Mad w o r l d .:.o p e n.:.

[Chuck Talon]

' ' bring your secrets to me , ,

[/i][/right]

The graveyard was quiet at night, especially at 1 in the morning. Sometimes you'd hear whistling in the wind if you listened closely enough, or crickets chirping in the forest. Tonight, though, it was completely silent except for the quiet crying of a small, red haired 17 year-old known as Chuck Talon, sitting in front of the gravestone of her recently deceased twin sister, Becky Talon. Chuck used to be a happy girl, always giggling and making new friends. Since Becky's death, everything in Chuck's world just didn't look the same.

Chuck couldn't sleep anymore, which was why she often found herself visiting the grave of her sister. It was only 2 weeks ago that Becky had been alive and well, and the sisters were just going to a party with some friends. Neither one had a drink, both were completely sober, and yet, they were the ones who had to suffer for other people acting stupid. It just wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that Becky's life was so short, and it wasn't fair that Chuck had to go through life without the person whom she'd known her entire life, starting in the womb.

Chuck reached a hand up to gently skim her sister's name engraved on the stone. Feeling her eyes tear up even more, she quickly took her hand away to wipe her eyes. She shook her head. It just wasn't fair. Sighing, Chuck leaned against the side of the gravestone, tempted to fall asleep there. She'd been found sleeping in the graveyard within the past week, and her parents were convinced that she was sleep walking. She wasn't. Her emotional problems went far deeper than that. Chuck pulled her hoodie tighter around her, trying to keep herself warm as she kept an eye peeled.[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Ansel Gillis]

Ansel had to be insane, completely and totally insane. He was wondering the graveyard in the middle of the night. Not that he really had anything better to do when he was going through a phase of insomnia. Not to mention, when it came to ghosts, graveyards were pretty quiet, very few sightings were ever seen in them. But every now and again, you could find them, which was what Ansel was actually trying to avoid. But, his apartment that night had seemed... cramped. So, he packed up his laptop, a couple other items, and a flashlight. After a short walk he found himself in the almost pitch black graveyard, the only real lighting being that of the moon.

He walked inward, shining his flashlight in random directions keeping his eye out for ghosts. He hated it when they just popped up on him, and wanted to be a little prepared for it. So far, nothing, he was thankful. Finding a place to settle, he sat down, angling his flashlight on the grave he was sitting by to shine on what he was doing. He opened the laptop and turned it on, once the light from the screen was bright enough, he flipped off the flashlight, then pulled out a web cam. He removed the flashlight and replaced it with the web cam, plugging it in. He liked to see what was going on around him, and a web cam was one of the best ways to do it.

Ansel looked at his computer screen, opening a website he was coding, glancing now and again at the web cam picture. He stared at it, frowning slightly. "What's that?" he whispered to himself. He reached up and shifted the camera, zooming it in on what had caught his attention. There was someone laying against a gravestone. There was no strange aura coming from them so surely... they were alive? With the camera zoomed on the figure, Ansel gave a long and loud whistle, just to see if they reacted.

[Chuck Talon]

' ' bring your secrets to me , ,

[/i][/right]

Chuck sighed, trying to calm herself down. Since Becky died, Chuck had collapsed. Why couldn't it have been her? Why was it her twin? Becky just hadn't deserved to die. Chuck closed her eyes, leaning more against the gravestone. She jumped when she saw a flashlight and heard a whistle a second later. She straighted herself up, glancing around when her eyes landed on a guy probably older than her. Great. Chuck was sure he was a nice person probably, but she didn't want anyone to see her like this. Not even the ghost of her sister. At least she wasn't the only one who wandered the graveyard at unGodly hours of the night.

