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Alone, drunk, and feeling particularly miserable one night, Natalie googles her own name. Which, yeah, obviously stupid, but she's never been one for making good decisions. It feeds that little caged rat inside of her, the one that yearns to electrocute itself for lack of anything better to do.
It's not the first time she's done it, just to look at the array of headlines and stupid nonsense bullshit the mainstream media put about about the crash survivors. But this is the first time she's scrolled further, down until she hits the dark web conspiracy theorist bullshit.
She finds a forum board dedicated to them, the cannibalistic Yellowjackets — or "Meat Bees," as the board is called. It's a split of a larger site with all sorts of fucked up shit. Conspiracy theories and true crime and gore and leaked crime scene photos. It's somewhere no sane healthy person should ever go, a breeding ground for the worst of humanity.
So naturally, Nat dives deeper, following some sick twisted desire to see what these sorts of people think about her.
Same shit as the rest of the world. Yellowjackets Tragedy Survivor Arrested After Bar Fight. Natalie Scatorccio Arrested for B&E. Natalie Spotted Buying Cigarettes. Taissa Turner and Shauna Sadecki Happily Married and Thriving, Natalie Scatorccio Crashes and Burns. Nat the slut, Nat the burnout, Nat the addict and suspected murderer, angry and violent and a fucked up piece of shit. What else is new.
Apparently she has a masochistic streak. She checks the comments.
sH@un@st@lk3r: shes a mess but what do you expect from trailer trash lmfao
ripjackie: can we just make a megathread for nat shit we all know shes going to od in a ditch somewhere who cares
AfricanGrey: replying to @sH@un@st@lk3r you're just some virgin loser living in your mom's basement
AfricanGrey: replying to @ripjackie if you died tomorrow no one would care
AfricanGrey: this board has always been so disrespectful and discriminatory towards Natalie. What on Earth is this mod team doing? Anarchy. The hateful behavior I'm witnessing here is unbecoming of this community and distracts from the important conversations we *should* be having about trauma and its effects on these poor, poor women, not to mention the misogyny and racism and homophobia many of them have faced. You people are just as bad as the tabloids and frankly, if the mod team continues allowing this sort of bigotry, I will have no other choice but to leave this community
Sadickiwife: no one cares
F1ND_C0ACH_SC0TT: replying to @Sadickiwife he's just some weird perverted stalker ignore him
Weird perverted stalker or not, Nat can't help but feel a little flattered that at least one person seems to be sympathetic towards her. She clicks on their profile. Seems like they spend an unhealthy amount of time on this forum. They venture into the gore/conspiracy sides of the forum on occassion, but primarily, they're a Yellowjackets fanatic.
They have good things to say about nearly everyone. They're enthusiastic about Tai's promising law career. They gush about Van's gay cinema store, despite never having been. They don't like Jeff very much, and they question the choice to toss Lottie in a mental institution instead of helping her heal. No one seems to believe them, but they even claim to have met Misty while she was in nursing school a few years back and describe her as a "lovely person, kind and caring and empathetic in a way so few people are" (so, definitely lying).
But if they admire the others, they worship Natalie.
Nearly every other post they make is about her. Sometimes it's just a "stunning!!!" to the latest picture of her circulating. Other times it's a positivity thread, something like Natalie Appreciation Post or Natalie's Beautiful Caring Heart or Natalie Scatorccio and Resilience in the Face of Despair. And Nat actually laughs to herself when she reads the replies to other hate comments. AfricanGrey seems to have the IP address of every person on the board, as well as an encyclopedic knowledge of their strangest fetishes to use as blackmail.
Sure, it's a little creepy. But they're funny. And it's nice to have someone in her corner for once.
She takes another swig of whiskey and decides to make an account. Fuck it, right? Why not?
cobain7: so i take it nats your favorite yellowjacket
Unsurprisingly, they respond only a few minutes later.
AfricanGrey: Sorry, who is this?
cobain7: youre nicer than all the other shitheads on this website
AfricanGrey: I try. I'm passionate about the Yellowjackets too, but I think people need to be less judgmental, you know? It's like they forget that we all care because they went through something horrible. Instead they just want to theorize about the cannibalism or whatever
AfricanGrey: But you aren't a regular here, are you? So why do you care?
