"Then maybe in one planet, I am a movie star."
"There's no maybe about it. You live in Beverly Hills and swept last year's Oscars."
"That's good."
"Yeah, but don't forget, somewhere else, your film was a flop."
"Oh?"
"It bombed. The critic's turned on you, the studio lost a fortune, and you got into booze and Valium. It was pretty ugly."
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I leant over and kissed Françoise. She pulled away, or laughed, or shook her head, or closed her eyes and kissed me back. Étienne woke, clasping his mouth in disbelief. Étienne slept. I slept while Françoise kissed Étienne.
Light-years above our bin-liner beds and the steady rush of surf, all these things happened.
The Beach – Alex Garland
One I been thinking of writing for ages. And finally did.
This is my Birthday fic, because I'm so important :)Not thatit's not my birthday till the 6th, but I'll be busy tomorrow, presents, cake and stuff, so I'm putting it up today.
It's... probably not the best one I could have put up, but I just couldn't think of any nice short drabbles. None the less, I wrote one for you all.
Anyways, enjoy it, improvements welcome etc.
MP SLASH, because I love it. Not recomended reading for the half-asleep. I can't understand it now, and I wrote it :p
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x
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"Every time we do something, or make a decision, we're made again to follow it through?"
"Correct."
"And you have been drinking…?"
"Nothing, I swear."
"Well, explain it to me again, only so I can understand."
"Silly." Pippin says, raising himself on one arm so he could look me in the face. "Say we're walking and we see a dip in the road."
"Yes,"
"And you decide you can jump it,"
"Right,"
"Well, either you can or you can't. Somewhere there's a place where you jump it, and so do I, but a falling branch hits us later. And somewhere there's a place where you can't jump it and fall over, we have to stop for a bit. By the time we reach the branch, it's already fallen and we don't get hurt. And somewhere there's a place you don't see the dip and go walking right into it. Understand me now?"
"How could I not, after that marvelous explanation." He falls onto his back, lying down next to me.
"Yes or no would have done me." He says, sounding insulted, though he's probably pretending.
"Sorry. I know what you mean."
"Good." And I can see him nod out of the corner of my eye. "So, if you think about it, there are thousands and thousands and thousands of me!"
"I don't think we need anymore of you, Pip,"
"Course we do. Think of how fun life is with just one me. With loads of me…"
"Then half the Shire would be afraid of leaving their holes, Peregrin."
"You exaggerate."
"Maybe a third then." He laughs and there is a dull thud as he hits my arm, before we settled back into silence.
So there were more of us. Was there a Shire somewhere, where we were never born? Where we were brothers? Where we were lasses? My thoughts began to wander, although nowhere they'd not been before. Was there a Shire somewhere, where I'd stopped this fussing, just told Pip about how important he is to me? Where he already loved me? Where the line between best friends and lovers never existed?
I sigh and turn to my cousin next to me.
"Pippin," He looks back and smiles.
"'Tis it?"
I kiss him. He kisses back, he pushes me away, he laughs, he runs away, he makes me happier than I've ever been, he breaks my heart.
In reality, in the world I have made for myself, I do nothing so daring and so tempting. In reality, I give a weak smile and say, "I'm tired."
He laughs, moving closer and falling asleep with his head half on my shoulder within minutes.
I look back at the stars above me, cursing myself for my cowardice. Maybe, somewhere else, I'm not so afraid, and I've done the right thing.