jaebird (jaebird) wrote in rrinitiative, @ 2013-01-01 19:53:00 |
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Entry tags: | aaron, aaron and jae, day nine, jae |
Mr Fuckoff and Miss Phobic
Characters: Jae and Aaron
Setting: the elevator
The kitchen being in a whole other building was a fucking pain in the ass, Aaron had decided. Especially on the days when he wasn’t feeling particularly sociable. Say, like - today. It meant that he was now standing, waiting for the elevator, with a plate of food covered with foil. His dinner - which he figured would probably be half cold by the time he got it back to his room. But he was still doing it. He wasn’t in the mood to sit and eat in the cafeteria.
Jae had gotten around to gathering up her laundry, which she wasn't overly enamored with doing. But, she needed clean clothes. So, she was going there, wondering if the storm raging outside was going to be heard underground. As she walked up next to some new guy holding his dinner, she nodded. "Hello, and how are you this fine, beautiful day in Terrordome Stormageddon Headquarters?"
Aaron looked across, still facing the elevator, and raised an eyebrow. “The... what?” he asked, blankly.
"The facility. I just like to jazz things up when I get the opportunity, and with the light show going on, it was the easy pick. Though, clearly it went over your head. So, right. How about just 'hi, who are you'?" She amended, glancing him up and down subtly.
Aaron looked unimpressed - but that was a default setting for him these days. He made sure of that. “Yeah, clearly,” he stated. “Aaron,” he added as the elevator doors dinged open.
"Hello, Aaron," Jae said, the name immediately lighting up her brain. Jeremy had given her the rundown on this guy. He was the interesting one who she'd wanted to talk to. See about that whole interrogation thing. The lights flickered above them just as the elevator arrived, and she cast an annoyed glance ceilingward. "Nice to meet you." she said, stepping into the elevator. “How’s it going?”
Aaron situated himself on the other side of the elevator to her and the doors closed. He sighed and glanced across. “Clearly just peachy,” he deadpanned. This was all he needed just now - some peppy girlie who wanted to play ‘let’s be bffs!’
"So, I should take from your sunny tone, short answers and 'fuck off' body language that you're one big fluffy teddybear, Aaron?" Jae asked, leaning back against the wall of the elevator, waiting for him to push the button.
“You can take from it what the hell you like,” Aaron growled. He pushed the button and mentally began to count the seconds until they reached the exit. At least, he was counting until all of a sudden everything went black and the elevator stopped with a jolt, eerily quiet.
Jae had a comment, but it died in her throat as the elevator stopped. She reached out to steady herself on the wall, basket dropping to the floor. She waited, waited....waited. "...fuck."
“Aaaaand that’ll be the storm,” Aaron said, mostly to himself. He reached out a hand, felt for the wall, and then put his back against it. “You okay, girl?” he asked, his voice far less sullen in the darkness.
She noted the change in his voice there, and arched a brow even if she couldn't see him. "Yeah." she said. "Just...well. Kinda annoyed now, and wondering why the hell this place hasn't been hooked up with at least two generators. Cuz...one would really think that would be the way to go. Have a bunch of prisoners, lock them up together...maybe power outages aren't a fab idea." She tried to listen, but she didn't think she actually could hear anything but Aaron breathing. "You good?" she asked in return. "You're not claustrophobic or anything, are you?"
“I’m good. No, not claustrophobic. No medical conditions, nothing that you need to be worried about. He reached out, found the two corners on his side of the elevator and put his plate of food down in one. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out his lighter. The flame was small, the light it gave off negligible, but it was all they had in the darkness. And it was enough for him to check the controls. “And whaddaya know. No fucking emergency call.” The flame disappeared as he let it go. “Looks like we’re on our own, girl.”
She gave a short laugh that didn't hold a lot of humor. She also slid down the wall to sit on the floor, starting to feel around for her laundry. It didn't seem like much fell out of the basket, however, so that was fine. She shut her eyes as she heard him moving around, drawing in a slow breath. She'd asked about claustrophobia, mainly because...well. She was. It wasn't as pronounced as it could be, but she was really hoping she wasn't in this situation long. "I have a name." she told him. "It's Jae." she provided. Hopefully the power would be back on soon. It could be just a hiccup.
Aaron found himself listening. In the silence and the darkness, there was little else to do. He tried to work out where she was and what she was doing. It was hard to do, but when she spoke, it came from the floor and he figured that she had sat down. He did the same, though he was careful to stick to his own side of the elevator. He didn’t want to spook the girl. In this situation, he didn’t want to appear a threat. “Well, Jae. Guess we’re stuck here until the power comes back on - unless you want me to try cracking the doors open. We can’t be that far from either floor.”
"Wouldn't do much good. Cracking the doors should open us up to mostly a blank wall. We'd be better off trying to find a hatch in the ceiling." she said, voice a little duller than it had been before. She sighed, and rested her head back against the wall with a light thunk. "Your dinner's going to get cold." she told him.
