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Post by Alonna Swanson on Apr 22, 2009 23:28:52 GMT -5
She was running. Seriously running. Gasping for breath while your lungs expand way too far and your heart threatens to pound your ribcage to shreds kind of running. She’d been on the move for a good four minutes now. When you have the power to wink out of sight at a moment’s notice, you don’t exactly put a lot of effort into your aerobic exercises.
But now she was in broad daylight, in plain sight of anyone who happened to be glancing her way, and every street she turned down just had to have some kids on their way home from school, a middle-aged man on a walk with his dog or one of those super-grannies who did take time every day to work on her aerobics. And no matter how strong the lady’s heart was, vanishing into thin air right in front of her would definitely not be good for her health.
“Lon! Alonna, stop running! We need to talk, alright?”
Definitely not alright, actually. Not that she had the breath to shout that back to him. Brendan had definitely been spending some time on the treadmill recently; apparently that was pretty common right after someone became single again. Try to get in shape to attract a new interest, or to make the old one jealous. Not that Alonna was worried that she’d get all swoony after getting a good look at his newly toned calves, abs, or arms. That was hardly the reason for her desperate retreat. No, she was more afraid that if she had to look at him, to talk face to face with the boy who had sided with her mother, her mother - not to mention the prospect of Hollywood, fame, and fortune - over her, she would lose complete control over herself and hit him so hard her knuckles broke. That or start crying and not be able to stop. Possibly both.
So, instead, Alonna ran away from him as if he were a six year old boy with cooties. And, like a six year old boy with cooties, he pursued.
If the next corner wasn’t clear, she would just risk it and vanish, she decided, as a stitch stabbed at her side. (Note to self, no being chased after by evil ex-boyfriends until at least 20 minutes after lunch.) Either that or she would collapse to the ground in a heap and have to face him red-faced, windblown and out of breath, which would be about as far from an ideal confrontation as she could possibly get.
She rounded the corner…
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Chase
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Post by Chase on May 16, 2009 0:17:13 GMT -5
It hadn't been easy to keep ahead of her. She was fleeing pretty much at random, turning every corner she saw in a wild effort to get away from the well-built man racing after her, shouting her name.
The name shouting had helped, actually. Chase had been lurking in the general area for a while, trying to match up every young blond he saw passing by with the picture he'd been shown by an operative back in the Seventh Circle. The info packet on her said that she lived in this general area, but hadn't been specific enough to give an address - clearly the higher ups were getting sloppy - and after a few hours he was about ready to call it quits for the day when he'd heard a shout from the next street over.
He'd made his way over in time to see her disappearing around a nearby corner, but even a glance was enough to convince him that he'd found his mark. And, anyway, how many "Alonnas" could be living in this tiny hick-town?
It had taken some doing to get ahead - in fact, he might not have done it at all if she hadn't cut a U-turn, probably without noticing it, in her desperate attempt to get away. He was a full block back when he saw her cut right and, instead of following her, took a chance and moved right as well. When he heard her footsteps pounding back towards him, he smirked. The gambit had paid off after all. Then, slowly, his smirk faded into an expectant wince. He rolled his shoulders, and stepped into the line of fire.
A second later they collided.
The impact hurt, and he stumbled, but Chase managed to keep his feet, however barely. He grabbed the girl's shoulders to keep her from kissing pavement as well.
"Hey, are you ok? What are you running to?" He shot a glance over Alonna's shoulder before returning back to her panicked look. What exactly had he stepped in the middle of? "Or... from?"
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Post by Alonna Swanson on Jun 13, 2009 12:45:46 GMT -5
The impact rattled her so hard she almost bit her tongue, and she was sure she would have hit the ground if a set of strong arms hadn't grabbed her shoulders to steady her. She followed his glance back over her shoulder and was relieved to see that Brendan wasn't in sight... yet. A glance back at the stranger revealed a man about her own age, with dark brown hair that fell into concerned looking eyes. He seemed nice enough, but she didn't have time for small talk unless she wanted Brendan to catch up.
"I'm really sorry. I've just... I'm trying to avoid someone, guess I'm taking it to an extreme but I can't face him right now."
Her gaze darted about for a quick place to duck out of sight until he was gone.
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Chase
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Post by Chase on Jun 14, 2009 19:44:58 GMT -5
He heard the pounding footsteps around the corner maybe even before she did, and, hiding a grin (honestly, could he have planned this any more perfectly?) he slid his grip on her down to her wrist, murmured, “Alright, come on,” and pulled her into the small shop directly to their left. Inside there were a few aisles full of knick-knacks and kids’ toys, and he inclined his head toward the back of the store.
“You wait back there, alright? I’ll let you know when the guy’s gone.”
