Johnny, on the balcony

[strangetomato]

This is a sort-of drabble without a prompt. It's a piece of writing that may or may not make it's way into an upcoming story post, but I'm feeling excited about actually writing and so I felt like sharing it now. If you'd rather not know, it is a bit of a spoiler, but it covers some of the same ground as the previous JRO chapter. All that's new is a little glimpse of the scene between Johnny and Ripp that wasn't shown because Phi had stepped out to give them a moment.

Interested? I'd love a little feedback/speculation to help me get back in the writing groove.



Johnny sat on the balcony, thinking back to the time they'd spent in the cabin.

Lying there, in the dark bedroom, like a comforting womb. They'd been protected from the world. He remembered lying there, sensing the other two, feeling the heat of their bodies, smelling their smells, hearing their breathing. Their heartbeats.

It had been like a dream, outside of the real world. The real world wasn't like that, as much as they might want it to be. And now...

Now the reality had come back to strike him in the face.

His father would soon be dead. And not just him, but maybe all like him. There were people out there that wanted them removed from the planet in any way necessary. Why would they stop? Today it was the aliens, but tomorrow it might be the hybrids, too. It might be him.

Then what?

He couldn't let that happen. He had to go. He had to do something. None of them would be safe if he stayed.

Or maybe he was just running away. This was just another reason to run. Maybe he just couldn't deal with it.

He was scared.

He closed his eyes again, and returned to the cabin. Ophelia had just gotten up and gone to the kitchen. Ripp's face had looked the way he felt, a mixture of fear and excitement and unspoken longing.

"What are we doing?"

"I don't know."

A pause.

"I mean, we're doing something, aren't we?"

"We could be."

"Yeah. I know."

And then silence. What could they say? They simply looked at each other. For a long time, neither spoke.

"Johnny, I'm just going to lay it out there, okay?"

He nodded.

"I think you know what it is you want. I absolutely know what I want. I think it might even be the same thing."

"Yeah... maybe it is."

"You don't need to be afraid of this. There's nothing to fear here. I've said this before, but I want to make sure I'm being clear. I don't want to take Ophelia from you."

Johnny closed his eyes, and slowly nodded his head again. He got that. Both of them. And him too. It had taken some time, but he got that. He felt Ripp's hand cover his own.

"I want to take her with you."

He opened his eyes.

And he was on the balcony again. That's how it had been, and how it still was. He only had to say the word. He hadn't. Not that way, at least. He'd met him halfway. Together, all three in a bed, but still fairly innocent. He could have said the word. He could still say the word at any time. But then what?

Where could they go from there? What would they do when he was the one fearing for his life? Would the world tear them apart or would they do it themselves? Was it just a matter of time?

Ripp didn't understand. It wasn't that simple.

Nothing was ever that simple.

Comments

[milliexx.livejournal.com]

I loved this! Very poignant, but not in a very 'in-your-face' poignant. I'm so glad you decided to share and you're back into writing!

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I'm happy to hear that. Perhaps I'm getting more subtle in my old age? :P I'm really happy to be writing again. I have a couple of other pieces that I wrote recently that I'm adding to my next update, too. Now if I can get back into the images I just might get this ball rolling again. I'm working on it.

I love your icon, by the way! That's Ripp, right? Who's the woman in the foreground?

[milliexx.livejournal.com]

Haha it is! And that would be Angela Pleasant. In my game, Ripp tends to hit on her, but she doesn't really want any part in it :P

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Haha! Yeah, that makes sense. Ripp tends to be pretty into them. I was thinking that, but for some reason she didn't look like one of the Pleasant twins to me in that pic.

[milliexx.livejournal.com]

I kinda tweak the sims to suit my game (I know alot of people think this is treason, but meh) and I do have some face overlays on her. I like to reshape them a bit because it makes them seem more like they're 'mine', if you know what I'm saying. Also I usually leave the originals untouched. I just like to preserve them because I don't want to mess up and wish I'd done something else. It's a vicious cycle.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

*gasp* How DARE you! XD Just kidding. I know some people are very opposed to plastic surgery in sims, but it actually seems like a fairly good idea to me for some of the premades with really wonky faces (eye level adjustment being the worst offender). And, of course, I see no problem with anyone adjusting their game to suit their own aesthetics (though giving everyone the same face seems silly to me).

You don't seem to have altered Ripp, though. Or have you maybe shortened his chin a touch there? Dude does have a pretty prominent chin.

[milliexx.livejournal.com]

Maybe, it's possible I didn't even do anything :P He's adorable :) However if you have a face like Miranda Capp... That took some work.

[milliexx.livejournal.com]

(especially aged up!)

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure which one you're referring to here, but I agree in both cases. Ripp gets more attractive and Miranda less so. Strangely enough, they have a similarly shaped chin. :P It's not so great on females.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Yeah, he's a cutie. There's no doubt about it.

Miranda Capp has pretty extreme features. I think whoever was designing Veronaville was getting a kick out of making them that way.

[krolowa-francji.livejournal.com]

Man, I'm so glad you're writing again. I love this drabble. It shows Johhnny's concerns very clearly, but as milliexx wrote, it's not shoving them in the reader's face. It really does feel like an inner monologue.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Thank you. ^_^ It means a lot to me. And I'm pleased to hear you say that, because I don't think understatement is really my strong suit. I have way too much fun mining the characters to leave much to the imagination. I'm glad this reads well as an inner monologue.

I'm really looking forward to getting to that chapter. It's right after the last part of the Veronaville chapter. (And I'm trying not to hate that one, though trying to finish it has been a nightmare! :P The combination of losing inspiration and focusing on a side story hasn't been working in my favour.)

[katee412.livejournal.com]

Your dialogue was poignant, and I feel it revealed more about the characters than was said outright. I think that with more inner dialogue Johnny's position, and his point of view, would also be as moving.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Ah, so you see that maybe there's more to that conversation than meets the ears, do you? Maybe so, maybe so. Johnny's still really working his way through his thoughts on the situation and hasn't really figured everything out just yet.

Of course, Ripp hasn't had his final say on the matter yet either.

Thank you. ^_^ I appreciate your kind words and feedback.

[selenecorvino.livejournal.com]

"His father would soon be dead. And not just him, but maybe all like him. There were people out there that wanted them removed from the planet in any way necessary. Why would they stop? Today it was the aliens, but tomorrow it might be the hybrids, too. It might be him."

Wasn't this around the time that Johnny was abducted? Hmm,... Now I'm more curious as to what happened during that meeting.

Glad your Muse has returned, looking forward to more.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

This takes place when Johnny has returned home for his father's death, so it's about a couple of months after his abduction. There's a little more detail about what happened during his abduction in Chapter 33. The most relevant new information is that the aliens have good reason to believe that the sims that don't want them there are going to get more aggressive and the virus that's killing the aliens has made its way to Sim Earth somehow, even though everyone involved has been extremely careful about keeping it confined to their home planet.

Thank you. ^_^ It's a fickle muse for now, but I have high hopes. Thank you for reading!