Ophelia sat in the loudly thrumming, undeniably alive club and wondered just why she felt like such an outsider. She had always been reserved, but sometime after learning she had breast cancer and this moment, she had truly stopped feeling alive. It was hard to keep hope, especially after all the rounds of treatment, the nausea, pain and hairloss, it turns out that she is not getting better. No, worse than that, it's infected her other breast now too. Maybe that's why she felt like she shouldn't be here, surrounded by all these vitally alive people, she would just taint this place for them with her memory after she died.
A ghost of a smile brushed her lip as she realized that if anyone knew she was thinking that, she'd get a hell of a chewing out. Her neice Grace would scoff at her and give her an earful on staying positive and not letting illness and depression beat her. As if a strong mental fortitude would equate a strong body. But that was Grace, she was the quintessential red head, hot blooded Cuban. Not that that combination occured often. But Ophelia knew both her brother and Maddison, Grace's mother, well and they were fighters through and through. Delinquints to the core. It was easy to tease them because she loved them, and it was strange to her to almost envy them their wildness.
Now if Nathaniel had heard her giving up, his reaction would be vastly different than the others. Grace would argue about perserverance, West would bluster and threaten abou beating Death itself, Maddison would crack jokes. But Nate, he would simply smile at her and shrug in that lazy lethario way of his and say something like You're too good for death just yet. Besides, who would keep me in line if you died. Or some other equally joking yet tragic line.
Opheila swallowed a sigh, not wanting to be stuck in these depressing thoughts like always, but that was the curse of living in your own head. It is very hard to escape it when you need to. Which was how they had ended up at the club tonight in the first place. Grace had been... strange this morning, when Ophelia returned home. Everyone had realized that she wasn't there this morning, but she'd lied to her family, telling them all that she had felt great this morning and wanted to go to her apartment to get some work done on grading some reports. It felt terrible to lie to them, and when her brother West had actually had the audacity to say that she shouldn't go anywhere alone, Ophelia had felt true anger burn through her.
"In your condition, I don't want you going anywhere alone, I won't allow it." West had fumed. Ophelia had a moment to see both Grace and Maddison give him this warning look but it was too late.
"Won't let? Westley Vincent James Junior, I am neither your child nor your property. I am a grown woman and although I live under this roof for convience sake, I am not yours to control. I WILL go where I choose when I choose to, and I will not abide an escort or chaperone. Get this foolish whimsy out of your head that you have the right to tell me what to do. Because BIG BROTHER, I am not so sick as to need a keeper!" Ophelia had felt wildly alive in that moment, and the astonished look on West's face had given her a sensation of elation. It had been that energy that had allowed her to walk out of the kitchen and to her room before the shaking had started.
Ophelia felt the faint smile linger on her lips as she had to admit, just to herself, that the anger had compelled her to go ask Grace to go out to eat at the club. She had neither the energy nor desire to be surrounded by several scores of people, but she'd known it would make West angry. There was a little bit of the rebel in her own blood it seemed. Or maybe living in the same household as he did had rubbed off on her. As Nathaniel swirled back to their table with the inate grace of a dancer, Ophelia almost laughed at the looks that followed him. She was ten years older than he was, had in fact babysat him and changed his diapers on more than one occassion, and it would break these young women's hearts to know she had spent the night with him in bed. True, it was not passionate liason as they would assume, instead she had acted the child and cried in his arms. It made her uncomfortable to admit that she had been emotional in front of anyone, and yet at the same time she'd felt for a moment slightly free, having a friend there at that precise moment.
