This isn't a Game [Andrew, Ceara]

by **Ceara** Tue Feb 19, 2013 2:10 am

Ceara wrapped her scarf tighter around her lower face and neck and tugged her hat further down. Winters in the Radius were absolutely brutal. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to go out on a mission tonight. But then again if she pushed off doing a few missions now again because of the weather, then she’d just keep doing that and end up without money for a month or so. The weather wasn’t going to get any better, anyway. At least the scarf was warm, though. And soft. She’d have to thank Trevor for it the next time she saw him, if ever.

The girl shoved off the steps outside her building with a huff, looked around, and plopped down again. Where the hell was Andrew? Granted, he wasn't actually late, but she'd have expected him to be excited to run a delivery and be here a little earlier. They had to leave as soon as possible, if they wanted to take the package and bring it to the drop off point on the other side of the district in time. Only three hours for everything. Ceara wasn't sure if that was enough time. If they ran into trouble, they'd be pushing it.

by **Andrew** Tue Feb 19, 2013 2:22 pm

Andrew grumbled softly, jogging to get to where he was supposed to meet Ceara. He should have known that mentioning to Halt why he was leaving his backpack there and actually grabbing the coat the man had given him years ago (and that he had never grown into) was going to lead to a lecture on being careful. So, as a result, he was running later than he wanted to be and had to call the man when he was done. Next time, he'd either have to get the stuff earlier or try to sneak around.

He slowed to a walk when he was a couple of buildings away and stopped in front of his cousin. "Sorry, wanted to swap some stuff out and my friend decided to lecture me." He shrugged lightly then adjusted the reinforced gloves he was wearing. He didn't wear them often, but they were warm and tonight was friggin' cold. He then fiddled with his own scarf, hiding a smile in it. It had been a complete surprise when Trevor had stopped him and passed him the two bundles before muttering something and walking away, leaving Andrew confused and unable to deny his growing crush.

But that was a thought for another time. "Ready to go?"

by **Ceara** Tue Feb 19, 2013 11:31 pm

She lifted her head at the sound of footsteps and stood. “Why are you so happy?" He could hide his face, but it was obvious that he was giddy about something. "And it's fine. You know you can just leave your stuff at my place, right?” She nor Tal would really mind. He had the keys to the apartment for a reason. Maybe they could avoid the lectures then.

“Ready to go?”

Ceara nodded, tugging up her own gloves to make sure they were secure. Thank god she decided to buy herself a new pair, because they were ridiculously warm and soft and actually practical, unlike her last pair. Though they did cost her more than she cared to admit. “We should hurry if we want to make it on time. Foot or public transportation?” Knowing Andrew, he’d choose to run, but… Running would warm her up, but her leg was still a bit stiff and she didn’t want to tire herself out, just in case they ran into trouble. She wouldn’t be able to keep up, anyway. Though who knew how long they would have to wait in the cold for a bus? The girl exhaled. Either way, it was going to suck.

by **Andrew** Wed Feb 20, 2013 7:31 pm

He blushed softly then shook his head. "I just am," he muttered. He wasn't going to mention his crush because he could just imagine how she would tease him for it. "Yeah, I know, but I didn't have a coat at your place," he said more normally, sticking his tongue out at her.

Andrew hummed softly, tilting his head back and forth as he thought. "Well, we're not too far off from where we've gotta pick it up, right? Why not jog there then take a bus since we'll be at the hub?" He frowned then, remember how she had been limping last week. "Wait, how's your leg? You gonna be up to a run?" If not, they could just try to catch the bus and hope that things cooperated with them.

He tossed his arm around her shoulders and started them down the street, giving the impression that they were a couple out together rather than cousins on a gang mission. He glanced at her hat as they walked, a little jealous that he didn't have anything to keep his head or ears warm. Maybe he'd steal Halt's hat. Or, even better, ask Trevor to make him one to match his scarf. It would be a good excuse to see him again.

by **Ceara** Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:18 pm

Ceara raised a brow at her cousin’s unusually tightlipped manner, but decided not to push it. Andrew normally was very happy to spread around his cheerfulness and the fact that he wasn’t saying anything to her, especially, was odd, but she was confident that he’d tell her eventually. And if not, well, then she’d pester the hell out of him for the information later. He did enough of the same to her, anyway.