Shaking slightly, Chuck raised a hand to take the hood off of her head and give the guy a small wave. She tried to wipe her face off as best as possible. She noticed the camera that the guy was holding. Ugh. The last thing she wanted was for someone to be zoomed in on her face. She probably had mascara smeared all around her bloodshot eyes. She squinted, trying to get a better view of whoever it was. They had a laptop out as well. She couldn't help but wonder what he was doing out here at this hour, but she didn't have much room to talk. [/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Ansel Gillis]

A smirk spread across his lips as the girl removed her hood and gave his camera a small wave. We'll at least she wasn't dead. He shifted the camera again, zooming for a moment, but couldn't recognize the face. He pulled down the camera and set it on top of the keyboard before grabbing his flash light. He flicked it on, and stood, shaking the grass off the butt of his jeans before walking in the direction of the girl.

Normally, he doubted he would have even of bothered to approach her, but they were both alone in the dark graveyard... maybe she wanted company? Then again, she had probably come to get away from everyone and everything. Oh well, if she didn't want his company, she could tell him to f-off or something of the sort, he wouldn't take offense.

Ansel stopped several feet from her so as not to take up any of her space, keeping his flashlight on the ground. He wasn't one to blind people with light beams. Quietly, he placed his free hand in the pocket of his baggy jeans then spoke. "Do you come here often... at night?" Wow, amazing. He was the best conversation starter in the world, ever. Once he realized the words that had slipped through his lips, he hoped that she didn't think he was hitting on her... that could end up making their meeting short and awkward.

[Chuck Talon]

' ' bring your secrets to me , ,

[/i][/right]

Chuck straightened up a bit more as she saw the guy get up and start walking towards her. It made her a bit nervous, to be honest. Then again, everything made her paranoid at this time of night, even before Becky died. Chuck had to admit, she could use the company. Even if it was someone whom she didn't know. At this point, any company that didn't judge her was acceptable. Chuck cracked a grin at the boy's question. She actually smiled, something she hadn't done in weeks.

Chuck shook her head. "Not...really, no," she said quietly, her voice quivering a bit. She really only visited the graveyard during the day, but she'd snuck out to visit it at night a few times. This was one of those few times. Chuck looked upwards, trying to figure out who this guy was. He didn't look too familiar. He was probably a few years older or had already graduated or something. Though, she didn't think she'd ever seen this guy before in her life. Not even passing him on the streets. Springdale was pretty small, so everyone sort of knew each other. He must've been relatively new to the town.

"Do you?" Chuck asked back quietly, looking upwards again as she shivered slightly. [/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Ansel Gillis]

Ansel nodded at her response. Not many people visited graveyards at night... except apparently Ansel and this girl. He smiled, well there was two people who did. When she asked him the question back, he made a small 'hmm' sound before shaking his head. "Nope. Only when I'm going through a spout of insomnia." He gave a small shrug. "Graveyards are... quiet. Not much to distract you..." he trailed off, his thoughts going in a completely different direction then his words wanted to go.

Apparently, there was a distraction in the graveyard that night though. And it came in the form of a girl who seemed... sad, and slightly curious about him. Then again, seeing as she looked completely unfamiliar, she was just trying to figure out who the heck he was... or at least that's how he was going to take her curiosity. Giving a small shrug to his own thoughts, he let his dard blue eyes fall back to the girl.

"Can I sit here?" he questioned, pulling his hand out of his pocket and pointing to the ground. "I don't want to impose on your... solitude of anything like that..." he fell silent and gave another shrug for his own benefit.

[Chuck Talon]

' ' bring your secrets to me , ,

[/i][/right]

Chuck nodded. She definitely knew what it was like to not be able to sleep, hence whey she was where she was at the moment. She winced at his second statement. There was a lot to distract her at a graveyard. Like the gravestone that she was leaning against: the closest she could get to her sister ever again. Graveyards were quiet, though, she had to admit. Though almost anything would be an improvement to the silence. So she was glad that he was talking to her.

Chuck looked at the ground momentarily, letting her mind wander. She glanced back up when the boy asked to sit with her. "I could use the company," Chuck said, giving the boy a small, shaky smile. She figured that he must've sensed that she wasn't just here on a whim. Most people didn't generally pick a random gravestone to fall asleep on. "I'm Chuck," she said quietly.[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Ansel Gillis]

Ansel gave a small nod before taking a couple steps closer to her and sat down on the slowly dampening grass. He let his legs stretch out before him momentarily before pulling them under him cross-legged style. He flicked off his flashlight and set it beside him as she said his name. He gave a small chuckle at her name, though not in a rude way. Chuck just seemed like an out of place name to him, then again, it could just be a nickname. "Ansel," was his response, a smile lingering on his lips.

