Last Chance House (Shadez & Bored)

Ivy couldn't help but feel a hundred times more exhausted as they came into the house, watching Dez with a small frown as he dropped the bags off. When he advanced towards her she took a tiny step back, worried he was going to...she wasn't sure. But picking her up definitely wasn't on the list. It took her a moment to register what was going on. She was on his bed, her hand in his hair as she automatically felt the need to comfort him, but she didn't feel like she was there.

Ivy almost felt like she was floating above their bodies, staring down at themselves. Her thoughts were both an ocean during a storm and a grass valley with no wind. She knew that this wasn't a sexual thing and that seemed to scare her even more. When was the last time she'd been intimate without having sex involved? Her thoughts moved, much like her hand in Dez's soft hair, to Ven last night. That had been a form of intimacy, right? "It's okay." Was all she said, not really sure what to say but feeling like silence might swallow them up.
 
Dez snorted, laughing lightly against Ivy, finding immense comfort as she ran her hands through his hair.
“Thanks, Ivy…” he muttered, arms draped lightly around her. He was far too tired to overthink the situation, just needing her to be there in that moment. He didn’t want anything from her except her warmth. Eyes fluttering shut, she hummed a tune for a while, his thumbs absently rubbing circles against her skin.

~x~

Cal let hot water wash over her body, trying to keep her body from shivering. The water was scalding, leaving her skin flushed and raw, but despite the fact, she still felt frozen. Rowan, or ‘Ro,’ as she’d introduced herself, had helped a little in easing Cal’s mind that day, the numbness subsiding little by little. Turning off the water, she grabbed the towel she’d been given and changed, moving back to the couch where she’d spent the majority of her day drawing while Ro had been away at work.
Sitting down, she thought about the night before, the others heavy on her mind. All she’d had to do was make dinner. It shouldn’t have been that hard. Cal didn’t even realize how tense she was until Ro was sitting next to her, rubbing her hair wildly to get her attention. Cal instantly pushed away from the girl, hands bracing against the couch, skin tingling as she expected her new friend to look dazed and confused. Ro was quite the opposite, giving Cal a confused look, head teetering to one side, quite coherent in that moment.
“Did I do something wrong?” she asked, hand still slightly outstretched towards Cal.
“You— You— you TOUCHED me. H-how did you do that?!” she asked, shocked as she reached up to stroke the area where Ro’s hand had previously been, her hair fluffing with the motion.
Ro only shrugged, giggling to herself.
“I mean… I just touched you. What’s the big deal? Not a touchy person?” she asked.
“Sorry, you just looked like you were thinking about Dez again. Looked like you needed a hug,” she added, curling up on the couch now, offering the girl a shy smile.
Cal blanched, inching closer to the girl until her toes were grazing her leg close by, but quickly pulled them away, watching Ro’s face intently. Yet again, the skin tingled and Cal felt like she was going insane.
“But— but— you SHOULDN’T be able to touch me and….I mean… the only person who can is Dez, and that’s because we’re siblings….I don’t… I don’t understand…” she rambled. Ro took the girl’s hand, letting her energy run through her in small waves, slowly moving up her arm until she’d reached her elbow, and then ran down her arm yet again.
Cal just stared, utterly dumbfounded by the exchange.
“You’re not the only acer in this town, you know,” she giggled, letting the energy surge back towards Cal. The girl instantly pulled her hand away, the equivalent of a shock leaving her fingers tingly, like before.
“I control energy,” she explained, fluffing the girl’s hair once more. Cal relaxed, unable to suppress the joy she felt finally being touched by another person after what felt like forever.
“I….well… usually… control others….” Cal said bashfully, giving Ro a relieved look.
“So THAT’S why all the dogs are so obedient when you’re at the kennels. I was starting to think I was going insane. They never listen to me like that!” she beamed.
“I well… I… can’t control it well yet, but I’m working on it,” Cal explained, mentioning that that was why she was so afraid to touch other people, which had added some problems with the others. She didn’t disclose that the others were acers, but Ro read between the lines as Cal spoke.
‘That’s it…. First wall obliterated,’ Ro thought, chuckling to herself as she listened intently to the other, pulling her closer. Cal let out a squeal as she was spun around, and didn’t continue until she felt a brush run though her hair.
“I’m just braiding it, please continue,” Ro urged.
Cal flushed lightly, enjoying the sensation, relaxing against Ro’s touch, but continued to explain how her abilities had imposed on her personal and social life, particularly with the others at the institute.
 
