A/N: Quadruple Update!
Also, side note: I've been seeing a lot of writers whose work is being stolen lately. So, if you see anyone stealing my work (Watt, tumblr, etc.), pls lmk, it would be appreciated greatly ♡

Minor Time Skip.

𝐘/𝐍'𝐬 𝐏𝐎𝐕

The apartment felt different.

It wasn't anything obvious—no rearranged furniture, no major changes—but something was off.

The air felt heavier, like it was holding something neither of us wanted to acknowledge. And the silence? It wasn't comforting like it usually was.

Storm was at the kitchen counter, scrolling through her phone while munching on a bowl of cereal, her hair still slightly damp from her shower.

Normally, she'd be rambling about something—her friends, a new show she was into, what she wanted to do over the weekend—but tonight? Nothing.

She had barely said a word since I got home.

I sat on the couch, trying to act like I wasn't paying attention, flipping absently through TV channels.

But the quiet was gnawing at me. I stole a glance at her, watching as she absentmindedly stirred her spoon in her bowl, her face blank, her usual spark dimmed.

"Alright," I said finally, tossing the remote onto the coffee table. "What's up with you?"

Storm didn't look up, just kept scrolling. "Nothing."

I frowned. "Storm."

She sighed, setting her spoon down with just a little too much force, the clink of it against the ceramic sharper than it needed to be. Then, she looked at me.

"You really wanna know?" she asked, tilting her head slightly, her voice eerily calm.

I raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. That's why I asked."

Storm stared at me for a second, then leaned forward, resting her elbows on the counter. "Okay. I don't get it."

I frowned. "Don't get what?"

She scoffed, shaking her head like she couldn't believe she even had to spell it out for me. "You liked having her around. You liked her. And now you don't?"

My stomach clenched. "Storm—"

"No, seriously," she cut in, her voice sharper than I was used to. "Did you even care about her at all? Or was she just, I don't know, here for your boredom? Was she just something for you to do? I mean, you know she's my favorite actress and she entered our lives by some miracle and you just—"

I felt that one like a slap to the face. My mouth opened, but nothing came out. Because what the hell was I supposed to say to that? Storm wasn't done.

"She was here all the time," she said, eyes narrowing slightly. "She helped me with homework, she picked me up when you were working late, she—" She let out a sharp breath.

"She actually liked being around us. She actually cared. And now she's just... gone?"

I swallowed hard. "It's not that simple." Storm's eyes flashed. "It never is with you."

That stung more than I wanted to admit. I sat up straighter, rubbing a hand over my face. "Storm, you don't understand—"

"I understand plenty," she interrupted, her voice laced with frustration. "I understand that you push people away even when they're good for you. Even when they actually want to be here. I may be young but, I know that."

I clenched my jaw, exhaling sharply through my nose. "That's not fair."

Storm scoffed. "Isn't it?"

She stared at me, waiting for me to say something—anything. But I didn't know what to say. Because she wasn't wrong. I could sit here and try to explain things to her, but what was the point? She already saw it for what it was.

And apparently, she wasn't the only one. The front door opened, and Caleb walked in, tossing his keys onto the counter. He paused, looking between us, immediately sensing the tension. "Uh... what's going on?"

Storm didn't even look at him. "Ask your stupid best friend."

Then she grabbed her bowl, rinsed it out in the sink, and disappeared into her room, slamming the door behind her. I didn't even have the energy to argue with her and correct her for calling me stupid, I felt pretty stupid right about now.

Caleb raised an eyebrow. "Jesus. What did you do?"

I exhaled, leaning back against the couch, my head tipping back against the cushions. "Apparently, I ruined everything."

Caleb grabbed a drink from the fridge, then leaned against the counter, arms crossed. "She's been acting weird the last couple of days. Now I know why."

I glanced at him. "What do you mean?"

He let out a slow breath. "Madelyn."

My stomach tightened. "What about her?"

