Void spotted her near at the platform - Uly, white shirt, lavender blouse, deep brown hair, eyes like smoke and secrets. She walked towards her like judgement towards a convict. Void felt her chest tighten in that uncomfortable way, like something old was trying to wake up in her ribcage. She told it to shut the hell up.
They hugged, but Void wasn't sure if that was a relief or a disappointment.
"Hey," Uly said, simple as that. Her voice had a softness to it. Tired after a week of work, maybe. Or just real.
Void offered the faintest smile, more reflex than emotion. "Hey."
The city around them moved like it had somewhere more important to be. Void didn't. She just had her hoodie with a fresh spike plate she made for it the day before, her chunky boots with violet laces and pentacle ornaments, her too-cold fingers in her pockets, and the vague sense that she was either making a memory or another mistake.
The walk to Building 11 took about half an hour, but Void felt every one of them. Uly talked - not too much, just enough to fill the space between their mismatched footsteps. Something about how the gallery's layout was "like a maze designed by a poet on acid." Void smirked. That image felt familiar.
She mostly let Uly talk. Gave short answers, nods, noises of acknowledgment. Not cold, exactly - just... orbiting. She couldn't tell if she was scared of getting pulled in or scared she wouldn't.
But Uly didn't push. She just kept the pace relaxed, hands buried in her pockets, occasionally glancing sideways with a look that felt like a question she didn't need answered.
By the time they reached the entrance - an old industrial building tagged up with pastels and sharpie manifestos - Void felt her tension cracking a little. Uly reached out and opened the door.
"Ready to see some chaos framed and sold as meaning?" Uly grinned, just enough to show teeth.
Void hesitated, then shrugged. "Why not. It's exactly what I came here for."
But what she didn't say - what lingered just under her tongue - was "maybe I came for you too."
Void stepped inside, finally letting herself breathe - just a little.