Something about that rubs Nat the wrong way. Who the fuck are they to talk about them like that? What do they know about what happened out there? It's all speculation. 'We all care?' Bullshit.
cobain7: you all treat them like theyre animals in the zoo or something
cobain7: like they just exist for your amusement
cobain7: its fucked up
cobain7: this whole place is fucked up
AfricanGrey: That's not true. Not for me, at least.
AfricanGrey: But if this board is so reprehensible to you, maybe you should log off? Or at least stop harrassing me.
cobain7: i just don't know why you'd want to tihnk about it
cobain7: like ok maybe they ate people but they probably havent done it since
cobain7: is it like those serial killer fantaseis people have where oyu think theyre hot and then prtend it means thre not evil bc hot people cant be awful
AfricanGrey: No. I'm a heterosexual woman. And none of the Yellowjackets are killers, that we know of. Are you doing alright? Your typing seems distressed.
cobain7: maybe nat ll kill herself in a few years maybe she wont who cares its not like anyo f you know her beyond the fact that maybe shes a murderer
AfricanGrey: Don't say that.
AfricanGrey: She wouldn't do that. And she's not a murderer.
AfricanGrey: Natalie Scatorccio deserves to live more than anyone else on this planet and I post because she should know that people support her. That *I* care about her.
AfricanGrey: This is what I'm talking about. You people see someone clearly struggling after a huge tragedy and start theorizing and moralizing and I'm sick of it! She did what she had to to survive and she's doing her best to survive now and it's thanks to heartless comments like yours that she thinks she has nobody in her pocket.
AfricanGrey: You think you're so important. That you have this grand perspective and your judgments are better than everyone else's but you don't know ANYTHING about the kind of person Natalie is and I think you should probably drown yourself and really reflect on how you've lived your life while your brain slowly dies
AfricanGrey: but I'm glad you came to my inbox instead of posting this publicly so there's no chance she'll possibly see it
AfricanGrey: Nat deserves so much better than the cards she's been dealt but she's more selfless and heroic than anyone else I know despite it. She's a fighter. She's saved countless lives. It's ignorant dickheads like you that make life hard for good people like her.
cobain7: oh
cobain7: thats a lot
AfricanGrey: It's not even close to enough.
AfricanGrey: If I see you saying bullshit like that again I'll find you and make you regret it.
[You have been blocked by @AfricanGrey.]
Natalie stares at her monitor, dumbfounded. What a strange person, she thinks. Her head is spinning and she feels a little fuzzy, so she goes to bed and tries not to think about it.
She keeps thinking about it.
The thing is, she's had stalkers before. Right when they got back, everyone wanted to know everything about the Yellowjackets. Cameras in their faces and reporters around every corner. But they would always ask about their crimes. Their sins. No one has ever followed her around to defend her before.
Checking the "Meat Bees" forum becomes something like routine. Every other week or so, she gets an appropriate amount of drunk, then scrolls through AfricanGrey's profile until she either catches up or passes out, whichever happens first.
She manages to go a few months without commenting. But one day she tries to call Travis and it goes to voicemail. Fifteen minutes later she calls again and he picks up on the first ring only to tell her to fuck off. So she goes to buy cigarettes and bury her misery under the weight of inevitable lung cancer, only to see a "where are they now" magazine with none other than Misty Quigley's face plastered front and center, so, yeah, she's having a pretty shitty day.
It seems even her newest unhealthy coping mechanism is out to get her today, though, because as soon as she opens the website she's met with a thread about the psychopath in question: Why do the others all ignore Misty?
Gee, I wonder, Nat thinks as she clicks on the thread. Surely AfricanGrey has an interesting answer, seeing as how they're allegedly BFFs.
vanpalmersgf: i mean shes just kinda weird? they prob just dont like her
MartinezDivorceTheory: Most of the survivors don't seem super close though. Just because we don't have proof doesn't mean they don't like her. Maybe they just don't talk much
Burner26483829: replying to @MartinezDivorceTheory I live in Wiskayok and I see her around Shauna's house all the time. Shauna usually comes out and shoos her away. I do not think they're on good terms
AfricanGrey: replying to @Burner26483829 Why are *you* at Shauna's house all the time? Stalker much?
