𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬, 𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫 ✓

t h i r t y

TW: MENTIONS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE, SEXUAL ASSAULT, AND ADDICTION ARE IN THIS CHAPTER. WHILE ESSENTIAL TO EVA'S STORY, I ASK YOU TO SKIP THIS CHAPTER IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE TO THESE SUBJECTS. THESE TOPICS WILL BE VAGUELY MENTIONED IN THE NEXT FEW CHAPTERS, BUT THIS IS THE ONLY CHAPTER THAT WILL EXPLICITLY DESCRIBE IT. AND REMEMBER, IF ANY OF YOU EVER WANT TO TALK, MY PMS ARE ALWAYS OPEN. I LOVE YOU ALL.

- XO, REECE

✿

REAL LIFE!

Settling down to tell her story wasn't something Eva had planned. She wasn't going to speak about it ever if she didn't have to. But she did. She did because she had made a mistake. A mistake to her girlfriend. A mistake to herself. A mistake that meant she had to tell her story because she loved Bea and didn't want to scare her off. So she sat curled up on her couch, a burgundy cardigan draped over her shoulders and a mug of scalding tea in her hands. Bea sat across from her, a concerned look on her face.

"So..." Eva started, looking at Bea hesitantly.

"So."

"I guess I should start at the most recent event before I explain everything, huh?" Eva's laugh was humourless. Bea regarded her nervously, giving a nod. Mostly, she was worried. She didn't know what to expect.

"If you don't want to, you don't have to-"

"Yes, I do." Eva sighed, shrugging. "So, I guess the first thing I should do is apologize. I ghosted you for two days because of something Khalil said about my last relationship, and I shouldn't have done that. I'm so sorry. It wasn't fair to you."

"It's okay, E."

Eva didn't reply, simply shaking her head and continuing. "He said it to our entire group of friends because I told him that I," she paused, averting her gaze to her mug, "that I love you. And the last time I loved someone, it went really poorly. They tried to help me, and I shut them down."

Bea went to ask a question, but Eva stopped her with a shake of her head. She needed to tell her own story without interruptions or it would never get out. She had to get it out.

"When I was on Girl Meets World, I was new to the scene. We all were. Rowan and I had done other stuff as kids, but it was our first major acting roles. And sometimes young actors-"

"You don't have to," Bea interjected. "You don't have to."

"No, it's not what you think." Eva waved the words away with her hand. "There was another actor, Max. He played Riley's uncle, Josh. He was three years older than me. And in the show, our characters kind of fell in love." Eva paused, furrowing her eyebrows for a moment before rephrasing. "Maya fell 'in love' with Josh. But she was a kid, she didn't know anything. And I kind of followed her example?"

Her words were more of a question than a statement. Bea raised an eyebrow, starting, "Aren't you-"

"Absolutely. But I didn't want to believe it. Because my parents, and the industry. So I told myself I liked Max. We flirted every time he was on set, and then one day, he asked me out for coffee. And I was ecstatic, or I pretended to be."

Bea was quietly impressed with how easily Eva was holding it together, but of course she was. This was the easy part. The beginning always was. Eva had never told this story before, though; her friends had lived through it, so there was no need. She had a feeling she'd only break down from here.