masanari | [Badlandia] I'm not sure that's a good AU name tbh but w/e

[Badlandia] I'm not sure that's a good AU name tbh but w/e

[ Junko will find that she's woken up in a motel room. Specifically, on a bed in a motel room which looks dirty and therefore probably not in the city where they had grown up. She'll also find that whatever outfit she had thought she was in had been changed into something Ethan would consider "more appropriate," with some changes for her style, and that whatever she had on before is nowhere to be found.

And that the boy in question was sitting on the edge of the other bed. It was a motel room with two double beds, a bathroom, and not much else. It was sparsely decorated with a few lamps and a digital clock. There's a bottle of pills on the bedstand... which might be why she was groggy.

Well, groggy and there might be other side-effects, like slight memory loss for how she ended up in this position. They had a chance to start over, to connect with each other after their break up and all. Ethan was looking at her repeatedly as she was waking, though he was also doing something on his phone, perhaps googling something.

This day wasn't starting off well, all things considered. Probably not helped by the fact that the room smelled of antiseptic, which was either creepy or implied Ethan himself was horny, which was unusual in and of itself given his strange sexlessness while they were dating. ... Which might be unsettling in and of itself. ]

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[Apparently one of the other side effects the vague sensation of having been smacked with a two by four. It's almost as painful to try and open her eyes and get them to focus. The smell is what hits her first, and even though she really doesn't remember meeting him, running into him, or even thinking about him, there's no way that smell wouldn't remind her of Ethan. The first thing that leaves her is throaty, confused moan.]

Wh-

[Her throat hurts and her limbs feel oddly numb and tingling at once. She attempts to turn onto her side but she can only loll her head to one side and there's Ethan!

... What in the world.]

Oh, careful, careful, Junko. You don't need to get up so quickly. After all, you might still be groggy.

[ He sounds genuinely concerned! But of course he does, he loves her! Ethan leans forward now, setting down his phone and gently reaching out to brush some of her hair back, to make her look a bit better. Be good! Be happy!

Or well, she will soon. ]

Why ...

[She can't even get a single syllable word out properly, yeesh. She flinches at his touch, or at least tries to. She still feels terrifyingly numb all over so even though she can note the order, it's hard to tell if her body is listening. This is a hotel and they're alone, they have to be since it's deathly quiet, aside from an occasional bump in a room outside of this one.

How the hell did she even get here? She'd talked with Audrey, left the house, took the bus and ... That's it. That's where her memory cuts out abruptly. It doesn't make for the best feeling in the world, even though she's trying to make her body work there's a sense of dread building in her chest.]

Because - well, because you happened to fall, Junko. I picked you up and now we're here. It's been several hours, but you should be okay. Can you see me? Are you thirsty?

[ Ethan seems... excited. But odd (for him) his scent seems to increase as he's talking, oozing out to coil around her, as if the smell of a clinic could urge her own coffee out as well. If it can is debatable, but it's clear that there's a variety of issues here, from the setting to her clothing to Ethan himself! ]

I fell ...?

[Her voice is coming back in chunks, which is nice. She tries to move her hands so that she can touch her head, make sure there isn't any blood or a sizable bump. She has to repeat his words three times in order to pinpoint what's wrong with his explanation, so for a little while Junko is quiet, squinting at him a little.]

Then why ... Are in a hotel?

[Because if someone had fallen and possibly hurt themselves you'd take them to the hospital or at least urgent care. It feels wrong, his story and her body and his scent which is becoming overwhelming to the point of further disorienting her. She can't smell anything but him and it forces her body to sluggishly respond, but it's an automatic response and nothing else.]

It's a motel, actually.

[ . . . Leave it to him to be pedantic.

That said, he folds his hands together, more to resist touching her than anything else. He nervously taps his foot, which is unbecoming of him, but one of the things he does when he's a bit charged or on edge in a way he doesn't feel confident about, like he would be in a debate. No, instead, he responds to her ]

We had planned to get away and reconnect. So I simply decided to take you our afterwards, because it wasn't an overly serious fall.

[Wow, she did not miss that aspect of his personality.

