Journey Back to Amphibia

Chapter 3: Sasha's Place

"Is that all your things? If I'm going to be honest, I expected you to have a lot more nerd merch," Sasha said as she set one of Marcy's suitcases in the spare bedroom of her apartment.

"Oh, I do. I sent it through the mail. It should be here in a day or two," Marcy explained. "Thanks again for letting me move in until I get my own apartment."

"Not a problem. I won't lie. It will be nice having your help paying the rent," Sasha said with a chuckle. "There's a desk right there for you to work on your webcomic too." She pointed to the wall next to them.

"Sweet!" Marcy clapped her hands and made a small jump.

"Well, let me know if you need anything. I'm going to take a quick shower and get ready for bed. I have work tomorrow."

"Ok. I think I'll just read a book and unpack everything tomorrow." Marcy pulled a book out of her suitcase.

"You got it, girl." Sasha left her in the room alone.

Marcy closed the doors and got dressed into her pajamas and flopped onto the bed. Letting out an exasperated sigh, she pulled the blankets up, cuddling in her new bed. With her index finger, she found her bookmark and opened the book to where she had left off.

"Alright, Dr. P. What else do you have up your sleeve?"

After thirty minutes of intense reading and flipping of pages, Marcy was suddenly jolted out of her book. She could hear Sasha's muffled raised voice. Fearful that something terrible was happening, Marcy quickly got out of her bed and opened her bedroom door. She briskly walked to the end of the hall and peeked out over the corner.

"No!" Sasha let out an aggravated huff. "Mom, stop, we talked about this. I'm not dealing with your debt anymore. I have my own bills to pay and last time you wasted it at a bar-" She pinched the bridge of her nose as she paced in front of the tv.

Marcy could hear Mrs. Waybright's voice from where she stood at the edge of the hall. She couldn't make out the words but it was loud enough to make Sasha finch and jerk the phone away from her ear. Sasha had always had a problem with her parents, especially her mom.

It wasn't until Sasha came back from Amphibia when things started to really go down, but Marcy moved and never got to see if it got better. She never wanted to ask Sasha through text how things were going and Sasha never seemed open to discussing it. From the argument Sasha was currently having on the phone, it was obvious which direction the mother and daughter relationship had gone.

"Mom," Sasha tried to interject.

"No, Sasha. We're not talking about this. End of discussion."

Marcy blanched. She could hear that one very well. It reminded her of the times when they were younger and Sasha would pull that demanding, manipulative tone. Of course, it must hurt Sasha far worse for her own mother to treat her that way and constantly be reminded how she was before. If Marcy knew Sasha well, she knew her friend hated being reminded of her days before she turned a new leaf in Amphibia.

"Wh-Mom!" Sasha cried. "Hey, if you're not going to treat me like a person, then don't call me!" She hung up on her phone, letting out what sounded like a mix between a growl and a scream. Gripping her bangs, she slumped onto her couch, resting her eyes on the palms of her hands.

Not certain what else to do, Marcy gently sat down on the couch next to her friend. Then she set a hand on Sasha's shoulder as the blonde let out a loud sniff, indicating that she was crying.

"You know, you can always let Anne talk to her. That'll be fun to watch," Marcy offered jokingly.

Sasha snorted back a short laugh. "My mom wouldn't know what hit her..." She scrubbed the tears away. "But... It's fine."

"Is it?"

"Well... Close as it's going to get..." She sighed. "It's just that... It's hard to keep handing her my trust only for her to stomp on it time and time again..."

"Then maybe you should stop."

"But she's my mom. And you guys never gave up on me."

"Yes, well, you were only a kid, and your mom was given a whole lot more time to change. Some people just don't want to change and they won't... That doesn't mean you don't get to love her still. It just means she needs to earn you back. That will take time. Months, years, decades, a lifetime. Whatever." Marcy had her hand turning in a circle unconsciously as she spoke. "Am I making sense?"

"Yes. Thanks, Marmar... Isn't this sort of my job though? I'm the psychiatrist after all."

Macy chuckled. "No problem, and i guess you could say that I learned from the best."

A smirk played on Sasha's lips. "Hey, want to watch a movie? I know that I have work in the morning but I could use something to take my mind off things for a moment."

"Ah, you know me. Of course I would! I could stay up all night!"

"And regret it in the morning, like you always do," Sasha added.

"Touche," Marcy grinned. She grabbed the remote and handed it to Sasha. "Did you know they made a Love Choice Six?"

"Aren't they getting washed out at this point?"

Marcy shrugged. "Probably."

"You want to try it? I haven't seen it yet."

"Sure! I'm up for that," Marcy agreed.