"nothing new?"

he scoffs in return, eyes still trained on her, though not able to find her gaze.

"he's the first person i've actually dated since you, spence."

because you fucked me up.

Spencer Hale
mission

☉

With every syllable he speaks, she buries her earbuds deeper into her skull, intentionally, so he sees it.

"That's great, Cian, really. I'm so glad to hear you've found another person to one day forget about and take for granted."

You fucked me up, too.

She bites back the tears, because she has to be better than that. She can't be the one to kneel or admit she had feelings, and that he'd broken her heart long before she'd chosen to put the knife in his back.

Spencer glances back at Cian Junior, at the innocent life caught between their strife. She pulls away from him, too, twisting on her heel to walk away. But her haste, and her emotional state, and the hurt rising up and out of her prevents her from thinking straight.

She doesn't see the dip in the ground. Pain lances up her ankle and she gasps, dropping to the ground like a stone.

CIAN MAHER

☉

he doesn't turn away when she does if only because cian junior's still floating in front of him. he tenses, calling out for him only for his attention to snap right back to her. the same way her ankle likely snaps from the dip.

"shit."

concern overrides all else, and just like that, he's closing the distance between them, kneeling by her to assess the damage.

"are you okay? here, let me help."

Spencer Hale
mission

☉

hostility is to be expected at this point. he's grown used to it, and though it hurts a little, it can't possibly compare to the pain she must be feeling at this very moment.

"don't—"

but she does anyway, because when has she ever listened to him? she falls back down, and he can only sigh.

"your ankle's fucked, spence. stop moving and let me help."

Spencer Hale
mission

☉

Tears stream down her face, though its hard to tell if they are out of pain or anger. Maybe a mix of the two- and maybe humiliation as well.

"Don't-"

She objects at the same time he does, but he approaches anyway. And she doesn't stop him, even though she's spoken to suggest otherwise.

Instead, she curls in on herself, either hand clasped to her ankle as she holds back heaving sobs. He's speaking to her, but she can't find any words to say in response between the hyperventilating through her teeth.

"It hurts-- it hurts so fucking bad."

CIAN MAHER

☉

well, her ankle's pretty fucked up, and now she's crying, so what can he do but help? he's not cold enough to just turn and leave her, and the sight of her in pain is too much for him to just ignore.

"i know..."

he tries his best to be sympathetic.

"remember when i sprained my ankle that one time running through the woods near home? same shit, i assure you, so i know it hurts."

he smiles, exhaling softly as cian junior floats over them, worried as well.

"i'll help you get back to the city. we gotta go to a hospital."

Spencer Hale
mission

☉

Somehow, someway, Cian always manages to be her crutch. There for her at her lowest even if she didn't realize it or didn't want it.

She bites back the urge to snap at him, biting the inside of her cheek. He hovers close to her, as does his Castform, and she glances between the two briefly before pressing her cheek to her knee to keep from crying. The throbbing is intense and there is absolutely no way she can walk on it.

Memories flash from evenings spent walking home from the movies or late night coffee dates, arms wrapped around Cian's neck and his hands lifting her in a playful piggy-back..

"Tch."

She squeezes her eyes shut, and although her scoff might appear to be in direct response to his sympathetic statement, it isn't.

"Yeah-- yeah, fine."

And then, slowly, she uncurls herself from her tight, angry, pain-ball to reach for him.

CIAN MAHER

☉

while he could've easily called out one of his pokemon to help her get back to the city, he doesn't, and instead reaches to help pull her off the ground. he swings her arm around his shoulders, bending down just enough so she doesn't have to tip toe.

"see? not too bad, right?"

but now comes the tricky part: walking.

"ready?"

Spencer Hale
mission

☉

Spencer sucks in a breath as she is lifted up off of the ground. Instinctively, she goes to set both feet on the ground for stability in spite of Cian's body posing as her second leg. As such, she puts weight on her foot and gasps. Her cheek presses into his shoulder, his shirt absorbing her tears.

"Fuck."

She pants, loosens the iron grip she realizes she has on his shirt, and breathes out slow as he bends down to accomodate for her shorter size. Normally, she would have reacted negatively to his help, taken his bending as an offense.

Instead?

"You're going to hurt your back like that. I'm too.. short.. for you to do that without hurting yourself."

CIAN MAHER

☉

his shirt's all crinkled now...

her concern is unexpected. he blinks, unsure of how to respond to it. so, naturally, he brushes it off, shaking his head.

"it's fine, spence. my back's pretty strong."

his castform nods in agreement, giving both of them moral support.

"come on. one step at a time."

Spencer Hale
mission

☉

She doesn't believe him, but his stubbornness outmatches her own in the heat of the moment. She doesn't have the energy to argue.

Instead, she just allows herself to lean into him and let him support her.

One step at a time.

She swallows, exhales loudly, lips forming a small 'o' as she focuses her energy on walking forward. Her other foot is not injured, but the act of walking in tandem with Cian is confusing and frustrating.

They had never seen eye to eye before- not for a very, very long time. Would they be in sync now, when it mattered most?

CIAN MAHER

☉

it's funny, in a way, to see two people that were once so close and intertwined to each other struggle to do something as simple as walking in tandem. it shouldn't be difficult, but it is.

but they're both highly competitive, and perhaps too stubborn for their own good. it's why, after a few moments, they fall in sync, walking with the same rhythm and pattern.

"that's it."

Spencer Hale
mission

☉