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Re: The Headlines: Ch 7 [Updated 9/7/15]

Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2015 8:34 am
by Mirage_GSM
Been a while since I wrote for this story, I've been working on my one shots a lot!
Three whole days! A long time indeed... ^^°
[/sarcasm]
With Natsume and I sweeping our quarrels
Natsume and me
when the bell signifying the end of the day rings out
signalling?
who is now engaged with a full fledged debate
engaged IN
I've been working on some designs, nothing flashy..."
Well, it IS a flash drive...
"Get over there! You need to hold down her arms so she doesn't break anything."
BAD idea. NEVER try to hold an epileptic down! Trying to do so will actually increase the probability of their (or your) arms to be broken.
Instead keep your distance and try to remove hard objects from there vicinity. Now you know...
This ends out current PSA.

Well, except for that very bad First Aid advice at the end it was a good chapter. If Jun has been friends with Naomi for a while she should know that as well. Also, Natsume would never be able to hold down Naomi during an epileptic seizure.

Re: The Headlines: Ch 7 [Updated 9/7/15]

Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2015 9:01 am
by swampie2
Mirage_GSM wrote:
I've been working on some designs, nothing flashy..."
Well, it IS a flash drive..
Badum Tshh :lol:
Mirage_GSM wrote:
"Get over there! You need to hold down her arms so she doesn't break anything."
BAD idea. NEVER try to hold an epileptic down! Trying to do so will actually increase the probability of their (or your) arms to be broken.
Instead keep your distance and try to remove hard objects from there vicinity. Now you know...
This ends out current PSA.
Noted, I'll make some changes, thankyou!

Re: The Headlines [Updated 6/7/15]

Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2015 8:44 pm
by danfs
swampie2 wrote:
"Hisao? Get outside, Naomi is have an episode!" I almost shout into my phone. I can almost hear his blood drain from his face.
I'm not a native english speaker, but I'm pretty sure that that "Naomi is have [...]" would be "Naomi is having [...]"

Re: The Headlines [Updated 6/7/15]

Posted: Thu Jul 09, 2015 10:11 pm
by swampie2
danfs wrote:I'm not a native english speaker, but I'm pretty sure that that "Naomi is have [...]" would be "Naomi is having [...]"
That's right, typo on my part. :oops:

Re: The Headlines: Ch 7 [Updated 9/7/15]

Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2015 5:59 pm
by swampie2
★ The Headlines ★

Chapter 8: A mixture of fear and pain
POV: Naomi

[Naomi -> Jun][Meet me outside? I've got food.]

I've been excited about catching up with Jun all day, and then I went and forgot to ask her once we were done with newspaper club this week. I'll just chalk it up to the fact that I'm feeling a little ill. I slap my phone shut and place it into my jean hoodie pocket while walking towards the dorms.

My late night trip to the Aura mart would probably anger the nurse off to no end, he seems to think that the only reason I'm not having to many episodes recently is because I'm sleeping too much, if I let him know that my sleeping pattern has been ruined for a week or two then he'll give me that speech that he loves to use on every student here.

With my breath running short, I take the opportunity to sit myself down on the nearby grass. It'll take Jun a while to get herself sorted, so I can rest of a second. These bags aren't this heavy, why am I so tired? My toes begin to tingle and realization crashes into me like a bus.



That's why I was feeling off all day, I'm about to black out. I reach for my pocket and grasp at my phone as my arms slowly begin lose feeling. I quickly flip it open and thumb over to the contacts menu after a couple tries. My motor control is degrading faster than usual, so I let the phone slip from my hands and roll myself further into the field, hopefully I won't wiggle over to the concrete. Jun is on her way, I just have to fight this feeling until-



"Are you feeling okay?" I flutter open my eyes and see the a large study stretching out before me, each wall hold a bookcase, covered in various novels and books. I glance up from my notepad and meet eyes with Hisao who is leaning on a table, swirling a glass of bourbon in his hand.

"What do you think detective?" He asks while tapping the ash from his cigarette into a nearby container.

