STPTown gets hard-boiled (a group story)

[usmu]

After parking his car across the street from Firebird's grill and bar usmu gets out of his car. Hopefully the food's as good as it was way back when. It's been a while since usmu's been there, but he remembers the food well. Not to mention the regulars. Man, they were a rowdy bunch.

Looking in through the door the place looks empty. When usmu pushes against the door it opens. The place not only looks empty, it is. Stooping to pick up some pictures he almost stood on usmu looks around. Nothing seems to be out of the ordinary.

Glancing at the pictures usmu gets quite a surprise. Isn't that... and that guy also looks familiar. He quickly flips throught the photo's. Well these definitely look interesting. And not only from an anatomical point of view. I might be able to use these. And with that usmu pockets the pictures. Now to make a nice clean exit before somebody notices me.

[Firebird98]

"well look what the cat dragged all over the gates of hell..."

Usmu finished hiding the pictures without noticable movement. He turned around to see the unseen voice, but he knew who it was.

"you don't look so bad yourself, friend. how's it going?" Usmu smiled andstepped towards Firebird.

"Just fine, friend. What brings you around these parts?"

Usmu started to explain but the sound of someone reching in the bathroom stopped him in mid sentance.

"Jace still living upstairs?"

"Yeah, if I charged him rent I'd have been able to close this place down years ago. I don't mind it though, he doesn't bug the customers. He's like the mascot around here. Also..." Bird looked to the window. It wasn't Lulu, was it? Nah, couldn't be. As much as he wanted to, she was never coming back and he knew she wouldn't be snooping around here...

"Usmu, did you bring anybody with you, or did anyone follow you, waiting on you, per chance?"

"No, not that I know of, why?"

"Someone's out there, looks female."

"You want me to go check it out? I'll be back in five..."

"Go ahead. I'll be here. I got some steaks grilling."

"I always dug your steaks man. Best and biggest in town."

"we're still talking about steaks, right?" Bird grinned and turned to the grill as Usmu went out the door. The bell on the door (an idea from Wiloe to make the place seem more chipper, before her book took off and so did she, along with half of Bird's comic collection and his 87 Buick GNX. Man, he missed that car...)said Usmu had left. Once inside the grill, he grabbed a knife and started to slice up his mushrooms.

He didn't feel anything after the sharp pain in the back of his head, and after he slipped into unconciousness.. he didn't feel anything at all. A loud clank echoed through the kitchen as the steel cutting board hit the floor, drowing out the sounds of Bird's body being drug out the back door.

[Lulu]

Slap!
"Wake up bird!" Lulu slapped him again. "Wake up!"
Lying atop a heap of plastic trashbags filled with refuse in the back alley, Firebird was begining to come around.

Earlier that evening...

After wrestling Miral and her sister into the car, Crazy and Lulu had sped toward Firebird's bar and grill. Thanks to the constant bickering in the backseat, Crazy had applied more than the usual amount of pressure on the gas pedal, thereby increasing their speed and landing them at their destination in record time. All the same, Crazy had had to threaten more than once to "stop the car and come back there" since the squabbling siblings could apparently not resist needling eachother. The scenario progressed something like this:

"You're on my side of the seat," Miral growled more than once.
"No I'm not- this is my side! See? We drew lines! My line is here- This is MY side of the car!"
"Is not!"
"Is too!"
"Is not!"
"Is too!"
(Here Lulu interjected: "Shutup Goddamnit! Before I throw something at you!" Followed by sullen silence....

which only lasted a minute.)

"Ow!"
"Stop it!"
"OWWW!"
"Crybaby!"
"She's pulling my HAIR!"
"She tried to strangle me again!"
"You were on my side of the car!"
"Was not-"
"Was too!"
"Was not!!"
"Stop touching me!!"
(Here Crazy interjected: "So help me, if I have to stop this car and come back there!" Slowly as his tone of voice rose, their speed gradually increased.... until [img]eek.gif[/img]

Lulu : "Omigod! You're gonna kill us! Wall! Wall!"

Miral and sister: (inarticulate screams!)

The car flew around the bend at breakneck speed, slamming Miral, Lulu and Miral's mad sibling back against their seats. Crazy, true to his name, continued to drive. The journey- lasting five minutes from thereonout- proceeded in silence until the car slammed to a halt, breaks screeching as it slide into the parking lot across from Firebird's Bar n'Grill.

Lulu was the first one out- Running toward the bar which she had just seen a strange man enter. She slipped inside silently and followed the sound of voices until she saw Firebird. His back to her, her ex lover [img]graemlins/devil.gif[/img] was slicing mushrooms (the bastard!). The cast iron tray lay on the counter... [img]graemlins/broken_heart.gif[/img]

....

And bird groaned as he blinked up at a fuzzy, yet incenced Lulu.

<font color="#776446" size="1">[ February 26, 2003 07:53 PM: Message edited by: Lulu ]</font>

[Branflakes]

"Yes, you own a comic shop," Bran said, eyeing Asis. "Red really messed you up if you don't remember that. Next you'll tell me you don't like SIP anymore..." Asis' blank look answered that question. "Nevermind," Bran said. "So, before you left, you had Jace take over the store."