Nat frowns. Is that really all she has to say? She expected an obviously fake anecdote at the very least.
vannat4evah: honestly I think Misty is just profoundly unlikable? There's just something off about her. You can tell she's not right in the head, and I don't think it's because of the crash
cobain7: replying to @vannat4evah whats your problem go fuck yourself
vannat4evah: replying to @cobain7 looks like we found Misty's secret account
cobain7: replying to @vannat4evah suck my dick
iflewtheplane: you think she murdered someone out there and that's why they all hate her? Maybe she's still a cannibal. Either way she shouldn't be allowed to be a nurse that's for sure lmfao
cobain7: replying to @iflewtheplane there are abusers in evry fuckign field you rlly think the best way to stop them is to ban evreyone with trauma from working what about fucking empathy
iflewtheplane: replying to @cobain7 I didn't say everyone I said Misty Quigley. I'd trust Tai and Van. Idk about the others but they're still better than Misty LMFAO she's just psycho
cobain7: youre all assholes
She's about to type some scathing response that's sure to get her banned by the forum mods when she accidentally refreshes the page. Now there's a little red mark next to her inbox. She clicks on it.
AfricanGrey: So I take it Misty is *your* favorite Yellowjacket?
cobain7: i thought you blocked me
cobain7: and shes not
cobain7: i dont have a favorite yellowjacket thats weird
AfricanGrey: You asked first.
AfricanGrey: And it seemed like you changed your tune, so I unblocked you. I want to know why you'd come back to defend Misty of all people.
AfricanGrey: People don't tend to say nice things about her.
cobain7: i dont know
cobain7: its just shitty to talk about a real person that way. i dont know her or care about her
cobain7: or the others. but they dont need me to defend them
AfricanGrey: …You're strange.
cobain7: no shit sherlock look where we are
cobain7: why didnt you defend quigley? i thought you were best friends
AfricanGrey: …sometimes you have to pick and choose your battles. Nobody here really likes Misty. I'm not going to change their minds by trying to fight them. It's better for me to protect my reputation so I can stand up for people when it counts.
cobain7: like nat?
AfricanGrey: Exactly.
Maybe it's just because they're discussing Misty Quigley, but Natalie can't help but read those words in a particular voice. High-pitched with all the intensity of a ray of sunlight focused through a magnifying glass.
cobain7: thats bullshit
cobain7: why doesn't it count with misty? if youre gonna spend all your time claiming that your constant fawning over nat is to compensate for the mass negativity then misty should get the same treatment
cobain7: your whole philosophy falls apart if you only apply it to the people you find defensible. why does misty fall outside of that range. its hypocritical. maybe this is where it counts. or else youre just playing favorites the way you get mad at the others for doing
AfricanGrey: …
AfricanGrey: alright. sure. maybe I see your point.
cobain7: ok good
AfricanGrey: You care more than you want to admit, don't you?
cobain7: i dont know what youre talking about
Natalie decides she needs a change. That same caged rat instinct to pace and gnaw at the bars and press the button to administer an electric shock to itself instead of falling into a depression. She gets in her car and roams around the northeast, city to city, working some scams to make ends meet. Focus on the moment — the thrill of the hunt, the amnesia-inducing rushes of adrenaline. If you're scared enough, nothing sticks in your brain long enough to hurt in the After. If you're scared enough, you forget to feel it.
And it works, mostly, with the notable exception of AfricanGrey of the Meat Bees Forum, and by extension Misty Quigley, because every time she thinks about AfricanGrey she can't help but picture a familiar mop of poodle-esque blonde curls paired with an unsettling smile.
It's been years since Nat last spoke with Misty, but the similarities between the two are obvious. The overeagerness, the obsessive tendencies. How neither of them seem to shy away from inserting themselves into a conversation their passionate about.
How both of them view Nat with an unthinkable amount of tenderness, reverence.
cobain7: why nat specifically
AfricanGrey: ?
cobain7: i mean you talk about her more than the others. youre almost aggressive when it comes to her its weird. why her
AfricanGrey: Why should I tell you?
cobain7: dnt know
cobain7: were friends arent we
AfricanGrey: We are?
cobain7: ok ifne nevermind
AfricanGrey: no wait
AfricanGrey: I don't think I could ever properly explain all of it. Some things just can't be put into words. But… It's just overwhelmingly clear to me that she's a good person. She's a hunter. A provider. She made the rescue call that saved them, and half the time she's in the news, she's only in trouble because she was protecting somebody else. And everyone only looks at her broken parts and it pisses me off that no one else can see what's right there on the surface. A kind caring person who would take a bullet for someone she barely knows. Or even someone she doesn't like. There are so few people like that in the world.