It was late into the night when Ven finally made it back to Last Chance House and he wasn't amused at what he found. Ivy and Dez were all curled up in bed and he couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Not in a romantic conquest kind of way, but in the way a lonely person feels when their one friend spends more time with someone else. It was like a cold reminder that he was an outsider. Ven wanted to bang his head against the wall.

"What?" He mumbled to himself as he made his way back down the hall towards the kitchen. "Did you think a few days made you belong?" His finger nails bit into his palm and he paused for a moment, relishing the pain, before turning a corner and slamming into a wall. Well not a wall, since walls didn't tend to be so warm, but it was solid. Ven peeled himself back for a moment and stared up at the face of Roland.

Roland looked pissed, and tired. Ven could understand why, since his best gal pal Cal didn't seem to be around much these days, but he also wondered if he was lending anything to the anger. The big guy had made it obvious that he didn't want Ven around, but Charles got the final say. He could only imagine that seeing him just made things worse.

"S-sorry." Ven gulped and attempted to step around Roland, but then he hit another wall. This one was clearly from Roland's abilities and it hurt a lot more. "Fuck." He held his nose, wondering if it would start bleeding, and turned a glare at the tall man. "What's your problem?"

"You." Roland seethed and the emotions rolling off of him seemed to hit Ven like a tidal wave. The invisible wall dropped and Ven tumbled forward into the kitchen, whirling around to keep facing Roland, but the guy had already headed back to his room.

~X~

Ivy woke up the next day and found herself with one arm slung over Dez. She smiled, feeling an internal happiness for once, and wiggled off his bed. It wasn't until she stepped out into the hall that the reality of the day hit her. One, today was D-Day and they had a bombing to stop. Two, Ven was curled up beside the door as if he had waited for her to leave the room at some point, which she hadn't.

She knelt down to shake him awake and motioned for him to follow her to her own room.


"Well, alright." Ivy said as she looked at the men in front of her as they stood at the bus stop. "We've got our gear, bus money, and..."

"Bus." Roland said as the loud machine stopped beside them and he climbed on board.
 
Dez awoke to his alarm blaring in his ear. Yawning, he stretched lazily to turn it off, glaring at how early it was. It took him more than a moment to recall how he’d gotten to bed and what was going on that day, but when his mind finally caught up, he stood up abruptly, changing in a hurry and glancing downstairs to see the bags they’d left were still there. He had time. Tugging the other half of his shirt over his body, he finished changing and quickly joined the others, trying not to worry too heavily over what the future held. On the bright side, if he died today, he wouldn’t have to worry about his sister anymore.
‘Silver lining,’ he chuckled to himself darkly.

~x~

Holding the supplies from yesterday, Dez sauntered up to the others, bobbing from one foot to another in an antsy dance, his nerved getting the better of him. With no hands free, he couldn’t let out the nervous energy by tapping, so tapping his feet with the occasional scuffle was the best he could do under the circumstances. Despite his nerves though, he felt surprisingly well rested. Following the others onto the bus, he nearly threw his money at the driver this time, exact change in hand in preparation. Didn’t need his money spilling across the isles like they previously. Flopping the bag next to him in a seat close to the others, he began tapping almost instantly, combining the scuff of his shoes to make a steady beat, a slurry of sounds that almost sounded good together, but not quite on the crowded bus, his nerved only growing the closer they got to the mall. It didn’t help that this was a busy time of day. There was no telling how many people they’d be responsible for. His muscles tensed in his seat at the thought, tongue clicking as the mental image crossed his mind. He shivered.
‘It… It’ll be okay,’ he half attempted to convince himself, failing miserably, his fist tightening around the bag next to him. He just hoped he knew enough to keep people safe.

