RILEY PARKER
Werewolf
Posts: 307
Age:
22
Occupation:
Postgrad Student - Environmental Sci.
Status:
Engaged
Partner:
Danny Mahealani
Played by:
ANGE
Last seen Apr 28, 2024 16:30:53 GMT
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Post by RILEY PARKER on Jan 16, 2024 22:18:14 GMT
It had taken him an hour to get out of bed that morning. His phone had buzzed a half dozen times on the nightstand, each message ignored for the moment. More than likely it had been the pack – Scott, or even Kaleb – reaching out to check on him. What was he supposed to say though? ’Danny’s still gone, I still feel like I’ve been torn apart from the inside out’. Hollow, ripped to shreds with the space where his heart had been holding the worst of the damage. His fiancé was dead.
Staring at the smooth pillow beside him, Riley tried to conjure up a mental image of Danny there, the morning light spilling over his tawny skin, his lips curling into a sleepy smile. There was nothing though, the thought wouldn’t come and it scared him enough to finally drive him out of bed. It was too soon. Danny had told him to move on, but he wasn’t ready for that, wasn’t sure he ever would be. It could’ve been years, not months, but he still would’ve woken every morning, hoping to God that it had all been a bad dream and he’d wake up to find Danny right there beside him.
He showered and dressed fast, trying not to torture himself with the things Danny had left behind at his place. It was bad enough catching the scent of him from a shirt draped over the chair in the corner of his room, or coming face to face with the photos of the two of them that littered his bedroom still. It was better to keep his head down, to push past it, to try and keep himself busy so he wouldn’t blow off an afternoon’s worth of classes to end up right where he’d been, laying in bed, waiting for a miracle that was probably never gonna come. They’d had theirs, they’d had a handful of amazing years together. It was more than most ever got and so much less than he wanted.
By the time he got through his afternoon class on water management, he felt himself starting to crumble. The paper thin shell of who he’d been turning to dust. He walked away from his class, startling at everybody who walked past, racing after some tall guy with black hair in case. The guy had puffed out a what the hell as he’d spun him around. Feeling tears bite at his ears, Riley had let him go. Danny wasn’t just going to float back into their lives like he’d never been gone.
Struggling to reel himself in, he’d pulled out his phone, desperately scrolling through his phone to try and find Scott’s number. He was the only pack member still in classes. Everybody else had graduated and they were out there working, their lives carrying on without Danny in them. Theirs didn’t centre around him, not in the way his own had. Realising that Scott had probably just come out of class the same way he had, Riley turned back, heading past the building he’d been in to the one beyond.
Hoping that Scott hadn’t already left, he slipped through the parking lot between the buildings, trying to find some sign of Scott’s bike. As he hit the last row and saw Scott just emerging from the building, he let out a shaky breath. ”Hey,” he croaked. Riley licked his lips, tried to get them to lift into a smile but it was as shaky as his breath had been. ”I know you’ve probably gotta head off to work … have you got ten minutes though? I kinda need some company.” It was a plea, one that he knew he should’ve been beyond considering how long Danny had been gone, but with no sign of him or his … body … it was impossible to settle, to try and move on from the tragedy that had torn at all of their lives.
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SCOTT MCCALL
Werewolf
True Alpha
Posts: 486
Age:
22
Occupation:
Trainee Vet
Status:
Single
Played by:
Emma
life can’t ever be all bad or all good, eventually things come back to the middle
Last seen Apr 30, 2024 21:36:26 GMT
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Post by SCOTT MCCALL on Jan 17, 2024 0:00:36 GMT
It had been months since Danny had disappeared and life had gone on but it still didn’t feel right to Scott. They still hadn’t managed to find any sign of him or his body but Henrik and Kaleb had both tried locator spell after locator spell and none of them had worked so one thing was for certain – Danny was dead. Even just thinking those words was enough to make Scott’s heart ache, with how big the pack was now and everything they had faced together he had honestly hoped that they would be able to find a way to stop the curse from taking Danny’s life the way it had so many of his family before him but they had failed. Nothing they had tried had worked and in the end the curse had caught up with Danny the way that Danny had always feared it would. It was cruel to think that it had happened after he had proposed to Riley and Scott couldn’t blame his friend for needing some space. Scott made sure to try and check in with Riley each day but that day his messages had gone unanswered and Scott couldn’t deny that that worried him. They hadn’t been able to find Danny’s body and Henrik hadn’t been able to locate where Danny had gone after he’d died either. Whether that was something to do with the curse or not Scott had no idea but he wasn’t giving up hope. He hadn’t told Riley but anytime he was able to he still went out and searched for any sign of Danny’s body. Once they found that then perhaps it would be easier for Henrik to be able to locate Danny’s spirit but so far he hadn’t found anything. He had started with campus itself and the woods surrounding it before branching out further and he knew that he wasn’t going to stop until he found what he was looking for. Unfortunately with classes, work, making sure he was there for the pack and full moons to contend with, Scott didn’t have as much time to look as he would like but he still tried to get out there as much as he could. Danny had been there for all of them so as far as Scott was concerned, it was the least he could do. That day unfortunately he had classes all day and they were difficult but Scott knew that it would be worth it to be able to become a vet like he wanted to. Finally they came to an end and as he headed out of the building and in the direction of his bike, Scott heard a familiar voice and he turned to find Riley heading in his direction. “Hey. I tried texting you earlier, how are you doing?” he asked, his eyes searching Riley’s face for any sign of how he was really doing right now. As he spoke again, Scott’s expression softened. “I’m not working today so I’ve got as much time as you need. Shall we grab a coffee?” he suggested, not sure whether Riley had something else in mind. Either way, Scott knew he wasn’t going anywhere. RILEY PARKER
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RILEY PARKER
Werewolf
Posts: 307
Age:
22
Occupation:
Postgrad Student - Environmental Sci.
