Hangover with a Side of Breakfast (Angie May Thompson)

[Delilah Pryce]

The green and black Barracuda owned by Delilah ripped through the outskirts of Pilot Ridge, the roar of the engine deafening to everyone it passed....had their really been anyone to pass. Inside the confines of the city, cars and people were everywhere, but on the further outskirts of the town, it was much more quiet. Delilah drove with one hand, the other resting against her temple as she propped her head up against the door of the car. She wore a dark pair of sunglasses to hide her eyes from the bright light of the late morning. Her head pounded from a bit of a hangover, too much drinking from the night before. A bottle of pills lay in the Delilah's lap, but judging by the scratched off label, it wasn't exactly aspirin in the bottle. Yeah, Delilah had way too many vices, sue her. She wasn't a good person by any means, but had been trying to do better as of late. Her life had been horrible enough for too long and so now it was time to adjust it a bit, right after breakfast maybe.

The car slowly pulled into the small parking lot of Bessie's, a small little greasy spoon just outside of town. Delilah had heard good things about the place and had decided to give the diner a try. She revved the engine once before turning the car off and slumping further back into the seat. Judging from the sun in the sky, it was around eleven or so, lunchtime for some, breakfast for Delilah. With much effort, the small woman managed to finally push her car door open and slowly slumped out into the morning air. The clothes she wore were leftover from last night, a small grey cotton tee shirt with blue jeans and sneakers. Delilah had managed to comb her hair and brush her teeth, but that was about all. Her head had hurt far too much for her to even attempt to put any make-up on or bother looking for fresh clothes.

Delilah sighed and looked about the parking lot, noticing a few cars but not too many. Slipping her car keys into her back pocket, Delilah slowly made her way toward the door of the diner, pushing her way inside. Reluctantly, Delilah removed her sunglasses and looked about for a seat, seeing a booth at the back. She walked the short length of Bessie's and slid into the booth, tossing her sunglasses onto the table top. Leaning over, Delilah reached into her pant's pocket, looking for her pill bottle, realizing she had left it in the car. "Great," she muttered, leaning over to her other side, hoping that one or two pills might have escaped their bottle and into her pocket sometime last night. "Thank you," she muttered again, finding two pills in her pocket, clenching them in her fingers. Her small hand slipped from her pocket, just as a small framed woman came walking over to the booth. Delilah pushed the pills into her mouth, chewing them quickly. The bitter taste hardly effected her anymore. She smiled weakly to the waitress, squinting her eyes as her head pounded a bit harder. The woman's face was familiar and thanks to Delilah's infallible memory, her mind was already searching what it could to remember the face.

[Deleted]

Angie had the morning shift at the diner today and was smiling about as bright as the sun outside. The day hadn’t started out quite as charming, however. She first woke up sometime in the middle of the night, screaming a name that she swore to never speak again. Forgetting where she was, Angie cowered in her bed for a good 30 minutes before finally stepping out onto the cold floor of her little shack and headed to the kitchen for a glass of milk.

Just like a kid, she could hear his voice saying. What are you doing making such a racket in the middle of the night? Go back to your room. Tears had fallen down onto her lightly pinked nightdress as she stared at her reflection in the window. She knew he was right behind her and would slide his hand around her waist any moment now. He’d whisper in her hear with a deep, southern timbre. Or were you looking for me? You dumb, little slut.

She’d thrown the glass across the room, then cut her foot as she tried to clean it up. By the time Angie was ready to settle down again in her modest little bed, it was already time to get up and start getting ready for work. She showered. Dried her hair and curled it into ringlets, then set it up in a messy bun atop her head. She covered up the dark circles under her eyes with a layer of concealer and then brushed a light layer of foundation over that. Rouge. Eyeliner. Shadow. Then a modest, a-line sundress.

Angie liked that she was allowed to wear near anything she wanted at her job. It was just the shoes she couldn’t get around, but today she was thankful for it. Sandals wouldn’t look very good with a bandaged up foot.

