"Joshy! Joshy look at the water!" The little girl said, tugging on her babysitter's sleeve as though she were attempting to tear his arm from his shoulder. Josh chuckled at the child and lifted her onto his shoulders so she could see it better from the parking lot. "I can see it, Emily." He said just loud enough for only her to hear. She bounced lightly on his shoulder, barley able to contain her excitement and fascination. She squealed and asked him to put her down, and he complied to her wishes. All of a sudden her smaller hand was in his and she was beginning to drag him toward the steps that led down to the beach, but Josh held her back. "Hold on, Emily. We must wait for your parents, remember? They should be here soon." He said quietly, and his charge frowned and looked like the most broken girl in the world. "Oh, okay." She whimpered, and Josh gave a soft smile before kneeling on one knee so he was almost eye level with her. "Hey, I promise that I will ask your parents sometime if I may bring you to swim sometime." He said, and Emily brightened immediately. "Really?" She nearly yelled, and Josh nodded before standing straight when he heard his bosses call him. "Hello, Josh!" The mother, Mrs. Shepard, a tall, kind lady, yelled to him, and he gave a polite nod in greeting. "Hello Ma'am, Sir." He said, also greeting Emily's father who was an important business man, but spent as much time as possible with his family as he could. The two had gone to the beach for a day of relaxing without their energetic daughter and so they'd left her with Josh, asking him to bring her here at a specific time. "Thank you for watching her." Mr. Shepard said before paying him and shaking his hand. "Your are most welcome." Josh replied with a small smile. Emily hugged him goodbye and the small family left, leaving Josh by himself. He didn't feel like going home, but he didn't have anywhere else he wanted to go, so he decided just to lay on the hood of his Sedan, one leg bent with his shoe flat on the hood, and the other hanging over the edge, his arms folded across his stomach almost as if he were hugging himself. If only he had someone to talk to.

(Somebody poooost Dx)

(me?)

(Of course, if you wanna x3)

(Yay!)

Felicity scowled at the man in front of her. She had met him a few weeks ago at a party, and thought he was a pretty cool guy. He had invited her to the lake with some of his friends, and she took it as a friendly gesture. But he had established pretty quickly that he saw her as more than a friend and wanted to show her off. "Come on baby. Just relax, its no biggie." She stiffened and gave him a poisonous look. "You literally undressed me in the back seat! I didnt agree to come to the beach so that you could flaunt your new girlfriend!" He crossed his arm, looking pissed off. "Count yourself lucky that i took interest in you. Any other girl would beg to be in your position. Quit being so ungrateful!" She narrowed her eyes, "Im not most girls. This isnt your decision to make." Her voice was soft, and dangerous. He laughed, "Whatever." and stormed off to his friends car, slamming the door and telling his friend to leave, calling Felicity some unsavouy names. His friend shot her a synpathetic look before speeding out of the parking lot. Felicity sat down, pulling her auburn curls into a messy bun, fiddling with the hem of her black crochet top, pulled over her white bikini top. Her green eyes shone in frustration as she slumped down on the bench. Sighing, she opened her bag to pull out her water bottle, taking a drink as she watched a little girl talking animatedly to a boy, and then going off with who she assumed were the parents. She wondered what it was like, to always have someone you could go to if things went wrong. She sighed and leant back, realising she had no way to get into town. She'd have to walk.

Josh's eyes sparked with interest as he sat up to match the scene with the angry words and rather colorful language. He watched as a pissy looking teen, not much older than himself, walk to someone's car and drive off, leaving some poor girl behind who looked less than amused. Some people were such asses, which was why Josh had lost all but a tiny fraction of his faith in humanity. His slid from the hood of his car, taking a couple of seconds to wipe some dirt from the legs of his skinny jeans. He really needed to wash his car. He made his way over to the auburn haired girl, his converse making no sound as they hit the pavement, this usually causing him to scare the crap out of people because they couldn't hear him coming. "Hello." He said once he was close enough to her for her to hear his quiet voice. He gave her a small smile as he stepped up next to the bench and clasped his hands behind him, standing in a very proper posture. His somewhat long black hair played in the slight breeze, getting in his face, though not enough for it to be annoying. This girl intrigued him; he didn't know what it was about her, but he definitely had curiosity. "Are you alright?" He asked, hinting at what had taken place not five minutes ago. She seemed pretty frustrated, and he hated to see people that were unhappy for any reason, and thought it his job to find out what was the matter and make their day better is possible. His smile grew just a tad bit, hoping just this small gesture would lift her spirits at least a bit.


(Bleh, my muse ran away Dx Sorry)

It seemed as if she hadnt heard until she glanced up and sighed, "Some people are just such... eurgh." She finished her sentence in an almost growl, but she smiled softly at the friendly boy. He had a kind voice, she mused to herself. "I'm fine. Just tired of realising how few good people are left in society. Everyone wants something from someone, never in it for the pure enjoyment of a persons company. I'm Felicity." She decided she trusted the boy well enough. He looked pretty genuine, and that was enough for her.

