Flying High - Tagged

[Isla Hudson]

"Dunno, you could spin 'Okra' on the Wheel of Flavors! But tell you what...I'll spin, too, and take what I get."

Once they got to Polly Ann's, she looked up at the big wheel, then took a breath and gave it a spin. "Wish me luck!"

The rapid ticking gradually slowed until the wheel finally stopped on 'caramel salt lick'.

"Oh, not bad!" She gave it another spin, laughing as it landed on a 'free' space. "Oh, look, it's not even going to cost you!" Another spin got 'pink bubble gum' and her nose wrinkled up. Not that she minded the flavor, but..."Bubblegum and caramel?" She looked up at her brother. "Just not a great combo, but a deal is a deal, right?"

Then he was Steven's turn, and he first landed on a 'free' space, all the better, Isla thought, so that left money for the manni-pedis! His flavors were 'kooky dough boy', and she muttered a comment about that being appropriated, and 'espresso'.

"Man...you get all the luck!" She laughed, it really didn't matter much, the ice cream here was great! Well, except maybe for the okra...

"So, um, now that we saved all that money, we can go next door, right? You'll love it, I promise!"

Steven Hudson,

[Steven Hudson]

Well there was dicing with death dangling off a rope and messing with an ice cream order. Steven nodded trying to be relaxed about it but what if it was ‘Okra’ on the wheel or... no there was no point in stressing about it. Once they got to Polly Ann’s he stared at the brightly coloured wheel, yes he would throw himself off a platform but spin a wheel this day was getting more and more daring by the minute for him.

“Good luck.” He said holding his thumbs at her as he ticking slowed and she choice was ‘caramel salt lick’. He wrinkled his nose a little as he nodded encouragingly, he watched the second spin trying to work out what could possibly go with the first choice. “Deal but you know I’d have paid anyway, just to see you eat bubblegum and caramel.” He said grinning wondering what that would even be like.

“Hey, nothing wrong with kooky dough boy, I’d be happy to have that name.” He said laughing as he got espresso, well if he was drinking coffee it was good but coffee ice cream was as close to heaven as a person could get. “I’m one lucky kooky dough boy.” He said grinning as he glanced at Isla the minute she mentioned next door.

“Yeah you’ll love it and sure, I can just sit and wait for you with more ice cream?” He offered grinning as glanced at the ice cream. Since when had he ever done anything like that, his hands and feet were his hands and feet as he was a little nervous about even the prospect of next door. “I’ll even let you have mine and I’ll eat bubblegum and caramel if you want?” Bribery it worked or he hoped it would as he had never been for a manni-pedi ever before.

Isla Hudson,

[Isla Hudson]

Isla shrugged and shook her head. "Nope, deal's a deal, I'll take my punishment of caramel and bubblegum!" Sighing, she grinned. "A mani-pedi would feel soooooo good, and no heights, no screaming, some nice pampering...what's not to like?"

She batted her eyes at him, the way she had since she'd been little. "You know, more brother-sister bonding time, right? You sure you don't want to give it a try? Pleeeeassseee?"

That had worked a lot when she was a kid. Both she and Em had figured out that Big Brother was a push-over when it came to certain things, as much as he was a vicious pit-bull when it came to others -- like sneaking out of the house in 7th grade to go to a party at Misty's house with no adults there...Yeah, Isla had never tried that again!

Steven Hudson

[Steven Hudson]

Steven watched Isla shrug as he realised there was no getting out of this one at all. Hearing her and that coupled with the batted eyes at him, he hated when she did that because honestly how could he refuse anything? “Yeah I’m all for the no heights, no screaming but the pampering... that’s the part that worries me.” He said trying not to cave in then and there. No he had to have some back bone.

It was his baby sister since when was he ever going to say no as he sighed. “Fine... fine you win, I’ll give it a try but only because it’s you and this stays between us alright?” He asked not sure he wanted anyone else finding out he had been near a mani-pedi at all. The one thing he had never been able to do with a few things was stand up to his sisters when the pulled the please card and the eyes.

