diffidenced:
if there’s any language that theodore chua is fluent in, it’s silence. still, he knows how to control his words, not his actions, and right now he’s sure his body’s betraying him, face falling with the quiet remorse he does not wish to feel. there’s a sharpness to daphne’s tone ( which he expects ). it’s justified; the girl has every right to be angry at a man who leaves without even the decency of an explanation, but still, part of him wants to know what the root is: is it grief, or merely hurt pride? eyes meet the floor, not wanting to meet whatever sharp glare she might have been giving him, and trying to maintain a tone of nonchalance, he says “thanks.” he doesn’t dignify her other remark with a response,because however sorry he feels, and however hurt they may be, it’s the right decision. daphne moon is the antithesis of his existence — while teddy strove to climb the mountain of expectation the world piled on him, daphne broke away and built her own damn path.
girls like her were good at leaving, and boys like him were never worth staying for. teddy grabs his bag, shutting the keyboard off, and as he exits the live bar’s stage, eyes catch glimpse of the girl he could have loved, and he lets his gaze linger, every unsaid apology climbs to his throat, along with unvoiced explanations and a quiet i miss you. as he once had, teddy breaks his own heart before allowing her the opportunity. “i’m going to go.”
“oh, don’t kick yourself out just ‘cause i’m here.” daphne raises her eyebrows, wondering if there’s an i’m sorry written in the falling of his face. it’s not fair that he has such an effect on her, not fair that she can’t completely cut herself free from the tangled knot they’ve found themselves in; none of her previous relationships ever hurt this much. she didn’t care as much.
is it ( a ) the ache of things that could have been? ( b ) hurt pride? ( c ) a new beginning ending far too quickly? or ( d ) all of the above?
it’s all fun and games with daphne until it’s not, and perhaps her first mistake was letting herself get caught up in him because he was so good to her. because he made her feel safe and loved and beautiful.you were here first, she doesn’t say, i was just grabbing something. she’s not in the mood to defer to him. “this space is for everyone, yeah?” she says instead. “it’s not like we have to talk. it’s not like you have anything to say to me,” she pauses, lifting her gaze from her phone and looking directly at him, “right?” there is a plea threaded in that one word, a challenge to say the unsaid.
