======Harry Arnold Eternity====== =====You are never alone – A story about an almost accountant.===== Hunted down by a pack of hyenas. “Well…looks like our little friend has gotten lost.” They cackled at him. His flesh malleable beneath their bruised hands. //His jaw cracks as knuckles connect with bone. The air forced out of his lungs as another fist propels itself into his stomach.// He had always been good at hiding away, but when he finally decided to be brave, he did not know where to run. //His collar digs into the back of his neck as his feet lift up off the floor. Bloodied hands entangling themselves in his shirt. Metallic tastes coating his tongue.// “Please you can’t do this please! Think of what I did for you! I’ll do what I did before, no questions asked! Please…” His voice breaks. He chokes on his words. It’s hard to see as tears flow down his cheek. “Do you know what happens to lost people like you, Arnold?” They cackle at him again. “You only had us Arnold. We were your friends…” His body suspended over the edge of a rooftop. “…and now you have no one….and you will be forgotten…” A sickly sweet smile “trust us…we will make sure of that” //His body writhes in desperation.// “You…you can’t! You…you need me!” “We never needed you, Arnold. You needed us, and you forgot your place.” //Stomach lurching as his body falls.// --------------------------------------------------- It’s disorientating, believing you’re alone. That’s what Harry believed for a long time. An internalised falsehood that felt impossible to ignore. Felt impossible to break free from. Self-destruction felt like the only answer. Give people a reason to stay away from you. You don’t deserve them. //“I’m not a comfort you deserve.”// When you die trying to break free from the web of lies you start to question whether it is easier to be the prey. Stuck in your own mind. Doubts clouding your thoughts. Making it easy to blame yourself because all you want is an answer. A reason to stay secluded. //“And what if would cause those who you love pain to see you hurt?” “Their pain is worth more than mine.”// ------------------------------------------------------ And then Harry learned to look around him. He was wrong. When you look inside yourself it is isolating. You become the centre of a collapsing universe of self-hatred. You ignore those around you because you fundamentally disagree with your right to love. But pain is temporary, and pain is not a weight to be measured up against others; regardless of the pain you feel, you deserve love from those around you. Your pain doesn't make you a bad person. This is what Diego taught him. //“You may not know who you once were, not entirely. But here and now you are a good man, Harry Arnold. One I am glad to have met.”// You are allowed to reach out to those around you. You do not have to sacrifice yourself to rid them of burdens if it means you break down in the process. This is what Willl taught him. //“Sit here and then put your arms around my waist and hold on tight - I don't care if you squeeze too hard, just don't let go.”// It’s okay to make mistakes. It’s okay to acknowledge being in the wrong, and to acknowledge your imperfections without detaching yourself from other people. That is what Acacia taught him. // “I don't know what changed. Lots. Too much to quantify. But here we are sending emails directly instead of through a messenger. And here I am, rambling to you as though you're paid to listen to my thoughts. I guess what I meant to say is thanks for your email.”// We all deserve love. Even him. Even with all his faults. That is what Atom taught him. //“There is love to have for everyone and everyone deserves it. Every scared fuckin teen on the street deserves a hand and guidance, every figure wasting away in a hospital bed deserves someone in the chair beside them. Compassion is what we owe each other, it's what makes us human. But god, Harry I love you so far beyond the point of principle and obligation. I adore you.” // --------------------------------------------------- Harry was never alone. That’s what he’s learned here. Human relationships are not just transactions. They’re filled with love and burning passion for those we care about. And as Atom and Harry, Willl, and whoever else joins them as they head to new blocks – they will make sure no one feels alone again. // -- by Rei// =====Acceptance===== Harry meets Bite, aptly enough, in a bar. Rundown, dim lighting, newspaper clippings and lewd art next to rainbow flags on exposed brick. The type of place that Harry would once have hesitated to enter, not the place for a person like him: dressed in