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Dramatis Personae Anette and Pedro	2016-01-17 "I just need one more hit."
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. It's late at night and Anette's apparently chosen a night in for once. She's sitting at the dining room table, laptop up and open which she browses mindlessly. Sharing the table is a just cooked frozen meat lovers pizza. She casually munches on the pizza, not paying attention much to the outside world. She wears a pair of sweats, a baggy 80's hair metal t-shirt, fuzzy purple slippers, and her hair pulled up in a messy ponytail. Across the apartment, the fireplace is alive and roaring, filling the apartment with light and warmth. Pedro stumbles out of his room, yawning widely. He's glad in only boxers, and his hair says it all, he just woke up. He mumbles a hello and waves to Anette before disappearing into the bathroom. The shower is run, and twenty minutes later, Pedro reappears, wrapped snugly in a towel, his hair slicked back. Yawning widely once more, he ambles over to the coffee machine. "Hey, Anette, how're you doing? Want some coffee?" "No, I'm good," Anette says, not even bothering to look up from her screen. She remains focused for a little longer before suddenly looking up. "Oh...hey. Remember when I told you about Teague? Jewel? I actually talked to him a few days ago..." While she tries to play it off casually, the way her voice sort of fades at the end suggests she has something important to say. Pedro's ears perk up, though he concentrates on setting up the coffee maker. "Oh? What did you talk about, and what did he say?" He does sound curious and a little eager. "Were you guys hanging out at the safehouse or someplace else?" "No, I...visited him at his apartment. Nice, if a little bare," Anette says, spinning in her chair to face Pedro as she takes another bite of pizza. "Anyway, I tried to nudge him in your direction and he's uh...not really looking for anything right now. Sorry." That appears to be the gentlest way she can come up with to say it. The coffee machine beeps and gurgles to life. "Ah well, just how it goes I guess, si?" Pedro shrugs and goes about getting himself a mug and spoon. "I went twenty years without…someone. A little longer won't kill me. I hope." Anette frowns slightly. "I just...feel bad. I really thought he'd say yes. I probably shouldn't have told you anything until I knew something for sure. I mean...I didn't want to get your hopes up for nothing." She does smile softly though, turning back to her laptop. "Yeah, don't worry. Besides, these things aren't all fun and games. There's something to be said for being single." Pedro chuckles. "Yeah, all that non-sex happening is fantastic. I am pretty sure all the good times in a relationship generally outweigh all the bad things in a relationship." He happily pours himself a coffee, and mixes in a little milk and sugar. Slurping noisily, he shuffles over to the table, peeking at Anette's screen. "What are you up to?" he asks curiously. On the screen are just random humor articles, links to funny videos. You know, the usual. "Oh, just killing time," Anette says, shrugging lightly as she takes another bite of pizza. "I'd offer you a slice but there's no fruit on it." She does shake her head slightly though, "You know, it's a tough call. I wouldn't hold my breath on that." Pedro shrugs. "Sometimes something is better than nothing, and other times..." He moves to settle upon the couch, leaving her to her humour. "Just killing time? Are you heading out or to bed soon?" He glances back to her and grins, "Ah, bed. Unless it's a sleepover, maybe? And it's fine, not sure how good pizza would be for breakfast anyways. I could probably eat the sauce, but that's about it." "Ah right. Tomato, the infamous of all fruits," Anette teases but nodding slightly as she closes up her laptop. "Yeah, I was just having a late dinner and then I was going to head off to bed. /Alone/." This last word is emphasized playfully and with a wink. "Well, if you really want to find someone for yourself, you can go out yourself. You don't need me trying to hook you up. Actually, you're probably better off if I don't play a part, I can't handle my own life." Pedro shrugs at the tomato comment. "I can eat it, and I have. Ketchup, however, is all wrong. I have no idea why people would want to spread sweet crap all over their fren... what the hell?" The batty mutant pulls ... something from between the cushions of the couch. "Yeah, apparently so...", he says in response to her last comment. He shakes the bag in her direction. "When was this?" Anette looks up curiously as Pedro reacts to something, brows pressed together as she tries to see what he's so worked up about. Sudden realization dawns on her and her face pales when she realizes he's reaching into the couch cushions and she realizes what exactly she hid there. "Pedro, no!" she suddenly yells, dropping her half eaten slice of pizza on the table as she quickly rises to her feet. "It's nothing. Don't worry about. Just a bag I forgot about...from before." Pedro raises an eyebrow, looking quite skeptical. "You know that I am here for you, yeah? Even with the bit of difficulty we