All is usually calm in the Doll world for a certain blonde, and the same applied to a certain female doll.  The word 'peace' was just a mere excuse for their emotions, but it was so much more than that. It seemed at the temporal moment, all was well and they enjoyed the present.

But then there come the obstacles that lie within at least one person's life. Lou had decided that now was a most appropriate time than ever to have some time to himself, taking in his surroundings as the sun sat merrily on the horizon of the hills just ahead of his right. It seemed as though that he never gave himself some time away from Mandy, not in a resentful or resisting way, but more so to give them space and remind themselves that they have their own lives as well. He breathed in the fresh air, the sensation following through his nostrils. He certainly felt at peace within this very moment. But all of a sudden, something had caught his attention.

"...Lou..."

His head shot up in alarm. A part of him felt cautious of someone calling his name in an unimaginable tone. But the rest of him felt oddly curious. "Who's there?" He called out to the voice.

"F...llow.....s...ound...voice"

The language almost became unrecognizable, he felt a shiver travel down his spine, not liking where this was going. A gust of wind had travelled by his right side, visibly blowing against the oak trees and the freshly grown leaves. He stopped in his tracks completely this time. His eyes followed the direction of the mysterious movements against certain aspects of the environment. He cautiously and slowly began to follow it. Now to others that was a very stupid idea, don't get me wrong. But in Lou's case, Stubbornness can be dangerous, or discoverable. Lou always believed that where the trouble lies, though it was important to steer clear of it, he always found himself running at it.  

But that sense of curiosity was at a pause as something disrupted his moment of hypnosis. He shook his head, all the sounds of reality and nature hitting all sides. His eardrums were greeted with the sounds of birds chirping in the distance and the calm breeze was much more natural. "What the..." He asked himself, confused about what just happened. He then shook his head, feeling that maybe the pang of lethargy was starting to hit him. He found himself casually, yet internally cautiously making his way back to Mandy's humble abode.

---

"Me... Can you focus on, me?~"

"Baby can you focus... on me~"

We make a return to the sight of Mandy really feeling herself into the music. Her movements were slow to the vibe of the song, but to her, the energy that flowed through her was a wondrous sensation.

"Baby I just want you to get up~"

Normally Mandy would not be out of her comfort zone, 

that is 

when no one was watching. 

The song that was playing was slow, a melody that was so beautiful and could put anyone in an inviting trance. The harmonious sound of the harp that played in the back put a chill down Mandy's spine.

Her moment of tranquillity to herself though was disrupted to the sound of the door opening, she quickly panicked. She turned down the music slightly, launched herself onto the couch, pulling off the illusion as if the entire time she was only occupying herself to a book. Her eyes shifted to the preferable vision, seeing a blonde pretty boy walking into the living room, with that teasing smirk on his face.

"You have great taste in music, babe." Lou joked, being able to see through her. She smiled in defeat, knowing that this man was just too good to be fooled.

"Hi, Lou..." Lou laughed in response, pecking her cheek, much to her lack of amusement that she could never fool him. She slightly pouted and gave a huff, Lou rolled his eyes in amusement from her actions.

"So whatcha reading." He casually tried to conversate with her.

She glanced at the book she picked up, not actually taking a look at which one she had picked up in a rush. Lou saw this and successfully attempted to hold in a laugh. 

"'Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow', you know for some classic high school, stereotypical life it does challenge some pretty decent themes here." Lou raised a brow in amusement. "Like what?" 

"Well..."

They then began to converse for the rest of the afternoon. There were some slight moments where they would go off-topic, beat each other to the punchline. But the majority of the conversation was a good amount of light-hearted banter and silent adoration for one another. The two of them, much to their liking, really couldn't get enough of one another. Time had passed and the inviting aura of the out-going breeze and the warm sunshine that had caressed the walls of her house began to darken, as well as the cold shivering night, came to pass over time.  

Lou laid back into the cosy corner of the couch. He was in deep thought of what he had witnessed just a mere few hours ago. Brows were furrowed and his arms were crossed. From time to time, he thought that even with the journey through his dark past, he'd not become crazy. He'd convince himself of this so often to avoid shifting the blame to himself so harshly, but now he was at no point of peace to not think about whether or not he's turned crazy. It felt so real. The way that there were rhythmic and almost fluidly timed motions that could be seen through moves leaves and branched put a pit in his stomach, now starting to fully grasp the abnormality of his situation. 

Meanwhile, with a certain doll that we all love, she was in the middle of sorting some new supplies that she had gotten. Business was certainly booming for Mandy and Lou seeing as their credibility was increased to more than what they'd expect. People are beginning to accept Lou again and therefore making him a further asset to the Doll world. Mandy had been getting more and more attention from new clients each week just to get them all dolled up after Lou had recommended her so thoughtfully. Mandy had silently thanked him in response, feeling as though she should do something for him. She had stretched her back, resulting in a satisfying crack that came from it. She sighed after putting down the final box and sorting it into a new compartment. 

