5 years ago [Flashback Tawpic]

Well, this was depressing. It wasn’t supposed to rain today, was it? She could have sworn that the skies were supposed to be clear. That’s why she bothered coming to this place. As far as she was concerned, Lunapa was only good for its beach, since it was away from the rest of the world. She couldn’t believe the one day she chose to come out would be like this. It was a total waste of time to come here. She would run through the rain without putting her umbrella over her head. She was already wet from the ocean so this wasn’t going to kill her. It would probably give her a cold though. She couldn’t wait for that part of this ordeal. If only her towel wasn’t already wet. Then again, what good would it be in this weather?

On her way back to the subway, she noticed a girl that looked just a little younger than her standing under the roof of some building. Her wet, blonde hair dripped from over her eyes as she looked at the girl, who appeared to be dry. She must have lucked out and gotten out of the rain early. Still, Naomi couldn’t recall seeing this girl before. Not at school, not around the islands, not anywhere. She was either new, or she didn’t get out much. Poor thing, she must have had a rough life. Well, Naomi was a sympathetic person. Surely she could make this better. She would stroll up to the girl with a blank stare, stopping just in front of her, but not under the roof. She could do this. All she had to say was ‘hello. Are you okay? Do you need help?’ and maybe include her name. She could do this in her sleep. Her eyes would look the girl from top to bottom before speaking, “Was the monkey separated from her troop?” That worked too, “Huts are back that way. Maybe you can find someone willing to give you a banana. I hear the simpletons of Lunapa love to take care of animals, especially the frail, sickly looking ones.” And the insults kept flying. They hadn’t even exchanged names yet.

Naomi would double over, grabbing her stomach with her hands, as the girl’s foot made contact with her body. Her face twisted into a pain-filled wince, but she wouldn’t pull back her manner of speech, “Daughter of Mr. Redgrave? I’ll assume that I should be impressed by that, but I’m not.” Even though she had only recently got kicked, she would stand straight up as if nothing had happened. It wasn’t that she wasn’t affected by the kick, but she was good at holding back and hiding her physical pain. She got in enough fights to know that she shouldn’t show any sign of weakness, “And being his daughter means shit. You can only brag about that kind of thing if you are the person themselves. Being their child has no value, unless you enjoy having all your achievements be the product of a lucky birth.” A scoff left her mouth, “But I suppose if the first thing you mention is how you are his daughter, you must really have no other redeeming qualities.” She laughed.

She would stare at the girl as she went back under the roof. She had to respect anyone that could fight for themselves and not break down crying at the first insult that was thrown their way, “It’s not my fault you were dumb enough to come out in the rain. I’m sure that’s a byproduct of your low intelligence threshold, being a monkey and all.” She couldn’t help but seeing the girl as some homeless animal that got lost in the rain. She looked utterly pathetic. Naomi would reach into the bag that she had brought with her to the beach, which was soaked through and through since it was made of cloth. Inside, however, there were several things stuffed in sealed plastic bags. If you were going to the beach, it was a must to carry your important items in something that the water couldn’t breach. She would throw one of the bags at the girl, “If being wet bothers you then change your clothes instead of complaining. You can’t be that stupid.” Of course, Naomi’s clothing may be a bit big for the girl, but it was better than hearing her go on about being wet.

She would glare at the girl’s next statement, “Don’t you dare insult my home. A monkey like you doesn’t have the right to speak about it. Unless you’re going to praise this place and sing it’s graces, you keep that filthy mouth of yours shut.” No matter how rude Naomi was, this was her home and she carried the pride of being born and raised here, “So, why is a monkey here anyway? This is pretty far away from the treetops where you should be hanging out. Did you get distracted by a shiny object?” Her hip cocked to the side as the rain kept beating down from the sky. She slicked back her hair so that it wouldn’t cover her eyes, “As for who I am, you’re supposed to introduce yourself first when giving introductions. Don’t you have any manners?” Not that she expected much from this girl. She was slowly showing she lacked a higher form of intelligence, “And just saying you’re the daughter of Mr. Redgrave doesn’t count.” She needed a real name, not some worthless title.