lay all your love on me

holly dawn benson as rapunzel

meet holly benson

Trigger Warning: Mentions of death and sexual assault

“It had nothing to do with you. I just got angry at you because you were easy to focus my anger on. I know that’s wrong and shitty of me, but I was drunk and I won’t try to justify my actions. I know what I did was wrong, but I never meant to hurt you. You were just at the wrong place at the wrong time.” Sage didn’t understand why Holly took it so personal when it wasn’t even about her, technically. “I don’t expect forgiveness or anything like that. I just felt that I needed to apologise so that we can all move on from the situation.” She had to swallow her ego and admit that she’d been wrong. “Yeah, of course. Take all the time you need.”

A shrug rolled off the blonde’s shoulders as her attention now split between the girl and her work. “That’s okay, I never got your name the first time we met so I think we’re even” she smiled. A few more clicks of her keyboard and she was done. Paper sent. She closed the laptop and returned it to her bag. “So, you planning on taking another nap or do you feel like grabbing a coffee with me?”

God, she was amazing. Not just to his eyes, but the warmth she put out into the room, there was something so pure and fun about her presence. He was addicted, more so than any kind of drug could ever influence him. Looking into her colorful hues, he was mesmerized, taking a bite of his apple before putting it down, to seem as if he wasn’t merely studying her, which was probably obvious anyways. “That’s awesome, I’ve always wanted to move across the big pond… When my brother died, we all were looking for an excuse at a fresh start.” He never talked about Todd, but she made it easy to open up. 

As he took a sip of water, his arm was grabbed, causing him to nearly choke as he sat down his water, chuckling, he looked back at the ecstatic brunette. “You’re being serious? You’re not messing with me, right?” He asked, perking a brow with a wide grin. “I’d love to! My family needs a reason to get out of the house.” His smile died a little when she mentioned him being her best friend, but after all, he had told her to call him such. “So you talked to your parents about me?”

She’d been about to take a sip of her water, her glass just barely touching her lips, when he mentioned his brother. She quickly pulled her glass away from her as she put her entire attention on Liam, setting her water on the table. “Your... Your brother?” Did they truly have more in common than she thought? Holly couldn’t really recall him mentioning a brother. Then again, she hasn’t told him about Kai yet, either. “I’m so sorry, Li. Am... Am I allowed to ask what he was like?” There was also a part of her that wondered how he passed, but that was even more touchy than her spoken inquiry.

callie instantly frowned at her activities, arching an eyebrow at the girl. “why are you doing so much?”  

“Pepperoni, cheese and meat lovers.“ Ryan said passing her one of the boxes to look through. 

“Nuttin’” He shook the thoughts away. “Oh same thing happens to me when I read.” He admitted. “Did you sleep well at least?” He asked, taking a seat beside her. “You know what the problem is. You pick places that are too cozy.” He mentioned as he felt up the couch.

liam would be lying if he said he didn’t feel different when he was around her. even before he heard her voice, just being around her smile was contagious for him, she brought out the best in him. holly benson was a name he couldn’t get off his tongue, and he found himself saying it to himself when he was alone, grinning uncontrollably. he knew he had to do something about it after his mom encouraged him to invite her over for dinner, which he objected to… but still, he would invite her out himself.

walking around the home that felt so foreign, yet cozy to liam, he made his way over to his kitchen, grabbing a cup of water for himself. ‘ well, when your parents don’t trust you on your own and don’t want to let you out of their sight, and can afford to move anywhere, it’s kind of hard to avoid them moving with me. ‘ he sighed, grabbing an apple from his fruit bowl in the kitchen before stopping at her request. ‘ lemon fanta is a thing? ‘ he’d never heard of it, so he just poured her another glass of water, meeting her in the living room, where they had a large couch and coffee table. he had the apple secured between his teeth as he carried the two glasses of water, handing her one, while he threw his feet up on the coffee table, taking a bite of his apple as he sat down. ‘ make yourself at home. ‘

“Mm, got it,” she giggled, shaking her head gently. “My parents wanted to come here as well, but there were some... other obligations that kept them back home.” Mainly, making sure that Ace would never come near Holly ever again and to make sure that Justin was to stay in prison until the day he died. Plus, Kai’s grave was back home. It would be hard to for them to part from him completely. Even Holly had some difficulties not being able to visit him every Thursday after school like she use to. “However, my aunt and her fiancee live in a town nearby, so that has helped my parents rest a little easier.”

‘ hey hey, i say when you get to put a label on it… fine, you’re my best friend! ‘ he grinned. she actually made being sober somewhat bearable whenever she was around. being that he didn’t want to say the wrong kind of thing to her. and as she squeezed his hand, he couldn’t help the little backflip his stomach did when the gentle notion was received. 

a few minutes later, and they were at the newcastle home, where he knew his mother would be out shopping and his father away on a business trip. ‘ welcome to the newcastle residence, benson. we’re still unpacking, so sorry for the boxes, but uh- do- do you want a drink or something? i wait all year long just for the eggnog season, and we got some imported from the states that i’ve had since i was a kid. ‘ 

He made being at Foxcroft easier, better. Hell, he just made being alive still easier. If she were back home still, she would probably be thinking about Kai and Ace and Justin all the time and be even more of a broken mess than she already was. But when she was with Liam, she didn’t think about any of those things. She lived in the moment. She was her true self with him and didn’t need to pretend. She felt so free when she was with him and that was when she truly knew, Liam Newcastle was going to be an important part of her life.

“No offense, but I really don’t know you yet, so I really can’t tell what kind of girl you are. Don’t take it personal, though. It had nothing to do with you as a person.”