Unfamiliarity | Wilhemina Venable

part seventeen| memories

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"How much do you remember?" was all Ms Venable said to me.

"Not much." I replied.

It was the truth. I couldn't remember much. The most I could remember was I was looking all over New York for a job, and nobody would take me. I didn't have any skills to show off and didn't have a resume typed up. I was genuinely lost.

"I remember looking for a job. Anyone that would take me." I told her, lowering my voice so she wouldn't hear how pathetic I was.

"Speak clearly when you're talking to me." she demanded with a loud thud of her cane, and towering over me.

I took a deep breath and looked her in the eyes.

"I remember trying to find a job." I said loud enough for her to hear me. "No one would take me."

She smirked, as if she got satisfaction from watching me coward beneath her. She then turned on her heel and headed towards the cushioned couches in front of the lit fireplace in her room. Ms Venable sat down slowly, not letting me out of her sight. She probably thought I was going to try and escape.

I didn't want to look at her. As mesmerizing as those brown eyes were, it ached my heart to look at them. It felt like looking at someone you once knew, but is now only a stranger; merely a background character in your life. It felt like that feeling you get when your adrenaline starts rushing because of the memories you made with that person, but can't bring yourself to talk to them because of how long its been.

I wanted to curl up into a ball and cry. I wanted to release my feelings until there weren't any left in me. I can't even remember the last time I cried, but it must've been a while, because I felt any moment I could break out in hysterical tears.

"Sit." Ms Venable boomed, eyeing the chair in front of her.

My legs creeped towards her as fast as they could, and sat in the empty seat in front of her. The fireplace started to make me sweat and my thumping heart wasn't helping the situation. I kept my eyes focused on the ground, and my posture upright, terrified of being yelled at or punished for slouching.

I was a trembling mess. My fingers wouldn't stop twitching in fear and my leg wouldn't stop bouncing. The more I concentrated on keeping myself still, the worse it got. My thoughts were rushing through me like wind and I could barely make out what was in front of me.

Just then I felt a finger pressed against my skin. Ms Venable had placed her index finger under my chin and raised it, so our faces were only inches apart. I could feel her breath on me, faintly warming my lips.

And just like that, I felt a sharp pain in my temples. I felt as if i'd been electrocuted. It wasn't unbearable, but it was enough to make me flinch from Ms Venable's grip and grasp my head in pain. I sat back in the seat, squeezing my eyes and massaging my forehead until the pain eventually went away. I opened them back up after a few moments to see Ms Venable kneeling beside me and gripping my thigh underneath my dress.

It took a few moments to realize what had happened, but once I did my stomach sank into a bottomless pit. Tears began to rush down my cheeks when I recognized Ms Venable. I recognized her touch, her scent, I remembered every moment spent with her, I remembered her home, every conversation we had, her cat Willow, I remembered that horrible fight we got into. It was her, it was Wilhemina.

I was too nervous to speak, terrified in fact. I could barely even breathe properly. Wilhemina still had her hand on my thigh, stroking it softly. She was helping me calm down.

"Mina." I whispered barely audible.

Her eyes began to water as she looked up at me, and for the first time, she smiled. A genuine smile.

"Darling." she trembled. "Oh darling!"

Mina buried her head atop my dress, holding onto me like I was ice and could melt into nothing at any moment. She cried while I stroked that fire hair of hers.

"I was afraid you'd forgotten about me. Forever." she trembled.

"I could never forget about you Mina. Not in a million years." I cried.

I cupped my palms around Mina's cheeks, raising her head to look at me. Those eyes finally looked familiar, like i'd known her all my life. I wiped away the tears that stained her peachy face and gave her a kiss on her forehead.

"I love you." I smiled. "I love you so much."

"I love you angel. I'll always love you no matter what."

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Wilhemina had worn herself out. She ended up falling asleep on the bed while I stroked my fingers through her hair, softly and gently.

I sat up slowly, not wanting to wake her up. She mumbled in her sleep which put a smile on my face. I gave a small kiss on her cheek and got up from the bed, being careful not to make a noise, then tiptoed out of the room.

As I shut her door behind me I headed down the hall to my room. Before I could turn the handle I was jump scared by Athena creeping around the corner.

"Jesus! Don't scare me like that!" I nearly yelled.

"Sorry!" she said back.

"What are you doing here? Everyone's supposed to be asleep. It's late." I told her.

"I was gonna ask you the same thing."

Athena lowered her head like she was working herself up to ask me something.

"I was wondering if I could sleep in your room tonight." she finally said.

"You know we can't do that." I said.

Wilhemina had made it very clear that there would be no close contact between yourself and the other people of the outpost. No sex.

"I can't go back to my room. It's quiet and no matter how many candles are lit i'm still freezing." she begged.

"Fine." I gave in, and held my door open for her, not thinking of the consequences.

"Thank you." she smiled, and went inside.

She made herself right at home, bouncing slightly on my bed and letting out a deep sigh as soon as her head hit the pillow. I admired how happy and content she was with so little. She could create something good out of something so horrible, like being stuck in this outpost. Although she seemed terrified most of the time, her personality grew whenever she was around me, and she became a care-free individual with gleaming eyes. I think we made each other feel safe.

I laid down beside her and let out a sigh myself. It must've been at least 3 in the morning and I was dead tired. Before closing my eyes I looked beside me to find a girl curled up in fetal position and letting out quiet snores.

My eyelids quickly grew heavy, and I fell asleep in a matter of seconds.

I heard small taps on a door before the handle turned and the door squeaked open. I was still half asleep so I couldn't comprehend what was going on at first until I squinted my eyes and focused on Mina standing in the door frame.

"Morning." I smiled, and sat up from the bed.

Mina stood there with her brows furrowed and glossy eyes. I became confused watching her expression. Why did she seem upset?

That's when I remembered the girl sleeping next to me. Athena. I turned to see her still fast asleep and her nearly fully covered by the blanket.

"Mina." I whispered, and stood up.

I took a few steps towards her, to which she backed away, not wanting to make contact with me.

"Mina wait!" I said desperately, watching her walk swiftly down the hall.

Once again, i've fucked everything up.

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a/n: im gonna be a little slow with posting ive been pretty busy lately. hopefully this will be finished within a few weeks. bare with me :)