free candy and beginning to chow down on the delicious sweet before perusing the additional selections. So many people, even this late! She had only a few crumpled bills to spend to supplement the free candy, but it would be enough to buy some things. Jada and Aidan and Cookie and Daddy would love them! They had little candy boxes, that went inside bigger boxes- like a mix and match selection. Tiny samples to make up a bigger sample, but she could decide what all to get. There was gelato, and ice cream, and the shimmery visual delight of ribbon candy, and there was a case of “fine” chocolate which was decorative. “Willie Wonka couldn't have a better chocolate factory,” she sighed to no one, clapping her hands and reeling with indecision. Where should she even start? Should she get some for the hospital kids, or her classmates? Ugh, that free piece of candy was so good! She made her way carelessly around a display, small hand on it, eyes tilted inward, not upward. What kind of candy- oof!!
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Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2017 1:29 pm
Elex pushed the sunglasses further onto his face, relying on their dark lenses and aviator style to block out overbright beams. And they did, to some extent — dull pounding behind his eyes slackened when he viewed the world in muted, charcoal greys. The people surrounding him looked less vibrant and offensive so long as he applied such a strong filter to the world. Conversely, the sweets looked less appetizing.
Yet they smelled phenomenal. Despite talking heads and gesturing hands pounding their messages into his mind, Elex caught the scent of new candies easily. They sat in their delicate wrappers, perhaps still warm from conception, perhaps still sticky as the glaze hadn't yet set, and they beckoned onlookers with new lurid packaging. FREE SAMPLES said the sign lording over them. In consideration of the sometimes-ban Schörl placed on sweets, Elex loathed to pass the opportunity. A touch of legwork, proper excuses, and thin elbows won his way to the delectables on the silver serving plate. He absconded with one — a hard candy mixed of cream and delectable strawberry. He tucked it into his mouth with every intention of slipping from the crowd.
He crumpled the wrapper, its pitched capitulation cutting holes into his mind. He winced. The only trash can sat near a display adjacent to the exit. He shifted toward it —
He struck the wall, or a display, or — a child. His hip groaned louder than it should, with aftershocks reaching his perpetual headache. Elex suppressed a wince. The offending shoulder stumbled away from him. It belonged to — the blonde girl from the beach? Elex blinked away the hurt behind his eyes as he tried to recall. Right. Whose was she? Not the Townsends… The Camerons are all boys. The Chamberlyn's? Has to be.
"Sorry," he muttered around the candy. A small consolation for getting hip-checked in the shoulder, he supposed. A thin hand found balance against the display. "Who let you into a candy store?"
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Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2017 7:14 pm
Giulia hadn't meant to knock her shoulder into anyone, and the reedy seven-year old blinked, gripping at the display with a tiny hand, blinking blue eyes in the direction of the poor person she had just made contact with. Her shoulder hurt from bumping into them, and then from stumbling back into the square case, but luckily she had not clumsily knocked anything over; the display was a bit scattered, but intact. She would not be having to do dishes in the kitchen to pay for broken candy or something!
Her inhale pulled in the scent of sweets, and she could remember how divine her treat had tasted. But her shoulder ached, and the right side of her jaw tingled a bit. Had she bumped that too? How awful! Still, she peered large deep blue eyes at the person she had made contact with- and was very happy to see a slightly familiar young man gripping the display. She thought she had seen him before- at the beach! He had made a pretty conch, which still sat on the shelf in her bedroom. Cannons, and boomies, and shells, and the smell of salt and sea and sand, and- "Alex?" No, wait; that wasn't right. Her nose scrunched up, and she corrected herself. "Elex?" Or was it- that was the right name?
"I'm sorry I bumped into you," she told him, and she scootched her small body closer, lighting up with hope and delight at seeing her old friend- and friend he was, because she said so. And while he wasn't old, she'd known him since she was only, like, six, so it was practically forever!
