Andy
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Rufus probably
rick gets all his ideas from the sorting hat's cousin - the bad advice bag
Posts: 119
active character(s): Rick
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Servo
Apr 10, 2015 21:29:24 GMT -6
Post by Andy on Apr 10, 2015 21:29:24 GMT -6
"What're ya--" Rick started to question, but he - no, his entire SEAT - was already being shoved backwards and Lorna was inviting herself into his lap. Which, normally, would be quite thrilling! But as it stood, Rick was left panicked, confused, and mildly turned on, which was a conflicting mess of emotions and he was grateful for the opportunity to just have his hands function as a makeshift seatbelt around Lorna's hips and waist as she tore away from the scene.
The next several minutes were a cacophony of sight and sound, as Lorna expertly avoided their pursuers who were on MOTORCYCLES and SHOOTING AT THEM and at what point had heir apocalypse survival days turned into Mad Max-style car chases that Lorna was secretly as expert at??? If Rick's hands weren't so busy holding onto Lorna's hips for dear life, he might have covered his eyes. Or, no, wait, under different circumstances, he'd be paying good money to watch this, so he'd have to be peeking through his fingers if he did that. But still. It was at some point during his mental tirade about how simultaneously awesome and horrifying this was that he was rewarded with an elbow painfully jutting into his ribs, although based on how Lorna didn't even seem to acknowledge it, he was guessing it was just an accident and it really couldn't be helped.
With a grunt, he tried to wedged himself a little out of the way. (And also because he felt bad for being completely useless, acting as Lorna's seat warmer.) But then Lorna almost sent them into a ditch, and that had him bracing one hand against the dashboard and another against the roof, trying to stop himself from crushing her between the steering wheel and the console. Catching his breath, he wondered how absolutely none of this seemed to phase Lorna at all. Was she made of steel, or was this just the result of military training? If you learned how to pull all this off without breaking a sweat, sign him up!
Catching his breath to congratulate her on a job WELL fucking DONE after she had successfully ducked them into an inconspicuous parkway, he was about to open his mouth to say as such when Lorna slapped his mouth closed. The last of their pursuers passed by, and he sunk into his own seat as well, belatedly realizing 'Hey, why are you over there sitting in your own seat again when you could still be sitting over here in my lap if you know, wanted to, because I mean, it's still totally vacant and available for sitting in???'
"Are ya kiddin' me?" He laughed slightly, still feeling breathless as he took off his hat and wiped at his brow. "We should get inta car chases more often! Dat was... intense."
Sighing longingly, he stretched out and nodded at Lorna's idea of sitting and waiting. It wasn't like there was much else they could do for the time being, anyway.
"How long do ya think we should hide?" He asked conversationally, peeking out at her from under the brim of his hat after he had put it back on his head and yanked it downwards.
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Servo
Apr 10, 2015 21:49:00 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by ashestoApples on Apr 10, 2015 21:49:00 GMT -6
Lorna wouldn't admit it but she was pretty proud of her car chasing skills. She had just seen a lot of movies, really. And also one time left the emergency brake on while driving which led to learning about that part.
"Unfortunately we should wait until we see them retre--" she stopped suddenly as she looked over at Rick, eyes moving to the window as she tapped him on the shoulder and pointed. He was snapped out of his relaxation by her tap and stared out of the car at a hoard of the undead on the horizon.
Lorna looked around frantically. The road in front of them, woods to the right them, a hoard to the left, a house behind--
"THE HOUSE," she said, pointing. "PARK THE CAR OUT OF SIGHT COME ON LET'S GO!!!"
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Andy
Full Member
Rufus probably
rick gets all his ideas from the sorting hat's cousin - the bad advice bag
Posts: 119
active character(s): Rick
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Servo
Apr 10, 2015 22:23:49 GMT -6
Post by Andy on Apr 10, 2015 22:23:49 GMT -6
Rick jolted so suddenly he smashed one of his knees into the console, cursing internally as he did but knowing he had much more important things to be concerned with right now. He swiveled his head back towards Lorna so fast, it almost had his hat spinning and flying off, which he readjusted hurriedly before he popped the car into reverse and looked frantically out the back window.
