Relaxation-Well Versed

[Brenden Erickson]

Some people would probably wonder why Anthony was at the beach, with Brenden's puppy. But the answer was rather simple, Brenden had asked him to watch the puppy overnight last night and he wouldn't be picked up for a few more hours. He was glad that he had the puppy for a few more hours since he was fun and he missed having a dog. He hadn't had a dog in two years and that Molly, she'd been a Golden Retriever actually she'd been Mike's dog. The dog was about two years old and after Mike's death the dog had been there for him, when Brenden couldn't be. Yet, it was just two weeks after he had lost Mike that his mother sent the dog away. After that he'd been so mad at her that he hadn't spoken to her for a few days after that. Couldn't she see that the dog was basically the only thing that was left of Mike and that the dog was probably one of the things that he could actually talk to? Sure he'd talked to Brenden, and Jordan a lot but he couldn't really talk to them at two in the morning. Well, actually he could but he knew that neither of them would probably be awake.

It hurt to think about Mike, he'd been his only brother and now he'd been gone for almost two years. Not a day went by that he didn't think about him at least once. He'd followed him around for years and the two had been close. It always seemed like he knew what to say and what to do. Of course he knew that it wasn't true but he'd respected Mike a lot. He was lucky though, after Mike was gone Brenden had stepped up and virtually filled the older brother role but it was more than that. He'd also taken up a best friend role at the same time, exactly like Mike had. Yet nobody would ever take Mike's spot completely, not even Brenden. Right now he could say that Brenden was the best friend that he had though, since most of his other friends had drifted away once his mother had announced to him that he'd be home schooled. That was one of the worst things that he had heard in his life. He hadn't wanted to be taken away from another thing that he really knew. A few days ago his parents had told him that this year, he'd be going back to a normal school. It made him wonder what his father had to say to convince his mother that he needed to go back to a normal school but he was glad. Since his mother had been the biggest obstacle, and now that was over he could focus on other things.

One of the things that he was focused on now was the fact that would people accept him again? He hoped that they would, of course he'd still be around Brenden and Jordan a lot for the first few days. He knew that since it wasn't like people would probably instantly accept him again. Another thing that he was thinking about lately was if he should actually join a team. He'd been on sports teams when he'd been in school before and it wasn't like he hadn't practiced. Since Brenden always took him with off into a spot in the woods where they'd practice in private. Since Brenden didn't really like people watching him practice for some reason but of course, Mike had been that way too. So maybe it was just some habit that Brenden had picked up from him. It wouldn't surprise him if that was the case since Brenden had known Mike since he'd been born. Mike had been a few months older than Brenden and now Jordan was in the middle between the two.

His green eyes scanned the beach, there wasn't anybody else out here. That was probably a good thing since he just wanted to sit and relax for a bit. It hadn't been that long of walk out here, of course he was a fast walker. He then sat down on the beach and looked over at the puppy who was sitting next to him. "You know Brownie, I wonder if Brenden's going to let me babysit you more often. Since you were a good dog last night." He said and then ran his hand through the Springer Spaniel's short brown fur. The puppy was eight or nine weeks old and was the runt of the litter. Yet the animal was very energetic but right now the puppy was happily laying down beside him. Which was a good thing since at the moment, he didn't really feel like playing.

[W e l l ;; V e r s e d]

Small tanned feet scuffed heavily at the sand covered ground beneath them. Black painted toe nails digging into the soft sand with each slow step that she took. Long black spiraled curls spun around as her bright eyes looked at the impressions in the sand that her small feet had left. Curving to the right she felt the chilly water sweep silently over her, brushing sand all across her ankles gently. This place reminded the girl so much of back home in South Carolina.

The white foamy water splashed across and up onto her black skinny legged, holy jeans. Hugging her arms around her thin figure she continued down the sandy path covering the tightly fitting black and neon pink rib-caged printed tank top; her low top converse swinging back and forth in one hand. Turning, Lynne's misty eyes caught sight of the vermilion colored sun laying down across the horizon.

