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Time had flown like violent waves coursing through a stormy ocean. It felt as if eons had passed by, leaving a barren field behind, which once bloomed with the blossoms of Happenstance.
Happenstance? Thatâs right, thatâs how youâd met him all those years ago, three to be exact.
If you take a tour down memory lane, it will all flash right in front of your eyes as if you were watching a high definition movieâŠ
Youâd moved to Linkon City with hopes of something long forgotten but mainly for, continuing your passion for writing. When you were younger, you too wanted to pursue a career path in becoming a Deepspace Hunter, having a really strong affinity towards the profession. But upon growing up further, your past dream had slowly shrouded within the neural networks of your brain.
Life in Linkon was moderately hard, with the occasional Wanderer outbreaks and Hunters reaching the designated area on time for action, saving civilians. You admired them, you admired them from the depth of your HeartâŠyou wanted to write about them, but you barely found the words to do so.
It left you frustrated and up late every nightâŠonly for the next day to continue as a torturous loop of boredom. Not even three months in the City, you were already boredâŠ
You wanted a wishâŠa wish to be grantedâŠa wish to cure your boredomâŠand you wanted write all over againâŠ
You wished for it.
Three weeks into the beginning of your third month in the City, you meet someone, you never knew would play such a significant role in your life.
You met herâŠ
MC was her name. She was a new Hunter at the Huntersâ Association but ever so skilled and compatible. A strong, independent woman; someone you soon grew close with.
It was a coincidental occurrence.
You were at Destiny Cafe, a favourite place of yours added to your recency list, when Fate did Her magic.
She was sat at the table alongside Tara,
(who was a ray of sunshine, a pure soul, her colleague and friend, one sheâd made at the Association.)
As time flew, hangouts and sleepovers became more common, mostly happening at hers, Tara would often join the two of you, but if she didnât it was the both of youâŠ
The two of you could spend hours talking and talking, as youâd ask her about her day and missions, taking inspirations for your work, while sheâd about the stuff you wrote.
âOde to Her, who intermingles and entangles the fragile webs (of our lives that) we weave.ââyour first wish was granted.
âŠ.
Two weeks into the middle of your fourth month in the City,
Perchance You were out with MC and Tara at the Kitty Cafe, playing several rounds of the Advanced Mode of Kitty Cardsâ
Perchance one evening to Azure Square at that one bakery that MC had told you about, to feed your craving for Macaronsâ
Perchance on the way to MCâs apartment when you almost run into her upstairs neighbourâ
Perchance at a local Casino to feed your thirst for a game of Blackjackâ
Perchance out an art store, where hung a pretty wooden board containing the symbolisms for each colourâ
When youâd first met him.
There was no verbal exchange, just the meeting of gazes for the very first time.
Later that night, your heart had already started skipping beats from the encounter, your mind started creating scenarios of your second meet, if there was any to come. You hoped for itâŠ
You wished for it.
You wrote about it. Told MC a few days afterâŠHer face lit up, she knew him. Oh?
He was an old friend?
her primary care physician?
a colleague at work?
someone she works as a bodyguard for?
a fruit vendor?
She asked if you wanted to formally meet him. You nodded.
So you did.
at her apartment, when sheâd called you over two evenings later.
at Akso Hospital when he was on his lunch break, sheâd taken you to.
at the beach, she called him over.
at the Karaoke place, she told heâd like.
It was awkward as heck, what would you have said? That âHello I am the girl you made eye contact with days ago.â, you were nervous.
Maybe he sensed that, he spoke first, he remembered you. You smiled.
The weeks passed, growing with them the bonds of the new friendship that you had been gifted with. The two of you would often meet up almost everyday if time permittedâŠbut you wouldâŠ
Sometimes with MC, sometimes without her.
You cherished your times spent with him, they made you feel specialâŠa little bit too special, that your heart would strum along the strings a melody, you were oh-so utterly familiar withâŠbut you didnât want to hurryâŠ
As the saying goes, âSlow and Steady, wins the race.â
Each night youâd return home, stare up at the ceiling giggling like a teenage girl with a crush.
A CrushâŠ!
Plus youâd blame him for making you fallâŠ
How dare he remember your favourite flower,
your favourite colour,
your favourite song,
your favourite food,
the things that make you smile or ickâŠ
He knew the ways of your little world better than your own comprehension.
All so crystal clear, within just a matter of monthsâŠ
You were bound to fallâŠand you didâŠ
You fell hardâŠ
âOde to Her, who leisures around with the fabrics (of realities), knitting them up together into a bewitching rag or even a hideous robe.
Ode to Her, who along with Lady Luck composes symphonies and dissonance.ââyour second wish was granted.
âŠ.
A year and a half had passed since you met himâŠand you were down bad for himâŠ
In Every star cluster in the night sky,
Every flower blooming and blossoming in a garden making it rich,
Every flake of the gentle snow which landed upon your nose,
Every ray of the Sun that caused the ripples of the Sea to glimmer,
Every winning gamble-
-you saw him.
You envisioned him, by your sideâŠhand in hand for as long as Space-Time marks itâs existence.
You wanted him to be happyâŠ
You wished for itâŠ
Your pages were diluted in his essence, as if every word you wrote was written for himâŠ
Did he even had the hint of what went on within yourself?
Perhaps.
Did you want him to know?
Perhaps.
Would you ever tell him about it?
Perhaps.
But did the two of you hush out your deepest secrets with each other over call in the silence of the nights?
Absolutely.
âPerhapsâŠâ
It was a word that shrouded itâs true pose from you for a long time.
A word that created the illusion of bliss over your story like a veil.
It was not sooner or later when you had finally been able to snip your way out of the veilâŠwitnessing the harsh truths of realityâŠ
You started noticing him and MC together more over the weeks, observing their conversing patterns⊠You had asked him, countless of times, if he was sickâŠif he was alrightâŠif he was okayâŠbut to no use, he would always divert the conversation, so you eventually stopped.
You knew about his past, he had told youâŠhence,
You would see saw how his eyes would illuminate as if they held constellations behind.
You would see saw the colours and hues that would splatter over the canvas of his face.
You would see saw the easiness in his body language whenever she was near.
As if it was all meant to beâŠ
Each day became a new lesson upon the ways of the unfair world, each night a review of the same.
Confrontation is never an option when itâs the people you consider home.
And what would you confront about?
When you could see the Alchemy of their amalgamations transcend to the cosmic levels, it was as if the Universe had made them a pair, a bond. Eternally bound to each other.
If the word âSoulmatesâ held ground, they would be the Altar which it stood upon.
Such was the strength of their unityâŠ
It hurt, hurt like anything to accept this epiphany that you had come acrossâŠbut did you have a choice?
How could you ever compete with what the Cosmos had set in stoneâŠ
So what did you do? You wrote about itâŠyou wrote and wrote like there was no tomorrow, every night, all nightâŠat least it took off a minute-fraction of the load that your heart had to carryâŠ
Of course you didnât stop talking to either of them or cancel meet-upsâŠwell not with herâŠ
With him however, you started growing a bit distant, often cancelling your usual meetingsâŠyou needed the space to get a grip on yourselfâŠ
You always covered it up over text, just like you masked off every single emotion from your external appearanceâŠ
It was on you, upon you, your fault for you had termed your third wish in the wrong wayâŠyou shouldâve been selfish, not caring for his happinessâŠbut whatâs done is doneâŠ
His happiness was your happinessâŠ
Her happiness was your happinessâŠ
Even so this happiness was a curse,
You were happy.
The funny thing was that, the more heartbroken you got each night, the more creativity painted herself with words onto the canvas of your notepadâŠ
So you brain came upon a gentlemanâs agreement with your broken heart, a business deal if you may describe it asâŠyour broken heart would provide the flow of emotions to the brain which in turn oozed out your creativity; while your heart would feel the weightage of the load lessen even if it meant by fractional amountsâŠ
And what did you do? You let yourself bask in the Status Quo.
âOde to Her, who creates the Illusio of choice and free will.
Ode to Her, who makes YOU believe to be the creator, when all you are is a mere followerâŠââyour third wish was granted.
Oh he cannot form sentences about the way his heart soared with elation when he met her again, in this lifetime,
for the first timeâŠ
His heart thumped loudly within his chambers, as if it were banging against a locked door, pleading to be let out, set freeâŠIf heâd ever known Love, then it was because of her existence that he understood the concept of Love.
She was the Destiny to which he elected to be Eternally bound. The connection they shared was beyond the mortal realm, transcending to the reaches even beyond metaphysics. It was Cosmic, he knew it, he felt it. It was the Universal Truth.
Hence why he felt desolate from within when she didnât recall the pastâŠthe âThemâ, that he carried on evermore in every one of his lives. He will continue to do so for eons to come.
Whatever she neededâtime, familiarity, he was ready to give it to her. After all he was hers and she was his, they were an amalgamationâŠ
Besides what Love wasnât obsessive, sacrificial, a misconstrued treachery, or chastised.
So he waited, like he always hadâŠ
âŠ.
His days had grown monotonous without her memory.
âWhen will she remember?â, was the fundamental thought that occupied his state of peaceâŠ
A change of scenery was much needed from this cyclic motion of work-life.
So he went, out for a stroll one fine evening.
Maybe he found out from his âtrusted sourcesâ who sent notifications every second from her phone to his, that MC was at the Kitty Cafe along with some friends, playing several rounds of the Advanced Mode of Kitty Cards. Plus he needed to make sure she was with good company, after all he was only looking out for herâ
Maybe he took a turn towards that one bakery the both had often ventured to satisfy their cravings for sugarâ
Maybe he wasnât a fan of his pre-planned stroll and instead made his way towards MCâs apartment when someone almost bumped into him. Letting out a flurry of sorriesâ
Maybe at a local Casinoâ
Maybe passing by an art store, where hung a pretty wooden board containing the symbolisms for each colour. He stopped by to judge them of their mistakesâ
When his eyes met new ones, heâs never seen you before.
Maybe you were a new friend of hers, maybe even a stranger? Or an acquaintance? Whoever you are, it was of no concern to himâŠ
âŠ.
A phone call was unexpected the very next evening, but not unwelcome. Infact he strived to hear her voice in some way or form, every single day of his being. She wishes to officially introduce him to her new companion? Oh?
Again unexpected. But if thatâs what her wish was then itâd be his command. Although he was a bit hesitant upon meeting this mysterious personâŠmajorly because he heard her go on for hours about how the two of them had gotten closer in just a matter of months.
She was sly, never mentioning the gender of this new âcompanionâ of hers. Maybe she enjoyed keeping him shrouded in half-truths.
What was his response? Yes of course. As if he could ever say No to her.
Sheâd assigned him a place for the meet-up along with the date and time, told him not to be late.
It was another dusk hour on a Sunday,
at her apartment,
at their assigned bakery they often go to, for replenishing their sweet teeth, well mostly his,
at the beach,
at the Karaoke place,
âŠYou again?
Well at least it wasnât a guy
You seemed awkward of the situation at hand, he could sense your nervousness scattered all over your features, profoundly. He wasnât any big of a fan of first-impressions, but maybe a part of him wanted you to ease upâŠso he spoke up first, he remembered you.
He could see you heave a big sigh of relief internally at his words of consolation. You smiledâŠ
The prescribed time soon had passed, enveloped within getting to know each other, while MC would often chime in to restore/uphold the fluency. He got to know considerable amounts of informations about you. You? A few adding onto the context of what you had already gathered from MCâŠ
It was pleasant.
Days to weeks, weeks to months,
When had the Rendezvous metamorphosed into simple Hangouts, he couldnât recallâŠ
It started with the three of them when the familiarity was still in itâs budding stageâŠthen slowly over time, the need for a watched maintenance of your fluency became discretionary,
for there bloomed beautifully the bonds of this new friendship, which got nurtured through your affection and dedication each dayâŠmaking it grow strongerâŠ
Hangouts became often (sometimes she would be thereâŠsometimes not), almost everyday if permitted by time. If not? Youâd substitute through calls and texts..
âŠ.
Time felt as if moving in a slow pace after ages of being driven with constraints and limitsâŠhere was noneâŠ
Things felt naturalâŠinnate with you, like the gentle breeze on a calm spring night, or the heavy shower accompanying a stormy dayâŠ
Like every phenomena in nature, often overlooked but are daily and recurringâŠ
He couldnât quite put his finger around itâŠyetâŠ
He forgot to keep track of the exact moment when he
Started paying attention to the posters you hung above your bedâ
Or the way you would try to stand your pen upright on your desk when your mind would wander off while writingâ
Or the way you would duplicate multiple tabs on YouTube, each one filled with a specific song or mixed genres, while you would try resonating with it, to incorporate the same into paperâ
Or the collection of hair ties that you possessedâ
Maybe even the pre-existing tiny dent on the wall above your kitchen counter, which you said you would cover up with something but keep forgettingâ
Maybe it was the way youâd smile everytime he was within your proximityâ
Or the virtual hug youâd send him through your collection of cute bunny, crow, apple, snowman, artsy birb, stickers, every time before he went to bedâ
Maybe it was the way your eyes would stare into his whenever he was over at you place and you were thinking of how to go forth with your words on paperâ
Or everytime the two of you would be out, and you would feel like a breath of fresh airâ
Soon he found himself accustomed to the ways of your world,
What made you ick or inspired,
Your favorites:
The certain colour of paint , or mixture gradients heâd use on his canvas that made you filled with joy, so heâd restructure his paintings like suchâ
The symbolism that each of the Cards and their Suits held within the deck of 52, making you speak on and on about them for hours, over text or via voice message at 3a.mâ
Late night outings to go stargazing at the park, sitting on the plain grass, while you ask him about the different constellationâŠmaybe just maybe while doing so, your head slowly tilts down to lay comfortably upon his shoulderâ
How it became a regularity for you to visit the hospital every late night he got off of work, with a 6packed box of strawberry flavoured macaronsâŠwell two for each night on a row for three days, following the similar pattern for two weeks. Then came a gap for the next two weeks, as the cycle continuesâŠbut maybe what he wants to say was that, youâd be the Constant, coming over every nightâ
Every movie marathon youâve been having, while he would cook for you. Not to mention how youâd constantly refer to him as âMaverickâ and hum along the theme song every time you watched Top GunâŠApparently it was your favourite thing to do, along with constantly complimenting his cooking in Shakespearean English and fumbling oftenâ
Alongside the feeling of a calm warmth flowing through his bodyâŠa something elseâresembling to fear??? Was slowly nibbling itâs way through his heart.
âŠ.
Uh ohâŠ
A year and a half had passed already since he met you? And you had already confide countless of your deepest secrets to himâŠHow could you trust him so much? Why did you trust him so much? Should he do the sameâŠtell you about all his past lives, that haunt every hour of his existence?
Oh noâŠ
The epiphany struck him like a truck when
In
Every star cluster in the night sky,
Every flower blooming and blossoming in a garden making it rich,
Every flake of the gentle snow which landed upon your nose,
Every ray of the Sun that caused the ripples of the Sea to glimmer,
Every winning gamble-
-he saw you.
OhâŠ
He had ever so slowly, fallen for youâŠ
Now this filled him with panic,
He was panicking like a madman, like he had never beforeâŠ
He didnât know what to do, or how it was even possible for him to fall for someone else when the Love of all his Lives was MCâŠHe needed to talk it out with MCâŠcome up with a solution, something, anythingâŠ
All his thoughts and feelings were clogged and cluttered over his brain.
All this time heâd been beating around the bush, trying to press it down into the depths of chambers to be never found againâŠbut somehow the feeling re-emerged, digging through every ground that he wanted to bury it beneathâŠ
He felt like a nomad, like he knew nothing about the ways of the WorldâŠlike a newbornâŠ
Plus how would he even bring this up to MC, what if she gets heartbroken, or worseâŠ
He couldnât afford thatâŠ
But neither could he mute the sound of his thumping heart for youâŠ
YouâŠ
Why did he have to fall for You? Who were you? A no-one till one and a half years ago.
He wouldnât even have known about your existence if he didnât meet you by Happenstance that faith-forgotten eveningâŠ
He could barely concentrate on workâŠEverything around him felt like a spiralling vortex and he was trapped insideâŠ
Being the man he is, he somehow let his discomforts escape your radar eventually, after you had asked him over text, call, in-person countless number times, if he was alrightâŠif he was sickâŠif he was okayâŠ
MC eventually takes notice of this and confronts himâŠshe had never seen him this distressed, calling him over at Destiny Cafe to talk.
Not sure how to go forth with the conversation, he hesitatesâŠ
He felt like he was stuck within a soft-lock of the game, his life had reduced to temporarilyâŠ
He had two choices,
âEither to abandon his future and stick to what Fate had woven for him eternally.â
âOr venture into the unknown and embrace the beauty of no obligations.â
She initiates.
He eases upâŠ
Finally opening upâŠ
Going on for weeks, he too gets to learn that she was plunged into a similar situation. Thereâs someone great that she met months ago during a mission, someone she savedâŠsheâs been meaning to tell him but she didnât know howâŠ
âThey were on the same boat.â
Discussing upon ways how to break something thatâs eternalâŠ
Would it cause an anomaly?
Maybe a rift in Space-Time?
Or a breakage in the Universe?
What if the Cosmos punishes them, or worse the person theyâve been doing all this tallying and calculations forâŠ
The risk was high but worth takingâŠ
If it meant they could finally be free from this blessing-turned-curse.
Now came the part where he has to finally admit his feelings for youâŠ
âThis scared him shitlessâ,
Being tied down to Fate and Eternity to one person was something he was familiar withâsomething he thought would last for all his lives to comeâŠ
But then you appeared, as the anomalyâŠ
Like an error that could make a whole equation go wrongâŠ
A glitch in the fabric of what he thought was RealityâŠ
A new chapter added onto his storyâŠ
And he couldnât wait to write it together with youâŠ
A/N: This fic was highly inspired after reading the prompt by @chika-seno, so full credits to them, and thank you so much for writing such a wondrous inspiration. Hope you enjoy, the entire fic when itâs finished.
*TW: Angst, maybe not well written, NON!MC Reader, Reader has Anemia, heavy blood loss during periods, shouting, feeling of betrayal and heartbreak, shaking, crying, feelings of self made insecurity and rejection, self sabotage.
*Index: Narration is written in regular, small size, and italicised.
Reader speeches are white, bold and italicised.
Zayne speeches are blue, bold and italicised.
MC speeches are pink, bold and italicised.
Sylus speeches are red, bold, and italicised
Others are white and just italicised.
Thoughts are written inside single inverted commas and bold (small font), sometimes struck through.
Texts and chats have âIndentedâ font.
Call conversations are written in the âChatâ font.
Actions are written inside asterisks, white and bold.
Diary entries -will be updated-
If youâre uncomfortable with the following genre or any of the trigger warnings, then please donât read ahead.
SYLUS PLUS HOZIER SONGS IS ENOUGH TO TRANSCEND ME TO ANOTHER WORLD OF PLEASURE AND TRUST AND WHAT NOT!!!
SYLUSâŠTHAT MAN IS THE LITERAL EPITOME OF WHAT HOZIERâS SONGS SYMBOLISE!!! AT LEAST TO ME! UGHHHH THEY RESONATE SO FUCKING WELL TOGETHER! NO EVOL NEEDED!
TTâŠTT
Change my mind?
Especially Take me to Church, No Plan, Work Song, and Too SweetâŠ
These lyrics scream SylusâŠIâm giggling and cryingâ
(Some of the lyrics which literally scream Sylus to me, more than the other parts of the song)
From, No Plan
âThere's no plan, there's no kingdom to come
I'll be your man if you got love to get doneâ
âThere's no plan, there's no hand on the rein
As Mack explained, there will be darkness againâ
A gentle tune played in your ears, dragging the music with a slow, very slow pace rippling all throughout your bodiesâŠit emanated out a placid wave which were soon absorbed by the clayey moulds of your soulâŠ
âYou leapt from crumbling bridges watching cityscapes turn to dust
Filming helicopters crashing in the ocean from way above
Got the music in you, baby, tell me why
Got the music in you, baby, tell me why
You've been locked in here forever, and you just can't say goodbyeâ
You peek at him from the corner of your eye, as a form of scheduled checksâŠ
âKisses on the foreheads of the lovers wrapped in your arms
You've been hiding them in hollowed-out pianos left in the dark
Got the music in you, baby, tell me why
Got the music in you, baby, tell me why
You've been locked in here forever, and you just can't say goodbyeâ
You took in a deep breath before letting it goâŠthe atmosphere of your room seemed to shrouded in the mist of your heartbeats, as if they were resonating along with the musicâŠ
âYour lips, my lips
Apocalypse
Your lips, my lips
Apocalypseâ
Your eyes shut closedâŠas you let yourself with enveloped deep within the sensationsâŠ
âGo and sneak us through the rivers
Flood is rising up on your knees
Oh, please
Come out and haunt me, I know you want me
Come out and haunt meâ
Each lyric seemed to hold a symbolism to itself, one you couldnât decipher, so you let yourself bask in itâs open secretsâŠa strange haunting presence filled the cavities of your hearts leaving a trail of goosebumps all over your skin, as if to be a strong claim of a supernatural ongoingâŠ
âSharing all your secrets with each other since you were kids
Sleeping soundly with the locket that she gave you clutched in your fist
Got the music in you, baby, tell me why
Got the music in you, baby, tell me why
You've been locked in here forever, and you just can't say goodbye
You've been locked in here forever, and you just can't say goodbyeâ
The false ending created upon by the composition had always left you at awe whenever you would give it a listen, each time your heart fell prey to the impostorâŠcontaining something enigmatic behindâŠit was the same feeling youâre feeling right at this exact moment
Yet there seems to be a sense of perspicacity that came along with himâŠit felt so right as if you were finally listening to the song they way it was written in the stars meant only for youâŠYou knew the song had different interpretations portrayed within the chambers of different hearts⊠yours claimed that this one to be veracious.
