A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)
<h1 id="title">Elliquiy Role Playing Forums</h1>
		<h2 id="linktree">Play-By-Post: Bondage, D/s, S&amp;M =&gt; Bondage: Human Solos =&gt; Topic started by: Aleph on 30-09-2009, 15:34:05</h2>
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 15:34:05</strong>
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				Luke chuckled resignedly into his mobile as he looked over the park. A fine day in early Spring, it was the amongst the first after winter where people visibly stopped shrinking from the cold. Passers-by had left the house without checking whether they needed a jacket, unable to stop themselves blurting about how much nicer the warm weather was.<br><br>"Yes, ok, if it will make you happy, I'm going! Just don't bug me about it...or not having a date!<br>Luke snorted.<br>"I don't know, remind me on the day before that I promised and I won't be able to back out. How's that?"<br>"I'd love to but I can't, I'm collecting Chris from the airport today....yes of course that Chris! Any others I've talked about?....we'll stay with me at the house. I'll show him around the place, the falls, the old house, etc.. I don't know after that, I figure we'll sort something out."<br>"Yeah sure, best of luck, listen if you're back in town before Chris leaves I'd love you to two to meet up."<br>"Mm-hm, you too, take care Sis."<br><br>Luke walked towards his car, the wash of air pulled back and forth from the traffic ruffling his sandy coloured hair. Tall with the lean, muscular sort of build that made a good footballer, his complexion was that of a man who tended to avoid the sun. Not quite pale but nowhere near as tanned as some of the people he knew. As his friends and fellow school graduates celebrated on sun-soaked beaches around the world, Luke had quietly packed a bag and wandered around the great cities of the world.<br><br>Indeed, when he received his first email from Chris, amongst the list of surprises was how many places they could have met each other, but for a day or two's difference. The best surprise was that now they would be meeting up once more! After...seven years? Eight?<br><br>His first meeting with Chris inserting himself between him and a bully, not for the last time. Though Luke wasn't a small kid by any standards, he was still outsized by his opponent. The difference however was more than compensated for by Luke's ferocity. Luke had already garnered a reputation for being the British immigrant kid who stood his ground longer than most adults would, a fight like this might have expelled him to a different school. Chris however managed to pull Luke away from the scene moments before their teacher arrived to investigate the commotion. Along a bully who had refused to explain why he had lost a fight and to whom. After that, Luke and Chris were virtually inseparable. To the extent that it was hard at times to know who was the leader and who the shadow. Social cliques that would normally accept one or the other wound up being avoided because the invites for were for one.<br><br>Then came the unexpected day. Luke's parents were not-so-distant relatives of an English peer, a fact they liked to keep all and sundry reminded of. The immediate heirs had died unexpectedly and they were informed that as the closest kin, an immediate return to the country of their birth was well advised. One day Luke and Chris were messing around in the park that was halfway between their two houses, the next Luke was taking his first flight to a homeland he had no memories of. His parents had tried to explain why this would be a good thing, it fell on deaf ears.<br><br>As the years went on Luke's kept his high standards in school, kept fit, played for the school football team but was never the popular kid. Not quite a loner, his social interaction seemed to be measured at the minimum required to stop people from forgetting his name. There were even relationships, but nothing that lasted long.<br><br>As happier memories of the handful of years he spent with Chris trickled back to him, Luke wandered the long, neon lit halls of Heathrow towards the arrivals gate. Underneath the memories a muffled bell of alert was ringing. In his emails, Chris had mentioned something about being unwell. Normally, such a sentence could be dismissed as one of a hundred maladies that plagued a traveller. He couldn't support it in anyway, but there was an undercurrent in the way it was written that he couldn't quite identify.<br><br>Here he was, Gate 12, 16:40 Emirates Airways flight from Rome. A little early but never too late.