Amberlynne remembered the day as if it was just yesterday. In a couple days it would be a full thirteen months after Martin's death. It didn't feel that way nearly at all. Black outlined eyes squinted as they tried to stare into the core of the sun as her mind wouldn't allow her to push the thought from her mind. The sirens. The screaming. The tears. The smacking of her bare feet on the pavement as she ran as fast as she had ever in her life. Lynne remembered holding his lifeless body in her arms after she'd been alarmed of the accident.

The young girl had never come to understand why he was taken from her. It was a little like being killed on the inside, and nearly a month after he had passed it began showing on the outside. Back now to the warm sun, Amberlynne waded deeper into the water, allowing it to brush up over her knees and soak her pants. Martin was pulled from her just as the sand was pulled from the beach. Now only if he too could just be washed back up onto the shore...

A small tear fell down the cheek of the dark haired girl and she brushed it away with a small brush of her hand. Her ears heard something over the rush and pull of the waves. It sounded like voices. With a swift look about the beach she laid eyes on a pair. It was a young man and what looked like a small dog. Her first reaction was to turn around, surely she wouldn't want to make a first impression on this stranger by looking like a lonely girl sobbing away her sorrow in the waves, but Lynne kept watching him.

He looked as if he wasn't too happy at the moment either and a very faint smile brushed across her cheeks as she looked down at the puppy laying obediently at his feet. Without listening to her conscious she moved toward the young man and the dog, hoping that she wouldn't be interrupting anything. It was the puppy. It was just so darn cute. Her sorrow had nearly been forgotten as the usual out-of-control Amberlynne set in again.

Nearing them she squatted down in the sand with an outstretched hand. Her black painted finger nails digging into the puppies fur with little hesitation. The smile once more found it's way to her slender face and a bright look filled her smoky eyes."He's gorgeous." she said absent mindedly.

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[Brenden Erickson]

He heard a female speak and it made him slightly nervous but he wasn't as nervous around strangers as he had been before. Besides, it wasn't like this girl was going to attack him or anything. Not to mention, he could tell that Brownie liked her petting him. A smile appeared on his face as she said that the dog was gorgeous. He thought the same thing that the puppy and Brenden was very lucky to own the puppy. "Yeah, he is isn't he? His name's Brownie, and he's actually not my dog I'm just babysitting him." He said calmly and then looked down at the puppy again, the dog sure loved all of the attention that he got from people. It seemed like wherever he had taken the dog people had stopped to pet him and give him attention. Yet, it still made him remember how much he missed having a dog. He knew that in a few hours he'd have to return the dog to Brenden but it wasn't like he wouldn't ever see the dog again. That was the one thing that he wished his parents would let him get again. Yet he knew that his mother probably didn't want another dog in the house. He'd always dreamed about finding Molly again but he knew that the chances of that were slim, besides the dog might not even remember him anyway.

Of course, his mom had always been that way she'd never really liked pets that much. She said that they were too messy but the day that Mike had brought Molly home she'd let him keep him for some reason. Sure the puppy had been really sweet and lovable even though he had found the puppy wandering around in the woods. Of course, his mother had also said that they needed to try and find the owner of the puppy but it had never happened so they got to keep her. Molly had been Mike's dog through and through though, and he had noticed that she missed him when he wasn't around. Perhaps it was for the best that the dog was gone since she probably would still miss him and it would be sad to see the dog depressed. He knew that some people didn't believe that dogs had feelings but he was one of the people that believed that they did. After all, did they not express joy once their owners came home?

His eyes wandered over to the water again, he was surprised that Brownie hadn't instantly ran toward the water when he had been brought out here. Since the puppy loved swimming, but maybe he'd tired the puppy out after playing with him so much. It was then when he realized that he hadn't even really spoken to the girl who seemed to like the puppy. "He's usually running around or swimming in the water whenever Brenden brings him to the beach." He said before looking down at Brownie. The puppy was wiggling and wagging his tail, it was clear the he liked this girl.