He knew there had been a lot going on and yes he had been pit-bull like when it came to sneaking out of the house for Misty’s party with no adults. Steven was trying to look after them even if at the time it felt like he was just being that annoying pit-bull that had no fun. The two of them however knew their ways to get around him with ease and he was still unsure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

Isla Hudson,

[Isla Hudson]

"Of course my lips are sealed!" Grinning, Isla pretended to 'lock' her lips and then throw away 'the key', then led the way inside, explaining to the ladies there what they wanted, stressing 'No polish' for her brother. He was game enough to actually agree, but she wasn't going to push it. Besides, he might find that hr liked the pampering, especially when they got to the massage part!

Then she settled back in the big chair and finished her ice cream as the woman worked on her feet before moving up to her hands. Occasionally, she would cast a quick glance at Steven to see how he was taking his treatment, and she managed, under the guise of texting, to get a couple of quick blackmail pictures of big brother, just in case!

"See, this isn't so bad," she declared as the woman working on Steve started massaging his calves.

Steven Hudson

[Steven Hudson]

Steven watched her pretend to ‘lock’ her lips, since when did he ever believe her he wondered as he nodded following her inside. He was about to plead when Isla mentioned the no polish for him, well maybe this was a good idea if he could stick with it. After all there must have been something good about it for Isla to want to do it. He made sure to cling to his ice cream as he followed Isla and settled into one of the big chairs.

This was awkward he thought as he kept his eyes away from his feet, he fought the urge to laugh though he concentrated on his ice cream still as he glanced toward Isla and tried to smile. “Steven watched her texting he assumed, likely Emily having a laugh about him even setting foot in a place like this let along having a stranger touching his feet. This was really a new experience for him.

He started to relax slightly when he felt the person massaging his calves. After the previous days shift it was nice he had to admit as he nodded. “Not that bad, better than I expected. I mean I can see why people spend time doing this.” He said surprised by it but then again if he had walked by he never would have set foot in the place without his sister. “How’s it going over there? Everything okay for you?” He asked Isla wanting to make sure she was okay with everything.

Isla Hudson,

[Isla Hudson]

"Uh huh." Glancing over at him, Isla smiled and nodded. "Looks like you aren't doing too bad yourself." The woman working on her had just finished painting her toenails bright pink and had moved up to her hands.

"Of course, next to a full-out massage, this is pretty nice!" She didn't do the hour massage often, she didn't have the time or money for the most part, but when she did, it was so relaxing and afterward she was relaxed and felt better for days. "Heck, I bet if you played it right you could get the insurance to pay for massages...you know, work out the stress and kinks..."

Then she laughed and shook her head. "I guess if you look at it like that, you could claim coffee as a medication!

Steven Hudson,

[Steven Hudson]

“Well I’m not enjoying it and that is the story I will stick with if anyone asks.” Steven said grinning as he winked at her. He glanced across at her toenails, bright pink well nope he had to draw the line somewhere and he would stick to his pale pink natural coloured toenails in case he had to take his boots off at work. The questions about bright pink toes would be too much for even him to chase off.

“It is nice, guess I should have tried this sooner and if you want the full out massage. We’ve got time if you want?” He offered not so sure he would take part but then so far it had been a lot better than the torture he had first expected it to be. Steven was hardly sure what he thought it would be but this was great compared to the image he had earlier. “Yeah you think? Would take a lot of massage to do that, maybe one a day for the rest of my life.” He said grinning.

“Then again I could do steal my sister away again so it doesn’t look as strange and that way it saves on paperwork.” He offered not exactly sure it was a once a day thing but he was starting to get used to the idea. “Coffee is different. It’s a valid medication; it is also a vitamin and one of your five a day because it’s a bean too. It’s a super food if ever there was one. Sugar too for that matter and it’s what you have to live on when actual food is a pain to transport.” He said though sure his diet was hardly the best but then when sugar and coffee came in containers that rarely spilled, it was a super food.

"Then again you could claim that too, between court and studying you need to relax too." He said knowing that was the reason for the day or at least the reason he had pulled her away from her books for a time. Too much study was never a good thing.

