Hold My Cards Close • •

[chuck rushton snow]

Eat, sleep, work, repeat. Chuck felt like it was a monotonous cycle of his life as of late. He was keeping his head down and just getting on with everything that came his way. He knew that the chances of the past catching up to him were pretty damn slim, but with the anniversary of his own disappearance coming up in a month’s time, he wanted to keep away from the spotlight even more than usual. It would be fourteen years since he had ran away from San Antonio and the horrors that had been his life there. His escape was the best thing that had ever happened to him, and Chuck was never planning on returning to Texas if he had any say in the matter. He’d happily spend his days in New York, cooking steaks for the diners in WD-50 and fading into the crowds here.

He didn’t have dreams of becoming some top name chef, even though he was a great man in the kitchen. He was happy to be left alone and just to be able to get on with everything without worrying about someone recognising him, or thinking he looking a little like that kid they had once gone to school with. There were too many risks with becoming a household name and Chuck wanted to keep his life simple, grow old with the minimum amount of stress in his life. It might have seemed like a great deal to ask for, but he didn’t want much in terms of life goals. He was happy just to keep his life how it was right now. His childhood had left deep scars and he wasn’t willing to let anyone in to help heal them or even glance at them. Chuck figured being alone and working with what he was good at was probably the best way to stay.

He grabbed a bagel to go from his apartment and then headed out into the crisp morning. Chuck wasn’t working until that evening, but he hated being cooped up with nothing to do. At least out in the city there were people to watch and sights to admire. He wasn’t about to run off and join in with the crowds playing tourist, but Chuck did follow the folks with the cameras and tacky t-shirts down to the harbour. When they joined the queues for the ferries, he slipped away, sitting himself down on a bench just a short distance from the crowds. He had no intention of going over to one of the islands, but he liked coming down here in the mornings, for the sea air and for reasons even he couldn’t explain. Taking another bite into what was left of his bagel, Chuck leaned back against the hard wood of the bench and chewed slowly. He had nothing to do today before work, but he still wanted to find something to fill his hours with. The way in which he kept to himself meant he had never had many people to call friends and he wasn’t the type to ever reach out to them first anyway, so he didn’t even bother to reach for the phone in the pocket of his jeans. Instead he just took another bite of his breakfast and looked out over the water.

• • •

TAGGED! @anna
WORDS! 547!
OUTFIT! Refined & Reserved!
LYRICS! Polaroid - - - Imagine Dragons
NOTES! <3

[Deleted]

Running was one of the many joys in Anna's life. She didn't have to worry about anything while she ran. All she had to do was clear her mind and think about her breathing. Anna tried to run at least six times a week, sometimes she got seven in. Each time she ran, she ran outside, rain or shine. She didn't care. She hated running on a treadmill or on a track; to her, that was one of the most boring things you could do. When you ran outside, you got different terrain. Not only that, but you got different surroundings to look at and admire. With Anna's job, she got to travel a lot, which meant she had gotten the chance run in a lot of different cities across the world. But her favorite place to run at was around the harbor in New York. 

From the harbor, you could see the mass of buildings New York had to offer. You could watch the sunrise break over the buildings and glisten on the river. That was one of the prettiest sites Anna could ever remember seeing, and it reminded her of her childhood, of her innocence. It reminded her that though there were a lot of shitty things in this world, they didn't matter. Each day, you got a new chance at life. The sunrise was the proof of that statement. 

In the middle of her run, she decided to stop in order to fully take in the sunrise. She sat down in a grassy area, her knees pulled up to her chest. She had turned her music off, pulling her headphones out. She noticed a guy sitting near her under a tree. She just figured he was doing the same thing she was. 

"Isn't it beautiful?"

She asked, glancing over at him, taking her eyes away from the sunrise.

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For: Kim with Chuck
Outfit: Click
Words: 311
Notes: I'm sorry about this one...

[chuck rushton snow]

Chuck had been running for over a decade. He was used to looking over his shoulder and being reminded about how important it was to keep quiet about where he came from and who he really was. Rushton had reminded him countless times when he had been growing up in Canada, telling him repeatedly that they were never totally safe. It would only take one slip up for someone to see through the lie they had told throughout Chuck’s teenage years, and then all hell would break loose on the little life they had built for themselves in Montreal. Chuck couldn’t say he had been happy glancing over his shoulder for years, but he had been content. His life of lies was a hell of a lot better than anything that could have existed for him in Texas.

