[AFTERMATH] So... how about that? (Melany & Jamie)

[saedusk]

There weren't many things Shiloh knew that Jamie didn't. In fact, he was here at Horace's doorstep because of it, loitering outside without knocking. Truthfully, he assumed Melany would prefer seeing Shiloh over him. They were closer, much closer than Jamie could claim, but there were things he wanted to say to her beyond checking in to make sure she was alright.

Thanks for de-bunning me that one time was definitely one of them.

First things first, though. Jamie was here to make sure nothing had gone weird after the casting, see how she was holding up, and ask if she wanted a little company. Finally, he knocked.

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

"Coming, coming," called Melany from inside the house. Jamie could hear her fumbling with the chain lock on the door, then the deadbolt, and then she opened the door.

She was oddly lopsided, without a left arm to balance her, but she still smiled to see Jamie. "Hey," she said. "Jamie! It's been so long. Oh... you're probably one of those otherworld people too... do you know we're friends? Friendly? Something like that? I thought we were friends, but I don't want to presume."

She seemed chatty. Happy.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

A weight lifted from Jamie's shoulders in that instant. Something in him had always worried about how Melany might think of him, though he tended to worry that way more often than not. Still, her friendly greeting made him feel better and he returned her smile with one of his own.

"I, um, yeah I'm one of those pod people," he said, but couldn't remember where he'd heard the term coined for them. "So I can't really answer that, but I like to think we were..." Wouldn't it have been so, so nice to be part of a friend group? Growing up had been unbelievably lonely for Jamie. He hoped it hadn't been quite the same for his counterpart from this world.

"If we could... still be friends now, too, I'd like that."

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

Melany stepped back. "Yeah, sure! How've you been? I was worried about you after the full moon... That must have been really scary. I'm glad Shiloh called me."

She closed the door behind Jamie and perched on the couch.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Following her inside, he sat on the couch, too, his hands playing in his lap. His nails were tangerine orange.

"It was scary," he admitted, "but I'm okay now. I try not to think about it too much. I never wanted to hurt anyone." Or turn anyone, for that matter. It was a bit of a nightmare if he were honest. "Thanks for helping me, by the way... I don't remember a lot of it, but Shiloh told me what happened. S-Sorry you had to see me like that."

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

"It's okay," said Melany. "What are friends for? I mean, sure, some friends aren't rely-on-friends. But I'm the mom friend. That's my specialty." She flexed her single remaining arm, puffed out her cheeks and thrust out her jaw, trying to look tough. "I don't get to do a lot of momming lately, though," she sighed.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

"If it makes you feel any better, you're the only mom friend I know." Sure, there was Eve, but she sat more in the realm of crunchy granola cool aunt mom than friend mom. As far as friends his age, at least, there was Melany. "So mom away. It's... actually kinda nice knowing there's someone else looking out for me."

Sheepishly, he tugged at a long, curled lock of hair. How did she feel about having that in return, he wondered.

"I'm not really a mom friend," he admitted, "but I am a worrier. I was wondering, has... everything been okay?"

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

"It's alright," said Melany. "I think my dancing career might be over, though... even if I get my arm back, I've been out of practice for so long..." She sighed. "Which sucks. It was sort of my dream as a little kid to be a principal ballerina, and now it's never going to happen, and I was so close!"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

"You really think so?" It was wishful thinking to hope dreams were things that never died. For so long, Jamie never had a dream. Everyday was take a step forward, pray s**t doesn't get worse, rinse, repeat. It wasn't until the end of high school that he met Shiloh and grew a touch of confidence, then met Finn and decided he wanted to be a park ranger. The thought of losing that dream to impossibility still hurt, even if it seemed minor compared to a childhood dream.

"I mean, I don't know the first thing about ballet, so maybe I'm wrong, but... I don't think you should give up. More farfetched things have happened." Like magic, for instance, if you would've asked Jamie only a few years ago. "Isn't there any kind of practice you can do like this?"

shibrogane

 

[shibrogane]

"It's months of physical conditioning that I'm going to be missing," said Melany. "Half the exercises I need to do, I can't. I don't have enough points of balance to do them." She sighed. "And the kind of dancing I wanted... it's not very open to prosthetics. Not as prosthetics for arms are right now."

saedusk