Baltimore, Sunday Night

[spin_kick_snap]

It had been another bad day. The worst part was, there had been nothing that had made it a bad day. It wasn't like there was rhyme or reason for it, but for some reason as the sun went down and the lights came on over the water, Kathy been struck anew by grief, her breath thick in her throat, her eyes burning with tears. Maybe the lights had reminded her of LA. Or maybe they'd reminded her of happier, easier times, when everything was good. More than good. Perfect. She'd known what she was doing and why--everything had made sense. She'd had a plan and every step she'd taken had moved her closer to her goals.

Now she had no plan, no goals other than 'make it through the day.' Some days, she felt good, like she was making progress, uncovering bits and pieces of herself that she'd thought she'd lost, trying to fit them into the person she was now like shards of a broken mirror. Other days, like today, she felt like she was drowning and every breath was a struggle around the thick weight of grief and regret and pain that sat on her chest like a creature out of myth. Most days were somewhere in-between, an odd muted gray as she fumbled her way, uncertain whether she was moving forward or backwards or even off to the side.

Like she did so many nights, she made her way to Baltimore. This time, she found herself on a rooftop somewhere, staring down at the city. She didn't think she'd even stood on this particular building as Banzai before, but still the vantage point and the angles were so familiar that the ache she felt sharpened to the point of true pain. But the tears stayed where they were, locked away, and instead she just sat, staring at the city, at the life, she'd once called hers and waited for it to pass.

It would pass, right?



[For one and up early for SP]

Comments

[spin_kick_snap]

"They weren't caterpillars, they were silkworms." Kathy, literally not helping. "And they're really good! They kinda pop in your mouth when you chew on them."

Now she was just being a brat.

"Stop being so American about new foods."

[rebelseekspizza]

"I think I'm happy being American, thanks," Dante said, pulling a face. "Can we get some hamburgers up here?"

[spin_kick_snap]

"Not pizza?" Kathy asked. "And I don't know. I've never thought about ordering takeout to a rooftop before. We could always go get something." She looked over the city. "Remember that bar we went to that time? Where you hooked up with the waiter who liked spankings? We could always go there, if you want. I don't think it's far from here."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Don't always feel like pizza," Dante said easily. "And I guess a bar could be nice? You remember what the food was like over there?"

[spin_kick_snap]

"Pub food mostly, wasn't it?" Kathy asked, trying to psych herself up for burgers. Maybe Dante wouldn't notice if she only stuck to fries? "I mostly remember drinking Angel's Tits and devouring everything in sight because I'd patrolled all night without a snack. They could have been serving tripe on crackers and I'd've gone with it."

Though now the very idea of tripe--and the part of the body it was from--made her feel ill.

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante snickered. "Maybe we'll just get you drunk," he said, "And see what happens. C'mon."

He pushed up to his feet, much less fraught now, and offered her his hand.

[spin_kick_snap]

And Kathy grinned and took it. "You couldn't drink me under the table if you had your brother's liver to help you," she told him.

That was also not at all true. But sometimes you had to talk shit.

[rebelseekspizza]

"I so can," Dante said. "Might have to drink and dash if we really go for it, though."

Considering both their systems.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Don't you have a job?" Kathy teased, heading over to the edge of the roof. She didn't keep holding his hand after she'd stood, though she did squeeze it once before letting go. "You can't tell me you can't afford your own booze, Dante."

[rebelseekspizza]

"The way we drink?" Dante said. "I'd have to be a millionaire."

[spin_kick_snap]

"We might have to make the hard choice between food and alcohol, Dante," Kathy said sadly. She was, as he might notice, not arguing against the idea of a dine and dash. "Whatever shall we choose?"

[rebelseekspizza]

"Drinks," Dante said. "Definitely drinks."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Maybe we'll get drunk faster on an empty stomach," Kathy said. "And only have to be a thousandaire to pay for our tabs."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Let's get down there and find out," Dante said. He paused, tilted his head. "... Which direction is it?"

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy glanced around again, looking for landmarks. She knew Baltimore so much better by aerial view than down on the ground. "That way," she said, pointing to their left. "See the building with that giant, like, weathervane on the roof? It's two streets over from that one."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Right," Dante said.

He looked at her again. "You mind if I carry you? I wanna try something."

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy shrugged, curious about what it is he wanted to try. "Piggyback or princess-carry?"

If he said fireman, she was sticking to bouncing.

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante considered it. "Princess," he said.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Sure, okay," Kathy said, standing in front of him so he could scoop her up. "What are you trying to do?"

[rebelseekspizza]

"Taking the fast way there," Dante said, sliding his arms around her and scooping her up. "Here we go..."

He took a running start, then jumped, channeling energy into his shoulders.

The glide still worked without his arms involved, and he passed easily over the gap between one building and the one on the other side of the street, landing on the rooftop with both feet.

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy squealed, not in fear but delight, leaning in his arms to watch them cross the impossible distance. She was laughing when they landed, clapping in glee. "I see you've decided to give even fewer fucks about gravity in the interim," she mock-chided. "Won't be tied down by anything, huh?"

[rebelseekspizza]

"That's me," Dante said merrily. "Can probably cover even more distance if you get on my back, actually."

Though he was taking another running jump now, to the next roof.

[spin_kick_snap]

"How?" she demanded, looping one arm loosely around his neck and raising her face to the wind. It caught at her hair; she was going to look ridiculous when they finally landed and she wouldn't even care. This was better than 'just' feeling alive. This almost felt like being free.

[rebelseekspizza]

"Got a grappling hook now," Dante said.

Then his feet came down on the next rooftop. "I can cover some real ground."

[spin_kick_snap]

"You got a grappling hook?" Kathy sputtered, then burst out laughing. "Oh god, you're no longer the world's prettiest scabbard, you've become the world's prettiest weapons locker!"

That wasn't stopping her from scrambling down to hop up onto his back. This, she needed to see.