As Eleanor found her way into the architect room, a hot blush sneaked up on her face as she saw Tahani's long dark hair cascading over a dark purple suit. The tall woman was staring in the opposite direction as a test was in session for a young woman on the other side of the glass wall, and the young woman appeared to be in a college campus reliving a particularly unsettling memory. Eleanor froze where she was, internally kicking herself as her footsteps alerted Tahani as she pressed a button and ceased the test altogether.
"Eleanor!" Tahani gasped, walking over and hugging the blonde woman tightly. "I thought you had...had gone through…"
Eleanor gasped as she saw Tahani's lip quivering and her eyes widening, and without thinking she reached her hand out for Tahani's hand.
"How did you…?" Eleanor's expression scrunched up.
"Janet was to alert me the moment you were ready," Tahani looked away. "As she did for when Jason and Chidi went through the door."
"Why didn't you say goodbye?" Eleanor asked.
"I feel like I would've kept you from seeking peace," Tahani blinked, revealing the first tear rolling down her face. "Who was I to keep you here when you were ready to join him in the universe?"
Eleanor flinched, the image of her former lover flashing in her head for the first time since she'd returned to the Good Place short of three toes. Was she never going to find true peace because he left before her? Was her desire to go through the door a way out of the painful memories?
...no, it wasn't nearly as painful now. Thinking of Chidi, smiling as he walked through the door, actually brought a warm fuzziness inside her knowing that their relationship ended on the best note possible, instead of a screaming match or broken glass. She would always have the memories, the silly calendar, and Janet to remind her of a beautifully illustrated past that would always be a part of her in a way that was uplifting instead of destructive.
"It was never about joining him," Eleanor frowned as she processed her words. "Well, maybe at first, but when I walked through the door, it was about giving myself to the universe for a greater purpose. I didn't exactly feel purpose when I was about to walk through the door."
"Wait, you walked through the door?!" Tahani gasped. "What happened? Did you explode? Implode? Get yeeted back to the other side?"
"Yeeted?"
"Sorry, one of the Bad Place architects taught me that word, can't quite get enough of it," Tahani snickered. "Regardless, words cannot describe how elated I am to see you here. This calls for one of my parties. Vicky, could we postpone Carrie's test for another time?"
"Ugh, fine," Vicky smiled after her loud groan, while the other demons gave Tahani dirty looks. "If only to give the two of you some time alone~"
Vicky grinned like the cat that ate the canary while Tahani gave a cutthroat gesture with her hand, causing Vicky to shrug and walk out of the room with a barely audible chuckle. Eleanor was about to speak up on the interaction, when Tahani whirled around to face Eleanor and place her hands on her shoulders.
"Now, where were we?" Tahani grinned, before snapping out of whatever thought train was derailing in her head. "Oh right, we must discuss what happened when you went through the door. But first, l must get the whole party set up! Just wait here while I summon Janet for a few items, and I'll be right back!"
"What did Vicky-" Before Eleanor could finish her sentence, Tahani whirled around and disappeared through the same exit as Vicky. She swore she could hear some shouting, followed by a chilling laugh that could only come from a demon. And then, silence for a few minutes as the remaining demons dispersed, leaving Eleanor by her lonesome. Tahani walked back into the room, taking Eleanor's hand and grinning as she lead Eleanor out of the room.
"Wow," Eleanor whispered as Tahani lead her up a grassy hill with a night sky that had dark blue and light purple clashing together with a sprinkle of stars on top. Eleanor's eyes remained glued to the view for a few moments as Tahani lead her to the top of the hill, and as she tore her eyes away from the sky and looked around her, she then looked at Tahani.
"Where is everyone else?" Eleanor asked. "You said this was a party?"
"Yes, that I did," Tahani grinned, that same wide toothy grin that she'd been sporting when Vicky was teasing her. "A one-on-one party as it were."
Eleanor's eyes widened as she took in the picnic blanket they were both standing on, the basket by her feet with two wine bottles sticking out of it, and the aroma of shrimp and cheese coming from inside. She looked up from the basket and at Tahani.
"I know exactly what you're doing…" Eleanor stated.
"Oh, y-you do?" Tahani gulped, feeling her heart pounding as she waited for Eleanor's next words.
"You're trying to get me to stay!" Eleanor smirked, crossing her arms. "Admit it, hot stuff, you can't stand the thought of losing your most bangin' friend."
Tahani's mouth dropped soundlessly like a fish out of water, before closing it and thinking over her next words.
"I...yes, that's exactly what it was," Tahani looked away, feeling a protest deep within her mind that she shut down as she laid in the grass. "Wine?"
"Yes please," Eleanor grabbed the wine bottle and glass, pouring a generous amount in her glass before handing the bottle to Tahani. "With having to find this dumb secret desire keeping me from becoming space bits, I'll be needing a couple of drinks."
"Secret desire?" Tahani felt her voice coming from farther away, her skin tingling with a warm sensation as she felt like she was entering a dreamscape, an alternate reality where Eleanor never left her side and spoke the words she had been waiting for many Jeremy Bearimys.
"Yeah, apparently I can't stay on the other side of that dumb door until I find true peace or whatever," Eleanor huffed. "There's something out there that I haven't done yet, itching at the back of my mind. I mean, I read all the philosophy books I wanted to read, drank all the wine I wanted to, had a lot of different fantasies fulfilled-"
"All of them, Eleanor?" Tahani asked, trying her best to ignore the thought of someone else fulfilling Eleanor's desires. "Come now, you might've done everything your heart was set on, but what about trying something new? Did you ever throw a party, did you read all the philosophy books in existence, did you even entertain the thought of falling in love again after he left?"
Tahani felt her heart jumped as she dared to ask the last question, feeling shattered as Eleanor lowered her wine glass onto the blanket and stared at the ground.
"Eleanor, I'm so sorry," Tahani whispered.
"No, you're right," Eleanor looked back up at Tahani. "I spent so long telling myself there would be nothing left after he went through the door, that I started to believe it. Oh...oh my gosh, I could participate in so many orgies…"
Tahani flinched as her fingers gripped the skin on her arm, staring down at the blanket.
"Are you okay, Tahani?" Tahani nearly jolted off the blanket and into the grass as she saw Eleanor's hand gently moving her hand off her arm. "You must've had such a hard time with your luck on Earth, and being married to a dude in love with another girl-"
"Not a girl."
"How the fork can she hear me?!" Eleanor exclaimed, wildly turning her head to find the source of the echoing voice, before looking back at Tahani. "Anyway, you've had plenty of time to heal from those wounds and seek your ambitions. You can let loose now! Go out on a date! Fall in love! And y'know, when you've loosened up a bit, you can join me on those group activities~"
Tahani sharply inhaled as she stared at Eleanor as if she had grown a second head, the idea of getting tangled with Eleanor, watching as she gave herself to other people in front of her…
"I, um, t-this was such a lovely party," Tahani forced a chuckle. "But I really must see to finishing the test I'd paused. See you later, Eleanor."
"Wait-" but Tahani was already storming down the hill, quickly becoming a tiny dot in the distance as Eleanor frowned, glancing down at her untouched glass of wine.
What did I do wrong?