Paths (TWD) [IC]

[ch0sen1]

((Please refer to OOC and signup for plot/character info))

~~~~THE NEAR FUTURE~~~~
Unbelievable chaos ensues around all of New York City. Vast cries fill the urban air with fury and rage. The clatters of noises and the still of death intudes the airways. Blood, limbs, and organs litter the Big Apple with an unprecedented tone of morbid death. Swarms upon swarms of people rush in a multitude of directions, as the blending of the abundance of wails meets the panic on the worn and tattered faces of every individual that exists in this dark fray. This unexpecting nightmare to behold upon the world. Some people in the masses run with full force, screaming for help, or loved ones....just to see the light of day one more minute past the next being beside them....some limp with a cold stare of different eyes. I shatter the fourth wall for a minute, #KS leads the way as the reveal is in question: One question mark, two marks, three marks, four. Their shrieks and voices pale and faded from the brink of this chatoic calamity. They reach out towards the others, longing for something. Distant explosions, shattering glass, gunfire, and yells invade all around New York City for an endless amount of distance and time. The sky is a pale but azure blue, welcoming the soon to be dark sky into this abysmal notion of a life changing event. Bodies fall from the sky from vast altitudes, as splatters of red and the snapping of bones impact with the concrete, mangled and ripped anatomies flooding the streets as if they were raindrops. In the vastness of this terrifying reality lies a girl in the midst of it all. Not moving, unbudged. With a dirty face of will and drive, her eyes lock on to something in the masses of the crowd. She remains there staring, zoned out to the horror around her, all for this one, discrete object. That girl looking into the masses....
.....it's me.

????: "Faith!!! What are you doing!? MOVE!!! FAITH!!!" *raises rifle*

-------------------------------------------------------SIX HOURS EARLIER------------------------------------------------------


A loud alarm breaches into my eardrums. The sunlight beams through the curtain and right into my closed eyes as I squint to the intense illumination before me. I open my eyes and turn over to my iPhone to see that it's 12:02 PM. Crap. I'm late for the photo shoot, and I'm supposed to go see my mom at the hospital sometime today also so now my plans are getting bunched up. I didn't even want to check my messages. Marcucio was going to have a fit....and Kanine was probably wondering what I was up to. I didn't sleep until 3:30 last night, up watching movies and Skyping Kanine. But oh well, this was the first time I was EVER late for anything besides class. Freshman year was a breeze I made the Dean's List and I actually got a role for a short film. But I want the big screen, the big time....and Track & Field wasn't bad either we ...well I made it to nationals. I loved sports, but if I had to choose between that and acting/modeling....well....wait why am I rambling I'm late!!!

I jump up and head to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face. I look at myself in the mirror with that same, ambitious look. I began humming as I started to notice my Roommie Scarlet wasn't here. She ran track with me, and it's a Saturday in the start of the summer....where would she go without me? I wipe my face off and head back into the room and I start to throw on my NYU track team outfit and I grab my purse. I was already late for my ESPN cover photo so I'd make up my bed and such later. I grab my wallet, keys, and student ID and head out, locking the door with my phone in hand. Walking to the elevator in my dorm, I check all my text messages:

Texts
From: 646-493-4322 - 'Hey this is Marcucio with ESPN, we're expecting you soon?' - 12:01PM

From: Kanine - 'Babe! wyd...?' - 11:14AM

From: Scar - 'Decided to let you sleep, going to get my car boo' - 10:45AM

From: Ben - 'Hey, wanna get breakfast?' - 10:22AM

I reply Marcucio and rush to press the elevator button:[BCOLOR=#00ff00] 'Yes I'm so sorry I got caught up I'll be there in literally about 3 minutes'[/BCOLOR]

Just woke up and already this was shaping up to be another long, busy day in the life of Faith Rucker....​

 

[BitterSting]

I sat down with another cup of coffee at the long metal table and waited for the sound of the timer to go off. It was all I could do not to count the seconds down until when I could take some of the fluids out of the petri dish and peer into the lens of the microscope. If I did start counting down, at this point, I'd have to start at 1,320 as I still had 22 minutes left. I looked over at the three controls sitting on the counter and gave another silent prayer that this time the temperature had remained constant and I would see some sort of pathogen reproduction.

I was sure Dr. Rucker would be by at some point today, hopefully she wouldn't point out the lack of any sort of life I had outside this lab again. I knew it was true and maybe when I saw some positive movement on this experiment I would attempt to change that. Oh, who was I kidding? If I hadn't done so much research on viruses spread by cat feces, I'd probably become a cat lady myself! I looked over at the timer…20 minutes left. "Come on!" I whined, I just wanted to get this moving.

Looking up from my cup of coffee, I took in the new lab I had moved to. I missed my place in Virginia and the little bit of family I had, but this lab was amazing! It was completely worth leaving those things behind, I can always visit after all. I should have already gone back home and visited, but I'd been so busy with all the new work and really wanting to impress my boss. There were so few of us women in research and I was proud to be counted among women like Dr. Rucker.
I looked back over at the clock…fifteen minutes. Darn, I really thought my reflections on my life would warrant more than five minutes!

 

[Mr.Scales ⚖]

-4 days before the virus-

-Darren gets out of the fire truck and walks to his good friend Randy-

"damn man,we did good today" Darren says to the fellow fire man

"an you saved that little girl in the apartment,your a hero man"

"i just did what i had to do,i'm going home see ya man" he walks out and walks to his car, and drives to his home

he drives in his garage and locks the car as he gets out,he opens the door and walks in.

