The late night bus wobbled about on the gravel driveway, like a boat in rough water on the Ohio river. Tash was seventeen, a thinker and a talented mathematics student. A guitar, given to her at the age of five, was sitting on her lap as she slept against the window.
Another item beside her were a couples of old and short pencils, and nearly filled up notebook. This wasn't unusual as the orphanage was always rather snippy with the supplies, even though they had enough to buy some new computers for themselves and the favorites. Apparently, she was too quiet.
Without warning, the bus jumped a bit into the air and a screech echoed throughout the area. She and the guitar fell forward, her slumber abruptly knocked off as she fit in between the seat in front of her and her original one. Pencils rolled onto her stomach and she softly grunted, her make-shift hat going askew along her face. Red hair became mussed up as she listened to the rest around her.
Blew a tire? Maybe this was a chance for her? Standing up, she slowly picked her stuff up and looked out the windows with the others, crowded around where the tire had clearly been blown out.
Tash licked her chewed lips before she picked up her instrument bag and zipped her guitar into it, being wary of not stretching the messy stitch down at the bottom. Tying her coat around her as best as she could, she then pretended to move, to try and get a better site of the incident. The bus driver was even off, allowing her to look left and right.
Everywhere she looked, there was the forest, those horrifying branches twisting over the bus and enough to block out the moon. Sucking in a quick breath, she slipped past the other young kids and down the steps slowly. As soon as her shoes hit the dirt, she ran right for the shadows.
"HEY! TASH CALLVEN!" The red-head ran, thanking for her too small clothes as her hat sat right on her head. The orphanage uniform consisted of a grey skirt and a white top, and those were the only thing comfy. But tonight was chilly and as she kicked up more leaves, the faster she seemed to go, wind licking at her stocking-covered legs.
After what seemed like miles, she slowed down, no longer hearing anyone chasing after her. Notebook and old pencils in her hands, she gradually relaxed as she went on, uncaring of the darkness. She was more comfortable with the forest than something in an old, rickety home. Breathing hard, she watched her breath become a cloud, the rest of her body warm from her newfound exercise. Lifting her hat, grey eyes brightened and she tread carefully, making sure of not to trip.
Despite the night, the forest was so 'alive.' Alive and full of wonder and this mysterious air that left her wide-eyed and thinking openly. Soon, she sat, keeping her knees together and her legs somewhat slanted to the side as she removed her guitar from her back and the bag.
Rubbing her hands together, she moved to play a soft chord and smiled, wondering if anyone could hear her. Probably not. Deciding to move to a clearer area, she picked up her stuff and began to walk again, taking the paths of deer as she did so until something caught her attention. More importantly, her ears. Lifting her chin, she followed the sounds of music until a clearing broke through in front of her. She could've become Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz right there.
Before her was a circus, consisting of tents, animals and many people with costumes of all shapes and sizes. There were so many colors, despite the darkness and the noises were mixing and mashing but it was so joyful that it immediately contrasted with the orphanage.
Here, at the edge of the woods, she sat down and began to draw it all, using what was left of her dwindling pencil source and papers. She sketched the crowd, the animals, the shading of the lights, the arcade games, the make-up and even the tent patterns, a happy smile spread across her face as she focused right there.
Tash had no idea what time the entire event closed all together but it didn't even sadden her to see the lights die down. Actually, she was more than excited to check everything out once the crowd was gone. She didn't like crowds anyway. Picking her stuff up again, she let an hour pass by before she raced down the hill she was on, towards the silent place. She watched and counted every last person and made sure no one was there.
Setting her items down on the grass once again, she kept her guitar as she raced about, her smile now an 'o' for wonder. Chewing on her lips, she decided to go around, unknowing of when she'd become tired. There were so many animals still there, and upon seeing horses, she was befriending them immediately, hugging their necks and simply getting comfortable.
Until a voice popped up.
"What are you doing here?" Tash gasped and pulled away from the horses who didn't even seem to blink before dashing off. "H-Hey! Wait!" She didn't even see who it was but she didn't stop there, tearing through the area at an almost breakneck speed. The red-head passed by cage after cage, pausing for a nanosecond to take a turn but met up with an unhappy lion cage. As soon as she turned, it clawed at her with a snarl, marking her side horribly.
Tash fell right to the floor on her knees, grasping her side as she tried to get up. Whoever was there, they were coming faster, making her take to a corner and cower, breathing hard from pain and her effort in hiding tears. Her shirt was torn and her skirt covered in dirt and blood. There was no way she was going back now but…what if?
