let it once be me

even statues crumble if they're made to wait

[hvzeful]

olivia laughed as she stepped through the door, shooting hazel an amused look over her shoulder. "please, you say that like you won't be standing beside me encouraging every terrible financial decision i make," she teased, slowing down just enough for hazel to fall back into step beside her. "you'll hit me with the classic 'well... it is kind of unique', and the next thing you know i'm standing at the checkout with a ceramic duck wearing rain boots." she shook her head with a dramatic sigh. "for the record though, i don't think there's anywhere else where i'd rather spend my afternoon." the confession came easily now, no hesitation behind it. she reached for hazel's hand without thinking, intertwining their fingers as they walked through the aisles. "as for the apartment..." she hummed, pretending to consider it. "i suppose one of the lamps could go. but if you suggest i part with one of my mugs, we're going to have our first real argument." she let out a laugh. "although... if i do come back with too much, that's the perfect excuse for you to stay and help me figure out where everything belongs."

[prxpheciies]

"You're so right— I'll find any way to make sure you buy anything you even briefly enjoy," Hazel laughed, not even bothering to attempt to counter the remark. She was a total enabler when it came to things like this. It was always in good fun though. "Do you actually think we'll manage to find a ceramic duck wearing rain boots? I think it'd look incredible just outside your front door," she then followed up with a mischievous grin. This was one of the many highlights of being in love with your best friend. You already knew all the ins and outs of one another. It was so easy to feel seen. Hazel's heart warmed at the feeling of Olivia's reaching for hers, wrapping her fingers around the other's in response without a second thought. "Me? Ask you to part with your extensive — and frankly very impressive — mug collection? I wouldn't dream of such sacrilege," she gasped dramatically, her free hand having reached up to grasp at her chest for the additional theatrics. "Speaking of your mugs, we're bound to find some unique additions today," Hazel added, mischief playing in her tone again as she looked at Olivia from the corner of her gaze with another grin. "I mean, that's a sacrifice I'd be willing to make— only because you could use a hand and couldn't possibly sort through all those purchases on your own. Not because it'd also be an incredible valid excuse to spend time with you," she teased, "Not at all." As the two began browsing the wares, Hazel was immediately seeing things she totally didn't need but suddenly couldn't part without. "Liv! What about this? You totally need this coat hanger, right?" her exclamations akin to a child being set free in a candy store. Antique shops brought out that unbridled glee from her. "And oh my god, look at this teapot— I think I'm obsessed."

[ruinedsoulsrp]

If it had been anyone other than Brett, Cami wouldn’t have allowed them to speak to her like that – simply meaning she would’ve cut them out of her life, but even as an ex, Brett meant more to her than most people did. Maybe that was why it was so damn hard to just say no to him, even after he’d just made a whole ass scene at this party. She was grateful when he agreed to take whatever this conversation was going to be outside, the last thing she wanted was to make another spectacle here. She knew her name already fell off other people’s lips far too often, she didn’t need to give them more of a reason to gossip.

A small scoff of a chuckle left the blonde at his words, and her slim shoulders shrugged. “Yeah, well – less eyes is better than nothing.” She mused before following his gaze to the exit and nodding slightly at his words. Cami was almost certain she could feel the ghost of his hand at her back, but maybe it was all in her head. She lead their way outside, the cold evening air pulling goosebumps to her bare skin almost immediately and her arms wrapped instinctively around her. She walked toward the sidewalk, figuring it might be an easier conversation if she didn’t have to face him head on, they could walk beside each other. “Okay to walk?” she suggested, gesturing down the sidewalk.

[prxpheciies]

He nodded in agreement, following Cami outside wordlessly. The outburst couldn't be undone but if they could minimize the amount of witnesses, it was always better than nothing. "Yeah," Brett replied when she asked if he was okay to continue their conversation on a walk. His eyes looking over the goosebumps that had spread across her arms the moment they'd stepped outside. He felt the instinct to shrug off his jacket and drape it across her shoulders, but he'd stopped part way with the coat in his hands outstretched to her, "You'll freeze, here," Brett finally said before handing it over to her awkwardly to avoid turning it into an intimate moment.

