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Post by shades on Aug 17, 2014 5:33:16 GMT
Elmore is considered a small town which can be kind and hypocritical at the same time. Everyone knows everyone, whether it's the pastor's daughter, Holland, or the new family moving into the large house...the Palchaks. In Elmore, it would be tradition to meet a new family at their home bringing gifts and offering to help move in. Many in Elmore have done so with newly weds, small families, or single young adults getting away from the city life. The Palchaks, they are different culturally. Sure, Elmore is a town striving off it's religious nature, no not everyone goes to church in Elmore; it's common for people to have different lifestyles. And though the community tends to lean on one another, most of the older and more religious adults shun such people who do not attend Sunday Mass. It was common, but in the end it was life.
What made the Palchaks different? Besides the ten foster kids living on one of the largest properties in Elmore?
For one, Mrs. Olczak (the relator) gossiped about meeting the kids. She describes them as an 'oddball' bunch. "I'd never let my daughter date their delinquent son; well, the more brooding of them. Yet the other one...he seemed more reliable." She clucked to the church, making uneasy feelings wander. "According to Mrs. Palchak, she said that they needed room to roam than a suburban neighborhood and out of the city. Tsk. Probably doesn't even know half her kids are druggies." She gossiped, making almost no one wish to meet the children of the Palchak clan.
Unbeknownst to the community, half of Elmore's kids follow the lifestyle most of the Palchak kids lived in or are running away from. Making tension run wild when maybe the darling daughter loses her virginity, and is blamed on being influenced by a Palchak boy. Or maybe the crazy Palchak girl convinced the other girls to partake in dancing around the fire in a devilish way, when really they were just listening to good music and dancing. Who knew a community could be so judgmental and easy to place blame on anyone but their saintly church-going children.
What a real shock when life hits them.
Meet the Palchak Clan!
Head of Household ; ;
Joseph and Carolyn Palchak
Levi Anderson ; ; 17 years
Background ; ;
Orphaned at a young age by a teen mother, frustrating in care of workers and other children. Adopted at 4 by Stephen and Mary Mosier. At age 6 Mary Mosier and Levi were in a car accident resulting in the traumatizing death of Mary Mosier. Accordingly from age 6 to age 10 is shaky territory which will result in silence from Anderson. At age 10 Levi was found on the streets involved in illegal activities and brought back to an orphanage. Until the Palchak family at age 12, Levi has been to 15 other foster homes all of which report he ‘disappeared’ in a few days of living there and wound up being caught by the police ‘walking away’. Sometimes there would be a struggle, Levi being rather violent. Why this current Palchak family is any different is beyond anyone.
Rose Palchak ; ; 17 years
Background ; ;
Rose was seven when her single mother, Angela Roberts, abandoned her. She doesn't remember much about her mom besides the fact that she left her on the front door step and vanished off the face of the Earth. Rose hopes to find her mom someday, though she's scared what she'll find or won't at all. Rose has always used sarcasm and light, airy humor to cover her inner feelings and doesn't ever tell people her feelings. Her biggest fear; being left alone.
Harry Palchak ; ; 16 years
Background ; ;
Harry, unlike Rose, did know his parents, and they try to take him back from the Palchak's all the time after he arrived to them at age fourteen. Yet they always seem to lose and Harry's old enough to decide where he would like to stay. His mom has been caught wit crack and his dad has gone to jail just too many times for comfort, so he prefers his 'better' family, though his real parents often cause lots of problems legally and emotionally for him. He likes to stay focused on soccer to forget them.
Jane Palchak ; ; 16 years
Background ; ;
No one really knows Jane's story except for the Palchak parents, who were told when she was given to them at five years of age. But she was diagnosed with shaken baby syndrome at eight months old and since than has 'healed' in a way, but sometimes has medical issues that need to be taken care of. She says little because it's hard for her to speak in general, but she has a heart for everyone and just wants them to like her. She is also very good with the kids and tries to help Mamma Palchak as much as she can. Sometimes she gets seizers which can result in serious injury if she's not taken directly to the hospital.
Zoey Palchak ; ; 15 years
Background ; ;
Grew up in a life without her mother (Stacy Marie Harris), but instead her father (Richard Harris) was a previous military Sergeant First Class; working on a military base after being honorably discharged for medical reasons. Living on base Zoey had access to the community to watch her as her father worked. When she was 10 years old her father’s cancer pushed for the worst and he was abruptly put on hospice. Zoey was in the care of a neighbor ‘til his death and funeral; arrangements were made and she joined the Palchak family without hassle.
Tommy Palchak ; ; 14 years
Background ; ;
Tommy was literally thrown away when he was five years old and put into the foster system. His father, a serious drug lord, didn't allow his 'girls' (kind of like a pimp) have children, and if they did, he would make sure he killed them himself. But Tommy's mother hid him as long as she could until his father found him and threw him into the alleyway dumpster, horribly beaten up and almost dead. The trash guy found him and he was given to one other foster home before the Palchak's. A lot of nights he has nightmares of his father ( Señor Ramez ) beating him and if he smells the same smell of a dumpster, it usually makes him freak out. But besides that, he just wants to be accepted like a regular kid and tries not to let his past define him.
Farlan Palchak ; ; 10 years
Background ; ;
Sweet, composed, stoic; very much quiet and reserved since his parents death. Doesn’t talk much, struggles to tell his story. Sort of the wingman, doesn’t know what to say and is used to being stuck up for and dragged around into trouble. Parents were killed in an accident; Farlan was separated from his sister Tessa in the system and arrived at the Palchak family at the age of 9.
