[old] hexes for exes, briarville girls (1)

二十一。別哭了

(don't cry now)

"I'M NINETY PERCENT SURE PAMELA isn't outside my bedroom door right now."

Madi hummed pensively from the other end of the phone. "Has it ever crossed your mind that you could poke your head out and check?"

"No," Livia deadpanned. "I did not think of that. Wow, you're so smart, Tahiri! How did that never cross my mind? You're such a genius. I really get how you got to your spot now."

"Shush," Madi grumbled. "Stop teasing me, you sarcastic," a pause as Madi scrambled for the right insult, "asshole?"

"You couldn't even come up with a proper rebuttal," Livia huffed as she sat down on her bed. Sunday mornings were supposed to be spent in outside gardens enjoying a nice cup of tea with her friends and family, but here Livia was, locked inside her room, trying to finish another chapter of her book- honestly, somedays, Livia regrets ever getting her book published. The pressure is overwhelming, in her opinion, especially as she has to balance all that on her studies. She got a B for her maths quiz two days ago. Like, Jesus, it was the easiest of stuff!

"Sue me," Madi snorted. "Okay, okay. Your sister is mad?"

"Yes."

"I'm beginning to wonder if she's the right choice for all this," the girl sighed. "Anger is a wonderful fuel, but..."

"I'm about to quote Arya Stark."

"Don't you dare- not let me finish my sentence, damn you."

"You're not finishing it."

"Oh, just shut up, Wong. I meant to say that anger can also blind her to everything else... Which is a pretty bad thing for, y'know, a queen."

"Dearest Madeleine, not all of us can go through life with a smile on their faces."

"You don't have to. Just go through it with a fake smile on your face. Everyone's too busy with their own to notice that yours is just as plastic."

"Have you ever wondered how much easier it would be if everyone acted the way they want to?"

"Have you thought about how high levels of bullying, murder, blackmail and crime would be if that was the case?"

That was a good answer, but Livia didn't want to continue indulging in this conversation.

"Enough philosophical discussion, Tahiri. You never call on Sunday mornings, what's up?"

"You do realise that I could be calling because we're friends, right? And calling each other randomly is what friends do?"

Neither Livia nor Madi were the kind to keep that kind of friends around for long. Or at least they aren't anymore. Madi, toughened by her experiences in a strict hierarchical system, Livia by loss and pain.