Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 14, 2007 17:45:26 GMT
"Shit..." Desmond heard himself mutter. He'd untied the wrong guy rope, and now his entire tent was slipping out of place. The rope in his hands snapped away and burned his palms, the canvas of his tent first drooping, then sagging, then lying pitifully on the floor, sand sliding onto it.
"For the love of--" he began, and then left his curse hanging as he kicked at what remained of his tent, and fell to his knees, scrabbling around underneath the canvas. He tried rescuing his belongings so that he could rearrange them, and he managed to grab a couple of rucksacks, but that was all. He threw the two he had managed to salvage onto the ground a few yards away.
He stood up and scowled at what he had done to his tent. It had begun as just a tightening of a rope here and another there, but now he had loosened the whole thing, he wondered if he'd ever get it back up again.
He stormed to the nearest grassy knoll and sat down roughly and painfully. He wished silently that another vision would flash in front of his eyes. It was at least something more interesting to watch than the slow lapping of the sea across the shore. It also provided him with something to do, rather than lament over his dilapidated tent.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 14, 2007 20:04:02 GMT
Lani couldn't help but laugh lightly as she watched the man struggle with adjusting his tent. He was only a few tents down from hers and she was sitting out on the beach, listening to the ocean and sketching.
She watched as he scrabbled around attempting to rescue his belongings as the canvas collapsed and then storm off in frustration. While she wasn't really the type to approach others, this was an exception she could make. Carefully she closed her sketchbook and slipped it into her brown messenger bag, along with her charcoal pencils.
Lani stood and brushed sand off her legs and shorts as she walked in the direction of the grassy knoll the man had gone to. She threw her bag over her head so that the strap crossed her chest diagonally and then hung at her side. Upon reaching the knoll, she smiled at the man, asking in a knowing tone, "Difficulties?"
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 14, 2007 20:25:59 GMT
"Difficulties?"
Desmond looked up to meet the eyes of the woman who had spoken. She was smiling, and said the single word in the tone that suggested she knew exactly what had gone wrong. He didn't want to wave her away, so he smiled back, rubbing his forehead, slightly embarrassed.
"Aye, just a few," he answered. He suddenly realized he must seem very rude not offering her to sit down next to him, so instead he decided to stand and join her before she was forced to invite herself. He had managed to find a place with little sand to sit down in, but there was still wet sand clinging to his jeans.
He hadn't seen her before, or at least, he didn't recognize her. Then again, he knew hardly anyone anymore, besides the select few he chose to speak with every once in a while. He was rather annoyed that he hadn't introduced himself to her earlier. He was sure she was a nice sort, but "never judge a book by its cover" was ringing in his ears faintly.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 14, 2007 21:58:15 GMT
Lani tilted her head slightly to the side, and said, "Well I can't tease you about that. I nearly gave up on my tent." She shrugged and brushed lockes of her hair out of her face as the breeze gently blew it around. She glanced back at her tent. Sure, it looked nice and sturdy now. But when she had first put it up, it had taken her hours to get it right and it frustrated her beyond anything else.
She recognized the man. She knew he was the one who had been on the island before them. The man from the hatch, Desmond. She knew most of the people in the camps names, even though she hadn't met many of them. She was an observer and listened very well.
She didn't like awkward silences, but she also wasn't usually one to put herself forward and start conversations. It was only lately that she had found herself doing just that. Just like now, Lani extended her hand politely in introduction, "I'm Noelani...Lani for short."
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 15, 2007 16:00:49 GMT
Desmond tilted his head at her slightly, as if he was wondering what she was stretching her hand to him for. He then caught himself from falling into stupidity, and shook her hand firmly, but gently.
"Name's Desmond, but I'm sure y'already know that," he said with a smile, "Noelani, that's a beautiful name, if y'don't mind me sayin'," he added. He'd kick himself for that later when he remembered. For now though, he rolled his eyes briefly and looked out beyond her to the horizon. He'd forgotten all about his tent, and when she looked back to her own, not too far away, the image of the pile of sticks, ropes and canvas threw itself to the forefront of his mind.
"I'll get 'er back up when I can, t'ain't that important t'me, really," he said in response, breathing a quiet laugh to himself. He'd have to get it back up as soon as possible before night settled in, and he knew it.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 15, 2007 20:50:54 GMT
Lani slipped her fingers in the pockets of her shorts, and nodded her head, "Yes, I did know that already." She smiled. Her cheeks turned a light pink when he complimented her name, "Merci beaucoup," she replied in her native French, then she reverted to english, "Thank you." She let out a slightly embarrassed chuckle as she thought about the fact that she actually had two names for her first name: Noelani-Grace. But she couldn't stand it. She thought it made her sound prissy.
