Reviews :
Snake557 : Hey friend! I know, I GREATLY appreciate it! It really means the world to me. I wish more people came out of the woodwork tho :( I wish I had more people to chat with about it. Thank you, you're the best.
Burgie : Oh that's reassuring! Thank you SO much. I'm glad to hear you guys like the details and the pace, that makes me feel better.
Song Listened To :
Afterglow by All Time Low
*Chapter 54*
In the day-long excitement that Berri, Wren and Theo had gotten swept up into, due to the unveiling of their brand new tower and abode, the three spent the rest of the entire day moving in to said new home. With the occasional stop to ogle their futuristic, flawless, brand new white tower, the three nearly had no clue what to do with themselves. A proper, four storied tower, the ground floor was a common room for the three residents, a similar sharing experience that the majority of the towers, on the lot, had, with more private floors and bedrooms higher up. With Berri's, Wren's and Theo's new tower stationed just to the right of the recreational hall, they not only had the social and gorgeous view of the palace's pool, they also were slightly tucked into the flyer's enclosure for a more secretive, private aspect of it all, as well.
A gleaming white tower to match the rest of the palace's architecture, their pad had a proper front, outdoor foyer of a porch, and dead in the center of said glossy, white, covered foyer was a proper, round teleportation pad, just five or six feet from their much larger, round front door, a thick slab of white, marshmallow-birch wood. Upon entering into their abode, it eased into an exact replica of their outdoor foyer, a round and glossy entrance with dim, comfortable wall lights, though it had gorgeous matte grey tiles that stepped up into their home, something Zed and Tessa hoped Berri would secretly appreciate, having it all slightly match Turbo's loft. From the few steps up the grey-tiled foyer, and down a dozen foot, high ceilinged corridor, it opened into a lovely, spacious kitchen and living area, with high-vaulted ceilings and a far, slanted wall that was all thick glass windows. Although it was clear said slanted windows could be opened, to reveal the sweet sounds and scents of the flyer's jungle enclosure, everything was sealed due to the rain and snow storm happening outside.
With the incredible show of potential sunshine that could cast in from said all-windowed green house like slanted ceiling, upon stepping out from the foyer's smaller corridor, a long, comfortable, swooping bench hugged said entire wall of windows, with a curved and seemingly never-ending counter and kitchen island that hugged said benches, as well. With bar stools on the opposite side, it was a perfect, massive sprawl of a workspace so all three students could easily do their Academy studies together, without feeling crowded. Farther to the right hooked a lovely white kitchen, with tall floor to nearly-ceiling cabinets, a glow of cozy wall lights, and gorgeous, sparkling new amenities, the gang felt as if they had likely been spoiled a little too rotten. With personal touches of entire coziness, a place of peace and serenity, the palace's brand new tower just boasted every last ounce of relaxation, a place the three could escape and unwind after long, tiring days in their studio or at school.
Tucked to the left of said cozy living area was another short corridor that lead directly to Berri's, Wren's and Theo's original music studio; with Zed's code room skill, he managed to copy-paste the entirety of their studio and attach it to their abode, so they could easily access it whenever they wanted, without having to cross the entirety of the lot and play frogger with the teleportation pads. The music studio's interior stayed the same, though Zed and Tessa made sure to further sound proof the entirety of it, so to have a safe hub for maximum loudness, without disturbing others. Just to the right of the corridor that lead to their music studio, was a lovely, glass door that lead out into the flyer's enclosure, and more specifically, to Chester's riding stable, which Zed also diligently moved closer to the tower, for Berri's easy access. The whole lot of it was a perfect dollop of clean sophistication, a project that certainly had Tessa and Zed itching to upgrade the rest of the palace's interior, exterior and architecture alike.