Natalie takes a screenshot and saves it. No title, no folder, just floating unlabeled in her downloads folder. Then she closes her laptop and cries herself to sleep.
She doesn't open "Meat Bees" again for the next few weeks, although she spends enough time staring at the screenshot to memorize it word for word. It sits behind her eyelids at night. Her brain plays it back to her on long drives, always read in Misty's voice. It drives her crazy. It keeps her sane.
Three weeks later, she stops trying to resist and logs in again to find two messages from AfricanGrey, sent two weeks ago at 3am local time.
AfricanGrey: why are you here? You don't seem particularly passionate about the fan space and you barely post at all aside from messaging me.
AfricanGrey: are you perhaps a bitter ex? One of Natalie's, maybe?
Nat holds back a laugh. Wrong survivor, but AfricanGrey technically isn't wrong.
cobain7: nope. just bored i guess. want to observe you sickos in your natural habitats
cobain7: why? would you be jealous if i was?
The response is nearly immediate.
AfricanGrey: no!
AfricanGrey: I was just curious. I can't really figure you out.
cobain7: maybe youre an ex and youre just trying to throw me off your trail. would explain your creepy ass obsession
AfricanGrey: I told you I'm straight!!
cobain7: i mean theres travis
AfricanGrey: no. ew
A strange sense of relief washes over Nat, only to be quickly replaced with annoyance.
cobain7: ?????? what do you mean ew
AfricanGrey: he's just not my type is all
cobain7: hes hot as fuck how is he not your type
AfricanGrey: I don't know. I just can't picture myself with him, I guess.
cobain7: well if you had to pick a yellowjacket then. who would you pick
AfricanGrey: I mean I'm straight but if I *had* to pick I'd say Natalie. Duh!
Nat smirks, feeling far too proud about the admission. Obviously this girl has some shit to work through, because she had that reply locked and loaded.
AfricanGrey: Or Misty!
AfricanGrey: How about you? You'd pick Misty too, right?
cobain7: ?????????? misty??????? youd pick misty?????? why?
cobain7: wait why the fuck would you assume that MY answer would be misty
AfricanGrey: um because the only time you've ever made a public post on this board was to defend her? And what's wrong with Misty?
cobain7: theres nothing wrong with her
cobain7: i juts wouldnt pick her. not my type
cobain7: id choose travis. obviously
AfricanGrey: oh
AfricanGrey: are you gay?
cobain7: bi
AfricanGrey: oh
cobain7: is that a problem?
AfricanGrey: Obviously not!! My first boyfriend was gay, actually. Love who you love. Be who you are. You're my friend and I will support you completely!! <3 <3 <3
Her response is… surprisingly endearing. Definitely too much, but endearing nevertheless. It's very Quigley of her.
cobain7: thanks :)
AfricanGrey: yes of course anytime
AfricanGrey: :)
AfricanGrey: <3
AfricanGrey: ok good night!!!
cobain7: good night
That little emoticon is matched by Nat's smile as she drifts off to sleep.
Two days later, someone stops her on the street and asks for a photo. Normally, she tells people like that to fuck off, because they're typically stalkers and she really doesn't want to have people going around social media bragging about meeting that burnout cannibal or whatever. That kind of attention only brings trouble.
But today, her thoughts immediately gravitate towards her little penpal. She'd probably be ecstatic to have a real, proper picture of her favorite survivor. Especially if Nat lets her know about it before it hits the forum. So she says fuck it and lets him snap a shot, so long as he agrees to email it to her throwaway account right before he posts it publicly.
cobain7: got a scoop for you
cobain7: [image attached]
Honestly, it's not a bad picture. She looks properly annoyed, flipping off the camera. Very on brand.
AfricanGrey: !!!!
AfricanGrey: I've never seen that one before!!! How did you manage to find it before the board??
cobain7: i have my ways
AfricanGrey: Gosh. She's so pretty. and the quality is so good!! you can basically see her pores
AfricanGrey: and she's so relaxed!! I think she was having a good day :D
cobain7: ?? she looks pissed off to me
AfricanGrey: No see you can tell by the little creases by her mouth. She's trying not to smile. And her eyes are shining. It's mischevious. Almost playful.
