#heat suffocation thru the weekend

[shuheather]

50 questions

tagged by: @azfool ty these are fun !!

1. What is the color of your hair brush? I use a thick toothed comb these days and it is black

2. Name a food you never eat? Beef

3. Are you typically too warm or too cold? Lately I’ve been too cold like every day but my heat tolerance is miserable

4. What were you doing 45 minutes ago? Probably checking my work slack

5. Whats your favorite candy bar? Twix all the way bb

6. Have you ever been to a professional sports game? Yes, mostly baseball (at least Cubs, Indians, Orioles, and Red Sox but maybe more), I’ve been to some indoor football games if that counts? Also do you consider yoyoing a professional sport because I’ve been to a million yoyo competitions because of my brother

7. What was the last thing you said out loud? Something in response to one of my brothers about a video game probably

8. What is your favorite ice cream? Chocolate Chip Cheesecake from J. P. Licks (if they ever bring it back I WILL go great lengths to get some) but of the attainable variety honestly anything that has a good amount of chocolate, no fruit, and no nuts

9. What was the last thing you had to drink? Water from my water bottle

10. Do you like your wallet? Honestly not really I never use it, I just keep one of those pockets on the back of my phone for the three cards I need most at any given moment

11. What was the last thing you ate? I had a bowl of Frosted Flakes for breakfast

12. Did you buy any new clothes last weekend? No but the weekend before I thrifted a flannel that I am very excited about

13. What was the last sporting event you watched? Stanley cup final

14. What is your favorite flavor of popcorn? I could eat any sort of lightly salted popcorn for years on end but buttered is good too as long as it’s not too much. Movie theater popcorn makes my stomach upset though so no more of that

15. Who was the last person you sent a text to? Olivia

16. Ever go camping? Yes but not since I was a child

17. Do you take your vitamins? I don’t buy them on my own but when my mom tries to get me to eat gummy vitamins I say no

18. Do you regularly attend a place of worship? Whenever I’m outside I stop to look up at the treetops and the clouds a lot does that count

In all seriousness no my parents never cared about religion much so it’s not something I’ve ever been into

19. Do you have a tan? My Chaco tan from this summer is still going pretty strong but it is fading

20. Do you prefer Chinese or pizza? Chinese 100%

21. Do you drink soda through a straw? I don’t drink soda so undefined

22. What color socks do you usually wear? I always wear funny patterned socks that either I buy or other people buy for me. Common themes include cats, space, and food

23. Do you ever drive above the speed limit? Honestly yes but I try not to do more than 10 mph over

24. What terrifies you? The future of my country, that everyone I interact with secretly hates me, suffocation (but especially drowning)

25. Look to the left, what do you see? Phone, water bottle, pencil holder I sculpted in high school containing pens and honey sticks, my wall of art/letters/quotes/etc that makes me happy

26. What chore do you hate doing the most? Doing the dishes is hard sometimes

27. What do you think when you hear an Australian accent? I’m bad at separating out Australian accents from English/NZ/etc accents tbh so usually I’m just like ??? trying to figure out where they’re from

28. What’s your favorite soda? I don’t drink soda so undefined

29. Do you go in fast food places or just hit the drive thru? So I don’t eat a ton of fast food these days because their vegetarian options are often few or nonexistent however if I go to Taco Bell I always go in or order online because I do so many modifications that I would be embarassed to dictate it to a person and I would rather just input it on an order screen. Otherwise if I have my order together I’ll drive through as long as the line isn’t significantly longer than the line inside

30. What is your favorite number? I know it’s basic of me to pick my birthday number but 24 probably

31. Who’s the last person you talked to? like, out loud? My youngest brother

32. Favorite cut of beef? I don’t eat beef so undefined

33. Last song you listened too? I listen to music while I work a lot but it’s never music that I know because then my brain latches onto it, so I’m currently listening to Lucky Sue by Men I Trust on my discover weekly but the last song I knew was Just the Two of Us by Grover Washington and Bill Withers

34. Last book you read? I am currently in the middle of The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern and it is wonderful so far would recommend

35. Favorite day of the week? Saturday because I work 9-5 so it is the only day I am truly free rn

36. Can you say the alphabet backwards? I just tried and my brain went “zyxcvbnm” so no

37. How do you like your coffee? I don’t drink coffee so undefined but as a loophole I will say cookies with coffee in them are REALLY good

