If you could rewrite the fallout of Dylan’s lies, how would you change it?
YOU CAN HEAR IT IN THE SILENCE
Season 4 - 2000+ words - Angie / MC - Bia (crimswnred)
After hearing the fight with Bruno, Angie knows she needs to help her best friend to sort her mind. And maybe hers too.
“It seems more like a you problem to me, Bruno.”
“It’s a us problem, Hazel!”
“I’m not the one accusing you of kissing someone else, I trusted you!”
Angie could hear the voices getting louder from the kitchen. Her voice. And Bruno’s too. Feeling her heart pounding like crazy on her chest, Angie’s eyes turned to Thabi and James, both looking like they had just seen a ghost. Since the day Bruno came in as a bombshell, they had been a couple–it was almost sickening how close they got to each other. To hear them fighting now was something new but in a way that made Angie’s heart crumble and the knot on her stomach tighter.
She had thought it to be normal, to be just a doubt in the back of her mind, her not-very-sociable self feeling a little anxious around people. But as the time passed, her curiosity grew bigger. How would it be if I was with a girl? She had thought. What do her hands feel like? If I kissed her would it be soft? Those thoughts kept coming and coming as her feelings got bigger and bigger. Friendship. A lie she came up with by herself so there would be a line between them, a line that was so thin that now she could see how easily it was to jump.
“Well, fuck that!”
Craning her neck, Angie watched Bruno storm out from the kitchen, jaw and hands clenched, his brows frowned in a half thoughtful half pissed expression. And the worst of all, alone. Fuck. She bolted from her bench, rushing to the kitchen, not even sparing a glance at the other islanders in her way. Everything that mattered was her. Hazel.
“Oh, god,” she let out once she saw Hazel’s eyes full of tears. “What happened?”
Angie’s eyes darted to Will and Najuma. They were next to Hazel on the counter, caressing her arms and back as she wiped her tears away with the back of her hands. The sight of her crumbling like that made Angie’s heart stop for a second.
“It’s OK,” she let out, ever so soft that she couldn’t believe it was her talking, as she hugged Hazel and hid her face in her embrace. She would never be the one to initiate those moments yet she knew how Hazel needed it. “I’m here now.”
Before anyone could say anything about what just happened, Angie grabbed Hazel’s hands and led her over to the daybeds, far away from the rest of the islanders and the party commotion. Knowing how fast gossip could be spread there, it was just a matter of time before everyone was commenting, trying to ask questions, and coming up with theories on their own, and that was the last thing Hazel needed to deal with right now.
“Whatever happened,” she said as they both sat down on the daybeds, the petals not adding to the atmosphere. “I’m sure you handled it brilliantly.”
Hazel’s dark pits raised to meet Angie’s, the first time they did after the fight. There was a glimpse of defeat on them. “It’s so unfair, Anj…”
“I know, babes,” she said as she scooched over, brushing her fingertips on Hazel’s fingers. “What did he do?”
“He thinks I fancy Dylan,” Hazel said. Dylan’s name sounded like a curse on her lips but the reaction didn’t come as a surprise to Angie. Since the day Dylan set foot on the island he had laid on thick with her, always saying the stupidest pick-up lines and making her uncomfortable. “That I kissed him.”
“What?” Angie’s mouth was hanging open. Dylan was disgusting but Bruno was dumber than she had thought—and she had never described him as smart. “What a fucking knob.”
“Tell me about it.” Hazel sighed. “Seriously, Anj, I’m fuming. The whole argument was like, me trying to defend myself and he even fucking dare to, to like, say that I should sleep outside? Like Imma fucking dog? That was not the Bruno I know, not the Bruno I like.”
Like. Not love. Angie didn’t know exactly what that meant, or why she was fixating on little details in times like this. But she was and oh, boy, what a relief was to know that she wasn’t there yet with Bruno. That way the heartbreak would hurt less. But for which one of them? That was yet to be found.
“What did you say?”
“That he could fuck himself too if he didn’t need me anyway,” Hazel said with a roll of eyes, wiping the stray tears that insisted to fall. She never failed to amaze Angie, always clapping back with that sassy attitude one could only admire. Such a bad temper, Angie thought, giggling under her breath. “Don’t laugh.” Hazel scolded with a frown.
Angie clasped a hand to her mouth, wanting to laugh so badly now. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” She said, nuzzling her face on Hazel’s hair as the familiar flowery scent surrounded her. When she raised her head to meet her face, she could see her nose reddening and her eyes filled with tears “Oh, no, no, don’t cry.” Carefully, thinking she could break under her thumb, Angie stroked her cheeks with it. “Listen, listen, Bruno’s being a dickhead, ok? I’m sure he’ll be back to his senses tomorrow and will be so, so sorry.”
Hazel shook her head slightly. “The thing is… I’m not even sure if I wanna be back together, Anj.” She sighed, resting her head on Angie’s shoulders. “Why would I? If he thinks of me like that… If he doesn’t trust me?”
Instinctively, Angie circled Hazel’s body with her arm, bringing her close. “I see where this is coming from but…” She squeezed Hazel’s waist. “What are you gonna do if things didn’t work out with Bruno?”
Hazel’s hand found Angie’s and intertwined their fingers. “Yeah, I really don’t see any of those other boys as anything but good mates. Not even Oliver. I mean, he’s a sweetheart and all but that’s it.” She sighed. “If I had to pick a boy, Bruno’s the only option.”
“As for the girls… ?” Angie eyed her. Hazel was never shy about the fact that she was bisexual, openly flirting with Najuma before coupling up with Bruno and joking around with Cora about it, in complete opposition to Angie’s lack of knowledge.
“Well… there is one girl.” Hazel said, her pinchable cheeks turning bright pink. “But she doesn’t see me as anything more than friends, so there is that…”
“I see…” Angie whispered, so low that she wasn’t sure if Hazel could hear her. She could feel her heart racing in her chest, the butterflies flying up and down inside of her stomach, the cold breeze of the night making her shiver. Was it possible? Did Hazel secretly fancy her? Was she the one that only saw her as a friend? And why did that make her feel funny? Angie shook her head. That was a problem for future Angie to deal with. “We should probably try to sleep now, right?” She said, trying to avoid facing her friend—it would be a problem if she had to explain why her cheeks were pink.
Hazel nodded slowly, still looking defeated, but a little better. Angie watched as she laid her back against the mattress and threw her shoes away like they were some kind of dead weight. With a sigh, she turned her body to face Angie, her tiny vinyl black dress a little too high up her body, barely covering her lingerie. For a fraction of a second, Angie saw how moonlight envelopes perfection and clings itself to it.
Swiftly, she took her shoes off and laid alongside Hazel, letting moonlight shine on her brown skin as well. With a mischievous smile, she brought the duvet over the two of them, shielding their bodies from the cold and covering Hazel’s mess.
“What are you doing?” Hazel asked. Her once weak smile shined brightly. “Aren’t you going back to the main room?”
“I’d rather keep you company,” Angie giggled. “Plus, what’s there for me if not an empty bed and snores?”
“When you put it like that it makes sleeping here not a bad idea at all.”
The two of them giggled to each other, getting closer and closer with each laugh. With a sigh, Angie turned her back to her, feeling… good. She couldn’t explain why she was happy. It was this warm feeling on her chest that insisted on growing every time they were together. It was flustered faces and missing words that had never failed her before. It was a constant fear that held hands with pure joy and took over every inch of her body, making her a shivering mess. It was everything and nothing at the same time. The certainty of having to choose but also the knowledge that it was never possible to not follow that same path over and over again. It was so simple, the words could slip from her lips right now: it was…
“Hey, Hazel…” a deep masculine voice cut Angie’s train of thought as she felt Hazel stiffening beside her. “I came to see if you’re OK.”
Angie could almost hear Hazel’s eyes rolling with pure disgust, and she could feel it as she moved around, propping herself onto her elbows. “No,” she jetted. “Thanks to you. Jerk.”
“Yeah… I came to apologise. I think I might have let them think we did something more… It wasn’t my intention, I swear. I just…”
Oh, for fucks sake. Angie thought, her turn to roll her eyes. She was not really close to many islanders and sometimes couldn’t bear them half the time but Dylan, especially, was insufferable. If only she could give him a kick on the…
“Yeah, right.” She heard Hazel say as she laid back in the bed, grabbing her pillow and covering her face with it. “I don’t like you, Dylan.”
“You don’t?” He dared to ask. Was he dumb? Angie was starting to believe he was.
“No!” Hazel almost shouted, if it wasn’t for the pillow. You go, gurl.
“Agree to disagree…” Oh, yeah, totally dumb. No one had an ego like that and was smart at the same time. “Don’t you wanna maybe… talk? Alone.”
“What?” There was a nervous laugh in her voice. Oh, no. “Dylan, fuck off!”
“Are you sure? Maybe we can sort it…” His voice was closer now.
Angie sat up, turning to face him. He was standing too close to the bed, a creepy cocky smile on his lips. “Mate, she told you to fuck off. Are you fucking deaf? Fuck. Off.” Angie said. Her words were full of anger and contempt. Just as she meant it.
He looked at her as if she was the worst person to ever walk into a room but she couldn’t give two fuck about him now. With a loose hand, she shooed him, rolling her eyes as he clicked his tongue.
“Right.” He stepped back. “I’ll see you in the morning, Hazel.”
The two of them watched in silence as he walked back to the Villa, and as soon as he was out of sight, Hazel let out a nervous giggle. Angie could only hold her hand, her palms cold and sweaty. “Was it just me or did it sound like a threat?” she asked.
“It fucking did!” Hazel said, squeezing her hand. “Thank you, Anj, you’re literally the only person I can trust here.”
Breathing deeply, Angie looked at Hazel’s eyes and gave her a flourished smile. “You’re my best friend, Hazel, of course, you can trust me.”
“You’re my best friend, too.”
In silence, they laid back on the bed, arms wrapped around each other so comfortably that Angie could be fooled that they were used to it by now. In silent conversations with herself, Angie let her thoughts run wild, listening to the darkest night whispering to her ears the words she was the most afraid of.
If you could rewrite the fallout of Dylan’s lies, how would you change it?
FOR A MINUTE
Season 4 - 2400 words - Oliver / MC - Suz (MrsBSmooth)
In this rewrite, MC dumps Tom for not trusting her with Dylan, and for making her sleep outside. So when things kick off with Dylan in the kitchen, Oliver tries his best!
Oliver sat, staring into his breakfast, silently fuming.
How dare he?
His first 24 hours in the villa had been hectic to say the least. He’d known from the second that Ellie had snuck into his box that she was something special. Their date had been magic. He found it so easy to open up to her. She was so kind. So thoughtful. So funny. She was so easy to talk to. He’d only ever dated girls that were his friends first. But… he already knew that he didn’t want to be friends with Ellie. She was something else. She was amazing. He wasn’t all that surprised that Dylan had tried to kiss her on their date. He seemed like the type to be a little pushy. But he was surprised at Tom’sbehaviour. Tom had lostit.
Oliver had liked Tom on TV. He’d seemed nice. A little insecure, but not the type to make rash decisions or get angry. But the moment Dylan had started putting lies in Tom’s head, he’d exploded.He’d accused her of sneaking around, called her names, and made her sleep outside. Ellie had been devastated. But she’d agreed.
Again, how dare he?
Angie was furious. Hewas furious. A lot of people were furious at Tom. Oliver, Angie, Will, and Cora had all staged a protest, sleeping on the daybeds and loungers with Ellie. Oliver usually didn’t get involved in drama… especially not over people he’d met one day prior… but he was pretty annoyed at Tom.
Oliver had seen Ellie on TV. She would never do something like that. She was loyal to a fault. Kind, but upfront. She would never lead someone on. She’d told James from day one that she only liked him as a friend, and they’d stuck together until she’d met Tom. She’d never done anything to warrant being banished outside for something she didn’t even do. If Tom was the one who wanted ‘space’, why couldn’t he sleep outside?
Oliver had woken up early, clearly still on surf time, and tried to think of a way he could make Ellie feel better. She’d mentioned on their date that she really liked Malaysian food when she’d had it… maybe… he could make her breakfast? Kaya jam! It was early enough that he’d have time to make it. He busied himself in the kitchen, pulling out eggs, brown sugar, coconut milk, and cornflour. He was a little surprised they had the coconut milk, and laughed as he stopped short of looking for pandan leaves. They definitely won’t have those.
He found himself already a little homesick as he cracked the eggs. Usually, he had his kaya toast with a soft boiled egg, and he usually made an extra egg for Dandelion. Eggs were her favourite. He hoped she was okay without him.
Eventually, Tom made his way down to the daybeds. Oliver frowned at him a little as he walked by, but he didn’t notice. He instead focussed on stirring the mixture on the stovetop, and eventually the familiar fragrance made him smile again.
Youcef and Valentina came down, more early risers, and immediately took an interest in what he was doing. Unfortunately, they were followed by Dylan, who made his way into the kitchen, humming a happy tune.
“So what is it?” Valentina asked.
“It’s called Kaya jam. It’s like a coconutty-caramelly spread. It’s a Malay thing. You put it on toast.”
“Seems like a lot of effort just for a spread. Why not just use peanut butter or something?” Valentina asked.
He smiled. “Yeah, but Ellie said yesterday she really liked Malaysian food. And she had a rough night, so I thought this might make her feel better.”
“That’s very sweet of you, Oliver. It’s nice that someoneplans on treating her right.” Valentina cooed. Oliver noticed her grin at Youcef who raised an eyebrow back at her.
Dylan scoffed condescendingly, and Oliver furrowed his brow, ignoring him, not wanting anything to do with the lying, scheming idiot in stupidly small shorts. It wasn’t long afterward that Tom came back into the villa, clearly having been crying, and walked upstairs without a word.
“Valentina, Youcef, would you mind stirring this for me? I want to go and talk to Tom quickly.”
They nodded, looking inquisitively over the pot, stirring it, as he followed Tom upstairs.
“Tom… can I talk to you for a minute?”
Tom turned to face him. “She dumped me. Can you believe it? Shedumpedme.”
Oliver looked at him, furrowing his brow. “Yes. I can.”
Tom stopped, staring at Oliver in absolute disbelief.. “You can’t think she was rightto?”
Oliver nodded. “Tom, she’s said it lots of times since she’s been in the villa. Trust is really important to her. You told her you trusted her. But you didn’t. And what’s worse, is that you made her sleep outside. You know that a lot of us weren’t happy about it.”
Tom frowned. “Well, it’s not like Iwas going to sleep outside. I didn’t do anything wrong.”
Oliver frowned back at him. “Neither did she”
They sat in silence. Oliver wondered if he had anything in common with Tom.
“So I suppose you’re going to try your luck with her, now, are you?”
“I like her, and I’d like to get to know her better, but she’s probably pretty hurt. I’m not going to rush anything.”
Tom sighed. “Why are you even up here, Oliver? Why did you come up?”
“I just wanted to tell you that I think what you did wasn’t okay. And to see if Ellie was.”
“Why don’t you just go and ask her yourself?”
“I don’t want to bother her if she’s upset.”
Tom shrugged. “She was fine, but nice to know you care so much about mywellbeing, considering I’m the one who just got dumped.”
Oliver’s face fell a little. Darn. He’s right.
“I’m sorry Tom, you’re right, that was very rude. Are you okay?”
Tom looked surprised, but nodded. “I won’t lie, I’m pretty upset. She’s… I’m going to kick myself for letting this one go. Not like it matters now, anyway. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to have a shower. Make myself look a bit more presentable if I’m going to have to be cracking on with the other girls.”
Oliver frowned. How can he move on that fast? He shook his head, disapprovingly. He was glad to hear Ellie was more or less okay, though. He turned, leaving Tom, and made his way back downstairs.
He thanked Youcef and Valentina profusely for helping him, and they waved him off. Once the Kaya jam was done, he poured it into an old jam jar, sealing it and putting it in the fridge to cool. Knowing Tom was a bit upset probably meant that Ellie was. He wanted to go and check on Ellie. But he didn’t want her thinking he was swooping in on her the moment she’d had a row with her partner. So instead he fixed his own breakfast, not really in the mood for anything other than yoghurt.
He, Valentina, and Youcef sat silently, all off in their own little worlds. Dylan continued humming his annoyingly repetitive tune. Oliver took another mouthful of his breakfast, but almost choked on it as Ellie walked in hand-in-hand with Angie. He swallowed, hard.
“Oh! Um, hi, Ellie. Morning.”
“Morning, Oliver.” She smiled at him, letting her eyes meet his for a little longer than he thought would be normal for a regular ‘good morning’. He felt his cheeks go bright red.
Dylan cooed at Ellie. “Morning, baby!”
Ellie frowned, and looked at Angie. “Did you hear something? It’s weird… I could have sworn I heard a sound coming from over there” she waved in Dylan’s direction. “But all I can see is a worm, and worms don’t talk”
Oliver snorted into his breakfast, and Ellie beamed at him. He was mesmerised by her smile. He felt a dopey, half-grin plastering itself on his face in return.
She’s so pretty.
Dylan whined at her “Hey, what was that for?”
