[FIN] Can I Call you?

[Suudonym]

The appreciation in her voice was worth alone worth as much as her willingness to explain. He knew there was little he could do at such a distance but to be an ear and a voice, and it was just a little frustrating, but he was more than willing to do as much. And so he listened fully as she spoke, though he honestly had no idea what the term she used meant; he'd never heard it before, but he could discern the slight discomfort in her tone well enough to know to avoid a request for elaboration. At any rate, he felt that he more or less understood the point: Her mother had children without taking a husband. It wasn't difficult to see how the sudden appearance of a father would be startling. "Right, makes sense."  

[Blood_Goddess]

"Well, turns out in my case, I did have a father, he's been in my life all this time too. Someone mom worked for and was a good family friend, and from what he told me today... they really loved each other."
she reached a hand up to her face. "Oh my gosh Luke, I didn't know what to do... That's why I texted you. I was so surprised by the idea that I had a father I didn't stop to think that maybe he might have known the whole time that I was his daughter, and there was a reason he didn't want to be there..."

She paused here, thinking about the things he had said to her just a few hours ago. "I'm not really sure how I should feel about it now, I don't think I'm angry, I don't know if I should be upset at mom for keeping this from me, I know she was doing it to protect everyone, me most of all. Faleen was just trying to tell the truth, I don't know how long she had to hold onto that. And Mr, Garnet... Well, I wasn't supposed to happen, if my existence could really have destroyed his relationship with his family so badly, like he said it would, then maybe it was for best."

She paused here, her eyes searching the carpet distantly. "I'm sad... I wish I didn't know any of this..."  

[Suudonym]

He continued to listen, vaguely restless. He could easily imagine the kind of unease such a revelation would cause, but he very much disliked the thought of Rosie feeling such a way. The suggestion that she wasn't meant to exist, however, brought up a harsher indignation. He took a moment to reflect on his response before offering it, "No matter what anyone says or thinks, no one can deny anything about the nineteen years you lived to become who you are right now, "he took a slightly sharper tone, "and if who you are right now isn't precious to him, then he's an idiot because that's a huge loss for him." He exhaled silently; it had never been so difficult to be so irredeemably far from someone. When he spoke again, the words were far softer, "I wish I could say 'just forget about it!' but I know it doesn't work like that. I'm sorry. I wish I could be there."  

[Blood_Goddess]

There was a long pause after he spoke, broken with a soft sniff and a gentle sheepish laugh, she continued like this for a short time, but it was uplifting to her.
"In a way you are here though. Other then being on the phone with me now I mean." She said when she finally did speak, sniffing again
"... I told uncle while he was taking us home... It hurts that my father doesn't want to be in my life, I know I can't get away from that. But what makes it okay... Is that I know that I don't need him, and i never will, becasue I have people like you in my life. I wouldn't give you up for a chance to have a father."
She shook her head. "I am sad, and it hurts a lot... but its o-kay."  

[Suudonym]

Luke's posture remained unforgivingly tense. He knew that if anyone would be okay, it was Rosie, but neither her assurances nor his certainty could bring him to quite relax. "There'll be so much good in the future that this hurt won't mean a thing," he said. "That's a promise." One that he would keep - he didn't know how, but damned if he was going to just stand around and let her feel that way.  

[Blood_Goddess]

Blue eyes blinked at Luke's words, it took only a moment for the words to sink in causing a warmth to spread within her chest, and her head lifted off of her knees,
The brief light giggle that followed a short pause was more genuine and relived than she had sounded during this whole call.
If nothing else, it was so good to hear him talk like that again, so good.

"Thank you. Luke" She spoke into the phone,
"I trust you when you say that."  

[Suudonym]

Lingering anxieties were at last coaxed from his disposition by her response and the tone her voice carried, leaving in their place a warm relief. "If you're ever worrying about something," he said at length, "I'll always be happy hear you out. You don't have to worry about bothering me, so don't think you have to think about stuff like that by yourself if you don't want to." Not wanting to burden others, that was a feeling he was too familiar with, but then he was also familiar with the feeling of knowing there were friends who would listen to anything.  

[Blood_Goddess]

Rosie nodded softly as he spoke, eyes on the carpet as she picked at the fibers, not even paying attention to what she was doing, since all of her attention was on the voice coming from her gear.
She let out a soft breath, that lifted a little more weight off of her.
"Okay...." She said, knowing she would have to make a conscious effort to.
"I know I can be bad about that sometimes, but I'll remember. I know that if there was something bothering you, I would want to help listen too."  

[Suudonym]

He laughed lightly, "I guess I'm pretty guilty of it myself, actually." Like, pot and kettle guilty. "I'll try too." Usually when he wrote out messages, he deleted them shortly after because they were inconsequential or unimportant. Sera had already gotten after him for that a few times…  

[Blood_Goddess]

"Sounds like a plan~" She smiled with his laugh "And we've always got Sera to tattle on us if we don't." Sera was good about that, she didn't tiptoe around anything, especially when it came to her two best friends.

"Thanks again Luke... your support means a lot to me, but it was really good to hear from you anyway."  

[Suudonym]

He gave a small nod reflexively, though he knew it would go unseen, "Yeah, same here." Traveling Kodo was certainly interesting and was also proving quite beneficial, but he found himself longing after Camphoreon, especially knowing that Rosie was upset; that sat poorly with him.  

[Blood_Goddess]

She smiled softly, listening as a silence fall between the call for a brief time, but some how taking comfort from knowing her friend was on the other end, like just having the presence, even if it was a voice belonging to someone who was actually very far away.

The longer she sat there though, the more she thought about what he had been saying to her, and the warmth in her chest started to bring back that familiar yet relatively new ache.
"You sound like you're doing a lot better." She noted through her smile, She knew that Yuri was taking Luke around Kodo to help get him to do something, but its been a while since she heard Luke speak so hopefully, and this much really.  

[Suudonym]

"Really?" There was an honest surprise to his voice; the only times he paused to consider his behavior objectively were when he recognized oncoming feelings of hopelessness. "I dunno. I guess it's just that there's stuff I want to do. I don't really have time to waste on being depressed."  

[Blood_Goddess]

"Mmhum." she hummed gently in affirmation.
"Its good to hear though, that you have something now."
That he got to have moments that he could forget that he was depressed. though the blond would prefer he never had to be depressed again, she knew how unrealistic that actually was.
"Can I ask about it?" Rosie continued brightly curious, "What kind of things have you been wanting to do?" She sounded interested, what it could be that was bringing back moments that he could be his own self again, one that wasn't weighed down by horrible pain.  

[Suudonym]

He hesitated for a moment in search of the appropriate words to convey his meaning, but he wasn't sure anything completely suitable existed. "I'm getting used to fighting again," he said, "with a sword, eventually with a gun maybe. I want to be able to protect the people around me." He had said something similar to her before, shortly after he had started carrying a sword: It wasn't to attack, but to protect. Two years later, those words were much heavier. "I need to be able to protect the people around me. I can't just keep depending on everyone."