seattle ; tuesday

[necroslacker]

Coming back hadn't been...pleasant. Sam had figured it wouldn't be so he'd prepared himself. Frank was angry but he was, at least, talking to Sam. Ramon had yelled at Sam upon his return and then stalked off and now was refusing to talk to anyone. Sam figured it would pass and he'd just give Ramon time. If he'd been that angry, he would have just moved out altogether and he was still here.

Sam didn't tell Frank much, keeping everything very low key just to possibly avoid Frank texting everyone and their brother about his return. He'd said he was tired and had promised to talk about it later. With that, he'd meant to go to his bedroom to just decompress.

But, he'd ended up in the basement. It still gave him a chill and he still felt an almost painful tugging in his gut but he tried to ignore it, to beat it down and not let it overwhelm him. He leaned against one of the bare walls and thought about maybe doing something with this space.

Maybe that would help.

[NFB but open for interactions. If you think you got a text from Frank about Sam, feel free to mod it.]

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[whenshewasnice]

Natalie had stared at Frank's text for a while, not even sure of what she was actually feeling.

And then she went to call Sam's phone. She wasn't really trusting it to even be on or anything, but trying to call was still the first thing she was doing.

[necroslacker]

Sam's phone still went to voicemail since he hadn't actually checked his phone or even bothered to turn it on. It was just the same voicemail message from previous phone calls. He'd get around to checking that in awhile.

[whenshewasnice]

Of course he would.

"It's me. Of course you probably don't even have your phone on. Probably hiding away because everyone's angry at you. I'm coming over."

Maybe he'd even check his messages before she got there. But she was grabbing her bag and making sure her mini menagerie weren't going to run off, and then she was already scheduling a portal.

These weren't decisions made with any sort of sense and logic.

[necroslacker]

Sam didn't make it upstairs to check his phone. He stayed in the basement, sliding down to sit against the wall. He was more thoughtful than anything else. It had just been a long, long week.

Frank had figured out where he'd gone and come down to bring him water before leaving him alone again. Ramon was still staying away.

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie got to the house in record time. Amazing what a stern voice and a humourless attitude could do sometimes. She let herself in, then looked around. His bedroom seemed like the safest bet, but with everything that had been going on, she wasn't so sure that was where she'd find him now.

"Hello?"

[necroslacker]

Frank popped out of a random room, looking towards her in confusion.

"Natalie?" He hadn't expected her to show up this quick. "Hey. I didn't hear you knock. You here about Sam?"

That was a dumb question, Frank.

[whenshewasnice]

It was, but Natalie was going to let that one slide this time.

"Yes."

[necroslacker]

"He's in the basement," Frank told her, nodding his head in the direction of the door to the basement. "Has been since he came back."

[whenshewasnice]

"... Really, Sam?"

She kind of muttered that mostly to herself, before nodding at Frank. "Okay. Thank you, Frank."

She turned to head towards the basement door.

[necroslacker]

Frank nodded before disappearing again.

Sam was still sitting against the wall, eyes closed and body still. He didn't look pained though he was a little tense. There were thoughts whirring through his head so he wasn't paying that close attention to other noises that might signal someone coming downstairs.

[whenshewasnice]

And Natalie moved quietly. Not even on purpose. It was just how she moved. Her scuffed sneakers didn't make too much of a sound as she slowly came down the stairs. Slowly, because she really wasn't sure what to expect from this encounter.

Still, once she was there, she looked him over, and said, "Hey." Because that was the best start to go for when in doubt.

[necroslacker]

Sam didn't look awful, at least. Both of his hands were still bandaged with stark white gauze and though he was tense, he didn't look agitated or irritated with things.

When she spoke, he startled a bit and opened his eyes. He shouldn't have been surprised to see her there. "You didn't have to come. I'm fine."

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie moved to sit down beside him. Felt weird to loom over him. Of course, this whole situation was going to be weird no matter what she did, but still. "Uh huh," she said. "As people often are after they've been MIA for over a week." She glanced at his hands. "And trying to raise dead things."

[necroslacker]

Sam glanced down at his hands and shrugged. "It was just one person. And it didn't work anyway. So, wasted a lot of blood for nothing."

He sighed and relaxed a little.

[whenshewasnice]

"I'm sorry," she told him quietly. Well, she didn't like him hurting. Just in general. "Something still made you come back, though."

[necroslacker]

"Yeah."

He scratched the side of his head and didn't say what had brought him back.

"Things suck. But they don't suck enough that I want to be alone."

[whenshewasnice]

"Good enough." She wasn't going to push him for information on anything he wouldn't freely share. She'd expected to want to yell at him, but now that she was here... She didn't have it in her. "That's all anyone was really trying to say before you bailed, you know."

[necroslacker]

"I lost control, Natalie," Sam said, sighing and looking across at the other wall. "And I didn't want that to happen again. As much as I don't want to be alone, I don't want to hurt anyone either and I can. Realizing that is terrifying."

[whenshewasnice]

"I know." Not from personal experience. But she understood the concept. "But not wanting to matters more than that you could. At least when you're not freaking out."

Which he had been. A lot.

[necroslacker]

"Yeah, I know." He'd gotten that lesson from a few people while he'd been gone. "I know. But, I had to realize that for myself. Douglas really messed me up when he unleashed me, Natalie. And I haven't really been able to deal with the full extent of what I can do. I scared myself. I had to get away."

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie sighed, and just looked over at him for a moment, in silence.

"Everyone else has already yelled at you, right?"

[necroslacker]

"I haven't seen Brid yet but I'm sure that's coming," Sam told her. "Haven't talked to my mom either. Figured I'd save that till I can only get over there and see her in person. I've got a message for her anyway."

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie nodded at him. "Okay. Brid can do my share of the yelling, too." She rested the back of her head against the wall and glanced across the room. She'd never been down here before, and she couldn't say she'd been missing out on a pleasant experience. "I'm glad you came back, Sam."

[necroslacker]

"Yeah." He sighed and rubbed his face, trying to prevent himself from getting teary or emotional or anything like that. "I'm sorry if I upset you, Natalie. I didn't mean to. You just have to know, I was really scared and doing what I thought was best."

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie thought about holding a hand out for him. But, bandaged. Better not.

"I know," she replied softly. "It was scary from the outside too." Kind of liking he hadn't even been him. He'd been just that freaked out. "But I know."