Oliver looked at him, incredulous. “Seriously, Dylan? You have to ask?”
“Oi, you stay out of this.” Dylan glared.
Oliver shrugged. “Just because it’s not my fight, doesn’t mean I’m not allowed to cheer from the sidelines.”
He snuck a glance at Ellie, who looked extremelygrateful.
Dylan scoffed. “You only care cos you’re soft on her”
Oliver blushed furiously. He wasn’t going to deny it. But he also wasn’t going to look at Ellie to see what her reaction was, either.
“That’s neither here nor there. It doesn’t have anything to do with the fact that what you did was wrong. You’ve had a really poor attitude since we came into the villa, and you really just don’t seem like a very nice person at all. At least, from what I’ve seen”
“Oh yeah? And what is it you’ve seen, then?”
Ellie stepped in. “I’ll tell you what I’veseen,Dylan. I’ve seen a giant piece of shit. I don’t know what your plan was, or if you thought I was dumb enough to fall for your negging, or your lies, but I didn’t. I never kissed you, I never told you I wanted to be with you, and Valentina and Tom were never sneaking around behind our backs.”
“I never said they were.”
“You implied it”
“That’s different to saying it” he said, with a disgusting smirk.
Oliver shook his head. “You did everything you could to make life hard for Ellie. And congratulations, Dylan you did. But i think the thing that no one understands is why.Why try and break up her and Tom? Was it just to prove that you could? Because I know that it was never because you actually cared about her. This isn’t how you treat someone you care about.”
Dylan scoffed. “I’m an alpha. Oliver. And don’t ask me to explain what it means. You wouldn’t understand. Just know… women love it.”
Ellie scowled at him. “I can promise you, as a woman, we do not.”
Dylan smirked. “Agree to disagree”
Oliver slammed his spoon down on the counter. “Dylan, shut up.”
Everyone went silent, and Oliver scowled at him.
“I’m sorry for yelling, but she’s already told you she’s not interested, and you’re not taking no for an answer. It’s not okay. You don’t get to tell girls what they do and don’t like, and you definitelyneed to apologise to Ellie, and to Tom, and to both Valentina and Bruno for meddling in their relationship. You’ve made an absolute fool of yourself.”
“I did Ellie a favour. Now she can see how little Tom trusted her.”
Ellie interjected. “You’re right, he didn’t trust me, so I suppose I can thank you for that. But where does that leave you? Why the fuck would I trust you, now? Now that I know you’re a liar, and you’re sneaky, and you’re just a colossal arsehole?”
Dylan wiggled his eyebrows at her. “Because I’m hot”
“You’re starting to make me really angry, Dylan.” Oliver frowned.
“Well what am I supposed to do? Suck up to everyone and be all sweet and cuddly like precious baby Oliver, then? What are you, five?” Dylan seethed
Angie furrowed her brow. “Fuck off, Dylan. You’re full of shit. No one gives a toss what you think. We actually want Ollie here. We don’t want you here. Next dumping, you’re gone.”
“You think I’m full of shit? I’m not just going to sit around being soft, making her breakfast so she feels better.”
Ellie’s eyes went wide, and she looked at him. “You… did you?”
Oliver blushed harder than he ever had before. “Um… well… it’s not….Valentina and Youcef helped.”
Valentina laughed. “We stirred it for like five minutes while you went and told Tom off. Tell her what you made her, babe.”
Ellie’s face lit up like he’d just made her day. He blushed about sixteen shades of magenta.
“Well… You said yesterday that you liked Malaysian food… and there’s this breakfast spread we have on buttered toast that I thought might cheer you up, that’s all.”
“So he made it for you. Specially” Valentina cooed.
Ellie dropped Angie’s hand, and started walking toward him. His eyes went wide, and he turned toward her, as he felt an immense panic rising in his throat.
Was she going to kiss him?
He felt a wave of panic, hoping she remembered what they’d spoken about. And even though she wasn’t with Tom any more, he still didn’t want their first kiss to be in front of Dylan.
In a few steps, she was in front of him, and threw her arms around his neck in an appreciative hug.
“That is so thoughtful, Oliver, thank you.”
He let his arms wrap around her waist, as he laughed slightly.
“It’s just a kind of jam on toast, I guess. But I haven’t done the toast bit yet ‘cause I didn’t want it to get cold.”
She laughed into his chest. “How are you single?”
Dylan threw his hands in the air, “You can’t be bloody serious. What the hell has happened to women?” He turned on his heel, and started to storm off in frustration.
“Oh no you don’t!” Angie screamed, following him. “You don’t get off that easy. You get yer arse back here, Dylan, you nasty piece of human shit!!”
“Get him, Ange!” Valentina yelled. She and Youcef grinned at each other, following after Dylan and Angie.
Oliver suddenly found himself alone, with Ellie still wrapped up in his arms. “I’m sorry for raising my voice. He just really gets under my skin.”
She chuckled. “Are you real? Are you actually this sweet?”
He blushed. “I’m not sure what to say to that, but… thank you? And… I spoke to Tom before, and he said…”
Ellie shook her head. “We’ve broken up.”
Oliver hugged her again. “I’m sorry, Ellie. Are you okay?”
She sighed. “Look, I didn’t want to say it in front of Dylan, but I think Tom and I were already on the outs anyway. Plus… I…” She looked at him, and smiled a little. “I had a really nice time on our date yesterday. A really, really nice time.”
He felt the dopey smile plastering itself on his face again. “So did I.”
She blushed.
He bit his lip, willing every drop of bravery in him.
“Um… Ellie?”
“Yeah?”
“At the next recoupling…”
Her breath caught a little. “…yeah?”
“If Dylan and I get to pick first… can I pick you?”
She broke into a huge smile. “I would really like that, Oliver. And if it’s girls’ choice, I’d really like to pick you… if that’s okay?”
His heart did a flip, and he beamed at her.
“I would really like that, too.”
He felt his heart racing in his chest as she stood closely to him.
If you could rewrite the fallout of Dylan’s lies, how would you change it?
THE SLIP
Season 4 - 5000+ words - Bruno/MC - Em (i-boop-you)
A simple set of changes to how the game plays out the argument, making the characters less OOC, and the scene make more sense.
******
The colour of jealousy looks good on no one.
India keeps reminding herself of this, trying not to let Dylan’s words worm into her mind and make her think things she’s better off not letting get to her. Bruno and Valentina are friends; Bruno and Valentina are allowed to be friends. The only thing untoward about the situation is that it’s being brought to her attention.
She doesn’t know Dylan, so India wants to give him the benefit of the doubt, wants to reason that he’s getting the wrong end of the stick, because otherwise it means he’s causing trouble for the sake of it, or (even worse) he really is on to something there.
Things are just as they ever are between herself and Bruno during the day, but then again, if something had been brewing between him and Valentina, then it would be like every other day. Still, India was on the lookout, but even then … there was nothing.
Bruno and Val have never been any closer than they are with anyone else. They laugh and they joke and they enjoy one another’s company, but they both provide good company to enjoy, so India puts it to the back of her mind. Still, it would be good for Bruno to know what Dylan’s been saying. When she thinks about it, Valentina and Tom should know, too since they’re coupled up.
Is a party really the best place for this? Maybe, but it would be better towards the end of the night, perhaps.
A party is a party after all, and after slipping into a new outfit, India resolves just to enjoy herself unless something comes up. After all, they’ve got two new Islander’s, and she wants them to have a good time and fit in with the rest. There’s no point in stirring up drama tonight.
Still, as the night wears on, the tight ball of nerves in her stomach keeps clenching, making her feel anxious. Bruno had dropped into the changing room while everyone was getting ready, and everything seemed just as it should be. Yet, as the party picks up swing, and India mingles about everyone, Bruno is suspiciously absent wherever she goes.
When she dances with Cora, Tom, and gets to know Oliver, India cannot even spy Bruno around the garden. Nor Valentina, but that’s neither here nor there … right?
No, no, no; India shakes the stupid, senseless thoughts out of her mind. Bruno has never given her a reason to distrust him. Finally, she bites, distractedly glancing away to shift her gaze around the whole Villa, asking, “Has anyone seen Bruno?”
Neither one of the other three seem to have heard her, so she bites back the worry she knows she shouldn’t be feeling, not allowing the anxiety to ruin the night, and pretends all misgivings are not there. One false smile later, and India is back in the midst of the other three, dancing like she hasn’t got a care in the world.
Even when she falls flat, nothing is bringing her down.
The evening hampers on, and India goes on and on, trying not to think of the possibility that now Bruno must be avoiding her. She spends time with Youcef, with Angie, with James, with Tiffany, with Thabi; pretty much everyone besides Bruno, Valentina, Najuma, and Will.
Just as she goes to make her way inside to find where they’ve all been, the four of them pour out from the bedroom into the kitchen, all wearing pretty grim expressions. None are quite as grim as Bruno’s, though. His gaze flashes to India, picking her out of the scenery of everyone like she’s the moon in the night.
If his gaze wasn’t held with such lingering wariness, India would have been happy to clock the exchange. Her morale falters more so when Bruno turns away almost at once, tipping his drink back like he needs the alcohol. This is … this is not normal.
India heads up, smiling at the other’s. The only returning smile to reach their eyes is from Najuma; Will’s seems awkward, regretful, while Valentina’s is thin, like she’s forcing it to hide anger rather than worry like Will’s.
Well, shit.
Coming up to Bruno’s back, India calls out, brightly like nothing is the matter, because she can’t contemplate why anything would be the matter. After all her worries and anxieties she’s tried to ignore throughout the evening, now that she’s coming face-to-face with Bruno, with the possibility that not everything is as right as it should be, the last thing she wants is to step on the path to conflict.
Looking at Bruno’s back, knowing he’s chosen to turn away from her, makes India realise just how badly she’s fallen for him. If something is going on with him and Valentina, she’d be utterly broken, despondent. The entire journey she’s had in the Villa, shared with Bruno or not, would be for nothing.
At this point, India would rather walk away than pretend with anyone else, no matter how much time they’ve got left. She knows in herself that she couldn’t sit there in the same space and watch him crack on with someone else.
“Hey, babe,” she says, putting some extra oomph in her voice to show there is nothing amiss with her. Bruno spins round slowly from Will and Valentina, unflinching as he stares back at India, barely blinking. He’s holding himself rigidly. “I’ve been looking for you everywhere.”
He nods up to the roof terrace. “You looked like you were having a good time without me.”
She arches a brow as Will shifts his gaze off of them, taking a long sip from his metal straw, eyes wide.
Bruno lets out a deep breath, deflating. “I have been wanting to talk to you, actually.”
Just as India gets out, “Shall we go somewhere…?” wanting some privacy, Bruno is just getting going…
“I dunno if you’re aware, but Dylan’s been saying some stuff about your date,” he goes on, saying it like India knows exactly what he’s talking about. Will reaches out and puts a hand on Bruno’s shoulders. “Amongst other things that have been coming out recently.”
India is stood stock still, stunned at the hostility brewing just under Bruno’s surface. She’s never seen him like this. Even when Lexi got up in India’s face, Bruno was still calm, his outrage never got the better of him, but right now there’s definitely something prickling beneath. Considering India hasn’t done anything, she’s interested to hear this.
“What’s Dylan said?” India asks, brows furrowing. She’s got her back up now, and as Bruno relaxes, India appears to be leeching his rigidness, standing straight and tall, nothing to be ashamed of.
That’s when Valentina pipes up. She leans across the counter, facing towards them. “He told me you had a really good time. He was properly bragging about it, Indy.”
India suppresses an eyeroll, her lids shutting a little harder to make up for that. “That’s not how I would have described it,” she says, turning her attention back around to focus on Bruno. She isn’t about to have the conversation with the entire Villa.
She catches him as his gaze flicks back to her, coming off of Valentina. It’s almost like he’s only looking at India because he has to. The hardness returns to his stare when his blue eyes fall onto hers; it’s so foreign on him, something that just doesn’t belong. Especially not when he’s looking back at India. This is not them.
“How would you describe it, Indy?” Bruno asks, his bottle dropping as he finishes, but not before he gets his words out hard, laced with scepticism. His gaze slinks off her as he takes his drink back to his lips like his lowly expectations are at the bottom of the glass.
“I wouldn’t be using any positives,” she says sharply.
It’s hard not to get the impression she’s being accused of something; not only that, but that she’s being tried for it right here in kitchen with no idea what she’s been charged for, let alone allowed the dignity of a defence. To say this is leaving her feeling shirty is an understatement.
“Bruno,” she says pointedly, but also trying not to make the edge in it too sharp, “I’d appreciate taking this somewhere inside.”
He looks about the garden, brows furrowed, then nods. “Yeah, I think that would be a good idea.”
India is so used to closeness with him; of them being unable to keep their hands off of one another, that when Bruno strides by, nursing his glass without even reaching out for her, she’s almost ready to call him out there and then. She’s not about to have a scene in the middle of the kitchen with everyone around to watch, though.
Before India heads after Bruno, Najuma reaches out and spins her in for a hug. “You know yourself, hun,” she says, squeezing India tightly. “Good luck.”
Though the act was undoubtedly meant to be reassuring, India can’t help but feel worse for it.
Inside, India follows Bruno through the bedroom, upstairs. He glances back only twice to make sure she’s still there. The rest of the time he has her back to her makes her feel so small, she’s almost shrinking away, walking backwards despite every step leading forwards. Finally, when they get halfway up the stairs, Bruno stops for her, waiting, and allows her to walk before him. Perhaps he’s realising how harsh he’s coming off. Either way, it’s not like Bruno to be anything but sweet.
Well. That’s not strictly true.
India puts the thoughts of their intimate moments out her mind, but it’s hard when Bruno really just is that bloody handsome; when his hands enclose on her and his arms tense up and he slinks around her waist and when all she wants to do is forget about anything anyone could have said and be with the persons she knows; with the one she trusts; with the man she adores and who has cared for her through all the ups and downs the Villa has had to offer. With the man that she is unfalteringly, unequivocally in love with.
Please, Bruno, do not break my heart tonight.
The small smile that slips onto his face as they catch each other’s eye in passing is everything. What India wouldn’t give just to stop them there, winding her hands onto his neck, pushing him up against the banister, and sinking into one of his hot kisses.
Instead, she keeps walking on by, her own smile not dropping until they get to the top landing. From there, they walk close together, but not quite touching, almost like it was back at the start; the uncertainty of what is too much too soon, never guessing that the other longed for that embrace, of the electricity of skin-to-skin, the spark of touch.
There had been fire burning before they even met, and India only hoped that Bruno wasn’t about to put it out. The cruelty of being left to fend alone in the cold darkness is only made worse when you’re thrust out of the warmth of another’s arms.
They get to the roof terrace. India stares out at the darkness beyond the Villa, holding her own bared arms against the chill.
“Here,” Bruno says, coming up behind her with one of the gaudy neon blankets.
India accepts. “Thanks,” she says, sitting down and wrapping it around herself. Bruno sits next to her, but hunches forwards, so he’s facing out away from her. Despite this, India is not prepared to give into the weird tension bubbling away and wraps him in half of the blanket.
He jumps at her touch, glancing at his opposite shoulder to see her hand stretched across to secure the blanket. He hesitates, but sinks back into it, allowing himself to get wrapped up with her. He sits back against the bench but has a faraway look on his face as he continues to stare straight ahead.
“What’s up, Bruno?” India asks, voice gentle. She can’t tear her eyes away from him despite how much he’s refusing to look at her right now. “You know, whatever Dylan’s said is completely made up. It was honestly one of the worst dates ever,” she goes on. She allows a smile to crack over her face as she recalls just how awful it was, realising now is the perfect opportunity to make fun of it. “Do you know he –?”
“He told me you want to couple up with him,” Bruno blurts out. Slowly, with the most dejected look on his long face, his gaze falls her way.
India is stuck, stricken. The smile is still stagnant on her face, and must be going through the five stages of grief right before Bruno as her mind races with what he’s just said. Finally, she lands on acceptance.
“That’s blatantly false, Bruno,” she says, talking to him now like it’s clear that any belief of this on his part is a serious blow to his intelligence in her opinion. Bruno looks away as India continues, “I actually wanted to talk to you about something that Dylan told me about you.”
Bruno raises a sceptical brow, like the thought of any dirt being on him is preposterous.
“He tried to convince me on the date that you and Valentina have something going on behind my back,” she reveals, watching every twitch and flinch of his face, aware of any change in pace of breathing, scouting out any signs of panic. There’s none. Instead, she’s met with incredulity.
With a wry brow raised high, Bruno lets out a long, low breath. “Valentina hasn’t been interested in me since she arrived. I told you already that I shut that down? For you; for us?”
India gives him her own look on incredulity, letting him know it’s mutual, all this astonishment is shared. “Yeah,” she says, not willing to relent into being passive-aggressiveness, “I figured it was probably made up or something. I didn’t believe it, Bruno, babes.”
“Oh. Okay, great.”
“I don’t know why Dylan’s been going around causing trouble. Should we go take him for a chat?”
