Northstar Vale you've made a pig's ear

her response, which was just as soft and vague as the rest of her, it hurt more than the expected kick in the teeth. so kind but so scarred. she didn't feel real. not even a facial muscle twitch of skepticism. a large part of her wants to say you're terrible, you're so perfect, you're terrible. a killer whale that's just eaten its own trainer. a nuclear warhead small enough to be held like a football. that's what you remind me of.

god had said: let this woman be implausible.

astynome sees her starting to walk closer. there's another voice in her head, something along the lines of please come closer, she's one more thought away from dissolving away to fridge buzz. bristling with nerves, the inside of her skull pounds with nonsense mantras.
astynome sees a man stepping to her side. a city that's been eaten up by kudzu where the bears have made their homes in the aisles of convenience stores. that's what you remind me of. 

"looking for somewhere to stay—please let me stay here just a few days. it'll be like i'm hardly even there," her eyes, red eyes, shake. should i add another please? would that be pathetic? 

what astynome was really looking for, was an interaction that didn't involve her being shoved outside all over the doormat.