You slide your arm closer to his proximity in hushed hopes of something discreetâŠyou felt his palm unite with yours, fingers entwining, a soft smile appeared on your lips as you opened your eyes to look at himâŠ
And just at that exact moment of tranquility, the melodies of the rain outside and the song inside became fusedâblending together in a perfectly imperfect ratio in order to create the highlights you were currently residing inâŠ
It wasnât a cosmic feeling that had been casted upon by the forces of the universeâŠ
it was earthly, ever so purely earthlyâŠ
Realisation comes crashing down like a wave during a violent storm in the oceanâŠupon the both of youâŠand how much you resonated with the following lines to comeâŠ
Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
â Live Streamingâ Interactive Chatâ Private Showsâ HD Qualityâ Free Actions
Free to watch âą No registration required âą HD streaming
Over these four months, the friendship that you two had been building was blooming ever so beautifullyâŠit made you feel great, it was something that finally finally provided yourself enough closure that youâve made tremendous progress with tackling with your past heartbreak. It made you value the friendships that you possessed, more than anything. You felt grateful to life for introducing himâŠ
Your meet-ups werenât restricted to the coffee house anymoreâŠyouâd gone to many of Linkonâs famous places, like Azure Square, Stellar Park, and many moreâŠYouâve started taking your meds and supplements on time again, began to take better care of yourselfâŠoften times youâd ponder back upon the times where you felt like everything was lost and you were left all alone in the void and painâŠyou never truly understood the value of platonic love in the life of individuals, but now you doâŠit came to your life in the form of true amityâŠYour friends, be it old or new, have helped you make progress, and where you stood now. That being said of course you didnât completely forget about the past, but you learnt to live alongside it, accepting itâŠyou finally felt alrightâŠ
âŠ.
It was a Sunday evening, the two of you were strolling around Stellar Park, the gentle breeze hitting your features, easing a soothing sensation of peace to your demeanourâŠyou had the overwhelming urge to invite him to your place and listen to songs together in peaceâŠ
Sylusâs arrival into your life has added an essence of music in your otherwise flat storyâŠyou couldnât explain it to yourself why or howâŠbut certain songs that you would play from your playlistâŠlistening alone, maybe at home, work or perhaps even at the coffee shop, you could imagine sitting with him, or chatting with him or just being in his presence while doing soâŠit was a strange sensation but it brought you calmnessâŠcalmness which youâve been yearning for too long nowâŠ
âIs there something on my face?â
âHmm?â
âYou were staring.â
âOh! Uh sorry, I didnât mean to make you uncomfortableâŠI was just lost in thoughtâŠâ
âMhm.â
âSkyeâ
âHmm?â
âCan we get some ice cream?â
âSure why not.â, he bought two ice cream cones from a nearby cart, heading back towards youâŠ
It amazed you how quickly heâd mastered the learning of your favorite ice cream flavorâŠwell it being among the many of your favorites that heâs mastered learning aboutâŠ
ââŠâ
ââŠâ
ââŠâ
âI have iron-deficiency anaemiaâ, you blurt outâŠumm girl why? Anyways you donât know whyâ
He looked at, confusion filled behind his eyes, mixed with the seasoning of worry andâŠsomething you couldnât quite decipherâŠ
âI donât know why SkyeâŠI justâŠI wanted toâŠmaybe itâs the weather or the ice creams or the lights or the stars or the breeze or whatnotâŠI wanted toâŠâ, the part of the sentence which you couldnât complete was that you felt safeâŠyou felt really safe and comfortableâŠ
He held your free hand in hisâŠand smiledâŠit was so soft, so warmâŠit made you feel all tingly and specialâŠ
âThank youâŠâ
You nodâŠyou didnât know if it was a spell that your friendship had casted upon you, but you are more vocalâŠvocal with your feelings, than you ever have been in the pastâŠespecially when you used to be withâŠ
Maybe it was just because you couldnât write anymoreâŠyou needed to have one passageway for the free flowing of your emotionsâŠ
Yet on the other hand, there were moments like right nowâŠwhen the complete contrary would take place. The two of you would barely exchange words, yet the silence would range through various emotionsâŠ
âŠ..
The next day at work, you were feeling more refreshed than ever, a smile on your face that was genuine while you hummed tunes in your head, as you did your jobâŠ
Raya looked in your direction from the Yellow Pansies section, a small smile struck her face too, these few months youâve been making impressive progress and were finally on the verge of becoming truly you againâŠwhat more could she wish for as your best friendâŠshe loved you, ever so dearly, she always wanted the best for youâŠ
An idea struck her mind as she carried a yellow pansy in her hand walking over to you at the front desk, twirling the small flowerâs soft petals against your cheekâŠwhile your fingers were effortlessly gliding over the computer keys, following their own rhythm, as you were entering in the records of the ongoing purchases and shipments to comeâŠit was a slow dayâŠyet sales went on efficientlyâŠ
âYou know what they say? A yellow pansy symbolises that someone might be/is thinking about you~ or in this case, maybe you are thinking of someone~â,
She hands you over the flower, as you gently take it and swirl it around in your fingersâŠit was so delicate to touch, so pretty to look atâŠthe grin on your face widenedâŠ
Were you thinking ofâ
âSoooo whoâs the mystery that had been spiralling all across your brain, hmm? Whoâs all this humming and rhythms for?â
âShut up.â, you giggle as you place the pansy upon the ridge where your right ear and hair met.
âNo way you have to tell meeeeeee!â
âHushhhhh!â
âCmooooon!â
âNoââ
Just then a customer came in, the two of you looked at each other and greeted them in politely like alwaysâŠ
âYes Maâam, how may we help you?â
âŠ.
By the time you got off of work, it was around 11:00âŠit was too late, especially for MondayâŠwell it all happened because the since evening you were experiencing rush hour, plus certain customers were rowdy, had to be kicked outâŠmessed up the shop, though thankfully it was all minorâŠso yep basically arranging and rearranging everything took time for all of you, aaaaand hence the lateâŠ
The streets had grown almost fully empty, with a few people here and there⊠a cold breeze came in, it was chilly it gave you goosebumpsâŠyou hated this sort of scenarioâŠ
You tried to wander your mind off of unwanted thoughts which started to preoccupy your mindâ
*ping!*
You take out your phone and your face instantly lights up.
SY-SY!
SY-SY!: Long day?
You: Yes ughh! I just got off of work like Iâm exhausted, plus on top of that, some customers were being rowdy, messed up stuff here and there thankfully it was all minor damageâŠalso not forgetting rush hour!!
You: Iâm so happy now that you texted :DD
SY-SY!: Hmm. If you ever want to teach them a nice lesson, Iâm here. All I need are the names. Even the cctv footageâs would do.
You: Oh dear Sylus donât annihilate them off of the face of the Earth!
SY-SY!: Of course not. Just a lesson well taughtâŠand making sure that it was well learnt too
SY-SY!: *nodding crow sticker*
You: I can sense the ominous tone from all the way here TT~TT
You giggle as you walk towards your apartment.
You: Heading towards my apt rnâWAIT I TOTALLY FORGOT! HOW DID YOU KNOW I HAD A LONG DAY AT WORK, ARE YOU SPYING ON ME HMMMMMMMM?
SY-SY!: âŠ
SY-SY!: You didnât know? I planted a tracker inside the ice cream we had yesterday. Now itâs inside your stomach, hence I know your every move.
SY-SY!: Iâm omnipresent.
You: NOT FUNNY SY I JSUT JUMPED AND SHRIEKED, I FEel BAD FOR MU NEIGHBOURS!
SY-SY!: *shrugging crow sticker*
You: SYLUS! IM REALLY FREAKING OUT RN! DID YOU REALLY DO IT? IS THAT WHY THE ICE CREAM HAD A METALLIC AFTERTASTE TO IT!â?
You: I CAN SEE YOU READING ALL MY MWSAAVES! (Read: 11:31 p.m.)
You: SYLUS! (Read: 11:33 p.m.)
You: SLUES! (Read: 11:33 p.m.)
You: SULUS! (Read: 11:34 p.m.)
You: SHYLOCK! (Read: 11:34 p.m.)
SY-SY!: Make more variations of my name and I might just appear at your front door sweetheart~
You: AH! THATS IT IM NOT TWLKING WITH YOU ANYMORE! (Read: 11:35 p.m.)
You didnât even freshen up as you plopped onto your couch, fingers violently tapping onto your phoneâs screen, as you dialled his number.
*ringâŠringâŠringâŠ*
*click!*
âYOU! ANSWER ME TELL ME THE TRUTH.â
âWhatâs the point the deed is over.â
âSYLUS I AM SERIOUSLY SHITTY TERRIFIED RIGHT NOW, AND I WILL CRY!â
â*sighs* Iâm sorry I was just messing with you.â
ââŠShould I trust youâŠ?â
âYesâŠNoâŠMaybe soâŠâ
âSYLUS!â
âOkay okay, I really apologise from deep within my hearts secret chambers⊠*he chuckles in that husky, fine-wine voice of hisâŠugh this manâŠ*â
âSo you were actually messing with me?â
âMhm.â
âHow do I believe you?â
âWell, a leap of faith.â
âI hate you.â
âMhm.â
ââŠâ
âTell me the real truth, howâd you know I got off late?â
ââŠItâs obvious, you text me everytime you reach and get off of work.â
âMondays, Tuesdays you get out at around 09:00-10:00 usually. Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays are hectic, and calculating up the rush hours experienced, it takes you around 11:00, like todayâŠThursdays you leave early so maybe earliest by 08:00, and Sundays are your day-offs.â
ââŠâ
ââŠâ
âWoahâŠitâs like you have my schedule memorisedâŠâ
âThat is because I do.â
Something struck the chord of your chest, emanating out a gentle humming tuneâŠyour bpm roseâŠ
ââŠâ
ââŠâ
âYou should freshen up nowâŠI know you havenât since you were too traumatised from earlier.â
âDid you have dinner? You have to take your medicines and supplements tooâ
You groaned at the memory, it was a pain to do this everydayâŠ
âYeahâŠyes I willâŠI have leftovers from yesterday, will heat em up and haveâŠâ
âMhm.â
âHow about you Sy? Did you have dinner? Or well breakfast according to your scheduleâŠâ
âAll done.â
ââŠâ
ââŠâ
âSyâŠâ
âHmm?â
ââŠâ
ââŠâ
You softly let out a ânevermindâ from your lipsâŠit was as soft as a whisper which upon falling became one with the air, hence he couldnât hearâŠ
âIâll hang up now SyâŠyou promise you truthfully didnât put any chip inside of meâŠ?â
He could tell the fear and nervousness in your toneâŠmaybe heâd taken it too farâŠhe had learnt how easily scared you could get which made you really agitated.
He spoke with a gentle toneâŠ
âI would never.â
*click*
âŠ.
SY-SY!
You: Hi! Youâre prolly sleeping since itâs noonâŠand you sleep during the day, work at night bla bla blaâŠbut ummâŠ
You: Do you wanna meet up on Thursday pretty please? Destiny Cafe? Iâm bored out of my mind :p
Sending the message, you continue having your lunch.
âSooooo whoâs this mystery person, thatâs been occupying your mind all the time these days? âPansyâ telling me?â
âOkay first of all that was a terrible pun, secondly umm wellâŠitâsâŠyou remember we went to that Jameson Auction, the big rich one for delivering the bouquets months ago?â
ââŠâ
ââŠâ
âYOU BEFRIENDED SOMEONE FROM THE N109 ZONE?! GIRL DO YOU HAVE A DEATH WISHââ
âSee this is why I wasnât telling youâstop shouting in my ear! Plus youâre getting spit all over my food!â
She took a deep breath inâŠ
âYou know you could get k*dnapped or worseâŠâ
âI know I know! But heâs not like that believe you me! Heâs sophisticated, heâs nice heâs sweetââ
âUh huh uh huh, thatâs what they all sayâŠand then one day boom youâre goneâŠâ
âLook Ray even Iâm terrified like shit sometimesâŠbut I trust himâŠI really really doâŠâ
âAnd how long have you known him?â
ââŠ4 months and more I guessâŠâ
âHow can you trust someone youâve known only for that little duration?!â
âLook I ugh! I just donât know okay? I just do! I have this immensely strong gut feelingâŠand if he wanted to harm me, he wouldâve by now, heâs had plenty of opportunitiesâŠâ
ââŠâ
âI know youâre worried about meâŠbut trust me when I say this RayâŠyou have seen me make progress right? Itâs evident upon my features right? I mean you even say that yourselfâŠand Iâm finally really happy after a long time RayâŠI donât want anything bad to happen to this friendshipâŠâ
ââŠâ
ââŠâ
âJust be carefulâŠis all I have to sayâŠand donât hesitate to call the police, the second you see somethingâs fishyâŠâ
âMhm..â
âSo whatâs his name? And what does he do, lemme guess heâs a druââ
âNO! oof! Listen! His name is Skye andââ
âThatâs a birdâs nameâŠâ, she said fully judgemental
You nod, pointing your finger onto the counter, âNow _that_ I agree with. Heâs the human version of a literal crow.â
ââŠâ
âSo he steals stuff heâs a thief?â
âWhereâs that coming froââ
âI mean you just said yourself, he is the epitome of âif crows were humansââŠand we know the behaviours of crows, always attracted to shiny thingsâŠhow many jewelleries of yours are missing?â
You were frustrated and a bit mad, âHey! Heâs not any of that okay?! Cmon! Heâs a very successful business man!â
âHeâs in the fruit selling business and heâs a very successful, fruit vendor!â, you added blurting out. Ooo you were angyâŠ
You huff and puff, when you notice the smirk on her faceâŠyou narrow your eyes, biting onto your sandwich⊠âWhatâŠ?â
âDo I smell adoration~â
âRAY!â
âCMON IS IT? IS IT? IS IT? You grew all defensive!â
âNO! Weâre just friends!â, your face grew dark crimsonâŠ
ââŠ.plus however much time may have passedâŠIâm still recovering RayâŠIâm still not completely over ZayneâŠand I donât think Iâm ready for any feelings towards anyoneâŠâ, you sighed, there was a subtle sting around your chest but your brain ignored itâŠ
She nodded, wrapping her arms around you⊠âI knowâŠI knowâŠand Iâm proud of how much progress youâve madeâŠIâm sorry I shouldnât have teased you like thatâŠbut (Name)âŠmaybe try to check for possible cues given by your heart too?â
âŠ.
âŠâNo way in heck he had 5 million from just fruit business!â
Uh ohâŠshe didnât forget the bid he raised, well it was partially your fault too you kept reminding her that nightâŠ
âWell fruits are very popular! And he has the freshest of the fresh of each stack! I mean like us!â
ââŠBabe none of us would ever go close to making that amount, even if we calculated our individual wages of ten yearsâŠâ
âItâsâŠa family businessâŠâ
ââŠWell then I might have to see the shop sometimeâŠâ
ââŠsureâ
She looked at you, as you finished locking up the shop. Cupping your face gently⊠âLook hon, I love you and hence I care for you the most, justâŠbe safe and careful okay?â
You nodâŠplacing your palms on top of her hands⊠âI promiseâŠâ
You check your phone as you walked out the shop after telling your goodbyes to RayaâŠ
SY-SY!
You: Hi! Youâre prolly sleeping since itâs noonâŠand you sleep during the day, work at night bla bla blaâŠbut ummâŠ
You: Do you wanna meet up on Thursday pretty please? Destiny Cafe? Iâm bored out of my mind :p (Delivered: 02:07 p.m.)
Your face falls slightlyâŠ
âHuhâŠhe hasnât replied yetâŠmust be busyâŠâ, you thought completely ignoring the weird sensation you felt suddenly surge through your bodyâŠ
âŠ.
Thursday soon arrives, youâve heard nothing from Sylus since TuesdayâŠ
Currently after work sitting at Destiny Cafe, in the hopes that heâd surprise you with a cameo appearanceâŠ
An hour passed, your second cup of Boba too had finished, the freshly baked star cookies and the Americano-Large, youâd ordered for him, had long gotten cold to even touchâŠ
Your worry started to grow, what if he was hurt or what if some unpleasant situation arrived or what if he was taken hostage orâ
Just then you felt a sudden tap on your shoulder, turning your head behind you saw a soft smile on his face as he subtly waved at youâŠ
Your face lit up, as if the darkness that once shrouded your countenance had been long forgotten upon his arrival. You felt giddy with glee.
âSkye!â
âMiss me?â
âYeah! Why didnât you text back? I was worried sick, I thought youâd been taken hostage or somethingâŠâ
He gave out his iconic deep husky chuckle, as he sat opposite to you, facing you, taking a cookie in his mouth, and a sip of his drink.
âWait hey theyâve gotten coldâŠâ
âDoesnât mean theyâre any less delicious. Besides you ordered them for me, itâd be a shame to let them go to waste.â
ââŠâ
âWere you really that worried about me sweetheart~?â
âYeah duh!â
âWell to ease your worries, look, Iâm in tip-top shape. And donât worry, anyone would think their upon their entire lifetime, before even having the thought directly aiming for me.â
âHmmâŠâ, you wanted to ask himâŠbut you didnât want to seem like a botherâŠ
Heâd sensed your uneasinessâŠlike always, so he continued.
âI had some things that needed to be taken care of. Itâs confidential.â
âUh oh how many people did you put to sleep foreverâŠâ
âDo you really think thatâs all I am ever capable of?â
âNo Iââ
ââŠâ
âIâm sorryâŠI didnât mean to offend you I just I got really worried and umm down that you hadnât texted backâŠI enjoy talking to you a lot SyâŠIâm so sorryâŠâ
He sighed, reaching out for your handâŠ
âMhmâŠI knowâŠso do IâŠâ
You both sat like that for sometimeâŠbasking in your silenceâŠas you stared out the window, it was a cloudy eveningâŠmaybe itâs gonna rain soonâŠ
âAnd you?â
âHmm?â, you diverted your gaze back at himâŠ
âYou got off of work early.â
âOh yeahâŠthings were taken care of and well there was no load today soooâŠI thought Iâd get out early todayâŠof course I talked to Mrs. Li before and she allowedâŠbesides Ray said sheâd handle itâŠâ
âOh that reminds me! I still have yet to introduce you to Raya! When do you wanna meet her? Pleeeeeaaaase want to meet herâŠâ, you spoke excitement reeling off of your posture. He smiled as he replied,
âAny day you would prefer.â
âOk then! Next week, Thursday, come over during closing time? Well that is if youâre freeâŠâ
âSure.â
You grinned, as your gaze went back outsideâŠit was to be raining soon, you canât let him go off like that, not when your apartment was only a few walks awayâŠbesidesâŠyou want to spend some more alone time with himâŠ
All you need now is to gather up the courage and askâŠCmon you can do it girlâŠ
âAhemâŠummâŠSkyeâŠâ
âMhm?â
âWell you see itâs gonna be raining soon and umm Iâd hate for you to go in the rain when my apartment is only just a few walks away plus you have no umbrellaââ
âI have my bike.â
ââŠway to ruin it I hate you.â, he laughed out,
âOkay okay I apologise, do go onâ
ââŠâ
âI am sincerely and deeply sorry and regretful of the choices that I had put forth. The following mistake shall not ever be repeated again in the future.â
âPffftâŠso yesâŠwhat I was gonna ask was that ummâŠdo youâŠwell do you want to come over to mine?â, there you did it, ripped the bandaid off!
âI would love to.â
âŠ
âDid you alreadyââ
âNo.â
âOr maybeââ
âNo.â
âWhat ifââ
âNo.â
âŠ
You had tidied up your bed, to make space for the both of you. Youâd even made him freshen up after you in the bathroom, where he almost knocked down your shampoos and soaps and other necessities, bonking his head onto the shelvesâŠ
âWhat the fuck?â, you rush inside the bathroomâ
âWOAH LOCK THE DAMN DOOR! AND CLEAN UP EVERYTHING YOU DAMN LAMPPOST!â, your face fully dark crimson as you run out, slamming the door shutâŠthat idiot was already in a towel and he didnât even bother to lock the door firstâŠYou heard him laugh from inside, as he locked the door.
âŠLater youâd even him given your pair of oversized pink hello kitty pyjamas that you ownedâŠyou never understood why, because they were enormousâŠand they fit him perfectlyâŠplus of course youâd made him clean and change first, because there was no way he was getting in your bed, with his outside clothes, be it however expensive.
âPffftâŠâ
âI look rather lovely and elegant.â, he stared at your mirror, a subtle smirk on his face.
âAhaha oh I wish I had a ribbon on me right now!â
âI neeeeed to take a picture!â, as you quickly fish out for your phone, opening the camera app quickly without ever waiting for his permission.
âOh! Wait!â, you rush to your closet, taking out a small round plastic box, inside which were kept, multiple tiny clips. âYou cannot say no! Now sit!â
As the both of you sat down on your bed, folding your knees, you didnât even need to ask because before you could utter heâd let his head down, within your reach for you to fasten the clips to his hair.
You happily decorated his hair with red, yellow, pink, tiny ribbon clips which contrasted oh so silly with his silvery-white coloured hairâŠ
âAhhhh I will cry you look so adorable! Waaa!â, you giggled.
*click!* one with a single of him
*click!* and the other with the two of you. Sitting together knees touching, as you leaned towards him, doing a heart pose with your fingers.
âLook it came out so good!â, you grinnedâŠbut little did you notice the warm soft smile and pair of ruby eyes, examining your every animationâŠ
Sitting down on your bed, you patted the spot next to yourselfâŠ
âMake yourself at home and comfy!â, he sat downâŠyou were about to plop down flat when he stopped you.
âHave your medicines first.â
âUghhhhhhhhhhhhhh.â
âNow.â
âFine.â, you huff as you did what he said.
âŠ
Soon you two laid down beside each other in your bed,
Lights turned off, whatever illumination was present were coming from your phone, whose screen was left onâŠ
the pitter-patter of the rain adding to the serenity of the atmosphere, both inside and outsideâŠ
Then an idea struck your mindâŠ
âSyâŠâ
âMhm?â
âDo you like songs?â
âI think you should very well know by nowâŠâ
âNo I do butâŠI mean youâre mostly into vintage and old fashioned genreâŠI have some songs which I want to make you listen as wellâŠand right now is the perfect weatherâŠI just want to be sureâŠâ
âI will cherish anything you make me listen toâŠâ
âŠthat tugged at your heartstringsâŠhe was really getting skilled at doing soâŠbut you didnât mind one bitâŠ
âThenâŠâ
As you reached for your EarPodsâŠchanging the bud of the right one, wiping it with the white cloth delicately, as you hand it to himâŠ
He puts it onâŠ
You put the left one to yoursâŠconnecting your phone with bluetooth to themâŠ
His eyes wander your every movement, as you scroll scroll scroll and tapâŠ
Welcome! Welcome to the world of Love and Deepspace where weââŠhmm? Oh? Oh they know it already? Oh wellâŠumm then hi! Skipping through the pleasantriesâŠletâs move forward! Currently we are giving you the exclusive viewpoint of the story from a different characterâŠYour usual narrator is on a break and hence Iâll be taking over.
Before we continue forth, keep in mind that, my job here is just coverage, I donât write anyoneâs stories and neither am I interested in them.
Weâre sorry for the inconveniences causedâŠ.well shall we begin then?
âââââââââââââââ
Sylus QinâŠa man feared amongst the massâŠstanding as one of the most wanted criminals for the Linkon city Police and the Huntersâ Association to get their clutches upon,
a man who held such a huge bounty over his head, it had become a historical record to keep and store maybe even in the museumsâŠYet he held not even a flicker of distress behind his ruby eyesâŠ
And the bounty? Oh please, he could pay four times the amount of that sum any day to any individual.