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 16:27:10</strong>
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				Chris sat on the plan bound for London, England, reading over the e-mail he had sent Luke over his smart phone. It was peculiar, to say the least, that their friendship has come to something like this. Years together faded to years apart, but now a desire to see someone who has meant quite a bit to his childhood simply on the basis that he's not going to be on this earth for that much longer was... to say the least, tragic. When the stewardess walked by asking of Chris would like to have some coffee or tea, he put away his phone and said a gracious 'no', before settling himself into the seat to sleep away the rest of the trip.<br><br>Maybe it was the sickness, or just an incredible amount of stress of knowing that you're dying suddenly breaking down, but Chris didn't awake again until the wheels squeaked against the pavement for its landing. He sighed, watching the seat belt light turn off before standing to get his one carry-on luggage. There wasn't much left in his possession-- what was a sick man to do with a house and a car? Well, he sold them to pay for all of the airline tickets. Clothes were at a minimum, opting to fill his luggage with trinkets from around the world than clothes on his back. Getting off the plane, going through customs, and retrieving the one piece of luggage from the conveyor belt was like clockwork after all of his travels, so Chris wasted no time making his way to the gate.<br><br>With the sickness, his frame has gotten considerably slimmer, his medium length red hair a little greasier from lack of care, and his clear blue eyes looking a little darker, courtesy of all of the troubles he's been through. Chris never really concerned himself with his looks since the diagnosis, and he certainly didn't do that now when he caught sight of Luke. <br><br>It's been years, but he couldn't think of anything to say except smile and open his arms for a hug.&nbsp; <br><br>((Hopefully that's okay for a first post. :P I hate RPing guys. lol I usually make them incredibly sexy and they just say 'man' and 'dude' a lot. :P))<br><br>
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 16:39:09</strong>
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				Luke's heart was thumping, he hated the constant parade of people who weren't the one he was waiting for. The tetchiness got to him every time he entered an airport. Ironically, he was looking away as Chris came through the doors, thus leaving him unprepared as he turned back and...<br><br>There he was. A strange noise left Luke's lips that was somewhere between a laugh and a whoop of delight, walking to Chris and joyfully hugging him. The strange noise, balanced between two options turned into laughter and after a moment he pulled back.<br><br>"I can't believe it! I can't believe you're here after all this time!"<br><br>As excited as he was, the undercurrent of alarm had become an internal air-raid siren.<br><br>"He's wasting away...", the thought Luke couldn't avoid thinking.
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 16:44:01</strong>
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				"It's good to see you, really." Chris said with a shallow, almost raspy voice. It was hardly the same voice as years past, and it was easy to blame his sickness for it. "We really do have a lot to catch up on, don't we?" He tried to match to Luke's laugh, just as they did as kids, but it turned into a pitiful sort of cough, followed by a disappointed shake of the head and a hoisting up of all of his luggage into his hands. <br><br>"I think you ought to lead the way, Luke... and try not to be too excited-- you might just die." Dry, dark humour took over Chris's usual sense of it. In time he may become a little more sincere about what has happened to him, but not anytime soon. 
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 16:59:33</strong>
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				<div class="quoteheader"><div class="topslice_quote">Quote</div></div><blockquote class="bbc_standard_quote">"We really do have a lot to catch up on, don't we?" He tried to match to Luke's laugh, just as they did as kids, but it turned into a pitiful sort of cough, followed by a disappointed shake of the head and a hoisting up of all of his luggage into his hands.<br></blockquote><div class="quotefooter"><div class="botslice_quote"></div></div><br>Luke tried not to get too alarmed as he watched Chris cough. The combination of the cough and collecting his luggage seemed to make him lean forward dangerously. Almost off reflex, Luke gathered Chris' bag, pulling it over his shoulder.<br><br>"Let's get out of here, shall we?"<br><br><div class="quoteheader"><div class="topslice_quote">Quote</div></div><blockquote class="bbc_standard_quote">"I think you ought to lead the way, Luke... and try not to be too excited-- you might just die." Dry, dark humour took over Chris's usual sense of it. In time he may become a little more sincere about what has happened to him, but not anytime soon. <br></blockquote><div class="quotefooter"><div class="botslice_quote"></div></div><br>Quietly ditching the initial plan to go to a pub, Luke opted to take the straight route home. Though the motorways were improving slowly, their destination was regardless a long drive away. The time inbetween was filled with Luke filling in the massive gap in their story. The thought of talking at length didn't sit well with Luke though, he was just as desperate to hear what Chris had been up to.
