I can't help it, she said, pulling a long face,
It's them pills I took, to bring it off, she said.
(She's had five already, and nearly died of young George.)
The chemist said it would be all right, but I've never been the same.
===
"Minako, are you alright?"
The city was dark and cold as Minako wandered through it, Artemis following a few feet behind her. She was bone-deep tired, exhausted from school, studying with Katarina, and then, just as she was about to crash into bed, getting up to chase a youma halfway across the city.
She glanced back at Artemis, his eyes shining in the darkness. "Yeah, I'm fine," she assured him, watching a taxi slowly cruise past. "Just tired. It's been a long day."
"You've been just tired for two weeks," he informed her, hopping up onto a fense and walking across it until its end. "You go to school, you study, you fight... You barely talk to anyone except Katarina, and even then, you avoid her. And I haven't even heard one mention of - "
He abruptly stopped talking when they made it around the corner, Minako's building in view. Even in the flickering street light, it was obvious that there was a dark figure sitting on the stairs outside, and Minako barely had to glance that direction to recognize the slope of that back, the angles of those shoulders, or the blue-black tint of that hair.
"Alan."
Alan started and practically rocketed off his feet, took three steps towards her, and then stopped as though he'd hit an invisible wall. He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Minako. I... I'm sorry, doll. I should've called, and I did, but your mum answered and I figured it'd be better if I just gave it a wait. I was gonna leave if it got too much later, but your light wasn't on, and - "
"Alan." Minako took a deep breath and then she was rushing forward, faster than even Artemis could keep up, and throwing herself into his arms. "Alan! I'm so sorry, Alan!" she started sobbing, her fingers balling in his shirt.
Alan blinked and, of all things, looked at the cat. Artemis turned up his nose like normal cats did and padded up the stairs, but not without keeping an ear trained backwards on the conversation. He ended up laying down in the landlady's flowerbox. "There there, love," he murmured, wrapping his arms around her back. "What've you got to be sorry for? You haven't done anything but refuse my calls, and I barely answer myself these days."
She shook her head, sniffling. "Just say you forgive me," she begged. "I didn't want it to happen, but I can't tell you what. Just say it's okay."
"It's okay, love. Whatever it is, it's okay."
Artemis had no idea how long they stood there, limbs twined around each other and words left unspoken. When Minako did pull away, and climb the stairs, she nearly locked him out.
Nothing was said until they were back in Minako's room. He watched her change dutifully into her pajamas and turn out the light before asking, "Do you want to talk about it?"
"No."
"No?"
"No."
The pause was so long that Artemis, curled at the end of Minako's bed, assumed she had fallen asleep.
"Artemis?"
"Hmm?"
"What I want... It's not something I can have so why should I talk about it?"
"You can have anything, Minako."
"No, I can't. Sometimes, things happen, and what you want is in the past." She shifted and sighed. "And nothing you say or do can change that."
There was another long pause.
"Minako, are you alright?" Artemis asked finally.
The only response he ended up getting was the sound of a sniffle in the darkness.
