Reaching Out
"Why did you hang up on her?" Amity asked in disbelief.
She was eavesdropping on the conversation that she set up; hoping for wholesomeness.
"Because I don't want to talk to her," Luz scoffed.
"Why not? She's a very kind person," Amity insisted.
"I bet she is. It will be the safest bet in both fucking realms," Luz retorted back; her tone was an odd mixture of sarcasm and frustration.
Amity jolted at the remark. She did not expect this reaction or the swearing. Other Luz didn't curse when she was furious with her the first night. This Luz's red coat looked so bright even in the dark. The Red Bandit took a long breath and said, "Look, you chased the wrong Luz, but I can see how you confused the two of us. You want her, not me."
"Want?" Amity repeated that word.
She shook her head and said, "No, you got it all wrong. I don't want her. I don't know her. We only talked for seventeen minutes."
"You talked to her for too long," she said with a low voice.
"About five minutes a day," Amity corrected.
"Still, too damn long," Luz drew out every word.
Amity took a step back; the introspection wasn't wanted. Luz's glare went straight through her and her sudden smile was unnerving. She shot up to her feet and said, "I don't blame you. Anybody would be drawn to her. Her cheerfulness is like a sun that makes you feel warm and fuzzy."
Amity wanted to rebut that claim, but couldn't think of a good response while under Luz's gaze. She explained how it felt to be around the Other Luz and what's missing now. This Luz couldn't replace the other one. Amity should have thought of this scenario. "I guess I wasted both of our time. I'm sorry about that." Amity admitted.
Luz's face softened a bit, as she accepted the apology. "Curiosity's a bitch, huh?" Luz said with a smirk.
The last thing she said before she left was, "Sorry, I'm not a lovey-dovey goofball,"
Luz couldn't let everything end like that. She blamed herself for the disastrous meetup and she wanted to do something. It was the first time alone the crystal ball can contact the other timeline, thanks to Hunter being on break. Luz knows everyone would be intrigued, but this is a conversation that she needs to do alone.
The crystal ball showed a tiny, pitch-black bedroom, which can't be right. It should be in the afternoon over there. The only light that was in the bedroom was coming from its crystal ball. Luz could hear soft shuffling noises. Someone was in there; hopefully, it was the right person. "Hello, anybody in there?" Luz called out into the darkness.
A deep yawn was the answer. Was she asleep? A woman slowly crawled into the frame but averted her eyes from the light. Luz recognized her own hair. She sleepily said, "Wrong number."
The call was cut off. Luz stiffened, but this scenario could have been a lot worse. She collected her resolve and made the call again. "It's not a wrong number. Your name is Luz Noceda, right?" Luz called out.
Other Luz didn't answer. So, she continued, "It's Goofball Luz from yesterday."
Other Luz peeked up to see; straining her eyes in the process. She rubbed them, flopped onto her bed, and moaned into her pillow, "What do you want?"
"I just want to talk. Are you okay?" Luz asked.
"I'm fine; just sleepy." Other Luz mimicked her voice.
Before Luz could respond, the call was dropped again. She grunted in frustration. It was hard to believe that she is another version of herself, but she's had a different life than her and could only guess what Other Luz has been through. With that reminder, Luz made the call again.
"You don't look fine," Luz dryly said.
"How are you doing that?" Other Luz asked.
"Honestly, I don't know," Luz swiftly answered. "However, I do know that you're not okay."
"You can tell?" Luz asked mockingly.
"Yes, I can tell something is bothering you," Luz said.
Other Luz chuckled at the statement. Luz realized the irony, but continued, "Whatever it is, maybe I can…"
A hand suddenly blocked the screen; stopping Luz mid-sentence. Other Luz grabbed the ball and held it up to her face and harshly said, "No."
Then she chucked her own crystal ball across the room; hitting the wall and breaking into pieces. Luz froze with her mouth open. It's been a long time since she's been that coldly rejected, but wasn't undeterred. There's only one other call that Luz could make to the other timeline and not sure how it would help, but she still owed an apology.
Luz made another call. She was ready to speak until she saw that the receiver was in a state of undress. She immediately clapped her hand over her eyes and profusely apologized. She could hear a giggle then Other Amity said in a friendly voice, "Hi Luz; long time, no see."
"Hi," Luz awkwardly greeted back with a handwave.
"Are you going to tell your wife about this?" She teased her.
"Of course, I am," Luz snapped back. "Do you want to finish changing or put on a robe?"