~x~

Cal awoke with a start, Ro’s alarm catching her off guard. She hadn’t realized it, but she’d fallen asleep next to the girl in her bed that night, Ro’s delicate arms draped lightly around Cal’s exposed waist, her shirt having rode up at some point within the night. Her skin still tingled, but Cal couldn’t help but marvel at the control Ro had on her ability. Even asleep, she was able to maintain a low level of energy. She could feel it in waves, swelling and rippling against her skin like the ebb and flow of a tide. Back and forth, but still balanced somehow. If anything, Cal found the sensation oddly soothing and found it difficult to shift away from the girl as she got up to tap the alarm. Ro groaned beside her, rubbing her eyes with a large yawn, her hair sticking up in a large blue tuft.
Cal snickered at the other, pushing her feet out of bed and stretching, shoulder popping lightly with the movement. Ro stuck her tongue out at the other, throwing the blankets off of her body and rushing off the tidy herself up in the bathroom. Cal couldn’t help but notice how remarkably similar her hair looked to cotton candy at that exact moment. It was oddly relaxing, something Cal wasn’t used to. Checking Ro’s phone, she frowned.
‘That certainly didn’t last long,’ she thought, noticing a text from her brother.
‘Headed to the mall. Gonna be the bomb. lol’ he’d typed, adding an emoji for a bit of flair at the end, though it was obvious he was trying to make light of the situation.
‘Be sa…’ Cal started the type, backpedalling and instead clicking the phone, her heart starting to pound as it rang. It’d taken her a moment to recall the threat from days before. She only hoped Charles was there to help mitigate and keep people safe.
“Hello?”
“Dez…” Cal breathed, surprisingly breathless in her haste. She hadn’t planned on what she was going to say.
“Callé…” Dez sighed, relief in his voice. Glancing up at the others on the bus, he turned his head to look out the window, leaning over for a big more privacy.
“Where are you?” he asked, a bit frantic.
“Downtown… I um…” she struggled.
“I’m with a friend… Sorry… for scaring you. I just needed some space,” she said, struggling to find the words she wanted to say. Dez nodded to himself, able to smile in that moment as he listened to his sister, thankful that she was alright. It took him a moment to realize she couldn’t see the motion. Speaking up again, he laughed.
“I’m… glad you’re okay…” he admitted.
“Roland and I spent all day looking for you and—“
“Dez… where are you?” she cut him off, his voice drowned out by the suspension of the bus as it stopped abruptly. Three stops to go before they reached the mall.
“I already told you,” he huffed, shifting in his seat awkwardly glancing back at the others and back at the window next to him.
“Please… be careful,” she struggled again.
“There’s no use coming home if you aren’t there…” she added forlornly.
“R-right,” he coughed, watching as the bus loomed ever closer to their destination, his stomach giving an uncomfortable squeeze.
“How long?”
“Until…?” he asked, frowning.
“How long until the party?” she asked in a hushed tone, “I heard it is going to be the bomb,” she added, emphasizing the final word.
Dez nodded in understanding at this.
“Not… sure” he stated glumly, checking his phone for the time only to give a defeated sigh when it wouldn’t stop shaking in his hand.
“Where will you be?” she asked, moving faster now, bot bothering to look at her reflection as she passed a mirror and threw on her pants from the day before. Ro had allowed her to wash her clothes there, so they were still nice and crisp.
“What? No. Stay there!” he said, panic rising in his chest again. It was bad enough they were going, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to focus with Cal there.
“Fuck no. I’m not letting you do this on your own,” she hissed, holding the phone between her ear and shoulder as she shoved an arm through her jacket.
“Ro!” She called. “I need a ride to the mall!”
“Ah… right now?” she whined.
‘I can’t have you getting into trouble just yet…’ she thought, popping her head out of the bathroom long enough to give Cal a tired look, hair still a mess.
‘I told Ven I’d keep an eye on you~’ she thought to herself, staring hard at the girl for a long moment.
“Sorry… it’s kind of urgent. Dez is… going to explode if I don’t meet up with him today,” she said. Ro grumbled to herself, turning on the shower and shutting the door.
“Subtle,” he said on the other line, leaning his head back in the seat as he listened to his sister talk to whoever her new ‘friend’ was, eyes closing for a moment as he resisted the urge to hang up on her.
“Seriously, Dez, where should I—“
The bus came to a shaking halt, and Dez stood up abruptly, grabbing for the bag as everyone began to shuffle for the exit.
“Food court, be late, he said, hurriedly. “Gotta go…. love you,” he said, hanging up the phone.
“Love you t—“ but the phone cut Cal off. She set it aside, sighing as she continued to gather her things. it didn’t take long, but unfortunately for her, Ro’s shower did, delaying by 20 minutes, and then an additional 20 because she needed coffee before her day began. Cal struggled not to reveal her urgency.
“Rooooooo~” She whined, handing her girl her phone back, shoving her towards the door.
“Cool your jets… seriously… what’re you in such a rush for all of a sudden?”
“He just sounded really upset, and—“
“So? That didn’t matter yesterday, so why would—?”
“I’m just worried, okay… I don’t think he’s been taking care of himself while I’ve been gone…” she said, shutting the door behind them.
Ro gave the girl another tired once over, shaking her head and shrugging, defeated.
“Like you can talk,” she said, sighing to herself.
“I need to stop by the bank first,” she added.
Cal tense, struggling not to lose her patience on the girl on that exact moment.
“Then the mall?” she asked, trying her best not the let the edge in her voice show.
“Then the mall,” Ro agreed, giving the girl a bright smile as she buckled her seat belt. ‘Can’t have you interrupting the plan prematurely, can we~’ she hummed to herself as she started the car.
 