He backed it up as far as he could, tucked against the side of the house and hopefully looking abandoned under the shade of the trees overhead. Struggling with his seatbelt for a moment, he swore at his fingers before he got them working and yanked himself out of the car, hands braced on either side of the door as he practically kicked it open and made sure to - quietly - close it behind him. Lorna was already out of the car on her side, making sure to ease her door shut just as soundlessly. Grabbing her hand, Rick hustled towards the house, eyes searching every window and door for an opening.
"There!" He pointed, voice low but demanding attention as he directed Lorna's attention to a window on the second floor. It wasn't completely boarded up, and what boards were over it were shoddily done, should they prove to be in the way of them squeezing their way inside. Lorna shot him a look, clearly communicating 'How are we going to get up there?' But he was already kneeling down and weaving his fingers together, making a boost as Lorna leaped up and got a hold of the roof. She hoisted herself the rest of the way up, before laying down on her stomach and hanging some of her upper body over the edge, hands reaching out so Rick could grab on.
With some struggling and Lorna's help, he managed to pull himself up, and they set to work on dismantling the window without making too much noise, or destroying too much of a barricade they wanted to keep in place afterwards. Ignoring her hips, Lorna didn't require too much effort to squeeze through, but Rick was another story. Grunting, he unintentionally broke a board they had left on the window, tumbling headfirst inside and landing with a pained noise on his shoulders. Whatever! At least he was inside now!
Grabbing the two broken pieces of board, he hastily shoved them back into place. Unless you were looking at it carefully, you couldn't even tell it wasn't attached properly! And seeing as they were both presently more concerned with the hoard, who would definitely be too far gone to notice such a thing, Rick figured that was good enough.
Turning back to Lorna, he gave a quick thumbs up before basically tackling her, backing her into a corner until he was bracing her against the wall again and they were both holding their breath, weapons drawn.
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Servo
Apr 10, 2015 22:52:42 GMT -6
Post by ashestoApples on Apr 10, 2015 22:52:42 GMT -6
Lorna was very extra sure that the adrenaline was what helped them boost up to the window, but she didn't actually care??? She was far more concerned with the fact that the undead hoard that was about to come through could rip them a new one. Even twenty or more of them they might have been able to take on, but that... looked like far more. Maybe more like one hundred and twenty of them. How were they going to get out?
Snapping back to reality once they were inside, she noted that they were braced against the wall with weapons drawn when there hopefully weren't any lurkers in the house and if there were they should be... y'know, dealing with them. She cleared her throat and stood, looking around and tensing her ears to hear anything. She raised a finger to her lips and waved him to her, hopefully indicating that they should search rooms and check downstairs. She was satisfied when he got up as well.
They checked the (more and more familiar) rooms upstairs (the house was smaller than hers, thankfully, or they'd be up to this all night) before creeping down the staircase-- Rick was painfully loud behind her (as usual. Why were boots so helpful but so loud??? Especially HIS boots under his weight, god damn) but she had settled a bit now that the upstairs was clear. Even if there was a small hoard down the stairs, they could flee up the staircase at the very least.
They found themselves in a sort of parlor downstairs that connected to a formal dining room, living room, kitchen and hallway and she again, got feelings of familiarity. She shook it off, figuring it just like she was playing a zombie video game with how it was set up. She crept down the hallway since she figured Rick could handle the other rooms, and crept into a door at the end of the hall, leading into a bedroom. She slid in and looked around, only for her shirt to be grabbed from behind. She sucked in a breath and fell over. Her gun slid across the floor and the lurker approached her, painfully slowly. Recollection dawned on her face as it neared her, and she almost got herself killed due to her recognizing what was left of the lurker's face.
