Honestly, reconnecting with Christine was probably one of the best things that had happened to me recently. It was really unfortunate that it took everything it did for that to happen.
Still, I was extremely glad to have my best friend back. I missed hanging out with her like this.
"And then Newter flipped off the railing right onto their table! Drinks went everywhere! They were soooo pissed dude, I thought I was gonna have to stop them from trying to kick his butt!" I laughed.
Across from me, Christine was giggling loudly, a hand cradling her middle as she convulsed with laughter, "W-why didn't he just get down normally?" She asked through her laughter.
I rolled my eyes, reaching in front of me to take a bite out of the sandwich I had made while raiding her fridge. Turkey, warm bacon, tomato, mayo, and some garlic stuff I didn't know the name of. Delicious.
"There was a cute girl in the group." I explained after swallowing, "You have no idea how he can get with them. He's like a flirting monster or something, can't be stopped once he gets going."
I was back at Christine's house for the second time that week, we were both sitting at the table in her kitchen. I wasn't bothering to hide my presence because her parents had gone out of state once again and had left her alone. Again.
Honestly, here recently her parents seemed to be away more often than not, and it made me wonder if they actually cared for Christine in any capacity as a daughter.
"So what, is he a playboy or something?" Christine asked. She took a sip of her drink, some kind of coffee based thing that had too many words to comfortably name. It was more of a milkshake than a coffee honestly.
I shook my head, "It's not like that. Newt's powers make it where anybody who touches him gets an immediate contact high and they basically pass out. He's starved for affection and usually makes up for it by being more outgoing."
I took another bite of my sandwich, speaking through my chews, "According to Gregor, ever since I came along he's been better about it. Because of how my power works, he can touch me without me being affected so anytime we're together he practically hangs off of me any chance he gets. I don't really mind it all things considered, he's pretty funny when you get to talking with him."
Christine frowned slightly and I immediately covered my mouth. I forgot that one of her big pet peeves was people talking with their mouths full.
"Right..." She said quietly.
We sat in comfortable silence as I finished my sandwich and I felt contentment sit warmly in my stomach. I had missed this.
Unfortunately, as much fun as I was having just talking to Christine like we used to, that wasn't why I was here. It sucked to have to ruin such a peaceful moment, but this was something I had to get out of the way, best to give her a warning so she doesn't freak out. Well, more than she was definitely going to anyway.
I sighed, catching Christine's attention, "Something wrong?"
I hummed, placing the remains of my sandwich on the plate in front of me and pushing it away, "Sort of. As much as I love talking to you, I didn't just come over to chat. I've got something to tell you that you're probably not gonna like."
She frowned lightly, "Ok…What is it?"
I took a moment to gather myself, bracing for her reaction to what I was about to say. "I won't be around for a bit, the crew's going to Boston for a while. Big contract, real important too, couldn't really opt out even if I wanted to." I explained. The frown on her face deepened as she processed my words.
"You're leaving the Bay? For how long?" Christine's concern was palpable and I hesitated before replying.
"About a month…Maybe longer?" I said sheepishly.
"A MONTH!?" I winced at the outburst, watching as she shot out of her chair. Christine stared at me with something akin to horror, her eyes wide with disbelief, "What if something happens? What if my parents tried to ship me off!? Or-or Justin tries to do something?!"
I watched as Christine began becoming more and more distressed, my concern growing with each passing moment. Her voice was full of panic tinged with fear and my heart went out to my friend more and more with each passing moment until finally, I couldn't take any more.
I stood from my chair, striding over to the increasingly panicked girl. I placed my hands on her shoulders, forcing her to look me in the eyes, "Christine…Christine look at me."
She did so hesitantly, and I softened my gaze as her eyes met mine, "Everything's going to be alright Chris. I mean it."
"I'm sorry that this is happening. I know it's really shitty of me to just up and leave you like this but there wasn't really anything I could do. This job is too important to the crew as a whole."
