✗ | 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘, larissa weems

𝟎𝟐𝟖

˗ˏˋ༻ʚ♡︎ɞ༺ˎˊ˗
𝐓𝐖𝐘𝐋𝐀'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕

"what's wrong with you?" bianca demanded firmly, her voice a mix of concern and anger. she was clearly upset that i had taken my emotions out on our shared dorm room.

"nothing," i panted heavily, struggling for breath after trashing everything in my path.

sweat glistened on my forehead, causing strands of my loose auburn hair to stick to my skin, making me feel even more disgusting.

"seriously? i taught you how to lie effortlessly, and that's all you could come up with?" bianca's voice was sharp.

looking back, i wished i had never taken that lesson in deceit. maybe if i had been as terrible at lying as i used to be, i wouldn't have been able to lie so easily to larissa.

the adrenaline slowly began to fade away, leaving me feeling drained and weak, like a boneless fish out of water.

my muscles ached, and my shoulders slumped as i sighed heavily, tilting my head back and emitting a faint groaning noise, releasing my pent-up agitation.

"it's nine o'clock right now. we have an hour before miss thornhill goes dorm to dorm for lights out," bianca explained, her eyes scanning the room, realizing the mess needed to be cleaned up quickly.

"go to the bathroom, get a shower, and for the love of god, calm yourself down, please," she demanded, her arm stretching out to point towards the bathroom door.

"i'll tackle the mess," bianca added, and i felt incredibly grateful for her help.

i sighed in relief, wanting to collapse into her arms and hug her, but i hesitated, fearing she might break my neck.

"thank you—" my exhausted voice was cut off by her immediate response, making my lips close in submission.

"yeah, whatever, you're welcome. just go," bianca muttered, waving her hand dismissively as she brushed past me towards the broken glass.

bianca never did like words of affection, or acts of affection for that matter.

-

lying on my back, i stared blankly up at the dark concrete ceiling above me, unable to sleep for obvious reasons.

my mind refused to shut off, consumed by my father's voice, which left no room for argument. he was arriving with my mother in two days, intent on taking me back to greece by force if necessary.

in my mind, i had two options, but only one seemed reasonable. i could comply and leave quietly, avoiding any altercation, which meant returning to the traumatic horrors of Kefalonia.

the thought of going against my parents made vomit rise in my throat. i could fight them and refuse to leave nevermore, my true home, but defying them would result in absolute carnage for everyone i cared about.

i couldn't bear the thought of them hurting bianca, enid, or wednesday—friends i had grown to deeply adore.

strangely, bianca had become my closest friend at the academy, despite our bizarre and somewhat toxic relationship. she always seemed to have my back when it truly mattered.

as i rolled onto my side, a gnawing feeling gripped my stomach as i thought about the heart-wrenching aspect of this situation.

losing larissa forever would break me. i knew, without a doubt, that i would lose the person i had become without her. if i refused to leave nevermore in two days, my parents would not hesitate to hurt anyone in their path.