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When Laura woke up in Larry’s arms, she didn’t mind the smelly bandages, or the pain in her neck, nor that the leather sofa wasn't so comfortable for sleeping. Actually, she closed her eyes, put her hand right on top of Larry’s heart, and pretended she wasn’t conscious just for a couple more minutes before all the feelings from last night came back — feelings that she wasn't paying enough attention to, so she stood up and went to make a strong tea.
She didn’t have a lifetime of belongings like the others, so when they were all packing, Laura made her way to Rita’s room with her vodka bottle, wanting to steal some stuff and throw away others. Rita had a lot of things — clothes and cosmetics and bags and shoes and posters and photos and photos and photos. Laura opened the closet, trying to figure out what would make her look good. Maybe she could try it out before taking it away — she was sure none of the others would give a shit.
Laura took a horrendous blouse off the way to throw it on the floor, but felt the urge to nuzzle in it. The fabric still had Rita’s perfume, a fragrance so different from Bendy but still so much her best friend. Laura took another piece from the closet, and it was the same — the floral notes invaded her nose, making her gasp in pain.
It was unfair.
Rita was fucking unfair.
She didn’t have the right to die just when Laura was feeling part of the family, when she was caring and being — kind of — cared for. Rita not only chose to leave right when Laura thought she had her friend back, but also convinced the others to go separate ways. Was it part of her vengeance? What a cruel woman Rita was. What a dumb woman Laura would be to think she didn’t deserve to be alone.
Laura sat on the bed with tears on her cheeks, the bottle on her lips, and a lot of clothes on the floor. The bedspread was still the same where Rita died alone, and Laura felt sick but still caressed the covers. She was happy to have been able to say goodbye — it was a lot more than she had with Bendy —, but it hurt so much to think she would never fight with her again, feel her long fingers against her neck, hear her sarcastic comments, have the chance to kiss the glossed lips-
“Need help?”
For God's sake!
Laura turned into a bird at the same second, frightened by being taken by surprise at such a vulnerable moment. It took Larry by surprise too, who stood up against the door, leaving space for the scared bird. But seeing that it was just him, Laura turned into a human again, lying on the mattress.
“Bloody hell, warn a girl next time!”
“I’m sorry, didn’t mean to.”
Larry sat on the bed beside her, putting the empty bottle on the floor. He looked around the room for a minute, sure that it wasn’t that messy before, while they stayed in silence.
“So?” He asked, turning to Laura, who was looking at a picture on the side table. “Do you need help cleaning?”
“Wasn’t cleaning”, Laura mumbled, now looking at Larry, “I was stealing”.
Larry gave her a nod before laying down too. The whole mansion was quiet for once, with not one problem other than their own to worry about, not a plan to fail and someone to save — and maybe accidentally kill in the process. They stayed side by side, staring at the ceiling.
“I’m sorry to you too”, Laura cut out the silence.
“What for?”
“I know how close you were before the time travel shit. And how different she was when she came back.”
Laura loved Bendy as much as she loved Rita-after-Bendy, but she knew the experience was a lot different to the others. Rita had changed in such a short time for them in the present, but Laura saw up close her growth, her happiness, fierceness, disappointment, hurt, hatred. It was thirty funcking years with the Sisterhood, and none of those assholes could understand what it was like to have lived there at that time.
“She stole your machine. How is that your fault?”
“It was my machine. I came here. I let it be stolen.” It made sense to Laura. She rots everything she touches.
“Rita was the one who chose to take it.” Larry turned his head to face Laura. “And she never stopped being my best friend. I changed too.”
Laura gave him a nod, not convinced.
“I thought I would be used to grief by now.” She closed her eyes, feeling the perfume in the air again. “You know, every time I lost my memory in our short time travels, it was like living all that again when it came back. I saw myself giving a death sentence to my friends over and over again. And I thought someday it would stop hurting, but it never did.” She’s not used to talking about it. The temporary memory loss was a way to stop the guilt and pain for a while, but it was also a punishment for herself. It was always there. It was always fresh.
“At least it wasn’t you who killed her now.”
“Oh, screw you!”
But, in a certain way, it was a relief.
“What are you gonna do now? Will you try to get back to the Sisterhood?”
“God, no. They deserve peace now.” Laura stopped to think for a minute, feeling the bedspread with her fingers. “It’s not like I have a place to go. I mean, Cliff has his daughter, Jane has her headmates, Victor is the fucking Cyborg, and you… have whatever Keeg is.” She smiled, sad but sincere. “It’s better this way, I think. No one to fuck up with.”
“I get it.” Larry put his fingers on hers, feeling a bond that only mourning together could create. “I went by 70 years thinking about how I fucked up everything to finally get over my past.”
“Great. I just have to wait seven decades now.”
“Or maybe you don’t have to spend all your days alone in an old haunted house like me.”
“You weren’t alone.” Laura turned to look at him. “You had her.”
“Yeah”, Larry said, taking a deep breath, “I had her.”
After that, they stood up and started sorting out the things on the floor, even though Laura wasn’t cleaning and pretty much didn’t need help. They moved to the closet, putting Rita’s belongings in boxes Larry got in the basement. It turns out there weren't many things Laura would like to wear, but she ended up with a full suitcase anyway. Sometimes they had to stop, fighting with tears or stroking a special piece with too many memories.
“I’m going to destroy the Ant Farm.” Laura said it out of nowhere, closing a box with more tape than necessary.
“Actually, we did it once.” Larry was touching perfumes, trying to find out if Keeg wanted anything. “That’s how the were-butts got out.”
“You are forgetting a crucial point: I’m not stupid.” Laura gave him a cocky smile. “I’m going to do this right.”
“Hope so.” Larry sensed Keeg warming him up — not with a perfume, but with a portrait in the way. “That one, buddy? Fine.”
“I think we’re finished here.” Laura opened the cabinets to make sure there wasn’t anything useful there. “Wanna grab a drink?” She asked like that was nothing, but she would be lying to say she wouldn’t want the company for a little bit more.
“Sorry, I need to pack my own stuff now.”
Laura gave him a nod and another sad smile. That was it, then. They got out of the room and went opposite ways in the corridor.
“Laura!” She looked back at the call. “It doesn’t mean we can’t see each other again. I need to figure some things out, but we can find out why she was our best friend.”
Laura nodded once more, giving a real smile this time.
It was the last time she saw Larry.