Breathe Again (Open/ Casual)

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

Mona was out later then usual, the sky dark and a few lucky stars shining through the dense smog that covered New York. Only a couple of people strayed the park at this time of night. A cold breeze ran over her causing her hair to blow into her face. Mona shivered but didn't get up from her seat on the playground swing. She should probably be getting home soon, she had told everyone who asked that she was going to school. In reality she had lied, she hadn't been to the university in over 2 weeks. She just didn't have the heart for it.

Mona didn't know why she was still so depressed, shouldn't she be over it? She was doing well at work, She didn't think of Lo as much as she did, and since her parents death she had become extremely rich. Yet she still couldn't seem to break out of the darkness that had surrounded her. Like looking through a film of haze, everything just seemed bleak, and not worth her time. Inside it felt like she was drowning, stuck at the bottom of the ocean, unable to breathe. She wished she knew what if felt like to breathe again.

Mona's feet pushed her back and forth gently on the swing, the gravel under her making a crunching sound. The creaking metal of the swing chains sounded through the night. She leaned her head against one of the chains, her eyes staring off not focusing on one thing.

She felt like she was a child again. She acted like she did when she was younger, quiet, sad, and almost always invisible to everyone. The only difference was that now she couldn't hide it from people.

Mona's gaze darted from place to place never staying on one place. It was freezing out in the night air, she should be inside. But Mona figured she might as well stay out, she was already late home by about 6 hours. Closing her eyes, Mona let herself relax slightly against the swing's chain. She wondered if anyone even knew she wasn't home in her room asleep.

[DR. HASTIE LANYON]

If he was going to be quite honest with himself, Lanyon didn't have much of a social life.
Even back in Britain, he had never been the sort of person to meet very many people outside of his work (even Holly, he had met through mutual medical studies at Edinburgh University), so it was obvious that he would be much more useless at doing so in another country.
This fact had made certain that Hastie knew very few people in the city - apart from the obvious few accident-prone fellows who repeatedly ended up in the Hospital, of course.

He was also a newcomer to the city.
This fact was made blatantly obvious by the fact that he had chosen to take a walk. Late at night, in the park. In New York city.
It wasn't the wisest of choices, really, but then again Hastie hadn't taken the time to think about it until he realised where he was.

Which was approximately thirty-eight minutes after he had started walking.

See, in the thirty-seven minutes beforehand, the Doctor's mind had been previously occupied by matters of consequence.
In other words, he had been idly daydreaming.
First of all, he felt rather guilty. For, not once since having touched down in New York had the man missed 'home'. Or, Britain, as it couldn't be called home, really. New York was his home now - or at least it was supposed to be. In truth, it hadn't felt very homely.
The second matter was also related to guilt, and had occupied the larger portion of his brain.
He was thinking about Holly.

Perhaps he shouldn't have left Scotland. It seemed to feel a little like he was running away from it all - and maybe he was. But running when he lost a loved one was a sort-of nature for him, so it couldn't be considered running, in Lanyon's eyes. Merely leaving.
Though the latter was probably worse.

However, as thirty-seven turned to thirty-eight, and Hastie's ponderings were at full flow, a noise somewhere off to his right hand side caused him to stop in his tracks. Both a crunch of gravel, and a creak of chains caught his attention, as they seemed to echo through the night air. He squinted toward the direction of the sound, unable to make out any more than what he supposed was the outlines of a children's playground.
"Hello," He called into the dark. If he held any sort of fear, he hid it rather well, "Is anyone there?"

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

Mona was almost asleep, the only thing keeping her from drifting off into slumber was the cold breeze that continued to blow on her face. It seemed lately that most of what Mona did was focused around sleep. It was ironic how when her mind was healthy she got almost no sleep, yet now that she was broken, all she did was sleep. She wondered if it was like this every person that was depressed. Were they all as hopeless and sad like her? Did they switch from quiet and sad to angry and violent in a heartbeat like she did?Were they all alone? Were they all orphans? Were they all rejected by their parents? Were they all like her?

What would it take to keep Mona from slipping deeper into this depression? Maybe a miracle from a God she didn't believe in. All she knew was that she wasn't getting better. No amount of research or studying on what was going on with her, would ever help her fix what was broken.

