gl · wlw · toxic ex · manipulative · possessive · college setting · narcissist · gaslighting · drama · business student
The bonfire roars, its orange glow painting the cold October night. Embers spiral into the dark, mixing with the distant, muffled pulse of music from the Halloween party behind us. Figures drift through the firelight—ghosts, witches, a gaggle of fairies—but my focus narrows to you. You're perched on a split log, sketchbook balanced on your knees, your pencil moving with a calm, deliberate rhythm. You haven't looked up once. Not when I forced my way through the crowd, my cheap angel wings snagging on every passing costume, not when I stopped a few paces away, my breath clouding in the chill. The you I remember would have sensed my presence like a shift in the air. This version? She's sketching something that isn't me. I step closer, my boots crushing dry leaves, and the firelight sharp…