She’d taken a few breaths of preparation before finally blinking up to the sky and putting on her award-winning smile and starting her day at the diner. It was just after the morning rush when the brunette came in and darted to the booth in the back before Angie could grab a moment to seat her. Oh, well. No matter, it wasn’t that busy anyway. Angie snatched one of the menus and strolled across the diner to the woman. “Hi there, welcome to Bessie’s. Anything I can getchu started with?” She set the menu down on the table in front of the woman and offered her a bright smile.

[Delilah Pryce]

It was the voice which held Delilah as she slowly began to remember. That southern drawl, the deep accent, not too much like her own. Delilah began to breath a bit more slowly as she fought to remember all the while trying to remember how to control this part of herself. Sean had been very helpful in this department of Delilah's life as well, just as he was in almost every aspect since her first arrival at Hammel. However this part was neither here nor there and back to the moment. She tilted her head to the side and stared deeply at Angie, sort of stalker-ish like. Delilah narrowed her eyes a bit more than before as the past began to put itself together in her head. It was a brief second or two in real time but in Delilah's head, it seemed like a lifetime. The small frail girl who seemed to be a bit off, just as Delilah herself was but in a slightly more positive direction. Then she remembered the gossip of the girl who was pregnant. Delilah caught just about every snippet of anything and everything around her and remembered it well. So someone like Angie stood out amongst the others of Hammel and thus Delilah had introduced herself to Angie back then, but nothing to be likely remembered.

"I know you...," Delilah said rather oddly and cryptically as she ignored the menu Angie had brought. Then as if she was reading a cue card, Delilah said the name, "Angie." It was a simple thing to be said, and looking at it from a side view of sorts, Delilah realized how creepy this all probably looked. Hey, Delilah was creepy in that ragged sort of way. She could clean up well when she took the notion, but usually, Delilah was chaotic looking. Even in the way she smiled at the moment upon realizing just how weird this moment had become. She ran her fingers through her hair and looked away for just a moment before turning her gaze back to Angie, who no doubt was about to back-step it to safety. "You uh...we were at Hammel briefly together," Delilah finally said, hoping she had straightened this awkward moment out.

Delilah really didn't think Angie would remember her, after all, it had been some time since those school days one could say. Delilah had been through hell and back again in her life since Hammel and after and she was also sure Angie wasn't all that different, albeit her life might have been a bit more sunnier. Delilah had no idea of what Angie had been through and had she might, well......who really knew what might have happened. "I know, I look like a freakin' stalker, but really, I'm just a hungover freak of nature and the perfect example of what not to be when you grow up," she said with a sigh.

[Deleted]

Angie presented to the customer her butterball of a smile. The woman with the golden hair was always being complimented on her smile. How it just brightened people’s day, especially of those who’d had a particularly stressful morning/afternoon/evening. It was all she could do for them. And for herself. Maybe she had a little bit of trouble herself this morning, but it wasn’t nothing she couldn’t take care of by herself. No need to bother anyone else for it.

And that was how she treated this lady-customer as well. Big smile. At your service. It was her job after all. She wasn’t expecting the brunette to come out with Angie’s very own name upon seeing her. “Why yes, that’s right. Do we know each other?” she asked curiously. Her question was answered almost immediately and Angie gave the woman a good long stare, trying to dredge up the memories from back then. Not an easy thing to do, it was near ten years ago since she graduated.

Did Angie remember a girl who looked this….dark…?

Angie furrowed her eyebrows. “Now that’s just a bit of nonsense, isn’t it, hun?” She smartly slapped her hand down on the table and promptly took herself a seat across from the sullen looking woman. “I’ll not be having you talk down to yourself like that, not while I’m around to stop it.” Because if you only thought badly about yourself, then it just became easier to continue thinking badly about yourself. Angie forgot where she heard that from…

She smiled and reached forward to gently touch the woman’s hand. “Just pull back a bit of that hair, and there’s a beautiful gem hiding beneath, I’m sure.” Angie had no basis for this, but she always liked to find the good qualities in people and focus on those rather than the negative. Because it was too easy to see the negative, often times. “Now, why don’t you tell me your name, hun? I’m sorry I can’t remember right aways, but maybe knowing your name will help jolt some memories into place?”