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 17:10:41</strong>
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			<dd class="postbody">
				Despite standing and walking for perhaps a good twenty minutes at most, Chris was already starting to get winded, and was happy to be sitting again. It was a pleasure to listen to what Luke had been doing with his time, living a life of that wasn't grand, but very well off. There was a hint that he didn't seem to want to be rambling on about his side of catching up, so Chris started to oblige him. <br><br>"School was just that, school. I kept up with what was necessary to be done. Life has pretty much just been coasting, up until this sickness of mine." Chris sighed softly to himself again, looking out the window this time as opposed to Luke earlier. "It's strange... I've done so much traveling and enjoying myself for the last few months, against doctor's orders, mind you... and it's probably been the happiest I've been in such a long time. Seeing you again is really just the cherry on the cake."
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 17:32:08</strong>
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				<div class="quoteheader"><div class="topslice_quote">Quote</div></div><blockquote class="bbc_standard_quote">"School was just that, school. I kept up with what was necessary to be done. Life has pretty much just been coasting, up until this sickness of mine." Chris sighed softly to himself again, looking out the window this time as opposed to Luke earlier. "It's strange... I've done so much traveling and enjoying myself for the last few months, against doctor's orders, mind you... and it's probably been the happiest I've been in such a long time. Seeing you again is really just the cherry on the cake."<br></blockquote><div class="quotefooter"><div class="botslice_quote"></div></div><br>Luke broke into a broad grin, looking at Chris briefly as their journey took them out of the suburban hinterland, the trees appearing more and more either side of them as they headed south.<br><br>As they talked, the questions that Luke felt he couldn't ask rose to the surface, his parents, did the bullying start again, questions that ranged from the selfish to the potentially painful. All were silenced but for one.<br><br>"Chris...I don't know how to put this but...just how sick are you? I mean, is there anything I can do while you're here?"<br><br>
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 17:38:03</strong>
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				"I think the best thing you can do is be Luke." Chris said this in a blunt tone, as if it was an order more than anything. "I came here to see you because you've been the best, and at times, the only friend I've really had. So, just be Luke." The sicker of the two didn't want to think about how long he had before he was found unconscious or mid-seizure and would live the rest of his 'life' in a hospital. These trips considerably shortened the amount of time he had, but again, there were no regrets.<br><br>"You sounding concerned really isn't the Luke I know, so stop it. I'd fix everything by getting better but I don't think that this disease is really going to be that nice to me." Chris could only smile, not wanting to even try and laugh again in fear of just going into another coughing fit. 
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 18:44:29</strong>
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				Luke was stung a little, he was always concerned about Chris. The bitterness Luke thought he had heard in Chris' voice as they talked was nothing though to what had just been implied. <em>Not getting better.</em><br><br>The motorway had long since been replaced by off-roads and inter-town byways. The lengthening shadows turned to darkness, headlights started bouncing off trees and hedgerows but before too long, the road was replaced with a track and the trees along side the track parted.<br><br>The brief flash of the house in those headlights was not a castle or manor house by any stretch of the imagination, but it was certainly large.<br><br>The large front door opened into darkness. Unfamiliar shapes loomed about the place.<br><br>"Listen, this isn't really where I live. It's officially where my parents live when they're in the country. When they're out though I like staying here, it's good to have the space. I'll show you to your room."<br><br>Taking a torch from a table beside the door where he dropped his keys, Luke hoisted Chris' bag once more and shone a path up the stairs and down a hall that ran off the landing, pointing out the close-by locations of his room and the bathroom along the way. Setting his bag down on the large bed he'd made for Chris, Luke turned on a bedside lamp, illuminating the room properly and handed over the torch. He had explained on the way from the airport that most of the power in the house was turned off unless there were a lot of people staying.<br><br>"You want me to be Luke, I can do that. Like I said on the phone before your flight. You're welcome to stay here as long as you want. If you need anything, it's only us here, so just yell. I'm sure you're wrecked after the flight, I'll let you get some rest, we can keep talking in the morning. I'll show you around the place."<br><br>Luke smiled as he backed away towards the door.<br><br>"I'm really glad you could make it here."
