Your name is Vriska Serket and your best friend is dying.
You were on your way to see her, trying to hold back the tears that desperately wanted to escape, but you couldn't cry, you had to be strong for her. You turned up the music in your car, hoping the music would drown out your thoughts, but that, of course, didn't work all that well. Once you pulled into the parking lot of the hospital you were crying, you gripped the steering wheel as hard as you could, until your knuckles turned white and before you knew it you were screaming, screaming for her, screaming until your throat was raw, words came out of your mouth but they were unclear, a couple stared at you for a few moments, you could see them from the corner of your eye, the pity in their faces were clear as day.
You eventually threw the car door open, not bothering to be gentle, you slammed it shut with carelessness before locking it, you made your way into the hospital, it didn't matter what you looked like, she was blind, cancer had took both of her eyes long ago and now it was taking the rest of her.
A few of the doctors greeted you, you used to be stuck in this place too, you had lost one of your eyes for the same reason as your friend, and this is where you two had met, you both had a mutual pain but now, you had escaped the grip of cancer while she had been dragged back in. You let out a shaky sigh before you entered her room.
Terezi Pyrope was bed ridden, you were unable to pay attention to all of the machinery, all you could see was her and it was like the rest of the world had stopped "Terezi" You said, managing to sound as confident as you usually do.
"Vriska, what a pleasant surprise" Terezi said in a sarcastic manner, but you knew she was grateful for the company, from what you knew, no one else had visited her and that made you so furious that you had to resist the attempt to throw a tantrum when everyone had told you that they wouldn't go, that they couldn't go "Vriska, I can smell your anger in the air, just sit down already" The shorter girl ordered and you had obeyed, placing yourself in the uncomfortable plastic chair by her bed before holding her frail hand in your own, being careful to avoid touching the tube stuck into her hand.
"I'm glad you came, I've missed you" Terezi admitted, making you tear up again
"I came over as soon as I heard about" You paused "This"
"I'm sorry Vriska, I'm sorry for not being strong enough" She said weakly, you were sure if her eyes had been visible you would be able to see her crying.
"Don't say that, it's not your fault Terezi, it was never your fault" You told her, you wanted her to believe it, she had to believe it!
"Do you think I'll be able to see in my next life? I want to be able to see again, Vriska" Terezi had always been a big believer in reincarnation
"You'll have the best vision; you'll get trophies and be known far and wide for your seeing abilities, Terezi Pyrope, the woman who can see everything" You joked, trying to lighten the mood and you giggled along with Terezi, seeing that smile on her face was enough for you, enough to relieve the emotional pain, even if it was just by a little "She will explore the world with Vriska Serket, greatest pirate to ever live! They'll seek out justice everywhere they go, not letting anyone escape" Terezi added and you two laughed more as they relived their childhood, sitting together in a hospital room, speaking of a better life.
You were eventually forced to leave, you could see that Terezi was tired but you didn't want to leave her side but after Terezi told you to leave, you did, without hesitation. You re-enacted your state before you went into the hospital, the visit had ended on the nice side but that didn't stop the tears or the screaming or the shouting, you were angry at yourself, you were angry for letting her go through this alone, you were angry because you couldn't take away the pain!
You don't know when you had managed to drive home, you don't remember, your head still hurts from crying and your throat from screaming and you were curled up in your bed, you don't even know if you locked the door, you were unable to remember, your head felt stuffy and everything was unclear. What time was it? What day was it? Had you slept? These questions hurt your head even more so you decided to roll over and look at the digital clock on your night stand, it was 3AM. You let a small smile come to your lips, this was the time you and Terezi would sneak out and go stargazing, you two had been doing it for years, even when you were both in the hospital, you just seemed to wake up at 3AM whether you like it or not, you wondered if Terezi did too, or if Terezi wanted to continue doing it.
You shook your head, it was too dangerous, and you were worried sick, you would hate yourself if something happened to her because you decided to sneak her out, you curled back up, realising you were still in your jeans and your shoes were still on your feet but you were too sad and too tired to do anything about it, instead you let yourself drift into a sleep that you hoped would be dream –free.
