Bloody Ink: A Closed Book

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

It was still morning as a tall, black-haired guy walked outside his house. With a slight yawn the male put in his earphones and fixed the scarf on his neck, afterwards putting his hands in pockets. His grey eyes were hidden by the cap he was wearing, making him look just like a simple citizen just heading to work early in morning... Even though he was a writer - and a famous one at that. He succeeded in selling a book a few years ago, and now he was just about to release another one, hopefully just as successful as the previous one.

 

The man slowly walked down the street, covering another yawn. What time was it now?.. He lazily took one hand out of his pocket and glanced at the expencive-looking clock. 07:45... He could kill his editor for making him go meet her this early on Sunday. If there was anything he wanted, it was definitely sleeping at least 'till noon, have a relaxing day, preferably not going anywhere out of the house, too. Of course, someone would still have dragged him out to the city, but even this was better than waking up early... Man, he wanted to get back into his comfy bed and stay there all day.

 

Yet, he treasured his life too much to actually do that. His editor was able to frighten him enough for this thought to disappear immediately. She was a truly scary woman when she needed to be. It still confused him - how could someone as nice and bubbly looking as her be this dangerous? Maybe she was possesed by some demon or something? Oh, would this work as a book? Let's add a nasty rival here, some romance there... This is actually worth a thought. Though he really shouldn't mention he used her as the idea... He really wanted to live at least until he was eighty, maybe ninethy.

 

Finally the man reached the building and went inside, hoping not to meet one certain person-... "Thomas~! There you are!" As a high voice called out for him, the male groaned softly and turned towards the petit blonde woman, running up to him with a cup of coffee. "Come on, come on, she's been waiting for you! You're late, now go, go, goo!" She immediately pushed Thomas towards the stairs after handing him the cup. This girl was always so pushy... This was his assistant - Rose. Thomas was never able to understand how she was able to be so happy in the mornings. Impossible!

[Lady.Taser]

He had been awake all night, all night because of a case of nerves... how long had it been since being nervous stopped him doing anything, let alone sleeping. Sat on the bus he felt his foot bouncing against the ground, the muscle tensing in his calf. His hand closed around the brown paper package in his arms, holding it closer as though it was a precious artifact. It may be just a pile of paper to every one else, but to him it was the same as a precious artifact. It was his chance. The first manuscript he had submitted where he had even been asked to come in for a meeting. This manuscript could be his big break.

 

So lost in his reverie he only knew he was near his stop was the automated system on the bus announcing the next stop. In a small panic he hit the 'stop' button and sighed in relief when the bus pulled to a slow stop and allowed him to get out. The next problem he found was making his way to the meeting place. Now where had he put that address, he pulled a crumbled piece of paper out of his pocket and unfolded it. Reading the name on the paper he looked up at the signs on the buildings. He was looking for a publishing office, quite nicely named 'Dreams to Books' It was one of a few that he had sent the manuscript to and it was the only one that had replied. He found it quickly the unique logo standing out on the side of a building to his left.

 

Cautiously he headed towards the building still gripping tightly to the parcel in his arms. When he got to the door he saw what a mess he looked reflected in the glass of the door. Looking quickly at his watch he saw the time. 8am, well his meeting was at 8:30, but it couldn't hurt to be early right? Even though half and hour early was... exceedingly early he probably needed to look half decent before he walked through the door. He swung his bag round, off his shoulder and put the manuscript in it carefully, then he pulled out a comb which he ran through his hair a few times. Tidying up his brown hair, luckily his hair being short didn't take much time or effort.

 

He swapped the comb for the manuscript again and closed his bag, swinging his bag back onto his bag and taking a deep breath he pushed the door to the publishers open, finding a flight of stairs directly in front of him. Climbing them rather slowly and hesitantly made his way up to the office. He wasn't sure what to expect when he opened the door, so the busy room that he saw was actually a relief. It looked like most other offices, with the exception of the meeting areas at one edge. He stared around the room as he walked to the main desk at the entrance, not paying attention and bumping into the edge of the desk.

 

"Can i Help you Sir?" a chirpy voice called up to him from the desk.

 

"Oh um... Right yes... I.. My name is Jeremy. Jeremy Haring, I am here for a meeting with..." Pausing he looked at his bit of paper again. "Ms Pharme at 8:30." he finished he sentence and looked up at her with a small smile.

