Nisha stands outside {{user}}'s house, the rain staining her shirt. Despite her intimidating persona, she was actually worried sick for her little brother; the ramifications for bullying nowadays are much stricter than when Nisha was in high school. "I'm gonna kill Mason for putting me through this humiliating bullshit..." She mutters, her patience growing thinner. It's only after she makes the hushed threat that Nisha realizes where her brother got his violent tendencies from. "Ohhh... That explains a lot, actually." Raising a hand, she knocks on the door once, then twice, then thrice in succession. "If this little shit doesn't open the door right now, I'm taking a rock and-" Cut off by the door opening, Nisha unclenches her fist, letting out a sigh of relief. "Sorry if I banged your door up. It's... {{user}}, right?" Eying them up and down, they seem to match the description her brother gave. A hand runs through her hair, Nisha's reluctance made abundantly clear. "I'm Mason's older sister; heard he's been bullying you or something..." The last part comes out as a meek mumble, embarrassed with her failures as a sister. The hand nestled in her hair untangles itself from her scalp, instead pointing into {{user}}'s place. "Can I come in? I got here in a rush and my clothes are..." She looks down, only realizing now she chose a white shirt without a bra. On top of that, her shorts don't leave much to the imagination. "Just let me inside. I'll be nicer if you do." The warmth in her voice is forced, a desperate attempt to get on their good side from the get go.

Nisha looks at the towel skeptically before gingerly taking it. She rubs her hands with it before wiping her face, still not entirely sure if they had clean towels or not."Thanks," she says softly, surprising herself. After all this time, apologizing and being nice was hard; but for Mason... "I'm really sorry about my brother bothering you. I honestly didn't know he was doing it..." She sits down carefully on the couch, her body language practically saying 'do not touch me'. If they weren't careful, Nisha would strike at them without a moment's hesitation; she could feel it building up. "He never used to be like this... He was always so..." Her voice trails off, remembering the years of abuse they both suffered under their parents' care. It hurt her just as much now as it did then, but she couldn't show any weakness or compassion. At least not right now. "It's my fault, really... My mom and I used to fight a lot when he was younger, and he took after us..." She closes her eyes, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Look, I just want you to know that I am truly sorry for what happened and... please don't get him in trouble over this."

Taken aback by their laughter, she narrows her eyes suspiciously. "What's so funny?" Her voice carries the same threat of violence as before; it wouldn't take much for her to explode into a fit of rage. A shudder passes through her body as she imagines what that would look like, but she keeps it contained with an effort. Taking the chocolate gratefully, she blows on it first before carefully taking a sip. The warmth from the drink spreads throughout her body, helping to calm down just a little bit. "You... think this is funny?" She asks incredulously between sips.

Her expression darkens at the mention of the rain outside. "I don't like being wet," she says coldly. Nisha wasn't used to people offering her help; it made her suspicious. It was a survival instinct, honed from years of abuse and neglect. She doesn't want to seem ungrateful, though. "Thanks for the chocolate." She hesitates before asking, "But... why aren't you reporting this? It's not like it hasn't gone far enough already..."

Her eyes widen in shock at the sight of the scars on his body. For once, anger fades away as empathy takes its place. "That... that's horrible," she whispers, her voice barely above a whisper. "Why didn't you tell someone? You could have had people there for you..." She trails off, realizing how stupid the question sounds even as it leaves her lips. Of course he would never tell anyone; no one ever did when they were going through something like this. She wanted to reach out and comfort him, but she couldn't risk making things worse for him. "I can understand why you wouldn't want me to step in..." she says instead, voice barely above a murmur now. "But... I just want you to know that you don't have to take it like this." Her gaze flickers downwards, unable to meet his eyes any longer. "It doesn't matter what he did to us; we can choose our own path now," she says almost defiantly, surprising even herself with the sudden burst of determination.

Her stomach rumbles at the mention of food. "I... yeah," she admits reluctantly. It had been a while since she had eaten properly, what with all her efforts to keep Mason out of trouble and help around the house. "That would be nice." She tries to smile reassuringly, but it comes across as more of a grimace. She wasn't used to people being kind to her; it made her uncomfortable. Not that she wanted them to stop, exactly... It was just strange and foreign. "You know," she says thoughtfully, leaning in slightly. "If you ever want to talk about what happened or just... anything really..." Her voice trails off again as she tries to convey her meaning without actually saying it out loud. It's not like she could offer him much advice; they were both still fighting their own battles against the demons of their past. But at least she could be there for him, if only a little bit.

She picks up one of the sandwiches, taking a tentative bite before chewing thoughtfully. It tastes... not bad, actually. Better than whatever they had at home, for sure. As she eats, her gaze drifts back to Abdiel , studying him with interest. "You're really good at cooking," she says after a moment, surprised. "It's just something I picked up over the years," he replies with a small shrug. "I had to learn how to take care of myself." His expression darkens briefly before he forces a smile. "Anyway, enough about me. Tell me more about you and your brother. You said he was always like this?"

She hesitates before answering, looking down at her plate as she slowly munches on another sandwich. "No," she says eventually. "He was always quiet... kept to himself mostly. But he never hurt anyone... not like this." Her voice trails off again, the memory of her own abuse making it difficult for her to speak about it without breaking down. But she can't show any weakness; that would only make things worse. So instead, she forces a half-hearted laugh and says, "He was actually really smart when he wanted to be. He could have gone far if he hadn't..." She doesn't finish the sentence, not wanting to think about how it all turned out. Instead, she focuses on eating her sandwich in silence, hoping that Abdiel won't ask any more questions.

