Reviews :
Burgie : Thank you! Yes! We had a blast. We were at the Disney parks and stayed in one of the resorts for 4 days. Gideon's Bakehouse is so. freaking. good. The cookies are to die for. The whole thing was an awesome experience, but yeah going to Gideon's definitely was incredibly special.
Song Listened To :
White Noise by Flor
Half-Life by Duncan Sheik
*Chapter 68*
Golden brown eyes that scanned Arcadia's glorious, sun-white tiles, Gideon confidently pressed directly to Turbotime's outlet. No longer making it a sneaky thing, his softened facial expressions just barely glowered down Turbotime's much older, loved outlet, and though he was excited to get back to the lighthouse with the plans to clean it up and unload more of his brain to Pebbles, he somehow felt bitterness lick at his bare heels. In the toss of his eyes to Academy, down the enormous, long stretch, he narrowed his gaze and could see all the students loitering begin to file inside in messy, happy, chattering nonsense. With one last huff of a breath, a harder glower sent in the direction of Academy sat in Arcadia's gorgeous kiss of sunlight, the outlet wall erased the station from his vision and he turned to look onward.
Through the easy morning fog of Juniper forest, Gideon spent his walk enjoying breakfast. He adjusted his tattered brown sling bag over his bigger shoulder, having opted to ditching the backpack and normal school clothes, he was dressed in comfortable, tattered grey jeans, a dark green zip up underneath a heftier fall jacket that was unbuttoned, as well as a much lighter tank top at the core of it, he did what he could to properly begin planning for the days ahead. Although Fall was upon Arcade, and everything was chilly in the mornings and evenings, it was the time of year where the dead heat of the day was solid beach weather. Eager to get some sun, happy to finally set his mind to really shaping up the lighthouse and practice his manifesting skills, he hesitated to glitch-hop the rest of the way to the lighthouse, resistance that only his breakfast was keeping at bay.
"Alright, Pebbles, I know I promised you I'd bring Novus today, but-" Gideon grunted; having finally made it to the lighthouse, set his stuff on the kitchen table downstairs and squeezed into the smaller stairwell that lead to the upper room cutely crowned and with two East and West facing balconies, as well as access to the lighthouse tower, he heaved a hard sigh of relief and smiled down to the top of Pebbles' head in apologetic cuteness, "I don't know... I needed another day alone. I'm starting to feel better about this whole... Loneliness thing. I thought I'd be absolutely miserable, but... I guess it comes in waves, who am I kidding."
Gideon scratched his chest and already began to feel hot. He stretched a little, took off his heftier coat, and though he was due to heading back downstairs to begin fully cleaning, manifesting tiling, electricity, running water and anything else he could very eagerly begin practicing, he opted out of beginning to hesitantly put his coat on the ground. Although the balcony was technically clean, it was still littered with some leaves, even some beach sand. He eyed Pebbles as a whole, a beautifully crafted statue, a huge sprawl of wings and a set of scary fangs, he long-blinked in cute assessment and leaned down a little to get a better look. Not knowing just how long this statue had been sitting here, it didn't show too much age, though she still had leaves and dirt build up in the crevices of her ears, the bridge of her flat, broad cat nose, a proper settling of dirt that gathered around her scary, talon-like cat claws and paws, he eagerly began to swat the dust and dirt off of the top of her head.
"I guess, since this is your place, I should... Probably properly ask you permission to rearrange and fix the shit out of it, huh," Gideon sighed, and though he was fixing to sit directly next to Pebbles, he lovingly lofted his heftier coat onto her back and in the drape between her wings. Although her wingspan was impressive and about eight or nine feet in full spread, she still was a much smaller statue that was now cutely dwarfed in Gideon's big, cozy coat. With a loud, heavy grunt and a groan, Gideon plopped to a cross-legged sit directly next to Pebbles and bobbed a nod, "Maybe I should offer something, too... What do gargoyles eat?"