When you woke up you immediately got changed, wasting no time at all, you had to go see Terezi, you reached for your laptop, thinking that you two could flarp for a while but you stopped yourself when you remembered her eyesight, you and Terezi hadn't flarped for years, even when you did her eyes weren't that good and she had trouble seeing the screen which meant she had to get really close to it, which was kind of hilarious but also gross considering she always, somehow managed to get her spit on the screen which you would complain about, even if it wasn't your laptop, when she eventually lost her eyes you two stopped playing, you wondered if you still had any games that were designed for blind people from all those years back, you forced your parents to buy a bunch for you because Terezi was distraught when she found out she was unable to flarp anymore.
You eventually found the games at the back of your wardrobe, these were really old, Terezi had all of the latest ones but you didn't have a key to her apartment. You grabbed your laptop and shoved the games into a plastic bag before making your way to the hospital, you appearance wasn't important when you went to see her so it was very rare that you actually made an attempt to look decent.
When you arrived she was sitting up, an angry expression on her face "Vriska?" You frowned; she sounded upset "Yeah?" The blinded girl let out a deep sigh, her shoulders sagging "Did you forget about me last night?"
You immediately dropped your laptop case and bag, rushing over to the bed before sitting on the side of it and taking your friends' hand "No, Terezi, no" You said quickly "I just...I didn't want you to get sick or anything, I'm really worried about hurting you"
"Vriska, please" Terezi sounded unimpressed "I'm not some frail doll, anyway, what difference does it make?! I'm terminally ill Vriska, the sooner I go the sooner this room has space for someone who actually has a chance!" She was shouting, it made you angry and you couldn't help but to squeeze her hand a little too hard
"Terezi, don't you dare think like that! You're going to prove those doctors wrong I just know it!" You were yelling back, you didn't want to disturb others but no matter how hard you tried your voice would not go any lower, your nice (or you thought they were nice) words were cancelled out by the venom that was added to your words, you were never good at syncing your words with your tone and it really showed, definitely at times like this, you were going to continue until you heard crying, Terezi was desperately trying to pull her hand away from yours and you eased your grasp so she could succeed.
"That isn't something that happens" She mumbled, looking down at her hurt hand while rubbing it soothingly with the other "I brought some games" You told her quietly, trying to get off the subject "The really old ones that we used to play" Your voice was soft, finally corresponding with the way that you felt, Terezi turned her head in you direction, a small smile gracing her lips "Hurry up and get your laptop out"
You two sat, telling the computer strange commands, a voice constantly responding with 'I do not understand that command' and you and Terezi would laugh.
"Make out with the tree"
"Hump the tree"
"Propose to the tree"
"Raise a family with the tree"
"Kill the tree for paper"
You both giggled as the computer told you over and over again that it didn't understand, you sat next to her on the bed, her hand had accidently landed on your and she hadn't bothered to move it and you were sure your heart had started to beat a little faster from the contact and you hoped your hands wouldn't start to sweat and prayed to god you weren't falling for your dying friend.
You both eventually ended up beating the game; you managed to protect your battle ship and humped a few of the crew members in the process, as per usual. You were both a mess of tangled limbs, you two always ended up in this position but it was completely platonic.
"We could totally write a book about our lives" Terezi randomly blurted out, and you nodded "It could be developed into a movie" You added, and you felt her hand squeeze your own "I want you to do that" Terezi said calmly, leaning her head back against the bed rest "I want my name to be out there, I don't want to die broken and worthless" Instead of reacting or getting mad you pulled her into a hug, she felt thinner, her usual curvy form had shrunk "I will, I'll write about us" You promised into her ear and she wrapped her arms around you and you two stayed like that for a while, no tears, no words just peaceful silence and a welcoming warmth "I don't want leave" You eventually said "It's okay I'll see you at 3AM" She answered and you grinned.
