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 Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 5:41 pm
Gaius's brows furrowed together. He listened intently, frown deepening as he watched Nita.
"No, no, you're not a liar!" The chair scraped on the floor as he scooted closer. "Don't call yourself that... Hell... I'm sorry Nita..." He gave a sad shake of his head, wondering what to do. "If you were a guy, I'd offer to take you to a bar or out to see a game... I'm sorry, I don't know...."
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 5:59 pm
Nita sighed and went back to staring at Comet's head. "I guess it's what they call sins of omission. Not really lying but... not telling her things, either." She sniffed, willing herself not to cry.
"It was just... Awful." Nita gulped. "I'm sorry. I haven't really talked to anyone yet."
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 6:42 pm
Gaius shifted in his seat, unsure of what to do. He didn't want to upset Nita, but she was so obviously upset...
"I'm sorry, Nita..." He sat hovering, his knees a couple inches from hers. "...I can go if you want..."
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 6:54 pm
"No," Nita said, reaching out to hold Gaius' hoofed hand. "Please don't go." Her voice was just above a whisper. Nita's other hand went to her face, the palm digging against first one eye, then the other. "I'm sorry..."
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 6:59 pm
His hand closed around hers as gently as he could manage, and he shifted over completely from chair to the bed beside her. There was no intent to impress or to 'get an edge' here. Any inclination of that sort had been obliterated the minute she began sniffling. He wrapped his free arm around her round shoulders, trying to be a support for her as she'd been for him.
"Don't be sorry... You're the one who's hurt. I mean, it's hard to be completely honest with anyone, as much as anyone tries... I'm sure it's not all your fault."
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 7:18 pm
At that point, Nita just needed someone to hold onto. She curled against Gaius' chest, wrapping both arms around him. He was solid, and warm, and comforting.
"I know," she mumbled against him. She concentrated on breathing normally, on not letting herself hyperventilate. "I just... I tried to like the labs. For her. And I just couldn't do it." The words came out jumbled, some slowly, some all in a rush. On the other side of her lap, Comet pressed her head against Nita's leg.
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 7:43 pm
Gaius couldn't help a derisive snort. "I don't think anyone could like the labs. She shouldn't blame you for that. Don't beat yourself up over it."
He squeezed Nita's shoulder lightly, running his hand over her furry arm. It was hard, he wanted to fix it. He didn't know how, he just wanted to, but he knew what Nita needed was just to cry it out.
"You're a wonderful person, don't let her make you think otherwise..."
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 7:54 pm
"But she does!" Nita said in what started out as a whisper and nearly turned into a wail. "She does, and I promised, but I just can't. And she said I was lying to her and trying to turn her into a doll of a girlfriend. What does that even mean, Gaius? I don't even know..."
She finally let herself go, sobbing into Gaius' shirt.
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 8:06 pm
He held her close, wrapping both arms around her.
"Shhh," he shushed gently, "Don't listen to her... she's crazy or something. Hell, trying to turn you to the lab side?" He didn't know what a doll girlfriend was... But he doubted Nita could ever do anything truly horrible to anyone. And regardless, she didn't deserve this distress she was dealing with now. "She doesn't deserve you if she won't accept your opinions..."
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 8:16 pm
"I know, I know," Nita muttered, over and over again. And in her mind, she did know. Although she still felt horribly guilty- not just for letting Lauren down, but for even trying to meet those demands which were, ultimately, against her very nature.
Finally, exhausted, Nita made herself sit up. She kept holding on to one of Gaius' hands; the other wiped her face. Looking at his tear-stained shirt, she began to apologize again. Catching herself, she said, "I got your shirt all wet..." Nita gave him a bleary smile. Her cheek-fur was wet and slightly matted, and her eyes were still teary, but at least her breathing was relatively normal.
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Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2007 9:10 pm
Gaius let her go to wipe Nita's cheeks with the palm of his hand, a gesture he'd adopted since losing tactile sense in his fingertips. He blinked, glancing down at himself, and smirked. "Hey, at least it's not mud. Good thing I did wear one today..."
Looking back up at Nita, he moved his hand to rest under her furry cheek. Still worried about the girl's state of mind, but glad that she seemed to be doing better. "Do you need a tissue or something?"
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Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2007 5:04 pm
Nita smiled a little at the gesture, leaning against Gaius' hand. Her glance flicked down at his chest; she giggled, still sniffing a bit. "And at least I wasn't putting my face in mud!"
She sat still for a moment, continuing to work on her breathing. "I don't think I have tissues, but there's toilet paper in the bathroom." Absently, Nita turned Gaius' free hand over, inspecting the way his fingers had grown together.
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Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2007 5:18 pm
Gaius chuckled, equally glad, since he imagined that mud would be worse for her to clean out with her mass of fur. The laughter died though as she studied the change of his hand. Feeling suddenly self-conscious and ashamed of the undeniably strange state of his fingers. He closed his hand and pulled it from her grip.
"I'll... get you some paper then," he murmured, standing up and going to the bathroom. Inwardly, he berated himself. What'd happened? Somehow he'd let himself get flustered... He took his time unrolling and tearing off pieces of tissue, gathering the pile in his hand. Once he'd re-gathered himself, he went back out to Nita, sitting back on the bed, though he didn't sit as close as he'd been, and offered the toilet paper with an apologetic smile. "Here, you should dry your face."
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Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2007 5:32 pm
Even without any mud, Nita's fur took a long time to wash, dry, and groom. Because she had worn her hair long for most of her life, she was used to taking long showers. Adding fur all over her body, not to mention the floofy tail, only made them worse. At least she didn't pay a water bill.
Nita's mouth twitched into what was, for a fraction of a section, a frown. She had barely realized what she was doing, and certainly never meant to make Gaius uncomfortable. "Thanks," she said quietly.
Apparently the moment (was it even a "moment"?) was over. Nita set to work blotting her eyes and cheeks and blowing her nose. Eventually, a pile of damp tissue sat on the nightstand.
"Thanks," Nita said again. "For... whatever." She shrugged, indicating the room with one shoulder. For coming to see me, for listening, for giving me a hug, for letting me cry all over you.
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Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2007 6:01 pm
"Nah, it's okay, really... I'm always glad to help..." Gaius smiled bashfully, recovering a measure of his assertiveness. Scooting a bit closer, he began picking up the used tissues, gathering them up to throw away, but paused and touched Nita's hand. His cheeks colored pink, but he spoke in a steady voice.
"Listen, if there's anything I can ever do for you... even if it's just provide you with a dry shirt... don't hesitate to call, okay?" He hazarded a glance at her face, worried what she might be thinking, and if she'd really be alright on her own after everything.
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