“Then my dinner will get cold,” Aaron told her. He didn’t add that if they were stuck in here for a longer period of time, cold food might be useful. Somehow, he doubted stark reality would go down too well. He stood once again, lifting his lighter to the ceiling and tracking it back and forth. He had never noticed a hatch before, but that didn’t mean there was one. Escape hatches were fairly standard, after all.
Jae looked up when there was light again, and stood, also inspecting the ceiling. There were supposed to be hatches. It was a safety thing. She didn't quite see one either, but often times they weren't super obvious. She reached up, though the ceiling was beyond her reach. "Want to give me a hand?" she asked.
Aaron looked at her, noted her position, then flicked the lighter off. “Gonna hand you the lighter, okay,” he said, cautioning her before reaching out and finding her hands to place the silver lighter in them. “You need a hand up?” he checked. Touching a woman’s hands in the dark was one thing. Taking hold of her to hoist her up without her knowing exactly what was going down was something else.
Jae took the lighter. "Yes I do." she said, reaching out blindly as well to put one hand on his shoulder. She was a tall girl, definitely, just not quite tall enough. But he wouldn't have to give her much of a boost, just enough to get her a little more height and leverage. "Ready when you are." she said, feeling better about having a goal to concentrate on. She always did better when she had a focus.
Aaron put his hands to her waist and lifted her. He was a strong guy, and he worked at that. There wasn’t much effort needed to hoist her to the ceiling. “See what you can do,” he said, since it was all on her.
Jae reached up to feel the ceiling above her, and then flicked the lighter to life to illuminate the area. She made quick work of looking it over, then pushed hard at where she figured the hatch would be located. To her surprise, it actually opened. A lot of times they were a bit of a bitch, being secured shut, but not this one. She guessed that made up for the fact that there wasn't a fucking generator. Either way, she smiled, and pushed the hatch open, immediately setting the lighter on the top of the elevator. Then she grabbed the sides, and started pulling herself out. "And here we go."
Aaron found himself plunged mostly back into darkness as he stood below the hatch. “What do you see?” he asked her.
Grabbing the lighter again, Jae carefully stood up, sparking it back up. She looked around, then upwards. "...nothing all that helpful." she answered. "A maintenance ladder, we can try to climb up and pry open the doors in the cafeteria." she suggested. Then she glanced down into the hole. "You need a hand up?" she asked.
“No, I got this,” Aaron told her. He was taller and it was just a case of a jump up and grasp. Luckily he got it the first time round and didn’t end up hitting the ceiling like an idiot. He hauled himself through the hatch and onto the roof of the elevator. “Ladies first?” he suggested to her.
"I wouldn't claim to be a lady, but sure." Jae said, then handed the lighter back to him, so she could start climbing the ladder. She spotted a few things she could at least attempt to hang on to, though she wished there was more light. Still, she didn't hesitate in the slightest, recognizing in the back of her mind that really, most girls probably didn't go straight for elevator hatches, and climbing up elevator shafts in the dark. If he was as interrogation oriented as Jeremy suggested, she was guessing she'd get questions about that.
Aaron waited, and then started climbing up after her. Sure, he had questions, but right now, they could wait. Finding out if they were trapped was taking the top of his list.
Once up at the top, Jae tried her best to climb to the side so Aaron could get in position as well. She climbed higher than she strictly needed to, so they could both try to pull at the elevator doors.
Their positions were precarious, all in all, perched on a ladder, over a fairly substantial drop. Aaron hooked a foot round a rung to anchor himself better and positioned himself to try the doors. He noted that Jae had done the same without needing instruction at all. Interesting. "On three," he said. "One, two, three..."”
Jae put all of her effort into the attempt to get the doors open. Now, elevator doors were kind of a bitch. Normally, they took effort. This, however, didn't budge at all. She grunted with her strain, throwing her weight back into it as well, even if it almost had her losing her footing--all to no avail. "Goddamnit!" she swore, hissing a little in pain as her fingers cramped, and she had to let go.
Aaron reached out to catch her arm as she almost lost her footing. "Looks like they got this thing locked down tight," he observed drily.
Jerking her arm away from Aaron, Jae clamped herself to the ladder tightly and took a breath, letting it out slowly and quietly. "Yes, it does." she agreed. And now would be a fabulous time to not freak out. she told herself. And probably let him in on a thing or two. "...so, some disclosure here, I actually am claustrophobic." she said, resting her forehead against a rung lightly.
Oh fucking great, Aaron thought to himself. He repressed a sigh. “Well, thanks for letting me know, Jae. It’s okay - we’ll handle that. How you doing right now?” he asked, gently, his entire demeanour shifting on a pinhead to one that was far more approachable and safe. “Do we need to get you back down? Are you better sitting on top of the elevator than in the car?” he checked.
She heard the total change in his voice, and smirked faintly. "I'm not going to crack, cupcake. I'm fine. I'm not really a delicate flower type. Just figured you ought to know, just in case." she told him, tone not actually sharp or anything. "On top of the elevator would work better." she decided. "Mostly I just spent too much time in solitary. I wasn't adverse to tight spaces before I went into lockdown." she added. "But I'm made of sterner stuff than your average phobic, so...you we're good. I just didn't figure it was fair to keep that shit to myself, with no way out yet."
