Conquering The Darkness

Chapter Sixteen

A rough night's sleep heavily shows on Lorna's face when she awakens just a few minutes past six the next morning. She sighs, remembering that she's still trapped inside a concrete room with nothing but a worn-out bed and disgust-looking toilet. The only lighting in the room comes from the tiny window that sits above her bed. Sure, she knows Nicky's cell is right next to her but it's not the same. They can't see each other or have any sort of physical contact—it's hard for her to even know she's there sometimes.

"Nicky? Are-Are you awake?" The brunette's small voice calls out as she lightly taps on the wall. She leans her head against the back of it, closing her eyes while trying to imagine her friend's appearance.

"Wrong cell, bitch! Shut the fuck up, it's too early for this shit," an inmate harshly yells, throwing some sort of object towards the other side of the wall.

Lorna flinches at the vibration and stares shamefully down at the filthy floor. "S-sorry," is her hushed response. This, she internalizes, is much worse than prison. This is complete hell.

In the other cell, beside the brunette, Nicky clenches her hands in a fist. Her teeth grit in anger. "Hey, big mouth! Ya better leave my Lorna the fuck alone—don't be shit-talking her!" She bitterly growls but then immediately her features and demeanor soften at the thought of how Lorna is coping. It pains her to not be able to touch her or comfort her other than with her words.

"You feelin' okay, Lorna? How'd ya sleep, baby?" Her voice much softer now as she leans up against the wall that's nearest to Lorna's. She longs to be able to see her and hold her. The pure realization of not being allowed physical contact with the woman she loves is undoubtfully agonizing to her.

With a slight gulp, Lorna tries to find her voice. She's not sure she wants to say anything—not when it seems to be bothering other inmates. "Just wanna get outta here. Maybe we should be quiet so we don't make anyone else mad," she mumbles, staring blankly down at her shoes. As much as she would hate to not hear Nicky's voice, she'd rather not have all these inmates secretly plotting her demise.

Nicky sighs and sadly stares down at the ground. She longs to wrap her arms around the other and feel her body against her own. "I know ya do, kid; I want us to get outta here too. Who cares what anyone else thinks? We're allowed to talk and there's nothing they can do to stop us. It's not like any of em' can come hurt us or anything; they're locked up just the same as us, babe."

Her fingers lightly circle around the wall behind her. "Talk to me, kid. Please; it's the only thing that will keep us sane in here," the redhead lovingly pleads.

"I—Nicky, uh, n-never mind," the brunette finickily responds on the other side of the wall. What she longs to say is something that she feels shouldn't be said while their locked up away from each other. This is something she needs to tell her face-to-face.

"No, kid, say what ya gotta say. Come on, it's okay—I ain't gonna think any less a you for whatever it may be."

Lorna sighs, peering down at her hands. "I-I just – I feel like what I wanna say is something that should only be said when we're able to stare right at each other and stuff. It's something I want only you to hear, Nicky."

Sitting on the other side of the wall, Nicky lets out a frustrated groan. She can't stand that the two of them are trapped inside their separate – tiny – cells and for god-only-knows how long. "I hate to break it to ya, baby, but we might be here a good while. So ya might wanna say what ya wanna say now. It's okay, kid, it's not like anyone else can do anything. If they gotta problem with our conversation, they can go fuck em' selves. You just tell me what ya want, sweet girl."

"I-I, uh, I think I might have feelings for ya...God, I have the worst timing! It's not like it matters now, who knows if we'll ever get outta this damn place?! Who the fuck knows when we'll ever get to see each other again? This is hell, Nicky, absolute hell! I just—I wanna be with you and back in the regular prison—as fucked up as that is—and I just, I want it to be normal again...At least the normal before Mendez came back..."