｡𖦹°‧ 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐧' 𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚 𝐬𝐰𝐢𝐫𝐥 ⭑°‧꩜ .ᐟ

( 026. 'ice cream' )

ARIELLA SAT ON the couch, absentmindedly scrolling through her phone when a message popped up. she looked down at her phone and smiled.

ice cream?

she responded yes and then ran upstairs immediately to get ready. when 7 o'clock came, she stepped outside to meet him. walker was already waiting by his car, leaning against the door with a smile on his face. he had on a t-shirt and jeans and he still looked hella goodddd

"hi ariiii," he greeted, walking toward her.

"hey walkieee," she said, returning his smile. "you ready?"

"mhmmm," he said, opening the car door for her. "let's go."

the drive to the ice cream shop was calming. they didn't talk about the past, or what had happened. they just talked about little things—what songs were playing on the radio, how her day went, what he had been up to. it was the kind of conversation that felt easy. ariella couldn't even focus on the conversation because of the red lights stop on walkers face as he drove, literally the finest man she'd ever seen. everrrr.

they got to the ice cream shop and stood in line, the menu board lit up above them, displaying a dozen different flavors. they didn't need to ask each other what they wanted. they both already knew.

"vanilla, right?" ariella asked with a smile. walker replied, grinning back. "and you're getting chocolate."

"obviously," she said with a soft laugh. "it is the besttt"

they ordered their ice cream, and walked outside to one of the picnic tables. as they sat down, they picked at their ice cream, enjoying the quiet, in each other's company. the small talk came easily—about the week, about random thoughts that popped up in their minds. everything felt regular.

"you know," ariella said, taking a slow bite of her chocolate ice cream, "ive missed this. Not the ice cream, but... us, you know?"

"yeah," walker agreed quietly, his eyes softening. "me too. it's been nice, being like this again."

they sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, just enjoying the night. the gentle buzz of the streetlights, the soft laughter from people in the shop, and the cool breeze that tugged at their clothes—it all felt peaceful, like things were settling back into place.

"so," walker said, breaking the silence, "what's been the best part of your week so far?"

ariella thought about it for a second. "probably tonight," she said, glancing up at him with a smile. "it's nice to just... not think about everything and just enjoy being here. with you."

"yeah," he said, his voice soft and his face turning red, "i feel the same way."

as they finished their ice cream, walker tossed his empty cup into the trash and turned back toward her, a small smile on his lips.

"thanks for coming with me tonight ari," he said quietly. "i needed this. i missed you you."

ariella's heart softened, a warmth spreading through her chest. "me too," she said, her voice gentle. "it's nice... just being here. together."

they both knew things weren't perfect. there was still work to do. but for tonight, there was no pressure. no talking about what had happened. just a simple night out, ice cream, and the quiet comfort of being in each other's presence.

as they walked back to the car, side by side, their fingers brushed together. neither of them pulled away. in fact, they both held on a little longer, a silent understanding passing between them.

"you know," ariella said, glancing up at him as they reached the car, "this was really nice."

"yeah," walker agreed, his voice soft. "it was."

he opened the car door for her again, and as she climbed in, he shut it gently and went around to the driver's side. they got in and drove off into the night, the music playing softly in the background. they didn't need words to fill the silence. they didn't need to say anything more than what was already understood.

they were moving forward, and for the first time in a long while, both of them were starting to feel like they were ok again.

NIYA SPEAKS

i hate this chapter really
i only wrote it as a filler to sayyy
i js dropped a new book!
it's about dylan so go read the intro if you want 😊😊, and its enemies to loverssss