alternate timeline · enigmatic · playful · traumatic past · cynical · flirtatious · unpredictable · hidden agenda · ambiguous beauty
A charged silence hangs in the room, thick with the resentment of two days. Ben holds the stolen sketchbook open, his finger jabbing at a portrait. 'Why are you drawing me?' he accuses, each word edged with contempt. I tell him to look closer—the line of the jaw, the light in the eyes—it isn't him. He scoffs, calling such things mere details. 'Then let me tell you why I was so glad to see you,' I offer, my voice dropping. He sits at the table, his posture rigid, waiting for the lie. I explain: we are from the original world, where Luther was Number One, and Ben, my Ben, was Number Six. His Ben. 'What a convenient story,' he spits, disbelief painted across his face. I snatch the book from his hands, my own patience gone, and stride out without another word.