 

"Okay just a moment sir" She said smiling warmly and typing away at her computer before standing. "She won't be ready for a little while yet but if you would like to come this way and wait in the meeting area. Would you like a drink while you wait sir?" She showed him to one of the seats at the edge of the room where he sat, declining her offer of a drink and continued looking around the office is disbelief that he was actually there.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

With a soft groan and a yawn Thomas walked towards the room his editor was in. Before walking in, the male took out the papers from his bag. This was what he had written for this meeting. Of course, a ton of critisism would come from her, surely she wouldn't be too happy about some things... Especially since he decided to kill off one of the characters she seemed to like. He couldn't help it, it just... It just seemed needed.

 

Finally the black-haired man knocked and entered inside, his grey eyes meeting with azure ones. The owner of those eyes was a slim woman, her blond hair tied up in a messy bun. She wore a tired smile on her face as she stood up. "Thomas, here you are! You didn't forget to bring it, right?" Her words made Thomas roll his eyes. He'd forgotten to take the book once... Okay, maybe two... No, three times... Fine, he forgot the book a lot of times, but who the hell wouldn't? It was a miracle he remembered to take it today... On Sunday morning. Finally the grey-eyed male nodded and dropped the papers on his editor's table. After he put his bag aside, Thomas took off his coat, revealing a pair of simple skinny jeans and a huge, dark blue sweater.

 

"Wow, good morning to you too, mr. Grumpy." His editor teased with a smile while Thomas yawned and sat down, later mumbling with a low voice. "Morning... Remind me again, why do I have to be up at this hour?.." The black-haired male asked while staring at his editor. The later let out a soft chuckle and tilted her head. "Because I have another appointment right after you. We might have a newcomer here, make sure to take care of him! He seemed frightened, even..." She shook her head and sighed softly, while Thomas felt his lips curve into a slight smile. A newcomer, eh?

 

"Anyway, what do you today? What's the main plot? Romance? Any deaths? Travelling? Adventures? What will you offer for your hungry readers?" The girl asked, her long fingers already reaching out to grab the papers. Thomas stared at her fingers for a while, watched as she took the papers like a baby into her arms. "The main plot was the whole travelling through mountains. I added some monsters for spice, also a new companion. A baby mountain wolf for Inata, you know, since she was always obsessed with the wildness and all, I just thought - why not? The romance... I've got two couples ready. The first is Sarah and Matt, and the fans already liked them, while the second one... And you are not stopping me from adding them... They're Aiden and Jake." Right there the male stopped since his editor gasped.

 

"What are you thinking? You're just going to add a homosexual couple into your book? What're people going to think?!?" While she looked at the greay-eyed male, her own eyes widened, the man just huffed and turned his eyes away. "It's my book... I'll do what I want, and that's that. I don't get what is it with people? Are gay people now some kind of a disease? God, Anabeth, I'm gay! What makes you think I can't add a couple like that into my book?" When Thomas finally finished his sentence, Anabeth was left completely shocked. "Wait. Woah, you mean you're gay?" She asked, her eyebrows raised. The question made Thomas sigh and close his eyes. "Yes, I'm gay. What, you're going to stop being my editor because of that? Besides, this isn't the time to talk about this. And it doesn't have anything to do with my books, alright?" As Thomas asked, the girl nodded and cleared her throat. "Yeah, that's fine for me... So, what else do we got?" When she asked, the male could finally relax. One hard part was over...

 

"While fighting one of the monsters, Bobby dies. I was thinking of ressurecting him in some book later, but I'm not completely sure about that." The black-haired male kept his eyes closed while listening to Anabeth rant about his fans not being happy if this was to happen, but honestly, he couldn't please all of them... A soft sigh escaped Thomas' lips and he glanced at the clock. He wanted to go back now...

[Lady.Taser]

Jeremy was bouncing his foot again, it was accompanied by butterflies in his stomach. He honestly wasn't a nervous person most of the time, though the chance to follow his dream and to... no just his dream, obviously was more worrying to him than interviews, jobs and meetings where the only point was to provide him with money to survive through to the next day.

 

He had almost remember, no not almost he had remembered. Nothing really important just someone he would talk to when he was a child. They had been the same age, at least Jeremy thought they had, he hadn't ever asked the boy's name. Jeremy as a child was exceedingly introverted and enjoyed reading books more than playing outside, and one day he had come across someone who he had talked to a lot. A friend, well almost. It was never explicitly said, but Jeremy had considered him a friend and it was around that time that he started wanting to write. He wondered what had happened to the boy after he had moved away.