As for who had let her into the candy store... that was a story, and one small, empty hand reached out to him, silently looking for him to hold it. "Well, I like candy, so I was coming for free candy and to get some for my family, and the staff, and maybe the kids in class, or my teacher? I got some allowance this week, so I got to spend it, and I know that lots of people like candies, and so I came here, and maybe I'll get some for the hospital kids? I think they would like that, don't you?"
She still had to pay for what she had in her other hand, but her attention was less on the candy now. Who else she had found in the store was so much more interesting!
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Posted: Fri Oct 20, 2017 1:45 pm
Elex caught the gesture peripherally. Why not. Be the monster that holds her hand. I wonder if the Chamberlyns have escaped supernatural interference. As one of the wealthiest families in Destiny City, I expect they stand the most chance of buying their way out.
But money makes a poor substitute to energy.
Elex took the hand given. He listened to Giulia using her too-loud voice to explain her too-broad plans to reward the too-sick children in the hospital, her too-wealthy family and her too-diligent staff. His head throbbed, and he swallowed against the too-sweet taste in his mouth. His brain slowly cut itself in half at the corpus callosum. "Elex," he conceded when he found his voice. Even his own tones cut sharply against the aural background. The whole of the shop thudded in his ears, his eyes — a dissonant sensory overload that begged for an opponent greater than Excedrin.
Her hand felt cool, though not overly so. A trick of the glamour, he supposed. "I think that's a lot of candy." She dreamed big by the sound of it, and if her parents allotted money to match, then they'd buy out the store by the end of the month. Nearly a decade passed since he was her age; he could remember little of his arithmetic skills as a child. Had she learned how to process transactions yet? Did she ascertain the value of a dollar of small-batch bonbons versus a dollar of Reese's Pieces? "Start with your family. What were you planning to get them?" The store offered enough options to suit anyone's flavored fancy — sweetened gummies, sours, old victorian candied fruit, brand-name items, chocolate confections, candy corn, mud cups and far, far more.
Elex's tooth groaned at him. He swapped his candy to the other side of his mouth. I still need to find something for Mother. Dark chocolate coffins would do her some good.
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Posted: Fri Oct 20, 2017 5:42 pm
Elex. Whoops! She had been close, anyways. And he had been nice, and corrected her, and held her hand! Giulia beamed widely up at the boy, squeezing his slightly warmer hand in her own. She liked holding hands with people- it was a good feeling.Especially when they were nice people, like Elex. He had to be nice, to give hand-made gifts to little girls he had only met once! It had been something he had been making for him, so it was extra special.
He didn't look very good, though, like maybe he had the beginning of a headache, or maybe a little toothache like she was starting. Had she broken a tooth on a piece of candy? Oh dear- someone would be so mad at her. She just wasn't sure who yet! Regardless, he spoke next, and she perked her ears up, looking to the older boy with attentive interest.
"It is a lot of candy!" she agreed, and reached into her pocket to pull out two wrinkled twenties, and a five. "But this is a lot of money, right? The little sign says that you can get the tiny cubes for- for 5? And so I have..." her brow furrowed, trying to remember. There were four hands in the twenty, so eight hands, and an extra.
"I can get nine of the little cubes? So I was going to get caramels for Aidan, and strawberry twisties for ma- Jada. And then the chocolate orange candies, and the little pumpkin spice candies, and..." she wrinkled her nose. "Maybe some plain chocolate samples, and the watermelon hard candies? I figured boring candies would be better, because if they aren't all as good as the samples, at least the flavor is easy to eat." Oh, and maybe a sample of the peanut butter cups?
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 11:29 am
Who let you wander around this city with forty-five dollars? My mother hardly let me out of her sight and I'm twice your age. The concern of her appearance here alone did not leave his thoughts; drawing worried attention had a habit of spooking children. And if she learned to fear her lonely ventures, what effect would that have? Her forays into candy stores weren't his business.