Gideon eased a warm smile and earnestly gazed into the side of Pebbles' face. Knowing, full well, he likely looked like an entire lunatic, talking to a stone statue, he was relieved he could ease everything off of his chest without any form of return conversation or judgement. Although this was something he could expect from Novus, alongside of the ability to properly talk back, Pebbles was the closest thing to a stranger that he felt confident wouldn't up and change her mind about being his friend. He knew this was sad, resorting to befriending stone, he promised himself that he'd fix up the entire lighthouse and keep Pebbles' in her proper spot, her post of protecting this structure. Knowing it was potentially silly to honor said gargoyle, due to her being inanimate and without feelings, he still looked about the clear sky, above, and wondered if maybe bypassing gaining permission, and kindly gifting Pebble's an offering, could be something that came back to bite him. Not wanting to risk it, he perked up a bit and knew he'd much rather look stupid to no one but himself than to test the universe and its many leads of karma and luck, both good and bad.
"My intention here is to, well... Make a safe space for myself, and... I guess that obviously includes you, you protect this place," Gideon started, he raised his eyebrows in sweet, delicate delight and as the thoughts and ideas came rushing him, he gently reached up and gripped the lighthouse necklace he was gifted. Being fully aware that this was just where he needed to be, the tiny beacon of being pointed home he needed, he smiled in warm departure and took off his necklace with ease. In a cute drape, he easily sagged it over Pebbles' head and let it dangle from her neck. Because she was crouched, the lighthouse swung like a pendulum for a minute before settling, "My intention is to fix the floors, make everything in the kitchen work, change the walls, and... Make a solid spot for myself to rest and be. As well as Novus, of course... I feel safe giving you my lighthouse necklace because, well, I'll be adding proper door locks and security, as well. I really hope this is alright with you."
Gideon gently tugged his aimless gaze from Juniper forest straight to Pebbles' face. Upon sitting closer to her, he took note that her mouth harbored entirely sharp teeth, a broad, flat tongue with hundreds of carved, comb-like spines, just like an actual cat. Gideon got lost in all the incredible detail of this sculpted statue and finally dragged his eyes down to his beautiful little lighthouse charm, protected about Pebbles' neck. He heaved a long sigh through his nose, cued his purple coding and manifested a crisp, green apple.
"I had a green apple on my first walk here, I figured it was fitting, because my surroundings were also green," Gideon explained as he gently set the apple in front of Pebbles' hand-like paws on the ground, he returned to his slouched position and smiled sheepishly, "That, and getting rid of the core wasn't littering... Surely the birds got to it, but... Hope this suffices."
Gideon breathed a long, satisfied sigh and sat with Pebbles, side by side. The ledge they were both sat on was fairly large, though Gideon did find it strange that who ever had sculpted this beautiful statue didn't think to put her tight on the railing, so to properly look out over the land. Assuming it was a design flaw, the lighthouse charm, about Pebbles' neck, glistened and caught his eye as it gently swung in the wind. Although he wanted to get lost in his feelings, he wanted to unload and really claim this bubble for himself, he lulled his eyes closed and gently pat Pebbles' shoulder with a thud of the cold stone.
"Alright, friend, I'm gunna get to work, now. Don't get too excited," Gideon mumbled cutely as he grunted to a stand, dusted off a bit more dirt off of the top of Pebbles' head and finally made his way downstairs.
For the next few hours, Gideon did absolutely everything he could to begin manifesting the little abode he wanted. Starting small with furniture and really working his way up to bigger appliances, like a fridge, he successfully cleaned up the whole entire downstairs of said establishment. A fresh coat of sunny yellow paint on each wall, alongside white on the French doors that lead out to the old, rotting wooden deck, he was successful in laying out huge, gorgeous slabs of glossy white concrete tiles among the whole of the place and outfitting the kitchen with a proper island. Happy to really flex his skill, to code structures strictly from his memory of what these items looked and operated like, he was quick to fix electrical and plumping wires along the way. After hours of laying ground work, he also discovered the main front door of said establishment. Directly underneath the balcony that Pebbles' was on, one floor above him, he outfit the whole place with a security system, a heftier front door and a triple bolted lock that only he had the key to, now. Although not nearly done, he stood in the gape of his new doorway, which was directly across the span of tile from the double, glass french doors he was previously going through hell to get through, he eased a wide, satisfied smile and bobbed a nod.