"Daddy!" a little girl runs to Darren and he picks her up

"hey honey" he kisses her head and puts her down,his son runs in the room and hugs him

"Hey dad i wrote a report of a hero,and i chose you,and i got an A!"

"really,why don't you go get for me" A.J runs to his room to get the report as Darren walks in the kitchen and walks to his wife that his washing dishes

"Hey beautiful" he stands behind her with his arms around her waist "how was your day" she turns around facing him

"spent everyday thinking about you" he gets closer to her "oh were you" she smiles and they both kiss

"Ew,that's disgusting" his son walks in the kitchen and see's them kiss "psst,i think your mom has cuties" the mother raises her eybrow "dad i know cutties are fake" he crosses his arms


"well i got to go to my book talk,love ya honey" she leaves the house and walks across the street


-12 hours later-


an alarm goes off as Darren sits up,he kisses his wife's head that lays beside him and gets his overalls on,he then gets dressed and walks out the door and drives to work

 

[Blood Lightning]

Its been almost nine years since my little sister died in a horrid accident and even less time has passed since I have left the Marines. After I left the Marines. I decided to open up a Firearms Safety Class and teach people how to use firearms properly. I've been teaching kids how to use them too. Lately, all I can think about is my little sister. I still can't believe she's dead and I haven't accepted that she's gone yet. To tell the truth, I have been through a lot too when I was in the Military. During a Mission in Afghanistan, half my squad got killed in an Ambush and after that, three more were killed in a Suicide Bombing Attack. Aside from three other people, I'm the only one left alive from my squad. Survivor's guilt seems to have something for me. My Sister was hit by a car...I lose ten of my teammates in Afghanistan, the life of a Soldier isn't easy. I left around the time I was twenty-four. I know, for someone so young, I have seen more then my fair share of death. Even had a brush with it. But today was just another day for me. Just like any other for the past three years. For most of the day, I teach people how to use Firearms. But after that incident in Arizona, I stopped teaching kids how to use fully automatic weapons. I mean, I don't mind the usual Handguns, Shotguns or Rifles, but Automatic Weapons are out of the equation. Today, I'm teaching a Handgun Safety Course. I have a lot of students, old and young, most people were around my age.

Its pretty fun teaching, especially with kids. But sometimes its tough telling them that guns aren't toys.

My Clothing:


Gear:


Weapon:

 

[Aravhorn]

Saturday, 8:00 am, Day 0 since the "Outbreak"

Suddenly, the digital clock goes off, waking Wilson up from his sleep. He stretched his hand to turn off the alarm before yawning and moving to a sitting position. He glanced over to his left, and saw Jane sleeping, completely unaffected by the alarm. He smiled and kissed her cheek, before whispering to her ear: "Wake up, honey. It's 8 a.m. now.". After saying that, his wife started to stretch his arms, trying to take off the morning tiredness from her, and then slowly standing up from her resting place. "What day is it, dear?" she asked before yawning and covering his mouth with his hand.

"Saturday, and we have the next whole week for ourselves!" he replied with the same tired voice as her wife and stood up from the bed too.

"Well, that's great! I was already getting sick of working over that "pedophile maniac" case."

"And how is it going, by the way?" he asked while he was getting dressed with his casual outdoors clothing.

"Not too good for the suspect, that's for sure. The court is considering to charge him with 30 years of imprisonment, plus a 15 year long term of police control after he gets out from his cell. Hmph, if I were at charge, I would leave that psycho rotting at his cell for what he has done. Raping and murdering 7 innocent kids in the woods, what kind of monster would do that?" she said in a slightly angrered voice.

"I don't know, hon, but let's leave that topic for later. I don't think that is a good idea for any of us to start the day with bad thoughts." he said when he has finished putting on his jacket and moving aside the courtains, filling the room with a bright, white light.

"I guess you are right, love. Okay, I'm going to prepare the breakfast while you go and wake up Liz." Jane said before heading to the kitchen, also dresssed with outdoors clothing, since they both were going to drive Lisa to museum.

"Roger that." Wilson said, smiling, and then he went to her daughter's room. When he was at the entrance, he slowly opened the door to the room and approached the bed. Then, he started to wake up Liz. "Wake up, sweetheart, we are going to the museum today, remember?" he said quietly.

When the little girl woke up, both of them headed to the living room, where Jane was already placing the cups and dishes on the synthetic-wooden table, along which was aligned a set of genuine wooden chairs with a soft seat.

"Oh, just look who's awake!" she said happily upon seeing her daughter. "Good morning, my little biscuit! Here is your breakfast." she gently pointed with her hand at one of the bowls, which was filled wth cereals and milk.



Saturday, 8:25 am, After the breakfast (Meal: Black coffee and some homemade muffins).

Wilson helped Jane to bring the dishes from the breakfast earlier to the dishwashing machine. When everything was done and after double-checking that they didn't forget anything important, the family left their apartment (locking the door, of course) and headed down the elevator to the garage. There, they approached the dark-blue Citroen and got inside, with Wilson at the controls. After checking that the mirror was at the right position and lighting up the engine, he said:

"Well, everyone's ready? Then let's go!" and drove the car out of the garage and towards the museum, which was a couple of minutes away.

