Colin's posts

Ashley flinched a little, and shrank down some when he saw the spider, but he then nodded.

"...okay." he said further.

"Whatever... whatever works." he told her, as he tried to relax a bit.

"I've been feeling this way for... a bit." he said. "About... I don't know, a week or so?" he guessed.

"Started after I tripped down a small bit of stairs, and has just been getting worse since." he went on.

"Doesn't feel as bad right now, though." he finished, awaiting the spider.

Ashley nodded again.

"All right." he said, as they made their way to the couch and sat down on it. When they did, Ashley fidgeting a little, before sighing heavily.

"I... didn't slip in the pond." he admitted.

"I guess it looked like I did, but... I didn't." he told her.

"I started to get woozy and the world started spinning." he continued.

"...and then the world went black."

Ashley shook his head in response.

"No." he replied.

"I just don't want Lindsay to hear this." he told her.

"So... not out by the water, and preferably while he is bathing." he said further.

"If that's now, that's fine. Otherwise, the next time this situation comes up."

Ashley accepted the package and opened it, looking inside... and being shocked when he saw what was there. Shocked, stunned, and surprised.

"...woah. Shoes!" he said.

"These look so good, and so comfy!" he said further, before looking back at her.

"Thank you! So much." he told her.

He then paused again, looking a little more solemn now.

"Can we talk?" he asked.

She was met with silence for the first few seconds, but before she had a chance to truly start thinking they had left (and before her home spiders could tell her anything), she saw Ashley poke his head around a corner.

"Hi." he greeted her.

"Welcome back." he said.

"Lindsay and I were playing around outside and he fell into some mud. So he's down by the water washing himself and his clothes off." he then explained, to tell her why HE had just responded to the call.

"Wasn't too long ago, either, so he'll be a bit." he then said.

"There was a LOT in his hair."

Ashley nodded in response.

"I gathered that." he said.

"...anyway, I'm going to go and get some more sleep. I feel like I still can sleep. All night, really." he continued, before shaking his head slowly and making his way back into the room he'd previously been in.

"...night, Miss Anya." he told her.

"Please. Just Anya." Anya responded.

"Okay. Good night, Anya." Ashley re-stated.

Ashley looked at the strands of web uneasily, but then nodded.

"All... all right." he said.

"...........I'm sorry." he apologised.

"I'm sorry I acted the way I did." he told her.

"But... I mean... just..." he then stammered further, clearly unsure of how he would say what he wanted to say, before just sighed in defeat, and giving him. He wasn't an eloquent boy.

"I'm sorry."

Ashley was silent again, before nodding.

"I see." he said.

"All right then, thanks for the... warning? I guess?" he said further.

"..." he then looked a little guilty about her comment where she said he had head trauma. He looked away for a moment, and bit his bottom lip.

"I need to tell you something." he admitted. "After my head's not so hazy." he went on.

"...and where Lindsay won't be able to hear it." he then added.

Ashley looked like he was convinced of that, but Anya knew Lindsay was intelligent. He would be smart enough to pick up on perhaps the little holes in her logic... but thankfully, it seemed like he was too tired to think about it too much, and he took it at face value.

"Makes sense." he said. "Good night." he told them.

"Sleep well." Anya replied with a smile and a light chuckle.

"Night." Ashley told him, as his brother disappeared into the room, shutting the door behind him. Ashley then looked to be thinking about something, as though he were confused.

"...why does this place even HAVE bedrooms then?" he asked. "If you don't sleep... why even have a room that even IS a bedroom?" he asked her. "Why not make it something else?"

"This is more than enough." Lindsay told her. "The fact that they're actual rooms, with actual beds, and actual pillows, and actual-" he started to say further, before Ashley interrupted.

"I think she gets it." he said.

"Oh. Right." Lindsay responded.

"I think I'm going to just go to bed, then." he told them. "I am feeling very full and tired." he commented.

"Where do YOU sleep?" Ashley asked Anya.

Ashley paused for a moment, and then nodded very slowly. Deliberately.

"Yeah..." he said.

Lindsay then yawned. Rather loudly.

"I could fall asleep right away." he said, causing Ashley to smile a little.

"Yeah, been a bit since we had a real comfy bed." he admitted.

"Maybe turning in early wouldn't be such a bad idea."

The boys looked at their portions, and then looked at her.

"Good for me!" Lindsay said.

"I like mine as well." Ashley confirmed.

Anya could tell that Ashley was still hiding something though, but Lindsay was oblivious to it. Right now, anyway. However, he also seemed like he wanted to say something, but was holding back.

"Sorry about slipping." he apologised.

"It's okay. You're all right now, and it wasn't your fault." Lindsay insisted.

"I do!" Lindsay responded enthusiastically.

"I do, as well." Ashley said.

"...and yes, that does smell really good." he admitted again, getting to his feet, and making his way towards where Anya was, with Lindsay helping him a little. Once they were there, he looked at her.

"I didn't know you had bear meat here." he commented.

"It goes bad surprisingly quickly.

Ashley nodded in response, before pausing.

"Oh... moving my head hurts..." he mumbled.

"Ashley... are you all right?" Lindsay then asked. "You seemed... off... when we were arguing in the water." he told him. "And it's not like you to have slipped so easily." he went on.

"..." Ashley was silent for a moment, before looking away.

"I'm fine..." he answered quietly.