Disclaimer: Inception does not belong to me.

"Ariadne!" Arthur moved after her, his conscience prickling and chafing him for his sharp comment. "Ari, please! Don't go!"

She turned, and looked at him. He blinked, realising he was beginning to sound rather pathetic.

"No, its fine," she said, her words slightly clipped. "Best I leave. See you tomorrow."

Before he could stop her, she was moving into the bedroom, pulling back on the jeans and jacket she'd worn earlier that evening. He could only watch, helplessly, as she walked to the front door. "Bye."

"Look!" He tried to move in front of her. "Look, stop!" His voice held a note of authority. "Don't just walk out, what I said - please, let's talk it through-"

She shook her head. "No need." She looked at him, her eyes clear and tearless. "I think you've said all I need to know. Good night."

He stopped, watching helplessly, as she opened the door, closing it behind her with a sharp click.

Ariadne walked down the street, not caring that it was the early hours, or that she was exposing herself to potential danger. Arthur's words, delivered in that sneering tone, were echoing repeatedly in her head.

"Did you parents send you to a fat farm?"

She blinked, trying to keep back tears which threatened to blur her vision. The comment revealed to her that her deepest fears - that Arthur would always see her as a fat girl - were confirmed. She stopped, trying to gather her thoughts.

Suddenly, she heard a kissing noise, and turned. A man, obviously drunk, was looking at her, leering. She shivered.

"Hey sweetheart, come home with me."

She shuddered, and began to hurry onwards, her rapid footsteps leaving him and his crudity behind. As she reached her apartment, she almost broke into a run.

When she reached the safety of the small rooms, she immediately headed for the bedroom. Stripping her clothes off, she pulled up the covers, and pulled them around her. Shivering, she tried to block out the sound of Arthur's voice.

She closed her eyes.

Cobb rubbed his forehead, as he woke to the sound of a frantic banging on his front door. He frowned. Late night callers inevitably meant bad news.

"All right!" he snapped, getting out of bed. As he walked to the front door, he peered through the peep hole. To his astonishment, he saw Arthur. Slightly dishevelled, and out of breath, the Point Man was a far cry from the immaculate figure he generally relied upon. Cobb opened the door, and frowned.

"Arthur? Its nearly 4am. What is it?"

"I need to talk to you."

"Of course. Tomorrow, at the warehouse." Cobb started to close the door, but blinked in shock as Arthur jammed his foot in it.

"No, I need to talk to you." Cobb stopped and looked more closely at the other man. Arthur's face was pale, and his eyes looked slightly red.

Cobb relented. "OK, come in."

Arthur entered, and Cobb gestured to the lounge. "Come on. Good thing the kids are with Miles."

Arthur followed him, and at Cobb's direction, sat on the couch. Cobb sat opposite him.

"What is it?"

Arthur leaned forward. "I've..." he swallowed. "I've really hurt Ariadne." He blinked. To his own ears, he sounded like an adolescent, and the reaction on Cobb's face confirmed it.

"What?"

"I..." he swallowed. "I found out that she was..." he paused "overweight as a teenager."

"And that's a problem?"

"No!" Arthur looked at Cobb. "Its not a problem to me...but -" he paused, and bit his lip. "But its a problem to her." He carefully ommitted mentioning his comment.

The Extractor studied him carefully. "Why is it a problem to her?"

"Well, we shared a dream," Arthur admitted. "Her projection of me - I was standing there, shouting abuse at her, calling her fat. That's not what I think, not at all."

"So...what are you saying?" Cobb shook his head. "Arthur, its really late, and I don't think you're making a lot of sense. I think you maybe need to go to bed, try and sleep." He got up. "Come on, I'll show you out."

The Point Man got up, woodenly, allowing the other man to usher him to the door.

Ariadne swallowed, and turned over in bed. Everytime she closed her eyes, she saw Arthur's face, and heard those ugly words.

She got up, and began to walk to the kitchen. As she opened her cupboard doors, she felt herself recoil slightly with disgust.

Junk food. All of it. Crackers. Chips. No wonder he was repulsed. She started to pull the packets off the shelves, and move them to the trash. As they fell into the trash can, she nodded.

Arthur sighed as he let himself back into his apartment. It seemed colder and emptier than when Ariadne had been there. He moved into his bedroom, and his heart sank further.

He could still smell her scent. He cursed himself, knowing he had potentially severed for ever the closeness they had shared.

He couldn't bear anyone knowing his secrets. And for that, he had abused her.

He began to undress, even though it was after 4, and he knew he'd be having to leave in a couple of hours. As he sank down into the bed, he started to close his eyes.

Suddenly, they jerked open. "Extraction," he muttered. Nodding, he rolled on his side, hoping to slide into sleep.

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