Hide behind the Mask(Open/Casual)

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

The cafe was not very popular, in fact it was just a small hole in the wall that only few people could appreciate. Like every other dinner, cafe and convince store in the burning city of New York it hosted a bright neon sign promoting "Worlds best Coffee". It's ceramic letters were chipping above a fading red and white awning. in front of it's slightly cracked glass windows and doors , stands small metal tables with cheap chairs with them. Neither of them match each other nor the rest of the theme of the cafe. All people could see when they passed by was a small cafe, with money problems, struggling to stay alive.

But Mona knew better then all those people.

Sitting outside the cafe in the warmth of the sun she could watch all these people pass by through the dark tint of her sunglasses. Nobody gave her a second glance as she leaned back on the chair with her feet propped up on the table before her. It wasn't unusual sight for people to get through their minds, a young girl, couldn't be over 20, sitting outside a coffee shop with a carefree attitude, just normal for someone of her age.

True, but most people weren't silently judging these people from behind her glasses. No that wasn't right, all people judged each other in their heads ,even those who deny it all. No one was silent to the criticisms of others, they are only blessed that they did not hear them all spoken to their faces. And no one was innocent in the crime of putting labels on someone before being spoken to.

And how bitter had her life become that she only could see the bad labels across people's foreheads. No matter who it was all Mona could see were the words that brought out the worst in people. She used to be someone who would only look for the good in those around her, a therapist in training who spent her time trying to fix the bad in people. Now she just tried to bring out the worst in everyone.

Like she did to herself.

Whenever there was someone who spoke to her in an easy carefree manner she always pushed them away by being rude, nasty, and mean. She told people that she liked it that way, she liked being a bitch to people, that they were nothing to her at all. But very few would ever know that she did it to keep others from hurting her. She would never let that happen again.

Putting a condescending smirk on her face, Mona reached out a hand to grab her coffee, which in her opinion was truly the best in the world. She took a log sip as she stared at the passer bys on the street.

[OSRIC YOUNG]

It had been a compound, open fracture. It could have been a lot worse. Two surgeries, four months of strong casts and multiple doctors' visits, and five months of physical therapy later, his arm looked normal again. Well, almost normal. There were two scars, one long and thin - from the surgeries - and one shorter but more spread out - where the bone had ripped through his skin. They weren't terribly noticeable, because he'd had good surgeons and he'd always been one of those people who healed quickly, but it was... different.

It had been a year and two months since the crash. Eight months since the cast came off. Seven since he tried to play guitar again. Five since he was actually able to. The arm he'd injured was his left. For most people, that'd be a relief. Not him. Oh, no, he had that lefty curse, and wasn't it just his luck? Well, not really, he was usually pretty lucky, he thought, but not that day. Not at all.

In all that time, he'd never taken the painkillers they'd given him. Not voluntarily. Since he'd been able to go home, they'd prescribed him codeine, codeine, codeine. Two a day for two months, one a day for three more. Five little yellow bottles stashed in the very back of his cabinets. He hadn't thought he deserved them. He thought he deserved to suffer, because it was his fault, his fault, and there was no way he could deny it. The only times he'd taken some were when Wilson was playing nurse and tricked him into taking a few, and Osric had to admit, those times he had felt good. The first time, he slept for eighteen hours straight, and what was even better than the amazing dreams was the way he didn't have to think.

But that was why he refused to take them on his own. He wanted to think. Needed to. Had to. Not-thinking was the easy way out, and he didn't deserve that. So he'd suffered through the pain, even when it felt like he might die.

But now, he took one of the bottles out. His arm ached awfully this morning, probably from playing twice this week, and from moving a few particularly heavy boxes for clients as well. It throbbed and he wondered if maybe stopping PT early had been a worse idea than he'd thought. He hadn't meant to come upon his stash of pills, but he'd been looking for Advil, and he was out, and well. Hank was fine now, and so was he, so.

So maybe it was alright now.

The oldest bottle was expired, but he was pretty sure that stuff like this could last for ages and not really expire. So he filled a cup of water, and he felt the guilt settle in his stomach as swallowed the white capsule down. He thought he could feel it burn all the way down his throat. He had very little tolerance for substances, so the medicine took effect quickly. He hadn't thought it would be quite so strong. Maybe it was too strong. But his arm stopped hurting soon, and yes, that was good, good. It felt good. He slept on his couch for eight hours, and when he woke up, it was mid afternoon. He'd slept the morning away.