In the spike of new excitement this day brought, the evening came to a drum of tender quiet. Although Berri had a few code boxes that still hung aglow and blankly hovering in her brand new bedroom, waiting to be unpacked, stuffed to the coded brim with her furniture, clothes and everything in between, she ignored her responsibilities for the time being and hung out downstairs, in their common room and kitchen. Sat with her back to the vaulted wall of glass over her head, she was dressed in a faded t-shirt, clad with cutesy Sugar Rush logos and themes. Her beautiful blue hair swirled down her pink-covered shoulders, like the tastiest of cotton candy, she wore those favorite white sweats, with the grey-blue stripes down the legs, though her sad blue eyes scanned the large work table and stretch of a kitchen island she sat at. Before her was yet another prep list for Academy, something Tessa had brought home to her. She knew she'd be starting back up at Academy next week, though somehow it didn't feel real. She knew coming home and simply doing homework and having jam sessions with Wren and Theo wasn't the only thing she wanted on her agenda, though she felt tears sting her eyes the second she imagined Turbo throwing himself headlong into his inevitable death, a game show with many losers, and only one winner; the prize ultimately being the privilege of keeping your life.
In a proper school planner, laced with her cutesy handwriting, she heaved a shaky sigh, shook her head and desperately tried to focus. She wrote down new assignment due dates, test dates and made sure her class schedule was still as it were when she left it. The sound of gentle patter, on the gorgeous, massive sprawling span of slanted glass, above her head, made for an even calmer environment, and although Wren and Theo came and went, from their bedrooms, in meandering breaks from setting up their own rooms, Berri was alone in the common room; Chester soundly snoozed in the dim front foyer, just down the corridor from Berri's position. As she rested the side of her head into her hand, with her elbow on the glossy white counter, she cocked an eyebrow and dared to gloss her eyes to her dark phone's screen. With a tender tap to the responsive screen, it lit up, only to reveal the time, the date, the weather, and absolutely nothing more. She heaved a raspy sigh through her becoming-clogged nose and shook her head, she knew full well she abandoned Turbo in a heated moment of him rightfully wanting to explain himself, she figured she should at least reach out to him an apologize, bridge the gap, and let him say what he needed to say.
After almost an hour of solitude, of fighting her own inner demons for dominance, of trying to let the gentle patter of cold rain ease her rushing thoughts, she finally shook her head, sat up a bit, tucked her knees in a blunt sag into the counter's edge, she sat bent and curled with her back smooshed cozily into the bench's clean padding. She huffed a nasally sigh, opened her phone, tabbed to hers and Turbos text conversation, and diligently began typing him a near-novel of worries. Almost half way into her spiel, the teleportation pad, safely tucked into a domed, high-arched nook in the corner of the kitchen, eagerly buzzed. Unlike any of the other teleportation pads on the palace lot, this pad was only designed to transport the three to their respective bedrooms and back to the kitchen, ultimately nowhere else. Wren and Theo both stepped off the larger pad, they gently bickered about a few ground rules, now that the three were technically roommates, just what sort of boundaries were necessary. They had been in and out of the kitchen a few times now, this was the second time they didn't acknowledge Berri's presence, simply because she was previously busy with her work.
Although Berri heard Wren and Theo softly chuckling to themselves, organizing the kitchen a little more, and even pondering about what the three should do for dinner, Berri was successful in keeping her whole speech going, inside the now quaking text box, as if sending it would probably crack her phone screen in half. She furrowed her eyebrows and, amidst Wren's and Theo's soft, calming bout of deep voices and cute banter she grew to love, she felt another strange sound hit her skin. The sound of faint whining, a whisper of whimpering, could be heard from the foyer of their front door area. Through the dim corridor, Berri peered straight into the gape of the foyer, across their common room, and was surprised to see Chester now pacing in whole agitation, at their massive, round front door. His ears were perked high, his clumsy paws gently scuffed at the base board and bottom of the thick, huge wooden door, his snout sniffled hard, curious inhales at the door's seams and hinges, and it was here did Berri sit up in tender confusion and finally speak up.
"Chessy, c'mere bud, whatsamatter?" Berri cooed in a stark difference of Wren's and Theo's drumming, gentle masculine voices; both boys froze, perked up, peered their curious attention to Berri, across the room, and finally peeled from the kitchen in a saunter of further curiosity towards the corridor that lead to the front door. Berri shook her head and gestured, "Maybe he wants to go outside?"
