Aradia finds her "friend" Vriska leaning on her locker after work. The locker doesn't have anything essential: A jacket, some gum, an extra hair tie. Pretty useless stuff. For a brief moment, Aradia considers turning back to use the exit located in the kitchen. Instead, she sighs and proceeds towards the other girl. Vriska is glaring at the clock adjacent to her, and she's too busy mumbling to herself to notice Aradia approaching her.
"Vriska," Aradia calls. Vriska turns her head towards Aradia. Aradia is slightly shocked to see the blonde woman give her a smile. That's… new. Then, as if realizing what she's done, Vriska wipes the smile off her face and frowns.
Aradia crosses her arms and sighs.
"I've been waiting forever!" Vriska complains while raising her arms and stretching her back.
Aradia gives a half-hearted acknowledgement before gesturing at Vriska to step aside. "I didn't tell you to wait for me. Move. I need to put my stuff away."
"Gosh, if this is how you treat your friends I wonder how you treat your enemies!" Vriska says with a shrill laugh. It's unnerving to say that Aradia has become accustomed to Vriska's random visits. And these visits have recently become a frequent event, much to Aradia's displeasure.
"All my friends are dead," Aradia replies angrily. She slams her locker in frustration and only until she stormed off does she realize that she didn't grab her jacket. Whatever, Aradia thinks. The other employees have retreated to the back of the restaurant after closing time so Aradia doesn't need to worry about creating a scene. She stomps out of the small family restaurant into the freezing night.
Aradia can hear Vriska's boots buckling towards her and the Japanese woman suddenly begins to run. She doesn't know where, she doesn't know how far, but Aradia's feet carry her across the dark streets and away from Vriska. She then stops and shakes off the rush of adrenaline in her body.
Aradia looks up and takes in her environment.
Ah, so here she is once again.
Something cold touches her bare shoulder. (She really should have grabbed that damn jacket) And Aradia instinctively flinches. She doesn't need to look to know that Vriska has caught up with her.
"Why do you have to be such an angry bitch all the time?" the blonde woman says in huffs.
"As if you haven't been one yourself," Aradia hisses. She shoves Vriska's arm away and slowly looks up at the building in front of her.
"You know, my friends are dead too," Vriska says weakly. However, Aradia doesn't listen.
She always comes here, if she lets her mind wander.
The abandoned factory building. Popular among dumb teenagers and adrenaline junkies.
Unfortunately.
"God! This is why I hate you! You never talk about it. About them! All you ever fucking do is come here and reminisce or some shit. Are you going to stare at this dumb building for the rest of your life? Hello, Earth to Megido? They're dead!" Vriska yells angrily.
"You acted so high and mighty in high school! 'Oh shit, death doesn't affect me! I'm Aradia. Mother. Fucking. Medigo.' You're so busy saving face to actually talk about your problems huh? Now, look where this has gotten you! All you do is go to work and then come to this building and stare! Do you remember how I've been having to drag you home for the past few months because I've found you here? Does that ring a bell Aradia? Can you even hear me?" Vriska yells with a sob.
But Aradia does not hear her. She does not hear anything.
Her eyes are glazed with despair and her mouth is set to a straight line. She approaches slower, her shoulders shaking. Aradia's mind drips into her haunted memories. At first these memories brought only an ache of regret. But like an ocean, placid, shallow waters become roaring tides and the lingering sensations of regret become an aching sea of remorse.
And as if on auto-pilot Aradia comes back to the scene of her carelessness over and over again.
Vriska continues to shake the crying woman. "God damn girl!" She says harshly. "Get it together," she whispers. Then, Vriska groans and wraps her good arm around Aradia. It's a long trek back to Aradia's apartment complex, and a longer one back to Vriska's.
How did Megido ever survive without her? Vriska shakes her head. She then slowly urges Aradia to step back. Aradia silently complies. Her expression is very jarring, Vriska thinks. Her eyes wet and afraid, but her face is hard and rough.
"It must totally suck to be the only one in the room with a sense of composure, huh, Aradia?"