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( her face scrunches at the gesture. he definitely does that regarding her a lot. )
i'm sure she loved you. i always wished i had a little sister.
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ehh . . . i tried.
( he makes a little squish with his fingertips. like he does when he's calling someone tiny. )
gap was a lil big. mom hovered her a lot, but not me.
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awww.
( a warm giggle, imagining the sight: tall, lanky jax, & a little girl. reminds her of her brother when things were a little sweeter . . . the good parts. )
were you two close?
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( she tries not to look at them as they speak. she knows how it feels to be seen in those moments, too much, too much. )
aww. you have a sister . . ?
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.. normal.
( his head tilts. he wonders if the word sounds fake from his maw, a clear oversimplification for something he knows isn't right. )
mom, dad, boy and a girl. normal family stuff. i had a dog when i was little ...
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( she internalizes his switches all too well. she said the right thing. she said the wrong thing. she was being good. she was being bad.
& to think he probably thinks the same about himself when it comes to her . . . )
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okay.
( like a switch flipped, his ears unstiffen, smile suddenly no longer forced on his lips. he gives a real chuckle, soft, and pulls just a little away to give her proper space to breathe. )
you're right, anyway!
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( she stares at him with atomic pits for eyes, both big-eyed & all-too-readable. then, squeaks as she's jostled around; how pathetically easy she can be maneuvered. just like her real body.
but she snuggles into him, ribbons seeping between his back & the mattress. )
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( she shrinks away as he shifts closer. she never knows how to respond to the incongruity of his words, but . . .
maybe he did mean it. that he would kill anyone who did that to her.
. . . )
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( the hare-like stare remains upon face, he doesn't laugh along at her faux - chuckle, though he does try to. it just doesn't leave him. )
i'd kill him.
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( with his smile, her heart sinks, watching helplessly as his expression changes. part of her feels like she can't breathe. she tries a slow breath, ribcage lightly inflating before releasing. )
it's okay. at least i . . . won't have to worry about him anymore, right?
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( his ears stiffen, grin sinking away into his unfortunate blank face. big eyes stare at her; but he's not scrambling off of her or anything. just looking, frozen there.
no, he doesn't like that answer. he doesn't like how -
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. . . he was going through a hard time, but he always had a short fuse.
( the knives. the hammer. the hole in the door. )
i tried to be on his good side, but . . .
i guess he eventually got tired of me, too.
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( she covers her face with one of her flimsy ribbons to hide her embarrassment. now he's teasing her!
but at the question, she begins to nervously fidget.
he won't like this answer. )
i, ah, had a brother . . .
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well, ๐๐๐ค i know!
( giggling in reply; she does always do that.
they flop their ears side to side again, smiling cheekily, like they somehow knew all along. families are something they can find a way to relate to .. )
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( the first comment makes her chuckle, a little reminder of the years between them. but some days, she feels so much younger than him . . . which was frustrating, considering how immature he could be.
but he had his moments of wisdom. rare, but there. )
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being twenty is always weird.
( as though he's not a mere 2 years older than that . . .
but he's right, he thinks. it IS weird. )
my family didn't talk a lot either.
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