"Odd, cause... This whole evening he'd paw at the back door, if he wanted to go out," Theo grumbled in tenderness as he rubbed the back of his head, though just as both boys eased into the gaping entrance of the arched corridor, there was suddenly three tender, though confident knocks on their front door; everyone froze, including Chester.
Everyone softly peered nervous, curious gazes to each other, and although they were sure that certain family members, or friends, would want to come over and see their new pad, they were sure no one would be arriving this late in the evening. Before anyone could move into action, Chester suddenly barked a raspy whine, cutely crouched his upper body a little lower, and began to claw at the tiles near the lip of the front door. As if to dig himself a tunnel, his incredibly strong, sturdy cleat-like claws loudly began to clack against the durable tiles, and it was here did everyone finally jolt into action and head towards their dim foyer, which housed their gorgeous, round front door. As Wren eased down the steps, with Berri and Theo hanging back to observe, Wren struggled to get past Chester's eager stance, so to even open the front door.
"Bud, I... I gotta open the damn thing, watch out," Wren grunted with a hard chuckle as he reached for the door's glossy black handle, though Chester shoved his whole head and snout into Wren's hand and arm. Wren blurt a laugh and angled his body, so that Chester couldn't interfere, "Chester...!"
Once Wren finally had the door even so much as cracked, Chester urgently shoved past Wren, sagged his wings into the gape of the open front door and now dominated over the whole situation. Wren wobbled backwards, and although now everyone was certain Chester was doing this in a show of protection, the potential that maybe he was due to showing some sorry soul just what he was made of, everyone froze in hard surprise as Chester nearly barreled, face first, into Turbo's center. He blurt a hard chuckle, untucked his hands from his hoodie pockets, the one that Berri had successfully stolen and then forgot at Turbo's house. He held Chester's head, underneath his jaws, and shut his eyes tight in beaming delight as Chester eagerly sniffled him and lapped his turquoise tongue all over his neck, jaw and face. The feathers and fur on Chester's neck poofed in riled excitement, his tail wagged in puppy-dog delight, and as everyone watched the seconds of the endearing scene, their perspective broadened to find that Turbo was indeed, not alone, and properly tailed by his two brothers.
"Hey! Sorry I didn't write you back, we've been unpacking," Wren stated in tender sincerity, he easily stepped aside and was due to letting everyone inside.
"No, it's fine, I just... I figured I'd stop by," Turbo grunted a soft laugh as Chester so eagerly sniffled at Turbo's hands, as if to beg for another one of his infamous head and ear scratches, "I-I, uh... We brought a house warming gift."
"Hope it's not too late for us to be coming over," Throttle pressed nervously, he lofted his gaze across the snowy lot; his own abode sat about five hundred feet from Berri's, Wren's and Theo's new home.
"No, not at all," Wren encouraged as Chester finally began to show signs of letting up, though only because Turbo began to encourage Chester to step inside, like everyone was. Wren chuckled as everyone easily filed inside, the front foyer was more than large enough for the lot of them, though with Chester's bumbling paws and wings, it was beginning to feel cramped, "Sorry we don't have much going on right now, our rooms are still a chaotic mess... Really the only rooms that are 'finished' is the common room, which was easy, and... Well, the studio, which Zed only had to copy-paste everything over."
"The outside is incredible," Nox encouraged with a firm nod, his, Turbo's and Throttle's eyes visibly glowed, and added a touch of light, to the dimly lit and cozy foyer, a warmth of a glow that brought an easy feeling of further serenity to their new abode, "I can only assume the inside is even prettier."
"Yeah, my favorite is the common room, it has this whole vaulted ceiling of windows, on one side," Theo encouraged with a nod; Turbo continued to firmly pet and scratch the top of Chester's head, he was practically glued to Turbo's side in an unwavering show of puppy-dog delight, flattened ears and a cute, submissive demeanor about himself, "During the day, it's so pretty. It has a whole view of the jungle... I'm sure it'll look a lot prettier in the summer and spring, when all the leaves are, well... Happier."
