ArchivedLogs:Best Friend

Best Friend
Dramatis Personae Akihiro and Anette
In Absentia	2016-08-05 "While you were having casual sex, if I tried to masturbate my penis would have frozen off."
Location <BOM> The Spatters - Ascension Island
A comfortable three-bedroom cabin, sturdily built if inelegant. The front door opens up into a cozy sitting room with small bathroom; it is adjoined by a kitchenette with room for small table. The three bedrooms here -- two off the sitting room, one on the other side of the kitchen -- are not uniform in size nor layout, with the considerably smaller kitchen-adjacent room having its own screened-in porch. Akihiro wasn't to be found today on the island, rather he had important business to attend to. That's why he's just showing up now outside Anette's door, dressed in a simple white tee shirt and cargo pants, with a messenger bag thrown over his shoulder. "Housekeeping." he calls out sweetly, clearly a little bit more mellow than usual. Anette opens the door, looking mildly amused to Daken standing there. She looks him over a moment, merely shaking her head. "Killian doesn't like smelling you around here," she says quietly, looking a little hesitant but she does step to the side, allowing him in. "What's up?" Despite her happier attitude, her appearance has taken a slight downturn. Tired, dark-eyes look like she hasn't slept in days. "Well, I don't give a shit what he likes. I'm here for you." Akihiro says simply, no malice in his tone. He steps inside so Anette can close the door. "I brought something to help with withdrawls and you not being able to sleep." he first produces a bottle of melatonin, then a rather large bag of marijuana that's fragrant through the plastic, some folded up tin-foil, a roll-uh-bowl similar to the one he has himself, a torch lighter, and finally two boxes of diamond swishers. "I figured you could use a quarter-pounder and some dabs. If this doesn't help you sleep that melatonin will." Anette does close the door as he enters, turning around just in time to watch Akihiro unpack today's 'care package'. She shakes her head with a quiet chuckle. "Should've known." She sits down at the table, looking over the various 'medications' though she ends up reaching for the melatonin. "I don't know if weed is the best idea right now. Swapping one drug for another." "You can't get addicted to this one though. And it's just to help with the aches and pains of coming off of the coke." Akihiro assures Anette. "If this would hurt you I wouldn't have brought it over. You're welcome to not accept it though, won't hurt my feelings." Even if it's the reason he left the island. "Still...not sure it's the best plan," Anette says, though she sets the melatonin down and picks up the tinfoil. "I suppose a little buzz can't hurt." She looks over Akihiro again, smiling faintly. "So what'd you come over for today? Just to deliver another care package? "Yup, I'm actually keeping with the same theme though." Akihiro says with a grin. "What goes better with all those snacks and movies than a blunt?" As he speacks he pulls a swisher package out of his pocket. "And I just so happen to have one, so you don't have to break into your supply just yet." Anette grins and takes the offering. "Can't see anything wrong with that logic." She leans back in her chair, taking a few minutes to light up and take a long, deep draw. Exhaling a large cloud, she looks back to Daken, smiling faintly. "So...how have you been?" "To be honest? I've been missing you all day." Akihiro says with a slight shrug. "It's hard leaving your best friend behind when you know they're hurting." He heads over to take a seat close enough to Anette to be in rotation. "What about you? You look like you haven't slept since I brought you those cookies." Anette passes the blunt over, leaning against her chair. "Cocaine withdrawal is a bitch. I've been exhausted since I quit, no matter how much I sleep. Can't stop thinking about it, I've almost been tempted to clip my wings just so I can't fly to the city and get more. And...other stressors." She patiently waits for Akihiro to pass it back, though she can't help but crack a grin. "Best friend? I'm honored." "I hear that. Withdrawals kicked my ass too." Akihiro takes a long drag from the blunt before passing it over. "That's why I brought you this. Smoke a blunt to yourself, you ain't going nowhere." he exhales the smoke once he's finished talking. "And yeah, you know more about me than anybody else. Not anybody I trust as much as you." "I've been doing a ton of googling this time. It's going to take a fucking year to kick this." Anette doesn't look thrilled, even as she takes another lungful of weed in. "I don't know if I can do this." She does look back towards Akihiro, trying to distract herself. "The sex was that good, huh?" she says, cracking a bit of a smile as she attempts to lighten the mood somewhat. "You can do it, I believe in you and I'm here no matter what." Akihiro assures Anette. He can't help but grin at her last comment, "You're the best I've ever had, but that's unrelated." He fishes out a smaller piece of tin-foil from his pocket and leans over to collet the torch, heating up the nail on the bong he brought as part of the care package. Anette quietly watches Akihiro light up, her eyes begining to glaze over as the drugs take hold. "The best? Highly doubt it." She takes another inhale, though this one is much shallower, just enough to top off her buzz. As she does, she catches sight of her forearms, eyes focusing on the fading trackmarks. "I'd kill for your healing abilities." "Well, think of it like this. You carry your victories with you, I don't. I can't even get a tattoo or piercing." Akihiro says, opening the tinfoil and scrapping off a