“Wait, how’s your leg? You going to be up for a run?”

She shrugged, leaning into him a little to complete the image. It was still a bit creepy to her that they pretended to be a couple, but two people on a date was certainly less suspicious than two people on a mission. “Just as long as we don’t go too fast, I should be fine. We’d be warmer, anyway.” The injury had closed for the most part, leaving a pink, jagged line on her thigh. It wouldn’t leave much of a scar, though, and it definitely wouldn’t hinder her movements much. “Come on.” Ceara nudged him towards the opening of a nearby alley, knowing that it was a shortcut to their destination. They could run freely in there without calling too much attention to themselves.

by **Andrew** Fri Feb 22, 2013 8:02 pm

He huffed at her eyebrow's journey north. Yeah, he was definitely going to be hearing about it later. Hopefully something would happen that would make her forget about it. Wait. Had he just thought that he wanted something to go wrong? Oh, Ceara was definitely going to hit him if she found out about that. He'd have to make sure not to let it slip. At least, not until after the mission was over and even then only if nothing happened.

"Okay, sure. I'll let you lead then," he said softly as he leaned down, looking like he was going to kiss her. And the way he turned her toward him didn't dissuade from that illusion any. Using that motion, he ducked them into the indicated alley. He let his arm drop when they were out of view of the street and took a step to the side. The redhead didn't have a problem with the act; it was just that it was his cousin that made it odd.

He grinned at the woman next to him. "Well, after you," he said with a bow and swept out arm.

by **Ceara** Tue Feb 26, 2013 9:10 pm

She laughed softly under her breathe when he pulled away just as quickly as she did. Yeah, it was really weird to fake that kind of stuff with her cousin. People probably assumed they were dating all the time, you couldn’t see the family resemblance unless you were looking for it. That didn’t make it any less creepy. But Hoss had been right that one night; it was safer to be “together” than family on nights like these.

“Well, after you.”

She grinned back and dipped down in a small, sarcastic curtsey. “Why, thank you.” Straightening, Ceara adjusted her hat and scarf, making sure they wouldn’t fall when she ran, and started a slow jog. Her thight shot an initial twinge of pain, but after a few minutes of warming up, picked up her pace. She glanced backwards, frowning slightly when she noticed her cousin keeping up to her with next to no effort, while she could feel herself tiring already. Ceara hated running, but her cousin seemed to be just fine.

Once they came out of the alleys and close to the hub, the pair slowed down. Ceara caught her breath and massaged her thigh, looking at her cousin through the corner of her eye. “Ready?”

by **Andrew** Wed Feb 27, 2013 4:36 pm

He laughed at her curtsey. They hadn't really spent some time together that was just the two of them recently. He had missed it. He sobered a little, deciding he wasn't going to let what happened with Halt happen with Ceara. He was creating an odd little family for himself and he wasn't going to risk making any of them feeling like he was abandoning them again. Which reminded him, he should give Aiden a call and see how the calm man was doing, maybe talk to him about Robert and get his opinion about the whole situation. Of course, he still needed to tell Ceara about that too. He really should do that.

He was lost in his thoughts so he didn't really notice when they reached their destination, just following her and letting her set the pace. "Huh?" Oh, they were there already. "Yeah, I'm ready. Are you okay though?" he asked, turning toward her and frowning softly at how she was rubbing her leg. Maybe it was still too soon for her to be doing this?

by **Ceara** Sun Mar 03, 2013 11:53 am

She chuckled a little at his absentmindedness and nodded. “I’ll be fine. It’s just a bit stiff, it’s fine.” Hopefully. But the majority of the running was done, unless somehow they ran into trouble. And they shouldn’t – The hub had minimum security, it would be easy enough for them to sneak around without being caught. “Come on.” She tugged gently at his jacket, walking towards the entrance of the bus hub.

