Forever

[Wig_Powder]

This is allergy, because a certain set of people told me writing outside my comfort zone can be very deterring! (Thank you for that price of advice, BTW)

Forgive me if I've misunderstood what you're saying, but while I agree that it's scary to write out of your comfort zone, it is good to try every once in a while, because it allows you to experiment with styles and the like and to grow as a writer. Obviously, this is fluffy fetish fic, so you can write whatever you want, but please don't be deterred from writing other scenarios if you feel like trying them out. You never know unless you try, after all.

Back on topic (man, I feel like I'm spamming this place; sorry for being annoying, everyone!), I like that Henry's sort of just resigned himself to his allergies at this point while still trying to work through them. And succeeding, for the most part. Good thing the detective's there to look out for him, though.

[Orb]

Yeah, that is a good thing. This next one takes place about two weeks after, so I don't mess up the time line by forgetting.

Jo walked into his study, a manilla folder in hand.

"Suspect profile. I'm working on getting an arrest warrant, but we've got to get him in for questioning." Henry opened the folder, peering at her warily.

"Felix Martinez?"

"It's not a joke; That's the guy we traced the shoe prints on. It took a while, but we got a hit in CODIS."

"But he's got the same last name as-"

"Me, I know! But I don't know the guy, okay? Now come on before I use that scarf of yours for a lash to drag you out of here."

"Alright, alright!" Chuckling, Henry stood and followed her out to the car.

The cold, dark house cast a thick, inky shadow over the road. It was in the middle of the forest, the middle of October, and the middle of the ominous gravel road leading out of New York City.

"Shouldn't have taken the night shift." Jo murmered, stepping out of the vehicle.

"You can say that again." Henry stared at the home. A cat watched him from the window, green eyes piercing his own brown ones.

"Oh, wonderful. A black cat." Jo said, drawing her sidearm and climbing the steps.

"What's wrong with it?" Henry beat her to it, looking inside the glass peephole.

"Get behind me, you dumbass!" The Detective barked. Henry balked and backed away shyly, studying the gun.

"Now, shuddup so we can apprehend this bastard like real cops."

"But I'm not a police officer. I'm a scientist-"

"Put a scarf in it!" She grabbed his arms and pulled him aside, behind a a corner in the porch. The wooden door creaked open,make a surly voice called out.

"Who the hell's out there! I got a loaded Maverick 88 with your name all o'er it!"

Jo squinted and peered around the corner, just to see the door slam shut again. "Come on. Around to the back." Henry nodded and stood.

She opened the gate, and looked around. "Where'd you go?' Henry was gone.

"Behind here!" He was crouched behind a thick bush, with lavender colored flowers and long leaves.

"Get up! This guy doesn't know wer'e here, and he can't find out just yet-shit."

"What?" He pulled her down nest to him and Jo in turn pulled Henry to his feet. "Get away from there! You moron! That's lilac!" She snarled. In the darkness, Henry's face paled.

"Huh-chht! Why didn't you tell me?" He groaned, sniffing.

"You are the one who can tell when someone's lying just by listening to their voic.e you're the one who can tell if someone has had plastic surgery. You tell me, oh, Mighty Minded One." She snapped. The door frames open.

"Listen up! You bastards stay the hell off my property! Ya' here!" Jo whipped her pistol up and fired it into the air.

"NYPD! Put your hands up!" She yelled, starting for the door. Henry, followed, stifling two more sneezes and trying to look as menacing as possible.

Not that he could, being a grown man with no gun, old-fashioned clothes, and a red scarf to boot.

"Who's that guy, some World War Two veteran?" The man, now identifiable by his ear peircings, was clearly Felix Martinez. And a loaded shotgun swung from his grasp.

"Look, this isn't an arrest, we just want to... Huh-Xxsght!' Henry's head twisted and he sneezed into the darkness behind him.

Felix smirked, and raised his shotgun, waving it wildly. Jo froze in place, and aimed at his foot. Henry put up his fists and took up a boxer's stance, which made her want to laugh at how funny and out of place he looked.

"You do realize wev'e got you surrounded. S.W.A.T officers are in the trees, in the car."

"I only see one!" Felix's eye diliberatly twitched.

"Huh-Xxsght! Well, then don't look behind you," Henry said, nodding slightly to Jo.

"What?" He looked behind him, and the pair seized the opportunity to jump him, cuffing the man's hands together. "I'm innocent! I swear!" Felix looked frantic.