When 3AM rolled around you were grabbing a spare pair of clothes for Terezi, it would be cold outside and she always enjoyed wearing one of your over-sized sweaters, you picked out a teal one since it was the one that she liked the most out of your whole wardrobe, you drove to the hospital and surprisingly Terezi had managed to sneak out on her own, you quickly ran out of the car and shoved the sweater over her head, the poor girl had been hugging herself to try to block out the cold "Jesus, Terezi! I would've come in for you!" You told her, ushering her over to the car, holding open the door for her, you had already turned the heat on full, knowing that there was a chance Terezi would be cold "I honestly thought I would have to of carried you" You admitted, her legs were so small, you wish you had been able to see her the day she got admitted but you were on holiday at the time.
"Don't be silly, I'm perfectly fine" Terezi said proudly, bringing her legs up to her chest so she could cover them with the sweater, you groaned when you noticed she was wearing leggings "Are you serious, leggings?" You asked rhetorically, listening to her weird laugh "I didn't even know these were leggings, I thought they were just really flimsy sweat pants!" She exclaimed, laughing at herself, you shook your head and laughed along with her, Terezi's laugh was very contagious.
By the time she had calmed down you had arrived at a hilltop, it was perfect for viewing the stars "We're here" You informed, getting out of the car at the same time as Terezi, you grabbed her hand and you both got comfortable on the grass, lying down as you looked up at the sky, fingers intertwined. You knew Terezi couldn't see anything but she didn't mind, she liked to be in the open air and to be able to get some fresh air, going for a stroll around the hospital in a wheel chair was never enough for them both. You let out a sigh when you felt Terezi starting to shiver "God damn it Pyrope, you and your damned leggings" You cursed, standing up "Take them off" "What?!" "Terezi, I'm giving you my jeans" You explained, she visibly relaxed "Oh, okay" She shuffled out of them and you threw your jeans at her, you hoped no one was around, it would either be very dangerous or very embarrassing, you shoved on the leggings, once again joining Terezi on the grass who hadn't bothered to get up "Better?" "Better"
You soon heard Terezi snoring and returned her to the hospital, all of your 'crimes' in the past were worth this, or else getting Terezi in the hospital might have been a little bit more difficult. You made sure to at least hook her back up to the machine that ensured her heart was still beating, hopefully Terezi would bullshit an excuse about her pulling everything out in her sleep, and you just hoped that she would be alright.
You had left her in your jeans and your sweater, you had a feeling that would be a big give away but Terezi was probably the smartest person you know, she would be able to handle it. You let out a sigh as you got into your car, you stayed for a few moments, wondering if you could continue like this, Terezi was dying and you didn't know how to feel about it, you eventually removed yourself from the parking lot when a nurse had knocked on your window and asked if you were alright, at this point you decided to look at your clock, 7AM, even thinking of Terezi made time fly by.
You woke up at 4PM, you let out a groan before wiping your eyes until they were rid of sleep, you reached over to grab your laptop before realising that you had left it at the hospital, you let out another groan before burying your face in your pillow only getting up when you heard a pester chum notification go off on your phone, you reached over, looking at the screen and Terezi had sent you numerous messages while you were sleeping, you don't know how she did it, you gritted your teeth, if she had messed up your computer you were going to kill her
GC: Vriska, get your sorry butt out of bed and message me!
AG: Fine, I'm up! If you messed up my laptop you're dead to me Pyrope!
GC: Don't get your panties in a twist, I've given you the voice of an old German man; try not to say anything too inappropriate.
AG: Are you kidding me, an old German dude?! I can't believe you, I should never have left my laptop there, and I'm coming for it!
GC: Wow, you're so mean; I can't believe you would treat a blind girl like this
AG: If you don't shut up I'm sending you some weird porno script.
You didn't get another message after that.
When you arrived a nurse was in the room with Terezi and it made you walk over to her a little faster "Hey" You greeted, not aiming it towards either of them in particular, Terezi mumbled a greeting back as did the nurse "So, miss. Serket, care to explain?" The nurse asked suddenly, it surprised you
"Explain what?" You tried but she saw right through your act and continued to stare at you until you finally broke "I wanted to take her out, being in the hospital is too boring for her, she needs to leave every once in a while!"
