meliora | victoria sutherland

sixteen

forgiveness?
"i never said you were jealous."

_____

althea had reached the east coastline of the united states, awaiting the courage to start another long journey. although, unlike last time, there was another voice screaming at her to go find victoria.

had she ruined fate's opportunity just like that? probably. she was a stubborn individual, trying too hard to fulfil what others want, when in reality, she was plain wrong.

the girl always manages to incorrectly portray another, having a pessimistic mind when it comes to opinions about herself. of course, victoria didn't hate her, but the brunette latched onto early experiences, and always the wrong ones.

she stared out into the ocean, completely zoned out to the environment around her. not able to bring herself to leave, her body found a large tree to lean against, slowly making her way down to sit.

the bark scratched against her shirt, creating minor damage to the fabric. torn up grass and dirt clung to her pants, always finding their way back no matter how many times they were brushed off.

sighing, althea leant her head back, closing her eyes in hopes to remove herself from the world. she wanted to beat herself up for her actions, but no thoughts made themselves to her brain.

like the endless ocean, a stream of nothingness on the surface that only reflects what's above it. with eyes closed, there is nothing to reflect off with the absence of light. it was calming, but only for a moment. the reality still lingered near her, yet maybe some are too forgiving.

two eyes lingered on althea's figure, an unreadable expression, or maybe a mix of them all. it wouldn't have been hard to notice them, if the other wasn't so caught up in herself. although, the silhouette of the woman was extremely recognisable.

even without its colour, her hair's volume was almost perfect, if you didn't account for the varying twigs and leaves sticking out of it. and her body, wearing tight clothing to make anyone to see catch their breath was outstanding. it was almost too perfect, but then again, one could always claim it's the venom's doing.

victoria stepped forward, closer to the brunette in hopes she would open her eyes. unsuccessful, she walked even closer, almost a metre away from each other - yet to no avail.

"althea," the redhead whispered, her voice almost scared of the consequences. she expected a hotheaded reaction, thinking the other will still be in her unstable state.

the girl eventually opened her eyes, but never met the similar red eyes of the one next to her. she looked exhausted, which was unusual for her type, but the mental exercise put on herself has finally caught up.

"althea," victoria repeated, making sure her voice still remained soft. she knew the mimer hadn't forgotten about her and riley, and she would have to endure that talk at some point.

yet, they were both so worried about each other's reactions, no one dared to start a conversation. they had both just run five thousand kilometres with each other, but only one knew she was accompanied.

the redhead knelt down to the other's level, staring with curious eyes as she waited for any type of movement. the brunette was too nervous, not only was her presence so strong, but she was also awaiting a difficult conversation. her mental state provided it difficult to even hold a conversation, let alone one with meaning.

"look," victoria started, sitting down to completely be at the other's level, "i know you probably don't want to see me right now, but i can't just leave you."

the few seconds of silence could kill her, a million thoughts rushed through thinking of the worst.

it was surprising how much things had changed in just a few months. victoria used to be so confident around althea, a snarky remark that could easily be taken as sexual, yet was only partially joking. they would go back and forth with each other, until it was the brunette to take it too far. this was why she was so harsh on herself.