SCPI chapter 1

[nannyn]

Hey hey!

I'M DONE, SQUID. STOPPIT.

Okay. This is the first chapter of my fic. Play nice, kiddies.

Erm.... what to say.... Oh!

I've decided that the only POV's I'm going to write are the six Saladers that have the romantic relationships within the story. That will be easier, since everyone is basically in the same area--the institute. Each chapter will be one POV, which will be much easier to write, and also much easier to follow.

...Unlike The Kingdom, which was multiple POV's each chapter, with only a few sentences for each. It was getting confusing for me, and I knew more about the characters and the plot that you guys did! I have learned from The Kingdom. If I do ever go back to it, I will definitely incorporate this style of writing into the story.

Also! This story will be a mixture. It'll be real life, with some aspects of minecraft, like the biomes and maybe some names of stuff. So keep an open mind as you read.

and with that, my start to every chapter.

Story time!

Chapter 1




-Nan-

 

“WHAT?!”

Nan quickly pulled her phone away from her ear, wincing at the loud noise. “Yup!” She replied excitedly, her friend’s excitement rubbing off on her.  She switched her phone into speaker mode. Throwing it on her bed, she flopped down next to it, rolling over onto her back and staring up at the ceiling.

“That’s amazing!” The voice replied, then a muffled squeal was heard, barely audible from the hand that was undoubtedly covering their face.

Nan rolled back over, propping herself up by her shoulders and dragging her hair out of her face. “So, were you accepted too?” She asked, her voice becoming urgent with anticipation. “Please, please tell me you were.”

 The voice went silent. Nan leaned closer. “Squid? Were you accepted? Squid!”

Nan heard a sigh. Then the quiet words, barely held under control, “Yep.”

They commenced to squeal together for a bit, but stopped as Nan’s brother—who was in his own room right next to hers—hit the wall they shared together with something heavy.

They shut up after that.

 

~`~

 

“So, school starts tomorrow, eh?” Nan’s father asked, plunking his laptop case onto the bar and sliding into a chair next to her.

“Mmhmm.” Nan murmured in reply, most of her attention focused on the sketchbook in front of her. She just needed to get the one last perfect curve of the peony…

“Nan.”

She looked up, surprised by her father’s tone. “What?” she asked.

Her father had his hands clasped in front of him. His lips were pursed; he was obviously in deep thought.

“Dad?” Nan said, leaning forward over the table to look at his face better. “Are you okay?”

Her father looked at her, then brought her into a hug. “I’m going to miss you, Nan.” He said.

Nan hugged her father back, saying “I’ll be home for all of the holidays. And the full weeks we have off, we can meet sometime.”

Her father sighed—a sad, lonely sound. “And I thought it was bad when your brother left.” He said. “I’m sorry that I won’t be able to make it to your departure tomorrow.”

“It’s okay, Dad. I know you want to be there with us.” Nan replied.

Her father sighed, a long, exhalation of the air in his lungs that left him almost inverted at the ribcage. Nan looked up.

“You don’t know how much I want to be there.” He said softly, looking ahead of him.

Nan knew he wasn’t talking to her anymore, and slipped out of his arms. “See you later, Dad. I still have to do some last-minute packing.”

As she walked away to her room, she would swear that the expression on her father’s face was the saddest thing she has ever seen in her life.

 

~`~

 

“Nan. Move.”

Her brother wormed in between her and the car door, pushing her out of the way. She stumbled back, almost tripping over the potted plant by the flowerbed.

“Hey! Watch it!” She said, reaching down to brush off a clod of dirt that stuck to her pants. “What was that for?”

Her brother shrugged, turning around and leaning on the car door. “I wanted shotgun.”

Nan sighed and rolled her eyes. “Fine. Whatever.”

Her brother sighed as well. “Fine. Do you want shotgun?”

She rolled her eyes, smiling. “No you can have it. Just don’t put your feet up on the dash.”

He grinned at her, then nodded. “I’ll try to control myself.”

Nan grunted in reply, then looked out at the environment around her. It was early morning, about 5 o’clock; the fog hung low to the ground, not yet seared away by the noontime sun. In fact, the fog was so dense, that she couldn’t see the end corners of the family’s large property.