 

Glancing up at the clock he noticed it was now 8:20, maybe being half an hour early hadn't been as good an idea as he had first thought. He looked over and saw a water cooler, standing he got himself a small cup of water, the liquid hydrating his parched throat and as he headed back to his seat he found himself slipping over thin air. Colliding with one of the other chairs and knocking a table as he made his way to the ground. Both the table and chair made a loud clattering noise and he lifted his face off the ground with a frown. This was the reason he could never hold a job. He would do something like this in a meeting, and suddenly the investors wouldn't have as much faith in the company after hot coffee had landed on them. Or in the middle of an office causing piles of paper to fall over, mixing them up and frustrating everyone who he worked with.

 

The chirpy reception girl came over to help him up, asking if he was okay. Jeremy nodded, surely this was a job where clumsiness couldn't get him fired... right? "I'm ... just going to .. wait over here." he sat back down on the chair, grateful he had already finished the drink as he saw where the empty cup had landed. Right next to his manuscript. Cursing under his breath he started to massage parts of his legs which were starting to sting from the little accident.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

The two kept on discussing the book for a lot longer than they were supposed to. Most of their arguments were about the death, each had their own proofs of saying they were right, but finally Thomas won over her. "I'm telling you, if the fans are really that unhappy, I'll just ressurect him later! It won't be too hard... Though I could make a whole book out of it, you know, like gathering all the items needed, maybe they'd have to hunt down the lamino for his fangs?" Thomas started talking and his editor sighed, holding her hands up. "Okay, fine! You win with this one... But don't blame me if your reputation drops because of your... Unusual couple, okay?" Thomas only nodded and leaned back against the chair. He'd actually won an argument with her... He actually managed to defeat Anabeth!

 

The male streched and looked at the clock. "Hey, when's that newcomer supposed to come? It's already 09:15.." He said lazily while the editor groaned quietly. "Ah, he was supposed to come fourty-five minutes ago! Okay, I've held you up too much, sorry! Just go over the parts we discussed and come again... Next week, Saturday, at five, okay?" Thomas nodded and stood up, grabbing his papers as well. "Good luck with the new guy... I'd like to meet him too." A smile appeared on the male's face after these words. It was always amusing to watch the new guys try and get used to the atmosphere here. If they got Anabeth for their editor, their life was sure to become hell, at least for the first month or so. Thomas himself had a hard time dealing with this monster at first.

 

Once the black-haired man had gathered everything, he turned back to the woman and smiled softly. "See you on Saturday, Ann~" He'd given her this nickname after about a year of working. The first time it simply slipped out, but somehow it just fit her very well. Thomas had been using it ever since, only calling her by her full name time at a time.

 

Thomas walked out the door, grabbing the coat into his hands before doing so. The black-haired male streched and yawned widely, glancing around the waiting room once he got there. He wanted coffee now... With this thought the male walked over to one coffee machine and pressed a button with 'latte' written on it. He never could drink black coffee - he didn't like it too much... Coffee with milk and lots of sugar was so much better.

[Lady.Taser]

The receptionist, he still hadn't remembered he name despite her wearing a name badge, had come over about 40 minutes earlier to tell him that Ms Pharme's earlier meeting was overrunning just a little, though they couldn't say how long for. She told him to help himself to some coffee from the machine, he wasn't certain how logical that was considering he had spent the last 15 minutes pacing in front of his chair, but maybe the brunette thought it would help calm his nerves a bit. Carefully he had packed in manuscript away into his bag before moving away from the table, hopefully if he grabbed a coffee and waited around the coffee machine she would be done before he finished the drink. After his earlier mishap he wasn't walking anywhere while a drink was in his hand, especially a hot drink.

 

When he got to the coffee machine he saw a load of different labels... Americano...Latte...Espresso.. reading them mentally he continued till he found one he recognised. "Aah Mocha.." he smiled happily to himself, he wasn't overly fond on the flavour of coffee but for some reason mixing it with chocolate made the whole drink phenomenally better. he giggled slightly as he moved out of the way of the machine takings a sip and glancing up in time to see an office door open and a black haired man leaving as he called his goodbyes to the woman within. Not that Jeremy could see who was inside but he assumed anyway being called Ann was a woman.

 

The tall man seemed to stretch and survey the room, almost like a cat checking its territory, then he headed towards Jeremy... wait no the coffee machine. Jeremy sighed, something about this man was causing his brain to recognise him. But he didn't know where from, who the man might be or even if he had actually met the guy or if it was just because he was a writer.

