Cities of Dust (SugarPlumCoatedGun x Lotherio)

As he sped off into the setting sunlight, Jimmy was chastising himself not to be stupid. He knew she was trouble. She was a Falcon, he was Skeleton Crew. His front wheel led him to a old brick home in the city he had found while scavenging while he struggled with it all. As he put the bike into the front small front yard, raised some 3’ off street level, he paid attention to the surrounding few homes and crumbling city buildings. Slightly distracted he was still sure he was alone and went in, this was his private sanctuary. It had been looted and desecrated, a hollow shell with broken windows, walls tore down to the exposed boards underneath, and holes in the floor. In the basement, it would seem generations ago when the atomic age existed and people were frightened after the first atomic was used, this home owner had made a bomb shelter. Jimmy had the key, he kept his private stock here, the stuff he found himself that he didn’t want to share with his gang.

That wasn’t his intention, rather he took time to climb up to the second floor of the old building. Barren as well, sometimes he came here to think about life before all this, how it would be to live in this home when everything was here. It was so comfortable he had it furnished down to the smallest of picture frames on end tables and fixtures on the wall outlets. Tonight in his silent thoughts, Lexi was here with him. Looking out at the yellow horizon, through the city, he could still smell her in his memories. Then he hated himself for falling like this, people were baggage, extra weight. They were needed to an extent, but they couldn’t be trusted. They only brought hurt and pain, while suffering followed any interaction between two people since the world fell apart for him.

As purple stretched further across the sky above, Jimmy went up to the attic level of the old city manse. Up here in one small alcove, under a shallow v-slanted roof, was the remnant of a small stained class window. No particular design other than circular geometry. Most the panes of glass were missing when he found it original, but since, he’d broken out the rest himself. There were still a few left. Choosing carefully, he selected one that was somewhere between vibrant orange and deep red. That one he knocked out. Somewhere in his mind it was metaphorical, either humanity lost, or friends, or both. When the last one was broken, he knew he couldn’t put up with the city anymore. After which, he put the emblem back on his jacket and tied down the cloth

He returned to the Westover Academy and the Skeleton Crew, there he remained indifferent. He went to his room where, barren walls but a metal frame bed with something like a mattress for him to sleep on. The noise from the rest of the guys and gals enjoying the night was more than he cared for and he took out his current music device and plugged it into his ears. Drowning it all as he fell asleep.

The next day he remained distant, had a brief encounter with Darren, the current group leader. They were friends before all this and it afforded Jimmy an honorary position so to speak. He could have been second in command if he had wanted it, but he needed his own space. Darren respected it so long as he would help when needed, and he’d done just that before. They spoke about his distance, Jimmy gave him the supplies the Skeleton Crew needed. He’d left the gas at the compound supply center last night along with some salvaged food in wrappers. Jimmy explained he needed time to clear his head and he was going over to the old Canal, that part of the city where gangs didn’t fight. After that, he’d come back see what was needed, if he needed to scavenge some more.

The next day he went to the first place he told her she would be at. Sergio’s was a dive of corrugated steel, thrown together ramshackle. The sunroof wasn’t so much made to accentuate the interior as it was just holes in the steel roof. He kept a clean floor where he served mostly clean water and other drinks from a small bar, behind which were shelves covered with knick knack and bric-a-brac. Stuff that may have meant more before it all, but now it was just memories. Items that needed batteries that had long since died, broken picture frames with people no longer living in the frame, half books, computer parts, things that looked good but had ceased to function.

Only a few friends of Sergio were given access to the back, which was nothing more than a small yard which served almost like an outdoor patio at a restaurant. A few tables, some sheds for storage, a gate to a back alley, that sort of stuff. Jimmy found a table here, close to the wall bordering the main area of this hub of activity. Outside was nearly a bazaar since the apocalypse, shops and traders, venders and beggars all. Here, Jimmy could enjoy the relative quiet while still eavesdropping on the activity outside. Quietly he sat with a clear drink, perhaps water, and waited, part of him hopeless.

Apparently she had fallen asleep as when she opened her eyes it was bright again; it looked even hotter then the day before. Another thing she noted was that James was no longer lead behind her, so Lexi rolled onto her back to look around the office. The male was stood with his back to her, pulling a clean shirt over his head before tugging it down his body. She lay there for a moment, her bright eyes watching his back until he turned around to look at her causing her to sit up immidately. "Morning, Sugar. Get ready, we're heading out." The red head gave him a small nod before pushing to stand up, still in the clothes she'd worn yesterday. She waited for the male to leave the room before stretching and giving a quick yawn as she made her way over towards the bag she'd deposited on the desk recently.

