#invcntions

FROM THE NECK DOWN she can barely recognize them: clad in yale blue, bulldogs splayed all over. evie's giddy with how ordinary they look in her mirror, just a boy and a girl standing next to each other. « we look ridiculous, » she beams, meeting his gaze in the mirror. it's clear he's fighting through his discomfort to give her this, and despite the way they never seem to land on the same page she can't help but feel grateful for the attempt. she brushes off the anxiety of knowing it can only ever be temporary, that every day inches them closer back to the reality he longs for and she dreads. but right now they're just two college kids off to see a game. she gets on her toes to plant a peck on his cheek. « thank you for doing this, » she mutters gently, hand curling around his upper arm. « you ready ? »

        “ sure, after this display you've so proudly put on tonight, it's obvious that you only want me. do you realize how ridiculous that sounds? ” 

" what ? " head titled slightly, genuine confusion covering her features. " I thought that went well ? " to which she really did. running into tadeo in the quad with naina was a surprise, but she adapted. introduced him — kept the conversation moving. nobody had even gotten suspicious, everything seemed perfectly normal. at least it did in the moment in her head. looking back, maybe she talked to much. maybe he smiled every time he spoke. maybe she answered half the questions directed at him before he had the chance to open his mouth. things that someone who only knew him through a makeshift study group.. thing.. probably didn't need to know. maybe improvising wasn't exactly her thing, but she felt like she played it off at least enough. " I mean, she likes you. " words finally continued, after the pause of empty air. " you were nice. she was happy to finally meet you, that's good. " absentmindedly twisting one of her rings as the words fell off her. a pause. then her eyes narrowed slightly. " …why are you looking at me like that ? " she searched her memory one more time, replaying the conversation in her head. couldn't have been that bad. " I didn't say anything weird. " @invcntions ✦

the radio station looked completely different after midnight. during the day it was crowded. loud. people coming and going. not exactly his speed but he had ended up there a handful of times for interviews.  at one in the morning, though ? it was just fluorescent lights, the hum of old machinery, and marcus. he took up space on the the battered couch shoved against the back wall of the studio. guitar balanced across one knee. his notebook rested open beside him, pages littered with barely legible scribbles. the arrangement had happened gradually. first it had been late night texts which somehow evolved into a cohabitation in person. now he had found himself showing up there every couple of nights. because the change of scenery helped him write. obviously. his pen scratched across the page before stopping. through the headphones, a song faded out. marcus's voice replaced it. a few minutes later another song began. that one caught his attention. he let it play for a while. long enough to realize he'd stopped writing. he slid one side of the headphones off his ear and finally looked up from the notebook. " what was that last one ? " his voice carried easily across the tiny studio. " the song. " he gestured vaguely with his pen. " the one before this. " a beat passed. then, because apparently one question wasn't enough. " and don't tell me you've already said it three times on air. wasn't paying enough attention, sorry. "  @invcntions ✦

she didn't knock. mostly because knocking implied there was a possibility she'd wait for an answer, and she absolutely wasn't doing that. the door swung open. she marched inside like she paid rent there, already talking before she'd even crossed the threshold. " brooks. " no response. " brooks. " still nothing. a dramatic gasp left her. " brooks ! " she crossed the room in three quick strides and yanked the curtains open. sunlight flooded the room. " oh, my god. get up seriously. " she could have sworn she heard the lump beneath the blankets groan but she was far to one track minded to process it... instead bouncing toward the bed with a plop. " look at this. " shoved her phone directly into his line of sight and didn't exactly wait for him to focus before continuing. " some fraternity shipped in twenty tons of sand their backyard, how ? I don't know. going to be a bitch to clean up but — beach party. " her excitement was practically vibrating off her as those last two words dragged out. " the band is performing and you're just lucky I'm such an amazing friend because otherwise you'd still be in this cave when everyone else is out having fun without you. " the femme turned the screen back to herself scrolling across more posts of the growing function. " where do you even buy twenty tons of sand.. "  @invcntions ✦

‘  i  didn't  introduce  you  as  my  boyfriend  ,  so  what  ?  ’  eyes  roll  almost  to  the  back  of  own  head  ,  disapproval  spreading  across  features  in  response  to  misfortune  he  has  brought  upon  himself  .  it  is  not  often  that  pair  crosses  paths  with  former  colleagues  ,  whose  mere  presence  sours  the  mood  for  the  rest  of  the  evening  on  his  behalf  ,  forcing  him  to  reminisce  about  derailed  dancing  career  he  cannot  seem  to  mourn  enough  .  ‘  let's  not  make  this  a  bigger  deal  than  it  is  ,  just  give  me  the  script  of  what  i'm  supposed  to  say  next  time  and  i'll  make  sure  to  study  hard  .  ’  /  @invcntions

EVEN WITH ALL THE PLANNING in the world, elric knows he's needed luck on his side for them to ever stand a chance. with the world separating them for almost as many years as they've spent together, he would be a fool to believe nothing's changed — but as atticus walks into the now vacant throne room and elric sees him for the first time in what feels like an entire lifetime, it feels like he never left at all. it does not matter that parts of the castle will need to be rebuilt, or that elric will carry the guilt of this betrayal forever as his king, and friend, rots in a dungeon. it is a small price to pay for the flood of relief of seeing atticus again. « you are here, » he breathes in disbelief, a chuckle ripping out of him as his arms envelop the other man. « you did it. you are here. »

some people survive heartbreak; saskia survives the moments before it happens. the confession slid out before her brain could wrap a safety net around it, and now they were just out there. she had always believed the stage was the only place she could be fearless. tonight she learned there was something braver than 20,000 eyes — standing three feet from luis. she hears his questions, eyes fluterring shut and draws in a breathe to steady her nerves. voice drops to something soft, nearly frightened. "i've always wanted you for myself." she had never believed in north stars. she was chaos by choice, a self forged meteor ricocheting from the stage to the greenroom to the afterparty, burning too bright to orbit anything for long. but luis — he was the one magnetic field she could never shake, the quiet gravity she pretended not to notice even as every trajectory curved toward him. it started in the little things. the way he tuned his guitar by ear, she’d watch, pretending to scroll her phone, and feel something catch behind her ribs. somewhere between tour buses and 3 a.m. diner runs, the feeling stopped being platonic ache and became something wilder, rawer—love, even if she wouldnt say it. if she said it aloud, the spell could shatter, and she’d lose the only person who never asked her to be anything but saskia. "how do you want me?" she cant help but ask, gaze flicking to his mouth, then back up.