Mona sighed and kept her eyes closed while she pushed the swing with her feet. She thought about all the things that had happened in the last few weeks. She had met a man who she now thought of like a father, She had skipped school, and her parents had died. So much for an eighteen year old girl to take in, yet Mona didn't even blink at the events.

"Is anyone there?"

Mona's eyes shot open at the sound of someone calling out. She tightened her her grip on the swing and stopped moving. Mona didn't want to be bothered, she was tired and just wanted to be alone in the cold night air. She shivered slightly as the cold rushed over her again. She wondered if there was a way to get rid of them without speaking. They only thing around her were rocks. She shrugged lightly, it was better then talking to the person.

Mona reached down and grabbed a rock from the playground floor and studied it carefully in her hand. She listened carefully for the footsteps before calculating what she would need to do to reach them. She closed her eyes and threw the rock with all her might before relaxing once more against the chain of the swing and pushing herself slowly.

[DR. HASTIE LANYON]

Hastie was only asking. He couldn't have really expected for there to be an answer - and if there was, for it to be a friendly one - but perhaps he hadn't yet grown accustomed to the simple facts revolving around talking to, noticing or even trying to help strangers in New York. Especially late at night. When he could barely see, nonetheless.
Basically, he should probably stay away.

This point was furthered unquestionably, when it appeared as though whoever it was - wherever they exactly were - threw a rock at him.

He vaguely wondered what on Earth he was doing. Why he was even there - not in the park, but the country. He shouldn't be there, he should be home. Not parading around New York City at ungodly hours (the only reason he wasn't currently working, was that he'd been told to go home and get some sleep, after having stayed at the Hospital for the past three days, without break - another thing he should be doing instead)! And he definitely, obviously, shouldn't have run away.

Though all too soon, the sudden thud of the rock as it unceremoniously collided with his shoulder brought Lanyon to a rather disappointing - though much needed - realization. New York was his home now. And it simply wouldn't do to think otherwise.

"Ouch." He hissed, shuffling sideways as though he expected another rock to be fired his way.
To any ordinary person, that would have been enough to send them on their way. But Lanyon was Lanyon, to say the least. And so, he took a few strides forward - though they were cautious ones.
"Who's there?" He asked. Hastie no longer knew why exactly he was bothered, but remained persistent anyway, "Please don't throw another rock, they do hurt, you know." Perhaps it was the lack of sleep. He wasn't even sure what he was saying.

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

Mona glared out into the night at the sound of approaching footsteps. Was this person brave or just plain stupid? Didn't he know what went down at night time in New York? Not to mention it was cold outside which, meant people were crazier then usual. Why on earth would he walk towards her even after she threw that rock. Mona let out a sigh and got up from her swing, rocks shuffled underneath her as she moved.

"It was supposed to hurt, it's rock." Her voice held a flatness to it, that once upon a time would never of been a part of Mona. But it had all changed, everything about the sweet, once pretending happy girl, was gone.

Mona stood there shivering in the cold, standing yet far away from the man who stood in the darkness. She tried to study what she could see of him, but all she saw was dark shadows.

"Why are you here?"

She didn't really care who he was, she just wanted him gone. She wanted him far far away from her. In fact maybe she should be the one to leave. Now that someone had found her here, it was no longer the perfect spot for her to hide at.

[DR. HASTIE LANYON]

"It was supposed to hurt, it's rock."
Hastie chuckled lightly, though he wasn't entirely sure why. It wasn't as though he was happy. Perhaps he was just trying to reassure himself that he wasn't scared.

The voice was female, and obviously young. Though it was flat, emotionless, really. But Lanyon had met many people who put on a monotone voice. And most of the time it was for the same reason.
He was quite, inexplainably curious to find out whether the cause was the same this time, too.

"Why are you here?"
Hastie's face fell, though it was fortunately near impossible to see in the dark. He looked up slightly, no longer bothering to make out the other figure in the absence of light. Everything was always brought around to that one question.
Why. Was. He. There?

Shrugging in response, only after making the action did he realize that she wouldn't see, Lanyon took a few more brave steps forward - or was brave just the kindest word for stupidity? He was only around a metre or so away, now, and was on full alert of flying rocks. They really did hurt.
"I was just walking." He smiled slightly, but stopped moving, instead standing stock still. Hastie could see her now, though only just, and not very well, but see all the same.
"Why are you here?"