 

He then realised this man might have been the meeting that was overrunning with Ms Pharme, which meant he was next... and his coffee was almost full still. "Shit.." he cursed under his breath and tried to gulp the hot liquid, feeling it burn his tongue and then scald his throat as it traveled down it. "Ow... shit" he cursed again, his voice now slightly horse from the light burns.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas glanced at the brunette standing not too far away from him. He carefully sipped his own coffee and let a small chuckle escape his lips as the unknown man tried to gulp down all of the coffee left. It seemed the guy was only slightly nervous. With this thought the black-haired male came up to the brunette and put a hand on his shoulder. This must've been the newbie writer Anabeth had told him about.

 

"Hey, perhaps you're the one who was supposed to have a meeting nearly an hour ago? Sorry if I took up your time~" The male apologized with a smile. His grey eyes were now trailing th newcomer's body - everything from head to toe. Each part of clothing, the bag, his still slightly messy hair. "Anabeth there can be a true slave-driver, believe me. Just warning you - be careful around her!" Thomas finally finished and smiled at the other. He reminded him of a boy he once knew...

 

He used to talk with him sometimes, they had a few interests - one of them was books. Thomas always was very fond of books, he'd been writing since... Maybe ninth grade? It all started as little stories about forests, rivers, spirits and such, and now he was here... He was famous with the help of one book - Blood of the Spirits. The idea for this book was born while simply sitting by the riverside. He enjoyed spending most of his time there, it seemed like the best ideas came while he was there. Even the plot of this book - it came while he was staring at the mountains somewhere far away. He thought he could even see some birds flying around, he thought he could hear a roar coming from the top of the mountain. It made him feel amazing...

[Lady.Taser]

When the hand came from no where and landed on his shoulder he jumped... well the coffee seemed to jump more and Jeremy had to reach after the cup which had left his hands only moments before. "shit" his favourite curse escaped his lips again, for good reason as he barely managed to grasp the cup while it was mostly upright, a small amount spilling over the edge a burning the fingers it connected with. He quickly stuck his finger in his mouth trying to make it cool down.

 

With out removing his finger he half turned to the taller man the grey eyes drawing his gaze. Jeremy found himself almost a head smaller than the man and looked like a lost puppy as he looked up at him, not sure where to go and not really sure what to say either.

 

"I .. um yea. It wasn't quite an hour ago... more like 45 minutes..." He pulled his hazel eyes away from the charismatic grey ones above him. He suddenly felt so outclassed in everything from height, to unique looks and most definitely writing talent that he almost wanted to run away.

 

His hands shaking he tried to glance around without appearing to move much, looking for a sink to throw the rest of the coffee down before hurrying off to ask the receptionist if he was needed yet when the man above him spoke again. Something about being a slave driver, Jeremy looked back up and caught the smile, it was slightly infectious and he found himself smiling a little in response.

 

"In what way is... is she a slave driver?" Jeremy wanted to kick himself. In something that was purely work he was usually fine with communicating, he tended to call it his mask. The problem is he didn't have a 'mask' for social situations, and as they weren't meeting or discussing work his social anxiety flared up. honestly Jeremy was amazes he had only repeated the one word and that his voice had remained level. But that was just one sentence. Glancing away to check if the receptionist was coming to tell him about the meeting he found her head down as she worked through some paperwork and Jeremy resigned himself to social interaction for a little longer.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas watched the newcomer with pure amusement. Seemed like he'd scared the boy... Whoops. The black-haired male smiled and pulled his hand away. "Anabeth? She'll simply make you work your ass off, that's for sure. If you ever get into an argument with her, give up as soon as you can.. It'll be best for you. Of course, it's not like she's undefeatable, but it's hard to make her give up!" Thomas finished and smiled. "And if you need a sink, it's right over there. Relax a little bit, she won't bite... I think..." He finished with a soft laugh and sipped a bit of his coffee while pointing to their right, where the sink was.

 

The grey eyes were still trailing through the boy, who seemed more like a lost puppy than a writer. It wasn't hard imagining this boy somewhere outside, waiting in the rain.. Let's add a pair of dog ears and a tail and we'd have the perfect puppy. With a smile the writer thought of this, taking another sip of the coffee. Well, getting back into bed was out of question now. If he drank coffee, that meant the start of the day. No more coming back into bed, well, sofa was a different question, of course.