It wasn’t like he was free now. He had a life, a career, and a chance at a future he probably would never had had if he had stayed in San Antonio, but he was still waiting to hear a knock on his door, see police on the other side. He was still waiting to be found, even though he knew the chances were remote now. He had worked hard to make it that way. He was nothing like the kid he had been when he left Texas, and he had even lost his accent to make it harder to connect him to the state. The only thing that still stuck out like in the old baby photos he could remember were his blue eyes, still as dark and big as they had always been. He had shed the rest of his childhood identity though, casting it aside for something new that had been built over the Canadian border when Chuck was still at an age when he could be moulded and adapted into a whole new person.

He was thinking about that, despite not wanting to, when a voice spoke to him, snapping him out of his thoughts about his past. Turning his head, he looked with furrowed eyebrows at the woman sitting nearby. “Is what?” He asked, shrugging his shoulders. He honestly didn’t have a clue what she was talking about, and he was confused as to why this total stranger was talking to him in the first place. He didn’t even recognise her from around to suggest that she was to speaking to him for that reason. Keeping to himself for so long meant Chuck often lacked social skills, or came across as being a little blunt beyond the normal range.

• • •

TAGGED! @anna
WORDS! 434!
OUTFIT! Refined & Reserved!
LYRICS! Polaroid - - - Imagine Dragons
NOTES! Ugh, I’m sorry. Chuck is still finding his feet! <3

[Deleted]

For all of Anna's dating career, she had only dated one boy who looked like a model. All of her other boyfriends had been from different clique groups, which was odd considering she looked like a real-life Barbie. You would think she would date only the hottest and douchiest guys in existence. But, her first boyfriend was a complete nerd. He was tall and lanky, and he would have done anything just to see her smile or laugh. He was hilarious, too. Not to mention, he would talk back to her brother in a joking manner, which made Brad (her brother) super angry. That was hilarious to Anna. She still loved Jake, her first boyfriend. When she looked back on her life, she realized that maybe he was her forever love. She had just been too stupid to keep him around. And it was too late to go back to him now; he was dead. He had been since her senior year of high school. She regretted leaving him, but she was glad that they had been friends until the end. 

After him was a boy, whose name she didn't remember. He was nice enough, and he had been into the punk scene. They only dated for about a week before she met Giuseppe, Vanya's father. Giuseppe was pale, had a dadbod, and had long, black hair. He wore black and pants that were tighter than her own. But Anna had fallen for him from the moment she had met him. He was dark and mysterious, though he could be whiney at some points. They had dated before she left him for Apollo, who was the model-looking man. Apollo and Anna only dated for publicity, though. They were both popular in their high school, and they had decided to become a power couple. They eventually broke up because they were so different, but Anna had no feelings towards him. She had never had feelings towards him. He was just a guy to her. Then, she had gotten back with Giuseppe. They broke up shortly after Vanya was born because he ended up cheating on her. Since then, though, Anna had been pretty much single. She had a few dates here and there, but there was nothing serious (relationship wise) in her life anymore. She didn't feel that she had time for them, and she really didn't want to bring the drama back into her life, especially since she still had Giuseppe in her life due to Vanya. 

When the guy spoke, Anna raised an eyebrow. He seemed to be kind of ... rude? That wasn't really the word. Maybe a little, but maybe blunt was a better word. 

"Oh, sorry. I was talking about the sunrise. I assumed that's why you were here, too, but now that I think about it, you're probably...not."

She said, looking at him. 

**************************************************************************

For:
Kim with Chuck
Outfit:
 Clickclick
Words:
478
Notes:

[chuck rushton snow]

Chuck was not the most sociable of guys. Socialising with people usually led to them asking questions and expecting answers. He didn’t really like to give answers, or talk about himself in general. He found it easier to keep to himself. Plus, the answers he had to give with mostly lies since he was technically a kidnapped child living his life on the run with a cousin who would probably spend a number of years behind bars if the truth ever got out and made its way back to San Antonio. It wasn’t the lying that bothered Chuck, that was second nature to him now, it was the thought of someone deciding to pry further and discover that something didn’t add up. People couldn’t be trusted, and that was something he had learnt when he was still a little boy, long before he had gone to live his life on the other side of the Canadian border. He would never know for sure if anyone would take his word and be happy with it. Chuck always figured that people would want more.

He was cynical of humans, but then he had grown up around some of the worst he had ever encountered. That alone had left him jaded and unable to trust. Rushton was the only person who had looked out for him, offered him a chance to live a life away from the fear he had known throughout his childhood. That fear had been replaced by the fear of having to go back to Texas, at least up until he was eighteen and old enough to claim responsibility for himself. At least now he could take solace in knowing that there wasn’t a power in the world that could make him face up to his childhood again. No one could force him to go back home, make him return to a place full of cruel memories and nightmares. No, he was a kid from Canada whenever people asked, and he had some convincing looking documents to prove it, though he had never found out where Rushton had gotten that paperwork from. Even the trace of his accent had switched out over the years naturally.

