Lucas Hums.

Lucas actually let's out a chuckle.

"Yeah, I imagine it is. You want help moving some of this out of the way?"

He studies the guy's face and recognizes the tired look in the lines of his face. Hard not to recognize that here.

It took Ares a moment to realize someone was talking to him. His mind had been elsewhere, more so than usual. The storm had worn him down, striking just as he’d begun to feel the faintest sense of settling into his new reality. Now, exhaustion weighed heavily on him, like the life had been drained from his body. As always, he masked it, though the dark circles beneath his eyes probably betrayed him more than he’d like to admit.

"No, no… everything’s fine, I assure you," he said, shaking off the fog. "Just taking a wellness walk to, uh, clear my head." If that’s what we’re calling it, he thought but didn’t say. Instead, he flashed the officer a polite, if not slightly forced, smile. "Though, it’s a bit tricky with all the rubble around."

Lucas enters, seeing Rae covering a body. The brief look Lucas gets tells him it's not Kina. Which probably means Rae already did her.

"Hope I didn't interrupt," Lucas says gently, shutting the door behind him. "I just had to check in on you."

He steps closer, placing a hand on Rae's back between his shoulder blades. A touch he hasn't done often since they broke it off years ago. It's too intimate for friends after what they tried to be.

But this moment? This moment requires intimacy.

"How are you?"

he should’ve been working, another victim waited for him on the table. instead he sat on the stool & stared blankly at the autopsy notes before him. the knock at the door caught him off guard, the voice less so.

he contemplated telling luc to leave him alone, but knew well enough that he wouldn’t listen. “come in,” rae emotionlessly called back as he got up to cover the occupant of the table — a stranger this time.

where: edge of the woods | when: day time | whom: open to all

Lucas crouches at the edge of the woods, examining what could be tracks. Or could be nothing. He hates how smart the creatures are. They could've left this behind just to toy with him.

He hears rustling from footsteps behind him, and he doesn't bother looking up.

"The hunting woods are six miles that way," he says, pointing his left hand. "Signs and caution tape everywhere. You can't miss them."

Lucas feels a slight ache in his chest as they walk hand in hand. He didn't realize how much he missed this. Walking with Rae. Being with Rae.

"Hey," he says, soft but firm. "You are important."

They turn a corner, and they can see their houses. Only a couple of other residents between them. It had been a little awkward at first after the breakup, but then they eased into comfortable. Being close was comforting.

"I know you can. I just want to help like I used to. Moving bodies around. I saw how many you still had to do. That will definitely take forever on your own."

for most of the walk he couldn't stop looking down at his hands, constantly making sure the blood hadn't returned. that it was just a figment of his imagination. sometimes rae wondered if it was the town or his own sanity slipping.

it's ok. it wasn't, but having lucas' hand in his helped quiet the constant urge to check. he spent the rest of the walk relatively fine.

“luc, i don’t want to keep you from more important things,” he protested. "and don't say what i know you're going to say. i can handle it on my own, today was just...tough."

Adrien hugs back, happily squeezing the girl. Then Adrien's smile drops slightly when he takes in her words.

"What? That's not right. It's your birthday. You should be hearing that all night."

Adrien giggles and shakes his hair after the ruffling.

"Thanks, and same to you, okay? You need anything, let me know. I'm gonna be working at the Chop Shop with El, so I'm good at that kind of stuff."

Adrien shrugs and chugs some more water.

"I'm 22. You?"

CHERRY HAS TO BLINK AT THE WORDS, ALMOST CAUGHT OFF GUARD . it only takes a beat for her to soften, probably a mix of the alcohol and the whole night that makes her pull the guy who's practically a stranger into a tight hug . " aww, adrien . thank you ." her heart contracts a little as she gives him a little squeeze, pulling back to pat him on the head . " y'know you're the only one to say that all night ?" she can't help but shake her head with a sniff . she ruffles his hair . " you're a good kid . you needa favour from me, you got it, okay ?" a pause for a second as she blinks and looks at him up and down in new light . " wait, how old are you actually ?"

RAFAEL SILVA at the Epic Cons Chicago 2 convention - September 15, 2024

Adrien tried for Jacob Elordi in Saltburn, but he used his skill to make a harness in the Chop Shop and then attach some branches on it for the wings.

Happy Halloween, Oblitus!

Don't open the doors.

where: colony house when: Halloween night whom: @fromsaudades Maude

Adrien sits on a staircase and watches the dancing room through the arch. He'd needed a quick breather and to wipe the sweat from his face. He understands why they can't just open a window but fuck! It's hard not to just step outside real fast to cool off.

He notices someone kind of standing off to the side, watching the dancing as well. He stands and walks over.

"Hey, I'm Adrien. I don't think we've properly met yet."

He holds out a hand and smiles.

"Ah." Adrien deflates a little though it's understandable. No real point to a phone without service. He shakes his head and smiles again. "Well, I'm sure we can find some good stuff from it, not just the battery. Thanks."

He takes it over to El's desk, certain that they already know of some use for the parts or can give Adrien some ideas on what he could do with it.

He turns back to Charlie. "Is there anything else I can help you with? I'm really only supposed to be cleaning up but I'm sure El and Noah won't mind me helping you out."

Honestly, he really just wants people to talk to. He's spent so much of his life not getting close to people, but now he kind of has no choice because he can't just not be a part of the community.

charlie walked inside the shop and glanced around. she knew it was useless to fix the phone, there was no point, there was no service here, no internet. it was just a broke brick at this point. it was weird, she spent so much of her time on her phone back home and now it was nothing. "well, i threw it at a tree so i don't think it's really worth fixing even if we had service here. but you might be able to use the battery or something. i don't really know. just thought it was better than going in the trash."

Adrien instinctually checks his pockets, though he knows he doesn't have matches or a lighter. He does have his mini-tool kit, though.

"Uh, hold on, actually." He pulls out the kit and grabs a couple of things from it. Then, he picks up a streamer that had fallen to the ground and rips a piece off. With some creativity, he manages to light the piece and then holds it up to the joint to light for the guy.

"There we go," he says proudly. "Mind if I take a hit too?"

He'd smoked at a couple of parties. It wasn't something he needed, but he likes the experience sometimes.

to: open event starter! (0/4)

“Got a light?” The words came out rougher than intended, the night pressing its familiar weight on him. Events like these typically followed the same routine: dress up, show up, drift through the crowd with vague nods to faces he was sure he’d seen before, toss back a healthy amount of shots, and then dive into conversations that inevitably twisted into something painfully awkward. This was a loop he coped with by fading into the background and finding some dark corner to lose himself in, if only to spare others from the cloud of smoke he’d bring along.

Tonight, though, he felt the strangeness more acutely. Maybe it was the ridiculous outfit his friends had convinced him to wear. Icarus—because apparently, that’s who he was. Light D’Angelo, the fallen star, tumbling back to earth after drifting too close to fame’s burning heat. A halo of golden twigs sat precariously on his head, while makeshift wings drooped from his shoulders, and golden leaves circled his bicep like some half-hearted tribute to mythology. The costume was more a collection of scavenged scraps than an actual outfit—an oversized white shirt knotted around his waist to resemble a toga, doing little to keep out the night chill. Still, the alcohol coursing through his veins dulled the cold.

He twirled the small blunt between his fingers, lingering against the doorframe as he finally turned to the stranger nearby. The words came out low, almost conspiratorial as he raised the blunt.

“We’ll keep it our little secret for the night.”