𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐲𝐧'𝐬 𝐏𝐎𝐕

The dinner table had the same warmth I had grown up with—the soft glow of the lights, the faint scent of my mom's cooking still lingering in the air, and the easy rhythm of conversation. But tonight, it felt heavier.

Not in a bad way, but different. Like everyone was trying to get a read on each other without making it obvious.

Y/n, to her credit, was holding her own. She was polite but not overly formal, engaging without oversharing, answering my parents' questions with the kind of ease that made it seem like she'd done this a hundred times before.

"So, Y/n," my dad started, setting down his fork, "Madelyn tells us you're a firefighter. That's a tough job."

Y/n nodded, swallowing her bite before responding. "It has its challenges, but I love it. It's rewarding."

My mom tilted her head, curiosity flickering in her eyes. "What made you want to go into that field?"

For a second, something flashed across Y/n's face—just a flicker of hesitation, like she was calculating how much to say. But then she gave a small smile, her fingers brushing the condensation on her glass. "I've always wanted to help people. It felt like the right way to do that."

I knew there was more to it than that. There was always more. But she kept it simple, and I could tell my parents respected that. "Have you lived in Charleston your whole life?" my dad asked, reaching for his wine glass.

Y/n shook her head. "Uh yeah, born and raised, don't really envision myself anywhere else to be honest."

My mom smiled warmly. "Well, your parents must be so proud."

And just like that, I felt the shift. It was subtle. A slight tension in Y/n's shoulders, the way she suddenly focused on her plate a little too intently. My stomach twisted.

My dad, oblivious, kept going. "Madelyn, have you met Y/n's parents yet?"

Silence. Y/n didn't move. She didn't have to. I already knew I had to say something. How was I such an idiot? I forgot to tell them before dinner about her parents, I didn't want them to bring them up.

Clearing my throat, I forced my voice to stay even. "Um... her parents passed away seven years ago."

My mom gasped, immediately reaching for Y/n's hand. "Oh, sweetheart, I'm so sorry."

My dad exhaled, setting his glass down, his face instantly softening. Y/n, ever composed, offered them a small nod. "It's okay. Thank you, though."

I reached under the table, letting my fingers brush her knee. She exhaled, just barely, her body relaxing a fraction. "Well," my mom said, her voice gentle, "we'd love to meet your sister sometime. If she's anything like you, she must be amazing."

A small, genuine smile broke through Y/n's guarded expression. "She is."

The weight in the room shifted slightly, not gone but softened. "So," my dad said, clearing his throat. "How did you two meet?"

Y/n and I exchanged a glance before I smiled. "The Poguelandia Festival," she answered.

My mom raised a brow. "The Outer Banks event?"

"Yeah," Y/n chuckled. "Storm begged me to take her. We met at the meet-and-greet."

My mom smirked. "Wait, so you were a fan first?"

Y/n laughed playfully. "No, not at all."

I laughed. "Yeah, unfortunately, she barely knew who I was before that day other than the stuff Storm told her about me."

"That's true," Y/n admitted. "I didn't know much about the show. But then—" she glanced at me, amusement flickering in her eyes, "someone got all flustered and smitten."

I rolled my eyes. "I was not flustered."

"You literally tracked me down after I dropped my wallet."

My mom gasped, clasping her hands together. "That's adorable."

My dad chuckled. "She had you starstruck, huh?"

I scoffed. "I was not starstruck."

Y/n smirked as she smoothed her thumb over my hand under the table. "Sure."

The conversation was easy, the kind of playful banter I wanted the whole night to be. But then—

"So," my dad said, shifting slightly, "was it instant? Or did it take some time?"

I started to answer, but—"It took some time," Y/n admitted. I saw the change in my parents' expressions instantly. My mom tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

I hesitated, trying to downplay it. "It wasn't like instant or anything, we just needed some time—"

"What do you mean?" my dad cut in. I forced a laugh. "It's nothing, really. It just, Y/n didn't immediately take to the idea of dating me— she just didn't—she wasn't ready," I rambled on a little too long.

"You made her wait?" my mom asked Y/n, her brows furrowing.

Y/n sat up slightly. "It wasn't like that."

My dad scoffed. "Seems like it was."

I tensed. "Dad—"

"Well," he continued, crossing his arms, "it sounds like you were chasing her. So Y/n, if you clearly didn't want to be with her all that time ago, what makes it so different now?"