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				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 18:56:40</strong>
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				"Thanks Luke" Chris said plainly. He moved to sit on the bed, moving his bag from it and onto the floor. "I look forward to tomorrow-- see exactly what you came back here for." He smirked, making sure that Luke knew full well that he was only kidding and wasn't bitter. "See you in the morning."<br><br>Having come from Rome to the rather dark and rainy England, Chris was still dressed in khaki shorts and a t-shirt. He really wasn't motivated enough to change into anything and didn't have a whole lot to change into anyway. Lying down and closing his eyes in blinks really told him how tired he was when his eye lids refused to open again. Smiling at his blessings, Chris promptly fell asleep, softly breathing the whole while.
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				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>30-09-2009, 20:23:11</strong>
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				Luke sat on his bed, brooding and looking out over the entrance of the house. The fine, misty drizzle had come and gone since he'd gone to bed.<br><br>It wasn't bloody fair. Eight years of wanting his best friend back and now he doesn't know if he'll get eight hours.<br><br>Creeping up amongst the anger was the start of a gnawing sense of guilt, that there might have been something he could have done. It was nonsense of course, but none of this was helping him sleep.<br><br>The only comfort he had was being able to do some good in the time they had left.<br><br>Bleary-eyed the next morning, Luke rose early, checked with a certain nervousness that his guest was still asleep, a quiet breathing sound through the slightly ajar door said as much.<br><br>After his shower, Luke descended down to the Library. The library was where he spent most of his time while he was here. Books dating from the time of his predecessors lined two walls while his own collection and that of his families' took a more modest space beneath he windows. Breakfast stuff was laid out on a large table in the middle of the room, fruit, cereal, bread, with a toaster and fridge sitting in one corner of the room. The makeshift kitchen was one of a few changes that had been made to the house to save whoever lived there from having to change floors everytime they wanted to do something other than eat, read or sleep.<br><br>Settling in front of his laptop to read the news, Luke started on his cereal.&nbsp;
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>01-10-2009, 19:29:26</strong>
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				Chris awoke exactly how and where he started; his back flat on the bed, looking straight up at the ceiling. He wasn't sure what exactly woke him, whether it was the sun beaming in through the window or the subtle creak of the door, there was no telling. Waking up always was a little more of a task as time wore on. His body liked stiffening up and would much rather lay in bed forever than see the rest of Luke's home. Familiar with disobeying his body, Chris mustered everything he could in sitting upright, and towards the window to see just where he was. The land around the home was in pristine condition: flowers, statues, and furnishings all working well together to paint a wonderful picture. One particular feature that drew his attention was the waterfall. Though he clearly couldn't, Chris imagined the noise of the falling water and could only think about sitting there for an entire day. Now eager to see the home of his childhood friend, he turned on his heel and to the door in search of him.<br><br>The mansion looked to be one of old construction and the space was certainly void of people. Walking by rooms with open doors, there were white sheets covering the furniture to save it from the bleaching like effects of the sun, as well as the dust. Hearing some rustling in one of the rooms on the main floor, Chris ever so slowly made his way down into what looked like the library. <br><br>"Morning," Chris said in an irregular tone; part-sleepy, another part-sickly. "Trust that you've had a good night's rest, hmm? I really can't wait to look around the estate. It looks rather entrancing."