Aaron Wagner ; ; 12 years
Background ; ;
Grew up in a comfortable setting with his grandparents raising him. Unfortunately, the social services deemed them unable to take care of him. With no other relatives, Aaron jumped to the nearest foster family when he was 10 years old, the Palchak family. His grandparents still visit and he still is capable of visiting them, his grandfather Thomas Wagner suffering in a wheelchair and unable to work. Leaving Cecilia Wagner to work minimum wage which was the cause of why Aaron had to leave. Unlike other kids, Aaron has no traumatic experience plaguing him making him the ‘odd one out’ of the older kids.
Annie Palchak ; ; 8 years
Background ; ;
Parents often fight, leaving Annie home alone and locked in her room when both of them walked out. Both parents had their problems, whether it was Jeffery Sadler abusing Bailey Sadler, or alcohol; Annie seemed to live life with little abuse but with the cold fear of the backlash being turned on her as her father would threaten. Eventually both parents were sent to jail, leaving Annie in the care of the Palchaks when she was 3 years.
Mei Lei ; ; 7 years
Background ; ;
Mei was given to the Palchak at age seven and is there newest member. She doesn't remember it very well, but her family in China was murdered by the sinister Chinese gangs on that side of the world and she was left to rot and die from starvation. But an American minister found her and brought her back to America to be put into the foster system and into a better home. She went to six different homes, shoved aside as a pest in most of them, and so she's very shy and eats very little because that's how she's been treated to do.
The Elmore Kids
Marco Scott ; ; 16 years
Zayn ; ; 17 years
Holland ; ; 16 years
Small town's pastors daughter. Everyone knows her, and she gets talked about more than anything in the town. But she was tired of growing up in such a religious household and decided one night to go party. And that's how everything started. She doesn't keep boyfriends very often, or for a very long time, and doesn't prefer kids whatsoever.
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Post by Maple ♥ on Aug 17, 2014 5:56:48 GMT
bloop
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Post by shades on Aug 17, 2014 6:09:29 GMT
The Palchak Family ; ;
It was a quiet morning, which wasn’t unusual; after a week of moving in, the kids hardly had time to settle down before they would be sent to school. Not even Zoey, usually eccentric and boisterous was jumping up and down to get to school and meet her new classmates. Maybe it was the fact after not being in school for awhile, they aren't used to waking up so early.
Carolyn Palchak, however, was relieved that there was no tension or strain among the kids today. She set out the cereal and milk, knowing that yes she probably invest in a better breakfast…yet she also knew half of her kids would be running late and wouldn’t bother taking anything.
She was a perceptive parent, having dealt with many mornings with these ten kids. At 6:00 AM, Carolyn’s alarm clock beeped causing her to stir. Joseph went to work around 5:30 and woke up before anyone else in the house was awake. As she awoke and got ready for the day, 6:15 another alarm clock began making noise and was abruptly silence.
Shuffling could be heard from one of the older kids rooms, before the door to the bathroom slammed shut. There were three whole bathrooms, one on the top floor and one on the bottom, then Carolyn and Joseph’s which was adjoined to their room. Fighting for morning bathroom was a common problem, so it was obvious one would want to get in without hassle.
Cleaning the kitchen a bit, alarm clocks blared through the house throughout the morning. Some of her children would hit ‘snooze’ and roll over, while others got up. She had specifically told them to be down by 7:00 AM; the bus arrives at 7:25 to take them to school which starts at 8:00 AM (since it is a small town, both middle and high school kids get on the same bus and go at the same time). This left them room to get ready and eat breakfast.
The sound of footsteps alerted Carolyn to her oldest and most detached of the family, Levi. “Morning.” He mumbled, running a hand through his dampened black hair, blue-gray eyes half open as he sat down at the table. His backpack fell to his feet, and Levi’s forehead slammed on the table.
With an affectionate roll of her eyes, Mrs. Palchak clicked and asked, “anyone else heading down?”
“I don’t function in the morning,” was all she got. Leaving the older woman to huff and wander to the stairs.
“ROSE, HARRY, JANE, ZOEY, TOMMY, AARON, AND FARLAN; COME ON.” Mrs. Palchak called down, noticing that Levi had finally moved to get some cereal and was munching on it thoughtfully.
Zoey came bounding down the stairs.
“Oh boy, I wonder what classes they’ll give me. They better have some good classes here, because I don’t think I tolerate being sent into remedial math…again. Then again, I don’t mind tutoring my classmates and teacher, it was fun at Oakland to see their faces—”
“Shut up four-eyes.”
“Levi! Language!”
“Sorry, I meant: kindly shut your trap. No offense.”
Mrs. Palchak glowered at the eldest, receiving no indication of her anger from the other; she sighed and gave up. Levi never was a boy to acknowledge others, he knew…just didn’t care.
Zoey, though, wasn’t fazed. Living five years with the boy calling her ‘four-eyes’ and ‘shitty glasses’ she would just smile and continue to talk. She pushed her glasses up her nose, swiped some of her brown hair out of her face, and eyed the cereal selection like it was a rare delicacy. “Hmm…”
By that time, Aaron had made his way down. With a grunt and “Morning”, he poured his cereal and began dunking the spoon and scooping the apple-bits. His own blue eyes watched the other two quietly, as Levi insisted Zoey make up her mind before he not so kindly did it for her.