Ivy tensed up the moment she saw Dez receive a call, guessing just who it could be and turning a worried look towards Roland. He seemed to be barely present as he blankly stared out the window of the bus. She had taken a seat beside Ven and Roland had done his best to sit by himself. She wasn't sure if it was a good thing he wasn't aware of the phone conversation or a bad thing because it showed just how little sleep he had gotten the last few days.

Roland looked tired, Ivy noted as the bus continued to make its stops. She had only ever seen him look this knackered once before and it was the night he had shown up at the house. Charles had lead a slightly younger then Roland through the front door and Ivy had hid so she could watch. The young man had been thin, too thin, and it was clear from the bruises on his lanky frame that where ever Charles had found him was not a good place. But the bags under his eyes and the way he seemed barely able to stand, she had known that feeling before. Being so scared of what might find you while you were asleep that you never risked it. Maybe a few minutes with your eyes closed, but never anything more.

Ivy came back to the present as the bus finally stopped at the mall and Roland stood up to get off. She followed him, shooting a worried glance towards Dez, and they all entered the mall.

~X~

"So...Where is this bomb going to be?" Ven asked as they stood awkwardly around the entrance to the mall. Roland was barely paying attention and had a death grip on his cell phone, as if he thought any moment he might receive a phone call. It made Ven feel a little bad to know that Cal was with Ro at the moment, and that she was probably doing everything she could to keep the girl distracted. He had gotten one text informing him that Ro might join in on the mission today, but he wasn't holding his breath.

"We're not sure." Ivy said, her fingers drumming against her waist as she looked around, but it was clear she wasn't really registering anything going on around them. "I've been studying the maps of the mall, trying to decide what location might do the most damage." She paused and looked to Ven, surprising him a bit with the suddenness of it. "You pointed out that the basement might be a good place. If the explosions were big enough it could take the whole thing down."

"Or the roof." Ven said and it seemed that Roland was finally tuning into the conversation. "We could split up? Dez and Roland take the roof while you and I go to the basement?" His hands were shaking slightly as the small pieces began to fall into place. Was this all really working out? He had only decided just this morning on how he wanted to save her. The plans were to not go out of his way to get the Acers killed, but if it happened then it happened. But for Ivy, he had decided maybe he could convince her to join their side. He could see it, the hatred she held for the ordinary people. The people who had used and abused them for so long. "That way if anything goes down we have an escape person in each group."

Ivy nodded, looking a little more relieved. "Right. Dez could attempt to portal out and you could just phase us." They had tried using his phasing abilities on her the other night so she knew it would work out alright. "Dez...Just try your best, if you do need to portal out, okay?" Ven stepped forward and grabbed Ivy's hand as she opened her mouth to say something again.