[W e l l ;; V e r s e d]

A smile fell across the girl's face as the boy told her more about the cute little puppy."That's so cute. I don't know many guys that would babysit a puppy, but this one is awfully adorable." she stated, continuing to stroke the pup's soft fur. Sitting here petting the animal made her think of her own little darling, Gorgeous. Amberlynne had always been more of a cat person than a dog person and that's how her own little one had come along.

"Awh, this makes me want my kitten, Gorgeous." she said with a happy grin, shifting her gaze up to the young man. She liked this puppy and from the way it sounded so did the guy. How could you not? He seemed so energetic and happy to greet everyone."I'm Amberlynne. It's nice to meet you, and you too Brownie." she said happily patting the pup once more.

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[Brenden Erickson]

She didn't know of many people who would watch a puppy? That was odd, of course he knew that some people just didn't want to watch a puppy since they thought it would take away from their social time. That wasn't true at all and not to mention, a lot of people actually wanted to talk to you when you had a puppy along with you. "Yeah, well he's a really fun puppy and he makes up for the unbearable pain that happens when you're seen walking a puppy." He said and then smiled at her as he tried not to laugh, he was in a good mood today. And not to mention, he wasn't really too nervous around strangers anymore and there was only one person that was responsible for that. (Well, besides himself anyway.) That person already knew what they'd done for him and what they were still doing for him and he was glad about that. Of course that person could only be, Brenden. Actually, through all that had happened he'd grown close to Jordan too but he was closer to Brenden since he'd known him longer.

Her kitten's name was Gorgeous? That was a little odd but at the same time it was cool since the name was unique. "I'm more of a dog person since you can't really take cats for long walks." He said and then looked down at Brownie, the puppy always made him smile, no matter what mood he was in or what was going on. He actually was very surprised that the dog didn't want to play with this girl. Since usually when he met somebody the puppy would either stand there and let them pet him or take off and return with a stick or something to throw. Of course he knew that the puppy probably was enjoying the attention that he was getting too much to even think about running off to go find a stick.

"It's nice to meet you Amberlynne, I'm Anthony." He said and then wondered if this girl was new here or had been here for awhile. He hadn't really kept up with who was new and who had moved away when he had been being home schooled. For all he knew the girl could have been going to school here for two years now. He had neglected to mention his last name on purpose. Just in case this girl knew about what had happened to Mike, he didn't really want to talk about it today.

[W e l l ;; V e r s e d]

Her thin fingers continued to stroke through the puppy's fur as she turned her attention more to the young guy, Anthony."Gorgeous just tottles along behind me when I walk sometimes." Lynne replied with a laughing tone. Thinking of the small, white, two-eye colored cat prancing along behind her. Her legs were beginning to tire and so she plopped herself down in the sand as it sifted up over her holed jeans.

Honestly, Anthony didn't look all that familiar. Amberlynne had been attending Lakeland High School for nearly eleven months, or been in the area, and she didn't remember seeing him. It might just be a mistake though. He might be in a difference grade, and between work and her daily duities, she didn't remember the aquaintence. "Do you go to LHS?" she inquired, tilting her head somewhat.

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Oh.Oh.See;; Sorry, it's short. x3

[Brenden Erickson]

He could imagine the cat walking behind her and he knew that it certainly would be a sight to see. He'd seen people try and walk cats and most of the people really hadn't succeeded. Although, a few of them had and it had been rather interesting to watch. He knew that Brownie would follow you around and the puppy hardly ever got sidetracked. He had a few times though when he'd been following Brenden around and he had seen somebody that he knew. That was the only time that he could really remember the puppy running away when he was off of a leash. He was always amazed by how much Brownie listened to people, he just seemed so different then most of the puppies out there. "That must be a sight to see, I know that Brownie follows you around too. Actually, he'd probably follow your around right now since he knows you now. Or he knows that you gave him attention anyway." He said and then smiled at her, this girl seemed nice. Not to mention, she didn't seem to know him which meant that she wouldn't know about what happened to Mike. Unless somebody else had told her, which a big possibility.

