maybe the future will smile on us (open.)

[Eli Ackerman]

WAVING FROM SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS.
"Come down now," they'll say.

---

At least it was a nice night. Well, nice enough. How did that song he liked go again? 'A beautiful night for being lonely'. That's definately what he was. Lonely. Eli didn't even have Duncan with him tonight. The dog was impressive; of everyone he had ever met, Duncan was the only one who could 1. sleep comfortably curled into a ball half his original size, and 2. sleep at all with people screaming across the house at eachother. Eli cleared his throat in a subtle way, knowing some of the disgusting sounds people could make with their vocal chords (despite being alone, with no people around to disgust). Having taken part in the screaming, he was a bit hoarse; it was a big house to shout across. Let sleeping dogs lie. That was the rule, and Eli took it into consideration when fumbling for his car keys and slamming the back door behind him.

Eli hadn't been able to deal with Dan anymore, which wasn't uncommon. Over the past few months especially, he had burned up more gas than ever before with all the drives he took. Grocery store, that had been his excuse. He had ripped the slim piece of paper from the refrigerator and stuffed it into his pocket when he went out the door. That's another thing that had changed within the past few months: the small family never seemed to run out of anything food-wise. It was because Dan got extra irritable this late at night, and the grocery store was the innocent only part of this place open all hours of the day and night. The list of food was small and petty, some items impatiently underlined, meaning Dan wanted them. Those that were circled and underlined meant he really wanted them. Eli knew he was going to "accidentally" forget a lot of them.

Mainly because the grocery store wasn't the point. The grocery store was never the point. Whenever he needed to get out of the house, immidiately, he used the grocery store as a cover and took a walk under the stars. Something he never really did, considering he was a runner, and never walked when he could run, and considering that he was an only child and his mother was more than nervous about murderers and kidnappers roaming the streets. Truthfully, the city had made Eli the same way, which means it was stupid of him to be trekking through dimly-lighted streets in the middle of the night, after all, he could trekk through the well-lighted Strike Zone or the Red Lotus just as easily. Hell, he could trekk through the grocery store. But there was something about the night air that calmed the boy.

He had taken his walk, contemplated using the one lonely cigarette he had stolen from Dan a ways back, then decided if the nigh wasn't enough to settle his frustration a cigarette wouldn't either, and headed back to his car. It was close to three o'clock now, and even a peaceful town like this had cops. And at the annoying age of seventeen, Eli was still subject to curfew. And so he started the car and headed away from the park (making sure he checked the backseat for any kidnappers before leaving.) With his foot firmly holding the brake pedal, the boy suddenly felt a tearing emotion close to depression. A night for being lonely, it seemed that stage had passed. He needed someone to talk to. Someone other than the stars in the sky. Maybe he would swing by the Red Lotus anyways.

The boy had just exited the parking lot when the car gave a grand sputter, an exceptionally ugly noise, enough of one to cause Eli to pull over in front of the school, as he knew what that sound meant. That was Noise #4. And of all the problematic noises, #4 was the worst. Kind of like someone's soul was dying, throwing up, and scratching its especially long nails across a chalkboard simultaneously. The old Skyliner looked brand new: a still-retractable white hood (rare for its age) and a sparkling cherry-red body, the car was practically Grease Lightning. Except for the engine. Much unlike the famous, powerful, street-racing greaser car, Eli's sputtered and coughed at him at the most unintelligible times. Like now, when he simply wanted to find someone else in this world, just one person. Of course, Eli could merely drive cars, fixing them wasn't anywhere near in his range of talents. The car had cost him nothing, as it was a present from Dan's grandchild-loving, richer-than-God parents, despite the fact that Eli was technically not their grandchild. Maybe that's why the car was so great but the engine was so useless: he was only an almost-grandchild to them.

Eli let out a sigh and got out of the car, there was nothing he could do other than pop the hood, stare at the mess of machinery and hope someone driving by knew their way around the inside of a car. From what he could tell, the engine wasn't letting out intimidating smoke like it did when the car made Noise #2, the most uncommon and severe of the problems, and nothing was obviously out of place like Noise #5 situations. Noise #'s 1 and 3 had something to do with a shortage of gas and oil, or so he thought. Noise #4 was the tricky one that had given him no clues. The car was so impressive, and when the engine decided it was feeling good, it showed. Now, however, it was embarrassing, he almost didn't want anyone to stop by. But that was a huge lie, he needed human contact, needed it. He refused to go to bed knowing the last person he spoke to was Dan.