"Damn, I just MIGHT move away from home," Gideon mumbled to himself; although happy to go back to the sanctity of Sugar Rush, he was floored to have this secret escape now all to himself, a proper home only he knew about all while keeping up the illusion that he was still attending Academy.
In the rearranging and manifesting he had been doing for hours, all while letting in Turbotime's lovely flood of sunlight and ocean breeze all day, blasting his own music in his earbuds, Gideon was careful to keep the handful of items left behind, the charm that made this lighthouse just what it was. Although he now had manifested a working fridge, stove, oven, microwave and everything else he figured he could quite possibly need in his new little bachelor pad, he kept a few of the utensils and other knickknacks left behind. Cutely collected on the fresh, light cherry wood counter tops of his kitchen island, he eyed it in curiosity and felt mentally exhausted. Knowing that it was nearing time to meet up with Lash, he glossed his eyes about his new, sunny, airy, clean home and figured it all could be saved for tomorrow. Bookmarking the idea for a cozy living area, a proper dining table for one, or two if he ever felt brave enough to invite Lash and or Mara over, and in the swing of further contemplation, his eyes tossed to the decrepit deck just beyond the brand new French doors, hung agape and letting in the immediate ocean breeze.
Happy to have all these new aspirations and the settling of really cultivating a broad space for himself, he pressed to the narrow, still-worn little staircase and eyed the wall to the left of the shut front door. A perfect, huge wall to paint on, Gideon's mind ran wild. Now excited to really get his hands dirty for tomorrow and to truly bring this place to life with touches of his own character, he pushed into the second story area, which was untouched by his manifestation powers, and glossed his eyes in Pebbles' direction. His pupils tightened with the kiss of sunlight that was now beaming in from the West, at a high angle, signaling to him that it was about time to head to Vidrix city, to meet up with Lash and Mara. He came back to Pebbles' figure, eased a long, hard sigh and grunted to a sit right next to her, once more. In a lazy graze of his eyes, his coat still sat draped over Pebbles' shoulders, his necklace dangled still about her throat, the untouched green apple remained poised between her paws, he lulled his eyes closed and finally sat for the first time in hours.
"I'm back," Gideon huffed with a chuckle, "The whole downstairs looks really different, so if you go down there and are confused, I'm really sorry."
Gideon cutely laughed with himself and smiled out to Juniper forest, he shook his head and continued on.
"And, the fridge is fully stocked, so if you get hungry, y'know... Just save the lemon Oreos for me, they're in the freezer. You don't have to tell me twice about being a freak, I like my Oreos frozen and I can't really explain why."
The wind rustled, which kicked up any dead leaves on the balcony, his hair, the charm about Pebbles' neck, he lulled his eyes closed with a shaky sigh and as he loosely bent his knees up to his chest and rested his elbows and lower arms on said knees, he picked up a dead leaf and aimlessly twiddled the stem in between his fingers; it quickly twirled with said fiddling.
"And, I don't know who's bone-throwing... Altar thing was on the old table that used to be there, but I saved it because I thought it looked cool," Gideon mumbled shyly, "Would suck if I rustled up a curse by moving it, though... Figured getting rid of it wasn't wise, but if this place is suddenly infested with ghosts tonight, I'm really sorry."
Well aware he was sagging deeper into his feelings, his sorrowful eyes peered beyond the forest with a sting of a crackle of his voice.
"There's, uh... Also air and heating I've added to the place, the thermostat is unlocked, so if you get cold tonight, you, uh... Can turn the heat on," Gideon's voice dragged in a further slump of sorrow. Desperate to really truly show just how great of a friend he was, just how rich and abundant his love was, he furrowed his eyebrows in a pang of grief and fully allowed himself to bare all emotions, upon knowing he was truly alone with Pebbles' frozen figure. Tears began to well in his eyes, "I don't have any friends, besides like... Lash and Novus, so, guess we don't have to worry about a ton of company."
