she takes a few more puffs before picking the cherry off the end, not wanting to smoke bryan out while he was already having a trying day. a frowns present on her lips as she listens to bryan rant about what’s gotten him in such a mood that he’s slamming doors and dropping his bag with loud thunks. octavia can’t say she’s surprised exactly. miller’s been ditching out on their plans more and more lately but she’s surprised he’s acting this way. the pair weren’t close by any means but nate was close with her big brother which meant they spent enough time together and octavia never got the impression that he was the type to just… stop being there. “he’s a dick.” she agrees, placing the roach inside an empty cigarette pack before tossing it through the window. “well, i’m all yours – if you’re going to go out like a hero, i at least have to help.” she offers a smirk as she gets up from her place on the fire escape.
Bryan was grumpy and upset, using that as a way to hide that he really wanted to cry. He wasn’t sure what was up with Miller; he’d been acting really weird lately and it just kept getting worse. Was it something with him? Something with his family? He wasn’t sure, but he just hoped he’d find out eventually. For now, he’d stick with hanging out with his roommate and best friend, and eating a lot of comfort food. He bit his lip to keep the answer that he was tempted to say from coming out; Octavia didn’t need to know those thoughts. “Good, I’m glad you’re up for helping, because otherwise I was just gonna drag you along,” He teased lightly, stretching some and then letting out a loud sigh. “Okay, so, ice cream, brownies, all the comfort food, I’ve decided. See how much I can eat at once.”
breakfast that one time. instantly octavia’s head shoots up, maybe a little too quickly because for a moment after all she can see in bryan’s room is stars. “whoa,” she blinks once. then twice. emerald hues finally adjusting on bryan once it feels like the room is no longer a merry go round. “you mean the time we all decided a water balloon fight at the crack of dawn was a good idea after, how many tequila bottles?” there’s a light chuckle that fills the room as a smirk dances onto her lips. “my hair is completely moldable – it had to survive years of bellamy’s torture okay?” although he makes a good point, if they wanted to have breakfast down at the diner before adventuring tomorrow they needed to get some sleep. especially octavia. sleep would help the booze leave her system. “promise not to steal all the blankets this time?” she asks, eyelids already feeling heavier simply at the idea of sleep.
Bryan’s eyes went wide and he looked worried as Octavia shot up like that. “Yeah, whoa. Maybe that’s not such a good idea, huh?” He chuckled softly, “And yes, that time. I’m sure they still remember us there.” He continued to play with her hair for the moment, humming at her words. “This is true, though I think it’d be hilarious to see him trying to fix hair,” He snickered out. He scooted and made it so that they were both laying on the bed, grinning lightly at her words. “I’ll try,” He stated then, “But I make no real promises. Go to see, O.”
he smiles at her and for half a beat octavia’s not sure what to make of it. before they were even off the dropship the other delinquents were already whispering about her. they’d done the same thing the first time she walked into their earth survival skills class with professor pike. but this boy doesn’t seem to hold the same attitudes as the other kids. he seems friendly even. before she can make a decision on whether or not she could trust the boy or even ask his name his hand reaches for hers and they’re off. quickly moving through the forest trees and bushes after a blue butterfly. so far, octavia loved this place. it was beautiful and so much more than she could have ever imagined. bellamy was here to and it was like she truly was getting a second shot at a life.
when the boy beside her points out the glowing blue butterfly octavia’s emerald hues instantly grow wide. the butterfly was something so magnificent and for more than a few moments the brunette can’t tear her eyes away. without realizing, she takes a few steps forward, curiously watching as the insect fluttering along the branch. hesitantly, she reaches a finger outwards wondering if she would be so lucky that the butterfly would flock to her. moments pass and nothing happens so her attention shifts back to the boy. a wide smile on her lips. “you know my name, but i don’t know yours.” she says just before feeling a tickle along her finger. hues glance back and to her surprise the blue butterfly had come closer.
He saw the hesitation on her face, and just kept the soft smile on his to try and reassure her. He wasn’t going to be rude to her or judge her like the others were; Bryan was a kind, sweet boy who had never really held a grudge or been upset with someone for more than a day. It’d take a lot to break him of that. Kind, trusting, probably much too trusting as his mother had always said, but he couldn’t really help it. Still, he’s hoping that she’s just as kind, and besides; who could really say no to going and seeing the beautiful butterfly?
