⌗ 52; third person ✎ᝰ

Riley curls into a small ball in the corner of her bed as Andy sets off to sleep. The air feels colder than it normally is. Her body shivers and her mind wanders.

Her sleepless nights have not ceased. She's convinced that her insomnia had only gotten worse with time. Her frontal lobe aches in constant pulses. A recollection of her past memories flash behind her dark eyes, reigniting the hurt she's endured ever since.

She hears Andy's footsteps fade in the background, followed by the sound of a door closing. Her best friend had done what any best friend would do—care for her. Andy had been nothing but considerate of her feelings and her irregular and often childish behaviour.

The last few months have been rocky, and as the year nears it's end, she feels just the same as when she first stepped on the soil of her home country.

She clutches the fabric of her oversized tee as the light in the hallway illuminates her bedroom in the slightest. "Andy, I thought you were going to sleep?" Footsteps draw near as the bedroom door creaks open.

"It's me." Riley turned around in haste. She finds a tall silhouette by the corner of her bed. "I heard you haven't eaten yet. Didn't I tell you not to skip your meals? You promised to take care of yourself."

Riley uses the palm of her hands to help her sit her upright. "I'm terrible at promises it seems." A faint chuckle left her lips. "I thought you had a gig?"

The lamp that sits on her bedside table flickers on, revealing Renz in all her glory. "Not really that important." She sets the McDonalds bag on the edge of the Queen Sized bed. "Thought I'd hurry home and check up on you. I'm here to look after you after all."

A small smile forms on Riley's lips. "Thank you."

Renz chuckled lightly. "For the food? No problem."

Riley shook her head. "No, not for the food..." She tilts her head slightly. "Hm, well yeah for the food too." She chuckled again. "But more so for everything else."

Renz removes her baseball cap and sets it down. "Hm, what exactly is 'everything else'?" She wondered.

Riley holds out her hands in front of her. "For all this." She answered. "For letting me stay here. You won't even let me pay rent.." Riley felt slightly embarrassed. She's been living under Renz's roof with no way to pay the latter back. "I do appreciate this though. More than you know. It's a lot more comforting to be here with someone then all alone..." Her voice fades.

She'd grown used to the concept of being alone, Ironically, Riley had been surrounded by a lot of people. Andy would visit from time to time, kind of like tonight. Her best friend takes space in the guest bedroom. She's here more often than not, in fear that Riley would be incapable of taking proper care of herself given the circumstances. She too had grown weak, but not in the way that Mason had. Their concept of weakness were two different things.

Riley was still oblivious of the naked truth—everyone knew but her, even the one person that stands before her in this very moment. It would deem strange had Mason's cousin been unaware of the situation. Renz had kept Mason's secret bottled up like a wine left to age, leaving her housemate in the dark.

Riley takes a handful of fries. Renz sits herself down beside her. "Of course. You're family now..."

Riley begged to differ. "I'm not family, Renz." They were not related in any way, nor where they related through marriage. "We're not even together anymore."

The eldest clicked her tongue. "Mika would throw a fit if she heard that." Renz replied. "Actually, she's throwing a fit right now. I didn't exactly tell her about our little arrangement and now...she's upset. It's all me though, so don't worry. She's not mad at you."

Riley thinks back to her arrival several months prior. The airport was teeming with people, as it would be. It was hardly three in the morning when she landed, she was worn out and heavy-hearted. Her flight had been pushed back several hours due to delay. It left her stranded at the airport with no one to call.

Mason was a definite no and Andy would've been across the Pacific Ocean, on a plane towards her exact destination. Her best friend left several hours prior to come home in time for her orientation. Riley was set to follow suit, due to arrive no later than her best friend.

But luck was everywhere but her side. She was alone, hurt and in desperate need of a familiar face. And that's when she found Renz in a sea of people. Her tall figure and unique features were unmissable.

Riley hurried over with a suit case almost half her height and tears that fell down her face endlessly. It should've felt great to be back home, to a place that she so desperately missed. But all she felt was a sharpened pain in her chest as she felt her body collide with the latter, Renz's arms around her petite figure.

She broke down. She couldn't bear the hurt any longer. Riley cried until she felt numb, who knows what could've happened had fate not given her even that.

And now she sits in a Queen sized bed with lukewarm fries in hand and teary eyes. She had a lot to thank Renz for. Life back home would've been terrible. It shouldn't feel that way, but it does.

She's home but not quite. Home is 8000km away in the arms of another. In love, maybe? Riley's heart ached at the thought. Still so unaware of the hidden truth.

The food sits cold in the palm of her hands as Renz runs her fingers through her disheveled curls. A small piece of her vanished the longer she stayed apart from Mason. Constant recollections of their time together would appear in small constant flashes. It would haunt her in the break of dawn, the middle of the day, and in the dead of the night. Mason consumed her being.

There is no part of her that could stray away from the thought of Mason and every little thing about her. From the books that sit untouched on the laminate bookcase, the perfume bottle that sits in the centre of her vanity table, the hoodie that retains the kind of warmth that replaces Mason's presence. 

She wishes so desperately that she could turn back time. She wishes so desperately to have another chance. To change her miserable fate, and replace it with a heavenly happily ever after with her.

The constant sting urges the tears to fall freely as she buried her head between the crook of Renz's neck. The latter shuts her eyes closed at the mere sight of the girl in pain as she rubbed the small of her back to provide even the slightest bit of comfort. "I miss her so much."

Renz swallows the dryness in her throat. "I know." She answered. "It's ok to admit that. Let it all out..."