Ceara peered around the corner, and, seeing no one, slipped inside, her footsteps nearly inaudible. She had been told there would only be one or two guards, and if they were on duty this late at night, they probably weren’t the most attentive of guards. Just as long as they didn’t make too much noise, they wouldn’t bring any attention to themselves. This should be easy. Though Ceara still wondered why they had to be here in the first place; she understood the necessity for client anonymity but it would’ve been a lot less trouble if the package was in a more easily accessed place.

When they reached the lockers, the girl turned back to her cousin. “264B,” she whispered, gesturing for him to search the left rows while she looked at the right.

by **Andrew** Thu Mar 07, 2013 12:20 pm

Andrew stifled a soft laugh at how she tugged his jacket before that vanished into melancholy again anyway, remembering how Caitlyn had done similar when he had taken her to the park. There wasn't any place for reminiscing while on a mission.

Following Ceara, Andrew had his hands in his pockets and walked casually, tilting his head to watch her in bemused silence. What the hell was she doing? Didn't she know that looking like you were sneaking around drew more attention, whether you were or not (which, yeah, they were, but still)? Looking like you belonged was the best thing to do. Plus, in his experience, it was easier to notice things or react to them when you weren't psyching yourself out and making yourself tenser.

Shrugging lightly, Andrew wandered along his bank of lockers, steps light. "Found it," he said lowly, knowing that would carry less than a whisper would. He reached up to put in the combination on the added lock. He had been wondering why he had only been told the series of numbers but not which locker it went to, but it made sense to give only part of the information to each person in case something happened and they got separated or things went balls up.

Slipping the thick envelope from the locker, he frowned and put it in his backpack. No, he didn't have a clue what was in here, but it kind of felt like bricks. If the value was anything like the drugs that Halt moved around... then he easily had several thousand credits on his back now.

He turned toward Ceara, expression unsettled. "Alright Haze, let's get the hell out of here," he mumbled, passing her the paper that had been in the locker since he hadn't been told the code to translate to where they had to take the package. The lock was slipped into his pocket as he waited, glancing around while she was busy.

by **Ceara** Fri Mar 08, 2013 1:08 am

Well, in her experience, looking like you belonged did work… only if there was a crowd or at least some other people around. Otherwise you stuck out like a sore thrum. So if there was only one or two guards, she’d rather be careful and sneak around, avoiding any sort of contact completely than walk out in the open. There wasn’t anyone else hanging around here; the guards weren’t really expecting anyone at this time and being seen, even if they acted like they belonged, would raise suspicions.

“Found it.” She turned around at the sound of his voice, accepting the small slip of paper he held out. Ceara watched her cousin put away the package, frowning slightly. Her natural sense of curiosity urged her to take a peek inside the envelope later, but she knew she’d get into some deep shit if she did. It was probably best if she didn’t know, anyway. “Alright Haze, let’s get the hell out of here.”

She snorted softly at being called by her alias. It was weird being called that, and even weirder when her cousin said it. But oh well, it was necessary. Ceara took a glance down at the paper, running her eyes over the short coded message before slipping it into her pocket. She knew how to decode it, she’d just do it later. Right now he was right, they should leave.

Getting back outside was fairly easy, excluding the time where she caught sight of the guard’s flashlight when they were near the entrance and simply made a dash for it. Once out of the hub and across the street, Ceara pulled the paper back out, studying it more in depth while decoding it in her head. “It’s an address of a warehouse on the opposite side of the river. We’re taking the bus, I’m not walking there.” Starting to walk, she laughed softly and looped her arm through his, resuming their image of a couple.

by **Andrew** Fri Mar 08, 2013 10:25 pm

Andrew bit back a smirk as she started sneaking around again. Yeah, there wasn't anyone to blend in with, but that didn't mean that they had to sneak around like they were in a movie. It really was just a waste of energy so he was going to stick with walking normally. He sobered again when they had to run. As many problems as there would be if they ran into other gang members, there would be more trouble if they had to deal with actual guards and it would impact more than just them.