"You're not going to jail, Martinez. We just want to talk." Jo said, and together she and Henry hauled him to his feet and to the car, slamming the door shut.

"You, Henry, need to stop going into fits like this when I try to work with you!" She stated him on the arm and pulled out both the gravel-encrusted driveway.

"I didn't know...... Huh-Xxsght! Huh-Xxsght!' He sneezed three more times in quick succession. She patted his arm and laughed, thinking of the fighter's stance he had taken at the house.

"What's so-Huh-Xxsght! What's so funny?" He asked, looking at her.

"Did you used to box?"

"No."

"Where'd you learn that position?"

He sneezed and snifled, rubbing his nose. "You will laugh when I tell you. It happens 100% of the time."

"Oh, come on, it can't be that bad...." Jo teased, giving a drunk driver the bird and heading for the station.

"Actually...." Henry sucked in a breath and sighed, then his breath hitched suddenly and he sneezed loudly again. "Huh-Chht! Jackie Chan."

"Wow. Henry Morgan watched that movie. So much for being a scientist."

"Hey!"

I could do a few more, cause I've got different ideas to use. Did anyone like that?

[Shay]

That was fun. I laughed so much at Henry trying to look menacing and the whole boxer's stance thing. If you want to keep writing I'll keep reading.

[Orb]

Glad you enjoyed. I saw episode three yesterday-I thought the beginning part was really funny.

[Shay]

Oh geez. Refresh my memory. I did watch that episode but I can't remember what happened right at the beginning.

[Orb]

If you are not into spoilers do not look; I'm telling someone what happened because they asked. Don't believe me? Look above this comment.

In the middle of rush hour Henry went out into the middle of the street and Jo was following, basically hailing down cars and apologizing for his carelessness. <- That was my favorite part.

[Shay]

Oh right that was funny. BTW you can edit your post to use spoiler tags if you want. Just enclose the spoiler text with [ spoiler ] and [ /spoiler ] but without the spaces. This is what it will look like.

The part I thought was the funniest was when he started sniffing the pavement.

Though you're still pending so I'm not entirely sure if you can edit your posts, but you can always ask as staff member to if it's important, though I don't think the part you mentioned really reveals anything about the plot of the show, so it should be fine.

[Orb]

Thanks! I'll see if I can, you do this, right?

Then the comment? Sorry to bother you! :/

[Shay]

It looks like you put the spoiler tags in properly, and yeah you put the comment you want to hide between the start and end spoiler tags.

[Orb]

Thanks for that little bit of help and here's part two!

Henry stood in the back, guarding the door with another man. Jo sat across from Felix, and Felix, in turn, was a bundle of nerves. He constantly tugged his cuffs and looking around.

"We'll ask you again, Martinez. Was there anyone else involved in the bust?" She asked him.

"Why should I tell you, eh?" He snarled. "You're all idiots." Henry snifled. It was getting harder and harder to hold the building sneeze at bay. And the officer next to him certainly wasn't of any help, with the too strong cologne. Jo grinned.

"Okay. We'll sit here all night if we have to." At this, he nearly groaned. All night, fighting the allergy he had, and still not getting a wink of sleep?

"Fine by me."

"You do realize," Henry butted in, hoping to distract himself from his rather unfortunate plight, "That with-holding information will only allow for more suspicion to be aroused."

"Good to know." Felix replied, staring at Jo. His mouth peeled back, revealing long, yellowed teeth. "You're sure damn pretty."

"Look, I don't know what your problem is, but all we wanted to do was ask you some questions. Anything you say won't be held against you and if we have to go to court for this, then I'll-"

"Huh-Xxsght!" Henry gave in and turned his back to them, sneezing for what felt like eternity. The gaurd next to him gave him a dirty look.

"Yeah; see? Your stupid college can't even hold his tongue." He laughed, leaning forward. "I'll tell you what you want to know, sexy, but only for a night alone with you."

Henry, held her arms behind her back as Jo lunged across the table. "Don't blow it. You'll only get fined." He whispered, both because of the effort it took and because of the fact that he was fighting another sneeze.

"He's trying to woo me, you moron!" She snapped. "Don't you realize that?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do, and if it helps you feel better....." His breath hitched and he sneezed harshly into his arm. "I am quite jealous. Now, all we need is to know who else was there and an alibi. Then we can let him go, report in, and our shifts will be over.