 

[Mr.Scales ⚖]

-3 days before the outbreak-

-Darren drives in the parking lot of the N.Y.F.D,he gets out and walks inside,Randy approaches him-

"There's a fire at 7457 Tecumseh"

"alright let's go" Darren follows Randy to the fire trucks,as Darren holds on to the back of the truck and Randy gets in the passenger,three other men get in the truck,one goes in the drivers seat (Dave) one holds on the bar next to Darren (Richard) and the last one goes at the water cannon (Roy) they turn the sirens on and they start driving to the location





Dave,Richard,Darren,and Randy all go out except for Roy hosing down the building,Richard and Dave takes out the hoses and start hosing it down,Darren hears yelling and groaning from the building,

"there's some one in there i need to get them"he points to the building yelling to Randy,"i'll come with you" they run inside and put their arm around their mouth and nose and start's walking through the building,Randy keeps walking and see's a little girl crouched in a ball "hello little lady,i came to help,come here" the girl starts crying

"My mommy" the girl yells to him "My friend is going to get her,grab onto me"she stands up and grabs Randy's hand,he then picks her up and covers her head,he then runs out of the building,two medics grab the girl and bring her in the ambulance "Wheres Darren?" he asks Dave "He's not out yet" Dave says


Darren starts looking around the living room,he hears groaning coming from above him and walks to the stairs.he coughs as he puts his arm over his arm,he eventually make's it up the stairs to the master bedroom,he looks around the room "Hello,is someone there?" then the groaning starts again as it comes from the bathroom,acroos the room


A women comes out of the bath room,her eyes yellow and pale skin,brown hair and skinny,there's scares and burns on her arms and legs,she's Caucasian,she starts limping to him "Miss,are you okay?" he looked terrified,as the women came closer,"Are you okay?" the women eventually gets to him and grabs him and falls to the ground,she's on top of him as he tries to push her away,she tries to bite his neck as he pushes her out and runs to the fire escape and runs down


He runs down the stairs and finally reaches the street as he falls to his hands and knees and his head on the road,Dave grabs a towel and puts it around him as he grabs his arm and brings him to the ambulance,the building gets even more flammable and blows apart of the building up as the others run away,Darren sits their looking at the burning building

 

[Exiled Dragon]

Frankie stood at the end of the roof feeling the New York breeze billow past him, trying to set him off balance. He hadn't been in New York long but he enjoyed the heights and sights that it had to offer. He felt his hair being pushed back as the wind picked up. He knew his balance was impeccable and wouldn't fall to something so trivial.

He felt his phone vibrate in his front jean pocket. He already knew what it was about, but he pulled it out anyway to check. He saw on the small screen a message that he had job for a drop off. He chuckled as he thought about dropping off himself. He turned to and dropped into a cat hang on the ledge, then let go to the last foot before the fire escape. He raced down to flights of metallic stairs.

After running through the city, Frankie reached the offices of some swanky law firm. They handed him a set of documents that needed to be served within the hour. He just nodded and had them sign his slip. Without so much a word, he raced out the door into the busy New York street. Sure, the bike messengers were faster but he was charged less and he had more fun running through the shortcuts that bikes wouldn't dare. He hollered in the air to no one, just to enjoy the thrill of running through construction yards and crosswalks until he made his delivery.

 

[Blood Lightning]

It started like a normal day, just like any other. I took a quick shower and grabbed a quick cup of coffee before saying goodbye to my loving parents. I got into my car, sat down, turned on my music and entered my usual daydreamer-driving state. As I finally got to my Firearms Safety Class, I got into the Classroom to see all my students, eager and ready to learn. I smiled and got started.

I had many students, young and old. I enjoyed teaching them how to use firearms, especially when it was the youth just wanted to go hunting with their families. Many of them liked seeing my customized Handgun, which I've had for the past four years. Because of its look, people just call it the 'Samurai Edge'. As always, I always showed up to class in full combat gear. After all, I am a former Soldier. After a few more minutes, I then got to teaching.

 

[BitterSting]

The timer went off and I jumped up to start the test. I saw a flurry of activity rush past the windows that looked out into the hallway of the hospital. It was getting busy already, not uncommon, but usually things picked up later in the day. I pulled the sample out and drew a bit into a dropper, placing a single drop onto a slide and then under the microscope. I watched anxiously as the virus had been introduced to the healthy cells. The cells had already begun to mutate with the infection and the cellular membrane had begun to decay. Finally, the temperature was perfect and I had an outbreak. Well... an outbreak in my own little petri dish.

"An actual smile? Of course it happens in the lab." A female voice spoke from behind me. I turned and saw Dr. Rucker looking at me with a knowing smile.
"According to you, I am always in the lab, where else would it happen?" I asked, widening my smile a touch, "I finally got the infection to take root in the cell samples."
"How many controls did you burn through?" Dr. Rucker asked, I knew she wasn't being harsh, but the tone felt that way. I had only worked with her a short while, and I admired her quite a bit. It was not common to work with many women in this field, so to get that experience with someone as talented as her was a great opportunity. It was the reason I moved to NY really.
"They are all documented over there. " I pointed to the list on the wall by the freezer where the controls were kept.
"Not bad, Ayla. You were right on target with your temperature ideas. Good work. If you're free later, my daughter is stopping by...we could all go grab a bite if you would actually like to get out of the lab for a few." Dr. Rucker offered, as she had many times. I knew what she thought, she wasn't the first employer of mine that didn't get why I stayed in the lab so much. At this point, I knew I should give in.
