[station 72] mental link

[headinjuries]

you're never alone, no matter how dark it gets.	they say space goes on forever, right? doesn't it have to end eventually?
where's your sense of adventure?	i am so freaking pent up all the time...i could just burst!

( CODE BY WHAMBAM )

Comments

[headinjuries]

[ Wow.

Ow.

Sam's had plenty of headaches trying to get a grip on his symbiote's power, but that one can't be his. He just woke up; he hasn't had time to start trying to pick apart anybody's lies yet?

Even as he answers, he's pulling his pillow on top of his head because oh my God, turn off the sun. ]

( Wha? )

[vocalis]

[ That... that doesn't sound like Sam's voice answering back in his head. That sounds like... Sam... ?

Other Sam. Oh.

The frequency of Aoba's connection halts like someone just pressed a real life pause button on him. It doesn't stop the headache that's already spread over the connection, though. Too late for that. ]

Damnit... wrong Sam. I'm... I'm so sorry. Please forgive me, I'm sorry-

[ Too late to stop the shame train either. Guilt floods over before he tries to close the connection again. He's genuinely sorry, but it's repetitive with an ingrained need to be extremely guilty for the stupid mistake he's just made. ]

[headinjuries]

[ Ow. So it's not his headache and it's not even a headache he needed to inherit? Ugh.

On the other hand, somewhere in the back of his mind it's just occurred to him that this proves a weird point that he never really considered. ]

( So it's possible to like...mentally butt-dial? )

[ He wouldn't have thought so, but he never thought about it very hard, either... ]

[vocalis]

[ Guilt continues to permeate through the connection. Just as Aoba is about to ungracefully bow out and cut it off, Sam asks something he also hadn't considered. ]

I... guess? What's... butt-dialing?

[ He's not from a society with handheld phones. This is new, and sounds like something he might regret asking... Aoba regrets a lot of things to do with butts... ]

[headinjuries]

[ aoba pls ]

( It's like, when you put your cellphone in your back pocket, but then you sit down or something, and you hit buttons and make a call you didn't mean to. )

[vocalis]

Oh... we used coils, back home. Wrist-mounted communicators... they also had internet functions, and music. I still have mine.

[ So Applewatches with holo displays. ]

I think it'd be hard to butt-dial with a coil.

[ Unless your hand was in a really weird place. ]

[headinjuries]

( They're starting to make a few like that. But they're still stupid expensive, so most people don't use them yet. Unless they're being like oooh, look how rich and trendy I am, I shop Apple. )

[vocalis]

Apple...? What does fruit have to do with-

[ Another pounding beat against his head makes him pause. From the rented room he's stuck in, he sucks in a low, hissed breath. Hopefully Sam didn't feel that... probably too late. ]

Sorry... again. I need to try and reach... Sam Wilsom.

[ And hopefully not butt-dial this time. ]

[headinjuries]

[ Wince. Oh, yeah, he can definitely feel that. ]

( Yeah, sorry to get you off track. )

[vocalis]

It's all right. I'm sorry for... this.

[ Spreading the pain unnecessarily. In case he hasn't made that crystal clear yet.

He leaves just as quickly and awkwardly as he intruded, not wanting to make it any worse on Sam. Next time, he'd reach the Sam he meant to, hopefully. ]