But yet again she struggles to supply an outright objection. All of that sounds and feels wrong but all she's got to work off of are her feelings, and the general history. They'd broken up, Junko had met Rin - so why would she be going away with anyone outside of her pack? Why would she reconnect with Ethan, of all people? None of it made sense.

Now she tries to sit up, rubbing the side of her head.]

I need to go home.

[She wants her parents, she wants Rin. That weird sense of dread just keeps growing and her body won't go back to normal, if not because of the side effects then because of his scent.]

Oh no, no, no. Junko, at least rest first.

[ He sounds poised as usual, proper, gentle. But he also reaches his hands out to brace themselves on her shoulders and urge her back down on the bed, trying to make sure that she's relaxed, so that she can recover. He gives her a warm - insofar as he can be warm - smile and ends up nudging the nightstand as he did.

He didn't have a better plan than this, not yet. In that way, they were working against the clock ]

[To be fair Junko tries to resist, she means to push herself forward but ends up falling back suddenly enough that it makes her nauseous. Her eyes screw shut and it just - none of it makes sense and it claws at her, even though every thought and gesture takes up far more energy than it has a right too.]

I've been resting for hours.

[Talking is becoming easier, so that's a plus.]

Not that long - and really, don't worry. I will make certain that you're well cared for, and I even found a nice place to get us a dinner to eat in. It'll even fit with our nutritional schedule.

[ He says this all to be reassuring, and of course in his mind it is, as he strokes her cheek gently and brushes her brow a little bit ]

[What.

And why is he touching her he shouldn't be touching her, but the overwhelming force of his scent is even more cloying now, and her own scent kind of stutters out, as if it's as confused as she is. Which might be fair, this is really not a 'let's get horny' situation.]

I ... [Fuck, what should she do? Junko tries to move her hand to her hip but what she feels is odd, because apparently her life is made up of oddities right now. She'd been wearing jeans and a tank top, that much was easily recalled.]

What happened to my clothes?

Edited 2016-08-01 19:06 (UTC)

You changed them, didn't you? You thought that you should wear something more suited to your form.

[ Which is way she's in a sundress now! It's spring, so it makes sense, right? She's s pleasing when she's in one of those, and it really suits her body, given the changes that it's gone through since he was with her. But it's okay, it's okay... she changed, and so he needed to change to suit her. They needed to compromise, and get together. Her bangs fixed up, he smiles a little ]

I really liked those jeans.

[Which is why the idea that she'd change out of them, or feel that they weren't 'well suited' to her body is incredibly strange. They were comfortable and they made her ass look a little bigger. What's ill suited about that?]

... I need to go to the bathroom.

[What she needs is her phone, which would have been, surprise! In the pocket of her jeans. But right about now she kind of has to work with it, right? First comes privacy, second comes willing her body to get back to normal, third is finding her phone and calling her dad.]

Oh! Oh, of course, how silly of me.

[ He takes a step back from her, his scent remaining uncomfortably steady, and all the while trying to keep himself composed. He stands, but crouches over her, offering a hand to help her up and get to the bathroom. He seems to have dismissed the idea that the jeans matter entirely, because the topic is dropped. But still, let's get you going out to the bathroom! ]

[She really doesn't want his help and she wants to be touched even less - which is somewhat untrue - but there's no avoiding it. Junko reaches for his hand, but at least she does a better job of managing her own weight. It's not as difficult to pull herself up, but standing is weird. At least it doesn't feel like she's swaying all over the place.]

I'm okay, I can do it.

[Her legs are shaky but she can do this, she has too.]

Of course. But allow me to get the door for you.

[ It's a small motel room, so it's not like it's far to walk, but once he's confident that she's standing, he walks ahead of her to the bathroom. And he does indeed get the door for her, but he also steps in himself, picking up a small box inside of there which had been resting in the sink, taking it in hand, and walking on out with it. He gives her a pleasant smile as he walks past her again, motioning for her to go on ahead once he sets the box down on the foot of the bed he had been sitting on ]

[What the fuck.

