𝐌𝐘 𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐒𝐈𝐍.

𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘 𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓.

⌖ FUCK YOU | O38. ‹ ⚜ ›
❝ i also think i'ma find out one way or another if you lying, so... ❞

— JANUARY TENTH, ONE WEEK LATER
11:OO A.M. ᐟ

Monroe's eyes followed Iris as she walked through the visitation area. Iris's presence was undeniable, the kind of beauty that made the air around her change. It was the first time Monroe had seen her, & she couldn't help but notice the effortless grace with which she carried herself.

She couldn't deny it, even though she tried to. She tried to convince herself that Iris wasn't all that, that she was just another pretty face, but the way Jasiah looked at her, like she was everything, only made the thought seem ridiculous. Iris wasn't just pretty, she was STUNNING.

She & Jasiah made sense together, in a way that Monroe couldn't quite place. Not only did they just look amazing together, they had that unspoken connection, the kind of chemistry that was impossible to ignore, like they had been in sync for years. The shared glances that passed between them spoke volumes. The way his posture softened when she was with him, the way her presence seemed to center him, it was clear they were each other's safe haven.

Although under what Monroe, or any one else, could see, there were quiet questions that neither of them voiced. Unspoken doubts & fears lingered in the spaces between their words. They hadn't confronted them with each other, hadn't fully admitted the strain their relationship had been under in recent weeks. They were both silently hoping that these doubts were fleeting, something that would pass with time, that they could weather the storm without having to bring it up. The same question they were both asking themselves, are they supposed to be together? Or was this just an obstacle in their relationship?

Monroe found herself clenching her jaw, watching them, trying to brush off the envy that crept up from the pit of her stomach. She wasn't supposed to care. It wasn't her place to care, she was a side piece.

She kept her gaze trained on Jasiah from the corner of her eye as he interacted with Iris. His focus was entirely on her—smiling, laughing, something she didn't see him do in here. The way his face lit up in her presence, the soft, unguarded energy that surrounded them. The way he talked to Iris, the genuine affection in his voice, made Monroe feel like an outsider. She could tell they were in their own world, lost in a bubble where time didn't exist. He was all in, all smiles, as if he'd forgotten there was an expiration to their visit.

Monroe had been doing this job long enough to know the game, to understand her role. She was an officer—there to keep things in order, not to get emotionally entangled in the drama that came with the inmates. But still, watching Jasiah look at Iris like that made her question herself, her own feelings.

Was it jealousy?

She didn't like the thought, but it wouldn't go away. & as she stood there, watching them, she realized just how much she hated the idea of being an afterthought in Jasiah's life.