“Thanks for the heads up - let’s get back down there then,” Aaron said, deciding that no matter what she said, if there was any chance of a panic attack, he would prefer her to not have it hanging from a ladder halfway up an elevator shaft.
Jae waited til he was down before she started down herself, and she jumped the last few rungs down onto the top of the elevator. There, she sat down, and flicked the lighter to life again, holding it in his direction. She could faintly hear thunder rolling outside. It reminded her of gunfire. "Hope you aren't afraid of the dark." she said, clearly teasing. "Obviously, we should probably not waste the fuel in that thing."
“Not afraid of the dark,” Aaron confirmed. “So, you keep the lighter, use it as you need to. I’ll stay over here. And how about you tell me something about you?” he suggested.
"Thanks, but light just highlights the whole 'surrounded by walls' thing. If it's dark, it's less obvious." Jae said, not actually sure how she was going to do here. It was going to be an experiment, that was for sure. "Something about me..." she started. "I like knowing what I'm dealing with, and who I'm dealing with. Call it a penchant for wanting to be prepared. So, how about you? What's your story?"
Aaron took the lighter back and flicked the flame into life - just enough so he could sit down, plunging them back into darkness after a moment of getting his bearings. He settled back against... something solid, keeping the lighter in his lap, held in his hands. “What makes you think I have a story?” he asked, putting on a tone that was almost disinterested, suggesting that he really didn’t. Or that if he did, his story was much the same as anyone else’s. It was a more subtle avoidance tactic and he had found that in the past he had been called out on it less than direct avoidance.
"Everyone has a story." Jae said. "It's physically impossible not to. Time marches forward, shit happens. Even if someone is literally born then lays there for eternity, their story is ‘they were born then were super lazy’. Or paralyzed. You get my point. Plus, you're here, so clearly something happened that landed you in prison in the first place." she pointed out. "So, try again."
“Okay, maybe I just don’t have a very interesting story,” Aaron sidestepped once more. “How about you tell me yours first, then I’ll judge mine against yours and we’ll see where we go from there.”
"Sounds like a total bullshit response, how about that?" Jae said with an eyeroll. "Especially considering you just basically told me to spill my guts, and you'll still not spill yours. 'We'll see where we go from there' is not the same as 'you show me yours, I'll show you mine'." She drummed her fingernails against the top of the elevator. “Besides. I never asked for an interesting story. I gave no criteria you had to meet. Just asked for your story, period.”
There was a sigh from Aaron in the darkness. He decided he was only talking to keep her talking. Which would hopefully keep her from panicking. He certainly wasn’t going to start an argument with a claustrophobic in an elevator shaft. “I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and got collared for something I didn’t do. Period,” he told her, with a voice of resignation.
"Ahhhh an innocent man." Jae commented. "Was it the Shawshank that implied all cons said that? I've heard it before. Also, not saying you're lying. I don't have enough information so far to guess at that. What is it you didn't do?" she asked. "And when you got locked up, was your first instinct to escape?" she asked, since that was the line Jeremy had fed her.
“I don’t have a worn down rock hammer and a hole below a damn great poster, if that’s what you’re asking,” Aaron said, drily. “But I don’t want to get into what I didn’t do - since I didn’t do it, it’s not really relevant.” and he didn’t want to be stuck in an elevator shaft with a claustrophobic girl who thought he may be a rapist. There were so many many ways that could go sideways really quickly.
"Okay." Jae said, sighing. "You do realize that you sitting there, playing the silent game on shit just makes you more suspicious, right?" she asked. "All it does is make people more curious, or to a mind like mine, it makes you more of a dangerous, unknown entity. Because now you're someone with something to hide, and you're pretty damn adamant about it. So, just for your information, if your goal is to be left alone, and to get people to stop asking questions, your current approach leaves something to be desired."
Aaron barked a laugh at that, though there was a lack of humour in it. It was just kind of ironic, given that Reece had said a similar thing to him for acting in the exact opposite way. Then again, it wasn’t news to him that you couldn’t win in this world. “I’ll bear that in mind,” he told her. “So, how about you - what’s your story?” he asked.
"What's funny?" she asked, curious. She rested her head back, reaching up to absently start braiding her hair. "And if we're getting to know each other, it's give and take. So, you tell me something, I tell you something. That way neither of us gets away with something for nothing. How's that?"
“That’s fine. I told you something - now you tell me something,” he said, bluntly. He had, after all, told her he was innocent. He wasn’t playing a game of pretend with her, where she tried to make him feel like he was giving nothing, just so she could take more than she gave. He’d had far too many people try and play those types of games in the past. He would prefer not to talk at all.
She smirked at that. "You were in the wrong place at the wrong time." she said. "I was in the really wrong place at just the right time for things to fly face first into a shit storm. It wasn't pretty. Sometimes even the best laid plans go tits up before you can blink. Though--I wasn't involved in criminal activity. At least, not on the 'yay crime' end of it."