Other side of the river? Oh, joy. Here's to hoping he didn't go over the side of this bridge too. But better him than her. He always thought that, better him than others. As much as various friends had been helping him with his self-worth, it was still pretty low.

"Alright, that's fine with me. It's friggin' cold out." The bus would be a welcome reprieve. He smiled at her and shifted his arm to wrap around her waist and pull her closer to his side. "So, should I look into hooking you up with one of my friends?" he teased softly. Just because they were on a mission didn't mean that he couldn't pester her about other things too.

by **Ceara** Sun Mar 10, 2013 2:34 pm

Ceara stiffened, eyes wide as she stared up at him. She quickly relaxed though, although she knew she had already slipped up and now he knew something was up. "What's with the sudden interest in my love life?" her voice was kept carefully neutral. "I'm perfectly fine with the state of my romantic - slash - sexual life so can we please not talk about this? It's weird discussing it with you." She really doubted that her cousin would be happy hearing she went to the Arenas once every week or two to fight and then have sex with one of the more dangerous regulars there. Yup, that was a conversation she wasn't looking forward to. So she'd do her best to avoid it.

Tugging her scarf farther up her face to hide her growing blush, she shoved Andrew with her shoulder for the question. "So no. Please don't. I'm fine." It took them a little longer to reach the bus stop, only to find that the next one wouldn’t arrive for the next ten minutes. Ceara huffed, plopping herself down on the nearby bench. They would wait for it, the thought of the warm bus too good to pass up.

by **Andrew** Mon Mar 11, 2013 12:15 pm

Andrew's eyebrows raised as he blinked in surprise. Well, that was unexpected. He had figured she'd just laugh it off or give him one of those exasperated looks that she normally gave him. Or elbow him in the gut. One of the three. But nope, she just had to have a reaction like that and pique his curiosity. "Interest? I was teasing to start with but now I really want to know. Who's the guy? When can I meet him? He's treating you good, right?" The redhead might not be a fighter normally, but he did have a few tricks up his sleeves that he could use. And he would for a small handful of people.

Oh, there's the shove he was expecting but the blush was a bit out of place. He laughed softly as she sat on the bench. Staying standing, the runner looked at his cousin and bounced on the balls of his feet. "That blush you're trying to hide says that there's someone," he teased.

When the bus arrived, Andrew paid their fare then slid into a seat about half-way down the bus, leaning toward Ceara when she sat to whisper in her ear, "Everyone 'safe'-ish?" as he put his arm over the back of her seat.

by **Ceara** Tue Mar 12, 2013 12:09 am

Now she gave him that eye roll he was expecting. Ceara should’ve expected the questions, especially after that little ammunition she had given him with her reaction. “You don’t know him, probably never, and fine enough.” She was used to her cousin’s rapid fire questions by now and could easily answer them just as quickly now. “It isn’t anything serious, Andrew.” She knew exactly where she stood with lapin. Anything they had between them was purely physical; they weren’t dating, neither of them had any sort of obligation to each other. Besides the insults and gibes they threw at each other sometimes, they barely spoke. “Don’t worry about it. I can take care of myself.”

She smiled when they entered the bus, the heated interior extremely pleasant after staying in the cold for so long. Dropping her head on his shoulder when they sat, she cast her eyes over the other occupants in the bus. Turning her head slightly, she nestled closer so she could speak without the people hearing. “They’re all fine. The teen in the red jacket’s nervous about something,, but he was that way before we even got here.”

by **Andrew** Tue Mar 12, 2013 4:47 pm

Andrew frowned a little but let the subject drop. That didn't mean he wasn't going to not worry though, especially since he knew very well that saying something wasn't anything serious now didn't mean it couldn't turn that way. And then it would just hurt and get worse the more you ignored it. The redhead definitely knew more about being in that situation than his cousin would likely be happy with.