Mrs. Palchak, in the meantime, went upstairs to check on the two youngest. Annie and Mei shared a room, and were not in middle school so they had to stay home with her. That wasn’t a problem, she had no job yet and no need to go anywhere anyways today. Just unpacking and decorating.
Like any day, it would be a great accomplishment to get through it without killing anyone in the household.
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Post by Maple ♥ on Aug 17, 2014 6:33:07 GMT
Once Levi was done, Rose, well, she liked to take her time in the bathroom. Perfectly gelled make-up, hair curled to perfection, and outfit on point, she refused to go to her new school looking like trash. Of course, it was horribly hard to look your best in a family of twelve who shared everything. She was also horrible at being late, and messy, and sarcastic. Rose was just the perfect definition of a teenage girl in high-school, excited for the new beginning and nervous for whatever else was to come.
"I'm coming!" Rose yelled back, rolling her half mascaraed eyes in the mirror as she widened them to keep going.
Harry, was not like Rose. He'd been smart enough to take a shower the night before, because as long as he'd been there Rose used the bathroom the longest and that usually meant he didn't get a morning shower like she did. His hair wasn't anything special anyways, all he needed to do was brush his teeth and then he'd be out the door. That was of course, after Rose stepped out in a ball of perfume and girly products. "Morning bro," She tried ruffling his brown hair as she passed, which he quickly dodged while reaching into the top drawer that held all of their dental products to find his own and clean away his morning breath. He always had bad morning breath.
Tommy was still in bed. He did this the most, waiting until the last second to get up. He was in the awkward stages of middle school where hygiene wasn't the most important thing in his life; in fact, the only thing that was was either his older foster-sister Zoey, or his school work. But as he was woken up by his alarm clock from a dream about him and the 'populars' at school getting along, he didn't groan like he usually did. He actually smiled, rubbing his eyes to get rid of his sleep, and slipped out of bed to put on the clothes he'd delicately laid out the night before in preparation for this day. "Today's the day, Tommy boy," he said with a sigh and a smile before sliding off his pajama pants and getting into the nice polo shirt and complimentary blue shorts.
Mei Lei was still sleeping soundly, in her 'big girl' bed across from Annie. When she woke up, she would go potty first in the empty bathroom, then find her mother and eat breakfast, just like she did everyday. Her fingers gripped her small, stretched out, and so worn out it wasn't soft anymore, beany baby unicorn in which she called Pony and never ever was without, sleep or awake.
Jane, the helper to Carolyn, was up even before the middle-aged woman's alarm could blare. She blinked at the rising sun as she ran a comb through her long, wavy dark brown hair that almost looked black in color. Her dark eyes followed the lining of the window as she slid on one of the nice dresses she'd gotten new before they'd moved, twirling in front of the mirror briefly before yawning silently and stepping out of her room to brush her teeth. After that, she bounced down the stairs softly to the kitchen to start making the kid's lunches that she knew had to be done ever so certainly for each kiddo, but she didn't mind doing it. Like how Harry only like rye bread and Zoey was allergic to lettuce (?). Rose liked lots of mustard and Levi just liked food in general, so Jane wanted to make sure they all had happy days despite being the odd people out. She really cared for her foster siblings even if they didn't acknowledge her much. And, well, it felt good to belong in a position of helping Carolyn with the children when Joseph wasn't home to. So, humming an old Spanish hymn to herself idly, she was lining the breads out on the counter alongside the condiments and lunch meats when Carolyn came down to start readying breakfast and the children started to rouse from their sleep.
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Post by shades on Aug 17, 2014 6:45:47 GMT
The Palchak Clan ; ;
When Rose came into the kitchen, Levi’s steely eyes darted up with a quirked eyebrow. “What the fuck are you wearing on your face?” He asked bluntly, not even bothering to look at the other girl when he received an answer. Instead he just took another bite of his cereal, and gathered a mug of coffee when the pot had brewed. Sipping the black coffee, Levi was starting to wake up more. His eyes darted to the kitchen as Farlan finally dragged himself to a seat at 7:17; eight minutes before they were out the door.
He also noticed Jane making their lunch, and Zoey once again calling how she is allergic to lettuce (a lie, she just really dislikes lettuce and came up with the scheme to avoid having to eat it) and if she dies she’ll haunt them all.
That led Levi to once again tell her to kindly “shut the fuck up, you're too loud for the morning.” Earning him another scolding from Mrs. Palchak which he ignored, and Zoey ignored; continuing like she hadn’t heard them.
Aaron had finished up and went to brush his teeth (like Levi, he has to do it after breakfast) and grab his book bag from his shared room with Tommy. Noticing the young boy wasn’t up yet, Aaron shot him a look and stated, “you’ll be late.” Without another word and making sure had a pencil, Aaron left the room.
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Post by Maple ♥ on Aug 17, 2014 7:00:44 GMT
Rose stopped at the table, glaring at Levi and about to shoot him a just as dirty reply when she got a warning look from Carolyn that made her take a deep breath. Instead, she smiled at Levi and used her sweet voice, "My new outfit for school. Thank you."
Jane only glanced up at their quarreling briefly before going back to her work. She was half way done with the sandwiches and with eight minutes left, she was going to have to race to get the rest done. But she also had to be sure not to mess them up, or she would get even more shame from the other siblings and she did not want that happening. So she just picked up the pace a bit.