"It smells good in here," Turbo complimented with a small nod, and as his eyes tenderly hooked up into Berri's eyes, from the few steps of height she had over him, he gave her a warm smile and softened as Wren volleyed him a cute retort.
"Blame Berri," Wren smiled, he lofted his grateful gaze to his second cousin and rubbed his hands together in eagerness, "She's making a batch of her secret recipe cinnamon rolls."
"Ohhh please tell me there's enough," Nox pleaded quietly with a look of smiling, boyish desperation, and as Turbo, Nox and Throttle began to take off their shoes in the lower alcove of the foyer, Berri bobbed a nod and gave Turbo a secretive, almost authoritative look of gentle, impending hurt, though she quipped the group a kind notion of girly tenderness.
"Definitely," Berri concluded, and as she finally tore her eyes from Turbo's, she began to softly wander down the corridor, to the much brighter interior of their common room and kitchen.
"So, what's the housewarming gift?" Theo prod as politely as he could; Berri lead the group down the corridor in a lazy splay of bare feet and socks, a cozy conclusion to their night, a perfect mixture of company to properly christen their lovely new tower.
"Well... I-I guess it's something out of the ordinary," Turbo pressed, and as the group softly eased into the high, vaulted ceiling of the kitchen and common room, Turbo, Nox and Throttle ogled the splay of windows, ones of which were soaked with dripping, trickling rain. With crispy white walls and cabinets, cozy splashes of greens and creams in the way of accented plants and the bench's cushions, as well as a fluffy area rug that was positioned underneath the desk-like sprawl of a swooping counter. As Turbo's feet drummed to a halt, and everyone continued on in an ease to find a seat or a place to stand and lean, Turbo inhaled a shaky breath and reached for his back pocket. Rolled vertically was a hefty bundle of paper work, one that awkwardly jut from his back pocket, though as he pulled it out and softly waved it to the side a little, he looked down to it and continued on with a soft sigh, "I... I guess I could say this particular house warming gift is for Berri, though it spans to everyone else in this room, too."
"Yeah, bud, what's this about, then?" Throttle pressed as he and Nox sat down at the barstools of the swooping counter. Berri successfully sat on the other side of them, where she was previously sitting, with all of her school stuff splayed out.
"Wait, you mean, this is like a gathering?" Wren wondered in cheeky delight as he took a seat near Berri, he leaned back against the bench's cushion, lofted both his masculine arms alongside the tops of said cushions and was successful in easing his arm behind Berri's vicinity, as they sat close, "Are we going to get a rare house-christening speech from none other than THE TURBO?"
"Yeah, all he told us was that he had something important to tell you guys, and, well... Me and Nox needed to be included, as well," Throttle shrugged as Turbo eased to the rounded end of the counter, and as Theo sat next to Nox, everyone honed their eyes to the only being now left standing, which was Turbo, at the head of the group. He nervously unrolled the thick stack of papers, peered down to the secrecy of them and heaved a shaky sigh as Throttle warmly pressed on, "I guess... Turbo and Berri got into a tiff today, and, he wanted to come and correct it, but somehow Nox and I are involved, too."
"Yeah, and now that I'm here, I'm reminded how much I hate public speaking," Turbo muttered, his deep voice was now glossed in a fragile, cute tremble. He swallowed hard and only glanced in Berri's direction, somehow hoping she'd show some shred of understanding; he was delighted to see her furrow her brow in soft concern, the look of love and understanding held true in her eyes, as if no matter what they argued about, she'd still show him care. He heaved another shaky breath and nervously began to look down at the thick stack of papers before him. He bravely started off, though it was very apparent that he was struggling, "It's... It's nothing detrimental, but... I may have accidentally revealed some sensitive information, to Berri, earlier, and... She was pretty upset about it."
Everyone softly lofted their curious gazes to Berri, which had her almost sitting up straighter in solidarity, though she nervously eyed all the men in the group around her. She heaved a hot sigh through her nose and was glad to catch eyes with Turbo, once more. The look of apologetic cuteness on his face, she wondered just where this all was going, and why.
