Hold Me Tight

Status
Not open for further replies.
V

VengefulPeanut

Guest
"Aldwin! I'm open! I'm open!"

It was a warm summer's evening, the sun gradually setting beyond the sprawl of the city, casting a warm orange blanket across the streets. Aldwin was with a couple of his friends from his local neighbourhood, Connor and Jack, enjoying a leisurely game of football (or 'soccer' as they called it) after a hard day at work. It was nice. It was rare he could enjoy such frivolities in his life; being an emigrant left a lot of bills and debts needing to be paid so work was essential.

"Aldwin!" Connor called out, waving his arms frantically. Noticing him in his peripherals, Aldwin cut the ball in his direction, completely bypassing his opponents. Connor made a run for the goal, delivering a powerful strike aimed for the top right corner. Alas, the keeper deflected the ball away.

"It's mine!" Jack cried, as if appearing from nowhere underneath the ball. He headed the ball, knocking it over the top of the now-floored goal keeper straight through the posts. "Score!"

1-0. The game was going well so far as was the day. However, what Aldwin didn't know was how much his life was about to change in the next round.​
 
Marilyn sighed as she walked down the sidewalk. No where around her looked familiar, it was all strange and new to her, so she knew she had made a wrong turn somewhere. Did she turn around when she realized that? No, of course not. That was Marilyn Fae for you. She was stubborn, strong willed, and determined to never be proven wrong, even when she knew she messed up.

She was taught that there was no time for mistakes, so her running late from tutoring and then getting lost didn't help her case. As she finally decided to turn back around, Marilyn pulled her books close to her chest and started to cross the crosswalk when she noticed a few boys playing football in a small yard. She watched them from he corner of her eye for a moment before she turned her attention into walking in front of her, making sure not to trip or hurt herself, another common thing she did.

She heard a loud yell and as she turned towards the males voice, yelling for her to watch out, she felt her books get hit from her hands, and her feet got twisted together. Before she knew it, Marilyn was face down on the ground with her books thrown out all around her small body on the sidewalk. She groaned in frustration as she started to push her body up and she slowly sat up, reaching for her books.

Exhausted and sort of dizzy, Marilyn had to steady herself as she reach for another book. Once she had a couple in her arms, she slowly began to stand up, but she began to slowly fall over and had to catch herself and work on her balance. She had hit her head when she had fallen, and it was bleeding, but not bad enough to go to the doctor.
 
Aldwin's breath caught in his throat as he saw the ball launch towards and hit the girl. Not long after they resumed, Connor had gone to try and score a second point for the lads' team however completely cleared the goal, resulting in the ball travelling and hitting the unfortunate passerby. "Oh! Well done, Connor," Aldwin grumbled patronisingly, jogging over to the girl. By the time he reached her, she was back on her feet and looking around almost vacantly. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked concernedly, softening his brow. When she stumbled, he reached out to catch her but she seemed to have it covered. Dizzy, he thought to himself, seems disorientated after a fall - not a good sign. "Do you mind if I take a look at your head? I - I mean, just to check if it's bleeding. Not in a weird way or anything." He had a goofy smile on his lips as he nervously tried to make conversation, feeling a deep sense of guilt at the whole scenario. As he looked at her, he noticed a small trickle of blood causing him to wince slightly. "We need to get you checked out by a doctor or something," he observed, fearing the girl might be concussed.
 
Marilyn saw the male approach her and she just shook her head at his questions,"No I'm fine,"she said again, trying to convince him that she was alright, just a little startled. When he finally convinced her to let him look at her head, he noticed that it was bleeding slightly. When she saw him wince and ask to take her to the doctor, she again shook her head.

"No thank you, really, I'm fine. I don't have time to go to the doctor, I'm already late and I took a wrong turn,"Marilyn said sighing. She bent over slightly again and picked up the rest of her few books and looked behind Aldwin where the other boys were waiting for him to join their game again.

"Really, I'm okay. I'll go to the doctor tomorrow at lunch if it will make you feel better. I promise, but I have to go. They are missing you too,"Marilyn says smiling slightly, hoping that mentioning the game they were playing would make him not worry as much. She sighed and brushed against her dress to get the dirt off before looking back up at Aldwin."Thank you for your help."
 