"I'll get 'er back up when I can, t'ain't that important t'me, really,"
She grinned and her green eyes sparkled in the light, "A-huh...right." She didn't entirely believe him, but left him alone about it. She fiddled with the strap of her bag and looked around them. She wasn't entirely sure what to say next and she said, "Yeah...So...If ya decide it's important, I can help, if ya'd like." Her French accent was faint after spending so much time away from home.
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 15, 2007 21:10:00 GMT
"I'll give you a call when I do," Desmond replied as jokingly as he could. It was kind of her to offer, and being French, she had to be twice as polite, knowing those few true stereotypes.
"No problem...about y'name, that is," he added, running his hand through his unkempt hair. It was getting too long, he mused. Far too long to be practical, or attractive. Not that that mattered to him anymore. There was no Penny to impress. No Penny to insist to that he didn't need a haircut. No Penny to press a tenner into his hand and shove him out of the door, telling him to go anyway.
He must have seemed very distant, and proving to be a terrible person to have a conversation with. "I'm sorry," he said after a pause, "I was miles away, literally I wish," he tried searching for something to say to Lani, but his mind was blank.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 16, 2007 19:53:09 GMT
Lani laughed lightly and brushed back stray lockes of hair out of her face with a long thin finger. At the juvenile/rehab center, she had cut her hair short, to right below her ears. But that had been two years before. Her hair had grown much longer and was now past her shoulders.
She deduced from the expression on his face, that Desmond was in his own world. She shook her head at his apology, "No worries." She stared off into the distance and said, "I wouldn't mind getting off this island soon either. Far away...home...wherever that is..."
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 17, 2007 15:01:26 GMT
"We'd never really leave, though. Sure we'd be physically away back home, but our minds would still recollect every second of this place. Shame, that. I'd like to forget a lot of things," he said slowly, smiling. He was acting like the prophet that a select few were ranting that he was. He wondered if he ever had a destiny that lay beyond that blue line far away, where the sea met the sky.
One could only stand so much sand, surf and sea. One could also only stand so much mystery, attack and murder. He fixed his eyes on the one spot that he usually willed the dark shape of a distant something to suddenly appear. Some couldn't see past the shoreline. Desmond used to never see past the black screen that had green numbers making their way across it.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 19, 2007 23:44:16 GMT
Lani nodded. She understood what he meant. Even if they were back home, she would never forget this island and the things that occurred here. The pictures would be engraved in her mind, and on the pages of her sketchbook. They would never truly leave behind the island.
She stood staring out in the distance with him, and then laughed lightly in almost a bitter sounding way. "Well aren't we a sad lot. We don't need pessimism here...it only makes things worse." She sighed and shook her head, "You are right that even if we do get off this island, we'll never really leave it behind, but...I think...well, I don't really know what I'm trying to say actually." She scrunched up her nose and laughed again, ruffling the back of her long brown hair.
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 20, 2007 13:24:20 GMT
"I think I get what you're tryin' to say, don't worry!" Desmond assured her, laughing came as something rather strange to him. He hadn't laughed in a while, not properly. He was a pessimistic sort, he had to agree, but there was hardly a thing left to be benign about on the island anymore. It must have been his separation from the others that he felt he needed at the time. He made a mental note to speak with the others more often.
"We'll get off, don't you worry. I'll personally make sure of it," he added after a pause. It may have been false hope he was giving Lani, but Hell, any sort of hope was good. He didn't want to promise anybody anything, but he felt compelled to now. It was the only way he could believe in himself that he was still useful for something.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 20, 2007 17:34:27 GMT
Lani nodded and grinned, continuing to ruffle the back of her hair. "Glad to know that you get what I'm sayin'. I wasn't sure myself." She had always been pretty optimistic, though since her sister had died, she hadn't been so much.
Lani tilted her head slightly to the side. "Don't make promises you don't know you can keep..." she said softly. She knew there was still some hope and yeah, she wanted to get off the island and go home to see her parents. But she part of her was still afraid to see them after three years. She smiled lightly and shook herself out of her thoughts, "But thank you..." It was good to know that there were still people on the island who were trying.
