Promise Bracelet

     After such a long time inside the laboratory’s walls, Tangerine was sure nothing could surprise her anymore.

     Because surprises meant change, and change wasn’t something that Tangerine was particularly fond of. Within the Dream Lab’s walls, change meant that something was wrong, and when there was something to fix, her freedom was always limited. It didn’t matter what, if her environment, her medicine, or her own bodily autonomy– if there was something out of place, it would mean trouble. So, no matter how painful a routine in the Dream Lab was to endure, she endured it. That was the only thing keeping her sane.

     Someone trying to break into her room in the middle of the night was unplanned, but it wasn’t necessarily out of the ordinary. Every once in a while she would be visited by lab coats in the high hours of the night, and they would talk about making the best out of their insomniac minds, treating Tangerine like a midnight sort of entertainment. Most of the time, they were there only to examine her, and ask her a bunch of boring old questions. Tangerine would push through her sleep, knowing herself not to be in any immediate danger, and would give them their answers to their paperwork. The labs would conclude the night with words amongst themselves, thank her for her time (though those were rare, rare occasions), and she would be left alone once again. Times like those broke her routine, but she didn’t necessarily mind them.

     Some other times, she would be woken up by such a brilliant experiment, “It could just not wait till the morning”. Night or day, the subject asleep or awake, it was all the same to the cruelest minds in the Dream Lab. Tangerine would not have any sleep that day, and she would not have any sleep the following morning, either. Times like those broke her routine, and she absolutely dreaded them.

     But tonight, there was no flip of a coin. There wasn’t a cruel scientist waiting to experiment on her– There was no kind scientist asking her questions, either. In fact, there was no scientist at all. Tangerine was greeted with the sound of the door behind the glass, oxygen depressurizing to stabilize the environment, and then a shadow of some sort, a figure looming behind the iron barrier between her and the outside world.

     When the door creaked open, Tangerine was greeted by a familiar pair of green eyes.

     “Broccolina?” Tangerine blurted out.

     This was a surprise, but it wasn’t an unpleasant one. Brocolina’s lite body popped in the room, proudly sporting that crazed signature smile of hers. In one hand she held an ID key card, the type Tangerine had seen lab coats hold before. The other one was hidden behind her back, purposely out of view.

     “Well, well, WELL,” The woman’s voice echoed through the metal chamber. It was loud, booming, and so utterly Brocolina that Tangerine couldn’t help but relax. “It seems like little Miss Sleeping Beauty here has AWAKENED from her nap!”

     “How– When…?” Tangerine couldn’t stop looking at the key card. “How did you get that?”

     Brocollina’s figure danced across the room, twirling and prancing until she was at the other woman’s side. As usual, asking the more logical questions seemed to be a futile affair when dealing with such a crazed persona. When Broccolina had set her attention in a specific string of conversation, it was hard to get her out of it.

     “Aurora, my DEAR! In her chamber so CLEAR! Awake at such TERRIBLE hours of the night! Oh, how I wonder,” her finger touched Tangerine’s nose, quite a gentle, affectionate gesture, “Who could have caused this?”

     Tangerine couldn’t help but smile, “You did, Broccolina.”

     The other smiled even wider, “It seems like I did! Better find a way to make up for it!”

     Click, and it was only when the magnetic pull on Tangerine’s wrists loosened, that she noticed Brocollina reaching out with the key card. Tangerine’s arms fell limply at her sides, and pulled by instinct, the woman went to rub on her wrists. It had been days since the last time her arms had been allowed to rest like this. Guess she would never get used to it.

     “We should–” Tangerine started.

     “We will not escape tonight,” Brocollina soothed, and just for a second, her voice had shifted. There was a hint of sanity that was usually missing from her tone– but alas, it was blink and you’ll miss it. “New guards, ALL AROUND. Tall, short, little SILLY, little smart. So we wait, and wait, and keep on waiting!”

     “New guards,” Tangerine murmured. She wanted to ask more, but it didn’t seem like the time to do so. And by the look that Broccolina had on her face, she was visiting for a different reason altogether, “Well, then. Is there any–”

     “I am SO GLAD you asked!”

     Broccolina’s smile grew wider than Tangerine ever thought possible, the edges of her mouth almost fighting to escape her features. With a passive sort of amusement, Tangerine’s mind pointed out that if her students were ever around Broccolina, this was the sort of expression that would send them crying. But she knew that Broccolina meant good. And Broccolina was good, to Tangerine, anyways.

     Tangerine sat down to enjoy the show as Broccolina smiled to herself, toying with whatever she had behind her back. It was quite theatrical, with elaborate expressions and twirls around herself. Broccolina was a magician building anticipation, ready to make your dreams come true.

     “Behold,” Broccolina chanted, dropping to one knee and finally unveiling the mystery, “Every queen shall have the jewelry of a movie star!”

     In Brocollina’s hand lay her best attempt at a bracelet, created from that type of nylon string that scientists liked to use. It was gentle enough for sutures but strong enough to hold its shape, all braided together with a single shoelace. Scattered through the bracelet’s length were little charms and bobs, all created from miscellaneous items from around the laboratory, some of which Tangerine recognized: a lost button from a lab coat, a brightly green cap from a substance vial, a single glittery earring.

     “Broccolina,” Tangerine said, taking a hold of the gift and examining it with care. A crimson blush had grown all over her cheeks, “My dear, you made a friendship bracelet!”

     Broccolina looked puzzled, torn between feeling happy for Tangerine’s response and the specific categorization of her present, “Yes! Though– ah, SILLY me! I meant it to say more than just friends!”

     Tangerine laughed, “That’s just the name for these sorts of things. I used to make plenty of these in my classroom.”

     “Oh, I know!” Broccolina chirped out, “You told me once, and I said: I CAN DO THAT TOO! For you! So I did!”

     The woman was quick to fasten it into her cuffed wrist, admiring the way it shined against her skin. It was indeed a statement piece: messy, yet so intricate in its craftsmanship. It defined the discord that was Brocollina, that sweet sort of chaos that Tangerine had found to be the perfect comfort in such a dark, cruel world.

     “Then it’s a promised bracelet,” Tangerine said sweetly, making the final little knot to secure it on her hand. It was a perfect size, just big enough for her to feel it, just small enough to be hidden behind the cuffs on her wrists. The labcoats would never know, but Tangerine would, “It will always remind me of you.”’

     Broccolina leaned forward to place a kiss on her partner’s forehead, soft and sweet in the spot between Tangerine’s eyes. Tangerine laced their fingers together.

     “You should go,” she stated, squeezing Broccolina’s hand, “It’ll be morning soon.” To wipe that scowl that grew on the woman’s face, Tangerine added, “How about I leave you with a mission?”

     “Oh?” Broccolina was intrigued.

     Tangerine leaned forward into the other’s ear, eager to share a childish type of secret.

     “Promise bracelets come in pairs, you know,” she whispered, “If you bring me enough materials later, I can make you one too.”

     “I WILL I will! I will bring you all sorts of knickknacks, and doodads– and TRINKETS, and every single little thing you want, my love!”

     And with that, Broccolina was out the door, almost as if the mission meant to bring them that same night. Tangerine wasn’t sure when Broccolina would return, but as she lay sitting on her cell’s bed, thumb gently caressing her new bracelet, she knew that Broccolina would be returning.

     She made a promise, after all.