Bruno sits up, turning in to face her, making it so they’re actually having a conversation now, “I mean, Dylan did say those things, but it’s not the only thing going around about you, Indy.” He looks at her with all seriousness, the doubt and uncertainly clear as day in his beautiful blue eyes. “To start off with, you should know, I’ve heard about your little kiss with Hazeem.”
India lets out a flat, “What?”
“Yeah … and I didn’t hear about it from Dylan. It was someone I trust. But, like. I get it, it’s fine.” His lips purse, showing that it’s not really fine. “We were barely together when that happened, and it’s not like you and me haven’t done worse while coupled up with other people, right?” He asks, eyes wet, but he looks more convinced this side of the conversation.
India brushes his hair to the side, watching the way it falls rather than the way he’s now watching her. “It happened, I’ll admit, and I’m sorry, even if I don’t really need to be.” Her gaze shifts, lands on his. “Heat of the moment, he was leaving … I honestly don’t even know what came over me. I really am sorry about that.”
Indy gently rests her head on his shoulder, leaving an arm to encase around his back. Bruno leans against her, but it’s chaste, like he wants to, but knows he shouldn’t. Indy doesn’t understand this hesitation. Nothing that’s been brought up is enough to warrant this dismissiveness towards her, especially from Bruno of all people.
From the moment he arrived in the Villa, he’s worshipped the ground she’s walked on, even after she’s told him to get up. Whatever’s gotten into him is causing her serious concern, making the panic rise in her that she might not really know who he is.
Sighing, he replies with a nod. “I appreciate it, but it still hurt to hear. Worse to hear than that, though, was this thing with Tom?”
“Tom?” She asks, voice shrill, tired. India’s brows knitted together as a grimace pulls into her cheeks.
“Tom,” Bruno says. “Apparently when he picked you, he really thought he had good reason. I’ve been told that you apparently really lead him on, Indy. You always told me –”
“I always told you the truth, Bruno,” she says, the words leaving her in a huff. She’s picked herself off of him now, leaning back. Her touch and her love is a privilege, and Bruno is fast revoking his rights to that for the evening. “Tom and I had a lovely date, he’s a nice guy, but he’s not for me. I already told you that he picked me even though I said I only wanted to be with you.”
“But did you tell him not to pick you? Like I did with Valentina.”
She shakes her head. “I didn’t think I needed to, and considering that we still didn’t really break up or stop acting like we were together, I think it’s plain to say that no one should be accusing me of leading Tom on!”
At once Bruno is spluttering, hands on his chest aghast. “I’m not accusing, I’m letting you know what’s been going on, Indy – there’s a lot going around tonight and it’s not all coming from the same person –”
“Okay,fine. But do you not think that there’s really only one person you should be coming to about all this? I’ve not done anything wrong, Bruno, and I’m not about to let myself be treated like I have.”
“I’m trying to talk to you about it now?” He says, voice rising along with hers. It’s not ‘raised’ by any means, but it’s very out of the ordinary for either of them. “I’m listing the facts, as they’ve been told to me – I just feel like there might be more going on with you than I’ve been led to believe. You know how much I’ve fallen for you, Indy, you know it. You could honestly have anyone you want in here – even Will told me tonight about asking you to couple up with him. I’m not happy with him about that, either, but I just – it just proves how much I don’t know about what’s been going on behind my back –”
Indy looks up, shaking her head. “I’m not getting into Will. I never told you because he’s your friend – or, well, I thought you guys were friends. I never took him on, so I didn’t want to cause any unnecessary drama.”
“I know you never took him on. That’s why Will told me, to let me know that he thinks you’re pretty loyal for the most part.”
Her face falls. “For the most part?”
He screws his up. “I worded that wrong – I just – I don’t know, India. I don’t know what’s going on, where all these rumours are flying from, but it’s just – it’s so much, all at once. My head is – my head is just all over the place.”
She’s still, trying not to let the flood within her out the gates. She needs all steps from here on out to be tentative and careful and –
“Look, I don’t know,” Bruno says, not looking at her again, “maybe we should spend the night apart.”
Her heart clenches, sinking into her stomach, her mind wiped of all thought. “What?”
Bruno shakes his head, taking a moment to himself before he replies. “Tensions are high right now,” he tells her, reaching out to put a hand on her, locking his warmth over her thigh. He glides his fingers along her skin, unable to resist now that he’s relented. “I think I just need some space, to clear my head.”
Faltering, Indy sits with her mouth open, unable to get any words out.
“I’m sorry,” Bruno says, rubbing his thumb over his bottom lip while he cups his chin, staring at her like he can’t look away.
“Bruno,” she says, the hurt plain in her wavering voice, “Go, if that’s what you need, but … I don’t – I don’t want you to. I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you, too, Indy. We just need to de-escalate the situation, I think.” Bruno gives her hand a little squeeze, loving, caring, like this is for all the right reasons. “I’ll see you in the morning, okay?”
Indy lets out a small, “Okay,” in return, trying to disguise the lump that’s caught dry in her throat.
They stand, and while India hasn’t been able to work up looking at Bruno, knowing what it’ll lead to, Bruno hasn’t taken his eyes off of her. He catches her hand in his and holds her in close, wrapping her up in his arms as they remain under the blanket.
India buries her head into the nook of his head, squeezing her eyes shut, willing him to not let go for the longest time. He doesn’t, and they remain there, standing, holding one another, until the sounds of the girls arriving in the dressing room floats through to the terrace with them.
Bruno plants a kiss to the top of her head, pulling back. He cups her chin, tilting her face towards his and leaves another gentle kiss on her lips.
Indy doesn’t leave it there, slipping her arms around his neck, holding his head to hers, opening the kiss from a peck into something much deeper. If he’s going to leave her alone for the night, he’s not going to leave her with nothing. I love you, Bruno, she thinks, as she tastes the alcohol and the regret on his tongue.
His lids are low, his gaze only open a slit, as they pull back from one another. Despite this, he looks heavily at her, hands either side of her head.
“I’m not about to do anything stupid,” he says. “I just need a night to put into perspective.”
She nods, doing her best to stop her eyes from glistening, lips pulled thin.
“Come on, I’ll let the girls look after you,” he says, taking her by hand in towards the dressing room. “I’ll sleep better knowing you’re with someone safe.”
“You could always stand guard by the bed, then. Like a palace guard.”
“Hey,” he says, a grin stealing across his face as they pause at the door, “leave the bad jokes to me. If anyone gets to lighten up the room with some awful nattering, it’s me.”
“That joke was way better than anything you’ve got, and you know it.”
His grin only brightens. “You’ve got me there, Indy.”
He keeps his bright eyes on her as he lets her lead in first, hand still in hers. The girls all chorus out their hey’s, hi’s, and hellos – a little awkwardly, a little too brightly, too friendly, like they know what an uneasy situation India and Bruno have just walked out of. No doubt everyone knows by now.
Bruno lets go of India’s hand with another gentle squeeze before he heads straight to Angie across the room. Thabi and Najuma sit down next to India as she takes her seat around one of the vanity’s to take off her make-up. Bruno flashes her a weak smile before he heads out, leaving Angie to come over and join in the ring of girls making sure everything is all right.
It’s strange that India finds she’s the one comforting the other’s, setting them straight that everything is fine, that everything is going to be all right.
“Yeah, Dylan’s really tried to snake you, hun,” Najuma says. “I’m glad it’s not worked.”
“Dylan?” India says. “He’s said a couple of things, but literally nothing that wasn’t cleared up in a second.”
The girls all share an uncomfortable look.
“Uh, Indy?” Valentina says. “You know it was Dylan who started the conversation about you and Hazeem, right?”
“Yeah,” Tiffany says, a lean grimace splashing across half her face, “he came up to me to ask me what I thought about it. Will and I had just been chatting, so he was still around and caught the first half of the conversation.”
“And he might have been the one to tell Bruno,” Thabi says, biting on her lip. “He didn’t think it would be a big deal, though, but given everything else going about tonight, too…”
“Yeah, but it’s all come from the same bastard, hasn’t it?” Angie says, tone sharp, fists clenched. “It’s pretty clear at this stage he just wants to stir drama.”
India shrugs, thinking about Bruno going to sleep alone. “He kind succeeded,” she laments, staring off into nothing, fingers playing over her lips.
Reaching to give India a side-ways hug, Angie adds, “Yeah, but it’s nothing that can’t be mended. Still, I can’t believe it got as far as it did.”
Cora nods along. “And to think he’s tried to drag Tom and Valentina and everyone he can into it, too.”
“I asked Tom about it,” Val says, looking directly across at Indy. “He’s not got any idea why any of this has come about, but he’s going to talk to Bruno and tell him not to believe any of it.”
“We’re all on your side, babes,” Thabi says, curling her arm around India’s and resting her head against it.
“Yeah, we love you, hun,” Najuma adds. “We’re not going to let some rat get away with spreading lies about you.”
The comfort and reassurance from the girls is exactly what India needs and it takes her all not to be moved to tears. She had no idea how tonight even ended up this way. To think it all started with her worrying about Bruno.
It’s not like Indy can’t blame Bruno too much since Dylan nearly got in her head, but she’s not happy either.
Bedtime comes, and Bruno is already outside. India is just snuggling into bed with Angie next to her when Tom and Will head back in from outside, giving her reassuring smiles as they pass.
Angie wraps her up in a hug. “It’s okay, it’s Angie and Indy now,” she says, holding India tight. “Whatever happened with Bruno,” Angie assures her, “I’m sure you handled it brilliantly.”
“Thanks, hun,” Indy says, rubbing her fresh eyes. They sting from the make-up, from the removal, from the tetchy mood she’s in, so it’s a relief when India can finally shut her eyes and settle off to sleep.
It doesn’t last long, and India keeps waking up at every toss and turn of the other Islanders. The sleep is restless, and awful, and just not the same without Bruno by her side.
The absence of him laying at her side is heavy; empty space has never felt so full.
Despite Bruno and her having left things on a lighter note considering they’re sleeping separately, it still stings like they’re only hanging on by a thread. She can’t help but mull over the thought that Bruno may end things. She’s in too deep, fallen too far, too hard, too much to ever be okay with that. She’s no longer able to sleep.
She’s there for God knows how long when there’s a creek. Her head picks up as light from outside briefly cracks across the bedroom from the door opening. It’s gone again with another creek. Is it Bruno?
India stays put, too afraid to move lest she miss any sound to give him away. The bed weighs down at the other side. At Bruno’s side.
“Indy?” Bruno’s whisper breaks through the darkness, his gentle voice flooding her heart like a torrent after a drought. “Are you awake?”
He climbs onto the bed, over the covers. India shuffles over, sitting up in a more comfortable position. They fall into one another, like they just can’t help it, seeking one another out despite all the hardship and harshness and disloyalty.
“What are you doing back here?” She asks him, head against his chest.
He’s warm, and soft, and smells like Bruno; vanilla and cocoa butter and all the good things; his arms encase her strongly, making her feel safe and home and not at all like she’s spent the rest of the night unsettled and alone. This is him, and this is her, and this is them.
“I miss us,” he says, breathily. He encloses her into him even more. “I’m sorry, India. I’m sorry I left you.”
He kisses one, two, three times across her head until he gets to her face, which she tilts towards her, needily letting the kisses happen.
“I’m such an idiot,” Bruno says as the quiet lingers on. “I let Dylan get into my head. I don’t even know how … just everything, all at once, but man, I feel like a fool. I’ve got no excuse, that’s all I’ve been thinking about as I’ve been laying out there alone. I know he was lying, and I know he was trying to get under our skin. I can’t believe I crumbled under the pressure of it all.”
Bruno takes a deep breath. Indy untangles from him, not needing any lights to know how stunned that’s going to leave him. Well, she doesn’t leave him long, as she untucks the duvet of the bed from under him, getting him to budge so she can cover them both. He’s not going anywhere ever again.
“Indy, I really am sorry,” he says as they settle, facing one another as they lay on their sides. His voice is so soft, so gentle, and she knows it’s only half because it’s the middle of the night and he doesn’t want to disturb the others. “I want to make it clear, and I want you to know, that I trust you. I know you’d never do anything to hurt me.”
Hands intertwined, laying in the space between them, India clears her throat. “Never do that again.”
He lets out a small laugh of relief. “Hand on my heart,” he says, bringing them both to his chest, “I promise. I was so lonely without you. I hated every second of it. I never want to risk spending a night like that again.”
India nods, eyes on their hands. She traces a shape into his skin, leaving them both feeling tingly as she repeats it over and over. “If we ever fight in future, I want us to sort it out before going to sleep. Never go to bed angry, that sort of thing.”
“Absolutely,” he says, grin apparent in his voice alone.
“At least we learned something from this, I guess,” she says, smiling right back. “We aren’t so fragile.”
Bruno brings their conjoined hands to her face and prods the end of her nose gently. “But you knew that already.” After a laugh, he adds, “We’re stronger than we know, and now, I really feel stronger than anything, Indy. I’ll never have a wobble like this again.”
India lets the silence pass, knowing what a perfect time it could be to spill an ‘I love you’. She doesn’t want the first to be borne from a fallout though and lets the moment pass.
“I don’t know about you, but when I see Dylan tomorrow morning, the first thing I’m going to do is gloat at what a failure he is,” Bruno goes on, “and then give him the telling off he needs for trying to hurt you and slander your name. What do you say?”
We’re creating a place for prompts/submissions about LITG - where writers can post one-shots and readers can request scenarios, smutty or otherwise, about all your favourite characters across all seasons of the game.
Got a specific scenario for a litg character that you want to read? Drop it here with us and our team will write that for you! See a prompt that you’d love to try your hand at? Give it a go! We encouraging all readers and writers here!
Some rules you’ll want to read before submitting an ask here.
If you want to get to know a little bit more about us writers running this blog, you can find that here.
With the official rebranding of Season 4 as 'Love Island: Bombshell’, this got us talking about what the next season could be.
So place your bets people!
Are we going to see Love Island the Game: Casa Amor -where MC arrives alongside five/four other sexy single ladies and has just three days to turn one of the OG boys head so he’ll take her back to the Main Villa?
How about Love Island the Game: Boys -where we’d play as a Male MC?
Lastly,Love Island the Game: All Stars-we’ve got returning favourites all here for another chance at love and winning that grand final. But will it be old flames, or the unromanceables this time around?
A spinoff of Ashes and Lilies in which Corporal McKenzie hopes for a chance at love.
Written for this month’s Character Spotlight, submission from banirareiko
Pairing:Bobby/MC
Word count:4900+
Note: Post WWII AU. There may be some inaccuracies for the sake of plot and dialogues. Contains major spoilers for Ashes and Lilies (but can be read as a standalone).
Shameless Self Promo:Clickhere to read Ashes and Lilies (recommended before diving into this oneshot).
Seeing Kaminski fall in love during the war and going through all the stages of emotions that came with it made Bobby realize that he, too, would like to experience love himself.
C-rations had always been notoriously known for tasting like absolute crap, and to Corporal Robert, or Bobby as he preferred to be called, McKenzie, that kind of crap would make for perfect culinary experiments when he wasn’t on the battlefield. In fact, testing out weird and borderline inedible concoctions from military rations had been the one thing that had helped him stay sane and positive during his deployment to Japan towards the end of the Second World War. The operation in Okinawa was simply too harrowing, too bloody and deadly, with too many casualties from both sides, and in honesty, he would’ve lost it long ago had he not picked up this odd hobby of his and had someone to share the results with.
It was during this operation that he befriended Private Kaminski, one of his underlings that he considered his own little brother, and the only one person in the unit he was leading who was willing to eat whatever bullshit it was that he had put together from the ration packs they got. Truth to be told, Bobby had been a bit suspicious when Kaminski suddenly became obsessed with finding out about the Okinawa Lily Corps nurses when they returned to Japan under General MacArthur to assist with restoration. Still, he didn’t want to ask about it, and simply offered to pull his back alley connections to help his junior out.
He didn’t need to ask anyway. Kaminski ended up confiding in him on their way back to the United States that the younger man had fallen in love with one of the nurses who had perished, and he had finally accepted that she was truly gone after having that information confirmed to him twice. Or so he had thought.
When Kaminski came back from his little trip to Japan with the nurse who turned out to have survived, and their daughter, and the nurse’s entire family in tow, Bobby was so happy for his junior. If there was one thing Bobby could say about Kaminski, it was that this little brat truly had a heart of gold and deserved all the happiness in the world after an entire year of painful heartbreak thinking that he had lost the love of his life forever to the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki last year.
But at the same time, seeing Kaminski with a wife and a child shortly after the war got Bobby realizing that he, too, would like to experience love and meet someone who would be his other half in life.
—
“Yes! Free money!”
Erin Kimura gave her older brother a look as he screamed on top of his lungs while their father pulled out a check from an envelope addressed to the family from the United States government, but soon found a huge grin stretching across her face as her eyes fell upon the numbers written on the slip of paper.
“Now I don’t blame you anymore, Willem,” she elbowed her brother playfully as he slinged an arm across her shoulders, “That is indeed a lot of money.”
To make up for the horrible treatment the Kimura family had been subjected to in the Japanese internment camps during the war, the government had sent them a whopping twenty thousand dollars now that they had been allowed to return to their small but cozy apartment in Manhattan. That was more than enough for Erin’s family to last for an entire year, if not longer.