He heard her next question and knew that he would have to answer honestly. Although it meant that he might have to explain some things that he never wanted to talk about. "I used to, up until two years ago and then I was home schooled. But, my parents decided that I could go back to school this year." He said and then ran his hand through Brownie's fur for a moment before he knew what else he should say. "You know about what happened to my older brother Mike right?" He said almost timidly, he wasn't afraid of this girl it was just the way that he got whenever Mike came up. He knew that this girl probably had been going to the school for awhile now and had probably heard about everything at least once by now. Not to mention, the county had included what had happened to him into their speech on winter driving. He couldn't believe that they had done that and once he had found that out he'd just broke down. It seemed like they were blaming Mike for the accident, how was he supposed to know that there was black ice there?

He could remember hearing about what had happened and then almost instantly taking off out of the house and down the street. It was the middle of November and it was cold out and he didn't have a jacket. Plus, at the time he'd been sick with a cold and he'd ended up at the park sitting on the swings crying. He didn't know how long he had even been there but as it turned out he'd heard footsteps near him and looked up to see Brenden, he didn't look any better then he did. Jordan had been behind him and somehow the two had managed to coax him off of the swing. Brenden had given him his jacket and then they'd ended up walking around the park, at midnight before ending up at Jordan's again. Being exposed to the cold air without a jacket had taken its toll on him though and he'd come down with a really bad case of the flu. Last year, he'd ended up back at the park at night and once again Jordan and Brenden had brought him back with them. Although, last time he hadn't gotten sick.

He silently prayed that she knew what had happened, he didn't know if he could talk about it in the first place without breaking down. Even then she might say that she felt sorry for him and knew how he felt. She wouldn't know how he felt unless she had lost a brother too.

[W e l l ;; V e r s e d]

She could somewhat relate to this boy, seeing as neither of them had been around for very long; with him being home-schooled and all. Her hands removed themselves from the puppy's fur as she looked over at him, a frown creasing her forehead unknowingly."Mike? No, I don't think so.." she said softly, trying to think of anything that she had heard recently. From the way that it sounded Anthony didn't make it seem like something good had happened to his brother, and it slightly worried her.

"I actually haven't been around all that long. Well, at least not with any new friends or anything.." she said biting at her bottom lip. Amberlynne was learning to leave the past behind her and move on, but not forget it. It was a hard thing to deal with, but she had come a long way from where she was before. Looking back up at him, her fingers ran through the sand, leaving little lines to be washed away.

She didn't exactly know what to say to him in response."Well, I don't know about it and if you don't want to explain it, it's alright." she said with a faint half grin, attempting to give him some reassurance. Even if he did tell her, she wouldn't go galavanting around talking about it. Who would she have to talk about it to anyways?

Her mind began to wonder. Pondering on whether his brother had been taken by fate too. If so, she would understand how he felt and would try her best to keep her own composure. It was good to talk to people though. Especially if you have no one else but yourself and a cat named Gorgeous.

Her eyes rested on the puppy once more as she sat silently.

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[Brenden Erickson]

She didn't know what had happened to him? Wow, he thought that everybody knew about Mike's accident. After all, people around town probably still wondered about some of the decisions his mother had made after the accident. He looked at Amberlynne for a moment before looking down at the ground. She might as well know what happened since she probably would find out eventually. "Almost two years ago..he was in a car accident and died." He said while still looking down at the ground. He took a very shaky breath before continuing, he hated talking about this since he always got so emotional. "He swerved to avoid a deer, hit a patch of black ice, then his truck went down a hill and hit a tree." He said before he began to pet Brownie again, he could feel the tears in his eyes but he was determined not to cry. Especially in front of somebody that he didn't really know.