AfricanGrey: I'm going to print and frame it!!!
cobain7: do you know how creepy you are
AfricanGrey: You're the one who sent it to me, though. Which makes you creepier by my definition
cobain7: touche
cobain7: well im glad you like it anyways
AfricanGrey: of course!! i love it!! thank you so much!!!
It really shouldn't feel as good as it does. But she's not like any other stalker; she's a stalker who's looking out for her and says nice things about her and is almost-sort-of her friend, so, there's probably a justification in there somewhere.
She gets a picture of her own a few days later.
AfricanGrey: new Misty photo!
AfricanGrey: [image attached]
The picture is a candid, taken of Misty while she's wheeling a patient to the cafeteria. The photographer caught her mid ramble, elation and enthusiasm on her face while her poor victim looks bored out of his mind. She's wearing scrubs with little kittens on them, and also teal crocs, which seems like a potential health and safety violation.
And when Nat sees it, God help her, she feels a pitiful little pang her in chest. Not disgust, not outrage, but fucking longing. Because the picture doesn't catch the horrors or the abuse. It's just a perfectly normal moment of normalcy, like none of that shit ever happened. Misty can just work her regular-ass job and smile and shine in the sunlight; it feels like a window into something Nat can never have herself.
cobain7: ok?
AfricanGrey: well I just thought I'd send you the latest. since you treated me last time
AfricanGrey: :)
cobain7: were you hiding in a bush or something
AfricanGrey: oh no it's not my picture! I found it on facebook. The caption said it was entirely consensual don't worry!!
cobain7: ok…
AfricanGrey: so? What do you think?
cobain7: sorry why is my 'treat' misty
cobain7: i dont even get off on this stalker shit like you
AfricanGrey: Well she's your favorite right?
cobain7: she is not.
cobain7: but its a nice picture. i guess
AfricanGrey: That's it?
cobain7: i dont know. her scrubs are cute. she looks happy
Of course she's happy. She's Misty Fucking Quigley. Nothing seems to wear her down.
AfricanGrey: Yes!! I love those scrubs too!!! Misty wears a lot of cat-themed clothing. It's very endearing. I wonder if she has a cat herself since she seems to love them so much.
Nat's reply is automatic.
cobain7: she prefers birds actually
Where the fuck did that come from? Why does she know that? Why did she say that?
AfricanGrey: How do you know that
AfricanGrey: Where did you find that out???
cobain7: uh i dont know ignore that it was a joke
cobain7: i dont follow any of this shit she just looks like a bird person. like because of the glasses or something i dont know
AfricanGrey: okay.
Fuck. Well, not the most artful save, but a save nevertheless.
At around one in the morning eastern time, AfricanGrey messages her again.
AfricanGrey: so when you said Misty wasn't your type was that lik ea deflection or is it her personality or do you think shes ugly or hwat
cobain7: what? are you drunk?
AfricanGrey: no i sjtu wondering
AfricanGrey: beacuse like I'm not attracted to women so I just want ot know how that works you know
AfricanGrey: I think shes pretty but maybe i just dont get it
cobain7: you spend a lot of time calling women pretty for a heterosexual woman
cobain7: i mean ive seen the posts youve made about natalie's legs
AfricanGrey: thats aesthetic appretciation
AfricanGrey: like how people enjoy art. its not gay for me to call the Ecstasy of Saint Teresa beuatiful
cobain7: …sure
AfricanGrey: just answer the quesiton
Now that she thinks about it… Misty does have a certain charm to her. Her eyes are what Nat lingers on most. From what she remembers, they're this hypnotizing shade of brown that shines with sharp contrast to her hair. Almost molten. Sharp and piercing, like when she looks at you, she sees beyond the surface, into the things you try to hide beneath your skin. Matched with an overly confident smirk on her lips, Misty is electrifying and eye-catching; it always did surprise Nat how rarely people paid attention to her when every part of her, personality to appearance to demeanor, just begged for an audience. Nat sure did have trouble looking away.
cobain7: she has pretty eyes
cobain7: i mean. shes pretty. hot even i guess.