"I don't think we can put this to bed just yet." I reply while once again scanning my notes for something I've missed, but find nothing. "We need to follow that lead." I grimace at the thought, but it has to be done.

"If you're sure..." Hisao slams down the last of his drink and shrugs on his trench coat.

"I'm sure." I reply, and we set of for the car.

---



"This is the place?" Hisao asks.

"Sure is, let's go inside." I push past him and palm the large wooden door open, releasing a gust of warm air from inside. I step through the threshold and take another look around. In the center of the room sits many lines of tape, all connecting to form the shape of a human body. The railing just above that spot has been covered in warning tape, but is still clearly broken through.

"Tough way to go." Hisao adds as he waltzes in behind me. "What are you hoping to find?"

I point to the markings on the ground and the now feint, darkened marks where the wood had soaked up blood. "She had a ton of cuts, more than going through a second story banister would have caused."

"You're saying she was attacked before she fell, and the fall only ended the encounter?" Hisao grasps.

"Right." I point to him with my pencil, as if to say "1 point to you." "We both know how well she treated the people she hired."

"A housekeeper?"

"I believe so. In fact, all 3 should be around tonight." Hisao nods and begins walking up the stairs towards the upper rooms. Each floor had one housekeeper, and she fell from the second floor, though that doesn't mean anything concrete just yet. We reach the top of the stairs and quickly encounter the second floor housekeeper.

"Ah!" She releases, jumping backwards slightly. "Sorry, sorry, sorry! You scared me." She whimpers. She's skittish, almost too skittish. "What can I do for you today?" Hisao quickly pulls his notepad and flips it to the page he likes to write names on.

"Yuuko? We'd like to ask you a couple of questions." As she hears the words, she visibly shrinks behind her broom. She giggles nervously and turns to look behind her. That's not good.



Almost instantly, a second housekeeper bursts out of a nearby room with pistol in hand. He stares from behind his thick glasses and realizes the situation before raising his arm and firing. The bullet hits me in the leg, sending a bolt of pain up my back and sending me to the ground. Hisao quickly pulls his own weapon and returns fire, apparently not hitting his target though.

"Fuck." He quickly darts behind a nearby doorway to reload his pistol. "You okay Naomi?" he shouts. All I can do is nod and hold my leg still. Hisao peeks around the corner again, this time a round his close to his doorway, and he swears again. A second peek around the corner proves to be a mistake, as a round soars through Hisao's upper body, right through his heart. I feel my own tighten as I see him fall to the ground, not even trying to clutch at his chest on the way down.

He hits the wood with a hard thump, and the room falls silent. All I can hear are my quiet sobs -when did I start crying?- and the sound of boots walking over to me. My leg screams in pain as I disturb it slightly while looking around to try and find something, anything. Hisao's gun, there. I roll myself over onto my chest and begin crawling my way over to him and the large pool of crimson now forming underneath him. Come on Hisao!

Each step is punctuated by the sounds of my gasps as I drag myself along the floor towards the body of my partner. Only a couple more pushes. Come on. I peek up and look at Hisao, his face is a mixture of fear and pain, his skin turning paler each second. I reach forward for one last pull before I can reach the gun. My heart sinks as a boot finds it's way onto Hisao's had before kicking the gun away. I look up and look at the shooter, his glasses now splashed with blood after one of Hisao's rounds hit him in the neck. He chuckles and raises his gun towards me.

"Fucking Feminists."

BANG.

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2015 9:33 pm
by HoneyBakedHam
What did I just read...? :?

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2015 10:22 pm
by danfs
HoneyBakedHam wrote:What did I just read...? :?
I ask the same ._.

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Sat Jul 11, 2015 12:44 am
by brythain
That's one of those drug-induced Kenji-style nightmares she's having there. Cool. Actually, it sounds a lot like the effects of this drug.