"I haven't been honest with you, Nox and Throttle... All those times, in the beginning of this year, where you'd message me and ask me to hang out, ask if I was okay, I'd... I'd fib and say I was busy, I'd tell you I was totally fine, when I really wasn't," Turbo pressed sorrowfully, he shook his head and peered his honest gaze to his brothers, and it was here did Wren, Berri and Theo now understand that this opened interior, of Turbo's, was entirely normal, a cute show of ultimate comfort and assurance he had in the small group he was currently in, unafraid to show his true self and his true colors. It had everyone's whole attention entirely undivided and glued to Turbo's being, "I... I just want to apologize that, not only has it taken me this long to come back around and come out of my funk, but... All your effort may have seemed to fall on deaf ears, now that, well... Someone else has successfully pried me from said funk, in the matter of days."
In the second time of lofted gazes at Sugar Rush's princess, this time she felt a hard blush angrily swarm her cheeks, and instead of sitting up straighter in solidarity, she bashfully shrank, looked down to her school work, tried her hardest not to smile and fiddled the edges of her planner's neatly trimmed papers with her thumbs. Wren huffed a warm chuckle and so softly allowed his hand and arm, which was laid on the cushion behind her, to gingerly scratch her upper back in loving, brotherly knowing.
"It's because Berri's far prettier than either me or Throttle will ever dream of being," Nox blurt with a sarcastic grimace of impending tears; everyone blurt out in laughter.
"I-It's true, sorry... N-Not that that was the only reason, but, y-y'just... Well, what I mean is," Turbo now largely staggered on his words, which had Theo beaming a doughy, eager smile up in Turbo's direction, Wren simply cocked an eyebrow and froze in baited wait. Turbo rushed to carry on, the thick stack of papers ruffled with his now nervous, jerky hand movements of desperation, "Sh-she's pretty, but she's also someone I never really knew before, a-and it's... Well difficult when it's your family, cause-"
"You're only here for Berri and all of us dudes are chopped liver cause she can provide you things that we can't, we GET IT," Theo blurt as he teasingly jumped on the same bandwagon Nox was on, a fake, teasing show of grimacing, impending tears, "Just... Break our hearts more, OKAY?"
"For User's sake," Turbo huffed as he sagged his shoulders and aimlessly looked up to the high, vaulted glass above the lot of them.
"Glad I could help," Berri snipped in definitive cuteness, though her tone was still curt and distant as she now sorrowfully peered down to her school papers.
"... This past Winter, I signed up for Game Over," Turbo nervously revealed after a few moments of silence, between the group of six; everyone's face lit up in dire, terrified urgency, excluding Berri's, which remained sorrowfully glued to her school work.
"Y-You... You didn't like..." Nox gestured his fingers nervously, though in this stark realization, he eyed the thick stack of papers in Turbo's now trembling hands.
"I... I was accepted as one of the twelve contestants," Turbo staggered, and it was here did everyone's playful demeanors drop in whole horror, still excluding Berri, who now looked bitter and frustrated.
"T-Turbo, you can't, please," Nox now nervously begged, and just as he was about to quickly stand up and rush his big brother, Turbo lulled his eyes closed, shook his head, and lovingly gestured his hands for Nox to ease his worries and sit back down.
"I was... I was going to attend, I was," Turbo bobbed a nod of genuine honesty, he heaved a raspy sigh and peered down to the paperwork in his hands, clean and crisp, filled out and ready to go. He lulled his eyes closed, shook his head and gripped the papers, "I know this conversation sucks, and everything I'm about to say may hurt, but... It's my truth, it's how I felt... I never wanted to feel this way, but, it's true."
"Our effort wasn't good enough," Throttle drummed in a knowing tone, though somehow, he didn't seem offended by it; more as if he wondered if there were more they could've done.
"I mean for months we tried to come hang with you," Nox begged, though Turbo gestured his hand, once more, and shook his head.
"It's... It's not any one individuals fault. It was strictly for the fact that... I wanted attention," Turbo nervously revealed, a guilty show of sorrow plastered his face as he opened up his heart, just a little more, "I was selfish and... In signing up for Game Over, I wanted everyone to feel sad that I was leaving, potentially for good. I wanted to feel, well..."
