(4 days later) July 9th just before midnight
"am I dead" asks Cat
"no, this is real life" says Jade nuzzling Cat
"it just feels like it's too calm, I'm not hearing things now, I've heard voices for about two weeks, I'd almost thought it was normal" says Cat
"how long have you had seizures baby girl" asks Jade
"as long as I can remember, the medication that could save me from them nearly killing me when I was six" says Cat
"what's on your mind" asks Jade
"us, are we really really a thing, like I could kiss you right now and you wouldn't be mad" asks Cat
"all you can do is try baby girl" says Jade as Cat kisses her
"yum strawberry gloss" giggles Cat
"you're ridiculous you know that" says Jade kissing Cat back
"you like it don't you" asks Cat playing with her hair
"I don't know what you're talking about" teases Jade
"ok now who's being ridiculous" giggles Cat
"ok you two are absolutely adorable" says Tori
"I know right" says Sadie
"it almost feels normal" says Cat
"wait almost normal, but we've been joking for a whole day, it's almost midnight and you only just stopped giggling" asks Jade
"it would feel more normal if we weren't in the hospital" says Cat
"soon Cat soon I swear, I just have to hear if where we can live will be limited or not" says Jade
"…… so you want to live here in Sicilia" asks Cat surprised
"I'm your girlfriend Cat, where you live I live till the end of either this relationship or one of us dies" says Jade
"in that case there is this beautiful house in Milazzo to the east of here that just went up for sale, half a million, it's amazing and it has its own private beach, ten rooms, it's an amazing mansion" says Cat
"half a million US dollars or half a million Euros" asks Jade
"I don't know, all the ad said was half a million, I guess I'd assume Euros" says Cat
"I guess I'll see what I can do" says Jade
"wait Cat are you planning to let us live there too" asks Tori
"I mean kinda yeah, you don't like have to stay there like full time but the door would always be open, I like talking to you guys" says Cat
"it would be cheaper I guess being it's a port type city for the trips to Spain" says Tori
"oh I have plans to buy at least two boats for sure, one that I'd modify to run off of as much renewable energy as possible that I'd maybe rent out to people, you know less pollution and stuff" says Jade
"ok we should really sleep but I just want to say, I'm really glad you and Sadie got together Tori, I've been basically shipping you guys for years, finally seeing it happen just makes me so happy" giggles Cat
"thanks, that means a lot Cat" says Sadie
"hey you two are meant to be together, anyway night" says Cat as she almost instantly falls asleep cuddling Jade
July 10th at noon
"hey so how long till the festival" asks Jade
"exactly ten days, is your memory getting bad or something" says Cat
"no but you do have holes in your memory because of that virus and the damage it did as you were cured of it" says Jade
"but I still have the color issue thing, how can I be cured if I still have the issue that started it minus the hallucinations" asks Cat
"that's part of the damage I mentioned, you had that parasitic virus in you since you were two, it was slowly eating away at your nerves, in the end your body's immune system attacked it causing permanent nerve damage, similar in how Guillain-Barre syndrome and other nerve and auto-immune disorders happen, not just that but Doctor Isabelle's daughter, the biopsy they did on her eyes like they did yours, they found a similar virus trapped in what looked to be a tumor, exactly like what you had, that realization helped them realize how to cure the condition, that is if the pattern continues all sufferers could be cured in a matter of months" says Jade
"wait so Sadie was right, she led them down that path" asks Tori
"yes, if it ends up that it is curable like Cat's was then she will be entitled to a reward from the government, Isabelle said something like half a million dollars" says Jade
"wow, what her parents would do if they found that out" says Cat
"huh" asks Tori
"her parents would intentionally dumb her down, that's why she didn't always appear to be that smart, I specifically remember hearing people question why people like Sadie or I were allowed to attend Hollywood arts, we were labeled as talentless and dumb as a rock, her parents did that to her" says Cat
"would that explain why she made it clear to Hailey that she never consensually did drugs, she seemed to need to make that clear" asks Tori
"yes, they slipped it into her food, this last schoolyear she was living with her scientist slash virus survivor uncle who helped get her clean, her parents made her addicted to a drug she didn't even know she was taking, she was always left wondering why the school food didn't taste right, technically in the eyes of the law her uncle kidnapped her to save her life, the only reason he didn't go to jail is the fact that he was able to prove her parents were dosing her, they went to jail for that and she was left to pick up the pieces of her life, deciding what was and what wasn't real, I'm sure with time she will explain that to you Tori, just know that her love for you is real and that you love her back means everything to her" says Cat
"I know she loves me cat, she's stopped hiding that, Jade have her some money this morning and she's out buying cute things, did you know she's a contortionist" says Tori
"I didn't know that about her, do you think Jade and I are good together" asks Cat
"honestly I do yes, she's done a lot of growing since that documentary about the legacy of Hollywood arts at the exact moment I was trust into taking Trina's place at the big showcase, we all have, did you talk to Robbie before you left" says Tori
"I did, he was proud of me for telling Jade the truth about how I felt about her, he didn't want me to leave but he understood why I had to, that I didn't have a choice, he said he'd visit on my birthday, which is in eleven days, ooh I hope he comes" says Cat