"Our hospital gardens are perfectly fine" The nurse said simply
"No, they're not; this is Terezi we're talking about here! She doesn't want to be cooped up in the same lot" You argued, trying to keep your voice at its normal level
"Vriska" Terezi's voice was quiet and you felt your heart drop "I'm sorry for making you take me outside"
"You didn't make me do anything" Your voice had turned soft and you sat on the bed next to her, placing your hand over hers' "I wanted to take you"
Terezi began to cry and you had a feeling you knew why, you pulled her into a tight hug, no wonder the nurse had been so bitchy, she was angry at you for worsening Terezi's condition, from what you guessed disconnecting her from everything had been dangerous and taking out into the cold was even worse "I'm so sorry" Terezi whispered into your chest, over and over again and all you could do was run your fingers through her ginger hair and mumble sweet encouragements into her ear, the nurse had left at some point, leaving the two of you to hold onto each other, as if you were each other's life lines, which you were in some sort of way, you don't know how you're going to survive without Terezi in your life.
"I love you" Terezi confessed, at first you thought you had heard her wrong but then she said it again and again until you spoke "I love you too" You would've kissed her but you felt like it would ruin it, it would make you worse, it would be sloppy and gross, that wasn't how you wanted the kiss to go, that's why when Terezi tried to kiss you, you directed her to your cheek instead "I want your first kiss to be filled with love, not sadness" You told her truthfully, which made her cry even more.
Terezi had to be put on life support, she had caught a small cold but it had turned into much more than that, her body wasn't able to take it and she was unable to breathe on her own, the ginger hair she refused to lose had started to fall out in clumps but she was still beautiful, she was beautiful no matter what even when she asked you to shave it for her, she still looked beautiful, she cried afterwards but you congratulated her for being brave and she soon fell asleep in your arms, exhausted from crying or from just being alive, you couldn't tell.
Over the next few days you could see how much weight she had lost, Terezi wouldn't want to go on much longer and you knew that but you didn't want to let her go. She was talking to you about how life was bald and you soon moved onto the bed so you could be next to her, you turned to face her and pulled her into you, placing your lips against her own, she brought her hand up to run it through your knotty excuse for hair, the kiss was filled with emotion, you didn't want it to pull away but you didn't want to suffocate her, when you pulled away Terezi smiled at you "I've been waiting for that" She said breathlessly, I nodded before realising she couldn't see me "I know" She wrapped her bony arms around my shoulders, pulling me in once more "I love you so much Vriska Serket" "And I love you, Pyrope"
The next day you planned Terezi's funeral with her, in which she demanded balloons and other weird things only she would come up with for such a depressing event, she refused to show you what she wanted engraved into her grave, you tried to snatch it from her, but even when she was weak she was so much faster than you. You kissed her before gripping onto her hand tightly as they pulled the plug from the life support, you cried over her dead body for so long, you can't even remember how long you were there for.
Everyone Terezi had ever known was at the funeral, her friends who didn't bother to visit her at the hospital included, you didn't even go near them, you were too angry to tolerate their bullshit. Your speech was short; you didn't believe these people deserved to know about what went on inside the hospital walls.
"Terezi was my best friend, we met when we were both admitted into the hospital with cancer when we were very young and we pulled through together, we continued to be friends after that, of course, the last thing I ever expected was for cancer to come back for her" You clenched your teeth, tightly shutting your eyes and willing yourself not to cry "I don't want to live in a world without Terezi Pyrope, she showed me that being a delinquent would only harm me in the end, she showed me how to be a good pirate and I'll continue to fight for justice, just like she wanted me to" You were crying, you were crying in front of everyone, you wiped your tears away roughly with your hand before returning to your seat, someone had tried to comfort you but you waved them off, you didn't need to be comforted, you were just fine.
You almost start to cry again once you saw her grave stone; you buried your face into your hands, shaking your head 'Terezi Pyrope. Leader of Justice, member of The Scourge Sisters' You watched the casket be lowered into the ground, you wanted to jump in after it, claim that she wasn't dead, that she was alive but you knew you couldn't because you would only be disappointed with the result.
You thought back to those days even as you sat in court, defending your victim, trying to seek out the justice in the court room, you thought back to Terezi, about how she would be so proud of you to see that you had became a lawyer, how you had proved so many innocents not-guilty, you wondered what your life would be like if Terezi Pyrope was still alive.