Y/n's jaw clenched. "That's not—"

"How can I even trust that you're committed now?" he pressed and at this point, I couldn't tell if they were just trying to test her and get a reaction out of her or if they were being serious. I know how my parents get with people I'm dating, hence why I take a while to bring them home if I ever make it that far.

"You suddenly change your tune and think she's good enough for you after stringing her along or something?"

My stomach twisted. "Dad, stop." He was serious. I'm his little girl so, he gets very protective to say the least and he can come across as too much, especially after everything with Chase and Jackson.

Y/n inhaled slowly. "I didn't string her along. I had things going on and I wasn't in a place to give her what she wanted or deserved, that's all there is to it."

"There's always things going on," my mom cut in. "that's relationships in general. When things get rough, are you going to turn on her then too?"

"Guys, stop," I blurted, my chest tightening. "That's not fair."

"What isn't fair," my dad said, his voice firm, "is Y/n thinking she can tell you she wants you when she wants you and then when she doesn't want you—"

Y/n's expression changed in an instant. She sat up straighter, her voice calm but sharp. "Respectfully, sir, you weren't there through it all. And clearly, there was a reason Madelyn didn't tell you anything to begin with."

Silence.

Y/n leaned forward slightly, her tone steady. "What happened between us is our business. I wouldn't be here if I wasn't 100% in this with her. I don't date just to date—I date with intention. I knew what I wanted from the beginning. I knew it was Madelyn. But I had my own things to deal with, and that doesn't mean I loved her any less. So respectfully, please don't speak on our relationship when you have no clue what was actually going on."

I swore I saw something flicker across my dad's face—something that almost looked like grudging respect. And horrible timing but, her standing up to my dad in the way she just did, it made her 100 times hotter, no one's ever truly done that. When he and my mom get an idea going in their head, especially when it comes to me, they don't back down.

Before anything else could be said, Y/n's phone rang. She glanced at the screen before pushing her chair back. "Excuse me, I need to take this."

The second she was out of the room, I turned to my parents, my pulse still racing.

"That was uncalled for," I muttered. My mom sighed. "Madelyn, we just—"

"No," I cut in, my voice sharper than I intended. "You were rude. You had no right."

My dad frowned. "We're just trying to understand."

"By accusing her of not being committed to me?" I scoffed. "That's not how you get to know someone."

My mom hesitated. "We're just... concerned. We don't want you to get hurt. Plus, this is new for us, Madelyn you've never brought home a—."

I paused, looking at my mom waiting for her to finish what she was going to say. I know, it's never been a conversation and most people never thought they'd see me with a woman so, I knew that was what was on their minds.

I exhaled, rubbing my temples. "She loves me. I love her. That should be enough."

My dad studied me for a long moment. "Do you see yourself marrying her?"

The question caught me off guard. But the answer was immediate.

"Yes.". My mom's face softened. My dad let out a slow breath.

Another beat of silence.

𝐘/𝐍'𝐬 𝐏𝐎𝐕

The second I stepped outside, the cold night air hit me, but it didn't do much to cool the frustration simmering in my chest. My fingers gripped my phone tighter as I pressed it to my ear, my heart pounding at the sound of Storm's shaky breaths on the other end.

"Storm, take a deep breath for me, okay?" I said, my voice softer now, my frustration with the dinner completely pushed aside.

"I—I can't, Y/n/n," she stammered, sniffling. "They're all talking about it. People in my class, my friends—they keep asking me questions, sending me links. It's everywhere."

I swallowed hard. I already knew what she was talking about, but hearing the panic in her voice made it worse.

"What exactly are they saying?"

Storm let out a shaky breath. "It's all over Twitter, all over Instagram. They found out about Mom and Dad, Y/n. They know about the fire."

My grip on my phone tightened. Storm and I made it a point to never really bring up the fire, it was something between us, we didn't want to be the town sob story or anything.

As we'd both gotten older, it became more of a thing where we just kept for us, we didn't talk about it unless it was just the two of us or Caleb and Lili but even that was rare. So now, for it to be everywhere, it broke my heart.

I squeezed my eyes shut, pressing my fingers to the bridge of my nose.

I hadn't even looked at my phone long enough to see what was out there. I knew the media had started digging, but I hadn't thought they'd go that far—hadn't thought they'd drag my parents' deaths into this, like it was some dramatic backstory for the world to dissect.

And now, Storm was caught in the middle of it.

"I don't know what to do," she whispered. "People are being weird about it. Some of them are acting like it's this... this tragic movie or something. Others are asking me for details like it's their business. And some people are just straight-up making fun of it—saying stuff like, 'No wonder she's dating Madelyn, she's got main character trauma.'"

