With a rasp Maki shot up, her thin sheet catching around her arm as she swung and hit nothing. Her breath caught in a moment of panic, her lips parted as she struggled to catch her breath. Her gaze shot around the room, the gloom of the night sliced through by the early morning glow that slid neatly through a gap in the curtains. Maki blinked as the last dregs of her dream evaporated in her mind, leaving behind only the residue of some deeply unpleasant nightmare as she finally managed to force a gasp of air into her burning lungs. She stared, dumbly, into her empty room for a long moment before dropping back down to her pillow with a groan.
This sucked.
Maki considered calling the day a wash and returning to sleep, which seemed like it might have some positives like getting to ignore her problems for a few more hours. Or until Eiki came knocking at her door. Maki sighed, regretfully, and rolled herself back up into a sitting position. She ran the back of her hand across her forehead before pushing herself up to her feet. She’d feel better after a shower.
She stepped out of her room, peeling off her shirt as she stepped into the bathroom and tossing it into a hamper. She gave her face a splash of cold water from the sink, which did marvels at waking her up, before drying her face on a hand towel and looking at herself in the mirror. She looked like she had gotten a very rough night of sleep, which was true, and like she had been on the wrong side of a fight, which was also true. The dark skin around her neck was settling itself into an unpleasant purplish hue where that Grimm thing had choked her, and splotch ran from her bust to her navel where the woman’s leg had pressed down to pin her in place. And it was too goddamn hot out to wear high collars.
With a slump of her shoulders, Maki added the remainder of her clothes to the hamper and stepped into the shower. She could worry about her wardrobe later.
She stepped back out maybe fifteen minutes later trailed by water vapor and feeling a lot less grimy than she had when she woke up. Almost alive even as she crossed back into her bedroom and slid the closet open.
“Hey! You awake yet?” She called out into the hall. “Should have some stuff in the fridge if we want to eat breakfast here.”
This sucked.
Maki considered calling the day a wash and returning to sleep, which seemed like it might have some positives like getting to ignore her problems for a few more hours. Or until Eiki came knocking at her door. Maki sighed, regretfully, and rolled herself back up into a sitting position. She ran the back of her hand across her forehead before pushing herself up to her feet. She’d feel better after a shower.
She stepped out of her room, peeling off her shirt as she stepped into the bathroom and tossing it into a hamper. She gave her face a splash of cold water from the sink, which did marvels at waking her up, before drying her face on a hand towel and looking at herself in the mirror. She looked like she had gotten a very rough night of sleep, which was true, and like she had been on the wrong side of a fight, which was also true. The dark skin around her neck was settling itself into an unpleasant purplish hue where that Grimm thing had choked her, and splotch ran from her bust to her navel where the woman’s leg had pressed down to pin her in place. And it was too goddamn hot out to wear high collars.
With a slump of her shoulders, Maki added the remainder of her clothes to the hamper and stepped into the shower. She could worry about her wardrobe later.
She stepped back out maybe fifteen minutes later trailed by water vapor and feeling a lot less grimy than she had when she woke up. Almost alive even as she crossed back into her bedroom and slid the closet open.
“Hey! You awake yet?” She called out into the hall. “Should have some stuff in the fridge if we want to eat breakfast here.”