"Sounds perfect. Thanks."

 

[Aravhorn]

Saturday, 8:51 am, The family has reached the museum.

Saturday, 9:00 am, The family has bought the tickets and entered the museum.

Saturday, 11:14 am, The visit to the museum was uneventful, so the family drove back home when it was finished.

Wilson drove his car through the busy streets of New York towards his apartment with his family. He noticed that the mirror was placed a bit to the left, so he quickly put it in the right position while driving.

"Well, so what do you think about the tour?" he asked to his wife and daughter. "Personally, I liked it, especially the Cheerokee culture. It's amazing how respectful they were towards their dead relatives."

"It was so cool!" said Lisa with her excited high pitched voice; she was the one that asked to go to the museum in the first place. Unlike most of the kids of her age, she was amazingly smart and curious, to the point of being able to program things on the computer (Wilson taught her that when she was around 5, along other things. If you think that he is a really weird dad, you are not the only one that thinks that way) and speak a bit of spanish (thanks to her moher). But everything comes with a price, though: she is not very well accepted by the fellow children from her class, because they think she is "weird", so she spends most of her time alone or with her only friend Lilly (who was the only one that didn't care about Lisa's "weirdness"). Also, she wasn't a really brave kid, either. "I've never thought that the Civil War had so many strange stuff happening in it, like a family that was present at every single important battle without even asking for it, or Abe Linkoln taking cow prisoners!"

Jane smiled at her daughter's comment and said: "Well, we're glad you've liked it! Is there any other place you want to visit later?"

"Of course! I've always wanted to go the Yellowstone Park, or the Colorado Canyon, or Mount Rushhmore, or..."

"Okay, okay, little explorer!" Wilson said while chuckling a bit. "Me and mom will see what we can do."

He made a turn at the next crossroads and turned on the radio, and a random pop music started playing in the car.


Saturday, 12:04, The family has finally arrived to their apartments and parked their car in the garage. At the entrance to the elevator.

Wilson pressed the button to call the elevator and took a small step back, waiting for it to arrive.
Suddenly, he has heard a phone ringing, which Jane quickly held in her hands and replied to it.

"Yes?" She said politely. "*Some inaudible voices coming from the phone* Oh, mister Henderson, how can I help you? *Inaudible voices, seemingly alarmed* But sir, today is my- *Even more inaudible voices*. Yes sir, I will be there as soon as I can. " Then Jane turned of the phone and sighed in disappointment. "I'm sorry, Will, but I need to go to the court right now. Some crucial evidence has been found pointing out the suspect's inocence and the boss wants me to take a look at it. "

The elevator has arrived, and everyone entered inside it.

"Wait, wasn't it your free day today?" Will asked, a bit upset that Jane had to leave right now.

"Yes, I know that too, but apparently it's very important and my assistance is necessary." When the elevator has reached the 13th floor, it has opened its doors. "Damn, and I was already hoping to relax after this trip to the museum."

Will didn't say anything; now that was unexpected! But if she had to go, so be it, since he can't do anything without getting her fired from her job. He walked down the passageways until he stood in front of his apartment's door and opened it.

"Come back home soon, mom, okay?" Liz said while getting inside the flat with her parents.

"I'll try, sweetheart." Then Jane headed to the bedroom to change her clothes.

Saturday, 12:12, Jane left the flat, Lisa is in her room, drawing, and Will is seating on a couch in front of the TV.

Just to kill off some time, Will turned on the TV and slowly switched channels, looking for something interesting to watch.

*click*

(News cast. A woman is seen talking.)
"A never-before seen bacteria has been found in the blood of 99% of the world's populat-"

*click*

(Some sitcom show. A geeky guy is talking to a man lazily lying on the couch)
"How would you know that someone's actually a zombie and that you are not just seeing things during the outbre-"

*click*

(A survivalism show. A poorly dressed man is walking through some dense foliage)
"Sh*bleep*, I'm so hungry that I could eat a hor-"

*click*

Will stopped swapping channels and watched a rather interesting travel documentary about Italy.


ATACHMENTS:

Wilson's apartment building's entrance:

The 13th floor apartment:

 

[Daniel Griffin]

8:00: the alarm clock went off with the same old annoying music that normally disrupted Daniel's peaceful slumber on a week day. But, this wasn't even a day during the week. His body still showed its fatigue with every aching limb. Yesterday was a tough and agonizing day in his existence. Miranda at the law firm jumped down his throat for the Murray case, Annabelle was upset with him for forgetting their anniversary again, and he pulled some muscle in his arm while lifting weights. He didn't want to get up. Hell, he didn't want to move. Honestly, he wouldn't have if that damn alarm hadn't been going off for almost 5 minutes now.

His eyes were open, however, they were close to being squinted shut due to the sunlight peeking through the velvet curtains on the wall. The noise was getting on his nerves now; he slowly and hesitantly reached across his body and hit the off button on the clock. Sweet silence. He groaned as he dragged himself out of bed to a sitting position on the edge. It was idiotic that he had to work on a Saturday and it was the same damn room as always. This wasn't the life he thought it would be.

He wanted excitement and he wanted it as soon as possible. But, it wasn't going to happen. His sights turned to the top drawer on his nightstand. After opening it, he picked up a solitary photo depicting him and another female child. He was roughly 8 at the time. His eyes began to water at the memories of her that flooded in. Sniffles soon followed, as did the need to wipe his face off. He cleared his throat, returned the picture to its previous placement, and closed the drawer.