He was a man of many wonders and mysteriesâŠone that even the cosmos failed to unravel.
He was the writer of his own Destiny. Fate? She could never ever strike the chords of his life and was merely bound to himâŠbound to make him end up with his beloved, in every life that is there for him to come and goâŠ
Soon arrived that one fateful day in his current life, the one which he had eagerly waited on for eons to befallâŠmany months ago, his first meeting with herâŠ
âŠ.
He had returned from a long hiatus, even unknown by his own organisation about his whereaboutsâŠ
she had come to the N109 Zone for investigations to be carried out about himself and OnychinusâŠ
The place which was deemed to be perpetually lawless, the place where even the Huntersâ Association hesitates to peep into, she had comeâŠ
When his eyes met hers for the âfirstâ time, he could strongly conclude that she hadnât changedâŠnot one bitâŠ
âŠ.
She was a Deepspace Hunter now huh? When he saw her,
his breaths yearned for hers,
his touch yearned for hers,
his heart yearned for hersâŠ
his soul yearned for hersâŠ
but he kept his composure, his pride, he had an image to upholdâŠ
His heart had ached, the pain flashed upon his face for a fraction of a nanosecond, disappearing soon after within the depth of his soulâŠwhen the shopkeeper had told him the reason why they couldnât Resonate with their EvolsâŠ
âŠshe was disgusted by himâŠ
âŠ.
Soon after the Auction, heâd let her go, after giving her the answer she came to look forâŠpartially
But did he have any ulterior rational motive? maybe it was to give her time to remember him? To recognise him?
âŠ.
Familiarity began to breach itâs way through within themselves, when heâd first crashed a visit at the Karaoke Bar, sheâd went with her work friendsâŠ
âŠ.âOh my god MC whoâs this hottie?â
âYeah how does he know you~?â
âIs that your boyfriend~?â, came by the fleeting questions once heâd sit at their table, talking to herâŠ
Heâd hear the obvious irritation in her tone, that means he did his job rightâŠ
âŠ.âHi! Iâm Tara, one of MCâs colleagues and good friends! *giggles* she never introduced you to us, who might you be?â, chimed in one from the table. She had short-brown-flowy hair upto her shoulders, and was honestly adorable, even he had to agree to some extent.
âSkyeâyou may call me as her âBestieâââŠ
âŠ.She groaned, her friends laughed, the smirk on his face stayedâŠhe was enjoying it too muchâŠ
They shared a duet.
For her, it was simply a song sung among two people, trying their best to make it mellifluous.
To him, it was an epiphany, a symbolism of the caricature that though space-time were ever changing; she was his forevermoreâŠ
âŠ.
A single meeting turned to two, then three, maybe even four or five, he never kept count, heâd always be overjoyed towards any small update that she pressed onto him of herself. She could talk for days, even weeksâor months, and he would hear her, hear the woman whose voice was the sole form of music to his tone-deaf lifeâŠ
âŠ.
It was a long work day for Onychinusâs boss,
having five business deals to go to,
an auction to attend,
He didnât care about any of the following, but he would have to go, go for the sake of âupliftment of Onychinusâs reputationâ, as some would often termâŠ
As if people were blissfully aware of what Onychinus was, or capable of doingâŠ
An abandoned construction site, at the corner of a narrow lane? It was the same place, most chose and yet they talked of how secretive their working methods were when he could clearly tell.
He scoffed internally, frankly this all was a waste of his time⊠They barely ever knew the basics about business in the N109 Zone, and they had the audacity to approach him. He had never once chosen the same place to meet for work purposes, only mediocrities would make that mistake. He listened to each dealer for a maximum of two seconds, before calling in the other. He knew they all were useless. This was useless.
âŠ.
Upon returning back to his base, he heaves out a tired sighâŠ
he gestures at Luke and Keiran, his trusted henchmen, to take care of the stuff⊠âYes bossman!â. He had enough faith them, he knew they could handle the job properly.
Right nowâŠhe needed some rest, it was a long day.
Even the leader of Onychinus gets tiredâŠ
âŠ
âŠ
âŠ
*ping!*
It was a notification, from the Mephisto app,
Oh. Whoâs Mephisto you ask? Well, Mephisto was his âcompanionââŠIt was the mechanical droneâŠa mechanical drone shaped like a crow to be precise, a product of intricate craftsmanship, engineering and metal... Sylus was proud of him, although he would never admit that out loud.
âŠ
âDestiny Cafe, huh?â
He wondered, having employed his mechanical crow to âkeep tabsâ upon his beloved and her everyday lifeâŠfor âsafety purposesââŠ
Well in short, the mechanical bird nearly followed her every step, where she goes when sheâs free, what she does after leaving work, what condition sheâd be in after a Wanderer fight or some other field mission, does she drink? Who that annoyingly clingy blonde colleague of her is, always falling asleep with his head on her shoulder whenever he gets the chance. Who that overtly handsomeâŠwait no noâŠumm, what he meant wasâŠ
Whoever that overtly boring doctor friend she had at Akso, wasâŠ
Even when she was hired to be a body guard for a certain famous artist, he would roll his eyesâŠ
Was she aware of this? For a long time now.
Did she care? No.
Was it creepy? Maybe.
Would he give a shit? N-a-h.
At least he isnât some old family-friend, the type to secretly, plant a chip onto her and watch her every move, without her consent.
*ping*!
KITTEN đ±
Kitten đ±: I see Mr. Caw Caw just watching me while I try to drink my coffee.
Kitten đ±: If you miss me so much why not just come and visit me.
Kitten đ±: *location sent*
Kitten đ±: Oh and donât be late, you know how particular I am about punctuality.
She was feisty, and he loved every bit of it.
Sylus: Reaching in 20.
âŠ.
That was the first time, he ever went to Destiny CafeâŠhe knew there was a popular cafe in Linkon, but he didnât bother upon learning the nameâŠhe didnât need to, well that is until nowâŠ
âDestiny Cafe huh Kitten? What is so special about this place that draws you in?â
âOkay! First of all the menu and the quality of each product here is heavenly! Plus, I mean look around, the aesthetics, whatâs not to like???â
âNow donât tell me the Skye, has never ever drank coffeeâŠâ
She teased, as she poked at his chest. Such audacity, if it were anyone else, a bullet would go right through their head before they couldâve even adhered upon the thoughtâŠ
âIâve had my fair share of coffee, I need it to function smoothly, besides I hope youâre not forgetting that I sleep during the day and work during the night, I need tonnes of caffeine kitten.â
âOh yeah, sometimes I forgetâŠitâs as if youâre Batman or something.â, he had memorised every little detail about her.
Even simple conversations like such echoed throughout his heart like a loud boom. Every moment with her was a moment, worth living for. She was the sole purpose of his life in this timeline, and every other timeline that was to comeâŠ
âŠ.
His eyes used to wander throughout her entire form, while she talks with her friends, her colleague(s), even her primary care physicianâŠand the artist that hired her as his bodyguard.
The number of people she was acquainted with seemed to know no bounds, perhaps it was all in her charmâŠ
He had always been a keen and observant man, hence the reason he could oh-so minutely tell the differences throughout her personality as she talked to the various people revolving around her in lifeâŠ
Her eyes held lyrical allegories behind them, as if each significant man were a note in the composition that upon uniting with her would result in the formation of a holistic melodyâŠ
His mind would often start to wander at intervalsâŠdid he truly know her?
âŠ
âAn auction?â
âMhm.â
âAnd why do I have to go again?â
âA partner would increase the increase the reputations of Onychinus.â
âAnd since when do you care about that?â
She was rightâŠhe didnâtâŠhe wouldnât even attend them beforeâŠ
But now having been reunited with her again, he had the overwhelming urge to show her offâŠ
It was silly, silly for the leader of Onychinus, one of the most feared, top and respected organisations of the N109 Zone, Sylus Qin to feelâŠsmittenâŠsmitten towards his beloved from his past lifeâŠwho barely even recognised him now.
What would he even form an answer with? He was left speechless. It was a pleasant feelingâŠ
ââŠâ
âItâs not obligatory for you to accompany me kitten.â
His tone wasâŠdisappointed?
She smirked, adding upon the final touch-up to her outfit for the night before she emerged out of her room.
âWho said I wouldnât go?â, she pulled him closer by his dusk wood, strapped tieâŠ
âI have to go, especially when the boss of Onychinus is beingâŠthis submissive~â, she lets go, walking towards her front doorâŠ
She knew she had him in her clutches, and he knew he wouldnât ever dream of escaping even if he couldâŠhe wanted to drown himself within her presenceâŠ
Oh and did he speak of how she looked?
Maybe itâs best that he leaves it within himselfâŠsince no word would be even close to becoming eligible enough to describe how ethereal she looked as the moon shone itâs gleam down upon her, making her glowâŠas if she was one with the cosmosâŠ
âWhat are you staring at? Letâs go.â,
Oh what a mess she had made out of himâŠ
âŠ
âMay I have this dance mâlady?â, he bowed, holding out his palm in front of herâŠ
âI would be a fool to reject an offer from the leader of Onychinus himselfâŠâ, she placed her gloved palm onto hisâŠ
The rhythm was slow, yet familiarâŠtoo familiarâŠas if it felt like homeâŠhome? What was the concept of a âhomeâ? He had never had a home beforeâŠmaybe in Tarus cityâŠbut that never truly felt like home, not until heâd gotten to know herâŠ
She was his home, his identityâŠshe named him âSylusâ, made him the one who stands upon the Earth todayâŠ
The two of them were an amalgamation of one anotherâŠtheir hearts were one, desires were one, souls were oneâŠone with each otherâŠ
his existence held no meaning without herâŠ
She twirled gracefully in his arms, the both of them dancing to the melody breathed down upon them by the universeâŠ
It was specialâŠit was cosmicâŠit was meant to beâŠit was destinedâŠ
They fit in each otherâs arms like two puzzle pieces finally united to complete itâs holistic configurationâŠ
Sylus was devoid of religion, but she was holyâŠand he had to worship herâŠ
His movements, dipped her down, faces merely inches apart as they stared into each otherâs eyes, trying to interpret one anotherâs intentionsâŠ
âŠ
he took the callâŠit was too earlyâŠstillâŠshe needed timeâŠ
âŠ
Strolling along the grass in the park, the drizzles from the water fountain, hitting their faces.
âSee I told you itâs fun!â, she giggled.
He smiled, he always didâŠ
Often times heâd die from the inside all over again, just to tell her about everything and their past, to check if sheâd remember or recallâŠ
âI never disagreed with you kitten.â
He feels like his thoughts donât make sense, as if they ambiguous and scattered all across the placeâŠ
Thoughts? He never used to have thoseâŠhe had them reservedâŠreserved for his belovedâŠand now that she was finally with him, heâll let his feelings flow freeâŠ.
He was like the ebb and flow of the tides, she was his moon, causing the natural phenomena with the pull of her gravitational force of attractionâŠ
âŠ
They sit down on the bench, cotton candies in hands. Strawberry for her, cherry for himâŠ
âWant a taste kitten?â
âDonât mind if I do~â, as she took a big bite out of hisâŠ
He let out a hearty chuckle, the tone filled with nothing but love and devotion.
âŠ.
Her smile widened as she texted on her phoneâŠ
Was he curious? Maybe.
But itâs her privacy and whenever she feels right she would tell himâŠ
âŠ
âOh ZayneâŠâ
âHmm?â
âOh it uhhâŠâ
âYour primary care physician?â
âYeahââ
âI ummâŠI usually as before youâve noticed was used to calling him âDr. ZayneââŠwell I guess I should tell you thisâŠhe and I used to be childhood friends, and weâre catching up, have gottten more closerâŠso first name basisâŠâ
âMhm.â
âIs that okay?â
âWhy wouldnât it be?â
âI just thoughtâŠnevermindâŠâ
âŠ
âŠ.âHe got a new girlfriend! Iâm so happy for himâŠâ
Oh but she wasnât, Sylus was a keen and observant manâŠhe could easily tellâŠ
âŠ
He had envisioned plansâŠtoo many plans and imageries upon how their future would look like, feel likeâŠall up in his head, like record labels, each one with a different genre and taste, yet the base remains constantâŠ
Everything was pitch perfectâŠ
Too perfectâŠ
âŠ.
24/XX/2048(Tuesday)
Kitten đ±: Sorry Sy canât meet up tonight! I am having dinner with Zayne. See you soon, bye! (Read at 2030 hours)
26/XX/2048(Thursday)
Kitten đ±: Hi Sylus! I am so so so sorry I forgot about our meet-up, actually me and Zayneâ (Read at 2240 hours)
31/XX/2048(Tuesday)
Kitten đ±: Sylus I am so so sorryâ (Read at 2100 hours)
13/XX/2048(Friday)
Kitten đ±: Sylusâ
(Read at 0306 hours)
And so many more text messages like this carried on like a string laced with poisonâŠhe began to observe her around himâŠshe wasâŠhappier, livelierâŠnothing seemed forcedâŠit all felt naturalâŠtoo naturalâŠ
The warmth that she held in her eyes, in her soul for him, was differentâŠdifferent from all the others heâs observedâŠit was realâŠit was pureâŠit was rawâŠ
How did he know? He was a keen observer after allâŠ
He stopped sending Mephisto out for herâŠhe felt weirdâŠsomething he couldnât comprehend or explainâŠhe wasnât supposed to feel like thisâŠhe was Sylus Qin, the leader of OnychinusâŠ
Sheâd left him devoid of his logical domainâŠhis cognition failed to provide him with a calculative evaluationâŠ
âŠ
âBossman, are you okay?â, Luke and Keiran askedâŠthey were worriedâŠâultra worriedâ as theyâd often term itâŠtheyâd never seen their boss like thisâŠhe seemed miserable, although he was a master at concealment.
He gave a nod, as he continued cleaning his weapons, checking out his gun in his armory, laptop wide openedâŠ
They looked to each other, then left him aloneâŠ
âŠ.
She was an art piece, and whoever created her⊠must have loved her deeplyâŠbut she wasnât his Magnum OpusâŠ
He saw their love, with his own eyesâŠit was as exquisite as aged-wineâŠas pure as a melody composed form within depths of their soulsâŠit was a melody heard upon by everyone wherever they wentâŠ
but he was tone-deafâŠ
However much he tried to keep himself composed, at the end of the dayâŠ
He was only manâŠcaptured within the green eyes of JealousyâŠ
The Sylus Qin was known to be omniscient, yetâŠhe couldnât decipher out his own belovedâŠ
She was his springâŠthe Persephone to his HadesâŠ
But she never fell prey to the pomegranate seeds, hence she was never bound to himâŠ
It was after all only just an illusionâŠ
âŠ.
Her feet were never meant for to touch the groundâŠher being was too holy to be cradled by the Earth and it impuritiesâŠshe was one with the cosmosâŠ
All she knew was to fly and float highâŠ
He grew tired of itâŠtired off the endless fall that he was fallingâŠhe needed gravityâŠgravity to drag him back down onto the groundâŠ
Hello everyoneee! This is gonna be Thoughts part-5!
Thinking about a Spoof!: Caleb x fem reader (can be either MC or NON!MC, as one may interpret it)
OkâŠ
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đšđš18+ MDNI (MINORS DO NOT INTERACTđšđš
TW: NSFWâŠ
Lemon lemon lemonâŠ
Sesbian lex(?).
Fingering.
Eating out.
Punishments.
Mention of orgasms.
Use of pet-names and titles.
Reader and Caleb are both taken to be Bisexual for this fic.
Implied bondage play.
Degradation kink⊠(use of the word s*ut).
Magic exits in this world of Love and Deepspace. Caleb doesnât believe in it, but you do.
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đšIf you are uncomfortable with any of the mentioned content warnings or the whole genre of this ficâŠthen please do not proceed ahead. Thank you.đš
It was a long ass day at the Fleet, filled with missions, meetings, surveillances over areas and the Deepspace Tunnel and what notâŠhe was tired, exhausted evenâŠ
Plus only a few days ago, he had returned from a 5-day long Mission with his crewâŠplus the weather conditions were horrible out there that they had to remain on stand-by for almost an extra day and a halfâŠ
But right now, that he was back homeâŠhe didnât want to think of anything else but youâŠonly youâŠreturning back to SkyHaven was only worth it because you were there waiting for him all the timesâŠ
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The time was around 04:00 in the morning when he softly unlocked the front door to enter⊠âPipsqueakâŠ?â, he silently treaded the room, only to see you were long asleep on his bed under coversâŠhugging the apple plushie, along with a picture of himâŠHe smiledâŠyou were so cuteâŠhe wished upon for the moment to never endâŠ
After placing a gentle and delicate kiss upon your forehead, he quietly and carefully, grabbed his usual comfort clothes, which he wore at home from the closet, going to the bathroom to changeâŠ
After he was done changing he went to the kitchen, turning on the lights to get himself a drinkâŠmaybe he wasnât too carefulâŠas the noise resulted in you awakening from your slumberâŠ
âŠ
He opened the door to his fridge, when a purple liquid, a bit sparkly, poured inside one of the glasses, filled to half, the brim of the glass covered with an airplane coasterâŠthe ones that you had gifted him just like that, because you wanted toâŠ
Curiosity sparked within him as he took it outâŠeven though it seemed like grape juice, but what grape juice is that sparkly?
âŠâŠ.
You had woken up, from some noises coming from the kitchenâŠa part of you alert that someone might have broken in, but the other part thought maybe Caleb had finally returnedâŠrubbing your eyes, and stretching a bit, you get up on your toes, gently putting your plushie back under covers, as you treaded towards the kitchen yawningâŠ
âMmmâŠmmmâŠCalebâŠ?â
âOh heyâŠdid I wake you up? SorryâŠâ, holding the glass close to his mouth
âNoâŠnoâŠitâs alrigâWAIT NO CALEB DONT DRINK THATââ
Too late, he already did.
âŠâŠ.
âWoah woah woah, calm down Pipsqueak, whatâs wrong?â
âNO NO NO YOU DRANK IT FULL!â
âYou werenât supposed toâŠat least not yet!â
âWhat do you meanâŠwhat is in this?â
âWell ummâŠâ
âPoison???â
âDuh no! Itâs well ummâŠitâs a wellâŠa potionâŠâ
âPotionâŠâ
âYeah, it basically turns people into their opposite sex, I got it from the Apothecary and Witchcraft store thatâs located down the side lane at Azure Square.â
âPips you drunkâŠ? Or did you sleep too much that your brain is still dreaming?â
âWhaaat! You donât believe me the lady said it will!â
ââŠ.yep Im definitely getting a bad stomach tomorrowâŠâ
âJust you wait till it takes effect on you!â
âGo to bed (Name)âŠâ
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The next day when you woke up, went to the kitchen for breakfast right after freshening upâŠ
âSoooooo feel anything different???â
âYes I feel like Iâm cultivating breasts and maybe my cock is getting transformed into a vaginaâŠâ
âYou know what it will happen! I bet!â
âOh you bet on it?â
âYeah 100 bucks by midnight.â
âYouâre on pipsqueak.â
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It was almost around midnight, when you called out to him, âCALEB! BITCH COME OUT LETS WATCH A MOVIE!â
no response
So you get up and go to his bedroomâŠ
âCaleb whereââ
You walked inside of his bedroom to see him looking horrified into the mirror.
âWhat the actual fuck! What!â
âTold ya~â,
âCmon up, pay the piper Calebâor should I sayâŠCarly~â as he paced around the room, all twirlyâŠ
She looked so pretty with her long eye-lashes and her pretty purple eyesâŠthe necklace that you had gifted him, travelling down her neck like a ripple on the seaâŠ
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You eyes roamed all over hisâher body, the way her now oversized tee, dropped all the way down to her bust, exposing the fine valleyed-line along her cleavageâŠthe way her long luscious dark brown hair went all the way down to her slick backâŠthe way her curves became ever so prominentâŠshe looked tantalisingâŠand oh lord her thighsâŠthank the heavens that she was wearing shorts tonightâŠ
Your eyes wandered down to her ass, along the curve of it, then at the front to herâ
You bit your lip, you were no better than a manâŠ
Then a thoughtâŠan urge struck your mind like a lightning boltâŠyou quickly take out your phone, opening the camera and selecting the video option. You took out your selfie stick from the bedside drawer and place it on the dressing table, fastening your phone in its clutches as you hit record.
As you walk over to herâŠ
âPips youâve got to helpâmmf!â
You kissed herâŠhard, hands trailing down her back in a painfully slow rhythm,
as they reached her ass,
kneading the soft fleshâŠ
making her let out a soft moan into the kiss,
your tongue delved deep inside of the warm wet crevices inside of her mouthâŠ
âŠ..
She tried to take control,
but you wouldnât let herâŠnot tonightâŠ
as your tongues battled with each other for dominance, resulting in you finally winningâŠ
You pushed her down onto the bed,
spreading her thighs as you knee at her clothed pussy,
grinding your knee against it,
while your head dipped down to marking as many love bites as possibleâŠ
Your hands, went down to her breasts,
fondling with them, and squeezing themâŠ
thumb rubbing and rolling over her nipple through her teeâŠ
All she could do was moan and moan and moanâŠmoan out your nameâŠout loud.
âŠ
Your hands messily grabbed onto her tee âArms up.â, you command, voice laced with lust and dominance.
She followedâŠlike a puppyâŠ
âGood girl~â, you said, your voice low and deep.
Your hands roughly took off the clothing, while your mouth moved down to her breasts, lavishing each one with the perfect amount of attention and careâŠ
Your tongue lapped around her right boob, sucking and biting onto her nipple,
While your hand took care of the other..
âLook at these pretty tits for meâŠâ, you slapped them, hard watching them bounce.
âAhh ahh P-Pipsqueak! Nghh! More please!â,
âHmm? What was that Colonel?â
âPlease please more! Feel sâ good sâ good!â, your mouth continued its pace and job, determined to fill up her upper body in hickeysâŠ
âŠ
âNot so much of a pipsqueak now am I~?â
âŠ
âStrip.â
She nodded, quickly kicking off her shorts and boxers, to all the way.
âGood girlâŠare you tired?â
âNoâŠnoâŠcan handle m-moreâŠâ
You smirked as you went to the cupboard, opening it up searching for somethingâŠ.found it!