Still groggy from the medicine, which had far from worn off by now, he decided it was probably best to get up and do something today. Not that he had anything on; he had no shifts at the music shop, no clients to move things for, no gigs. Nothing at all. He got dressed, and wow, he was exhausted. That was strong stuff. It felt kind of like the first time he'd tried grass, except he wasn't going to be sick now. He just wanted to sleep again.

But no, he couldn't sleep right now; he couldn't let even one day go to waste. Days would go on even if you slept them through, and Osric had always thought, if you waste a day, than you're wasting a small part of your life you could have spent doing something fantastic. So he decided to go to a cafe. There wasn't much to be gained from that, but he wanted to wake up, even while his body told him he wanted to sleep even more. There was a small cafe that he'd played at before that had fantastic coffee. He used to go there with Carl there sometimes to study, because it had been close to Carl's dorm. Fucking Carl. Still, it was a nice place. So he got a taxi and nearly took a nap during the ride there, and he was pretty sure the driver thought he was drunk. He giggled at the thought. Him, drunk. Like he was ever getting drunk again.

When he reached the little place, he looked around. There were a few empty tables, a few half full. He didn't want to be alone. Most of the people in the cafe either looked like they didn't want to be bothered or they were full adults. Adults were boring. He was technically one himself, but not really. He saw a girl, young looking, who was leaning back in her chair with her feet on the table. It was a wonder the manager didn't tell her off. She had sunglass on, and she had a nice body. Well, easy choice there, then.

"Hey, can I sit with you?" Osric asked, and he was surprised how slowly his words came out. They weren't slow, not really at all, actually. More like normal speed, but that was slow for him. He gave the girl a tired smile. This would wake him up. People did that; they could rescue him from anything.

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

Mona turned her eyes to the boy who stood in front of her table. She didn't take her feet down, or take the cup from her mouth, hell she didn't even change her facial expression. She just sat there staring at him from behind her glasses. She could notice the tiredness that filled his face, or the way that he seemed almost sluggish in his reflexes. She would once be sympathetic to him, and gladly offer him a seat at her table , She would of even offered to buy him a drink. But that wasn't her anymore, she wasn't the nice girl that used to smile at people even as pushed her down. She was hard , cold , and hateful. Most days she would just send the guy off with an insult and a sarcastic wave, but she was bored.

And messing with him could be entertainment.

She turned her head away from him to look inside the coffee shop to watch the people inside. One of the owners saw her and waved cheerfully. She was a regular there , and since she always tipped well and paid her bills, they welcomed her always. In response she just gave a tilt of the head and turned away once more. She gave a sit down motion to him but didn't look at him at all. Her attention was focused on some people talking on cell phones while crossing the street. She almost laughed as one of them tripped on the curb and their phone when spiraling on to the pavement breaking on impact.

She looked to the guy in front of her and let out a heavy sigh, before setting her coffee on the table in front of her. She kept her gaze on him before pushing her glasses onto the top of her head. She winced at the bright light that assaulted her eyes, the sun was a harsh mistress to humans.

With her eyes still closed she started to speak '"So out of all the tables in all the world why did you decide to disturb mine with your presence? There's empty tables over there, and others with people more friendlier then I could ever be towards you. "

She opened her eyes and stared at him.

"Or do you just like preying on young girls till they fall at your feet?

[OSRIC YOUNG]

The girl didn't move. The owner waved at her. Osric supposed she was a regular, though he'd never seen her before. Or, he'd never noticed her before. But he usually remembered people, faces. He had never been skilled in the art of forgetting.

Osric wondered if maybe she just didn't care. He'd never been good at that either.

He just stood there with a lazy smile on his face until she offhandedly motioned for him to sit down with a sigh, and pushed her glasses onto her head, so that Osric could see her eyes. Oh, she had pretty eyes as well. The girl squinted at the new found light that was bombarding her eyes.

Her eyes remained closed as she said, "So out of all the tables in all the world why did you decide to disturb mine with your presence? There's empty tables over there, and others with people more friendlier then I could ever be towards you. "

Osric blinked slowly, leaning his chin on his right wrist, his elbow propped on the table. Oh, maybe she wasn't the social type. That was alright though. He could still talk to her. People who didn't talk weren't happy, he didn't think. So he could make her happy.

"Or do you just like preying on young girls till they fall at your feet?" The girl asked, opening her eyes and staring at Osric. Perhaps it could described more accurately as calmly glaring. Yeah, that was a good description.

"I thought that," Osric said, a second of hesitation in his voice before he finished with, "You looked lonely. Lonely's... lonely. Yeah." He huffed a short laugh out, blinked a bit slower than necessary, and said, "So we could be friends."

