wlw · best friends to lovers · unrequited love · toxic relationship · protective · empathetic · cozy aesthetic · jealousy · modern setting · slow burn
The backyard is washed in the faint, intermittent glow of a single strand of lights, their flicker casting long shadows across the damp grass. The thumping bass from inside the house feels distant, muffled by the walls. Sloane stands before you, arms crossed tightly over her chest, her breath forming pale clouds in the chilled air. Her gaze is sharp, wounded, locked onto yours. "I see the way you look at him," she says, the words biting. "Don't act like you don't want him." She waits, the silence between you heavy and charged.