It was the pretty pastel pink lacy pair of panties that you owned, but never once usedâŠ
âPut it on.â
She did, struggling, as her wet slick stuck to the fabric, creating an irritating and sticky sensationâŠ
âLay back down.â
âIâmâŠIâm so gonnaâŠget back at you Pipsqueak just you waitâahh~!â
You hands slapped onto her breasts, noticing them bounce up and down againâŠ
âYou have a big mouth for someone who currently possesses no control Colonel~ But Iâll let it slideâŠjust for this once~â
As you spread her legs, your head dropping down in between her thighs, as your nose rubbed against the wet patch on the panties, breathing in deeplyâŠ
âMmmfâŠCal you smell so goodâŠâ
She moaned and moaned, her fingers entangling within your hair, her thighs quivered, while you planted hickeys and kisses on both of them at equal intervalsâŠsucking and trailing your tongue up and down the marks.
âŠ.
âNghhh! Pips please s-stop teasingâŠâ
âPatience babesâŠall comes in good timeâŠâ, your fingers continued to play with the waistband of her pantiesâŠwhile your other hand cupped her clothed pussy, pressing onto it.
She groaned furtherâŠ
âFeel that ColonelâŠif you can be a bully in bed thenâŠso can I~â
âGosh just please!â
âWhatâs the magic wooooord~â
âŠ
âFuck meâŠâ
âThere it isâŠgood girlâŠâ, you slipped off the panties in a slow but steady manner, finally tossing them somewhere on the groundâŠ
âMoan. My. Name. And remember eyes on the mirror, want you to watch yourself pretty girl~â
Your tongue finally lapped round her clit, sucking at her sensitive nub so so sloppily.
âAhh! Ahhh! Oh fuck! (Name)! (Name)! Fuck so good!â,
Your hair came in the way, shouldâve tied it up before, you thought.
Pulling away from between her legs, you reach for your hair tie, pulling your hair up into a neat tight bun, before delving back inâŠ
âFuck youâre so hot ahhh!â
âŠâŠ.
You continue your slow rhythm, tongue delving into her folds, sucking up her slick while your fingers teasing along her dripping entrance.
Her hands grip tightly onto the bed sheets for dear life, while her eyes close from the pleasureâŠ
You stop the stimulation as she groans.
âHey hey I said eyes on the mirrorâŠwatch yourself for meâŠwatch how sl*tty you are for me ColonelâŠâ
âI see your eyes closed again, Iâll stop and lock you up for the night, cuffed to the bed and blindfolded. Is that understood?â
âY-YesâŠâ
You slapped at her cunt, her body jerking at the sensation.
âYes what?â
âYes MaâamâŠâ
âThatâs more like itâŠNow watch.â
She did, barely able to keep her eyes onto the mirror, while you carry on your workâŠ
The rhythm of your tongue unsteady, often times slowing down and then getting fast again. She hated how much she loved thatâŠ
âNo coming until and unless I say so.â
ââŠâ, she moaned, while you slapped her cunt again.
âWords.â
âY-yes Maâam!â
âŠ.
You finally pushed two fingers inside of her drooling holeâŠas she screamed out your name.
âFuckkâŠso tight for me babeâŠlook at youâŠso fucking tightâŠcanât even move my fingersâŠyou like em so much you sl*t?â, as you pump your fingers in and our of her, quickening your pace along with each dragging motionâŠ
âLook at you taking my fingers so so wellâŠwonder how many you can takeâŠcan you take a whole fist Colonel?â
All she was now reduced to was a moaning and withering mess, chanting your name as if it was the only word she knew in the dictionaryâŠher moans filled the entire room up with a melody, you know you could never forget ever againâŠ
It was like a drugâŠwho wouldâve known you could reduce CalebâŠto thisâŠ
You felt pride, beaming within yourselfâŠ
âŠ.
âYeahâŠthatâs itâŠâ
â(Name)! OH FUCK!â, she screamed out, once your fingers hit her g-spotâŠ
âHit the spot huh? How long till you come babe?â
âAhh! Ahhh!â
She couldnât answer, she and transcended to another realm of ecstasy and euphoriaâŠ
âI want an answer Colonel, else Iâll stopâŠâ
She managed somehow, âs-so so closeâŠcloseâŠâ
âYeah? Cmon babeâŠcome for meâŠcome all over my fingersâŠmake them messyâŠâ
As you quickened your pace to the max, hitting her spot at every secondâŠ.
She couldnât hold in anymore, sheâd reached her highâŠ
She came all over your fingersâŠscreaming your nameâŠ
The noise filled the room, as you slowly yet steadily lower your pace, getting her out of her highâŠ
âThatâs itâŠthatâs a good girlâŠâ
âŠ..
Your fingers glistened with her juicesâŠ
âLook at the mess you made ColonelâŠwhat would the other Fleet officers and your subordinates say if they ever found out, what Iâve made out of youâŠhow messy you are in bedâŠâ, repeating along the same lines he always uses with you in bed..
Youâve just changed the phrases and added more flavour into itâŠ
She pants and pants and pants, devoid of her ability to form even a single coherent wordâŠ
You tongue lapped around one of your fingers, sucking onto itâŠ
âTaste so goodâŠwanna taste?â
You shoved your other two fingers inside of her mouth, as she sucked onto them, tasting herself on your fingersâŠ
âYeah you like em, can tell how good you taste canât you?â
âŠ.
You stood up reaching for the blindfold from your dresserâŠ
âOh but weâre faaaar from done yetâŠâ
âWell Iâll be damnedâŠâ, soon everything went as dark as the void in space, for herâŠ
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You gave her a few more orgasmsâŠbefore being finally doneâŠ
âNow that was the perfect midnight snack~â
âŠ..
You giggle, âCan you walk?â
âYou think?â
âPfffffft! Lmao!â
âSeriously? This is what you say after that?!â, she glares at you.
âItâs funny if you think about it Caleb! I mean now you know how I feel!â
âAm I really this mean in bed?â, she gives you puppy dog eyes, and poutsâŠ
âWell maybeâŠbut then youâre again all snuggly and cuddly during aftercareâŠâ
âWill you be the same for me?â
âOf courseâŠâ, you pecked her noseâŠ
âBut first letâs get you cleaned up!â
âOh andââ, you whisper to her ear⊠âNext timeâŠIâm using a strap~â
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Bonus: You returned back around noon. He was cooking lunch, as you called out to him in a sing-song voice. âOhhhhhhhh Caaaaalebbb~â, he turns to look behind, to notice both your hands full with two plastic bags⊠one contained twenty bottles of that same potionâŠand the other was a long purple silicone toyâŠ
The coming days have beenâŠwellâŠweird for you, you still did harbour thoughts of Zayne and MC together, crying often at times, but another new thing had occupied your mind as wellâŠYou just couldnât get the man you saw at the auction, you couldnât explain how but it definitely had piqued your interest, and you allowed it to infiltrate your mindâŠit was a pleasant distraction from your constant thoughts about Zayne and MC, after so longâŠ
If only you remembered his name, if only your memory didnât suck
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âŠâOi whyâve you been so distracted these days? Is it about Zayne again?â âHmm? Oh no no Iâm goodâŠâ âWell if you say soâŠbut donât shut me out again k? I missed thisâŠâ âOf course, would never make that dumb mistake all over againâŠâ âWell that being said, customer at the Daisies section, is nagging she canât find a single good one, handle it with me?â âTo the rescue lets!â
âŠâWhen are you planning on taking your CBC and Haemoglobin tests again?â âI will I willâŠâ âWhen?? Dude youâve already neglected your health enough, and who knows how much youâve bled when you were at your lowestâŠnow that youâve been doing a bit betterâŠat least I hopeâŠget them, you need to checkâŠplus I know itâs hard but heâs a busy man, he might not be available when your appointment date gets fixedâŠâ, all you could do I nod, âYeah youâre rightâŠIâll goâŠâ
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âŠWhen you reached back home that day, your mind pondered about what Raya had said earlier, she was right, you have been planning on it for sometime too, but there was always that part that told you to stay awayâŠIt is Akso after all, and the last thing you want is seeing, them together, holding hands, talking and chatting, her giggling alongside him, going out to lunch or dinner, maybe even dessertâŠtriggering your past memories⊠You thought itâd have been a better choice if they had a complete online, no-call appointment process, but they didnâtâŠyou had to talk to Serene for that⊠ohohoho it was gonna be hella awkward, itâs been five months and neither have you gone there nor talked to any of them. You felt bad, too bad for doing that to SereneâŠespecially Yvonne, you two clicked so well. As you change and freshen up, getting ready to prepare for dinner, you phone beside you, contemplating on whether to dial or not. âItâs for my health! I should just do itâŠcmon cmon cmonâŠâ, you repeated to yourselfâŠaaaand well good job you finally did. Dialling the number, you put it on speaker, while you made dinner. It wasnât too late, around 08:45, like you usually return on Tuesdays. Hopefully they pickâ
*click*
âHello this is the reception desk of Akso Hospital, how may we help you?â
ââŠ.Yes Maâam sure, let me check her schedule onceâŠshe has appointments all dayâŠso could you come at around sayâŠ06:00 to 06:30 p.m.?â
âOkay sure, that works for me. Thank youâŠWhere should I proceed with the payment?â
ââŠ.Yes Maâam sure, let me check her schedule onceâŠshe has appointments all dayâŠso could you come at around sayâŠ06:00 to 06:30 p.m.?â
âOn that day itself. Youâve had your registrations done on your number, so all you need to do is speak to the front desk of the specific department, pay your consultation fees and wait till they call you. Standard procedures.â
âThank youâŠâ you want to ask but are too nervousâŠ
âYouâre welcome, is there anything else we can assist you with?â
ââŠHow have you been?â
ââŠAlright, same old same oldâŠyou? Weâve been missing you, didnât think youâd totally cut off tiesâŠâ
âIâm sorry, it just, you knowâŠâ
âYeah I knowâŠanyways Iâd have to cut the call now, but see you on Sunday?â
âYes yes thank you, on Sunday.â
âOh dear Iâm gonna get a looong lecture from Dr. StryxâŠâ
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âŠyou eat while your mind goes back to wandering about that man you saw at the auctionâŠwhat intrigued you the most were his eyes and the power they held in themâŠhis nameâŠyou still couldnât recall⊠âSomething with an S? Yea yes SâŠbut S what?â
________________________
âŠSunday evening arrives soon, time feels as if itâs passing by too fast, you dreaded today, neither did you want to go, nor get the check upâŠyou sigh as you enter through the automatic doors of Akso, and insideâŠit was like any other usual day, patients, doctors and nurses here and there, stretchers, wheelchairs, the familiar smell of antiseptic, youâd grown used to at some point in your life, but now it all felt too foreign. You smile and greet Serene, as she does too, and walk to your designated place. Fingers crossed hoping you donât run into you-know-who.
âŠOof finally you were done with it, she told you to take care of yourself better and take every medicine and supplement on time, giving two new ones to start with and advised you to continue with your old ones as prescribed before. Writing about the tests to be done in your prescription. Now the question remains when should you do them and with whomâŠMaybe youâll take the break on the first half on a Saturday and take Raya alongâŠyou hate needlesâŠAs you walk along the escalators to the ground floor guess who you run into!
Uh ohâŠ
â(Name)âŠitâs been so long, how are you holding up?â
She really had the audacity to ask you that? After everything? Sheâs nice and you admire that about her, but often times sheâs just too nice, and that annoys the heck out of you. Your eyes meet his for sometime as you soon move your gaze awayâŠoh it was gonna bother you tonightâŠ
You smile politely, âIâve been alright thank you. If youâll excuse me Iâll have to leave nowââ
âOh⊠ok alrightâŠ.take careâŠâ, as you leave without sparing them a second glanceâŠ
________________________
Why did you have to meet them? You were finally making progress little by little, but then this happensâŠYes you understand you were at the hospital where he workedâŠbut still why why whyâ
You thoughts wander haywire, âWhere were they going, to get coffee? Or maybe early dinner? Maybe to a sweet shop or bakeryâŠhe looked so calm, his gaze was so soft with herâŠnever was the same with meâŠno no no Iâve had enoughâŠI canât not now, not when Iâve been making gradual progressâŠshould I call Raya, sheâs not offf work yetâŠughâŠâ, as you desperately try to shove away any past memories cluttering your mind. You walk ahead and straight, setting your destination to Destiny Cafe, somewhere in the mess in your brainâŠ
You reach the shop, hoping that they wonât be coming hereâŠas you enter, eyes scanning the place, they werenât thereâŠphew... Your eyes stop their search as they fall upon a similar pair of slanty-sharp red eyes, silvery white short hair, and a tallâŠtoo too tall of a figure sitting at the table by the windows, scrolling through his phone, even though his eyes stared down at his phone, you could see the familiar strong presence emanating from within them, that was how powerful their color was. Oh it was himâŠit was him it was him it was himâŠ
You get the sudden urge and curiosity to walk upto him and talk maybe introduce yourself and a word or two? Why? Again you had no answer for yourself, it was something in those eyes that drew you inâŠYou walk in, because of course you canât hog the doorway forever, customers enter and exit at all timesâŠwalking up to the counter you place an order for your usual Boba-drink and find a place to sit, not at your usual, but just a table behind him so that he couldnât see youâŠgirl youâre seeming like a creepy stalker stopâŠSoon you come back with your drink, have it while still contemplating. âShould I go or should I not go?â
Finally as I push you with my words, an invisible urge strikes inside of you, making you stand at your seat and walk over to his tableâŠfuck your palms and feet were sweatingâŠ
âŠ
âŠ
âŠ
âUmm excuse me, helloâŠâ, his eyes fleet up at you, a color of nonchalance painted all over his face. He doesnât seem like the type to initiate a conversation, you thought, so you went ahead.
âHi! Umm Iâm so sorry if I just came here out of nowhere, I usually donât do so promise me, and Iâm so so sorry if itâs creepy, I donât mean any of that. I really just wanted to have a small conversation with youâŠI umm I donât think you remember meâwell of course you donât, there were a lot too many people thereâŠanyways what Iâm trying to get at is I guess, umm I was at the Banquet Hall of Mr. Jamesonâs last to last week, I saw you thereâŠwell actually what happened was that me and my friend, we were there for a delivery service, and he told us to enjoy the nightâŠI donât know why I just told you thatâŠbut yes so I uhh, we were about to leave and I didnât want to leave before I could see the one of the famous things of an Auction event, the bidding so we stayed for sometimeâŠAnd there was a call, starting price 1 Million and you immediately called 5 Million, that intrigued me really, I was like wow! And then I guess our eyes met for a while, but you donât remember probably and I really wanted to get a chance to talk to you and now Iâm here rambling, Iâve probably made you all uncomfortable, Iâm sorry Iâm so so sorryâŠâ, dang girl you rambled on, in one flowâalmostâŠ
He letâs out a small, husky laugh, as he waves his hand, âOkay first of all breatheâŠand secondly, Iâm flattered to hear that I intrigued you~ To answer to another question, yes I do remember you, you were the girls who got the flower bouquets, I had my eyes aroundâŠâ
âPlease sit, you entered the shop thinking how to approach me and talk to me and came all the way from your table after contemplating so hard upon how to do so, Iâm thoroughly impressed.â He smirked slightly, as you sat, feeling embarrassed.
âIâm so sorry if I came out a little too strong, ohhh this is embarrassingâŠsooo Iâm (Name), itâs a pleasure to meet you officially!â, you hold out your hand.
âSkyeâ, he shook it⊠âthatâs it just Skye? But it doesnât bring out the tone I heard at the auctionâŠcould he be lying about his name?â
You see him text on his phone, trying to study his expressions but all you could decipher was that he was texting, you couldnât understand the emotion beneathâŠmaybe he was good at hiding?
âContinue.â
âHuh?â
âYou said you were intrigued, you might have question flooding your mind? Maybe one like if thatâs my real name, or what you heard at the auction sounded different yet you canât recall itâŠor maybe how to try and read my face as I text.â, he spoke while texting
âDamn heâs good! Fuck I feel like a fool, uhh can I divert or dodge his accusations somehow? I donât wanna look like a creepââ
âItâs okay to be curious, youâre not a creep.â
âAre you a mind reader or something Mr. Skye?â
âWho knows.â, as he stood up, before you could even think of anything else to ask him.
âKeep your question bank to yourself for now, and when we meet again pour them out. And try to recall harder, maybe youâll find your answerâŠâ, he exited through the doorsâŠ
________________________
âWoahâŠâ
That night when you returned you paces around your room trying to recall what was that you heard at the auctionâŠfinally a pleasant distractionâŠ
âSkylar? NoâŠthatâs like a birdâs nameâŠooo ooo maybe Sans! âŠnope nope nopeâŠSteven? Not even close⊠it was like a âshhhâ soundâŠlike a âshhhh-iâŠshyâŠâ shy? Ughhhhhh!â
You take the help of your trusty old friend, âthe Internetâ, typing âRich business man names starting with the word SââŠyou read out most of them, some do fit, others simply ruin your moodâŠYou search up until, 01:30 in the morning, that was when you started getting sleepyâŠbut you didnât want to give up just yetâŠyour bed was a mess, food pieces here and there, pages from your notepad lying around, having scribbles on them everywhere, pen thrown across the bed in frustration, when google literally gave you a search list of eligible bachelors in your area who are businessmenâŠYou get up to clean everything up, yawning to yourselfâŠwhile you mind was still reeling over the names, seeing if their tones hit the right vibeâŠbut none didâŠYou soon closed your laptop, keeping it away in itâs proper place as you get to bedâŠ
âŠâShyâŠShyâŠShyâŠshylâŠit had an L for sureâŠshileâŠno no a YâŠshyâŠâ âShylock!â, you shout out as Raya looks over at you from the section where the Iris flowers were arranged at display, âHuh?â âOh nothing just nothingâŠâ âSo you randomly yell out Shylock in the middle of the day and claim itâs nothing? Youâre lucky itâs our break time, and no customers are here.â âNothing nothing just something I rememberedâŠâ âAbout the Merchant of Venice?â âNo leave it, do your job.â, as she goes back to neatly arranging them, while you go back to pondering while you eatâŠ
âOh btw! Oi Raya listen.â âHmm?â âI have my CBC and Haemoglobin tests this SaturdayâŠdude please accompany meâŠyou know how much I fucking hate needlesâŠâ âYeah sure Iâll be free Iâll goâŠâ
That night a flicker of something strikes you while you were eating dinner. âSylus! Yes! That was it! Sylus something surname, not important but yes! Now the question remains why did he hide his true nameâŠâ, you were almost done with dinner as you quickly finish up and in your bedroom you dash off to, opening your laptop to search⊠âSylus business manââŠ
As you read the results gaining info about him, well the one publicly available, then thereâs also some Govt. sites but you donât open them⊠âHeâsâŠone of the most feared and successful mafia leaders of the N109 ZoneâŠhead of Onichynus, richy rich richâŠwhatâs that? Probably the name of his organisationâŠemmm emmmâŠwowâŠthe Linkon City police are all after him, but nobody knows about his whereaboutsâŠwell I do nowâŠmakes sense why he has an aliasâŠIâm freaking out too, I might seem calm, but I amâŠI talked to the guy, what if heâs planning to execute meâŠcuz I found out his identityâŠwhat if heâs watching me nowââ, you look around your roomâŠwell duh even if he was you wouldnât see a drone or something thing in plain sight just zooming around⊠ââwhat do I do nowâŠdo I tell the police? No no no Iâll get takenâŠshould I tell RayâŠsheâll freak out, best not toâŠhe did say weâll meet again, maybe he knows about my locationâŠdammit why did I ever go upto himâŠ!â
________________________
âŠSaturday arrives. âI think I mightâve gotten a good bone bruise in my right handâŠâ âIâm sorryâŠIâll buy you coffee as compensationâŠâ âThatâs a sweet offer but Iâll have to decline, got a call from my mum, have to go now, my nephewâs coming over so gotta take him to the parkâŠâ âoh! Well goodbye thenâŠtell them I said hi! Text me when you reach.â âWill do!â, as she walked in the other direction, while you head towards the coffee shop, dreading each step, as you felt a ominous ring to the idea of going thereâŠwhat if heâs there and he takes you awayâŠwell maybe not in broad daylight but still. Suddenly your mind reels off to Zayne, since youâve always relied on him and his presence whenever you felt uneasy or scared or anxious, it always calmed you down, although now that you think about it, it was all out of compulsion, always has beenâŠSo you have two options to yourself, go home and cry about Zayne, orrr go to the coffee shop and meet your probable doomâŠ
âLatter sounds better, at least the chances are highly unlikelyâŠI mean if heâs a mafia leader, heâs probably out to do something there, whatever it maybeâŠâ
So you head in the direction of Destiny Cafe, plus you would like to blame your Destiny for putting you in such a messâŠ
You were just about to enter as you see a similar figure looming over you, eyes glued to his phone, entering at the same time⊠âUh ohâŠthis is itâŠâ
You watch him take his seat, where he sat earlier and you quickly avert your gaze, hoping heâd not notice youâŠand walked over to your usual seatâ
âIâm assuming youâve figured out.â
ââŠif I say anything will I be hurt?â
âThat depends on your next action, which will determine the result whether you will be or wonât. It is as simple as a causal-effect relationship.â
You donât speak any more, youâre genuinely scaredâŠ
âCome on sit, maybe we can have a deal and arrangement to see which path you lead to.â
You go obeying, sitting across him.
âNowââ, his eyes still glued to the phone, âPlace your offers and Iâll see what can be done.â
âB-But I donât have enough money on me now, only a couple hundred bucks andââ
He suddenly breaks out laughing, in that similar deep, husky voice of hisâŠ
âThat was fun.â, he looks up from his phone. âLook I donât know how to make you convinced, but Iâm not going to hurt you or anything, youâre not on my radar.â
âSo you do have targets!â
âSeldom, but yes. Also a bit softer please, youâll scare the whole cafe like thisâŠor maybe even give them the wrong context.â
âYou wonât harm me rightâŠ?â
âNo.â
âWhat if I tell the police?â
âIâll be gone before you ever get the chance.â
âWhy do you dress like some sort of frat boy street biker guy aesthetic?â
âMaybe because I do have a bike.â
âOhâŠâ
ââŠI need a Bobaâ
âYes Iâll get some drinks for usâŠâ
After sometime he brings them to your table, your usual Boba flavour that you get, and an Americano-Large for himselfâŠ
âHow did you know.â
âI told you Iâm keenly observant. Iâm not stalking you if thatâs what you think.â
âŠ..
âŠ..
âWhat if you added something in my drink or poisoned themâŠâ
âWell unless I had magical, invisible substances on me, or the barista was my subordinate, I couldnât have done soâŠâ
âSo the barista is your subordinate?!â
He sighed, rubbing his temple, âAt this point Iâll just let your imagination run wildâŠâ
âŠâŠ
âIâm not gonna drink it still.â
âBe my guest.â
âŠ..
His earlier tone seemed to be quite believable, but you still had your doubts, heâs a criminal, he can fake emotions and tones like itâs a piece of cake.
