but I'll just let you live-

the carnival

The weekend came faster than expected. It was supposed to be a fun Saturday night—the annual school carnival, complete with rides, games, and all the candy apples Josie loved. For once, Hope had looked forward to the distraction. She had promised herself that tonight would be all about Josie, just the two of them, no drama, no distractions. After the talk they'd had earlier in the week, Hope was determined to prove to Josie that she could be the girlfriend Josie needed. But things had a way of slipping out of her control, and that's exactly what happened when they arrived at the carnival."Come on, I need to beat my record at the ring toss," Josie said, tugging Hope toward the brightly lit booth, her face lit with excitement. For the first time in what felt like ages, Josie's smile seemed carefree, and it warmed Hope to see her like this again. Hope smiled, wrapping an arm around Josie's waist as they approached the booth. "You're on. But don't blame me when I crush you," she teased, her heart feeling lighter.Just as Josie handed over the tickets for the game, a familiar voice interrupted their banter."Hope! Josie!" MG's voice rang out over the noise of the crowd. He jogged up to them, closely followed by Rafael, Jed, and Lizzie, who waved casually from a distance, engrossed in her phone.Hope felt the tension in her body resurface. It wasn't that she didn't want to hang out with the group, but she had really wanted this night to be just about her and Josie.Josie noticed the small crowd forming around them and her smile faltered slightly. "Hey, guys," she greeted them, her voice polite but noticeably less enthusiastic."Isn't this place amazing?" MG asked, bouncing on his feet. "I'm going to win so many prizes tonight, you guys have no idea.""Yeah, but they're all rigged, man," Jed chimed in, shaking his head. "The only game worth playing is the dunk tank. Now, if they had some real stakes, I'd be all in."Rafael shot him a look, raising an eyebrow. "You'd probably break the whole thing, Jed."Hope chuckled, but she could feel Josie growing distant beside her. Josie had never been one to fight for attention in a crowd. She liked quiet moments, intimate ones where she didn't have to compete with everyone else. And right now, it was clear that Josie was slipping into the background, the way she always did when things became too overwhelming.Lizzie, oblivious to the growing tension, finally glanced up from her phone and crossed her arms. "Alright, losers, what's the plan? And by the way, you all look ridiculous hanging around here like you're in middle school. Let's do something more interesting."Hope glanced at Josie, feeling the situation slipping away from her. This wasn't what she wanted. She needed to find a way to make sure Josie didn't feel pushed aside. "I was thinking Josie and I would just—" Hope started, but before she could finish, Rafael cut her off."Oh! Hope, I didn't get a chance to ask. Have you seen Landon tonight? He said he might come by later," Rafael asked, his eyes scanning the crowd as if he expected Landon to appear at any moment.Josie stiffened beside Hope, her expression tightening at the mention of Landon. Hope's stomach dropped. This was the last thing she needed right now. "No, I haven't seen him yet," Hope said quickly, trying to brush it off, but she could feel Josie's mood shifting. She could sense the hurt starting to creep back in. "Seriously, can we talk about something that isn't Landon for once?" Lizzie muttered, rolling her eyes. "This is a carnival, not 'The Landon Show.'"Rafael shrugged. "Just thought I'd ask."Hope wanted to steer the conversation away, wanted to make Josie feel like she was the only one that mattered. But the others didn't seem to notice the tension growing thicker by the second."Hope!" a voice suddenly called out, and Hope's heart sank when she saw Landon walking toward them, waving with that boyish grin on his face. Great. This was exactly what she didn't need tonight. Josie's shoulders visibly tensed, and she shifted awkwardly, her expression carefully guarded. She wasn't going to make a scene—Josie never did—but the hurt in her eyes was unmistakable. Hope could practically feel Josie withdrawing, slowly shutting down.Landon jogged up, slightly breathless. "I thought I'd find you guys here. This place is amazing, right?" He smiled broadly, his eyes lingering on Hope for just a second too long."Yeah, it's great," Hope replied, trying to sound nonchalant, but the whole situation felt like it was spiraling out of control.Josie didn't say a word. She stood silently beside Hope, her lips pressed into a thin line as she watched the interaction unfold. The silence from her side was deafening.Rafael clapped Landon on the shoulder, breaking the tension momentarily. "Took you long enough to get here, man. You're missing all the action."Landon grinned. "Yeah, I got caught up with something. Anyway, I'm here now.""Awesome. Let's go hit the ferris wheel. I heard the view is amazing from the top," MG suggested, already leading the group toward the giant wheel at the center of the carnival.Hope shot a glance at Josie, silently pleading with her to say something, to give her some kind of sign that she was okay. But Josie's eyes were fixed on the ground, her hands clenched into fists at her sides."Josie," Hope whispered, leaning close. "Let's go somewhere else. We can get out of here, just the two of us."But before Josie could respond, Landon spoke up again. "Hey, Hope, do you wanna ride the ferris wheel with me? It'd be just like old times."Josie's head snapped up, her eyes narrowing as she looked between Hope and Landon. Hope felt like the ground was falling away beneath her feet. "I—" Hope stammered, feeling trapped between the two people she cared about. She didn't want to ride the ferris wheel with Landon, but she also didn't want to make things worse by rejecting him in front of everyone.sensing Hope's hesitation to just reject Landon Josie's face paled, and she quickly turned away. "It's fine. Go," she muttered, her voice cold and distant."No, Josie, wait—" Hope started, but Josie was already walking away, disappearing into the crowd without another word."Josie!" Hope called after her, panic rising in her chest. But Josie didn't stop.Hope's heart raced as she turned back to the group, feeling like she had made a terrible mistake. Landon's expression faltered, clearly realizing what had just happened, but he didn't say anything. Rafael and MG exchanged awkward glances, while Lizzie rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed by the drama unfolding."You should go after her," Rafael said quietly, his voice laced with concern.Hope didn't need to be told twice. She was already running after Josie, her mind racing with all the things she wanted to say, all the ways she needed to make this right.She finally found Josie standing by the edge of the parking lot, her back turned to Hope, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. Hope's heart broke at the sight."Josie," she called softly as she approached, her voice shaky with guilt. "Please don't walk away. I didn't mean for that to happen."Josie didn't turn around. She stood perfectly still, her shoulders rigid, her voice barely above a whisper when she spoke. "You didn't mean for it to happen. But it did."Hope felt the weight of those words settle over her, crushing her. "I'm sorry," she said, her voice trembling. "I know I keep messing up, but I love you, Josie. I need you to believe that."Josie finally turned to face her, tears brimming in her eyes. "Do you?" she asked, her voice cracking. "Because every time I think things are going to get better, it's like... I'm always second to him."Hope's heart shattered. She reached out, desperate to close the distance between them, but Josie took a step back, shaking her head. "I can't keep doing this, Hope. I can't keep feeling like I'm not enough for you.""You are enough," Hope said, tears filling her own eyes. "You're everything to me."Josie looked at her, her expression filled with so much pain that it nearly knocked the breath out of Hope. "Then why does it feel like I'm losing you?"Hope opened her mouth to respond, but before she could say anything, Josie shook her head again, wiping at her eyes."I need some space," Josie whispered, her voice broken. "I need to figure out if this... if we're really what's best for each other."Hope felt like the world had stopped. "Josie, please—""I'm sorry," Josie whispered before turning and walking away, leaving Hope standing there, her heart shattering into a million pieces.Hope watched as Josie disappeared into the night, feeling utterly helpless. She had no idea how to fix this. She had no idea if she even could.And for the first time, she wondered if she was about to lose the most important person in her life forever.