"Are you asking me to be your girlfriend James Beaufort?" I questioned him, while lying on top of him half naked.
As James Beaufort and Everly Calloway navigate the delicate transition from friendship to romance, they face obstacles that test the st...
"I'm still on that tightrope I'm still trying everything to get you laughing at me I'm still a believer but I don't know why I've never been a natural All I do is try, try, try I'm still on that trapeze I'm still trying everything To keep you looking at me"
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- Everly -
*trigger warning: sensitive topics discussed*
That night, beneath the unyielding rain, everything between James and me shifted irrevocably. I felt myself unraveling, entangled in the storm of my own emotions, a tempest I had vowed would never touch me. Maxton Hall's whispers painted me as broken—the bloodshot eyes, the lost weight, the frantic energy I couldn't seem to escape. Yet, that wasn't the essence of Everly Calloway.
I was a force, a storm in my own right, and I needed to reclaim that power, even if it meant embracing a facade.
The struggle within my mind had worn me thin, and though James worried about my scars, I knew I had to find a way to lock away those delicate feelings. As I lay on his chest that night, I made a solemn vow to myself: I rose to the top of Maxton Hall for a reason. It was time to reclaim my strength and pretend to be the girl I once was—the one who hid behind her responsibilities, using them as a shield for her unhappiness, not acknowledging the fragments that lay broken within.
The next morning, a steely determination anchored me. After my run, I sat down, forcing myself to eat breakfast while scrolling through Instagram as if it were just another day. Normal, be normal. The mantra echoed softly in my mind as James appeared, his surprise evident as he found me at the table, a flicker of disbelief in his eyes. He knew my struggles couldn't be mended with mere words and a kiss, but perhaps we both wished to convince ourselves otherwise.
"Good morning," he murmured, leaning in for a kiss.
"Morning," I replied, a smile playing on my lips. "Excited for the season to kick off tomorrow, Captain?"
"Yes, and at the same time... I just can't be bothered," he confessed, a hint of weariness in his voice. "Cyril and I... with everything that happened this summer, the team will never be the same."
The mention of summer cast a fleeting shadow across his face, a tinge of regret in his eyes. But I was ready to reassure him that it was more than okay—that I was thriving. I resolved to shift the mood, to reveal the change within me. James was breaking for me, even as I worked to piece myself back together. The cracks were there, and it was only a matter of time before the water started to seep through.