Status:
Engaged
Partner:
Danny Mahealani
Played by:
ANGE
Last seen Apr 28, 2024 16:30:53 GMT
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Post by RILEY PARKER on Feb 9, 2024 21:04:16 GMT
Guilt settled in Riley’s stomach the moment he saw Scott. After Danny had been taken he’d leaned on the pack so hard. They’d held him up through it all and, God, he knew he wouldn’t have made it without them. There were still those moments when he couldn’t be around anyone, though. Moments when he was sure that just looking at someone, even himself in a mirror, was going to shatter what was left of him. It wasn’t fair on them, he knew that too. They’d lost Danny as much as he had, and none of them wanted to lose anybody else. They needed to get him back, he needed for his life to start again with his fiancé at his side. Surely fate had to give them some chance of that.
Riley rubbed his knuckles under his nose as he stopped in front of Scott, a trace of heat coming to his face. ”Sorry. I heard the messages coming in. I should’ve answered them before I left home … I just … sorry,” he repeated. Sometimes it felt as though the word was on a constant ricochet around his mind. So many apologies to make, so much begging to do as though either would change what had happened.
”Not great.” Letting out a shaky breath, Riley dropped his hand and let his shoulders slump. Keeping up that mask wasn’t easy, especially when he was around Danny’s parents. They’d lost their son, the legacy they’d put aside to save their own lives taking him because he hadn’t wanted to step away from it when he thought there was something he could do. Riley puffed out a breath and glanced around him. ”I couldn’t go to class this morning. I can’t concentrate when I’m there. It feels like I should be out there doing something, you know?” Scott and the rest of the pack had been doing all they could. Henrik had too, there was just nothing and that was what was still the worst part of it all. Reaching out, he squeezed Scott’s shoulder, appreciating the support. He knew he’d been leaning on them all hard, not always able to be the shoulder they should’ve had to lean on too. They’d known Danny half their lives, he was their friend, they’d lost him too. ”Coffee sounds good,” he murmured. His brows furrowed faintly as he looked back up at Scott. ”It’s a lot to ask, but would you come with me to Danny’s parents’ place after? I haven’t been through his room yet. I didn’t think there was anything there that might help, but I think it’s time we tried. Nothing else has helped and I’m grasping at straws.” Danny knew he would, which was why he’d told him that if they couldn’t bring him back, to move on. How was he supposed to do that when it felt like any minute they would finally catch a break? He couldn’t. He wouldn’t.
