Young Writers Society

Bobby glanced at the guy with the fangs. Even he could hear the grumbling of the man's stomach. At a glance, it was easy to see that any food they found here wouldn't be safe to eat, and Kazimir didn't seem like he would be willing to share with any of the others.

Bobby had to pitty the fanged guy. Being hungry was hard and miserable for the first few days.

"Nah nothing interesting." Replied Jack. He took off his bag, unzipped it, and reached for something - a torch.

Lorcan took a deep breath.

He was feeling uncomfortable and hungry, but he knew he couldn't keep standing in the entrance to the church if he wanted to get back to his friends soon. When he was as close to ready as he could possibly be, he headed into the church and started searching the pews. If he was lucky, he would find some sort of clue.

Kazimir walked around the church, kicking some of the pews over and snooping in some rotting dresser drawers. He kept glancing back at Bobby in the doorway, making sure he was okay, and still there. All Kazimir managed to find was stuff that was water and mildew damaged. Nothing appealing, and nothing useful.

He let out a long sigh and looked up at the ceiling.

"'Course the church is empty," he muttered, stalking back to the doorway. "Let's keep looking. I'm sick of this musty church already."

Before Bobby could hear what Kazimir said, he ducked out of the doorway and headed out into the street.

He didn't like churches, and that church specifically sent waves of dread snaking down his spine. He needed some air, and to get out of the open. He felt like there was someone behind him, breathing down his neck, whenever he was so exposed.

Jack took Chloe's hand and walked towards Lorcan.

"Why do you look so pale? It's as if you saw a ghost. You might be the ghost for all I know. That kind of skin... You look pretty lifeless. You should step outside during the day too. Sunlight's good for ya!"

Kazimir looked up to the empty doorway, and the moment he realized Bobby was gone, he rushed to the door and looked around.

"Bobby?!" he shouted. "Bobby are you okay?"

Bobby jumped when he heard Kazimir calling for him and turned around. He'd been just outside of the church, sort of hidden slightly around the corner into an alleyway. It didn't look like there was much to see in this town, just the same old abandoned buildings everywhere and a clear, eerie silence.

"I'm here," he said, stepping out and fighting the urge to run off.

Lorcan faltered as he went to step out through the doorway of the church.

"I do step outside during the day," he said, a mix of embarrassed and nervous. He spent most of his days outside before meeting Charlotte - even when it completely went against the natural order of things. "I just..."

He hesitated.

"...cover up a lot," he awkwardly finished. "My skin is sensitive - I get sunburn easily."

That wasn't entirely true, but it was close enough to the truth that Lorcan could remember to say something similar to it if the topic came up again in the future. He didn't want to lie, but he knew it was better than admitting the truth at the moment.

Jack scratched his head and looked at Chloe. He looked back at Lorcan.

"I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable with that," he paused for a while and looked down. He looked back up at Lorcan and said, smiling, "Let's get going?"

Edit: Hair --> Head

Lorcan gave a tiny smile of his own, his fangs glinting ever so slightly in the light.

"It's okay," he said. "I appreciate the apology."

Giving the interior of the church one last glance over his shoulder, Lorcan finally exited the building and joined the others outside.

Kazimir, realizing he'd overreacted a smidge, let out a sigh of relief and laughed. He stopped right outside the door and looked over at Bobby. Here Kazimir was thinking Bobby had gotten snatched by somebody or some creepy whatever-type creature lurking in the shadows.

"F***, I thought something had happened," he said with a little laughter still in his voice. "Okay. Good. Good. You're okay."

Bobby stared at Kazimir. Why did he care? What did he want Bobby for?

His gaze slipped to the ground. "I'm fine," he muttered.

While Kazimir and the boy (who Lorcan needed to ask the name of soon) talked, Lorcan's gaze traveled to the town around them. He wasn't part of a pair. He didn't have someone to talk with right now. He could be worried about everyone else, like he always was, but he wasn't supposed to be panicking over the boy like Kazimir had been. He wasn't supposed to be clinging to someone else's side like Chloe and Jack were.

The only thing he could do now was look.

Nothing immediately stood out. The air was cold and misty. The buildings were old and decrepit. Everything looked like the color had been washed out of it. It was only when he looked away from Kazimir's direction that he saw a splash of color: a stained, torn backpack.

He got a sinking feeling in his chest.

After a moment of hesitation, he approached the backpack. It was a simple red backpack; it reminded him of the one Charlotte had. One of its straps was torn in half, and the zipper was broken off of it. Everything within it spilled out the moment he tried picking it up.

Some snack bars, a can of peaches, a notebook, and a wallet all came tumbling out to the ground. The wallet didn't have any pictures in it; it was just a collection of money Lorcan didn't entirely understand the value of. And the notebook didn't offer any clues to the bag's owner, either - it was just for school.

His gaze traveled a little farther.

The backpack wasn't the only thing nearby. There was a child's doll, too, but the doll was missing one of its arms and the dress had been stained by mud.

Lorcan's stomach grumbled.

His gaze turned back to the contents of the backpack.

The doll and bag had been there for awhile. He couldn't tell how long. But canned foods, according to Charlotte, lasted awhile. And while it wasn't really what he wanted, it was something.

He grabbed the peaches and reached into the bag in the hopes there was something to eat them with. A few moments later, he had pried open with the little bit of magic he had - unseen by everyone else - and was taking a hesitant bite of one of the peach chunks he had stabbed with the plastic green spork he had found at the bottom of the bag.

...It wasn't anything compared to a fresh peach, but it was...okay. It was better than the snack bars that had fallen out of the bag, at least.

Kazimir let out a little "hmph," and put his hands on his hips. "Good," he said as he looked back into the building.

"What are you guys waiting for? There's nothing in there," he called to Chloe and Jack, before looking back around and catching sight of Lorcan just a building over, huddled over an old muddy backpack he was raiding.

Was that... canned food? Was he eating old, god-knows-how-long-its-been-there old food?

Kazimir's lip lifted in a mixture of disgust and pity.

"What the hell are you eating, vampy boy?"