"Here you go ladies. A little something to fill the void while you listen to really bad techno." Nate joked as he dropped the Spanish style food in front of them. Althought Nathaniel's mother was Native and not Spanish, Nate looks tended so far towards his father's that it was neigh impossible to guess he was anything but Spanish. His younger sister Adrianna was a little more like their mother, and both children had inherited Alice's dancer's grace. Grace on the other hand, looked so much like her Irish mother that it seemed impossible that she was half Cuban. Unless the brat child actually got out and into the sunlight, then her skin tanned a lovely golden honey colour. And the freckles, those came out like mushrooms after the rain! But despite the strange motly of heritages that made up Ophelia's two young friends, they both ate the spicy Spanish food like it was everyday fare. Wheras Ophelia was a little bit more cautious. Thankfully Nate must have had words with the cheif, because although there was spice in the food, it was subtle in her plate and just added to the flavour. He'd been an absolute monster one time and Ophelia had ended up with the most upset stomache after eating a habaneros pepper...
"Thank you Nathaniel." Ophelia said with her usual calm tone, knowing that he was waiting for them to try a bite before he'd leave.
"Food's great. But no offence Nitwit, you look absolutely wretched. What happen, you wander the streets all night and forget to sleep?" Grace asked with her usual lack of tack. The girl also ate like her father, shovelling the food in so no one could steal it. Strange habit for an only child, except for the fact that Opi knew that Nathaniel would often steal food off of anyone's plate, that boy ate an awful lot, even after he'd stopped growing. Ophelia felt a slight pang of guilt because she knew why Nathaniel looked so tired. She had dumped an emotional wreck all over him last night and he had just taken it in stride.
"Oh you know me, I was out righting wrongs, defending the fenseless and rescuing puppies. It's hard to be a superhero on the sly, but I do it with such panache." Nate immediately replied with a grin and a wink.
"Some how I doubt that." Grace replied with heavy sarcasm in her voice.
Nate just shrugged and Ophelia almost coughed her food out when he replied with, "I could say I was in bed with a beautiful woman last night. Or maybe I can claim that I was actually coming up with a brilliant mathemagical equation to make me rich and famous."
"Mathemagical?" Ophelia felt compelled to ask, astonished at his plain faced audacity. Not a single change in facial expression or tone of voice had given away the fact that at least part of what he'd said was true.
"Yes, math is so far out of my realm of understanding that it might as well be magic. Thus, mathemagical." Nate shrugged again and Grace laughed while Ophelia just blinked at him.
There were moments where being Nathaniel Spade Vegas friend was trying to her patience, and then there were moments like this, where Ophelia was just amused and grateful that nothing seemed to ever stop his humour and light. Still, she had to wonder if that was entirely true, because she spotted the swolled red knuckles on his hands.
A lifetime as the younger sister to a gangster and all roung trouble maker, Ophelia had learned to spot someone who had just been in a fight. There were no bruises on Nate's face, but the battered hands and the way he kept his arms tucked close to his body said louder than words that he was sporting some bruises. And it disturbed her enough that she wanted to ask him about it. But not with Grace around. The youngest James woman was a might bit fiesty and Ophelia knew that if Grace were to learn that Nate had been fighting, the tall redhead would jump in with both feet, a lot of attitude and likely get in the way. Grace was tough and smart, but she lacked the natural finess of a fighter, much like Opi did. Attitude could only carry you so far.
They ate in relative peace after that and Ophelia did her best to try and endure the loud music and masses of people. Grace was having fun, talking about such and such a person on the dance floor, not knowing any of them but making up fantastical stories about being movie hero style spies. But The moment Ophelia had put down her fork, she felt the growing need to leave. It ate at her, the constant ache of pain, the fatigue that would mob her no matter how much sleep she obtained, and the ever growing weariness of it all. She was trying to fight it off, wanting to pretend for a moment to be a normal woman again. Still, she was about to ask Grace to take them home when she spotted Colby walk in.
As cold and heartless as Ophelia seemed to others, as distant, aloof and unreachable as she pretended to be, Opi had the moment where just seeing the man took her breath away. Which was absolutely ridiculous. He was her student, for one thing, and even worse, she knew he was Grace's date for the Fall Ball. For just a brief, terrifying moment Ophelia felt resentment at her own niece burn through her, making her feel sick and angry. Grace had no clue just how lucky she was to have a strong, decent man want to take her out, treat her right and be there. Grace was full of vitality, health, a future. Everything Ophelia lacked and it burned a wretched hole into her gut. None of it showed on her face, she knew that, and when Colby came to their table, she was even able to press a small smile to her lips.
