How do you forget, when everything around you is hellbent on making you remember? Sora's phone's memories setting is just another perpetrator of that everlasting violence. At least I'll never have to see him again, she thinks, packing her bag to enter yet another phase of her life: agreeing to star in a reality show wasn't really what she thought destiny would throw at her, but who was Sora to judge? It would be a breeze. God knows she needs the rest.
It happened quite frequently, those days. She had no right to judge, as seen that the things that Lenora herself did when she was seventeen rivaled those of teenagers that had to be emancipated โ or worse, sent to youth detention centres โ in order to escape their parentsโ wrath or cause cardiac arrests. Because of that ill-fated wisdom, dealing with the girl was quite easy, especially because of the hard-won camaraderie they had built over the years. Hell, if Morgana wasnโt so young, she could be hitting the night with Lenny. Or if she werenโt her fatherโs daughter, that is, or if Lenora werenโt something akin to her stepmother.
She watched the girl sigh and curse under her breath every few minutes from her side of the sprawling living room. They had been enjoying a very fitting afternoon of nothing but tea, silence and the occasional whoosh of pages turning. Lenora was reading whatever dark and twisted piece of literature Aleksander had lying around his study. Morgana, surprisingly, had taken after her and was finishing a collection of short stories that, if she hadnโt been mistaken, involved quite a lot of things that a young girl had no business falling into. Who cared? Itโs not like she was her mother, anyway.
When Morgana shifted on the couch, Lenora was able to catch the title of the book that had the girl so easily disrupting their easy peace. Dubliners, by James Joyce. She remembered that one; it had been a source of great comfort when everything seemed lost, at least a few years ago. It almost made her laugh when she realized that, without a doubt, Morgana would be grumbling about the worst of them, the one that resonated with Lenny the most. She questioned the girl and got the exact answer she wanted: A Painful Case. A tale about a lonely man and the affair he had with a married woman and their ill-fated end.ย
โItโs just so bleakโ, Morgana muttered. โDid you also feel like that back then?โ Her sharp gaze fixed on Lenora, the girl nudging her with a stocking-clad foot. โWhen you were, you know, cheating with dad?โ
She couldnโt help but chuckle at the very obvious tone that the younger one had taken to ever since Lenora infiltrated herself in her life. Morgana hardly ever made an effort not to voice out her concerns, pleas and complaints. She was a free spirit through and through, as beautiful as she was maddening; Lenny hardly ever took it personally. And because of that, she did nothing but close her book, setting it on top of her lap before nudging Morgana back with her own foot.ย
โIt probably wasnโt that depressing since none of us died so far.โ Lenora pinned Morgana down with her stare, not even caring that she had probably spoiled the rest of the tale, if the girl hadnโt already finished it. โThatโs just the way humanity is. Weโre all intensely flawed, hungry for the unknown, for hitting sore spots, for bailing out of the ordinary by doing something unimaginable.โ She watched, entranced, as the soft afternoon light filtered in from the huge windows, making the girlโs golden complexity shine even brighter. โIn my case, the unimaginable thing was falling head over heels for your darling, dearest father.โ
It was clear as day inside her head, a gift of her eidetic memory: James Joyce couldnโt have put it any more perfectly. [O]ften they spent their evenings alone. Little by little, as their thoughts entangled, they spoke of subjects less remote. Her companionship was like a warm soil about an exotic. Many times she allowed the dark to fall upon them, refraining from lighting the lamp. The dark discreet room, their isolation, the music that still vibrated in their ears united them. This union exalted him, wore away the rough edges of his character, emotionalised his mental life.
We cannot give ourselves, he wrote; we are our own. How wrong he had been. For Lenora had time and time again given herself to Aleksander, even when she wasnโt herself to give, especially then. Years later, making herself comfortable on his sofa, she reminisced that fact and understood just how some things were set in stone. She could have never escaped him; he would have shown up, sooner or later, to whisk her away from a life of boredom, of misery. His was a suffering that no other torture had the capacity to translate so far. The sweetest, most vicious: tailor-made for her.ย
Morgana rolled her eyes, throwing the little book away until it hit the rug with a muffled thud. She entwined her leg with Lenoraโs, her own version of a caress. โWhat a load of rubbish, evil stepmom.โ The girl grinned sheepishly and Lenny laughed, head falling against the back of the couch. โYou couldโve just told me you wanted a piece of dad. You just had no idea he would do the same and come back to steal the whole plate to himself.โ
What a life, she thought, throwing a cushion at Morgana and shielding her face before the girl threw another one back. Sooner than later, they were having something akin to a pillow fight, laughing and losing their breath and with their stomachs hurting from laughing so much. Aleksander would be there soon, and he would partake in their joke, or simply watch it from afar, smiling to himself. Lenora knew it, just like she knew the sky was blue and the world unforgiving. She knew it better than anyone, for that was her family as well; hers to love and cherish and fight over after so much pain, so many mistakes. Nothing had ever been bleak again โ and it never would, not with them.ย
Her phone pinged with a new message. From him, nonetheless. Wasnโt she always right?