The air between them painfully tense and, quite frankly, incredibly awkward. His hands in his pockets, Brett trailed along beside her on their walk trying to think of anything to say. "How um— how've you been doing since the breakup?" Pathetic, he thought to himself. "Are you seeing anyone new?" Even worse. Brett would"'ve done better if he just never spoke, but of course he had to put his foot in his mouth. "You don't have to answer that— I'm damn well aware it's none of my business," he quickly followed up with.

[elegancemultimuse]

Owen knew that he was asking a lot from Samantha. He wasn't stupid, and knew that if she did what he was asking of her, it was something that was going to take time. Breaking off an engagement wasn't something to take lightly. Owen just hoped that it was a risk that she was willing to take for him. "I am not asking you to make the choice right this second. I want you to think about it, and to think about what you truly want. Marriage is supposed to be forever, and before you take that step I wanted you to have all the cards on the table."

Owen wished he could explain everything to Samantha in a way that she could understand. "It's not just a maybe, at least not for me." He told her as he knew that he would be all in if Samantha chose to give him a chance. "Look, I can admit that my timing is awful. I wish I'd come to you earlier about it, that's on me." Owen said as he knew this situation would have been far less bad if he'd spoken to her before she had gotten engaged. "I am asking you to chose happiness. To do what you think is going to make you happy. I am hoping you give me the chance to prove that I can be what you need."

[prxpheciies]

Absentmindedly, Samantha had been fiddling with the hem of her shirt. She took in a sharp breath, her eyes momentarily darting around their environment as though she were paranoid someone from their surroundings knew them and would take this conversation back to her fiancé. Marriage is suppose to be forever. When Owen said that, she felt her blood go cold. Could she honestly imagine a forever with Michael? Could she commit to the rest of her life without wishing it had played out differently?

"Okay I— I'm going to take some time to think about it," she said after another long pause, feeling a sense of dread wash over her. The fact that she couldn't bring herself to look him in the eyes and say there was no second chance for them meant that there was a lot that she had to figure out. That she was not all in on the marriage like she thought she would and Michael deserved someone who's heart was entirely devoted to him. "When can I get back to you about—," Sam's eyes scanned around once more before landing on Owen, "—all of this?"

[benzenewritings]

"excuse me, i remember... some of it. like the big dipper," eliza corrected him, squinting at the sky as she pointed to a random cluster of stars that were definitely not in that constellation. "see!" she chuckled, already feeling warm at the feeling of his eyes on her skin. "jupiter. okay," she repeated, looking for the brightest star as he'd described, pointing with her index finger. "over there, right?" in truth, eliza didn't really have anything in particular to ask about. she just loved hearing him talk about his passions, the way his voice rose and fell with genuine love and adoration for the subject. "tell me about polaris."

[prxpheciies]

Harry reached to gently adjust where she was pointing at. "Close enough," he chuckled lightly. When Eliza began to scan for Jupiter, he grinned triumphantly when she'd pointed out the planet, "Yes— that's her," he confirmed proudly. "Look at you, little miss astronomer." Harry was well aware that most of the time she was just indulging him when it came to the night sky, but he'd be lying if he didn't admit that it felt good to have someone let you ramble about your interests every now and then. Even if she might never share the same love for it as he did, she cared about it because it was something that mattered to him. "Well since you mentioned the Big Dipper, I'll have you know Polaris can be found in the constellation of the Little Dipper," Harry traced in the sky as he spoke. "And while Polaris is famously dubbed the North Star, it's actually a triple star. And crazy to think that Jupiter still manages to outshine it, huh?"

[benzenewritings]

"hey, no saying things like that out loud. we can't risk the universe hearing them," she hushed him, tapping the glovebox for luck. lottie sighed, "it's no big deal he says while he can't stop yawning and his eyes are all big and puffy," she teased, nudging him. "you're too good to me," she said sincerely with a smile on her face. "of course you won't. i have enough time to go to our favourite place on the way, or if you want to go to sleep immediately after you drop me off that's cool too. we can stop on the way home later. maybe even just before your shift?" lottie suggested. "which i want to join you for again tonight if you'll have me." she'd tagged along in the passenger seat a few times when she wasn't busy, and genuinely had a fun time. "promise it's not just for the free food."