[Delilah Pryce]

Angie was one of 'those' people as Delilah often referred to people who were just way too happy. Angie's smile was disarming and coupled with her accent, well, the woman was sort of hypnotic. Delilah couldn't help but feel a small smile creep across her face as Angie spoke and especially when Angie placed her hand on top of Delilah's. Yeah, sure, Delilah was currently dealing with a hangover, but at the moment, dealing with that problem was becoming easier. That could have been due to the painkillers working their way into her system, but it sounds better saying it was Angie's nice personality which made the day just a bit better.

Delilah made no attempt to remove her hand from Angie's, it was sort of nice. Delilah did push her massive hair back from her face with her other hand though, at Angie's sort of request. Delilah was attractive in her own way, but years of abuse and a road of bad decisions shown through. The current hangover certainly didn't help matters, but Delilah had come to terms with her appearance years ago. The dark circles under her eyes showed the effects of her insomnia, her lips showed a few places from where she bit at them nervously, but most of all, it was Delilah's eyes which showed the torment of a young woman. Perhaps it was a look Angie herself would recognize? People of the same nature or state could often tell when they came across another like them. Angie hid her past torment well. Some people found ways of dealing with their problems, their nightmares in a way which allowed them to appear to have that normal life. Delilah wasn't one of those people though. She was trying to be a better person now and thanks to Dr. Neville, she was making a positive progression. Yeah, it took the complete eradication of her life before her arrival to Hammel, but sometimes you had to make drastic decisions to get any results.

A small laugh escaped Delilah as Angie talked, admitting to not remembering her. She didn't blame Angie for not remembering, it was a long time ago since either of them had been kids. "Delilah....Pryce," she said still smiling and locking her eyes with Angie's. The woman had attractive eyes. Delilah always noticed a person's eyes. It was the one feature which drew her the most. The eyes were where the truth of a person could be seen. You could hide the truth from your face, your body language and even your speech, but the eyes.....they couldn't be changed. Delilah had heard someone say that the eyes were the windows to the soul and while it was all metaphorical, there was a lot of truth there. Angie's eyes were innocent in a way, but if you looked long enough, they betrayed Angie. Delilah couldn't really say how she could tell there was a darkness in Angie, she just sort of knew it. It was probably just intuition coupled with years of dealing with her own inner demons which tipped Delilah off in the end.

Delilah casually managed to slip three of her fingers from underneath Angie's hand and sort of intertwine them the other woman's fingers. Whether that was a conscious or subconscious act was something only known to Delilah. "Okay. I was the one who tried to steal Dr. Neville's van in a horribly failed attempt to make a secret beer run," Delilah said with an embarrassed laugh. "Ended up getting snagged by security and had to follow Neville around for the rest of the week working off my punishment by being his 'gopher'," Delilah continued as her laugh slowly died. "Wasn't too bad though, I think during that time was when I first saw you. I remember partly because you stood out, in your own way. You were way too perky for Hammel. Most of us weren't exactly thrilled to be there," Delilah rambled on, taking a slow breath to pause her thoughts for a moment, "Also, there weren't too many soon to be mothers running around either," she added, trying not to sound like she was judging Angie, "No offense or anything," she added nervously, trying to keep some sort of smile on her face, but probably failing miserably.

[Deleted]

If Angie hadn’t had her son to think of and worry about, if he hadn’t been around to give the woman the strength she needed to not despair and give up, then Angie could have easily ended up as visibly worn as Delilah. Angie had someone else to live for, who depended on her to do her best. If Angie had let herself fall, then what would have happened to her son? He would have been left at the hands of Gerry and his wife. He might have ended up on the streets running around with the hoodlums and doing drugs. Sure the boy had his trials and troubles, but he was still the sweetest thing in her eyes and completely worth all the effort Angie put in to keep her head firm on her shoulders.

That didn’t mean that she was completely unaffected by her past. If this morning was any indication, Angie was just as troubled and distressed over it as the next person would be. Like Delilah. Angie was just better at hiding it. Because she didn’t want people to worry. She didn’t want to be labeled as the stupid, naive girl who let herself be trapped by such a monster. Angie really was a dumb kid back then.