The yard was enormous. Too large, in her opinion. She would be fine with one acre, much less than fifteen. But since her parents’ jobs were so successful—her mother being the author of a bestselling romantic book series and her father a successful businessman—the family could easily afford a nice plot of land and house. A nice house, away from the majority of the civilization, kept from the rest of the world in exchange for privacy and space. A house, so far away and secluded, that the occupants of the house had trouble making friends because of the sheer difference in lifestyles—

“Hey.”

Nan snapped her head up, noticing that her brother was staring at her.

“You okay?” He asked.

She quickly nodded. “Yeah. I’m fine.” She looked away, down at her expensive designer jeans and limited-edition, one-of-a-kind leather boots.

She felt him continue to look at her, but he soon turned away, towards the open door of the garage. “Mom! What are you doing? Come on!”

A sound of thinks clanging together suddenly came from the house, followed by a crash, then a string of swears that were cut short.

Nan groaned, pushing off with her feet, propelling herself towards the garage. “Mom, are you okay? Do you need help?”

“I’m fine! Just getting the last of the stuff.” Their mother said, coming outside, loaded with bags and suitcases.

“Mom, what is all of this stuff for?” Nan asked, bemused. Her brother slipped past her, taking up the heavier luggage and brining it over to the car.

Her mother was fiddling with her keys, flipping through them for the garage key. “Oh, just the stuff you two didn’t pack that I know you’ll want some day.”

“Mom. It’s not like we’re leaving for good. We’re coming back for Winter break.” Nan said, reaching down and picking up one of the bigger bags that remained.

Her mother finished finagling with the lock, turning around and grabbing the other bag. “I know… But you’ve never been away from us for this long before…”

Nan smiled, looking at where she was walking on the ground. “Mom, you’re a sweetheart.”

Her mother chuckled. “You know, that’s what I’m supposed to say. Don’t steal my job as mother.”

She paused in the conversation when she reached the car. Nan’s brother had the trunk hood open, waiting for the last two bags to be put in.

Nan reached the trunk, peering in. “Wow. You did a good job packing everything.”

Her brother snorted. “That’s what Tetris does to you.”

Their mother laughed. “You still play that silly game?”

He looked away. “Not that much. Well, not anymore.” He said, nudging the tire next to him with the tip of his sneaker.

Nan laughed along with their mother. “You’re great.”

He snorted, then walked around the car. “Are we leaving now? Our flight leaves at eight-thirty.”

“Yes, we’re done. Get in the car, kiddos.” Their mother replied. She stood up, then snapped her fingers. “Wait! I forgot to make a drink for myself! I’ll be back soon!”

As their mother jogged off inside, Nan’s brother groaned and rested his head on the ledge of the car.

“Why?” He groaned. “We’re going to miss our flight, at this rate!”

Nan sighed. Their mother took a travel-cup of water wherever she went. She was a strong deviation from a normal person, who coped with the fact that they were—basically—dehydrated all the time. Her personal motto was, “If you’re not hydrated, then you’re not thinking.”

It was very annoying.

“Just get in the car, Nan.” Her brother said, getting in himself.

Getting in the backseat, she settled down, resting her purse on the seat next to her, and putting her phone and sunglasses in the cup holder in between them. She then gripped the headrest in front of her, leaning around to get a better view of her brother. “Why are you in the driver’s seat?”

He rested his left arm on the steering wheel and twisted his torso to look at her. “Because I can.” He said, a gleam in his eye.

Ever since he got his driver’s license—which was fairly early, since he was one of the oldest people in his grade—he drove—or tried to—whenever he could. The latter was more often, since most people didn’t want to see his enthusiastic personality transferred into driving. Especially if they’re in the car with him.

Nan leaned back in her seat, picking up her sunglasses and tucking them into her hair. “Mom won’t let you drive, you know.”

“I’ll try, at least.” He replied, turning to face forward as well.

A few seconds later, their mother appeared at the door. The two waited impatiently in the car while she fumbled around with her keys again. When she had finally locked the door, she turned and bustled to the car.

“BDoubleO! Get out of the driver’s seat! Now!” She called.

Grumbling, he clambered out of the car and walked around the front. “Fine.” He said, sounding like a three-year-old who couldn’t get the biggest lollipop.