"Awesome," Eli muttered, tolerance level shrinking. Now he needed someone for reasons other than throwing a rope down the pit of despair to drag him out. In his loneliness, the boy was stranded. Leaning against the side of his car, his eyes watched the street closely. For any sign of headlights or footsteps. Anyone who could save him one mental breakdown and an auto repair bill. At least it was a nice night.

[/blockquote][/color]

---

EVERYTHING LOOKS PERFECT FROM FAR AWAY.
"Come down now," but we'll stay.[/font]

---

STATUS; complete.[/size]
WORDCOUNT; 1,039.[/size]
TAGGED; open.[/size]
JAMS; beautiful night -- burden brothers.[/size]
NOTES; eli is just about as socially deprived as his rper right now xP.[/size][/center]

[Allyson Harrow]

REMEMBER THOSE WALLS I BUILT
WELL, BABY THEY'RE TUMBLING DOWN
allyson jane harrow
-------------

The soft, comfortable bed squished itself as the human laying on it turned onto her side. Her blue eyes glanced to the white oak nightstand that held up a lamp, a clock, and a picture frame of the subject and a few of her friends against a beach backdrop. The clock read 2: 47, a horrible time for anyone to be up at night with a long waitress shift at eight in the morning. The human, a girl around seventeen years old, flicked her hand toward the lamp switch and immediately a subtle, muted light stream was emitted which glowed on the baby blue walls. She let out a soft sigh, and tossed the covers aside onto the floor. Slowly her tiny feet found the way to the floor, but Allyson soon pulled them up back to the bed-the floor was absolutely bone chilling in January, at night. She fumbled around for the pair of socks she had worn to bed the night before. What was it with her and losing her socks at night? Ever since she was three feet tall, Allyson would go to bed and then, in the morning, she would wake up barefooted. It was a great mystery to her, and to the other countless children on the playground she would tell the tale to. Finally, her pale, freckled fingers found the green and pink swirled socks. Allyson swiftly moved herself across the wood floor to her dresser. Something about going out at night, well early morning to be technical, on a short run around Camden was absolutely exhilarating in her book. Her fingers found the doorknobs to her closet in the dimly lit room, and soon all of her closet was exposed to anyone who was in the room. Careful to pick out something that would keep her warm during the cold, January night, Allyson took out a pair of jogger’s pants, a very baggy sweatshirt, and her white under armor. She quickly changed into the outfit and then went to the nightstand-the lamp was still on.

----

The Camella Grove home’s door was shut gingerly behind Allyson, as to not make a peep that would wake her sleeping parents up. If her mother, or even her father who was somewhat lenient on her schemes, found out she had been going on runs during mid-night for the past few weeks, she could kiss that graduation party good-bye. Now free to seize the night, Allyson let the frost night air enter her nostrils. It was an intoxicant, like crystal meth was to an addict. She sighed and started down the sidewalk towards the location of Abshire Park. The full moon was high in the sky as she jogged gracefully across the streets of Camden. It was like Allyson was rehearsing her ballet routine to Pachabel’s Canon in D Major. Every step was cunning, but ladylike, something her mother would be proud she’d picked up. She closed her eyes for a moment and allowed the frigid cold to stimulate her muscles. Something about running at night was better than in the morning, afternoon, or evening-combined.

Allyson was just about to turn into the park when something caught her eye- a car was parked along the side and the driver looked insanely irritated at something. She approached with caution, because you never know what sort of people were out lurking at night. “Hello?” Her muted tone pierced the silence like a pin. ”Do you want me to call triple A or something?” Instinctively, her hand reached for the cell phone that was tucked away neatly in her pocket.

------------

WORD COUNT ?! 600
MUSIC ?! Fame - Lady Gaga
NOTES ?! Pardon the epic fail. In no way did it live up to your post.

[/blockquote]

[Eli Ackerman]

WAVING FROM SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS.
"Come down now," they'll say.

---

So, recap of this lovely situation. Eli was alone. He was devestatingly alone, and with every passing minute he felt more and more deprived of social contact. His frustration-curing walk hadn't been successful, and he was more frustrated than ever. He needed someone to talk to, someone to a. listen to his thoughts, b. get his mind off everything, or c. all of the above. He wouldn't find that at home. Oh well, things could be worse. At least he wasn't stranded by the park at three in the morning with a broken car and a mere fifteen dollars and seventy-five cents in his pockets. Oh, wait... No, it wasn't all that great of a situation to be in. Which was why Eli was surprised he didn't see or hear the approaching girl.