Jo relaxed, but not before pulling her tazer out and setting it where Felix could see.The man groaned in mock agony.

"Falling for another man. How classic. Well, the offer stands." He chuckled and looked them both in the eye. "I'll tell you what you need to know, but on one condition."

"Name it. But not unless you try to screw me." Jo growled. He held up his cuffed hands.

"Hey, men are desperate, what can we say?"

"Huh-Xxght! Huh-Xxsght!" Henry leaned against the wall and unleashed two more sneezes into his arm. Everyone in the room turned to him.

"Bless you." The Detecive said, turning back to Felix.

"I want to make a phone call."

"Done."

Apparently the date Abe had over was going to have to wait.

"Hello?' He picked up the old-fashioned phone, knowing his father was there.

"Don't pick me up tonight."

"Well, what happened?"

"Long story. Huh'chht!"

"Bless you. I have time, you know. Marriette was coming over, but I canceled because I thought you had died again."

"Let's just say a captive fooled us."

This shocked Abraham. "Excuse me? Fooled you? You, of all people?"

"Yes, me. And the Detective. And Lucas. And Joanna." He sounded irritated.

"How?"

"Huh... Huh-Xxsght!" Henry stifled a sneeze into the back of his wrist and began. "A man named Felix asked to make a call in exchange for some information. Apparently he made more than one."

"He called up two?"

"Uh-no, he called in the whole gang. I currently have the good fortune of hiding in the morgue. So do the others, and we are safe for the time being."

"The morgue? What about the bathroom or something?" Abe was scared for his father, but was always comforted by the fact that he could come back alive, just the same that he always was, just naked. "I'm heading there! Stay put!" He said, reaching for his car keys.

"Abraham, no! Huh'chht! There are people out the with guns! I don't want to lose anyone else!" Henry barked sharply. Abe was shocked by the steel in his adopted father's voice. He knew what he was referring to, his past marriages.

"Look, this is one death I don't want to happen. We'll have to flee somewhere else if your'e shot." Abraham slammed the phone down, and raced up the stairs as fast as his legs would take him, to get the loaded .44 Magnum he knew Henry kept in his drawer. Opening it, he reached down and felt, beyond the scientific tools and papers, the cold, hard metal of the gun.

And he knew what he must do.

"Henry, keep it down!" Joanna whispered, ducking down behind a desk as two heavily armed gangsters walked by, flashing grenades.

"I'm trying, Liuetinent!" He said, trying to recall Abe and tell him to get on with his date. He couldn't allow his adopted son to die.

"Well, try harder!" His nose wrinkled and he sneezed into his arm, to lud for comfort.

"What the hell was that?" Felix asked, his orange jumpsuit and loaded USP. 45 -given to him by his friend- winked in the darkness. The men had forced a technician to shut down the power supply, leaving the whole facility dark and quiet, both the hiding staff members and the gangsters. One shined his flashlight behind the examination table.

The gun went off.

Jo suppressed a scream.

[Shay]

Wow, that part was really great, and jeez, you just had to end on a cliffhanger didn't you?

[Orb]

Don't worry, I'll write more in a few minutes And I felt that was the proper time to end it off, because Henry has gotten himself into a bit of a fix with his allergies. And now we have Abraham in there, too. That part didn't have as much sneezing as I'd have liked it to, but that's okay-there'll be time for more

[Shay]

I thought it had plenty of sneezing. Certainly more than the last part I wrote of my fic. I really like the way you write his sneezing though. It just makes me imagine him trying to contain it as much as possible but not really succeeding.

[Orb]

Glad you think so! Anyway, here's part 3 in the Drug Murder case, as in my mind, I imagine them calling it......

The bullet pinged off the tile floors, leaving a dent in the cool, icy surface. Everyone who was in hiding let out a breath-and wondered where Henry went. Felix shrugged.

"Musta been a rat or sumphin'."

He turned and walked slowly out of the room, gesturing for his friends to follow him. "Les' go check with the others. They might have found a worker who knows this place. Oh-" He paused and looked back, scanning the room one last time. "There's one guy who wears old clothes and he's got some kinda allergy. Kill him if you find him. One bullet through the brain. I don't care how it's done, actually. Just get rid o' him. Then we have Sexy-You'll know her when you see her. Don't shoot that one."

They left, and a muffled, "Huh-Xxsght!" Slipped through the darkness.

Jo never felt so happy to hear the strange young man sneeze in her life.