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

Mona couldn't hide her surprise at the words that flowed out of his mouth.Lonely... Friends. Next he'll be sprouting some nonsense about everyone deserving to be happy , or peace on earth. It was so comical that Mona indulged herself in a small chuckle.

Why of course she was lonely, her whole life she had been alone. Sure, she had people with her, around her, people who sometimes gave her some comfort. Yet just being surrounded by people didn't really stop her from being alone, in her own definition of the word.

Alone to her, was when no one knew how she felt when she sat at home locked in her room. Or how no one but Dolores stood up for her, who now of late, was absent from her life. Alone was when the only visitors you got in the hospital was the Doctor you hated and your sociopath roommate, no matter how highly function he was. Alone was when all you wanted when you were a kid was for anyone to reach out and hold you. Alone was when no one cared, when no one loved you. Mona had always been alone, and she would continue to be alone, even in the crowded streets of New York City.

Because she had no one who cared or loved her.

So yeah she was lonely, but it wasn't a thing she would ever admit to anyone. That would make her weak, and she refused to be seen as weak any longer, by anyone. Even this stranger.

As for friends, Well Mona didn't have much of those anymore. Actually Mona never had much of those in life. It seemed that the art of making friends seemed to elude her. It could be the fact that she didn't really like to talk to people, or that she always tried to keep others at arms length away from her. She didn't like to be touched or even looked at. The list of her flaws could go on and on , but she didn't mind. Her flaws were what made her ...her. She tried to be picture perfect once before, but it didn't work out like she had hoped, in fact it destroyed her.

Now she was just trying to pick up the pieces without being cut.

Mona kept her gaze on him, before a small smirk fell on her face. She picked up her coffee again and took a long sip before setting it down once more and speaking in a light but cold tone.

"Lonely is a word that people who have never been alone use. Those of use who have always been alone like the word solitude. And no I wasn't lonely, I was in fact enjoying the view" She said the last sentence with a sarcastic flare, that she had perfected over the years.

"And I don't have friends, shame really. If I did I would have someone to bother more often. But since I don't I guess I'll just have to bother myself."

[OSRIC YOUNG]

The girl looked surprised, and she gave a short laugh of disbelief before she took another sip of coffee. Well, that was... sad. Why would someone laugh at the offer of friendship? And it wasn't even a friendly laugh, the kind that just meant, 'That's surprising,' it was more of a 'I can't believe you would offer that, how ridiculous' kind of laugh. Osric frowned; he was just trying to be nice.

"Lonely is a word that people who have never been alone use," the girl said coldly. "Those of use who have always been alone like the word solitude." She paused, then added sarcastically, "And no I wasn't lonely, I was in fact enjoying the view." Osric wondered what view she was enjoying. People watching? He did that sometimes. But he didn't really call people a 'view.'

"And I don't have friends, shame really," the girl continued, but she didn't sound like she was saddened by that 'shame' very much at all. If anything, her voice had grown colder, more stony. "If I did I would have someone to bother more often. But since I don't I guess I'll just have to bother myself."

He didn't really understand what she was trying to say at the end, but whatever it meant, he had the feeling it was sad. She was sad. Lonely. Or wait, no, she said she wasn't lonely, or that she didn't use that word. At any rate. Alone.

"Well," he started, "I guess I've never really been lonely. I'm lucky, see." He smiled a little. He'd had a very nice life indeed; he was lucky. "But I do know, it's a lot easier if you have someone to, uh, bother," he quoted her. He moved his head down to scratch the side; it tingled like numbness. "Come on," he said, a skip in his words as he chuckled lightly, and put his cheek back to his hand. "Let's be friends."

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

"Let's be friends."

"Thanks for the offer but my answer is no" She said her answer quickly and efficiently. The monotone sound of her voice gave away no hint of emotion. Not even the smug, sarcasm that had been there only a few short minutes before. To her there was no other answer she could be aloud to give. No was her only choice.

Friends were to dangerous to have around. They were just pretenders who would dump you as soon as someone better came along. IT was all the same, every where you went. No matter the country or the people there , it was always the same.

Mona stared at him and let her face show a small smirking smile that didn't hold the same capacity as once before.

"I'm sorry but that is not an option that I can pick. We can not be Friends, the best I can say is that I may not hate you all the time. if your lucky it will only be half a day of hatred."

Mona downed the rest of the coffee and called a waitress over for another.

"If you want I could even try and be nice to you. Maybe say a nice compliment about you, though I won't mean it. Would you like that? A fake pretense of friendship that would never leave the space of this table? Because a false pretense is all you will ever get from me."