It was the last thing he had expected really, coming to the graveyard in the middle of the night to have a conversation with someone named 'Chuck' but it was definitely and interesting turn of events, and way better then attempting to work out codes for some website. He glanced toward the grave she was resting on, cocking his head to the side once again. "A friend?" he asked quietly, giving a small nod toward the grave.

[Chuck Talon]

' ' bring your secrets to me , ,

[/i][/right]

Chuck smirked a bit at Ansel's slight chuckle at her nickname. "Short for Charlotte," she explained, shrugging. Charlotte never really fit. There were a few who called her 'Charlie', but it was mostly just family members. Charlie was more of a pet-name. She nodded at Ansel's brief introduction, watching as he sat down across from her.

Chuck looked at the ground as Ansel nodded at the gravestone, asking if it was a friend of her's. She felt her eyes go a bit watery. The last thing she wanted to do was cry in front of someone whom she'd just met in a graveyard. She held her tears back, nodding briefly. "Um...my sister," she managed to get out. It was hard enough to say that her sister had died, let alone her twin. That was just too much to get out. She took a deep breath. "Twin, sister," she said quietly, closing her eyes as she brushed her bangs out of her face.[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Ansel Gillis]

There was hesitation from Chuck when it came to the topic of the grave. And Ansel found out why when she told him it was her sister, and twin no less. He sucked in a breath through his teeth as if in pain. He felt like saying he was sorry, but he'd been there before. No matter how many times people said 'I'm so sorry' about his mother, it didn't change the fact that she was gone. So, Ansel kept his sympathy and pity to himself.

Ansel stretched out now, letting his legs stretch in front of him before resting back on his elbows. He crossed his ankles and shook his head. "I lost my mother about six years ago. I think I cried for about two weeks straight, locked myself in my room too. It was probably the hardest thing ever losing her. So, I guess you can say I've sorta been there... but a twin... that's gotta burn deeper." He studied the girl in front of him, then looked at the gravestone. Chuck apparently wasn't even close to over her sister memory, then again, she probably never would be either.

Biting his bottom lip, Ansel felt the urge to help the girl out. You know, sorta bring her out of the shell and cage she was locking herself in. And yes, she was doing just that, otherwise she wouldn't be in a graveyard at her twins grave at one am. So, with another nod toward the grave, he asked a question, "what was she like?"

[Chuck Talon]

' ' bring your secrets to me , ,

[/i][/right]

Chuck listened, her eyes closed as Ansel talked about his mother dying. She couldn't imagine losing a parent. She was experiencing a great loss as well, but it was different. It was just hard for her to accept that the person whom she'd always been around since she was born was really gone. So many times in the past week or two, Chuck had gone into the room that they once shared, sat on her bed and waited for Becky to come home from work or hanging out at a friend's house, but she never did.

"It's just...hard," she managed to choke out. "We always hung out together, we were always with each other," she said, keeping her eyes closed tightly. She took a deep breath, trying to think of how to describe her sister. "We're...were, a lot alike..." she started, wincing at the use of past tense. "She was always more outgoing than me...she always had more friends. She introduced me to all of them, though," she said. It was true; if it weren't for Becky, Chuck would've probably been a complete loner. "She was just...a really great person," she said quietly, sighing sadly. It was comforting, to have someone there listening to her. Her parents had sent her to a therapist after Becky died, but if anything that just made things worse because she felt like she was being forced into talking about it. She felt okay talking about Becky's death to Ansel, though, even though they'd just met. He seemed to know where she was coming from.

"I just really miss her," Chuck said, her voice cracking slightly. When Becky died, it was like she took half of Chuck with her. The good half. The half that went to parties and laughed and made jokes. What was left was the quiet, reserved, solemn part of her that just couldn't seem to smile anymore.[/blockquote][/blockquote]