[prxpheciies]

"Since when did you get all woo-woo?" he teased in response. "Is a man not allowed to yawn in his own car anymore? Is this really what we've come to?" Harvey scoffed with humor, features resting in a comfortable smile. He didn't think he was too good to her. Especially not when he only saw all the ways she deserved nothing short of the best. "I can always nap in the car. I imagine you'd be calling me up to drive you back anyways so it's really not a problem," he assured her. "But we can go wherever you want first— I'm always going to be down for whatever includes food," Harv grinned. "You sure?" he cocked a brow when Lottie had mentioned wanting to do the night shift with him. "You sure you're not going to be exhausted after today?" Harvey would totally understand if she'd rather just crash at home after everything at the labs. "I can always bring you any unclaimed cheesy garlic bread, whether or not you do the ridealong with me," he added as a sing-songy promise.

[renegadetulis]

Noticing a smile threatening to unleash on her full lips was something Daniel wanted to relish in. He knew that image would please her and also it did happen. Max being the voice of reason from his family was unexpected but absolutely needed in that moment. The corners of his lips were mirroring hers till she spoke again, forcing him to deal with the fact that his decision would bring down the wrath of his parents. His eyes fluttered closed, jaw set as a sigh escaped. “I never expect you to…” As defiant as he wanted his words to be, Daniel couldn’t shake off that sinking feeling.

“I know I have never said it out loud… but… my parents are everything that I never want to experience in my own life, moving forward.” His brother had known it, being the object of their father’s ire once he became Duke — being passed over by his own brother had left their father bitter. His teeth had been chewing his inner cheek as he tried to gauge Hazel’s responses, her thought process. “Treating everything like a transaction to get more power or money… even their marriage was an attempt to combine wealth. I’ve never actually seen my parents wrapped up in one another in a single soft moment.” He scoffed lightly, shaking his head. “They can either accept it or look on from a distance… I just know I don’t want their life. I want mine to be my own… And I know I want you in mine, indefinitely.”

The stray tear escaping the corner of her eyes made his heart clench — especially knowing that he was the cause of it. Daniel reached out to wipe it away. "Then let's just focus on that..." Daniel insisted, gently squeezing her fingers before reluctantly leaving it to have both of his hands cup her cheeks. The pads on his thumbs caressed her jawline, blue hues searching for hers as if he was afraid that her doubt about their future would burn everything away. "We're adults," he muttered softly, leaning closer now. The frailty of her voice only edged its way into his cracked chest. “I know I’ve hurt you and I still am,” he whispered, his own voice reflecting the same fragility. “But Hazel,” Daniel took in a shuddering breath. “I need you to know that not a day goes by without me thinking of you when you’re not by my side.”  He held her jaw reverently in between his palms. “I’ve lost count the amount of times I wished I was coming home to you… the amount of times I wanted to share a silly joke that I was sure would have tickled you but you weren’t there… the amount of times I just wished you were somewhere near a corner so I could catch your gaze, your sweet smile…. The amount of times I knew I had failed you in all these years but you’re still holding space for me.” His hues had glistened, vision slightly blurry.

“And the blithering idiot I have been for not seeing you, for not treating you the way you deserved to be treated.” That was the utmost truth — try as he might, it was the one thing that had always kept him up at night whenever they break it off. He had leaned in closer, his forehead gently pressed against hers, tips of their noses touching. “And I know I need to match my actions to my words, for you to completely trust me again.” He nodded slightly, nuzzling her nose as he did. “And if you… you need the time and space to consider me… this… then I’ll give that to you too.” The stabbing ache in his chest was back as he pulled away, hands going slightly slack form her jaw and back down to her lap. A meek smile pulled at the corner of his lips. “You know, indecisive man-child Danny wouldn’t do this two months ago,” he chuckled mirthlessly, bashfully wiping away the tears that had streamed down his cheek.

[prxpheciies]

All these mixed, and honestly painful, feelings that came with Daniel showing back up at her doorstep didn't get in the way of the honesty in which he spoke regarding his parents. She believed every word of him not wanting to end up like them. Of wanting a life in which he got to choose love and passion over power and wealth. She'd seen that in him from the start. It was one of the many reasons that she'd fallen in love with him in the first place. It had been terrifying, especially at the start, to fall in love with someone who's life was so vastly different to hers. But there were things that had brought them together. There was strength in their differences. Daniel helped her see her worth and had opened so many doors that she'd believed would remain locked for someone like her. Meanwhile Hazel had made sure he stayed grounded and was humbled whenever necessary. She had been so connected to his heart and the genuinely good man underneath all the success and status. She had seen first hand that Daniel, at his core, was nothing like his parents. He was far more real and caring than they ever would be. And to hear that even after everything, she was the one he wanted in his life? Hazel felt like a giddy little schoolgirl with a crush hearing that. But her more rational side put the walls up, trying not to let herself rush into this with her heart wide open like she had so many times before.

