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Post by dobbythefreeelf on Jul 19, 2011 0:38:06 GMT -5
Keith Harkin grimaced as the grey clouds began to roll in. Grey clouds always equaled rough surf. Usually it had never mattered to him, but after an incident involving one of his best mates getting severely injured, Keith had decide not to take the risk.
"I guess we have to stay in today, Murphy." Keith told the shaggy, Irish wolfhound.
Woof. Murphy barked as if to reassure his master that there will always be a next time, as long as Keith was always near the sea.
Keith sighed and closed his window once the cold air reached his face. It was tempting him - the cold air mixed with the salty smell of the sea.
Murphy barked again, calling Keith's attention. The young wolfhound ran in circles. He whined and scratched at the door leading to the beach.
"Okay, fella." Keith opened the door and watched as Murphy ran towards the sand. It was the best Keith could give him in the situation.
Like Keith, Murphy loved the welcoming aura of the sea, no matter the weather. It was only a year ago that Keith had stumbled upon Murphy, whilst on his long surfing sessions. The wolfhound had been limping along the beach, which called to Keith's attentions. After finding no collar and no recognition from a local, the dog was rightfully Keith's.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
Keith walked forward and reached for his telephone. "Hello?"
"Hi, Keith.", came the voice of his younger sister, Rebecca.
Keith smiled. So long has it been since he had heard the sound of his sister's voice. "Hey Bex."
Rebecca groaned at the mention of her nickname. "Do you want to come over? Granny came and made your favorite stew."
He smiled and suddenly, his stomach began to grumble. "I'll be there soon. I'll bring Murphy."
"Keith, you know Granny doesn't like dogs... especially after they play in the water."
"Don't worry, Bex. Granny likes Murphy." He knew each member of his family had a soft spot for Murphy.
Rebecca snorted. "Sure, I'll see you in a bit, then."
Keith hung up and walked over to the open door. He whistled once and Murphy suddenly came running. From where Keith was, he could clearly see that Murphy was indeed playing in the low surf.
"Come on, Murphy. Let's go play with Granny!"
----
Antoinette bit her lip as she concentrated on the book she was currently reading. The protagonist was very, very close to finding out who his biological father was.
Her door opened in a sudden rush, revealing the distraught face of her nine-year-old brother, Thomas. "Mam's not going to come tomorrow... She just called me and said her meetings were delayed. She has to stay at least two more days in Russia."
Antoinette could feel how disappointed her brother must be. "It's fine, Tom. We could wait two more days."
"Toni, she was supposed to come today." He walked forward and sat down at the foot of the bed. "I can't stand being alone in this house."
"Thomas, it's just two more extra days." She gingerly put down her book. "And besides, I don't think I'm that bad of a babysitter.. am I?"
He grinned. "No. You're fine... I guess I'll just go and heat the casserole." He left the room.
They were alone at the tiny house in Donegal for a month, due to a business meeting their mother had to attend. Being of legal age, Antoinette had volunteered to take care of them, rather than one of their neighbors across the street.
It was quite lonely in the tiny house. Having had their father die of cancer just last year had quite an effect on the family. It was fortunate Antoinette was close to Thomas, rather than not talking at all.
"Toni, I think I burned the casserole!" Thomas shouted.
Maybe she could finish her book another time. Perhaps late at night, where she was sure Thomas would be asleep. Her brother had to be the most unfortunate soul in her family history.
She rolled off her bed and walked to the kitchen, where the burning scent of casserole was evident in the air.
"Did you do this on purpose so we can go get burgers?" She asked.
The innocent expression on Thomas face lead her to believe that it was all an accident, but she knew her brother all too well. Luckily, she was quite fond of him.
"Get in the car." She instructed while she went ahead and searched for the car keys.
After a "Thanks Toni, you're the best!" shout from her brother, her suspicions proved to be true.
----
R&R please:)
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Post by GalwayGirl on Jul 19, 2011 0:47:31 GMT -5
I absolutely loved it!!! This is a wonderful beginning!! I can't wait to read more, I love your writing style! Update soon! Welcome to Nox by the way, I know that you will fit right in!