"We should hurry. We don't know when this bomb will go off." Ven said and he barely registered the way Roland was watching them, already tugging Ivy away.

"Wait." Roland said, but as he moved to grab Ven the boy and Ivy disappeared. "Fuck!" He whirled around on Dez. "We're idiots. I can't believe I didn't notice it until now." He was talking quickly, clearly feeling nervous about something. The most alarming thing was that it was obvious to anyone looking at him that for the moment Roland was worried. "None of the maps showed a basement, Dez." He pulled around his backpack and began walking into the middle of the shopping center, just below the big glass ceiling. "Roof, roof..." Roland didn't care if Dez was following him or not as he stared up at the glass and then froze.

It wasn't obvious, since the mall was chalk full of electrical lights, but the sun light that normally pooled down from the glass ceiling was blocked out. If anyone had ever bothered to look up from their cell phones or their damn window shopping they might have saw the bulkiness on top of the glass. Might have seen how little black cables seemed to peel away from the dark mass and go out well beyond the glass part. "Little fucker wasn't lying." He hissed through his teeth and quickly dialed Ivy's cell phone number. She didn't pick up, but he did notice a handful of light, tiny looking from this distance, turn on in the dark mass.

If there was a basement, one that wasn't in any of the plans or maps they had looked at, then it would be a safe location. Unless Ven had just taken Ivy out of the building entirely. "Dez," Roland was already beginning to storm off in one direction. "You need to start evacuating people. Get them out of this mall. Or tell a security guard or something, then go find Ivy." He wasn't sure how Dez's portal ability worked, but he wondered if he could go somewhere he'd never seen before. "Ven's been playing us. I'm sure of it." Roland was running now, shouting behind at Dez as he headed for the stairs. "Ivy..." He didn't finish his thought out loud as he disappeared. Ivy might just be playing them too, he thought.

~X~

"Geez." Ivy shivered a bit after the long drop through the mall floor. Her hand fell out of Ven's as she looked around the part of the basement they were in. "Come on. We should look around quickly. There were no maps of the basement, but it's probably huge." It had to be to cover all of the mall.

Ivy began running forward, only noticing machinery and pipes, before she turned around to check on Ven. He hadn't moved from his original spot and looked a little concerned. "Ven, we need to hurry. Go that way and check things out. We can meet back in the middle, okay?" She took a few steps back, noticed he still wasn't moving, and gave an impatient sigh. Quickly she moved back over to him and put her hands on his shoulders. "Ven, are you scared?"

"A little." Ven said and he tried to stop his hands from their violent shaking. What if she said no?, he wondered as he forced himself to look at her. "Ivy...I need to tell you something."

"Can it wait?" She asked, dropping her hands and feeling a subsequent drop in her stomach. Something bad was about to happen, and she knew it was more than just a bomb. "We're kinda trying to save a bunch of lives right now."

"Human lives." Ven said and Ivy swallowed. "A hundred of them isn't worth one of us. You know that." When she didn't say anything he took a step forward and took hold of her hands, they were oddly warm to the touch. "Ivy, I'm your secret admirer." His eyes scanned her face, but she seemed to have put a perfect mask on. "I'm the one who's going to blow this place up." He dropped one hand and dug around his pocket, pulling out a little controller with a few buttons on it. Ivy had to bite back a laugh, finding it all so...comic. Ven pressed his slender thumb down on one of the buttons, but she didn't really notice anything happen.

There were no explosion sounds so she could only assume everything was still fine. "Why...leave the message? Why not just blow this place up rather than risk it being saved?"

"I can't tell you that, yet, but if you come back with me-" Ven stopped at Ivy's frown. "Please, Ivy, I know you feel the same way. I know you hate these people."

Ivy couldn't deny that. She did hate the non-Acers for their mistreatment, but she also didn't want to kill anyone. Ven could tell from the purse of her lips what she was thinking and he sighed, dropping her hand. "Then at least stay here. The bomb is on the roof," Ivy knew Roland wouldn't be able to turn that bomb off. He hadn't bothered to watch the stupid bomb defusal videos with them. And Dez, her heart sunk a bit, maybe he would at least get himself out of the blast radius but she had no hopes that he could get both of them to safety. And the people up above, her eyes shoot heavenward for a moment, all that glass and depending on the placement.

