Who: Rose Hathaway and Adrian Ivashkov What: Running into each other and Adrian is dealing with a massive hangover. Oh boy. Where: Streets in Madison When: Saturday afternoon Rating: TBD Status: Closed; Incomplete
It was a lot to take in. First, arriving in some small, midwest town with no explanation, being told she couldn't leave that said town, and then receiving free money and a place to live had been hard enough for Rose to swallow. Add in the fact that there were three people from her world (was that even the correct terminology?) here and they all knew the future so to speak? It was a near impossible task for Rose to digest all of that. From hearing about cheating on Adrian to Dimitri being turned back from being a strigoi, it was a roller coaster of emotions for Rose. On one hand, she was happy that Dimitri would be okay even if she wasn't capable of experiencing it, but at the same time, she was upset because ti seemed he didn't end up wanting anything to do with her. Also, she was bothered by cheating on Adrian because apparently they ended up in a relationship together. It was all too much and Rose couldn't stay cooped up in her apartment all day with everything racing through her mind. She needed fresh air.
Obviously, Adrian had been upset at the sight of her, given events that while she had yet to experience, were still pretty bad to hear about. It was clear he was not "over" her completely and that the wound was fresh and still deep in his heart. Despite not being at that part of her future or whatever, she did feel the guilt for having done it. You would have to be blind to not see how much Adrian did actually love her even from her standpoint in the timeline. She'd taken advantage of that love to get the funds to go to Russia and hunt Dimitri down, but she'd also left him with a promise. If/When she came back, she would let Adrian take her out. Obviously, they had gone farther than that in a relationship and when Dimitri returned to himself, she had gone back to Dimitri, but not...the right way. Being as impulsive as she could be, Rose was sadly not surprised at that. Still, it did not make it right and she could recognize that and even admit to it.
Adrian was just one of the many thoughts and people occupying her mind as she stepped outside her apartment building and started walking toward the center of Madison Valley. There was Lissa, her supposed "Guardian" detail here and Jill too. What would this do to their relationship? Now that they had talked on the network and cleared the air some, where did Rose go from here? Could she settle into small town life even knowing it was not in her blood and never had been? Would she come to trust these people like Lissa did? Come to respect them? Again, it all felt like too much too soon and Rose was still fresh from losing the man she loved. Dimitri's face never stopped haunting her dreams, the last sight of him being bitten would always remain within her and Lissa's words wouldn't change that. Knowing she hadn't been able to save him would haunt her for the rest of her life because there was no way that him coming back from being a Strigoi would not leave him emotionally scarred.
She turned the corner and it was only her Dhampir reflexes that stopped her from running right into someone on the other side. A someone who smelled like they had bathed in booze and cigarettes. "Adrian?" Rose stopped dead in her tracks. It was him. Even in a hungover state, he still retained a sense of attractiveness that even Rose could appreciate with his messy hair and handsome face. It was clear he was a mess and Rose knew she was the cause of it. It was true Adrian didn't need an excuse other than spirit to drink too much, but Rose knew this was her doing. He'd said he was going to go out and drink too much and well, he was true to his word.