"Never go in there again." Henry slid out from behind the bookshelf, rubbing his nose and sledding his phone into his coat pocket. Without hesitating, the Detective, left her hiding spot and embraced him, just as he sneezed again.

"You are a smart man! How'd you know he was going to shoot you?" She whispered. Lucas and Joanna hadn't realized they were hugging each other in fear, and let go, straightening their clothes out and emerging from behind the desk.

"I didn't-that's were I was beforehand. Abe is coming... Huh... Hurushoo!" He twisted away and sneezed, as quietly as he could. Jo boxed him on the arm and drew her sidearm, looking outside the shattered glass wall.

"Never scare the hell outta me like that again. You have a death wish, Henry Morgan, that I swear-with every single fiber of my being."

"Technically, the human body isn't made up of-" Lucus began. Joanna silenced him with a glare.

"Anyone ask you, kid?"

"What? No, I was just saying-"

"Shuddup."

Henry sniffed and rubbed his nose, slightly annoyed that he had been behind the bush two hours ago, and he was still sneezing.

Maybe it's the ragweed, he thought to himself, Or that officer's cologne. Jo, pressed something hard into his hand and he looked at it.

The tazer.

"What's this for?"

"I will not have a near heart attack again because you have a weird allergy. If someone points a gun at you, aim for between the legs." Jo instructed, peering around the corner of the metal frame.

"Need I remind you how painful that is-"

"Have you been tazed there before?"

"Actually, I have, and it will hurt for days afterward-"

"TMI." The Lieutinent snorted and started for the door, after Jo. "You men."

"And you women...." Lucas muttered, coming up beside Henry. He sneezed into his arm, followed by three more. Lucas looked at him.

"How often have you sneezed tonight?"

"Too often. Let's go." Henry followed the women,looking into the darkness anxiously.

Abraham, where are you? He wondered.

In truth, Abe had had no intention to use the gun, let alone shoot a guy in the face with it. In hindsight, he wanted to go back and apologize, but the guy was dead. Now all he had to focus on was finding Henry and his coworkers. In a building so gang tight he had to sneak in through a window. In the back. Over to trash cans filled with a substance that reeked of chemicals and trash. Next to an old hobo fortress where someone kept practically screaming; "I'm walking on sunshine!" Times ten.

Hauling himself up, Abe staggered into a room that he knew served as the morgue. A dent pierced the floor next to a bookshelf some had hastily shoved their for cover, but was three feet wide and seven feet high. And on wheels. Next to the wall, Abe could see where his

father had been hiding, but he didn't know it. He crept from the glass wall, and crashed into someone.

"Huh-Xxsght! I have a tazer!" Henry's voice whispered sharply, and he felt cold metal press into his chin.

"Dad?" Abe asked carefully, touching the hand holding it. The metal fell away and two strong arms wrapped around his shoulders, embracing him tightly.

"Thank God. I though I would actually have to use this thing." His father said against his shoulder. He backed up suddenly, and sneezed into his arm. "Huh'chht! And Abraham Morgan, if you ever do anything like that again, I will..... I have not a clue. But it will be bad!" Henry snifled and gestured into the inky blackness. "The Detective and the others are over there. And Jo told me to taze you where it would... Fester for days, so to speak." Abe winced, recalling the time his father had come home after dying, nearly incoherent with pain at being tazed where no man should.

"Hey, no hard feelings. Where'd you say they were?" He asked, squinting. Henry pointed again.

"Just follow...... Huh...Huh-Xxght! Huh-Xxsht! Huh'chht!" His adopted father's head snapped forward, accompanied by three sharp sneezes. "Just follow me." He sniffed and stepped away, heading for the main office. Shots rang out suddenly, ripping apart the peaceful quiet. Both men balked and froze, weapons up. "Did you bring the pistol?"

"Yeah, I'll go alone, unarmed, into a group of angry, weaponized men. Yeah, I brought the damn pistol, what do you think I am, a Simpleton?" Abe murmered, flashing the gun.

"Don't curse at me. Jo and the others may need help. Come on!" Henry sneezed and sprinted into the blackness, cutting a path of brown and red for him to follow.

Better to see him in ridiculous colors, than to see him dead, Abe thought, trailing his strange father.