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Post by DaughterofOphelia on Jul 19, 2011 0:55:25 GMT -5
I love it! Welcome to Nox!! Please, update soon.
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Post by celticthunder1510 on Jul 19, 2011 0:56:10 GMT -5
Good story
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Post by iloveyou on Jul 19, 2011 1:10:56 GMT -5
I love it!(:
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Post by HburgEagle44 on Jul 19, 2011 1:16:36 GMT -5
that was a great beginning...hehehe the burning the food bit sounds like something my brothers would do update soon please!
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Post by dobbythefreeelf on Jul 19, 2011 3:32:41 GMT -5
Thank you for the reviews:)
----
The rain had finally started five minutes after Keith had entered his Jeep, with a happy Murphy in tow. Keith was more than eager to reach his parents' house, where he knew for certain his favorite stew would be waiting for him.
Murphy whined as the rain began to fall heavier and heavier. If thunder and lightning came, Murphy would become frightened.
"Almost there, buddy." Keith reassured as he went over the limit just a tiny bit.
----
"Thank you for buying, Toni. I appreciate it." Thomas said over the bites of his burger.
Antoinette flinched at the sound. "Tom, chew with your mouth closed."
Thomas rolled his eyes. Nonetheless, he gave her a thumbs up and continued to eat his meal.
Antoinette felt her phone vibrate. She looked once at the caller I.D., before answering the call.
"Hello?" She said.
"Toni? Where are you?" Antoinette recognized the voice to belong to her friend, Fergus.
"I'm at Steve's Cafe, in town. Why?" She hoped Fergus didn't involve himself in a sticky situation, where she had to come and 'save' him once again. Oh, he was definitely known for that.
A pause. "Oh, you're in town? Good, good. Um.. Are you able to come and pick me up..? It's raining buckets."
Her ears perked up. "It's raining?"
Fergus groaned as if it was she that was annoying him. "Yes, Toni."
"I'd half a mind to come pick you up, Fergus. What is it that you are needing?" Antoinette's eyes watched as Thomas began to eat his burger with the utmost care.
Fergus sighed. "I was doing my own business, thought I'd be able to walk afterwards, then it started to rain."
"Ferg, you don't live far from here. Surely you couldn't -"
"I have to meet some relatives of mine, Toni. They live all the way in the mountains."
Not even bothering to find the logic in the situation, Antoinette quickly agreed to the arrangement. No matter how much of a pain Fergus was to her, she'd have done anything for a friend.
"Are you ready, little man?" She asked Thomas, after seeing that he was licking the salt from the chips off his fingers.
Thomas nodded. "We are going to pick up Fergus?"
"You heard that, huh?" Antoinette gathered her things. "Yes, but don't worry, he'll be gone before you know it."
Thomas stood up. "I don't like him, Toni."
Not a lot of people seem to, she thought.
It was true. To a majority of people, Fergus was said to be rude and boisterous. Whenever Thomas was around him, Fergus would always find a way to tease Thomas to the point of no return. She was his friend, however, and he can really show potential when it was needed. She'd just hope Thomas would be able to see that as well.
----
"SURPRISE!"
Keith let his eyes adjust to the warm room as he saw all of his friends and family gathered around.
"Aye, what is this?" He asked while searching the faces of his loved ones.
Rebecca, who was standing at the front, walked forward and gave him a hug. "Your party. You know, for finally putting up a record label."
"Bex, I've had the record label for a while now." He said as he took off his coat.
Rebecca shrugged. "We know, but we've never been able to throw you your party. Just think of it as a belated present, why don't you?"
At that moment, Murphy came running in, barking madly at the first sounds of thunder.
"Keith..? You know we can't let him in the house. He's soaking wet!" His mother, Siobhan, sternly said.
Keith gave her a pout. "Ma, he can't go outside. He hates thunder and lightning. You might as well ship him off to a shelter."
"He'll ruin the carpet!" She explained, as if reprimanding a twelve-year-old, rather than a young man of twenty years.
"He'll behave, I swear to it." Keith promised.
After seeing the stern look plastered on his mother's face, Keith quickly gave her a smile before greeting his bemused guests.
"How are you all, then?" He asked.
After many happy greetings, Keith wandered off to his Granny Peg.