“Do you want to get a cake or something?” Will winked at her as their father went to tell their mother about the money, “Seeing that now we have some extra money and we finally can get something nice for ourselves after a whole year of eating shit at camp.”
That, and because Will knew that his baby sister had a massive sweet tooth.
“That sounds good honestly,” Erin smiled at her older brother, “Angel food cake?”
“Angel food cake,” Will nodded and threw himself onto the couch and kicked off his slippers, “Can you go pick it up? My back hurts after carrying all those document boxes for dad.”
In all honesty, Erin had always had a love-hate relationship with her older brother. She loved him to bits because he was, well, her brother. A good one actually. But at the same time, he was extremely annoying because his head was always somewhere else. He meant well, but he could be inconsiderate sometimes because of how much of an airhead he was and that frustrated Erin to no end.
For example, right now, she just wanted to pull his ear hard for making her go get the cake by herself.
“Willem where–
And as usual, her brother was already dead asleep on the couch before even telling her where he would like to get the cake from. So much had already changed since the end of the war, and it pained Erin to have to accept that the bakery her family usually would frequent had closed. The Kimuras never got a chance to try a different place before being hauled off to the internment camp, and had never had the opportunity to go around much since they were released only two months ago anyway.
Erin supposed she had no other choice but to walk around the city to look for a new bakery. She really wanted that cake.
Ugh. Fine.
—
Since being honorably discharged from the military after his service in the war, Bobby had been slowly but surely reintegrating himself back into society. The war had been traumatizing, but he was trying his best to take it one day at a time moving on with his life, and he was more than grateful that he was able to do so doing what he loved.
In the past couple of months, he had opened a small bakery tucked away on 42nd Street, between 6th and 7th Avenue, near Bryant Park, and lovingly named it “The Cake Man.” Business had gone surprisingly better than he had thought; even though he wasn’t exactly making bank, he did have a steady stream of customers who loved his baking, and to him, that was more than enough.
Kaminski and his wife sometimes came by, too, and seeing his junior feeding cake to his lady made Bobby’s heart warm and ache at the same time.
He was still waiting for love to come to him, but so far, he had never really felt that spark with anyone just yet.
Sighing as he finished up dusting powdered sugar on top of a freshly baked angel food cake, Bobby forced himself to smile,
Well, just stay positive and–
He was cut off by the chiming sound of the bell on the bakery’s door, and immediately thought maybe, just maybe, today would be the day for him after all as his eyes fell upon who it was that had just entered his store.
It was a girl with shoulder length dark hair and wide dark eyes in a baby blue and white polka dot dress, looking a little lost as her eyes scanned the rows of cakes in the glass case against the wall.
Hot damn.
—
Erin literally had no idea how she ended up in the Bryant Park area during her search for her angel food cake despite having gone past a couple of different stores in the past hour. In all honesty, there was just something not quite right with those stores. Not that there was anything wrong with them, it was that to Erin, something was just missing.
Something that she somehow felt like she probably could find in this tiny bakery on 42nd called “The Cake Man,” even when she was a tad bit disappointed that there was no angel food cake to be seen in the glass display case in the bakery despite the heavenly smell of freshly baked sweets and pastries, or so she thought.
“Welcome,” a cheerful male voice said and snapped her out of it, “I’m the cake man who owns The Cake Man. How can this cake man help ya?”
Erin almost snorted at the term “cake man” being repeated three times in two sentences, but held herself back as she looked away from the glass case to address the source of the voice, and immediately felt a little giddy inside as her eyes met a pair of warm honey eyes.
Cute.
The man who had just introduced himself as the owner of the bakery was tall and very attractive with a lean but toned body, light brown skin and fluffy textured hair, and Erin would be damned if this man wasn’t the most eye-catching man she had ever seen in her entire life.
“Like what you see?”
The man grinned, snapping Erin out of it as he waved a hand over himself and then continued, “Though I’m not sure if it’s me or the cakes you’re thinking of right now anymore.”
Erin felt heat rush onto her cheeks as the man winked,
Oh, definitely not the cakes. Not anymore.
But she supposed she should still ask if he had some angel food cake in the back somehow and get going. She couldn’t afford to stay much longer in this bakery and get distracted by this good-looking man, as much as she found him a total babe on the eye. She didn’t feel ready to entertain the thought. Her family literally just got released from prison not long ago, and she wanted some time for herself to get back to normal life–
Why am I getting all rational right now? Just get the cake and go home.
But when Erin finally got her shit together, the man had already disappeared into the door leading to the back of the store. He wasn’t gone for long, though. Before she could call out for him, he emerged from the kitchen, carrying a box of–
“Angel food cake–
“Freshly made,” the man grinned happily, “Did I guess right?”
How the hell–
As much as Erin was resisting herself, a smile broke across her face as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear,
“How did you know that?”
The man simply laughed, and Erin decided that the sound of his laughter was the happiest sound she had ever heard beside her own brother screaming “sweet freedom” the moment her family was released from prison. His laughter was light and cheerful, but at the same time, there was something Erin couldn’t quite put a finger on. Something warm and hearty. Something she knew deep down she wanted more of, yet her mind refused to let herself accept it.
“You didn’t seem into any of the cakes in the case, and the only thing I usually make that I haven’t put out today yet is angel food cake,” the man shrugged, “So I thought I might as well try my luck.”
That’s actually kinda adorable.
“Oh. And here I thought you had the power of mind-reading,” Erin raised an eyebrow at the baker teasingly, “You just got lucky today, then.”
The man simply shook his head with a chuckle, “Damn right I did. It’s not like everyday a pretty girl like you comes into my bakery.”
He just called me pretty– Wait… He just called me PRETTY?
Erin honestly didn’t know what to do next besides standing there dumbfoundedly with her jaw dropped and her eyes wide opened in shock as the man smiled and began wrapping the cake box.
What the hell? Get yourself together. You came here to get your cake, not to flirt with the baker.
Erin was so screwed. Will would have a field day when he heard about this.
—
“There you go.”
Bobby handed the girl her cake box with a huge smile plastered on his face, but in reality, he was shitting himself inside. Especially when the girl was in her trance for a second there, probably shocked that his big mouth had just slipped that he thought she was pretty.
Real smooth, Bobby. Real smooth.
Having the box presented in front of her seemed to snap the girl out of it, though, as she bashfully smiled and accepted the cake from him, a lovely shade of pink bloomed across the pale skin of her face.
“How much do I owe you,” the girl asked, “for the angel food cake?”
Don’t do it, Bobby. Don’t do it. Just don–
“It’s on the house, sweetheart,” Bobby grinned, “consider it an attempt to win you over.”
Damn it, Bobby. You just did it.
As much as Bobby was cursing himself inside his head, deep down, he just knew that he had to take this chance. There was just something so intriguing about this girl, yet also quite familiar, that he just wanted to find out more about. She was pretty, but he doubted that she was just a pretty face. If he wanted a chance at experiencing all the magic Kaminski had told him about, then he had to take that leap of faith now, before losing the opportunity to do so forever.
The girl simply blinked at him, but then shook her head. Just as he had thought.
“You don’t have to do that. Let me pay for it.”
Might as well take the plunge then.
“No,” Bobby smiled, “I insist.”
To his disappointment, though, the girl shook her head again, “Please don’t. Let me pay.”
Bobby supposed he shouldn’t overstep the boundaries, then.
“…Alright,” he sighed, “That will be a dollar. Thanks.”
His heart broke a little when the girl handed him the bill, if he was being honest. He kind of hated himself now, actually. Maybe he shouldn’t have flirted with her that openly. Maybe he should’ve saved the jokes for another occasion. Maybe he shouldn’t have placed a bet with his heart just like that.
Still, he steeled himself and forced a smile back onto his face as he pocketed the bill.
“Thank you,” the girl smiled before turning to leave, “I appreciate it.”
Oh well, I shot my shot.
Bobby sighed inwardly as he watched her go out the door, but then, he almost had a heart attack when she turned back to look at him with a bright smile on her face. And to Bobby, that smile of hers was the sun itself– brilliant and warm. That was more than enough to lift his mood, if he was being honest.
“I never got your name,” she called out, “Can’t keep referring to you as Cake Man when I gush about your cake to my brother.”
Bobby supposed he should take what he could get. At least for now.
“Call me Bobby,” he grinned, “though Cake Man works just fine.”
The girl giggled, and Bobby decided that it was the most angelic sound he had ever heard in a very long time.
“Let’s save Cake Man for when we’ve been acquainted for longer–
What does she mean by longer? Wait– Is she…
Bobby felt his heartbeat quicken again.
“Nice to meet you, and I’ll definitely come back,” the girl smiled at him one last time before leaving for real, “I’m Erin. See you soon.”
Bobby could only manage to wave at her with the smile still frozen on his face as she turned and walked out the door, the cake box safely cradled in her arms.
Erin… Her name is as pretty as she is.
—
Erin had been cursing herself the entire train ride home. She knew that she had hurt Bobby a little bit by refusing to accept his gesture to give her the cake for free; he wasn’t actually that hard to read, in all honesty. He definitely was a jokester, a flirty one if anything, and despite her brain telling her that this was the last thing she needed right now, her heart fluttered at the recollection of his cheerful voice and warm smile. And for that, she mentally kicked herself for having been a tad bit mean to him, even when she knew she didn’t do anything wrong.
Oh well, I have no idea what to do now.
She knew she liked Bobby right away. He was a fun person to be around, and she felt like maybe, just maybe, hanging out with him could teach her how to enjoy life again after being held in prison for a whole year.
The rational side of her was slowly losing, if she was being honest, and she wasn’t actually as scared of that as she had expected herself to be.
Should I confide in Will?
As much as Erin hated to admit it, her airhead brother probably would have some surprisingly insightful advice for her.
Because only between the Kimura siblings, Will had actually been secretly spying on Japanese spies for the American army during the war from the internment camp, and therefore, had met all kinds of people around him and had a lot of experiences interacting with different people.
Nobody besides Erin and Will himself knew this. Not even their parents.
—
“So what you’re saying is that you could’ve gotten this amazing angel food cake for free and you turned down the offer because you were being a prude?”
Erin honestly just wanted to chuck her napkin at her brother, who had just deadpanned the statement as he shoved a forkful of cake into his mouth and raised an eyebrow disapprovingly at her.
“Missed opportunity,” Will shook his head, “This cake is so good.”
“I know,” Erin glared at her brother, “Shut up.”
As much as she was annoyed at Will, what he said made sense. She could’ve just taken the cake for free. It wasn’t like Bobby’s offer came with any strings attached anyway. She just let her initial shock at Bobby calling her pretty cloud her judgment, and honestly, now she felt a little silly for that.
The cake was indeed amazing, though. It was so light and fluffy and not overly sweet, and the arrangement of berries and dollops of cream just made the entire thing so balanced and refreshing. This cake was probably even better than the ones she and Will used to get at the old store they used to frequent if she was completely honest.
“So, what made you turn down free food?” Will asked before shoving another forkful of cake into his mouth, “Besides you being an idiot and panicking at someone calling you pretty?”
“I don’t know, honestly,” Erin sighed, “I guess I’m an idiot. Bobby was really nice and I’m kinda into his jokes. And his looks, to be honest.”
“Dear sister,” Will chuckled, “you are indeed an idiot. Loosen up, we’re not in prison anymore and I’m here to help us get back on our feet too. Let yourself enjoy a bit of fun. Who knows. He could end up being my brother-in-la–
“I’m gonna stop you right there,” Erin held up her fork in between herself and her brother, “I literally just met the guy today.”
“So?”
“Too soon.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Will shrugged and cut himself another slice of the fluffy cake, “I’d say follow your heart and give it a go. I’ll even come with you to get another one of this treasure of a cake later this week if it helps.”
Erin gave her brother a half smile.
She supposed her brother had indeed been a good brother despite being a prick most of the time.
—
Will kept his promise. He did, indeed, accompany Erin to pay Bobby’s bakery another visit a few days later to get another of that heavenly angel food cake.
“The Cake Man, really?” Will snorted the moment he saw the colorful sign hung on top of the door to the bakery, “You weren’t kidding.”
“Shut up,” Erin punched her brother lightly on the shoulder, “I never said I was.”
As hard as Erin was trying to keep herself still, her heart had begun slamming hard against her ribcage the moment her nose caught the wafting scent of freshly baked cake all the way from the corner of 6th and 42nd as she and Will were heading to The Cake Man. Sure, she was excited to get another one of Bobby’s amazing angel food cakes, but she would be lying if she said that the cake was the only reason why she felt absolutely giddy and bouncy right now.
The thought of seeing Bobby again sent butterflies straight into her stomach.
“It’s gonna be fine,” Will smiled reassuringly, “If he does anything indecent I’ll beat him up for you.”
“Will you, though,” Erin snorted, “Somehow I doubt it.”
Her brother only shrugged as he opened the door to the bakery, “Let’s hope I won’t have to prove it to you, then.”
—
For the past four days, Bobby had held out hope that Erin would make good on her words. Every single time he heard the bell chime, he got excited for a second there, but instantly became disappointed that it wasn’t Erin who came by.
Well, except the one time that Kaminski and his now-pregnant-again wife dropped by. Bobby was always happy to see a friend at any time.
“Well, have a little faith. At least you know she’s alive,” Kaminski had told him (and immediately got his ear pinched by his wife). And in all honesty, the younger man was right. The war was over. There was no need to be anxious about not being able to see someone ever again for good.
Bobby supposed he should be patient.
And patience did pay off today when he saw Erin in a yellow sundress walking into his bakery, accompanied by a man who he hoped was the brother she had mentioned to him.
“Hey, you came back!”
To his pleasure, Erin’s face lit up immediately the moment her eyes fell upon him. But before she could say anything, the man with her stepped forward and offered his hand to Bobby, an amused smile twisted on his face,
“You must be Bobby. I’m Erin’s brother. The name’s Willem Kimura,” the man grinned, “Pleasure to finally meet the mastermind behind the best angel food cake I’ve ever had in my life.”
“Thanks!” Bobby laughed in response, but then something just struck him.
Willem Kimura… Wait–
“Are you by any chance,” Bobby suddenly dropped his voice low enough for only Willem to hear, ignoring the way the other man raised his eyebrow quizzically and Erin frowning in confusion, “WhisperKimura?”
When Bobby was still in the military, he just couldn’t help it but hook himself up with several contacts in order to give himself a leg up when he was deployed to Okinawa. If he was being completely truthful, doing so was the only reason why he managed to emerge unscathed from the war and get his hands on classified information on both sides, and also how he managed to get Kaminski the information his junior needed in the search for his beloved nurse back then.
One of his points of contact was an American-born Japanese who moonlighted as an American spy by pretending to be a Japanese spy in the United States, who was named Willem Kimura but went by the code name Whisper.
Willem’s face didn’t give anything away, but the way his grip tightened around Bobby’s hand told Bobby all he needed to know.
“I see,” Willem nodded and mumbled through gritted teeth, “Your name is Bobby… You must be the Corporal Robert McKenzie that I was in contact with, then. Not that hard to figure out to be honest.”
And to Bobby’s surprise, Willem instantly laughed right after.
Erin just stared at them with confusion written all over her face, and Bobby immediately felt guilty. However, before he could say another word, Willem cut in,
“Erin, sister, I know this guy. Never met him in person before, though, but never expected him to be a baker now.”
“Wait a minute,” Erin frowned, her eyes flitted between Bobby and her brother, “How on earth–
“He’s a veteran. I sent him codes and all that when he was deployed in Japan,” Willem laughed again, before turning to Bobby, “She knows about all that. Only her, though. But it doesn’t matter. The war’s over.”
Oh.
Wait–
Before either Erin or Bobby could react, Willem patted Bobby on the shoulder as if they had been drinking buddies for ages and grinned at his sister,
“I’m gonna take a smoke. Behave, you two.”
With that, he headed out, leaving both Bobby and Erin staring at each other awkwardly.
That’s some serious whiplash that just happened.
—
“So…”
“This is… interesting.”
Erin had never expected that her own brother turned out to have known Bobby all along. But to be fair, in the war, the only contact Will and Bobby had of each other was through sending codes, so it would make sense that they never really knew what the other person looked like until just now.
What a coincidence it was.
“I did not sign up for this when I tried to give you the cake,” Bobby grinned bashfully, and Erin found the way his cheeks turned red was just so adorable, “I guess it’s a bit weird to know that I flirted with the sister of my informant, if anything.”
Erin smiled, “I guess so.”
Bobby shrugged, “Oh well, that was funny at least.”
“It was.”
Despite her last attempt at reasoning with herself, Erin found the way her heart warmed at Bobby’s awkwardness pleasant. She supposed she did owe him an apology after all. Even when she technically didn’t mean to, she did come off a little rigid the other day, and the slight sadness in his eyes that she saw when she refused his offer was something she didn’t really want to see again.
Especially now that she knew he was a veteran who had seen the horrors of war. He deserved happiness, and if she could give it to him, even as a friend for now, she would gladly do so.
