// THE BAD APPLE

the brunette took a moment, but eventually made her way to his closet picking up all the jackets and sweaters she could find. “how often do you wear this one?” she held out a green cardigan, seemingly having pulled it out of nowhere. kari popped her head out from behind it, eyes narrowed, “i didn’t even think you owned any green in your closet.” // x - @escapenevaeh​

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flora watched him from her spot, eyes glassy and full of mourning. he really believed those words. he really thought he was hurting her. she wanted to try, she wanted to get him to see that those were just lies his head was feeding, but she was scared if she pushed more he’d pull even further back. the thought that this was going to be the last time they saw eachother broke her heart. imagine remembering the last time they spoke, it’d be with her in tears and him wallowing in his self pity. she wiped at her eyes as they watered again. “yes it is,” she answered honestly, and he knew it. he had to know how she felt, how she was feeling. “if you really want me gone, i’ll go but you owe me this much atleast,” flora stepped up to him, ignoring that he might push her away or that he might hate her more. he owed her this, this small, small thing. she wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his shoulder, trying to sap what warmth she could get for the last time. oh, she thought dizzily, this will be our last hug won’t it. // x - @escapenevaeh​

despite her efforts at trying to keep her face clear, the tear tracks and reddened eyes made it all futile. she physically recoiled, flinching at his words. one couldn’t mistake the shock and hurt on her face. her heart was thumping erratically in her chest in sync with the conflicting emotions within in. so… all this time? all this time she’d- “that many times? i hurt you that many times by sticking around,” she shuddered a breath, trying to keep what composure she had left in her. miraculously. flora hadn’t realized she was forcing her company on her. even if she knew rationally he was only saying these things to push her away, but she’d always been one to take her faults too strongly. “you didn’t do anything,” she argued, weakly, “you didn’t do anything at all, alma.” now that the words were in her head, she struggled to keep them out. she was hurting him, the boy she cared about so deeply she only wished to see him get better. god, how awful she must be to not have noticed. // x - @escapenevaeh​

“you can’t say that- you can’t say that and expect me to actually believe that do you?” flora wiped at her eyes, vision blurred. “how do you expect me to just turn my back on you and leave you like this. how could you expect me to think of you as some lost cause-” she cut herself off, saying the words physically hurting her. a moment stretched, before she found the words again. “you won’t even look at me? is that how badly you think of me now?” // x - @escapenevaeh​

Ilima smiled, but kept silent initially unsure of whether to accept the offer or reject it. “It probably wouldn’t come as a surprise if I told you this isn’t the first time it’s happened.” Jealous lovers were everywhere. Jealousy was everywhere, but that was fine with him. Their insecurities were their own, he had nothing to do with that. “I’d hate to keep you if you had things to do, Alma.” Ilima answered honestly, “It’s bad enough that you got roped into things so suddenly.” // x- @escapenevaeh​

i’m not a project you can fix. the words made her stop in her place. the words made the world stop turning. is… is that what he thought of her? is that what he thought she was doing? flora was floored, but she couldn’t find it in herself to argue. she could be pushy, and fussy, but it was always with good intentions. it was never because she thought of him as- her eyes stung, and she quickly raised a hand to face. with a shaky voice, she managed, “it wasn’t like that, alma. it was never like that. if i leave now, i really am scared this will be the last time i see you.” alone. hurt. angry.  she didn’t want to remember him like that. 

flora could practically feel his walls raising up, blocking her from him. her heart thumped in a way that, unfortunately, was slowly becoming associated more and more with alma from recent events; fear. this time it wasn’t out of fear for him, for what he goes through and what could happen to him. now it was fear of him. he was shutting himself out again. shutting himself from her. the thought hurt her more than she could ever admit. she thought the two of them were beyond things like this. that the trust they built would help them manage whatever came their way. “alma, you know that’s not what i meant.” she tried to get near him again, trying to walk around him to see his face. flora needed to see his face. it was the only way to calm the growing panic in her. “you keep doing this to yourself and you always end up taking the brunt of all the pain. you keep trying to carry the world on your shoulders-” she halted hearing his tone. it was frigid, making her shiver. there was no way to describe the way she hated seeing alma like this. flora had always been a sensitive soul, this was no different. she felt her eyes mist over, but thankfully no tears. “alma, you can’t expect me to just leave you like this, do you? you can’t expect me to leave you.” // x - @escapenevaeh​

“Sometimes, it seems that the going is just too rough.” || @escapenevaeh

“Yeah, but it’s not like you gotta do it alone.” Kari gently nudged his shoulder, staring at him with a knowing glint in her eyes. She never wanted those around her to think they had to go through all their troubles alone. If they let her, she’d be right there with them. “You have me! So how bad can things be if you share the load.” 

continued from here || @escapenevaeh

“Worse or less, you’re still in pain and that’s what I don’t like.” Her tone was soft, but hurt. Flora didn’t like seeing the people around her hurt, and she wasn’t so fond of people dismissing their pains either. But she was not their keeper. “Atleast keep the ice on it for now? Please?”

continued from here || @escapenevaeh

Kari peeked at him, feigning suspicion on her face as she buried herself deeper in the hoodie. “Which one?” She inquired. Truthfully, it didn’t matter too much which hoodie she got, only that the other wore it. She liked the feeling of being enveloped in their warmth and smell, it was comforting for her. Which is why she often took this one because Alma wore it often.