(its like midnight here hahaha can i sleepybye now?)

Josh gave her a small frown and an understanding nod as he listened to her. "I know how you feel. I have dealt with many people who are like that, and it saddens me that they are never happy." He said, his lip twitching slightly at the angry way she finished her sentence. "I do get tired of how many rude and unhappy people there are in this world, and sometimes I wish I didn't have to deal with it. And I, unlike most, do enjoy the company of others." He replied after a moment, and gave her a kind smile after she revealed her name, and gave her his in return. "My name is Josh." He said politely, and moved his hand so that they were held in front of him, one wrapped around the other in a polite yet relaxed manner.


(No, you're not allowed to sleep ever xD And, sorry for the shortness, my muse kinda died again xP)

(No faaaaiirrrrr XP no muse cause i had such a solid riding lesson earlier, we trotted in a frame and it was SO much hard work! worth it though!)

Felicity smiled. "Josh. Short for somethin'? If you dont mind me asking." Her voice cradled his name as she spoke it, delicately like if she rushed the syllable it might shatter. Names were important. When you lose everything, you learn to cling to your name. When you lose your name, well, you learn to be careful with others. She patted the empty spot beside her casually, adding warmly "I dont bite. And ive got all day, i dont have to be anywhere and to get anywhere i have a long walk, so id appreciate a delay before i embark on that hike and a half." She laughed sarcastically to herself as she peered down the road.

(Fiiiine xD But, you can only sleep for a little bit xD And, zomgs, that's awesome x3)


At Felicity's question, he gave a single nod before answering. "Yes. It is short for Joshua." He replied with a smile. He noticed how delicately he said his name, and it made him a bit curious as to why she had said it in such a way, though he didn't say anything about it. He glanced over to where hes hand was patted the empty spot on the bench beside her, and took the invitation. He was more comfortable standing, but he didn't want to seem rude (I almost spelled Rude as Rood XD) He sat with his back straight and his hand clasped neatly in his lap, though the prper posture was difficult to accomplish because he was turned at a slight angle so he could see Felicity better. As she gave her next sentence, Josh raised a brow slightly. "Well, I can drive you if you wish, I would not mind helping you out at all." He said a bit too quietly, and he wasn't quite sure if he could her here, however he didn't want to repeat himself if she had, so he looked down at his hands and waited to find out whether she'd heard him or not as he thought to himself. Felicity didn't seem to notice that the way he was acting a bit odd, and if she had, she hadn't mentioned anything, and this somewhat surprised Josh. He was used to the ridicule, and even though she seemed to be a perfectly decent, kind person, it shocked him a bit that she hadn't at least said anything to him. Well, that made him like her all the more.

She hesitated. "No, no i dont want to be an inconvenience. Its not that bad a walk." she smiled softly. She didnt even know where she was staying tonight. If she was on a job then she'd get herself an apartment, but at the moment she had to lie low. Maybe she'd stay at Nates. He's sure to have forgiven her by now. She blinked herself out of her train of thought and looked towards Josh again. "Where are you driving? If its on the way i might have to impose on your kindness." she had a gentle joking manner, as she pulled at a chestnut ring of hair, a nervous habit.

Josh just gave a soft chuckle as Felicity told him that she didn't want to inconvenience him. It wouldn't be like that at all; he'd be happy be elated to be able to help her out by driving her to wherever she needed to be. He was about to say something to her nut noticed she seemed to be in thought, so he didn't bother her. Instead, he went into his own mind to ponder some random things he'd been meaning to think over for some time. Like his next babysitting job. Emily was by far the favorite child he'd ever babysat, and hoped her parents would keep him on for a while longer. Most parents fired him after a couple of weeks after their children told them that he was weird and didn't like him. But Emily was different. She never questioned his behavior or the way he spoke, and she got very excited every time he watched over her while her parents worked or went out. He was suddenly pulled from his thoughts as Felicity spoke and almost didn't hear her say that she may actually need a ride to wherever it was she needed to be. "Well," He began, having to think for just a second to figure out where he felt like going before continuing. "I am going home, but I would not mind having to go out of my way to take you to your destination. I do not feel like going home right away, so driving around a bit would take up some time." He finished with a kind smile. He hadn't noticed the joking manner in which the girl had spoken, but he did notice that she was lightly tugging at her hair, and he very slightly raised a brow. Was she nervous?

Felicity laughed a little, "Well ill have to figure out where i need to be taken to before i take you on a wild goose chase." She glanced around, her eyes scanning everything in a trained and precise manner. It seemed fine, but younever know who could be lurking in public places. "I can pay you for gas money too." Her eyes rested on his again, the mossy green irises flecked with copper.

