riptide pt 2.— [fly o'malley/alex pepperwood]

[Deleted]

{

}

Chickens have always hated me despite me never doing anything to them. At first I just thought it was our chickens. That our chickens were ungrateful and lashing out at the one person who took care of them. However, my current predicament was proving otherwise. Though, maybe it was fate. Maybe the chickens wanted this to happen. Maybe they knew I was having such a hard time coping with Thad's death. Maybe this girl was having a hard time too.

Let me start back at the beginning. Our district was selected as a "county fair" to host members of districts Eleven and Nine for a few weeks. At first, I wasn't interested but Quinn made me sign up for a few events regardless. Well, I wanted to see what all the buzz was about. As I was headed to the fairgrounds, it happened. I was speaking to someone who lived right by the fairgrounds when the latch for their chickens broke and all at once their chickens came out.

The chickens had death in their eyes and they set their sights on me. All at once the beasts began to swarm me and I ran. There was nothing else I could do at the time. Luckily, the owner managed to round up the majority so I only had about five chasing me by the time I actually left their property. I made sure to make a mental note to myself to try to return the chickens once they calmed down, if they calmed down.

Maybe I could've taken them on, but I was worried about hurting them, Though, with every peck of my heels the urge to just stomp on one was growing and growing. Is this how they did it? Thad? Evan? Six? Did they just keep taking the hits from the mutts and other tributes until it became too much and they were forced to fight back? Would I ever be put in that situation? I prayed not.

But then it happened. Lost in my thoughts and focusing on trying to get the chickens to fuck off, I crashed into a girl near the camp sites. I fell to the ground as I smacked into her and the chickens began to peck my hands and legs rather than just the back of my heels. But right now I wasn't focused on them. I felt sort of bad for crashing into her. Especially over some damn birds. 

But when I looked at her, she felt familiar in a weird way. Like I had known her long ago or as though she was someone I had once seen in a dream. Plus, she was pretty dang cute. She had really pretty eyes and her hair was like fire dancing across her shoulders. I scrambled to get up, not wanting to embarrass myself further in front of the pretty girl as the chickens continued to attack me.

"Sorry about that, I'm Alexander. But, a girl as pretty as you can call me Alex."

alexander ‘alex’ pepperwood

[ table by ulla ]

[djed carnelian . d8m [kap]]

Fly O'Malley

I said it time and time again, and I don't think it'll ever change: I want to help people. It's always been my dream. I want to be a superhero, basically, just without the special powers. I want to be the person who saves those in need, and does whatever I can, big or small, to make a difference.

Just thinking about it wouldn't make a difference in anything, though. I had to actually take action one of these days.

-----

When I was walking around near the cabins, an opportunity presented itself. A boy being chased by chickens crashed into me, falling to the ground, yet somehow I managed to stay on my feet. For a moment, the chickens that had been in pursuit of the boy were pecking at his legs, before he managed to get himself to his feet. I shooed the chickens away, and when all had left but one, I picked up the final bird and moved it, setting it away from us. It then wandered off.

I turned back to the boy. He was about my age, and pretty good-looking. There was something different about him, too, and it was strangely comforting. It was like we were both supposed to meet here, for some reason. There was something divine about this meeting, no matter how strange that sounds. I could just feel it. This was meant to happen, and now it did.

He apologized and introduced himself. He'd also called me pretty, which caused a red blush to rush to my cheeks. I smiled slightly and looked to the ground for a moment to allow the redness of my face to fade. Then, I looked back up at him.

"It's nice to meet you, Alex. I'm Fly O'Malley, here to help!" I gave a joking salute and a big smile, following by a silly laugh. I was so happy to have been able to save him. It made me feel like I was worth something more, even though I hadn't been able to help Six.

[Deleted]

{

}

The girl shooed away the chickens and for some reason they actually listened to her. For a moment I was worried about returning them to the owner, but they were close enough to home it would probably be fine. At least I hoped that it would be fine. If not, maybe the chickens shouldn't have chased me, Besides, there were plenty of stray farm animals running around the district ranging from bunnies to the occasional sheep.

