Rain was a nuisance. It drizzled ceaselessly, like long tufts of white grass swaying between the gray sky and the earth.
Her long hair was splayed across her back, the ends soaked through, making her head feel heavy. A layer of silvery-white fuzz seemed to have bloomed on her black overcoat.
"...Are you still outside waiting for me?" Brianna asked in a low voice.
"Yeah," Morando said. Her voice was a small, gentle echo of a feeling she longed for, trapped in Brianna's earpiece.
"When you saw me today, did you think I was anything like my old self?" she asked, her tone deliberate.
Morando was silent for a few seconds before saying, "...People change."
Brianna laughed.
'Just like old times. She was always trying to strike a balance between the truth and a comforting lie.'
"Why did you come out?" Morando seemed to want to change the subject. "It's not safe yet," she said in Brianna's ear. "The clean-up crew the Kai Family hired just left, so there might still be people around."
