[attr="class","icon"]

more than one.

[break][break] not that he's surprised. women like giada morgan didn't just stick to one man. innocent women didn't sneak into people's homes and try to steal their belongings; and giada was far from innocent.

[break][break] "why did you call me then?"

[break]

bang!

[break][break] as soon as the gunshot goes off, he knows it's over. his fingers tremble around the hold of the gun, his heart thudding loudly in his ears. his eyes snap open to the horrified image of his father bleeding out in front of him.

[break][break] good.

[break][break] when he hears the words of THEO BECKETT behind him, it takes everything in caden not to snap up and shout. he wants to scream. he wants to cry. they made him kill his dad. boruta maher did this to him. CIAN MAHER did this to him. he did this to him.

[break][break] but years of discipline and restraint keeps him frozen still.

[break][break] he slumps to the floor instead, biting back out a choked sob.

[break][break] his mind is empty except for one thing that rang impossibly true:

[break][break] he needed to get out of rocket.

[attr="class","ooc"] THEO BECKETT [break]



[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-munna"]

[attr="class","icon"]

"on the sub, mostly. but i have an apartment in lilycove too."

[break][break] most of his days were spent on the sub because he couldn't be trusted to do anything else.

[break][break] he was surprised that Rory Faust hadn't heard of it already. his family's tarnished reputation. or maybe she had, but she was pretending to ignore it.

[break][break] or not.

[break][break] caden blinks with surprise. he didn't think she would've been so brash.

[break][break]"it's fine," he says, lifting his shoulder in a shrug. "it is what it is."

[break][break] close-up, she would be able to see the still-fading bruises on his cheeks. it was a stark contrast to how he normally was - how he used to be before blood stained his hands.

[break][break] "i'm surprised you still want to hang out with me."

[break][break]

[attr="class","icon"]

"i know some good places."

[break][break] he slides over the metal tray over to her, and something to scoop the batter with.

[break][break] "but depends on your budget, and where you live."

[break][break] he places a finger in the batter and scoops it into his mouth to taste it.

[break][break] "i lived in slateport for a while."

[break]

[attr="class","icon"]

"i don't like chocolates that are too bitter," he says, as he watches her stir around the mixture. instead, he busies himself with taking the rest of the ingredients out of the bag and also pulling out a tray to pre-spray it.

[break][break] "i prefer cupcakes to cookies to be honest."

[break][break] his head tilts towards her.

[break][break] "have you tried chocolate cream eclairs?"

[break][break]

he pauses.

[break][break] "are you threatening me, ma'am?"

[break][break] a chill ran through him, and not just because of the wintery weather that was all around them.

[break][break] but despite everything, he knew that she was right. it was why he hadn't left yet. why he agreed to stay in the first place, no matter how much it shattered his pride.

[break][break] "of course, ma'am," he repeats, voice hollow, as he tucks his hand into his pockets. "i'm honored to work alongside you too."

[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] Lulu Flint [break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-hypno"]

caden isn't sure what it is about emerson whitlock , the buggy-eyed nerd that he'd seen in the corner of the hospital. when they'd first met, he'd felt annoyance. then confusion. then now just a blatant curiosity, like a scientist watching a charjabug scuttle to the corner of a cage.

[break][break] and then, there was the fact that - in despite of all of that - he found the redhead kind of cute.

[break][break] but not in the way that he'd found @elliott cute, not in the way that he found Antoinette Spina intoxicating.

[break][break] the kind of cute that made him wonder how red emerson could get.

[break][break] "your apartment's around here?" he says, arching a brow.

[break][break] he smiles.

[break][break] "so what do you like to do when you come here?"

[break]

[attr="class","ooc"] emerson whitlock [break]
the ritual [break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-munna"]

[attr="class","icon"]

as mundane as these activities are compared to his ordinary life, caden can't help but be fascinated as he watches her. the whole situation bites him with a bit of irony — at the hospital, he was used to the one doing the work. today, he was her assist.

[break][break] when she laughs, and her bow nearly slips, he offers a light touch to nudge it back into place.

[break][break] "what're your favorite kind of sweets?"

[break][break]

[attr="class","icon"]

"and chocolate chips?" he offers, lifting the bag of semi-sweet dark chocolate ghiradelli chips with one hand.

"i think i have some frozen raspberries if you want."

[break][break] he slides over to her, watching over her shoulder as she spills the ingredients into the bowl.

[break][break] "are you a baker?"

[break]

[attr="class","icon"]

obediently, he sets the plastic bags on the counter. inside are a few classic ingredients: flour, salt, yeast, baking powder.

[break][break] "it's all good," he says casually, lips twisting into a smirk. "anything for you, rory."

[break][break] he begins pulling out the ingredients one by one, setting them onto the counter.

[break][break] "what'd you have in mind to make?"

caden maher had always put up a front.

[break][break] even as a kid, he'd always tried to be cool and calm. he wanted to live up to the expectations that his father had set for him, to follow in the glory of CIAN MAHER and boruta maher. wanted to make his mother proud.

[break][break] but in reality, he was soft. softer than boruta, than cian.

[break][break] his fingers clutch around the barrel of the gun, trembling, as he looks at his father.

[break][break] cian had always said their father was terrible. bo would have agreed.

[break][break] 'it'll be okay, caden.'

[break][break] there's no choice. he shuts his eyes, and hopes for the best.

[break][break] bang!

[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] THEO BECKETT [break]



[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-munna"]

the rumble of laughter that echoes in @symon's chest makes him shift, gripping tighter to the other's bicep. it's comforting. the familiarity of it all.

[break][break] caden would've been more petulant if he could. he hated being taken care of, hated being dolled around even more. but there was really no choice, and even if he didn't admit it, he was glad for his roommate's help. he groans as he leans back against the couch cushions, his head spinning.

[break][break] "get me some fucking fentanyl," he says. "or... water, i guess."

[attr="class","ooc"] @symon [break]
nurse joy [break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-hypno"]