Posted by Civilian Rafael Torres (Resident) in The Quill & Parchment- Second Chances

Posted by Civilian Karilan Massat (Owner, Quill and Parchment Books) in The Quill & Parchment- Second Chances

Posted by Civilian Rafael Torres (Resident) in The Quill & Parchment- Second Chances
Posted by… suppressed (5) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Karilan looked at him and leaned forward. “So I know his side of what happened. Tell me yours. All of it. Because truth isn’t a single perspective. It exists between them. So tell me why what he did was the right thing… but you still resent it, at least a little.”

Karilan

Raf shook his head. “This isn’t about you, but we only just met and that is not a story you casually tell cruising over a colony. on our way to dinner.” It had been hard enough to share what he already had, and even though many years had passed since that one terrible night, it had stuck with him. He’d never get that image out of his head. True, he never got into trouble with the law again, but his life spiralled afterwards in terrible ways. It was different now, but the line felt exceedingly thin at time.

~Rafael Torres

“Fine.” Karilan said as the slider slowed and stopped. “You can tell me while we eat.” The door opened and Karilan stepped out.

Maybe he should have been more specific and said it wasn’t a story you told someone you had just met. But if today had shown him anything it was that sometimes you just had to go with things a little and if you were lucky everything wouldn’t fall terrible apart.

They were stopped in front of a small restaurant nestled between storefronts on either said and stretching down the block. The shops were mostly closed at that hour, but the window to the restaurant was light brightly from inside. Gold letters on the window read ‘McMurtry’s Public House’. Karilan walked to the door and led Torres inside.

Raf’s pace slowed a little as they stepped inside. He hadn’t been in a place like this for a long time, even before his rehab. He doubted anyone needed to be empathic to note his apprehension. It wasn’t that he was tempted, but life was stressful right now and he was doing his best to avoid the temptation.

The inside was a traditional Irish pub-looking establishment. People milled around tall tables, sat at the bar, or spoke softly inside plush booths. Karilan looked at Torres and said “And no, I am not a heartless moron taking you to a bar. Nothing they serve here has alcohol in it. It’s a bar for sober people; and they have great food.” She led him back into the bar and to a booth where she slid in and took a seat.

Karilan

It took him a moment to process her words and follow Karilan. She was constantly surprising him and that was’t a bad thing at all. But it was hard to not feel like everyone was trying to trick him. But that was old crap he was getting tired of. There was a reason he had come to this planet of all places. It wasn’t just about Dash, though his old friend was a part of it. A part of him wanted to contact him again and thank him, but he knew that right now Dash needed his space. And he had been honest about not wanting to hurt Jones, and make things more difficult for him here. He might not be the smartest person around, but even he understood optics. He understood that other people would’t understand. It was okay.

Settling into the booth across from Karilan, he blew out a breath and studied the Deltan for a moment, intrigued. “You said you were were willing to help me because of someone who was mutually important to both you and Dash. They have to be pretty damn important. I guess I’m kind of envious.”

~Rafael Torres

“They are. And you should be. The amount of friendship and adoration that person engenders is like nothing I have ever felt. And I would quite literally kill to make sure that person is never hurt.” Karilan said matter-of-factly. She lifted a menu and then looked at Torres. “If you are lucky, maybe someday you will have someone like that in your life. They make you a better person. And that is something we all need from time to time.” She began to puruse the menu and said without looking up “Get whatever you like, but I highly recommend the skewers.”

Karilan Massat

He was trusting Karilan with his livelihood and actual life- what was a food choice in comparison? “Skewers are usually a good option,” he said as he skimmed the various items on the menu. “I had that once, what you’re talking about, or at least something close to it. It was a long time ago now.” He supposed it was good to know it had been possible, but that was the past. Now? He tried to not be cynical, but well, that was hard.

~Rafael Torres

Karilan didn’t look up, only said “Really? Tell me about them. I want to know you better, Mr. Torres. The people that I choose to work with and for me are a reflection of me. And I want us both to understand who one another is. So tell me about the time you had what I spoke of. And then you can ask me anything you want.”

Karilan

Could he? He never spoke of Liv anymore. It hurt too much. Or rather, it used to. Now he supposed that the pain was gone and left behind was a ton of regret. “Olivia,” he said softly. “She was an agronomist focusing on soil science. We met through mutual friends she was just this kind and bright light. A lovely woman from a lovely family. We couldn’t have been more different, and she wasn’t scared off by the things I had dealt with. With her I could imagine being able to do anything together. I had never had that before. We actually were engaged for six months but a bunch of stuff was happening around the same time and… I relapsed. I made one mistake and I could pull myself out of the addiction and I made it really hard for her to stick around. She gave me space to work it out, but it was all too much and by the time I was ready to be with her properly, she had moved on, as I suggested she should.” Raf shrugged. “It hurt but she deserves to be happy.”

~Rafael Torres

Karilan looked at him and cocked her head to the side. “So do you, you know. Just because you are an addict doesn’t mean you have to suffer.” she said matter-of-factly. “Mr. Torres, you have paid your debt to the justice system. You are paying your debt to those around you and who care for you by staying sober. Every day you pay them back for their support. You encourage them to continue to support you. Now you have to learn to forgive yourself. And to allow yourself to be happy. And as long as you are in my employ, I will make sure you have every opportunity to be such.”

Karilan Massat

It wasn’t that Raf doubted what Karilan was saying but that he was moving cautiously. It was easy to get caught up in what could be and lose sight of where he was right now. He also know that his sobriety depended on him being in the moment. Was he hard on himself though? Yeah. He knew that too, but it was a hard habit to break. “I appreciate that,” he said quietly, offering her a tiny but genuine smile.

Karilan said he could ask her anything and rarely did people mean that, but Torres was quickly recognizing that Karilan Massat was not your average person. All bets were off. “What’s your crutch? The thing that trips you up more than you would like?”

~Rafael Torres

Bump