 

The tall male covered a yawn and glanced at Rose. Come on, the boy was supposed to have his meeting soon... What was Ann thinking? Just because the poor guy was a newbie, she was going to make him wait even more? Shesh, and she wonders why some people don't like her...

[Lady.Taser]

Jeremy fussed about as he poured the coffee down the sink, not sure how to deal with the man, or the man's gaze which he could feel all over him. Shyly he peered up at the taller man from under his bangs which had fallen into his eyes yet again. Using his left hand her carefully tired to tuck his hair behind his ears so that he has some resemblance of tidyness. Sadly for Jeremy the soft hair didn't want to stay and kept falling back in the way of his eyes.

 

Unnoticed to Jeremy there was a woman stood watching them. Well the whole office was watching them discreetly but this woman was leaning against the door of the office that the man had not long left. She signaled over to the receptionist, who after having spoken to the woman came over to talk to Jeremy.

 

"Excuse me Mr Haring, but Ms Pharme is ready to see you now." This made Jeremy who had thought he might finally regain some level of calmness and control become flustered again. He thanked her hurriedly and paused as she gave a polite nod before heading back to her desk. He turned back to the man he had been talking to, realizing that had no idea what to call him and also that he had yet to introduce himself.

 

"Oh.. um Thank you for the ..advice..." he was hesitant as he continued the sentence. "I um.. forgot to introduce myself earlier. My name is Jeremy Haring. Nice to meet you." he made sure he had everything with him and noticed the empty coffee cup still in his hand. With a deep sigh he discarded the cup into the nearest bin and smiled at the man he'd briefly spoken to. "I have to go for my meeting now... bye"

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas chuckled and nodded. "The name's Thomas. Thomas Kanate. Good luck, I hope to meet you here again, Jeremy~" The tall male let the name roll off his tongue like it was a delicious sweet... And sweets he loved. With a smile the black-haired male patted the smaller's shouder and turned to walk away. He was going home, that's for sure... Later, maybe he'd go by the riverside? It was the best place to write, after all.

 

With this, Thomas headed towards the exit, putting on his coat in the mean time. The bag was flung over his shoulder as he said his good-bye to Rose and walked outside. The cold weather hit him like a wave of displeasure, making him frown instantly. Why couldn't it be warm? With a sigh the grey-eyed male started walking back home, his bag feeling a little bit too light...

 

In the mean time, Annabeth let out a soft groan when she spotted a manuscript left on a chair. "He forgot to take it...." She muttered out and turned towards the brunette. "Mr. Haring, I suppose? Please excuse me for meeting you late. That moron, if you'll excuse me, took up too much time and still managed to leave the one thing he was supposed to take no matter what..." The azure-eyed woman sighed while walking over to grab the manuscript into her hands.

 

"Well, come on, don't just stand there! Sit down here and let's start." She said and put down the pile of papers on the table. She was going to have to get someone take this to Thomas later...

[Lady.Taser]

"Oh.. Yes of course." He rushed in closing the door behind him and sitting down in the chair opposite. Her straightforward gaze made him feel nervous "Does he.. um do that often... leaving the manuscript behind..."

 

She sighed, "and that's when he remember to bring it. Anyway lets get on with the meeting. I am Annabeth Pharme. Please tell me you have the manuscript for your book." In a hurry he dug it out of the top of his bag and pushed it along the table to her. It was exactly the same as she had already read since it was just a print out of what had been sent to editors. "Brilliant. Now while i like the idea for the book and it could grow to be a very big seller you are missing at least one crucial thing from the story. Romance. These two friends you have here, change one of them to a girl and add some romance that spans the story, give it an extra layer and then it will become more attractive to the female readers.

 

Jeremy looked up at her flustered, "I.. um I don't know how to write romance... I have read loads of romance novels but... i just can't write it. I don't understand it.." He squeezed his hands together in his lap, looking down embarrassed.

 

"How old are you?!" her voice incredulous knowing he was 27 from earlier communication, "and you haven't experienced Romance?" With a sigh she massaged her temple and started to explain to him ways he could write romance into the story, talking quite quickly since her whole schedule for the day was running late. not long later Jeremy found himself with a notepad and pen in his hand writing notes. "Or Better yet, throw away those notes and go fall in love. Then you should be able to write the romance into the story. Once you have some love in the story then we can talk again, but i do not want to publish a book that won't be a best seller." She said the last line with a smile, she was planning on making sure it was a best seller.