"It'll go down like a house of cards." Ven answered her thoughts for her. "But this basement is oddly fortified. All this concrete just encasing it." Why hadn't they had any floor plans mentioning the basement? How had she not noticed how weird it was for Ven's arrival so close to the threat. A secret admirer, and he had even been that at the mall when they first met. The mall...he had just been waiting for them. Her eyes found his again and finally her mask broke as she frowned. The first meeting, staying with them just to mention the damn bomb's location, and now this? "Come with me or stay here, but I won't let you join everyone up stairs."

"Ven," Ivy sighed again and looked around. She wouldn't even know where to begin to find the exit. From just what she could see this clearly spanned the entirety of the mall. And all those pipes and bulky machines, just made it a maze. "You don't want to kill these people."

"I think I do." He chuckled a bit, tilting his head. They locked eyes and he flinched, wondering if she still found his gaze unnerving.

"No..." Her hand reached out and took hold of his, but it felt different. "I realize I barely know you, but..." We have a connection, she wanted to say but he understood it anyway. Was it the story between them? The shared pain of having their bodies taken from them? Ivy had never felt this close to anyone, even Dez, and her hand held his a little tighter for it. "You're a good person."
 
Dez cursed as the entire group disappeared. Roland by far had left him the most unnerved, anxiety building within his chest, but he knew what to do. Digging into his pocket for one of the maps of the building, he rounded a corner and found what he was looking for— a red lever shielded by glass. Puling it, a loud alarm suddenly blared. People stopped to look up, unsure how to respond to it at first. Dez growled to himself, sucking in a deep breath before releasing a loud scream and pointing towards the exit.
“FIRE! THERE’S A FIRE!!” he shouted. That got their attention and people began hastily shuffling for exits. Turning to go find Roland again, Dez was met by the officer from the day previous, an annoyed look on his face as he crossed his arms.
“and where is this fire?”
Dez felt his jaw go slack for a moment as he struggled to find the words he was looking for. He didn’t have time for this, directing the officer’s attention to the ceiling where the bombs loomed, he watched as the man’s eyes went wide like saucers.
“I lied before, but I was told they’d be set off early if the police were involved,” he said, voice low.
The officer had turned several shades redder, his anger now bubbling, but Dez put up a hand to interrupt whatever he was about to say.
“No time. Get people out of here. A friend went ahead to try and buy us some time and I need to find him before it goes. Get. People. Out.”
The man still looked thoroughly irritated, but started shuffling people out at a quicker rate, only looking over his shoulder once to see Dez’s portal closing behind him.
“Roland!” he called, once he’d made it to the roof, trying his best to stick to the plan. He was still tempted to look for Ivy, but he didn’t know the way to the basement nor could he produce a portal to anywhere he hadn’t at least seen before. The roof, he’d seen on a few occasions, though more so to test his abilities with a bit more privacy, in the past.

~x~

Cal jumped out of the car as Ro stopped by the mall, pausing to look at the commotion.
“I don’t think this looks very— hey! Cal, wait!” but it was too late. Cal was already running to enter the building, fending off a sea of civilians that were rushing to exits. ‘Dammit… too early…’ the girl thought, irritably, looking for a parking place where she could wait for the girl and watch the chaos unfold from a safe distance.
Cal pushed forward, struggling to maintain skin coverage so people didn’t get trampled in a daze from her touch. Looking around frantically, she jumped when someone grabbed her shoulder. A police officer gave her a leery once over and then tried to direct her towards the door, but she persisted, twisting away from him and further into the mall.
“DEZ! ROLAND!! IVY!!” she screamed at the top of her lungs, but to no avail. Looking around, frantically, the best she could think was to help direct people out of the building until she found the others, but it wasn’t going to be easy. Running as far back as she could, she opened any exits that were still closed and started shoving people out of them, removing her gloves and thinking ‘LEAVE!’ with all of her might. All of them ran in response, nearly trampling other people in the process, but she only touched a few, hoping she hadn’t caused too much trouble. Getting people out was the primary concern.