𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒛𝒚

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ zion moreno via instagram .

Emma D'arcy for Flaunt Magazine (2026)

"yeah, they don't get to talk to you like that." andy was still keyed up, her hands shaking a little at her side and the right one, which she'd just struck that person in the jaw with is throbbing in a way she was currently ignoring. she felt bad for causing a problem, maybe a little bad for hurting someone since she was a doctor after all, but she didn't feel bad for putting someone in their place for treating someone that way. her heart was hammering but she ignored it, trying her best to calm them down instead. "i wouldn't let them talk to anyone like that. but especially not you."

"andy..." claire breathed, reaching for her injured hand and slowly turning it around in her own. she let out an exasperated sigh. "you know you're going to have to explain this in the ER, right?" the attempt at humor was weak, her voice slightly unsteady. she swallowed hard and shook her head. "god, you're such an idiot." as a social worker, claire was used to being the one who had to pick up the pieces, used to beingg talked over, dismissed, and occasionally treated worse than she deserved. "you shouldn't have had to do that." she said quietly. "but..." her eyes lifted to meet andy's. "thank you. no one's ever stood up for me like that before."

"Y'know, I'm legally obligated to stop servin' you when I feel like you've had too much to drink," she said, narrowing her eyes at them before sliding another drink to them across the bar top. "But I can't lie and say I haven't been enjoyin' your company."

"so that's your professional opinion?" alena teased, wrapping her fingertips around the glass. "for what it's worth, i probably would've stayed even if you'd cut me off an hour ago." she shrugged her shoulders slightly. "the drinks are definitely nice. but i also think the company is much better."

muse a and muse b have an intense, on-again , off-again relationship where they hurt each other but can’t seem to walk away . both know it’s toxic , yet they avoid ending things for good . muse b crossed a line recently , and muse a confronts them , leading to an honest but painful conversation about their flaws and history . despite the tension , they still feel tied to each other , unable to break the cycle , even though the relationship stopped being fulfilling long ago . neither wants to let go , but the emotional strain is undeniable .

this is the part that is so truly dangerous. the real reason noa had pushed. and it's not because she was hoping quinn would stay. it was becuase she'd known that given real love, given a real reason, given someone like this who had real hope in their eyes and care in their trust and goodness in their intentions, noa would be so dangerously easily to convince to throw her defenses away. she wanted it too badly. she wants quinn too badly. and her private school, ivy league education isn't enough to intellectualize all the reasons she should still say no. to be safe. for both of them. the real reason noa has pushed, for so long, is because she's known that if someone gives her the chance to throw her father's life behind her, she'll take it. just like she'd taken classic literature and greek mythology courses in secret just for fun. she'd take it because she wants more. but so had euridyce. and look where that had gotten everyone involved. she listens to every word quinn says, trying everything not to argue, not to shake her head, not to pull away from the soft touch of the other girl's finger against her cheek. noa sniffles, and looks up, and in response says only one thing--"loving me?"

"yeah," quinn answers quietly, like it's the most simple thing in the world. "loving you." a shaky laugh escapes her as she glances down. "god, you really didn't know?" quinn's thumb brushes gently against noa's cheek. "i've been trying so hard not to say it, because every time i got close enough, you'd start putting your walls up and i'd convince myself i was imagining it. but i love you. i love the version everyone else sees, and i love the version nobody gets to see. i love how impossible you are, and how you pretend not to care when you're the person who cares the most." she rambles, feeling her cheeks begin to flush slightly at the confession. "maybe that's stupid considering everything you've just told me, and maybe it would be smarter if i ran, but i'm tired of pretending this is something smaller than it is." quinn takes a breath, before her hand lowers back down to her side. a part of her was absolutely terrified that everything between them was about to crumble, but she'd been biting her tongue for too long. even if these were some of the last words she ever says to noa, at least she would know there is someone who genuinely loves her and she knows that she's not alone. "the truth is, if you asked me to leave right now, i would. because i love you enough to respect that. but if you're asking whether i love you because you're still trying to give me one more chance to walk away... then the answer is yes. i do. and that's why i'm still here."

“why not?” the truth is alice can’t forget about it either, but holding onto their drunken rendezvous doesn’t seem to help anyone, not when her best friend is still wearing the engagement ring on her finger. she’s convinced herself that marnie would simply write the night off as a mistake, and she’s not sure if her heart can take the blow so she’s kept quiet and acted as if nothing happened at all. her eyes widen from the confession that makes her brain short circuit for a moment, the bassist falling unusually quiet. “you’re all that’s on my mind, too.” today, yesterday and every other day.

for a second, marnie just stares at alice because she doesn't know quite what to say. part of her has convinced herself that she was alone in this—that she's the only one unraveling over something that was supposed to have been left in the past. her gaze drops to the ring on her finger, and it suddenly feels way too heavy. like it doesn't belong there because she only has one foot in. "then what are we doing?" she asks softly. "because i keep trying to be the girl everyone wants me to be. the one who marries her high school sweetheart and gets her happy ending." a shaky laugh escapes her. "every time i think about walking down that aisle, all i can think about is you standing beside me instead."

Corteon Moore as Ellis Stevens —FROM, 4x04 "Of Myths & Monsters"