Asis shrugged. "I guess so. And business must be hurting if no one is picking up their books."

Bran nodded. "People have been disappearing from town left and right. I'm trying to figure out why. Sounds like Dan disappeared first, then Eris. Wiloe left for the book tour, plus she and 'Bird had some problems, so I assumed there wasn't anything suspcious to that." Bran shrugged. " 'Bird just came back into town. Hmmmm."

Asis' mind whirled. People were disappearing from town? And why was Bran trying to figure this all out? Was she a detective? Cop? So was Red...Mary Beth a cop, too? This was getting more confusing. Asis had an idea. "Why don't we go to the comic shop? Maybe I'll remember something. Or Jace will know what's up."

"Too bad the shop's closed." Bran pointed at her watch. "But, we can go check up on Jace at his place." Bran suddenly remembered where Jace lived. No, that wouldn't work. "I have a better idea," she said. "Why don't we go to Eris' apartment? It's not far from here and I have a key."

Asis lifted an eyebrow. Was Eris an ex?

"Eris and I are just friends, sheesh," Bran said, reading Asis mind. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Asis. Come on, let's go."

They both left the apartment, jumped in the car, and sped to Eris'.

[Lulu]

Bird was still too dazed from the blow to his head to speak, so Lulu laid into him (graciously giving him a chance to recover).

"Damnit Bird!" she cried, shaking him by the collar. "Where have you been?! How dare you run off on me like that- you RAT! You BASTARD!"

Bird looked as if he were about to say something, but Lulu shot off again.

"We had it ALL bird- ALL! Fame! Fortune! Passion! Lust! A record deal! A MOVIE deal! All of Hollywood at our feet! And you- You left me at the prom, standing there like an idiot, waiting for you to show. Cameras flashing- paparizi shouting and tailing me. GOD that was so embarrassing!"

Lulu thought she heard voices behind her. The others had clearly entered the establishment and could probably hear her shouting. Frankly, she didn''t care.

"And then you didn't even call! Just a stupid postcard from Mexico.

And WHY Bird? WHY? So you could settle HERE? In this stupid town and run a stupid restaurant? You were a ROCKSTAR- and now you're nothing! What's here that could possibly lure you away from me? ME!"

Again Bird opened his mouth as if to say something.

"Oh Shut Up!" Lulu interjected. Seizing him forcefully by the collar, she yanked him melodramatically close. The kiss was full of sound and fury.

<font color="#776446" size="1">[ March 01, 2003 11:27 AM: Message edited by: Lulu ]</font>

[Firebird98]

Bird didn't know what hurt worse, the lump on the back of his head, Lu's nails digging into his neck, or his shoulder bent the wrong way from landing. Either way, groggy as he was, he knew that he was sharing his first kiss with Lulu in over 2 years, and he wasn't about to say anything.

Not like he could, anyway, after she had told him numerous times to shut up even though he was just trying to cry for help. Man his shoulder was killing him, and he could feel the blood dripping down from his neck. She had gotten him pretty good. Bird never heard her sneaking up on him, which was odd, because if memory served him correct, Lulu could never ever be silent, no matter what they were doing. Oh, the memories of police noise complaints came rushing back to him, standing outside her mansion door in bath robes or whatever they could gather at the time to tell the cops there was no domestic dispute, just a little playtime going on...

His shoulder seered with pain as she jerked him up to kiss him harder. A tiny yelp was lost in the frantic impromptu make out session. Her tongue danced over his, and as soon as it started, it was over. His head again clashed with the floor, in which he finally manged to get out a quick.. "Ow... jesus" with out being told to shut up.

"Why.." she screamed at him, "did you just leave me there alone!!" For a second he thought she was going to hit him.

"Lulu, I'll tell you why." He winced. It was killing him to talk more than he thought it was going to.

"You better tell me, and make it good."

"Ok, I will, but get mt to a doctor first. I think you broke my skull."

[Lulu]

"Bird? Bird!" Lulu cried in alarm.

"Ohhh," the Bird moaned, "I'm in SUCH pain!" He was clearly milking the moment for all that it was worth. He knew how it was with Lulu.

"Oh God Bird! I'm Sorry! I forgive you- I do! Just hang in there baby. Are you in much pain?"

"The pain- oh the pain!"

"Ok. Ok Bird. I'm gonna get you to a doctor. Then you can explain yourself. (And I swear, it better be good!)" Lulu looked frantically around. Then in her typically effective style, she shouted out to anyone withing earshot: "911! Someone call a doctor! Help!"

Sprawled across the heap of garbage bags, his head cradled in Lulu's lap, the Firebird groaned loudly, pitifully and melodramatically.

[Firebird98]

The call was made, the medics were en route... time for Bird to lay it on thick. One way or another, he was gonna weasel one more kiss out of Lulu.

