Meredith avoided lunch again that day by getting her food and going back to the spot on the lawn from the day prior. It wasn't that she was antisocial she just wasn't into people, being alone was what she was use to and she saw no reason to shy away from what works.
"How come you're not eating with us?" Meredith shook her head with a smile at the voice behind her
"I didn't want to impose on your friends, besides I'm not a people person, if you haven't noticed." She replied shivering a little. One would think that after the day before she'd be bright enough to wear a jacket
"Nah come on, we're very excepting people, we can even make ya an honorary Duck. Lemme see you flap your wings."
"It's okay Fulton really, go inside, eat with your team." By now her teeth were chattering
"Here, I think you need this more then I do." A light blue jacket with a red stripe on the sleeves and white stars on it, came down over her shoulders as Fulton lowered himself to the ground next to her
"Thanks. You seriously should go back in though, your friends are going to miss you."
"Are you gonna come with?"
"No."
"Then I'm staying out here. So what are ya gonna do when winter comes and it starts to snow out here?"
"Make an igloo." Meredith giggled under her breath
"Did you just make a joke?"
"Nope."
"Yes you did. Hurry alert the media Meredith Rice as a sense of humor."
"Why are you out here?" She rolled her eyes at him
"Well I have no plans for letting you sit out here by yourself, so there's only one solution. I gonna sit with you."
"And the Ducks?"
"They'll live, I see them everyday at breakfast and practice anyway. And contrary to what people say we do associate without of our species."
Meredith knit her eye brows at him skeptically
"Uh huh."
"That was a joke."
"I figures, it just wasn't funny though."
"You know Merry, you're one cool chick."
"Merry?"
"Yeah Merry, cuz you're such a perky person."
"Right… So what do I get to call you?"
"Mr. Bash, The Bash Man. I dunno, Fult?" He suggested
"How about Reed?"
"That works, I don't think anyone around here even remembers I have a last name. My jersey even says Fulton on the back."
"I know, I've seen pictures. Are you planning on changing you name to Fulton Fulton?" Merry tease pulling a scrunchi around her mane of messy brown hair
"At least I got I got a first name, Portman, Averman, Goldberg and Banks only have last names. Banks has it the worst though cuz they don't even call him Banks anymore it's Banksie now. The other day my mom asked me how Adam's wrist was doing and I didn't know who she was talking about."
"That sucks."
"Yeah. Hey what English class are you in?"
"Ms. Willow, why?" The girl took a bite of the apple she had with her lunch
"I'm transferring into there today. For some reason they put me in A level with Mr. Underwood, so I went down to the guidance office after breakfast and had my schedule changed. Now we can do our homework together."
"Fun, fun."
"So where do you live? I'm coming over." He bumped her shoulder lightly
"You're serious?"
"Yeah. I'll be there after hockey practice. Hey you wanna come to practice, then we can go home together."
"Can't, I gotta work a few hours tonight. Come by Mickey's after hockey."
"Cool. Um you gonna eat those?" Fulton nodded to the small bag of pretzels sitting by Merry's side.
"No go ahead."
Fulton sat on the bench staring at he clock on the scoreboard, Orion was in complete drill sergeant mode and there didn't seem to be an end to his madness. Practice started at 5:00 and here it was 7:30 and he was still barking orders. No one had a clue what had crawled up his ass and died but they all knew better then to ask. The young enforcer hoped he could get out in time to meet up with Meredith but it didn't look like that was going to happen.
Merry wiped down her last table and walked over to count her tips.
"Not bad $26.00 tonight." She said to herself and looked at her watch. Her shift ended twenty minutes ago and the last bus to her street came in fifteen minutes. If Fulton didn't get there soon, she'd miss it and they'd have to walk. Walking home in the dark scared the crap out of her, but with someone like Fulton with her she'd be less frightened.
After a half hour she came to the conclusion he wasn't coming, making her a not happy camper. She wasn't sure if she was more mad at Fulton for ditching her or herself for waiting and believing he'd show.
"First person in the world that seems to be worth being friends with and what does he do? He ditches you on the first time you're suppose to hang out. You must be stupid to have fell for that." She muttered to herself pulling her coat tighter around herself. It was freezing out and a the walk from Mickey's to her house was going to take a good half hour. She should've just left at her normal time and taken the bus.
