Recent content by Professor Arvel Ayers

Arvel raised a hand, lowered it, raised it again, scratched his forehead, and then finally knocked on Geo's door. Cradled in the other arm was a carton of orange juice, which was the only thing he'd been able to scavenge from the kitchens at short notice, and which, in hindsight, was probably a...

Arvel didn't know what to say to that. He'd never written to his own dad, but... that was different. Zennon actually cared about Finley. It wasn't unreasonable to want him to reply. Even so, it was pretty optimistic. Maybe there were kids out there who enjoyed writing letters, but Arvel had...

At first, Arvel had been opposed to Zennon turning up whenever he felt like it. More often than not, Arvel spent his days off lounging around the flat in his pyjamas, usually with a big pile of dirty dishes in the sink. Zennon probably wouldn’t have cared much about either of these things, but...

Date

Arvel almost laughed. It wasn't funny, really, but the blitheness with which Finley had betrayed his dad made it hard not to smile. Besides, it wasn't true, was it? Zennon had a busy social life. People were drawn to him, always had been; he had that kind, welcoming sort of aura that made people...

10/10 SHE'S SO CUTE :wub: it's perfect for her

Arvel didn't think for long before he nodded. In the time it took Zennon to go back to his apartment, collect Finley, and return, he was sure he could get the place cleaned up. It wasn't exactly what he'd imagined, but maybe it would be good for all of them; Arvel was a lot less inclined to mope...

Arvel cracked half a smile - only half, in case it wasn't a joke. Sometimes, the only way he could tell was by looking to see if the other person was smiling, but even that wasn't always a reliable indicator; people had a strange habit, he'd noticed, of smiling while talking about something sad...

Arvel shrugged. In hindsight, laughing was probably the best way Zennon could have reacted. It was nothing Arvel didn't deserve, anyway, after the things he'd said and done. He looked back down at the table. It was his turn to listen, and he did so with a growing mixture of relief and...

And then it clicked. Zennon had come to see if he was all right. For a moment, Arvel just stood there, silently processing this improbable revelation. Someone had to be at the bottom of people’s priorities, and most of the time, that someone was Arvel. It didn’t surprise him any more. It had...

When Arvel opened his eyes again, his bedroom was dark. He squinted at the clock, which advised him the hour was six, but the instinct which told him whether it was six in the morning or six in the evening was missing. Typically, he fell asleep darkness and woke up in the middle of the day...

St Mungo's Hospital never slept, but it did occasionally close its eyes. Arvel stood by the window in the empty break room, listening to the rumble of the plumbing and looking out at the dark harbour below. His shift had finished fifteen minutes ago, but he often found peace in moments like...

Arvel looked at Zennon, help me written in bold all over his face. What was he supposed to do? Pat the girl on the head like a dog? Push her off? Fortunately, before he had to make that decision, Nia released him, tottering off to subject Zennon to the same embarrassment. Kids. What did she even...

Arvel was trying to give the girl his full attention, but he was obviously distracted. He'd never seen Zennon like this before. No, that wasn't true - Zennon had always been kind and considerate. It was the warped lens through which Arvel had for many years viewed him which made him seem cold...

Friends? Zennon didn't want to be Arvel's friend. Zennon just took pity on people who were feeling overwhelmed; that much became clearer by the second. Any chance of real friendship had sunk years ago - and since dragging it up from the depths would require Arvel to turn his thoughts and...