When he was back in the car, Nan leaned forward. “Told you.”

“Shut up.” He said, settling down in the seat and pulling out his phone.

“Okay!” their mother said, plunking her drink into the cup holder and rubbing her hands together. “You two ready?”

“DRIVE!” BDubs yelled.

Their mother chuckled. “Okay, kiddos. Buckle your seatbelts! We’re off to the airport!”

BDubs rested his head in his hands, groaning.

 

~`~

 

“This traffic is going to kill me.” BDubs said.

Nan looked at her phone for the third time in that minute. The airport was a mile away, and their flight departed at eight-thirty. It was six-thirty.

“What are you two so riled-up about? You’ll have plenty of time to get through security, if that’s what you’re concerned with.” Their mother said, worming the car between two others in the smallest space imaginable.

“Mom, this isn’t a lane,” Nan said, peering out the window.

“It isn’t?” their mother said, glancing out the driver’s side window. “You’re right, it isn’t.”

BDubs groaned.

“What are you two worried about? You’re going to be fine.” Their mother said, reaching forward and flipping on the radio. It blared the 80’s.

BDubs immediately turned it off.

“No, Mom.” He said. “No Eighties.”

“Mom, the windows are down!” Nan said, slouching down in her seat. “Other car windows are too!”

Their mother chuckled. “Fine, fine.” She turned the radio on again, turned it down, and switched it to the radio called “Today’s Hits.”

As soon as it came on, BDubs inhaled sharply. “I love this song.” He said. He turned it up, then started singing along. He sounded exactly like the artist, not missing one high-note or the low ones.

Nan slumped even further down in her seat.

The car ride wasn’t going to end quickly enough.

 

~`~

 

“We’re here!”

“Yes, Mom, we can see that.”

Chuckling, their mother hopped out of the car and, along with BDubs, unloaded their entire luggage. Nan watched from the sidelines, helping by piling the stuff together.

“That’s the last of it, right there.” Their mother said. “Okay, get inside. We need to check this mountain of crap in.”

The process of getting the entire luggage inside and over to the baggage check-in was probably oversimplified. They just slung it all on, and went inside looking like a trio of bulky, discolored bag monsters.

They got to the baggage check-in, where the woman working the station stared openly, eyes wide. “Wow, you three have a lot of luggage.” She said. “Which ones are you checking in?”

“Firstly, it’s only my two kids that are going to be flying with you today.” Their mother said, all of a sudden professional and all-business. She then dumped all of the bags very unprofessionally onto the ground in front of the scale and said, “And we’re checking all of the bags in, except for her purse.” She pointed to Nan, who held up her black cross-body purse to show the woman.

The woman’s eyes grew wider. “All of it? You’re able to have one carry-on bag that you take aboard the plane with you. It doesn’t add the extra fee of putting the luggage aboard the cargo hold of the pane.”

Their mother waved her hand in an ‘it’s nothing’ gesture. “We’ll just pay the extra.”

The woman’s eyes grew even wider. “Well then, let me weigh all of these…”

And so the woman weighed each bag, with BDubs helping her get them on the scale. The whole process took too long for Nan’s comfort.

Finally, when Nan thought she was going to rip her hair out, the woman stood upright and dusted the imaginary grime off her hands. “Okay! That was the last one. Are you ready to pay, Ma’am?”

Their mother stepped forward. “Yes, I am.” She pulled out her wallet.

“We only accept Visa and MasterCard.” The woman rattled off in a way that gave Nan an impression that she didn’t leave the airport that often.

“Oh, I don’t have a credit card. Nasty things, those pieces of plastic.” Their mother said casually.

The woman eyes grew wider. “Then, Ma’am…”

“How much is it?” Their mother asked, looking down at the contents of her wallet.

The woman told their mother the price, and Nan almost fainted. “How can we have that much luggage?” She hissed to her brother.

He shrugged, obviously dumbfounded. “I have no idea.”

Their mother pulled out a wad of money and handed it to the woman. At this point, Nan was afraid that the woman’s eyes were going to fall out of her head, they were so wide.

“Did I count correctly?” Their mother asked, concerned. “And are you alright, miss?”