He briefly wondered where his girlfriend Annabelle was this early. She wasn't in bed next to him when he woke. She usually didn't go out this early, maybe she just wanted to get away from him for the day. It would be understandable because of what happened last night. The clock showed 8:05.

"Damn," he muttered to himself. "I'm gonna be late." Finally, he yanked himself out of bed and up to his wardrobe. He opened it and picked out the same black suit with white undershirt and black tie as always.

It was almost like a uniform to him at this point in his career because he always dawned the same apparel. But, he didn't want to get dressed without taking a shower first. He hurried to the bathroom, took his shower, got dressed, brushed his teeth, washed his face, and even sprayed to spritzes of his new Cologne Sexy City Smart on his lapel. He was ready for the day. He gave a quick smile to himself in the mirror before walking downstairs, getting into his car, and driving the half hour it took to reach the firm.

Traffic was always a bitch during the mornings. It wasn't all bad though. The backed up lanes that usually made him more late to his job gave him time to ponder his existence and even the responsibilities he had during that day. Eventually, traffic pushed on and he reached the firm at about 9:16. He walked in, spotted Miranda and knew it was going to be a very long day, yet again.

 

[Breethang021]

Katarina woke startled in her sleep. Night terrors often troubled her, understanding Psychology she knew why. The past was troubled, so her present state of mind was troubled. She groaned as she glanced toward the window of her flat and realized that it was still dark outside. Oh, the street lights from the city spilled in, punishing her ill adjusted eyes, but the sun was not up. Her T.V. still blared at her from across the room where she had left it on. The Ring was playing.
Great, she thought to herself. Just what she needed to wake up to after having her own mind create paranoia enough.
Shuffling around her covers she found the remote and changed the channel to the CW. Americas Next Top Model was playing. The mindlessness of the show relaxed her as she watched Tyra Banks chastise a model for failing miserably. Katarina let the remote drop back to the abyss offered by her blankets and searched for her phone instead. Finding it she glanced at the screen and saw that it was only 3:22am.
Damn, I have to get up in less than two hours if I'm going to make it to class on time.
Sighing, she leaned back against her pillows, uncertain if she should attempt to drift back to sleep. Her nightmare this time would surely reappear if she did. Night after night she had the same nightmare, her boyfriend attacking her, chasing her, killing her. It didnt make sense that Richard would appear as her aggressor in her nightmares, he never did anything wrong to her besides suffer with addiction. Even then the worst of it was him calling her names when he was going through withdrawals. Hell, that was a year ago. From what little emotional damage that did, she should have been over it by now, a year later. Richard had been sober for a whole year, she kept having to remind herself that. No the nightmare was really about her mothers old boyfriend, an abusive, evil man that manipulated himself into their lives. It didn't help that her own mother had told her when she was six years old that he was a real monster, and not human. Her mother was dramatic to say the least.

5:00a.m.
The alarm went off on Katarina's phone, though she didnt need it. She was up. Wide awake and watching stupid episodes of ANTM. Her body ached from the lack of sleep, as she slid her legs over the side of the bed. Lack of sleep always put her in a bitter mood.
It didn't take long for her to get ready, a simple pair of jeans, a tank top, and some flats had her walking out the door. Simple was the way of models, don't hide your natural looks. The only thing that took her any amount of time in the morning was filling her cat Lily's bowl with food for the day.

5:58a.m.
Katarina reached the campus and rushed up the stairs. This was her favorite class, Psych 307, Abnormal Psychology. She loved learning about how weird people could get, she loved knowing why they got that way and how drugs affected the brain. This class covered almost everything, drugs, meditation, sex, addiction, personality disorders, you name it, it had it. By 6:00 am Katarina sat in her seat, eager to learn more.

 

[Mr.Scales ⚖]

You still have day 2 of the virus and it's populating China. Your character is rushing in school taking kids out, there should be day 1 only, no sign of an outbreak AT ALL.

i thought i deleted it?))

 

[ch0sen1]

"SHIT."

I rush down to the Coles Center where I'm sure Marcucio was waiting impatiently. I swing the doors open and I enter into the main court where the entire camera crew and ESPN staff are. What seemed like hours of being late, I was only about 7 minutes late. Whew.


Marcucio: "Ms. Rucker! How are you?"

Me: "Fine! SO sorry about the delay I had no idea it'd be this crazy getting down here, how was the trip?"

Marcucio: "Oh it was wonderful thank you! Ready to get started?"

Marcucio leads the way to the already set up photo op area with the all white background and various NYU athletic props: batons, the mascot, even cat paws. Really? I step into the are in front of the camera. This was kind of exciting, winning a national NCAA title in the 100,200, and long jump events. This was about to put NYU on the map! I smile into the camera in the various poses he has me to do, standing, kneeling, hands on hips, the cat paws....This was sort of exciting. I wish Scar was here with me, she could've at least woke me up before she left the room this morning! I also had to go see my mom at the hospital today, so that I can fill out that volunteer form to be an assistant. Mom and dad thought best I get some community service hours over the summer.

After the photo shoot, the camera staff then comes up to me as Marcucio grabs a notepad and pen as he begins the interview questions to ask me that will appear in the next issue of Sports Illustrated. I contain a smile as he begins the process, this was all so exciting, I wish mom and dad was off today. So they could be here and we all go out to eat or something. And Norty too, I missed that chump. Colorado was too far away, I mean the phone convos are nice, but Norty was like my twin brain. It was scary how we could read each others' minds. But I knew in due time we'd all be together again.