Henry and his son arrived at the office, the scene of a battlefield. Joanna and Lucas were crouched in a corner, applying CPR to a man going into cardiac arrest. Jo and several others-including the cologne bathed one- fired upon gangsters armed with G36Cs, AK-47s, ACR .68s, and MP5s. Henry immediately went to help Lucas and Joanna, but they looked up and shook their head. Gone. Damn it, he faced death every day, and while he didn't yet want to so badly, he wasn't able to join their ranks. And soon Abraham would slip to them, too.......

"Huh-Xxsght!" His nose had other ideas, to distract him fro his secondary worries. Swapping the tazer for his .44, Henry felt much better to be away from that Tool of Manly Pain. He crouched next to Jo, and asked if police backup had arrived.

"They have. Thing is, these are sneaky bastards we're dealing with. They barred everything up and even used the Virus Containment Protocol.

"Ah, well. Unfortunate things happen." How snifled to alleviate the growing itch in his nose again, but to no avail.

"Yeah, no kidding." Jo aimed over the barricade formed by toppled dissection tables, and fired, taking out a man in orange..... Felix Martinez. As he fell, the gangsters noted their leader was gone, and fled the scene through the windows. The only issue was, Henry noted, was that the office they were in was on the third story.

"Detective, could you-" Henry turned to Jo, about to ask if she could tell him why the officers couldn't blow down the doors, when a sneeze caught him completely off-gaurd. Thing was, Jo's face was in the line of fire.

"Henry!" She flinched, wiping her face with her hands. He gaped, unable to form the words to apologize. Great, now his chances with her were ruined. And because of his own stupidity, too! But, she laughed. Abraham sat next to him, and tossed the taxes at the Detective.

"Here, take it."

"Why did you-" Henry turned and froze. As did everyone else in the room.

Lucas was lying on the floor, convulsing and clutching between his legs. Joanna was beside herself with laughter, and horrified, he looked at Abe.

"What the hell did you do?!"

"Uh, what did he do. He was about to cut him open."

"Because-if....You-can't-save.....Him-With-CPR,-try.... To-get-an-IV....Into-him,-you-moron!" Lucas said through gritted teeth, gasps, and shudders.

"Huh'ccht!Huh-Xxght! Yky do realize this could have cost me my job, Abraham." Henry grunted, cuffing his shoulder.

"Oh, hell no, I've been waiting to see that happen to one of you forever, now." Joanna smirked and laughed, as did everyone else in the room.

Henry cringed at the use of the word 'forever'.

What do we think? Each story I write should have no less than two parts, and that was fun to write I enjoyed coming up with ideas for it.

And by the way, anyone who has an idea on an allergy scenario, post it and I'll see what I can do to make it happen.

[Shay]

Yay, another great part. So glad no one was hurt by that cliffhanger gunshot. But poor Lucas.

As for allergy scenarios, well there are definitely a few I'd like to see, but I'm planning to use them in my own story, so I guess I probably shouldn't state them here. Not that it would be horrible if we both wrote about the same triggers, it's probably unavoidable at some point, but still. I just say surprise us. I think it would be fun if he was allergic to something really obscure and unusual that just happened to come up in an investigation. I'm just not going to try too hard to think of anything specific, because if I do, I'll want to use it myself.

[Orb]

Hey, no sweat! Those are your ideas and while it may be inevitable sometimes, I've had someone at school completely rip off a series I wrote. I was so mad.... Anyway, I could write some each day.

[Shay]

Yeah I'm surprised/impressed at how fast you write. Though one thing that slows me down is I'm very meticulous about my writing and I read over what I wrote a few times before posting, checking for errors or to make sure everything sounds the way I want it to.

[Orb]

I've always had a gift for writing. I turn in writing reports to my teacher the day after she assigned them, and they'd be of high quality, too. Thing is:If you have the scenario in your head, let your hands do the work. I write on my tablet-that's why sometimes there are words that don't make sense because I have spell check. And I am flattered you think so

[Shay]

Yeah I have noticed some stuff like that in your writing, but I didn't want to say anything. I figured I'd cut you some slack because you're young(I hope that doesn't sound too condescending), but the actual content of the story is what's important. Also impressed that you do your writing on your tablet. I find it cumbersome just to write a simple email on my tablet. I guess I'm just too used to using all of my fingers to type.

Anyway, with me it's easy to see the scenes in my head, but I'm not always the best at translating the images in my head into the written word. I often have dry spells where I can't write at all for long periods of time, and then I have those rare times where all of a sudden it just seems easy and I'm in the zone and try to take advantage of it as much as possible like write now.