"I can put on a robe. Do you like the black one, or white, or tan, or grey?" Amity asked, trying to get her to peek.
"Why do you have so many robes?" Luz asked annoyed and still blindfolded.
"Okay, okay, I picked one. Why did you call? Do you need something?" Amity asked politely.
Luz was too scared to look. She kept her hand over her face as she explained, "Um, I tried to talk to the Other Luz."
"Really? How did that go?" Amity replied.
"Not well, she doesn't want to talk to me."
"She did say that. You're the last person she wants to talk to, Luz."
"I only want to help."
"She wouldn't want help from a better version of herself."
Luz paused and let that realization sink in. It's a valid reason that she never thought of. Her voice lowered as she said, "I never said that I was better than her."
"You didn't have to. You're the one with a happy life and a happy wife," Amity replied without missing a beat.
"What can I do? I don't want to leave her sad and alone."
"You're overthinking this."
"I am?"
"You need Luz to open up and talk about what's wrong, and who's best at doing that?"
"Uh… But…" Luz stumbled over the words.
She knew the answer but didn't want to admit it. "But I don't want her to!" she blurted out.
Not fully understood why her wife was so worried about her reaching out to Other Amity. She hung her head and murmured, "Karma's a bitch."
Other Amity gasped. "You said a swear," she said.
Luz looked up and vented, "I'm a grown woman! I can curse!"
She flinched realizing that she took her guard down and was thankful the Other Amity was wearing a robe.
"How much of our conversation did you hear?" she suddenly asked.
"No idea what you're talking about," Luz said while avoiding eye contact.
"You're a horrible liar, Luz,"
"O come on," she moaned.
"Guess you're not always in a sunny mood," Other Amity randomly said.
Luz was confused by that. "Everyone has bad days," she replied.
Luz couldn't read Amity's thoughtful expression; that hasn't happened in a while. "Well, I want to apologize for…" Luz started to say.
"You didn't do anything wrong," Amity interrupted her. "Keep me updated, okay?"
"I will," Luz agreed.
She dropped the call and thought about how the hell she was going to explain this to her wife.
Amity found herself in a secluded conference room in front of the famous crystal orb. She cannot believe that she agreed to this, but her wife is right. She can't ignore that they might have hurt another Luz; unintentionally or not.
At least she gave Luz and Other Amity a little privacy. Willow and Luz are waiting right outside the office door. Following her wife's advice, she took a long breath and made the call. The screen was still broken and was brought together with huge cracks. The disjointed image has small pieces facing in random directions. "Hello? Luz?" she called into the void.
It took more observation to realize that the bed was skewed upward. "Wait, there's broken glass on the floor. You have to clean it up," Amity warned.
She heard someone giggle. "There's no need to nag. I'll get it," a familiar voice said.
Nag?! Amity had to remind herself that she is not talking to her wife. "Before or after you cut your feet on the glass?" she sarcastically said.
Other Luz shuffled to the edge of the bed. Amity shifted her eyes away. Why didn't her wife warn that Other Luz was in matching black underwear? "After," Other Luz scoffed.
Amity barely recognized her voice; this is another person. She had no idea if she was joking or not, but it didn't matter either way. "That's not funny, Luz. I don't want to hurt yourself," said Amity.
Other Luz slinked away from the view. "Why do you care? I'm not your wife," she asked.
A valid point. This really is karma. She had to use her wife's reason for talking to Other Amity in the first place. "Because you're still a Luz and that's enough for me to care," she explained.
Other Luz stayed silent. Amity gave her a minute to respond, but she didn't. She tried again, "I know that all of this is intrusive. I'm not going to pressure you to talk; I can wait until you're ready."
Muffled groans alerted Amity and listened very closely. Other Luz's breath was uneven. "Luz, are you crying?" asked alarmed.
Other Luz didn't respond right away. First, she controlled her breathing and answered no with a crackly voice. Amity rose to her feet. She had no time to think right now. "Stay right there. I'll be right back," she told her.
Amity rushed out of the conference room and demanded, "We need to open a portal now."
The sobbing grew louder. Other Luz must have heard that. "Don't!" gutturally yelled in protest.
"I'll be right there!" Amity yelled back.
Amity moved closer to the two puzzled women. She lowered her voice this time, "She's crying alone in the dark. We have to get over there."
Rapid footsteps silenced the sobbing. It was already too late for an intervention. Amity combed their conversation with her wife and Willow; trying to guess why Other Luz reacted like that and it made them worry about her.