38. Favorite pair of shoes? In the summer my chacos, right now my feiyues, in the winter my docs

39. Time you normally get up? I am currently working hard to maintain a sleep schedule so my alarm goes off at 9 but left unsupervised I will wake up any time between 9 and noon

40. Do you prefer sunrise or sunset? If I am seeing the sunrise it usually took some level of sleep deprivation to get there which is usually not good for me in any respect so sunset

41. Describe your kitchen plates? I’m living at home rn so we have a variety which includes my plastic Barbie plate which I think is actually older than me but also these plates that were supposed to be fancy dishware and my mom was like “if we don’t just use these they will sit in a box forever” so now they are our normal dishes

42. How many blankets on your bed? I sleep with a sheet (look I also used to be anti sheet but sleeping in a place with no AC changed me okay) and a comforter. In the winter I might add another blanket but I get warm when I sleep so extra blankets are usually not necessary

43. Describe your kitchen at the moment? There is such thing as having too many spice mixes

44. Do you have a favorite alcoholic drink? I do not drink so no

45. Do you play cards? I used to a lot when I was a kid but now I mostly just play solitaire on my phone

46. What color is your car? I don’t have a car of my own but the car I share with my brother is maroon

47. Can you change a tire? I might need to follow instructions but with instructions I believe I could

48. Favorite state? I don’t think I have a favorite state but if we were doing some sort of mathematical analysis a large amount of my favorite places are currently in Massachusetts

49. Favorite job you’ve ever had? I think probably my current one which is Database/IT stuff for a racial equity nonprofit

50. Tagging: @alnasak because it’s just like the good old days

#me

[robby-l-keene]

A Change of Scenery

I don’t care that Miguel @therunawaystudent ran away again.  I’m not going to care.  I can’t. Not again.   Dr. Ali @dr-ali-mills was disappointed, I could tell.  She thinks I’ve just run out on my friend.  I can’t tell her what’s really going on.  I especially can’t tell her.  

Last night made me realize that perhaps I hadn’t buried certain feelings as deeply as I had thought.  I can handle the fact that Miguel doesn’t have the same feelings for me that I have for him.  He’s not the first person to turn me down.  And I’m not one of those creeps who can only take no for an answer if the person disappears from their lives.  And I really do like, maybe even love, Jason, but feelings or not, Miguel is my best friend. And I thought I was his.

But he’s protecting Hawk while dropping this whole thing in my lap.  Hawk.  The guy who left him to make his way home, bleeding and disoriented.  The guy who thinks it’s funny to get Miguel drunk and see just what dumbass mess he’ll get himself into.  *You’ve gotten him drunk before too* Yes, but I didn’t leave him alone to see what other trouble he could find. I took care of him.  Just like I did last night and tried to this morning. Like I always do.  Hawk just dumps him in the middle of Encino to save his own ass.  What if I hadn’t been staying here?

I finally see it.  I will never mean as much to Miguel as he means to me and the pain of that, I can’t handle.  I feel like I’m coming apart and I’m dying to grab a vice and lose myself for a few hours.  Booze, pills, sex, it’s all the same at this point.

I have to get out of here. I go up to my room and start packing a bag, glad that I could finally drive, and Sam had turned my car over to me a few days before.  I put Axel in her carrier and go to the kitchen to pack her food and water bowl.

“Hey, Gladys,” I say. “I’m going to take a few days away to think about what I want to do and all.  If you want to keep coming over, you can, or if you want to take a few days’ vacation, take off and rest.  I’ve talked to Granpa’s accountant.  He says you’ll keep getting paid until the house sells or you find another job.”

“You going to your Dad’s, Honey?”  she replied.

I shake my head.  “Nah, I need somewhere to think where no one there has a stake in what I do with everything. He agrees that’s a good idea.” Okay, so maybe that isn’t exactly true, but he would agree if he knew about it.

“I understand,” she nods. “Well, be safe and have a good time. I’ll probably take some time off, but I’ll keep things here up too.”

“Thanks,” I smile, grabbing Axel and my bags and heading out to my car.  I don’t really know where I’m going yet, but I do know that if I don’t go, I’ll soon be heading to Ami’s, or Trey’s.  Either one would be equally disastrous.  

