liamrussell (liamrussell) wrote in lemuriathreads, @ 2017-12-30 09:31:00 |
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The guard, or the man who dressed like a guard and moved like a guard but was clearly not a guard, only asked Liam a handful of questions between his cell and the airport. He answered as best he could - no, he didn’t have any controlled substances in his bag, as much as he would have liked some - no, he didn’t want to stop at his mother’s house for the rest of his belongings - no, he didn’t want to tell his parents some story of where he was going - let them think he’d been lost in the shuffle. He couldn’t imagine either of them would care very much. He put it all out of his mind - or tried to, as he watched New York fade away out of the window of the plane on which he was the only passenger. The last year already seemed like a dream - or a nightmare, but unreal all the same. Strange that whatever was ahead already seemed more real than anything he had left behind. By the time the submarine docked on Lemuria, however, the wistfulness he had begun the day with had faded considerably. He stepped onto dry land surrounded by a crowd of other wide-eyed hopefuls, feeling significantly out of place (which he was used to) and rather seasick (which he wasn’t). Carrying his belongings in a small plastic bag - he was wearing the only change of clothes he had - he stared around at his new surroundings. At least most of the others were also staring, which meant he didn’t stand out too much. As he received his room assignment and entered the main building, he already regretted not asking more questions, or at least paid more attention to what was being said. At the time, anything that got him out of the hell he was living in had seemed worth the chance, crazy as it sounded. He was only now realising that he had no idea where he was, and there was no way to leave without first leaning to pilot a submarine. He could do it in a video game, but he had doubts about trying it in real life. The dormitories were small but they were bright and modern and warm, which was the main thing, and no bars on the doors. Not exactly paradise, but he’d take it, and he seemed to have first pick of beds. He’d just put his plastic bag of things on one of the top bunks - harder to get to you if you were up high - when he saw someone else come in out of the corner of eye. Having never been on a plane before, or a submarine for that matter, Sean was encountering plenty of firsts today. He still wasn’t sure he wasn’t going to wake up any moment back in South Boston, days away from having to find his own place to live or for signing up for the any branch of the armed forces that would have him. Unlike the late spring overcast sky he had left that morning, the pacific sun was warm and held a promise of better things to come. He didn’t have much with him because he didn’t have much to his name. His entire life was shoved into a second, maybe third-hand duffle. It didn’t even fill it up completely, but Sean didn’t mind. It was far easier to maneuver about in the crowd of what looked to be his fellow first year students. He kept his head down and ears open as he listened in to the questions others asked. For the most part it seemed simple enough as he was directed to the room that would be home for the next year, provided that he didn’t get kicked out. There was another dude already in the room by the time Sean crossed the threshold. It looked like he had already claimed a bunk too. Top, near the door, just like Sean would have chosen for himself. Second choice then. Top bunk, far corner. At least he knew nobody would be out of his line of sight. Liam looked around warily. From what he’d seen so far there were people here from all over the world, so he could only hope he’d even be able to communicate with whoever he was going to share this tiny room with. Still, he knew all too well that it could be a lot worse. He tipped his chin at the newcomer, who at least looked about as relaxed in their bizarre new surroundings as Liam felt. “Hi,” he said, a cautious experimentation. Sean had barely enough time to dump his duffle on his new bed when the other boy was talking. American, judging by his accent. If that was good or bad, well, Sean wasn't sure yet. For now, he'd mark it as a positive as at least they would be able to communicate without having to play charades. "Hey." Looking over at the cubbies and drawers that were supposed to serve as their closet and dresser, he jerked his chin in their direction. "You pick one yet?" Liam shook his head. “Go nuts.” Making sure to keep his new roommate in the corner of his eye, he hopped up the ladder to kneel on the bed so that he could open the blind, peering with interest out of the window. The view was a number of large buildings dotted between lush green lawns, and in the distance the pale blue of the sea. “Cool,” he murmured to himself, smiling unconsciously. No more concrete walls, no more fences, no more bars. Maybe it actually was paradise, tiny bunk beds notwithstanding. After all, he’d had a big bedroom to himself growing up, and that had never done him any good. Sean wasn't sure if he wanted to unpack when there were others about, it wouldn’t give him a chance to hide things, and there was a chance that the other two occupants would walk in at any time. Not that he had much