100 prompts challenge thingy
Not really following the specific rules I guess, just using the prompts as inspiration since I have a bad case of writer's block.
#1. Beginnings
There is not much Callie knows about Alex Shepherd. In fact, she might be able to list all information she has on him on a single hand.
She knows that he is loud and obnoxious most of the time.
She knows that he runs on a very short fuse.
She knows that his favourite show is Deadliest Warrior.
She knows that he likes his eggs sunny-side-up.
She knows he is a murderer. Like her.
This, she knows.
But she knows little else about the guy with whom she shares living quarters, the guy sitting opposite her at the kitchen counter every morning. The guy with whom she spends all her time, everyday.
But, Callie muses as she tips the smoke between her lips towards a golden flame, it’s okay. It’s all okay. Alex probably knows even less about her. He seems to have accepted her reluctance to share any kind of personal information with him. And that is enough for her.
Behind her, the door creaks open. Alex appears in the door frame, shielding himself against the cold.
”Aren’t you coming in? Deadliest Warrior is on.”
A smile flits across her lips. There is not much she knows about Alex Shepherd.
But after all, this is only the beginning.
#2. Middles
”Final offer Clyde, take it or leave it,” Callie says, shooting Alex a dark look, and he knows that he’d better not step on her toes this time, but he just can’t help himself.
”You can’t be serious.”
He makes sure to wedge a joking tone in there, attempting a grin in her general direction.
”Not familiar with the meaning of the word ’final’ I see...” Callie adds dryly and rises from the mattress. Before she can leave the room however, Alex grabs her sleeve, tugging her back in her seat. She is about to protest in a rather non-verbal manner as he quickly brings up the remote in front of his face, using it as a (frankly not very effective) shield.
”I swear Clyde...”
Alex rolls his eyes. ”Just hear me out, okay?”. His reply is a poisonous glare, but a silent one, so he goes on.
”I know you hate this show, all right? I don’t know why you hate it since, in my opinion, it’s the epitome of all things awesome,” he says, ignoring Callie muttering something under her breath about guns, chicks and explosions being a waste of good brain cells, ”and I’d change it, but can’t it be for something other than Twin Peaks? Nothing happens on that show, like, ever.”
Callie places a palm against her forehead. ”Some of us are patient enough to follow an actual plot, you know.”
”Yeah whatever, I have better things to waste my life on than watching some dude praise a goddamn cup of coffee.”
Cue a raised eyebrow. ”Yeah? Like watching The A-Team?”
”Yeah.”
They have a brief stare-off. It might just be a notion, but Callie has the feeling that she could cut the air with a knife if she wanted to. She wants to kick him for getting her wrapped up in such a silly argument.
”This calls for a middle ground,” Callie finally sighs, and Alex is about to speak up but she silences him with a raised hand, her lips a thin line.
”We watch X-Files or,” and she snatches the remote from Alex, ”TV-night’s over and you help me do the dishes.”
Alex sits quietly, his mouth twitching with irritation. Finally, he crosses his arms and lets out a dramatic sigh.
”Fine, mom.”
This earns him a slap upside the head. Callie is fortunate that he has over time developed a mechanism that allows him to distinguish her from other people and thereby not react to physical contact with violence, but it doesn’t spare her a very, very annoyed look
But then theme tune starts up, and none of it really matters. It’s not The A-Team, but Alex can cope. At least now he doesn’t have to listen to Callie’s snide remarks about physical impossibilities and plotholes.
Maybe middle grounds aren’t all that bad.