And then she tried to math. Elex hated math when his brain was actively trying to implode. No auras existed on the periphery of his vision, but he didn't need them to diagnose a migraine. Luckily she knew division well enough to do the math on her own, because Elex wasn't in any mood to guide her purchasing practices to considerable degree. "Yes," he concurred, if a little softly against the candy store's din. Even the word alone made his jaw hurt.
His tongue prodded a tender tooth as his brow furrowed. Any jostling to the bone caused a sharp jab of pain to splinter through his jaw and he winced slightly. When did that happen? I wasn't grinding my teeth.
'And strawberry twisties for ma- Jada.'
Jada. I remember her. Mother used to pick up modeling magazines and brood over Jada's looks. She'd lecture me about waist lines and hip-to-bust ratios and tell me how to spot a perfect hourglass figure. She talk of the older days, then compare them to the present and warn me that our body types were out of style. That girls like Jada, and boys like Trey were the people to be in this day and age. I think she'd die where she stood if I told her that Jada eats candy. If I said that Jada eats anything, really.
He tuned back into the conversation for the dregs of it. Looking around the store, much of the displays sat low for children's seeking fingers. The shop owner planned this well. "And what are you getting for yourself?"
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Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 4:10 pm
His confirmation of her math made her draw herself up in pride, wrapping her fingers more tightly around his hand. She went to smile, but her teeth clacked together and a pain shot through her head that made her blanch, gripping at his hand tighter, small nails digging in hard to the skin there. "I think I bit something though," she told him sadly after a moment. The feeling was sharp, like a really big.... hmm. What made people feel pain? A hammer? In her face.
She trudged forward, picking up another small candy box, tucking it against her body. There were still some candies to get before she left, and suddenly felt not very good at all. That was probably her sign to start buying her stuff and get ready to go home. But his next question kind of surprised her, distracting her from the increasing pain in her jaw. "For me?" why would she need to buy something for her? "I was just gonna share with everyone I bought candy for. Cookie makes lots of sweets, so I don't need anything for me..." her lips pursed, thoughtful, before she ventured a response.
"Maybe a gelato, or their ice cream?" it was more a question than anything else. "What would you like, Elex? I can get you something! As a thank you for the shell you gave me. I still have it in my room." it was one of her treasures! "What's your favorite thing? Maybe a hard candy for you to suck on while you're in school? I like peppermints in class, they help me keep focus."
The sharp pain that hit her next made her wince, and she lowered her cheek to her shoulder, unwilling to let go of his hand or the candy.
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Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 6:04 pm
"I think I did too." The raw hurt of his root radiated through his lower jaw. Though perhaps an ineffectual precaution, he spat the free candy into the trash. Sugar may only exacerbate it, he reminded himself, as he rubbed the sore spot. Regardless, standing about in a candy shop only encouraged more pain.
Sharing is a better choice than I would've made. Even the mention of sweets incurred hurt. Elex chose carefully to steer away from the subject. "If you want to thank me, we can work something else out." She tried hard to endear herself to others. Humbleness, gratitude and generosity were each qualities demanded in children by their parents and elders. That one must give and give and give became an expectation, often an unhealthy one, that cursed his peers. Giulia hadn't yet fallen prey to it. Skipping meals out of self-worth came later, if at all. In the interim, he faced aggressive kindness. Candy is a poor choice when my teeth are falling out.
Then she mentioned school, and Elex took his turn to wince. School commonly reached his thoughts while dwelling in Negaspace, and the choice of tactics-based learning proved a poor substitute. Schörl demanded his compliance and his intellect put to better use — combat training over calculus, tactics over theater, evasion over English. He no longer had a pool of peers to draw from, not in the same way — seldom had he met other teens trawling the dismal space. Instead he had only captains, each aloof, and each far more devoted to their own research and conduct to spare him any attention. School held peers and friends and cohorts long since unreachable. School held promise of a future. Of normalcy.
He held mixed feelings about normalcy.
