Happy Place - A KathNiel Story

Chapter 6

They both ignored the bell as it rang as a warning that first period was going to start soon, Arisse continuing to just hold Kath as she cried. She could tell that Kath needed to just get it out of her system - it was more therapeutic for her at that moment to cry it out instead of being pushed to talk about what had happened with Jason and his friends. She slowly pulled away from Kath as her sobs turned into sniffles and she couldn't help but let out a small laugh as she looked at Kath.

"What?" Kath asked, sniffling and her voice was hoarse from the tears.

"You kinda resemble a panda bear right now," Arisse admitted, smiling when it got Kath to crack a smile and she led Kath over to the closed toilet lid, making her sit down and she grabbed her own backpack, pulling out her makeup bag. "I'll fix it if you like."

"Thanks." She mumbled, continuing to sniffle.

"You're pretty good at the whole smoky eye thing - better than me. I'll try and make them match." Arisse said, smiling when it got her to laugh breathlessly and Arisse grabbed a wad of toilet paper, dabbing under Kath's eyes and her cheeks to wipe away her remaining tears and the smudged makeup.

"I'm sorry for crying."

"Don't be stupid," Arisse said dismissively, but she looked up at Kath after a moment. "You don't like crying in front of people, huh?"

"The only other person who's seen me cry is my sister, and even then I don't like crying." She admitted, her voice quiet and Arisse shook her head.

"There's nothing wrong with crying... it's therapeutic to cry. It's better than keeping everything in! I've seen both JC and DJ cry before and I know I will again at some point, the same way they've done the same for me... there's nothing to be ashamed of." Arisse assured her, but she wasn't surprised when Kath just shrugged her shoulders.

"Thank you... for not telling anybody," Kath said as Arisse got out her makeup properly, trying to find the right shade for Kath and she gave her a soft smile.

"You can trust me," Arisse assured her and Kath sniffled, playing with her fingers and it was only when Arisse looked down at her hands that she noticed the pale but noticeable scars underneath her tattoos. "I like your tattoos." She said and Kath pulled her sleeves down slightly, nervous that Arisse would start to ask questions but she let Arisse tip her head back slightly so she could start applying the makeup.

"I made a fake ID so they'd tattoo me." She admitted with a small smile and Arisse laughed.

"Oh my Gosh, I'd never take you to be such a badass." Arisse teased playfully.

"My sister nearly killed me the first time, then she saw they weren't dumb or anything so she just kinda dealt with it. She came with me after a while." Kath said and Arisse's eyebrows creased together out of pure curiosity.

"Your parents not freak the Hell out?" Arisse asked, but she shook her head when she noticed Kath starting to tense. "It's fine, you don't have to tell me anything... close your eyes, I'll try and fix your smoky eye." Arisse said softly and Kath hesitated before doing as she was told, closing her eyes. It took a lot of trust for Kath to do that and Arisse could tell that it did - she felt a swell of pride for the stranger, getting the right makeup out of her bag so she could attempt to fix Kath's makeup from her crying.

"I need to get back to DJ... we gotta get to class. I'm supposed to be helping him."

"What class is it?" She asked.

"Drama."

"He knows where the stage is, you can meet him there in a minute - they'll let him head off early anyway because he's on his crutches," Arisse assured her and Kath hesitated before agreeing - she couldn't nod since as Arisse was doing her makeup for her. Nobody had done her makeup for her since she was barely a teenager when her sister taught her how to do the basics.

"Do you... do you ever feel like you'd be free if you just tell everybody your darkest secret? But then you're too afraid to do it?" Kath breathed after a minute of silence between the two girls and Arisse stared at her for a moment, unsure of what to do or say in response to that - it made her instantly think of DJ, and how he'd already told her and JC that Kath seemed to be the only one in the school who didn't know what happened to him.

"I can imagine how hard it is... but you have a friend in me and DJ now, you can get comfortable around JC too - he's a good guy. You don't have to say a word about anything until you feel ready to." Arisse assured her, before pulling away from her. "There... I think we're done." She said, holding up a compact mirror and Kath looked at her own reflection for less than a second before handing it back.

"Looks good, thank you. I gotta get to class." Kath said, rushing out of the bathroom before Arisse could say anything to make her stop.