As she pointed out the others were waiting, Aldwin looked back towards them as they stared curiously back at him. Thankfully, the girl seemed to be fine and Aldwin relaxed slightly, pulling the ball from the ground. "No need to thank me," he said modestly, "We were at fault so... you know... sort of owed it to you to try and help you up." He smiled back at her slight smile. "Anyway, if there's nothing you need I better get back," he continued with a slight, nervous chuckle motioning back towards the group. "Maybe I'll see you around sometime...?" he asked, suddenly realising he didn't even know her name.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
"Maybe,"Marilyn said smiling at him. She knew that she should probably introduce herself, but she decided not to. She waved goodbye to him before walking the opposite way towards her house.
---
The next day Marilyn woke up at the same time she always did: 6:30A.M. With a groan, she made her way to the shower and cleaned up. As she got dressed and fixed her hair, she walked downstairs where she met her family for breakfast at 7 A.M. sharp. As she sat across from her younger brother and between her older brother and her mother, they ate in silence, none bringing up the fact that her head was bruises slightly and she was late.

As Marilyn made her way towards the park where she was meeting a bunch of her friends, she sat down on a picnic bench and waited until her friends Sandy, Maria, Thomas, Dalas, and Dean arrived, sitting beside or across from her.
 
As the sun rose the next day, the harsh beam permeated into Aldwin's room causing him to roll around in his bed restlessly. He groaned slightly, pulling the covers off of him and drifting back to consciousness. Rotating his body around, he placed his feet on the ground and pulled himself to a standing position, stretching widely with a loud yawn. He rubbed his eyes before taking a look at the clock on his cupboard. 05:59AM, he spoke to himself internally, 3... 2... 1... Right on his count, his bedroom door flew open and a half dressed Connor sauntered into his room. "Ah, you're awake," he exclaimed in surprise. Aldwin simply nodded in response.

"Jack?" he asked.

"Oh, you know sleeping beauty. Still waiting on his prince to come and kiss him awake. I'll leave that one up to you.

"Ha-ha, very funny," Aldwin responded sarcastically before sighing, "I'll go get him up. You can have the bathroom first." Connor nodded in agreement with a grin on his face. It was a pretty typical morning getting ready for work. Aldwin, despite not acting as such, didn't really mind though. He was just glad he met the two of them. If it wasn't for them he wouldn't have work or a roof over his head and they were pretty lenient on his rent. They were a few years older than him, mind. Connor was 20 and Jack 22. When he'd left England for the States he wasn't sure he'd make any friends but there he was.

Work started at 7:30 for the boys, while litter picking in the day and working a bar at the nights wasn't the most glamorous occupation for three young bachelors it put money in their wallets.
 
As Marilyn listened to her friends talk about the fair that night and for the next two weeks, she let her mind drift to the night before where she had met the male that made sure she was okay. She remembered his face clearly and was confused as to why she hadn't leaned his name, but figured that they'd never see each other again, so there was no use in thinking about it.

As her friends caught her attention and she heard Dean ask if she was coming to the opening of the fair that night with him, Maria, and Thomas. Marilyn thought about this for a few seconds but nodded in agreement,"Yes I'll come, my parents said I could come with you anyway,"she said thinking for awhile.

Marilyn and Dean had been steady for about two months, set up by her father and his mother. Marilyn father thought that he was the 'right' and 'appropriate' kind of guy that she should be going out with, so if Marilyn wanted to go anywhere, she just said she was with Dean. Although she never really liked him, he was nearly the only male that her father approved of. Even though he was very stern and sometimes rude and abusive towards Marilyn, she dated him so that her father would be happy with her.
 
The day passed by, the usual routine and all: pick litter here, pick litter there. Occasionally, the boys would cross paths and enjoy brief conversation before moving on and continuing their work. The topics of conversation were usually competitive - who picked up the weirdest piece of litter and such - a trophy Aldwin won that day for finding a pair of ladies underwear discarded on the sidewalk. It never dawned on Aldwin just how much like family the pair had become. Somewhere along the line of their year and a half of living together the lads stopped being friends and became brothers to him. He smiled at that thought. Smiling even through the grim task that was laid before him.

As the shift drew to a close, Aldwin got changed and prepared to work his second job. It was his shift at the bar that night so Connor and Jack got ready to enjoy their time off which translated to sitting at the bar chatting away, making Aldwin jealous by making overly exaggerated gasps of refreshment whenever he served them. Aldwin had just finished serving a young woman when Jack called him over. "I'll have another beer, I think," he mused with a smug look on his face.

"That the only thing you called me over for?" Aldwin sighed, placing his arms on the bar with a deflated look on his face.