Tommy just ignored Aaron as he was slipping socks on and tying his shoes. He wasn't going to let his annoying foster siblings ruin his great day; this was his time, not theirs. He was going to make friends with the popular kids and be normal and liked with lots of friends and people to sit with at lunch. He just needed the confidence to do it, and a part of that was looking his best. As he went to the small mirror in the room, he licked his hand to smooth down some hairs sticking up on his forehead and grabbed his backpack to head down the stairs to eat quickly.
Having finished up in the bathroom, Harry groaned as he came down the stairs, laying his shoulder on Carolyn's head for a second as she was washing the dished. "Why, dear Carolyn, do you force us into the hell that is called school? I could be playing soccer instead of sitting and wasting my life away in math," he threw up his hands a little. Besides being calm, Harry was a dramatic when he did get spurts of energy. And that usually only happened around his foster mother, due to the fact that he liked her a lot more than some of the kids in her home.
Going to the fridge, Rose opened it to find something healthier inside of it, glancing down at her stomach disapprovingly. Maybe she should skip breakfast. Yeah, she was too large this morning. Skipping food would help. So she closed the fridge again and opted for some orange juice instead, sending another glare at Levi. "Nice hair," she snorted, seeing that a few of the strands had dried at different angles. If he was nicer to her, she probably would've fixed it for him because she was just that OCD about looks, but since he was being a douche to her this morning, she'd give it right back to him when Carolyn's back was turned. "It's like you took the pubes right off of a monkey."
"What're pubes?" Tommy came into the kitchen slightly out of breath, dropping his bag and beginning to pour a bowl of dry cereal for himself.
Rose instantly covered her mouth with laughter as Carolyn gasped and turned around, eyes wide. "Rosalie! Don't say that kind of thing in front of the littles."
"I'm not little!" Tommy protested, cheeks burning a bit as he realized Zoey was in the room.
"You're like a five year old in a fourteen year old's body, kid," Rose chuckled into her drink, sipping more. Carolyn gave her the 'we'll talk about this later' look before rushing over to Jane to help finish up the lunches, shoving them into the bags. The bus would be there soon.
"Sorry I'm not a bad influence like you and Levi," Tommy rolled his eyes and shoved more cereal into his mouth.
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Post by shades on Aug 17, 2014 7:23:57 GMT
The Palchak Clan ; ;
“Oi. Watch it you shi—”
“Levi.” Carolyn piped up, sending him a warning; having enough of the children’s bickering.
In the end, Levi marched upstairs to brush his teeth and comb his hair until his onyx locks framed his face gracefully. Looking in the mirror, Levi held an indifferent gaze; honestly, he was still going through many nights without sleep or even bothering to try. Sure, to therapists that come by, or to specialists they all go to; Levi seemed to be the one struggling with the others in the family, but he was also struggling with himself. It wasn’t like he opened up to anyone anyways, except for maybe his social worker who got the full story from the man he called father, and convinced Levi to just tell him, nobody knows it. Mrs. Palchak surely knows, the way she glanced at him once so often when a stranger would brush past him, Levi would stiffen up.
He should of felt mad that someone else knew, when it his life and secret to give. Yet, he was grateful to have her around. Which is probably why his ‘running away from foster home’ habit turned to late walks and just thinking.
But thinking was where Levi felt the most insecure, like any moment fate would tell him ‘fuck you’ and send off into the hellish world alone again.
Yet he held his indifferent gaze, and snapped out his thoughts at the shouts for the bus will be arriving soon.
“Tch.” He uttered, spitting his last toothpaste and wiping his mouth. Walking out of the bathroom and towards the door. Grabbing his lunch, slinging his backpack over his shoulder, and shoving on his black converse; Levi didn’t bother to look and make a head count.
He really didn’t give a flying fuck.
Zoey bounded out the door soon after, looking at Jane as she grabbed her lunch, “you didn’t put lettuce on this, did you?” She asked cynically, sniffing the bag suspiciously. At the confirmation that there was no lettuce, Zoey hugged the girl, “thanks!” Before she ran off in a sprint out the door.
Aaron and Farlan were content, putting on their shoes much more slowly and muttering “Thank you” to Jane, and hugging Carolyn goodbye. Farlan, particularly, did not want to let go until Aaron assured he would be able sit next to him on the bus.
By 7:25 AM all the kids were out the door and the bus still hadn’t arrived.
“Wow, fucking shitty ass bus can’t even come on time.” Levi muttered darkly (free from Carolyn's glare and warning of language), arms crossed as he glared at the grass as though it had offended him in some way.
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Post by Maple ♥ on Aug 17, 2014 14:29:46 GMT
"What put you in such a shitty mood?" Rose snapped at him as she walked up, side bag slung over her shoulder. Her golden hair whipped around her head, somewhat messing up the beach curls she'd curled it into and making her frown with disapproval, hands going to hold the wings down so they didn't get messed up.
"Levi's always in a bad mood," Tommy said pointedly as he came walking up beside Harry, not late due to the fact that the bus wasn't there yet. He was practically jumping off his toes with his excitement. Seeing Zoey, and slid in next to her and smiled. "Are you excited for your classes?" he asked her, brown eyes shining.
