when joy ends

if you are sending to a multi-muse, remember to specify the muse that the sentence starters are being sent for .

"Your breath against my neck is the only thing keeping me from losing control right now."

"Don’t look around. Don’t change your expression. Just listen very carefully to what I’m about to tell you."

"I can make you disappear, and the best part? Everyone who loves you will help me look for you."

"You’re acting like you have cards left to play. Look at your hand. Look at me. We both know you're done."

"Take a deep breath. Let it out. Enjoy it, because it’s the last easy thing you’re going to do today."

"I'm not going to ruin your life. I'm just going to stand back and watch you do it yourself."

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't end this conversation right now.

"Choose your next words like your life depends on them, because they do."

"You think you're the monster in this room?"

"We are well past the point of apologies.

"Now, we're just negotiating the collateral damage."

"I am being incredibly patient with you right now, but you are running out of seconds."

"Go ahead. Pull the trigger. Let's see who haunts who more."

"I didn't lock the door to keep them out. I locked it to keep you in."

"I've been watching you sleep for a week.

"You talk in your sleep, did you know that?

"You keep apologizing to me."

"You can scream if you want to. No one is going to come, but I’d quite like to hear what you sound like when you're desperate."

"Hold still. It hurts a lot less if you don't fight it, and frankly, I'd like to get this over with."

"I’m going to ask you a question. If you lie, I take a finger. If you stay silent, I take two. Let’s begin."

"You’re crying. Why? This is exactly what you chose when you decided to double-cross me."

"Don't bother looking for the keys. I melted them down an hour ago."

"I’m not angry. I’m just calculating exactly how much of you I can take apart before you stop breathing."

"If you make a single sound, I will drive this blade straight through your throat. Do you understand me?"

"Please. Please don't look at me like that. Just do it quickly. Just don't make me beg."

"They're downstairs. They found us. If we don't jump right now, we are going to die in this room."

"Look at my hands. I can't get the blood off. It won't come off. Why won't it come off?"

"Run. Don't look back, don't wait, just run because whatever is coming next will be me."

"Go ahead, call the police. Who do you think answers the phone when you dial those numbers?"

"Look in the mirror. Do you even recognize what's left of you?"

honestly, the point seems lost to herself even the more she talks. as if she's desperately grasping at anything just so it would make sense. some final efforts that are more than just spending hours in front of a blank document. so she wouldn't have to sit with the uncomfortable truth that maybe she just sucks as an author —

until he said okay.

and she perks up visibly, sitting up straight as if she has just heard the best news in her life. in a way, it probably is. "wait — really?" before she could stop herself, both her hands reach out to grab his, like she needs to anchor herself to the moment, to make sure she isn't just imagining it. and maybe there really is still hope left for the pathetic state of her draft.

for the first time in weeks, she feels lighter. the smile that finally spreads across her face is impossible to contain, though she does attempt to keep her expression in check as she bites on her lower lip. she isn't dense enough to not realize this agreement probably benefits her way more than it benefits him. hell, it probably makes him uncomfortable too, and it is only then that she catches herself, letting go of the warmth that is his hand before dropping her hands back into her lap. "sorry. i mean — okay, that's great. i'm really happy." but that's just luhan, isn't it? she could barely recall any time of him rejecting help when asked. there's a tiny voice in her now that wonders if that's precisely why she's asked him. out of desperation, and maybe the trust that he's the only one who would help. "dinner and drinks sounds good," she says, nodding slowly, mouth pursing a little thoughtfully. "basic, can't really go wrong with it." a bit boring, which is the problem with her writing now. a brief glance at him follows, "okay, no, we need something more fun... what did you usually do on your first dates?"

for a moment, chen ye doesn't say anything, just stands there with his hands at his sides now, jaw tight as his eyes narrow at her.

he wants to tell her she's insane — and a small part of him thinks she probably is — that finding him isn't bravery or intelligence, it's more like stupidity wrapped in a time bomb. there is always the risk of her father's men finding out, and chen ye is nothing but a loose end that it wouldn't be in her best interest for her to get entangled with him again.

but she's right. he had spent years tracing her steps, shadowing her from room to room that somewhere along the way, he had convinced himself that the proximity meant something. like watching over her gives him the right to decide what was best for her. but he'd left. and leaving means letting go. of the responsibility, of the pretense, of the quiet delusion that he could protect her from a world she was born into. it means he no longer has the right of telling her what to do anymore.

his hands curl into fists at his sides, then release.

"fine. we'll talk. but only if you promise to leave after and not come back again." with a sharp exhale, he tilts his head toward the only chair, as he sits on the edge of the counter, arms crossed over his chest. "sit. if you want to." he has a feeling this conversation wouldn't end quickly, no matter how much he would like to pretend otherwise.

"i meant what i said, yuqi." he continues, only managing to hold her gaze long enough to make sure she's listening, that he is being serious. "after this, you leave. you pretend yo never found me. and i pretend you never came."