The Selection Role~Play discussion

http://imagesus.homeaway.com/mda01/94...

Ten minutes before dinner
Eli bounded into his room and immediately began throwing off his clothes. After Jamie and Maya left, he had to hide in a pantry for an hour and a half till Barry had a chance to sneak him back to his room. If he was going to take another stroll in the garden, he’d have to be much more slick about it. Actually, he might not be able to until the selected leave. Internally he groaned. How long could a person go without sunshine before they withered up and died? He went into the bathroom and took a moment to look himself over; Mrs. Tinsley hadn’t been joking when she said he was a mess. His hair was disheveled all over the place, with bit of twig stuck in it. Although it was small enough Jamie probably didn’t notice it, no doubt Mrs. Tinsley had though. He examined his muscled chest and noticed he had a purple burse on his side; he must have gotten it one of the times he dived into the bushes. It was going to be sore for a couple of days. He got into the shower and bent his head under the water. His 6’2 height was too tall for him to just stand under the shower head. The water was painfully refreshing. Eli could have stayed there for hours, but he knew his time was short. After quickly washing his hair, Eli got out of the shower and used a towel to soak up the water in his hair. He resisted the urge to rub it, but his best friend back home told him that could make you go bald. It took him a moment to remember he had left his comb on his night stand, so he went out in his room and grabbed it, effectively combing his hair to the side. Then he dug through his closet and tried to find his spare pants and undershirt. If only he was a selected, then he could have a maid lay out his uniform for him. Finally, he found them and he was able to throw his uniform on. Normally, Eli dressed much faster, but his side ached every time he turned it. Eli looked himself over in the mirror on the bathroom door to make sure his uniform had no wrinkles or stains. Perfect. He ran out the door, the image of a handsome solider, toward the dining hall; wondering if he could sneak a word in with Jamie or Maya, make sure they had made it back okay.

(He's in the guard's lounge area aka the guard's quarters)

Almost breaking the door, Eli slammed into his room and ran right for the bathroom. He ripped off his clothes except for his boxers, and then quickly splashed water on his face. His heart beat was through the roof, and only sped up when he saw the small four pointed star shaped scar on his right shoulder blade.

Flashback
*Poke*
“Argh! Stop that Claire!”
The little girl giggled and sat next to six year old Eli. His hair was sticking out in every direction; being a six year-old meant the abilities of a comb were beyond his comprehension. Cool water swirled around his feet as he kicked them back and forth in the lake.
“Why you always so moody Eli?” She was still giggling between every couple of words.
“It’s Elliot. And I’m moody because I have to hang out with you.” Elliot stuck his tongue out her.
Claire turned her head so he wouldn’t see her lip tremble. She loved Elliot; he was her best friend for as long as she could remember. Course, Elliot didn’t really see it that way it seems. Their parents went to school together, both their mommies getting pregnant at the same time. Play dates together had started in the crib.
“You’re a meanie Eli!” Dipping her hand in the water, she lifted it with enough momentum to hit Eli right in the face. He looked back at her with storm gray specks threatening to consume the sky blue of his eyes.
“Then why don’t you leave me alone?” The grumble of his voice sounded like thunder.
“Fine!” Claire leapt up and turned away in a dramatic fashion, her long raven curls flying around her face. She fumed into the woods.
A scowl plastered Elliot’s face. He didn’t hate Claire, he actually loved her very much too. She was always there for him. Without her, who would he share his cookies with? Even though he knew he was acting like a baby, he just wanted to be alone.
The boys had been picking on him for the entire trip. It was a school trip and they were supposed to go canoeing and white-water rafting, but there was something different about the lake waters compared to the ocean. It was muggy and Elliot didn’t trust what he couldn’t see. So, when the teacher took them out on the first day to go rafting, Elliot played sick and stayed in his cabin. The other boys knew what was going on though, they could sense his fear.
“Being afraid is good for a man.” Elliot could hear his father say in his head. This was a common line said around the house. I’m six years old! I’m not gonna be a man for another three years probably, how’s that going to help me?
He was a sensible child, only talking when he had to. The only time he let go of reality was in the ocean. Claire always teased his moodiness, saying he was like playing with an old man. His scowl deepened on his face thinking about it and he could hear his mother in his head saying, “If you keep that expression long enough on your face, it’s going to get stuck like that.”
“Whatever mommy,” Elliot said to himself.
Then he heard the scream. It was high-pitched and girly, clearly belonging to Claire. Eli jumped to his feet and ran barefoot in the direction it came from. The forest cleared out leading to a cliff. There dangling from the edge, was Claire.
Her green eyes were streaming with tears, sobs breaking out between her cries for help. Eli ran over and grabbed hold of both her wrists. Before pulling her up, he looked over the cliff and felt vertigo. There was the gushing rapids, white foam beating against rocks. For a moment he was frozen, unable to move. Then he heard Claire yelp, “Help me Elliot!” And he began to pull again. But, the rocks broke beneath his feet, and they both fell to the rushing waters.
If only he had pulled her up right away.

