real life;
"you won't believe who just texted me."
"who?"
"kit."
"no way. why?"
from: kit connor
>hey
>how are you doing?
>heard you've got a relationship
>congrats
to: kit connor
>thanks
>i guess
"honestly, it's not cool of him to text you now," conan said, raising his eyebrow.
"yea, like he sees your happy, and then he's all over you again," gracie chimed in, rolling her eyes.
louise sighed, sinking back into her chair.
"i don't know what he wants. maybe he's just trying to be friendly, but it feels so...disingenuous."
"you don't owe him anything," conan said firmly. "he had his chance, and he blew it. don't let him mess with your head now."
"agreed," gracie added. "you've got a good thing going with alex. don't let him ruin that."
louise nodded.
she looked at her phone, debating whether to respond or just ignore the message. she slipped her phone back into her pocket deciding to leave it with that. for now.
they continued their night, laughter and conversation flowing freely as they enjoyed the city lights and each other's company.
when she sank into her bed at night, louise's thoughts kept drifting back to kit. she had been deeply in love with him, and seeing his name on her phone had stirred up emotions she thought she had buried, moved past them. she wondered if she had truly moved on or if there was still a part of her that held onto those feelings.
the next morning, louise woke up to a series of notifications on her phone. kit had replied, but she also had several messages from alex, who wanted to check in.
from: kit conner
>just wanted to say hi
and see how you're doing.
>maybe we could catch up sometime?
louise wasn't sure where this road would lead her.
later that afternoon, louise met up with conan and gracie at a cozy café. the place was bustling with activity, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee mingling with the sound of quiet conversations and clinking dishes.
"hey guys," louise greeted as she slid into the booth.
"hey!" conan said, waving enthusiastically.
"did you fall back?" gracie asked, her brow raised.
"i..." louise began to say but didn't finish. how was she supposed to answer when she wasn't even sure herself?
"you don't need that kind of distraction," gracie said firmly.
"gracie..." she didn't know why she began this sentence, she didn't have a point, anything to say for her defense.
though as they chatted, their conversation shifted to lighter subjects.
that weekend, louise met alex for another dinner. in the three months they've been dating now it became an occasional meeting for them.
"i'm really glad to have you in my life," he said, his eyes sincere. "i feel like we have something special here."
"mhm, i feel the same way," louise replied, her heart swelling with warmth but also it became tighter. at the same time a gaze of sadness lingered between her guts, she didn't know what source it was.
as they enjoyed their meal, louise felt a sense of peace and happiness that had eluded her for a long time. but in the back of her mind, kit lingered, casting a shadow over her thoughts.
the months that followed were a whirlwind of activity. louise's time was spend mostly in the studio, gracie's album release was a massive success, and conan's opening night at greek was closer than ever.
eventually alex's birthday came up, which louise only remembered when conan told her and she felt terrible. she found herself thinking about kit more than ever and felt extremely guilty about it.
"hey birthday boy," louise smiled when alex opened his door.
"hey," he embraced her with a peck on the lips before shutting the door behind her.
louise was no stranger to his apartment as she spended many nights there before.
they celebrated the night together, feeling a sense of happiness and contentment. as louise layed in alex's arms, she tried to focus on the present, but thoughts of kit crept in. she couldn't deny the unresolved feelings and the what-ifs that haunted her.
she knew that it wasn't fair to alex. laying in his arms as his girlfriend thinking about someone else.
alex wasn't a rebound.
he wasn't.
he was the love of her life.
maybe he wasn't.
but did it matter?
as if anyone finds the love of their lifes.
as the weeks turned into months again, louise's internal struggle only grew more pronounced. she genuinely cared for alex, but every time kit's name came up in conversation or she saw his face in the media, her heart wavered. the unresolved past loomed large, and she wondered if she could ever truly move on without confronting those lingering emotions.
"okay, this one is called 'love is embarrassing' or something like that."
louise played the chord progression before joining in the verses she wrote in her living room the other night.
the other night when she was on and about to grab her keys and drive over to kit's, to confess her feelings.
she decided to get drunk instead.
"gosh lou, it's amazing," dan statet when louise looked at him for feedback.
"i thought maybe like drums in the beginning, very vintage coded you know."
"love it."
"and i-"
she looked at her phone, kit's name lighting up.
"i'll be back in a second."
dan nodded before turning back to his computer.
"hey," kit's familiar voice came through the line.
"i know this is out of the blue, but i'd really like to talk. can we meet up?"
louise's heart raced.
"kit, i...i'm not sure if that's a good idea."
"please," the boy pleaded. "just one coffee. for old times' sake. there's so much i need to say."
after a moment of silence, louise took a deep breath.
"okay. one coffee."