“Delilah,” Angie repeated, searching into her mind for any sort of recollection of that name. It seemed familiar. But nothing was immediately coming to mind. At least not until Delilah provided a very specific account of one of her past hijinks. “Oh!” Angie exclaimed with a smile. “That was you?” She burst into giggles breaking her hands from the other woman’s and covering her smile with both of them. “Oh my goodness, I remember that! Everybody was talking about it for weeks!” Not necessarily talking to her, however. Angie had her share of friends, sure, but being the teen-mother, it was easy for the blonde to be pushed into the outer rings of the social circles.

Angie’s smile softened when Delilah pointed out just that fact, of her soon-to-be mother status, and she grew just a little bit quieter. “It’s alright, hun,” she said gently. “I did stand out, after all. It was pretty unusual for a girl like me to be something like that.” That’s what a lot of the older people would say. Back then, she wasn’t a girl who was pregnant, she was a thing that was unseemly. Angie could barely go a day without someone feeling the need to say something negative about it. "But that's just how life is sometimes, don't you think?"

[Delilah Pryce]

Outwardly, Angie and Delilah seemed like to be two totally different people. Angie was just so bubbly and energetic, the sort of person Delilah suspected that birds and other cute woodland creatures followed around. Delilah on the other hand was darker, more brooding and pretty much a smart ass. Her face was ragged and her dark eyes told the story of a long hard traveled road. With Angie and Delilah across from each other, this close, they looked like two different sides of a moral mirror. Normally someone with Angie's sunny disposition made Delilah want to vomit or belittle, but a lot of things had changed recently in Delilah's life to bring about a different sort of feeling about Angie. The other woman's charming and upbeat attitude cleared up Delilah's dark afternoon. Delilah couldn't help feel some of the burden on her shoulder's lifted. Whatever worried she had been carrying around this morning were gone for now, replaced by the pleasant conversation she shared with Angie. Even Angie's laughter was contagious as she laughed at the story Delilah recounted about one of her little rule infractions back at Hammel. It was a funny moment and one of the ones Delilah liked thinking about from time to time, especially when she was depressed.

Angie's smile faded a little as her teenage pregnancy was mentioned, something Delilah could have kicked herself for bringing up. Delilah figured it couldn't have been easy being a pregnant teenager on top of also being a meta. Life had dealt Angie a crap hand there, but Angie seemed to play this embarrassing moment off with some deflected ease. Delilah was thankful as she didn't want to upset the woman. It wasn't a great idea to piss off the person taking your food order, plus it wasn't a good start in trying to make some decent conversation. Angie seemed to be the forgiving sort, the kind who had come to terms with the events of her past. This was something Delilah was working at now, trying to atone for all the bad she had inflicted upon those in this world. Consequences were to be paid for Delilah's past actions eventually, she knew that, but until that judgement day came, she was going to do the best she could in trying to remove that dark blot on her soul. "I'm sorry I went straight to the pregnancy thing, I really didn't mean anything by it. It was just the first thing that fell out of my mouth," Delilah said looking rather embarrassed.

Delilah's face sort of contorted at Angie's comment about life. "Sometimes?," Delilah said questionably, her eyes showing the hurt which bubbled beneath Delilah's personal facade. "If you ask me, 'life' likes to stack the deck to its own twisted advantage. It cheats you at every breath you breathe. It makes us all fight to be king of the hill and sits back and laughs at our losses and bloodshed," Delilah said, falling into that darker part of herself before realizing just what she had been spouting. Clearing her throat, Delilah looked down a second, catching her breath. "Sorry about that, its just he depression talking," she said, looking up to Angie once again. "It'll do us both some good to forget that stupid little outburst."

[Deleted]

“That’s alright,” Angie said with a softness to her voice. A sort of sad softness, though her face still held that cheek-dimpling smile. “That usually the first thing people remember about me anyway. It’s nothing to apologize for.” Angie had indeed come to terms with the choices she’d made in her childhood. Most people would have called them mistakes, but she couldn’t bring herself to consider her son as something so negative. She had no choice but to thing about that one particular joy in her life as the most beautiful and positive thing that came out of her foolish youth.