End flashback

((*evil grin* all will be revealed in time...did you like it? I'd kind of like feedback for the long posts like these.)

(trying to, I'd like to be a writer.)

Barry walked into Eli's room without knocking. He found him on his bed, with his legs curled because if he stressed them out they went over the edge. Immediately Barry could tell something was wrong; Eli just lied staring at the wall.
"What's going on kid?"
Slowly Eli turned his towards Barry, then he dropped it back on his pillow and closed his eyes.
The chef's head felt nauseous when he looked around the room, it wasn't humane to not have at least a window in your room.
"You wanna talk about it Eli?"

Words couldn't escape Eli's lips. He felt drained and was unable to remove the clasp around his heart. No, he didn't want to talk about it. No matter how many years went by, he'd never forgive himself for what happened. It was his secret to keep, to hold onto as a way to make himself a better person. Eli decided to change the subject.
"Where's my jacket?"
Barry sighed, not knowing what to do. This was Mrs. Tinsley's territory. Where was the jacket? Was it still on the kitchen floor? He'd check when he got back. Right now, Eli needed to go make things right with Jamie, it wasn't often he made real friends. Yes, everyone wanted to be around him, but Eli rarely wanted to hang out around people his own age. Not at the palace at least. So Barry gave him a push in the right direction.
"Jamie has it. You should check on her."
"Jamie?" Eli asked. Oh yeah, she fainted. He lifted himself up with one elbow, "Is she okay?"
"Find out for yourself kid, I have to go make dinner." Barry turned on the light, making it impossible for Eli to stay in bed, then he threw his casual clothes at him and told him to get dressed. With a wave, Barry left the room.
As a way to escape the cold, Eli put the clothes on. It was a pair of green corduroy shorts, a dark violet t-shirt, and flip-flops. He’d use the servants’ passages to get to Jamie’s room.

Kicking his flip-flops off and throwing his shirt somewhere around the room, he wasn't really aiming, Eli collapsed onto his bed. Pain was throbbing in his head, and the rest of his body felt numb. Unconsciously, he traced the scar on his shoulder, till he fell into a deep sleep.

Eli awoke on a simple cot. His eyes were not opened yet, but he could hear birds chirping outside his window. There was a piney smell in the air and light was creeping in from somewhere, probably a window. It didn’t take long for Eli to become aware of a searing pain in his arm. His eyes flew open and tried to get up. He looked at his right arm, his shirt was off, and it was covered from shoulder blade to hand in bandages. Suddenly the day’s events came rushing back at him. Claire! Despite the pain, Eli jumped out of bed; he could hear commotion in the room next door. He saw his mother on the blue sofa, crying her eyes out.
“Mom?” Eli asked. “What are you doing here? Where’s Claire?”
Eli’s mom wrapped him in her arms, “Oh Eli, sweetheart.”

His father came in next, from the small kitchen the kids weren't supposed to go into.
“Eli! Thank goodness you’re awake.” He rushed over and joined them in the hug.
“What’s going on? You’re scaring me…where’s where’s Claire?”
Eli’s father bent down on one knee, so he was eye level with Eli. He had dirty blonde hair and seawater blue eyes. Lightly, he put his hand on Eli’s left shoulder. “She’s gonna be okay Eli, we can save her.”
“Save her?” Eli’s voice broke, tears rimming at his eyes from what is father was telling him. “Where is she? Why won’t you tell me where she is? Is she in there?” Eli pointed to the kitchen, when his father’s eyes confirmed it he struggled out of his parents’ grip and ran in. There, lying on the metal counter table was Claire. Sweat clamped her dark brown curls to her face, and her entire left leg was covered in blood.
Shock prevented Eli from throwing up. His voice trembling he asked, “What’s wrong with her leg?”

Claire's father saw him and picked him up, taking him back outside, "You can't be in here Eli!"
"Answer my question!" Eli was screaming, snot and tears covering his face. "What's wrong with Claire? What happened to her?"
He put Eli down, tears in his own eyes. "You guys took a really bad fall. Claire's leg got hurt really badly kiddo, it needs surgery, but...we don't...we can't afford..." Her father broke in tears, sobbing uncontrollably; he hugged Eli tightly.
"Do you need money? I can give you money, I've been saving some in my piggy bank." His voice was in hysterics, Eli turned on his mother. "Mom! We have to go home right now, we have to get my piggy bank! Claire needs surgery, I have to help."
All the parents were crying now. "Oh sweetheart, it won't be enough...we're going to have to...it's the only way...we have to amputate her leg. She won't live otherwise; she's losing a lot of blood."
“Ampoo..amput..ampu what?”
“Claire’s going to lose her leg son.” It was harsh words, Eli’s father knew, but Eli needed to know the truth.
It turned out, the truth was too much for him. He looked back into the open kitchen door, saw Claire lying helpless on the table, and passed out.