Her ears picked up the noise from the other gang members playing around and laughing as if they were as care free as a bee but she could only hope they weren't so blind. Opening the bag, Alexis pulled out a set of underwear she had looted before meeting Jimmy and she laid it on the table, giving it a thoughtful hum before start to strip off. She pulled off her red vest top and tossed it onto the floor, slipped off the denim shorts before placing them on the desk and slipped off her boots, which she had also slept in. By the time she'd thought about taking off her clothes to sleep she was already dormant. She reached behind her, unclipping her bra before tugging it down her arms and discarding it on the ground and she did the same with the matching panties. Picking up the clean underwear, she brushed them off a little and then slid them up her thighs before putting the matching bra on and clipping it up. The underwear was a soild baby blue colour with a layer of white, see-through lace over the top to give it a more detailed look.

Just as she was slipping on her denim shorts again, James burst through the door and looked her up and down as she fumbled with her zipper. She noticed he had some sort of material clenched in his hand and without anymore delay he tossed it at her. "Wear this." The red head caught it with both hands and held it out in front of her, raising an eyebrow at the top. It was cut off half way, so it would reveal her stomach, and it was long sleeved and looked like it would hang down her shoulders a bit. Lexi frowned before glancing up at James. "Fine." Turning, as if she had to hide her body from him to keep her pride, she slipped the thin material over her head and stretched her arms into the sleeves. It cut off just under her chest and she tugged it down a little, frowning at her exposed stomach. The top did indeed hang just under her shoulders and she wondered why the other wanted to show off her body like she was. Shrugging a little, the girl slipped on her cowboy boots again and grabbed the jacket from the desktop, which she slipped on before untucking her hair to allow it to fall down her back like a firey waterfall.

James stepped over towards her silently, his eyes unblinking as he paused in front of her; she didn't flinch, nor did she step away as he stopped. Her bright eyes stared up at him blankly and she waited for him to move before she did. He simply grabbed the bag and emptied it onto the wooden surface before turning towards the door, beckoning her to follow; which she did. Once outside the office, she was greeted by a few girls and one grabbed her hand, tugging her along to a small, less dirty room where Mandy was currently being housed. She stepped in, gave her a quick check over and then stepped out again, following James as him and some of the boys started out of the main door to head to their destination. As far as she knew, they were heading to a netruel area to trade and so she supposed it would be the centre of the city; it wasn't far from anywhere and the many gangs could reach without much of a hike.

It took around twenty minutes to reach their destination and once they were they, they knew it. It wasn't quite as busy as the world used to be, but people were bustling around, buying and trading, begging and stealing. Lexi paused when the other's did and she caught them talking about where they were going to start. "I'm gonna go take a look there. If you need me, just call." Without a glance to James and without waiting for him to give her permission, she head towards a shack that looked a little worse for wear. She stepped inside and glanced around, suprised at how clean things were inside, and she stepped towards the make-shift counter where a large man was stood behind with a less then happy expression on his features. "Hello. I'm supposed to be meeting Jimmy here, well, he told me he'd be here sometimes, in the back?" The red head waited as he looked her up and down before speaking in a deep, husky voice. "You're a Falcon?" Lexi gave a simple, sharp nod to answer his question and he gave a rumbling laugh before gesturing with his thumb to the door that could only lead out the back. Frowning, Lexi paused for a moment before taking a few steps towards the door, pushing it carefully before stepping into the small area behind the store.

Hopelessness washed away when she stepped back into his life, the reaction from Jimmy was nothing less than short of his nick name. His eyes noticed her and then, the noticed her. The first look saw her come in while the second took all of her in, from familiar boots to the new shirt, and most of all the flame of hair atop her head and her eyes. The silence in him was akin to a jaw dropping before he caught himself just looking and managed to stand up. “Forgive me for saying this is a surprise,” he said, surprised before moving closer to her. Then he caught himself, she was out here but that didn’t mean her friends weren’t close. He trusted she’d come in her alone so he moved closer again.

“A happy surprise though,” with a genuine smile even, “I could use more surprises like this.” These days being the ones were he forgets everything he hated and can really be just happy. His outfit wasn’t much different, just a new clean t-shirt, less worn pants, same boots and jacket. He paused and wrung his hands a moment, as if merely thankful that she arrived. “I want to bury my head in that hair of yours, but I’m wondering if that would make me seem like a fool.” That was the sort of thing two loved ones did when they hadn’t seen each other after months or longer, such as lovers reunited after being separated by war, by real space like oceans, that sort of stuff.

So, unsure, he stopped their to look into her eyes, standing in the middle of the rusty yard, barren of grass except the brown and slightly green weed grasses that thrived on anything but healthy air and water. A laugh rose in the bazaar outside, but that the distrusting laugh of haggling before it died down into the din of noise out there. Meanwhile, in the yard, it was just him and her for the moment, business being slow at this time of day. Then thinking all the talk was making him sound more foolish than anything else, he finished crossing the yard and hugged her.