âOkâŠâ
âLook listen, the last day you had ordered and I heard it.â
âYou remembered it becauseeeeâŠâ
âI knew today would come.â
âNow youâre being all creepy againâŠâ
âOk ok I sincerely apologise, do ask me whatever you want to ask me.â
âŠ
âWhat business do you deal in?â
âWoah straight-forward. Iâm in a successful fruit selling business, Iâm a real good fruit vendorâŠâ
âŠ
âŠ
âŠ
You take a sip of your drinkâŠ
âAnd Iâm supposed to believe that? I wouldnât even have believed that if you told it last timeâŠâ
âWell sweetheart, I canât go on spewing my real profession now can I, you searched it yourself, the police are after me.â
ââŠOkâ
As you both drink in silenceâŠit was awkward for you, maybe not for him. He takes out his phone and texts. You canât help but ask.
ââŠYouâre telling your henchman the time and place to take me hostage arenât youâŠâ
âVery creativeâŠbut as a matter of fact, Iâm texting my âBestieâââ
Pffft Bestie? That sounded funny in his voice.
âIs that a codeword forââ,
He letâs out a hearty chuckle and sighsâŠfinally showing you the phone and itâs contents as wellâŠit was a chat opened, with many messages, here and there with the username of the other person saved as, âKittenâ, huh weird? Itâs funny, also kinda cringeâ
âOhâŠâ
âIâm sorry for suspecting you but Iâm still suspecting you.â
âIâm fine with that.â
âŠSo that was how your second meet went, he was a bad guy(?) but at least he had a sense of humour.
âIsnât it only fair that you tell me your profession too, since I told you mine.â, he spoke as he stood up from his chair, smirking.
âYou know mine, you did say it last day, me and my friend came to deliver the bouquets.â
âMhm so youâre a delivery person?â
ââŠI donât want to tell you but then again you already knowâŠIâm a florist, I work at a flower shop atâno not telling you that no no. Besides you lied about your job.â
âWell you know the truth. See you.â, he left
âŠ.
It grew amusing and kind of concerning to you? As over the next few weeks, youâve had both your third and fourth meetings as well.
Your third meeting was uncalled for too, meeting at the same place, âDestiny Cafeâ, cuz of course, you have such great luck and Destiny. He entered while you were munching onto their star shaped rich buttery cookies, as they would just melt inside your mouth with every bite. It was such a delicate and sweet taste, making you want to gobble down more and more and more.
âHello.â, he sat down.
Your mouth filled, you quickly, try to chew and gulp, while wiping it with a napkin.
âEasy easy there, no rush. Iâm not leaving so soonâ
As you finish it up and take a sip of your Boba, âSorry, excuse meâŠhow did youâŠyou know what doesnât matter. Iâll be nice to you.â
âWhatâs with the sudden change in attitude?â, he speaks while keeping that smirk on his face, you swore it never leftâŠ
âI just want to be.â
âGood day at work?â
âI gave a little girl a yellow rose and she hugged me.â
âAdorable.â
âŠâŠ
âYouâre always texting, is it always your best friend?â
âMhm.â
You drum against the table a bit, not knowing what else to ask or sayâŠ
âThe Lavenders were really fresh by the way, thank you.â
âI never gave youâoh! So you were one of the special guests of Mr. Jameson?â, of course he was.
âIs he a part of your organisation?â
He chuckles, âHeâs a stand-alone businessman, dealing in Protocores and Aether Cores. Know what they are?â
âYeah.â
âŠâŠâŠ
âŠ..
.
ââŠWhy did you pick the name Oni-dot dot dot?â
âWhat?â
âYou know why did you pick that specific name for your organisation?â
âI have no answer to that.â
âOkâŠ
âŠâŠâŠ
âŠâŠâŠ
âHow as your day?â
âAlright.â
âAm I bothering?â
âNope.â
âI wanna show you to the flower shop.â, he looks up from his phone upon hearing that, those red eyes, casting a spell of determination within yourselfâŠ
âIâll be honoured then.â, he said with a smile.
âMaybe on our fourth meet up?â
âSure.â, you offered him the last two of your cookies.
âCookies?â
âWhy not.â
âArenât they so good!â
âMhm. You have good taste.â
âIâll have to leave now, get up early tomorrow, weâre having new shipments arrive. When can I meet you again?â
âThursday.â
âWorks for me, I leave early on Thursdays. Soooo here at Destiny Cafe?â
âHere at Destiny Cafe.â
âBye!â, as you leave.
________________________
Failing to see the soft smile that you had casted upon his lipsâŠnow what might that indicateâŠ
You were at work the next day, it was a Wednesday, itâll be a long day and itâs going to be hectic, with the shipments coming inâŠyet you felt light, it was a strange sensation but it was definitely welcomedâŠ
âGirlll!â âYes?â âWhat are you daydreaming about? The things are here, cmon letâs go look to them.â âOh yes.â
âŠâIs there something bothering you?â âNope.â
________________________
Thursday came around very quickly and heck were you excited! You were really excited, you didnât register why but you wereâŠbut you had to keep your guard up, heâs still a dangerous man (?)âŠas you walk towards the cafe, it was a pleasant eveningâŠthe streets bustling with people. âHello!â, you greet him as he stood in front of the coffee shop. He looked up from his phone into your eyes, with a sly smile, âSomeoneâs excited.â
âYou bet I am! I donât know why thoughâŠthe fact that you could still k*dnap me remainsâŠâ
âMhm.â
ââŠâ
âI wonât.â, he sighs.
ââŠAre we getting coffee first? Letâs take those biscuits on the go! We can eat while we walk.â
âAfter you.â
âŠThe both of you walk along the streets of Linkon, which were brilliantly illuminated by the street lights. It was a new moon day, so the moon wasnât visible in the sky. As you both chew and walk alongâŠ
âSooooooo itâs down Hashcrew Lane, which we e reached as we speakâŠaaaand taaadaaah! This is where I work, I love this placeâŠâ
âCosyâŠâ
âYeppp and thanks, although we are planning on renovating the shop.â
âHmm.â
ââŠWhy do I have a feeling you already knew..â
âThe bouquets also came with your shopâs business card.â
âAhh I shouldâve figured it out. That oneâs on meâŠwhy didnât you tell me earlier though?â
âI wanted you to trust meâŠbesides you are always too paranoid.â, he says with a slight chuckle, eating the last of the cookies.
You felt a smile creep up to your face as wellâŠ
On the way back, he nudges you slightly, âSo you finally trust me now, donât you?â
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Welcome back, at this point I donât even know why Iâm complaining so much about writing your narrative, itâs not like itâs got anything to me, moreover it would only be to my benefit for as long as I get to do my jobâŠ
Well a few days have passed and your periods had arrived againâŠfirst day had started, in the morning itself, awakening you from your sleep, as you groan clutching onto your abdomen. You sluggishly go to the bathroom, grabbing a pad from your cupboard. Upon returning back after sometime you finally fully open your eyes, only to see that youâd made a big stain on your sheets aaaand your blanketsâthankfully the Jasmines were alright; you groan, it was onlyâyeah 06:27 a.m., it was too early for any of this shit. A striking pain hits you as you clutch onto your abdomen, tightly, groaning, tears forming, as you crouch on your knees, face planted upon your side pillowâŠ
But you had to clean up, and soon else the stain would get dry and become permanentâŠSomehow reaching for your medicines cabinet at your bedside table, you take out a strip of your pain killers, popping one pill into your mouth as you gulped it down with the help of water from your bottleâŠ
You stay like that for a while, and only after feeling the effects of the pain killer kicking in, you get up to bring the liquid detergent from your bathroomâŠZayne had once told you to use that companyâŠonly half-cap of the liquid was required to pour, was cost-efficient, a trusted companyâdermatologically tested safe, checking out the criteria, plus thatâs what they mostly used to wash patient gowns at the hospital.
You hate that everything you see, touch, taste, smell, feel, hear, had some sort of connection to himâŠit was getting too annoying and frustrating, to be honestâŠgood thing that youâre finally starting to realise that so too. Itâs gotten too tiring to write about him everytimeâŠ
Anyways you do your job, the stain gets out.
âââââââââââââââ
âŠToday was a Friday, meaning a rush day at the shop, too many customers to deal with, plus your mental fatigueâŠyouâd just put on your pad a while ago, and it already started a waterfall show down thereâŠYour periods are a bitch, always planning to start during the most hectic days at the shop, pure diabolical is what it was.
At least you took the pain killers, you can feel relatively alright for the coming six hours, can get you through work. It was too early, and you had no mere enthusiasm to make breakfast or pack your lunch yetâŠ
âŠWell the time passes, you do your stuff and reach the shopâŠyou donât initiate greeting any longer, but just nod along with a brief smile as the others do. Cue to you doing what you usually do at work; attending to the customers, filling in the logs, yada yada⊠âHey when is the new stock of Peonies and Begonias supposed to arrive today, I forgot?â, Raya looks in your direction, her eyes filled with hurt and painâŠyou two had been best friends, you clicked from the moment she joined, she wants to help you, and she had tried her level best, but you would never open up. You glanced at her seeing the expression in her eyes, you felt guiltyâŠfuck of course you didâŠshe was your best friendâŠyou two have always been for each otherâs highs and lows, even before Zayne entered your lifeâŠbut the pain was too too harsh to be dealt with. So you just let her suffer? Fun arenât you the perfect friend. âY-Yeah theyâll be shipped in todayâŠprobably by 09:00 or 10:00âŠâ, she searched your eyes, seeing you hesitant⊠âTalk to me (Name), pleaseâŠâ, she pleaded in her mind hoping that telepathically youâll hear herâŠbut you regained your straight face and nod going back to work.
Arenât you aâleave it itâs none of my business after all.
âŠsoon arrived break time, as everyone heaved out a big sigh, Fridays were a pain⊠âHey (Name)âŠâ, you look up from your mindless fiddling with your lunch, didnât even touch your foodâŠcmon just talk to herâ!
âExcuse me.â, as you closed the lid and went to the bathroom, sighing. Poor girl.
âââââââââââââââ
âŠAround evening, Mrs. Li visited the shop, checking on business and asking how everyone was and how everything was holding up. She does this on a monthly, but today she had a special task. After a bit of chit-chat amongst her and everyone, she comes to the counter where you and Raya were stood. âListen girls I have a task for youâ, she said in her sweet, motherly voice. She was a sweet old lady. Both of you look up as she continues, âSoâŠumm we have received a request of ten red rose bouquets, ten blue orchid bouquets, six lavender bouquets, seven multicoloured tulip bouquets, and last but not the least two daisy bouquetsâŠmake sure everything is the freshest of the freshest and that none of the flowers have any minute imperfectionââ, bruh theyâre flowers, how can they not have any, not even the slightest of imperfections? ââand make sure everything is perfect and prim and proper.â You two nod along, âBut Maâam where are they need to be delivered and by when?â, you ask, âThat and plus is it for a wedding or any other ceremony?â, Raya chimed inâŠMrs. Li grew a bit hesitant⊠âWell noâŠbut it is a pretty big event, heck itâs a huge event, I just have the location where it is to be delivered, not any specific details, since it is confidentialâŠSoâŠitâs in the N109 Zone.â WOAH! Both of your every widen, âWait wait wait! Hold onââ, Raya starts, âThe N109 Zone? A.k.a. THE DEATH ZONE?! How could you agree to an order like that??â, you finish. âThe money is really good girls! Plus itâll help us for further renovations of the shop, (Name) youâve been saying we need to renovate, make it a bit bigger too remember?â âBut I wouldnât go as far the N109 Zone for that!â âDitto! Itâs like the breeding place for illegal activities and crimes!â, âYeah what if we get k*dnapped?! Or worse t*afficked?!â. âGirls listen please, itâs for the good of the shop and all of us, beside you two are my oldest employees, I trust you the most, you two would know how to succeed at the task very well, I know it! And I assure you none of that is going to happen because, it is a trusted customerâŠPlease.â Sure as if a soft please could change their mindsâ âFineâŠâ âFineâŠweâll do itâŠâ, Oh for the love ofâ
âGreat! Thank you so much both of you! I promise you your safety is my priority and itâs assured! Now you have to deliver everything by coming Saturday, 07:00 p.m., sharp, so donât be late. You two donât need to come to work on that day, just visit the shop and keep everything ready for delivery two hours prior, and be in your best outfitsâŠyou know these rich people thingsâŠgotta look elegant.â, welpâŠthe both of you sigh and nod, âYes MaâamâŠâ
âââââââââââââââ
âŠNight fell, as it was closing time around 11:30, Raya and you are the last ones left, packing up to make sure everything was in place and properly, like always, as you grab the keys. She turns off all the switches and you two head out, quietly. Locking the door properly, âYou have leaves on Saturday, how are you going to accompany meâŠ?â, wow it felt weird, and nervousâŠ
âOh so you do remember about me.â, she spoke with an annoyance yet a slightly teasing tone⊠âAs for your question, Iâll be free next Saturday, no family events or plannings so yes, Iâll be accompanying you...â
Cmon! You sigh finally breaking into a quiet laughterâŠitâs been too long since you last laughed from the bottom of your heart. She joined in too, as the both of you kept laughing like madwomenâŠif anyone were to be passing by, theyâd feel theyâre being haunted.
âŠDestiny Cafe remains open for 24 hours on Fridays. Sitting their with your drinks and snacks at your table, initially nervousâŠyou apologise to her tonnes, as you two talk and gossip for what had felt like yearsâŠit was pleasant to see the cafe still filled with people, the night always brings out a different atmosphere. âCanât believe weâre having to go to the DEATH ZONE, that also voluntarilyâŠwell not entirely voluntarily but you get the gist.â âYeahâŠat least weâll get to dress prettyâŠâ âOooo thatâs what Iâm the most excited for too! And free drinks hell yeah!â âHow are you so sure theyâll allow us that?â âGut feeling.â âSure as if that has ever been right.â âThere was the time~â âOKAY! OKAY! I GET IT!â, both of you laugh⊠âWeâre high on caffeineâŠâ âWho cares! To us!â âTo us!â, as you clink your cups, earning a few stares here and there.
âŠYou reached homeâŠâTodayâŠespecially the nightâŠit felt niceâŠit was niceâŠâ, you think to yourself, a smile on your face, itâs been too long since you felt this rejuvenatingâŠyou didnât even think of him during the time with RayaâŠuh oh you just did, but you felt like your misery had decreased by 0.001 percentâŠitâs niceâŠbut you were tired and the cramps were getting at it againâŠYou ate enough at the cafe with her so you werenât hungry. Right now, all you want to do is get to bed and sleep. So you didâŠof course after changing and freshening up.
âââââââââââââââ
âŠDuring this week that was still left and the next, Mrs. Li visited by almost regularly, checking upon your progress and if you two were choosing everything properly⊠âGirls pick that rose, it looks more brighterâŠ..that tulip is vibrant yellow go for that oneâŠ..arrange them neatly, use our that paper to wrap around the bouquetâŠ..â âThe one with the regal aesthetic?â âYes yes that.ââŠit was a pain to pick and choose and inspect and wrapâŠthere were just too manyâŠbut since youâve been busy with all thisâŠit kept your mind off of them to a great extent, maybe it was for the best?
Friday night comes by, as you and Raya chat while you packed up and checked if everything was all according and plannedâŠnothing should go missing or miscountedâŠyou take your second last count of every bouquet tonight, leaving the final for tomorrow, as she checks their quality and freshness. âAll good?â âSeems so to meâŠyou can check on after Iâm done?â âYeah sure, Iâll do that, you recount.â, as you two do that⊠âSo what will you be wearing? Decided yet?â âWell duh yes of course the thing is tomorrow. Anyways Iâve chosen that dress, remember I sent you the picture, I bought recently online as I got it for a cheap price hehe.â âThe mulberry one?â âYeeeep!â âOoooo! Canât wait to see you!â âYessss! And how about you missy?â âHmmm not chosen yet, but I think Iâll go with the rosewood coloured one, my cousin gifted me for my last birthdayâŠâ âOh yes please! That screams elegance and grace!â âSo does yours by the wayâŠitâs more of elegance and royalty.â
The next day arrives too fricking quickly, have you thought about Zayne the last night? YesâŠplus you did cry too, but it was less than usual, and for the first time in months you felt excited (plus nervous and scared too) againâŠgood improvement. One thing that youâre really thankful for is that the deliver date was after your periods had ended, it was a relief. You were excited so you woke up early on a day that was supposed to be your break from work,well that break was given since you had a task but yeah whatever. It was around 08:15 a.m. when you texted Raya.
RAY
You: You awake yet?
RAY: GURL DUH OFC! I. OULD BARELY SLEEEP FROM YHE EXCITWMWY LAST NIFT!!
You: Lmao can tell by your spellings.
RAY: SHHH, NO JUDGING. Anyways, will we be getting ready at the shop or from our homes?
You: Home duh. How can you get ready at the shop itâll be too much of a hassle, plus are you forgetting itâs a work day for the others.
RAY: Oh yeah lol, theyâll be at awe when they see us hehe
You: Soooo we meeting at the shop around say, 5:00?
RAY: yeah sure, k bye! See ya!
You:đ
âŠYou started getting ready around 04:00âŠit suddenly reminded you of every date that youâd try to look your absolute best for ZayneâŠslowly inching towards your Anniversary nightâŠthe memories bring back the pain and the agony and the betrayal youâd felt, you shook your head trying to focus on todayâŠyou wanted to look extra beautiful tonight.
âââââââââââââââ
âŠItâs 05:15, when you reach the shop. âHey thank god youâre finally he-WOAH!â, you chuckle at Raya, âUMM MAâAM ARE YOU LOOKING FOR THE WAY TO THE ROYAL PALACE?? CUZ MY OH MY!â âSays you, have you seen yourself in the mirror? A total hottie~â âNot more than you~â, as you two share a laugh, âKk letâs go count for one last time?â âMhmâŠand pray that everything is all well and properâŠâ Your other co-workers stare at the both of you, complimenting you two, some even flirt., Raya returns their gestures, so do you but youâre more hushedâŠyou mind suddenly once wanders to what if Zayne had ever flirted with you like soâŠyouâd have melted on spotâŠmaybe he does with her, but no use of pondering upon it, you look forward to tonight, hoping to taste some of the free foods and drinksâŠItâs a rich party after all theyâll have pretentious yet tasty portionsâŠ
â33âŠ34âŠ.35âŠ.aaaaaand 36âŠ.â, âOkay, we all set then?â âSeems like to me, we counted more than six times by nowâŠ.so I guessâŠWait didnât Mrs. Li said sheâd come to wish us luck? And count.â ââŠMaybe she forgot? AnywaysâŠletâs seeâŠten bouquet roses, ten tulipsâno noâŠten blue orchids yesâŠtwo daisiesâŠsix lavendersâŠaaaaaaand seven tulips, ok weâre officially all setâŠ.â âHereâs to the hope that nothing bad happens to usâŠâ âHearâŠHearâŠâ. As you place the bouquets neatly in a big circular thermocol trays, securing each set by wrapping cellophane paper on top of eachâŠ
âŠSoon arrives a black limo⊠âDamnâŠâ âUh-HuhâŠââŠa guy in a black suit and sunglasses gets out, â(Name) and Raya, Mrs. Liâs workers?â âYesâ, you two say in unison, why was the dude so intimidating :/. He checks the trays and puts them in the in the right seat, setting them down carefully, before nodding, âGet in.â You two, cross your fingers, clasping onto each otherâs hands tightly, hoping to wellâŠsurviveâŠ
The Limo, had too many things, both of you had only witnessed such things in movies, a drinks table, the seats felt like royalty, a music player, a big table in the centre from where the other guards ate and drank and chatted about, and a regal lighting, the seats were of a beige color and felt a little hard to sit on to be honest. You and Raya, were sitting at either sides of the flowers, to make sure they didnât fall down or anything, basically protecting them from any impending doom, and yours. Glancing at each other, lips pressed tightly in a thin line, as you two looked around subtly of courseâŠ
Oh and need I say how fast it was going?
âââââââââââââââ
âŠYou reach in about an hour or so, getting out carefully with the flowers in hand, as you were escorted in by a single nod given by one of the guardsâŠ
You look at the hallâŠwowâŠyouâve never seen anything this fancy, sure youâve been to weddings but thisâŠthis was just, on another levelâŠit was all too royalâŠthe interior carved with intricate designs, a soft velvetty carpet covered the entire floor, there was a dance area, a huge open bar, huge stretch of a buffet system, the entire building had a rose-gold hue to itâs colouration, making it look as if one had entered the royal halls⊠âWoahâŠâ âYeah woahâŠâ, as you keep on walking forward behind the securitiesâŠeyes falling upon every person, dressed in extravagance and glamour, showing off their elegance, jewelleries of gold and platinum and what not other precious gemstones that they possessed; chatting, mingling, drinking amongst one anotherâŠit was all too grande and screamed money money moneyâŠThe two of you walk ahead a few more as you see the guards stop I front of a tall old manâŠprobably was around the age of your Mrs. Li. âSir theyâre here.â, he nods and let them off, as they gave a subtle bow and left.