Fulton raced full tilt across the parking lot of the diner to the door and pulled with all his might. It was locked damn it. There was no sight of Meredith either. He had no idea how he was going to get around that, he'd convinced her to trust him at least to some small degree and she probably thought he stood her up. That was not the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
"How come you're not eating with us?" Meredith shook her head with a smile at the voice behind her
"I didn't want to impose on your friends, besides I'm not a people person, if you haven't noticed." She replied shivering a little. One would think that after the day before she'd be bright enough to wear a jacket
"Nah come on, we're very excepting people, we can even make ya an honorary Duck. Lemme see you flap your wings."
"It's okay Fulton really, go inside, eat with your team." By now her teeth were chattering
"Here, I think you need this more then I do." A light blue jacket with a red stripe on the sleeves and white stars on it, came down over her shoulders as Fulton lowered himself to the ground next to her
"Thanks. You seriously should go back in though, your friends are going to miss you."
"Are you gonna come with?"
"No."
"Then I'm staying out here. So what are ya gonna do when winter comes and it starts to snow out here?"
"Make an igloo." Meredith giggled under her breath
"Did you just make a joke?"
"Nope."
"Yes you did. Hurry alert the media Meredith Rice as a sense of humor."
"Why are you out here?" She rolled her eyes at him
"Well I have no plans for letting you sit out here by yourself, so there's only one solution. I gonna sit with you."
"And the Ducks?"
"They'll live, I see them everyday at breakfast and practice anyway. And contrary to what people say we do associate without of our species."
Meredith knit her eye brows at him skeptically
"Uh huh."
"That was a joke."
"I figures, it just wasn't funny though."
"You know Merry, you're one cool chick."
"Merry?"
"Yeah Merry, cuz you're such a perky person."
"Right… So what do I get to call you?"
"Mr. Bash, The Bash Man. I dunno, Fult?" He suggested
"How about Reed?"
"That works, I don't think anyone around here even remembers I have a last name. My jersey even says Fulton on the back."
"I know, I've seen pictures. Are you planning on changing you name to Fulton Fulton?" Merry tease pulling a scrunchi around her mane of messy brown hair
"At least I got I got a first name, Portman, Averman, Goldberg and Banks only have last names. Banks has it the worst though cuz they don't even call him Banks anymore it's Banksie now. The other day my mom asked me how Adam's wrist was doing and I didn't know who she was talking about."
"That sucks."
"Yeah. Hey what English class are you in?"
"Ms. Willow, why?" The girl took a bite of the apple she had with her lunch
"I'm transferring into there today. For some reason they put me in A level with Mr. Underwood, so I went down to the guidance office after breakfast and had my schedule changed. Now we can do our homework together."
"Fun, fun."
"So where do you live? I'm coming over." He bumped her shoulder lightly
"You're serious?"
"Yeah. I'll be there after hockey practice. Hey you wanna come to practice, then we can go home together."
"Can't, I gotta work a few hours tonight. Come by Mickey's after hockey."
"Cool. Um you gonna eat those?" Fulton nodded to the small bag of pretzels sitting by Merry's side.
"No go ahead."
Fulton sat on the bench staring at he clock on the scoreboard, Orion was in complete drill sergeant mode and there didn't seem to be an end to his madness. Practice started at 5:00 and here it was 7:30 and he was still barking orders. No one had a clue what had crawled up his ass and died but they all knew better then to ask. The young enforcer hoped he could get out in time to meet up with Meredith but it didn't look like that was going to happen.
Merry wiped down her last table and walked over to count her tips.
"Not bad $26.00 tonight." She said to herself and looked at her watch. Her shift ended twenty minutes ago and the last bus to her street came in fifteen minutes. If Fulton didn't get there soon, she'd miss it and they'd have to walk. Walking home in the dark scared the crap out of her, but with someone like Fulton with her she'd be less frightened.
After a half hour she came to the conclusion he wasn't coming, making her a not happy camper. She wasn't sure if she was more mad at Fulton for ditching her or herself for waiting and believing he'd show.
"First person in the world that seems to be worth being friends with and what does he do? He ditches you on the first time you're suppose to hang out. You must be stupid to have fell for that." She muttered to herself pulling her coat tighter around herself. It was freezing out and a the walk from Mickey's to her house was going to take a good half hour. She should've just left at her normal time and taken the bus.
Fulton raced full tilt across the parking lot of the diner to the door and pulled with all his might. It was locked damn it. There was no sight of Meredith either. He had no idea how he was going to get around that, he'd convinced her to trust him at least to some small degree and she probably thought he stood her up. That was not the beginning of a beautiful friendship.