The rest of it, however….it was a well made mask she wore that said she was over having walked through hell and back for the sake of her son. Angie would do it again in a heartbeat if she had to. That didn’t mean she was anything of alright only ten months after having escaped from a lifetime of horrors and tragedy. Once freed from that prison, yes she had her freedom and she had her son by her side, but she also had a lifetime of nightmares to look forward to, His ghost which would never cease to haunt her whether awake or asleep. Angie was positive, she was convinced that one day she’d just blink and there he’d be again, ready to drag her back to being his little porcelain doll that he could play with whenever it was convenient.

Angie’s smile seemed to fade a little more at Delilah’s little “outburst”, her eyes turning down in dolor. It got to her. Angie didn’t disagree, but she couldn’t allow herself to dwell for too long, otherwise it would consume her entirely.

Angie brightened her smile and her eyes again and leaned forward. “Do you like pie?” she asked out of the blue. “We have great pie here. I make it all myself. Give me a name, and I’ll bet my bottom dollar that we have it!” Angie sat up again and started to slip from her seat. “Because I think we both could use a piece. It’ll help to brighten up your spirits. If nothing else, it’ll just rightly fill your tummy. What’dja like? And by the way, this is completely on the house. No need to worry about the cost.” Angie beamed her too too bright smile to her new friend and old classmate.

[Delilah Pryce]

Delilah was the queen of awkward moments and true to that nature here she was in a rather uncomfortable silence with Angie. Thankfully, the other seemed to brush aside Delilah's rather rude behavior as if it were nothing. Delilah wondered if Angie's early teenage pregnancy was mentioned by others just as Delilah had. It wasn't like it had been any sort of secret back then, everyone in the school knew about it. It was just bad form, even for Delilah. Some things just needed to be left alone in the past to pass away into a forgotten fog, not drug out into the light by near strangers. If Angie was mad at Delilah, Delilah wouldn't hold it against her. Angie seemed to be the sort to give forgiveness easily and for that Delilah was indeed thankful. Delilah knew deep down that she couldn't forgive so easily, a flawed trait she was trying to change. While her nightmares were gone, she still harbored some sense of fear. Delilah had no idea as to why she had this sense of dread in her gut all the time, she just knew it was there. Maybe she needed someone like Angie in her life to help her find the better part of herself?

Delilah smiled at the mention of pie. Pie seemed to be the cure all for life's problems. "Apple. I like apple pie," Delilah said sort of softly, hinting at her more softer side. Underneath all that gruff and depression was a fragile young woman who wanted nothing more from life than to just be happy. Problems would always be there, but it wasn't the everyday problems which bothered her. Delilah really had no idea why fear and dread followed her around. She surmised it had something to do with her childhood since she remembered nothing before Hammel. Sean Neville had removed all the dark memories of her past per Delilah's request and had told her not to go digging around trying to remember anything. Delilah had no intention of trying to dig up her childhood past, it was gone for a reason. However, fear was a strong emotion to shake and it had been a large part of Delilah for so long that it would take some time to be free of it.

At the moment, fear was taking a backseat to Angie's bubbling personality. Delilah felt a little silly letting Angie just give her the pie instead of paying for it herself. Delilah still had several bank accounts open, each with a large sum of money just sitting in it. Where that money came from was a question better off left unasked. Delilah had worked for several shady characters over the course of her young life and had been compensated for her skills quiet well. Since she really had no reason to spend her money on anything lavish, outside of her car, Delilah just piled it away and let it sit quietly.

[Deleted]

Angie had heard everything there was to say about her pregnancy. All the good and all the bad. It had been mostly bad. Judgement. Scorn. Pity. There were those who expressed sympathy, but even then it seemed condescending. Never did they fail to leave out the fact that it was a ‘mistake’ and never should have happened in the first place. She really was between a rock and a hard place when it came to satisfying people’s opinions. If she’d chosen to terminate the pregnancy, then she was a murderer and doomed for hell(though as a religious woman herself, she would never chose such an option). If she’d chosen to give up the baby, then there would be talk akin to “thank god that such an incompetent person won’t be responsible for the wellbeing of a new life”. And then later, she’d be labeled as an abandoner.