suit and tie; briefcase in hand; tidy hair. It would simply have been too unprofessional. There are certain rules a person follows to fit in. There are lines one does not cross, thoughts one must suppress. It is the cost for approval, Harry once may have believed. For acceptance. But no amount of approval will equate to comfort, and acceptance is meaningless if those around you are only accepting a disguise, a shadow, a shell. Rules are made to be broken. And in a place like the Threshold, what rules mean anything at all? Harry walks into the bar with a half unbuttoned shirt, his blazer traded for a leather jacket, and with his hand firmly held by Atom, pulling him in. They buy a drink, walk to a corner of the bar, and… “Bite…?!” “Atom…?!” Tears, laughter, the kiss of two who were parted by death. Two men nearly knocking one another to the floor from the force of embrace. For a moment Harry’s hand is dropped as Atom grips Bite for dear life. Dear death. He falters for a moment. But soon Atom is pulling him into the booth, the three bundled in together. Introductions, stories, kisses are exchanged. Atom, Harry and Bite become interlocked. There is little more queer than the overspilling of love. Than the grimy intimacy of connected lives, of trust and curiosity and radical openness. For a man who once dealt in lies, those that constrained him, deception that refused care and rejected any opportunity to be loved, for a man like that, how wonderful it is to be honest. With himself, with others. How wonderful it is to be yourself. How wonderful it is to be loved for it. =====Highlights===== (Bold text is Harry) ------------------------------ __**Harry and Atom:**__ **"What would// you// call teasing?"** Hm. Being this close to you, and still not doing this. //There's little distance between the two and now Atom closes it. He presses his lips to Harry's, kissing him whilst his hand moves to gently grip the back of his neck. // ------------------------------------------ __**Moro:**__ It is one thing to weep when you hold yourself responsible for the tears you shed, to mourn a loss while burdened with the yoke of liability that still hangs about your neck. //Four dark crescent moons mark his left palm in a clear-cut arc.// It is another thing entirely to let yourself grieve freely. ------------------------------------------------ __**Kessler:**__ //Kessler straightens up, a shift in tone// If you keep things from me, I will respond far worse than if you tell me outright. You would be doing yourself a favour by clarifying. ------------------------------------ __**Acacia:**__ TO: You know who you are FROM: The Office of Acacia Labang SUBJECT: Please see attached... ... for a copy of the restraining order I have had personally made to keep you at more than an arm's length from me. It does not matter that I wrote it. The Psychopomp seal in my office is as good as that from any office. Duration of restriction: forever. Time of beginning: preferably, immediate. Stop sullying my good paper. - A. Labang --------------------------------------------- __**Renita:**__ -> They were really good, especially considering the horror stories some families have -> Almost made some of the more teen angst songs fall flat sometimes ngl... almost ;) **-> Teen...angst songs? -> Actually you can introduce me to them I guess //A pause, the text bubble appearing and disappearing several times// -> Do you miss your family?** -> Every day ------------------------------------------------ __**Albert:**__ Your computer lies in pieces before you when the ding of an email arrives on your phone. From one slaughterhouse@asend.com. Good evening, Mr Arnold. I understand your intentions. I welcome your opposition, and that of Mr le Tillyer. From an experienced hunter to one so naive in the game: I wish you the best of luck. - AW **Good evening, Mr Wyre. I’m looking forward to my haircut. - Harry Arnold** ---------------------------------------------- __**Diego:**__ To me, that paints the picture of someone who would break the law only because he had no other choice. You do not have the memories to confirm this, but giving yourself the benefit of the doubt is the best we can do in these situations. I do not know why I remember committing mutiny when I thought I remained loyal to my captain, but I must trust there was good reason for it. As for the mysteries beyond yourself, I know it is hard, but time will one day tell all. //He stands, one hand full, and places the glass in a napkin on the counter.// You may not know who you once were, not entirely. But here and now you are a good man, Harry Arnold. One I am glad to have met.