Gideon's eyesight began to warble in and out of the blurry kisses of light that reflected from the tears in his eyes. He could feel his nose and sinuses sharply sting with the onset of the production of more, hot tears, and with ease, he blinked tears down his face and breathed a shaky, loud huff of a sigh out before him. Desperate for camaraderie, a soul he could be entirely vulnerable to, his frown broadened as he gently leaned a bit harder into Pebbles' bubble and thumped his skull against her cold, stoney shoulder. He softly huffed a trembly little breath of an exhale onto her shoulder and upper arm, and as he lulled his eyes closed, more tears spilled down his face and onto the white stone of her shoulder. Upon the hit of water upon said dry stone, it streaked in glossy greys down her arm. He grimaced a small choke of a cry and tried his best not to come unglued with the very thought of being so incredibly close, yet so unimaginably far from genuinely having a shoulder to cry on.
"Do you ever have a hard time opening up to people?" Gideon's deep voice whimpered in a stagger of full unload, all by his lonesome. His glassy eyes aimlessly peered to the dead leaf that was still in his hand, "Why do the people in my life have a greater impact on me than I do for them?"
In his lean, Gideon lulled his eyes closed in a sag of defeat and eased his skull a bit heavier to Pebbles' sturdy, stone shoulder, and as more tears poured down his face and onto her arm, he coughed a bit louder of a cry and tightened his grimace.
"Why did I reject Callum's invitation? I-It was one of the first times I was ever genuinely included in something and I denied it because I thought I was doing myself a favor," Gideon huffed in teary, trembling whimpering. His deep voice crackled as he messily swiped his face and got rid of old tears, only to very quickly be replaced with more, "No one has ever done me any favors, the second I do MYSELF a favor, I feel like a self-centered asshole. I really thought I was doing something, sticking up for myself, but... Now that I look back, all I want to do is go back and be included in on Callum's invitation."
Gideon sagged with his eyes closed and allowed himself to feel the depth of his sorrow. True, genuine, painful loneliness, he was so glad he at least had the outlined structure of a shoulder to lean on. In his defeated sag, he gingerly wormed his arm about Pebbles' skinnier, extended upper arm in a loose link of desperate camaraderie. Although it wasn't exactly what he wanted or needed, on top of feeling truly desperate for the warm sensation of skin against his, he knew this was absolutely better than nothing. Knowing the option to be this incredibly vulnerable to Lash was out of the question, for the time being, he was grateful to have an outlet here with Pebbles', secretly tucked away in the protected little lighthouse he had been so desperately trying to get to. Knowing now that the reason being was to start fresh with himself, to really dig his heels in and fix his own problems from the inside out, he figured he had had a good enough cry and it was now time to stiffen his upper lip and really just allow this loneliness to shape him.
"Thanks, Pebbles," Gideon's voice crackled, he slowly pulled away from Pebbles' shoulder and began to unravel his coat from her little shoulders. He eventually pulled himself to a stand, gathered his bag, shoved his coat inside and stood to peer out to the forest, "I'll be back tomorrow... I'll bring Novus. Thanks for looking over this place, I don't know why it was previously so important to me, but... I'm happy to finally be here."
Although he had a small journey to the city, via train, he was nervous to show up to Lash's shop with red eyes. Eager to get a hit of fresh air, upon his walk to the train station, he knew all of these growing pains were for his benefit, all of this sorrow and loneliness wouldn't be forever. Knowing it was always darkest before the dawn, he was eager to continue clawing through the darkness, to truly find it's end lest it all swallow him whole into a vanta-black void of eternal numbness. With one last glance back to his precious lighthouse, from the peak between the trees in Juniper Forest, where he had begun vanishing into, he smiled and was able to catch a glimpse of Pebbles' perched figure, diligently cloaking his homey lighthouse in a protective gloss of care. Eager to get back and begin welcoming Novus into their new hangout, he switched his mindset to hanging out with Lash, a guy friend he was happy to have, a soul that made the lonely first half of his days easier to bear.
