Half Full Told (hfjONE sodapack au)

2) that leaves you to rot

"It felt like a puddle beneath him.

Liam rose up to see that he was back in the waiting room.

Wait a second.. what's going on?

He looked down to see.. what was the familiar geometrical landscape he was once in.

He heard a familiar voice above him.

"Hello everybody. Welcome to my competition called.. ONE."

No, no, no, no, NO!

THIS COULDN'T BE HAPPENING.. NOT AGAIN.

Liam frantically looked around. There was no one else there. The Plane was all gloomy. The backpack was.. alone.

Suddenly, he found himself in water.

He panicked, trying to swim up, but found the weight of what was his cast, attached to his leg. It felt like being chained to a boulder.

Liam struggled to swim up. He was trying to detach the cast and swim up to the surface all at once. As much as he could. But it was no use. He couldn't help but sink to the bottom of the pool, as his last breaths escaped his mouth.

........

Liam jerked up, shocked about what he just experienced. He could feel the sweat on his back, dripping as he sat there in disbelief. He heard noise coming from the front door. There stood Bryce, two soda cans and a coffee cup.

"I already told you, I'm not going. Listen, I have work tomorrow, and we could barely get enough money-"

"So that's more important than seeing your own family in a long time?! And who's we?!"

One of the soda cans peered past Bryce's back.

"Hey.. who's that?"

Liam glanced at the bubbly-designed can that was staring at him. The other soda can seemed designed to be more fizzy, and it hid behind the coffee cup, glancing every now and then at the backpack.

Bryce hesitated to say, "That's my roommate."

"Valerie, I understand this is important, but you think I'm just gonna drop everything I've got to go back?"

"Better seeing your mom and dad again since 7 years. At least we're fighting when your fuckin' sober!"

"You said you wouldn't swear Val.."

"Sorry Mel."

Liam broke eye contact with the other soda can, interrupting,

"Uh, sorry to interrupt, but who are you people?"

Bryce sighed, with no better use than explaining the situation.

"Liam, these are my cousins. They came all the way from my hometown for a family reunion.."

"Yeah, but you'd rather drink your way out 'till you get numb."

The soda can rushed past Bryce and immediately started shaking Liam's hand abruptly.

"Hi!! Your name is Liam right?! That's a cool name! AnywaysmynameisDelaneyandtheresmysisteroverthereMelaniesandtheresmyothercousinValeriewhosalsocousinswithBrycewhoyoualsoknowsohorray!"

The backpack sat there, absolutely confused and still trying to process what they said.

Melanie tried to speak up.

"Can you at least stay for a few days? It doesn't have to be long, it's a family reunion anyway!"

Bryce sighed. He didn't know what to decide.

"I can stay here. I'll work to get money for rent."

He turned to Liam, but knew this was probably gonna be bad.

"No, you still don't know how to drive yet, and I don't want you walking in the cold from here to work."

Bryce turned back to his cousins, and responded,

"I'll stay for a week. Then we're leaving. Got it?"

Both Melanie and Valerie gave a grin at each other while Delaney jumped in excitement.

"So it's settled."

------------------------

Bryce and Liam packed their stuff into their car as the other three started up theirs.

"We'll meet you at the house. You know the address, right?"

"Of course I do."

The cousins sat in the grey car and drove off. The other two objects stared at it until the falling snow shrouded around what they could see ahead.

"So, uh, I guess we better get going."

Liam and Bryce got into their car, and they were on the road.

"I took Texty with us. Thought it wouldn't be fair to just leave them alone while we're gone."

"Good idea," the taller said.

"Well, we're gonna be pretty much on the highway for 5 hours, so make yourself comfy, I guess."

Liam rested his head on the window. He admired the fluffy snow that laid on the grass. He felt his senses fade as he drifted off to sleep. The sound of the car radio and the GPS and the strong smell of coffee just seemed to vanish.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Many names called out for Liam.

All his memories flowed back to him.

He heard the sound of music still playing from the tape recorder.

"I'm wishing you a well...mind at peace within yourself..."

Liam saw himself back at Airy's universe. How much he had struggled to get everyone back home. He didn't get back to Amelia and Charlotte and everyone else just to get stuck there. He didn't mean for Bryce.. to be dragged along with him and get stuck back on the Plane again.

"Covers up I cast you off...I'll be watching as you breathe...."

He heard a presence behind him. There stood Airy, looking down, with an axe.

"Hey! G-get away!"

"I'd lie still you move I'd send you off around the bend..."

The lamp looked up. But it wasn't Airy at all. There stood in front of Liam was.. him staring back, the copper lantern lid on his head.

"Don't you feel a bit guilty?"

"Yes- I was! Did you know how long it took- how much I did to stop ONE?!"

"That still doesn't change how you did it. You dragged Bryce into this, and if you hadn't, you all wouldn't have been stuck there for another 2 months. Perhaps everyone hates you already."

"But we got back! And.. I don't think.. everyone hates me..?"

"We'll see about that."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He felt a sudden jolt. He heard the soda bottle shout at himself.

"SHIT! Sorry Liam, I hit a bump in the road. Are you ok?"

"Y-yeah. I'm alright."

"We should be almost there. You can relax."

But Liam couldn't. We won't be for a while.

------------------

925 words. may revise later O.o