Bryan’s face lit up when he saw the way Octavia reacted to seeing the butterfly, happy to see her happy. He watched her, tilting his head a little as she reached out towards the insect and wondering what it would do, if anything. At her words, he chuckled and opened his mouth to reply, but then gasped when the butterfly had come closer to her hand. “Wow,” He whispered, stepping forward slowly, “It likes you! I’m Bryan, by the way. So that you know my name too. Bryan Nolan.”
the july heats killing her, even in her shorts and sports bra so she’s become accustomed to lounging out on the fire escape whenever she spent a significant amount of time in another’s room. currently, she’s sat on the stairs near bryan’s window with an unlit joint dangling from her lips when she hears his loud burst through the bedroom door. she’d been waiting for him. wondered what was taking so long but something told her she was about to find out. eyebrows raised in his direction as she brought the lighter up to her lips. “you okay?” she asks, quickly inhaling a first toke before shoving her lighter away. she stands, letting the cloud of smoke fade away from the window before she sticks her head in the window to catch a glance at him. “am i kicking someone’s ass?” she questions her roommate. brows furrowing before she takes a seat on the stairs again. another toke in, she turns her gaze towards the streets. “cause i will – just gotta let me know.” she hollers to him.
“No,” Bryan huffed out, dropping his bag with a loud thunk onto the floor, looking over at Octavia as she sticks her head in the window. “No, no. Don’t kick his ass. Just because he’s a stupid fuck doesn’t mean he needs his ass kicked. Just… Ugh.” He moved over then, climbing halfway out the window to join Octavia on the fire escape. He sighed and leaned against the wall, looking at her with a grumpy expression. “He canceled, after I sat there for almost an hour. Said he had other things to do and we could reschedule. Again. For the third time in two weeks. I’m starting to think he just doesn’t want to date anymore. So I’m going to head back out and buy as much ice cream as I can, and go out like a hero.”
“don’t toy with my emotions there, B – now we have to put the notice on the bulletin board in jasper’s room,” there’s a smirk lacing her lips but for a half a second it seems to slip ever so slightly. it’s been a long week since she’s been inside the apartment across the hall – the downfall of avoiding her big brother. but she doesn’t allow her thoughts to linger on bellamy long before she shifts her attention to her roommate. absentmindedly, octavia’s finger’s start tracing patterns along his clothing, spelling words and making random shapes. “can we go to that diner down the block?” she asks, remembering how good the french toast had been a few weeks back when she had tried it. “i’ll buy,” she offers, far too excited for their adventure now.
“Me? Come on, O, you know I’d never do that,” Bryan chuckled out at her, “And we’ll do that.” He continued playing with her hair, making the next braid a little more complicated, testing it out as he felt her drawing patterns and shapes on his clothes. “The one down the block? Is that the one where we got breakfast the one time?” He asked, furrowing his brows and trying to think about what she meant, though he nodded anyway. “Yeah, sounds good. Now, how about we get some sleep, because otherwise I’m going to make your hair a mess.”
“somehow?” she asks, eyebrows raising in her roommate’s direction. “what, don’t think i’m smart enough to be a lawyer?” she asks again, although the question’s a very loaded question. was there even a right way to answer it? luckily however, her quick defence seems to lower as bryan continues to thread his fingers through her hair, twisting them into braids. “now there’s a perfect idea – everyone should do that b, thanks for the idea.” she gleams, her body wiggling ever so slightly like she’s won something. when he offers up the suggestion of having an adventure with less alcohol, octavia actually can’t help but think it’s a great idea. sure. her life was fun. her nights were even better. but sometimes she liked to just enjoy the adventure, instead of the parties. “mmm, milkshakes,” she hums, her tongue wetting her lower lip. “can i stay here tonight – then we get started tomorrow?”
Bryan blinked, looking a little confused as Octavia raised her eyebrows at him. “What?” He asked, lost, “I never said that. I think you’re plenty smart enough to be a lawyer. I’m just saying, if you choose to become one, because right now you’re not.” He shrugged lightly, chuckling as she then began to relax. “I am full of good ideas,” He agreed then, “Maybe we put out a floor wide bulletin that everyone has to do that.” He continued to braid her hair, grinning as she agreed about the milkshakes; and nodded almost instantly at her question. “Of course,” He chuckled, “We can get some sleep and then first thing in the morning, after breakfast of course, we can get started on planning out that adventure.”
her nose crinkles, a sloppy smile lacing her lips as she glances up at him. “am so, lawyers object all the time.” she counters happily. all octavia’s life she’s been willing to argue about anything and everything. her mother used to say she could argue with an empty room, so in her drunken state being a lawyer wasn’t very far off. once settled in bed, octavia’s quick to cuddle up against her roommate, laying peacefully as his fingers comb through her hair. “i’m your roommate, you should never have your phone on silent, mistake number uno.” she tells him, lifting her head slightly to lean on his chest. “we could adventure together tomorrow.”