The crowd had gathered, and Bird saw many faces he'd seen over the past week up close for the first time. He didn't pay attention to them, only Lulu, who rocked back and forth cradling his head in her lap. He groaned every now and then, a bit much, but his head was killing him, so he juiced it up for extra comfort.

Soon after the ambulance arrived, he told the paramedics that Lulu MUST go with him, and after much protest and a threat of getting off the stretcher and wlaking his damn self to the hospital, they obliged and Lulu hopped into the back with him, hand in his, still worried that she has scrambled his brain a tad much. Love did make you do the dumbest things, but getting smacked in the head with a steel cutting board was his idea of above and beyind the call of duty.

Luckily, she did not fracture his skull, as the x-rays pointed out, but he was gonna have a knot and a half on his noggin for a few days. They were keeping him in overnight (per his insistance) and once they wheeled him to his room, he got comfy and waited for Lu to get there. She had gone to get some coffee or something, he pretended not to remember. The aspirin was doing wonders for his pain. So he "nodded off" while waiting for her to return.

"bird?" her voice was soft and forgiving. He didn't stir. "Bird?" she nudged his leg. That caused him to twitch his hand and he look ed up at her, "blinking" his eyes open. "yeah, I'm here," he said in his groggiest spmeone-just-knocked-me-out voice.

"I'm sorry, Bird. I just don't know what to say." Was that a tear in her eye?

"Lu, it's okay, babe. I understand." Bird winced and adjusted his head. "You owed me that, because I left you. I had that one coming."

"No, I didn't mean to hurt you. I... I couldn't do that to you.. unless, unless I still cared." Yep, that was a tear.

"But you don't know why I left you at the prom... I never told you that. I've been hiding it for all this time, and I could never tell you."

"You can tell me now" she said, squeezing his hand a little tighter.

Bird turned his head to the side, cleared his throat, and began.

"I never told you that even though I was out of the army, I was still involved with the special operations program. I had been even before I met you. All those times I said I was going out of town to get you shows and concert bookings, I was out in the jungles somewhere doing things you didn't hear about on CNN." He faced her, to see the tears more clearly now. It didn't make him feel better.

"The night of the prom, I was all dressed and ready to go, was about to grab my keys to pick you up when the phone rang. It was Spec Ops Command, and they had a mission for me. I had to accept, there was no way out of it. So I went on the job, and didn't tell you, just like I never told you about the other ones, because I knew it was best that you didn't know. That postcard from Mexico was something I sent you, thinking you'd know I was ok, but you took it as I left you. But I couldn't Lu... I didn't want to hurt you, because..." he took a deep breath... " i still love you."

Lu looked down at him, with tears in his own eyes. She leaned down to kiss him before announcing that she would tell everyone he was okay. Lulu waved goodbye to him, and as the door closed, Bird asked himself a simple question...

Instead of that whopping lie he just told her, why couldn't he just come out and admit he got his johnson stuck in his fly?

<font color="#776446" size="1">[ March 09, 2003 01:35 AM: Message edited by: Firebird98 ]</font>

[Miral]

Miral, Larim and Crazy stood at the backdoor of 'Bird's bar as the ambulance drove away. La gave Miral a dirty look and slinked inside. Crazy followed La, not giving Miral much of a glance. Miral, crossed her arms and sat at the bar and ate a couple of peanuts. She was tired and hungry. She was about to get up and try to talk to Crazy when a bright shiny white piece of paper caught her eye. The way it lay under the table she could tell it wasn't placed there. La and Crazy stared at her as she reached under the table and pulled out a photograph.
She stared at it. Her mouth a perfect "O" of shock. "You two will not believe this, but Lulu, you La, 'Bird and I have a death threat out on us."
La and Crazy looked over Miral's shoulder at a photo that was obviously PhotoShop enhanced. It was a picture of Lulu, La and Miral hugging each other as 'Bird waved from behind them. You could tell that it was from their high school days and that they were a little more carefree and young. The addition of their guts spilling out and the fact that they all looked like rotting corpses made the picture grotesque. Above their heads on the marquee was 3:15.
"I have a funny feeling that in either a few days we will be dead... or a few hours." Miral's voice broke the strange silence.
"Well, it looks like we are going to have to hurry then." Crazy snatched the picture and put it in his coat pocket.

[Lulu]

Lulu zipped up her black leather jacket as she exited the bright and bustling, santized halls of the hospital. It a cold,windy night.

Outside of the Bird's immediate influence, his strange power to render her giddy and lovestruck faded. Lulu gathered her senses enough to register that she was alone, out on the darkened streets. Her old rock-star instincts for self preservation took over.

She slipped on the shades (again) [img]cool.gif[/img]

"No one will recognize me now!" She thought smugly.

Once more safe from screaming fans (ok- so like, where WERE all the screaming fans?), having a little more difficulty seeing than before, Lulu headed back in the direction of the bar.

(15 minutes later)
The buses had long stopped running, and no cabs were responding to her calls. The walk was proving longer than she had anticipated.

Just then, a familiar car rounded the corner. Her old benefactress! Lulu considered flagging Brandiflakes down for a ride. Maybe she could get those photos back in the meantime...