Prompt 278-Facial Hair

Do you like or have facial hair?

Todd grimaced at the tray of processed nutrient bars and protein supplements disguised as pudding. He knew they would provide his body the tools it needed to rebuild him from the inside, but they tasted awful. What he wouldn’t give for a real meal. Like a greasy cheeseburger with a side of fries smothered in mayonnaise.

Fae’s doctors were the best on the planet, not least because they had insane tech that could mend broken bones in days or regrow torn muscles in hours. They lamented their rudimentary machines at the base, though. They claimed the facilities on the home world were even more sophisticated. If they still had access to the Empress’s ship, they could have healed his wounds in hours.

He still would have had to eat the dense energy packs though. He sighed.

“Just eat it and get it over with,” Ash said without looking up from the magazine she was reading.

Apparently it was her turn to enforce his meals. As if he needed mothering. “You try eating these tasteless chunks of plastic every meal for a week and see if you don’t start to dream of juicy burgers instead.” Not that Ash would ever dream of eating meat.

“I just make sure not to get a hole blown in me while I drive my getaway vehicle off a cliff.” She shot a glare at him over the top of her zine. It was for some rifle company or another. She was always shopping for new accessories for her baby. “And if I did cause myself bodily harm after disobeying direct orders to retreat, I certainly wouldn’t gripe about the food I was given to recover after the doctors saved my life.”

Todd took a large bite out of one of the bars and chewed it for an eternity. She may as well have stood over him and physically shoved it in his mouth. They were the same age, but with her scolding he felt half that and like she was an older sister who would punish him if he didn’t do as she said. He thought about reminding her who was the leader of the Todd Squad, but he knew good sense when he heard it and chose not to fight her on it.

The door whispered open to admit the other members of his team as several crumbs from the bar dribbled onto his chin and got caught in his stubble. “Lookin’ scruffy there, King,” Cari teased.

“Thought I’d try for the rugged rogue look,” he said, flashing the most devilish smirk he could conjure. He’d been out for a week after they rescued him and he hadn’t had an opportunity to shave since he was well enough to sit up on his own.

“You certainly look roguish,” Deidre laughed. “It’s not as impressive as Diesel’s beard though,” she added with a sigh. Ash rolled her eyes and returned to her catalogue.

Vaughn nodded sagely as he stroked his full beard with theatric affect. “A beard this majestic is not for all men,” he said.

Todd absently scratched the patchy fuzz on his chin. His father had worn a mustache in his younger days, but Todd had never succeeded in growing one. He had never had the opportunity to grow a real beard either, not with the war and all. The Mosari did not wear facial hair. He wasn’t actually sure if they even grew it. At least, not the Imperials.

He leaned forward to catch Tarathiel’s eye in the bed next to his. “What do you think, Tar?” He struck a pose with his thumb and forefinger framing his chin as he flashed another grin. “I’d look pretty dashing with a beard, wouldn’t you agree?”

Tar frowned at him quizzically. “Are you not already?”

Cari laughed at Todd’s stunned expression. “Smooth, E.T.!”

Tar turned his curious expression on her. “I do not understand, Boomer. Did I say something funny?”

“Nah, you’re alright,” she giggled. Deidre was hiding a grin behind her fist.

Todd sighed as he ripped off another bite of the nutrient bar. Tar was brilliant in many ways, but he still had a lot to learn about humans.

Notes: Oh look, the Todd Squad is back. I figured I could write a short scene for this prompt with a guy shaving his beard or debating growing one out etc., and then I got thinking about my own characters and what sort of facial hair they might have. It occurred to me that I didn’t really have any bearded or mustachioed characters, so I decided to give Todd some growth and see how he reacted to it. I wasn’t really expecting to learn these little bits about the other characters (like Ash being at least a vegetarian, possibly even vegan) but that’s the fun of sitting down and throwing your characters into a scene to see what happens.

I have so many ideas for this crew and this world, but I’ve got to narrow them down. I’ve been watching Gundam SEED: Destiny again the last few weeks and it really makes me want to write a mecha sci-fi story, though I don’t even know where to begin. Part of me wants to turn this conflict into a giant robot/mobile suit war, but we’ll see how long that idea sticks around.

I like facial hair on my husband. His goatee makes him look slightly older and more mature. He shaved it off for Movember a couple years ago and I could not deal with the babyface. He shaved ten years off with the beard and Chris Hansen appeared in my room to shame me for preying on a minor. He has not been allowed to completely shave the beard since. (Not that I would stop him if he really wanted to, of course. I’m not actually a monster.)

Well tomorrow is a holiday and I get the day off! It’s gonna be a weird couple days. But I’m going to see the new Spiderman tomorrow so there’s that. I’ll have another post for you in the evening as usual. Until then, stay safe! Have fun! Don’t die! G’nite!

PS-Like these prompts? Like the short stories I write based on these prompts? Want to show your support? Give the blog a follow! Leave a comment! Buy me a coffee! I put a lot of time and effort into these posts and your support means the world to me! Ok, now go out there and write!