[Orb]

Henry laced his fingers, stood, and stretched, looking around his study. He had been working on a case since midnight last night, identifying the different fibers found under a victim's fingernails the day before. Not as easy as it sounded, when you've been sitting in the exact same position for six hours. Ever since the criminal-Felix Martinez, not to be confused with Jo Martinez-Had been found guilty of murder and discovered hiding in his house since the attack, both he and the rest of the staff had ended up working tirlessly for the next week or so straight, trying to solve yet another crime. This one, however, had been deemed and accident-Death by falling from a building, not all bad if you didn't count the fact that fibers (Of every shape, make, and size) Under her recently manicured nails. A light rap on the door caught Henry's attention and he looked up.

It was Jo. "Lucas says he may have found out where the victim may have lived. And he wants you to come see for yourself." She motioned at the folders on his desk."Find anything?"

"Other than more fibers, no, I did not." Henry shook his head. "People are saying they saw he jump, but it may have been forced, judging by bruises on her arms and legs if she hadn't been-"

"Just go sah 'hello' to your Shrink Squad leader." The Detective said, walking away. Henry sighed. Technically, he was the Shrink Squad leader, and by all means, she had deliberately avoided calling him that. Maybe Lucas had found something bad.

He headed from his office to the lab, raising an eyebrow at Lucas's back.

"The Detective said you found something."

"Whuh-" Lucas jumped back. A microscope was on the table, beside a motionless body. The women was covered from the feet to her chin, but he knew the body had been prepared for placement back into the morgue. Lucas turned to him.

"Scare the hell outta me like that again, and watch how fast I break your nose." He threatened, then looked back at the microscope.

"Well, what was it that you discovered?" Henry patted his friend's shoulder and looked into the small tool's eye piece, not getting what he was looking at.

"What is it?"

"Good question. Some type of pollen mixed with soil and crushed pine leaves."

"But she lived in New York. Here, the closest you get to that is potted plants." He looked up as Jo walked in again, smirking. She had overheard the conversation.

"No, she didn't. She was here on vacation. That sample came from the inside of her shoes."

"So then...."

"Her parents have no idea she's dead-She was only 21, you know. Still lived with 'em."

"What are you getting at?" He glanced up, realizing what she meant. "Oh, no. You know I don't like those kind of situations where-"

"It's either that or go back to your desk for another seven hours until your shift is over. She only lived on the outskirts of Binghamptom. Closer to the Pennsylvania border. Henry groaned. There was pollen in the samples. Now he was going to their place of origin.

"You play a wry game, Detective Martinez."

"Play your cards right and you might win every once in a while."

"This is it?" Henry asked, peering out the window at the picturesque scene before him. A cabin stood before them, and rolling, green hills filled his vision as far as he could see.

He could already feel a sneeze worming its way through his defenses. Jo nodded.

"Yep. Now, the best way to tell family members someone has died is to-"

"Huh-Xxsght!" Henry sneezed sharply into his arm, cutting her off. The Detective, gave him a look, arching her eyebrows.

"Bless you. It's starting isn't it?"

"Shouldn't have dragged me out here." Henry sneezed again, then motioned for her to continue.

"Keep your eyes on them at all times, especially the dad or any large male siblings. Keep your back oriented to the door and be ready to flee with out hurting anyone." She removed the tazer from her car's compartment and pressed it into his hand.

"Exactly why I hate these things. Do you ever care about anyone else's concerns?" He asked jokingly. Jo opened the door and got out of the car. Henry did the same and slipped the tazer into his coat pocket. "Don't you trust people to reign their emotions in?" Jo grinned.

"Well, don't say the wrong thing and you'll be fine. Thing is, you are going to say something scientific, and they'll get angry and say it's not true. That's what you do every time, Dr. Morgan. Every time." She went up the steps of the porch and rang the door bell. A smiling old man opened it, the color draining from his face. He turned and yelled for a women, then allowed them in when Jo told him who they were.

"Do you recognize this women?" Jo pulled an image of the victim, Amy White, from her pocket and showed it to the couple, sitting on the couch. The older lady nodded and buried her face in her husband's arm.

"Yes. She's my daughter." The man bit his lip and accepted the picture.

"She's been...Huh-Chht! Chht!" Henry pitched his nose and his shoulders jerked up, punctuated by a blocky noise grating from his throat.

"What my college means is that she is no longer with us." Jo filled in, shooting a look at him. He sneezed again and snifled, rubbing his nose.

