Welcome to Hickstead, home to both Seven Oak Stables, and Blue Acre - two rival stables. Both offer opportunities for their clients to reach the highest level of excellence. Each stable differs from the other, so choose wisely and never forget, loyalty is everything... Meanwhile as the stables battle it out, there's trouble brewing at the university. Be careful, if you don't pick a side you may get caught in the cross-fire...
This is an chilled out rpg with a super friendly and relaxed atmosphere! Remember to sign up with your characters full name in all caps and don't forget to do your claims! Thank you and Welcome, we've been established since 10th March 2009 but unfortunately have had to close guest view of our boards due to multiple sites ripping off our hard work, such a shame! Come chat to us in Discord before joining if you like!.
his bike dropped to the ground beneath him with a clatter as he jumped off it, leaving it where it was on the pavement outside the building as he ran barefoot through the doors. his mind was going a million miles an hour, not stopping or letting him form a solid thought beyond the fact that nash couldn't stand to look at him. it kept going around and around in his head. why do you have to look so much like her? stop being like her. did it make sense? not really but it was what his mind was stuck on. it had hurt when his brother had said it but his mind was making it worse. if nash felt that way did every one else? did his brothers hate looking at his face? did his father? did they resent having to look at him day in and day out when they didn't have their mother? was it a constant reminder of her? it had to be. they had to hate him. they just had to. he'd never felt this kind of panic before, that he could be the cause of pain for his brothers and it had sent him spiraling.
he'd ran from the house in what he'd been sleeping in, shorts and a shirt and he hadn't thought about shoes or anything before he'd grabbed his bike from the front lawn and started riding away from the house he'd once felt so safe in. as he reached derek's door he lifted a hand up and he thumped his fist against it loudly, not even thinking once that it was late at night and derek and the people that lived next to him were probably asleep. he ran his hands through his hair as he waited, his eyes trained on the door handle to see if it would start turning when he had a sudden thought, or fresh fear flash through his head. derek would feel the same. he'd just run from home so he couldn't hurt his family anymore and here he was waiting for derek to open the door to a face that looked just like their mothers. he won't want to see you. you heard nash, it hurts to look at you the voice inside his head screamed and he backed away from the door, turning to run away from it just as the handle turned.
Derek had had a long day. One of those dreadfully long days that made it hard to want to do anything more at the end of it than just go straight to bed, still clothed and all. He'd worked the graveyard shift as a doorman, but then gone to the gym instead of bed as he had an early 8am tattoo appointment that would take most of the day. Some people would have chosen sleep, but Derek knew sometimes it was better to soldier on and sleep when he was dead. Okay bit dramatic, but to at least sleep after the day rather than have two hours and be groggy. He had been downing coffee so fast he felt it would have been easy just to inject straight to the vein, but it had worked. Somehow he'd managed to finish the tattoo to his usual high standard of work and the client was pleased. But the long day and the hard concentration had taken a lot out of him.
He'd attempted to stay at the parlor and get some concept sketches done for his newest client who was due to get her ink completed next month but everything he'd tried had been sloppy and not to his liking. In the end he'd given up, swinging by Starbucks on his way home to grab yet another coffee and a quick bite to eat. There was no chance he'd be making dinner when he got back. He'd just about managed to wolf down the sandwich and get in the shower before crashing on the sofa with the TV blaring. His own fault, he'd thought that he should try and make it a couple more hours before bed but his brain had had other ideas.
He woke to the pounding of the door, Netflix having paused mid series to ask if he wanted to continue, his phone left uncharged on the table had now died, completely disoriented as to what time it was or where he was for a moment. He rubbed his eyes and sat up, groaning at the crick in his neck, a hand moving to rub at the tension sat there. Stupid. He should have just gone to bed. At first he thought he'd imagined the banging but when it came again he frowned, sleep immediately forgotten. It was late enough for it to be dark, which meant it was too late for someone to be knocking at his door. Especially like that. Covering a yawn, he checked he'd at least remembered to put joggers and a shirt on before he opened the door. "Crev?" confusion at first, until he looked the boy over and saw the bare feet, the state of undress and the wild look in his eyes. "What's happened?" Because something had always happened.