Isla Hudson,

[Isla Hudson]

Isla laughed as she glanced over at him. "Coffee is a bean, so that makes it food? Is that paramedic logic?" It didn't surprise her that her brother would come up with that, he was, after all, a guy, and were pros at justifying what they wanted to do, and Steven had always had a knack for that...'Shade sitting', 'guarding the TV', ice cream is dairy', 'pizza has all the food groups'...

"So, you really will do a massage, too?" It did sound like a good idea, and even though nothing had intellectually changed for her, she was already feeling good about her boards and a little more relaxation wouldn't hurt!

"Sure, if you're willing to do that." Her smile widened, then softened a little as she looked at him, realizing that with work and school they had all, well, not 'drifted apart' so much as just not had the time to get together as much as they had when they were kids. She'd have to make sure they did this more often.

"We'll need to have a family get-together," she declared, "once I'm done with the boards my schedule will settle some..." She shrugged. "I miss that."

Then she laughed again. "You're paying for massages, right? After all, I'm just a starving nursing student!"

Steven Hudson

[Steven Hudson]

Steven gave her a look and nodded, “Its adult logic not just paramedic logic. Beans are food, just as pizza is in the same food group, the whole wheat flour, tomato base thing, leafy greens in herbs. It can be one of your five a day too, same with chocolate. Cocoa bean comes from a plant so maybe a root vegetable but same principle.” He explained grinning at her. His food logic was stretched but then when he hardly had time to sleep on a shift you made do with what was at hand and often healthy was not to hand or just not appealing. An apple after a long shift felt too healthy to him.

“Yes I will but only if you do, besides you’re the one supposed to be relaxing here.” He said though honestly after the day previous and his attempted thirty hours of sleep a message to relax did sound like a fantastic idea. Seeing her smile widen he grinned at her, it was nice to spend time with her again. Between school, his work their time together had been short not like when they were kids as he knew he would need to drag her away more often. It was nice to see her again, to see her smile and of course aid in dragging her away from study.

Steven nodded and agreed about the family get together, it would be nice to have everyone in one place for a change if it could be done. “I miss it too, the get together sounds great. Finally everyone in the one place for a change. Then I get to share the family stories about you when you were only two feet tall.” He said with a grin, so she had been the great little sister though every one of them had their ‘moments’ and the stories on each other.

He rolled his eyes and laughed for a moment, “Can’t have the starving nursing student paying.” He replied grinning, “Of course I’m paying, it’s your day remember besides I did ask you to jump of a tree ledge so it’s only fair besides there’s nothing better than seeing my sister smile.”

Isla Hudson,

[Isla Hudson]

"Oh, you don't have any stories about me when I was two feet tall...or four feet, for that matter!" Isla would have given him a sound smack if her nails weren't freshly painted, but she was grinning. "I was a perfect child, never did anything bad...or silly, or clumsy!"

Of course, they all had dirt on each other, and that was what kept them safe...if one of them wanted to start a 'remember the time', the others could give back in kind.

"So, massages, too? You're the world's greatest brother, you know that!" She knew he enjoyed indulging his sisters, but she'd find a way to make it up to him some time.

"When I pass my boards I'll make us something really good for dinner...and have it served at a fancy restaurant!" She laughed, then stood and thanked the lady who had just finished her nails.

"Look at that!" Proudly, she held up her hands to show her brother. "Now I can be all fancy while I type up peoples' confessions!"

Steven Hudson

[Steven Hudson]

“Oh I do lots and lots of stories. Like the one where you got hold of mum’s nail polish... I remember the cushions changing colour.” He teased though sure they each had their own stories, they had grown up together and it would be naive to think that they would have nothing. “You are the perfect little sister and I still have stories and photo’s too somewhere so if ever you decide to start dating and bring a guy around... there’s a box filled with incriminating images.”

Steven figured that every family had a box like that, the sort of thing that came out on family occasions to embarrass and remember the great times in life when there were little worries and the biggest issues were what was for lunch. Technically that was still his worry most days but there were bigger things to deal with.

