Case Reopened

Yes or No (Yvette)

I'm sorry but this is directly tied to the chapter in Open Case File titled: An Important Dinner. It's the one where Mason meets Yvette's parents. You might need to reread to refresh yourself on it. Or don't, that's up to you. This picks up right where the one ends.

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'Okay if that is really what you want and you're not simply afraid of letting someone get close'. The words echoed in Yvette's head as she watched the elevator doors close on Mason.

Chasing the echo of her own words were the ones he'd said before her: we need to break up.

Mason's kiss and promise to call her the next day told her he'd taken back the breakup.

But the effects on her were still there. Though she knew the ground hadn't been ripped out from her, that it remained solid beneath her feet, aspects of it felt shaky. It felt as if when she took a single step forward, she didn't know if the ground would be there or not.

Yvette remained leaning against her doorframe for support, staring at the metal doors of the elevator. When she felt certain she could detach herself from the doorframe, she pushed herself up. Finding her heart had calmed down and the ground was there, she turned into her apartment.

She closed the door, slipped out of her heels, and curled up on the edge of her couch. She stared out her window at the city of lights with the realization that she needed to address her emotions.

Starting with the beginning, she decided to unpack each emotion tied to Mason and give it a critical examination. They'd been dating for four months, it was the right time to step back and be analytical about it all.

As if she were doing a research paper on a famous structure, Yvette started at the bottom, dealing with the foundation. The foundation was always key to the strength of the structure, no matter how the top looked.

The foundation. If Yvette was being truthful with herself, she'd known Mason before he'd ever known her. A girlhood crush that had spanned years.

Now analyzing it from the view of an adult, she could see how Mason represented what she wished for in her life: respected, beloved by everyone, confident, and poised.

As one of the few Hispanic girls at her private high school, she felt on the outskirts at times, never fully appreciated for her intelligence or respected for simply being herself. She quickly learned how to navigate the world of high school, using her warm personality to win others over. But looking at Mason, she saw someone who didn't even have to try and people accepted him.

But then she'd met him. The illusion that she knew who he was had been destroyed. But in a way that made her see a real person, not a perfectly curated image.

As the First Son, he smiled often, laughed easily, and looked like he was everyone's friend. But as just the person Mason, it took time for his smile to make an appearance, and his laugh, though deep and rich, was rarely heard.

The real person Mason was someone without a shiny veneer, instead, he was rough edges with strands of gold hidden within him.

Her girlhood crush had vanished because she'd seen the reality of Mason and accepted that the image she'd had of him, when younger, had been an illusion.

Though she didn't know why he'd come back to the bar to talk to her, she'd gotten to know who Mason really was.

Or she got to know what he let her know.

As time progressed, she realized he shared himself in increments. And even with that slow of a pace, with each rough edge of him chipped away to reveal something behind, she felt herself giving him increments of her heart.