Normally people just left Chuck to himself. He figured he had one of those faces that always held a ‘go away’ expression. At least he had heard one of the kitchen assistants saying he gave off that vibe in work and he was no different there to how he was in the rest of his life. So, when this blonde woman spoke to him, Chuck was a little bit surprised, but it didn’t show. He had gotten really good at hiding his emotions a long time ago. “No. I’m not.” He really didn’t care about the sunrise. He hadn’t even noticed it. It happened every day and it was no different.

• • •

TAGGED! @anna
WORDS! 478!
OUTFIT! Refined & Reserved!
LYRICS! Polaroid - - - Imagine Dragons
NOTES! He’s a difficult man! I’m sorry >.>

[Deleted]

<sub>Anna had temperment problems. She always had, though they did get worse as she got older. While she was growing up, she was resistant to what her parents and nannies wanted, but everyone blamed it on her growing up in the spotlight and being raised by nannies instead of her own parents. Plus, her sister was more of a wild child than her, so they wanted to try and tame her and pay more attention to her. Anna really didn't mind, seeing as she never really enjoyed her parents' presence. They were rude and stuck up, and they were also too much like Anna for her to like them. So when they shipped her to a boarding school, she was happy and excited. She could finally be away from their constant criticism. 

But her attitude got worse throughout high school. She was a major bitch to everyone at the school, and she had gained a reputation for being a nasty woman. Anna didn't care about how people saw her. She felt that if they didn't want to take the time to get to know her, they weren't worth the trouble. That was how she had lived her life up until this very day. It made for a lonely life full of fake friends, but it also saved her a lot of heartbreak in the long run. She had all of the friends she needed in life. She had enough love to last her multiple lives. She was set. 

So when this guy started talking again, she raised an eyebrow, pursing her lips. She looked at him for a minute before deciding to do what her therapist had told her to do in these types of situations: breathe. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, clenching and unclenching her fists a few times. She stood up, walking away from him, but her temper took over. She walked right back over to him, standing in front of him. 

"I'm just going to assume you aren't a morning person, and that's why you're being so rude."

She told him, a frown on her tanned face. 

"But I was being a decent human being and making conversation. Now, I get that some people don't really like being bothered, but the least you could do is smile and be kind. You don't have to be a giant dick to me."

She added. 

"And you know something else, being kind to others won't kill you. In fact, it might save your life one day."


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For:
chuck rushton snow
Outfit:
 Click
Words:
419
Notes:</sub>

[chuck rushton snow]

Chuck was closed off from most, but he wasn’t some terrible New York City transplant who adopted the arrogant ways and crude mannerisms of many of its local residents. He had reasons he could never explain for keeping his distance and in day to day life he knew enough to smile at those who held doors open and thank the people who served him in stores. Ultimately it boiled down to Chuck not making friends easily because it was obvious he didn’t want to open up and eventually people grew bored of trying to get blood from a stone. There had been a few people in his life who Chuck wished he could say more to, but after everything Rushton had done for him he didn’t dare to risk it all for what could be a fling, or a friendship that would be ruined once he revealed his secrets. People weren’t reliable, they were fickle and flimsy and Chuck had seen this first-hand throughout his life. If that made him a cynic then so be it. No one had come along to give him even a glimmer of hope of changing that opinion about the human race.

He knew Rushton had tried to make him see things differently, but it had been too late. His childhood had fucked him up, but there was no way of rectifying that damage without speaking to a professional and they would ask the kind of questions the cousins had been working hard not to answer. Chuck could go now without the risk most likely, but he didn’t want to speak to someone who called themselves a Doctor and charged obscene costs for appointments where they just crawled inside your head and tried to unearth grotty little secrets.

He let out a sigh when this woman moved closer to him, and he lazily looked up to hear what she had to say. Was it so much to be left in peace these days? Her words made him laugh because they were absolutely ridiculous. “I wasn’t aware being honest made me a ‘giant dick’.” Chuck replied, not moving from his seat for what was an entirely pathetic argument. “You made a presumption, which was wrong, and I answered honestly. You’re the one being rude and hostile for no fucking reason.” He laughed dryly again and shook his head. Was this really actually happening? Was this woman making a fight out of absolutely nothing? “There was no conversation to be had. We weren’t having one, you weren’t starting one, and I didn’t want one. If I did, I wouldn’t be sitting down here at this hour of the morning, on my own.” He thought that much could be fairly obvious and if he did want a conversation with a stranger he wouldn’t start talking about the sunrise like it was the greatest thing ever.

• • •

TAGGED! @anna
WORDS! 483!
OUTFIT! Refined & Reserved!
LYRICS! Polaroid - - - Imagine Dragons
NOTES!