Henry had been to Ollie's school before; sometimes for lunch when Ollie couldn't get away, or sometimes when the other had to work late he'd bring him a lunch. That was a favour returned for the times when Henry himself was stuck in his office and Ollie came to rescue him with some food and, of course, kisses.
But Henry had never seen Ollie in action with his theatre group until now. He was told by another teacher that Ollie was in the gym for practice, so Henry made his way there. He heard the piano and singing from down the hallway and slipped into the gym to take a seat near the back.
It was Ollie, singing his heart out and doing a damn fine job of it. Henry had known he was musically inclined, but he'd never had Ollie sing in front of him before. He smiled to himself, his eyes unable to move from Ollie's handsome face.
After months of planning which included coordinating schedules, picking a place, rentals and all that jazz, they were finally enjoying their first vacation together. And so far everything has gone by smoothly. Milo was a bit scared of how things could unfold during this time —they lived on opposite sides of the country and saw one another for a couple of days every certain amount of time. That level of coexistence was different from spending 24/7 together for two entire weeks in a different place for both, so he feared they could get into an argument that would ruin their vacations completely.
Apart from some minor disagreements, they were getting along just fine. There wasn’t much energy for anything anyways. Once they reached the hotel room, all they wanted to do was crash in the bed after how tired they were returning from visiting all the touristy spots in New Orleans. They had already seen every corner of The French Quarter, tried every local food, visited jazz bars and The Botanical Garden for Milo’s excitement. Now he was ready for a more outdoor adventure.
It took some convincing to get Dex on board for camping, especially because the spot was far from where they were staying. Milo wanted a real camping experience in the woods, with a tent like he used to have when he was a kid and not some cabins with amenities. It was just a two night adventure with a four hour drive towards the Kisatchie National Forest, so he rented a car for it and prepared all the stuff they needed.
“GPS says we’re just an hour-ish away. Are you excited?” Milo asked beaming, briefly diverting his gaze from the road to look at his boyfriend. He really hoped Dex would enjoy the experience as much as he did. “We can set up a bonfire once we settle, and go for a little walk before the sun comes down if you want.”
when dex wakes up this morning, he'll find cian's side of the bed empty. the shell necklace nemesis had blessed for him is no longer on the nightstand, the closet door is slightly ajar and a letter's placed on top of cian's pilllow.
it reads…
dex,
you’re asleep a few rooms away. i thought about waking you more times than i can count, but every time i got up, i stopped at the door and… couldn’t. because if you looked at me, really looked at me like you always do, i wouldn’t leave. and i have to.
i don’t think i’ve ever told you what it was like before you.
not properly.
i wasn’t the kind of person people notice. not in the way that matters. i wasn’t the strongest, or the fastest, or the bravest. not clever enough to stand out, not reckless enough to be memorable. i wasn’t terrible either, not bad enough to be a warning story. just… somewhere in the middle of everything. easy to overlook. easy to forget.
at camp, there were always people worth watching. heroes in the making, or disasters you couldn’t ignore. people who laughed too loud, fought too well, loved too easily. they found each other without trying. formed groups, fell in love, built something that looked like it might last. and i stood at the edges of it. close enough to see it. never close enough to belong.
it wasn’t that anyone pushed me away. it’s worse than that, i think. it’s that no one really noticed i was there in the first place.
i got used to it. you have to, after a while. you tell yourself it’s easier that way, that being invisible means being safe. that if no one’s looking at you or thinking of you, then nothing can take anything from you.
and then you came along and ruined that completely.
you look at me like i’m not something that fades into the background. like i’m not… replaceable. like i matter in a way i don’t know how to hold onto without feeling like i’m going to drop it.
in a room full of people, it’s never “everyone else and me” with you. it’s just… me. like i’m enough to take up all that space on my own.
do you know how terrifying that is?
because i don’t know how you do it. i don’t know what you see that no one else ever has. i don’t know how someone like me ended up being the one person you don’t look past. but i felt it. every second of it. and it made me happy in a way i didn’t think i was built for. that’s why this is so hard.
because i know what i’m walking away from. i know exactly how rare it is. i know i’m leaving behind the one person who ever made me feel like i wasn’t just… there. but i also know what’s coming.
there are things out there that don’t care how small or ordinary someone is. they don’t need you to be special to use you. and as long as you’re with me, you’re not safe. not “maybe,” not “if something goes wrong.”
you.
specifically.
and i can’t ignore that. i can’t pretend i’ll always be enough to stop it, because i won’t be. i barely am as it is. i’ve been lucky more than i’ve been good and luck runs out. it always does.
i could live with getting hurt. i could live with being the one who loses. i couldn’t live with it being you. i couldn’t stand there and watch something happen to you because of me, because i wanted to keep something that was never meant to be mine in the first place.
maybe that’s what this comes down to.
i was never meant to be the person who gets this. not the kind of person someone like you chooses, or stays for, or loves. i got something good anyway, somehow, and i held onto it for as long as i could. long enough to know i’d never forgive myself if i was the reason it got taken from you.
so i’m letting go before something else does it for me.
this isn’t because you weren’t enough. it’s because you were too much for a life like mine to keep without consequences. you deserve better than me. you deserve something steady. something safe. a life where you don’t have to worry about what’s following me home, or what might be waiting in the dark because of who i am. you deserve to be with someone who doesn’t put a target on your back just by loving you.
i wish i could be that person. i really do.
and i’m sorry that i’m not. i'm sorry i made you think i was. thank you for seeing me. even if i never understood why you did.
take care of yourself. be careful. be stubborn about it.
and… don’t look for me. please.
not because i don’t want you to.
but because if you find me, i might not be strong enough to leave a second time.
i love you. i’ve always loved you. since the first time you said my name like i was the only one on the line.