"No, not really. You heard about the fair that's coming to town?"

"No, nothing about it. Beyond you two, I'm not exactly a social flower, am I?"

"Well," Jack continued, "The opening's tonight. Your shift ends in an hour right?"

"Yeah, Mandy's covering the night shift. I just had the evening slot, remember?" Jack had a pleased grin on his face. Connor seemed a little indifferent to the whole thing but then again he wasn't the budding social flower either. Aldwin had Jack figured out from the start. He just wanted to go to make passes at and flirt with every girl there. It wasn't any secret he figured himself a ladies man and because of such his company could become quite embarrassing sometimes. Still, getting out and about and meeting new people would be nice. Aldwin knew he couldn't rely on Jack and Connor for company all of the time, so, finishing his shift, the trio set off in the direction of the fair opening.
 
Marilyn was home by seven and she quickly showered and changed into a nice, red poodle skirt that went down to her mid shin and up to her belly button, with a white, sleeveless blouse with ruffles on the front. As she let her brown hair fall down and the small natural curls fell down her shoulders and back. As she pulled her white tennis shoes on and made her way towards her door where she met with Dean and her father, she walked down the sidewalk towards the fair with Dean by her side.

The fair had opened at 6:30, but since free entry was at 8:30, that's when Marilyn and her friends decided to go. As they all met and walked in, they began playing the small games and going on the many rides that they could. As they all got up on the ferris wheel, something they all loved, Marilyn noticed a familiar face a few feet away from her in the line to the ferris wheel.
 
"I can't believe you made us spend that much money on the shooting range," Connor groaned, looking at Jack with a bitter malice. As the group wandered around, they had a go at almost everything there. Their wages had come through and for once they were quite well off. Connor and Jack bickered every now and then like an old married couple, all of it starting when Jack insisted that he could get the top prize on one of the stalls. Regardless, the fair had a nice ambience. There was a subtle background hubbub of people conversing, laughing and generally enjoying themselves all mixed in with the wacky sounds of many of the stall's games and rides. To say it was pushing 9:30pm, the night air was warm and alive.

"What about the ferris wheel?" Jack exclaimed, pointing it out for the others. Aldwin and Connor both looked with an embarrassed grimace on their faces.

"A ferris wheel? I don't know..." Connor winced, clearly worried about his appearance. Jack walked to the two, leaning in close so that they would do the same.

"Look, a ferris wheel is prime hunting ground for picking up chicks, trust me."

"Really?" Aldwin responded sarcastically, "I suppose all girls love the romance of being stuck in a carriage, suspended above the Earth, with a really creepy guy making comments about her toes."

"Look, that was one time and you saying that actually hurts, you know." Aldwin chuckled at Jack's response and Connor merely shook his head in disbelief. "Come on, we might as well. I mean, it was free entry!" Jack continued, coercing them into agreement. Aldwin looked to Connor.

"He's right. We might as well have a go." Connor looked positively flabbergasted at that.

"What about my image!?"

"Your image will be fine," Aldwin reassured.

"Fine," Connor finally conceded, "But if my Native-American spirit name becomes Rubs-Up-Men-In-Tight-Spaces you're all dead."

So, with that decided, the trio set off and found their way into the queue for the ferris wheel. Connor didn't seem anymore enthusiastic than he did 4 minutes prior but Aldwin had actually got into the idea. From the top, he'd be able to clearly see the city skyline - a sight he was yet to see properly unrestricted by other structures. It would be a beautiful sight, for sure.
 
The ferris wheel sat eight to a seat, a new addition they added in, so as the next eight stepped up, it happened to be Marilyn and her friends, and the familiar looking guy and his friends. As they climbed in the seats and the door closed, Marilyn looked across from her and she was sitting in front of one of Aldwin friends, and beside Dean. She turned her head to look out the ferris wheel as they stopped to load other people in, and she smiled, able to see nearly the entire city. That was what she loved more than ever about the fair being in town. She came ever night of the fair just so that she could see the city, and try to win a bear that she always failed at.

As the ride got to the very top and stopped, Marilyn turned back towards everyone else who was having a conversation."The fair is always the best time of the year. The busiest day is always either the first or the last though, everything in between is just for the fun. Tonight they are having fireworks and on the last night everything is free admission and they're having fireworks again,"Thomas said smiling as he talked happily to the people they had never seen before.