Really, he was just surprised in general. All he knew was the mess of the car in front of him, the empty road in his range of vision, and suddenly a voice was to be heard behind him. With a small yelp he quickly spun around to face his company, finding it was not a mugger or some other terrible being of the night, but a girl he was positive he had seen roaming the halls at his school (though he wasn't in the clear yet, the nightlife of students proved to be quite unexpected on occasion, still, Eli felt that both he and his wallet were safe from the potential wrath of the girl before him). Wide-eyed with shock, Eli shook the surprise from his mind. "Sorry..." he started, a bashful sort of smile crossing his face. "You sort of snuck up on me there..."

That's right. He was smiling now, in the middle of his misery and deprivation. Half because of common courtesy, and half because karma had compensated. He was still stranded in the middle of the night with a broken car and nearly sixteen dollars, but he wasn't alone anymore. So, step one: find someone else facing the dangers of the night. Check. What was step two? Eli had no idea, but regardless, he saw the light in the brunette's arrival. At least he wasn't alone now, waiting through the night so he could go home. Even if this wasn't by any means a conversation to help his mind escape the suffocating thoughts of home, at least he had found someone to help him with the car troubles. At least, he hoped she could, instead of leaving him stranded to sleep in his car... Eli almost wanted to ask why she was out at this ungodly hour, but he hadn't yet told her his answer.

That is a good question: what would he say? "I, um... Triple A? No, no thanks, I don't think they can do much with my car." Obviously. Eli took a glance at the car from the corner of his eye. What had he done to it? He had tried to start it. "It's kind of prehistoric..." he began, knowing that he was stating the obvious. "And I say that because it sounds like a dinosaur," Hopefully she hadn't heard the terrible noises that emitted from the engine moments before. But who was he kidding? Of course she did. Everyone in the general tri-state area heard it. In the middle of the forest small deer and rabbits stopped eating grass and lifted their heads to listen."I don't think it gets any worse than it is right now." It didn't seem likely, nor did it seem possible. "But then again I haven't tried the windsheild wipers in a while." No matter his mood, Eli was always able to make a joke when a girl was present. Especially a pretty girl. That's right, he had noticed. He noticed when he wondered what sort of evil was awaiting him next time he tried to clean his windsheild.

"I'm Eli," he introduced himself, hoping that maybe this conversation would last longer if she knew his name. "You don't happen to have a functioning car and a pair of jumper cables hiding in your pocket, do you?"

[/blockquote][/color]

---

EVERYTHING LOOKS PERFECT FROM FAR AWAY.
"Come down now," but we'll stay.[/font]

---

STATUS; complete.[/size]
WORDCOUNT; 702.[/size]
TAGGED; allyson.[/size]
JAMS; shine a light -- wold parade.[/size]
NOTES; nonesense. it's this post that i'm sorry about ><' next one will be better, i promise.[/size][/center][/quote]

[Allyson Harrow]

REMEMBER THOSE WALLS I BUILT
WELL, BABY THEY'RE TUMBLING DOWN
allyson jane harrow
-------------

The young male, who looked vaguely like one of the faces that wandered the hallways of Marlot High School, turned and Allyson was comforted to see that it wasn’t an axe murder, a creepo, or some other night dweller that would otherwise wish to do harm to a young female. "Sorry...You sort of snuck up on me there..." Ally blushed, although you couldn’t tell in the dimly lit streetlight, ”Oh! I’m sorry. I just thought maybe I could offer you some help…you looked like you needed it.” She forced a smile through her pale lips and put her hands in her sweatshirt pockets.

I, um... Triple A? No, no thanks, I don't think they can do much with my car." Allyson glanced at the male with a raised eyebrow. She had never met a human being in her whole life who had refused to call Triple A when something related to car problems was happening, but then again she couldn’t place a name with this human being. Her hand that was grasped around the cell phone ever so slowly let go. It fell to the bottom and that’s where it rested there for the remainder of the night. "It's kind of prehistoric…And I say that because it sounds like a dinosaur. A small chuckle escaped her lips, and it wasn’t one of those fake, Hollywood laughs. It was a genuine, full-hearted chuckle. "I don't think it gets any worse than it is right now. But then again I haven't tried the windshield wipers in a while." Ally looked somewhat confused at the boy. ”That would cause problems?” Apparently her father should have taken the time when she was younger to teach her about cars instead of letting her play with dolls.