"Good evening ladies. It's a pleasure to see you both out and about." Colby smiled that aww shucks grin of his and Ophelia looked away to sip her water. It was strange what dying would make you want to do. Opi just did her best to let go of any desires or ridiculous plans for a future. It wasn't in the cards for her and she knew it. But Grace, ah that girl deserved a chance, and so did Colby. Intellectually Ophelia could note how they made a handsome couple, Grace's honey and red colours suiting Colby's own looks. Ophelia knew that many people wondered at whether she was albino, her skin translucently pale, the hair she'd once had seeming almost bone white in it's blondeness.
Of course, the night was just made more awkward yet interesting when Nathaniel suddeny appeared right next to Ophelia's side. She'd thought that her face had revealed nothing of her inner torment, but then again, Nathaniel had spent a lifetime learning to read her face, and his anger nearly vibrated through him. It horrified Ophelia for a moment, the realization that now someone else knew. That Nathaniel, of all people, had realized her pathetic attraction to Colby. Who was taking his best friend on a date to the Fall Ball. Oh this was not going to go well at all. Oh dear.
"Colby." Nathaniel's usually rich tone was flat and empty, the anger that Ophelia could almost taste in the air was no where to be found in his voice.
"Nate." Colby replied, his voice cordial and friendly, even though it was clear he wasn't Nathaniel's friend. "Don't mind me, I was just hoping to ask my date to the Ball if we had everything ready. The night approaches quickly."
Ophelia just took a slow deep breath, feeling almost caught between the fire that burned under Nathaniel’s skin and the choking politeness of Colby’s tone. It hurt but she was used to the pain, but that little stab to her heart was neigh impossible to ignore. And the man didn’t even have a clue he’d done it. But Nate did, and that just made this whole mess of a situation more unbearable.
So Ophelia did something she wasn’t entirely proud of, she used her illness to escape. “I’m feeling a bit unwell. Nate, would you mind terribly giving me a ride home?” she asked, not even having to fake the exhaustion in her voice.
She wasn’t sure how he managed it, but before the others could properly react to her words, Nathaniel had all but scooped Ophelia up and brought her outside, getting her settled into the passenger seat of his car while the others stammered words behind them. He hadn’t carried her, that would have been mortifying, and yet Ophelia knew he’d somehow taken all but the last of her weight and guided her through the crowd without ever letting it look like she was leaning on him for strength. He might be a playboy who goofed off more than he should, but once again she was seeing the kind of man he could be when it was needed. Ophelia wondered if he was at all aware of it himself.
“I’m going to kill that man. Skin him alive and dump him in a vat of salt and vinegar.” Nathaniel growled as he sat behind the steering wheel. The ferocity of Nate’s words surprised Ophelia, but she kept quiet, not knowing how to pull Nate back from the seething edge of his hatred. “I cannot believe it… He has….” Nathaniel’s body was tense and his grip white around the steering wheel but words failed him. Ophelia was a little confused, not understanding just why Nate was so angry at Colby for being unaware of Opi’s slight attraction to him. It wasn’t Colby’s fault at all, she had wanted him oblivious.
“You’ll do nothing of the sort.” Ophelia finally replied. “You are simply going to drive me to my apartment, come inside and have a cup of tea with me. That is all you are going to do. Do you understand me?” Ophelia asked, her tone arch and a dozen words left unsaid.
Nate looked at her and she was not at all surprised to see him looking like Wrath itself. His eyes blazed, his jaw clenched and his grip on the steering wheel creaked. Yet she wasn’t in the least bit afraid of him, just afraid for him. He didn’t need to take on more of her emotional burdens. “Yes Ma’am.” Nate finally replied, his tone not in the least bit settled. This is what happened when Ophelia tried to live outside of her own head it seemed. It was a little too exciting for her own good.