Samantha. She hadn't been great friends with her, but Brad had been. She, fumblingly reached for the knife in her boot and stabbed what had formerly been her friend through the eye, turning her head away from her to avoid any splattering. She went too easily, Lorna thought, and she fell toward Lorna who was smart enough to tumble out of the way. After realizing that it was actually an arrow in the back of her head that had taken her out, she glanced toward the doorway to see Rick looking very angry at the lurker as if it had disrespected him personally.
"Thanks," she said, leaning down to get his arrow and her knife. "Sorry, I--" She didn't continue, but Rick looked like he had kind of figured. Lorna went to retrieve her guns and proceeded to follow Rick out the door and to the dining room where he had apparently taken care of another one.
She was pretty sure he'd asked if it was anyone she knew or something like that, but she only regarded it distantly as she looked down at the face of her dead husband- the very one she'd been unable to kill over a year ago. She dropped to the ground, staring at him wide-eyed. She tried to explain herself for a moment before giving up to find herself leaking from the eyes instead. It didn't make sense- she wasn't sad, she'd already accepted this. She saw him turn. But of all the houses, how did they end up here? It was her own fault they did, she knew, but somehow it still didn't make sense.
"Brad," she said finally. "My ex-husband."
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Andy
Full Member
Rufus probably
rick gets all his ideas from the sorting hat's cousin - the bad advice bag
Posts: 119
active character(s): Rick
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 16:24:36 GMT -6
Post by Andy on Apr 11, 2015 16:24:36 GMT -6
Lorna clearing her throat helped draw Rick back to reality as well, and he blinked as he stood up slowly and felt his back crack as he did. Oof. The adrenaline from before they were inside the house and in an easier position to defend themselves was fading, though it never faded completely as the fact that they were still in potential danger was ever-present. However, with some of it out of his system, he could now feel the after-effects of him smashing his knee in the car, and his tumble through the window, and he couldn't say it was a good feeling. Oh well, it wasn't like bruises were something he wasn't used to and didn't expect.
Taking the time to stretch and crack his neck and knuckles, he followed behind Lorna as she lead the way. The sound of his boots on the stairs was just as obnoxious as it had been in the previous abandoned building, and he tried to support some of his weight on the handrails lining the stairs to lessen the sound. That just resulted in the handrails starting to creak under his weight, and with a grumble in the back of his throat, he tried to find a balance between the sound of his heavy boots on the stairs and his weight being applied to the supports as they went.
At the bottom of the stairs, he nodded to Lorna, going separate ways. Not that he was happy to do so, but he understood the necessity of it. He took in the digs as he searched. Not a bad place to be trapped during the apocalypse, if he did say so himself, but Lorna's was definitely nicer. He was drawn out of his reverie by the sound of shuffling ahead of him, and he brought up his crossbow preemptively. As expected, a little ways ahead of him, a walker stumbled out of a doorway, its back to him. As if sensing something, it towards Rick at the last second, getting an arrow in the front of its head instead for its efforts. With a smirk, Rick watched it slump to the ground, but kept his crossbow at the ready as he cautiously stalked forward.
When nothing else revealed itself, Rick retrieved his arrow and was just debating whether to wipe it on his pants out of respect for the previous occupants of the house, or say fuck it and wipe it off on a piece of their furniture, when he heard the sounds of an altercation somewhere else in the house. Senses on red alert (or rather, ginger danger, if you will), he made his way as quickly and as quietly as he could in the direction he had last seen Lorna go, cursing his boots the whole time for keeping him from moving as fast as he would have liked.
He was greeted with the sight of one of the things making its way towards Lorna. Instantly, he let loose an arrow, which lodged itself into the back of the things head just as Lorna had dove her knife into its eye. Admittedly, she could've handled that situation herself, but Rick wasn't one to take a chance like that. He tilted his head in thanks as she handed his arrow back to him, wiping it off on his pants as they moved back into the main part of the lower floor and Rick pointed out the only other one he had encountered.
"I haven't checked all da others room meticulously yet, so if ya wanna come with, we could do it together." He offered, but Lorna didn't seem to be listening to him.
"Lor?" He called out to her, watching her stand over the recently re-deceased corpse crumbled on the floor before them. "Uh, ya know dem, er somethin' ...?"