“Conspiracy?” Aaron guessed. “Or are you another innocent one?” he asked her, curiously, running through the various things that could put someone in that position with the way she phrased it.
"I wouldn't say 'innocent'." Jae said. "Of the various colorful phrases they threw at me when I was tried, some of them are totally, one hundred percent true. Just, not all of them, or not how they wanted to sell it." she added. "Conspiracy...not quite, but you aren't completely cold, on that. Your turn. Why do you want to keep your shit under wraps?"
“Maybe I want to be judged as a person, not a crime,” Aaron suggested. It was bullshit, in it’s way. Everything about Aaron - his appearance, his demeanour, his personality generally - was carefully crafted to stop people from judging him as a person. To stop them from even considering getting to know him. Even now, when he’d toned himself down a whole lot so as not to add to her problems, he was gruff and hard work.
She laughed. "You sound like me." she told him. "And, since you do--I call bullshit. 'Maybe' implies a less than definitive answer. Maybe, you've got a third testicle, too, that doesn't make it true. So, how about you try that part again, only this time you go for less bullshit and more truth?" she suggested. "Also, just in case you merely rephrase what you just said, I think if you wanted to be judged as a person, you'd behave like one. You don't."
“No - I don’t,” he agreed. “And the reason for that is the same reason that I don’t go round playing twenty questions and sharing. I don’t care - I have no interest in getting to know people, or people getting to know me. What I want is for people to leave me alone, let me serve my time and then I’m out. I’m not lining up to make besties in the process.”
"Understandable." Jae said, actually getting that part. "Okay, here's the hard part. I know you're new. Have you taken a look around yet and realized that playing the ice king isn't going to get you far? I get it for normal prison. I do--you could call me 'antisocial' back in lock up too. But here, things work differently. Now, I'm not saying I've got it all worked out," she added, just so he didn't think she was a little too big for her britches. "But I'm working on it. And what I see is a big mess, waiting to happen. It's already starting to break down, which is y'know. Fucking sad."
Aaron took in what she said and concern rose up at the idea of things breaking down. He couldn’t help it. Some things he just couldn’t switch off, they were part of how he was made. “Breaking down?” he asked, cocking a brow in the darkness.
"Yeah," Jae said with a heavier sigh, shifting in the dark as she tried to get comfortable--but they were on top of a fucking elevator. That so wasn't happening. But she gave it a shot. "Okay, listen to this. So, there was this fucked up day where we were told 'bla bla bla, people among you did bad!'" she said in a mock-authoritative tone. "And we were told everyone had to meet in the courtyard, and the idea was to slap people they said had done wrong into the stocks. Which--fucked up. No two ways about that, especially with the utter lack of y'know. Evidence, a trial...due process at all. But whatever, fast forward, and people are in the stocks. So, I see this skinny little thing getting in the face of some dumb bitch who looks like she's there to start shit. And, a fight breaks out. Like, random, fucked up, Tattoo Lady throws down with a girl who looks like she wandered off the set of Little House On The Prairie." She was silent a beat. "And all it took was one day where things were off kilter. Hell. Not even a whole day. Like, a couple hours. I'm no stranger to violence, and I know shit happens, but damn. That to me said very bad things are in our path."
“Yeah, I heard about that - happened before I got here, but I heard about it. There’s a reason they put guards in prisons,” he grunted.
"There really, really is." Jae agreed. "And we have none here."
“Tonight’ll be the test,” Aaron told her. “Of how shit’s gonna go down. No electricity. No cameras. Nobody even watching. That’ll tell them something.” He figured that some people would be dumb enough not to realise that there would be no feed, but lots of people would get that straight away. Unless, of course, he suddenly thought, it’s just a big test. Make like the power had gone out, leave the cameras running. See how the animals got along with no big brother watching.
"Probably." Jae said. "But I don't know. I just...get a bad feeling about it all. And some people I've clocked as bad news. Still working out whether or not I think you are. You didn't answer the question. You getting that you're going to have to ponder your MO?"
“And why’s that then?” he asked her, not giving an inch.
"Because this is not the environment you left. There are going to be different rules. Different dynamics." She was quiet for a moment, and when she spoke it was with a slightly resigned note. It also had the light quality of something repeated. "Adapt or die."
“Given that my MO is to encourage people to leave me the fuck alone, there’s not a whole lot of adaptation needed - pretty much it fits into every circumstance.” He was going to be keeping up that front for as long as he could. If he showed his true colours, questions would start being asked. Why he knew what he knew. The choices he made, the way he reacted. He could adapt to this place. Hell, he could probably be good for this place. But he would have to sacrifice himself to do it, and so far he didn’t see a single damn reason to do that.
"Then you're still not getting it." Jae said. "You're not going to have a choice. Plus, if you read the propaganda you got when you arrived, you're supposed to be in a 'community', cupcake." she told him. "Which means if your real goal is 'do my time and get out', you still have to take a look and give that a good ole re-think. If you're really going to keep up your current front, then you're going to be shooting yourself in the foot." she pointed out.