Interview Questions:
What drives you to reach your goals?
-Just my will and passion to get better and always strive to become a person that was better than she was 5 seconds ago. Everything is influence. My family, campus, life...everything plays a part in fueling me to not only progress for me, but for outside people/things as well.

Why NYU?
-Well, when I got news that they officially moved to Division I in athletics, and my mom worked in NYC and my dad at West Point, I was kind of like "Why not NYU?" The city of New York is beautiful, it's where people want to be. The energy, the zest, and the fact that I could bring something else to the table in an original way to further compliment that is just a privilege.

How did you feel when you broke the long jump and 200 NCAA records?
- I felt wonderful!!! Not on the aspect of like, I broke a record but more so because it was a real concrete proof that my hard work and everything that I'm doing is paying off on major levels.

How connected are you and your teammates?
-We're a family. Brothers and sisters in our own rights. Not even with just Track and Field but with ALL athletics. We're all pretty close knit. Texts to go out and eat together and have movie nights and such. We push each other because we all can relate to each other athletically while bonding and getting to know one another personally. It's a great experience.

How does the team and Coach McDonough influence you not only athletically, but personally?
-There's just that mutual respect there. From respect we just relate and bond with one another on a personal level also. They make sure I'm doing well in class and I do the same as well. It's a two way street all revolved around respect. They teach you even more respect, discipline, and now how to live your life and find that balance that makes you sustained as well as happy. Just like a loved one would.

How does being in a military family attribute to your discipline and athletic life?
-It factors in heavy. Being a military brat and the daughter of a virologist sort of gives me a look into both the brains and brawn sides of the world, and how I can take those and attribute them into my life and my own individuality and just make a difference the best way I can. I know how to respect, have manners, and the bounds of certain things and that means a lot more than people realize.

Where do you want to go in life?
-I just want to be happy in doing what I love. I have a passion for a few things, and in either one of them on any given day I would just be honored and humbled to do them without any hesitation. I want to go to the highest level of those passions and make a positive difference for anyone who may experience me, and vice-versa.

I noticed you're a performing arts major, and you're into acting and modeling, could you see yourself with a career in acting? Would you choose that over Track & Field?
-Definitely! I want to act, I love to act. But not just like those soap opera kinds of acting, I want to be in the middle of the action and the story. I want to do stunts, beat up bad guys haha...then if it calls for me to be in a horror movie or a 'chickflick' then I'd be more than happy to do that also! Um...would I choose it over Track & Field...I think if I could I'd have both, why not go big?

Finally, what do you want to leave on this world?
-I'd want to leave with people knowing that I made a big difference. Not that I was a NCAA champion or record breaker, not that I was a great actress or blah blah, I'd want them to know that I actually loved and touched lives. That I turned people away from negative things or saved people who'd I never even meet. A real, actual difference.

After the interview the camera crew took some pictures with Marcucio and I as I pulled out my phone and took a selfie with him also. I felt so special, like I was doing something in this world. I post the pic up on my Instagram to my 2,467 follwers with anticipation. I tagged in my Facebook and Twitter accounts also, so that it could leak out more through social media.

Marcucio: "Pleasure meeting someone like you, Faith. It makes me feel good to know people aren't about just fame."

Me: "You're welcome thank you for the experience!! [hugs Marcucio]"

Now that all this was over it was time to head back to the room and shower and actually put on some clothes so I could get this day started. Hospital, food, room, maybe go out tonight? This was going to be epic. I was feeling good from the interview, but now time to get back to reality....which was telling me to EAT. I leave Coles center to head back to Carlyle Dorms where I stayed.

 

[Mr.Scales ⚖]

-The same night-


After getting checked for burns and bruises, he is able to go home, He doesn't bother saying good night to Randy because he was ashamed of himself

-He gets in his can and puts the keys in the ignition and starts to drive-

*Turns on radio* "Local firefighter Darren Chaplin saves a little girl from a fire,if you ask me, hes a-" Darren turns the radio off

when he gets home, he gets out and locks his car,he then walks inside,sice it was almost 2 in the morning no one was awake

-he walked down to his basement and walks to a locked door- he looks around him then looks back an grabs a key and unlocks it

he then makes sure no one saw him and closes the door behind him, their is a saw table next to the door and a punching bag in the corner, their is also a cupboard,a lazy chair,and a table with a picture of his dad on it

He walks to the cupboard and takes out a bottle of whiskey and a glass, and sits at the table

he pores the drink and takes a sip,once he finishes the cup, he looks at the picture next to him "Don't look at me like that,your dead" he pushes the picture down, and walks to the punching bag,he begins punching it repeatedly, but then he misses the bag and punching the wall making a whole "Fuck" he puts his arm over his mouth

he then falls to his knees and starts crying, about 10 minutes later he stands up and looks at the mirror across from him "I'm not a hero" he walks out and locks the door behind him, he then walks upstairs to the living room and lays on the couch and falls asleep

 

[Mr.Scales ⚖]

2 days before the virus-
Darren starts waking up on the couch,he sits up and yawns,he looks at his hand,still bleeding from last night,he stands up and takes his phone out of his back pocket 10:35, thank god everyone was asleep, he walks up the stairs to the bath room,he starts looking for peroxide, he opens the mirrior and takes the bottle out,then finds the bandages in the cabinet over the toilet,he takes the peroxide bottle and grabs a towel and starts putting the liquid,but on accident the towel moves and most of the peroxide falls onto his hand "Fuck!" (excuse my french) he yells