Christine nodded silently and I sighed, "Listen, if anything happens, call me. I'll come back to Brockton asap and handle it." She opened her mouth, probably to tell me just how stupid that statement was, but I just ignored her, "I will find a way to get back here Chris, even if I have to go to the Protectorate, I will find a way back. Understand?"
Christine didn't say anything for a long moment, lips tightened into a thin line with worry. I kept staring at her, making sure she understood just how serious I was being and eventually, she nodded softly, not breaking eye contact.
"Good." I kept my hands on her shoulder for another moment before releasing her. She kept staring at me as I stepped back and I gave her what I hoped was a reassuring smile, "Hey, we'll figure this out together. You're not alone in this, okay? We'll find a way to handle everything, and I'll be here for you every step of the way."
Christine stared at me for several long moments, before she sighed lightly, turning her gaze away from me. "Valerie…there's something I've been meaning to tell you-"
*Knock Knock Knock*
The both of us jumped in surprise as a series of loud knocks emanated from the front door just a room away, a voice following shortly after, "Christine, open the door! You and I need to speak."
I turned to the other blonde with a raised eyebrow, "You piss of your boyfriend or something?"
Something about the look on her face told me it wasn't just a jilted lover that was demanding entry into the house. And the words that followed just confirmed my theory.
"It's Justin!" She said, bumping into the table in her panic and nearly knocking over her drink in the process, "I haven't seen him in days and he shows up now of all times?!"
Justin. Her cousin. The cousin who had been the cause of a good portion of her recent issues and grief. Well then…
I turned to face the doorway, placing a hand on the marble table in the same motion and activating my power, an angry scowl appearing on my face as I did so.
A hand on my shoulder stopped me from stalking into the living room and beating the everloving shit out of her cousin for the grief he had caused her. I looked over to Christine with a confused, and slightly angry, expression, "What? I'm gonna go kick his ass!"
"You can't!"
"What!? Why not!?"
She placed her other hand on my shoulder, turning me around to face her, "Valerie even if you can beat him, and I'm not sure you could, we're in the middle of a residential neighborhood! If you guys fight here, people could get hurt. And that's not even mentioning the amount of Empire members who live here too!"
While I scowled at her doubting I could beat the cape outside, I couldn't deny she had a very valid point. Depending on exactly which of Kaiser's lieutenants Justin was, a fight between us could become very destructive very quickly.
While a fight between me and say, Victor wouldn't be too messy, the same couldn't be said if I were to fight the likes of Stormtiger or Krieg. Stormtiger was liable to throw me through buildings if his wind blades failed to break my skin, and a fight against Krieg would definitely go on far too long as I tried to get through that slowing field of his and he tried to get through my own power, leaving more than enough time for reinforcements to arrive.
I wasn't too sure about how my power would interact with Crusader's, and the less said about just how destructive a fight between me and Hookwolf would be the better.
I sighed, my skin changing back flesh as I turned away from the persistent knocking to face my friend, "So what do you want me to do?"
She bit her lip, "You've got to leave. He can't know you were here."
She looked around hurriedly, before her gaze stopped somewhere behind me. I followed said gaze and saw a window sitting to the side of the refrigerator.
She hurried me over it, and I was struck with an overwhelming sense of deja vu as she pushed me towards the opening.
She stopped just as we got to the window, staring at me weirdly again. Behind her, I could hear the sounds of her cousin's knocking increasing in frequency and volume as he became more agitated. And still, she didn't move.
"Christine, what's going on with yo-" Just as I went to ask her what she was doing, Christine leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on my cheek, freezing my words in my mouth as soft lips lingered against my skin.
And then she placed her palms on my chest and literally shoved me out the window.
"Sorry!" She whisper-shouted, before closing the window shut, immediately turning to walk to the door where her cousin was waiting.
I fell about two feet and landed in a bush just below the window with a small grunt. I stayed there for a moment to process what had just happened, the feeling of warm lips burning hotly into my cheek, before I was startled out of my thoughts by the sound of voices through the window I had just fallen out of.
