Old Friends [ Helene + Kai ]

[helene_beal]

She wasn't really sure how long she put it off: a couple of hours... a couple of days. When Helene finally found herself at Kai's door, she was surprised she'd made it that far. And she probably only knocked because she knew it would have been childish to turn back. Immature. She was a new woman now

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[yasuragi_kaito]

"Nobody here but us hookah-smoking caterpillars," was Kai's called out reply, chuckling under his breath.

He'd been practicing a pared-down acoustic version of Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit" for the past hour and a half, and honestly, he was beginning to think it was messing with his head. Not that it needed any more messing with in the first place, really. Aside from the chemo, even -- his stomach had been doing a few tiny flip-flops every few minutes with every thought that turned towards Helene. Because it had been a while since he'd seen her.

One pill made her married; one pill got her divorced...His violin was sitting next to him on the bed, case open, bow resting across the Helene-pillow. His guitar was in his arms, and for once, he'd decided he wasn't going to hastily shove the violin back under the bed. If she wanted to ask about it, now would be a perfect time. He was already going to tell her about the album, right? Only fitting that he'd also tell her about his other talents. He did, after all, record two tracks

[helene_beal]

She tilted her head, taking him in slowly. Helene wasn't sure if Kai looked better or worse. There was some color in his face, so... better? It's what she made herself believe anyway. She felt guilty that it had been so long since her last visit, but she'd forced herself to believe a lot of things to dull that pain, too. He needed time to heal. She had too much to deal with on her own. It was better that he wasn't so close.

She nearly hated herself for all of it.

But, she put on a smile. "The Doormouse. He's the one in the teapot, right?" Helene spotted the violin and bit her lip. When had he taken that up? It was another bullet on the long list of things she'd missed.

"Or is that the March Hare? Is there a March Hare?"

She took a seat on the edge of his bed. She smiled. Sort of. Regardless of whether or not she'd invented the color in his cheeks... it was good to see him. Maybe it was the guitar. Helene listened for a while. "Jefferson Airplane? Curiouser and curiouser."

[yasuragi_kaito]

"You remember more than I do. All I really remember was that nutty Hatter."

Indigo eyes glanced up at Helene -- his Helene, if he could have it his way -- and he gave her a ghost of a smile before returning his attention to his guitar. One of his many metaphoric security blankets, shielding him from the pains of the rest of the world... which, unfortunately, sometimes included Helene. Or, at least, the thoughts she often spurred in his head. Like wanting to smash his guitar over David's head. For a moment, though, he was content to pick at the strings and murmur the lyrics of the song in a throaty, rockstar rendition that would've been better off in a smoky alternative bar than anything remotely radio-friendly

[helene_beal]

He played beautifully. He played in that way that made you never want to say another word, if it meant he might play forever. Helene listened, her eyes on his thin, magical fingers, and when he spoke, the music wasn't interrupted in the slightest.

Helene didn't raise her eyes to his. Wanna go first, meant, Go first. She knew that well enough. If it brought a little smile to her lips, she wasn't aware of it. She played with the sheet on his bed, spinning it between her fingers. She caught sight of the pillow she'd given him from the corner of her eye.

She sighed. "David's gone. I filed for divorce last week." Helene hesitated, running her tongue behind her teeth. "I'm not sure if I'm doing better or worse than I expected," she finished with a dark chuckle. Now, she looked at him. Waiting for his reaction. She wasn't sure what she wanted to see.