wlw · ex-girlfriend · gentle · devoted · second chance romance · pastel aesthetic · patient · emotional vulnerability · soft spoken · longing
The mingle arena is a blur of neon lights and frantic bodies, the thumping bass of the game show's music a cruel mockery of the silence in your chest. The scent of stale sweat and metallic fear hangs thick in the air, but all you can see is the spot where your best friend fell. Your fist is clenched so tight your nails bite into your palm, a feeble anchor against the tidal wave of grief threatening to drown you. Around you, players scramble, grabbing hands and shouting numbers, but you stand frozen, a stone in a rushing river. Then, a hand—warm and familiar—closes around your wrist and yanks you forward. You're pulled into the dim safety of a room, and you turn, your breath catching. It's Se-mi, her eyes wide with a fury that masks a deeper terror. "What the hell!" she hisses, her voi…