“So, what would you suggest instead?” he asked her. He didn’t sound like he agreed with her assessment, in fact his tone was edging towards being mocking.
Jae gave that true thought, which meant she didn't answer right away. Sure, he was baiting her, but she gave it thought all the same. "Finding at least two people you can stand being around, keeping your ears open, and learning how to field a question or two without raising red flags." She chewed at her lower lip. "For starters, anyhow."
“That what you’ve been doing?” he asked her, since she had come out and told him that her way of dealing previously had been the same as his.
"Well. The social version of that." Jae said, light amusement in her tone. "That and grilling everyone I come across. But I covered that earlier."
“What - so this isn’t you giving me special treatment? I’m hurt,” Aaron deadpanned. He didn’t mention that he had been doing his own version of grilling everyone himself. “That working out for you?” he asked.
"So far." Jae said. "And sweetie, no one gets special treatment. At least, not yet. So, I'm afraid your bruised feelings are just going to have to suck it up." she added with a put on, dramatic sigh.
“And yet you’re still predicting that everything’s gonna go to hell in pretty short order. I’m surprised you’re not doing more to try and save the day. You see more concerned than most,” he offered up, interested to see her reaction to that observation.
"Less that it'll happen in short order, and more that when the shit starts rolling downhill, it's going to bury everyone in record time." Jae said. "And do I, now. What makes you say I'd try to save the day at all?"
“Because you’re trying to give me advice on how to change. You don’t seem to be the type who would just bury your head in the sand, or blithely accept whatever’s coming. You’re making changes. So either you’ll act to try and stop whatever you see coming. Or you’re digging in to try and survive it when it hits. Either way, you’re proactive. You’re doing something.”
"Never was a passive personality." Jae said, clear amusement in her tone. "So, I suppose guilty as charged there. Though, I'm pretty sure there isn't a way to actually save anyone. The way this is set up, it's more...damage control. And the attempt to at least see things coming, instead of being blindsided. Which means sussing out who's dangerous, who's going to be the first weak gazelle to be taken down, who could have your back in a fight...shit like that." She shifted again, stretching. "It's like a really dark version of elementary school playgrounds. Bullies, crybabies, sheep and wolves. Shit can be boiled down pretty simply, but it's about keeping your eye on the whole picture."
“Good luck with that,” Aaron said, drily. She was a team player, that much was clear. Looking to make affiliations, categorising people. He couldn’t blame her. He had always relied on himself, but he had the physical bulk to back that up. She, on the other hand, looked like someone who could be handy, but it wasn’t the same. Maybe she could put someone down, but she couldn’t intimidate them into not starting something in the first place the way he could.
"I see we're falling back on being a dick." Jae noted. "What, we been having a real conversation too long, you're feeling the need to slap in there some sarcasm to remind me you're Mr. Fuckoff?"
He shrugged. “Pretty much. I think I’ve been damn clear about the fact I’m not looking to make friends. Don’t want there to be any misunderstandings on that. Plus - it’s kinda my opinion. You’re looking for allies. Assessing for enemies. Who can and can’t you trust in a maze full of criminals. Which means you’re assessing me. You want to know whether I’m a guy who would have your back. You already don’t trust me. I won’t tell you what I’ve done, so you trust me even less. But if I could be trusted, you figure I’m someone who would be good to have onside. So you’ve not entirely dismissed me either. You’re not sure what to make of me. It’s enough for you not just to be able to leave it at that fact I’m the loner in the corner of the schoolyard who don’t mess with anyone and who nobody messes with. You want me in the game and you’re trying to put it that I won’t survive without that. Which suggests that you want me on your side. So - yeah, I’m falling back on being a dick. I’m not gonna help you play your own games ‘cupcake’.”
"Oh, you've already been dismissed as a guy who'd have my back." Jae told him. "I wouldn't be dumb enough to go that route. While it's true, if you were an ally, it'd mean there was a heavyweight in my corner, and that's always cool, you're too far up your own ass. Where I'm at with you, is trying to figure out if you belong in that same category as Ryan, and Reece." she told him. "And they aren't my games, dickbrain. It's just the situation you're in. Like I said--schoolyard. You couldn't just fuck off if you didn't like the kids in your class. Or if there was a bully picking on you. You were trapped there, day in, day out, and you had to learn to deal. I didn't set up the board. I'm just not pretending there isn't one in front of me."
“And what category are Ryan and Reece in?” he asked, her comments about him and their situation rolling straight off of him, it seemed. Dismissal was, after all, his intended result. He wasn’t going to be hurt by succeeding with it.
"I should tell you why?"
“Because you brought them up first.”
"Sorry, aren't you too busy 'not playing' to listen to that information?" she posed. "Besides that--since you're disregarding everything else I have to say, why do you give a shit what I think of two other random dudes?"
“Because so far you’ve not mentioned any names. Earlier it was all ‘dumb bitch’ and ‘little house on the prairie’ and now you’re onto ‘Ryan’ and ‘Reece’ as being in a category. It was a shift for you,” he explained, casually. For all that though, it was a clear assessment. He had been listening, he had taken on board what she’d said - even when he might not have seemed to be doing so.