The expression on her face changed automatically as her bright eyes caught sight of him, sat there looking suprised. A smile spread across her pale features when she saw him, a difference to the hard and blank one she was wearing upon stepping into the small yard. She paused just in front of the door as it shut, her hands falling to her side as she raised an eyebrow at his speculation. The girl watched him stand and listened to his words before parting her own lips to speak, her own suprise seeping through. "Is it really that much of a suprise?"

When Jimmy confirmed it was not a bad suprise, she folded her arms across her chest, not taking any steps forwards to greet him like she wanted to. "I hope you get used to them then, I'm sure I'll be seeing you every now and again." Her tone was cheeky as she took a few steps forwards towards his table, her boots silent against the weedy ground. When he spoke again, she paused and tilted her head a little, moving a hand up to pulled all of her hair around her neck and over one shoulder, as if offering it to him. "You're not a fool." Her voice was stronger and certain as she truely believed those words she spoke.

Blue hues were fixed on him as he remained standing there and she thought for a moment that he wasn't going to make any physical contact with her at all. In the front of the store, it was rather noisy; people chatting and bargening with each other, but it was unusually quiet that morning. She wasn't sure how long she would get with him, having been brought along by James, so just as she was about to step forwards the male moved and she hulted again, waiting for him to cross the yard and reach her. As his arms encased her, her own wrapped around him and she pushed up onto her tip toes to give him a quick peck on his jaw line, just under his cheek. "It's nice to see you again." She mumbled, hugging him a little tighter as her eyes closed just as tightly; being with him made her forget and that was something she looked forwards to almost as much as Jimmy himself.

“You’re right,” he said quietly into their embrace, “I can get used to these surprises.” Then Jimmy held her a moment longer before pulling his head up enough to look down at her again. “I’m still amazed at how beautiful you are, to be honest. But I’m curious, I mean, you had me with the shorts but this shirt now? I hate to say it but, you know,” and then he spoke out of the corner of his mouth in a stage whisper, “This is the apocalypse, you know, we’re trying to survive and you’re here looking all sexy.”

He chuckled at the thought, though he was really curious. She would of looked good in anything really, including full on survival gear – the sort of stuff the wasteland wanders tend to wear. Those in the city tended to stay put, but occasional some crazy would wander in from the barrens beyond the city, dust covered and war torn by the looks of it, but people were surviving out there somewhere. Just because it was more harsh outside the city didn’t mean living in the city was any less difficult. This only fueled Jimmy’s curiosity, he preferred dressing for comfort and protection it would seem.

Whether or not she answered his curiosity, he turned to his table, “I have some clean water, Sergio’s private stock even. Got a good deal on it, if you want some.” He waved a hand to the table if she was interested, but for the moment, he was simply enjoying standing with his arms around her, and hers about him. The offer was there but he wasn’t moving too much to go sit down and have conversations about the weather or whatever people talk about. It was a day to day world and right now in this moment, he was holding her again and all was right.

Lexi kept her eyes closed as his voice sounded in her ear amongst the light chattering and footsteps that echoed in the little space in front of the small shack. She pressed up onto her toes, pressing into his torso more before she felt his head lift from her shoulder. She allowed herself to lower back on the the heel of her boots and she glanced up at the male, her arms falling to her sides as he looked her up and down. She let a small smile pull at her lips as he complimanted her, but she could tell he felt something was a little odd. When he mentioned her choice of clothing, her hands digging into the leather jacket's pockets to pull the material over her stoamch while giving a gentle shrug and an akward sway from left to right. "It wasn't my choice. I was told to wear it. I'm the kind of girl to be...shown off, I guess." Again, Lexi gave a small shrug, her bright eyes staring off to the side.

Of course she knew this was a live or die situation, and if she had her way she'd been geared out in full on survival clothing. For some reason though, James always wanted her to dress up, to show off her body even in the kind of enviroment they lived in now. It was as if he was cussing at everyone who walked past her, as if he was basically saying an big 'Look what I've got' to anyone who's gaze would linger for more then a second.

As she heard him chuckle, she simply continued to look off to the side, trying to work out if he was offended by her lack of clothing or maybe he thought she was stupid for dressing in something so unprotective; as if she didn't value her life or something. Her arms briefly extended around him again as he mentioned water and she gave him curious look, one eyebrow raising as a cheeky grin gathered at her lips. "I'm alright thank you." The red head continued to look up to Jimmy for a moment before she lowered her head and rested her cheek against his chest, letting out a small sigh. It was incredible to think how different two people could be and the thought crossed her mind that she could just make a run for it, if only for a second, before she thought of the other's she'd be leaving behind.

[Bump?]