he hadn't been quick enough, the door had opened as he had turned to run away from the door and he froze on the spot, his eyes wide as he looked at his brother. it took him a second before he looked away, turning his face from derek as he stood there on the spot, his finger nails picking at his arm nervously. what did he say? how could he say it? he didn't even know how to start because he hadn't been thinking when he'd rocked up on derek's doorstep. he should have gone elsewhere, anywhere that meant someone from his family wasn't waiting on the other side of the door. someone that wasn't going to have to open the door to see a reminder of their mother's face. "nothing." he managed to breath out through a tense jaw. it wasn't nothing, he knew that derak would see that it wasn't nothing, but crev didn't know how to tell him. he knew he was still breathing fast, he could feel his hear pounding in his chest so hard and fast he felt that it was about to burst out of his chest. he had to leave, he had to get out of there in case derek thought the same way as link. if link hated him, that meant everyone else might to. "i'm sorry." he said as he kept picking at his arm, his nails sharp enough to start causing grazes on his arm that were slowly starting to bleed but he didn't notice it. "i didn't know .." he kept looking away from his brother, his gaze on the floor or the wall next to his brother. "there was nowhere else to go."
Derek frowned as he saw his brother about to turn away, "were you really about to turn tail and run?" He asked, somewhat incredulous about the behaviour, "after beating down the door like a madman on the run?" His voice was a little gruff, still only just awake. He rubbed his eyes roughly, though the cold chill of the night air was enough to help give him a slap in the face. "nothing." Derek's frown deepened, almost becoming a scowl in confusion. "What do you mean nothing?" He asked, because there was no other logical reason for his brother to be here now, at this hour, looking as agitated as he did. Something had to be wrong. Shaking his head, he stepped out of the doorway, offering space for Crev to enter. "Come inside, it's freezing." Derek's bare feet were starting to go numb, and it was too late in the evening for him to handle it.
"i'm sorry. i didn't know .. there was nowhere else to go." Derek sighed, waiting for Crev to come in before he closed the door behind him. "Don't need to be sorry, Crev, you can always come here." and he meant it to - unlike when people offered it for the sake of saying the words. He would welcome any or all of his brothers here.. well.. perhaps Keith might need to persuade him a little, but they were still blood and it was drilled in Derek that he would take them all in if something awful happened. Even Keith. "Do you want something to eat?" He asked, heading into the kitchen and switching on the kettle. He was at least getting Crev a hot chocolate, and himself a coffee - he didn't even offer the kid the choice. He wasn't going to give him caffeine at this time of night, or his age, and he needed something hot inside him. It would help steady his nerves too. Something had upset the kid, and Derek needed to know what exactly had happened. Once he'd finished getting it all together, he plunked down a hot mug of chocolate infront of Crev, taking a swig of his own coffee. "Sorry no marshmellows." He apologised.
he didn't think there was a point in trying to argue that he wasn't going to run away. derek had caught him with his back to the door and it was hard to argue with that point. but running away had seemed an easier than choice than asking his brother the question he wanted to ask him. he really hadn't had a plan when he had taken off from home, he'd just come to the one place he knew that the door would open for him, he hadn't thought about what was going to happen once the door opened. he scrubbed one of his hands across his face and shook his head in response to his brother. the words weren't working for him at the moment, his usually reliable to the end voice was letting him down, the lump in his throat thick and his heart was trying to pound out of his chest, that was all he could think about, let alone form words to come out of his mouth.
he stepped into his brothers apartment and the warm air inside made goosebumps jump on his arms and he only just realized how cold he'd really been feeling. he shivered slightly and rubbed his bare arms lightly. he might not have found the words to say yet, but his brain had rationalized that it was somewhere safe and the pounding in his chest started to slow, the world not as scary to him as it had been a moment ago. it was because he was with his big brother, no one had ever made him feel safer in his life, apart from his mother and he probably needed that right now. especially after what nash had told him.
all he could do was shake his head when derek asked if he was hungry, but he followed him into the kitchen, slipping into one of the chairs at the table. he still couldn't find the words to say, couldn't make his mouth or his brain work together and he knew that it was going to worry derek. crev had never had a day in his life since he'd started to talking that he'd been silent, he could talk the ears off anyone and he usually did unless he was asleep. he sat there without a word as his brother made them drinks, wrapping his cold hands around the warmth of the cup when it was put in front of him and he stared at the swirling milk and chocolate for a moment before his brain seemed to jump start and without lifting his eyes from the cup. "do you hate the fact i look like mum too?" he was unable to help the tears that sprung into his eyes as he asked.