Although those werenโt my first words to you, they are still the ones that I remember most dearly, for they were the kickstart to something I couldโve never anticipated; something perfect, beautiful, exciting, unique. Something you.ย
It has been some time ever since then, from all the hilarious text chains, the late-night brainstorming, the back and forth of thoughts and opinions and whatever it is that made us into what we are. As I write this letter, I revisit all of these memories, something I do quite frequently for no other reason than reminiscing the pure, unabashed joy I felt at the start of a friendship that was dead set on becoming the most important thing to me. It never gets old, truly. I get something new out of it every single time, like I could never get enough of even the smallest tidbit of us. In every way, that is the one truth that guides my days. Itโs like we were written on the stars. Meant for each other.ย
Am I rambling? I feel like I have so much I want to write in here, but Iโm also kind of deviating from the initial purpose of these lines. This was supposed to be a birthday letter, wishing you the very best and declaring my undying love for you. Iโd then seal it and send it to you in the mail, maybe to your dadsโ place. But then Iโd have to deal with the probability of them looking into it and finding the contents of this paper, and Iโm not sure Iโm okay with that. What if I wrote something improper?ย
That is definitely a given. And I swear I didnโt smoke before picking up the pen, but right now, my thoughts are all jumbled up, and picking them apart is turning into a real hassle. Everything Iโve ever kept about you in my head is now flying around, a tornado in which I wish I could lose myself, and I need to take a few minutes every now and then while writing to stop and appreciate whatever it is that my brain throws at me when it comes to you. Iโm still at the very beginning, back when you were still such a mystery to me. When you were nothing but a novelty, something Iโd die to unwrap and unravel until you made absolute sense.
Iโve always had a hard time reading people. Back when we were nothing but acquaintances, I used to stay up late reading and rereading every stupid parcel of information youโve ever shared with me, trying to find some inkling of your feelings in-between the lines. It wasnโt easy at all, and even when I thought I had achieved something, some situation would make me take a few steps back, away from what I truly wanted. To this day, thereโs still something that boggles my mind, and that Iโm afraid that no one but you could ever conquer.ย
How did this all happen? When did we start making so much sense? How did a guy that was the talk of some random group chat ages ago manage to infiltrate my hazy mind so thoroughly, battering past my defenses, changing the way I love, the way I live?ย
Jaehyun, youโre a force to be reckoned with. Youโre headstrong, intensely serious, stubborn and utterly maddening at times, but still, thereโs not a single thing that Iโve found out about you to this day that has made me love you any less. I embrace your qualities and flaws wholeheartedly, just as you do with mine. I look at you and it is like diving off a cliff because a few friends told me it would be fun, although Iโve never done that before, free falling inside an elevator while pressing the emergency button but knowing, just knowing that it wonโt do shit. No warning bells could ever keep me away from you. I would walk into the threat of you time and time again, because I know that whatโs waiting for me is bigger and brighter than whatever it is that I have ever envisioned for myself. You are my future.ย
So much happens in my life without planning, but without a doubt, you are the best one so far. For the first time ever, my irresponsibility gifted me something Iโve been dreaming about ever since I was a little girl. Although Iโd deny for the rest of my days, romance has never been lost within my veins; my sister may have been the one idealizing her perfect relationship from a very young age, but I may have wanted it even more than her. I wished upon a star for you in painstaking detail: tall, handsome, with eyes that could make me travel through the stars and hands that would hold me steady all the wayโฆ and the glasses were just the cherry on top, I guess.