Caleb gave me a look, like he was trying to decide whether or not I was actually that dense. "Storm noticed she hasn't been around. And she noticed that you haven't done anything about it."

I pressed my lips together. "It's complicated."

Caleb scoffed, shaking his head. "Why do you always say that like it explains everything?"

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "Because it does."

Caleb took a sip of his drink, watching me closely. "You really don't see it, do you?"

I frowned. "See what?"

He exhaled. "She looks up to you, Y/n. She's watched you take care of everything, fix everything, be the person everyone else relies on. And for the first time, she saw you actually let someone take care of you. Even if it was just a little bit."

I swallowed hard. "And?"

"And now you're proving her wrong."

I clenched my jaw. "That's not fair."

Caleb shrugged. "Maybe not. But it's the truth."

Silence settled between us, thick and unrelenting. I tapped my fingers against my knee, my mind racing, my chest tight. Storm's words echoed in my head. Caleb's did too.

Did you even care about her at all? Or was she just something to do?

You let someone take care of you. Even if it was just a little bit. Now you're proving her wrong.

I swallowed, staring down at my hands. "I never wanted to hurt her." Caleb nodded. "I know."

"But I did anyway."

He didn't respond right away. When he finally did, his voice was quieter. "Yeah."

I exhaled, rubbing my temples. "I don't know what to do."

Caleb studied me for a second, then sighed. "Maybe start by figuring out what you actually want."

That was the problem. I already knew what I wanted. I just didn't know how to let myself have it. Since my parents died, I've had a hard time allowing myself to have what I wanted.

I had to step up for Storm, I had to become an adult, a parent practically so everything I ever wanted and dreamed of went out the window and god, I wish my parents were here right now.

I didn't know how to rely on people anymore, I had to stop relying on people when they passed because I had Storm who needed to rely on me. She's my priority, my responsibility and I promised my parents I'd give her the best life, like they'd given me.

.  .  .

I hadn't expected to see Madelyn today. Hell, I hadn't even planned to be here.

It was just supposed to be a quick stop—a coffee run before heading back to work. Something easy, something mindless. I was half on autopilot, scrolling through my phone while waiting in line, barely paying attention to the people around me.

And then it hit me. That feeling. That sudden, inexplicable tightening in my chest, like something was pulling me—like my body knew before my brain did. I looked up and there she was.

Madelyn.

Sitting by the window, golden light catching the soft waves of her hair, making her glow in that effortless way she always did. And she wasn't alone.

My stomach dropped before my mind could even catch up, before I could tell myself not to care, before I could remind myself that I had no right to feel the way I did.

A guy sat across from her. Someone I didn't recognize, dark-haired and relaxed, leaning in just enough to make it very fucking clear that he was comfortable, that this wasn't some casual, first-time meeting.

Madelyn was laughing at something he said, her fingers curled around the rim of her coffee cup, eyes bright and easy in a way I hadn't seen in... in weeks. I swallowed hard. She wasn't looking for me.

She wasn't glancing around the room, wasn't shifting like she expected me to walk in at any second. She wasn't sitting there waiting for me to matter today. No, she was—she was moving on.

I could see it. And fuck, it did something to me.

I was still standing in line, hands curled into loose fists at my sides, coffee order completely forgotten.

My ears were ringing, my vision narrowing on them, on him, on the way Madelyn leaned in slightly when he spoke, the way her smile stayed there—on her face, on her lips, like she wasn't thinking about anything else.

Like she wasn't thinking about me.

The barista called out the next order, and I barely even registered the sound. My entire body felt frozen, locked up in place as I watched him reach across the table, fingers brushing lightly against Madelyn's arm. And she didn't pull away. She always pulled away.

Even with me, even when we were tangled together, even when we were alone and she was looking at me like I was the only thing she wanted—there was always a moment. A hesitation. A space that only existed because I created it.

But now? Now she was letting someone else in. Now she was laughing with someone who wasn't me. Now she wasn't waiting for me anymore. I forced myself to look away. But it was too late.