âAhhh welcome welcome welcome, Iâm Jay Jonah Jameson, the host, you must be Mrs. Liâs most trusted workers, weâre glad you could make it tonightââ pshhh as if you two had a choice; âIâve been buying flowers from her since she first started the shop, and have never once been displeased with the quality, colour, fragrance, or aestheticismâŠshe always had a knack for picking out the best of the best. And I strongly believe she did so too.â, as he inspected the trays in our hands. All you two do is nod along as he took the trays from yours and told his assistant to keep them at the nearby table and count properly and sort them out. âPlease ladies enjoy yourselves fully. And donât be at all bothered on your return back, the limo will be outside, whenever you want to leave, theyâll take you back safely.â, he said with a smile as we were left aloneâŠ
âJay Jonah Jameson? What is this Spider-Man?â âIkrâŠthe only difference was that it was not just a J, but Jay, emphasisingâŠâ âThink heâd suit the Daily Bugle?â âPerfectlyâŠâ, as you two softly chuckle amongst each other and walk along the hall, admiring the atmosphere⊠âThink he overdid it just for some flowers?â âSurelyâŠIâd say dude has a crush on Mrs. Li if I didnât know any betterâŠâ âAtleast we get to enjoy this grandeur setting for the night wooâŠâ
âHey look at these big-ass rubies and gemstones, didnât know they could be that enormous in sizeââ, *sigh*âŠ.you facepalm âIdiot! Theyâre not any gemstones, these are Protocores! Theyâre found inside Wanderers!â âOH! I didnât knowâwait how come you know?â âMy cousin is a Deepspace Hunter, I know my tids and bits.â âOh yeahhhhhâŠ.â âCmon letâs eatâ âOoo yeah!â
âââââââââââââââ
âŠâUgh oh dear lord the food was too goodâŠâ âYeahâŠhalf the time I wondered what the name tag meantâŠâ âUnderstandableâŠdrinks?â, as you walk over to the open bar and order two classic Margaritas, the bartender, portraying his talents on display, mixes the drink, and pours it in two glasses for the two of you, coating their brims with sugar poweder, with two limes on top as decoration. âMoney money money must be funnyââ âIn a rich maanâs world!â âCHEERS!â, as you sip and drink and drink and sip⊠âGirlllll we canât get drunk!â âWe arenât Ray, we just had three glasses. Cmon letâs get up before we get even more tempted.â, as you drag her up and away, exploring the rest of the HallâŠit seems like one might need a golf cart, just to explore the placeâ âMaâam what would you like to see? We have the finest starting at the most valuable prices, only 2 millionsâ⊠âYeah right only .__.â, you thought to yourself, I mean for real what do they mean only, acting as if 2 millions is only a fifty bucksâŠugh⊠âNo no thank you weââ âWe also have the Aether Core sets over there, starting range from 7 million!â Okay I swear this dude, Iâll hit himâ âThank you but weâll just browse for now.â, you say politely as that would be the only way to get him outta your asses. âWell okay then! Do call me up if you need anything!â, as he left. âFinallyâŠâ, said Raya, âOh yay youâre not drunk!â âDuh I have a high tolerance level, I ainât a lightweight like youâ, that suddenly reminded you of your drunken ramblings you made to him on your Anniversary nightâŠyou shook your head as the both of you walk forward. âWhen shall we leave by the way?â âIn a few? Maybe see a couple dances and then?â âNo please not dances.â âAlright fine weâll leave soon, but first I wanna see some bidding prizes and offers.â âWhyyyyyââ âGirl we are at an auction event and whatâs that if we donât witness the main game.â
ââStarting at 1 Million! Everyone letâs see your cards! Starting at 1 Milââ
âŠâI see a man hold up the sign which said 5 millionâŠdamn that high of a jumpâŠat the start itselfâŠwho is thisââ oh hoho now this will be funâŠwell the guy was wearing a full black high quality leather set with a overcoat that had a streak of dark crimson splattered neatly creating a designâŠEveryone gasps, while he looked unbothered and nonchalant as everâŠas if he put in only two pennies up frontâŠYou could only catch a glimpse of him from behind the line of people watching. âW-Well Mr. Sylus has done it againâŠwould anyone l-like to raise the stakes? âŠ.Going once! Going twice! âŠâŠ.SOLD! To Mr. Sylus Qin!â,
just then your eyes meet for a brief period as you feel a sudden shiver down your spine.
His gaze returning to where it was initiallyâŠyour gaze shifts to Mr. Jameson, seeing a satisfied smirk on his face, when suddenly Raya drags you away and out the Banquet Hall. âYou tell us to leave and then you delay it, cmon itâs already around 09:30, letâs goâŠweâve had enough N109 Zone for the rest of our lives to remember. Oi! You listening?â âHuh? Oh yeah yeahâŠdid you see that man go 5 million on the first call? What was his name againâŠugh I canât remember!â âYeah I saw him, but why do you care? Wait donât tell me youâve taken a interest to him just becauseââ âNo no! Itâs not that itâs justâŠDid you look into his eyes? They held such strong ground, dominance and powerâŠthat aura was probably emanating through the whole room, plus the people looked veryâŠI donât knowâŠumm shuddered and with utter respectâŠâ
âGirl cmon letâs go, youâre drunk.â âNo Iâm not! I mean it, he had red eyes, they were like the colors of a ruby or better yetâŠred berylâŠâ âYeah probably was wearing contacts, thereâs no way those can naturally exist, cmon letâs go back Iâm getting sleepyâŠâ
âI want to knowâŠif only I can rememberâŠâ
Maybe you will, maybe you wonâtâŠthen again how would I know, Iâm just writing your storyâŠjust doing my jobâŠ
*TW: Angst, maybe not well written, NON!MC Reader, Reader has Anemia, heavy blood loss during periods, shouting, feeling of betrayal and heartbreak, shaking, crying, feelings of self made insecurity and rejection, self sabotage.
*Index: Narration is written in regular, small size, and italicised.
Reader speeches are white, bold and italicised.
Zayne speeches are blue, bold and italicised.
MC speeches are pink, bold and italicised.
Sylus speeches are red, bold, and italicised
Others are white and just italicised.
Thoughts are written inside single inverted commas and bold (small font), sometimes struck through.
Texts and chats have âIndentedâ font.
Call conversations are written in the âChatâ font.
Actions are written inside asterisks, white and bold.
Diary entries -will be updated-
If youâre uncomfortable with the following genre or any of the trigger warnings, then please donât read ahead.
Hmm? Oh hello there, still making me write your story? Do you even ever want to try to regain back your narration or will you keep on being a puppet of your own mind? Well itâs none of my concern, as for always Iâm just here to do my job assigned.
Exactly 5 months have passed by since you lost your story into the void of seemingly no return. Days and nights come and go by, time stood still for none. Yet you still think about it, about him, like heâs the oxygen that somehow keeps your brain running and functioning, call it gruelling, call it unhealthy, you canât help it. Raya worries about you a lot, everytime youâre at work and beyond but sheâs stopped trying to ask you or talk to you, except for the usual business talk.
Just a few weeks back youâd gone to Destiny Cafe, for a bobaâŠglaring at the drink as you remember it was the same thing that you had when you and her met upâŠHer, the very person who appeared in your life like a ray of sunshine and just like a powerful gust of wind during a storm, blowing everything away, took away the one person who made you feel completeâŠBut it was mean to be. They were meant to be. Itâs what Fate had wanted.
You sat as you stared at the stubby glass bottle, stirring at the drink mindlessly with your straw. Did you have your meds that morning? Probably.
You hear voices and laughters, the pitch was high yet sweetâŠoh you knew that voice. âIâm telling you Tara, he is such a romantic! He blushes at everything I do! Itâs just the sweetest!â âAhh! Canât believe the cold prodigy doctor of Akso could go all mushy gushy! You go girl!ââŠHe laughed with her, expressed himself to herâŠyou rarely ever got a smile. For you his soft expressions were a prize to be won and earned, for her they became flower petals falling from the trees during cherry blossom seasonâŠin abundance⊠âUh huh! Weâre going to the park this Sunday, will have snow-cones and more!â, that perked your earsâŠ*sigh* Youâre gonna do it arenât youâŠ?
Did he ever feel guilty? Should you go talk to her? You hated that thought with all your guts yet a part of you wanted it to happenâŠwould she even recognise you?
You finally sip your boba, ironically you were the most expressive youâve been in months, in the current situation.
Anyways enough with the sad flashback, currently youâre at the flower shop, working diligently, attending to customers, adding inputs and updates upon the cash register, like usual. Raya was at the Marigolds section showing a couple the best of the best, as they wanted some to decorate their newly bought apartment with, and for housewarming. Your eyes wandered to the couple, the guy was tall like himâŠand the woman was short like your lengthâŠthey looked so happyâŠthey looked like the version youâd yearned that you and Zayne would once reachâŠbut alas that remained fiction. You hated it, envy and jealousy filled your heart, so you thought the best would be to go out for some fresh air.
You told your other co-worker to fill in for you, who nodded along, as you excused yourself out.
Everytime your eyes gaze at the streets, it was really pathetic how you saw him in every passing person on the streets, whether they were tall or short, light or dark or tan skinned, long, short or mid length hair and of any color, wearing monochromatic or colourful clothes, all you ever saw was himâŠhimâŠand only himâŠ
You return soon after as one of your co-workers calls out to you to handle a rather annoying customer, youâd work for long enough you knew how to deal with them, so you went.
âŠThe next day came as usual, everything was the same old same old, you were growing tired of it, you hated Sundays now, the same Sundays you used to be eagerly waiting for. Sundays you had your break plus his shift gets over early on Sundays, you mind wanders againâŠmaybe theyâll be on a date or lunch or dinner, or in bed, making love to each otherâŠsomething which you and Zayne had never once doneâŠheck you never even got to that pointâŠyour periods were soon to approach, your sexual desires too increased, adding on to your discomfortsâŠThey existed with Zayne too, your body would die for his hands all over, or even for a sensual touch, but you kept them under control, often times with artificial things, because your love for him transcended beyond any mortal form of lustâŠbut now? You were annoyed and cranky, besides you donât even want to touch anythingâŠthe recently bought bunch of Jasmines, laying on his side of the bed, as you stare at them, eyes brimming with tearsâŠmaybe you should just cry all your exhaustions out huh? You do that.
âŠGoing out to the park was a bad bad bad idea, girl why are you self-sabotaging yourself! I know that you were hoping to see them together, to catch a glance of him and determine how elated heâs been with her!Maybe it was because you were inching close to your periods? Girl youâve never done it, then why now! Ughhh! I swear if I wasnât bound to writing Iâd haveâanyways, you sit at a bench, nearby the water fountain, (reminding you of a very specific song)âŠyou look around subtly andâŠyou catch a glimpse of them walking hand in hand, with snowcones in their free handsâŠyou look at him, smiling, he looks soâŠhappyâŠIâd say get a grip. But itâs none of my concern. Iâm just here to do my job assigned.
They couldnât have seen you, you were amongst the spectators that they had surrounding them and their stage of loveâŠGo homeâŠgo homeâŠgo homeâŠyou sigh to yourself as you get up heading towards your apartmentâŠWhat a fun evening spent huh?
âŠYou crawl into your bed, wrapping yourself in a burrito in your blanketâŠcryingâŠagainâŠclutching onto the Jasmines close to your heartâŠ
Your hopes of ever finding true love are flowing down the drain, yet still holding onâŠhow delusional can you be, you think to yourselfâŠ
For how long will you keep on carrying your broken heart to yourself??? Why donât you try to venture out moreâŠyour life isnât overâŠtalk to the people who matter, and when the right time comes you may find the right personâŠBut itâs none of my concern. Iâm just here to do my job assigned.
â đđ°/đđđ đŹ: first person pov, non-mc reader, feminine implied reader, some connections to calebâs 4-star tender moments, angst/hurt + no comfort, kinda long but fast paced
â đ°đ: 11.1k
â đ/đ§: longest fic i've written yet, go me woot woot :p i wanted to write heartbreak so here it is. pls do not have your therapist bill me, thx! anyways when caleb goes, âi wont get a girlfriendâ in stage observer, he sounds kinda down, right? yeah imagine hes thinking about you (the reader) in this as he says that LOL. okay, (try to) enjoy lovelies!! <3
I never believed Iâd let something like this happen to me.Â
Yet it crept in quietly, the way all irreversible things do. A shift so subtle I almost missed it, until I was already too deep to turn back.
It was in the lingering glances, in the way the air felt charged in the spaces between us. In the laughter that came too easily, the silences that felt safe, the moments that stretched just a little too long. It was in the way he looked at me; like maybe, for a second, he saw something more.
But love, if you can call it that, isnât always kind. Sometimes, itâs a quiet war. A battle between logic and longing, between whatâs real and whatâs only ever been wishful thinking. And when the person you want is still holding onto someone else, someone they canât seem to let go of, where does that leave you?
I swore Iâd keep my balance; though gravity has a mind of its own.
August-
It was breezy, as are most August days in Skyhaven. Fumbling my fingers through my hair, desperately trying to comb through any loose strands from the wind, I tried to make myself look somewhat presentable for my first day of classes. It was senior year, and I wanted to make the most of it for once, as it felt like the past few years had been me barely passing by.Â
I sat down in the lecture hall, music blaring through my headphones as I fidgeted nervously with the pen in my hand. It wasnât long before a figure sat next to me in my peripheral, and I internally groaned.
âYou have this whole ass lecture hall with so many empty seats in this row, and you sit right next to me. Dick.â I thought to myself.
Seeing the person tap on my desk, I glanced over to notice it was Caleb.
We had crossed paths before, orbiting the same social circles through mutual friends. Our interactions had been fleeting, exchanged pleasantries at gatherings or brief moments of conversation that never really dug beneath the surface.
His lips moved as he spoke but I didnât hear a word he said over the sound of my music. I pulled one of the speakers off my ear, âWhat?â
âWell first I said âhey, what's up?â, then told you Iâm glad to know someone in this class.â Caleb smiled, âBut then I realized you werenât listening.â
His grin was infectious. Then again, everything about him was. Caleb was a campus favorite, and for good reason; his effortless charm and magnetic charisma drew everyone in, leaving them captivated.
I smiled back, âI wouldâve listened, I just couldnât hear you.â
âShoulda tapped you sooner then.â
We talked as more people trickled in, and conversation with him flowed effortlessly. He was almost unfairly likable, the kind of person who won people over without even trying, it was no wonder he had everyone wrapped around his finger.
âYeah, I failed this class the first time around, so if I want to graduate this spring, I have to finally retake it,â Caleb sighed, shaking his head. âThe Caleb failed a class? No wayâŠâ Gasping, I clutched my chest in mock shock. âI had no idea you were even capable of failure, Mr. Perfect.â
His lips twitched into a smile at the nickname, but his eyes betrayed him. He shrugged, âWell, I can do it this time around.â
âIf it makes you feel any better, I totally didnât realize I needed this credit.â I poked his hand resting on his desk with my pen, âWeâre in this together.â
The professor was about halfway through the syllabus when Caleb started writing on my notebook.Â
Do you have class after this?
I looked over at him, mouthing âNoâ. Not for a few hours, I wrote back.Â
Hangout with me after this then
And thatâs how I ended up sitting in the quad with Caleb, with the itchy grass prickling my legs and a sweating can of soda in my hand beneath the warm August sun. Yet Calebâs presence was still warmer; my cheeks and stomach hurt from laughter, and every giggle of mine only fueled the fire of his jokes.Â
As the laughter died down, Caleb leaned back on his hands, squinting up at the sky. âMan, I forgot how nice it is to just sit around like this on campus. No deadlines yet, no stress⊠just kinda existing.â
I took a sip of my soda, nudging his knee with mine. âYou make it sound like youâre constantly suffering.â
He chuckled, shaking his head. âI mean, maybe a little. Gotta keep up the âMr. Perfectâ image, right?â
I tilted my head, studying him. For a second, he looked almost⊠tired. Like there was more he wanted to say but wasnât sure how.
âYou know you donât have to be perfect all the time, right?â I said, softer now. âYouâre allowed to mess up. Youâre allowed to breathe.â
He glanced at me, something flickering in his eyesâsurprise, maybe. Or relief. Then, just as quickly, his signature grin returned. âGood to know Iâve got my personal cheerleader.â
I rolled my eyes, but my smile gave me away. âMore like your reality check.â
âEven better.â He bumped his shoulder against mine, before laying down on the ground. The sunlight hit his eyes just right, making them glimmer like polished amethyst. With his brown hair tousled against the grass and his shirt riding up just enough to reveal a hint of skin, it wasnât hard to see why all the girls fawned over him. When it came to looks, Caleb really did live up to the whole Mr. Perfect thing.
âWhat about you?â Caleb glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. âWhatâs your kryptonite?â
I raised a brow. âCome again?â
He smirked. âYour weakness. What takes you down every time?â
I pretended to think it over, then shot him a cheeky grin. âProbably failure.â
Caleb let out a soft laugh, propping his head up on his elbow. âAlright, Iâm sensing some hypocrisy here.â
âItâs not hypocrisy,â I defended, shrugging. âI just fail to take my own advice.â
He tapped his chin, feigning deep thought. âMm, no, that just makes you a hypocrite. But hey, at least youâre self-aware, Miss perfect.â
Something between us just clicked, that unspoken feeling when you know youâre going to get along with someone. Nothing about our conversation felt forced, it unfolded with an ease that caught us both off guard. I donât think either of us saw this coming, but somehow, it just made sense.
And so it continued; messing around with Caleb in class, then hanging out in the quad afterward. Our dynamic quickly shifted from casual acquaintances to good friends as our connection bled beyond the classroom. The progression was almost rapid; natural, but undeniable.
Conversations with him came naturally, filled with dry humor, shared ambition, and the kind of unspoken understanding that made being around each other feel easy. We started saving seats for each other without thinking, sharing notes even when we both knew we hadnât written anything useful, and lingering just a little longer after class, stretching out the moments before we had to part ways.
Afternoons in the quad turned into grabbing coffee, which turned into late-night study sessions that often had more laughing than actual studying. It wasnât just that we got along; we started to seek each other out, gravitating toward one another like it was the most natural thing in the world.Â
It wasnât just about sharing space; it was about the way we easily fit into each otherâs lives like we had always been meant to.
I found myself opening up in ways I never had before, trusting Caleb with thoughts I usually kept locked away. And in return, he let me see past the carefully constructed walls he had built.Â
I learned a lot about Caleb in our time spent together; I learned about his dreams and aspirations, his worries and fears, his home back in Linkon and how much of it still clung to him.
And her.
I learned about her.
MC; the kind of nickname all the cool girls had, lifted from their initials like it had always belonged to them. She was innocent, pretty, just the right balance of book-smart and blissfully unaware. The kind of girl who never had to try too hard because the world seemed to bend in her favor. She was perfect in that way, and maybe thatâs why Caleb felt like he had to be perfect, too.
She had been his childhood friend, raised alongside him by his gran, their lives tangled together like roots beneath the same old house.
âSheâs your sister?â I had asked, unsure of the dynamic.
Caleb hesitated, something unreadable flickering across his face. âNo,â he said finally, his voice careful. âNot really. We just grew up together.â
She was everything to him, the quiet force that shaped him in ways he probably didnât even realize. Everything he did, every careful step he took, was in her image. And suddenly, it all made sense.
The way Caleb kept people at armâs length, the reason he didnât have many real friends at the Academy. It wasn't because he didnât want them, it was because a part of him was still anchored somewhere else; belonged to someone else.
Once, we had sat on the steps outside one of the buildings, his elbows on his knees, staring out at nothing in particular.
âYou never really let people in.â I looked over at him, my statement coming out of nowhere.
He let out a short breath, almost a laugh, but there was no humor in it. âWas it that obvious?â
âI didnât get it back then. Thought maybe you just had too many friends to be really close with any of them.â
He was quiet for a moment, then shook his head. âIt wasnât that,â he admitted. âI just⊠I already had MC. Growing up the way we did, it was always just us. I guess I never really learned how to need anyone else.â
I glanced at him, but his eyes stayed on the horizon, lost in something I couldnât see.
âYou still do that, you know,â I said. âKeep people just enough away.â
He swallowed hard, rubbing a hand over his jaw. âYeah,â he murmured. âSome habits donât go away easy.â
âSo why am I an exception?â
Caleb exhaled slowly, rubbing his hands together. âI donât know,â he admitted. âMaybe because you didnât try to push your way in. You just⊠stayed.â
I frowned. âThatâs it?â
He shook his head, a small, almost self-conscious smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. âNo. Itâs more than that.â He glanced at me then, something raw in his eyes. âYou just understand the way I think, and nobody has before.â
A silence stretched between us, thick with things neither of us knew how to say.
âYou make it sound like some big thing,â I murmured. âLike I did something special.â
He tilted his head slightly, considering me. âMaybe you did.â
His words awakened something in me, an ache settling in my chest. A quiet, gnawing feeling that signaled the start of an internal war; one I never really meant to step into, but quickly became hard to ignore. A silent competition I didnât sign up for, but suddenly felt compelled to win.Â
It wasnât against MC, not even Caleb himself.
But against the undeniable truth that no matter how close we got, I may never be the one he chooses.
September-
I barely notice the shift at first; the way August hands things off to September, smooth and effortless, like theyâve done this a million times before. Like they were always meant to meet. It feels familiar in a way I canât explain, like stepping into a conversation thatâs already halfway finished but somehow still knowing exactly whatâs being said.Â
Things with Caleb had settled into a familiar rhythm. On campus, we were either together or in class, our days stitched together by shared moments. Being with him was refreshing, like the first warm breeze after a long winter, a quiet promise that brighter days were ahead. Silence with him was never awkward; it was understood. He always seemed to know what I was thinking, what I meant to say, even when I didnât say it aloud.
Iâd known Caleb for a while, but the way we grew close so quickly felt natural, like weâd been moving toward this all along. It was as if there had always been a space in my mind shaped just for him, waiting for the right moment for him to step in.
The cloudy sky above turned dark with the impending storm coming, but in a rush to meet Caleb, I had hardly noticed until I was halfway to his dorm. Cursing to myself, I silently tried to manifest the rain would hold off until I got back to my own dorm later.Â
It was movie day; every Friday afternoon after Caleb and I finished with our classes for the day we would have lunch and watch a movie. He was on hosting duty this week, and his dorm was on the other side of campus. If I got caught in this rain, Iâd still have a bit of a walk in the storm before I arrived.Â
Almost as if laughing at me, the sky cracked with lightning and thunder rumbled, and I heard the pouring of rain before I felt it.
âShit!â I picked up the pace, my sneakers splashing through puddles forming on the sidewalks as I started to run. Thunder booming in the sky, I mentally prepared to get struck by lightning and hoped I would be eaten by the campus birds before anyone found my body.Â
Trying to take a shortcut through the grass was the worst decision I could have made, as I wasnât even two feet from the sidewalk before I slipped, landing on my back and getting waterboarded by the sky. âArgh!â I screeched, tears of frustration welling in the corners of my eyes. I sat up, glaring at the students staring at me as they passed by with their umbrellas.Â
My whole body was drenched by the time I was outside of Calebâs; my hair, jeans, and sweater caked with mud (and probably a few stray leaves).Â
Making my way upstairs, my cheeks were pink from the cold and embarrassment as everyone in the building looked at me with confusion as my clothes and hair dripped all over the floor.Â
Caleb swung the door open before I could knock, something heâd do as he watched for me through the peephole in his door. Looking me up and down, the corners of his mouth twitched upward as he coughed, stifling a laugh.
He leaned against his door frame, âWhat happened here?â
âShut up.â I pushed past him, annoyed but a bit guilty as I continued to drip all over his floor.
âYou look like a sad wet cat,â Caleb patted my wet hair, frowning when he saw I was shivering, âa cold, sad wet cat.â
He started to rummage around the room, going through his drawers and closet, pulling out clothes. Tossing them at me, he pointed to the bathroom, âGo shower, I donât want you all soppinâ wet on my stuff.â
I glanced at the clothes he handed me; hoodie, sweatpantsâŠhis boxers?Â
âUm, Caleb-â
He shook his head, âItâs only weird if you make it weird.â
Pursing my lips together I nodded, heading into the bathroom. I called out to him, âCaleb, do you have a towel?âÂ
âJust use the one in there.â
Okay, we were close, but I wasnât aware we had crossed into this land.