Jane quietly moved after her siblings, staying back behind the group. It'd surprised her when Zoey hugged her, but a warm feeling was coming from it in her lower abdomen. It was rare that they acknowledged her, and so it felt good that someone had. Even the thank you's from the boys was enough to make her very happy for the whole day. Maybe school wouldn't be so bad as long as she had her 'family' to come back home to.
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Post by shades on Aug 17, 2014 18:57:36 GMT
Levi Anderson ; ;
A steely cold eye twitched ever-so-slightly, Levi turning his gaze down the road. “It doesn’t fucking matter, it’s school for fucks sake.” The young man evaded the question, glancing down the road at the familiar sound of a bus. The yellow, elongated car came into view—rust growing on the metal that clanked together on the dirt road.
“Oh hell no. I’ll take my chances walking.” Levi uttered, glaring at the bus. It was filthy, dusty from the back roads, and the lack of washing. Not only that, but the vehicle looked like it could turn into rubble at any moment. Hopefully when they weren’t on it, but Levi highly doubted they would be that lucky.
The bus came to a pause in front of the group of eight foster kids, gray eyes looking up at the bus driver and down at the windows to the few interested faces looking at the new kids. Gossip like this didn’t go unnoticed by most kids and their parents, recently the Palchak family have been the talk of the town. Levi, though he loathed the idea very much, took the first step towards the other side of the road and the awaiting door.
Instinctively, Levi’s back straightened bringing him to his full height at 5’4. Pale fingers tugged at the hem of his plain black t-shirt, glazing down his black belt holding up dark blue jeans. Levi’s new converse had particles of dust on the white tip, causing a quiet “tch” to come from his mouth.
Despite his cold and calm demeanor, Levi hitched his breath and stopped before getting on the bus. Fingers grasping his backpack harder, looking up at the bus driver (a larger man who seemed to think Levi was either a murderer or the new player on the block; maybe both) who didn’t seem to be staring at Levi in the most pleasant way; causing him to go rigid for a brief moment. He ignored the indignant shouts of the others for him to get on, only snapping out of it when the man spoke.
“You getting in or going to stare at me like I killed your puppy?”
Levi took two hasty steps to get past the man, taking a breath to calm his nerves. Looking over the bus, it was empty for the most part. There would only be a few more stops until the bus was ¾ full—most kids in the town walked to school and only those in the country were on two buses which went to each side of the county.
He noticed the others students staring at him, steely gaze lingering over some of them. Girls, mostly; and a few odd looks from the guys.
Guess it was normal, though Levi never did reciprocate feelings of girls he always found them staring at him. Normally, he would act oblivious and sometimes he would tease them by getting too close and breathing his hot breath on their skin. It disgusted him how people were begging themselves upon each other, when other people didn’t have a choice. And it hurt.
Levi was, to say, short for his age. He was 5’4 but was able to be taller than some girls. He is enigmatic, mysterious, and doesn’t talk much. The personality which seems to attract women towards him, but with a shitty attitude that scared most of them away. Were most girls expecting a kid who basically was sweet tea and sugar cookies, shy, and just alone? They normally got a bitter taste of disappointment.
He wore a simple shirt today, not going for anything fancy, his dark blue zip-up sweater covers most of his arms and discolored skin. The sleeves slipped past his hands, making Levi look childish…and bored. Another finger looped around his belt, looking around for where he wished to sit. He didn’t have much choice on the matter of being near people, so Levi took the first empty seat and prayed nobody would sit next to him or engage in conversation.
Levi tugged his ebony hair so the strands were lying on his face, a few falling into his steely blue-gray eyes. Pink lips were upturned into a slight frown as the bus began to move.
Zoey Palchak ; ;
Zoey smiled at Tommy, “of course I am! I just hope that I get all advanced classes, those are always the most fun!” She exclaimed, following the small family to the bus. She ran right smack-dab into Harry’s back at the hold-up, staring oddly as Levi refused to get on.
“Shoooorty, come on!” Zoey whined, being ignored by Levi—that wasn’t unusual—but knowing something was up. As much as Levi disliked other people, he still was a part of the family. Most of them could tell when the others are distressed, usually from their own reactions to situations.
Levi, as much as he loathed to admit, was a open book with body language. Mrs. Palchak had to practically explain it the first day Levi came into the family, causing a ripple with his attitude. She looked at Tommy and whispered past him to Rose or Harry, “Is Levi okay?”
At that, though, he had already descended into the bus and was sitting down. Zoey bounded up with the crowd, looking around. Immediately Aaron and Farlan sat together, not comfortable with other people, however, they were positioned near some kids their age who were eyeing them and were ready to engage them in conversation. Zoey herself brushed a dark strand of hair behind her ear, adjusting her rectangular frames.
Zoey wasn’t attractive to most boys, she knew that. In earlier years she was made fun of and called names by others for being smart. Some even daring to call her ‘four-eyes’. The girl wasn’t shy, so her face would reflect hurt feelings each day she came back to the Palchak home. Carolyn would notice, Levi would notice and when no one was around would express a sincere interest in “shoving a spoon up their ass”, Rose and Harry would be comfort figures, as would Tommy.
It didn’t take long for the girl to finally stand up to herself, but not before coming to terms she just isn’t a girl who looked pretty on the outside. But Carolyn had told her she was “pretty on the inside, so that’s all that matters.” Being optimistic, Zoey believed her.