She melted helplessly into his hands as he cupped her face. It wasn't clear where she ended and he began, surrendering to his touch as he lamented about the pain he had caused her and how he had come here to make things right. To prove to her that he was serious about them and their relationship. About her. Hazel felt as though she was swimming in words she'd only hear him say to her when he'd show up in her dreams. "I think about you too... all the time," she confessed pathetically. She felt like she was handing him a dagger and daring him to stab her straight through the heart with it. "Everything reminds me of you, you big lug. You're in the silly moments and the sad ones. I think of you when I can't get that one damned biscuit tin open. I find some ridiculous way to relate every single song on the radio to our relationship. I can't even walk past a Renoir without thinking of you," she stated, almost as though all he did was inconvenience her. And to a degree — especially on the days where she wanted to forget how much she missed him — he indirectly had. "And worst of all, no matter the day I've had, whether it was good or bad... I just wish I could come home or give you a call and tell you all about it. You're the person I always want to tell everything to."

Hazel didn't even dare to breathe when Daniel pressed his forehead against hers. The subtle warmth of his skin against hers. Her eyes carefully meeting the ocean of his, feeling the immediate and dangerous pull of their waves. Like she could drown in his gaze if she wasn't careful. She felt goosebumps run down her arms when his nose nuzzled against hers. "Danny," the plea coming out frail and defeated. Hazel was beginning to trust herself less and less. And suddenly he had pulled away again, keeping the promise of granting her the space and time she needed. Hazel wanted to reach out and pull him back to her, but she couldn't cede her self control easily. "We would need to both be incredibly serious about this, Daniel. Hell— we should probably tread lighter with one another. Communicate better. Maybe... I want to say that maybe we should try and take it slow or start over but— I don't think we're capable of those things. We're both pathetically intense in our own ways," she let a watery laugh fall from her lips.

"No, I guess the Danny from two months ago wouldn't be saying all of these things," Hazel agreed after brief consideration, the tears on his cheeks tugging at her heartstrings. "It seems like you've done a lot of work on yourself. A lot of self-reflection. That's... that's really good, Danny," she commented warmly. She kept trying to choose her words and actions carefully, trying to protect her heart when all she wanted to do was offer it back up to him on a silver platter. She was barely fooling herself however, because if they were being honest then Daniel had always had it in the palm of his hands. Whether he knew it or not. "We need to think about this," biting down on her bottom lip. "If this... if I am what you really want, you need to sure. You need to be absolutely certain and I— I need to be firm with this being a last chance. I can't do this back and forth forever. I want you, Danny. I always have. And I need you to prove that you're just as serious about me as I am about you." Hazel was resisting every urge to throw her arms around his neck and kiss away the tears from his cheeks. "Do you earnestly believe you can do that?"

[pcpulr]

" a handful is one way to put it." she chuckled. " my older sister was the perfect child to them. straight A's, ivy league college, a very successful attorney. my parents were still supportive of what my life plan was but you could tell they were having a hard time with it." she shrugged. her parents opinions only mattered a little bit , however , not as much as it did when she was younger. she loved seeing them at her shows and having so much fun. marisol's question made her nod her head. " yeah , i do believe in myself and what i've worked on. all the failures and lack of sleep was absolutely worth it. i get to tour the globe and see places i've never been to before ... or heard of for that matter." a small smile appeared on her face thinking about all the tour memories. " didn't think we get so deep over some mushu pork." she joked, laughing. " you fear anything ?"