“Yes—yes. I’m fine.” She replied, stuttering a bit.

And so Nan had to suffer through the woman going back through and counting the wad of money.

It was the exact amount.

“Okay, thank you!” Their mother said, then pushed the two away.

Nan whirled. “Mom! That was so embarrassing!”

“Yeah, Mom. You can’t do things like that.” BDubs agreed, his eyes narrowed.

Their mother ignored them. “Okay, you two. This is where we part.” She held out her arms.

Their past annoyance immediately evaporated, and they both hugged their mother tightly, in front of everyone else in the airport. They didn’t care.

Their mother pulled away, eventually. “Okay, you two. It’s seven-thirty. You need to get to your flight!”

And she walked away.

 

~`~

 

“People are staring at you.” Nan hissed to her brother. “look, that girl over there by the souvenirs is eyeing you!”

BDubs rolled his eyes. “It happens regularly. Don’t worry about it.”

“What?!” Nan hissed to him.

He turned his head to her. “What?”

He was handsome. Nan could admit that, at least. His dark brown hair and warm chocolate-brown eyes gave him a warm, comforting appearance. His teeth were straight, and… white. His lean body was also a plus, Nan guessed.

She shook her head to get rid of the thoughts.

That was as far as she was going to go.

“Why are you staring at me?” He asked, scrunching his eyebrows together. Running a hand through his hair, he looked around. “I’m hungry.” He said to the air.

“Didn’t you eat at home?” Nan asked.

He pursed his lips. “Yeah, but that was four hours ago.”

“You’re such a stereotypical boy.” Nan said, leaning back in her chair.

“What? Why?”

“Because you eat a truckload of food every three seconds.” She said bluntly.

He leaned back in his chair. “That sounds fine to me.”

Nan groaned, but it turned into a giggle as he chuckled. They sat there, waiting for their flight, giggling quietly with one another.

They were interrupted, though, with the loud call of “TERMINAL C, GATE SIXTEEN. THE PLANE HAS BEEN UNLOADED, AND IS READY TO BOARD. TERMINAL C, GATE SIXTEEN. THE PLANE HAS BEEN UNLOADED, AND IS READY TO BOARD.”

Nan looked up at the speaker. “That one’s ours, right?” She said, suddenly feeling very nervous.

BDubs must’ve felt her uneasiness, because he put a hand on her shoulder. “Nan, don’t worry. I’ve flown alone before. You have me to guide you through this.”

She relaxed. “Okay. Thanks.”

He nodded, then brightened. “It’s actually not that scary. It’s just like a normal plane trip. We even have seats together. I’ll even let you have the window seat.”

He looked over Nan’s shoulder. She turned, seeing the line that was forming at the gate. “We should get in line.” She commented.

“We probably should.” He agreed. Grabbing her hand, he dragged her through the rows of empty seats, past the large window.

Nan looked out at the scene happening outside. Cars were everywhere, shuttling baggage back and forth. Men dressed in neon orange garb directed huge planes in and out of gate spots. Planes were lifting off, touching down, and being guided to their takeoff spots.

Nan didn’t know how the people up in the control tower did it. It was certainly too complicated for her.

“Boarding pass, please.”

Nan turned to the voice. A very annoyed-looking man had his arm extended to her.

“Boarding pass, miss.” He repeated in the same tone.

“Oh! I’m sorry!” she said, jamming her hand into her purse. Rummaging around, she felt it brush her fingers. She snatched it and brought it out, handing it to the man. “There.”

“Thank you, miss.” The man said, beeping it into the system. “Have a good flight.”

She nodded to him, then jogged into the tunnel to reach BDubs, who was trying to control his laughter.

She caught up and smacked his arm. “That wasn’t funny.”

“Yes it was.” He said, chuckling. “Okay, come on. Get on the plane.”

She grew serious.

Goodbye, everyone. I’ll be back soon.

She got on the plane.

I chose to delay the brother's name for as long as possible. I thought it would be fun. Heh. :P



Previous stuff:

Character charts: http://mindcracklove.dreamwidth.org/342414.html#cutid1
Prologue: http://mindcracklove.dreamwidth.org/341086.html


 

Comments

[nannyn]

Thanks :3