Swallowing his fractured thought, Elex urged her toward the counter. "If your tooth hurts, you should check out. The drug store next door will have some anbesol. I'll take you there after." She could demonstrate her arithmetic for him, whether needful or not. He doubted the candy store clerks would find it prudent to take advantage of a child, but there were just as many simple dangers as there were lethal ones in Destiny City.
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Posted: Wed Oct 25, 2017 8:46 am
The fact he did too made her frown, sadly. Hopefully the pain would go away soon, but if two people had yucky pain after eating the candy, it might have been a bad batch. Should she tell someone? Was it too late? Elex spat what was left of his candy into the trash, and Giulia briefly mourned her greed, as she was unable to do the same.
"I do want to thank you," she said instead, before plucking one last cube off the shelf and making her way towards the register. Behind them, a man in jeans and a button-up shifted to keep apace, still respecting space but clearly keeping her in sight. "The shell you gave me is on my mantle. It's one of my favorite things. I get lots of things but usually the only handmade stuff comes from Aidan. Kayley was apparently the artsy one in the family, and I don't remember her." Kayley had gone to Heaven with mama, when Giulia was little. "So it is extra special, and I like it a lot." she shrugged, squeezing his hand, blue eyes bright with childish affection.
She passed over her cubes of candy, 7 in all, and passed over the two twenty dollar bills after double-checking on her fingers. Getting back coins surprised her, and her brow furrowed. Tax? So she had to pay for the items and then pay more? That was silly; why didn't the price tag just say what it meant? "What's Anbesol?" she asked Elex, tucking the coins away in her pockets along with the two dollar bills and a receipt that was now wrinkled. "Is it like Orajel?" she knew a little about Orajel from when Aidan had lost a tooth and been complaining it hurt.
Giulia led Elex towards the door, her bag swinging in her hands. "You seem very smart about things, Elex. Will I be clever like that one day? When I'm older?"
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Posted: Fri Oct 27, 2017 3:21 pm
A shell is just busywork. It's all restless hands and roving minds. They're throwaways — trinkets better left in trash cans. Why treasure it? Even if it's handmade, do all crafts hold meaning? If they don't, do you ascribe meaning to them?
You're shaping up to be a tragic little girl, Giulia. All grandeur and no personal connection. I wonder if it's that common for rich kids.
Elex attended her to the counter, where he watched in silence as she made the exchange. The tax total cropped up and she looked a little taken aback, but Elex found no reason to step in and explain. If she wanted to know, she'd ask. Instead, he drummed nailed fingers on the countertop idly. He counted the seconds. He checked his pocket watch for the count of hours and minutes left on his second skin — on his chance to play normal with a little girl on one hand and a passive sense of safety on the other. He almost felt normal. Almost, save that he held the hand of a girl he barely knew and his parents' phone calls kept going to voicemail. He would never answer them, he knew.
As he walked out with her, Elex prodded at the pain in his mouth. Even with the candy gone, it refused to abate."It's the same thing. It's for tooth pain." She knew Orajel well enough — that was more than he cared to learn on nights when he was losing baby teeth. More than his parents cared to explain, too. That was the way of his family, he supposed.
"If you keep paying attention and asking questions, you will." I wonder if your parents spend all their time looking up the best private schools and preschool books and thought-promoting toys to try to place you on top. The Best Possible Chance Syndrome. How many hours have they spent looking up all the right locally-sourced, organic foods and the best babysitters? Enrichment and pressure build up to the point of disinterest after a while. At what point will you tune out of that rat race, Giulia? Will you? Or will you stick to it to make Jada proud? The pressure's on for the perfect family, and mine's out of the running. Maybe yours is just waiting to be a happy tragedy. "Just don't think too much. You'll get bitter really fast."
He took a passing glance at the cashier before they ducked out of the candy shop, the bell whistling their farewell. The streets were cold, the night promised colder, and the walk to the drug store beckoned them before they parted for the night. His pocketwatch read 23 minutes to three.
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