 

"um... okay..." he blushed not sure how to respond to that, he had never had any desire to pursue love before and wasn't sure how to go about it. He took back the manuscript where she had now indicated points at which he could develop romance, and even introduce another male character to travel with them a while acting as a rival in both the story and the romance. "um did you want me to take that over to him for you?" He pointed at the manuscript that Thomas had left behind. He didn't have any other plans and he wanted a bit more advice on the whole romance thing... and how to handle Annabeth. His offer saved her or her staff needed to do it so she accepted and told his to get the address from the reception. Not long after that he found himself outside the building, somehow still as nervous as when he went in and looking for Thomas's house.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas let out a soft groan while digging everything out from his bag. He left the goddamn manuscript back in the office! The tall male plopped down on the ground and bit his lip. He would have to go back to Annabeth and take back the manuscript... Along with a long moral on how he should look after his belongings more and how she's grown sick of all the mess he's made. He knew all that, she didn't have to repeat it every single time...

 

With a sigh the black-haired male closed his eyes and let out a soft mumble, including a few cursewords. He wasn't usually a man who'd curse a lot, but he did it sometimes... Especially at times like this. He hated his memory sometimes. It's like it would just erase everything needed and left some uselless facts that rarely made any sense. How come he could remember all the Greek gods but not the time of his meeting? Why would he even know about Greek gods so much? He never used it in his stories anyway!

 

Another annoyed groan left the male's lips as he stood up, careful not to knock off the pile of books next to him. Those piles were everywhere around his house. Kitchen, living room, bedroom, guestroom - everywhere you could think of. He was a complete book maniac. He collected all the books of his favorite authors, he would never miss a release of a long-awaited book.

 

Thomas streched and walked over to grab a coat. He'd go and take the manuscript right now. If he were to go there later, nothing good would come out. The grey-eyed male slipped into his shoes, put on his scarf and walked out the door, nearly forgetting his keys inside. Gosh, he really had to do something about his weak memory...

 

He locked the door after himself and tossed the keys into his pocket. Just as he turned to walk to take back his manuscript, a familiar face appeared not too far away. Jeremy, was it? The new guy was here... Well, a small talk wouldn't hurt. Maybe he lived somewhere near? With a slight smile on his face, the taller male walked up to the other.

 

"Jeremy, what are you doing here?" Thomas asked with the smile not leaving his face. The taller male pushed his hands into his pockets to protect them from the cold. He should probably buy a pair of gloves sometime...

[Lady.Taser]

Jeremy had been walking to Thomas's house, not wanting to risk getting a bus as he didn't know the bus routes and where the stops were, and not getting a taxi.. because, well he didn't have the money. If the book didn't succeed soon then he would have to move back in with his parents and get another job that he wasn't interested in and would only get fired from anyway.

 

It wasn't much later that he though he was almost there when he looked up to see a 4 way junction. He stopped and looked down all of them, one was the way he came which still left him with 3 options, no road signs and a useless map. It was about then that he heard his name.

 

He looked up to see Thomas walking towards him. It was a good thing too as he had no idea where to go next, smiling he moved closer to Thomas and pulled the man's manuscript out of his bag and handing it to Thomas. "Here. you left it in the meeting earlier.... and.. i um .. need some help. You see .. she wants me to put romance in and make the book appeal to girls too... but i don't know how.. and she's so.. forceful i didn't know how to say no..."

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas smiled and took the manuscript. "Thanks,I was just about to go get it~ You saved me from dealing with that monster..." He thanked and held the pile of papers carefully in his hands as he listened to the request Jeremy had. Once the brunette was finished, Thomas chuckled and nodded. "How about you come in, we have some tea and discuss everything?" He offered while looking straight at the smaller guy.

 

He couldn't shake off the feeling he knew him from somewhere... Those hazel eyes were something that drew his attention exceptionally. They reminded him of something it hurt, but still there was nothing. Well, he never had a good memory, so this wouldn't be the first time he'd forgotten a person anyway. But still...

 

"And have we met before? I feel like I've seen you somewhere, I just can't put my finger on it yet..." The black-haired male muttered out and let out a sigh. "You remind me of a childhood friend..." Thomas said and shrugged. "Well, nevermind. Now come on, I don't want to stand around in cold all day, okay?" He asked with the smile back on his face. He'd just have to hope he would remember some time soon. He hated knowing he forgot something and not knowning what it was.

