forum Stronger than Some // Roleplay with Crocs

Started November 01, 2019 by Deleted user

tune

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"And then…?" he asked. Anger began to boil in his chest once again at the mentioning of the guy's name,b ut it didn't show at all in his body language.

“He stabbed me, took off my clothes, and did exactly what you think he did.” She said, jaw clenching for a split second. “That was my favorite shirt. Covered in blood, had to toss it.”

"Did you tell Rico? Silas, maybe?" Raymond asked, forcing the rage down even harder. Getting mad would do nothing for her.

“O’ course not.” I didn’t want to deal with the idea of them treating me differently. She hadn’t wanted to drive them away, to ruin what she’d worked so hard to build. “I dealt with it.”

"That is the dumbest shit ever." He let all of the frustration out, but put it towards a different target. "Why? 'Cause you gotta be 'strong?' That isn't strength. That's just stupidity. You seem to think that it's your responsibility to walk around like this wounded soldier who has too much to do to let themselves heal when that isn't the case. Everyone needs help. They need to vent. They need to tell someone what's wrong and they need to let someone help fix it. Why is that so hard for you?"

Khione stilled, eyes focused not on his face but on the space next to it, as though looking him in the eyes was something she couldn't handle. She was quiet after he stopped talking, setting aside the icecream to wrap her arms around herself. "'Cause the last two people I ever told any of my problems to, are dead." She sounded so hollow saying that. "And because, in this case, I didn' wanna watch anyone walk away. Didn't wanna lose anyone again. He told me nobody'd believe me, that they'd call me a liar and leave."

"You think I'd l-?!" then he stopped. He had left. 2 years ago The last thing he had said to her before getting on the bus to college was, "I'll call you when I get there." Not even goodbye. Then she watched every single one of his games, probably waiting for a next or a phone call afterwords that never came. Even now, if he hadn't needed help, she wouldn't even be here. He would have never talked to her again.

"I did leave," he said softly, looking down at his feet. All at once, the rage inside of him rushed out, filled instead with a devilish concoction of guilt, shame, and sadness.

"Yeah." She finally did look at him then, deflating from her tension filled, straight backed posture. Into something less sure. "I worked so hard t' keep everyone around me safe and….around me. To keep from losin' 'em. I kept my secrets t' keep them from pullin' everythin' apart, and I took on everyone else's. And then you left. You left anyway, and I was so-I was fuckin' scared, Ray. That if I suddenly dropped that bomb, that everyone would leave, that my family wouldn't believe me. Sleeping with a Panther. That's another one o' my nightmares. Where tha's what everyone thinks, where I'm a liar and a traitor. And then I lose them, too."

Raymond felt speechless. What was he supposed to say? Sorry for adding to your list of nightmares? My bad for betraying your trust and leaving you in the dust? None of that would help. In fact it feels like he just made the situation even worse for her. So, instead of speaking, he did something else.

He pushed off the counter, walked over to her, and wrapped her up in a gentle hug. It was literally the first time he'd ever given her a hug in the 6 years of knowing her. She had offered many times, but all were turned down.

Khione froze. A hug had been the absolute last thing she'd expected, especially from Raymond, who never accepted any offer of a hug. He hated contact, even more than he hated emotions. Was he sick?

Either way, she found herself wrapping her arms around him in return, pressing her face to his chest as she took a shaky breath. She wasn't going to cry, at least. Just accept the comfort while she could. The knowledge that even if he had left, at least they were trying to make things right again.

(It would be more pressing her face against his chest)

"I won't leave again," he promised softly, his voice seeming to vibrate his chest. "I was stupid to do it before. It won't happen again."

((fair point))

What she wanted to say, 'it was stupid of me to expect you to stay', wasn't what she said. Instead, she made herself believe it, told herself that he was telling the truth. "I couldn't stop you, and I wouldn't. But please, don't leave this time."

"I won't," he repeated, his hug growing a bit tighter before he released her and stepped back. "I guess that's why I offered you this job. To keep you around again."

She shifted, placing her hands on the counter and nodding once. "I'm glad you did. I-I'm also glad you called me, of all people. And I hope we do make it work this time."

"We will," he said, slipping his hands into his pockets and scrunching his shoulders up slightly. "Your ice cream's melting."

“Right. Ice cream. Least now the freezer burn’ll have chilled a bit.” She said, pulling the tub towards her again to continue eating.

Raymond shrugged, moving back to where he was standing before. "I don't have it all that often, so it just kinda sits there. Do you mind if I go back to bed?"

“Go ahead. Get some more sleep.” Khione said, glancing up at him for a moment. “Sorry to wake you up. Tried not to, but…”

"It's fine, it's fine," he said, pushing off of the counter. "I think it was something we needed."

Raymond began to walk towards the exit, but turned around at the doorframe and said, "Goodnight."

“Night, Ray. Hope your dreams are better than mine.” Khione said, an almost soft undertone to her voice as she lifted the spoon in a wave. “See ya in the mornin’ mornin’.”

He gave her an awkward wave before continuing upstairs, his footsteps slapping gently against the stairs After a few more moments, a door closed and the house went still

Raymond walked down the stairs at four o'clock, his hair an absolute mess and his eyes still slightly glossy from sleep. This was the time he literally always woke up. It was like a natural alarm clock that was implanted into his head when he was a baby. He looked around the living room, wondering if Khione had stayed down here for the night.

Khione was already up.

And of all things, she was making breakfast. A pair of earbuds were plugged into her phone, which was tucked into her pocket. And she was dancing. Focused entirely on the eggs she was cooking, a pan of bacon sizzled on the burner next to it, while she bobbed around to the music in her ears, looking at peace considering last night's events. She didn't notice Raymond at first, too focused to, and only caught sight of him as she turned around to search for something to flip the bacon with. She pulled one earbud from her ear, arching a brow at him. "Mornin'. You sleep alright after…the whole thing last night?"