On the Back Burner

[Samantha McManus]

After an appointment with a medical facility not directed by an ex-Soviet addict and a long-overdue shower, Sam is finally back at the dorm suite.

"So alright, that was... that was a lot."

[Will Stanton]

"A lot at one time, after we'd been chill for a while," Will agreed -- that is, the one who had been on the mission with them, not the crazed fae or the tiny, rescued one.

"Then again, if 'a lot' includes driving off of a highway overpass through the glass dome of a shopping mall after a high-speed chase, there are worse things, aye?"

[Samantha McManus]

"I mean, I'm not going to say some parts of it weren't... glorious."

"I think I'm in a bit of trouble for enjoying it, though."

[Miriam Bell]

"I was just happier not knowing all the details." Miriam mutters from where she's pretending not to sulk on the couch. "Never letting myself get talked into going on to one of these again. This was insane."

[Samantha McManus]

"It doesn't... it doesn't usually stay away," she admits.

"The madness, all that. It always seems to find us."

[Miriam Bell]

"That doesn't mean I have to throw myself into it, thank you very much."

[Samantha McManus]

"I'm not sure we could have done it without you, though."

[Miriam Bell]

"Oh my god, really? You're going to guilt me into volunteering for this shit?"

[Samantha McManus]

"I just mean... in this specific case you really helped, aye?"

[Miriam Bell]

"Fine, yeah, sure. Whatever. You're welcome. I guess."

[Samantha McManus]

"Is this about the singing? Are you still sore about that?"

[Miriam Bell]

"Why not, let's go with that. Certainly didn't help."

[Will Stanton]

"You've got a better voice than you give yourself credit for. With a little training..." Will said, with a sheepish lopsided grin.

[Samantha McManus]

"Not like anyone was singled out, aye?"

[Miriam Bell]

"It's not about the singing!" she raises her voice before she can think better of it.

[Will Stanton]

Will waited, patiently, raising an eyebrow. Poke the bears, and the bear will clam up. Or eat you. One or the other.

"No one's going to bite your head off here, Miriam. What's up?"

[Miriam Bell]

Miriam glares for a moment, but then seems to crumble a bit.

"Moving those pathways was... bloody hell I don't even know. It was euphoric and painful at the same time but the scars it opened still hurt. Leaning into the kind of loneliness that exists between people is... it's like weaponized 'standing outside in the freezing cold, looking through a window at the cozy warmth'. Or something. It crawls inside of you because it's always there, defining the boundaries of 'You'."

[Samantha McManus]

"You know you're not alone now, aye?"

"Or you don't have to be."

[Miriam Bell]

"Whatever that's supposed to mean." she bristles for a moment. "Look it's... I like you. Both of you. I'm glad for that. But Sam, you know what it's like to have to put up barriers. To not blur into others or have others blur into you. But I reached into that barrier and it's empty and hurts and I have to hold it up anyway."

[Will Stanton]

"At the same time, you can't wall yourself off from everything.

Being with people changes who you are inside. That's true whether you're a telepath or not. You take a piece of everyone you've been close to with you for the rest of your life. There has to be a happy medium ground between holding up those barriers and letting people in."

[Samantha McManus]

"I guess I'm just saying you can come in from the cold, Miriam. We're here. You don't have to make the effort for awhile."

[Miriam Bell]

"I'm not walling myself off! It was just... rough. Plunging myself into that. I poked at a bruise and I'm still hyper-aware of it right now."

[Will Stanton]

"Well...if you need some time, that's understandable. But if you need to tap into something a little less cold..."

[Samantha McManus]

"Will's got the right of it, there."

[Miriam Bell]

Miriam vaguely shakes her head. "I can't. I'd be too worried about losing my sense of self if I did."

[Will Stanton]

Will glanced at Sam for a moment -- not quite rolling his eyes, because Miriam was having a hard time with things that actually mattered, but still with a little bit of bemusement.

"Well, we can help you out there. If you come across a moody, gothic thought, well, that's probably coming out of your own noggin."

[Samantha McManus]

"I think it goes without saying that Will's pretty unbothered by the thought of us melting into each other," she chuckles.

[Miriam Bell]

"Fine, let me put it this way then." she doesn't quite snap but it's hard to hide things from a telepath. "What will keep me up tonight is the thought of what happens if I step in there..." she gestures at the wall which grows a simple, boring door that swings open to reveal an empty room, the only noteworthy characteristic of which is the fact that on the other side of that wall should be the hallway. "And let it fade from reality again."

[Samantha McManus]

"I'd find you."

There's no hesitation when she says it. No elaboration. This doesn't feel like something she's just saying to reassure. There's a certainty to it.

[Miriam Bell]

"You know, sometimes it's obnoxiously hard not to believe you two when you spout stuff like that." she says with the hint of a begrudging smile.

[Will Stanton]

"One day you'll learn that you don't have to shoulder all your weight alone anymore. That's part of what being together means. It's not all just the fun stuff."

[Samantha McManus]

"Have to be some upsides to bunking up with people willing to jump into weird shite."

[Miriam Bell]

"How you two can be so positive after all this escapes me. It's like you thrive on this non-sense."

[Will Stanton]

"It gets the blood pumping, to do what you were meant to do, you know?"

[Samantha McManus]

"There definitely were times when everything just kind of flowed, aye."

[Miriam Bell]

"Well, don't let me rain on your victory parade. I mean it. I'll be okay."

[Samantha McManus]

"Doesn't feel much like a victory if I can't be there for my girlfriend."

[Will Stanton]

"Yeah. We wouldn't want popping of champagne and dance music to get into your brooding time," Will said with a slight chuckle. "We can play things your speed for a while; you had to keep up with us after all."

[Miriam Bell]

"Still do, apparently." she grouches but now it's definitely to hide a smile.

[Samantha McManus]

Sam walks behind the couch, and there's the distinct sound of a bathrobe hitting the floor. Then, three sets of arms reach out to hug Miriam.

"You've earned some pampering," three voices say in unison.