He watched in shock as Lorna wilted to her knees, and was she crying? Before he knew it, Rick was on the floor beside her, hands hovering near her shoulders, unsure if this was a 'don't touch me' moment or not.
"Brad," Lorna explained, sounding far away, "My ex-husband."
Oh. OH. Hoooooly shit. No wonder she was... He slid his arms around her back, pulling her face into his shoulder protectively. It didn't make the best pillow, but it did block her view of the... Yeah. What was someone supposed to do in this kind of situation? She was holding herself together, fairly well. Far better than Rick could imagine himself if their roles were switched right now. But this was Lorna he was considering, and he knew she would probably beat the crap out of herself for this later, even if she had regarded this with a cold, blank stare and a final "Hm. Unfortunate." before turning and walking away.
He stroked her hair idly, and rubbed soothing circles on her back with the other hand.
"I'm sorry." He whispered quietly, at a loss for other words.
Admittedly, he had a million and a half questions, but not a single one of them was appropriate at this point in time, nor would they probably ever be. (Were you married long? Was he your ex before, or after zombification? Is this your first time seeing him since... ya know?)
"Is dere anythin' I can do? I could... move him, somewhere." He offered awkwardly, leaning back to look at her face and using his thumbs to wipe away any lingering tears.
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 16:41:56 GMT -6
Post by ashestoApples on Apr 11, 2015 16:41:56 GMT -6
Lorna shook her head quietly, just allowing herself to fall apart for a few minutes. She hadn't expected to end up in this house- she'd thought of it, of course, since it was so close to the town they were needing to go to- but the thought they'd wind up there hadn't crossed her mind. The most she thought of during the chase was that the road felt familiar and that she went around the winding driveway with ease. She hadn't thought much past that- she'd only passed through when she... they... were first here.
After a few shaking breaths, she managed to stand (with Rick's help) and she looked down at Brad's body again, this time with disgust on her face. She quickly thought of a few ways she could lighten the moment, but she realized after a moment that Rick would see through any of them, most likely. She knelt and took his feet (which were, thankfully still attached) to drag him down the hallway. Rick helped, and they made quick work of putting him in the room with Samantha. She closed the door probably a little more loudly than necessary and just stood there for a moment. She felt lightyears away, like she was re-living through everything that had happened.
Finally (thank God Rick could be patient at times), she said (truthfully), "I've done more than enough moping over this guy. Let's just check the rest of the house." She said this, but she knew there wouldn't be any others here. She was surprised Samantha hadn't left before she... well. What little was left of her face told the story when Lorna saw her the first time. She held up a glock and made her way back down the hallway and toward the kitchen where she recalled there was a door to the garage.
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Andy
Full Member
Rufus probably
rick gets all his ideas from the sorting hat's cousin - the bad advice bag
Posts: 119
active character(s): Rick
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 18:00:10 GMT -6
Post by Andy on Apr 11, 2015 18:00:10 GMT -6
Rick held her through it, waiting patiently until she tried to stand and then he stood up first, offering a hand he was surprised she took as he helped her the rest of the way up.
As expected of Lorna, once she had a hold of herself again, she rapidly got back to business, picking up her ex-husband's body and beginning to drag it as though it was nothing special. Rick helped by lifting him up under the arms, carefully not to damage anything as Lorna lead the way back to the room she had fought the other one in. He had thought at the time maybe she had recognized that one, too, but hadn't questioned anything and still wasn't going to. Whatever the situation was between Lorna and these two deceased, it was probably better left unsaid and buried.
They put Brad's body down next to the other one, and if Lorna slammed the door a little aggressively on her way out, Rick didn't point it out.
Readying his crossbow again, Rick crept behind Lorna, wondering where she was leading them now that she seemed to remember exactly where every nook and cranny was in this place. It would serve them well, if any of the hoard outside decide to do some further investigating of this place instead of simply passing by.
