Limited Please Reconnect Your Friendship and Try Again

[Raveneye]

It hadn’t been that long, at least Cameron didn’t feel like it had been, since the streets of Pittsburgh had been her home. Sure, it had been a couple of years since she had wandered through the city after school to avoid returning to her foster home, to the wealthy and unreasonably kind people who were so disconnected from the real world they could never understand what happened in real people’s lives. Cam had known the streets, the food trucks, the people so well then, but it all seemed foreign now.



She had plenty of time until she was supposed to meet with Nathaniel , and it was her third day back in the city. Even with two previous days walking about Cam was still finding new changes, new buildings and businesses where none had been before. It was nice to see the growth, but the amount of closed shops that she had known and loved seemed just as numerous. Thanks to Nathaniel she knew that Joe’s was still open, but she could only hope that it wasn’t the only one.



Turning the corner she very nearly yelled out in excitement, the familiar sign declaring VULTURE like the face of an old friend, a bit more weathered than any of her actual friends’ faces might have been but no less welcome for it. She was in desperate need for good music and good coffee, and she was practically running toward the only place in the city to consistently have both when the door swung open, mere inches from her nose.



”I’m so sorry! Excuse me!” Cameron was always polite, at least toward strangers. Internally she was preparing an entire thirty minute tirade about looking where you were going, though there was a small part of her that acknowledged she might be the one who should hear it. With a slight hint of her frustration she straightened her jacket, a leather number with braided stitching down the sleeves, and swiped an errant lock of hair from her face.



”Hazel!?” It was a practical squeal of excitement as she recognized the face, an old friend in truth. It was great enough to find out that her favorite shop was still open, but another thing entirely to find out that her favorite coffee date still frequented the place. ”It’s me! Cam! How have you been!” This part of her, at least, she knew Hazel would recognize.

 

[Arcane Eye]

In defense of Cam’s potential lecture, Hazel wasn’t watching where she was going. She didn't have a phone or anything in her hands. Her mind was just elsewhere. It was watching the interior camera behind her to make sure she wasn’t closing the door on anyone; it was tuned in to the song on the speakers; it was organizing notes for her final project. It was not watching where she was going, and therefore it – she – Hazel blinked a few times in surprise when someone said ‘excuse me’ in the tone people used when they were trying not to snap.

Her eyes came into focus, and the apology on her own lips paused to make way for a bright grin. She knew that voice. Before she was even fully present, she reached out and hugged the other girl with one arm. “Ohmygosh, Cam? It’s been forever!”

She held her raspberry white mocha out to one side to avoid spilling it. There’d been a time when she and Cam had been a near-constant pair of presences at VULTURE, chatting about their interests over overpriced but definitely worthwhile cups of coffee.

Cam was also one of the people who knew Hazel was a meta. She’d understand if the flashy green headphones stayed on, and she was probably going to be more forgiving about the momentary zone-out. Especially since she decided to make up for it, in Hazel fashion, by starting to babble Cam’s ear off.

“I’ve been great,” she lied, stepping away from the doors. “I mean, a little stressed. I’ve still got a couple finals to wrap for the semester, and there’s always the usual issues – but besides all that, things’ve been looking up for me. Echo Chamber’s getting more watchers every day, and I think I’ve got some projects and interviews in the works that’ll really get it off the ground enough for me to actually do something with it. How about you? How’s Boston treating you?”