[Lady.Taser]

Jeremy smiled with a nod, glad to have been able to help the man, and grateful that he was willing to help him back. "Sure I'd love to come in, and tea would be good" Jeremy paused with a light giggle, "It is cold outside today." Looking up at the taller man he could see that Thomas was focusing on his eyes. The attention made him nervous not used to such intense watching. Usually people just glanced over him and didn't bother with him, he wasn't overly attractive... well not in his opinion.

 

The questions confused him and he furrowed his brow as he looked up, starting to get a slight ache in his neck from leaning it back to look at Thomas. "Um..." Even after being told never mind he was thinking, Thomas saying that had reminded him again of a boy from his own youth who he could have considered his only friend at one time. looking up he quickly followed Thomas towards the door muttering as he went. "you... also remind me of someone... its strange.."

 

Thomas's retreating back was broad and blocked his view of where Jeremy was going but he tried to stay close, worried that he would get lost even though there was no one else on the road and there fore no crowd to get lost in. "Ah" Jeremy frowned at himself, he had tripped over his feet again, he hadn't landed on the floor this time as he had been able to regain his balance quickly but it still annoyed him at how clumsy he was.

 

"Um... what do you think about what Annabeth said to me about.... falling in love..." he gulped, knowing it would be a hard thing for him to manage. He had never had any desire for love at least not love that wasn't familial.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas glanced back at the smaller guy as he tripped. "You okay?" He asked while looking at the other. A small smile was appearing on his face again. It seemed like Jeremy was rather clumsy, hm? The kid he knew was the same... By any chance, maybe this is?.. Nah, what was he thinking? It happened years ago, he didn't even get to know his so-called friend's name!

 

Once the black-haired guy heard the question, he glanced at his companion. "What about it? You've fallen for me~?" He asked with a chuckle and unlocked the doors to his house once they've reached it. He waited for Jeremy to come in first and followed after. Once inside, the tall male looked around the piles of books and let out a soft sigh.

 

"Sorry about this all, I can't find more places to put them... Just be careful while walking!" Thomas warned the other and took off his shoes and coat, leaving his scarf on. He had a reason he didn't want to take it off, and he hated talking about it...

[Lady.Taser]

A furious blush stained his cheeks. "Fine.. I'm fine." the man's smile only made it worse, at least it felt like it did, he wasn't sure if there was any visible change as his cheeks were already burning. The teasing didn't help and the blush spread from his cheeks round to his ears and the back of his neck. "Ah.. i ...um ...urr.." He avoided Thomas's gaze not used to any level of teasing and having had little interaction with girls when he was younger, which tends to be what happens when you've studied at an all boys school.

 

"N-n-no, its not that.. i just wanted ... your advice on what she suggested.. so i thought i should tell you what she said to me." Looking around Thomas as the door opened he took a breath, there were piles of books, everywhere. It looked like heaven. He was very distracted as he took off his shoes and coat and when that was done he proceeded to wander around looking at the piles of books and examining the names on the spines.

 

"This is amazing, have you read them all?" He asked his eyes almost sparkling and not leaving the books for a moment.

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas smiled and shook his head. "I can't tell you what to do, you know. Each writer has his own way of knowing exactly what to write when talking about love. Firstly you just have to try and find someone... Or even something that you enjoy!" The tall male started while looking at the brunette with a soft smile. "Oh, do you want tea? Coffee? Maybe some snacks?"

 

A soft chuckle left Thomas' lips at the innocent question coming from the other's lips. "Of course. I've been reading since I first learnt how to~ You know, I used to have a friend who enjoyed reading books just as much as I did... Too bad I had to move out... I'd like to see him again some day~" Thomas kept on talking while fixing his scarf.

 

"You can go into that room and make yourself comfortable, okay?" Thomas smiled softly as he pointe towards a room straight ahead of them. It was the living room, also the room with most books. Some of them weren't exactly innocent or with man-woman relationship. You could basically find any book at all in that room!

[Lady.Taser]

The books still held his gaze and he listened partially as Thomas spoke. "snacks? oh no i'm okay.... do you have hot chocolate?" He looked away from the books to look imploringly at Thomas now desperate to enjoy a warm mug of hot chocolate, ideally topped with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles.

 

"I've only ever had one friend that enjoyed reading anywhere near as much as me. It was years ago though. Why is love so hard to write about?" He went back to his issue with his book, it nagging at the back of his mind. He knew he was unable to write it, sure it may be to do with the fact he had never been in love, or had a crush. He had read many a romance book, but he just couldn't understand how that translated into real feelings and he ran his hands delicately over the spine of the books as he scanned the names. Following Thomas direction he went to the living room again scanning the piles of books, he knew a lot of the names and a lot were new to him.