the commotion wakes up his wife and she runs over to the bathroom,Darren sits on the cold floor holding his bleeding hand,Sharon runs over to him "My god what happened" she was shocked,she went to comfort him,"My God, your hand," he was grinding his teeth in pain "I-i need,help Sharon,i need help" he cried as she held Darren


-Couple hours later-

Darrin sat in a long chair,it was white, a bookshelf across from him,and a brown chair next to him on his left, He needed psychiatric treatment, He never broke down like that before, He felt worried about his wife and kids,
a man walks in the room holding a book and paper,he sat down on the chair next to him


"Hello Mr.Chaplin, My name is Dr.Knightly, Now whats been hurting you?" the man had a brown coat,brown pants, And glasses "Well,uh," He didn't want anyone knowing what happened in there, they would think he left a women in a burning building "Don't worry Mr.Chaplin, I won't tell nobody" the man go his pencil ready
"Well me and my crew of fire fighters got a call about the fire on Tecumseh, well me and my friend Randy went into the building because we heard screaming,well Randy got a little girl out,While i heard noises from upstairs, There was a women,She was sick or something, She fell on me, it look like she wanted to take a chunk off my neck,so i eventually got her off and ran to the window and ran out, How could i leave a human being in a fire, I'm a terrible person." after the man finished writing down, He looked at Darren and said "What your feeling is normal,
You feel regret, wishing you could of done something, But that's the thing of life, You cant keep thinking about the past, Just your future, teaching your son how to ride a bike, Your kids going to college, Live your life and Carry on"

A few hours later, after the session was done, He felt much better, He smiled as he walked to the car, Those words kept going through his mind, Now he gets it, To live life like there's no tomorrow (see what i did there) he got in his car and drove away

 

[BitterSting]

Dr. Rucker sat down beside me and pointed to the slide. I scooted over and she took a look. "The cell structure is decaying." She noticed and I nodded. "You were right, it kills it first. It's not typical, no...not at all." She said, looking into the microscope longer as if she waited to see something else.
Dr. Rucker leaned back in her chair and leveraged a look on Ayla that she had seen before. It was good, but it wasn't enough.
"When will you have stage two manifest?" She asked. It was common to expect results quickly, even though they both knew it would likely be days or weeks before it could happen.
"I have no accelerant for this, it's too new. I am hoping a week, maybe two?" Ayla said nervously. She knew the timeline was absolutely reasonable, but Dr. Rucker was always looking for better than average.

"Two?" she looked away from Ayla and across the room, "You know, you're a bright scientist, young...eager...but not aggressive enough. You were asked to come out here to work with me, right?" She asked her and then looked back at her.
"Yes. I jumped at the opportunity." Ayla honestly answered. It was one of the biggest moments of her life.
"I almost turned down the notion." Rucker said as she stood up. "I wasn't sure I wanted them to ask you." And then she started to the door of the lab. Ayla was completely unsure of what to say to that. She thought her coming here was as good for Dr. Rucker as it was for her. She was an expert in her field and beyond that, she had an understanding of the organic nature of all living things. It was a boon in the world of virology to have that understanding.
"Why?" Ayla's voice asked in a defeated tone.

"Because you should have asked me." She opened the door to walk out and paused. "My daughter will hopefully be here soon. Her aggressive nature has snagged her a cover shoot and record breaking titles at NYU. See you soon." and she walked out.
Ayla was completely in shock. She had no idea that Dr. Rucker had felt that way. Aggressiveness was not in her personality unless it had to do with experiments in the lab or the cells in a petri dish. "Damn." she said out loud and started immediately on creating the next phase of the virus. She was determined to show her boss how aggressive she could be.

 

[Breethang021]

8:00am

Katarina yawned sleepily, rising from her chair as the class came to a close. It was always fascinating learning about the abnormalities that people carry within them on a daily basis. People have higher functioning compared to the animals around them, but at the end of the day people are still just mammals. They have wants, fears, needs, and all sorts of emotions in between.

Walking past the teacher she smiled and left the class room quietly. She only had one more class for the day and this one wasn't nearly as exciting. A simple anatomy class. Simple was being sarcastic of course.

 

[Breethang021]

9:00pm

Katarina laid in bed with Richard, watching his favorite show, Supernatural. Richard could watch this show Season to Season, back to back and never tired of it. Katarina felt the show was lacking in acting skills but secretly enjoyed it at times. Sighing to herself, she strung her fingers through Richard's. He barely noticed, his full attention was on the show. After his recovery he often became like this, so engrossed in mindless media that he barely noticed the world around him. It seemed to be its own form of addiction, the media, like Richard couldn't function without something to obsess over. Sometimes she wished he would obsess more about her... although she knew that that desire was unhealthy in its own. It sometimes simply felt like he just didn't like her enough, he was too busy with the gym, work and his television shows. At the end of the day, however, Richard was always the one who texted her good morning and goodnight, he was always the one that held her when she suffered from problems in life, he was always there for her when it mattered.
Thoughts of their relationship continued to bombard her mind as they stared at the TV together. Time passed and soon Richard was snoring next to her, his chin resting on his chest as he slumbered. He always did this, as if he never got enough sleep. He would pass out whenever he sat still for too long, she often wondered how he managed to stay awake at work. Sometimes it was comical to her, other times, like right now it annoyed her. Made her feel like she was boring to him. Even worst, it was never easy to wake him up once he passed out.