[prxpheciies]

"I see. So you've got that younger sister syndrome of wanting to prove yourself and all of that good stuff, huh? A tale as old as time," Marisol replied with an air of amusement to her words as she tried to make light of things. She had a bad habit of deflecting with humor. It just made it easier than to dwell on the bad. "That's pretty fucking amazing, I'm not going to lie. Getting to tour the world with the music you made? That's... unreal. You're living the dream," she acknowledged, hearing how clearly proud the woman was of herself. It was refreshing to see. "Did you not? I live for this sort of thing," she teased, a grin playing on her lips at that. "Besides, isn't moo shu pork the best thing to get into deep conversations over? Or would you have preferred chow mein?" she joked lightheartedly. "I mean if we're being honest, there's a lot that I fear if I really think about it. But one of the main ones is the concept of forgetting the people I love the most or vice versa. It hurts to consider a reality where we don't remember family or friends and what they meant to you, you know? That's the sort of shit that really freaks me out, I dunno," she shrugged, digging her chopsticks into the dish in front of her.

[elegancemultimuse]

Owen listened to her words and tried to see if there was any hint of a lie in it. He couldn't fully tell, and that killed him. Owen had to realize that maybe he didn't know her as well as he used to. "Life is complicated, and it doesn't always work out like we hope it will." Owen said as he knew that he had to be very careful with his words. "Letting you go is the worst mistake of my life."

Owen wanted for Samantha to be happy, but he was also selfish. He wanted things to go back to how they were, but he knew that things had a lot of factors that were in the way. Owen wanted to fix everything, and to move on in a way that almost didn't seem possible at the moment. "Just because you said yes doesn't mean that you can't change your mind." Owen said as he knew that it was really complicated and it would cost a lot of money and their would definitely be hard feelings. "I can ask you to do what is going to make you the happiest." He added as that was the one thing that Samantha didn't say. "Just because he have been apart doesn't mean that we aren't able to fix things now."

[prxpheciies]

"Calling off an engagement isn't exactly an overnight decision, Owen," she sighed, cusping on exasperation. "And if someone makes that kind of a choice, there is so much left to cancel and apologies to make— it's... it's really messy," Sam added, chewing at the inside of her cheek from nerves. The fact that she hadn't shut down this conversation immediately had been a massive red flag on her behalf. She shouldn't even be entertaining this and yet here she was. If she was so sure of her husband-to-be, she wouldn't be standing here talking about calling off weddings with the person she once thought she'd be spending her life with.

"It's not that simple, Owen," she stated when he said that no matter how much time had passed, they could still put in the work to mend things. "This is a life-shattering decision. I promised my forever to somebody else and you're asking me to set that all on fire for a 'maybe'," she bit on her bottom lip, fighting the tears. "It's been so long— you couldn't have shown up in my life again any earlier? You had to choose now?" Samantha wasn't actually angry at him, she was more frustrated with herself because of all of these conflicting feelings. It should've been an easy decision. So why wasn't it? "Are you seriously asking me to blow up my life like this?"

[luciddream5]

Jade couldn’t help the light smile she gave to Adam, shaking her head, “Definitely not,” she assured him. She had to run to the store, too, but she wouldn’t bother him with those details. She’d have to figure out how to get the necessary groceries plus pay for the car to be fixed – or potentially a new, well, used car. She couldn’t let herself stress about it right now, knowing the financial stuff could easily make her feel like she was drowning. Glancing around to make sure, all she really had was the small purse, “Yeah, I’m all set,” she offered, making sure she’d taken the car key off her key ring so he had it.

Heading back out to the truck, she buckled herself in, glancing around a few moments to get her bearings, “Yeah, I can lead you. It’s not too far. I live right by where you picked up me and my car.” She gestured slightly, “just turn left out of the parking lot and go straight until the buildings look older and more run down,” she half joked, though it was completely true. Glancing down to what he’d picked up, she gave a nod, “Thanks, I think I’m alright,” she didn’t think the taste would work well with the coffee she’d just drank.

[prxpheciies]

"Not a problem." Adam nodded along at her instructions, glad to have a good memory after driving this town practically his whole life. He knew it well, convinced that — if for some preposterous reason — he had to navigate it blindfolded, he'd be able to do it. He was pretty bad at small talk without it being awkward, but he wondered if anyone was capable of making that kind of empty conversation... not awkward. When they'd finally pulled up to the familiar area he asked follow-up questions to make sure he drove her down the right street. "Is this you?" he asked, nodding his head towards the place she'd directed him to.

