[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the woman that steps into the hospital room is not the one he's familiar with.

a new facet to the concept of illeana reyes stands beneath fluorescent lights, hair almost matching the walls. and perhaps, in a different setting, she might almost look close to her counterpart. the gleam in her eyes is quickly learning to mirror a doppelganger, sharpened until it matches the instruments used to cut him open.

she stays quiet at first. observing, taking it all in: him laying almost completely still as machines beep life into the room.

and it's odd... somehow, she feels nothing.

there's an expectation given the personal nature of their relationship. she should feel something, anything. and yet, all that comes is a deeply seated rage.

"councilman."

a single word slices through like a knife. it's flat, cold, detached.

she's had a lot of time to think about this, about him. two weeks in a cell with nothing but three walls and metal bars to talk to means she's practiced her side. it's locked and loaded into the mind, a round of bullets sitting in a magazine.

and with her finger on the trigger, she's finally ready to bring the inevitable: the fracturing of their fragile agreement.

it took two, almost three years for the realization to dawn. once it did... there was no denying it any longer.

FERNANDO SILPH

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the events of sootopolis have been repressed for the time being. they'll resurface as nightmares, as bits and pieces of trauma and blood splattering across her face.

for now, they lie dormant just as he does in this hospital bed... patiently waiting to be freed.

she doesn't react to his smile, to the rarity of genuine expression. it looks out of place here, as if it doesn't belong anymore.

her last name makes jagged scar tissue along the back crawl with the irritating sensation of life.

and as he coughs, she stares down at him. her eyes narrow with the following sentence. neutrality becomes a coiled snake, tail rattling out a warning sign.

"okay from what?"

and so it begins...

"sootopolis or rocket?"

irony persists.

FERNANDO SILPH

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]stress fractures weaken the foundation of her expression. irritation slowly begins to show itself as her lips curl downward.

he cannot be fucking serious...

"no, it's not."

the darkest day is left behind in favor of her own selfish tantrum. it's insignificant at this time, an afterthought in the face of perceived betrayal.

her frown deepens and there's a slow rage rising in a red stare.

"super weapon?" confusion settles for a moment before she's barely holding back a scoff. "i don't know what you're talking about."

whatever it is, she's blind to it. the rose colored glasses have been abandoned where he's concerned.

FERNANDO SILPH

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]she tries to resist the urge to sneer at him.

it works... for the most part, anyway.

"i was."

she raises her chin a little, aims, and fires away.

"i was also in a rocket cell for two weeks."

the smile that rises is hollow, mocking.

"or did you not notice?"

the root of the problem is simple: her assuming she meant more to him than being a tool.

FERNANDO SILPH

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]when.

she scowls.

"may."

and somewhere along the way, she's come to learn a few things about the people around her. who knew sitting in a cell for two weeks would bring such a revelation?

"i shouldn't have to tell you." she steps closer, keen on looking down at him. it's a vantage point she's never had before. usually... he's the one on the prowl. "it shouldn't take me telling you to notice i was gone."

at first, she had been devastated over the concept. there was a sadness haunting her day in and day out. and eventually, it evolved into anger. the following weeks after her rescue at the hands of Felix Gallagher resulted in this, in her exploding on a man not worthy of the two years spent at his side.

FERNANDO SILPH

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the apology means little.

she's still scorned, still on a rampage and the path leads further and further away from him.

"are you?"

her eyes grow accusatory.

"sorry doesn't change shit, fernando." his name dissolves into biting anger.

she's well aware that she could have told him, could have run to him after everything. and yet, she didn't... she's not sure if that speaks more of her or him.

"i find it hard to believe you had no idea." then again, she believed she could be more to him than she actually was.

perhaps, in the end, they were both wrong.

FERNANDO SILPH

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]does she actually want to do this?

yes... she does.

the scowl continues to fester and with it, the jumbled emotions behind her attack increase in intensity.

"absolutely."

deep down, she knows she won't have the audacity again. time is ticking and eventually, her anger will settle. for now, it roots into her bones and stays fed by an endless stream of spiraling thoughts.

"would you prefer i didn't bring it up and just left you here?" she wouldn't but... it's an option. the safest option for him, perhaps.

FERNANDO SILPH