Could You Love Me? || Ms Venable

II.

.･:*:･･:*:･.
"Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio: A fellow of infinite jest."

(Hamlet, act 5 scene 1)
.･:*:･･:*:･.

****

My head turned towards the door, too see a slim figure emerge.

"Why aren't you with the others?" Ms Venable asked, her voice on the edge of demanding.

"I just....I don't really like being around a lot of people, I prefer my own company" My voice was quiet and nervous, unsure what kind of mood Ms Venable was in. I didn't know why I stammered though, or why my palms had suddenly grown sweaty.

She didn't say anything, just walked towards me, stopping as she towered above my resting body. I stiffened in fear, wondering what she was going to do or say. I wasn't sure, but I thought that she'd noticed how my body was shaking a little. But it wasn't only because I was intimidated by her....there was a feeling in me when I was around her that I never was able to recognise.

"Shakespeare" She murmured. It was more of a statement that a question.

Ms Venable gazed off into the distance above me in thought. That was rare, her lost in thought, and not being her normal alert self.

"We know what we are, but not what we may be" Ms Venable murmured to herself. That surprised me. She knew Hamlet quotes off by heart, so she must have been a reader before the apocalypse, but couldn't have been one anymore because I'd never seen her in this library.

Silence fell over the room as I stared at Ms Venable, waiting for her to say something. After a few minutes, she visibly snapped out of her trace, clearing her throat.

"Dinner is in an hour, you will not be late, and you will eat" Ms Venable's voice returned to its cold state, and she exited the room quickly after.

I sat there, slightly confused. That whole situation was new, it was like she'd been captured in a memory for a minute, unlike I'd ever seen her do before.

I watched the old styled clock on the mantelpiece tick the minutes by until it was seven o'clock.

Sighing, I stood up. Dinner. People. Great.

*

"Why do you eat it so slowly?" Asked Coco, talking to Stu.

"It makes it feel like I'm eating more. Eating like you is silly, wolfing it down in one mouthful" Stu shook his head. Coco took the advice, and used her cutlery to cut the cube up into very small pieces.

"Ms Aldean" My head turned to the voice, recognising it immediately. Ms Venable's eyes were narrowed, glancing at me then to my plate. When we'd all arrived, we'd been allocated permanent seats, and mine happened to be next to Ms Venable. That unfortunately meant that her dangerous presence was always surrounding me.

"I told you earlier that you will eat quicker." Her eyes bore into me as I flushed pink. I really couldn't eat this. Really. She didn't understand, no one ever had. I just couldn't.

"If you do not speed up from now on, you will receive some form of punishment. I will not accept people ignoring my commands"

Everyone at the table was now aware of me and Ms Venable. They all looked curious as to what was being said.

"I...." I trailed into silence, slowly picking up my fork. Glancing back up at Ms Venable, I gulped. I knew that if I didn't hurry up, I'd be digging myself a hole of regret.

Not being able to bear the situation any longer, I just grabbed the cube and swallowed it whole. It was a disgusting jelly texture that nearly made me gag. Ew.

Ms Venable nodded slightly in approval. That one action for some reason made me feel....validated. As if I cared about what she thought of me.

After about two minutes of the food sitting in my stomach, I started fidgeting nervously. I absolutely hated being around people, and I liked the safety of my own company.

Everyone must have finished their food because I heard Ms Venable tap her cane twice.

"You may leave"

At those words I jumped up, stumbling, and fled the room, fast walking. I made my way to my room, pushing the door open and running to my bed, curling up under the covers, half smiling in relief. But soon I felt tears blurring my vision because all I could think about was how much I missed my own bed back at my apartment, missing the warmth from fluffy blankets and pillows. I missed everything. This apocalypse had taken everything I had, and I didn't even have a lot to start with.

When I sniffed and stopped the tears, I turned my head slightly then gasped in surprise.

There, standing in my doorway, was Ms Venable, two hands on her cane, and she was looking strangely elegant.

"What is the meaning of this, Ms Aldean?"

My body started to tremble slightly as I rose to my feet, terrified that she'd punish me for something, though I didn't know for what reason. For crying maybe?

"I-I'm sorry.." My eyes looked down at the floor, not daring to connect with hers. What was I meant to do? Just stand there like a twat?

"Ms Aldean, I asked you a question and I expect a direct answer, not an apology"

"I...." And that was it. I broke. I started to cry, tears falling down my face and I saw Ms Venable shift uncomfortably. Then she simply left.

What? She was gone? Without a punishment?

After a few minutes, I managed to get myself together. I was so pathetic, crying in front of Ms Venable, the leader of this outpost. I sure was one hell of an emotional wreck.

Falling asleep was hard that night. For some reason, there was one thing on my mind. Well, one person on my mind to be specific.

Ms Venable.

I didn't know why or how, but this woman just seemed to cloud over my thought. She always had, but not this much.

Sighing, I sat up, abandoning the task of sleeping. That wasn't going to happen today.

We weren't allowed to leave our rooms at night, and I'd never dared to break the rules before, but I just couldn't stand being in my room any longer. Staring at the ceiling had become a tedious act I repeated every night.

Taking a deep breath, I slipped out of bed.

****