 

"Why don't you get somewhere bigger so that the books can all go on shelves?"

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas smiled and nodded. "Sure thing~ Do you want marshmallows on top?" The tall male asked from the kitchen as he searched for the chocolate. Once he was sure Jeremy was out of his sight, the grey-eyed male let out a soft sigh and started making the chocolate. Truth be told, all this happy and cheerful personality of his was an act.

 

Thomas bit his lip as one of his hands sneaked under the scarf, sliding to the back of his neck. The tall male sighed softly as he ran his fingers over the few scars that he knew so well. They reached from the middle of his back to his neck, one even went to the side of his neck. That was the reason for him always wearing a scarf, even when inside. Especially if there was anyone else with him. No one was supposed to know about this...

 

Once Thomas was finished with the hot chocolate, he put his smile back on and walked to the living room. "Here you go~" He smiled warmly at the smaller male before sitting down next to him. "A bigger house? I don't like big houses... A small house is the best thing - it always feels so warm and welcoming!"

[Lady.Taser]

"Oh... Marshmallows... yes please." As Thomas left the room he found himself once again absorbed by the number of books he was surrounded by. Jeremy would walk up to one tower of books, examine all of the names in the pile and then pick up one of two glancing at the blurb or the first few lines of the book, most were ones he had read, but had never had the opportunity to own. Most of the books Jeremy had read were borrowed from friends or libraries.

 

Finding a seat he looked over the books in the pile closest and found a book he hadn't read that sounded interesting and he picked it up and started to read the first few pages, quickly becoming absorbed into the story. Despite this he noticed when Thomas made his way back into the room and put the book back on the top of the pile making a mental note of both the name of the book and the page number.

 

"Thank you." accepting the hot chocolate he held the drink in his hands for a few moments letting the warm aroma wrap around him before taking a sip. "The books deserve more space though, they deserve to be loved and read. How do you find any books in the piles like this?"

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas let out a soft chuckle and shook his head. "It might seem that the books are pilled up without any order, but actually even like this, each book has its own place. Most are put by how many times I need it, there's a pile of books in my work room which I oftenly use when writing... It's usually hard for others to understand how I manage to find each book, but it's possible." The taller male smiled softly before taking a sip of his drink.

 

The grey eyed wandered through the room, and for a few seconds it seemed as if Thomas was somewhere far away instead of here, in this room. "Well, let's begin talking about what you actually came here for~" The black-haired male grinned and leaned back against the chair. "You need advice on how to write romance, right?" He asked while trailing his eyes through the other.

 

"Though before we start... It might sound weird, but where did you live as a kid?" The man asked while staring into the hazel eyes. He still couldn't shake off the feeling he knew this boy from somewhere...

[Lady.Taser]

"hmmm oh well i lived somewhere out in the country... Hun...urm. All i remember is it was about an hour out of the city. I lived there till i was 8 and my only friend there was when i was about 6 i guess." He looked over at Thomas curiously. "Why did you want to know?"

 

Jeremy made sure to look away from the books as much as possible keeping Thomas within the centre of his sight. He had liked Thomas's explanation of the system it made sense if you knew how writers worked. He still couldn't bring himself to pile books on the ground, he was too clumsy and didn't want to damage books by falling into them.

 

"so with the writing romance advice... I'm completely useless at it, not even my sister could explain it. Supposedly because i have had no experience with romance at all...." he paused with a blush the words following barely a murmur. "not even my first crush..."

[Zombie_In_A_Box]

Thomas blinked a few times and glanced at the other. "Was it perhaps a village with that big fountain in the centre? Was it surrounded by a forest?" He questioned while looking at Jeremy. Maybe it really was the boy he knew a long time ago?

 

The tall male let out a chuckle when the brunette talked about his non-existing experience about romance. When he heard about the crush, Thomas grinned widely and leaned in over to the smaller male. "Oh, a crush? Tell me more about her~ If you try and remember exactly how it felt to feel in such a way towards someone, it will definitely help with your book~" The black-haired male smiled softly and lifted the cup up to take another sip.

 

His grey eyes focused on the brunette's blush and Thomas chuckled to himself. The guy seemed to be so embarrassed while talking about romance... If Jeremy managed to write a book with romance, it was bound to get more attention from girls than boys, that was for sure...