The In-Laws||MHAxOCS||

24. Reaching Out

Simon hoped it went well as she finally stood up to get her things.
Her office space was dark, but warmly decorated. She had her documents lined up in the book shelves and her little stuffed paper dolls she made in her childhood were hidden in various places. Overall it was comfy and homey, contrasting the professional and grand school where the office was located in.
Yawning, she went to put Luna's file away, moving one of her dolls.
She went to put it back, but looked at it for a second longer.
The door opened, but she didn't look up as she stared at it.
"What's that?" Aizawa asked from the doorway.
Simon flipped it over, then back again. It had a green paper dress and yellow yarn glued to its head.
"My sister." She looked up to him with a smile.
He looked confused and concerned.
"Ah! It's a doll I made of her when we were small!" She corrected. "I have one of all my brothers and sisters." She motioned around the room.
There were at least 13 dolls.
"That's a lot of siblings.." he mentioned, picking one up and turning it over, the name 'Christina' with a heart on the back.
"Not biologically! They were other kids from the or- the church." She stopped herself from revealing too much that she didn't want to. "They were like my family my whole life." She informed quietly as she walked up and looked at the one he was holding.
"Ah! That was Tina! She was a dork, always teaching me random things about the movies we watched together.."
He looked Simon in the eyes, grip on the doll loosening.
"Was?"
Shit.
She couldn't form words, her breath hitching as she tried to come up with an excuse.
He saw her struggling. "I came to talk about the Jade Case-"
"She died when she was 14, in the fire that Parker started at the church." She said, and he froze.
"If you don't feel comfortable-"
"I'll tell you everything. It's... important to Parker's profile."

"-and then he.. disappeared." Simon finished, finally looking up.
Her tears were streaming down her face but her expression was neutral.
He just stared at her with a look that was mostly surprise and some other expression she couldn't place.
She laughed in embarrassment a little, sniffling.
"Ah.. I'm not a ghost!" She said, flicking his hand that rested on the table.
He flinched and looked down, then back up.
Her hand was shaking, but she had a faint smile as she wiped away her tears.
His posture straightened.
"I have a lead in the next big shipment." He said, and her body stopped for a moment.
She looked confused. "Wha- oh!"
The case.
"O-okay!" She nodded with a wide grin, tears forming faster now as she tried to wipe them away. "I mean- that's good, tell me!" She corrected after shaking her head.
He's just coldhearted.
As he explained, he didn't even react to her obviously trying to be fine when she wasn't.
She told him everything and he didn't care anymore than if it was a location..
She hoped that it was just him being nice and trying not to make her feel vulnerable, but her voice in her head was saying Amara's words all along.
"Janie, we're all hurting and your little sob story version of events won't pay mom's medical bills. Go back to doing your job so I can have my life back."

"Luna, wake up! We have to-"
Brian stood there, wide eyed, at an already awake Luna, who was on her phone.
"Did-" He started to tear up. "Did you wake up to your alarm?"
"We have to leave at 3 am, do you think I slept at all? I'll nap in the car."
"Oh." He sighed in disappointment.
She sighed, standing up. "I would be more awake if I got a morning hug, though."
He smiled, walking over to give her a lazy hug. "Hey Luna?"
She hummed.
"I'm sorry about the last week. About Mom, and Amara... and me. I wanted to do something about it. About dinner, about all of it. I don't know why-"
He did this so much. Apologized for sitting and watching, but never doing anything.
She never blamed him, though. These were her battles, she'd deal with them.
"It's ok, B." She bunched his shirt in her fists. "It's ok, I promise."
"Please don't lie."
Sorry Brian. "I'm not."
She pushed him away, smiling. "Now get out of my room, I have to get ready."
She stood in the mirror, putting on layer after layer of foundation over her face. She'd looked kind of cakey this whole week, but it was better than the purple and blue mess underneath.
Her cheeks ached every time the beauty blender pressed onto her skin.
"You're not wearing that." Her mom pointed at her overalls. "You look like you're five. Change."
She came back with a pair of joggers.
"And the hair."
Her scalp was sore from all the pulling, but she put it up anyway.
She hadn't said a word to anyone besides Brian all morning, and she continued not to as she helped wheel her mom's suitcases into the car.
She slipped her sketchbook out from under her jacket, curling up with the back row of the van all to herself, and sticking in her earphones. She cranked the volume up all the way. Amara would keep her mom occupied anyway.
Her sketchbook was the only place she'd draw things that she didn't wanna animate. As soon as she finished a drawing, she'd will it to stay, and slam the book closed for good measure.
Putting the pencil to paper for once was relaxing.
I haven't had the time for this in a while...

"I'm gonna miss you sooo much, Rina!!" Amara's words were dripping with dramatic sincerity, and so was her face.
"I'm gonna miss you too, Amara!!" They clutched each other, and Luna wanted to gag.
"Brian." He walked over to his mom, zombie-like. Poor boy had to wake up at 2 am, drive five hours and stay awake through whatever Amara and her were talking about.
"Mahal kita, anak." She hugged him, in a motherly way, as motherly as you can be when your son is 6 feet tall.
He stiffened up when he heard the i love you.
Luna sighed, closing her eyes. She waited for a sarcastic comment, maybe a heartfelt goodbye, even an insult.
But when she slowly opened them she saw her mom's receding figure walking away, her brother walking toward her and willing himself not to cry, and her stupid stupid sister-in-law wiping her tears away with a handkerchief.
Her first thought was: Who the fuck still uses handkerchiefs?? and her second was of the woman who thought she wasn't even worth a goodbye.
So she let Brian hug her tight, and she let him say sorry over and over, and she stared until she couldn't see her mother anymore.
Somehow this hurt more than the abuse did.