He nodded, glancing at the indicated teen before leaning back in his seat. "So, you doing anything tomorrow?" he asked, rolling his head toward her. They hadn't hung out in a while and he didn't want her to feel like he was neglecting her. It was bad enough he had accidentally done that to one person already, he didn't want to do it to his only worth while relative too.

Thankfully, the ride wasn't so long that Andrew was tempted to fall asleep. When they got to the stop Ceara said they needed to get off at, he hopped over the stairs then turned to offer his hand with a flourish and teasing grin. "Shall we continue on?"

by **Ceara** Sat Mar 16, 2013 1:50 am

“So, you doing anything tomorrow?”

She smirked, turning to him slightly. “I was planning on lazing around the apartment, not really doing much, but if you have something in mind I’m up for it.” Ceara had been more tired than usual lately and just wanted a day to relax, but she agreed with Andrew’s thoughts. The two of them saw each other much less than they used to, back when they first met. She missed her cousin’s stupidity, if she was being honest with herself.

The girl glanced out the window and tugged lightly on his sleeve, motioning for him to get up. Snorting at Andrew’s antics, she batted his hand out of the way as she stepped out, tugging her jacket tighter around her. They were almost finished with the mission without running into any problems, and she’d like to hurry so it would stay that way. It’d be nice not to get shot at or stabbed or strangled on a mission for once. Hooking her arm through his again, she nudged him towards in the direction of the bridge. They were still a handful of blocks away from the nearest one.

A block and a half later, she frowned. It was the dead of night, she shouldn’t be hearing any other footsteps besides her own and her cousin’s. “Behind us.” It could be just a random person, but there was a chance that it wasn’t, and she wasn’t going to take that risk.

by **Andrew** Sat Mar 16, 2013 8:44 pm

"I was just hoping we could spend some time together. I've... got some stuff I need to talk to you about." Mostly Robert. And tell her a bit about Halt too. Now that he knew that Halt still wanted Andrew as a friend, he wanted them to meet too and really hoped that they got along. As much as he had wanted Ceara to get along with Aiden and Marjorie, the older man was much more important to him.

Mostly though, she deserved to know about Robert since he was the main reason that Andrew had been out of contact.

At her warning, Andrew inclined his head a little before stopping suddenly and turning toward her as he tugged her against his chest and set one hand on her cheek. He leaned down to, apparently, kiss her, glancing over her shoulder as he did so. "I see him. It's the one in the red jacket from the bus. Or someone who looks like him." If this kid was actually a part of a gang then he had to be a new member. That, or he was just some kid who had been dared to do something stupid or was trying his hand at breaking the law. Whatever it was, he didn't think the kid was anything to worry about.

by **Ceara** Fri Mar 22, 2013 12:27 am

She shot him a sidelong glance at his tone, frowning slightly. Had to be some important stuff, if he was nervous about telling her. Ceara just hoped he hadn't gotten himself into too deep trouble and needed her help. Of course she'd give it to him, but after that she would definitely berate him for not coming to her sooner. When she didn't hear from her cousin for a while she could only worry about him and she hated not being able to do anything. "Sure, come over whenever."

Ceara allowed the red head to move her around, this time forcing herself to make her body language remain natural instead of betraying the slight discomfort from being this close to her cousin. The guy in the red jacket? They didn't really have to worry much then. He was new to this game, if he was following them so obviously. The two of them knew what he looked like so getting off at the same stop, near one of the shadiest areas of the South, and walking in the same direction as them couldn't just be a coincidence. "We could probably lose him easy, right?" The girl smiled and took his hand, pulling the both of them into the alley between two buildings, as if they really were two teens on a date.

by **Andrew** Fri Mar 22, 2013 11:53 am

Andrew smiled a bit, relieved that she didn't have a problem with him coming over. If things went well for the rest of their mission, maybe he'd just stay over and sleep on the floor or something, depending on how long it took for them to talk at any rate.