She caught that it meant he'd been paying attention. And she narrowed her eyes slightly when he said it. Mostly because generally speaking, people didn't notice shit like that. She did. But the average joe? No. The average meat headed criminal? A whole lot of fuck no. "Doesn't clear up the bit where you don't give a shit what I have to say about anything, and you aren't playing." she pointed out. "Besides. I think if we're looking at the scoreboard, it's more than your turn to give up something on your end." Which she was assuming he wasn't going to do.
“What I don’t give a shit about is changing to fit in with this place. Doesn’t mean that a guy can’t be curious about who else in in here,” he told her. “You’re reading in, cupcake. So how about you tell me what kind of a category Ryan and Reece fall into and maybe I’ll even the scoreboard,” he suggested.
Jae rolled her eyes. "Do I really need to point out again how that's a ridiculous bullshit offer?" she asked. "You tried that one already. Didn't work the first time." she said, standing up. She was looking upwards, not that there was anything but blackness and more blackness.
It had been worth a try. He did, however, want to know her opinions on the other two guys. “So what do you want to know?” he asked her.
"I don't know, pick something." Jae said, not actually thinking he was going to give her anything to start with. He'd already told her all about how he wasn't going to get to know anyone, and the more important part--that he didn't want anyone getting to know him. That was what she considered the key element. Most people were self involved. Or, a huge part of the human race was, anyhow. So, it was different. This guy specifically being the anti-self-involved type was important, in her opinion. She felt slowly around the wall til she found the rungs to the ladder again.
Aaron considered things for a moment, sorting through the various pieces of information he could give out, looking for something that she would consider valuable enough to trade for, but nothing that would actually give anything away. He didn’t trust her, both generally and also specifically. She seemed to think the way he did, which was dangerous. People like him were too good at putting puzzle pieces together. “I grew up in foster care,” he told her, at length. “My father was a drunken bastard and beat the shit out of us. Eventually someone noticed and that was it.” Not entirely the whole truth, but it was close enough.
Jae was surprised when he actually did say something, though part of her wondered if it was bullshit, just for the sake of telling her something. It was much harder to gauge if someone was lying to you when you couldn't see them. She was also surprised when he didn't leave it just at the foster care statement, filling in more of the blank. She climbed up a few rungs. "Sorry your childhood sucked." she said, and while the words weren't fluffy, her tone indicated she meant it. "I've known people from that kind of background. It tends to leave scars." That was a statement, not fishing for more from him.
And, since he'd put up his end, she gave a little on hers. "Reece was involved in some shit that got friends of his killed. And when we were talking about it, he didn't even give the slightest flicker of anything. There was a lot of dead ass 'whatever' going on. And when I asked why he'd gotten into the situation in the first place, he said he couldn't remember. And that it was 'five years ago', like that for some reason is a long enough time to forget why it is your dumb ass got people you cared about dead. Not that you'd ask me, but I'd say that is a man who is dangerous. If you've got corpses of dear ones in your wake and it was your fault, if that shit doesn't haunt you even a little...there is something fucking broken in you."
Aaron shifted as he caught the fact that she had stood up. He had heard her moving around before, but her voice was coming from the ladder now. He stood himself, though he didn’t say anything about it. “And Ryan?” he asked.
She started to climb, though it was slowly. She was putting concentration into it. She'd been shifting around before, and now she was just starting to feel the edges of 'antsy'. Therefore, even if she knew it was hopeless to climb the ladder and fuck around with stuff up there, she was doing it anyhow. "It's your turn again."
“Where are you going?” he asked her, listening to the sound of feet on rungs.
"Up."
“You know there’s nothing up there for you,” he said, moving to stand at the bottom of the ladder, though he didn’t start up after her.
"I'm aware." Jae told him. "And you might want to move--if I fall for some stupid reason, you're not going to want me to fall on you." she advised, since his voice was coming from directly below her.
“I hear they keep disappearing people too,” he offered as a bland nugget of information which wasn’t focused on himself. “Ryan,” he pushed, not moving. He didn’t say it, but if she were to fall, he would prefer to be in a position to catch her. No way in hell he was actively admitting to that though.
Jae considered, climbing higher. But with the enclosed space, it wasn't like she couldn't still communicate with him well enough. "I think the 'whee, I'm probably dead inside!' assessment was a little more weighty than shit I already know." she told him. "You haven't moved." she noted, continuing her ascent.
“Which balanced out child abuse. Ryan,” he prompted again. He still didn’t comment on the fact that he hadn’t moved. He didn’t intend to. He was just going to continue to push in his calm and implacable manner until something gave.
She smirked faintly at that. "Fine." she relented. "Ryan..." she climbed a few more rungs. "He doesn't react correctly." she said, for the first time sounding slightly uncertain in her tone. Not fully, but there were hints around the edges. "His story didn't add up in my head either. He was one of the people in the stocks. And, he got a sentence far fucking longer than the other chick. Yet he claimed that all he did was enter rooms, whose doors had been left ajar." That part dripped sarcasm. "It'd be like slapping jail time for jaywalking. It doesn't make sense."