After I called her pretty, her face matched her hair. And not only that, she kept talking to me! Does she think I'm cute? I wish Harmon was here, he'd be able to tell me what my next move should be. He's really cool and doesn't even stress about talking to girls. Wait, does he ever stress about anything?

Once she said her name, it took me a moment to process it. But then, I froze and my breath hitched. O'Malley. Red hair. She's near the cabins so she's probably either from Eleven or Nine. What are the chances that she's related to Six? What are the chances the strange feeling in my chest was our brothers wanting us to meet? To say all of the things they never could?

Maybe I should have left it alone. I was having a nice time talking to a beautiful girl, one who actually seemed to like me too. What if I messed it up? Well, if she truly was from Eleven I'd probably never be able to see her again. And if Thad was telling me to do this, I couldn't let him down. He died for us. I could talk to a girl for him.

"O'Malley? I'm sorry, I know you probably have been getting this a lot. But are you related to Six? I- My brother is Thad Pepperwood. They were friends"

The name Thad Pepperwood hung in the air for a moment. And I couldn't look at her. I was still processing his death, still trying to figure out life without my brother. And here was a reminder of not just his death, but the cause of it. And what if it was just a coincidence? What if she wasn't related to Six at all? What if she's having a harder time with her brothers death than I am? All risks I'd have to take for Thad.

alexander ‘alex’ pepperwood

[ table by ulla ]

[djed carnelian . d8m [kap]]

Fly O'Malley

The tone of the conversation completely shifted. Alex froze when I introduced myself, and then managed to speak a moment or so afterwards. He brought up my name, O'Malley, and I realized that that wasn't really a name to just throw around anymore. It was important now. All of us in the O'Malley family were important now, and we were bound to have our names recognized.

Most of us didn't have our names recognized much at all before the Eighty-Eighth Games, even though one of our way-far-back ancestors was in one of the very first Hunger Games. I suppose that's because a lot of people around the District, especially the lower districts, aren't big into the history of the Hunger Games.

My new acquaintance commented that I was probably getting this a lot, but actually, it was the first time I'd heard it since arriving in Ten: he wanted to know if I was related to Six. Back home, most people didn't have to ask, as they already knew who I was and had seen me cry on the day of the reaping as my brother approached the stage. Rather, they sent their condolences instead.

When Alex mentioned that his brother was Thad Pepperwood, my heart stopped. I knew that name, and yes, they most certainly were friends. They'd protected each other, and Thad was with Six until he died. He fought to try to protect him until it was too late. I felt like I was in debt to Thad Pepperwood, and now, here was his brother, standing right in front of me after I'd saved him from some chickens.

"I- yes, Six is my brother," I said to him. I couldn't get myself to say was, even if Six was gone. He still is, my brother, whether he's with us or not. The past tense of saying he's my brother just doesn't feel right.

"Thad was so kind to him, and so helpful and... he was like a hero to me, protecting my brother in the arena. It means a lot. I know I can't thank him, but... can I hug you?" I asked Alex. I hoped he'd say yes. I was so grateful for his family that I wasn't even quite sure how to express it.

[Deleted]

{

}

Hearing her talk about how much Thad meant to her made me fill with emotions. He was a hero in my eyes too. And Six, Six did a lot for Thad. I remember thinking that if Six won instead of Thad, I wanted to give him the biggest hug, The way I saw it, if Thad considered him a brother, Six was a Pepperwood. I sorta saw parts of my brothers in Six too. He reminded me of Sammy, but he looked almost like a white version of me. But when he died? When he stood up to those careers and stood in front of Thad? That kind of bravery was some Harmon shit.