"Wanted," Wren completed as Turbo trailed off, he shrugged and softly lofted his gaze to Nox and Throttle, "I guess... It wasn't something anyone could've provided you. At least, anyone close to you. From the people that already knew and loved you, it could potentially seem like pity."
"But... Coming from an outside source," Theo trailed in warmth, and as he softly pointed a lazy finger in Berri's direction, the room's air grew thick with knowing.
"It felt genuine, no strings attached," Turbo exhaled, he so hoped his brothers weren't offended by this, and as he nervously eased his golden gaze to his two brothers, he was delighted to see them hold their curious eyes tight to his. Turbo shook his head and narrowed his gaze in bittersweet sorrow, "There's... There's no way I would've stepped into that stadium feeling like a man, feeling proud or full of honor... I'd feel like a selfish jerk, only interested in attention I was so eagerly ready to go to such drastic lengths for, when instead, I could've just... Opened up."
Everyone fell silent and hung in baited wait, and although Turbo explaining all of this helped Berri feel a little better, she still bashfully cocked an eyebrow and held her eyes tight to the dreaded paperwork in Turbo's masculine hands. She frowned, her eyes scanned his figure, the way his familiar hoodie hugged his arms and chest in such a different way than when she wore it, which was droopy and something she basically swam in, however comfortably. She felt tears sting her eyes as they continued to gloss the batch of the papers Turbo held, and in a solid dare she had with herself, she nervously lofted her now entirely glassy, teary eyes straight into Turbo's, she was floored to find that he was already staring back at her.
"I was selfish, and stupid, and childish... And, it took Berri literally coming over, unannounced, unnamed and entirely unknown, by me, to shake me out of my rut of a mindset," Turbo warmly explained, he gave her a nervous smile, as if to somehow beg to find truce here, with her. He shook his head and carried on, "You went to Academy and heard just horrible things about me, yet you still treated me fairly. I never thought I'd ever see the day where I felt wholly accepted by anyone other than my brothers and my two bosses."
Berri inhaled a trembling breath, bobbed a nod of nervous understanding and allowed her angry walls to come down. She twiddled her fingers, longblinked a few tears to the counter underneath her, and was glad Wren kept his loving hand to her upper back in a soothing, soft rub of comfort.
"You bought me coffee, you told everyone at Sugarbucks how nice I am, and... I know my brothers could vouche for me all day long, and it'd still mean the world, but..." Turbo shook his head and lofted Nox and Throttle an apologetic, sorrowful smile, in which they equally returned the cheeky favor of understanding, "Really, the word of the whole crew of TurboTime certainly wouldn't go nearly as far as Sugar Rush's princess."
"You're able to cover a lot of ground, with that title, my love," Throttle's deep, grumbly voice eased to Berri in cute, soft knowing, something to which she finally smiled about, however small and bashful it may be; she kept her eyes down and nodded once more, "I speak for both my brothers when I say... We're grateful."
"I'm done shutting people out, and... I'm sorry, to Nox and Throttle, for keeping you two at bay all this time," Turbo shook his head and heaved a long sigh. He gestured to his papers, once more, and looked off in disappointment, at himself, "The only reason I did that was because... I hoped it'd soften the blow, when I left. So much time had passed, it was like... you guys didn't know me that well, anyways... It would be an easier cut."
"Dude, you already have successfully made one of us cry, are you hoping to have us all in tears by the end of this or something?" Nox staggered in whole, grumbling annoyance as he finally sagged his whole face into his hands, though not quickly after, he grappled the neck hole of his t-shirt and also smushed the cloth into his whole face, specifically pushed into his now closed and teary eyes.
"It was extremely selfish of me, and... I hope that I can get your guys' forgiveness," Turbo bobbed a nod, heaved a hard sigh and peered down to the thick stack of papers in his hands.