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				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>02-10-2009, 04:11:37</strong>
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				Luke smiled as Chris entered. To Luke's eye Chris still looked weakened by whatever he was suffering from, but natural light painted a better picture of someone who'd slept through the night than airport florescents painted of a weary traveller.<br><br>Standing as Chris entered, he felt the excitement of having his friend around perking him up once more.<br><br>"I hope you slept well. I didn't hink to ask what you have for breakfast so I got a few things together, help yourself."<br><br>Letting Chris get settled, Luke sat down, closing his laptop and picking up the apple he'd been eating as Chris arrived.<br><br>"If you're feeling up to it, I thought I might show you around the grounds. Mayden Falls is just behind the house, it's a bit of a walk, but the view from the top is stunning. If the weather stays clear, we should even be able to see a bit of the southern coast."<br>
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>02-10-2009, 04:21:47</strong>
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				Noticing the smile on Luke's face, Chris assumed that he was looking a little better today than he did the night before. He decided here that he wouldn't be cause for worry and just ignore any of his big trouble... or at least not tell his friend about them. Walking over to the table with what was breakfast on it, he scanned over the set up for anything appealing. Truth be told, he really wasn't a big fan of breakfast. Mostly because he could never really keep it down, but today, he would. <br><br>With the like-mind of Luke, Chris went for an apple himself, smiling to his friend before taking a small bite out of the side. "You washed these, right? I really can't afford to eat a bug." He laughed, managing to pull of a decent one this time, before moving back to the doorway which he came. He made an effort to look eager to walking around and seeing the estate. "I could sit by the water all day. We should start there."<br><br>((Aaah! I'm eager to be a girl, can't you tell!? lol, being a dude is so... unnatural. lol))
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>02-10-2009, 05:16:35</strong>
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			<dd class="postbody">
				Luke waved away Chris' concerns about the apple. He bought most of the food here at a Farmer's Market in the town, washed and practically organic.<br><br>Once they were both done with breakfast, Luke lead Chris out of the library the entrance hall and corridors were pale yellow with dark red and black lacquered wood highlights. Intricate crimson glass uplights waited to be lit, though the hint of dust in some places suggested that it hadn't happened in a while. The entrance hall itself had several paintings on the walls above and below the stairs. The nearest as they headed out was half revealed, a thin liking man dressed in the suit of a gentleman of the 1830's.<br><br>"This is the 1st Baronet of Ashburton. He was a shipping magnate. I'm not as well versed in family lore as my sister but apparently he had a rough time of it after becoming a peer, ended up jumping off the falls one night in a depressed state. Funny thing is they never found the body. It's quite a drop and the landing could be tricky but the stream just isn't that big for someone to just vanish... Anyway, let's get going. Let me know if you need to catch your breath."&nbsp; &nbsp;
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				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>02-10-2009, 05:38:36</strong>
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				Chris thought about the story, a curious look on his face as he followed Luke around the estate. It would be weird to not have found a body, even if he did fall ages ago where people just didn't really have the sort of technology to make heated searches like they do now. Deciding not to bother himself with it too much, he tossed the thought away in a shrug.<br><br>"You don't have to worry about me that much, Luke... remember what I said? Geez." He said that in an upbeat tone, though he ran the risk of sounding somewhat fake and forced. Following Luke around, he took great care to absorb all he could about the home and its history. There was a lot of it, and considering their childhoods, probably neither of them would have thought they would have the opportunity to be in a building like this. 
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>02-10-2009, 06:11:14</strong>
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			<dd class="postbody">
				As promised, the view from Mayden Falls was stunning did indeed include a small piece of sea and coastline. The weather wasn't quite brave enough to become summery but it was too warm for a jacket as it had been earlier in the week.<br><br>Luke deliberately set a slower pace than he usually would, taking time to enjoy the riot of flora that surrounded the wide, tree-lined track they used to get up to the top. Several times they crossed the small stream in water that got up no further than their shins, in other places the stream was more narrow but much deeper.<br><br>"Soon after we moved here," Luke said after they spent a moment looking at the view. "I used to come to this spot with a compass, trying figure out where I used to live. I was never quite certain though."
