Blessed Virgin of the Circus- 14.

LaShawn knew that having a seizure sufferer on his cast was a huge liability. Though Mara was truly one of his best house people, he had to figure out a way to get rid of her right quickly.

**

The metallic taste was becoming the worst. She didn’t visit the statue anymore. Mara was tired of the blackouts and the blood. She wanted life to go back to how it had been before. Her relationship with Yana became strained.

In the meantime, Yana suspected herself pregnant. She drank and smoked and did aerobics out in the back courtyard more than usual just to make sure she wasn’t. Yana had no time to worry about Mara’s health now.

Mara became less conversational, and she also suspected something was wrong with Yana. She didn’t ask. Silence erupted between the two on a regular basis.

Mara decided that she wanted to ignore her health diagnosis and practice her contortion routine more regularly, believing she’d make it back into cast at the end of the run.

“This is never going to work,” said Yana.

“What won’t work?”

“LaShawn is never going to cast you again.”

“Says you. And you’re always vaping in here. It’s fucking annoying.” Yana would smoke real cigarettes outside regularly, but tried to be considerate when they were indoors. At least in her view.

“Nohohohohobody but you cares.”

“Is LaShawn allowed to reassign our living arrangements? Can we do that?”

“I don’t think that’s his job. We’re the ones volunteering to live onsite. You're just being a whiny idiot right now.”

Mara felt trapped. How do you run away from the circus?