Katarina slid away from Richard and stood, walking to the wide window over looking the city. Lily meowed and purred against her ankles. Bending to pick her up Katarina held her face against the cats soft fur and tried not to cry. Katarina knew that she was often too emotional but she couldn't seem to help it. Emotions rode her like the need for an average person to inhale air. They so fully consumed her that often times it was all she could do to act "normal" in society and around other people.

Katarina walked back to the bed and slowly climbed in, deciding to let Richard sleep the night, she leaned over and turned off the light.

I love you. She said as she laid her head against the pillows and began to doze off, Lily still in her arms.

 

[ch0sen1]

???: "Rucker!!"

I turn my head to see Coach McDonough. His interview was up next, he caught me as I was walking on my way up towards my dorms.

Me: "Hey Coach! Everything went good, it was a nice experience."

Coach: "Yeah except for you being late, had the whole staff on edge when they called and said you hadn't come in yet!"


Me: "Yeah I know sorry I had no idea campus would be hectic today."

Coach: "It's not... [puts hand on hips]...you know you don't want your dad finding out you're not punctual. Wonder how he'd take that?"

Me: "Ugh! Such a low blow Coach!"

Coach: "Just sayin! [smiles]"

Me: "Well YOU better get in there before YOU'RE late! [taps my phone showing the time]"

Coach: "Umhmm....well make sure you're here first thing Monday so we can go over our recruits and events."

Me: "Yes sir, gotcha."

Coach: "Alright then. [walks off]"

Me: "See you. [walks]"

Now I had time to check my messages. I sift through the array of texts as I begin to look at the new incoming ones:
~1:08PM. 2 new voicemails. 10 new messages.~

Twitter - 6 others retweeded you! - 1:05PM
Kanine - Soo....hit me up after the interview ~_~ - 12:47PM
Scar - NO! I didn't get back in time for the interview :/ get back to the room so we can talk about it! - 12:41PM

Norty - Heyyo! You see the new jerseys Oregon's getting!? - 12:33PM
Marion - How was the photo shoot?? - 12:28PM
Kirsten - Hey Faith! How's the ESPN interview? - 12:24PM
Lexxi - FAAAAAITH!!! - 12:21PM
Sammi - Ugh, I miss you country-city girl :/ - 12:17PM
Asshy - Kill the interview today! Proud of you! - 12:11PM
Caitlin - Do us proud today! ESPN woot woot!! - 12:06PM

I respond to the texts as I walk up the hill to Carlyle Dorms:

To: Norty - 'No, are they dope??'
To: Marion - 'It was GREAT! I think I did well :)'
To: Kirsten - 'It's over now, but it was cool!'
To: Lexxi - 'LEXXXXXXXX'
To: Sammi - 'I miss you to :/ how's Texas?'
To: Asshy - 'Kilt it, love you, miss you, bananas.'
To: Caitlin - 'It's over, it was amazing :]'
To: Kanine - 'I'm sorry, I woke up late then had to go straight to the ESPN bit...sup?'
To: Scar - 'OMW back now....I was almost late :O'

I catch view of the dorms as I hike up towards the door. Once I enter, I nod at the Resident Assistant as she smiles back at me. I press the elevator button as I watch the tv in the lobby.


Always on news channels, never anything exciting like TNT dramas or even SpongeBob. Something about a homeless man attacking people at a bus stop in Chicago. Figures...probably just wanted money or food. This current government sstem can be sad sometimes, then they wonder why people do what they do. Humans are literally the only species that have to pay to live on Earth. The elevator door opens as I ride up to the 5th floor. After opening, I hear loud music playing from my friend Lacey's room. She was a quiet girl that one....a bit odd. I see that the door to my suite is already open and my roommate as well as a Swim team athlete Scarlet was folding clothes she must have just washed.


Scar: "Oh my God! Faith! How was it? Tell me tell me!"

Me: "Hahah well seeing I got there 8 minutes late it was pretty epic, I took photos and then answered interview questions for a magazine cover. I can't lie it was exciting."

Scar: "That's AWESOME! Sorry I should have woke you and told you where I'd be--"

Me: "No it's fine babe no worries."

Scar: "Sooo? What's to do today?"

Me: "Well I'm going to shower and head to NY Pres to fill out a volunteer form my mom is making me do...uhh then grab food and then I'm free!"

Scar: "Let's go out tonight! Call up some friends....maybe Kanine huh? ;)"

Me: "Will you STOP we're just friends!"

Scar: "Oh? That why you stay at his place at night? That why you kiss? That why you fu--"

Me: "Heyyyy okayyy! We're are just....talking."

Scar: "Talkers....riiiight. Anyway I'll come with you to the hospital, then we can get food mmkay?"

Me: "Cool, thanks."

I grab a towel from my dresser and some fresh undergarments as I begin to set my purse down and take off my NYU track uniform. I grab a rag and my irish spring soap as I head into the bathroom and I set my belongings down. I run the hot and steamy shower as I strip to my underwear and look at myself in the mirror. Yepp, I was happy. Toned abs with a tan finish and nice and perky in all the right places. I may be an athlete, but I still wanted to be an attractive lady. I remove the rest of my clothes and hop in the shower.