"Hello, darling." She greeted warmly, before engulfing him in a hug.
Keith openly returned it. "Granny, did you really make me stew, or was Bex just lying?"
His Granny laughed. "It's in the kitchen, Keith. Just make sure that dog of yours doesn't eat it first."
He laughed. "Don't worry about it, Gran."
----
"Thanks for this again, Toni. It's just up the mountains. I'm already late enough as it is." Fergus confessed.
"Where are you going, Fergus?" Antoinette heard Thomas ask from the back seat.
Fergus rolled his eyes. "None of your business, short stuff."
"I'm actually 4'11, now." Thomas retorted.
Antoinette sighed and checked her speed. It was indeed raining very hard in Donegal, although it was nothing new to be heard. She was more cautious, considering the fact that they were driving up a very steep mountain path.
"You're cute, squirt." Fergus said as he checked the time on the dashboard. "Toni, mind speeding it up a bit?"
"No. If it bothers you so much, get out and walk. I am not going over 40 in this weather." She responded as she put her headlights to the brightest setting.
"Can't we just let him walk, Toni?" Thomas pleaded. "He'll get there faster, anyway."
Fergus muttered under his breath and remained quiet, much to Antoinette's surprise. "Turn to your right at the nearest fork." He instructed.
It was obvious to Antoinette that he wanted to get out just as much as she did. "Alright."
Hopefully they would make it back in time, for it was reaching ten o'clock pretty fast. ----
A/N - I am quite aware that Keith is 25 years old, but for the story's setting, I lowered it just a bit;)
R&R please:)
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Post by iloveyou on Jul 19, 2011 3:34:12 GMT -5
I love it! Update soon, dobby.
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Post by HburgEagle44 on Jul 19, 2011 3:47:13 GMT -5
This is super good! I love the switching POVs (which, of course, will meet up eventually ) update soon, please!
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Post by GalwayGirl on Jul 19, 2011 8:13:50 GMT -5
I loved the update!! This is a great story so far and I can't wait to read more... Update soon please!!
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Post by DaughterofOphelia on Jul 19, 2011 10:18:29 GMT -5
I love it Dobby!! Update soon please!!
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Post by dobbythefreeelf on Jul 19, 2011 16:13:34 GMT -5
"Thank you Toni!" Fergus yelled as he slammed the door.
Antoinette sighed as she watched Fergus run to the house. "Your ready to go home, Tom?" She was a bit frightened at the fact of driving down the very narrow path down the mountain, especially with Thomas in the back seat.
Thomas had also seem to have the same opinions as well. "Not really. Can we wait until the rain stops?"
"I'm almost out of petrol, Tom. I can't keep the heat on for long and I don't want you to get sick." She bit her lip.
"You do know Fergus. Go in the house, I'm sure they won't mind." Thomas unbuckled his seat belt.
Antoinette turned off the engine. "I don't know, Tom. It seems like they're having a party. We don't want to intrude."
Thomas coughed. "I think I'm getting sick, Toni." He let out a few more coughs before giving her a pointed look.
"You are unbelievable, you know?" She rolled her eyes. "You go inside, then."
----
"The FERG is in the house!" Keith heard an obnoxious yell by the door.
Keith turned around to find his eighteen-year-old annoyance of a cousin wave at him. He inwardly groaned, for Fergus was indeed one of the relatives he wished did not attend his party. He was a bit immature for his age, and Keith definitely knew he wouldn't be growing up any time soon. He learned to live with it, in the end.
"Happy birthday, Keith-o." Fergus said before giving Keith a one-armed hug. "Sorry I didn't get you anything. I was a bit tied up, you see. With the weather and all. I had to ring up my mate to drive me here."
Keith frowned. "It's not my birthday, Ferg." Leave it to Fergus to come for the wrong reasons.
Fergus looked momentarily confused. "Then why is there a party? Becky rang me earlier and said it was a surprise party."
Keith made a mental note to thank Rebecca for the invite later. "It was just a Congratulation party. You know, for finally getting a record label in the works."
"Oh." Fergus clapped him on his back. "Good job, mate. I'm going to go find Gran."
"Oh, thank you." Keith mumbled as he watched Fergus leave.