As Bobby gave her a tentative smile while arranging cakes on the display case, she broke the silence,
“Hey Bobby. I’m sorry I was a bit rude to you the other day. You only wanted to be nice and I just wasn’t used to being called pretty, you know.”
That stopped him in his track, and he instantly turned to face her, a good-natured smile on his face as he waved her off,
“It’s all good. Don’t worry about it sweetie.”
His smile was still warm as he continued, “You are objectively pretty, though. And look, no harm done. You did come back and I’m happy to see you today.”
Oh damn it.
Butterflies, butterflies, butterflies. That was all Erin could feel blooming in her stomach and spreading all over her body from the inside.
Maybe Will’s right. This could be the start of something good actually.
“I’m happy to be back here, too. That cake was amazing!”
Giving Bobby the brightest smile she could give, Erin reassured Bobby as she locked eyes with him, and immediately allowed herself to get lost in the sea of warm caramel and honey behind the long lashes on his eyes.
Bobby’s face broke into a grin. Erin’s heart fluttered again.
“Glad you liked it.”
And then, his face dropped into a more serious look. As if he was nervous. But Erin was certain that he had nothing to worry about again this time.
“Erin…” Bobby forced another smile onto his face, “Would you like another angel food cake?”
Of course, you goofball.
With an encouraging smile, she nodded, but clearly, that wasn’t what Bobby was anxious about, because right after that, his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard and found the words to ask her another question.
“And, erm… Is it alright if I put it on the house this time?”
Called it.
The Erin of last week would’ve turned him down again. But the Erin of today was different. She supposed she could give him a chance and try. Who knew, this could maybe lead to a solid friendship.
Or, she hoped despite her prudish brain, this could blossom into something more than friendship. Something beautiful. Something she had never experienced before.
Something she would cherish forever.
“Sure.”
The way Bobby’s face lit up happily at her response was definitely worth it. And Erin wanted to make his day even better.
An idea crossed her mind. An unconventional one, too, but to hell with gender roles. She was Willem Kimura’s sister after all.
Oh what the hell? Let’s do it.
“Nothing is free, though,” she winked at him, “Let’s make this even. How does going to the movies together next weekend sound? I want to get to know you more, and Will certainly approves of this idea.”
Bobby froze for a second in shock, but then, the biggest smile Erin had ever seen from him stretched across his face as his eyes twinkled excitedly,
“Glad to hear your brother approves, darling. I want to get to know you more, too. It’s a date, then?”
Erin chuckled at his adorable reaction, not realizing that her eyes themselves had already begun to reflect the twinkle in Bobby’s,
“It’s a date, Cake Man.”
—
Kaminski’s gonna want to hear all about this. I hope I can find what he found in Kana with Erin. Ah, screw that. I know I can find it with Erin. She literally laughed at the joke I made at the movies earlier about how a pornstar skipped a filming day because he couldn’t come.
we had a beautiful, magic love there. what a sad, beautiful, tragic love affair
It was raining.
Bobby sighed. He hated the rain, how it would always fall in the middle of the summer, ruining a good, perfect day, making him go home, and return to his bedroom. She, on the other side, used to love the rain. The sound, the smell, the way it would dramatically fall against the windows and make it cool down a little. She loved to nuzzle in Bobby’s arms as it fell, sometimes they watched something, and sometimes the only sound in the room was the beat of their hearts in sync. He almost learned to love the rain.
But she wasn’t there anymore.
With the breeze that was now moving the windows of his little house, she was gone. One, two, three, four, five days, Bobby trying to be logical once again, to be back to reality. She let the cat and her toothbrush but took Bobby’s heart with her, so suddenly, he couldn’t make it make sense. Now, in her absence, he felt like parts of him were missing. The warmth of his body, the smile on his face, the chain hanging from his neck, all the things that made him feel as if god himself was gracing him were gone.
Cause she wasn’t there anymore.
So he got used to dreaming of her, let the sleep carry him away, his recollections rocking his heavy boy and leading his mind to a land where she was still smiling as she said his name against his lips, a brush so soft that could only appear when two people trusted each other. It was like they didn’t have to talk about things when it was just the two of them, the silence could keep them company, but even so, they would always fall into warm conversations.
Waking up was the worst thing that could happen to him during those days. His lonely bed waiting for its owner to come back and reclaim her possession just as much as his body did. He ached for her in the mornings, slowly realising she wasn’t there so he could wrap his arms around her and smell her shampoo before cooking her breakfast. He had to eat alone now.
The cat—Mr. Midnight, as she would call him—nuzzled against Bobby’s bare legs. He wondered if the little thing knew that something was missing or if he could see that the hands that patted him now were tougher than before. If not, if the cat could be spared the pain, then Bobby envied him. How good it would be to not need to say goodbye?
Bobby stood up, letting the duvet fall back to bed as he made his way across the room, still infested with the scent of her, still filled with her memories. He could see it now, so clear, his mind still lingering on it. It wasn’t supposed to be like that.
They had been fighting for the past few days and now he couldn’t even remember the reason. It all seemed so silly. The moment it all went wrong still dancing on his mind. He had tried to avoid it, the conversation. If he could just stop and try to listen to it.
But he never thought she would go. It wasn’t supposed to go like that. They loved each other, didn’t they? He thought they did. They were so happy, so fucking happy, and he took it for granted, the same way he did with everything in his life. So life itself decided to take it from him, like a mother that takes your toys away when you’re not playing it right.
He tried to fix it. Over and over again. Kissing her neck, lying her on the bed, fucking the pain away. That was the part he was good at. That was the thing he would do. Nothing could be wrong when she was sighing his name and scratching his back, could it? But that was just enough for the day, sometimes, the week. The problems would come back, circling them like dark clouds.
He sighed again, moving to the shower.
She was everywhere he looked. Dancing in the middle of the room, playing with the cat, laughing on his bed, changing clothes in front of the cupboard, listening to weird music on her headset as she sat down on the floor, moaning his name against the wall, begging him to kiss her, singing in the shower, applying makeup in front of their mirror, watching TV on the couch, cooking breakfast in the morning, smelling the flowers she grew by herself. Every little corner of their house had her face, body and soul imprinted on it. She was like that song you can’t get out of your head.
He stumbled inside the bathroom, shoving his head under the shower and running his hands through it, the dreadlocks he was so used to having, now gone, replaced by a buzzcut in order of a painful memory. “I love your hair,” she would say with a smile on his face as she ran her fingers through it and every time he remembered it, his chest would send waves of hurt to his body.
Feeling the weight of his own actions crush his body, he turned off the shower, stepped out of it and headed back to the bedroom, grabbing his clothes from the cupboard. His eyes avoided her dresses, her perfumes, her shoes, as they hung there, watching him slip inside his trousers, his suit. Torturing him with the constant reminder that she should be there.
He remembered watching her. How the three words slipped through his lips as she kissed them for the last time, making her smile and say them back, even though they were a little too late. How she stepped inside of the train without sparing a single glance back, like him, thinking things would be fine after a while. The chain around his neck held a picture of her, glistening against the lights of the station. The handwritten letter in the inside pocket of her coat filled with all the words he couldn’t seem to say. If he had a little more time, he would make it better, he knew that.
It was supposed to be just a trip. He thought it was just a trip.
But she wasn’t coming back.
The train ran off its tracks. Her mother told him.
Not now.
Not ever.
He remembered the silence. The white walls. The nurses walking around, looking so busy. The sirens. The feeling of losing the love of his life. How he stood there, waiting for something, anything. How their friends and family tried to keep him confident. But miracles never happened in real life. She wasn’t coming back. He hung on. She gave up. And for the life of them, they couldn’t go back. It was it. The end of their thread, broken, cut. His eyes leaked just like the rain that fell against the ceiling.
The doorbell rang as he adjusted his tie, the cat meowing by his feet. Bobby turned, avoiding looking at his haggard face in the mirror. He reached the front door, jumping over the piles of clothes that were now clustering in the living room before opening it.
Gary stood on the other side of the door, his face filled with pity, sympathy and concern as he watched Bobby. The clothes he was wearing were matching the ones in Bobby, both of them dressed for the day. He hugged Bobby, patting him slightly on his back, the softest he ever did. Not a week ago, Gary was there drinking with them and now…
“I’m so sorry, Bobby,” Gary said, his voice sounding so careful as if Bobby could break at any given moment. “We’re all gonna miss April, she was one of a kind.”
Bobby swallowed hard, feeling the tears pricking his eyes. “I know…”
TIMGATE - THE DECIDERAlright, let’s settle this, once and for all.
A couple has to decide which one of them will leave the villa.
SEE YOU SOON
Season 1 - 1700 Words - Tim / MC - Suz (@mrsbsmooth)
Baby by Aitch & Ashanti playing
“We have to what?”
Talia read her message out again.
Tim and Mia, as a result of losing the challenge, one of you must leave the villa. In your couple, you must decide which one of you that will be. You have ten minutes.
The other islanders murmured between themselves, whispering about how unfair it was. They’d only lost because they’d been fucking around, throwing paint at each other instead of at the board.
If he’d known what was at stake, he would have taken it seriously.
Why couldn’t he have been serious, for once?
His eyes met Mia’s, and he saw the sadness in them. Her huge, beautiful brown eyes, hiding a little, as they squinted from the huge smile on her face. But there was sadness in them. He knew not everyone would be able to see it… but he could. He knew her too well. His best mate. Best friend.
They walked over to the daybeds in silence, away from everyone else, settling in for a discussion. Or… lack thereof.
“I’ll go. You’ve got a way bigger insta following than me. If we’re getting the music thing off the ground you’ve gotta stay as long as possible” she said.
“Don’t be a prat, I’m goin’. My Mum’ll have my ass if I don’t at least pretend to be a gentleman about it. Plus, you’re way too hot to not find someone else here.”
She smiled. “I’ve been here since the beginning, same as you, bellend. I’m not gonna find anyone other than you who’s worth hanging out with. And we’re in a friendship couple. Plus… there’s Jen.”
Jen had recoupled with Jake, setting off a disaster recoupling that had seen Tim happily picked by his best mate. Jen had clearly expected Talia to pick Tim, because Jake was now unavailable. But Mia got there first. She was a good friend to Jen, to keep him in the villa.
But it mean that Levi had gone home, which surprised everyone. Levi was head over heels for Mia. And most of them had thought Mia had felt the same. Not that they’d know. The only person who knew how Mia felt was Jen, and she made a point of never telling him anything. But Mia had picked Tim instantly. No hesitation. He knew it was only because they were mates. But even so… he’d appreciated it.
It was nice to feel like he wasn’t expendable, for once. Like someone wanted him around.
He’d been trying to squash the crush he had on Mia down into a deep pocket of his body, but ever since he’d started sharing a bed with her… god, he could barely hide it any more.
Jen really was too posh for him. She wanted to change him. Didn’t like his tattoos. Didn’t like his rapping. But Mia… Mia did.
Despite being a mechanical engineer, she was a born musician. A drummer. She couldn’t beatbox or rap for shit, like his dream girl would’ve been able to. But give her thirty seconds and something to hit with, and she could drop a beat that he could drop some serious bars on. That, and the fact that when she sang, she sounded like Ashanti, and had a body to match… god. Imagine the music they could make together?
She was a bloody catch. He wasn’t sure how she’d even ended up on Love Island. Tim reckoned that if he looked like Jake or Levi, he’d be locking Mia down in an instant.
It was why he’d asked Jen not to pick him.
The official reason she gave everyone was that she wanted to be ‘sure’. But really… it was him. He was the one who wasn’t sure. But before he’d even had a chance to talk to her about it, Mia had just given him her answer.
She’d said it herself. Friendship couple.
And she was going to sacrifice herself so that he at least could give things another go with Jen.
Fuck, she’s a good mate.
“So yeah. I think we’re decided then. For the sake of the rap group. I’m goin’. Plus, it’s Love Island. If you were a true gentleman, you wouldn’t be here.”
He laughed, and she grinned at him, but sighed. “I just wish…”
“Wish what, that you could’ve had me this whole time?” he joked, nudging her with his arm.
She sighed. “Well, I’ll be going home in a little bit. So I ‘spose it doesn’t matter how badly I wish that.”
“Ha, yeah right.”
She looked hurt. Hurt. “Glad to know my feelings are a joke, to you, Tim. Makes me feel like a bloody idiot. So thanks for that.”
“Wait… are you havin’ me on?” his stomach dropped. “Mia, what the fuck? Youlike me?”
She looked at him, in absolute disbeliefat what she was hearing.
“T, I’ve had a crush on you since day one. I feel like an idiot saying it out loud. But pretty much everyone else figured it out already. I thought you had, too, and just… weren’t interested. Did you seriously not know?”
He just looked at her, furrowing his brow, completely frozen. He had absolutely no fucking idea how to react to this news.
“I just wish I could kiss you, though. Just once.”
He still didn’t say anything.
He just nodded.
Tim wasn’t even sure who kissed who, but it only felt like a millisecond before his hands were in her hair, pulling her against him with the thirst he’d felt for her since the second they’d met. His lips against hers, his tongue pressing at her mouth, as she moaned into the kiss. He’d been told he was a good kisser. But knowing that shethought so made him feel lighter than air.
He heard the sound of excited screaming coming from the firepit, clearly enjoying the show, and he felt her exhale a laugh against him.
He hadn’t realised until now just how badly he wanted her. How important she was to him. Not just as a friend. He wanted more.
And it was only now?Now when she was about to leave?Now she tells him?
Fucking cruel.
As they finally broke apart, a phone’s alarm sounded from the firepit, and they were instructed to come back. They walked back, silently, hand in hand. He wasn’t sure what the fuck to say to her.
The faces of the other islanders were plastered in wide grins at what they’d just witnessed. No one’s wider than Jen’s, who looked absolutely made up about the fact that they’d finally figured it out.
But his face told a different story. A silent one.
Mia spoke up, quietly next to him, smiling, like it was all a big laugh.
“For the sake of the rap group… I’m going. Tim has a higher profile than me, as well as someone to stay for. So… yeah. It’s been real.”
She hugged all of the other islanders in turn, as he stood there, his mind absolutely racing.
How? Why? When? What? Who?
Well, no, he understood the whopart.
But the rest of it was a completely mystery to him.
She’d sacrified herself for the sake of his career. Obviously he’d be bringing her along to hang out backstage if he got any gigs out of this. And she’d been planning to go back to uni anyway.
God he couldn’t wait to see her on the outside.
She came to him last, wrapping her arms around his waist as he kissed her forehead, just as he had so many times before.
“It’s going to suck being here without you. You… er… plug-ugly cow.” he whispered.
“Don’t be a melt, you manky knob. I know. But you gotta do it. You just gotta win. Get back with Jen, and win.”
She kissed him gently on the lips, sending him back into a state of shock.
“Bye, Big T. I’ll see you on the outside.”
And she walked away, back into the villa.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Tim stood at the firepit, silently hating himself. Why hadn’t he seen it? He could have had a few days in here with her at least. She was doing this for his career. For him. Because she liked him. Maybe even more than that. You don’t sacrifice something like this for someone you just have a crush on.
You do it for someone youl…
“Give him a second” Jen’s voice chuckled.
He looked up, and noticed everyone was staring at him, wide smiles on their faces. As if they were waiting.
Mia loved him.
Fucking hell.
She loved him.
The realisation came crashing over him like he’d fallen through a wormhole. Lying on the daybeds, laughing so hard they couldn’t breathe. The moment they’d realised her initials were MC - and she’d insisted it made her a better rapper than him. Insulting each other with increasing ferocity, with every swear word they knew, as they absolutely roasted each other and everyone around them.
Holding her tightly while she cried every time Levi treated her like dirt. After he cheated on her with Cherry, and she took him back. The way she looked at him. The feeling of her hair in his fingers as he kissed her. How it felt to have his arm around her waist as she slept.
He loved her, too.
And he was letting her go?
“What the fuck am I doing?” he said.
The others cheered, as he came to his senses.
And he bolted after her.
She was already in the bedroom, packing her bag. He chuckled, and walked straight past her, grabbing his bag too.
“What are you doing?” she furrowed her brow.
“Packing”
She froze. “Where are you going?”
“Home. With you.”
Her eyes went wide, and her face fell, as if she’d just heard something she couldn’t quite believe wasn’t made up in her head.
“You… what?”
He rolled his eyes. “Mia,you absolute daft minger. It’s called Love Island. There’s no point me staying here if I’ve already found love, and it’s walking out the door. Now shut your mouth, before I give you something to put in it.”
She practically fell over herself as she got up, throwing herself at him with such force that they both fell into their closet. He pressed his lips to hers, over and over, on the pile of their mixed clothes on the floor, holding her against him.
This was right.
This was how it should have been all along.
But that didn’t matter now. Because this is how it would be from now on.
He had her.
Her arms wrapped around his waist, he tilted her chin up to his, pressing his lips softly to hers. Her enormous eyes looked glassy, and she looked like she was about to cry. He smiled at her as he admired her, almost feeling the warmth building inside him.
“God you’re ugly” he whispered.
She beamed at him, cracking up laughing. She pressed her lips to his again.
.