Josh raised his brow a bit further as she laughed, mildly confused and wondering what she had found funny. He watched her as she looked around, taking everything and seeming to do it as thoroughly as possible, almost as if she were searching for something. When she offered to pay for gas money, he couldn't help but let out a light chuckle. "No no, you do not need to feel as if you need to pay me back for a favor." He said in his quiet voice, ending up having to raise it slightly because he'd started his sentence a bit too softly and didn't think she would have been able to hear him. When her eyes met his, he felt very intrigued by them, not only the color but what he thought he could see swimming deep beneath the surface, though he couldn't tell if it was really. If anything, it could have been the sun's causing them to glitter as it's rays hit them. (Bleh. Sorry it's so short and such a fail Dx)

(its okay! but i think we should kick up the action a little )

Felicity smiled at him. "Thank you. Youre so kind." She watched him still, and then flinched slightly at a car backfiring. She supressed a memory as it flashed before her eyes. She blinked slowly as the flashback faded, watching the rusty car rattle away in relief. For a second she mistook it for gunshot. She decided on trying to get her mind off of it. "So are you from 'round here?"

(Omgyush)

Josh gave a respectful nod before saying "You are welcome." He replied with a soft smile. He cocked his head when he caught the slight flinch as a car backfired somewhere in the backround, and worry became evident on his face. She tried to cast it away as if it were nothing by asking him a simple question, and though he was curious and wanted to know what it was that was bothering her, he woulnd't question her about it because it was obviously a topic she didn't want to discuss, and so he focused on her question. "Yeah, I live at the edge of town. I've been in Horseshoe Bend all my life." He said, and his smile grew slightly, trying to make her feel better about whatever it was that was causing her to seem...afraid. (Bleh, shooort DX)

She nodded, returning his smile slightly. "Its a nice town. A little unlucky, but very lovely." She fiddled with a black stone strung around her neck, relaxing against the bench again. (Lets make it a little exciting maybe?) A small silver cylinder dropped in front of them. Felicity almost growled with annoyance as she reached for it, slowly opening it up. A note. Really? Her eyes scanned the words and she crumpled up the paper, pulling out a lighter and dropping the paper as she lit it, letting it become ash on the sidewalk. She threw the canister in the nearest trash can and brushed sand off of her shorts."Maybe you shouldnt drive me. I dont want to cause you any... trouble." she chose her words carefully, speaking them almost delicately.

(Oh god I'm so orry I wasgrounded and kinda forgot about this ><)


Josh noticed the small black stone that hung around Felicity's neck, and it caught is interest a bit. ait waspretty. He was about to compliment, but suddenly something small and silver fell at their feet, and he raised a brow. Just what was the mysterious object? His curiosity grew even more as his newfound friend Picked it up and opened it, withdrawing a piece of paper. He watched as she read it, his interest at it's peeak. To his surprise, she crumped and burned the note and threw away the little cylinder then told him it probaly wouldn't be a goodidea for him to drive her into town, that she didn't want to cause him trouble.. Josh became very woried. Was Felicity caught up in something bad? "What did it say? Felicity, what kind of trouble?" He asked. He remained in his stiff postre, though e had the strane urge to set his hand on her shoulder and tell her that everything would be fine, but he knew better. Nothing was ever 'just fine'.

(sorry for my horrid grammar xD My keypad for my Xbox is stupid)

Felicity quirked a brow, and smiled coldly as she shool her head. So many people wanted to know until they found out. She looked around. "Not here. We dont know whos here." She relaxed slightly after scanning the treeline, and noticed Josh properly. He was very cool and collected. A good sort of person. He would be safe if he opted out. He would cope if he didnt.

(forgive my shitty muse i only got 4 hours of sleep last night and its past my normal sleep time haha)

Josh's brow remained raised as she explaned tha there could be someone listening in and that it wasn't a good idea to talk where they were. and so, he gave a small amused smile. "Well then, why dn't we go somewhere else Somewhere we can't be heard." He suggested, the smile still playing at his lips as he glanced around, watching for anyone who may look suspicious, although he didn't know exactly who he was lookin for but judgng from Felcity's actions, she knew hoeverit was that was spying. He didn't want to be so..pushy to find out what Felicity knew, but he was worried for her safety. Just what kind of trouble was she in?

"Nothing i cant handle." Felicity mused, as if knowing his thoughts. Her mossy green eyes watching him carefully. She tied her mess of auburn curls up into a ponytail, and smiled reassuringly. "Lead the way." she chimed, running through a list of places in her mind. Maybe this guy knew some better ones, because hers were normally her regulars. The private places had been found out, they had planted spies in her life and she had known, let them find her out. Let them think they found her out. She studied Josh once again with slight suspiscion but he didnt seem like he was acting. They always had a wary air around them, knew who she was and were always cautious to be found out. He seemed oblivious. That was good.