Ding Dong.
Seeming to be by the door already, Keith rushed forward and opened the door. Maybe one of his other cousins or mates came to visit.
----
Antoinette ended up accompanying her brother in the end. She was worried the rain might wash Thomas' figure down the mountain. He was such a fragile boy, anyway.
"Ring the bell." Antoinette said as they approached the big house. It was nothing compared to her home. This house was more like a mansion. She hoped Fergus' party didn't include anything she didn't want Thomas to be exposed to at such a young age.
Thomas rang the doorbell and stood under the tiny awning.
In under a minute, the door opened to reveal a tall figure half-covered in their shadow.
"Hello. Might we come in?" Thomas asked. "See, my sister and I took Fergus here, but the rain won't let up and we don't want to -"
"Say no more, little man." The figure said. Antoinette concluded that it must be a man young in his years. "Come in. We have plenty of food."
Thomas eagerly came in and Antoinette quickly followed. Now in the house, Antoinette had a moment to study their 'savior'.
He was rather tall, good-looking, but tall nonetheless. From all her years spent in Donegal, she recognized his build to belong to one of the local surfers. It wasn't hard, there were only a couple or so. And not all of them had blonde, side-swept hair.
Harkin. The name had come to her almost instantly. His sister, Rebecca Harkin was in her year. The Harkins were well-liked and well-known in the little town. It suddenly explained the mansion-esque feel to the house.
"Thank you." Antoinette said.
He smiled. "Not a big deal. There's food in the kitchen. It's just a small party, nothing big. Fergus is in the hall, if you want to speak to him... please." He added.
She laughed. "No, thank you."
----
It weren't any mates of his, nor a cousin as far as he remembered. There were two silhouettes outside, both incredibly wet from the pouring rain.
"Hello, might we come in? Keith watched as a tiny boy of nine or ten came forward. "See, my sister and I took Fergus here, but the rain won't let up and we don't want to -"
"Say no more, little man." Keith interrupted him. Although they did the deed of taking Fergus to him, he felt pity for them. Rainy weather always made the path back to town slippery with mud. He wouldn't even drive in this weather himself. "Come in. We have plenty of food."
The two came in rather quickly. The little boy had brown, messy hair soaked with the rain. He was a little skinny, but his face had a very healthy look to it. He was quite lanky, for a boy his age. Keith hoped the spare clothes that his mother had kept from his childhood were still in the attic.
The second visitor was a girl, about Rebecca's age. She had brown hair that was kept in a messy bun. Tiny, brown freckles were scattered around her nose and cheeks. She was of average height, not too short or too tall. Her clothes were just as wet - looking as the little boy's, who he concluded to be her brother.
"Thank you." She said.
Keith heard a slight accent in her voice. It wasn't anything he'd recognized in the United Kingdom. Perhaps maybe France or Germany.
"Not a big deal. There's food in the kitchen. It's just a small party, nothing big. Fergus is in the hall, if you want to speak to him... please." He said, emphasizing the last part. Even if they were complete strangers, Keith knew Fergus had to drive her crazy just as much.
The girl laughed. It sounded vaguely like the tinkling of wind chimes. "No, thank you."
"I can't say I blame you..?"
"Antoinette. Antoinette Murell." She finished. Murell was definitely not a Donegal name, nor Irish for that matter.
Nevertheless, Keith extended his right hand. "Keith Harkin. Do you go to the Loreto Convent? My sister, Rebecca, goes there."
Antoinette reached forward and shook his hand. "Yes. She's in my year."
Well, that explained it, Keith thought.
----
Thank you for all your reviews.
R&R, if you please;)
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Post by iloveyou on Jul 19, 2011 16:24:58 GMT -5
I love it, dobby! ( :
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Post by GalwayGirl on Jul 19, 2011 16:27:43 GMT -5
I loved the update!!! I think Keith would have lived without Fergus there, but I am sure that he could possibly happy about it down the road... lol Well, they at least recognize each other for some reason. Sounds like they hit it off though!! I can't wait to see what happens next!! Update soon please!!
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Post by DaughterofOphelia on Jul 19, 2011 17:14:53 GMT -5
I love it Dobby!! Update soon please!!!
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