He scanned over all the detrimental words, all the warning stamps, all the lines where he signed and initialed, he finally smiled down to it, lulled his eyes closed in a silent goodbye to his old way of thinking, and began to gently dig into his pocket. In the soft sag of his thick paper work, he lofted his gaze in Berri's direction and continued to feel his heart sag, the gorgeous, glassy show of cerulean blue that her eyes pierced into his soul, a whole look of despair, he finally bobbed her a small nod, and in a warm, hefty loft of his thick stack of detrimental papers, he peaked a humble smile and, with a waft of a thud, he successfully laid the packet of papers in front of her, directly over her school work. She raised her eyebrows in prickled surprise and further flinched as he also lofted his black, worn and loved cigarette lighter on top of said papers.
"If you'd do the honors, Ms. Kalivar," Turbo's deep, sweet voice glossed over Berri's soul in knowing conclusion, he stood to correction and politely tucked his hands behind his back, his unzipped hoodie further revealed the lazy black tank he was wearing underneath, the expansion of his strong, masculine chest and the peak of his thick collar bones.
Berri, in a continuous show of girly surprise, eased her glassy eye contact straight to Turbo's, as if she could hardly believe what he was insinuating here. Without missing another second of these silly papers even so much as existing in front of her, she furrowed her eyebrows tight into her eyes, grit her teeth behind her closed-mouth, straight-lined facial expression of whole determination, and in a quick, hard spark, she grappled the thick papers in a clumsy, messy array and eagerly clicked Turbo's lighter in a gentle blaze. Although the flame was little, everyone flinched in whole surprise as she eagerly swarmed the papers, and the lighter, in an electric blaze of her dominant silver coding, and like wildfire to dead brush, the whole stack of papers immediately went up in flames; she only barely contained it in a safe, small, silver-coded bubble of preservation, simply so that the fire still had oxygen, though the smoke tidily gathered in the bubble, so to preserve their new home's lovely air and the cleanliness of their countertops.
Everyone sagged back in whole surprise as the silver coded bubble properly contained a bright, angry blaze of electricity and fire, though everyone further flinched as Berri suddenly stood up, shoved her palm to the glass above her, popped open the gape of the vaulted window and, with a grunt of whole entire irritation and dismay, and a palm wholly alive with her angry silver coding, she firmly lofted the coded ball of now smoke and ash outside of their home. Everyone froze and watched her not only get rid of Turbo's papers, but sentence it all to hell and then some. The silver coded ball of protection easily dissipated, causing the hot ashes to now carry into the Sugar Rush's cold, wet, rainy atmosphere. Through an angry, still teary and furrowed expression, she yanked the window shut in a slam, locked it, and firmly sat back down to her seat in a huff. With all the men now frozen in prickled fear of Berri's secretive, hidden angry side, Berri panted through her nose and held an ironically angry and grateful, teary glower tight to Turbo's eyes.
"What a mood," Wren blurt with a gentle laugh and a bob of a nod, as if to agree with Berri's whole entire silent spiel of detest, he lofted his kind gaze to Turbo as if to also express that he would've done the same exact thing to said papers, if he could; Nox, Throttle and Theo blurt out into laughter, both at Berri's actions and Wren's tender pluck of words.
"Now I'm REALLY not going, damn," Turbo blurt a nervous, trembling laugh; having only thought she'd simply light the stack of papers ablaze and watch it slowly burn, he was totally floored at how aggressive she was about it all.
"Y'all haven't seen Berri wholly pissed off, that was nothing," Theo muttered in grimacing nervousness, though everyone dragged their gazes to Berri, who continued to angrily glower down the untouched school work before her, she continuously lit Turbo's lighter over and over, as if in whole contemplation, like she maybe was still holding on to dregs of anger and was preparing to light other things on fire.
"Ohhhkay, why don't you give me this?" Wren chimed in a cute tone as he tenderly plucked the lighter from Berri's hand, he then grunted to slide out from the confines of the cozy, swooping bench, and as he stood next to Turbo, he rolled his eyes and eagerly lofted a gesture of his arm and hand in Turbo's direction, "Alright, c'mon, don't be a sour patch kid, give Turbo a hug, let's all say our sorries, kiss and makeup, c'mon now."