He then slowly looked up at Amberlynne. "Everybody knows about it and after it happened my mom forced me into being home schooled." He said before looking around the beach. It seemed like it was just yesterday Mike was chasing him around the beach. Not a day went by that he thought about him and remembered how much he missed him. Although, he was amazed this probably was the first time that he'd told somebody the story about what had happened to Mike that he hadn't ended up crying. Although he had came awfully close to crying but somehow he hadn't. "It's taken me this long to convince my mom that I should go back to a normal school. I didn't want to be home schooled in the first place." He said and then stopped petting Brownie for a moment as the puppy stood up. To his amazement the puppy got up and curled up on his lap and fell asleep. Brownie wasn't the type of dog who would fall asleep on you or intentionally get up just so that he could do that. Could he sense that his mood had changed or something?

"He'll probably wake up in about five minutes wanting to play again. But just out of curiosity where did you move from?" He asked since he knew that he needed to get off the subject about what had happened to Mike. Besides, it wasn't the best topic to discuss with a stranger.

[W e l l ;; V e r s e d]

It was as if Anthony had said something that should have come out of her own mouth. Her slate eyes filled with a foggy like glaze as she stared down into the sand, watching as the puppy climbed up into his lap and laid down. Honestly, how would something like that happen to both of them, and then it suddenly just appears in conversation between strangers. She looked up at him, holding the hot tears behind her black outlined eyes. Amberlynne sure didn't want Anthony to see her crying.

Keeping her composure, she turned to him with a reply."I moved here from South Carolina, about eleven months ago," she paused, removing herself from the sand and standing a little ways away from both him and the puppy."I moved here on account of a death." she added, pressing her heel into the sand.

Even though this conversation didn't exactly want to make you smile, she was happy that she had found someone that could understand her. What it was like to lose your best friend and older brother. The person that taught you almost everything that you know, and was always there beside you to hold your hand when you were afraid to jump into the ocean yourself.

It was getting easier every day to talk about it, but it wasn't something that Lynne liked to talk about with most people."I'm really sorry about your brother." she said softly, trying to think of something that might switch subjects easily. Sitting down on a rather large rock, she set her shoes in the sand, reaching over to pet the puppy on the head.

Yes, probably." she replied with a smile. Looking out across the water, it had nearly sank away, leaving nothing but a black velvet colored sky. Just then her face lit up and the bright excitement filled her brillant eyes once again.

"Say, you wanna take a swim?" she asked with a tilted but inviting grin.

[Jordan Anderson]

He could slightly tell that she was trying to hold tears back and he was too. He did not to cry in front of somebody that he had just met. Yet when he heard what she said he was rather shocked, they'd both lost somebody and she'd moved here because of it. He knew that he wouldn't be able to take that. There was a few people that were literally keeping him sane and not making him want to just run off and be by himself for the rest of his life. "I couldn't imagine moving on account of a death. Since I'd basically lose my whole support system and that wouldn't be a good thing." He said and then ran his hand through Brownie's short fur for a moment as he thought about the people that had stuck by him after Mike's death. It made him look up to a few people more and perhaps he did idolize them but he really didn't care. Actually, he did know that they knew that he looked up to them though.

"I really miss him, it still seems odd not having him around. His room has basically stayed the same and nobody's probably been in it for a few months now." He said quietly and then looked down at the ground, his mother was basically the one who had said not to touch anything in that room. Yet, for some reason he felt rather happy in that room, yet sad at the same time. Since he knew that it's former occupant would never chase him around that room again.

He smiled at her question about going swimming. He was up for that, and he knew that Brownie would be too since the puppy had just woken up. "Sure, that sounds fun and I'm sure that a certain puppy wouldn't mind being in the water either." He said and then watched as Brownie got off of his lap and then stood there wagging his tail.