Seeing the figure get close, she threw her arms over her head, one hand dyed in red from trying to cover her side. They kneeled down and long hands were immediately settling on her shoulders, in hopes of reassuring her. His touch was…was so gentle… "It's okay, it's okay. Just let me see it." A hand now gently moved her arms to the side and she noiselessly complied, giving an odd squeak at the twist she had to give.
"Yikes… Just hold still, okay? Let me find you some bandages." He looked right at her and she stared until he turned away. His face was so pale…and his smile was incredibly warm, and because of that, she was listening intently.
"Okay! Here we go! I've got some stuff for you so you should heal right up! …Kind'a. I don't ever really get hurt and all, so I heal pretty quickly. Alrighty, face me." She did so, having shed her guitar bag off and allowing him better room. Sniffling, she used her sleeves to wipe at her eyes. How embarrassing, to cry in front of a stranger.
"By the way," he began, "since we're here, what's your name?" With a nod, she moved over towards the floor a bit, writing in the dirt. The male watched with those bottomless sets of eyes and raised an imaginary eyebrow. "Tash?" She nodded but after another gauze pad and a spritz of peroxide, he pulled away with a question. "Judging by what you're wearing, you came from one of those orphanages?"
With a delicate flinch of her entire body, she glanced down with a nod. It was clear she hated it, but the male didn't seem to disagree as he pulled her into a careful hug, for better reassurance. "Don't worry. I won't take you back but how were you even able to get here without no one else?" And once again, she used her finger to draw into the dirt.
"Oh! You ran away?" Tash nodded, fixing her hat a bit, as if nervous for anyone to speak of it outloud before returning to the hug, accepting his strange warmth. But after a moment, the female decided to glance up under the brim of her hat and his own, attempting to catch a glimpse of his entire face. He seemed to notice and looked around, as if distracted by something else.
"You're brave for that but, let's see if we can get you fixed up. I can teach you whatever you need to know and let you stay here, if you want. I'm the owner of this circus." He smiled gently once again but was soon nearly knocked over as the female recoiled and then hugged him firmly.
"Whoa, hey now!" But he gave a faint laugh, causing her to share a genuine smile before accepting his hands to stand up, but right afterward, she tipped her head to the side and pointed at him for a few seconds.
"Mm? What about me?" She pointed at him again and then motioned to where she had written in the dirt for her name and as to why she was here. The tall man tapped his chin with a long finger before managing to smile, nodding slowly.
"Well, let me think," he began, picking her up bridal-style. Tash gave a raspy squeak before clinging to him, practically having a heart attack. But from the looks of it, he wasn't going to drop her at all. "What people call me around here is Splendy~, but my full name, though unusual, is Splendorman." Tash giggled and nodded once, making a motion that said that the name fit the tall man. He only smiled before he thought again.
"Now, how I got here and what made decide to make this was because my brothers live around here. I prefer the circus here, another brother prefers the woods and some of my family is also living up in the town nearby." The teenager seemed to think again before attempting to draw in the air but seemed to fail miserably. With her hands, she asked if she could borrow a piece of paper and a pencil.
"Sure~. We're already at my tent so you can get whatever~." Carefully, he set her on the bed, so as to not disturb the wound that still crawled up her side like a long centipede of pain. Looking around the open tent, it was clear the male practically lived here. There was a desk off to the side, some small lamps and even a small refrigerator that was corded up to God knows what. Or maybe it was just a place for warm food? Thinking about it made her stomach growl, causing her face to flush dramatically as the male came back, handing her the pencil and few sheets of paper.
"Hungry? Aha, nonono, it's fine. I'll get you some fruit and new clothes. Maybe even warm up some water for you to bathe in. Well, aside from your left side—" Without warning, she was flailing her arms, panicking as she motioned to her back and then pretended she was playing a guitar. Instead of answering, he only moved off to get some food, motioning to the front of the tent. When on Earth did he get her guitar when she was in his arms?
A curious gaze settled on her features before she shook her head, returning to writing on her clean sheets of paper. "By the way, Tash," he began, opening a small chest of clothing. "Do you know of any sign language? I can read some of that but I didn't know if the orphanage taught you some of that." And as Splendy looked up, she was signing right to him. 'Yes.'
"Oh! Good. I think it'd be easier than you having to write down everything. I can see you don't use it often, or maybe that's because stranger's don't always understand you." And off she went, signing away.