had, we're still roommates and friends, yeah? You have to talk to me when you're feeling rough, when this...", he holds up the bag, "Calls your name." He stands up and takes a few steps towards her. "But. I still stand by what I said before, ain't going to lecture you, okay? Whether you forgot or if this is recent, doesn't matter. I'm here, for you. You can beat this crap." Anette approaches Pedro, standing within inches of him. "Just...give me the bag, please..." she whispers, reaching out to take the bag for herself. "I appreciate the sentiment but...I'm fine. I just needed to take the edge off, withdrawal's been hell. Just let me finish the bag." Pedro quickly hides the bag behind his back. "No. Sorry Anette, you gotta quit this stuff before it kills you, gets you killed, or gets someone you care about killed. Who gave it to you? Do I gotta smash another house with a great fucking tree?" He takes a step back too, to get out of her space. The hiding of her bag does nothing to improve her mood. "Christ, do you know how much I paid for that? God, I don't even know where it came from...I bought it off some kid at a bar." She makes another move to grab the bag, not against she grabbing Pedro himself if she has to. "No one's getting killed this time, I promise! Please Pedro, just give me the damned coke!" Pedro squirms in her grasp, but the bag is still held out of her reach, behind him and partially covered by a wing. "How much? Fuck, Anette, do you consider your life to be worth less than a bag of fucking coke? You ain't having it back, I'm going to flush it down the toilet." Course, she is bigger and so he may have some trouble with that. But it appears that he is going to give it a go." One hand gripped firmly on his shoulder to hold and/or spin him as need be, the other stretched out to reach for that bag. "Pedro, enough!" she yells. "My life isn't worth a goddamn thing when every single waking moment I want coke." She finally releases her grip on Pedro though she stands close to him, ready to take advantage of any opportunities. "Look, I just need enough for a buzz until the nightmares pass, alright? You have one last chance to hand it over." Pedro's eyes narrow. "Or else what?", he growls, several of the doors in the cottage starting to rattle in place. A breeze blows Anette's hair back. "You really wanna see what I'll do to keep this from you?" The bag in question is still in his grasp, the bat proving to be quite squirmy and flexible during the struggle. "Take some sleeping aid and get sleep that way. This shit will keep giving you nightmares…that's the whole fucking point of quitting!" Anette takes a step back as the breeze picks up, taking the hint. "No, it /stopped/ the nightmares. And what are you going to do when I go out tomorrow and get more? Or hell, right now? Please Pedro, I've got a lot on my mind and I just need to...I just need it ok? Once the bag is done, I promise I'll be off for good." The sound of howling wind can be heard, coming through cracks under the doors and window panes. "No, it did not, it just fogged your mind. Every time the high wears off, the nightmares will return, and you'll get another hit. You gotta stop this shit. And perhaps, just maybe, see someone about the nightmares. Maybe Regan can find you someone you can trust, yeah? She's a doctor, so she can refer you to someone safe. It's obvious that cold turkey is not working." He sighs and looks down a moment. "If I have to, I will stay up as long as it takes, I'll show up and make it so the dealers stop dealing with you. I'll do what it takes, Anette." "Oh, and I suppose you know all this from your own experience, right?" Anette snaps, clenching her fists together angrily. "I know what it did for me, alright? And it did...it did some good things." At his comment about speaking with someone, she rolls her eyes and laughs. "I'm a mutant and a wanted terrorist, who exactly am I going to talk to?" She continues to stare angrily at Pedro, holding her cold, hard composure though it's beginning to weaken, her eyes softening against her will. "Just...let me have one more hit. I promise I'll never touch the shit again, I just need one more hit." "NO!", he yells, turning and running for the bathroom. "You said you would stop before, and you didn't. And as I just said, Regan probably knows people who are sympathetic to our cause. Miss Wanted Terrorist taking casual fucking strolls downtown, and buying up her drugs with who knows who looking on, but oh knows, a doctor might turn me in." If he makes it, the door is slammed shut. And the flushing sounds start moments later. Despite her efforts to convince him to not flush it, Anette makes no effort to follow him as he runs to the bathroom. Not that she's still not angry. "Why do you even fucking /care/? Nothing's going to change between us!" she yells back before turning back towards the kitchen and pouring herself a nice large cup full of whiskey, using a left over solo cup from the party. Pedro yanks the door open, visibly angry. "Because you're a friend! And a Brother! I ain't giving up on you. Maybe you don't give a shit about me, but that doesn't change how I feel about you." He stomps into his room and slams the door behind him.