Overland Park, KS, A Morning in May [Wednesday Fandom Time]

[vanillajello]

The stupid thing about going to Kansas was that time was much slower. Kate was painfully aware that while she'd already been gone from Fandom over two days, it had barely been 18 hours for her. Still, after a night at home, she was just about starting to feel a little less raw. The general nausea had abated, at least, as had the panic.

The guilt, however irrational she knew it to be, would probably stay for a while.

Stretching out on her bed, Kate reached to get her phone from the nightstand, then turned it on. For a moment, she thought about making a call – to Bod, to Jack, to Mitchell, to Hannibal, to anyone – but she decided against it, unable to really decide what it was she wanted to say to any one of them. (Except maybe Hannibal. There was a certain amount of I get it now present.) She put the phone down on the bed next to her.

She'd be available now; that'd have to be enough.

[ooc: NFB, but open for phone calls and texts! Whoo, taking advantage of my 1,5 days at home.]

Comments

[therewaslife]

The cabins were quiet and Bod figured it'd be a good time to catch up on sleep he'd missed this weekend but he found he couldn't. He was staring at his phone, wondering if he should take the initiative to see if Kate was recovering.

Are you there? he sent via text, not expecting an answer but he found he was really unable to do anything else until he heard from her.

[vanillajello]

Kate picked up the phone when it interrupted her thoughts with its buzzing, and she chewed on her lip as she read the message. She hesitated for a moment, tapping her fingertips against the edge of the phone, before typing and sending a reply.

there is a relative concept but yes. hi.

[therewaslife]

Hullo.

Bod sent that and a few moments later, sent something else.

Are you all right?

[vanillajello]

coping. are you?

'Are we?' may have been the more pertinent question for her, but she didn't want to let her paranoia show.

[therewaslife]

Things are fine here. The island's moved again.

That wasn't really answering how he was but saying he was lonely and missed her probably would have added more guilt to an already cumbersome burden she was carrying.

Do you need anything?

[vanillajello]

Kate rolled onto her side on the bed and gave a sigh at reading the question. Always with that question.

i'm not sure.

That was somehow better than saying she didn't know, right?

[therewaslife]

I can let you go if you'd rather not speak with me, Bod offered before frowning. He was getting the feeling she wasn't coping as well as she said she was.

[vanillajello]

When was Kate ever coping as well as she claimed to be?

It took a longer while for the next message to come. She hesitated before writing it, and then she hesitated before sending it.

you don't hate me, right? not, like, scared of me or anything?

[therewaslife]

Both of the questions made Bod's heart ache and he couldn't bring himself to just send a text message telling her what he wanted to tell her. So, she'd have to wait a bit for the reply. That might be a little nerve wracking but he thought it worth it.

Bod dug out a few sheets of paper and a few pens. He wrote down several things and then took pictures of the messages on each piece paper. He sent them back sequentially.

The first picture was of him holding up a sheet of paper that said I know this weekend wasn't easy for you. Believe me. I know it. The message he was holding in the second picture read But I still love you with all of my heart and my mind and my soul. I'm not scared of you. The third read I would do anything to not make this hard for you. And in the last picture, the message read Just know that I LOVE YOU. FOREVER.

[vanillajello]

Yes, the wait was nervewracking, and the longer it took, the more ready Kate found herself to just cry. Which she then did, once the pictures started coming. It was good crying, though. Relief, not sadness.

It took a while her to be able to reply, though she eventually did.

thnk yoi

... You try typing correctly with your eyes all blurry with tears.

[therewaslife]

It took Bod a moment to parse that before he smiled softly. He brushed his fingers over the text and sent a message back.

If I caught a portal there just to see you, would that be all right? Bod sent. I won't stay long, your family doesn't have to know, but I'd like to see you.

[vanillajello]

Kate had actually managed to wipe her eyes properly by the time it came to send this particular message, and she didn't hesitate in typing it up, either.

come, i think they're out and busy anyway and even if they're not i don't care. come. <3

[therewaslife]

All right. I'll be there as soon as I can.

He dialed up Portalocity as soon as he sent that message and managed to schedule himself a portal at the causeway in about a half hour. That left him enough time to shower, change, and make his way to the causeway. The portal opened up and Bod stepped...

...right before stepping out at the end of Kate's street. He hadn't been to Kansas in awhile but everything seemed familiar. He set off down the street, looking for the familiar mailbox and house.

[bitten_notshy]

Got your voicemail. How is Kansas?

It might have been a bit inane, but Jack wasn't sure where else to start,

[vanillajello]

Well, it was a good enough start. It didn't matter what he sent first, really, because kate was going to feel a wave of overwhelming embarrassment over it anyway. She rubbed her forehead for a moment before sending anything back.

kansasy.

That was a start too.

[bitten_notshy]

Flat? Not Oz?

That was about what Jack knew about Kansas, yes. He thought about sending just that, but added one more thing first:

Am glad yr safe.

[vanillajello]

Kate thought he pretty much had Kansas covered with those definitions, but didn't comment on that.

and not trying to eat people? yeah, me too.

[bitten_notshy]

that. and not hitting on me.

That part had been almost equally disturbing.

is leto rly vamp? where'd that come from?

[vanillajello]

NO.

Yes, that required capital letters even though she generally didn't bother.

remember the coma naps, evil vampire fandom thing 2 yrs ago?

[bitten_notshy]

hard to forget. was stuck here. And Rose and Emma were asleep, and Tony was off in Vancouver, and ... it had not been a fun week.

[vanillajello]

well that was the kate from there, i think, Kate sent. back then, dinah told me not-leto had turned not-me into a vampire.

And within five minutes of gaining that knowledge, she'd ended up crying all over Leto on their first meeting. Fun times indeed.

[bitten_notshy]

Oh.

That was a new trick, but was it really any stranger than turning into a 5-year-old, or a random shipwreck victim, or any number of other things? Another set of pieces was falling into place.

That's why you were acting so odd, he typed, though it wouldn't be news. You barely knew me.

If at all, really, Jack couldn't remember.

[vanillajello]

i didn't know you at all, Kate confirmed. She hadn't had a clue. i didn't know anyone i met. tried my best to fake it though.

Well, not really her best. She'd been too fond of letting people get confused, and then slowly scared.

[bitten_notshy]

kind of worked. i thought it was trauma.

Though he hadn't gotten scared for himself as much as he'd gotten nauseated that this crap kept happening.

[vanillajello]

you thought it was mitchell.

Kate thought bringing that up had about a 40% chance getting entirely ignored, and 60% to get an excuse.