AfricanGrey: So its her personalty thats the delabreaker then
cobain7: i didnt say that
cobain7: i dunno i think people overstate how weird she is. she's funny honestly i think she would be enjoyable to be around. theres something appealing about that kind of spontaneity yknow
cobain7: and she seems more honest than the others. like she really knows who she is and what she wants. i wouldnt call her trustworthy but she accomplishes things
AfricanGrey: So whats the hang up? then. What else is there
There's a lot else. Nineteen months of else. A dead kid and a dead coach and a broken transponder of else. But she sure as hell can't tell a stranger about that. And even if she could, how could she possibly explain the anguish she feels around Misty, how everything about her feels like a missed opportunity, a gaping hole in her chest?
cobain7: just wouldnt work. i dont think we're compatible
AfricanGrey: ok. noted
In the morning, AfricanGrey says "I'm SO sorry please ignore everything I said last night," but Nat can't stop thinking about it. How it would feel to be with Misty, if none of it had ever happened.
Misty's obsessive. Which could be good, or it could be bad. But she'd definitely be an attentive partner, doing everything in her power to make Nat feel loved. Actually, she probably wouldn't act all that different than she had back in their second spring, constantly attached to Nat's hip and backing her up like a sworn knight or something.
Nat probably wouldn't be good enough to her. But she thinks Misty might not mind that, either. She'd be willing to meet her halfway. She'd accept Nat entirely, each and every broken part.
Maybe she'd do the same now.
But that's dangerous territory. Not worth wandering down. So she decides to try and distract herself with AfricanGrey. Which doesn't go too well, because she seems intent on sending Nat photos of Misty, for some fucking reason.
AfricanGrey: Okay, what about this one?
cobain7: where do you keep getting these? are they all new??
AfricanGrey: There's been renewed interest in her from the community.
AfricanGrey: But tell me your thoughts on the picture!!
cobain7: her makeup is pretty. i like the lipstick
cobain7: what is your fascination with misty fucking quigley
cobain7: are you in love with her now or something? got over nat?
It's meant to be a joke, but just the thought of it tastes bitter in her throat.
AfricanGrey: Definitely not. Just trying to figure you out ;)
AfricanGrey: And I'm going through my saved Yellowjackets photos. What do you think about this Nat look?
cobain7: hot as hell. leopard print looks good on her
AfricanGrey: I agree SO much!!! Gosh can you imagine her in a leopard print tank top…
cobain7: no jacket, leather pants?
AfricanGrey: oh my god. wow.
AfricanGrey: Wow.
cobain7: still straight?
AfricanGrey: Unfortunately.
That feels like progress.
They start talking more and more often. "Meat Bees" is now, unfortunately, a regular part of Natalie's daily routine.
AfricanGrey: Based on your activity, I assume you live in a similar timezone to me. Would you be interested in meeting up in real life someday?
cobain7: oh definitely not
AfricanGrey: :(
AfricanGrey: Can I see a picture of you at least?
cobain7: no way in hell im sending a picture of my face to someone i met on a forum for stalkers
AfricanGrey: It doesn't have to be your face!! I'll take anything!!
cobain7: anything? you sound like youre asking to see my tits
AfricanGrey: .
AfricanGrey: you have breasts?
cobain7: yeah. you wanna see em?
cobain7: wait did you think i was a guy
AfricanGrey: Yes
AfricanGrey: To the second question!!! Not the first!!!!
AfricanGrey: but
AfricanGrey: if that's what you feel comfortable sharing I'd be ok with that.
cobain7: ill show you mine if you show me yours
AfricanGrey: sure! give me a couple minutes
cobain7: wait really? ok
Natalie had been joking, but, well… She's not opposed to the idea. And she's definitely on board once she sees the picture, because holy shit, she has nice tits. They strain against the cups of her lilac bra, and there's a little mole at the top that Nat sort of wants to bite. The angle obscures her face, obviously, but strands of curly blonde hair breach through the frame. It's hot. Really hot.
AfricanGrey: Wait were you not serious?