[benzenewritings]

ruby was frazzled to say the least. the past two weeks had been the most emotional and yet numb of her life. she was truly living hour by hour, trying to get through the days without bursting into tears in front of her class. it had finally come the day for her to move out of what she thought was going to be her marital home and into some... apartment with a guy she didn't know well. she'd been dreading it. and somehow it was even more awkward than she'd pictured. "i am very capable of dealing with my things by myself, thank you," she told him with a stern voice, lugging another box of kitchen supplies with her. ruby's shoulders were starting to hurt and she was puffing more with each trip. she slouched down onto the floor to catch her breath. "actually yes, please."

[prxpheciies]

"Yeah, of course," he nodded, his hands slipping into his pockets as he perched himself against the kitchen counter out of the way. He wasn't about to force his help onto her, especially not when everything still felt so emotionally raw. Theo was contemplating if it was too early to crack open a beer and dig into his leftovers, but hearing Ruby take his offer for help kept him from wallowing in self-pity so early in the afternoon. "Sure thing," Theo quickly got to work, marveling at the amount of things that fit into his spare room. "You... have a lot of stuff," he commented plainly after one of their many trips up and down the stairs. "It must've been such a pain to pack all of these things up." It felt stupid the second he'd put it out into the space between them so he quickly tried to adjust, hoping to avoid his own downward spiral about the love of his life running off to marry the love of Ruby's life and leaving them both in this predicament. "Can I get you anything? You must be hungry."

[benzenewritings]

"ugh! i am not!" eliza guffawed at him, brushing the cereal crumbs off her sweater. "can't believe you just threw cereal at me, you're a grown adult," she rolled her eyes. "but yes, babygirl is a good thing. leave it, it looks good." eliza couldn't help but chuckle at the way his words left his lips, "you just confirmed it, doofus. did i say there's anything wrong with it? no, i did not. just... interesting."

[prxpheciies]

"I vacuumed just last night," he frowned at the crumbs she brushed off her sweater but the mourning barely lasted a whole two seconds. "Exactly. I'm a grown adult so I can do whatever I want. It just so happened that in that moment I wanted to throw cereal at you," Harvey nodded with a matter-of-fact grin cast across his features. "Alright— I'll trust you on that. The 'stache stays," absentmindedly reaching up to run his fingers across the mustache, "—for now." He didn't need to say aloud that if Lottie hated it he'd probably shave it off clean on the spot, Eliza clearly already caught on to that. "Interesting?" he hated how easily he'd gotten defensive about the topic of her. "Why is it interesting? Why are you being so cryptic?"

[benzenewritings]

jules frowned at the other, though a chuckle did escape her lips at his attempt to cheer her up. "not nearly enough whipped cream on there to call that a smile, lou," she told him. "it's fine. well, it's not fine but i'm fine," the blonde paused. "i got stood up. again. and i really thought i hit it off with this guy too." this was the second time it had happened, and the first she had called louis after an hour of sitting by herself at a table, hopelessly waiting. "i at least left the bar before i called you this time. waited twenty minutes instead of an hour. a little bit easier than last time."

[prxpheciies]

"Not enough? Should we take it up with the waitress?" Louis challenged rhetorically, "I'll make sure to pack a can of whipped cream with me next time we come here," he joked, plucking a blueberry from the sugary plate. "He's a moron— that's what he is," he grumbled, trying to keep steam from coming out of his ears. To say he was livid about the situation would be an understatement. "What is wrong with men? Are they all just hopeless or have you unintentionally become a magnet for the shittiest ones?" Louis sighed, looking across the table at her with a softened gaze. "I'm really sorry it happened again, Jules. Nobody deserves to get stood up but especially not you," his words sympathetic but also firm. He hated seeing her get treated like this on more than one occasion. "Did you really like the guy?"

[benzenewritings]

jules x bentley – for @prxpheciies

jules budged up so he could sit onto the sofa next to her, piling the blankets on her lap, careful not to let them flop onto the cat curled up on her. "it's bad, ben. i've started watching love island," she told him, not taking her eyes off the tv. "like this is objectively awful tv, but i can't stop watching it. this is what happens when you and lou are busy in the evenings."

[prxpheciies]

"Love Island? That's the one that's not the one where they can't see one another, right?" he asked for clarification with a furrowed brow, certainly not the best at keeping up with trends like reality television, but he knew enough to know it probably wasn't his type of show. "Is it at least an enjoyable hate-watch? I remember that one summer I got oddly fixated on Selling Sunset after one of my coworkers kept putting it on in the clinic's waiting room," he chuckled to himself at the memory. "Do you want to borrow some more of my books? Maybe you'll feel better reading instead of spending your nights watching people 'couple up'," Bentley suggested with an amused upward twist of his lips.