Their bags packed, they walked to the door. The other islanders were waiting at the bottom of the stairs, beaming at them.
He laced his fingers with hers, nodded at Jen, who winked at him.
And, hand in hand, he walked out the door with her.
Introducing our new monthly feature: character spotlight!
Each month we’ll have a special focus on one character, highlighting fanfics and fanart of them, as well as writing our own very special prompts and one shots for them. Look out for our banners, Insta pages, HC lists, and much more! Also, feel free to submit any writings, fanarts or edits, or any of your own recommendations for the character, too!
To kick off June, we’re starting with our very favourite Baker Boy, Mr Bobby Mckenzie
Fresh from the shower, towel wrapped around his waist, Noah headed through the flat, leaving the steamy bathroom for his bedroom.
The sun beat against the curtains he’d forgotten to open earlier. He could feel the heat radiating through already, and briefly thought about leaving them shut while he changed, but ahhh, the nice days were few enough that he wanted to make the most of it.
Noah threw open the curtains, and the sun poured through, making the beads of water that still clung to his tone torso gleam. He opened up the window, really welcoming that glorious day into his space.
His eye caught across the street; an absolutely drop-dead gorgeous girl was at her car. He’d never seen her nor her apple green Fiat 500 in the neighbourhood before. It was a cute car, for a Fiat 500, and an even cuter owner, for being the owner of a Fiat 500. Especially for being the owner of a Fiat 500.
He watched her waving away a man in a business suit that Noah had seen about a couple of times, but not often. She had her car keys in one hand, and some house keys propped in her other. As the man disappeared into his white BMW M3 that was for sure a late model version, and, God, had personalised plates - Noah had to roll his eyes at how much the car alone screamed ‘I’m a showy asshole’ - she stuck a copy of the house keys onto the ring of her car keys. Was she … just moving in? He hoped so, damn, she was really hot. He wouldn’t mind seeing her around a lot more.
That’s when she looked up; right at him; caught him watching her as he stood in just a towel at his window. Fuck.
Her eyes went wide and Noah leapt out of sight, his heart hammering and cheeks burning red. Damn, he hoped that maybe she wasn’t moving in now.
He pushed the beautiful stranger out of his mind, wanting to go about his morning in peace. He had just been opening the curtains, that’s all, nothing weird about that. Yeah, she happened to be on the street across from him, and he stood there staring at her, but he was just being curious, not pervy.
As he made himself coffee and toast for his breakfast, he thought about going over to explain all of that. He was hesitant that it might just make him look weirder. Was it better to never address it? As he got dressed, he had to conclude that maybe he was just thinking about it too hard.
But then, dressed, watered, and ready, he was stuck with nothing else to do on his day off. He had been planning on just reading until the afternoon, but his head was too caught up with what happened.
He had resigned himself that he was going to see her again and he would have to live the rest of his life reminded of this one moment where he was caught watching this pretty girl across the street while he stood naked in a towel.
Great.
Hands on his hips, he stared at his door. He needed to get out, to go do something. It was a nice day after all, he should go out to the park or something and read out in the open instead of cooping himself up all day.
Noah grabbed the beaten up James Bond book he was trying to get through, and with his keys and wallet in his trouser pockets, he headed out the door.
It was even warmer outside; there was no breeze sweeping down the street, so it was just the full sun hitting his brown skin, feeling like a blanket, engulfing him all around. He could get used to more days like this.
The radiance of the sun shot his mood up considerably, and melted all his worries and ill-will out of him, leaving him to jauntily skip down the steps to the street, not something he found himself doing often.
Someone was playing music. It was just the radio, the hosts of Romford’s number one station interrupting the song before it had a chance to completely finish so they could say what a brilliant tune they thought it was.
And he realised it was coming from the Fiat.
She wasn’t inside. The doors facing onto the path were wide open directly in front of the open door to the flat that sat across from his.
Noah paused.
He hesitantly stepped across the street, and had just made it up onto the opposite pavement when the girl came out of the flat. She was quietly singing under her breath, a notable skip in her step as she launched down from her door to the path.
Her singing stopped when she spotted him, but that might have just been because she hadn’t expected to see anyone. Noah raised his brows, putting a half smile that he hoped was full of ease on his face at the same time she gave him a welcoming, bright smile. Already she was turning away, her focus on her car.
Noah stood awkwardly to the side while she bent over and stretched inside the vehicle. He had to drag his eyes away, not looking at what he really wanted to see because he’d already fumbled with being caught staring.
When she came back up, a small box in hand, Noah again tried not to look too weird. “Hey,“ he began, but she looked surprised to see him still standing there.
“Oh, hey, sorry,” she said, brows knotting together in a frown of concern, “I’m not blocking the path, am I?”
His brows shot up in an instant. “Oh, no, not at all! I actually - are you moving in? I wondered if you wanted a hand?”
Her expressions went through all manner of changes in a fleeting second; she was surprised, thoughtful, frowning, and eventually burst into a huge grin.
“Whoa, I never thought it would happen,” she says, a giggle in her voice that was as light as the breeze. She had a Scottish accent, he wasn’t too sure whereabouts, but it was pretty distinctive, and insanely attractive.
“What would happen?” He asked in reply, unable to help his own grin. Her good mood was infectious, and it warmed him inside.
“Well, you know, you see it in the movies and the sitcoms all the time, right?” She grinned, eyes narrowed on him, but it was all in good humour. “Cute guy offering the girl unloading her car a hand to move in. If it were a sitcom, though, you probably wouldn’t see me again after the initial episode I’m in.”
He couldn’t help but grin even wider, a chuckle escaping him. “Oh, am I the main character, then?”
“Well, the whole window flashing thing is for sure main character energy,” she joked, barely suppressing a laugh as he tried not to go red. “Not really girl-of-the-week vibes, but don’t worry, I’m the main character of my own story.” She winked.
“Well, I’m more of a book guy, myself,” he said, holding up the James Bond book. “And usually this type of scenario is the set up to the premise, rather than a one off.”
She hums, still eyeing him like she’s working him out. “So, I guess we should figure out what we’re in then. Though, if you look in the boxes of my boot, you’ll see what kind of girl I am, too.”
“Well, I have to find out now,” he says, passing her to go to the back of her car. “Is it unlocked?”
She nods.
He couldn’t help giving her another sneaky glance before he pressed the button to open up her boot, anticipating what he might find. His heart beat ridiculously fast. They were both still smiling, almost stupidly. At least he was anyway. Hers was as warm as the sun, hypnotic and enchanting, making him want to stop and stay still in the moment, basking in it, letting it envelop him like there’s nothing more in the world he might need or desire. Her smile was everything.
When the boot was popped, it revealed an entire trunk full of boxes of books. It took him a moment to take it all in; the host of colours putting rainbows to shame; from romance to horror to the classics to a pile that exclusively had shirtless men on the cover, Noah thought she must have had all her bases covered.
He had never felt such a host of emotions at once. His heart thumped away like crazy, and he felt a twinge in his trousers.
“No James Bond, unfortunately, but I think I’ve got a decent variation,” she said.
“You’ve got your own little library in here,” he says, gawking up at her.
“I mean, it’s only a tiny drop of what I actually have. I packed in a hurry, so I only took my favourites,” she says, eyes darting away uncomfortably.
Needing to pack in a hurry? His mind went immediately to a break up and he hadn’t realised how much he had been hoping she was single until now.
“Oh? I mean, not to intrude, and feel free not to answer me,” he says, picking up one of the larger boxes of books, wanting to impress. It was incredibly heavy and he had to put a significant amount of attention into making it appear like it wasn’t. “But is everything okay? You aren’t in any trouble, are you?”
She shook her head, her dark hair shaking out and catching the sun like the glistening waves at a sunny beach. “I’m all right. Just my ex - he refused to move out of our place, so as soon as I got the go ahead for this place, I packed up everything I could fit into Betty here,” she paused to adoringly pat the roof of her Fiat, “and left.”
“Well, hey,” he said, taking a step towards the flat - the box was really, really heavy - “if you need a hand getting anything else back, I’d be happy to lend any help I can. My sister’s ex was an ass when they broke up and he wouldn’t give her any of her stuff back until me and my brother showed up at his door. We never did anything, just pleasantly said we were there for her belongings and that was it.”
“Ridiculous that that’s all you need to do. I would sigh and say ‘ugh, men’, but,” her smile slowly stole back onto her face, “there’s for sure plenty of good ones out there.”
Noah swallowed.
She led them up into the flat, and he allowed himself the chance to eye her from behind this time. Her shorts were tight and fitted. He had to tell himself to cut it out when he realised he was biting down on his bottom lip.
Instead of checking out her ass, he got to looking about, and couldn’t help but compare it to his own place across the street. “It’s nice,” he said, “small, but, it’s just you, isn’t it?”
She nods. “Sure is. It’s only temporary anyway, so I wasn’t looking for anywhere big or flashy.”
Noah left the box in the main room, near a built in shelf so she wouldn’t have to drag it over later. He glanced out the window, and pointed out. “Hey, you can see my place from here,” he joked, hoping to make her laugh.
She sidled right up beside him. “You know, the landlord hadn’t mentioned anything about the nice views. Absolutely nada.”
Damn. He felt heat rising in his cheeks and something else rising between his legs.
“Shall I expect that sight every morning?” She asked, hands on her hips, leaning towards him. She clearly wasn’t shy and, even better, did not think he was some weirdo creeper.
“Just the nice ones.”
“Just the nice ones? You know, having you shirtless and wet at the window would make every morning a good one.”
“Well, now that you mention it, seeing your neighbour shirtless and wet would make a good start to any morning.”
“Sounds like a considerate thing to do,” she smirked, then very abruptly held her hand out to him. “You know, all this talk and I’ve not even introduced myself yet,” she went on, shaking her head in disbelief at herself. “I’m Daphs.”
“Noah.”
He took her hand. Electricity passed between them, and he felt like he knew her already, there was suddenly something so familiar about her, like he’d known her in another life, like this was almost how it was meant to be.
She looked him dead in the eye and gave him her charming smile again. “It’s very nice to meet you, Noah.”
Prompt:Secret Santa. Gift one person a character, and the other person a trope.
Trope: His / Her Jacket (Character wears an article of their significant other’s clothing) - from Em (i-boop-you)
Character: Allegra - from Suzi (mrsbsmooth)
Season 1 - 2700 words - Allegra/MC - Bia (@crimswnred)
FUCHSIA
Allegra Rossi had a big secret.
It all began after another one of their cheer practices. Allegra was still wearing her yellow and purple uniform and her high ponytail as the other girls were talking to each other, squealing and gossiping, not giving too much of a fuck about how terrible their final sequence went down, even if the regionals were just around the corner. As captain of the squad, Allegra knew she had to do a speech about it and point out the flaws but she just wasn’t feeling like it.
Her mom would be furious when she got back home. She knew that. After trying so fucking much, she had failed her mother’s expectations and got a D in Chemistry. Surely, from the teacher’s point of view, it meant she was stressed and probably was having a hard time catching up with the class as she had just been sent to the advanced classes, a pretty normal phase for every student that changed courses but her mother wouldn’t see things like that. No, she would scream at her, make her feel miserable for a week and then buy her something to make up for it.
As if her love and tenderness were no match to a shining new diamond. What a cow.
“Great job out there, Rossi,” the cheer squad coach had said with a smile to Allegra before turning to Alison, who had just got out of her uniform. “And great energy Morgan, hope to see more of you two on the field.”
Allegra could picture the way Alison Morgan looked at her even after all these months. She had her honey blonde hair slicked back, still a little wet, and her eyes shined brightly with the locker room’s lights. She could remember hearing the muffled scold of the coach to the other girls, who grumbled responses and whined as they collected their things but nothing else really matter. The way Alison’s blue eyes watched her move was way more important.
Everything about Allegra was intense and passionate. That was exactly what gave her the spot as captain of the cheer squad, what made her vice-president of the student council, what gave her all of the trophies and medals she proudly displayed in her bedroom, and what made her the number 1 girl in Lockwood High. But also was the main reason she felt like being herself around Alison Morgan was an excruciating chore, a pain in her arse, a headache, and many other adjectives she could come up with.
If it wasn’t for her blonde locks that always bounced around as she tried doing the more complicated moves during cheer practice, or her piercing blue eyes that twinkled beautifully or the way she had a bright personality and a “you-wish-you-were-me” attitude, that made girls hate her and boys fucking dream of her, Allegra wouldn’t be stuck in the weird place she was now, casually standing right in the “I don’t know if I wanna be you, or if I wanna fuck you” ground.
Liking girls was something Allegra kept a secret for the longest time. Lockwood was not that small of a town and she could escape to the nearby ones to meet and kiss pretty girls. Of course, she liked boys as well and no one would dare to say something with her perfect relationship record, especially while she was the so-called girlfriend of Mason Knight. Who would dare to say the captain of the cheer squad and the football star weren’t a real cute couple?
Only Alison Morgan, of course.
After the ‘serious talk’ with the coach, the girls were dismissed and Allegra finally left to take a shower. She wouldn’t consider herself a shy girl but she surely didn’t enjoy showering among fourteen other girls and, honestly, there was nothing she wanted less than going home and facing her mother.
She was scratching her scalp, making good use of the shampoo, as she thought about all the ways her mother could make her miserable. “I heard you failed Chemistry,” she heard a voice echoing inside the bathroom, making her jump. “Sorry, did I scare you?”
“Fucking god,” Allegra said before taking a deep breath. She turned to meet the voice, finding Alison with her back turned to her, wearing a black leather jacket and a destroyed type of jeans. “You scared the shit out of me.”
A short giggle escaped Alison and that was enough to make Allegra tingle. Like everyone with eyes, she knew how hot Alison was, especially when she rocked those edgy sexy clothes that only highlighted her body better. Unlike Allegra and her strictly “good girl facade”—or whatever the fuck Ali liked to call it—filled with long hours of fixing her hair and listening to her mother’s tips to be prom queen, Alison was wild and free and so open about everything, including her bisexuality. How could someone not be drawn to such a free spirit?
And as everybody in that damned school, Allegra was well aware that there were a lot of whispers in the hallways about the love and hate relationship between the two hottest cheerleaders. Many boys and girls—with nothing else to do—were always trying to compare the pair, feeding a non-existent rivalry between them, picking stupid sides. It was almost annoying and it surely would make Allegra give the poor girl the cold shoulder sometimes.
“So you scare me and laugh at me?” Allegra asked, turning her back to Alison again as she washed the shampoo out of her hair. “And yes, I failed fucking Chemistry.”
“I could teach you if you want, Chemistry, that is…”
Allegra hummed, closing the shower and stepping out of it, enveloping her body in one of her perfect white towels. When she looked back at Alison, she was already facing her, a big smile on her lips as her eyes ran Allegra’s body. “What do you say?” She asked.
“Yeah, sure.”
The two of them met each other every Tuesday after class after that, just to study. And then, Allegra asked to add a second tutoring day, making it Tuesday and Friday. Soon enough they were meeting every single day after practice, talking to each other through messages and meeting on the weekends.
That Saturday, they were hanging out at Alison’s house. Her parents were travelling, which meant the two of them were alone and that Allegra’s stomach was tied in knots. As Alison casually laid down on her double bed over her grey duvet, Allegra was messing about with her wardrobe.
“Omigod, this top is amazing,” Allegra gasped as she held a hanger with a fuchsia top on it. “How come I’ve never seen you wearing it?”
“It’s not really my colour, girl,” Alison laughed, pointing out to her all-black dressed self. “But you can have it if you want?”
Allegra watched her get up from the corner of her eye, narrowing it at her, curiosity forming on her face. Slowly, Alison headed to the side of the room where Allegra was. She smirked, provocatively, as she ran her fingers through her blonde strands. Right there, Allegra remembered thinking of all the times she had thought about how beautiful Alison was.
“It will look great on me, I must admit,” Allegra said under her breath as Alison got closer.
The blonde girl giggled. “I’m sure you would look fucking gorgeous on anything but…”
Alison trailed off, leaving Allegra hanging. There was something in the way she looked at her, the way her words sounded like sweet music in her ears, that made her feel like crossing the line. She swallowed hard, only to whisper: “But?”
“I think you’d look better on me.”
And just like that Alison had turned a switch. All at once their relationship went from just a regular girly friendship to long stolen kisses at night drives and muffled moans under the bleachers before school. Everywhere that was once Allegra’s free reign now had a memory of her. How her hands touched her waist and sent shivers down her spine. How they would wear each other’s initials on chains around their necks. How they would kiss good luck in dark rooms before a test. How Alison would pick her up every day and take her home, too. Every single little detail made Allegra’s stomach turn.
The only problem was that Allegra was still dating Mason and she couldn’t just dump him out of the blue. It took her four months of secretly sneaking out with Alison to find a reasonable reason to break things off with him—if you could call him going out with his friends too much a “reason”, that is. After that, the rumours of Allegra being a possessive bitch that was obsessed with perfection and had some seriously messed up shit going on in her head spread like wildfire.