((Short but I'm going to walk my dog to get my muse back. I hope the post is decent.))

[W e l l ;; V e r s e d]

Tossing her low-topped Converse into the sand she placed her hands on her hips. The sun was practically gone now, and she cast her blue-eyed glance up wards at the moon that softly became visible. Her skin shone a soft white in the light that the moon cast down wards on the trio. Her hair curled all around her face loosely as she smiled, looking back over to the two. Her eyes momentarily came in contact with Anthony's before she spoke."Hm. I know how you feel, Anthony. I mean, I lost my brother, too." she said, feeling somewhat relieved for getting that off of her chest.

She didn't quite know what it was, but there was something about this new acquaintance that made him easy to talk to. Maybe it was just the fact that under all the smiles they were still both sharing the same pain? Amberlynne didn't want to get back on the subject fully, but she thought that it needed to be said. In somewhat of a closing. He didn't need to say that he was sorry, because they were generally feeling the same emotions for each other.

Squatting down, she motioned for the puppy and took a couple bounding leaps back wards. The thin girl was happy were she was at the moment and all that she could think about doing was having fun with her new companions. Giggling softly she waded into the water, splashing some in their general direction with a playful flick of her hands.

"What are you waiting for, silly?"

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[Brenden Erickson]

He watched as their eyes met for a moment and he listened to what she said. He knew that they probably were going through the same thing yet he'd lost Mike about almost two years ago. Sometimes he would get the urge to go out to his grave and just sit there. Of course, a few times he'd ran into Brenden out there but nobody else knew that. Yet he could remember the look in his eyes and he knew that they'd both been out there to think about things. He could remember going out there and just losing it of course that had been a short while after the accident. He hadn't completely broken down in about a year now. "You know, it's kind of nice to actually have somebody to talk to about this. There's a few people that I actually do talk to about things similar to this. But they could never truly understand since they didn't lose a sibling." He said quietly before staring up at the moon again for a few moments.

He watched as she entered the water and then asked what he was waiting for. "I have no idea what I'm waiting for and whatever it is I'm going to stop waiting for it." He said before removing his shoes and then tossing them over where Amberlynne's were. He then entered the water and began to make his way over to her before he heard a splash. Then he looked behind him and noticed that Brownie was swimming toward him. He then was right next to Amberlynne and a few seconds later Brownie was happily swimming around the two of them. The puppy sure loved the water and he could remember the time that he'd been with Brenden while they were taking him for a walk and it had began to rain. The puppy had then been running through every puddle he could find. Of course, Brownie had gotten rather dirty but he knew that the puppy didn't mind.

((I hope that's long enough I'm trying to work through my muse problem.))

[W e l l ;; V e r s e d]

OhOhSee;; Wow. Punch me in the face for taking so long. x[


Another smile fell across her face as she looked over at her new friend. Well, hopefully he would consider her the same. Amberlynne believed that even though they didn't know each other all that well, they had found something inside of one another that had almost strangly brought them from strangers to friends. It wasn't often that something like that happened in someones life. At least not hers.

She giggled lightly as another larger wave came and pushed up against her back, soaking her entire backside. Amberlynne was nearly drenched and she had only been in the water long enough for Anythony and Brownie to swim out after her. Standing momentarily, she waited for the both of them to make it out into the water before she spoke.

"Yeah, it is good. I mean, people say that they understand, but you know that they say it to make you feel better." she admitted with a half grin."I try talking to my cat, Gorgeous, about it. It doesn't help all that much when you know that the only thing running through her mind is food." she said in a chiming tone. She adored that cat, but she had to admit that it was way easier sharing your feelings with someone of the same species. [[xD]]

When they had finally reached her out in the water, she laughed and stroked the puppy. Looking back over to Anthony, there was a devious glint in her eyes as she let out a cry, clutching onto his back, laughing.

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