Choosing to keep the baby had landed her with months of medical expenses and treatments, a huge burden on her own body, and further scorn after he was born from those trying to be ‘sympathetic’ for a young mother while they whispered more judgmental words as they walked away, thinking she couldn’t hear. As God fearing as she was herself, Angie feared other God fearing folk far more than the Almighty himself.

However, even more than them, Angie feared the man who helped bring her son into this world. She loved him, yes, but just as much he made her melt on her feet with a mere kiss, so did he paralyze her with a mere glance.

Against that kind of malevolence, Angie had learned to brush off the mild hurtfulness imposed by other’s carelessness with her bright spirit. Though sometimes, it seemed like maybe she was trying too hard to hide her desolation. “Apple it is then!” she exclaimed brightly. “I’ll be right right back. Don’t you move now!” She pointed a quick finger to the brunette before scuttling off to grab the pie from behind the counter, a task that would take her no more than a couple of minutes. When she returned, Angie set the plate before her new friend, along with a fork and napkin, then retook her seat, setting her own piece down. “Pie always makes things better,” she said happily.

[Delilah Pryce]

Delilah stared at the pie Angie had set before her for a moment. Her mind drifted like this sometimes. So many memories and ideas running through that pretty little head of hers. It was like a raging storm inside Delilah's mind, all the time. This was just one reason she drank and used drugs in the manner she did. Thankfully, the painkillers she had took upon sitting down were in full effect now and she was able to shake off the vacant stare and memories pounding inside her head. With a smile, she looked to Angie, "Thanks," she said before taking the fork in her hand. Normally Delilah's hand might shake a little due to the physical strain her meta ability put on her body, but once again, painkillers saved the day. Not to say she was steady mind you, but steady enough. Her reaction and movements were slowed and dulled a bit, something not readily noticed by just anyone, but Angie might. If asked, Delilah could say it was due to the hangover she was inflicted with currently. Being a liar came all too easily for Delilah.

The pie was good. Fresh, not some frozen mess you'd find in other eateries. Silence sat between the two young women for a moment as both ate. Delilah made no effort to hide the fact she stared at Angie as if studying her. Truth be told that was what Delilah was doing. Angie was way too happy and cheerful, a sign that the woman was hiding something.....Trying to forget something maybe? Delilah wouldn't push the subject though as she had her own demons to deal with and didn't like people poking their nose in her private business. It was simple curiosity.

About halfway through her slice of pie, Delilah sighed. "You been in Pilot Ridge all this time or did Hammel pull you back like it seems to do to all of us?," she asked, trying to make conversation. Small talk wasn't Delilah's forte but she was doing her best here. If she wanted to make a change then she was going to have to learn how to act like a productive normal member of society.

[Deleted]

Angie did notice Delilah’s unsteadiness in holding her utensil, but she didn’t say anything about it. While Angie loved to talk and ask questions about people, she imagined that if they wanted to reveal any physical ailment of theirs, then they would. And perhaps Delilah would, after some time. In any case, Angie knew that she dreaded questions that came to her from the community about any stray bruising she’d failed to cover up. She wouldn’t know how to explain the truth, so what usually came out was a lie. “I fell,” she’d say. Or “I bumped into the corner of the dresser.” Sometimes it was because she stood too close to a door as it was opening. It was always because Angie was too careless, and not because anyone had done anything to her.

To this day, Angie would probably still give that sort of response. Angie knew nothing of Delilah’s situation, and she might not understand a lot right away, but of what she did know and understand, she liked to be as sensitive as she could about it.

That didn’t always work out, unfortunately.

There was a moment of silence and for the moment, Angie’s thought’s drifted over the matter, memories of the past surfacing. His smiling face appearing in her mind. The scornful words of the churchgoers, gossiping about the mistress of the household. Words hurt. Even a year later, they hurt. Angie rose her head slowly at the question as she refocused in the present. “Mmm?” she hummed. “Oh, no. I came back because…” She hesitated. Angie smiled. “I have son,” she explained. “He started up at Hammel a couple years back. I finally decided to follow him out here last September.” Angie took a dainty bite of her pie, smiling fondly on the topic of her pride and joy. “A boy needs his mother, after all.”