Iโve realized that the 5th of May might have become my favorite date ever. On this day, many years ago (Iโm too high to go through the math. Iโll leave that one to you) the love of my life was born. He sure took his sweet time, but he did come into my life when I needed him most. And now, I am never, ever letting him go, not even if he wants to and begs me to leave.ย
Baby, I love you so much, I have no idea what I wrote in these pages. There are a loooot of words though, so Iโll just assume itโs something good. Whatever it is that they couldnโt convey, Iโll just tell you in person - or show it to you in our favorite way everโฆ have the best birthday! I bought you a delicious cake. And a new dress to go with it when you decide which meal youโd rather ravage. LOL
As I write this, the sun is starting to rise over Bergamo, casting its first light across our room, gently touching your face as you sleep. I don't think I could ever tell you enough how much you mean to me, how deeply grateful I am to have you in my life. You know that, for me, words don't come out that easily, and I'm sorry. There are times I still catch myself wondering how I got here, with a woman like you, and a love like ours. A life. You have given me everything I never dared dream of, and more. You gave me happiness, my love, something I never thought I'd deserve.
Since we tied ourselves together forever, I feel I am seeing the world through new eyes, and it's all because of you. Here, in this place we call our home, with our daughters laughter ringing out like music, I finally understand what it means to be content. Pauline, my little Paulette, with her bright eyes and daring heart, reminds me so much of you. And your sweet Yelena, your Lenoshka, she has a softness, a quiet wisdom already, as though she's carried lifetimes in her small heart. I look at them and see pieces of us, pieces of you, and feel like I've been granted something sacred.
I thank you for every day that I am lucky enough to spend beside you. You took a broken man and pieced him back together, gently, with so much patience that I could scarcely believe it. With every touch, every glance, you mended a part of me that I thought was beyond saving. It's you, Vasilisa, who has made me whole, and with you, I feel like I could finally cast aside those shadows of the past, those moments of sorrow. They don't matter now because you've shown me what it is to feel complete.
When I see you with our girls, the way you hold them, speak to them, teach them - I can hardly breathe for how full my heart feels. You have given me a family, a joy I never thought was possible. You've given me mornings filled with giggles, nights spent in warmth, and countless days that begin and end with love. It's as if you took the scattered dreams I carried and breathed life into them, creating a world where they became real, where happiness is no longer something I only see in passing.
With you, my Angel, I have purpose. I have meaning. I'm not only a husband to you, but a father to our children, and I cherish every moment of it. For that, I thank you from the deepest parts of me. I will spend every day for the rest of my life trying to be worthy of you, of this life we've made. I only hope I can give you as much happiness as you've given me, that I can be the man who reflects the light you've brought into our home.
I love you, ma belle. Every piece of this life we've made is because of you. Thank you, my wife, my friend, my soulmate, for bringing me into this world of color, for making me feel alive and needed and loved. I am yours, wholly and without end, and I will love you for every sunrise we share.
@zodiacbot: scorpio, write capricorn a love letter
To Daesik, From Elise. It's never overโฆ
Sometimes I like to imagine that you're not real. How would it be, if you were just the sweetest of my dreams? I'd never wake up from you if you were a mere creation of my brain, leaving no room for reality to creep in and steal you away from me. Funnily enough, you are even more perfect than anyone I could possibly imagine, way further than whatever I once imagined. You are a dream, the sweetest most beautiful dream in the world, and I don't ever want to wake up if it gives me any sense of reality. You're too good to be real, and too good to be mine.
I got a taste for love letters these days, I have to say it. I wrote tons of useless drafts and threw them away, what should I write for you? It's hard to put words out because I'm yet to fully understand what it is that I feel for you entirely - it's strong, as demanding as the one I say owns my heart. This love has me completely helpless, at your mercy, living off everything and anything you could ever give me. I don't know if love is enough to translate this thing inside of me, the one that ties your name to mine endlessly. All I know is that what I feel for you is alive, raging inside of me as my heart pumps blood aggressively - it seems that what I carry for you in my heart keeps me alive.
I remember how it felt, when I first loved you - Daesik, you were and still are a thrill. Back then, I was naรฏve enough to believe what role you'd play in my life was fleeting, a passing storm. I never imagined you'd be this relentless force pulling me in, though your demanding presence keeps me tethered to you. Even in moments when I sense you drifting, trying to push me away, I find myself in your orbit, drawn by this pull only you can create. It's as though you exist in every beat of my heart, a rhythm I cannot escape nor would I ever want to. Your love, Daesik, has a gravity all its own, and I am helpless against it.
Sometimes, I lie awake at night wondering how someone like you found a way into my life. You are a vision I never knew I needed, a warmth I cannot live without. It feels as though you are stitched into the fabric of who I am, woven so deeply that the thought of being without you is like contemplating a life without light. Do you feel it too, this endless current that binds us, invisible but undeniably real? Or maybe it's just me, entranced, caught in the shadow of you, always longing for more, even when I have you so close.