“Yeah you’re only saying it because I’m paying.” He teased though it did sound good to him, to be anyone’s greatest brother. “Since you said it though, you the world’s greatest sister just don’t tell Emily I said that.” He said grinning; Steven liked to indulge his sisters it was the least he could do given everything that had happened. If he could do that and they were happy it was all that he could ask for.

“Ooh now you’re talking, really good for dinner and fancy restaurant.” He said grinning as he nodded, “You’re on and you’ve got these boards in the bag. My sisters are the smart ones in the family so passing has never been not an option.” He said confident in her ability, also the fact that he had never seen anyone study as much as she had done for the job so really she had it covered.

Steven looked over to her nails as she proudly held up her hands. “They look lovely and yeah you’ll be the star of the court room but you’ve always been that. The fastest typist I know with awesome nails to boot.” He stated grinning as he looked at his own, they did look better than before but then without a coat of polish which he was glad of escaping they looked more practical than anything.

Isla Hudson,

[Isla Hudson]

"And your hands are as manly as ever!" Isla declared, "They look just like when you decided that the car needed to be 'Star of Life blue' instead of green!" Who would have thought that that shade would come in a spray can! "And don't forget, there is picture evidence of you, too! Like the time you wanted to be 'Tygra' from the Thundecats for Halloween!" It had been before her time, but the photo evidence was there!

And her brother had always been in a lot of trouble from what she recalled, but his intentions had always been good, and that was what she remembered most growing up. "You always made sure we were safe and taken care of."

She knew it had been hard on him and both she and Emily appreciated what he'd done, and was still doing, for them, even if they did resent it sometimes. And they knew he wouldn't have it any other way!

"So...massages. You know you're going to have to get down to your chones, right?" She gave him a teasing grin, mostly because he'd already agreed to it and would be hard-pressed to back out now!



Steven Hudson

[Steven Hudson]

Steven laughed, yes manly and what he was doing hardly went together but he would take it until he heard her talking about the ‘Star of Life Blue’ incident. “Woah woah woah, hold it right there... there’s nothing wrong with ‘Tygra’ from the Thundercats and that was the best Halloween costume ever.” He said as he did his best cat pose, “I admit though the blue...that colour was a bit... well the car was better green so that photo evidence had better disappear or do I need to bribe you more?” He asked not sure he wanted those photos to see the light of day.

There were days he was glad he had younger sisters given that the photo evidence was just their parents doing and one set of photos were enough for a lasting legacy of blackmail. Trouble he swore seemed to find him or he found it but either way he tried. “Yeah well least I could do really, I mean wouldn’t have been a very good brother if I didn’t. Then again I think I’ve a few photos of you in your Halloween costumes... could be something good in those?” He said grinning at her though with Isla he had failed to make sure she was safe when he let the idiot near her but that well there was little he could do to change it even if he wished it.

As the conversation changed to massages he furrowed his brow for a moment before he realised what had just been said. He stared at Isla for a moment seeing her teasing grin as he shook his head. “Wait, what?” He spluttered as he glanced at her. “You mean I can’t just be as I am?” He doubled checked trying to think of any excuse though he was coming up empty given he had said he would.

Isla Hudson,

[Isla Hudson]

“Wait, what?” He spluttered as he glanced at her. “You mean I can’t just be as I am?”

"Oh, heavens, no!" She laughed. "You'll scare them enough as it is! But then, maybe you'd be more scary without...you know...clothes..." Well, he'd still have some, but...she was teasing anyway, although the joke was usually on her, since she just got flustered and embarrassed.

"Anyway, don't do anything embarrassing, like farting or whatever...please!" She looked at him with a grin then stepped into the shop. As awkward as your first massage was, she was pretty sure he'd be hooked on them, it worked the knots out of muscles and relaxed your body, and with the sort of work he did, it could really be therapeutic.

"Good luck," she told him when the ladies came to escort them to their rooms. She kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, behave your self, enjoy and I'll see you in a bit! So demanding!"

Giggling, she rolled her eyes, then followed her therapist.

Steven Hudson,