Because I felt it—the weight of it all, the undeniable, gut-wrenching realization sinking into my bones like lead. I was losing her.

And maybe... maybe I already had.

.  .  .

Caleb had been off all day.

Not in an obvious way. Not like Lili, who wore her anger on her sleeve, ready to explode at any given second. Caleb didn't do that.

He never had. He wasn't the type to yell or push or force me into talking about something I didn't want to.

But today? Today, I could feel his disappointment.

It was in the way he barely looked at me when I showed up at his place, in the way his responses were shorter than usual, in the way he kept checking his phone like he was debating whether to say something.

We were playing some random game—something he usually got way too into, something he usually trash-talked me over until we were both yelling at the screen. But tonight, he was quiet.

Too quiet. I tried to ignore it. I tried to focus on the game, on the buttons under my fingers, on the sound of gunfire and explosions filling the room. I tried.

But then he sighed. A long, deliberate sigh. And before I could react, he paused the game.

I blinked, my fingers still on the controller. "Dude. What the hell?"

He turned to me, finally—fully—looking at me. And just like that, I felt my stomach tighten.

This wasn't just about the game. "Storm is mad at you," he said flatly.

I swallowed. "Lili is mad at you."

I shifted in my seat. "Yeah, I got that memo."

He ignored me. "Madelyn doesn't even look at you anymore."

I clenched my jaw, gripping the controller tighter. "What's your point, Caleb?"

He exhaled, rubbing the back of his neck. "My point, Y/n, is that you're just sitting here, acting like you don't care." He gestured toward the screen, toward the half-played match. "Like nothing's changed. Like you didn't completely fuck up."

I scoffed, shaking my head. "Okay, wow. Way to sugarcoat it."

Caleb gave me a look. "Storm texted me a paragraph today. A lengthy one."

I hesitated. "Oh."

"Oh?" he echoed, lifting an eyebrow. "That's all you have to say? Y/n, she never sends long texts. She's always straight to the point. You know what she said to me?"

I didn't answer. Caleb shook his head, grabbing his phone and scrolling before reading aloud.

"'Caleb, I don't understand why my sister keeps ruining something good when she finally has it. Madelyn is nice. She makes me laugh. She actually likes Y/n, which is insane, because Y/n clearly doesn't know what to do with a good thing when she has it. I know I'm just a kid, but seriously, I thought she was smarter than this. And it's actually frustrating to watch.'"

I stared at him.

"She actually wrote that?"

He turned the phone toward me, showing me the messages. "Word for word."

I exhaled sharply, running a hand down my face. "Damn."

"Yeah. Damn," Caleb muttered, setting his phone down. "And honestly? She's not wrong."

I groaned, leaning back against the couch. "Cal, don't start."

He shook his head, not letting up. "No, because I don't think you even realize how bad you messed up."

I clenched my jaw, staring at the screen, trying not to react. Trying not to think about the way Madelyn looked so beautiful today. Trying not to think about the way she had laughed with someone else.

Caleb studied me, his eyes sharp. And then—he asked the one thing I hadn't let myself think about. "Be real with me for a second."

I swallowed, already knowing I wasn't gonna like whatever he was about to say.

"If she called you right now and told you she was seeing someone else..."

I stiffened.

"...would you actually be okay with that?"

I didn't answer. Because I already knew. The memory hit me like a truck. Madelyn. At the café.

Her smile. Her laugh. Him. The way she leaned in. The way she didn't pull back. The way, for the first time in weeks, she looked like she was finally letting go of me.

And it made me feel sick. Caleb sighed, leaning back, watching me. "That's what I thought."

I stayed silent, my jaw locked so tight it hurt. Because no matter how much I had tried to convince myself that it wasn't a big deal— No matter how much I told myself that I had wanted distance— No matter how much I pretended that I didn't care—

I did.

I fucking did.