I wish I could show you how you look in my mind, Daesik. You are like dawn breaking over still waters - beautiful, calm, but capable of stirring the deepest parts of me. Sometimes, when I'm quiet in bed, I imagine I'm in your embrace, and the world melts away. In those moments, it's as if I belong nowhere else, as if my soul was crafted to find peace only in the presence of yours. There's a tranquility I feel with you, something I've never known before, and it scares me how much I need it, how much I need you.
It's never over with you, and I wouldn't have it any other way. You are my beginning and my end, my wildest dreams and my calmest peace. Thank you, my love. Thank you for being my constant, for showing me that the truest things in life are those we can neither see nor touch, but feel so deeply they become our very essence. With you, I am whole.
A quick overview of Lila's phone and Instagram can't go without blurbs!
She has one of those crappy iPhone battery cases - like, really bad. She can't leave the house without a charger, and her phone will probably die right when she needs it most.
Even though Lila will never admit it, she's insanely addicted to that one pic of Soren. It's been on her lockscreen since the moment she saw it, and she keeps it there just to stroke her own ego a little - she did manage to get him by being annoying and insufferable, so she figures she can achieve pretty much anything in life.
Of course, she's a huge Beyoncรฉ fan! Lila's obsessed with the old jams, especially Destiny's Child - they're her go-tos for shower singing. And since the walls are way too thin, Soren never misses a chance to tell her how off-key she is on Jumpin', Jumpin'.
Truth is, Lila hates texting. She'd much rather spend hours on the phone, FaceTiming or whatever, but texting's just not her thing. Still, every now and then, she gives in to society's expectations and replies to people after ghosting most of her acquaintances. Soren's the only one she replies to promptly - unless, of course, she's avoiding telling him she's horny at 11am and in need of some D treatment.
Her Instagram is a total chaos. She posts whatever she wants to keep around for a while, mostly because she deletes every single pic on her phone - storage is that bitch when you can't pay for cloud space. Her posts include some cute selfies and sexy polaroids, her wild fridge magnet collection, toddler-level arts and crafts, and, naturally, shots of Soren Kang.
And yeah, she keeps posting him because, well, they're kind of a thing, right? Just the thought of it makes her head spin, even if he hasn't and probably won't officially ask her to be his girlfriend. They don't really need a label or some big moment, but people talk. For her, posting him is just a little bit of marking her territory, calming her insecurities - or just her jealousy. Deep down, Lila knows Soren is totally whipped, but hey, showing him off on Insta now and then won't kill him.
If somebody would've told Mackenzie she'd be living in cold, cold Russian surrounded by humongous Bratva man everyday, she would never believe it. But well, now it seems like she can't go without her game afternoons and KUWTK evenings with her husband's employees while he's out and about doing business.
Of course, Kenzie misses Vanya deeply. He works too much, and what he does is still somewhat unclear to her - she's positive he's up to no good by being a mob leader, but she doesn't know exactly what he's up to all the time. Ivan, on the other hand, seems to know every single detail about Mackenzie's life, and it makes her feel cherished and cared for despite them being far apart for most of the time.
It's somewhat funny how they managed to click so well, her being as broke as one could get, failed by the promise of the American Dream and him being just an Interpol wanted Red Notice. She's still working on her Russian skills, but her Vanya got way better at English since she got him to watch Love Island with her.
There are so many things Kenzie loves about Vanya, but the way he calls her devushka and koshka and kotyonok and malishka is definitely her favorite. She's in luck though, as her husband is not only coming home for the weekend, but also spending some quality time with her at his mountains house.
When Simรณn sent that article on romantic things to do in Zurich, he had no idea Amelia and Zoeller had already etched their own romantic path through the city last Winter, leaving trails of vivid red wherever they wandered. Their hearts seemed to bleed with every unspoken I love you, marking the city as their own with a bond that needed no words.
Since reconnecting after nearly a year apart, Amelia and Zoeller have barely left each other's side, not even for a single day. Now, they work together, Amelia proving herself resilient enough to be Zoeller's pupil - not just a lovesick girl trailing behind him. They understand each other completely, each aware of the motives behind the other's every action. They're lovers who share hopes for a better world, even if it means shouldering the weight of change themselves.