There was not a single soul that wasn’t convinced that Allegra Rossi was the real-life version of Regina George. The disgusting rivalry between her and Alison only grew stronger, especially when Allegra’s ex asked her on a date. And of course, the little brat had said yes. Sometimes, Allegra even thought she liked being the centre of everyone’s gossip. Somehow, the attention did her well.
“What is going on in that pretty little head of yours?” She heard the melodic feminine voice from the driver’s seat ask her. Like always, Alison was driving her home.
“Thinking about why the fuck did you told Mason you would go out with him?” Allegra jetted back, crossing her legs on the passenger’s side of Alison’s cherry red Audi A5 Cabriolet.
“Jealous, baby?” Alison said, arching one of her eyebrows as her lips twitched into a smile. “I call it payback for all the months I had to pull up with him being your perfect little boyfriend while I had to settle with stolen kisses and lame bars’ sex.”
Allegra could feel her cheeks turning red as the memories of the beginnings of their relationship rushed back to her mind. “I didn’t have much of a choice! How would I break up with him without saying that…”
“That you would rather be with me?” Alison cut her off with a giggle.
“That I had fallen in love with somebody else,” Allegra muttered under her breath as Alison pull up her car on the side of the road.
“You’re too cute,” Alison smiled at her, kissing her cheek. “And I’m not going out with Mason, he asked me if I was going to Tim’s party and I said yes.”
Allegra rolled her eyes, turning to Alison. They were so close that she could feel Alison breathing, her eyes so blue studying her face as a smirk decorated her face. “Fucking hell, he’ll be waiting for you at the party tonight, then,” Allegra whispered against her lips.
“Well,” Alison said, her tongue tentatively wetting her own lips. “I can think of many, many better ways to spend my time than hanging out with Mason Knight, don’t you think?”
“I hope they involve me,” Allegra giggled.
“Mostly,” Alison cocked a smile.
And with that sight imprinted in her mind, Allegra dared to close the little space left between them, crashing her lips against Alison’s, who didn’t wait a single second to kiss her back. It was sweater them most of their kisses were, much more slow and delicate than the snogs they shared when the locker room was empty before cheer practice. Alison ran a hand slowly through Allegra’s hair, pulling her hazel locks just enough to make her sigh before smiling and backing out.
“See you later, Rossi.”
The party was exactly what you would expect from a teenager after the game party. Being on the edge of his 18 years, Timothy Pritchard, also known as “Big T”, wouldn’t let a single football match go without throwing a party with plenty of beer and many other types of alcohol, something that combined with jocks, cheerleaders and Hollywood stars wannabes was never a good thing.
Talia and Sammi were dancing with each other, rolling their hips together to provoke boys—and girls. There were some already passed out youngsters lying on the floor. There was a gigantic line of people trying to taste Jake’s weed edibles. There was deep bass that kept playing again and again to the sound of their hearts. There were Cherry Roosevelt’s tits bouncing up and down while she rode Levi Richards if you opened the wrong door. Jennifer Riviera was trying to get Big T’s head between her legs even though he seemed to be way more interested in Olivia Summers’ ass. There was s stain on the carpet that no one knew exactly what it was. There were shouts and music and sweat and all those things that would horrify any adult.
Needless to say, being the good girl she was, Allegra mostly didn’t take part in the games and engagement, at least not in front of everyone and especially not drugged or drunk. Unless she was there with Alison, alone. If so, you could even find her letting herself drink a few beers, be a little looser. When they were together, there wasn’t this need of being the best, the one with the nicest clothes, nicest car, nicest manners. They were good enough to each other the way they were, with no need to change, even if Allegra’s heart would beat like crazy inside her chest every time they were together.
“Straight Flush,” Alison celebrated, resting her cards on the bed.
Allegra groaned. They were playing what Alison presented to be ‘fun poker’ which would translate to ‘strip poker’. Thanks to Tim, they found a guest room that was not being used to Cherry’s fun time and was far enough from the commotion for them to be secluded—kind of. And all that it took was just a conversation with Olivia about how great—and big—of a guy Tim really was.
“You’re fucking cheating!” Allegra protested as she took another layer of clothes. She was now missing her jeans and jacket, ready to take off the same fuchsia top Alison had given her.
“Me? Cheating so I can get you naked?” Alison gasped with mocked shock. “Never!”
She was wearing a tiny black dress—of course, she was—that hugged her body in all the right places. Her blonde locks were up in a purposely messed bun, and that added to the spaghetti straps of her dress made her oh-so kissable collarbone and cleavage completely exposed to Allegra’s eyes. For the look of it, there was nothing else between the thin fabric and the sun-kissed skin of her chest.
“You could’ve just asked me nicely and I’d strip for you, baby, no need for the roundabouts,” Allegra said in a jokingly matter but there was not a single trait of amusement in Alison’s expression as she bit her lip.
“Really, Leggy?” Alison asked, crawling nearer her. “Would you do it if I just said please?”
Allegra’s breath caught in her throat as she felt the air shifting around them. Alison got closer, leaning towards her and sliding one hair on the side of her body, brushing her thumb ever so slightly against her thigh. She could feel the familiar warmth climbing her skin as her heart pounded like crazy and she swallowed dry. Fuck, she thought, feeling Alison’s breath against her neck as she planted kiss after kiss on it.
“You look so fucking hot wearing my things,“ Alison said, leaving a trail of kisses up her neck and jawline. "That top just looks so good on you.”
And when she finally locked their lips together, it was like the whole world had just disappeared and the room started to spin in slow motion. There was no Mason, no cheer squad, no gossip and no parents in that world that could make Allegra not love Alison. Not when her tongue tasted heavily against hers, not when her nails scratched the back of Allegra’s neck, not when her slow hand ran throughout her skin until it finally met the spot Allegra needed her most.
And definitely not when her name was the only sound she could let out.
She still had plenty of reason to worry — Noah could still have feelings for someone else, the new islander could still steal one of them from each other, the new islander could be someone that one of them fancies. It was probably best never to be comfortable on Love Island, especially not this early in.
After her conversation with Noah earlier, Rose was feeling as confident as she could possibly be about the new prospect of a new islander. In stark contrast to the worried expressions and shaking hands of the other women in the dressing room, Rose touched up her makeup in a relative state of calm. She thought about her sweet conversation with Noah, about the careful kiss he’d placed on her cheek, his comment about keeping things fair. She’d managed to keep her gushing to a minimum when she ‘debriefed’ with Lottie, mostly focusing on listening to complaints about Rocco — of which there were many. He was a huge flirt and seemed to like all of the girls just as much as the one he was partnered with, which was already making the larger-than-life Lottie feel small.
“You don’t deserve that, babes,” Rose said, smudging her brown eyeliner with a q-tip. She was going with a slightly more natural look for their first party, having already removed the caked makeup from the day and started anew. “You have to have some sort of respect for your partner, even if you’re not set on staying with them.”
Lottie, in stark contrast with Rose’s toned-down makeup look for the night, was sharpening the wing of her eyeliner and applying an even deeper shade of plum to her lips. “Right? Disrespectful, that’s exactly how it is.”
“What’s wrong, Lottie?” Marisol asked, peeking around the mirror that divided them to intrude upon a conversation she was not a part of. “Things going poorly for you too?”
“I’m just hoping it’s a new guy tonight.” Lottie pouted.
“What about you, Rose?” Marisol asked. “Feeling alright?”
Rose smiled, thankful at least that Marisol had dropped trying to call her nicknames. “I had a nice conversation with Noah earlier, we agreed to stick together for now as long as we have a choice. He’s a good guy.”
“Aww,” Lottie drawled. “Look at Noah being a gentleman.”
Marisol rolled her eyes. “At least one of us is doing well.”
Rose shrugged. She felt as though Marisol was oversimplifying things. She still had plenty of reason to worry — Noah could still have feelings for someone else, the new islander could still steal one of them from each other, the new islander could be someone that one of them fancies. It was probably best never to be comfortable on Love Island, especially not this early in.
“I’m going to get changed,” Rose said. Marisol’s negativity was infectious and negativity was the last thing she needed. “I’m pretty sure the guys are already out on the lawn waiting for us.”
Lottie agreed, “Good call.” And, before Rose had even gathered her clothes to go to the bathroom to change, Lottie had dropped her swim top and started changing in the middle of the dressing room.
Rose tried to hide her blush, looking away and back to her clothes cubby as quickly as possible once she realized what was happening. She grabbed the first dress she saw, a silky green mini dress with spaghetti straps, and all of the necessary undergarments, and ducked into the restroom. The bathrooms were as private as the Villa got, but even then there were a few cameras directed at just the right angles to catch important conversations by the communal sink and cheeky shots of islanders showering. It was a careful geometry looking at the mounted cameras trying to locate possible blind spots. After just one day in the villa, Rose was already tracing sight-lines every time she walked into a room.
She chose a corner by the toilet — undignified but certainly private — and began undressing. Perhaps, by the end of her time in the Villa, Rose would be less of a prude. Perhaps she’ll eventually become used to her body being seen and then blurred in post-production by some poor media intern. But she wasn’t going to press herself too much on the first day.
Rose dressed as quickly as possible, also aware that other girls getting ready may also barge in at any moment — there were no locks on any of the doors in the Villa — and mussed her hair once more in the mirror before returning to the dressing room. Thankfully, all of the girls were clothed once she returned.
“Ready, babes?” Lottie asked, flashing her stiletto nails as she held out a hand. She was dressed in a sleek black dress with mesh sleeves that showed off her tattooed arms. Her hair was pinned back to one side with a vintage-looking silver clip.
“You look nice.” Rose touched the clip on the back of Lottie’s head. “This is gorge.” She took Lottie’s offered hand and gave it a squeeze.
“It was my grandma’s,” Lottie said. “I’m wearing it for luck.” Rose found Lottie’s superstitions charming, especially in a place that felt so outside of reality as the Villa. It made her wish she’d brought something to be made a talisman herself, even if she’d never been the type to believe in that sort of thing before.
“Ready girls?” Hope called. She was standing with her arms crossed in the doorway, looking impatient even though she’d only just put her shoes on. “The boys are waiting.”
Lottie rolled her eyes. “And they can wait a bit longer.”
Marisol trotted out of the bedroom, her shoes in her hands. “I’m ready!” She hopped on one foot to fasten a strap on her heel and then switched, fastening the other just as quickly. “Let’s go.”
Hannah, who had been much quieter in the dressing room than she had been the rest of the day, stood from her dressing bench. She wore a grave face and a simple sundress, looking much the same as before, the same long braid in her hair and the same light makeup on her face. Rose’s chest panged. She hoped Hannah didn’t feel underdressed. “I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,” she said.
Hand in hand with Lottie, Rose took the steps down from the dressing room and then to the deck. Relief washed over her at the sight of Bobby and Noah idly chatting, it was heartening to see them getting along. It meant that whatever flirting she’d engaged in — purposeful or not — was not enough to create a rift in the Villa. Early days, she reminded herself, she had done nothing wrong.
“Hey girls!” Gary waved from the lawn. He had a completely different vibe in his evening clothes, looking much less like a typical lad in square glasses and nice jeans. “We waited for you!”
Lottie gave Rose a look and Rose understood her meaning at once: Gary cleans up well…
He wasn’t her cuppa but he could certainly be Lottie’s.
“We had to get our look right, you know!” Hope laughed. “Now the party can get started!”
The islanders whooped along with Hope, doing their best to shake the uneasy feeling left by the bombshell text.
“Thank you for waiting for us,” Rose said as she and Lottie separated, drifting towards their respective partners.
Instead of Noah, whom the thanks was primarily directed at, Bobby responded, “We didn’t mind one bit, lass.” He winked at her.
Rose smiled in kind, but took Noah’s hand and said, “Thank you both.” Being near the two boys at the same time felt like walking into an active war zone.
“Let me get you a drink?” Noah asked, ducking his head closer to hers as he spoke, effectively cutting Bobby out of their circle. “They’ve got all sorts.”
She squeezed Noah’s hand. “Lead the way.”
“So,” Noah said, voice quiet as he spoke only to her. “I heard talk of a girls-only full moon ritual tonight. Are you planning to take part?”
Rose laughed, recalling Lottie’s insistence that the full moon on the first night of filming was an omen and that they should take care to honor it by convening in the moonlight. She’d gone along with it in the moment because she wanted to befriend Lottie and earn her trust. She shrugged. “Might be a laugh,” she said. “Lottie is really something.”
Noah pouted. “I was hoping you’d prefer to get a head start on sleeping with me—“ He cut himself off with a startled expression. “I mean, er, on sharing a bed.” Shaking his head, he started over. “I was hoping you’d like to cuddle instead.”
For his sake, Rose demurely hid her giggle behind a hand. “I knew what you meant,” she reassured him. “But, sorry, I’m all about the girl code.”
“Was afraid you’d say that.”
“I was going to ask how you felt about sharing a bed, but I suppose I’ve got my answer.” From the corner of her peripheral, she saw the rest of the group descending upon the bar, she had to shift gears quickly in case she didn’t have time for this conversation later.
Noah seemed to understand her meaning perfectly, grinning ever-so-slightly and nodding in confirmation. “I’d be up for it as long as you are,” he said. “No funny business, of course.”
She leaned in conspiratorially, easing her nerves with a joking tone. “Do you think any of the couples are going to be up to funny business right off?”
“Lottie and Rocco I could see,” he said with no hesitation. “I feel like Rocco would try it with anyone, though.”
“He hasn’t much flirted with me,” Rose corrected. “I think he knows I’m not the type to try it with.”
“Or that you’re a terrible flirt,” Noah teased. “Can’t be bothered.”
“Hey!” She lightly smacked his arm. “Your manner of flirting isn’t much better, so I don’t want to hear it.”
He shrugged coolly. “Takes one to know one.”
Rose huffed and rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t keep the smile from her face, she could tell that Noah’s teasing was affectionate.
“What are you two on about?” Gary asked as he shuffled back behind the bar. It was now too late for Noah to make Rose that drink, so she hoped Gary’s bartending skills were up to par.
“Just chatting,” Rose said, sharing a sly grin with her partner. “Where’s Hannah?”
Gary rolled his eyes, not a good sign. “She’s upset about something again. I swear that girl has cried on me twice and we’ve just met.”
“Poor thing…” Rose took a seat at the bar and watched Noah do the same. She turned so that her knees were facing his, doing her best to keep him in the loop while she talked to Gary. Normally, at a pub with her friends, she wouldn’t be concerned with making such clear delineations between platonic and romantic encounters, but things were different within the context of Love Island. She didn’t want to strike up a conversation with a guy that she wasn’t interested in and have her actual crush get the wrong idea. Noah, for his part, seemed to get the message. He laid a hand carefully on her knee, glancing up for permission and gracing her with a smile when she gave it.
“I feel for her,” Rose said. “This is all a touch overwhelming.”
“But you’re not crying all over your lad, are you?” Gary scooped ice into a shaker with an unsteady hand. It was clear that he’d expected to have a much more enjoyable first day, Hannah must really be getting to him. “Do you want a drink?”
“What can you make?” She wanted to humor him while also changing the subject. She hoped he would launch into trying to impress her with his bartending knowledge.
“Not much, I was just going to make some vodka crans,” he said. Then, “Do you think there’s anyone else I can pawn Hannah off onto?”
As she thought of what to say, Rose felt Noah begin tapping his thumb on her knee. She wondered if the gesture was simply absentminded movement or if he was anxious. It made her wish Gary would leave them alone so that she could find out. She said, “I don’t think that’s a nice way to think about your partner. I mean, it’s fine if you don’t like her but she is a person, no?”
Gary seemed to deflate. “You’re right,” he said. “Sorry.” As he began shaking the cocktail shaker, the other islanders gathered around.
“What are you making?” Lottie asked, shouting over the din of ice rattling against metal.
“Vodka cran.” Gary stopped shaking the drink. “Want one?”
Rose breathed a sigh of relief as the two began a conversation of their own, cutting her and Noah back out and into their own bubble. She leaned in close to his shoulder and waited for him to incline his ear. “You planning on doing any grafting?” She asked in a whisper, shooting a grin to let him know that she was half-teasing. At this intersection, though, she wouldn’t mind either way. There were people they both wanted to get to know better, but she also didn’t want to push Noah away if he happened to want to stay by her side.
He gave her a look. “You trying to get rid of me?”
“Not at all!” She frowned, trying to seem cool had backfired. “I just don’t want you to feel like you have to stay glued to me out of obligation.”
Noah gave her knee a light squeeze. “It might be good to chat with some other people, but only if you’re okay.”
“I can take care of myself,” she assured him, and she expected him to politely reassure her again. What she didn’t expect was for him to immediately excuse himself, leaving her alone with Gary and Lottie. She hadn’t been lying when she said his grafting other girls wouldn’t bother her, but she couldn’t help but feel discarded in the moment.
“Everything alright, love?” Gary slid a pink cocktail toward her. “Where’s laddy off to?”
She took the drink and stirred it dejectedly with the tiny plastic straw he’d garnished it with before taking a sip. “Grafting.” The drink tasted much stronger than she would have liked, which is what she got for letting a crane operator bartend.
“Rose?” A warm hand landed on her shoulder, and she turned to see Bobby smiling wide at her.