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 18:48:10 GMT -6
Post by ashestoApples on Apr 11, 2015 18:48:10 GMT -6
After peeking in the garage and examining the kitchen for anything sort of alive, Lorna nodded at Rick in a 'yeah this place seems alright' kind of way. After their many escapades, though, Lorna realized that neither of them had eaten all day and the food was in the car. She glanced through the slats of one of the windows to see walkers upon walkers just now getting into the yard.
"What do you think about food?" she asked. "I probably have something around here..." she started rifling through her pockets and found herself rather fruitless. No, really, what happened to her dried fruit??? She did find a few granola bars and some peanuts, but that didn't look like enough.
She glanced at the kitchen and supposed they could try some cabinets or something.
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Andy
Full Member
Rufus probably
rick gets all his ideas from the sorting hat's cousin - the bad advice bag
Posts: 119
active character(s): Rick
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 19:07:12 GMT -6
Post by Andy on Apr 11, 2015 19:07:12 GMT -6
"Can we risk it?" He jutted his head towards the window Lorna had so recently peeked out of. She showed him her meager offering of nuts and granola bars, and at the sight of food, Rick's stomach reminded him of the predicament they were in by grumbling loudly. He shoved his hands over it, as though that would stop the sound, and decided to hell with it, might as well check.
Peeking inside the cabinets that were higher up than Lorna could reach easily, Rick found a whole lot of stuff that was either inedible in its current state, or inedible period. He stood back, hoping Lorna had better luck as she sorted through the lower cabinets, kneeling on the floor. He may or may not have been enjoying the view as Lorna had to crawl partially inside one cabinet, pulling herself back out with a tiny, triumphant 'aha!' as she held up two cans of beans.
Rick made a face, furrowing his brows together. Lorna shot him a look back, eyebrows coming down and mouth pulling down into a frown. He understood the non-verbal communication, and though he wasn't happy about it, he had to admit they didn't have any other choice. Sticking his tongue out childishly, he took a can from her and removed the small knife from his boot. It wasn't as sharp or as sturdy as Lorna's, but this one hadn't so recently been crammed inside the eye socket of one of the infected, so they both silently agreed it was a better choice.
Jamming it into the top of one can, he did his best to saw a slit into it until he could get a corner of the lid to lift up, enough to fit a utensil inside. Thinking of it, Rick handed the knife and the second can off to Lorna, as he fished through the drawers for something to eat with besides their hands. He came back with two spoons, one already shoved into his own as he offered the other one to Lorna, who had opened her can much in a similar manner to his.
"Lunch of champions." Rick mumbled as they ate, "Or is it dinner time now?"
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 19:14:43 GMT -6
Post by ashestoApples on Apr 11, 2015 19:14:43 GMT -6
Lorna wasn't really sure if it was lunch or dinner anymore. She glanced through the slits in the windows. "It's evening at least," she said after a moment. She ate basically in silence-- they didn't need many words in the first place, but even beside that she had a lot on her mind.
"I think Brad hated my eye," she said randomly as she ate. "He never said it, but it was... kind of implied." She said this all matter-of-factly. It wasn't a big deal to her, and she even chuckled. "What a baby," she said before eating another bite. "But it is pretty nasty, to be fair. War scars aren't for everyone." She didn't know why she was saying anything, really, but eh.
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Andy
Full Member
Rufus probably
rick gets all his ideas from the sorting hat's cousin - the bad advice bag
Posts: 119
active character(s): Rick
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 19:23:32 GMT -6
Post by Andy on Apr 11, 2015 19:23:32 GMT -6
"Mmm." Rick murmured through a mouthful of beans. If it was in reply to Lorna or in regards to the taste of their cold meal, it wasn't clear.
He slowed down in his shoveling of food into his mouth as Lorna began speaking, raising his eyebrows as she spoke so candidly about her late ex. Again, he didn't know the time frame of how... everything, whatever it all was, went down, but that just made him even more uneasy about how carefully he needed to tread the subject. Would it be offensive to agree her ex was a whiny man-child if he really had such a problem with his military wife's war scars?