AfricanGrey: Sorry. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable
AfricanGrey: Don't feel any pressure to respond in kind. I've never done this sort of thing before
AfricanGrey: You're taking a long time to respond. Is it because they're ugly?
cobain7: no youre fine
cobain7: i just needed a minute. god damn
AfricanGrey: Is that good or bad?
cobain7: good. definitely good. one sec
She shrugs out of her shirt and bra, snaps a quick picture, checks to make sure nothing is visible that would out her as her creepy friend's favorite fixation, and quickly transfers it to her laptop to send.
cobain7: [image attached]
AfricanGrey: oh
AfricanGrey: wow
AfricanGrey: gosh
AfricanGrey: um. Wow!! Geez
AfricanGrey: Okay. Well. Thank you for this :))) It's really nice to learn more about you and see this different side of yourself that you hide from the online world and I'm honored that you would trust me with this
AfricanGrey: Anyways! I have an early day tomorrow! So I should go to bed! But it was wonderful talking to you and we should chat again soon <3
AfricanGrey: ignore the heart.t ypo. I meant :3
AfricanGrey: So!! Good night!! Sleep tight!!! Pleasant Dreams!!!!
Nat checks the time. It's only 8:30 PM, but, sure. She's probably realizing some things about herself, judging by the shaky response. About damn time. That gives Natalie the rest of the night to herself. Awesome.
So, yes, she does jerk off to the picture. She's not proud. But it's good material, and she'd bet good money the object of her fantasies is doing the same right now, so fair game, right?
(Two hundred miles away, Misty Quigley comes to terms with four very important facts.
-
She is not as straight as she previously assumed herself to be.
-
Her sweet and kind internet friend/crush is Natalie Scatorccio.
-
Natalie Scatorccio just sent her a picture of her boobs.
-
She might actually be a weird perverted stalker, because she did in fact recognize Natalie by boobs alone.
But it makes sense. Cobain7 did always remind her of Nat — and, okay, now that she lays it out like that, really obvious username. She should have checked sooner.
Now. What to do with that information?)
AfricanGrey: Big news! I'm not straight!
cobain7: shocker. howd you figure that one out
AfricanGrey: So, turns out I actually have feelings for Misty Quigley.
AfricanGrey: In a carnal sense. If that wasn't clear.
cobain7: what
AfricanGrey: I don't know, I was just thinking about her and what you said about her having pretty eyes, and it just sort of came to me, you know? She's just smoking hot. And I bet she'd be good at sex too.
AfricanGrey: She has a public Facebook account. And I don't live too far from Wiskayok. Do you think I have a chance? Maybe I should contact her.
Something angry and loud thrashes inside Nat's ribcage, heavy thuds that make her bones rattle and her jaw clench.
cobain7: do not do that
AfricanGrey: Why not? Jealous? ;)
cobain7: no its just creepy as fuck. youre gonna scare her
cobain7: the paparazzi pictures and conspiracy theorist shit is bad enough dont harass her
AfricanGrey: She accepted my friend request! Yay!
AfricanGrey: Okay I'm going to log off and talk to her :) Wish me luck!! I'll let you know how it goes :3
cobain7: what the fuck
cobain7: come back
cobain7: jesus fucking christ
Nat gets up and starts pacing around her apartment, taking a break every five minutes to refresh the page. She doesn't know why she feels so restless. It's like every part of her body is vibrating with anticipation, the same thrum of adrenaline she feels right before a fight. Only there's nothing for her to hit, and also no reason to hit anyone. An engine with no machine to power.
Finally, after a couple hours of spiraling, AfricanGrey returns.
AfricanGrey: Good news! She said yes!
AfricanGrey: We're going to grab dinner Thursday evening at this cute little Italian place that just opened :) I'm so excited!!
cobain7: congrats
cobain7: which restaurant
AfricanGrey: Marco's! I have reservations for 7 :D
cobain7: cool
cobain7: have fun. be safe
AfricanGrey: Thank you!! I will!!
It's not really Nat's business. If they both want to go out, then whatever. She doesn't need to warn Misty that her date has an unhealthy obsession with her. She doesn't need to tell AfricanGrey that it's about 50-50 whether or not Misty will kill her if she finds out. It's fine.
Thursday afternoon, she drives the three and a half hours to Wiskayok, pulls into the parking lot outside of Marco's, and storms inside. To do what, she isn't sure. Frankly, she was barely mentally present for the entire drive, running on instinct and momentum alone.
Evidently, she has lost her fucking mind.
When she spots Natalie, Misty jolts upright and beams at her with that trademark blinding smile. "Nat! Hi!"
