﹡ “ talk? about what? ” she doesn’t know him well enough to label him good or bad, but even if she did, eloise must know that people are never inherently right or wrong. the shades of principle and dignity are painted with the same streaks of color that evil and immorality are, they deeply intertwined to become mankind and everyone around her — whether she will ever face the truth or not — fails to fall wholly into one side or the other. but, she longs and longs for elijah to be bad. she falls asleep, hoping and praying to a god that has her reluctant faith that her half - brother is the kind of man that she can hate. eloise wants to have a reason to meet his gaze with poison and spit her venomous words toward him; without a real reason, she becomes the kind of monster that she would leave for dead on the side of a bleak, darkened road. her unwarranted hatred for him eats her up alive, gnawing away at any virtue she has left of herself. it leaves her thirsty and hungry and aching and terribly, horribly, empty — so, so, empty that ever since finding out and ever since confronting him, she’s felt off center. as if her world has been turned on its axis, tipping her in every which way so she may never regain her balance. deep inside, eloise knows that she has never been the best of mankind, she does not hold the values she preaches so tightly to her heart, but now, she struggles to feel . . . anything. good, bad, right, wrong. the only thing that consumes her, wholly, completely and raw, is this hatred that elijah doesn’t deserve. her features contort from hurt, from embarrassingly weak and vulnerable to stone cold. a marble statue, with disgust molded into her lips and eyes permanently. “ i’ve said everything that i’ve needed to say, elijah. there’s really nothing else to talk about. ” except, there’s so much more to talk about, there are so many thoughts that have spilled from her lips onto blank pages that she will never be able to find the strength to articulate.
❪ talk? about what? ⸺ it was the simplest of questions yet somehow elijah found himself backed into a corner. it was his own fault for taking matters into his own hands after being instructed to stay away from eloise. he never considered himself to be impulsive, jumping head first into any sort of situation without assessing the potential damages it may bring. elijah felt he was completely out of his element, however, not knowing what was wrong or right in a situation that felt like the end of the world. he felt almost on edge, that they were all waiting around for the inevitable doom to take place, but were all delusional to believe everyone pulling apart would save themselves. even with the case of the world coming to an end weighing heavy on elijah’s shoulders from time to time, there was still so much the two half - siblings had to discuss before they went their own ways or disappeared. the two never had a real connection as cousins, elijah wondering if their mother kept them apart with the purpose of a vile secret staying hidden or if the two never clicked, ran in the same social circle to notice one another. the past wasn’t how the present was and it wouldn’t be how the future is either. the two are siblings, brother and sister who never had the chance to bond and grow together. while the two don’t have to walk into the sunset as the best found family trope, he wanted nothing more than to clear the air. “there’s so much to talk about, eloise.” elijah insisted, almost a desperate plea to his tone. “we’re brother and sister ⸺ “ he was quick to cringe, immediately lowering his voice a moment later in case any other faction or factionless member was listening. “ ⸺ we’re siblings. there’s a whole bunch of history we didn’t get to make for ourselves and, you know, i didn’t get to say my peace either.” he fights off a pout, frowns instead at his younger sister. “i get it you want me gone. i get it, i do, but we ⸺ we haven’t even scratched the surface of what happened.”