As if she maybe didn't want to, she inhale a hard breath through her nose, shook her head and still followed Wren's direction. She quickly scoot out from the confines of the benches, as well, and once she was in a stand, she held on tight to Turbo's diligent word, the words he reminded her of on the night of her birthday party; the fact that he was, indeed, a hugger. With no reserve, she grimaced into a small hiccup of a cry and filled the gap, in an eager sag into his welcoming arms, she gripped her tight embrace about his chest and upper body. He jolted at her fervor, and with an understanding chuckle, he did absolutely everything to welcome her into his warm embrace. With Turbo's strong, masculine arms draped tight about the back of her head and her upper shoulders, he smiled and shut his eyes amidst their squeeze of an embrace. He dared to sag his head and face into the side of her lovely hair, his gentle hand so softly rubbed the back of her shoulder with a further show of care.
"Alright, we let the lovebirds have their moment, let's all pile in, now, c'mon," Theo barked in a dull tone as he waved his finger in the air, he got to his feet and gestured for Nox and Throttle to join, who wasted no time in heeding his word, "We're all a team, here, group hug."
With an eager glom, Nox glued himself to Turbo's side and obnoxiously wrapped his arms about Turbo and Berri. Turbo jolted his eyes opened, peered down to Nox in his peripheral and blurt a soft laugh, though they jolted, once more, as Throttle came around the other side and did the same. It wasn't until Theo firmly latched on to the entirety of them did everyone finally start laughing, Berri's soft voice only emit a bashful few giggles of the slow of her tears, and it wasn't complete until Theo's large hand firmly swiped at Wren's shoulder, ultimately dragging him into the group hug as well. Wren rolled his eyes and succumbed to the nonsense, the massive, tight and loving group hug everyone sat in, now a quiet, laughing mess.
"Hope you know how loved you are now, dude," Nox grumbled into the back of Turbo's upper arm, in which his face was smooshed against.
"Okay, so next year, for the NEXT round of contestants, if you sign up, I swear to User," Theo muttered as he eyed Turbo, as much as he could, amidst their group hugs.
"I won't allow it," Berri stated firmly into Turbo's broad, warm chest. She closed her eyes and relished in the secrecy of their tight embrace, something they dutifully got away with due to the now glom of extra arms around them. She snuck a bashful smile into his chest, inhaled his intoxicating scent and relished in the feel of his strong arms still woven tight about her upper body. She was thrilled he caught on to their little secretive display of further snuggling, the way his arms drew tighter around her, the way she could feel his hot breath on her shoulder, the goosebumps she got due to the feeling of his mouth hovering right by her ear. Berri heaved a hot sigh of relief into Turbo's chest and squeezed him a little harder, her tears successfully being dried by his shirt. She carried on in a teasing show of authority, "As Sugar Rush's future Queen... You're forbidden from applying to Game Over, ever again."
The lot of the group hug began to coo loud and obnoxious notions about how Turbo just was thwarted, due to Berri playing her stature card, something she didn't do very often, though Turbo snuck a sneaky smile into the side of Berri's head, lulled his eyes closed and allowed the noise to drown out his soft and tender words to her, and only her.
"...Yes, your majesty," Turbo's deep voice so softly eased into her skull, shook her mainframe, had her heart in a chokehold and did everything it could to gloss an entire lifetime's worth of coy, loving insinuations into her brain, in the span of just two seconds.
Berri felt a hard shiver want to just cascade down her body, and as much as she was sure it happened, she felt numb, entirely on cloud nine. She heaved yet another sigh of relief into Turbo's chest, and in sly, secretive movement, she lulled her eyes closed, relaxed against Turbo's chest and successfully nuzzled her face into the nook of his neck, under his jaw. The feel of his stubble against her soft skin, the drape of his arms about her, she so wished she could just halt time, she prayed there was a way to just freeze everything about this moment, for she knew there likely wouldn't be another just like it. She relished in the tightness of the group hug, surrounded by everyone she loved, she was well aware there was no where else any of these gamers would rather be, than in this center of love, the game's very pinpoint of a gravitational pull, one coated in all of the love they could ever want.