Today she was dressed to her personality. Bright neon green shirt, with leg-hugging jeans to match that were decorated with an eccentric girl’s boredom of neon duct tape around the legs. Her own shoes were an obnoxious orange, glowing in the morning light.
Zoey was careless with her brown hair, putting it into a ponytail with strands falling and framing her face. Brown eyes were wide and naïve, the girl always smiling as much as she could. Her slender fingers gripped her backpack, and with a fling of the fabric off her body, she claimed her seat and sat down—notably bouncing.
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Post by Maple ♥ on Aug 17, 2014 19:43:53 GMT
Rose Second one in, Rose sucked in a deep breath, scanning for possible friends throughout the bus. Whimpy kids, young girls staring at her with wide eyes, a group of 'olders' towards the back. Only have a split second to decide, Rose continued to the back of the bus to sit beside a pretty girl who's back was turned to a pretty boy behind her and a few other 'popular' looking people. Rose smiled at her as she approached, and to her surprise, the girl smiled right back.
"Hey, I'm Holland. You new?" she greeted Rose and moved over a bit more so she could sit. Rose pressed her lips together and took a seat, blue eyes looking over all the kids around them.
Rose nodded. "Yeah, my family and I just moved here. I'm Rose."
"Pretty name," the guy behind them nodded his head, slung back lazily over the bench chair and making Rose's heart flutter. She pushed some hair over her shoulder delicately. The guy smiled at her, teeth straight and black stubble lining his lips, but cut so that it was sexy. Tattoos lined up his bare arms, leading into a dark blue shirt that accented his black skinny jeans and black, fashionable boots. He read Rich Boy all over him. And trouble. "I'm Zayn." (he looks like Zayn Malik hehee) Rose felt her chest fill with nerves as she bit her lip and shook his outstretched hand over the back of the seat.
"Nice to meet you," she said slowly, like the girls did in the movies. Zayn lifted his eyebrows, only briefly impressed before his dark eyes left her and found his first target.
Jane Always in the back of the bus, and the group, Jane came on last, giving the bus driver a sorry smile as he grumbled and almost shut the door on her. She pushed a long strand of her hair behind her ear, eyes trailing up from the floor briefly to see the other kids on the bus. Their gaping gazes, having been on her foster siblings only moments before, zipped back to her as soon as she started to walk back to the back of the now moving vehicle. Out of no where, she tripped slightly as her foot caught on a bar under a seat and the bus jerked to the right. Lurching onto the floor, her sac lunch went flying under another set of seats and a loud thump of her elbow caught the stares again, looking down at her. Her already rosy cheeks burned with a red color of embarrassment, moving to get up as fast as she could. But she only had one foot up as she heard a snarky comment come off the lips of a very clever looking boy. Zayn
"Nice one, Boarder Jumper," he snorted and his small group of friends, those that filled the bus mostly due to living with the richer families in the country, laughed with him. His dark, beady eyes squinted at her maliciously as he bent down to grab Jane's lunch, which had landed at his feet, now smushed in all aspects. "You new here, perra?" The boy's happiness over the new girl's torture was raised even more as she reacted to the nickname he'd given her, lip quivering slightly as she was still looking up at him on her knees. He raised an eyebrow. "I mean, I pay buy the hour. But if you're begging..." he smiled to his friends who all burst into laughter. And Zayn enjoyed it. He'd heard about these kids, these foster ones, and he knew they were going to be fun to mess with. It was no fun to mess with kids who were already there, and he'd known his whole life. And Zayn was the type of guy who wasn't afraid to call a girl a bitch and a prostitute all in the same minute. He quite enjoyed it, actually. Jane Jane's face paled and she tried to scrambled to get her lunch back from him, off of her knees, but he yanked it away from her grip. "Do you even speak english?" he asked her. Jane was instantly embarrassed as he called out one of her major flaws. She'd never known any kind of language, actually. Talking and her didn't get along. It was very hard for her to speak in general, and the fact that this already new bully was attacking her on her biggest flaw was pushing away her good mood from earlier almost instantly. " Hola?" he tapped his head. "Brain much?" Tommy Tommy was watching everything happen, but instead of helping, he was sulking down into his chair and making sure no one saw that he was going to help her. He didn't talk to Jane much anyways, and he didn't want people to think he was close to his loser of a foster sister. She was nice, though, so he felt guilty as he watched and then quickly looked out the window to ignored everything around him, wondering if at the next stop, someone might sit with him.
Harry Harry took a seat at the front next to some kid his age, boldly, but it was because he was holding a soccer ball. The commotion behind him was so far off her didn't really hear it, asking the kid, "Do you play for the school team?" happily.
Rose "Jane," Rose said through clenched teeth, giving Jane the 'you're embarrassing me' look. When Zayn noticed the confrontation between them two, he tilted his head to Rose, still holding the ruined lunch.
"You guys friends?" he questioned.
Rose knew this was the do or die moment; either she was to say what Zayn wanted, and stick with the popular group, or go with Jane and be forever a loser at this school.
Holland was watching her along with everyone else, waiting for an answer, and Rose swallowed. "I mean..." she looked at Jane who was stuck with her arms wrapped around her as she stood, bumping with the road. The bus driver yelled from the front,
"Take your seats!"
Finally, Rose's conscious got the better of her and she blew out a sigh. "She's my sister. You don't have to be rude about it."