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Sat Jul 11, 2015 6:23 am
by Sharp-O
Epilepsy-induced noir stories? That's the most specific disability ever and I love it :D

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:21 am
by swampie2
Sharp-O wrote:Epilepsy-induced noir stories? That's the most specific disability ever and I love it :D
A bit like Suzu playing battleship with death. :lol:

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:24 am
by Sharp-O
swampie2 wrote: A bit like Suzu playing battleship with death. :lol:
Image

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:43 am
by HoneyBakedHam
swampie2 wrote:
Sharp-O wrote:Epilepsy-induced noir stories? That's the most specific disability ever and I love it :D
A bit like Suzu playing battleship with death. :lol:
Touché, good Sir.

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2015 3:43 am
by Mirage_GSM
A chapter from the PoV of an unconscious person 😅.
Interesting... We'll see how well it mirrors actual events...

One thing: feint <-> faint

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 8:01 pm
by swampie2
★ The Headlines ★

Chapter 9: How's the heart?
POV: Hisao

My slumber is disturbed by a rather annoying beeping. That can't be my alarm clock, it feels like I've barely been asleep for an hour. I battle the urge to open my eyes, but decide that I don't want to be late to class again. I muster all my strength and open my eyes, only to find that the room is still dark. I look over to my bedside table and see that my phone has vibrated it's way off the table and too the floor. I lean over and paw at it, eventually managing to grab it and answer it.

"Hello?" I ask, noticing the time and the caller.

"Hisao? Get outside, Naomi is having an episode!" With that, my heart jumps into action shortly after the rest of my body. After the thought that this is some sick joke, then banishing that thought, I reply.

"I'll be out in a second." I launch from my bed and quickly grab the first pieces of clothing I can find; Some old grey sweatpants, a loose tshirt and a jacket. Before I realize it my legs have carried me outside the dorms and towards the lone figure I see stood beneath a light.

"Where is-" I ask, before finding the answer myself, accidentally releasing an "Oh shit." under my breath. About 15 meters away lies Naomi, rolling around in the grass rather violently. Both me and Jun stand in shock for a moment, and she speaks first.

"Get over there! You need to make sure she doesn't hit her head or anything." Alright sounds- wait.

"I can't! I have a heart condition, if she hits me in the chest then it's lights out for me too." I sigh, all I want to do is get over there and make sure she's okay, but the only two people present could be seriously injured by going near her. I quickly weight up the options; She could hit me in the chest, but I'm sure Naomi would do the same for me in some twisted mirror reality.

"Okay, I'll watch her, go get the nurse." She stands for another second before my second shout catches her attention. "Go!"

"What about your heart?"

"Well then at least the nurse will be here if it does go out, right?" She looks on for a second before nodding and taking off in a semi-sprint towards the auxiliary building. I take my que and spin on my heel, rolling up my sleeves in the process.

So I just have to make sure she doesn't hit her head? Am I meant to hold her down? Looking at her I don't think that'd even be possible, I'm sure somebody would get broken if I even had the strength to hold her down. I'll just go for making sure she stays in one place for now. Is this a bad attack, or just a regular one? Jun seemed pretty shaken up, so this must not be her lightest episode.

Naomi's leg catches on the grass and she rolls slightly closer to the concrete area. I remove my jacket and step forward, placing one arm across my chest hoping to deflect any flying limbs in the process. I carefully place the jacket under her head and catch a glimpse of her face as she rolls, and my face drains of blood. The way she looks.. it's just so... fuck epilepsy.

After a tense couple of minutes, the nurse returns with Jun close by. He quickly makes his way over to her and takes over, causing all the adrenaline in my system to drain, leaving me to fall to the ground.

I didn't realize how out of breath I was, and how much my chest hurts. The nurse shouts to me while he pulls Naomi further into the field and I give a weak "I'm okay." Before returning to my prone position against the cool grass. As I close my eyes the sight of Naomi's face flutters through my vision, once again making me feel... awful. Compared to her my problem is a walk in the park, sure I could die at any given moment, but at least I get some notice. She just gets a face full of ground and more than a fair share of broken bones.

"You okay Hisao?" Jun speaks quietly while placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Okay... Just out... of breath." I reply between gasps.

"How's the heart?" She dances around the words, unsure if she should be asking.