dab. Once the bowl is glowing a bright red he removes the torch and carefully drops the wax down into the nail as he hits it. Once the wax is a bubbling liquid he caps it off and fills the bong with smoke, removing the metal piece from the bowl so he can clear it. "And the best. Everyone else I slept with I did it as a cover, or to get something. You're the first person I had sex with because I /wanted/ to. So yes, you're the best." As he speaks his eyes glaze over noticeably, clearly he's able to catch a buzz off the concentrate. "Huh, we have something in common. Course, I usually just wanted sex. But you...were the first person that I actually wanted more than just a quick bang." Anette's smile appears a bit more permanent, likely having some chemical help. "Though I've done my fair share of using sex to get other things." She pauses a moment, her mind taking more time than usual to piece her thoughts into coherent sentences. "And I don't thinkI have too many victories. They're more like warnings. Stupid shit, not to do again." "You survived it, that's a victory." Akihiro says with a wave of his hand, settling down into the couch. His attention shifts over to Anette, "We shoulda smokes more weed together though. Bet the sex would have been even better." It's clear he's teasing, as the stoned man doesn't make a move to do anything other than grin. "Naw, I like being able to remember our sex," Anette says, fiddling with the blunt in her fingers like a pen. "I suppose nothing says success like surviving being shot twice and almost being eaten by a jaguar," she adds, with a lopsided grin. "Think I'd rather have not gone through those though." "Wait.. What?" Akihiro asks after a moment of processing that, brows furrowing. "You almost got ate by a jaguar?' He leans forward slightly, stoned gaze looking Anette over. "When?" Anette merely pats the tattooed shoulder, bits of it peeking out past the tanktop she's wearing. "Surprised you didn't notice when we...the other day. The tattoo is hiding the scars." Her brain, high as it is, does manage to warn her this conversation might become a problem and she suddenly has a worried look on her face. "You, uh...you don't want to know where it came from." "I did, but I didn't wanna ruin the moment." Akihiro reaches up to rub at his neck. "The only jaguar I know is Killian. Something happen?" He doesn't sound angry, merely concerned. "You would be concerned for 'the moment'," Anette teases with a smirk, nearly forgetting what they were talking about. That smirk quickly dissappears as she takes a few moments to piece her thoughts together. "Yeah. It was him. But not really. We were...both sick. Zombie flu. Craziest shit. It makes you angry. Mutants lose control. He turned into a jaguar. His mind went full jaguar, lost all humanity. Plus the anger. We practically destroyed the cabin. I tore into him, he tore into me. He has a healing ability. I don't." Anette stares up at the ceiling for a moment, thinking she got all the main points somewhere in the sentence fragments. Akihiro lets out the breath he was holding. "Oh thank god." Yes, he's actually relieved. "I was worried he hurt you on purpose for a second there. I'm just glad you're alright." He pushes to his feet, heading over to grab some cookies. "Want a cookie?" he asks, taking a seat on the arm of Anette's chair, offering out the bag. Anette looks towards Akihiro, her head tilted in confusion though she doesn't voice it until he's returned with the cookies. "I figured you'd be pissed. Seems like you'll take any reason to hate him. And you're so damn protective. And why would you think it /was/ intentional?" she asks, grabbing a cookie and taking a rather large bite. "Because I'm a little stoned." Akihiro replies to the last question, reaching over to squeeze Anette's shoulder. "And because you don't want me fighting with him. I don't like him, but I'm not about to go pick fights with the guy. Last thing I need to do is stress you out and have you relapse." "That is...the smartest thing I've ever heard you say," Anette admits. "And I'll never understand why you two can't just get along." She gives a smile at the shoulder squeeze, a wing stretching out and wrapping about Akihiro's arm like a hug. "So, while we're here, any other questions? You were gone a while and...well, things have changed. Figured you might have one or two." "Anything I don't know about?" Akihiro asks. "You got into a casual sexual relationship with Pedro and Killian, almost got assaulted by a drug dealer, got infected with the zombie virus, and got shot a couple of times. I really don't like hearing about you getting hurt though, each one feels like a failure on my part." He leans over to give Anette an actual hug, "Don't wanna see you go through anything like that again. I'm hoping these withdrawls are gonna be the worst of it. Knock on wood and all that." "Casual sex with quite a few people. Kinda my go-to state when I'm not, you know, actually with someone," Anette says, rather simply. "The rest sounds about right. I've only gotten shot at twice though. Once before I even met you and the other was when I was in that damned cast for a month." She does pause, thinking for a moment before she shrugs, returning Akihiro's hug. "That sounds about right. And dear god I hope the withdrawals are the worst. If anything else happens..." She fades off, spacing out as she considers what might possibly go wrong. Akihiro presses a kiss to Anette's forehead. "Nothing else will. On the upside, know that while you were having casual sex, if I tried to masturbate my penis would have frozen off. So there are some small victories." He flashes a grin now, "Living in a winter wonderland ain't all it's cracked up to be." Anette smiles softly, at the kiss. "Ah, I