Zayn looked surprised for a second, furry eyebrows raising again, as he frowned and nodded his head, shoving the lunch into Rose's face and making her flinch back. "Then take the lunch for her, I guess. You all seem like serious cases," he chuckled and the tense moment in his group of friends left as they joined in with him. He winked at Rose. "So I think you should go sit somewhere else, probably. To help your, sister," he dropped the lunch over the buses seat, into Rose's lap, and making her scramble to get it before the smushed contents splashed onto her nice white jeans and red flare top she'd chosen out so precisely for weeks. Thankfully, it didn't spill, because she caught it in time.
"Zayn." Holland, voice cool and laid back. "She seems kinda cool. Let her stay."
Zayn rolled his eyes. "You're too nice Holland. Shoo shoo, off with you charity cases," he shooed Jane and Rose with his hands and Rose glared at him, spitting with anger. But before she could say anything to get her in trouble, Jane reached down and grabbed her wrist softly, brown eyes begging her to go. Biting down roughly, Rose got up and moved to find another seat in front of the populars, sliding in first, and then followed by Jane silently.
"Here," Rose pulled out her own lunch from her bag and tossed it into her foster siblings lap. "Have my lunch," she grumbled and stared out the window. She wasn't pretty enough anyways, she wouldn't eat it. Now, her whole social status was ruined because of her good conscious. Her jaw was tense as she didn't look back at Jane, rigid with anger and embarrassment.
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Post by shades on Aug 17, 2014 20:18:02 GMT
Levi Anderson ; ;
Even though he could rarely say he liked any of his siblings, calling them names and just being a jerk; there were rare bursts of a protective feeling gnawing in his gut and would sometimes rise to his lips in a retort that caused trouble. Maybe it was because in other foster homes, he didn’t have siblings, or those who did were just as much of jerks like the guy teasing Rose and Jane. Maybe they always remind him of the silhouettes haunting his past.
Levi turned around in his seat, a single earbud hanging off his ear while the other blared music from a cheap MP3 player. He sent his most fearsome glare past Rose and Jane, at Zayn. “Oi. You shitty piece of trash.” He glowered at the young man indifferently, gray eyes narrowed as he spoke. Thankfully they were near the back, the bus driver seemed more focus on the road than the kids, and he happened to be near where the event had taken place.
“Take your suggestive comments to some fucking slut and not them.” He said evenly, frowning at the young man. He wasn’t typical small town boy looking, he had sleeves of ink on his body and an ugly face to match.
“Tch.” He briefly glanced at Rose and Jane in the same seat, then towards Harry, Zoey and Tommy, and finally Aaron and Farlan. He was uncouth and rude to them all, but even Levi had that big-brotherly attitude.
Fingers swept hair from his eyes, a silent threat on his parted lips, eyes continuing to glare in the small town kids direction.
Zoey Palchak ; ;
Zoey watched the exchange slightly, looking at Tommy. She poked him, “hey, that guy looks scary.” Zoey smiled with mischief. “Maybe I should let Bean eat him.” Zoey had many animals in her room, Bean, a bearded dragon….was her precious pet which came from her original home. Other pets include Nimrod, a turtle she found; and Harry Jr. a pet tarantula she somehow bought with her own money and snuck into the house. Needless to say there have been many other pets, like random butterflies, and crickets, or frogs.
She was joking, however, even if the bearded dragon could muster the strength to actually bite Zayn, never would she dream of letting him eat the man. Her eyes darkened, however, “I don’t like him.” She stated, looking out the window.
Unbeknownst to Jane, she was a girl everyone in the house was fond of. Her quiet nature just made her the perfect replacement for Carolyn, and her patient attitude towards people like Zoey who was always showing Jane her latest invention or find to both her and Carolyn.
“Buuuut…” Zoey sang, poking Tommy in the cheek continuously. “You’ll protect me, right? You and Shorty will kick his ass~”
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Post by Maple ♥ on Aug 17, 2014 20:52:03 GMT
Rose Eyebrows raised in absolutely shock, Rose glanced at Jane next to her, surprised Levi was sticking up for them like he was. Leaning forward, her black polished nails dug into the seat in front of her. She hissed, "Levi, it's okay. Don't make it worse," she begged him, for once all malice from her tone gone and big blue eyes pleading with him instead of glaring. Inside, she felt honor a bit that he would stick up for her. Then again, she also didn't need to be in more trouble with the populars.
Jane Jane stayed silent as she watched the commotion, lowering in her seat and clutching the lunch Rose had given her. Though, deep down, Jane felt her heart warm a bit at the realization that Levi was sticking up for her.
Zayn Zayn's beady eyes slid over the seats of the bus until he found the form in which the mocking voice had come from. When he found the kid, a guy with black hair and an ear bud in, a rather amused smile spread onto his face. "Are you talking to me?" he asked, pointed at himself. When he realized the kid actually was speaking to him, he shifted forward, pushing Holland aside who rolled her eyes, and tilted his head at him. "Me? Trash?" he ran his tongue over his teeth. "You know what I think? I think that a little fella like you," he raised an eyebrow, smiling. "Should keep his mouth shut." His eyes suddenly turned dangerous. "Because you're riding on black waters already, short-shit," he said as a warning.
Rose Rose moved to intercept, getting in the vision of Levi and Zayn. "Levi, don't do anything stupid." She warned, knowing fully well that her foster brother could in fact get very violent, and she knew Carolyn and Joseph would not be happy if he got in trouble on their first day at school. She was close to his face, tilting her head, and making sure he looked at her. "Please," she asked of him.
