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[abrightboy]

This is Bright. Leave a message.

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Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ] cw: mention of gore, death of a child, SA, cannibalism

[abrightboy]

I'm sorry. That's horrific. ...Did it seem weird that people were... trying to be nice? Or was that something they did to put people off guard?

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ] cw: cannibalism

[handleyourshit]

That's how the asshole cannibals that did catch me treated us at first, to keep my group from fighting.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ] cw: cannibalism

[abrightboy]

I’m sorry.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

...thanks.

If I was uh.

Friendliness and tolerance has been a death sentence for a while.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

I can imagine how it must be jarring, having to... people again.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

It sucks. There's more people on this boat than I saw in one place in the months between Dallas and Alexandria. Almost more than are in Alexandria at all.

If there've been this many... bodies. Around me for most of that time, most of them were the dead.

And your priorities change. How you interact with people changes.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

It would have to. It couldn't not.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

That's why I react to you differently than you're probably expecting.

And it's not just you.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

Well, I'm kind of weird and off-putting, so it's not just you, either. And I know there are people who think I'm not trying, but... I really am.

I'm sorry for not... picking up on your fundamental existential distress better before.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

I can deal with weird and offputting in the long run.

[God knows that before Eugene showed his true colors, she was one of few who associated with him.]

What I got pissed about more than you not picking up on it was... I was trying to explain it to you. You wanted to apologize, I wanted you to know why I was pissed so the apology could mean something.

And you kept wanting to move past it before I could.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

Yeah... that's a social cue thing, too. I'm working on it. Sorry.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

Mm.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

I don't like to... advertise my various...... problems, but Will thinks it would actually help people to understand that there are literally things wrong with me. It's counterintuitive; I've been conditioned all my life to hide it all as much as possible. But. What I'm trying to explain is that I didn't mean to dismiss you. That wasn't what I wanted to do. And as much as me saying that tends to make people say 'so just don't, then', it's just... not that simple? But I really.... I'm really trying. To do better. Especially with... conversations.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

I can roll with that.

The next time I explicitly say "stop talking and listen," we'll see how it goes.

And I'll try to do better, too.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

[He perks up a little.]

I stopped the last time you said stop.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

You did.

And look, now we're having an actual conversation.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

So... are we good now?

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

Slate's clean, as far as I'm concerned.

Start over, see if good is on the table.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

So... how do we do that?

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[handleyourshit]

We keep... doing whatever it is we're doing. But the next time a problem starts up, we try to remember what we just talked about.

Re: [ Audio | Slightly Backdated ]

[abrightboy]

Okay. Thank you.