feel better then," she says, though she can't help but grin at his last sentence. "Really? But it's like Christmas year round! Didn't make friends with a polar bear to keep you warm?" "Hell no, he tried to eat me, so I had to eat him. Survival of the fittest." Akihiro laughs, turning his attention down slightly so he can take Anette's hand into his own. "You know I'm more of a Halloween guy anyway. Christmas is great, but I can't watch cheesy horror movies all month." "Shame. Coulda had a pet. Named him Fluffy," Anette says, allowing Akihiro to take her hand and give it a firm squeeze. "Halloween would be a lot better if there were more costumes with wingholes." "Why don't you just go as a sexy owl like you do every other day?" Akihiro casually runs his thumb along the back of Anette's hand. "I was thinking about adopting a pet. Could get a great dane to follow me around the island." "I thought about it but I'm pretty sure Killian follows me everywhere. Hell, I've started keeping milkbones in the kitchen," Anette says. "See? There's perks to making friends with him. It's like having every pet ever with zero of the responsibility." "That's more creepy than anything." Akihiro points out. "Besides, if I want a dog I want it to stay a dog. Not try to kill me because it has the hots for my girlfriend." "When the hell did he try and kill you?" Anette asks, looking to Akihiro confused. "And that is /ex/-girlfriend." "I was generalizing." Akihiro says. "We fought when I felt like he insulted you, and we haven't since. I just meant to say I don't trust him. Gonna take a lot for him to change that." Anette sighs softly, turning her head to stare out the window, lost in thought. "He helped me murder the dealer who attacked me," she says, her voice quiet. "When I relapsed the first time, his first thought was to get me out of the city. Fresh air, change of scenery. Camping out in the mountain in this...probably condemned cabin. It's hard /not/ to trust someone after that." Akihiro lets go of Anette's hand, pushing to his feet. "I wish I was here for you." His hand curls into a fist, knuckles going white. "I feel like a complete piece of shit. Worthless. I'm sorry you had to go through all of that." He collects his bag and tugs it back on, before quietly saying, "Have a good night, alright?" "No, wait!" Anette quickly rises from her chair, yellow eyes wide as she tries to keep Akihiro from leaving. "I wasn't...I'm not trying to..." She closes her eyes, taking a deep breath before she continues. "I won't lie. I went through hell while you were gone. And I wished you had been there. I just thought...if you knew I wasn't alone." She groans and sits back down in her chair, rubbing her eyes. "I know you hate him. I know you probably think he's a horrible person. But I thought maybe if you understood the person's he's been to me, you'd understand why I was with him and now that I say it outloud it sounds like a terrible idea and this is the last time I smoke weed." Another deep breath and she slowly looks up to Akihiro. "I've forgiven you." "It isn't you." Akihiro shakes his head slowly. "I just haven't forgiven myself. All that time I was gone I thought I was helping you, and you went through so much." He heads back over to where Anette is, leaning forward to give her another hug, "I don't blame you for being with him. I understand that just because I don't like him doesn't mean he wasn't good to you. It just means I failed." "You didn't fail," Anette says. "If you hadn't left...well, who knows what would have happened. Both of us broken and unstable... When we were together, we had our rough moments. And most of the time it was a mess. But we had a lot of great moments. You were the best thing to happen to me. You remember who I was when we met." She smiles softly and returns Akihiro's hug. "I wish we could have made more great moments." Akihiro says, giving Anette a squeeze and resting his forehead on her shoulder. "But you were the best thing to happen to me too. You were the only person to ever love me for me, and I can't thank you enough. It's why I'll be here for you no matter what happens." "We had the past and the future. That's a lot of great moments," Anette says softly, wrapping both wings protectively about him. "Have I told you I'm happy you're back? "You did." Akihiro moves his face into Anette's neck. "And I'm glad we're finally able to be in the same room as each other again." He sighs softly, though it's sad. "I'm sorry I can't stop loving you. Wish I were able to just quit and let you go be happy." Anette allows Akihiro to rest his head against her neck a moment before gently shifting away. "It is nice to be able to talk to you without bursting into tears. Or clawing your eyes out." She returns his look, smiling softly though her eyes tell a much more somber story. "At least you know how you feel. I loved you. I loved Killian. I'd love to...just be happy with someone. But I don't know what I want anymore." "Whatever you decide, decide for yourself, alright?" Akihiro says, straightening up now. "Like I said earlier, you're my best friend. I want you to be happy, not stuck someplace you feel obligated to be. I guess what I'm trying to say is don't worry about hurting me. We had a good run, but if your desire to be with me died, it died." He flashes a sad smile, "I'm sorry I made things so emotional again." Anette reaches up to Akihiro, her hand brushing against his face, her talons ever-so-lightly grazing his cheek. "Thank you," is all she says, setting her hand down and quickly clearing her throat before making her way to the TV. "Hey, we have more Tarantino movies to watch," she says, her voice quickly returning t a chipper, happier tone, trying to break the cloud that's fallen over the room.