[Delilah Pryce]

Delilah tilted her head to the side and smiled at the mention of Angie's son. She kept the kid, Delilah could respect that. Delilah herself wasn't comfortable around kids and while she had none of her own, she knew it had to be hard to raise one. Delilah had the thought of who the boy's father was, but knew better than to ask openly. If Angie wanted to mention the boy's father, she probably would have by now. Delilah was already suspecting bad things in Angie's past, it was just a gut feeling. People could spot others like them a mile away and while Angie was more upbeat in life than Delilah, it didn't mean there wasn't darkness there in some form or another.

"I bet you're a great mom," Delilah said with a sigh before taking another shaky bite of her pie. "Hammel always has a way of pulling you back.....Always. It doesn't matter who you are, if you passed through Hammel, you'll always have something lurking over you to drag you back," she went on, eyes still locked on Angie. "Of course, its not always something bad. You're back because of your son, that's good," Delilah added, trying to smile some. Delilah found her way back to Hammel through odd means, but that had been some time ago. Gabriel had found Delilah some way or another and had contracted her for some rather suspect purpose. Bad things happened, people died and Delilah just went on. She had stayed in Pilot Ridge after the MSAD incident and had even reconciled with the very man she was contracted to hurt. Sean helped her, even after what she had done to him and his friends. She couldn't understand him, but knew he had the right idea about life. So, here she was, remaking herself into a better image.

Clearing her throat, Delilah tried to think of more small talk, "So.....What's he do? Your son? What sort of meta is he?" Too personal? Maybe or maybe not. Delilah thought it a reasonable response to knowing Angie's son attended Hammel. With silence and pie Delilah just stared and waited for an answer of some sort or maybe even a deflection response.

[Deleted]

Angie had kept it no secret as to whom she admired and owed the world to back when she was younger. Of course she never mentioned who the boy’s father was. She always came up with some sort of lie to explain it. The usual one was the beautiful story of a boy whom she met in the middle of winter. A gorgeous fellow with hair of gold, and eyes of starlight, who looked like a snow fairy gliding across the blanket of snow. But of course, he was no fairy and was hardly gliding because he left footprints in his wake. It was a story of young love, true yet brief, for the boy was only visiting for the holidays and was gone before she could find out how to contact him again. And then she’d say, perhaps I was the only one in love, and that’s why he didn’t say goodbye.

The story often brought tears to her girl-friends, however few they were. Pity from others, support, sympathy. But they ought to have known it was just the fantasies of a young girl who merely had a bad hand dealt to her, as the story often changed, details changing here and there. A new “memory” would take the place of an old one which was never told again. It was fine if they did realize. After all, a 14-year-old girl was entitled to her dreams, wasn’t she?

After all, not everyone was entitled to make them come true. Angie listened with a somber smile as Delilah iterated her view on Hammel and the area. She didn’t disagree with the troubled brunette, Hammel did have a way of pulling you back for one reason or another - but it broke her heart to hear her speaking with such…regret? That may have been it. Delilah had come back here, to Pilot Ridge, but not under such good circumstances, she decided. Well…Angie’s son was the good part of Angie’s reason for her return, but the other half was…it was not something Angie preferred to reflect on, if she could avoid it. Even though she still found herself thinking about those days, even reliving them sometimes, when she was left alone in her quaint little house.

Unfortunately, sometimes they came back anyway, even in the midst of a conversation. The smallest things triggered it, like talk of why she left Savannah and came back to Pilot Ridge, and for a moment, Angie had spaced on Delilah’s attempt to keep the conversation going. “Huh?” Angie blinked. What were they talking about again? Her son, meta…what was he…? “Oh, uhm….I don’t know what they call it. Electa-something-or-other.” Her smile brightened as she started to talk up her son. “He can just go zzap! at something and suddenly my hair is standing on it’s ends!” She giggled, slapping her hand down on the table. “Poor thing, he ends up going through so many cell phones because of it.” And Angie never thought to ask where he got the money to replace them either.