"Children can be fussy like dat." He teased gently, popping another spoonful of beans into his mouth. "Did ya have ta change his diaper often, or did he only really wet himself when ya talked 'bout bein' in da trenches?"
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 19:27:18 GMT -6
Post by ashestoApples on Apr 11, 2015 19:27:18 GMT -6
Lorna managed a chuckle between spoonfuls. "He didn't like my other scars either- and I have plenty of them. Actually now that I think about it, he didn't like my tattoos or stretch marks either. He was just a baby." She nodded solemnly as she ate.
"He could cook though, which is good considering I really, really can't." She was exaggerating, but not a lot. "Nnnnot that that matters much now!" She shook her head as she looked around.
"You were married too, right?" she asked- even though she knew. "How was that, if you don't mind me asking?" She honestly figured he did mind, but she wouldn't pry if he said so.
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Andy
Full Member
Rufus probably
rick gets all his ideas from the sorting hat's cousin - the bad advice bag
Posts: 119
active character(s): Rick
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 19:43:07 GMT -6
Post by Andy on Apr 11, 2015 19:43:07 GMT -6
Rick's eyebrows were crawling further up his forehead as she spoke. Lorna had been married to someone who didn't even appreciate the fact that she was like... like a battle warrior maiden? How did THAT happen? Also, wait, tattoos? Lorna had tattoos? When did she get them, how many, and most importantly, where were they? He belatedly realized he was clutching his can of beans, spoon kept inside of his mouth, and staring at Lorna as she spoke instead of, uhm, looking normal. As close to normal as he could get, anyway. He got back to shoving food inside his mouth, probably a little too fast to look casual about it, when Lorna posed the question about his own marriage, and he froze. It was just for a second, but it was long enough of a stutter in his movements for Lorna to have noticed, and now she was raising a curious eyebrow at him as he tried to ignore the fact he had given himself away. "I don't think it's fair'a me to say a lot about it..." He tried to think of the best way to explain it. "I mean, I don't..." He reached up, poking the spot over his forehead, underneath which there supposedly was the tumor that had changed his life in more ways than one. "I don't 'xactly remember everythin' . I used ta be... different." He shrugged, trying to pass it off like it was no big deal. "We were married back den. She left when..." He frowned, staring hard at the floor. "At least I can cook." He stated suddenly, before looking at Lorna. "And yer really, incredibly hot, regardless a' what some dumb man-child thought'a yer scars n' tattoos n' stretch marks. So fuck 'em."
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 19:49:46 GMT -6
Post by ashestoApples on Apr 11, 2015 19:49:46 GMT -6
Lorna didn't know what she'd expected. But how much did he remember? She wanted to ask, and also really, really didn't want to ask. It balanced out enough that she just passively decided to ask later.
When he went into the other stuff though, well, she rolled her eyes but she found she wasn't as into the eyeroll as normal. She couldn't really sell it.
"I appreciate what you're saying, but you don't have to try to make me feel better," she sighed. "I know my scars are pretty intense. It's like when you play a Bioware game and have to pick the intensity of the scar. Brad did that once and upped the intensity all the way and was like 'There ya' are, Lor!' and I did laugh, because it was true."
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Andy
Full Member
Rufus probably
rick gets all his ideas from the sorting hat's cousin - the bad advice bag
Posts: 119
active character(s): Rick
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Servo
Apr 11, 2015 19:56:57 GMT -6
Post by Andy on Apr 11, 2015 19:56:57 GMT -6
"Hey now, are ya callin' me a liar when I remark on a lady's beauty?" Rick asked in mock offense, one hand coming up to his chest while the other extended dramatically. This had the unfortunate side effect of spilling some of his beans, but he didn't worry about it too much.
"I would never lie 'bout dat. How dare ya. Do I look like da kinda man who can't appreciate..."
At this, he held both his hands up, squinting one eye shut as though picturing a masterpiece before tracing Lorna's figure in the air. It wasn't quite an hourglass shape, since her hips would never allow for such a thing, but the point remained. He waggled his eyebrows lasciviously, a wide grin painted across his lips.
"... All o' dat?"
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