Lose their tail? Oh, no problem there. "Is there a word for something that's easier than easy?" he asked rhetorically before laughing softly. "Come on, if you're up to a bit of running, we can go a bit through the alleys or even shorter on the roofs. I'll help you jump," he offered. Either one was fine by him, but she'd probably rather stick to the ground. Not that that would stop him from offering each time.

He nodded when she said what he expected her to then gestured for her to set the pace. "Take a right then the second left. Go two blocks then another right. That should get us close to where we need to go," he said as they moved.

by **Ceara** Sat Mar 23, 2013 1:39 am

She laughed softly, agreeing. Losing the teen would be easy; he was inexperienced and would probably not know that they were trying to lose him until it was too late. Ceara shook her head though at the suggestion that they take to the roofs. "I still need practice with landing and even if you do help me, I don't want to risk the both of us falling. Even if he has no idea what he's doing, I'd rather not have you deal with your res right now." And Andrew was right, she still preferred to run on solid ground than to roof jump.

"Take a right then the second left. Go two blocks then another right. That should get us close to where we need to go."

She grumbled lightheartedly as she started down the alley. "Don't tell me what to do. I know what I'm doing." Though that was the route she was going to take in the first place. Her cousin might know the city plan like the back of his hand but she wasn't clueless herself. She glanced back when they made their second turn and grinned when she saw no one behind them. "Ridiculously easy."

by **Andrew** Sun Mar 24, 2013 1:23 pm

Andrew shrugged lightly. He'd prefer not to deal with his restitution either, but after having ended up in the river back in November or December, whichever it was, he found that he didn't mind it quite so much when he was on cold concrete instead of ending up in cold water. Nearly drowning and getting half frozen sucked.

Getting the package into where they were supposed to drop it off, a locker of the same number as the one they had gotten it from (something that drew an incredulous look from the redhead. And he had thought that he had odd and stupid ideas) was even easier than getting from the first had been. Shaking his head, he just shoved the package into the locker and snapped the lock on and closed, spinning it for good measure.

When they were on the street again, Andrew turned to Ceara, looking confused. "Is that seriously it? Is... Is it just me or was that way too easy?" And he didn't think that was going to jinx it now that they were done.

by **Ceara** Mon Mar 25, 2013 1:59 am

She watched him put away the package from the corner of her eye, otherwise she kept a look out for anyone else. Ceara didn’t think they would run into any trouble from the teen in red from before, but it wouldn’t hurt to be a little bit careful, anyway, in case he or someone else walked in on them. The girl relaxed a lot more once Andrew clicked the lock shut and he ushered her outside. "Is that seriously it? Is... Is it just me or was that way too easy?"

She laughed softly at the look on her cousin’s face, not blaming him in the slightest for his reaction. It did seem way too easy, but Ceara wasn’t going to complain. “You’re upset that it wasn’t harder? I’m happy that it went so smoothly. Last time I went on a delivery, we got ambushed on a bus and got attacked in an alley; at least no one pulled a knife on us.” She grinned at Andrew, flicking her head in the direction of her apartment. “You have anything else to do tonight? I have a shitload of Chinese leftovers that I really don’t want to eat all alone.” Actually, that was an outright lie, she’d be happy to inhale the food, but she wanted to spend some time with her cousin. "You can talk to me about whatever you needed to talk about before?"

by **Andrew** Tue Mar 26, 2013 7:28 pm

Andrew shrugged a little. "I dunno. It just... seemed a lot like the kind of jobs I run during the day. And the only other thing I did before was a watch with Hoss and Aelio." He shrugged again, falling into step with his cousin. "And Chinese sounds awesome." He knew that she'd be more than happy to eat all of it on her own, but food always tasted better when shared with someone else.

"So, we'll report in then head to your place for dinner and a discussion, huh?" he asked with a laugh, tossing his arm over her shoulders and giving a light squeeze.

He just hoped that the night didn't go to shit once they were at her place and he told her what had happened when he lost contact, again. He really had to find a way for that to stop happening since it sucked for him and hurt the feelings of everyone he cared for. Hell, he needed to get in touch with Marjorie and Aiden again too. Shit.

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