Peeling my clothes from my body, I threw them into a pile in the corner. I nearly moaned when the hot water hit my skin, and basked in the feeling for a bit. I stared at Calebâs shampoo and body wash, conflicted on if I should actually use them or just try to rinse myself off the best I could.
Feeling the mud and tangles in my hair, I accepted defeat.
By the time I was done, clad in Calebâs warm clothes with every inch of me smelling like him, it felt like he was smothering me. Like I was enveloped in one of his bear hugs.
I looked at myself in the mirror, and I felt my heart jump a bit. There was something about wearing a boyâs clothes as is, but Calebâs clothes?Â
A bit ago, I had felt the shift before I could name it.Â
Itâs in the way my eyes flick to my phone more often than before, in the way my chest tightens, just a little, when his name lights up my screen. Itâs in the way my pulse stirs when I spot him at our usual spot in the library, twirling a pen between his fingers like heâs been waiting for me. Like he knew Iâd show up (and he always did).Â
And maybe thatâs what unsettles me the most, not just that I notice these things, but that a part of me already expects them. Like Iâve been pavloved.
It was ignorable at first, but itâs become this nagging feeling at the back of my mind. A tugging at my heart. Itâs annoying, like a mosquito buzzing in my ear thatâs too quick for me to smack it away.
The feeling that I didnât want to just be friends anymore.
Coming out of the bathroom, Caleb was already sitting on the floor in front of his bed with two cups of tea and food, and my mouth watered when I saw he made my favorite.
He smiled at me, something unreadable flickering in his eyes. âYou look pretty good in those.â
Heat crept up my neck, and I let out a nervous laugh. âYouâre just saying that because I look like you.â
âMaybe, maybe not.â Caleb nodded toward the bathroom. âYour hairâs still wet. Grab the towel.â
âItâs fine,â I shrugged. âItâs not that bad.â
He raised an eyebrow, arms crossing over his chest. âYou already got caught in the rain once. Stay damp any longer, and youâll catch a cold.â Then, with a cheeky grin, he added, âAnd I canât be left alone in class. Thatâd be tragic.â
Rolling my eyes, I turned on my heel, grabbed the towel, and tossed it at him. âRight, of course. Thatâs all I am to you, entertainment in class.â
âFor sure,â he said smoothly, catching the towel with ease. âNow sit.â
I sat beside him, reaching for the towel, but before I could take it, his hands found my shoulders, gently turning me away. I barely had time to protest before he took the towel himself, carefully running it through my damp hair.
âCaleb, I can do it myselfââ I started, trying to shift back, but his grip was steady.
âShush,â he murmured. âLet me help.â
I could have argued, but the warmth of his touch, the slow, deliberate way he moved, made it impossible to resist. My shoulders relaxed as he worked, the soft scratch of the towel against my scalp lulling me into stillness. Silence settled between us, easy and unspoken, the only sound the steady rhythm of rain tapping against the window. It was peaceful, grounding. For a moment, I let myself sink into it, let myself be cared for.
Before long Caleb tugged on a strand of my hair, âOkay, done.â
âThank youâ I pinched his cheek, his lips curved upwards and his eyes went soft.
âNow, what should we watch?â
âNothing crazy, I donât think my brain can function right now after today.â
Caleb laughed, flicking through the movies, before settling on some random cartoon. I sighed dramatically when I took a bite of the food he made, âCaleb, youâve outdone yourself yet again.â
He looked at me mischievously before stealing a bite, and I punched his shoulder, âYou have your own!â
His phone lit up and I saw the name, looking away as he picked it up to respond to the incoming texts.
MC.
A wedge of jealousy crept up my throat. It was our movie time, and here she was, almost on cue.
I always listenâreally listenâwhen he talks about her. About how much she means to him, how sheâs one of the only constants in his life. And it stings, sharper than I expect, because I want to be that constant. I donât say it, of course. Instead, I throw myself deeper into the friendship, as if proving my place will make it true.
I laugh at his jokes a little too hard. Memorize the way he takes his coffee without meaning to. Notice the small things that make him tick, the way his expression shifts when heâs lost in thought, the songs he hums under his breath.
The internal competition I created against her wasnât intentional, but once I noticed it, everything about it became hard to unsee.
He sets his phone down just as quickly as he picked it up, shooting me an apologetic look. âSorry, MC just had a question about something.â
âThat stupid question couldâve waitedâ, I think, irritation curling in my chest. But I shove it down, nudging his shoulder with a forced smile. âSâalright. Everything okay?â
âYeah, all good.â He settles back into the movie, but I barely hear it now. The feeling of her lingers, clinging to the space between us, and I try to shake it off.
His presence beside me soothes the sting, like a bandage over a wound, and I start to loosen up, letting my head rest against the bed. The warmth of his clothes, the comfort of a full stomach, the quiet rhythm of rain against the window; it all starts to pull me under, drowsiness settling into my bones. My eyelids grow heavy, and I barely register the way Caleb shifts beside me.
âSleepy?â His voice is soft, almost amused.
I peek one eye open, managing a lazy smile. âA bit.â
Without a word, he moves closer, wrapping an arm around the back of my neck. His hand finds the side of my head, cradling it gently as he guides me to rest against his shoulder. The touch is careful, deliberate, something more than our usual play punches and casual grabs in a crowd. This is different. More intimate.
For a moment, I forgot about the competition. Because my head fits perfectly in the crook of his neck, and the slow, absentminded way his fingers trace shapes on my shoulder feels so easy, so natural. He watches the TV like this is nothing new, like having me this close is just the way things are meant to be. And for the first time I let myself believe, just for a second, that maybe he feels the same way about me too.
October-
There's a charge in the air alongside the change in leaves, a quiet pull I feel every time Caleb leans in a little too close or looks at me like Iâm the only person in the room.
But then, thereâs her.
Sheâs not here, but she is. Always lingering in the pauses between sentences, in the spaces Caleb leaves open without realizing it. Sheâs in the way his face softens when he says her name, in the light that sparks behind his eyes when he talks about her. And I hate how it makes me feel; petty, ridiculous, like Iâve stumbled into a battle I was never meant to fight.
I just canât shake it.
Because lately, thereâs been something else. An even bigger shift, subtle, but impossible to ignore. The way his hand lingers a beat too long when he passes me something, like heâs reluctant to let go. The way his gaze finds me, even in a crowded room, like Iâm the only person worth looking at. The late-night texts, filled with thoughts that could have waited but never do.
Maybe Iâm imagining it. Maybe Iâm just reading too much into things, seeing what I want to see. But a part of me, deep down, knows he feels this too.
My phone began to ring as I was getting ready for the Senior Gala the Academy holds every year for those graduating in the spring.Â
âYes?â I already know who it is without looking.
Calebâs voice drifts through the speaker, soft and warm. âAre you almost ready, honey?â The pet name catches me off guard, a shy smile pulling at my lips before I can stop it. Heâd started using it recently, and I hadnât dared to question it out of the fear it would stop.
He was my date tonight (as friends of course), and I was running a little behind.
âI still have to finish my makeup, do my hair, and put on my dress,â I groaned in frustration, âIâm sorry Caleb, Iâm trying to go as fast as I can.â
He laughs sweetly, âWell, Iâm almost there. I can help you out.â
âHelp meâŠ?â
âYep, Captain Caleb is gonna be there to save the night. See you soon!â
The phone clicks before I can respond, and not a moment later, Caleb is strolling through my door like he owns the place.Â
I turned to face him, and my breath caught in my throat. His suit was a deep navy that matched my dress, the rich fabric adorned with his pilot and aviator pins. His hair, tousled yet intentional, framed a face that always felt like home. Caleb stood there composed, sharp but still him; and there was something about the way the badges gleamed against his chest that nearly brought me to my knees.
His gaze sweeps over my desk, taking in the chaos of makeup scattered around, before pausing on my curling iron.
âIs this plugged in?â He picks it up, inspecting it.
âCaleb, you are not putting that anywhere near my head.â I instinctively flinch as he reaches for a lock of my hair.
But heâs quick, his hand firmly grasping the top of my head, holding it still. âI always helped MC with her hair. I know my way around a curling iron.â
The words land harder than he meant, and I canât help but squint at him, a frown tugging at my lips. He misreads it, thinking Iâm questioning him, and gives me a serious look.
âTrust me here.â
I let the assumption hang in the air, letting him believe my discontent is just doubt. I sigh, giving in, âAlright, but if you make me look bad for my Senior Gala, I will hate you forever.â
He starts to section my hair and I raise my brows in approval, âOkay, yeah,â I think, âMaybe he does have thisâ.
Calebâs touch is gentle as I apply my mascara and lipstick, careful not to mess me up, his hands steady as he moves around me. It doesnât take long before he pulls back, setting the curling iron down as I finish up with the last touches of my makeup.
âWe make a pretty good team, donât we?â His hands rest on my shoulders as he leans down, chin lightly resting on the top of my head, both of us watching our reflection in the mirror.
I tilt my head, inspecting my hair with a playful smile, running my fingers through a few strands. âI suppose you did an okay job.â
He pinches the bridge of my nose, a mock scowl crossing his face. Laughing, I stand up, reaching for my dress hanging in the closet.
I headed to the bathroom, âIâll be out in a sec.â
I slipped the dress on, the blue silk molding to my body, the delicate sleeves draping off my shoulders. It was beautiful, I was beautiful; but as I caught my reflection, doubt crept in. Would I look out of place next to Caleb? He was all polished perfection, and I was just⊠me. Not bad, but not him.
She would look perfect beside him.
âNo.â I straightened my shoulders. âIâm Calebâs date tonight, not her. He could have asked her, but he didnât. He chose me. Itâs just us.â
Fumbling with the zipper, I let out a frustrated breath before finally pulling the door open. âCaleb, can you help me with this?â
His head snapped up, eyes widening as a flush crept up his cheeks. âOf course.â
Caleb stepped forward, hesitating for just a moment before his fingers brushed against my back. His touch was warm, a stark contrast to the cool fabric clinging to my skin. Gently, he gathered the dress, his knuckles ghosting along my spine as he found the zipper.
I held my breath.
Slowly, he pulled it up, the quiet sound of the zipper filling the space between us. With each inch, his fingertips lingered, tracing the curve of my back, sending shivers down my arms. My skin felt hypersensitive, like every nerve was tuned to him and him alone.
When he reached the top, he didnât step away. Instead, his fingers grazed the nape of my neck, adjusting the fabric, smoothing it into place. His breath was warm against my shoulder, his voice barely above a whisper.
âThere,â he murmured. âPerfect.â
I turned slightly, just enough to catch his gaze. His eyes flickered down to my lips, then back up, as if caught in some silent battle with himself. The air between us was thick, charged, pulling me toward him.
âThank you,â I said softly, my voice barely steady.
His hand lingered for just a second longer before he finally let go, stepping back, but not too far. Not far at all.
I turned around slowly, my heart pounding as I met his gaze. His eyes traced the length of me, starting at the hem of my dress and lingering as they traveled upward, taking in every detail before finally meeting mine.
Caleb swallowed, his lips parting slightly as if he had something to say but couldnât quite find the words. Then, as if shaken from a spell, he smiledâsoft, almost bashful.
âYou look beautiful.â
His voice was quiet, reverent, like he wasnât just saying it, but feeling it. Like the words werenât enough to capture what he saw.
Warmth spread through me, creeping up my neck, and for a moment, I forgot how to breathe. Iâd spent so much time wondering if I looked right beside him, if I fit; but now, standing here, bathed in the glow of his gaze, I didnât feel out of place.
I felt chosen.
âHold your compliments until youâve seen the whole look,â I teased, holding up a finger to silence him. âI still need to put on my shoes and pins.â
Caleb smirked. âNeed help with those too?â
I rolled my eyes. âI think I can manage strapping on my own heels and pinning a badge to my dress, thanks.â
âIâm not so sure about that.â He plucked my heels off the dresser, twirling them lazily around his finger, his gaze practically daring me to challenge him.
I huffed but gave in, sinking into my chair. âFine.â
Caleb knelt in front of me, his fingers warm as they wrapped around my ankle, steady but gentle as if I were something delicate. He slipped the first shoe on, fastening the strap with practiced ease.
âI can do most things myself, yâknow,â I muttered, though my voice lacked its usual bite.
âI know.â His fingers lingered against my skin for a fraction too long before he reached for the second shoe. âI just like to be helpful.â
But he still wouldnât look at me when he said it, and something about the way his voice softened made me think he wasnât just talking about shoes.
I stood as he finished, reaching for my pins amidst the clutter of my desk and fastening them carefully over my heart. Turning to the mirror, I shifted from side to side, checking every angle, making sure everything was just right.
I glanced back at Caleb. âAre you sure I look okay?â
Without hesitation, he took my hand and lifted it into the air. âTwirl. Let me see.â
I spun for him, the silk of my dress catching the light, and when I turned back, there was something bright in his eyes, something warm, something real.
âYou look more than okay,â he said, voice sure with conviction. âI promise.â
I held out my pinky. âPinky promise?â
He grinned, hooking his finger around mine. âPinky promise.â
âLock it,â I reminded him, and he chuckled before pressing his thumb against mine, sealing the deal.
His fingers lingered for a second before he gave my hand a gentle squeeze. âNow come on, weâre definitely going to be late.â
When we arrived at the gala, it didnât take long for Caleb to be swept away by a group of guys he often talked to. I lingered around, exchanging polite small talk with a few people I still considered friends. I didnât see them much anymore, as most of my time was spent with Caleb.
âSo, are you two dating?â one of the girls asked, tilting her head. âI thought he was seeing that girl from his hometown⊠What was her name again?â
âMC.â I said, a little too quickly.
âRight, thatâs the one.â
I forced a smile. âNo, weâre just good friends.â
But even as I said it, my gaze drifted to where he stood, laughing easily with his own friends, his posture loose and carefree. A quiet ache settled in my chest.
I wanted to be next to him.
But then again, I was; just not in the way they all saw. I knew him in moments no one else did, in the quiet spaces between conversations, in the unspoken gestures and late-night confessions.
And for now, that was enough. It had to be.
I excused myself from the conversation, weaving through the crowd until I reached one of the drink tables. Grabbing a glass, I slipped into the quieter halls, letting the hum of conversation and music fade behind me. The walls were lined with grand, extravagant paintings, each one demanding attention. I paused in front of a few, sipping my drink as I took them in, letting my mind settle.
I wasnât antisocial, I could hold my own in a room full of people, I just needed a break from the carefully choreographed chaos of the ballroom.Â
The rhythmic click of shoes against marble echoed through the quiet hallway, followed by a familiar, soft laugh.
âHow did I know Iâd find you out here?â
I hummed against the rim of my glass. âMaybe because you can read my mind.â
Caleb shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips. âSometimes I wish I could.â Then, extending his hand toward me, he asked, âDance with me?â
I glanced at his outstretched palm. âOut here?â
He tilted his head playfully. âWell, my possible mind-reading powers tell me youâd rather not go back in there.â
A slow smile spread across my face as I laced my fingers with his. âI think you might be psychic.â
The distant music from the ballroom barely reached us, muffled and softened by the grand halls, but somehow, that only made the moment feel more intimate. Calebâs hands found my waist, warm and steady, while mine slipped around the back of his neck.
He guided us into a slow, easy rhythm. I rested my head just below his chin, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath the fabric of his suit.
We moved without words; his breath against my hair was the only thing I could focus on, like everything else had paused around us.
The world outside the two of us faded, the grand chandelier lights dimming, the chatter and laughter of the crowd becoming a distant murmur. All that remained was the softness of the moment, our steps in sync, and the quiet, unspoken connection between us.
I could feel his thumb tracing gentle patterns against my back, the touch soft in a way that wasnât rushed. There was no need to hurry, no need to speak. We simply existed in this space, suspended between the melody and the quiet.
His fingers moved up to brush a lock of hair behind my ear, the gesture tender, almost shy. I looked up at him, and his eyes held mine, reassuring.
âYou feel like home,â he murmured, so quietly I almost thought I imagined it.
I didnât answer. I didnât need to. Instead, I leaned in a little closer, savoring the rhythm of our slow dance, the feeling of him holding me like this, as if the rest of the world didnât matter at all.
âDo you want to get out of here?â Caleb tapped my shoulder lightly, pulling away just enough for the space between us to feel suddenly too wide. It wasnât much, but the shift left a coldness in the air, and I immediately wanted to fall back into him.
âWhere are you thinking?â I asked.
He pointed toward the window. âThereâs a park across the street. We could go there. Away from all⊠this.â He gestured vaguely, as if the chaos of the gala was still buzzing around us.
I nodded without hesitation, and soon we found ourselves at the park, sitting on an old, rusty swing set. The contrast was stark; our lavish clothes against the worn, weathered metal, but I didnât care. My dress snagged on the rust as I sat down, but I was too lost in the quiet to be bothered by it. All I wanted was this moment, the stillness, just the two of us away from everything else.
The night air wrapped around us, cool and still, with only the rhythmic creak of the swings and the occasional whisper of wind through the trees breaking the silence. It felt like we existed in a world separate from everything else, suspended in something fragile, something fleeting.
Caleb leaned back against the chain of his swing, his fingers gripping the metal tightly as he looked at me again. That lookâlike he could see through me, past all the walls I tried so hard to keep up. My pulse hammered in my chest under his gaze.
âYou ever feel like⊠you donât know where you stand with someone?â I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
His eyes flickered, something unreadable passing through them. âYeah,â he said quietly, but with a certainty that made my stomach twist. âAll the time.â
For a second, just a fleeting, breathless second; I wondered if he meant me.
I forced a smile, trying to ease the tension hanging between us. I nudged my swing into his, making it sway slightly. âYou have a really good sense of self-restraint,â I teased, the words a shield to keep myself from feeling too much. âItâs almost a talent.â
His lips curved, but it was thin, hollowâthere was something sad in it. âIs that a bad thing?â
I tilted my head, watching him. âNo⊠well, maybe. Sometimes, I guess. I think you have a habit of depriving yourself of what you really want.â
Caleb looked down, his boot dragging against the dirt beneath him. âWhat if I canât have what I want?â His voice was rougher now, lower. âWhat if itâs not allowed?â
I reached forward, gripping the chain of his swing, giving it a slight shake to bring his eyes back to mine. âIf itâs within your reach, itâs legal, and youâre not hurting anyone, I donât see a problem.â My breath hitched, and my chest tightened as I spoke. âIf I had to guess, youâre trying to convince yourself you canât have something.â
His exhale was shaky, and a bitter laugh barely escaped him. âMaybe, yeah.â
I saw it thenâthe decision in his eyes, the surrender.
And then, he moved.
Caleb leaned in first, closing the space between us with a quiet certainty that made my breath catch. I barely had time to react before his lips met mine; soft, warm, real. My fingers clenched around the swingâs chain for balance, but it didnât matter. My whole world had already tilted.
The kiss started slow, tentative, but it didnât stay that way for long. Calebâs hand found my jaw, his fingers brushing my skin, grounding me as he deepened the kiss. There was no hesitation, no pulling awayâonly the quiet urgency of something inevitable, something long overdue.
I let myself sink into it, forget everything outside this moment. The cold night air, the weight of the past few months, the uncertainty of what came nextâit all melted away as Caleb kissed me like heâd been waiting for this as long as I had.
When we finally broke apart, breathless and dazed, our foreheads nearly touching, Caleb let out a quiet, almost incredulous chuckle. His thumb brushed over my cheek, lingering there like he was memorizing the feel of me.
His eyes searched mine, and for a moment, neither of us said anythingâjust letting the silence settle between us like something sacred.
I tried to catch my breath, still feeling the warmth of his touch all over me. âIâuh, I didnât think that was how tonight would go.â
âMe either,â he admitted softly.
I bit my lip, searching for something to say, but my thoughts were still tangled up in the kiss. The taste of him lingered, sweet and unfamiliar, like a song youâd heard once and couldnât forget. The warmth of his breath was still etched into the space between us, and the silence felt heavy, like it was holding something fragile; something we both werenât quite ready to name. I felt the words sitting at the edge of my mind, waiting, but they were lost in the echo of his touch, the weight of everything unsaid.
Caleb gently brushed a strand of hair away from my face, his touch so tender it almost felt like he was afraid to break something.
There was a quiet moment, just us sitting there, the air between us charged and delicate. Calebâs fingers brushed along my wrist, and he gave a small, hesitant laugh.
âIs it weird to say Iâm kind of glad we did this here?â
I smiled, the tension easing slightly. âNot at all. Thereâs something nice about having a moment thatâs just ours.â
He glanced up at the dark sky, the stars scattered above us. âYeah, itâs like weâre in our own little world. Just us.â
I took a deep breath, trying to settle the fluttering in my chest. âThen letâs not rush back. Letâs just stay here for a little longer.â
He grinned, that easy smile of his, and nodded. âIâm in.â
We swayed gently, both of us still lost in the quiet, the stillness of the park and the soft feeling that somehow, things were different now.Â
Better.
November-
The moment on the swings stays with me long after itâs over, a quiet echo that pulses in the back of my mind, haunting the spaces between my thoughts. It lingers in the way Caleb reaches for my hand without thinking, in the brief touches we exchange. The kiss, though, thatâs the one that lingers the longest; the warmth of him, the certainty that wrapped around me like a promise.Â
He didnât hesitate. He didnât hold back.
I tell myself it was nothing, that it was just a rush, a fleeting spark that will eventually fade with time.Â
But it doesnât.Â
Instead, it settles into the corners of me, a quiet undercurrent beneath everything else.
Everything is subtle at first, in the little things. His hand brushing against mine when we walk, his knee grazing mine when we sit side by side, the way his texts come more often now, careful and soft. When weâre together, it feels like we really have built our own little world, a space apart from everything else. And I let myself believe that maybe, just maybe, itâs enough.
Though one night, I find him distant. His gaze fixed on his phone, jaw tight like heâs trying to hold something in. He barely speaks, his words sharp and short, his mind somewhere else entirely. I donât ask, donât press him for an answer. But I know.
Itâs her.
And in that moment, something clicks.
Iâm not the only one caught between two worlds. Caleb is, too.
The realization doesnât ease the ache, it only makes it worse. Because if thereâs a choice, I already know who heâll choose.
Trainingâs getting harder, and graduation is only a few months away. The exhaustion is catching up to all of us, but I feel as if it's hitting me the hardest. Barely sleeping, too many long nights and even longer days, each one blending into the next until I canât tell where one ends and the other begins. I can feel my body wearing down, but I keep pushing, because what else is there to do? Let myself stop and think?
Ha.
No.
Caleb notices, though. Heâs just as drained as I am, but heâs still there, watching me. He always makes sure I eat, even when I donât feel like it. Reminds me to drink water when I forget, and always seems to be there after training, hanging around like heâs making sure I donât collapse right there on the floor.