“So, he’s lying then,” Aaron said. That much was clear. “Either that or the punishments that get handed out aren’t designed to fit the crime,” he suggested, knowing that that was something which had been raised with other people. “Is it him, or the situation?” Not that Aaron had the answer to that, or expected her to have the answer to that.
"Him." Jae said firmly, not having to waffle over that. "Okay--this might sound stupid, but stay with me." she said, climbing farther as she formed her thoughts. "The situation, yeah that was fucked. We all get that. But I'm good with fucked situations. That doesn't throw me. What gave me pause, was when I went to babysit. See, after the fight, he was left there alone. And fine, he's a creep, but I'll be damned if I let some unarmed man sit there, helpless with fuckers like Tattooed Looney McGee march up and have them at their mercy. It's just bad news, in this circumstance, so, I went to sit with him."
She paused in climbing, frowning to herself. "So, I start talking to him--just because I'm technically protecting him doesn't mean I have to like him. And the story smells like bullshit, so I call it as I see it. And he just didn't react right."
Aaron paused, his eyes narrowing. He was suddenly wondering about her background, with the way she put that. “Explain?” he requested - actually requested this time, a whole lot less bullish or disinterested than he’d been before.
Again, she was quiet for a moment, climbing again, but she paused and spoke. "So, your average person, if they're telling the truth, and you don't believe them, react with a few different things, but they're all in the same family. It's...hurt, or offense. People want to be believed, and when they aren't, especially if they're telling the truth, there's always some part of a person who's surprised and upset that they aren't trusted. It's human nature. Flip that to the other side--people who are lying and get caught, that's more of a very clear pissed switch to flip. No one likes getting caught. No one likes when people see through deceptions they're trying to keep in place. And that man...he kept trying to play...I don't know. Southern gentleman type shit? While at the same time it was just under the surface, that anger. Maybe you had to be there. But I'm not actually all that bad at reading people, either, and I say that one's trouble." And she didn't like it, that much was very very clear in her tone.
“Con man?” Aaron suggested. He knew the kind of thing she was talking about - or thought he did. He had seen it in his time.
Nope, that's Jeremy. Went through her mind. "I don't know." she said honestly. "If I had to guess, I'd say he uses the charm thing to keep people at ease. But something else in me says there's more to it than that. Tying that in with the idea that we have no fucking idea what it was he actually did wrong, and he got a long sentence..." she trailed off. "By the way, I don't know if you know, but for context, one of the other 'wrongdoers' assaulted a woman here. And you know what they did to him? Made him mow the lawn. So...yeah. Shit isn't right there."
“Why the difference in sentence? And assault like how?” Aaron asked her. He had had a moment when his heart had stopped - when she’d mentioned the assault, for a second he had thought that she had been talking about him and Brady had opened his damn mouth. He wouldn’t put it past the guy, who had seemed like an ass at the time. Then she had carried on talking and Aaron felt as if he could breathe again.
"Because he confessed on the journals." Jae answered his first question. "Because that makes sense." she added, sarcasm in her tone again. "And assault like nothing too serious, just enough to give everyone an adrenaline rush. I wasn't there. Just some people don't like to be touched, and some people are a little handsy by nature, I guess. It got worked out, either way. She's fine, didn't need medical attention, and he got punched for it." She got to the elevator door again and started feeling along the edges, to see if there were any catches they'd missed before. "Seriously, move." she added, hooking her leg through the ladder rung as well as she could, to support her weight with her legs and leave her arms as free as possible.
“It’s not gonna open, cupcake. If I can’t get it open, no way you’re gonna be able to,” Aaron called up to her. “So, okay - you confess, you get a lesser sentence. That’s pretty much standard practice. Though, it’s quite a come down from being locked in the stocks, to chores around the place,” he mused. Brought up that issue of whether punishments were just random and in no way connected to the crime.
I know. I'm taking action because it makes me feel better, and maybe I won't start concentrating on the walls closing in. Fucking humor me. Went through her mind. But she didn't share it. "If I fall, from this height, and hit you, you will be injured. We're going to call it a given that I will be. Then there's two of us injured, and that's just stupid. So, logically speaking, move the fuck out of the path of the fall, so if my dumb ass slips, we aren't both fucked." she said, voice a little tight. "And yeah, that's pretty much it."
Aaron suppressed a sigh, knowing she was logically correct. And also knowing he wasn’t actually going to move anyhow. Damn women. “What about the woman that died?” he asked her. “You think she did... Whatever it was that they were handing out punishments for?”
"Oh, you mean the chick who died from a fall, Mr. Hasn't Fucking Moved?" Jae snapped. "Jesus, just move. Okay? Because if I do fall, and we're both out fucking cold, or worse, and the power comes back on, guess what? We're both still on top of the goddamn elevator. Which isn't a great place to be. So one of us has to be a responsible adult, and at least take enough precaution to dump us both into the lift properly, so we aren't chewed up by machinery, or what the fuck ever. So this is me, the claustrophobic distracting herself, asking you to move your ass, before this stops being distracting!"