Whatever, man, at least she can close the door. Junko leans against it and takes a deep breathe. There's a weird sense of relief that comes with having a bit of space, though she can't hope to avoid his scent. Why was she here? What the hell had been in that box? Why couldn't she remember where her cell phone was?]

What the fuck is even going on.

[But it was fine, right? She could just leave. Even if it meant leaving behind her money and her cards and ID, she could just get out and find a phone and call her dad or Yamato or her mom to get her. So where had the door been? Could she get to it without drawing his attention? There was no telling until she tried, and even though she couldn't think of a justification for her fear and anxiety, Ada has always told her to trust her instincts.

So after breathing some more Junko tried to slowly turn the knob, and leave. Her body wasn't reliable right now but if she got outside, that'd be enough.]

[ But no matter how quiet she was, no matter how she moved going in and out of the bathroom, Ethan was there... Or well, at least, the boy was aware. He had the box on the bed and he was standing there with his back to the wall and smiling at Junko once she opened the door enough to see him. He's still got his scent out there, swirling around in the air. And he can't help but reach out and grab her--

No, no, he can.

Be proper, be polite. Even if this new something in his veins really was making him weird. Weird and charged and it was Strange and it was hard... ]

[When she dares to try and peek his way, to see if he's looking at his phone or out the window or something, he's just staring at her and it's weirdly startling.]

Uh, [The strength is coming back into her limbs but there's a new sense of apprehension, she tries to back up towards the door.] Listen, Ethan, I'm just ... Going to get some air, okay?

[Where was the door? Wherever it is, even with his stare and his scent seemingly willing her to remain in place, Junko keeps going for the door, she's just not stupid enough to turn her back right now.]

You really should rest, Junko.

[ They were in a motel mils outside of the city he lived in, but all the same.. it's not like it was the middle of the night. It was possible she would get a phone, and she might try to call her damnable father out here. Ethan shakes his head, and motions towards the bed, he himself poised on the wall next to the door. But... ]

But if you want, I could accompany you.

[ How did other people live with this feeling all the time? ]

I can go alone. I mean, you seem - preoccupied, anyway?

[He was never like this before, hell, trying to get him worked up had been like pulling teeth out of a lions jaw. But at least his arousal makes for a good excuse, even if she's failing to will her own body isn't obedience. When she tries to reach for the knob her hand trembles.]

Ethan, please ...

[She was kind of scared and couldn't he just let her talk to her dad? Couldn't he just let her go, and not do whatever the hell was lurking in his expression: there was a lot jammed into those two words.

[ Ummmmm no? ]

Junko I can't let you run the risk of hurting yourself. Please understand.

[ He claps his hands together, the very picture of reasonable as he pulls them back to himself with a pleasant expression! See, there's no problem here! This is normal. In fact, he gets into step next to her by the door. It's not like it's locked... or well, it is, but not locked to people inside ]

Edited 2016-08-02 01:33 (UTC)

[Why did she think there was such a thing as reasoning with him? He had always been weirdly stubborn, and it'd been stupid to think that would change.

She doesn't say anything, Junko turns the knob and tries to get the door open. If she can at least get outside then all she has to do is run, basically.

So if it's not locked to anyone inside then it shouldn't be a problem, right?]

[ Nope, she's free to open it up! And it opens to! ... the inner courtyard complete with a pool of a motel on the outskirts of the city they live in. Actually, more like off the highway where you would leave it from. Ethan intends to walk off behind her, a hand on her shoulder as she finishes opening the door.

... HEr skin is so soft... ]

[Oh, great, she's not even anywhere near her house, let alone her neighborhood. It's staggering to realize how far out they were and his hand feels really heavy on her right about now.

Yeah, no.

Her body is still a third of the way numb but Junko goes right and breaks out into a run, so unless Ethan was ready to grip her by the air and had good aim, she's going to bolt. Granted, she's still recently drugged so she's hardly graceful, and speed is a work in progress - she knows, to a point, that he can probably catch her easily - but she's got to fucking try instead of question every little detail.]

hey at least we're keeping with the theme.

Tru but there's got to be a better one

druglandia, which is not outstandingly original tbh

Oh that's not bad.

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