"Still pumping." I grimace, considering how lucky I am to have a bum heart instead of a brain problem.

"You wanna get a drink?" Jun offers, and I can almost taste the sweet, sweet juice already. I roll over and grab onto her offered hand before picking myself up with her help. I quickly scan the surroundings and see that Naomi's movements have become a little more subdued, and a second nurse has arrived as well. The nurse sees that we're both stood up and jogs over to us.

"Are you both okay?" He asks in a deadly serious tone.

"I'm okay." I offer, and Jun offers some similar words.

"Great, great. Can you both make your way over to my office? We need to report serious episodes like this."

We both nod and begin our brisk walk over towards the nurses office. As we walk my mind just won't stay away from the image of Naomi writhing around on the ground, and there was nothing any of us could have done. It makes me feel Ill, how such a genuine person can be struck down with something as horrible as what myself and Jun just saw.

"Shakes you up, huh?" Jun speaks as she pushes open the door.

"That's one way to put it." I sigh as Jun inserts a couple of coins into the vending machine placed by the entrance.

"I couldn't sleep well for two days after I first saw one."

"I don't think I'll be getting any more sleeping done tonight." I mutter as I take a box of juice from Jun's extended hand, offering a "Thanks." as she seats herself on the ground next to me.

"I'm not going to lie, that was a rough one." She shakes her head, attempting to free herself of the memory if she's feeling anything like me right now. "Thanks Hisao, and sorry for dragging you out of bed." She gestures towards my hastily donned outfit, complete with backwards tee shirt.

"Don't worry about it, happy to help." I sip at my juice, savouring it's taste in my dry mouth.

"And I'm sorry I couldn't help..." She continues. "I've got lollipop sticks for bones." She chuckles before sipping at her own juice.

"Like I said, don't worry." I lean back, enjoying the cold brick against my back as my body finally begins to cool off.

---

POV: Naomi

Ouch, my eyes. Why is that light so bright? This thing is soft though, soft and warm. There is somebody to my left but it seems that they don't have a face. I'd be freaked out if this... bed? wasn't so comfortable. My arms hurt, also my legs and my neck, but none of that matters because I'm far to comfortable to care. Hmmm.

"Nu░░░░, I ░░in░ ░░e'░ ░░ak░."

Someone speaks but I have a hard time making out any words, just sounds. Sounds are strange. Voices are strange too. People leaning over you are strange as well. I see blue hair but can't make out a face, my eyes refusing to focus. They speak some more words but I still can't make it out, eventually the person takes a step back and begins a conversation with the other person, leaving me to regain my senses.

With that, the pain in all of my limbs become far more apparent. My head begins to thump as I sit myself up, having to use a fair amount of force to get my muscles to agree. I make it about half way to sitting up before my arms give out and I flop back onto the warm, soft bed.

"Naomi?" Someone speaks; A male voice. I turn my head towards the voice and try my best to focus my eyes, finally able to make out a face of the mystery murderer, but unable to put a name to the face. Behind him I can see a girl with rather long, brunette hair and a guy next to her that seems to be asleep. Still having trouble finding any names though. I feel like I know these people, so why can't I remember them? and why are they in my room?

"Have you ever visited Italy?" The words escape from my mouth, seemingly out of nowhere. "I'd love to visit Europe someday." I continue, blinking while attempting to take in my surroundings.

"I'd love to visit Italy too, Naomi." Jun says. Jun! That's her name!

"Jun!" I exclaim, increasing the pounding pain between my temples that seemed to be a background song before.

"Hey Naomi." She gives a meek wave before sipping at a can of coffee.

"What are you doing in my room?" I ask, genuinely curious about why Jun and two random guys are in my dorm room.

"This isn't your room, this is the nurse's office." She says after a small giggle. I look past her to the wall and can't see my dresser, she must be right. "Huh." Is all I can say, inspecting the room that was once mine. Or it wasn't, but I was convinced that it was a moment ago, now it seems obvious though.

"Why am I in the nurse's office?" I ask while taking a sip of water from the glass on the table beside me and remembering my freaky noire dreams.

