Two Can Keep a Secret (position filled)

[Junki]

A strange feeling wakes you up from a deep sleep. Sitting up, you look at the clock next to your bed only to discover that your alarm was about to go off anyway.  So you flick the switch and climb out of bed, that strange feeling nagging at you. You get the oddest feeling as if someone is coming, but you shake it away, writing it off as a weird dream that you don't quite remember the details of, convincing yourself that it's nothing.  As you examine yourself in the mirror the reality of a bad dream seems more and more convincing, your eyes dark underneath as if you hadn't slept well, the ghosts of your past reflecting in your eyes - dull enough that you don't notice but bright enough that the memories still burn.

You move silently into your kitchen, certain that a cup of coffee will be the pick me up you need.  But as you push the brew button, you hear a faint knock at the door. That strange feeling quickly turns into a knot in the pit of your stomach, gnawing at your insides as you move to the door. Without thinking you open the door, not peeking through the peep hole, only to see a small, older woman. She smiles at you and for some reason that dreadful feeling dissolves - she seems so familiar. Like a woman you'd seen at the store, a friendly neighbor, a grandmother that loved her grandchildren. "Good Morning, I'm sorry to show up so early. May I come in?"  Despite her soft features, her voice is firm but musical and you step aside not bothering to question her, to ask if you know her or why she was at your home. You let her in and she walks straight to the couch and sitting down as if she'd been in your home a hundred times before.

"Do I know you?" You manage to ask, trying to sound sweet and respectful, feeling as if your question might impose on her rather than the other way around. Shutting the door, you make your way to the couch and sit across from her.

"Oh how rude of me. I am Rosalie Sinclair. I should have introduced myself. Now, to answer your question, no we have never met, but I have an offer for you." You nod, neither astounded that you hadn't met her nor thrown off - the entire situation felt magical...yet normal. As if this was no different than waking up in the morning.

"It's strange isn't it - the idea of knowing someone and forgetting. Not quite recalling a face but sensing a distant memory of some sort. I suppose it's the way that our lives twist and change, pulling us away from each other's memories. Time can patch over all things I suppose, including the memories of those we love." You watch as she looks distantly out the window as if held by her own memory. Slowly she comes back, her eyes focusing on you. "Forgive me - the rambles of an old woman." her chuckle is like wind chimes and you can't help but smile.

"I suppose you're wondering what I'm doing here," she states.  It's not a question, it's as if she's reading your thoughts; so rather than a response you just nod and give a smile back or at least a half smile not entirely certain of the proper protocol. You watch as she reaches into her bag, one you hadn't even noticed was there before, and pull out a thin pale office file with your name neatly printed on it. Opening it, she places it on the coffee table in between you and turning it so that the top page is clear to you. You look and see a house, more specifically a large mansion, bigger than any home you'd ever seen and yet it still looked friendly and homey. You eye it, flipping through the images in the folder and noticing a pool, luxurious rooms, and beautiful balconies. "Do you like my home?" How could you not. Beautiful gardens in the front, access to the beach in the back. It was gorgeous. You nod, looking back at the woman.

As you stare, waiting for her to tell you what is going on, you really notice her for the first time. The longer you look, the more you notice about her. A new wrinkle, a small freckle, a small worry line on the outer corner of her eye. Yet despite all of this, she still looks young and vibrant. "I have acquired much in my life time but I've rarely given back. So I've made the choice to offer my home to four strangers and to those who accept two hundred and fifty thousand dollars."

This shocks you and your eyes widen, the thought of anyone offering up a mansion and large sums of money is foreign to you other than within the safe confines of reality TV and game shows.  The words in your throat finally manage to escape, "But...why?" you ask, the phrase 'it's too good to be true' echoing in your head.

And you hear it again, that musical laugh that both soothes and intrigues you. As you look in to her eyes, waiting for a response, you see something. It is not the soul of an older woman or even her ghost, but your past. Every memory you'd buried, every trial you'd endured, it is all right there but somehow less painful when looking at it in her eyes rather than your own reflection. "I have done little good for the world. I have lived well and others have not been so fortunate. This is the best reason I can give you, though there are many. Sadly I must ask that you trust me." For a second, you are unsure but it falters as you stare intently into her eyes. You trust her. You'd trust her with your life. "All the information is on the card in the back of the folder. I hope that you will join me."