And so when she asked for a hug? I responded instantly. I wrapped my arms around her as tight as I could, gently stroking her hair with my hand. The red color of her hair was so pretty. Hugging her felt weird. Partly because of the fact she was a stranger, and partly because of what had happened in the Justice Building. I never got to hug Thad goodbye. I never got to feel the safeness of my oldest brother just one more time. And the realisation of that hit me all at once. I'm cool and I'm a man, so only a couple of tears escaped out of my eyes which I brushed away before she could see.

After a long moment I let go of her, taking a deep breath to make sure I wouldn't cry more than I already had. Then suddenly, I had an idea. We could both use a distraction from our brothers, so why not have some fun with it? It was too late to do any events this week together, but I could do something next week while she was still in the district. Besides, at this rate I'm never going to ask Quinn out. And if anything goes wrong with Fly I'd never have to see her again. Yup, I decided. I'm going to ask Fly O'Malley out on a date.

"Fly, next week there's a pumpkin carving event. Did you want to go on a date to that? Like with me? If you aren't busy? And if you like like me because I like you and I just feel like it would be fun but if you don't like me you don't have to go-"


Fuck I was rambling, someone shut me up please.

alexander ‘alex’ pepperwood

[ table by ulla ]

[djed carnelian . d8m [kap]]

Fly O'Malley

When I had asked Alex for a hug, I honestly hadn't expected such an immediate response, but it made me really happy to be wrapped in his arms for those couple of moments. I know that probably sounds weird, seeing as I just met the guy, but really, it was comforting and it made me happy.

Perhaps it was the fact that he stroked my hair with his hand, but it just felt right, ya know? He was so kind. He was so gentle, and he actually seemed like he cared about me, even barely having known me for more than a minute or so.

After we released one another from the hugging embrace, Alex spoke up. He was asking me out on a date! He wanted to go to the pumpkin carving event with me. It was going to be a real, actual date! I was so excited!

A broad smile made its way across my face.

"I would love to, Alex! You seem like a really awesome guy. Going on a date with you would be the best! I hope you don't mind, but I think I talk a little bit too much sometimes, so if I get too talkative on our date, feel free to ask me to be quiet or something. I won't be offended. I know I tend to rant and ramble a lot." I paused for a moment. "Oh geez, I'm doing that now... I'm sorry."

My smile faded only for a moment before returning when I spoke again.

"I can't wait!"

[Deleted]

{

}

After Thad had died, I made sure to hug people more often. I never got to hug him. So every night I went around the house and hugged all of the Pepperwoods goodnight. You just never know when something will change forever. I also started telling my family I loved them more. It always seemed like something that went without saying, but now I needed to be certain. I hope that Thad knows we all love him, I hope he died knowing how loved he was and still is.

For a second, Fly didn't remind me of a girl. I didn't have trouble talking to her and didn't feel stressed. Until she agreed to the date. Then it became painfully obvious that she was in fact a girl. It also meant that I had a date with a girl! Being such a cool guy you'd think I'd get dates with girls all the time, but no amount of coolness helps with talking to them. I honestly don't know how Thad and Harmon do it.

When she spoke, it was honestly pretty adorable. She seemed so excited - about a date with me of all people. I considered telling Quinn, but a voice in my head told me not to. And I wasn't sure how any of my brothers would react considering who her family was, so I decided I'd try to keep it as secret as possible. Besides, I had other things to worry about.

Would my hair be manageable in time? What would I wear? Should I meet her at the camping area and surprise her and walk her there, or should I just see her at the pumpkin carving? And what would her family think of me? I heard something about them being hella religious. Did they frown upon dating before marriage?

But, I didn't let any of that come out of my mouth in my response. After all, she thought I was cool, charming, and handsome. Which, I am all three of those things, but I still didn't want to risk my street cred by bringing any of that up. I gently moved a strand of hair behind her ear - all of the cool guys do it in movies - as I talked to her.

"Maybe I like listening to you talk, Fly... Do you like ice cream? There's an ice cream place here, it's pretty cool I guess."

alexander ‘alex’ pepperwood

[ table by ulla ]