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Post by Alonna Swanson on Jun 18, 2009 12:00:10 GMT -5
Alonna nodded thankfully and hurried down an aisle of grinning Barbies toward the back. She didn’t know who this guy was, but he was willing to help her, and with the way her last few weeks had been going, she could more than use a friendly face. The guy wasn’t one of Brendan’s friends, at least… not any of the ones she knew, anyway. She’d thought she’d known everyone he was close to, but as he’d proven when he’d shown up side by side with her mother, she didn’t know him as well as she’d thought.
She took a slow breath and glanced around – safely hidden at the back of the shop, she was out of view of any prying eyes. If this guy did turn out to be one of Brendan’s friends, getting her cornered in a shop so she’d have no choice but to listen to him, then the safest bet would be to blink out of sight now, before either of them came back.
But those were the workings of a paranoid mind. She could almost hear her mother in her head, telling her to trust no one – each person was only out for himself – and for that reason, alone, she decided to stay where she was and wait to thank the stranger for his help.
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Chase
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Post by Chase on Jun 23, 2009 14:51:05 GMT -5
Through the shop's windowed front wall, Chase watched the man reel around the corner, slowing and drawing in a few heavy breaths when he realized that he'd lost track of his quarry.
"Lon..." he tried again tentatively, before running a hand through his hair and letting out an inaudible but clearly visible curse. After a few moments of peering about fruitlessly, his eyes drifted through the window to Chase, who made no effort to hide his returning stare. An eyebrow lifted with an amiable but warning glance: You look crazy running down the street shouting like that, man. Cool down.
All at once the stranger seemed to realize that the whole street could see and hear him. A faint red tinge darkened his cheeks and ears, but he held Chase's gaze and inclined his head in a quick, grateful nod, before looking away and continuing slowly down the street, eyes averted toward the ground.
Good - whoever the stranger was, whatever problems he had with Chase's mark, he was the type could could be chastened out of his pursuit, so he couldn't be a big-time player. Who knew, maybe he was nothing more than a slightly obsessive spurned lover.
Well, whatever it was, Chase was glad it was over and done with. He wasn't here to deal with the little princess's personal drama. He had a job to do, and it was about time he got back to her and start working on it.
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Post by Alonna Swanson on Aug 20, 2009 1:46:02 GMT -5
As the stranger made his way back toward her alone she breathed a sigh of relief, releasing all of the tension that had built up like an itch, urging her to shift into the safety of invisibility ever since he had moved off.
A hint of a smile touched her lips as she moved forward to meet him halfway down the aisle.
“That was really nice of you. Kind of… chivalric, or something.” She laughed. “Really, though, thank you. You have no idea what a relief it is not to have to deal with him today."
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Chase
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Post by Chase on Aug 25, 2009 10:19:03 GMT -5
Chase laughed as well, shoving his hands into his pockets and shifting one foot across the ground in a conscious effort to seem embarrassed.
“No problem. I mean… most people say small town life will be less exciting than the city. But here I am, first day in the village, and I’m already rescuing princesses from vicious trolls.” He paused, stopped shifting his feet, and met her gaze with a hint of a hopeful smile. “Look, I don’t want to sound forward or anything, but I don’t really know anyone here yet. Would you mind… I don’t know… getting a cup of coffee? We could talk about your crazy stalker… or talk about anything besides your creepy stalker, if that's better.”
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Post by Alonna Swanson on Aug 31, 2009 22:46:15 GMT -5
He seemed sweet enough, and really, how many people could be working for her mother, anyway?
She’s not the Mafia, Lon, she chided herself, as her savior waited for an answer. And it’s not like Brendan was going to pull a hit on me, either. They’re just greedy, desperate people, but that doesn’t mean everyone you meet is going to be their pawn.
She was acting paranoid, and she knew it. She’d been leaning that way for a while, ever since she’d found her Mother and her boyfriend collaborating, and she had to snap out of it, fast.
“I’d love to. There’s a great place just down the street – I might be a little bit biased since I work there, but the coffee’s definitely edible. Drinkable.” She corrected herself quickly, laughing. She still felt a little on edge – residual nervousness from being chased down six streets, she supposed. Or maybe it was something in this stranger’s eyes…
Don’t be ridiculous – he just went out of his way to help you. There was no need for that. And if he turns out to be a creep then you’ll deal with it. You’ve dealt with creeps before.
“I’m Alonna, by the way.”
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Chase
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Post by Chase on Sept 5, 2009 15:00:07 GMT -5
"Chase." He didn't even consider giving a fake name. What would be the point? It wasn't like she was going to hear that single syllable and come to a dramatic realization that he was the Chase, the Chase who worked for the demon Amazarak and would switch from being her savior to her executioner at a word from his Bosses. It was just a normal name, and, as far as she knew, he was just a normal guy. "And any place that gives me coffee is a good place, as far as I'm concerned." He smiled, and stepped aside in the narrow aisle, sweeping his arm out to wave her forward. "After you, Princess." --- Continued in "Dine With the Devil"
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