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>03-10-2009, 07:21:59</strong>
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			<dd class="postbody">
				Chris zoned out Luke, but not entirely on purpose. The view of the coastline was something to admire and it practically entranced the young man. What fauna and flora there was around here made the air feel that much cleaner as he took a deep breath through his nose. "This is incredible, you'd think that as my childhood friend, you'd figure out how to send pictures." He was joking of course, this happened when they were rather young, as was the technology. <br><br>The sickly one took a seat by a rock close to the falls, but far enough away as to not get anything wet, save maybe his shoes. "I wonder if you could see your old house from here..." 
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>03-10-2009, 08:26:57</strong>
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			<dd class="postbody">
				Luke rolled his shoulders uncomfortably, "Yeah. I'm sorry I didn't stay in touch. I was a little too self-pitying when we first came here. I'm still funny about getting my way these days. Don't think I spoke to anyone for the first month we were here. Made me real popular, that did."<br><br>"The house? Yeah, you can just see a piece of it if you get closer to the center of the stream. Though be careful, the moss gets a little thick and slippery as you go further in."<br><br>Used to the view and perhaps a little jaded of it. Luke concentrated on points that were mostly of interest to him, changes to the area since he was here last, plants that had started blooming since Spring had started. 
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Rachubka</strong> on <strong>08-10-2009, 16:08:19</strong>
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			<dd class="postbody">
				A little curious about what Luke was talking about, Chris moved a little closer to the stream, and promptly into the mossy rocks to look back toward the house. The whole time that he was looking for the house, his friend was practically being absentminded and looked toward the trees and plants, as if to expect some sort of creature to pop out and give him an acorn. <br><br>"I was only kidding about not keeping in touch. Hell, it's not like I did a whole lot of work either, you know?" Chris replied to Luke's first question with that almost unnatural calm tone. Still having a hard time seeing the house from this spot, he moved a little further down the stream and towards the falls. "Are you sure you're not just toying with me? I can't see any--"<br><br>A little further in, a little thick and slippery... that as a little bit of an understatement. Chris had wiped out completely and thank god he didn't land on any rocks on the way down. Actually... this fall seemed to be a long one, considering how far he actually was from the ground. In a few seconds, he actually realized what had happened, causing the man to scream out for Luke, before blacking out completely in shock.
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			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: A New Lease On Life (Aleph and Rachubka)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Aleph</strong> on <strong>09-10-2009, 04:26:33</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The sound of Chris' voice cut off in mid-sentence causing Luke to look up with a panicked expression, Chris' absence the one thing he didn't want to see. Luke charged back down the path as fast as he could sprint, desperately trying not to think about how many meters Chris had fallen, the sound of a splash below a moment later at least telling him he'd hit the water instead of the rocks around the waterfall.<br><br>Running down hill, Luke found the path difficult territory to cross at speed. His feet could only find loose earth slipping beneath him, his luck held until he spied a short cut to the pond beneath the waterfall when his moment's lack of concentration slipped his feet out from under him. Hitting the back of his head hard against the track, Luke did his best to scramble back to his feet and dash to the edge of the pond.<br><br>Through the intense, throbbing pain where he'd hit the back of his head, Luke waded the few meters to where Chris' body had floated since it had splashed down in the pond. Lifting the body into his arms, Luke was grateful that Chris was much lighter than he expected and also that the faint sound of breathing could be heard. Something else occurred to Luke for a brief moment but through his worry over Chris' condition and the blow to the back of his head, the observation fluttered away.<br><br>Grateful for being fit, Luke was almost staggering as he pushed his way through the french doors at the back of the house, pushing himself harder as he climbed the stairs up to Chris' room. Once there, he laid Chris down on the bed after struggling to get his soaking wet top and pants off his body. Wrapping Chris in a towel, Luke flopped back onto a nearby chair, exhausted. As he took Chris' clothes off, that idea he had had came back to him, much louder this time, something to do wth Chris' body. Luke's flickering, close to unconscious mind reasoned that there was neither blood nor broken limbs, hence it was something he could deal with after he'd caught his breath.<br><br>At which point, Luke's passed out.
			</dd>
		</dl>
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