of anything of true worth, but old habits died hard. His clothes didn't take long, it was just a few pairs of worn jeans and tee shirts and a hoodie. He'd outgrown his coat last winter and he figured he didn't need one on a random island in the Pacific. Besides, the recruiter had said there would be money for clothes and he could get another one if the weather required it. Everything else he kept at the bottom of the duffle, shoving it at the bottom of one of the drawers. He'd find hiding places later. Sean hauled himself onto the bed and tested it slightly. Not the worst mattress he'd had to sleep on. He leaned back against the wall and watched his new roommate look out the window. "You have a name? My name's Fit-," he broke off. "Sean. Call me Sean." “Liam,” the other boy replied, tearing his eyes away from the view. He was still wary, but the last few months had given him some skill at telling when someone presented a threat. Sean seemed pretty harmless. And anyway it was enough of a relief to meet someone whose idea of a greeting wasn’t a headbutt or discreet punch to the stomach. “You from Boston?” he guessed. "Lemme guess, the accent." Even he could admit that he sounded straight out of a Mark Wahlberg movie. He didn't ask where Liam was from, not because he was rude but mostly because he figured it didn't matter. They were all on the island for the same reason in the end. Who cared where the story started? "Any idea who else is supposed to be joining us?" He hadn't heard anyone else get the same dorm assignment as him so it could be any number of the other boys he encountered upon arrival. Liam shrugged. “No idea,” he said, realising once again that he’d had his head in the clouds for the last hour. No wonder all his teachers had despaired of him. “You know anyone here?” "No." And Sean was glad of it. He wanted to leave Fitzpatrick back in Boston where he belonged. Seeing someone he knew would ruin that fantasy. "Sucks to be whoever gets here last…." Trailing off, Sean looked around the barren room. He'd shared rooms before and knew, roughly, how to live with others, but there had always been rules imposed on him. Now they were supposed to all know how to magically get along? No pun intended. Alright, slight pun intended. “Aw well, his loss,” Liam grinned, bouncing a little on the bed to feel the give. It didn’t squeak too badly, which was the usual issue with bunk beds - of course it was also made of wood, not iron. “Finders keepers, losers get bottom bunks.” Out of Sean’s sight, he upended his bag onto the bedspread in front of him: toothbrush, a razor, a pack of cards, and half a chocolate bar he’d been stashing just in case. Not even any fresh underwear. Maybe he really ought to have stopped by his mother’s house. “Did your guy say something about getting new clothes?” he asked after a moment, glancing at Sean out of the corner of his eye. “I think mine did, but I wasn’t listening.” Sean’s eyes widened marginally in surprise. He had listened to everything his recruiter had told him, filing away in his brain to catalogue and weigh out. Basic expenses being taken care of was one of the chief attractions to this place. There was no sign-on bonus like the army, but he would take six years over eighteen weeks of basic training. “Yeah, there’s an allowance or something.” “Nice.” Liam nodded. He shoved his stuff to one side of the bed - he’d sort it out later. “Think the food here will be any good?” he wondered allowed as he slid back down the ladder. “I’m fucking starving.” Food was food. As long as it was hot and plentiful, Sean could not rightly care about how it tasted. He'd had worse, after all. "There's the mess hall." He gestured vaguely in the direction that had been pointed out to him, figuring Liam didn't actually listen to that bit either. He might have scoped out the best bunk in the room, but it was quickly becoming clear that he didn't actually listen to anything anyone said. He was going to be eaten alive. Liam rolled his eyes. Of course the first person he met here would be the standoffish sort. It was still a better welcome than the last place. He’d take indifference over outright hostility any day. “We’re supposed to meet there once we’ve settled in, right?” he said. He actually HAD been listening to that part. The rest had seemed like too much to take in, particularly once he had convinced himself it wasn’t a dream. “At some point, yes.” Sean wasn’t sure how much settling they were able to do, but then again people probably brought more than a half filled duffle. There wasn’t a clock in the room, at least as far as he could see, and he had sold his shitty phone before he got on the plane to come here. So he had no way to tell time. That could possibly be a problem down the line. Straightening up, Liam decided to give it one more try - he had to live with this guy, after all. “Want to see if they’ve put out cookies for us, or something?” “It better be more than cookies.” Sean jumped down from his bunk. “A bunch of hungry and overstimulated teenagers is just a riot waiting to happen.” Which, now that he thought about it, would be pretty damn amusing to watch. Liam snorted. “You’re not wrong,” he chuckled, thinking that understimulated teenagers were just as much of a risk. Personally though he would be happy with a few cookies. He hasn’t had proper sweets in months. “Let’s go look.” |