"How did she die?" The man asked.

"That's what we're trying to figure out. We don't know if she killed herself or if someone forced her to end her own life." Henry said, leaning gains the door frame. From her position next to him, on the couch, Jo pinched his knee. Wincing, he grunted.

"Our baby girl would never do that to herself." The dad snarled ferally, holding his wife tighter."Are you advising Amy of suicide?" He demanded.

"No, sir! We just want to know the facts! We'd never accuse her of doing something you know she would'nt do!" Jo jumped in, smiling meekly. So they could see, she pointed to Henry, who was staring at the ceiling, chewing on his lip, and printed to her head, making a vague circling motion.

"HUH-XXSGHT!!" Henry's head then jerked forward, and he stumbled, sneezing loudly and harshly into his arm. Jo looked at him, slightly annoyed. The couple stared. "What?" He asked, righting himself. They shook their heads, and Jo co

[Shay]

I don't know how you expect me to concentrate on my own writing when you keep posting new stuff.

It looks like your post got cut off mid sentence though.

[Orb]

Sorry, I tapped the post button on accident.

..... And Jo continued the interview, asking basic questions such as how old was she, where she went to college, and what she wanted to be when she was older. They answered each one honestly, and she detected something close to annoyance at Henry's allergies.

"Thank you for this, Mr. And Mrs. White. Me and my college appreciate the help." Standing, she grabbed him by the scary and pulled him out the door, forcefully enough that a hailstorm wouldn't stop her. Once the door was shut behind him, Jo had Henry stand next to the car and explain to her why he wasn't buying allergy medicine.

"Why should I waste money on something not even natural?" He asked, splaying his hands. He was about to open the car and get in when Jo lifted the keys and locked it.

"Not a valid answer. Admit it, you don't think you have allergies." She said.

"That's absurd. What I think has nothing to do with my body's physical condition. Now if you'll kindly open the door, please-" His breath began to hitch, and he backed up, rubbing his nose.

"Yeap.You're about to sneeze right now."

He froze in place and shook his head.

"I can see it in your face. Just give it a moment." Jo said, laughing at his later attempt to hold it back. Secretly, she was glad he was trying to prove to her how masculine he was. Or whatever it was that men felt the need to express to women like her.

"There, you see?" He grinned and looked up. Then made the mistake of sniffing.

"Huh......Huh....Hurushoo!" Henry maneuvered his body so it was facing away from her and sneezed at the ground, bringing his hands up to meat his nose as he fell into a fit of sneezing.

Jo watched, slightly amused. Henry was a strange man, and she wasn't in the least bit surprised that he was still trying to prove that he was fine.

"Bless you, sucker." She smiled and unlocked the door as he straightened and gave her a dirty look.

"Did you have to make me stand out here like that?" He muttered, opening the door. Jo walked around to the other side of the car and got in, starting it.

"Well, you seemed eager to prove to me that you were A-okay at the moment, so yeah, had to see if you were lying or not." She looked behind her and backed out.

"I do not have allergies. I just had to sneeze." Henry replied, gazing at her with steely eyes.

"Interesting. Which is why I recall a certain someone pretty much screwing up a family just by sneezing. That caught him of guard, same as the stray itch that pervaded his nose again.

"Huh-Xxsght! Huh-Chht! I did no such thing."

"Yes, you did." She grinned and rescue the main road leading into New York.

Henry's eyes widened, and he looked at her. "And how did I disrupt the family?"

"Mentally scarring them. You should know this. Now every time someone sneezes and it sounds like you, they will think of their daughter."

"Huh-Xxgsht!" He sneezed one last time and stared out the window. "Don't remind me again."

"Uh huh."

That one didn't have any sneezing in the beginning paragraph because I had to explain the story, first. Who liked it?

[Shay]

Oh Henry, how can he still seriously be denying his allergies at this point? Though I kind of like it that he's too stubborn to actually take anything for it. I also liked the image of him being out in a rural area and reacting to the environment out there.

[Orb]

Hey, thanks. Glad you enjoyed that. And if you want to write your own story then please do so, because your'e a good writer, too. That is definately worth taking a break for. One more thing: I do have a tendency to write excecisvly because that is just one of my weird quirks.

[Shay]

I know, I just meant it playfully. I guess I just don't have the willpower to stay away when I get those email notifications of an update. Don't worry, you're not the only thing distracting me right now. So hard to write with company over and people talking loudly.