'My classmates never understood it, so I wrote everything down for them.' Splendor nodded but soon seemed to wrinkle his nose after a moment. "That's too bad. I bet you had a marvelous voice. Or was it from birth defects?"
'Birth,' she signed.
"Oh~, alright, I see. Well, here, try these on while I find some fruit or whatever you want. Is that alright?" She nodded, beginning to scoot from one side of the bed to the other, grabbing at the fabric. "Also, want a bath?" Tash shook her head but soon smiled at him, happy he was so caring. In reply, his own smile showed before he was walking out.
Tash gradually got up and began to dress, slipping off her shoes, stockings and then her skirt to fit some knee-length shorts on. They were comfortable and rather cute in color. Mint green was always a nice shade. Hat and coat were soon dropped and now she worried. How much would this hurt?
Nibbling her lower lip, she tried to lift her shirt but stopped, flinching badly at her recent wounds. Hugging her arms, she simply waited for the male to return, wondering how long he would be.
About only five minutes passed before she was getting bored, causing her to stand up and move over to the nearby tent entrance to pick up her guitar. Slipping it out of the bag, she played her own tune, softly plucking the strings and deciding to play by ear of what she heard on the radio yesterday night.
Splendy was on his way back but soon paused, standing there for a little while as he heard the instrument play. Oh! He knew that song, very well actually. A new pop song, he believed? After a minute longer, the male poked his head in, hat faintly up to show his non-existent eyes.
"Hey." She nearly plucked a string 'off' of her guitar as she jumped sky-high, causing him to laugh into the back of his hand. "Sorry, didn't mean to frighten you." Walking in, the male soon set down the new basket of fruit on the edge of the bed before looking to her. "Want some help with your shirt?"
Tash, who had been ready to snatch up an apple, paused for the longest moment, looking at him. Like a thermometer, her face went red as she pulled away, fiddling with her strings as she glanced away. Was she pouting?
'Maybe.' Splendor chuckled and moved to grab the shirt, unfolding it lightly to let her get a good look at it. The design was simple, probably something he made as the top was splatter-painted in vibrant colors. A white shirt would go well with the light-colored pants. He soon turned to her and watched her face go more red, causing him to chuckle and ruffle her hair.
"Hold your arms up as high as you can. I'll do my best." He long since knew this girl was a modest one and watched her raise her hands up to a decent height, aside from her left. Carefully, he took time to raise her shirt up away from her torn side and then slid it off her elbows and up her arms.
It wasn't shocking that both were somewhat blushing. The man was abnormal and way too jolly. No one really wanted to do anything with him aside throw a party a two, and it seemed like the girl was always…always so quiet and timid to do anything with anyone.
Setting the torn item to the floor gently, he helped with her shirt, once again being careful of the padding and gauze on her left side. Tash seemed to trust him, despite being halfway naked in front of him. It was interesting yet rather nervous feeling that entered her stomach before her other shirt went down over her head. Slipping her arms through the appropriate holes, she looked at herself, smiling faintly when Splendy happily clapped. "Perfect!"
Tash went red again before she moved to nibble on an apple, the guitar being set off to the side so she could do just that. He let her, deciding to take the time to relax as well. Sitting in a nearby chair, he stretched out his limbs before pulling his tophat even further over his face.
The female watched him fall asleep in seconds, causing her to raise an eyebrow as she took another, quiet bite of the apple. She suddenly felt bad. Here it was closing time, about twenty minutes ago, and she had probably worn him out much faster than before. Guilt covered her face but so did curiosity as she noticed how much he hid his own eyes.
Carefully, she inched over, steady fingers reaching over to carefully pull up the brim of his hat. A strangled squeal left her lips as he grabbed at her hand and tugged her onto his lap. "Don't you know it's rude to check something that people don't want you to see?"
For a solid second, she was prepared to be scolded, her entire body tensing up at his tired tone. Instead, she felt a hand gently move through her hair, patting her auburn locks to calm her down. Soon enough, Tash relaxed and just snuggled against him. "Am I more comfortable than the bed?" Sleepily, she nodded, and he could no longer keep that tired grin on his face. "Well then, goodnight, Tash."
Off to the side of them both, she signed a goodnight before laying against him. The male heaved a soft sigh before he faintly leaned over and blew out a candle. As he nestled into a nice nap, he realized how many sounds he could hear. Instantly, he, too, fell asleep, comfortable and rather happy.
Wait, when was he not?