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 20, 2007 18:10:25 GMT
"No problem..." Desmond replied quietly. She was right after all. He had promised himself he'd propose to Penny, and he did quite the opposite. He crouched down and grabbed a handful of dark and dirty sand, then stood up again, watching it all filter through his fingers. He had thrown away a lot to get to this stupid island, and he had lost other things along the way.
He'd count the days 'til he got back, even when he couldn't remember which number came after the other as soon as his memory left him if necessary. Lani still had some sort of hope, he could see it in her eyes. He didn't want to make a habit of staring into another person's eyes though, and he looked away once again, feeling the last grains of sand leave his hand.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 20, 2007 19:38:45 GMT
Lani sighed, and slowly sat down in the sand. She brushed her hair out of her face and looked at Desmond. Lani almost always looked people in the eyes when she spoke, so this was exactly what she did now. "Do you have a life to go back to?" she asked, curious to learn more about him. She didn't really know many of the others in the camp other than what she observed about them. She had always found that it was easier to get by if you made friends.
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 20, 2007 19:46:02 GMT
"I'd like to think I do, but I can't see anything worth going back to anymore," he responded, sitting down next to her. That way she knew he was there to stay and not going to leave at all. He knew that all people want to know sometimes is the past and thoughts of others, but he always fell silent when it came to his turn.
Given the choice, he'd probably choose to stay on the island, hateful though it was. That way he wouldn't have to face going back and face all of his old problems. At least on the island nobody knew half the things he didn't want them to know. Then again, a bit of support from a couple of people wouldn't go amiss.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 20, 2007 20:08:40 GMT
Lani nodded in understanding. "I think I lost track of my life somewhere along the rode...I don't think I've got anything to look forward to going back to...only grief." She shrugged and left it at that. She still blamed herself for her sisters death and she felt like her parents had blamed her too.
She looked up and squinted lightly in the sun. "I think that, even with all the bad things that have happened here...I think I'd rather stay here then go home." She hated admitting that, but that was how she felt. She would just have to go home and talk to her parents about how the juvenile/rehab center had helped her. Her parents would ask lots of questions and things would be awkward between them.
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 24, 2007 18:28:57 GMT
"Aye, don't we all? Maybe we were supposed to stay here, y'know? We're away from harassment and our secrets are safe, there's no-one to spill them but y'self," Desmond answered. His own words comforted him in a way, and so he smiled a little. He'd hate to go back to London, find Penny waiting for him, as well as her father. He doubted Penny would wait for him at all even, he'd have been gone so long she'd have probably forgotten all about him.
He sighed, wondering if it would be any help changing the subject. Talking about life and how bad it was got just a tad depressing after a while. Hell, they were on a tropical island with great sun, sand and surf. This was some people's dreams, and they were living it.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 24, 2007 21:07:33 GMT
Lani nodded. She understood completely. His words comforted her and helped her to release her tension at the thoughts of guilt and blame. She put her hands on the ground behind her to support her, closed her eyes, and tilted her head back slightly.
She breathed in the smell of the salty water and soaked in the sun. "On a lighter note, it is beautiful here," she said softly, a small smile forming. She opened her eyes slightly and then curled her knees up to her chest, folded her arms and rested them on top of her knees, and then rested her chin on her arms. She sighed and looked at the waves as they grew bigger and bigger. "Wow. This is one of those days when I wish I knew how to surf."
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Desmond
Castaway
"See you in another life, brother..."
Posts: 75
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Post by Desmond on May 27, 2007 18:11:42 GMT
"I have a vague memory of learning in Cornwall once...took a two hour lesson that cost a bomb if I recall, but that was all. Plus we're short of surfboards...we'd have to use driftwood or something!" Desmond answered with a laugh. She was right, it had a certain charm to it. The seas were blue, rich and sparkling, the sand crisp and golden. The only thing wrong was the way people took the idea in their heads. Desperate to escape a beautiful prison.
Desmond looked straight up, narrowing his eyes from the sun filtering into them, and smiled. It was a nice escape from life, and he couldn't have wished for more really. Well, maybe Penny being with him, but he doubted she'd want to be trapped on a desert island with someone like him, after all the things he had done to her.
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Post by Lani Bryant on May 27, 2007 19:42:49 GMT
Lani laughed with Desmond, "I was never able to take a lesson...My parents didn't want me to surf and then at the..." She paused, hesitant, trying to decide what best to call the juvenile/rehab center, and continued, "at the center we weren't really allowed to surf either..." She scratched her head and said, "Yeah, not sure how well driftwood would work as surfboards."
[blah...i suck today...sorry!] [[oh yeah, and love the new avvy and siggy]]
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