Day 23: Lunch

[part1of3.livejournal.com]

The second the intercom sounded, while the man on the intercom was still talking, Ashton pulled himself off the couch in the Music Room and slowly made his way to the door. He walked, glided even, as if he were a ghost in a dream. The nurses had already filed up to escort the patients to the lunchroom, and one bustled over to walk Ashton those few feet from one room to another.

"You're not looking very well, Mr. Pritchett," she said cheerfully. "Didn't you enjoy your shower?"

Ashton replied with a small, forced smile, then shook his head. He didn't feel like talking now. Though the nurses were pushy and downright annoying, he figured he owed this one at least a little explanation. They didn't know - or didn't believe - what went on after dark, but he owed them the benefit of the doubt. "Bad day," he decided on telling her.

Bad day indeed. The showers and the music had done nothing for his nerves. But then again, what could get that graphic image out of his head?

He glided ghostily through the taco line and settled on two chicken and bean tacos, with chips, a scoop of guacamole, two churros on the side, and a glass of apple juice. He wasn't used to this sort of food (save the juice) and he wasn't even sure he'd eat it, but the chances were high that he'd be able to pass it off on someone.

He was on the verge of tears again, too. What he would have given to just sit down next to a barrel and eat a hamburger.

Thank goodness the cafeteria was bare just now, too. It left all the corner tables open, the tables that shouted 'Don't talk to me, I'm brooding over here.' He sat at one, pushed his food a little away from him, and buried his head in his arms.

Comments

[offduty.livejournal.com]

Reno shrugged at her question. "Never been part of the interview process, but I'd say education isn't that heavy of a weight. I mean, I never even had a class to be at the top of." Tseng had just pulled him off the streets, pretty much. "Besides. You've got other things going for you, yeah?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Dean approaching. He'd intended to deliberate further before letting Elena know one more thing about her sister, but there was no time for that now.

He hesitated. "Look, don't get your hopes up because it's been too long by now, so this probably doesn't mean anything anymore, but - we never recovered any bodies."

His last words were spoken just as Dean arrived. He glanced up and nodded in greeting.

"Never better," he remarked. "You? You didn't break a toe or something kicking him, did you?"

[thehellismycar.livejournal.com]

Dean cocked a brow at her statement about good judgment, perhaps in a gesture of more-than-gracious will, and switched back to Reno as he sat beside him without waiting for a go-ahead.

"Nah, I'm fine." Yeah, it was the settling dressings that had his gut furtively in knots right now. The indication of that was a slight twitch at the corner of his lips, but he hid it by taking a swig of apple juice. He gave it an inquisitive look when he held it up, squinting laterally at it, after swallowing the liquid with a grimace. "Sure as hell isn't whiskey, but it'll do."

[beforehertime.livejournal.com]

"...never recovered any bodies." Elena's eyes widened at the implication. Of course she wasn't going to let herself be lured in by false hope...but...

"What kind of explosion, Reno?" she asked intently, Dean momentarily forgotten. "Oh, hell. Never mind about that part...when did Rosalind and Rod and Mr. Veld and everyone else die? Was AVALANCHE behind it?"

Were they actually dead?

And then Dean spoke up again and the girl colored a bit.

Shit.

"Uh...that's...technically...kind of classified...so..." Elena bit her lip. "Don't go repeating what you just heard? The people attached to those names--" My sister and her partner and all of her other coworkers "--aren't technically supposed to exist anymore. Their identities were erased when they died."

[offduty.livejournal.com]

Instinct had Reno cringing inwardly at first at the release of information, but on second thought, it didn't matter much. He doubted Dean knew enough about what was being said to make use of it - nor did he think the man would've even if he could.

"I'd kill for whiskey," he said to Dean before turning back to Elena.

He paused a second as he counted back in time. "Three? - years ago, about. AVALANCHE...played a role, but no one saw the explosion coming. Veld wasn't there, though. He...expired through other means."

The day following everything, Reno had tried to pull up Rosalind's file, expecting to see DECEASED or something on it. Instead, he got a "File Not Found." If anyone had bothered looking, they'd have noticed a jump in the file numbers in several places. But of those with a high enough clearance to check, all knew the truth, anyway.

"Just don't tell the boss I said anything, yeah?" Reno picked up his glass of water. "Or Tseng if he shows up. They'll take turns skinning me alive."

[thehellismycar.livejournal.com]

He coolly waved a hand at Elena's statement after gulping down more juice.

"How could I put information to use when it doesn't make sense? Besides," he smirked in Reno's direction, "I think we've established trust enough for you to believe me when I say I won't."

He continued to listen in, instinctively curious about the unknown. Eyes roving his surroundings, the cup was placed before him as he folded his fingers upon the table. Terms and names his company exchanged would probably grow familiar to him as he gradually managed to match meanings to them, though he didn't count on that happening at this moment. His gaze drifted until he recognised a figure sitting at a table nearby.

Rein.

"Catch up with you two later," he said distractedly. The fact his lunch remained untouched was something he overlooked for the time being. He didn't wait for a response to move him toward the woman.