"You had an episode last night." She sighs before taking another long sip from her coffee. Her eyes are framed by dark circles and her hair hasn't been brushed. Was she up all night?

"An episode? What show? what season?" The words once again release themselves from my mouth without my permission. She takes a deep breath and then drops her now empty can into the small bin beside her.

"An epileptic episode, Naomi."

Oh. Ohhh. Ohhhhhh.

"You were up all night?" I ask timidly, my voice sounding like a shaking leaf.

"Mhmm." She nods. "Couldn't sleep."

"And him?" I point to the sleeping boy... I'm drawing a blank on his name.

"Hisao.." She lingers on his name, obviously giving me time to remember it. "...offered to stay too, but he's too cute to wake up." She giggles. His form is hung over the small chair, his hair is a mess and his tee shirt is on backwards.

"Yeah he is..." I let slip without thinking, and immediately feel my face grow hot. Luckily Jun didn't hear me, or doesn't mind. Jun leans back in her chair and elbows Hisao, almost pushing him off the chair.

"Ughh... whu' time is it?" He asks, groggily.

"About 10:30." Jun answers, almost as groggily. He flutters his eyes open and is palmed a can of coffee by Jun. "Thanks." He leans forward and cracks the can open before noticing me, and I give a meek wave and a quiet "Hello."

"Hey Naomi, how are you feeling?"

"Everything hurts." I whine as I roll over on the bed, attempting to get comfortable. "Is Natsume here?" I haven't seen her about, she's usually first on the scene when it comes to my episodes.

"No, we decided not to worry her for once." Hisao answers, sounding a little more alive now he's got some caffeine in his system. "Nurse wants you to rest for today too, I'll let Natsume know before class." He takes a mouthful of coffee before leaning back in his seat and placing his hand over his eyes to cover the sunlight pouring through the window. I sit for another moment before I check myself over; I'm still in my casual clothes, now adorned with various grass and dirt stains, as well as a small bandage around my thigh. The nurse must have used my anti-convulsant, rather roughly given the stinging I feel coming from beneath the dressing.

Hisao lets out a contented sigh before attempting to throw his empty coffee can into the nearby bin, but misses, drawing a small giggle from both myself and Jun. He mutters some excuse and stands, bracing himself against the wall.

"I'm glad you're okay Naomi, but I've gotta go take my-" He cuts himself off and begins again. "I've gotta see what classes I can catch, I didn't mean to sleep for this long. Me and Natsume will drop by later, okay?" I nod, and he exchanges goodbyes with Jun before leaving.

"What do you think about him?" I ask.

"He's very altruistic." She chuckles while cracking open a second can of coffee.

"Huh?"

"Well... you know why he's here? I mean at Yamaku, right?" She sighs.

"Something to do with his heart right?" I blurt out after racking my brains.

"Last night he told me that getting hit in the chest could kill him." Her face transitions into a grimace. "But he still ran out to make sure you didn't bump your head." Hisao you idiot. At least I didn't kill him. That is, unless, I did and he is haunting me.

"Was he okay? I mean he's alive, but was he okay?"

"He got an earful from the nurse during his checkup, but aside from that he's fine." She smiles and I sigh, I should say thanks.

---

Author notes:
I had considered writing Naomi's waking up scene in complete gibberish, but decided it wouldn't be the greatest reading experience. :lol:

Thanks to Mirage for helping me out, this project wouldn't be the same without ya' !

This part draws act 1 to a close! The following acts will focus more on the romance :wink:

Re: The Headlines: Ch 8 [Updated 10/7/15]

Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 8:19 pm
by Sharp-O
swampie2 wrote:"An episode? What show? what season?" The words once again release themselves from my mouth without my permission. She takes a deep breath and then drops her now empty can into the small bin beside her.

"An epileptic episode, Naomi."

Oh. Ohhh. Ohhhhhh.
Good gag that! Laughed a little too loud for 1:20am :lol: Good chapter, nice to see you took on the feedback from the previous chapter about how to handle an epileptic fit. I'm really liking Jun too!