My jaw clenched so hard it hurt.

"Are you still with Lili?" I asked, keeping my voice as steady as I could.

"Yeah," she said, her voice small. "I didn't want to go home. I felt sick."

I exhaled through my nose, nodding to myself even though she couldn't see me. "I'm coming to get you."

"Y/n, you don't have to— you're with Madelyn"

"Storm, I'm coming," I said firmly. "Just sit tight, okay?"

She didn't argue. I ended the call, taking a deep breath to calm myself before turning back toward the house.

Madelyn was already standing in the doorway, watching me with concern. "Is everything okay?"

I ran a hand through my hair, sighing. "Storm's freaking out. She's at Caleb and Lili's, and I need to go get her."

Madelyn's brows pulled together in worry. "Why? What happened?"

I hesitated for half a second before shaking my head. "The media dug up stuff about my parents. It's all over the internet. Her classmates are sending her shit, and she doesn't know how to handle it."

Madelyn's face fell instantly. "Oh my God," she breathed. "Y/n, I—"

I shook my head, already stepping away. "I just need to go to her."

Madelyn didn't hesitate. "I'm coming with you." I glanced back at her. "You don't have to—"

She gave me a look. "Don't even try. Let's go."

I didn't argue. She quickly said goodbye to her parents—ignoring their comments about how she didn't have to leave just because I was—and then we were out the door, heading to the car.

The drive was mostly quiet. Madelyn reached for my hand somewhere along the way, lacing our fingers together, offering silent support. I squeezed back, my mind already racing through a dozen ways I could fix this.

By the time we pulled up to Caleb and Lili's place, my heart was still pounding. The second I stepped inside, I saw Storm sitting on the couch, knees pulled to her chest, Caleb and Lili sitting on either side of her.

She looked up, her eyes red, and the moment she saw me, she practically launched herself off the couch and into my arms. I caught her, picking her up and holding her tightly. "I got you," I murmured. "I'm here."

She sniffled against my shoulder. "I hate this."

I clenched my jaw, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "I know, I know."

Madelyn lingered a few steps away, watching carefully. I saw her swallow hard, like she wanted to say something but was waiting for the right moment. Her arms wrapped around herself.

Caleb ran a hand over his face. "Dude, it's bad. They're not just talking about the fire—they're pulling up news reports, old articles. They're making assumptions, saying you must have been some hero kid who pulled Storm out."

Lili frowned. "Some people are romanticizing it, others are making disgusting jokes. It's all over social media."

I let out a slow breath, nodding. "Yeah. I figured."

Storm pulled back slightly, her eyes glassy. "What do we do?"

I hesitated. "For now? We ignore it."

Storm frowned. "Ignore it?"

I brushed a curl behind her ear. "Yeah. This kind of thing dies down faster if you don't engage. People will move on to the next thing." I said, looking over at Madelyn who gave a slight nod.

Storm chewed her bottom lip, looking unsure. "But what if they don't?"

I hesitated. "Then we'll deal with it together."

Storm exhaled shakily, nodding. Madelyn finally stepped forward, her voice soft. "Storm, I'm so sorry."

Storm looked up at her, her expression wavering. Then, to my surprise, she walked over and wrapped her arms around Madelyn. Madelyn's eyes widened, but she immediately hugged her back, her hand smoothing over Storm's hair. "I'm so sorry this is happening."

Storm just nodded against her shoulder. I knew Madelyn was putting the weight of this on her shoulders.

I watched them, my chest tightening in ways I couldn't explain. I had spent so much time keeping people at arm's length, afraid to let anyone get too close. But now?

Now I had someone who was willing to hold my sister when she needed it. And that meant everything. After a few more minutes, Storm finally pulled away, letting out a deep breath. "Can we go home now?"

I nodded. "Yeah, let's go."

Caleb clapped a hand on my shoulder. "Text me if you need anything, alright?"

I nodded, exchanging a silent look of gratitude with both him and Lili before leading Storm and Madelyn out. As we drove home, Storm fell asleep in the backseat, exhaustion finally catching up to her.

Madelyn reached over, resting a hand on my thigh, her touch grounding me. "Are you okay?" she murmured.

I exhaled. "I don't know."

She squeezed lightly. "We'll figure it out. Together."

I turned my head, glancing at her.

And despite everything—despite the headlines, the dinner disaster, the internet chaos—somehow, that was enough.