Each day, it became easier to justify and lessen the remorse. To graze if you will. He wasn’t a total animal, didn’t play with his food like other clan members would. Kirik saw himself a farmer tending to chickens. Maybe he could love or care for one, but slaughter was inevitable.
What really was the harm in a pleasant feed every other month or so? It gave his host a dose of venom, calming them like nothing else. Made them more suggestible. Kirik could shape their reality, so when he came for them again, the fear would slowly dissipate. That was what his sire had explained, always slow and steady. The price to pay for anything more was another accident, like Zoella.
It would be his third feed on him this week. Unnecessary, gluttonous, but he tells himself it’s only to see Nicholas again. He’s flirting with his eyes, warm and brown. He just happened to be in the neighborhood, catching Nicky as he entered his home. “You, again, hi.” His smile read safety, but he could hear Nicky’s heartbeat even from the sidewalk, and that made his own quicken. Was he nervous? Every emotion seemed to pair so well with hunger. “I didn’t know I’d get to see you today, it’s a nice change of pace.”
It all came crashing down like a domino effect. First, his long-term girlfriend broke up with him, claiming to have feelings for someone else. Next, he lost his publishing job. And finally, the termination notice, informing of the owner's intentions to sell the building. It felt like a cruel joke. The universe was against Ike, kicking him when he was already down.
How to restart so late in his life? Almost thirty, no job, no partner, and not even a place to live. He considered going back to his parents’ house, but the idea made him feel even more like a failure. So he turned to his oldest friend.
“Just give me a month to get my shit together,” He said over drinks. “This can be fun, right? Just you and me.”
On moving day, Ike brought only a few boxes, not wanting to carry many reminders of the past. It was a new beginning.
“So how does it feel to have a new roommate?” He sat on the couch, a beer in hand. With a playful grin, he teased. “There are only two ways this will end. We're either closer than ever, or we're never looking each other in the eyes again.”
The string lights over the reception tent swayed gently in the evening breeze, casting soft gold across the dance floor. Noah stood near the bar, the stem of his wine glass pinched between his fingers a little too tightly. His - their- daughter, was laughing in the middle of the crowd, radiant in white.
Noah had seen Soraia across the room three times already tonight. Each time his stomach had flipped like he was still twenty-eight, and not fifty with a greying beard. The wine had done its work; four glasses, maybe five. Enough to push him forward.
“Soraia.” Noah swallowed, then offered a small, crooked smile. He glanced toward their daughter, then back to her. “Look at her. We did… we did a pretty damn good job, didn’t we? She’s happy. She’s kind. She’s smarter than both of us combined... When I look at the woman she became, I can’t help thinking we must’ve done something right. Together.”
@etxrnaleclipse little angsty prelude for Pedro to meet his future boyfriend lmao
The trunk flew open with a metal shriek. Outside, the dessert lay like a graveyard without headstones. A grim promise veiled in the heat haze. Suddenly, rough hands grabbed Pedro by the collar. The man dragged him out as if he was rubbish, letting his head knock the edge on the way down. The man didn't flinch, not even when he saw Pedro's blood mixing with sand. "Up," he growled, kicking the rookie detective in the ribs when he didn't move fast enough for his liking. He then paced once, twice, before he crouched next to Pedro and grabbed him roughly by the jaw.
"This, this ain't random. It is justice! The kind only I can understand." He patted Pedro's cheek as if in apology. "Pain's gotta go somewhere," he muttered, his jaw twitching, emotion flickering behind his mask for a beat before it vanished. Then he stood again. "You'll die out here. But not for anything you did. That's the point."
A Little Light: Closed starter for @etxrnaleclipse
Tuesday at four in the afternoon was probably not the time of day anyone expected to find someone in a church. That was probably why Josephine had chosen the time of day.
She would admit she was curious about the young pastor who had been so recently in the news. He was different from Wicks- that was obvious. She wasn't sure who had been whispering about the young woman and her newly appeared inn- had she already been in town more then a year? - but one service in Wick's church was all she wanted to sit through. He certainly hadn't liked the ofreda she built on Dios de Los Muertos. Or her fire dancing.
So Jo was cautious. Once bitten twice shy- and she had been bitten more then once. Jud seemed kind but 'seemed' was so often the word.
But it was the worse day of the year. And on the worse day of the year you went to church. She lit four candles: Luke, Victor, Neal then her mother. It wasn't the day for her mother's candle but lighting candles for her boys and not her mother felt rude in an odd way.
She heard a noise and turned, surprised to see the young priest behind her. Had he been watching or just walked in?