Maybe disappearing for a few days isn’t the best idea, but really, who will even care?  My Dad won’t look for me for a few days since we got in a fight and my mom never looks for me.  

First, I do make one stop. There is one person who will be looking for me.  

(Text to Jason):  Hey, Babe.  I know you’re probably pretty busy, but could you come out and talk to me for a few minutes?  I’m outside your dorm.

(From Jason):  WTF? Seriously?  I’ll be right down.

He looks happy to see me. I hug him, then kiss him hard.

(Jason):  I didn’t expect to see you.  What’s up?

You know how, when we went out last weekend, you were saying that maybe I should take some time away from the house and everyone and decide what to do?

(Jason): Yeah.  You doing it?

*I nod* I think so.

(Jason):  Where are you going?

*Shrug* Don’t know yet.  Maybe up north.  Sit on a beach for a while and think about things.  I don’t know when I’ll be back though.  I might miss our date this weekend.

(Jason): *nods understandingly* That’s okay, Baby.  Take some time.  Get your head on straight.  You can’t make decisions here where you feel guilty about everything.  Let me know where you land and if it gets to be too long, I can always run away for a weekend.

*Smiles* You got it.  I love you.

(Jason):  I love you too.  

*I kiss him again before leaving. *  

A few miles out of town, I got a text from Miguel asking me not to be mad at him.  I sigh.  Mad doesn’t even start to describe how I’m feeling so I jot a quick text back, saying it’s okay but that I’ll be gone for a while and wishing him luck.  Not rude, but nothing friendly or warm like our usual texts.  I can’t. I can’t keep letting the same snake bite me, hoping that when I grab it this time, it’ll be different, that it won’t strike me.  I smile at the analogy.  What is it with this family and snakes?

I head north and drive most of the day, stopping only when Axel or I need a pit stop.  Lunch is a fast food drive-thru in some tiny town near San Francisco.  I didn’t know where I was going or what I was going to do when I got there.  All I knew was that I needed plenty of miles between me and the Valley.

It was around 10 p.m. when I got to Del Norte County and decided to stop for the night.  I asked the attendant at the first gas station I passed about hotels, he said the nearest one was a Bed and Breakfast resort type place near the beach front.  But that they were pretty reasonable for rates and took walk-ins during the off seasons. It was another hour to the next chain place that took dogs.

Well, I was 13 hours from home and dead on my feet.  What did I have to lose?  I followed his direction and pull up to a large ranch house with a vacancy sign on the wooden sign next to the door.

I grabbed my bags and Axel in her carrier and made my way to the front desk ready to fast talk my way into renting a room, even though I’m just seventeen.

“Just a minute!” A voice called from a back room.

I look around while I wait. The place is pretty ritzy.  The gas station attendant said they allow small pets but I’m already second-guessing keeping Axel here.  So much expensive stuff here for her to break or chew.  Guess she’ll have to stay in her carrier tonight.  

“Robby?  Robby Keene?”  The voice sounds confused.

I turn and find myself looking at probably my Dad’s closest friend in the world now that Mr. LaRusso is out of the picture again.

“Fuck,” I mutter.  “Look, I don’t want any trouble.  I’ll just be going.”  I head for the door, but he somehow beats me to it.

“Like hell, you will,” he snaps.  “What are you doing here?  Is your Dad @everyonesfavoritegoldenboy with you?”

I just stare at him.

“Okay, I’ll take that as a no,” he replies.  “You’ve got to be the unluckiest kid in the world.  You try to run away and run right into someone who will tell your parents where you are.”

“Was,” I reply.  “Where I was.  I’m not staying here.”

“You’re not leaving,” he answers.  “It’s after ten and you look exhausted.  I’m not letting you go anywhere tonight.”

I just stare at him. Trying to decide if I should call his bluff when he softens.

“Come on, Kid,” he says. “Tell you what, I won’t call your dad tonight, but I can’t in good conscience let you leave here, tired and hungry.  Just stay the night and we can talk about what you need to do in the morning.  I won’t ask you any questions about why you’re here.  I promise.”

How did he know I was hungry?  The smell coming from the kitchen is delicious.  After a minute, I finally give in.   “Fine. But I’m not answering any questions. And I’m not calling my Dad.”

“Deal,” he says, holding his hands up in surrender.