“Well, maybe if you get your ass back down here then you won’t fall at all!” Aaron shot back up at her. “I get the distraction shit, but all you’re doing is frustrating yourself. And risking both of us. So get down here and I’ll go up the ladder and see what I can do, okay?”
"Then I wouldn't be distracting myself!" Jae pointed out, exasperated. "Me fucking around with bolts up here is distracting me. I'm aware it's stupid, but it's giving me something to do with my hands. You coming up here and doing it for me defeats the purpose." she said. "And now who's playing fucking hero?" she grumbled.
“Not playing hero - just don’t want to be stuck in here with someone bleeding on me,” Aaron told her. “Not exactly my forte. So, come down.”
"No. Just...move out of the way, and ignore me. Or, if you move out of the way, maybe I'll tell you what I know about the dead woman." Jae said, fine with giving that away, if it got her her way. "Technically, I believe you should be taking this as a win and go with the first option. I'm up here, away from you, and if you just leave me to it, I'll shut up! It'll be great. You can totally sit in the dark and be more or less all by yourself, and I won't be bothering your ass anymore. Fan-fucking-tastic."
Aaron was silent for a moment, and then he took and audible step back. “So, what do you know?” he asked, trusting the sound of his voice would illustrate the move. He waited for a moment before silently stepping back into position in the darkness. His size belied a certain ability to move quietly that he had mastered over the years.
At least he stepped back. Jae grit her teeth a little at the question, considering it meant apparently they were still chatting. Why he wasn't going to just sit in blissful-if-sullen silence, she had no idea. She started feeling around the edges of the door mechanism, wondering if there was a bolt she could try to loosen or something. "She was meant to hit the stocks, though I know it wasn't easy to get her out of her room." she said.
"No one had to go in and drag her out--no one even signed on definitely to do that--but either way, she wasn't exactly all about anything. Then, afterwards...looks to me like she kind of had a breakdown. There was some evidence that she was climbing, and it looks to me like she was making one hell of an escape attempt." She paused, trying to test bolts to see if they had any give. "I know I heard a chopper." she said. "And by the time I got out there, she'd already hit the ground. So, whatever's over that roof? Apparently it comes with choppers. They might not have guards on the inside here, but they aren't blatantly stupid either."
Aaron considered that, filing the information away. There were new facts there he hadn’t got from anyone else, and it all went towards building up a picture. He stepped back, away from the ladder once again before he spoke. “Someone suggested that maybe she jumped,” he offered up, not actually giving an opinion on that one, but wanting to know her reaction as he eased himself back into position once again.
"Maybe." Jae said. "I never spoke to her. But she could probably have killed herself easier ways. Hell, she could have tried a swan dive from the second story and probably cracked her head open, or at least broke her neck. But as far as I can tell, she was going over that roof. I think she wanted out, not a ticket to hell."
Aaron didn’t say anything to that, deciding to leave things hanging for a moment or two. He had had his doubts that the woman had intended suicide himself. He had looked at those walls. That wasn’t an easy climb. In fact, if he hadn’t known someone had done it - for however short a time - he would have said that it was impossible.
When he didn't say anything, she let the silence fall as well. She found a bolt that was somewhat loose, though not really enough. And she started trying to twist at it, because it gave herself something to concentrate on.
It was hard, standing there, in the dark. He heard the twist of metal and tensed for a moment, trying to second-guess what was happening. But she didn’t fall, it didn’t really even sound like she had slipped. So, he waited, tense and poised for something to go wrong.
Jae concentrated on the bolt, her fingers starting to hurt fairly quickly into the process. But that was why wrenches had been invented. There was a whole host of tools out there that were designed just for this task, and human fingers were not among them. But she twisted at the bolt anyhow, because it was better than concentrating on the walls. The quality of sound in a space that was enclosed.
Eventually, the silence got to Aaron and he took a step back before speaking. “What are you trying to do?” he asked her, looking up. He could hear the creaking and scratching sounds, but couldn’t work them out.
"Does it matter? I'm distracting myself." Jae answered. "It means I'm not concentrating on other things. When you've got a phobia, and aren't in a position to avoid, derail or escape it, you need to work out a way to appropriately deal, or things crack fast. So, I'm taking the necessary steps to avoid a situation that neither of us wants to deal with."
Aaron very much didn’t want to deal with it, that was for sure. Hell, he didn’t think there was anything he could deal with, or do, even if she was taking ‘necessary steps’ or what the hell ever. He decided that the best thing he could do was just to shut up, and be on guard for things going horribly wrong - all the while hoping that they didn’t. So, he said nothing, and instead fell into a watchful silence.
Jae worked at the bolt until her fingers were bleeding, and she was starting to feel too fatigued to keep herself up on the ladder solidly. So, eventually, she came back down, keeping the silence up. She sat down, and sucked at her thumb and fingers, getting the blood off.