I scrambled to my feet, pulling the hood of my jacket over my head to make sure none of my ex neighbors recognized me, before dashing away from the home as Christene greeted her cousin inside.
As I fled, I couldn't help but liken my situation to a old-timey mistress fleeing from an unfaithful partner's bedroom in the dead of night, shawl pulled down to ensure she was unrecognizable
That thought certainly didn't help the confusing feelings bubbling in my chest.
Later that night- Palanquin
"-and then I ran away." I finished my story.
"She kissed you and pushed you out of the window?" Newter asked incredulously. Next to him, Crystal was staring at me with similar surprise.
I flushed, taking a sip of my fruity drink to avoid speaking. The three of us were sitting in one of the booths at the Palanquin. Unlike the ones the Crew usually used upstairs, this one wasn't soundproof at all, allowing the full force of the bass from the music on the dancefloor to be heard and felt.
The three of us had come in here to drink and talk while we waited for some of Crystal's friends to show up. We had been here for only a few minutes before they had noticed my dour mood and demanded I fess up.
"And how do you feel about it?" Crystal asked. In the corner of my eye and through the slightly opened curtains, I caught sight of one of the waitresses begin to make her way over only to be waved off by Newter, "The kiss I mean?"
How did I feel? That was a tough question. I felt protective of her, that was for certain, but romantically…
I looked down at my drink, swirling it around as I thought about the question. Once upon a time, Christine and I had been like sisters, joined at the hip as we strode through the world side by side. We did practically everything together from sunrise to sunset, always with each other, constants in one another's lives.
When Christine had openly joined the Empire and I had cut off all ties with her, I had felt the loss acutely. It was as if a large part of myself had been torn away. All the things I used to enjoy doing seemed tainted by her memory. I could no longer sit through a single episode of those sappy teen romcoms that we used to privately enjoy together, couldn't walk in the park without turning to look at someone who was no longer there; no longer in my life.
And now that we were more or less reconciled, I had noticed a bit of that same carefree energy from when we were younger beginning to bubble up in our conversations and texts. While it wasn't exactly the same, it felt like I once again had my best friend back. It felt good to be able to just talk with Christine like I used to, even with the threat of the Empire hanging over her head.
"I don't know." I said finally, barely heard over the pulsing music of the club. "I may have had a crush on her during highschool but, well…you know what happened. Ever since we stopped talking, I was just so busy with everything going on that I never really had time to consider being like that with someone. Much less her… "
I wasn't exactly disgusted by the prospect, far from it actually, Christine had always been pretty and had been a not-so insignificant factor in discovering my sexuality in Winslow. Truthfully, if we had still been on speaking terms at the time, I likely would have asked her out at least once just to see where things went.
But with all of this shit with the Empire and her parents, I also knew she wasn't exactly in the best place. There was a good chance she was just latching onto the only stable thing in her life for comfort, platonic feelings could easily be misconstrued for romantic ones.
If that was true, and she was just latching onto me, I wouldn't feel right even considering returning her affections. It would feel too insincere and I would constantly be wondering whether or not the feelings were genuine, or just a product of my protecting her.
"Maybe you should sleep on it." Newter suggested, "We leave out for Boston the day after tomorrow, so maybe you can look at it with a clear head in the morning."
"Yeah and besides, tonight is supposed to be a celebration!" Crystal chimed in, "Jamie and Sabah may not be here yet but that doesn't mean we can't have some fun by ourselves."
I winced slightly. Well now I felt kinda bad, we were supposed to be having a good time and I had brought the mood down with my issues. Newter was right, I should let the issue rest for now and come back with a fresh head.
My two friends looked at me with raised eyebrows at my sudden silence and I shrugged, "Ah, what the hell." I tipped back the rest of my drink, swallowing the rest in one big gulp, before placing my hand on the wooden table and activating my power.
I stood up and grabbed Newter by the arm, dragging him out of the booth as Crystal followed behind us with a grin, "Crystal's right, this is supposed to be a party and we're sitting around talking. Let's dance or something."
The night was still young and the situation with Christine wasn't going anywhere any time soon.
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