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SCOTT MCCALL
Werewolf
True Alpha
Posts: 486
Age:
22
Occupation:
Trainee Vet
Status:
Single
Played by:
Emma
life can’t ever be all bad or all good, eventually things come back to the middle
Last seen Apr 30, 2024 21:36:26 GMT
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Post by SCOTT MCCALL on Feb 11, 2024 17:53:28 GMT
Scott knew that things had changed within the pack when Danny disappeared. They had been searching for him ever since but the fact that they hadn’t been able to find him could only mean one thing – the curse had caught up with him like he had said that it would. Danny was dead and even trying to find a way to bring him back was proving to be much easier said than done. They hadn’t found his body and Henrik and Kaleb hadn’t been able to find him on the Other Side either. Something didn’t feel right to Scott and he would be lying if he said that it didn’t worry him. He was getting out and searching for any sign of what had happened to his friend any chance he got but he was also doing his best to be there to support his pack. They had all lost Danny but he knew that it wasn’t hitting any of them harder than it was hitting Riley. Scott hadn’t been able to be there for his friend as much as he had wanted to because he had respected Riley’s need for space but he had always made sure that Riley knew he was there when he needed him. Scott had spent quite a bit of time with Danny’s parents as well, filling them in on stories about Danny and things he had done for the pack. He was still determined to find a way to bring him back but until then Scott was doing his best to be there for the people left behind. “You have nothing to apologise for,” Scott assured him, knowing that the last thing he wanted was for Riley to feel guilty about that. He definitely understood, Riley had so much going on right now and Scott knew that the last thing he wanted was to end up adding to it. He had known that Riley would reach out when he was ready and it looked like he was right. “I get it,” he said gently as Riley said he wasn’t doing great. “Losing someone you love is never easy, trust me,” he added. “There’s no set timeframe with any of it, all you can do is do things in your own time.” He and Allison weren’t together when she died but Scott had still loved her and he could still remember just how much it had felt like the pain of her loss was ripping him apart. He would never wish that on anyone but it was what Riley was going through now and he needed to deal with it in his own time. “I know what you mean. Nothing feels right at the moment,” he nodded. It wouldn’t until they found a way to bring Danny back but Scott wasn’t giving up hope. “Just hang in there.”Scott offered Riley a smile as the guy squeezed his shoulder. He knew how easy it was to feel alone in your grief because that was how he’d felt after Allison died but he hadn’t been alone and neither was Riley. They were all there for each other and they always would be. “Great,” he nodded as Riley agreed to a coffee. “Do you want to get one here or shall we head into town?” he asked, not sure what his friend would prefer to do. Either way was fine with him, he just wanted to help Riley in any way that he could. He was a little surprised when Riley asked him to go with him to Danny’s after to go through his room but Scott soon found himself nodding. “Of course. It won’t hurt to try,” he admitted. “I haven’t seen his parents for a few days anyway, it’ll be good to see how they’re doing.”RILEY PARKER
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RILEY PARKER
Werewolf
Posts: 307
Age:
22
Occupation:
Postgrad Student - Environmental Sci.
Status:
Engaged
Partner:
Danny Mahealani
Played by:
ANGE
Last seen Apr 28, 2024 16:30:53 GMT
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Post by RILEY PARKER on Mar 19, 2024 19:54:45 GMT
Apologies had always spilled out of him easily. Riley didn’t know if that was because his parents had been immune to giving them and so he’d always done it for them, or just because he felt like he’d leaned too heavily on everybody. It had been that way with Riley at first before he’d realised they were leaning on each other. When you loved someone it was different. When you loved someone it felt like you’d died along with them. He knew the pain that had torn at Danny while he’d been gone now, every nuance of it, every jagged shard of grief and sadness stabbing at his heart. God, he wanted him back here, in his arms. The dreams where Danny was were worse than anything else. That thought that maybe they had their third chance tricking his mind in sleep, leaving him freshly torn apart when he woke up and the other side of the bed was still empty.
This wasn’t the first time the pack had gone through a loss like this. His death hadn’t been close to the first. By now the feelings he’d gone through had to be familiar to Scott, but still, somehow he was on his feet, leading everybody else through it. Providing that shoulder to lean on. ”Thanks for understanding,” Riley said hoarsely, his hand dropping away from his face. Having Allison back must have felt like a miracle for Scott when it had happened, no matter what the circumstances had been. ”I don’t know how you got through it.” With the pack, with the support of his friends, the voice in Riley’s head reminded him. Danny had practically told him the same thing when they’d spoken about what would happen after. Don’t be afraid to move on, love someone again. Maybe it would happen with time, with acceptance of what had happened, but he wasn’t there yet. Riley never he never could be until they knew. The corner of his mouth kicked up faintly. ”I’m trying,” he promised. The problem was that he didn’t know what else they could do. How much more was there that they could try? Somehow, just offering that reassurance to Scott helped him pull himself together a little more. Riley straightened up, frowning faintly as he considered Scott’s question. ”If we’re going to his parents’ place, maybe coffee here and then we head straight there. I don’t know if I’m up to sitting around dozens of people today.” Especially not if he was going to see Danny’s parents afterwards. There was only so much his raw heart could take. ”I know they’ve appreciated you coming by,” he said lightly, turning in the direction of the coffee cart on campus. Riley walked slowly, his gaze darting to Scott. ”I know they were trying to stop this by not training the way Danny did, it can’t be easy on them not having those abilities now.” Just being grieving parents was bad enough, their love for their son always seeming so obvious to him. ”I keep wondering if it’s just that we haven’t found the right thing to try and track him with. Like one tiny thing is gonna be the key, you know?” A particular photo, Danny’s favourite t-shirt, a strand of hair. Anything they could use to strengthen the bond with him enough to latch on to him wherever he was.
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