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Post by shades on Aug 17, 2014 21:25:34 GMT
Levi Anderson ; ;
Snorting loudly, moving his face to peer around Rose; “I’ve always ridden on black waters, at least I don’t get stopped at airports for suspicious activities and baggage checks.” Levi hissed back, brows furrowed angrily now. Being called ‘short’ was always a personal insult; he can tolerate it to an amount in his family. Eye twitching once again, glancing at Rose.
He really shouldn’t be this stupid, he had a year to go in high school before he would go to college and wouldn’t be any problem to the Palchak family again. “At least I don’t go around and sleeping with anything that can suck, lick, and probably has more balls than you.” Sitting down, Levi glowered out the window. Obviously he put an end to the squabble, but he grew up on the streets at one point in his life. He knows being insulted like that and then being dropped wouldn’t be the end.
Levi felt the blasting music in his ear again watching as the country turned to paved roads and suburban neighborhoods and shops. The school was not far off, dropping off high school students first (Levi, Rose, Jane, Harry, Zoey, and Tommy) and finally the middle schoolers down the road, (Farlan and Aaron, who were content and not having any problems as of yet).
Gray eyes looked dull as the streets were mainly empty but one or two passer-bys and joggers, but as they neared the school it began to fill with students walking to school or chatting happily with the kids they grew up with. The Palchak family were just an added addition now, an anomaly, and knowing the way Zayn treated some of them; some Palchak kids might fit in, others might not.
Marco Scott ; ;
Marco glanced up as one of the two buses strolled by and soon came to a halt in front of the school—the other one not far off in the other direction. He was typical, smiling to all the kids who passed by him, waving at the ones closer to him; he was too kind for his own good, some would state as Marco would talk to anyone, shy or not. Outcast or popular.
His smile was bright, white, and upturned the freckles scattered on his cheeks and smashed them together. Brown eyes were wide and innocent, being too naïve for his own good, or possibly sheltered his whole life. There were many possibilities as to why he was the way he was. The Scott family consisted of Marco and Cindy Scott, and when they went to church the two always brought sweets and sometimes lemonade in the summer. They often invited neighbors over, or others from the small community church where most of the town would reside on Sunday mornings.
They were the definition of sweet, never judging like some of the people in town. Marco had asked why they didn’t judge as harshly as some other people who were currently gossiping about the intriguing speculation on one young man in town being ‘gay’ like it was a problem. Cindy just smiled, “judging is for the Lord, we just spread his Word and kindness.”
Though Marco would mutter and think how selfish he was, using he extroverted personality to talk to a girl he had a crush on, or to possibly try and get into a bigger group of friends. He still rubbed of as nice, a freckled saint.
Alone he would scoff, noting mentally that everyone has sinned. Him included.
The Palchak family were the recent cause of discussion in the classroom, students and families alike trying to get the details on the elusive new family of foster children. Marco wasn’t one to judge them, to anyone who would talk rudely he would step in and say, “they are foster children, you know, that means they don’t have any relatives to take care of them. Think of what could have happened in their past to affect their morality and personality today.” That shut some of them up, others scoffed and told the ‘freckled saint’ to simply,
“shut the fuck up, Polo, it’s just talk.”
Giving them a wry smile, Marco would walk away with fists clenched.
Seeing the busses unloading, brown eyes watched for new faces in the crowd, hoping to maybe get a chance to meet one of the Palchak children.
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Post by Maple ♥ on Aug 17, 2014 21:27:10 GMT
Tommy Absolutely enthralled that Zoey was talking to him, Tommy's eyebrows lifted and he smiled at her, then looked back at the situation with a cough. "I'm sure Jane was just being dramatic," he tried to defend, knowing it sounded stupid, but wanting to sound cool. |
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Post by shades on Aug 17, 2014 21:45:09 GMT
Zoey Palchak ; ;
Zoey knitted her eyebrows as she stood up once the bus came to a halt, glancing at Jane. “That girl can’t even say ‘no’ when Annie begs for a cookie, let alone stand up on stage. Dramatic my ass.” She shook her head, nudging Tommy lightly with a small smile.
“Jane doesn’t have a mean bone in her body, whereas Shorty has a strange infestation of meany-ness thriving under his skin.” Zoey joked around, lightening the mood as she sat up to peek over at the person in front of her on the seat. Tapping the girl lightly on the head.
“Hey! I’m Zoey, one of the new kids. But anyways, my name is unimportant at this time, but you better learn it…I’m kidding! Don’t look so afraid, I just wanted to ask you if the school has any honors classes. I’m a whiz, I want to do biomedical engineering or chemical engineering…I dunno something along the lies of playing with things that easily blow up or could wipe out extinction. Oh, this is Tommy, he’s my brother and over there are Aaron and Farlan, they go to middle school. And there, the two girls, see, that’s Jane and Rose. They’re pretty nice. Then Shorty McGrumpy, black hair and constant glare that makes you think if breathing is offending him, that’s Levi.” She introduced herself, smiling widely and pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose.
“O-oh is that the school?” Her interest was caught out the window to a medium-sized school with bricks.
“Y-yeah.” The girl piped up, looking at Zoey strangely. “W-we have honored classes, but sometimes we just get bumped up into higher grade-level classes too.”
Zoey brightened. “Yes!” She cheered, with a fist pump.
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