Despite the endless hours they pour into plotting their next moves, they still manage to steal moments to be regular people in love. They go on dates - much to Amelia's surprise, these are something Zoeller treasures deeply. They sip wine together, even though Amelia despises the taste of alcohol, indulging him anyway with a playful grimace. Sometimes, they snap pictures, filling burner phone after burner phone with precious memories. Zoeller likely knows that Amelia saves these photos in albums on her cloud, hidden but cherished. But he's never said a word about it, so Amelia quietly keeps them close, her face lighting up whenever she sees an old snapshot appear on a new device, a reminder of the life they're building together in their own sick way.
Since Luca's been shifting genres since he began his career, Jackie took it upon herself to find everything he's ever released - that, of course, including quite a few infamous photocards.
To her, it's somewhat funny to see his little face on those pieces of stupid paper, and it takes her down memory lane real bad. She's been styling him since the early days, recalling every single one of the days those selfies were taken. That, of course, makes her wonder - did he love me then and was I stupid enough not to notice at all? No shit...
Her most recent acquisition is a debut showcase exclusive, which she paid more than she should've because, well, Luca probably finds it extremely corny that he used to do that kind of fanservice for fucks sake. She loves it, though, and has been keeping her collection on a little collect book which she carries around in her bag. Maybe, just maybe, if she asks him fondly, he'll make photocards a thing again.
If anyone's wondering who is the girl who walked her graduation ceremony to I'm Legit by Nicki Minaj, here's her Instagram account!
Hana is definitely not ready to graduate, even though she just did last week. Her mom and dad flew in from their beach house in Sicily to support her, along with her boyfriend and his mum, Dominique Jang, whoโs somehow still got that same old model beauty. Of course, her twinsie Joohy was there too, bawling her eyes out because they wouldnโt be cruising around hammered at frat parties every week anymore. Old habits die hard, but well, Hana is finally done with school.
At the massive house party thrown in their huge Seoul home, her dad, once he was suitably tipsy, started firing questions at a very shy, very polite Thomas. So, when are you marrying my daughter, Thomas? Hana, as out of it as her dad, grabbed her boyfriend's arm, laughing with a genuinely happy smile. This is exactly the life she wants with Thomas - calm and very, very happy. But, absolutely smashed, she couldn't help herself from adding a little twist, and a little white lie wouldn't hurt, would it? She threw a look at Joohy, who sat across from her, a signal that Hana was about to do something entertaining. Actually, Dad, we're engaged, she said, pausing dramatically, and I'm pregnant! You're going to be a grandpa!
Sometimes, Eli just has to Google Asami's name, scrolling through every piece of information out there, savoring how little they all really know. Fans and tabloids think they have her figured out - cute, polite, picture-perfect. But Eli knows the truth: his Sami isn't anything close to what they imagine. He's the only one who truly sees her, and it's almost funny, like an inside joke only he's in on, to see the wild speculations online.
He relishes how his name is tangled with hers like a fucking disease, an infection too late to cure; he's taken over her, and she's tangled up in him. Search results connect them endlessly, Are Asami and Eli dating?, feeding on every scrap of gossip like vultures. It's too late for her to back out now, and he knows his sweet girl is too careful, too well-behaved to ever say no to him.
The thought is almost intoxicating: he could ruin her with a single move, shatter her entire career if he wanted. And it fucking thrills him. The power he holds over her life and image, how her fate dangles by his fingertips - it's a thrill he savors like a last meal on death row. Part of him wants to blow things up, go public and revel in the fallout. However, at least for now, he's content just playing along, scrolling through another rumor article with a smirk, letting the world buzz cluelessly around them.
When Eric finally got a few days off from his robot house project or whatever he's working on for what seems like an eternity to Nina, he couldn't say no to her request, not when she quite literally begged him to visit her folks upstate. Pretty pleeeease, she pleaded, clasping her hands together, sparkly eyes wide and pouty lips impossible to resist. And just like that, they were off to Napa Valley the very next day.
Nina's latest obsession with digital scrapbooking was perfect for the trip. While Eric took work calls and replied to emails by the vineyard, she'd pretend to be coloring endless Bobbie Goods designs on her iPad. In reality, though, she was pouring herself into their little digital time capsule, carefully picking stickers and pictures to eternalize their first Napa trip together. Eric had no idea she was creating these little pages or that she'd been memorializing their dates and cozy nights together for the past four months, but well, she'd tell him eventually... Or keep it a secret until they get married next Spring.