"you aren't interested in Poly are you Cat" asks Jade nervously
"no, I have no interest in Robbie romantically, he's just a good friend who I like having around and bouncing ideas off, he helps me write music, you know like Andre helped Tori, in my case I have issues with beat and rhythm, let alone writing songs that say and come across with the message I want, look on my laptop, password is Cat's bibble eighteenth, spelled out not the number, there is two folders on my desktop, one named Stupid songs and one named my intentions, both are song folders, the latter is what I intend to write and the stupid songs is what I'm finished writing by the end of my hour song writing time daily, the only reason the latter exists is because of Robbie, he helps translate my sugar words into real words, he helps me make the songs in my head real" says Cat
"so it's about music, Andre got a contract Cat, he's no longer there for me, you have to be open to the idea that Robbie wants to be more than friends and accept that if he gets upset when he finds out you don't want him he might not be there for you" says Tori
"Robbie knows" says Cat as Robbie walks in out of nowhere
"what do I know" asks Robbie as Cat's jaw drops
"h-h-how did you get here, you said you couldn't visit till my birthday" stutters Cat
"I know what I said but then I learned that Jade had left LA and I saw what was happening and had attempted to bring a cake, commemorating the beginning of your future together, unfortunately the TSA refused to let me take the cake on the plane, I hope burgers are a good substitute" says Robbie
"so then you know that Cat has no romantic interest in you" asks Tori
"yes, do I wish it wasn't so, yes but I was never going to make her feel a way she didn't, I accept her for who she is, I'm hoping to get a job over here somewhere, Italy or Europe in general, I've been turned down by all of the girls I liked in LA and I didn't think I'd fare any better in another American city so I wanted a fresh start, I've already inquired about two tech jobs here in Sicily" says Robbie
"ooh I know a girl who loves a good techie" says Cat
"who" asks Robbie
"my doctors daughter, she's a year younger than us but age of consent is different here" says Cat
"you can't possibly know she'd like me" says Robbie
"I'm sorry I'm just hopeful, I guess that's just me being brain dead and stupid again" pouts Cat
"don't you dare call yourself that Catarina Grace Vega, I won't have it, I don't care who called you that, it couldn't be farther from the truth, stop measuring smarts by comparing yourself to others, you've come so far Catarina, you need to fight those thoughts, if you can't then Jade must help you fight them" says Robbie upset
"so it isn't true, I'm not brain dead and stupid" asks Cat
"Oh my God Cat, NO, how could you ever think that, sure you don't fall under normal categories of smarts….. that came out wrong, Cat you're autistic, your brain is wired differently, it doesn't matter how you came to your conclusion on any subject because you never failed a class, not once, most people don't realize there is more than one way to come to the same conclusion, not everyone follows the same brain path" says Jade
"ok I didn't understand most of that" says Cat
"in short Cat she was defending your smarticles" says Tori
"oh ok" says Cat as Isabelle walks In with lunch
"thanks for making lunch Isabelle, we're still working out our money situation" says Tori
"as long as Cat is in this hospital your meals will be free" says Isabelle
"ok I have been meaning to ask, what could possibly be the reason Cat is allowed to be a patient in a government hospital" asks Jade as Cat winces
"see now if I answer that you won't see Cat or her family the same way" says Isabelle
"does her family have some government holdings or something" asks Jade
"Cassandra's Dad is the current elected leader of Sicilia, Cass works for the government" says Cat
"is that some sort of problem, I've heard and seen other countries do it without a problem" asks Jade
"Sicilia has a states of power law, it states that if a family member is elected to power then the rest of their family is to be nonpartisan, generally that means no accepting government jobs, my uncle was in a sticky situation when Cass was written in as the peoples choice for the peoples verdict government position, on one hand if he let Cass assume the job title he could be removed from power for favoritism and attempting to mass power and authority on the other hand if he made her reject the job she would be in trouble with the people who elected her to that position, so he compromised, Cass would get to be part of policy talks but wouldn't be a paid member of the government, or in the case of what happened her salary was cut down to a level Cassandra was comfortable with" says Cat
"speaking of Cassandra, is it really against the rules for her to date Hailey" asks Tori
"yes and no, she's basically head of the TSA equivalent here in Sicilia, which is to say diplomatic pass queen as Sicilia doesn't have a need to invade everyone's privacy like the USA seems to need, not unless they have a very specific reason to, as a result the fast track and diplomat pass TSA employees are seen as her contacts or equals and it is generally frowned upon for them to date, Hailey's parents are very immuno-compromised so they can't work anymore and don't seem to qualify for assistance so Hailey is their only income, Cass is all about morality, that's why she's as popular as she is, it is unfortunate that it's standing in the way of her being happy but you won't change her mind on the subject, nobody can, Hailey's parents are dependent on Hailey's income to afford the meds they need to survive, unless that situation changes they will never be able to be together" says Cat
"you know you and Cassandra aren't that much different" says Jade
"believe me I know that, it's a blessing and a curse" says Cat