[OSRIC YOUNG]

"Thanks for the offer but my answer is no," the girl said quite seriously, and Osric almost had to laugh. It came out more of a huff; not offensive by any means, but amused, certainly. He couldn't believe he was meeting someone so openly dark. It was fascinating.

"I'm sorry but that is not an option that I can pick. We can not be Friends, the best I can say is that I may not hate you all the time. if your lucky it will only be half a day of hatred."

"Well, a half-day is great in school terms," Osric pointed out, smiling warmly. He was genuinely unperturbed by the verbal abuse he was taking in at the moment.

"If you want I could even try and be nice to you,"she said, sounding perhaps a little sarcastic again now, but really, quite honest. "Maybe say a nice compliment about you, though I won't mean it. Would you like that? A fake pretense of friendship that would never leave the space of this table? Because a false pretense is all you will ever get from me."

"I get what I can take," Osric said. He knew it sounded somewhat pathetic but he didn't care. People may as well see him as he was. Besides, this girl was amazing. Disturbingly honest with her own dark thoughts. He was captivated. He was in love with her! Her courage! That was right; he'd marry her! Sure. That'd be interesting. "I always do."

He leaned forward across the table, smiling at her. "What's your name, Miss?"

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

"My Name is Monica Lisa Dragoti, The last of the Dragoti's" She said in a sarcastic noble voice. "Glad to be the last one to." She removed her feet from the table and sat up prim and proper to drink her tea.

"Now you may call me your majesty, princess or Mona...whichever suits your fancy." She said it with such a straight face that it was almost physically hurtful not to laugh. So instead she did. It was the first real laugh that she had shown in front of this man. In fact if she was to be truthful, it was the first real laugh she had in a very long time. The worst part was that she was laughing at herself. Not the words she said or the joke she played, but at her thought that she could never be as perfect or pretty or even normal to be a princess.

Or anyone's equivalent of one.

Her laugh was so overwhelming to her that she had to lay her head down on the table and hold on to her stomach. It wasn't even a large laugh or a hard laugh, but just a laugh. It was soft and smooth sounding, and so unlike the hard girl that had been siting there once before.

And then almost as if she was bipolar she stopped and just stared down at the table her head was laying on. That's right, being pathetic wasn't something to laugh about , was it? It was what made people sad and useless, just like her.

That's what made her this way right? Not being wanted, because she wasn't a princess or perfect or even anything close to human. She was the stupid girl who like other girls and nothing more. It wasn't worth her sadness, nothing and no one was worth her sadness.

So she'd just be angry and bitter instead. To protect her stupid non-perfect self.

Perfection could never be held by her hands, it could only slip through like water.

[OSRIC YOUNG]

"My Name is Monica Lisa Dragoti, The last of the Dragoti's. Glad to be the last one to," Monica said sarcastically. Osric had the feeling he recognized the last name Dragoti, but couldn't remember where from. Maybe the paper? "Now you may call me your majesty, princess or Mona...whichever suits your fancy." Osric wasn't sure if he was supposed to be amused by this or not, but then Mona started to laugh hysterically - quite hysterically. So much so that she laid her hand on the table and held to her stomach as if she'd told the funniest joke in the world. Honestly, Osric didn't find it so amusing; he was actually quite nervous as Mona suddenly stopped laughing.

"I think I'll go with Mona. It's easiest," Osric said softly. He lay his chin on the table too, so he was level with Mona. He was pretty sure the girl was nothing short of depressed or psychotic or something, or maybe just really flippy-floppy with her emotions. Whatever it was, it scared him, and he was fascinated. Now that his eyes were on the same height as Mona's, he smiled ever so slightly at the girl, just a bit sad. People being sad always made him sad. It wasn't convenient.

Lying his head on the table, he thought, he wanted to sleep. He wanted to sleep and wake up only when he wanted to. He didn't want to move. Everything seemed a bit tedious at the moment. He closed his eyes for a few seconds before he forced himself to open them again. "My name's Osric," he said tiredly, "And I think we ought to be whatever your equivalent of friends is. That or get married." He chuckled and sat up a bit, but only enough to lean his head on the back of his hand propped up on the table again. "Just kidding, of course."

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

"And I think we ought to be whatever your equivalent of friends is...."

"I have no equivalent of the word. You at best can be a person who brings me lunch. And I already have one of those who makes a damn fine lunch already. And applications for that position have already been filled and closed. Please come again if you find another open position."