Her view was turned to the rhythmic ticking from the clock. It was later in the night and nobody would ever come around during this time. She figured that it was time for a nice late night walk. She had changed into something more comfortable and was about to head out the door. Not before notifying her beloved.

"Hey Lou, I'm just going out!" Mandy smiled while making her way out the door, but slowed down noticing the tense aura that had so obviously surrounded Lou's presence.

"Okay, that's nice." He assured her, not really taking into account what she had just said. Mandy slightly sank from how pressed Lou looked. She had slowly approached him, her energy dying down. "Hey..." Mandy eased, walking towards the pressed blonde with a warm glow in her eyes. But even through such a big opportunity for Lou to notice the moments he held to his heart, his mind seemed to overtake that through his deep curiosity. Lou looked at her, noticing that she was concerned for her. He smiled looking back up at her and assured her truthfully.

"I'm fine Mandy. I just gotta think about a few things, I got a lot on my mind..." He'd secretly hoped that she wouldn't feel offended or hurt from his response, but what she did next made him love her even more, 

"Okay... don't worry. I'll let you have some time on your own." She smiled kindly before kissing his cheek caringly. His heart fluttered at her method of affection, even though it was so minor, it did such a number on Lou and his heart. He just smiled back and nodded in appreciation, with an apologetic smile on his face.

She nodded back understanding that he meant well and walked back by the door, "I'll be going out for a little stroll. And help yourself to a little surprise in the pantry." She winked before escorting herself out of the house and through the door shutting it behind her.

------

Mandy took in the scent of her surroundings, how the moonlight had illuminated the view of the streets along with the accompanied streetlights. The cold atmosphere that made her sink her chin into her scarf was almost pleasurable and liberating. The stars in the night sky had got her thinking about what constellations she could make out; Orion and even The Little Dipper. Letting out a sigh, amusing herself from seeing her breath due to the single streetlight she had just passed. She turned to her left, seeing a lonely calm field with a seating area. 

She had made her way over there taking a seat by a bench. 

All was quiet and the seas were calm. Well, not for long.

"Ugh, it's you..." Mandy shot up in alarm from the sudden voice that had surrounded its presence with her. She turned to her right seeing a certain somebody that made her roll her eyes.

"Tuesday," Mandy said almost nonchalantly, not interested in starting a fight. "Mind if I sit? Literally every single seat here is either completely soaked or damp, and I'd rather sit next to you than sit on the floor." She cringed thinking about the situation before Mandy had said nothing but move aside for her to sit.

A silence was greeted upon them for a sudden moment. Until it was interrupted. "I don't get you, Mandy." Mandy turned towards the blue-haired doll, raising a brow in confusion. 

"What?" Tuesday just scoffed, "I mean why do you hang out with a traitor like him?" Mandy's blood was beginning to boil at the mention of Lou in a negative way, but she always found herself hesitating to speak her mind.

"Tuesday, come on... Everyone has been over this, he has changed okay. Now that I think about it, everyone has changed except you," She spat, Mandy crossed her arms in anger, concise with the point she had made. Tuesday, on the other hand, had just laughed at her. "Me? Oh but Mandy, sweetheart. It's you who has never changed..."

Mandy just went from pure anger and resentment to total confusion and curiosity. "What do you mean?" Tuesday shifted towards her, her arms crossed and having one leg over the other leaning back against the bench. 

"I don't see you suddenly speaking up to people. I don't see you suddenly putting yourself out there. You aren't confident, out-going and you certainly don't participate or take part in anything now even after the gauntlet. You are just the same, sad, fearful girl that we all know. And sadly not all of us love."

Mandy's heart shrunk at the mentioning of this. Though she may have been given a changed lifestyle through her new change in career and buisness opportunity, she never really changed as a person through the whole rendition of Lou changing for the better, yet everyone else had changed themselves for the better. She felt a liquid substance almost fighting its way through the seam of her eyeball. The emotions were just too unbearable to handle. 

Tuesday stands up, brushing off any imaginary dirt that may have remained on her skirt. Her posture is very upturned and hoyty-toyty. "You will never be anything more than a sad, silent doll, Mandy," Tuesday stated before strutting her way back towards her house figuring it was getting late.

Mandy was alone. In a way, if you count the rain that had fallen to the ground from the clouds up above another sense of company, then I could be proved wrong. The thunder rumbled in the distance, but that still couldn't compare to her own emotions. Though some part of her may have recently felt that way, it seemed as though that the thunder didn't have any connection to her. Instead, she could understand the rain more than the thunder, and the lightning hasn't even come close to her situation next.

The moment in the given time and her emotions mixed together were too much, her self-deprecation side of her persona started pouring out of her system. She had begun to ball her eyes out, through the lonesomeness out in the could.

Crying in the rain.