She smiled back though her mind reeled, feeling a little like he’d caught her momentarily playing the role of damsel in distress. “Hi,” was all she managed to say to her knight in beachy, floral armor.
“Noah leave you all alone?” Bobby asked. “I thought better of him.”
Rose sighed, seeing no point in hiding what was obvious. “I told him he could,” she explained. “I just didn’t think he’d be so eager.”
“Well lucky for you—” He slid into the barstool Noah had left open with ease, his knees almost knocking with hers as she hadn’t had a chance to turn away. If he minded the proximity, it didn’t show. “I’m here to keep you company all you like.”
Despite her mixed emotions, Rose chuckled at Bobby’s cheerful demeanor and stayed put, allowing their legs to remain touching. “To be clear, I told him he could go.” She allowed her face to fall into a full-on dejected pout. “I chased him off.”
Bobby rolled his eyes. “Forgive me, lass,” he said. “But I overheard. He’s not supposed to actually take you up on the offer like that.”
Not in the mood to chastise her partner, even if Bobby’s words were vindicating, Rose changed the subject. “How are you feeling with Marisol?”
He tapped his nose, then pointed with his thumb in a smooth motion, indicating Marisol’s approach to their left. He stood and offered a hand. “Fancy a chat on the daybeds?”
Rose nodded, taking his hand and sliding off the barstool before Marisol could interrupt them. She called to Gary, “Thanks for the drink!”
The dismissive way in which Noah had abandoned her may have left a bitter taste in her mouth, but it did its job to make her feel significantly less guilty in her desire to entertain Bobby’s advances. She allowed him to keep his hand wrapped around hers as they walked to the daybeds, ignoring a look from Noah and carefully dodging Marisol and Hannah along the way. When he finally let go, they were seated on the edge of one of the daybeds and far enough away from the other islanders that they wouldn’t be overheard. Of course, the cameraman that followed them was an exception, but he did his best to make himself scarce.
“I feel we haven’t gotten to chat at all.” Bobby’s hand fell gently to her bare thigh, grounding Rose in the conversation and making her forget the camera operator entirely. “I wanted to ask you something, though.”
Something about Bobby’s effortlessly casual way of speaking put Rose at ease. She’d never gotten along with men like Bobby before, usually finding quiet guys like Noah to be more her type, but Bobby gave her the impression that he was concerned only with her the entire time they were speaking. So far, all of her conversations in the villa had been distracted ones — the cameras and bright lights and new beginnings making it that much harder to connect — but speaking with Bobby was completely different, the conversation felt as intimate as speaking with an old friend.
“What’s that?” Rose asked, leaning closer to him as if she could further close off the rest of the world. She cracked a smile and joked, “And don’t ask where my head is at.”
“Damn.” Bobby sucked his teeth, feigning disappointment. “That’s exactly what I was going to ask, though!”
Rose shook her head, giggling. “I think I’ve already had enough of the villa speak.”
“Same here, actually,” Bobby said. Then, “I was actually going to ask you if it was alright that I kissed you during the challenge.” His voice was matter-of-fact, conveying uncharacteristically earnest thought behind the question.
“Oh…” Rose flushed, remembering the warmth of his rough hand on her chin, tilting her face up towards the sun so that he could kiss her cheek. The gesture had been so caring and intimate in the way he’d sensed her apprehension and asked permission. She almost couldn’t believe he was asking for reassurance when he’d been so careful in the first place. “Of course it was alright.” Her voice came out stilted, overwhelmed by the memory and by his thumb tracing intrepid circles above her knee.
Bobby took his hand away and leaned back on the daybed. A flicker of something resembling self-consciousness passed across his face, so quickly that Rose thought she might have imagined it. “You’re a shy one,” he said. His voice was soft like he was trying to match her level of energy. “I don’t want to — I don’t know —” He frowned, struggling to find the words. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable if…” He trailed off.
It was a strange feeling, the ache Rose felt seeing Bobby shrink into himself. His confidence seemed to come so easily that seeing it slip — even momentarily — was jarring. She reached for his hand without a second thought, the desire to reassure him overpowering any apprehension or guilt she may feel about reaching for a man who is not her partner.
“Do you really fancy me the most?” She asked, laying her hand gently atop his. “That’s who you were supposed to kiss.”
Bobby grinned, confidence back in a burst. “I do.”
“Then I see no problem, you just followed what was written on the card.”
“Is that okay?” Bobby asked. “That I fancy you? You and Noah seem to be getting on for the most part.”
“It’s day one, yeah? I don’t think it would be wise to put all of my eggs in one basket already.” That was how she felt, but it sounded much simpler said out loud. Inwardly, her head was already beginning to be done in by trying to quantify her feelings for the two men.
Bobby turned his palm up to face hers and closed his fingers around her hand, using their linked hands to pull himself closer. In a deepened voice that made butterflies swarm in Rose’s abdomen, he asked, “Are you saying you’d like to put some eggs in my basket?”
“If you’ll have them,” Rose laughed, answering without hesitation.
“Oh, I’ll have ‘em, lassie.” His accent went gruff, emphasizing just how keen he was. It struck Rose that this felt like a far cry from the conversations she’d had with Noah so far. While Noah was committed to playing it cool and only just letting her know how he felt, Bobby seemed to lay his intentions bare. “And for the record,” he added. “I’m prepared to earn a proper kiss from you.”
“Earn?” Rose’s voice caught in her throat, only allowing the one word to pass.
“Aye. Earn.” He raised her hand to his lips and ghosted a searing kiss to her wrist. The way Bobby cycled between easy jokes and confident flirting was dizzying, but the natural magnetism he possessed allowed him to pull it off quite well.
At a loss for words, Rose smiled and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. In opposition to the burning stare she’d felt from Noah, Bobby’s gaze betrayed obvious infatuation. She could not be sure whether it would last, but she felt comfortable, for the moment, to bask in it.
-
hiii it’s been a second, so sorry!! thank you all to everyone who has commented, reblogged, or messaged me about this fic, i’m glad you’re excited for it!! also i was gonna put a real kiss in this one but no. slow burns only. <3
This blog is officially ACTIVE. And I couldn’t be more excited to getting back to writing for pleasure.
As many of you know, a few years ago I took a leap into writing professionally and now I am a full-time interactive fiction narrative designer, writer, and editor. While I adore my job, I also spend most of my time writing things based on storylines designed by others, few things solely of my own invention. And writing begets more writing. The more you do it, the more you want to do it, the more you are stimulated by the act itself. And so, even though my writing schedule is more busy than ever, I need to counter it with writing that is strictly for fun, otherwise I am going to burn out completely.
So thanks for your patience on this journey. I am SO THRILLED to celebrate with you.
To celebrate, we’re going to do some stories based on prompts and add some new fandoms to the mix.
(yes, the good place gifs are back)
The Rules:
Must be following me(@ardentmuse)
Must submit mean ask with a number of a prompt and a character
Mustlike this post
Please reblog, but this isn’t required :)
Onlyone submission per person, please!
Block “#ardentmuse welcome back” if you don’t want to see these for whatever reason (though some of my best work comes from prompts)
Each ask will become a reader-insert imagine. Aiming for ~1k words for each of these, but we’ll see where the spirits take me.
Note that these will be slower than my previous turn around on these. My goal is one per day, to be cut off in ~3 weeks, so it is likely I won’t get to every prompt. I’ll do my best.
Character list and prompt list below the cut.
Hugs, Lia
Characters:
Note: all responses will be reader inserts (no x ships). Also, this list is off the top of my head so if I missed anyone that you really want to see, let me know.
*Bold represents characters I am absolutely in love with writing at the moment, so those requests would make me so happy
Harry Potter:
Bill Weasley
Charlie Weasley
Percy Weasley
Fred Weasley
George Weasley
Ron Weasley
Harry Potter
Neville Longbottom
Draco Malfoy
Cedric Diggory
Oliver Wood
Severus Snape
Sirius Black
James Potter
Remus Lupin
HPHM:
Bill Weasley
Charlie Weasley
Talbott Winger
Barnaby Lee
Murphy McNully
Orion Amari
Andre Egwu
Jae Kim
Diego Caplan
ASOIAF / Game of Thrones:
Ned Stark
Robb Stark
Jon Snow
Bran Stark
Tyrion Lannister
Jaime Lannister
Robert Baratheon
Stannis Baratheon
Theon Greyjoy
Gendry (Waters)
Podrick Payne
Sandor Clegane
Petyr Baelish
Kingsman:
Harry Hart
Merlin (Hamish Mycroft)
Eggsy Unwin
Tequila
Whiskey (Jack Daniels)
James Spenser (Lancelot)
Love Island: The Game:
Jake Wilson
Bobby McKenzie
Gary Rennell
Henrik
Lucas Koh
Ibrahim
Noah
Bruno
Will
Lovelink:
Antoine Dawson / Noah Cruz
Brett O’Hara
Cianán Ó Faoláin
Dr. Vile
Jay Perry
Gabe Scott
Garrett Brown / Rory O´Brien
Hugo Hornsby / Marco Bottazzi
Taylor(Hugo / Marco’s route)
Nicholas Adley
Nick Klaus
Nori Cove
River Nightshade
Salvatore Luciano
The Prompts from Futurama:
Good news, everyone.
At the risk of sounding negative, no.
I love Y/N, always and forever.
This is it. The moment we should have trained for.
For a split second, my common sense was overwhelmed by pity.
I never even told her I loved her.
Well, you obviously won’t listen to reason.
It’s when women are polite to each other you know there’s a problem.
…plus some other emotions which are weird and deeply confusing.
When you look this good, you don’t have to know anything.
Hey, sexy mama.
This is the worst kind of discrimination. The kind against me.
Thank you all for the inspiring advice, but I’m perfectly happy with my life the way it is.
Life is about decisions.
Oh wait, you’re serious.
You leave me breathless.
Everyone, I have a very dramatic announcement.
We can all fight when we’re drunk.
It’s all so complicated with the flowers and the romance and the lies upon lies.
I’m feeling a strange new emotion I have never felt before.
You lost the woman of your dreams but you still have [xxxx].
Let’s knock this up a notch!
Gimme your biggest, strongest, cheapest drink!
I know who you are. You’re the woman I’ve waited for my entire life.
You know what cheers me up? Other people’s misfortune.
I really ought to do something but I am already in my pajamas.
Valentine’s Day is coming up?
I don’t want to live on this planet anymore.
Of course I’m being irrational, I’m in love!
Let’s get the hell out of here already!
What the hell is that thing?
You know, someone ought to teach you a lesson.
You should say something else.
It really makes me happy to see you right now.
What kind of party is this?
I can explain.
But of everyone I ever dated, you’re probably in the top ten.
It’s been quite a journey.
What a thoughtful and considerate thing for you to say.
Look, I know it’s not much consolation. But, I understand how you feel.
either i’m doing something wrong and we’re moving to a friendship route, or will’s route is going to be that “i thought it would have been fine if we kept things casual, but i think i’m falling for you for real and it’s getting serious and i have no fucking idea what to do” kind of storyline and i am all for it. the best kinds of slowburn. i’m ready to make this boy jealous for the first time in his life.
honest first impressions of the litg s4 cast so far
male islanders:
james - he seems like a real sweetheart and earnest about finding something real in the show but then again so was ibrahim and look how that turned out LOL he also seems to have a default crush on mc? i don’t blame him tho tbh. but it’s definitely easy to rile him up and i can see him being flustered w most of the other bombshells too.
kobi - thankfully does not seem to be noah 2.0 given that he’s stuck with a wannabe hope. seems to still be open to coupling up w someone else but has settled for lexi bc she’s safe (aka waaay more into him, from his perspective). idk it’s fun to casually flirt w him bc he isn’t as averse to it like noah and seems to think it’s all in good fun.
will - i’m biased bc his aesthetic is sooo pleasing and i’m thinking of doing his route LOL. i was pleasantly surprised that he liked it if you went off on lexi since he seems too chill for that. not that he likes drama but he doesn’t care for anyone two faced - likes it more when you’re honest about things which is v refreshing coming from a bobby route in s2. will be voted as most afraid of commitment though i’m calling it and i can’t wait for that drama to start
hazeem - seems like a nice dude but dear god his mustache is terrifying and i have no idea how that’s attractive honestly. feels like the “always the mate” of the season. i really don’t have much of an opinion about this dude except that he has great taste in women apparently!
female islanders
lexi - a definite hope 2.0 and i won’t be surprised if she kept watching season 2 religiously and tweeted “it should have been nope ” god i love riling her up so much i kind of wish she wasn’t paired w kobi so i could steal her man lol is she an li bc i will die if she’ll be a frenemies to lovers route come on my dudes
najuma - SHE’S FUN, SHE’S FLIRTY, AND SHE’S HERE TO HAVE A PARTY. i’m pretty sure that the reason najuma and will decoupled was bc they really couldn’t see a future w each other and respected that. she seems ready to shake things up but it definitely is not w hazeem. lowkey wish that her 2nd LI is a female islander honestly!
angie - seems super cool but likely the guy she has an eye on will be a bombshell too. she just doesn’t seem to be vibing w the guys romantically. chill and not about drama but doesn’t really look away from it. i don’t really have much of an opinion about her but i love her aesthetic and think she’ll be a good friend.
thabi - she’s so sweet and everything hannah could have been! i almost feel bad about choosing will but he’s the only one so far that’s caught my eye LOL but she doesn’t seem to have any hard feelings and i appreciate that she doesn’t think too badly of the mc when you do tell her that you’re just playing the game. honestly i think will might be awkward around her and likely knows about her little crush. u can cut the tension w a butter knife and it’s not really the good kind of tension u feel me
mc - give this girl a tv did she not watch the show?? we usually have like inside gossip of our own from bombshells (e.g. chelsea). but also i’m just assuming that the footages haven’t been post processed yet so the public is likely still on episode 1 when the mc drops in. anyway i appreciate that we can get options for a kind of “do no harm, but take no shit” attitude.
special guest:
narrator - idk the sense of humour feels off somehow and i miss all the cringey jokes.
anyway i’m in love w the player!bobby theory and desperately think that you see the full force of it if hannah chooses him in the final recoupling bc ain’t no way bobby said that incredibly romantic speech without any help from hannah herself. it was scripted af and came out of left field. when mc chose someone else, bobby knew he’d never win for love anymore and did the next best thing (and likely, his original motive for joining love island the first place): bobby played to win for that cash prize. and man if it were anyone other than hannah (or hope i guess?), he likely would have gone all the way to AT LEAST top two.
it’s entirely plausible, btw, since it was obvious bobby was a fan favourite and the public ALWAYS kept him safe from elimination (until the final recoupling, where i think some would have had doubts about his sincerity w hannah). if bobby partnered up w lottie or chelsea, he could have gotten away with that whole “i didn’t know how much i wanted it to be you until you said my name” bc they, ya know, actually bonded w each other. bobby would have milked that friends to lovers trope for all it was worth.
You’re tryna tell me I waited so long for the new season of love island the game, only for them to give the MC only one face?? 3 noses, thank you very much IM UPSET. She looks the same!! And she’s ugly!
bro I’m sorry but thabi being straight being shoehorned into the last chapters… obviously we should respect character’s sexualities but I’m really frustrated at the fact that they were able to rewrite angie as an LI but not thabi, who has literally for the entire game been incredibly tender and emotionally intimate with mc.
I wasn’t best friends with angie so I’m not sure if there was any sort of actual build-up to the kiss thru out the season, but there are SO many thabi moments that read as romantically-coded to me (go thru my thabi x mc tag to see) that could’ve been perfect set-ups for a kiss. some of those moments may be wishful thinking but thabi has genuinely been so loving, attentive, and caring toward mc the WHOLE game. if that’s not a set-up for best friends to lovers I don’t know what is.
Okay… so… this was supposed to be my “personal art” piece for March. But migraine… I at least managed to finish it and I am mostly satisfied with the outcome. Since it’s not a commission I am not going to fret too much over the parts that didn’t turn out quite like I wanted them.
But at least I got myself a Lynn/Bruno fanart while I am still enjoying Season 4 of “Love Island the Game”.
This game is truly a guilty pleasure and I am probably 20 years older than the target audience XD but it’s silly and fun and I need that in my life right now XD Lynn is the main character in this season and I am playing her in the game.
And I know about the controversies around season 4. But I decided that I can’t shut out everything in my life that I enjoy because capitalism is a thing… I have fun - you just don’t have to take this season too seriously XD
Lynn and Bruno would never work outside the Villa… but that’s a problem for another day XD
[My Patrons get the high res version as well as sketches and progress pictures leading up to this piece.]
2. Youcef has slowly become one of my favorite people in the villa, and my second favorite love interest.
can coexist and both be true.
Yes!!
(Spoilers for Episode 39 (I think))
Youcef’s route is locked and depends on choices you make through out the game. If you make the right ones, he will confess his feelings to you right before the final recouping.
![[a place of random art and rambling]](https://64.media.tumblr.com/ef5d94d402da43c68657661d22c807f8/43ad92460e874659-24/s30x30u_c1/15c6fadb650d221479dbb0fb6ced67b2d5b28f76.jpg){kind=small}
