Drama Queen

[Eli’s eyes take a minute to adjust to the sudden lack of light in the room after he let the fridge door shut, but he has a guess as to who it is- there’s only one person in here with shoes as loud as that and a giraffe’s neck.  He squints, taking another bite out of the tomato and leaning against the kitchen counter.]

[What the hell is this kid eating? An apple?...No, too mushy. Kallie is straining her eyes in the dark to look at him but all she can make out his scrawny figure. He knows who she is apparently, but she can't remember an "Eli" to save her life. It only makes sense, she guesses. She's popular; he's not. How is she supposed to remember all the peons in this dinky little hospital?]

[Padding through the hallway without his shoes on wasn’t something Eli woud usually do. However, when it’s 2 AM and the only other people that are awake are nurses who’ll probably have a few questions as to why you’re sneaking into the kitchen when you’ve been offered three perfectly fine meals throughout the day before. 

[Kallie is elated that a quick flash of her chest helped her snag yet another piece of contraband. It's not much--only a fourth of a bottle of some off-brand rum, but it's more than enough to give her the buzz she so desperately craves.

I’m afraid I don’t pick my nose, no. [Though it would be simpler, wouldn’t it? Perhaps now is the time for the lie. Twenty-three bodies piled beneath the floorboards, they’re disgusting in their own way. But they come with complications he’d rather not voice, and so he doesn’t.]

[She hardly thinks "self-esteem issues" and "paranoia" would mark him as disgusting, but it's not her place to question him. Besides, for all she knows, he could be so insecure about his looks, that he might pick the occasional pimple in public. Or so paranoid, he wears one of those weird tin-foil hats around, so the CIA can't "spy" on him.]

A new freckle? I’m impressed you noticed. Have you so spent much time studying my face that you were able to pick up on such a thing?

Pfft. Study your face? As if. You're getting cocky there, Felix.

[Miranda’s fingers pause. Talented? No, no, this is just a distraction. It’s amusing enough, but a distraction nonetheless.] Thank you. And of course!

Clever.

That and depression, actually. Writer’s burden, innit?

Depression? That's...depressing.

[Even before the girl replies, Miranda’s hands have started moving again; her nimble fingers turning tons of tiny squares into the rapidly evolving tail of the dragon.]

[Jesus Christ. The woman is talented. Kallie watches in awe as Miranda's fingers flutter over the paper, turning and folding the sheet with great precision and speed.]

Not really. [To be honest or not to. He decides to be truthful only for the hell of it. And perhaps a bit to see if her expression will change when he does. He’s not narcissistic, only conscious of himself. Which is funny, because he’s hardly connected to himself anymore.] Most of the eyes I’ve seen in my life were either afraid or disgusted by me. Congratulations may be in order. You’re one of the first.

Disgusted by you? Why? What do you do? Pick your nose in public? You hardly look the type to do anything "disgusting."

[A voice he hasn’t heard in a few days, though it feels like longer. He glances up and his lips full into a smirk]

[Oh God, it's Felix. The last time she'd seen him, she panicked at the prospect of having sex and had bolted--bolted!  She couldn't believe she did that and she hopes Felix doesn't believe she's some sort of--ugh--virgin. I mean, she is, but she doesn't want him to think that. How embarrassing.]

Er, not really, no. I might’ve, a bit ago, but ‘m clean and sober for ages now, so I haven’t got any friends around here that’re junkies. ‘m sure you could find someone, though.

[Kallie likes the stranger even more after his confession. She doesn't actually have any drugs nor does she actually use them. She hated the things--hated seeing what they did to people. She saw firsthand how horrible it could make people and just how easily it could ruin their lives. Her mother, after all, had overdosed more than once.]

[Miranda’s head tilts slightly as she regards the young woman in front of her. Arrogant, she decides. Pretty. Different. Enthusiastic. Bright. She’s fun to look at. Pleased at having defined at least the blatantly displayed characteristics of the girl, she can turn her mind to the eager questions.]

[A hobby? Oregano--er--origami is a hobby? What's so interesting about it? It's just folding paper, isn't it? You can't really play with it or do anything with it other than just look at it. Whatever. She'll feign interest because the girl seems nice enough and Kallie can always use another friend.]

[Everything. He’s not going to tell her anywhere near everything, but the words amuse him all the same. A small chuckle slips forth before he can think to hold it in. There’s something occasionally pleasant about people with grand presences.]

[She laughs and is slightly disappointed that he doesn't actually tell her what his social security is. He'd be stupid to give it to her, of course. She could be some identity thief or some weird Buffalo Bill type character who wanted to walk around wearing his skin. She's neither, though, and she wouldn't have known what to do with his social security even if he'd told her.]

You have part drugs, do you? What drugs have you got? You know you could score pretty well with a few patients ‘round here, yeah?

[Miranda raises her head from a complicated origami dragon to regard this loud girl. She’s very vibrant. Happy and amused. Glittering. She lists the words to describe this girl in her mind. Realizing that she had spoken in greeting, Miranda responds in kind. Well. Perhaps not quite as enthusiastically.] 

[The woman before her is very pretty. She's not as pretty as she, herself, is, of course, but then again, who is? Nobody! Kallie's looks are unparalleled--especially in this God-forsaken asylum. There are far too many droolers and twitchy-eyed weirdos here. Kallie knows she doesn't have any competition. Still, she can acknowledge when she sees beauty and she thinks the woman before her is very, very pretty. Whatever. She's probably batshit insane as well. Kallie takes comfort in that thought.]