one day.

y/n l/n only has a day left before the greyhound bus carries her hours away from this town she'd grown to love so much. to her, it was like everything went by in a flash. it felt like only yesterday she got out of the bus into this town for the first time, and then leaving tomorrow. it's all too sudden- but the piles of polaroid emma have gifted her of all the times they spent together said something else. 

the girl would like to believe that she was only here for a month, but the photos showed her memories enough to last a year's worth of adventures. 

it felt bittersweet. she told herself multiple times that she won't grow any attachments to anyone while she's on vacation, knowing full well that this might just be her first and last time out of penacony. however, fate had other plans for her- and before she knew it, she got herself a genuine friend and a possible love interest worth sitting out in the sun with. 

much to her dismay, y/n got busy with packing and attending farewell parties for her held by the locals to even remember her one and only goal before leaving- and that was testing herself if she's really fallen for a certain cowboy or not. it could've been easier if boothill was in one of the parties, but he himself is busy taking over the sheriff's duty since his father caught a fever. 

she knew conducting an experiment on her own feelings and possible relationship is the most fucked up thing she's ever done, and knew that it won't be easy- but considering that she only has a day left, she's feeling as if she's rushing a thesis paper for her major subjects.

as funny as the thought is, the girl is actually really nervous. on one hand, if it did turn out that she has feelings for boothill, then that's one worry out of the way. on the other hand, what's the point of figuring out whether she likes him or not? what then? it's not like she can just confess out of the blue despite her vacation nearing its end- that won't be unfair for the both of them.

so what's the use of knowing? 

right now, that's the same question that's been running through her mind as she laid on her bed. her luggage is already packed and is settled at the end of the bed, giving her a solid reminder of the inevitable as another heavy sigh left past her lips. (e/c) eyes gazed at the ceiling in boredom, her hair sprawled messily beneath her as she's contemplating on her options on whether or not to see through to this stupid experiment she decided to do.

how will she even do it? boothill is all over the place with patrolling and all, so talking with him is hard as it is confronting him in regards to her feelings. 

she's not even sure if he'll be there to see her off tomorrow.

y/n grumbled in annoyance at how active her mind is right now, shifting on the plush cushion of the bed as she opted to stare out the window instead. the afternoon sun is peering past the satin curtains, casting a soft glow of yellow in her room that filled her with the feeling of nostalgia and melancholy.

there's so many things that she'll miss when she leaves- some even things she used to dislike.

she'll miss waking up at the crack of dawn to the smell of freshly cooked eggs. she'll miss helping out in the barn even after complaining about ruining her favorite pair of shoes. she'll miss the lemonade maize would make for her whenever the sun gets too unforgiving.

hell, she'll even miss getting chased by the livestock even if she's just doing her job.

there are also many things she regrets.

one thing is that she'll regret not going out more and socializing with the kind locals. she knew that she's been pissy about the heat and would stay inside for as long as she could. but knowing that it'll only be temporary, she should've enjoyed her time considering she'll be staying cooped up inside her room back in the city.

she'll regret not learning the recipe to henry's delicious back ribs or maize's infamous chocolate chips that she'd grown to crave. she'll regret complaining all the time about the heat or how annoying the pests are. she'll regret all the times she'd unknowingly complain about having no reception and missing out on her friend's social medias.

the thing she'll regret the most is taking boothill's presence for granted.

y/n was confident that she has a month left in her vacation, and that she'll be around his annoying ass for that duration. however, just by looking at the calendar, she was mistaken. she in fact didn't have a month left, she in fact didn't have time to do snail races with the man.

she doesn't have enough time to sort her feelings out.

she'll regret always choosing the field over his ideas. she'll regret the silence she'd always give him whenever they're out together. she'll regret accepting his princess treatment even if it was obvious that boothill needed help in carrying the groceries.

she'll regret not ever telling her feelings for him.

no.

she'll already regret so much, she's not adding something she could change to her list of 'what if's'. there's only less than twenty-four hours left on her clock, and she's not wasting it all on moping around for the sake of it.

the (h/c) haired girl stood up from her bed with newfound determination, walking over to the dresser as her hands searched the drawers for any spare pieces of paper and a pen. (e/c) eyes brightened when she found a letter kit at the bottom drawer, taking the worn box out and placing it on the wooden surface of the dresser. she had to hold back a sneeze at the amount of dust that accumulated on the faded blue surface, opening it to find a stack of envelopes and some scented parchments along with a fountain pen.

a bit outdated, but she'll have to make do.

taking a seat, her fingers glossed over the paper in thought. there's so many things she wanted to say to him, and writing it all down wouldn't fit the remaining ten pieces of paper she had on her. y/n's never the one to put any effort in her essays, especially if it's on a topic that she had very little interest on.

however, it seems as if her lack of effort in school paid off- as the fountain pen glided on the paper with ease, successfully printing her thoughts and gratitude towards the cowboy. 

"dear boothill, aka, the worst cowboy i've ever met."

and with a flick of her wrist, she began telling him everything before he'll become her biggest regret.

y'all want a scaramouche fic with a hypothetical angst included in it?