Mona sat back up and stretched herself out and then took a drink out of her cup. She watched him with carefully blank eyes. She could feel him watching her while she watched him. Only unlike his friendly analyse of her she was trying to find every flaw that she could. He was sluggish and Mona suspected it was due to the influence of some depressant substance, either pills or alcohol. Mona knew all there was to know about alcohol thanks to her Mother's residence in the bottom of a bottle. And pills...

Well Mona had a history with pills.

"...or get married."

She laughed quickly before the first real smile came upon her face. It looked almost soft with a twinge of smugness. She didn't even know it was on her face.

"Just kidding, of course."

"That's good, cause I'm afraid you'd be a bit disappointed with our love life. You see You and I play for the same team. If you catch my drift."

[OSRIC YOUNG]

Mona laughed, and it seemed a lot realer than any of the other ones she's presented in the past few minutes; Osric found she certainly did have a beautiful life. She was just a beautiful girl all around; it was a shame she wasn't a bit nicer by social norms' standards. But Osric didn't really care about her sharp-ish tongue, because he decided, he really did like her, a lot. He wasn't quite sure why exactly, but she attracted him in a strange way.

"That's good," she said, once he admitted to joking about the whole marriage thing (though really, if she'd taken it seriously he wouldn't have minded that much), "Cause I'm afraid you'd be a bit disappointed with our love life. You see You and I play for the same team. If you catch my drift."

Osric didn't catch her drift. Not really, for at least a few seconds. Osric looked up at the ceiling (though his head stayed still, only his eyes moved) and thought for three...
two...
one...
Oh.

Oh, right, okay. Dammit, it was a shame she was off to market to him, then. Well, at least some equally lovely girl might come along and take care of her heart properly some day, then. In general, Osric thought girls were nicer than guys anyway, though guys were more fun to mess about with. He wouldn't have been able to take care of her anyway, if they had gotten married.

"Oh," Osric said, then looked back to her, a small smile on his lips. "Well I suppose getting married isn't really an option then, is it? Though," he chuckled, "I have been told I look like a girl sometimes." Osric shrugged his shoulders a little, still grinning lightly while he did so. He was fully aware that he was had looked pretty feminine in the past. Right now, he hair was only down to his chin at most, but in the past, it'd gone far beyond his shoulders.

"So," Osric started again, "If we're going to be not-friends, I'm interested. What do you do?"

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

Mona couldn't help but roll her eyes as it took him a few moments to figure out she was not straight. But she liked that he kept of moving forward with the conversation. Though Mona could of dealt with silence, she liked it on most days. But if he wanted her to speak, who was she to tell him no?

Of course she couldn't tell him that she was enjoying his attitude, or the fact that he never gave up.

"Once upon a time I was a therapist, the youngest you would ever meet. But now I'm nothing, or rather I do not partake in any profession at the moment."

Mona looked down with her eyes to look at the table. Sometimes she missed it, the thrill of helping someone out with their problems. IT used to make her happy to see them get better.

Now she feels nothing but jealous rage when she saw them. Why is it that they could get better through professionals and she couldn't?

"I can't be a therapist anymore anyways."

[OSRIC YOUNG]

"Once upon a time I was a therapist, the youngest you would ever meet. But now I'm nothing, or rather I do not partake in any profession at the moment," Mona said, looking down at the table. There was a hint of sadness in her voice, as if she missed being a therapist. Osric wondered what had made her stop.

"I can't be a therapist anymore anyways."

"Well, that's a shame," Osric said sympathetically, "I can't be a musician anymore." Not professionally anyway, he didn't think. There was a sort of… wrongness, in the idea that he might be one again. It scared him, honestly. Everything scared him. Not since…

"Not since I messed up my arm." It seemed like with that loss, he'd lost… muse, or something. Sure, it'd only been, what, a year? Nearly two? How could he even remember anything anymore? It was all so… well, time didn't matter anymore.

"Think about time going in the opposite direction. The start of the universe. Nothing into everything." Hawking sure had it right. Nothing into everything. Backwards. Bang.

[MONA LISA DRAGOTI]

"What instrument did you play?"

Mona was shocked at herself by asking that question. God, she was close to being friendly with him! How on earth was this happening to her? She had to beat it back quickly, otherwise people may start to think she was actually human.

"Oh oh, let me guess! Was it a shoe box with rubber bands on it?"

That was better, she liked the cold bite that being bitter had on her tongue. It was strange but it was as if being cold was her safe place. As long as you were mean and nasty no one could get close enough to kick at you.

And if you could trick yourself into not caring for anyone, then you would always be safe from yourself. She couldn't let herself fall back into her old ways of being completely nice to everyone. The most important person in her life had to be her.

Because otherwise she wouldn't be around to much longer.