Thomas was the outgoing one in the group. He was always ready to talk to new people and explore new things, unlike Marilyn who was taught to stay in her own little bubble and not tall to stranger. Dean and Maria were the same, they did whatever they wanted and whenever they wanted, no matter what anyone else had to say.

As the group turned back to the three sitting across from them, Marilyn caught eye contact with Aldwin, or as she knew him as, the familiar face. She still didn't know where she knew him from or even his name, but suddenly it clicked as remembered the night before when she had clumsily fallen and hit her head.
 
Finally, it was their turn. The carriage sat more than they had remembered so as they got seated they were joined by five strangers. Well... all strangers but one. Noticing Marilyn climbing aboard, Aldwin immediately diverted his gaze elsewhere. As the wheel came to a stop, a grand view of the city was laid before the group and Aldwin leaned over so that he could see it fully.

"Say, isn't that the girl from yesterday?" Jack whispered into Aldwin's ear, causing him to look at her once more. There was no mistaking it, it was her. Leaning back to Jack and pressing his back into his seat Aldwin responded,

"I think it is." He wasn't sure why he was acting coy and unsure, or why he couldn't look at her straight. There was something about her, though, that was sending his nerves sky-high. All three of the lads looked to Thomas as he randomly opened conversation with them.

"Fireworks, eh?" Connor responded in an impressed tone, "We'll have to make sure that we get to see them, then." Aldwin looked to Marilyn again but this time accidentally made eye contact with her. As he broke eye contact and looked away once more he prayed internally that she didn't think he was stalking her or something. It's okay, he reassured himself in his mind, it's just a coincidence and she'll know that. If I pretend I don't recognise her then all will be-

"You're the girl we met yesterday, aren't you?" Jack exclaimed, clearly a reaction to Aldwin cowering in the corner. For the love of god Jack! Left with no other choice, Aldwin returned to the conversation and tried to look as confident as possible.
 
Marilyn snapped her head up at the voice talking to her, and she stared at him surprised. She stuttered over her words at first, and then looked back over at Aldwin for a second before looking back at the other male."Um.. y-yes. That was me. Nice to see you again,"she said nodding her head awkwardly. She turned her head against to look at dean who was staring at her.

"Where did you guys meet again? Marilyn isn't usually the social flower, so she doesn't meet new people usually,"Dean said laughing as he looked back at Jack."Oh I was on my way home and I tripped and he came to make sure I was okay,"she said. She didn't tell Dean the entire truth, but she had no reason to either. She hated when he would try to get in her business, so she left it just simply to her tripping, which she did do.

As the ferris wheel turned around and around, Marilyn stayed quiet as the rest of them talked, and she just stared out the side, admiring the beauty of the city and of the fair lights. She could see everything in the city and in the fair, she already mapped out in her head where everything was, so she knew immediately after the ride was over, she would head towards the games and try to win herself a stuffed animal before the fireworks began.

During the fireworks, all the rides and games would still be open, but the fair manager opened up a huge field so that people could lay out on blankets and watch the fireworks without being on the rides. As she heard Thomas and the other boys talking about the fireworks, she heard Thomas invite them to sit with them. She snapped her head towards Thomas shocked. Of course Marilyn didn't mind if they sat with them, she was just shocked that Thomas had offered, and that it had to have been them.

Marilyn had no problem with them boys, in fact, sitting and riding with them in the five minute ride showed Marilyn that they were all nice boys. The one that had made sure she was okay was quiet and taken back to himself, but the other two seemed to be more outgoing and... flirtatious which made Marilyn giggle quietly to herself.
 
The three boys were shocked when the stranger had invited them to see the fireworks with them. Despite that, they still accepted gratefully. Truth be told they didn't have any blankets or anything like that so latching onto a group that maybe did seemed like a sound strategy - they didn't seem too bad as people either. Jack gave Aldwin a playful nudge as him and Connor accepted the offer on Aldwin's behalf.

When the ride drew to a close the boys dismounted and cleared the ferris wheel, turning to the other group. "So, see you in the field when the fireworks start?" Jack asked. Aldwin had kept rather quiet. If he'd have started trying to talk his nerves might have taken over and he might never have stopped.
 
Marilyn slowly made her way off of the faris wheel and stepped to the side as everyone else got off. When Thomas agreed to meet them by the gate, the two groups parted, and Marilyn exceed herself to go to the restrooms. After allowing herself to take a few deep breaths and calm down, Marilyn made her way back out to the fair as she found her group of friends.