Her cheeks flush slightly at his words, unexpectedly flattered despite herself. "I... I like to read," she says, trying to think of something that he might be interested in. "And I'm really into boxing and chemistry." She nods proudly, feeling a small surge of pride at her own accomplishments despite the difficult circumstances. "What about you?" she asks, wanting to return the favor of getting to know him better. "You seem pretty smart too, if you can cook like that..." Her voice trails off, but he gets the hint and answers with a laugh.

The rest of the evening passes quickly in conversation; they share stories about their pasts, their dreams for the future, and even some of their favorite foods and hobbies. To Nisha's surprise, she finds herself actually enjoying Abdiel 's company. He's kind, considerate, and has a sense of humor that's both dry and self-deprecating. As the hours tick by, her initial fear and suspicion begin to fade away, replaced by a strange sort of camaraderie.

Eventually, Abdiel 's parents return home drunk as usual; their arguing and shouting filtering through the walls as they stumble upstairs to pass out. It's then that Nisha realizes she should probably go; there's still plenty she needs to do tomorrow morning before school starts again. Reluctantly, she stands up, her movements graceful despite her intimidating appearance.

"Thanks for talking with me tonight," she says quietly, her voice barely audible over the sounds from next door. "It was... nice." She hesitates for a moment before continuing, "Maybe we could do this again sometime?"

Abdiel looks up at her, surprise clear in

Surprised by the offer but not entirely sure what else she should do, Nisha nods slowly. "Yeah... I guess that would be alright." She swallows thickly, unsure of how this will look to her brother or family back home. But as much as she hates asking for help, she knows she can't deal with the rain any longer.

Following Abdiel upstairs to his room, Nisha sits down on the edge of his bed while he disappears into the bathroom to retrieve some extra blankets. As she waits, her gaze drifts around the room; it's surprisingly neat and tidy for someone who lives in such close quarters with their alcoholic parents.

A moment later, Abdiel returns with a pile of blankets in his arms, which he carefully drapes over Nisha's shoulders before sitting down next to her. The warmth they provide is instantly comforting, and she finds herself relaxing against him almost instinctively; the two of them sitting together like old friends sharing a cozy moment despite their short acquaintance.

For what seems like hours but is likely only minutes, they sit in silence; each lost in their own thoughts as the rain continues to beat against the windowpane outside. It's strangely peaceful, and for once Nisha doesn't feel the need to fight or protect herself from anything. It feels almost... nice.

Eventually, Abdiel stands up and offers her his hand; help in rising from the bed. Taken aback by this sudden display of chivalry, she accepts it gratefully; allowing him to pull her upright with surprising strength despite his smaller stature. "Thanks," she says quietly, blushing slightly as their hands remain entwined longer than necessary.

"No

"You didn't have to..." she starts to say before realizing that it does look quite comfy. After everything that's happened today, the thought of being warm and dry tonight is almost too much to resist. With a small smile, she takes the pajamas from him and holds them against her chest.

"Thank you," she says sincerely. "I appreciate it." Her gaze meets his again, and for a moment they stand there in silence; the tension between them easing ever so slightly as their closeness grows. It feels oddly comforting, this newfound connection between them; like they're somehow linked together despite all their differences.

Finally, she breaks the silence with a yawn. "I guess I should get some sleep," she murmurs tiredly, already starting to feel her eyelids growing heavy from the long day and the warmth of Abdiel 's bed. "Thanks again for everything."

With one last grateful smile, Nisha climbs into the bed; her body instantly drawn towards its newfound heat source like a moth to a flame. She curls up under the covers, using her arms as a pillow as she drifts off to sleep; dreaming of warmth and safety in a world that had always been so cold and cruel before tonight.

Abdiel watches her for a moment longer before also crawling into bed; but instead of curling up on the other side, he lies down behind her; his arms wrapped around her middle protectively as he spooned her close. It's an intimate position, one that speaks volumes about their newfound trust and comfort with each other despite everything else happening in their lives. And as they both finally manage to find some peace amidst the chaos, it becomes apparent that perhaps not everything was lost after all; maybe there

Her body molds perfectly against his, her cheek resting on the curve of his shoulder. It feels so right, like this was how it should have been all along. She lets out a contented sigh, relaxing into his embrace as if she'd been doing it for years. "Thanks," she whispers softly; not sure what exactly she's thanking him for, but knowing that words aren't necessary right now. The feel of his skin against hers is like a balm to her soul, soothing the countless cuts and bruises that had built up over time. For the first time in forever, she feels safe; protected. And it's an incredible feeling.

Her eyes flutter open, still half-asleep as she looks up at Abdiel. For a moment everything is fuzzy and surreal; she can't quite believe that this feeling of comfort and safety exists in the world outside her dreams. But then his smile reaches those gorgeous green eyes, crinkling the skin around them in a way that makes her heart race, and reality comes rushing back in like a cold wave. "Morning," she murmurs, returning his grin with one of her own before pushing herself up onto her elbow. A yawn overtakes her then, making her shoulders shake as it reverberates through her body. "What time is it?"

Her eyes widen in surprise as she takes in his words; they sound so sincere, so genuine. It makes her heart flutter in an unfamiliar way. She hesitates for a moment, unsure of how to respond before finally saying, "T-thank you..." Her voice comes out shaky and raw, but she doesn't care; the gratitude is there nonetheless.

Shifting slightly on the bed, she glances at the window, watching as the first rays of sunlight peek over the horizon. It's going to be a beautiful day, she can tell already. Maybe things will start looking up for both of them now; together they can face whatever comes their way and make something of their lives.

Suddenly aware that Abdiel is still looking at her expectantly, she returns his gaze with one of her own. There's something different about him this morning; a certain lightness that wasn't there before. She finds herself wondering what it might be like to get to know him better, now that they have this... connection between them.

Deciding not to overthink it, she offers up a small smile and says softly, "What do you want to do today?"