#repoussewrit

ben and audrey, to me and in most (not all) ways i have written them, have a relationship built upon a very strong friendship, or at least a strong sense of some shared identity. no matter how you look at it, they have much in common: they’re both high society citizens, and have been raised in the same social circles; they’re both royalty (heirs apparent to boot), and so they understand the constant pressure that comes with learning the ways of their world; and they’re both masters of disguise in that neither of them has the luxury of being anything other than picture perfect for the outside world. 

so when you meet somebody who not only is beautiful, charming, and poised but also gets it — that’s not a relationship you want to pass up.

one of my most favorite – and most extra – ways to describe audrey and her world is that she is constantly in attendance at a grand masquerade ball. her mask is venetian, and impeccable, and damn near bullet proof, and it is rarely permitted to come off. enter ben, who is in the same situation – even more so – and things make sense.

( pause for a question that i had to ask myself: why not chad? she’s closer to him, and they know so much about each other. i can only speak to the relationship i’ve written up with @repoussewrit, but chad is chad. he’s precious to her, and for a long time (forever in some verses, rip) she is only ever able to view him as her very best friend. any other alternative is just too weird. his mask is also not of the same kind; chad deals in attractiveness and impenetrable teflon-esque veneers. he has never been one for perfection. and no, i couldn’t get through an ask without mentioning my asshole son. kindly bite me twice.)

when they start dating, i imagine it’s ridiculously sweet. of course neither of them are particularly shy, so there’s no real beating around the bush, but young love is young love. and that’s exactly what i imagine it to be: love. not at first mind, but it gets there. having grown up in a culture built on the back of True Love, it’s not that hard. that doesn’t make whatever is between them any less genuine.

when it’s just them two alone, the masks come off and they get to breathe. they can have fun with each other and rant with each other and wind down with each other. they can share hopes and dreams and concerns. they can help each other, empathize with each other, calm each other. they can talk politics, should they wish, and maybe sometimes they do — but they can be kids with each other. a boy and a girl being groomed to be the leaders of two of the most prominent kingdoms in their world being just that. a boy and a girl who get to be a boy and a girl in love.