As they walked around the fair waiting for the fireworks to start, playing different games, Marilyn let her mind think about Aldwin and why they ran into each other at the fair. She was never one to believe in coincidences, so she wasn't sure what to think about them seeing each other again.
 
The time between the group getting off the ferris wheel and waiting for the fireworks to start wasn't particular thrilling or eventful. The lads had pretty much been around most things they wanted to try out and they didn't really have time to queue for some of the more daring rides that were being sported that day. Still, they didn't want to wear the fair out either. It would be there all week and it would lose its charm if they did everything in the first day. So, resolving to go for a stroll, the lads wandered and admired the scenery. Well, the 'scenery': Jack and Connor went 'window shopping' and Aldwin was simply content to admire the scene of happiness around him. That's not to say he didn't find himself, too, being pulled guiltily into admiring the beauty of a few of the girls the other two were gawping at but he was much more reserved and much less interested than them. What was most prevalently on his mind was the way he felt when he saw Marilyn again. Why did she make him so nervous? She seemed to have a boyfriend as well and it's not like she fell head over heels for him when he helped her out - that was the footballs doing and heaven knows he didn't possess an arsenal of charm. No. The romance tales were never quite so accurate when it came to real life application. Still, the night at the fair had been an enjoyable one so seeing it to its end, dispelling silly thoughts and enjoying the company of new people seemed the most important.

When the field was opened for the fireworks the lads rendezvoused with the other group with a smile and a wave. "So, these fireworks best be as good as you promised!" Jack exclaimed with a cheeky grin.

"Way to doubt the guests, Jack!" Connor replied to him with a sarcastic rhetoric. Aldwin chuckled lightly at that.

"Because we're totally not the guests here..." Aldwin said teasingly, pulling Connor up on his failure in phrasing. Around and around the circle of banter went as it usually did with those three until Aldwin looked to Thomas to break it. "Do you have a spot picked out, Thomas?" he asked inquisitively, quite excited for the display that would follow.

large.gif
 
  • Like
Reactions: Alison
As the groups met up, Marilyn again stayed quite, not much saying anything to anyone except a few words to Maria or Thomas when they talked to her. As Thomas began wearing the group out to the field to show them a good spot to watch the show, Marilyn lagged behind a little as she let her eyes wander up towards the beautiful starry sky. As she smiled and turned her head back towards the group, they had stopped a few feet away and claimed their spot on the field before others did.

Then as they began to sit down, Marilyn remembered that Thomas had left the blankets in his car, and figured that they might as well go get them in the fiver minutes before the show started."Thomas I'll get the blankets if you want. I remember where we parked and it shouldn't take long,"she says standing back up from her spot on the ground. "Okay that's fine, but there big blankets and a lot of them, are you sure you can handle all of them by yourself? You're kind of small,"he teased.

Marilyn scowled at him and turned around, beginning to walk back towards the car. She knew he would probably send someone after her to help, being the worried and concerned best friend that he was to her, but she continued walking, hoping to get to the blankets and back before the show started.
 
As Marilyn walked off, Aldwin looked to Thomas once more. "She going to be okay on herself?" he asked. It was all too often he'd see stubborn people try bite off more than they could chew. He knew because he was one of them. Around the group, more and more people filtered onto the field, all anticipating the start of the display. The atmosphere developed a warm, ambient hubbub of people talking and laughing and the once empty field became filled with people squatting down and getting comfortable. Out of the corner of Aldwin's eye he noticed Jack wander over to Sandy.

"Any of these lucky guys your boyfriend," he asked with a wolfish grin on his lips. Connor had settled into trying to talk to Dean.
 
Marilyn made it to the car and back quickly enough with the blankets, handing them to everyone in the group. Marilyn sat herself down on the edge of the blanket with her legs out and her hands behind her holding herself up. Dean was sitting a few people away, and although she had figured he'd sit by her, she didn't mind. She preferred to not sit by him anyway, if it was her choice she would have ended the relationship with him before it even began.

Sandy giggled a little as Jack talked to her and she shook her head. She had always thought that Thomas liked her but ever since Maria and Thomas began going out about a month ago, she had been looking for another boy to focus her time on and Jack was a fairly attractive guy, anyone knew that by looking at him.

As Aldwin sat down a little a ways from Marilyn, she glanced at him and realized she didn't even know his name. None of the other boys had said it and they had never really done introductions, so she figured with the few seconds left before the firework display began, she would introduce herself. "Um, I don't think we actually introduced ourselves earlier. I'm Marilyn,"she says smiling.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom
Back