"I'm Eli. You don't happen to have a functioning car and a pair of jumper cables hiding in your pocket, do you? Allyson took her hands out of her pockets and held one out for Eli to shake. ”Hey, Eli. I’m Allyson,” she grinned as she introduced herself. ”Erm…I don’t exactly have either of them with me.” Her fake smile found its way into the conversation once again. ”I can wait with you until someone comes…if you’d like,” she offered, hoping it didn’t sound like there would be any strings attached. ”I mean, or I can call someone for you.”

-----------

WORD COUNT ?! 391
MUSIC ?! Poker Face - Lady Gaga
NOTES ?! Hopefully Ally didn't come off too desperate. xP

[/blockquote]

[Eli Ackerman]

WAVING FROM SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS.
"Come down now," they'll say.

---

It seemed too much to ask for someone who fully understood his sense of humor. Obviously karma was giving him one miracle at a time. He had gotten someone else to occupy him in the world, she would probably just never laugh at what he said. Which, in his two months in this town, Eli was used to. Back in the city, his jokes were hit-and-miss. But here in this tiny little town, it seemed the ratio had been skewed to a miss-miss-miss-miss-miss and the occasional hit. It was the way people thought, or the fact that it was three in the morning and anything could be considered funny to him, and not necessarily other people. "This car seems to hate me sometimes," he started explaining, with a sort of smirk. "I feel like the windsheild wipers would leap off and attack me if I tried anything. But now that I think about it the steering wheel is horribly territorial. I don't think it would let anything happen to me."

The sad thing about it was the near-truth of the statement: Eli's car owned him more than it was vice versa. Over the year and a half that it had been in his posession, the car had broken down a total of fourty six times. Well, fourty seven now. That was about once every two weeks. With the sensors on the dashboard just a little bit off, the passenger side door making a funny noise when opening, and the radio collapsing on itself not once, not twice, but three times, Eli had paid quite a pretty penny to see all the inconveniences fixed. He didn't keep track, but he was sure he had paid more money than the car was worth, walked a quarter of the driven miles to get help, and nearly crashed enough times to shave a few years off of his life. It was a love-hate relationship between the boy and his car, but it was one Eli couldn't end; in this relationship, he was genuinely whipped.

It was then that the girl, Allyson, offered to wait with him and the use of her cell phone. Eli gave a sort of bittersweet smile, because the only place he had to go was home, and he didn't at all want to go there. But of course he couldn't say that, he had just met this girl. "I've got my own phone, if I wanted somewhere to go I'd have done it by now," he offered with a shrug and a kind smile. "Besides, it's too nice of a night not to enjoy it..." This was a lie, for it was a rather cold night. The only thing keeping Eli warm was his leather jacket (which he felt so cool wearing). It was simply a way to stray away from the topic of his house. "So, Allyson, what brings you to the park at ridiculous o'clock?"

[/blockquote][/color]

---

EVERYTHING LOOKS PERFECT FROM FAR AWAY.
"Come down now," but we'll stay.[/font]

---

STATUS; complete.[/size]
WORDCOUNT; 497.[/size]
TAGGED; allyson.[/size]
JAMS; where is my mind? -- the pixies.[/size]
NOTES; gah... i wish this was twice as long, but i'm typing it up in class right now...[/size][/center][/quote]

[Allyson Harrow]

REMEMBER THOSE WALLS I BUILT
WELL, BABY THEY'RE TUMBLING DOWN
allyson jane harrow
-------------

"This car seems to hate me sometimes. I feel like the windshield wipers would leap off and attack me if I tried anything. But now that I think about it the steering wheel is horribly territorial. I don't think it would let anything happen to me." Allyson’s blue eyes still looked to the young male, rather confused. That must be his family’s way of joking, she thought. She watched as he smirked when telling his story, although in the dimly lit street it was hard to tell if that was a smirk or a smile. ”Well, anything good, it seems,” she grinned as she spoke. ”Otherwise you wouldn’t be stuck her talking to me at umpteenth hour of the day.” Her words rolled out of her mouth and pierced the nighttime air, which has grown increasingly nippy in the last few minutes, probably due to her decreased activity. In response to this, she pulled the sweater tightly around herself and cursed herself in her mind for not bringing a pair of gloves, or mittens at the very least.