It's been years since they've last seen each other. Time has left Nat unprepared to deal with how overwhelming Misty is. She has so much energy, and she always focuses it entirely on Natalie. Being in her presence feels like burning under a spotlight: a strange mix of power and fear, combined with the dizziness and nausea of heatstroke.
Nat pulls out the chair across from her and sits down. Misty smiles like the cat who got the cream.
"Gosh, it's so nice to see you again, I was just thinking about you!" Misty giggles. "It really has been too long, hasn't it?"
"Sure."
"Oh, but…" Misty winces. "This is kind of awkward. Sorry. I have a date."
"Look, I—" She what? Why is she here? What does she possibly have to say?
"I mean, I'll cancel right away, if you want to catch up. You're always my first priority. Duh."
"Why did you say yes?" Natalie blurts. "I just… don't understand. It's not like you."
"Maybe I was bored."
"Are you going to kill her?"
Misty tilts her head, blinking passively. "Do you want me to?"
Nat's hand clenches around the edge of the table. "No, obviously fucking not—" she starts, only to stop short when she notices the way Misty brightens.
"So you do care about her!"
Nat's head spins. "Huh?" Every conversation with Misty seems to throw her off guard to some extent, but this time, she's completely lost.
"I knew you were just being curmudgeony. That's how you are with me, after all. I thought maybe you just needed a little nudge—"
"Hold on," Nat interrupts, standing up. Puzzle pieces start to connect in her brain, and finally, everything clicks. She slams her hands down and leans forward, hissing, "Have you been fucking catfishing me?"
Misty lets out a little squeak. Which would be cute, if not for the everything of the situation. "No! Not on purpose! I didn't know at first, I promise!"
"How long?"
Misty goes silent, blinking up at her with those wide owlish eyes. Her cheeks look a little pinker than normal, and she wiggles a little in her seat, almost ashamed.
The movement draws Nat's eyes lower, just a little, and—
"Jesus, Misty." She pushes away from the table, turning around and shutting her eyes tight. "What the fuck."
"Nat," Misty whines, "please don't be mad. I wasn't trying to manipulate you. I just wanted to see what you'd do. Because it seemed like you were having fun talking to me, maybe, and you said such nice things—"
"Stop talking."
Misty obeys.
What does she even do in this situation? How the fuck is she meant to grapple with… All of this? It's hardly the biggest betrayal she's ever faced from Misty, but it feels worse, almost. More personal. And she can't stop thinking about those massive walls of texts, the easy way she defended her to anyone who'd listen (and also those who wouldn't) before she even knew Nat was there to see.
Maybe that's just how Misty is. It wasn't intentional manipulation, probably. Or if it was, she was nowhere near subtle, because every time Nat talked to AfricanGrey, she could feel the phantom presence of Misty hovering over her shoulder.
And she really had enjoyed talking to AfricanGrey. Maybe because of their similarities. Maybe Nat had missed Misty, too.
Fuck.
"You know," Misty says, voice quiet, "I don't actually have a date. So, if you wanted to stay, and have dinner… Well, I wouldn't mind. And I have a guest room, too, so you don't have to drive back late if you're tired."
God help her, Nat does want to. She really wants to. And after the rollercoaster of the past few days, she doesn't have the energy to pretend to be upset. So despite everything, she sits back down, and tries her best not to melt in the glow of Misty's raw, wanting smile.
Pictures of the two of them having dinner together hit the Meat Bees forum not long after. It's big news, too. Dominates discussion for over a week, easily.
Lottieluvr: is this the first time two survivors have been seen together since Shauna's wedding????
vannat4evah: The way Natalie is looking at Misty…. O////O do you think they have a thing going on???
Burner26483829: replying to @vannat4evah: I went to high school with the Yellowjackets and I can say Nat always had a bit of a soft spot for Misty. I wouldn't be surprised.
F1ND_C0ACH_SC0TT: Do you think sharing a meal reminds them of eating their friends ROFL
vannat4evah: replying to @Burner26483829 omg if you have any stories about them PLEASE dm me ….. i must know more
Sadickiwife: nat is so far out of misty's league lmfao she can do better
cobain7: replying to @Sadickiwife jump off a cliff
AfricanGrey: replying to @Sadickiwife I'm sure she likes Misty more than she likes you ^^