alone for a moment [ open ]

[Ella Dan]

Ella made her way through the meadow, tall lush green grass swaying at her knees. She was heading towards a tree, a tree she often visited to read by.

She sat down at the base of the tree on a root that curved up, and picked up her book from the bag.
She cleared her throat before leaning on the trunk and started to read aloud.

She heard the grass move and looked up from her book. The wind was washing across the tops of the fronds, but something was different.

" Ehh.. hello ? "

[No.23]

There was a scary shouting coming from the distance.
"What was that?! Only two hundred dollars?!" a man screamed at what seemed like the person to blame, kneeling in the flowers. The person seemed unable to move, but you couldn't see the reasons why until you came up close. But the young boy seemed afraid. The screaming man held a bottle of beer in his hand, obviously drunk. "You're stuck here for tree days. I hear there's a storm on the way too! Good luck, little fucker..." and with that, the man kicked the boy in the head and stormed off. The young boy was handcuffed to a tree, blindfolded, wearing only black trackpants with his bony upper body covered in piercings. He had belts around his torso and a bar through his mouth to keep from from speaking, which he was biting in in stress.

[Ella Dan]

Ella closed her book quickly and peered over the opposite side of the tree.
A young boy was tied up, and by the looks of the bar in his mouth she wanted to cryout in pity.

" Oh dear, oh dear ! "

Ella ran to the boy and bent his lips apart, trying to pry the bar from his mouth.

" Oh, oh, you poor thiiing ! "

She tried brushing hair from his face and took off her cardigan, wrapping it over his bare shoulders.

" This is hoooorrid ! Why would these people do such a thing.. what is your name, do you know ? "

[No.23]

Once the bar was away from 23's mouth he was shaking like mad. His head hung low and he had a frown that looked like he was about to cry, yet it was something he's managed to almost get used to. But the man left him with a black eye that was hidden under the blindfold. The cardigan was warm around his shoulders but his reasons from shaking became fear instead. 23 didnt reply to her yet because he was afraid that man was still around. The piercings all over his torso were moving around, hurting him since they werent put in properly. It's not like he wanted them in te first place anyway. "number 23." he finally replied, but in just a mere whisper.

[Ella Dan]

" .. Number 23 ? Huh.. Interesting name, I-I've never heard anything like it before.. "
Ella started working on taking the piercings off, and took off the blindfold.
She stared at the blackeye.
" Ungh ! You poor baby. " she cried like a mother, wrapping her arms around him.
" That bastard.. "

She tried not tugging the skin when she tried tasking off piercings.
" Well, i'm Ella. You can call me Ell or Ellie, but I don't really mind. "
She unraveled from the hug and looked over his body.
" That man.. what did he do ? What is his problem ? " she couldn't wrap her mind around it.

" A storm is coming, and I don't have a car.. here, let's get closer to the trees, " she said, trying to get him closer to where her book was, were she had an apple as well.

She held out the red fruit.
" .. Do you want it ? "

[No.23]

"That's my auction number that's why." 23 notified her in a raspy voice. "I can't remember my name." as she removed his piercings the was tempted to say just to leave them since it hurt more as they were being painfully removed. His bit his lip so hard it left a mark, and his bruised eye blinked slower than the other once. 23 buried his face in her shoulder when she embraced him. He woul have hugged back but his arms had no strength at the moment.
23 didn't reply to her last question about him until they for under the tree. He hated storms which was why he was put out here in the first place. "All of this you see isn't just him." he replied, coughing a little. "Other people bodoney so they can hurt me for fun. The piercings were by a man who got fired from his piercing job. I couldn't see him because I was blindfolded but he told me the story. And the big scars on my back and stomach was by an angry surgeon. He strapped me to his bed and ripped out my appendix I think. I can't remember what he did to my neck because I wasn't awake. I font get why I'm still alive.." 23 nodded and took the apple shyly from her. He would have said but he hadn't eaten anything in a while.

[Ella Dan]

" ... I'll call you Jason. "

She pet his hair and stopped trying to take out the piercings.
The rain started to drip.
She repositioned the cardigan on his shoulders and formed his hands stronger around the apple.
" .. Let me read to you. "
She got out a hardback book with a fabric cover. It was old, but a classic she loved.
" Heh, it's ah.. Alice in Wonderland, but it should do. "

She opened the book, flipping a few pages and speaking softly as she read.

" They were an indeed queer-looking party that assembled on the bank- the birds with draggled feathers, the animals with their fur clinging to them, and all dripping wet, cross, and uncomfortable.. "

She looked up to make sure he was okay.

[No.23]

He didn't reply to her comment about another temporary name for him but he agreed. He kids liked that name. 23 took a bite out of the apple as she read to him. It's been a while since he's been read to but even at the age of 16 he loved stories. Maybe it was due to the fact that he's been isolated for far to long, and now he behaves differently. He won't ever fit in to the modern day. But who was ever to old for a story, right? Especially Alice in Wonderland, story he claimed he's read and enjoyed before. He listened closely to each word so he knew exactly what was going on. The eaten apple was next to him and he ended up resting his head on Ella's shoulder.

[Ella Dan]

She read for quite the while, a few chapters atleast.
She closed the book and watched the rain fall, and got out her dark umbrella from her bag. She nestled it between a low branch so it acted like a shelter over him, while rain water simply fell on her instead.
She smiled at the thought of his head on her shoulder, how sweet he was.
She planted a small kiss on his nose and got out a bottled water.
" Here, you can have this, too. "

Ella tied her wet hair back in green ribbon and smiled shyly.
" .. Are you okay so far ? "

[No.23]

As she read, 23, or who she called Jason, ended up falling into for a little while what was a dreamless sleep. He couldn't help it. Without anything to see and nothing in his imagination to dream, he couldn't. Remember if he was asleep or not at times. Now that he knew the world around him, he found an opportunity to shut his eyes for real. 23 was a silent sleeper and it may take a while to wake him up, this kid sleeps like a rock. After a little while, he dreamt of being in Wonderland, no longer skinny and pale but with a full body and clothes that weren't filthy. The knighted mice ran circles around him, giggling as he took a seat on the purple grass. He was greated by the white rabbit and the chesire cat who appeared from the moon above. It made him smile in real life, finally able to live a fantasy.

[Ella Dan]

Ella wrapped an arm around one of his skinny sides, her own sides now drenched, the thin dress cloth now clinging to the sides of her thin figure.

She wanted to take him somewhere comfortable, but her apartment wasn't the best idea.
His keeper could get worried.. then again, she didn't want his "master" having any more sight of him.

She gasped, finally noticing his black eye.
She felt the sympathy rushing in, and she automatically packed her satchel of her things, and watched him as he smiled.
She liked the smile, the showing of happiness that he'd newly shown.
She'd take him to her apartment tonight, and make sure he got better rest.

[No.23]

The embrace made 23 burry his face in her neck like he used to do when he was a toddler to his mother. It's not like he'd be able to remember that though. Memories of his mother and childhood have been deteriorated. The cold soggy clothing started to travel onto his fragile skin and he shook a little, tucking himself up and waking up just a little. "It's cold." he whispered, his eyes slightly open.

[Ella Dan]

" Oh, right, "

She blushed when he pressed his face in her neck.

" I have an apartment.. My car isn't too far. " she said after clearing her throat and lending a hand.

" Let's go, "

[ I'll go make the other thread, don't bother replying to this one. >w< ]