When Eli awoke from his dream, for a moment he felt the pain from his injury all over again. Every time he dreamed about it, he woke up to his shoulder blade burning. It didn't take long for it to go away though.

He jumped into the shower to help wash away the day's stress. When he got out he stared at his closet for a half hour trying to decide what to wear. He didn't want to get back in uniform; he didn't want to get back into any clothes. Eli wanted nothing more than to put on his orange bathing suit and run to the sea. He needed a vacation. If he wasn't careful, stress could cause him to burn out.

Who was he supposed to ask for, for vacation time? Eli had never asked for a day off before. Maybe Thomas? A scowl scrunched up Eli's face thinking about the strict, grumpy, old man. It'll have to be someone else.

An idea struck him, what about the Queen? She seemed all upset over her son's crappy manners; she might be willing to give Eli a break. If only that dimwit had the sense to take a vacation at the beach himself. Eli was going to put his uniform on, but then he realized he didn't have his jacket. That was the main reason he went to see Jamie! Well, he wanted to know she was okay, but he has to have his jacket. He sighed. Regular clothes it is. Eli left the room and went straight for the King and Queen quarters, where he’d wait outside in the hallway, so he could “accidently” bump into the Queen.

Eli went straight to his closet. He was in as much a hurry to ditch the palace as Bella was. The bag he brought with him to training was on the top shelf, so he grabbed it and shoved everything he had that wasn't a uniform in. It wasn't much. Eli was actually concerned. He wasn't supposed to wear casual clothes, so he only had about three sets. That wouldn't last him two weeks. Plus, he needed a bathing suit. He'd have to go shopping there. With a final shove of his bathroom supplies, he strode out the door and towards the kitchen.

It took Eli several hours to get back to the palace. He was beyound done. With dealing with these people, with being a guard, with life in general. I want to go home. I need to go home now.

Eli rolled over in his sleep.

((He sleeps like a rock, she's going to have to go in. Also, did you see what I said about hints in the On or Off thread?))

"Eh? Wut? Leabe me lone Claire. Sleep now."

((Do you remember the conversation he had with Jamie about how old she was for instance? I'm pretty sure you had no idea why he was upset over her age.))

Eli opened an eye, peaking at her in the dark. "Who?" Then he remembered faintly that he had come back to the palace. "Oh, Jamie." He lifted himself up from bed and reached over to turn the light on. It was glaring to him. His chest was bare because he only slept in shorts, and he had bed head. He ran his hand through his hair, trying to wake himself up a little more; this made it even more messy.

"What's up?"

Realizing Jamie was upset, Eli did what he did best and comforted her. He held his arms open, "Hey come here."

((If you are wondering how Theo/Hayden feels about Jamie I just posted it.))

"Who?" asked Eli, completely confused.

((Haha they are the same person, but different kinds of people...It's complicated.))

"I love you Jamie." The words suprised Eli, but once he said them he knew they were true.

Eli blushed, suddenly afraid of rejection. "I said...um...Well I said that I love you." He laughed. "Now I'm the one stuttering. Never thought that would happen did you?"

His face fell. She didn't say I love you too, and Eli knew what that meant. "Boy, I really screwed up huh? If I had just...I should have tried to get you to like me instead of following the rules."

"I'm not sure what it means either but all I know is that when I'm with you I'm happy. We've been apart for a really long time and I've been miserable."

At first Eli didn't kiss back from shock, but it didn't take him long to lean in. He had been denying his feelings because Jamie was supposed to be with Aaron, but now that she wasn't in the selection anymore, there was nothing keeping them apart.

((I gotta ask, what's it feel like to be Bella or Katniss lol?))

((Uh, maybe I should point out that it's either late night or early morning, they're in Eli's bed, and he isn't wearing a shirt.))

Eli moved on top of Jamie, placing his hand on her waist. He was unaware of anything but her. All he wanted was to take all of her pain away and to get her to love him back. Really love him.

((Are you still there?))

He moved from her lips to her neck. Eli definitely wasn't tired anymore.

Eli ignored her and moved back to her lips. In between kisses he told her, "I think you should let them sleep a little longer."

He smiled at her sheepishly. "Okay, but we should have lunch together. Can you at least promise me that? I'm still technically on break, I'm just here in case there's a security breach again."

Eli frowned; eating with Barry didn't sound very romantic. "Why don't you meet me in the garden? By that fountain I showed you and Maya."

((I'm pretty sure it was a fountain, but I could be wrong...))

When Jamie left, Eli took a shower and then put on a pair of light blue jeans and a navy sweater. Then he went to the kitchen to plan with Barry.