[benzenewritings]

eliza frowned at the insinuation that she'd stolen her sister's shirt. "i know exactly the one, yes. but i don't have it," she told her, crossing her arms in protest. "there are so many other better shirts that you could wear, actually. way nicer than that abba shirt. let's go through your closet, hm?" she tried to err her away from the topic.

[prxpheciies]

"Maybe you think so but I'd really been hoping to wear that one with these flared jeans," she smoothed her hand down her thigh to emphasis the pants she was wearing when Eliza insisted that there were better shirts for her to wear out. "Did you lose it? Stain it? Sell it on Depop? Accidentally set it on fire?" Grace cycled through the options, one of her brows raising higher in suspicion with each accusation. "And besides, what could possibly be more fitting for a karaoke night than an ABBA shirt from my closet?

[benzenewritings]

eliza x harry – for @prxpheciies

she curled up next to him on the nest of blankets, still making sure her head was horizontal to the floor so she could take in the vast expanse of the night sky. "teach me about the stars, h," eliza asked.

[prxpheciies]

His arm reached around to embrace her as she got comfortable upon the blankets. "You know, as romantic as that phrase is to me, I begin to wonder if you ever retain anything I ever teach you about them," Harry teased softly, looking through his eyelashes at her in the dark before letting his eyes wander back to the sky. "A good place to start is often Jupiter," Harry spoke, gaze scanning across the stars with admiration. "Almost always going to be the brightest thing in the sky. Maybe one would think that it'd be Polarius, but it's not," he mentioned, gesturing between the two. "Is there anything you'd want to know about in particular?"

[benzenewritings]

lottie x harvey – for @prxpheciies

rushing to his car, lottie opened the door on the second attempt, sighing at seeing him. "thank you so much for this. my stupid car stupid broke down again," she cursed under her breath, throwing her bag on the floor and buckling herself up. "the one morning i need to be in the labs early too for the algae checks," she groaned, leaning her head back on the headrest. "plus i woke up you up and i feel shitty about that so i'm gonna buy you lunch or something. or maybe a coffee first."

[prxpheciies]

"Let's be glad mine started this morning," he joked, Harvey's eyes still slightly puffy as he sleepily wiped at them. Taylor Swift's Speak Now album played through the stereo faintly, the audio quality a little crinkly. "Seriously though, it's no trouble at all," he said through a yawn. He typically worked night shifts at the pizza place so he was most definitely exhausted, but he would've gotten up at any hour to help Lottie. "I won't say no to free coffee though," he then flashed his signature toothy grin at the promise of caffeine, pulling out of her street once the door had been shut behind her. "How are things at the labs going?"

[hvzeful]

olivia's smile softened as hazel brushed the loose piece of hair out of her face, taking the opportunity to reach up and link their fingers together. "well the coffee breaks are definitely a strong selling point," she admitted, giving hazel a playful grin. "i'd also be lying if i said spending the afternoon wandering around with you wasn't a big part of the reason i said yes." olivia's expression grew more thoughtful as she considered the question. "but i don't know. maybe i'm looking for something too. nothing specific. just for one of those things that catches your eye and makes you feel like it belongs with you before you're even sure of why." she shruggled lightly, bumping her shoulder against hazel's. "though if my history is anything to go by, i'll spend three hours insisting i don't need anything and then leave with two bags and a lamp under my arm."

[prxpheciies]

"You? Wanting to spend your free afternoon with little old me?" Hazel feigned shock at the information. "Sounds highly unlikely," she played up before her lips gave into the grin she'd been loosely holding back. A positive about basing a relationship on a friendship first meant she was never worried about if Olivia actually wanted to be spending time with her or not. It felt nice to feel secure about something. Especially in a relatively new relationship. "Ooh okay, I like that. We can work with that," she nodded, getting inspired that Olivia was open to finding something on their shopping trip today as well. The brunette blurted out a laugh at her girlfriend's follow up, "You're completely correct— you're bound to end up buying half the shops by the end of the day without even realizing it," laughter still trickling through her words. She held the door open for Olivia to enter first. "I just hope you'll be able to fit everything in the apartment afterwards. Or be prepared to part with some of your existing lamps to make way for the new."