3/30 Instance: (What Would've Been) A Modest Proposal

[Ult_Sm86]

[timeline: immediately after Instance: A Terrible Day For Everyone]

Hope: Unfortunately, Hope could only manage to drag Bobby along for searching for so long. The idea had occurred to her to search through Johnny's room for clues. Maybe he had left a clue about where he had been searching, any leads he hadn't verbally told her about. Hope dug through every single drawer, hoping to find something... anything.

Miles: Miles opened the door. He seemed expressionless, his eyes looked tired. He wasn't wearing a shirt. He went to his bed, completely unaware of her presence in his room.

Hope: Glancing up, Hope swallowed a bit. "Miles...." She glanced down at the drawer she was going through, suddenly feeling, well, crazy.

Miles: He froze and looked down at her. "Where's Johnny?" he asked.

Hope: Johnny. Hope stared down at the floor. Johnny. She just shook her head, unable or unwilling to say the words. "Kidnapped by cannibals."

Miles: Miles: Miles sat on the bed. "... Well. I guess this is just the worst night ever."

Hope: "I went with Bobby to look for him. We watched the tape from the cameras at Vito's. I saw it. Right there. I saw it and I couldn't do anything about it. And we drove all over the city and I can't find him."

Miles: Miles stared at Hope. "What are you doing in here, then?"

Hope: Scrubbing her face with her hands, she gave him a pathetic, half sheepish look. "I was hoping he left some kind of clue behind... something... anything that said where he had been looking. I know he was looking... he got more than he bargained for." She moved to Johnny's clothes, going through the pockets for receipts.

Miles: Miles nodded and looked to Hope's frantic sorting. "My dad died tonight."

Hope: Death. Such death! Hope paused her search to look at Miles, trying to figure out what she should say. "Miles... I... I don't even know what to say..."

Miles: "Someone shot him for his car. I was supposed to be at the house helping him paint the bathroom. I got told I couldn't go on the mission so I went to help my dad, but I got caught up with this girl instead..."

Miles: He felt his grief swelling up and grabbing his throat. "I-I... I'm so irresponsible. And now Johnny?" He sat down on the floor.

Hope: "I hardly think that's your fault. You could have wound up dead too." Hope reached for his hand.

Miles: He jumped a bit as she touched it. The jump snapped him back to reality. "I... think I need to put a shirt on. I had to take my other one off 'cause it was covered in blood."

Hope: Jerking her hand back at his reaction, Hope blinked a bit. She hadn't even noticed he was shirtless. "Yeah... yeah clothes are good." Clothes. She went back to searching through Johnny's clothes. Sheesh he was messy.

Miles: Miles just reached under his bed and pulled his own shirt out, putting it on. He didn't care much if it was dirty, nothing really mattered right now.

Miles: "So Johnny was taken... by cannibals. Do we have any idea what we can do about this?" He was actually very upset, but he was afraid of overreacting now at this point.

Hope: "If you ask Bobby we should sit here and do fucking nothing." Hope ran a shaky hand through her hair, glancing over at Miles again. "I have other plans. If I can get close enough to him... I'll sense his power... and I can find him. They took Jamie too." She felt guilty for forgetting about Jamie.

Miles: "Right, that part I knew. I just got done talking to my cousin." He didn't like any of this. "She never mentioned Johnny..."

Hope: "She told you about Jamie and not Johnny?" Hope gave him a puzzled look.

Miles: "...it was a confusing conversation. She said students got grabbed, she brought up the dupes."

Hope: "Oh..." Hope shook her head. "I just... I try to focus on little steps right now. If I can find him... anyone else shouldn't be too far away. I hope."

Miles: "I think that's probably a fair assumption." he agreed. "So you really think you're gonna find a clue?"

Hope: "I don't know... I have to do something." She made a confused face as her hand found something cold. The color drained from her face as she pulled the object out of the pocket, smashing it her fist, unable to look at it just yet.

Miles: "... You alright?"

Hope: Reluctantly, Hope looked down as she opened her hand to see the ring. It was unmistakably an engagement ring. "Oh God...." She choked on a sob, hugging her knees to her chest, ankles crossed. She couldn't stop the sobbing. So much death, and now not just her boyfriend... the man who was going to be her fiance was missing, could be dead already.

Miles: "Oh. Shit." Miles announced.

Hope: Finding him was not an option. She would, or she would die trying. "I have to find him," she told Miles softly. "I have to."

Miles: "... Yeah. I'll help." he assured her. "I think I'd like to go to that wedding."

Hope: Hope nodded, pressing her face into her knees, trying to regain control. She didn't cry in front of people. "Thank you."

Miles: "Hope..." Miles reached forward and gave her a hug.

Hope: She wrapped her arms around him, pressing her face into him. Oh she was a blubbering mess. Here Miles was with his own tragedy, and she was the one bawling all over him.

Miles: Miles couldn't help it any longer and he cried more as well. "We'll find him, Hope. I promise."

[Slarti]

Wheeeeew, Bobby's glad he dodged that one.