“You’re not a lawyer, this isn’t a court, and I meant you’re not allowed to object with me. If you somehow end up a lawyer, you can object all you want,” Bryan laughed out, shaking his head lightly at Octavia and how adorable she is. He hummed as he played with her hair, rolling his eyes playfully. “I’ll go on and set it so that even if I have it on silent your calls will come through. Sound like a plan?” He continued to braid her hair, nodding his head then at her suggestion. “That sounds good,” He agreed, “We can go do something fun, maybe with less alcohol though. Maybe milkshakes.”
two weeks ago bellamy told her she was on a one way ticket to being just like their mother, he practically called her aurora. you’re looking for something to hold over me, that’s one way to become just like her. if he thought she was like aurora before, well she’d prove him. self destructing and lashing out were what octavia blake did best. katie was still waiting on her payments for the bail money and octavia had been working every shift she could get her hands on, however instead of the money going towards the rent she needed to make up or the payments she was starting to fall behind in, octavia used the money on anything that could help keep her numb. my life ended the day you were born. once the anger against bell and fox had subsided, the brunette was left with an overwhelming sense of agonizing guilt and sadness. her solution was simple. she couldn’t be swallowed up by her sadness if she didn’t give it the chance. she didn’t have to face bellamy or the things he said that she knew were true if she never gave herself the chance. everything became work. parties. coke. booze. events. men. weed. anything to simply keep her big brother’s voice from haunting her.
phone tucked up against her cheek, she crouches against the brick building in the alley way. after her shit night at work all she wanted was to curl up into her bed and let her haze coax her into a dreamless sleep but after the taxi driver had dropped her off she’d become too unsteady to walk herself up the stairway. how pathetic she’d become. you’re taking your clothes off for money, what’s next? what’s too far for you? octavia wants to scream in the alley way. pound her fists into the pavement or take another line from the men at her event. my life ended the day you were born. anything to make bellamy’s voice disappear. thankfully before she can do more harm to herself the ringing in her ear stops and someone answers the phone. “b-bryyyaan,” she slurs, an unhealthy mixture of drugs and booze coating her tone. “can yo–..ooou come leet-..t me in?”
Bryan had been worrying a lot about Octavia. Ever since that night where it seemed like everything had kinda imploded, he’d noticed that something was off. He’d tried his best to keep an eye on her and do what he could; fixing her food, giving her cuddles, staying by her side when she needed him. He didn’t want to push and ask what was going on, he trusted that she would tell him, or at least he hoped that she would tell him when she needed to. But the worry was a constant, and he just wanted things to be okay again, he wanted Octavia to be okay, and happy.
He’d been sitting at his desk, tapping his pen against the notepad in front of him and staring off into space, when suddenly his phone was ringing and he jumped. Octavia’s ringtone. He’d put it special, so that even if his phone was on silent, her calls would come through no matter what. Grabbing the phone, he hit the button to answer it and quickly put it to his ear. When he heard Octavia’s slurs, his heart sank into his stomach and the worry hit even harder. “’Tavia? Are you alright? Where are you at?” He asked, already up and grabbing a jacket as he headed out of the doorway.
Outside, he assumed of course, but he still wanted her to tell him. He was quick to scramble out and into the elevator, jabbing at the buttons as if that would make it get him to the ground floor faster so that he could get to his roommate. “I’m on my way, O,” He stated gently, “Just tell me where you are.”
Send ➳ for your character to receive mine as a gift/spoil of war. || Accepting || @headstrongblake
The war felt like it had been going on forever. As the youngest out of four siblings, two older brothers and an older sister were what he had, Bryan wasn’t really that involved in it. That, and maybe the fact that he hadn’t been with his family at the castle lately; he’d been at the cottage his father had bought him, working on setting up a farm for himself. He was useless when it came to fighting, and all the boy wanted was to settle down with a nice farm and a small home for himself and his future partner. That was the dream; not being a royal who was to be married off to further his family’s position.
But the war; between his country and another, all started over a land dispute, or was it a ship that had been in the wrong harber? Whatever had started it, it had blown up faster than anyone could stop it. His father and brothers were sending troops, his mother and sister were helping the wounded, and everything was a mess. He’d thought he was safe at the cottage, but that wasn’t to be. He’d suddenly found troops coming over the hill and he hadn’t had time to hide or get away. When they found out who he was? Well, they had the youngest prince in their captivity, of course they weren’t going to let him go.
That was how he suddenly found himself on his way to the country his family was at war with. That was how he found himself in chains, a bag over his head, and being dragged down a hallway to the throne room, being shoved onto his knees. “Your Majesties,” The man who was holding on tightly to his shoulder announced loudly, “We have brought you a gift in this time of war. The youngest prince of–”
Bryan didn’t hear him say the country name, wincing instead as the bag was yanked off of his head to reveal him to the royal family that was sitting in front of him. He bit his lip hard at the bright light that was suddenly blinding him now that he wasn’t in the dark, feeling scared. He was dressed down from where he’d been farming, but anyone who knew them would know it was him. He slowly lifted his head, jutting his chin up a little to look at the other royals, waiting to see what they would do.
indiebryan 