You watch as she gets up, her posture perfect, her grey hair perfectly imperfect, and she makes her way to your door. With her hand on the door knob, she looks back at you smiling that smile that somehow makes you feel safe. "We've all spent time running from our past, maybe there can be rest for the wicked." Momentarily you wonder if she knows - about you, about your past - but you know that if she did, she wouldn't be looking at you so tenderly, wouldn't be inviting you into her home.  So you smile back and in that moment you realize - you have to accept her offer, not only for the kind-hearted older woman, but for you.

[Junki]

Characters

❝  Natalie  Ann  Morris  ❞
(( the VICTIM ))

STUBBORN ⋮ SELF-RELIANT ⋮ HONEST  ║▌║││║▌│║║
nat ║ twenty-seven ║ female ║ brown ║ Junki
Born to an abusive and alcoholic father and a silent, headstrong mother, the Victim was always just that...the victim.  From very early in her life, she was the target of her father's abuses.  As she got older, he tried to break the spirit that she tried so hard to maintain.  Her body often ached and pleaded with her to stop - stop the back-talk, the pushing, and the demanding. But she didn't.  Her spirit stayed strong.

When she was sixteen, she walked in to find her father brutally abusing her mother.  She tried pulling him off her only to have him turn his rage against his daughter, something horrifying in his eyes.  Their fight somehow ended up outside, her cries for help going ignored.  Until he a good Samaritan came along and somehow stopped her father and got her to the hospital.

She applied for emancipation immediately after that and, when it was granted, she moved.  Her parents wound up in prison and life was good for a couple of years.  She fell in love that same year - so deep in love with a boy that promised her the world and swore they would get married after graduation.  But nothing was ever that easy for the Victim and her love was taken from her when he tried saving her life from a school shooter.

After graduating high school, she decided that she was done needing to be saved, done being the victim.  She joined the Marines - something that she hoped would bring her prosperity and peace.  A year into her service, her commanding officer (THE FIRST SERGEANT) molested her.  The man was higher-ranked and better known, it was a mistake to try to go up against him.  She tried to bring charges against him for what he had done to her, attempted to fight for herself, only to be dishonorably discharged.   But at least she has plenty of meds she can take to help her "deal with things."

{ Shh! I POP PILLS TO ESCAPE MY PAST }



❝  MICHAEL  JAMES  CARTER  ❞
(( the FIRST-SERGEANT ))

STRONG ⋮ ARROGANT ⋮ FOCUSED  ║▌║││║▌│║║
mike, sir ║ 29 ║ male ║ black ║ RP Dan
With devoutly Catholic parents that expected he and his adopted sister to be perfect, verbal abuse was just a normal part of life.  He tried to be perfect but it wasn't easily accomplished - he acted perfect around his parents, but at night he took his anger and hatred out through street fighting.  He became one of the best, both powerful and strong, and easily took out his opponents.  He loved fighting and kept it up, often coming home with bruises and marks that he would attribute to football games.  At seventeen, he killed his first man in the ring.

One night, he knocked on the bathroom door to hear his sister crying, so he busted in and saw a little white stick on the counter that read "Pregnant" on the screen.  He bolted, told his parents, and watched as they dragged her to the abortion clinic the next day.  He saw the life fade from her eyes in a different way that day.  The First Sergeant still can't say if he told his parents because he wanted to be the favorite for some other trivial reason.

A year later, he decided to join up with the Marines.  His ambitious and cunning mind allowed him to move up quickly - within three years, he was First Sergeant.  Which was about the time she (THE VICTIM) enlisted.  She was beautiful and tempting, but a man like him didn't get anything the easy way.  He had to take it.  So he did.  She tried bringing charges against him but he had better standing and they dishonorably discharged her.  He laughed.

{ Shh! I HAVE A GOD-COMPLEX AND ANGER ISSUES }

[Junki]

So basically, these two are pulled together unknowingly to work through the pain of the past.

Will the victim attempt to make sergeant's life a living hell? Or will she find it in her heart to forgive him?

And as for the sergeant, will he pick up where he left off- toy with her some more? Or will he finally feel remorse and seek redemption?

------

Willing to discuss further in private messages or on discord. ID: Junki#3860

Thank you to all who took the time to read through all of this. And hopefully I'll find someone to write this out with.
Thank you & good night!