He leads me to a small, private dining area off the main kitchen.    “Alex, this is Robby Keene.  I’ve told you about him.”

The man at the table looks up and smiles.  “Your buddy’s kid.  Your namesake, right?”  He stands up and shakes my hand warmly.

“Right,” Bobby smiles. “Robby, I like you to meet my husband, Alex.”

“Nice to meet you,” I nod.

“Here, here, have a seat,” Alex says, pulling a chair out.  “Let’s get you some food.”  He takes my bags, noticing that one is a dog carrier.  “You have a dog?”

“Yes,” I say, wondering if that will get me out of this.

“Oh my God, Bobby.  He has a dog.  Can I get it out?  What’s its name?  Is it friendly?”  He was already unzipping the carrier without waiting for answers.

“Alex loves dogs,” Bobby laughs.  

“Her name is Axel and she’s very friendly,” I hear myself saying.  

“Come here, Axel baby,” Alex croons.  “Oh, you’re freezing.  I bet it’s a lot colder here than you’re used to in L.A.”  He picks Axel up and tucks her in his vest.  “There you go.  We’ll get you warm.  Bobby, turn the heat up.”

“We’re not suffocating the guests because a dog is cold,” Bobby says.  “Get her a blanket.”

“I will,” Alex announces, raising his chin.  “Come on, Axel.  We’ll get you the best blankets in the house since that mean, old man won’t let you have the heat on.”  He glares at Bobby.  “Well, get the boy some food.”  He goes out of the room, leaving his own plate half-eaten and forgotten.

“Forgive him,” Bobby laughs. “He recently lost his dog after sixteen years and we haven’t found another to adopt yet.  He’s been missing him.”

“It’s okay,” I say, wondering if he’s bringing Axel back.

“Let me get you some dinner,” Bobby says, disappearing into the kitchen before I can protest.  Now was my chance.  I could book it and come back for Axel later, but I don’t.  I just sit there and soon both men are back.  Bobby with a plate loaded with food and Alex with Axel and several blankets.  He makes her a nice bed before sitting back at his place.

“Bobby, Hon,” he announces. “Axel and I have bonded.  Her name is Axel, mine is Alex, it was fate.  We’ll have to keep her now.  You’ll have to figure out how to make that happen.  Even if we have to keep the boy too.”  He winks at me.  “Eat, eat.”

I dig into the delicious smelling food.  I should be suspicious.  I should be jumping up to go, but I just can’t.  Bobby and Alex’s moods are contagious, and I feel myself relaxing for the first time in months, really.  

Bobby:

You could have knocked me over with a feather when I saw Robby.  He is nearly grown.  Last time I saw him, he couldn’t have been more than ten.  But I would know those green eyes anywhere.  The spitting image of Mrs. Laura’s.

The first thing I noticed, after his eyes, was that scared, anxious look about him.  As though he was carrying the world on his shoulders and it had just crashed down around him.  I truly was afraid to let him leave.   He didn’t look like he’d make it another ten miles without breaking down.  I know that scared, deer in headlights look.  I should.  I’d seen it on Johnny’s face often enough.  

I hear myself agreeing to most anything to get him to stay the night.

I kept my promise not to ask him any questions, but I can’t keep the one about Johnny.  Not technically anyway.  I text him while Robby is helping Alex get dessert.  I have to.  He must be going out of his mind.  Robby catches me setting my phone back down.

“You said you wouldn’t call my Dad.”  A defiant look falls over his features and I think for a minute that he’s going to make a dash for it.

“I didn’t.  I texted him.”  Yeah, I know it’s just semantics.  “Robby, I had to let him know you were okay.  He was probably out of his mind with worry.”

“Yeah, well, you shouldn’t have bothered,” he answers, taking his seat and lift Axel up in his lap. “He probably doesn’t even know I’m gone. If you hadn’t texted him, he wouldn’t have known for a week or more.  Don’t be surprised if he doesn’t answer.”

It takes everything I have to keep my promise about questions after that, but I do.  

When he’s done eating, I show him to the guest room in our quarters and I swear he and that dog are asleep before I can even turn the lights off.  Poor kid.  He looks nervous and broken, even in his sleep.

I’m still waiting on Johnny to text me back when Alex and I go to bed.

 @chickskickasstoo @mamabearlarusso

#cobra kai rp #need to escape #really is the healthiest way