I've got my own phone, if I wanted somewhere to go I'd have done it by now. Besides, it's too nice of a night not to enjoy it. So, Allyson, what brings you to the park at ridiculous o'clock?" Allyson looked down at her feet rather embarrassed and a pinkish hue began to spread across her pale skin. Of course he had his own phone. What teenager in American didn’t these days. “It is a somewhat nice night.” ‘If it wasn’t so chilly outside,’ she thought. Allyson’s gaze returned to Eli’s as she thought of a sane reason she would be in a park, jogging, at night. “Well, actually, it may seem kinda funny but,” she began blushing, “I have trouble sleeping at night and the best way for me to counter than is to run. I run through the park because it’s peaceful….and close to home,” she added as she motioned to her clothing attire-running shoes, wind pants, sweatshirt. “I think the real question, though, is why are you out driving at this ungodly hour of the night?” Allyson smirked at him as a sudden chill shook across her body. Alertly, she grabbed the elbows of her sweatshirt with opposite hands so they rested across her body. ”It’s actually pretty cold out her tonight.”

-----------

WORD COUNT ?! 393
MUSIC ?! Halo - Beyonce
NOTES ?! Yay! +2 words up from last post. xD

[/blockquote]

[Eli Ackerman]

WAVING FROM SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS.
"Come down now," they'll say.

---

He was dealing with a sharp shooter. Right away the girl seemed to know that nothing good could come out of driving the broken dinosaur. But then, everyone seemed to know that but Eli... But perhaps he knew it subconsciously, as often times his subconscious tended to think ahead more so than his regular conscious. Perhaps he had wanted to get stuck at this hour, knowing he wouldn't have to go home and deal with the wrath of the stepdad. It was true, Dan's anger could fuel his energy for hours, but with nothing to take it out on it would surely fade, and by the time Eli got home (be it morning, or when he swallowed his pride and decided to walk home), surely the childish adult would be out by that time.

Instead of an immediate reply (for the time would come when he would answer the 'Why are you out?' question) he gave a sort of mysterious smile and rose an eyebrow the way he often did, setting a bemused expression. If Eli had one talent (though he could count at least two), it was within his left eyebrow. With one little quirk, his mood and mindset shifted. For example: he was previously thinking bitter thoughts about having to go home and face the dark creature that lurked there, but suddenly... BAM. It all disappeared. Sometimes he worried that his subconscious and his eyebrows were in cahoots, their combined power would surely eventually corrupt them both, but until then... "Call it getting up early."

Somehow the subject changed to running, which really did seem like a beacon from the heavens above. Eli loved to run. It was his passion in life, if he could choose between his own legs or Duncan, well... He was just glad he got to keep them both (but he kept the thought in the back of his head: dogs can be replaced). The boy was surprised he hadn't seen it beforehand: he was all too familiar with the late night run, he could've seen it from a mile away. But then again, he was probably just humoring himself, for he hadn't seen the girl coming his way just minutes before. "No, I get it, I run, too." Eli had to bite his tongue before his confidence got ahead of him and spat out his mile time. "It's a good way to spend your time this time of night. Better than this anyways..." he motioned to the broken down car.

The girl asked the question he was awaiting: What was he doing out here? He couldn't unleash his whole life story to someone who didn't know him. It was too much, and too personal, trouble sleeping was the only problem the girl had mentioned so far, which was totally unequivilent to the massive stormcloud of dislike that rumbled over Eli's head. What sort of excuse could he come up with? Giving a shrug, he responded: "The people in my house make a point to keep me awake. I'd probably have a better chance falling asleep here and now." As uncomfortable as the pavement was, Eli preferred it to the atmosphere that polluted the house. "Besides, this car comes alive at night, it's not my fault if he was out partying all day. I told him to go to bed early." Speaking of early... Eli checked his watch. "But I guess that makes me a hypocrit, doesn't it?"

Suddenly the girl compressed herself, wrapping her arms around her torso to keep herself warm. Indeed, it was a bit cold out, but because the boy had a jacket he appreciated the crispness. Allyson, probably not so much. It's true, he did contemplate offering up his leather jacket, but soon thought better of it for many reasons: he hardly knew the girl, he didn't expect her to stay around for very much longer, and selfishly, he loved that jacket too much. In place of the chivalrous action, he pointed his thumb over his shoulder towards the car. "Y'know, I think I've got some extra sweatshirts in the trunk."

[/blockquote][/color]

---

EVERYTHING LOOKS PERFECT FROM FAR AWAY.
"Come down now," but we'll stay.[/font]

---

STATUS; complete.[/size]
WORDCOUNT; 699.[/size]
TAGGED; allyson.[/size]
JAMS; flowers and football tops -- glasvegas.[/size]
NOTES; you don't believe how busy i've been these past few days. but it's all in the past now, and i can start posting regularily again. hooray![/size][/center]