I try not to let it mean anything, try not to read too much into it. Heâs just being a friend, right?
But itâs hard to ignore the way he lingers, the way his eyes flicker with something I canât quite place when I sway slightly on my feet, too tired to stand straight. He doesnât say anything, but his hand is there, steady on my arm, holding me like he doesnât want to let go.
Caleb picked me up from the Academy airport after a training flight. We were supposed to grab lunch, but when his eyes landed on my exhausted form, something in his expression softened.
âLetâs get you home, yeah?â he said, his voice gentle.
I shook my head, trying to shake off the exhaustion. âNo, Iâm fine. Letâs just goââ But before I could finish, my body betrayed me, and I stumbled forward, barely able to keep myself upright.
Calebâs hand was there in an instant, steadying me by the shoulder and wrapping his arm around me like he wasnât letting go. âI think youâd fall asleep in your food and suffocate. When was the last time you slept?â
âYesterday⊠no, Tuesday? I donât really remember.â
I threw on my coat, but Calebâs gaze was still on me, studying me like he could see right through the act I was trying to put on.
âDonât look at me like that,â I muttered, glaring at him. âIâm fine. Letâs hurry before we miss the bus.â
Standing outside at the bus stop, I shivered against Caleb's arm around me (that was still trying to hold me up). He asked me about my day, if I had eaten breakfast; simple questions that didnât require much thinking on my part and patient, non-expectant responses from him. I pressed my body closer into his, trying to soak up his warmth, and maybe even share a bit of my own.Â
He looked down at me and chuckled, ruffling my hair, âJust a bit longer, honey.â
And he was right, seconds later the bus pulled up. I was practically bouncing to get inside and out of this weather.
Snatching the window seat, I stuck my tongue out at Caleb as he situated himself next to me. âYouâre evil, you know that right.âÂ
The bus was a welcomed relief from the biting cold outside, the warmth inside wrapping around me like a comforting blanket. My coat was serving as a blanket, and I donât even remember when I drifted off, but at some point I found myself asleep on Calebâs shoulder.
I half-awoke to him nudging me gently. âHey, this is my dorm, letâs get off here.â
Groggily, I shook my head, struggling to form a thought. âNo, sâokay, my stop is nextâŠâ
He chuckled softly, and I could hear the concern in his voice. âI donât trust you not to fall back asleep and miss your dorm.â His fingers brushed through my hair to comb the strands away from my eyes, his touch tender as he looked at me. âJust come back up with me. You can sleep there until youâre good to go back.â
I barely had the strength to argue, so I let him lead me, sleepily leaning against him the entire way. By the time we reached his room, I was barely conscious. He helped me take off my coat and shoes, and without a second thought, I crawled onto his bed, curling up into a ball as sleep claimed me again.
When I woke, the world outside was dark, and it took a moment to realize where I was. The blanket was soft against my skin, and I noticed Caleb beside me, his face relaxed in sleep. It was the first time Iâd ever seen him look so at ease, so⊠soft.
I felt a pang of guilt when I noticed the clock beside his bed. It was nearing one in the morning. He probably wanted to sleep, but I had taken over his space.
I started to sit up, but before I could move, an arm wrapped around my waist.
âWhere are you going?â Calebâs voice was thick with sleep, and I froze, my heart skipping a beat as I turned to see him blinking slowly up at me.
âI have to go home,â I murmured, my words barely above a whisper. I reached out, hand instinctively brushing his face, but then I stopped myself and pulled it back.
He toyed with the hem of my t-shirt, and I felt the warmth of his touch spread through me. I could feel myself melting under his proximity. âItâs too late,â he said softly, his voice almost a plea. âJust stay here.â
âCalebââ
âOr I can walk you home,â he added, his eyes still half-closed, and he stretched as if to get up, but I placed my hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
âNo, really, itâs okay.â
He smirked a little, still mischievous even through sleep. âYou pick. I either walk you home, or you stay here.â
In that moment, the stillness of the night seemed to press in around us, and my heart ached. Caleb was a vice. He was dangerous.
âOkay,â I whispered, my resolve crumbling. âIâll stay.â
The room is quiet except for Calebâs steady breathing. The city of Skyhaven hums faintly outside, the night stretching endlessly around us. Iâm awake now, but I canât bring myself to move. Calebâs hand rests lightly on my waist, like heâs afraid Iâll slip away if he lets go. Itâs nothing, really. Just a small, almost casual touch.Â
But it feels like everything.Â
It sets my entire body on fire, this little contact. I shouldnât be here, not like this, not after everything. But I donât leave. Instead, I sink back down, letting the warmth of the blanket and his presence pull me under.
We donât speak. Thereâs nothing to say. No explanations, no excusesâjust this fragile moment, suspended in time, hanging between us. Calebâs breathing evens out again, his grip loosening as sleep pulls him back under. I stay awake, staring at the ceiling, listening to the soft sounds of the night. I know this is a mistake. I know when the sun rises, when the reality of the world outside finally settles in, things will go back to how they were.
Heâll wake up, stretch, rub the sleep from his eyes, and weâll pretend like this never happened. Heâll go back to talking about MC, and whatever thisâwhatever weâwill remain suspended in the realm of âalmostsâ and âwhat-ifs.â But for now, in this quiet moment, I close my eyes. I let myself have this, just for tonight. Because even if it means nothing to him, it means everything to me.
Morning comes too quickly.
I stir first, blinking against the soft light filtering through the blinds. For a second, everything feels warm and comforting. Calebâs steady breathing beside me, the weight of the blanket, the quiet hum of the city waking up outside.
Then, reality crashes back in. I shouldnât be here. Not like this.
Carefully, I try to slip out from beneath the covers, but the moment I move, Caleb stirs. His grip tightens around my waist, pulling me closer just a little before his eyes flutter open.
He looks at me, caught between sleep and consciousness, and for a second, thereâs something in his gaze; a softness that makes my breath catch in my chest. But then, he blinks, and itâs gone.
âYouâre awake,â his voice is thick with sleep, raspy, and it twists something inside of me. He doesnât let go.
âYeah,â I whisper. âI should go.â
Caleb doesnât respond at first. His fingers absently trace the hem of my sleeve, like heâs thinking, weighing something.
Then, finallyâ
âYou donât have to.â
Itâs quiet. Hesitant. It feels like a confession wrapped in uncertainty.
I swallow hard. âCalebâŠâ
I donât even know what Iâm trying to say. I just know this, this tension, this dangerous line weâre walking, is too much.
He sits up slowly, rubbing a hand over his face, and then he looks at me. His expression is unreadable, and it makes my heart clench.
âLook,â he sighs, like this is some sort of explanation. âI know things have been⊠complicated.â
Complicated. Thatâs one way to put it.
I scoff and shake my head. âYou think?â
He runs a hand through his hair, exhaling sharply. âI donât know what Iâm doing.â
And that hurts more than it should. Because I know what Iâm doing. Iâm falling. Iâve been falling for so long, and Iâm pretty sure Iâm about to hit the ground.
âI canât keep doing this,â I whisper, my voice barely steady.
His jaw tightens. âI donât want to lose you.â
Something inside me cracks.
âThen stop making me feel like Iâm something you have to choose.â
Silence. And thatâs when I know.
He wonât say it, but I already have my answer. Because if I was ever truly an option, I wouldnât be standing here, begging for clarity.
I nod to myself, standing up. âI need to go.â
This time, he doesnât stop me.
December-
It hurts, it really hurts.Â
My chest aches like itâs been hollowed out, and every breath feels too heavy, too sharp. My body trembles, like itâs trying to hold itself together, but itâs already unraveling.Â
Is this what dying feels like?Â
Is this death?Â
The slow suffocation of something that was once whole?Â
Or is this grief?
Endless, suffocating griefâbleeding through my veins, consuming everything I am.
I canât tell anymore. Only that it hurts. So much.Â
I donât even know who I am anymore.Â
I feel like a hollow shell.
January-
The snow falls lightly, dusting the pavement with delicate flakes as I walk across campus. The world feels quiet, wrapped in winterâs cold embrace, but inside me? Thereâs nothing but noise, a clamor I canât silence. Just as fast as everything had began, it ended just as quickly.Â
I didnât expect Caleb to reach out. After everything, after the silence between us thatâs stretched since November, I thought heâd let the distance settle. Let whatever we had fade into something unspoken, unresolved.
But then I got the text.
can we talk?
And because Iâm weak, because no matter how much I want to convince myself Iâve moved on, I know I havenât, so I agreed.
Now, Iâm here, waiting outside the coffee shop, my breath clouding in the cold air. Calebâs already inside, sitting by the window with his fingers curled around a paper cup. When he sees me, he gives a small, hesitant smile. He looks the same, yet it feels so foreign.
I steel myself and walk inside.
âHey,â he says when I slide into the seat across from him.
âHey,â I echo, my voice flat, unreadable.
We sit in silence for a moment, the weight of everything hanging between us.
He exhales, looking down at his coffee. âI hate how things have been between us.â
I donât say anything, just let him speak.
âI miss you,â he admits, and for a moment, my heart stumbles. But before I can process it, he adds, âI donât want to lose you, I want us to still be friends.â
Friends.
I should have expected this. Maybe I did. Maybe Iâve just been foolish enough to hope for something else.
I swallow, my fingers tightening around my cup. âFriends.â
He nods, earnest, like he doesnât realize heâs twisting a knife into my chest. âYeah. I mean, we were good at that, right? Before things got⊠complicated.â
Complicated. That word again.
I take a slow breath, trying to force the ache in my chest to quiet. Maybe this is what we need. Maybe being friends, just friends, will hurt less than losing him completely.
So I offer a small smile, one that feels forced but I try to make it real. âYeah. We were.â
Relief flashes across his face, and something deep inside me tugs painfully. But I ignore it.
We can do this.
We have to.
âAre we okay?â he asks carefully.
I hesitate for a second, just a moment, but then I nod. âYeah. Weâre okay.â
And maybe, if I say it enough times, itâll start to feel true.
We step outside together, the cold air biting at my skin. We walk side by side, but itâs different now. Less certain, more fragile. But for now, itâs enough. Weâre still in each otherâs lives. And that has to count for something.
February-
The cold of February feels different this year. Itâs sharp, biting at my skin, but itâs nothing compared to the way the distance between Caleb and me has settled; thick, suffocating.
Weâre friends. At least, thatâs what we tell ourselves.
But every interaction feels like a shadow of what it used to be. We pass each other on campus, exchanging forced smiles, awkward pleasantries. He texts me sometimes, but the messages are clipped, casual. The playful banter, the inside jokesâwe donât have those anymore.
Iâve gotten good at pretending it doesnât hurt. I laugh at his jokes when weâre in class together, crack a smile when he waves in passing. I tell myself that being near him, even like this, is better than nothing.
But it isnât. It isnât better at all.
One afternoon, after class, Caleb waits for me while I pack my things, his hands shoved deep in the pockets of his jacket. His eyes meet mine, but they flicker away quickly, like heâs not sure how to look at me anymore.
âHey,â he says, his voice quieter than it used to be.
I force a smile, but it feels too tight, too stretched.
We walk together, but the silence between us is thick. Weâre not really talking anymore. Not like before.
âHowâs everything?â I ask, trying to fill the space with something. Anything.
Caleb shrugs, his gaze far off. âSame as usual. You know how it is.â
I donât know how it is. Not anymore.
âAnd you?â he asks, almost apologetically, like heâs afraid heâll break something if he pushes too hard.
âIâm good,â I say, too quickly. Too easily. I wish I could say something that would make it sound like we havenât drifted so far apart. But I canât.
The truth is, I donât feel good. Not at all.
The rest of the walk is silent, and when we reach the place where our paths diverge, Caleb gives me a tight, awkward smile.
âCatch you later,â he says, already turning away before I can say anything else.
I watch him walk off, the weight of all the things we never said hanging between us.
Itâs painful. But I swallow it down. I have to.
The days pass, and we continue this dance; one of shallow conversations, stiff smiles. Every text feels like a performance. Every interaction, a reminder that weâre no longer who we used to be.
One night, I sit at my desk, the glow of my laptop screen casting a pale light over my face. My phone vibrates on the table beside me. Calebâs name.
I hesitate before picking it up.
hey, are you free later?
My heart skips a beat, but I force myself to respond.
Yeah, whatâs up?
Thereâs a long pause before his next message.
i was thinking we could grab coffee. but no pressure, just thought it might be nice.
The words âjust thought it might be niceâ sting more than I expected. Itâs so casual, so simpleâlike the idea of spending time together doesnât carry any of the weight it used to.
But I canât back out now. I canât keep pretending that Iâm not still craving his company, even if itâs not the same.
I tell myself itâs fine. This is what we agreed to. That being friends is better than nothing.
And no matter how many times I tell myself Iâm over it, no matter how many times I remind myself that this is what I chose; it still hurts.
When we part ways that evening, Caleb gives me a small, almost apologetic smile. âIâll see you around.â
âYeah,â I reply, throat tight. âSee you.â
I watch him leave, and I canât help but feel like a piece of myself is slowly drifting farther away.
March-
I canât keep doing this.
April-
The months start to feel like a slow, inevitable slide into something I canât quite escape. The air has warmed, and the snow is nothing more than a distant memory, but the silence between Caleb and me cuts deeper than any winter chill.
We still see each other every day. We still share the same spaces, the same halls, the same class. But now, weâre nothing more than shadows of what we once were. Just two people who used to mean something to each other, now standing on opposite sides of a wide, unbridgeable gap.
We promised to be friends. We promised weâd make it work. But those promises feel empty now. Thereâs no joy in our interactions, no spark. Every conversation is forced, every laugh hollow. Weâve become experts at pretending, at wearing the mask of âjust friends,â even though neither of us believes it for a second.
Iâve tried to move on, but when I see him, itâs like a miserable cold wave crashing over me. His eyes, once warm and inviting, are distant now; like heâs holding back something Iâm not allowed to know. Even though heâs still there, still around, it feels like heâs lightyears away.
It was a Tuesday afternoon, sitting alone in the student lounge, my books spread out in front of me though not really focused on them. My phone buzzes, and I glance down at the message, already knowing who itâs from.
Caleb.
I hesitate before opening it, my fingers lingering over the screen.
iâm outside the library, want to grab coffee?
My heart skips. I want to say yes.Â
I want to say yes more than anything.Â
But a part of me knows how this will go. Another awkward conversation. Another round of small talk and unspoken feelings.
Iâm tired. Tired of pretending things are fine when nothing is fine.
I canât, sorry.
May-
The day is warm, but thereâs a crispness in the air, the kind that signals a transition; between seasons, between chapters, between what was and what will be. The hum of excitement fills the air, the kind only a graduation ceremony can bring. Students in their uniforms mill around the venue, laughter and shouts of celebration ringing through the open space.
I move through the crowd, my diploma and badges in hand, the weight of the moment pressing down on me. I should feel proud, should feel accomplished. And I do, somewhere deep inside. But thereâs something else, something heavier, lingering beneath the surface. The kind of feeling Iâve spent the past few months pushing away, convincing myself Iâve moved past.
Then, I see them.
Caleb stands a few feet away, surrounded by the floods of people. I notice heâs staring ahead into the crowd, and a girl comes crashing into him with the kind of ease that twists my stomach; MC.
She leans in, closeâtoo close. And then, as if the universe had been waiting for the perfect moment to shatter the fragile balance I had built, she presses a kiss to his cheek. Itâs celebratory, happy, and by the look on Caleb's face, just enough.
The world tilts.
For a second, the sounds around me blur into static, the conversations and cheers fading into the background. The weight of months of restraint, of quiet acceptance, of pretending I was fine, collapses all at once. The carefully built walls around my emotions crack under the force of everything I had tried so desperately to move past.
I thought I had let go. I thought I had made peace with everything that had happened. But in this moment, watching him, watching them, it all comes rushing back. The late nights, the quiet moments, the unspoken words that once sat between us. The way he once looked at me, the way heâs looking at her. The realization that, despite all my efforts, my heart had never truly stopped waiting.
I force my feet to move, to carry me past them, past the reminders of what could have been, of what wasnât mine to hold onto anymore.
The weight in my chest is suffocating, but I refuse to stop, refuse to breakânot here, not now. Because this is supposed to be a celebration, the closing of a chapter, the start of something new.
Maybe in another life, it was never a competition. Maybe in another universe, I donât have to worry about her. In that world, I am herârunning into Calebâs arms, stealing his hat, and pressing a kiss to his cheek.
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Okay guys! Thoughts part 4! My brain wonât let me sleep hence I shall write, forgive me if I make any spelling errors though, I might get drowsy :â)
The night came by quite like the usual, the sky was clear, it was eerie everywhere except the âcloversâ Banquet Hall where the âfinestâ of Protocores Auction was being held. âSo-calledâ, he knew their true value, they were worthless, yet the place was jam-packed with wannabes, who wanted nothing but to just flaunt their money and âeleganceâ, if one could even call it thatâŠIt looked more of a pity party for the spoiled rather than an Auction, people were mingling too much yet too little, nothing was right.
Then why was he there, one might askâŠwell itâs simple he was a nocturnal and he had nothing fun to doâŠso why not come in guise at an âAuctionâ which merely stood firm ground to itâs name. His roams the velvety carpet with the strong presence and aura that he possessed, turning heads here and there. As if any of that ever came close to bother him. Heâs already met the love of his lifeâno his love in every timeline and universe. But boohoo she couldnât recognise him yet, so yeah maybe give her time?
He eyes the Protocores displayed, in hues of brilliant ruby, emerald, amber, lapis lazuli, and amethyst, claiming they costed millions and millions, the most precious, and valuableâŠ
He breathed out a husky laugh to himself, he swore he saw atleast majority of them on display at a flea market selling what-not.
He wants to leave but he doesnât, again, Onichynus is too boring tonight, Luke and Keiran are having too many âteenage tid-bitsâ, as heâd always call themâŠplus Mephistoâs battery was drained, so he couldnât even stalk his dearestâŠ
âGoing once!
Going twice!
Sold!â
He sits at the back of the Banquet at an empty stand-alone chair, why was that even there? He didnât know, it was out of place. His eyes wander, filled with void and boredomâŠ
_____________
It was a complete waste of his time, even embracing boredom was better than whatever that was. So he left.
He didnât brink his motorbike tonight, he wanted to walk, maybe even all night and sleep asleep by a manhole the next dayâŠWeird ideas roamed his mind none that made any senseâŠ
So he walks he walks he walksâŠwhen was the last time the N109 zone seemed so peaceful?
He comes at an opening into a wider part of the street through a lane, the moon illuminating itâs presence vividlyâŠhe knows the place, he knows the moonâŠbut he doesnât know the person in the far backgroundâŠ
Covered in a Rosewood strapless long dress upto her bare ankles, glimmering with white gemstones around her waist and bust. It had no neckline, the top end of the dress looped around her breasts secure, her neck had a band, the same colour of her dress, and a black and white choker-belted-neck piece, fastening itself, the locket had the âspadesâ symbol carved and settled inside of itâŠher hair fastened up into a bun neatly. Her hands contained silvery bangles, their ends fixed a thin long chain strands, a âred heartâ at the end of each, which came upto her upper armâŠ
She had her phone secured to the jaws of a selfie stick, that had a âred diamondâ symbol as itâs shutter button, as she pressed record, dancing around in the empty streets like a madwomanâŠthe camera even captured him, but she didnât care or budge, as she danced and swayed around flawlessly to whatever music was being played by her brainâŠ
The sky suddenly emitted a crimson glow upon her form and the surroundingsâŠhe glanced up at the blood moon, he swore heâd never seen beforeâŠHe kept staring, he couldnât fathom why.
As he remembersâŠthe curse of the blood moon which falls upon two souls, dejected by Fate, binding them together for their whole life that they shall continue to live onâŠ
But wasnât he tied to MC by Fate, for all his lifetimes to come and go? What game was Fate playing with him? He wanted MC with all his heart, yet he stumbles upon this unfaithful nightâŠhe searches for indicators and clues for the cause of this âbrief interruption, this slight malfunctionâ that crashed upon his lifeâŠyet he found noneâŠ
The sky suddenly seemed to rift apart and everything became static and hazyâŠthe world laggedâŠwas this a glitch in the cosmos? Did space and time rift apart causing an anomalyâŠ
Most importantlyâŠwho is she? And why does she look so regal, what veil of illusion had she casted, that he, the leader of Onichynus, one of the most notorious mafia group of the N109 zoneâŠSylus Qin, couldnât even spare a glance away?
She turned to gaze at him for a fraction of a secondâŠyet the gaze felt as if it had lasted eonsâŠshe held constellations in her eyesâŠ
Why did she seem like she was one with the cosmosâŠno as if the cosmos itself was bereft of any meaning-value-principle without herâŠ
âŠ.like she was a vision to behold, appearing whenever a new universe gets createdâŠ
Who was she and why was she so divine, that he felt like mediocrity in her vicinityâŠ
He needed to knowâxxxxxâxxxxxâxxxxâerrorerrorerrorerror
*rings the bell* Helloo!! Can I just say that I love your writing and hello the storylines? Omg they just satisfy my heart. Also I had an request (only if you take them and are comfortable) Maybe you could make a story where the reader after getting out of her unrequited love relationship meets another Li maybe Sylus or anyone for the matter of fact and gets together with them but encounters the feeling of starting over, trust issues, and the eventual build up. I feel like it'll take time for reader to properly get over her ex but in the process she experiences doubt about the concept of love in general, insecurity, and overall her feeling like "Maybe I was pretty enough to be the side piece, to fill the empty space but never enough to actually be pursued. Maybe I was pretty enough to be looked at but never to be fought for" and after getting together with sylus he shows her the real love (isn't sylus the epitome of supreme standards? And a man of love TT) His actions were always more than her ex and he makes her feel loved, seen, heard!! and suddenly she realises that this is love and maybe life isn't that unfair. I am sorry if it's too long I just got this idea after reading your recent zayne fic. Also love your work so so muchhhhh <333
Hiiii!! Thank you sooo sooooo much for liking them!!! Love love love <3!!!
And might I tell you that I am absolutely ADORING this request, itâs amazing omg?? I would LOVE to do it :D! I was just thinking of writing a Sylus x NON!MC fic a while ago, looks like Fate was pulling the strings for me lol.
I just wanted to confirm something with you, itâs that: do you want me to write it as a sequel to my recent Zayne x NON!MC reader fic or as a stand-alone? (AND PLEASE YESSSSSS THAT MAN HAS MY HEART UGHHH HE MAKES MY STANDARDS TOO HIGH TT~TT)
And again Iâd looove to write this! Ty again for making the request! Iâll do my best and I hope youâll like it :D <3!
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