[ phone call to rafael giovanni ]

[slay]

[ how does 10 pm greenwich time translate to chicago? buffy's not really sure, but she does know that it's the weekend and that means it's time for a regularly scheduled call to rafael. you'd think after a certain amount of time, she'd have this time zone thing sorted. she doesn't.

~ring ring.~ ]

Comments

[slay]

[ that warrants a smile from her, and she hums her agreement. she's not entirely on board, but she likes rafael's impression of herself. that's a buffy she can get behind. it's felt more and more like she's losing sight of her while she loses sight of the finish line -- she just doesn't see a way to win anymore, and it does help to have the reminder that sometimes they keep fighting because it's worth fighting for, not just to win. that's where she slips. ]

Maybe I just like hearing it from you instead of me. I mean, it was supposed to be a well-disguised "I miss you," but maybe too well-disguised.

[romanticidal]

[ she can hear the sad smile, which is easy enough to visualize - she'd seen it plenty of times to know it by heart. ] I miss you too.

[slay]

This isn't one of those things where, like, I said it, so now you feel like you have to say it, or it'll be awkward?

[romanticidal]

Is this a thing?

[slay]

[ the woman trap that no one saw coming. buffy's voice softens in her verbal shrug. ]

You tell me.

[ do they have a thing ????? are they a thing ??? she is not talking about whether he means the 'miss you' anymore or not but really when has rafael ever made a wisdom check. she's fully prepared to sweep this one under the rug and be cool, but this had to slip out first. ]

[romanticidal]

[ sfjaklf;jafa

he rolled a 2 ] It is a thing I meant, carina. I hope it will not be so long before I see you again.

But you must tell me everything I have missed. How are the others?

[slay]

[ bless his italian heart. ]

They're same old. Kat's doing the whole avoid-y emotionally unavailable thing with Fred. Finnick's ... well, I haven't really seen him, but he's probably still drinking. Des is hanging out at the castle with us and reaffirming every chance he gets that he's not all "part of the ship, part of the crew." Spike's as fickle as always, and I think the others are all just happy for a chance to be home for a while.

[romanticidal]

Have you spoken much to Myri?

[slay]

Uh ... No. No, I -- You know, with the way things ended, and her reasons for leaving, I just don't think ... I don't think she wants us heaping that back on her when she'd just gotten away from it.

[romanticidal]

Are you sure she would not want to know you all still are concerned with her? It cannot have been easy, walking away.

[slay]

She was trying to get away from us. The best thing I can do to make it easier on her is to not come crashing back into her life once she did finally make that choice.

[romanticidal]

Perhaps. [ he does not sound convinced. ] What about Finnick?

[slay]

We weren't exactly friendly even when he was dating Myri. I'm pretty sure he thinks I'm the closest thing he's ever seen to Hitler. Probably because he's never met Sir Hellsing.

[romanticidal]

[ apparently in all that time he was spending with buffy, raf to failed to notice all that time buffy was spending with him - instead of other people on her team. he falls quiet, his tone almost apologetic. ] Things were very difficult all the time, were they not? Strange that I still have so many good memories of my time with you. [ in between the suicide attempts i guess ]

[slay]

[ yeah well he wasn't winning any awards for observiness anyway. ]

I guess it just goes to show: it's not about what you're going through, but who you have to go through it with.

[romanticidal]

If the answer is not Burt, I think you are doing better than I.

[slay]

[ that gets her to laugh outright. ]

Fair enough. Although, Des has been more irritating than usual.

[romanticidal]

Des? How so?

[slay]

Just his usual perceptive cynicism. You know how it is.

[romanticidal]

Si, that I do...

I imagine it is not easy for him, being there.