melting magnets } justice x poppy

arx!!
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 17, 2018 15:04:34 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 17, 2018 15:04:34 GMT -5

JUSTICE
FRAY

My tie is choking me and the smell of flowers is making me feel sicker than I already am. It's been a full day since my prep team showed up; they haven't let me take a single drink. Being surrounded by bottles upon bottles of champagne isn't helping. A camera flashes in my face and I'm blind. I feel the earth shifting and I'm certain I'm falling.

But someone grabs my arm and I breathe—"Ah, thank you, lost my balance there for a second."—my voice catches when my vision returns and Ellie is holding onto my arm.

"You alright?"

Nope. Absolutely not.

"Yeah, yeah, uh--" I pull away and straighten out my suit jacket. My hand is trembling when he offers me his. "Congratulations. Welcome to married life."

I think his smile might actually be a genuine one. Mine isn't. "Thank you," I say, shaking his hand. "I'm excited."

Cedric runs up behind him and clings to his leg. He's speaking nonsense, but Ellie seems to know exactly what he wants as he scoops him up in his arms—"Cake? You want some cake?"—and I don't realize I'm staring at the little boy until Ellie gives me his congratulations again.

"Say, 'bye, bye' to Justice," Ellie says as he straightens the boy's bowtie. He waves at me with a shy smile and says, "Bye."

It takes me until they're entirely out of earshot to get my voice to finally work. "Bye." Even then it's only a whisper.

My heart is pounding out of my chest and my stomach twists itself into a knot. I clutch at it with shaking hands and wonder how the hell I got through this the last time. I feel sweat collecting in my shirt collar and dripping down the back of my neck. The sun isn't fucking helping. Why the hell did we have to have this shit outside?

Why'd he come over here anyway? Congratulate me like that? We aren't friends. Ugh, why'd she go and marry him? Cedric isn't even his, why even--

I'm dizzy with irritation, rubbing my temple in the hopes that this will just stop. It doesn't. I shut my eyes. That doesn't help either. I growl.

I need a fucking drink before I punch him.

I spin around right into Poppy.

She's so beautiful. Shit. I take a step back because I don't have the energy to think about any of this right now. I'm already fighting off the urge to beat her husband's face to a bloody pulp. Looking at her, talking to her? It's only going to make it worse. And I still so desperately need that drink.

"Sorry," I say, talking to my own feet. "I think Ellie and Cedric are over there." I shrug in the direction I saw him leave, putting my hands in my pockets to stop them from shaking. Or reaching out to touch her.

She's just so perfect.

And I'm just so sorry.

This hurts so damn much.

"I've gotta go."

Before I do something I regret.

[ v i c t o r y ]

Last Edit: Jul 17, 2018 15:05:15 GMT -5 by arx!!

"I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights."

[nyte]
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 17, 2018 19:00:40 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 17, 2018 19:00:40 GMT -5

I know we've made a graveyard of this all

My anger is rotten. Like a plague, it clings to my skin, reaching deep into my veins and every breath burns. There's nothing left of the fire in my fingertips, the venom in my words. I'm tired. So fucking tired. Even as I braid daisies into hair Ellie helped me stain soft lilac. It's hard to feel beautiful when I am so utterly used up. His touch is like sunshine, lips upon my skin forcing smiles I'd rather keep hidden and not once have I forgotten that we are perfect. But I am woven with ivy and lies, even looking at him hurts. He deserves better. He deserves so much better than me.

The dress is black. Resting just above my knees with lace upon its fringe and I hate that I wonder what Justice will think. Thoughts thundering somewhere in the back of my mind and it's all I can to keep them from overwhelming me. Hurricane winds lapping at my lips and it's been so long that I've forgotten the way that his would sting. Instead I smile at my knees, hands clasped in my lap with my head upon my husband's shoulder because that is how it's supposed to be. He has his and I have mine and we were over before we started.

I've got this terrible habit of forgiving Justice Fray. Seeing the human behind the monster and every word he repeats upon the alter makes me want to be sick. Bile sitting in my throat- eating through the skin and I wonder if anyone else notices the sweat upon his brow or the way his hands are shaking.

He's sober.

There are snakes beneath my tongue, crawling in and out of my mouth. I shift in my seat and squeeze Ellie's thigh too tight. Looking for comfort through the anxiety suddenly slick upon the back of my neck. Everything about us may be wrong, but I can't stand to see him suffer. I can do nothing but watch as Elara and he are hollowed out, forced to rest within each other and the strain is obvious upon his forced smiles.

I haven't seen him since that night. Again and again, we shatter. It's easy to look at whats left and convince ourselves that's all there ever was. "I'm going to go congratulate Elara." A soft kiss upon Cedric's forehead and another that lingers upon Ellie's lips. "I love you boys." And my smile is not made of plastic. I try not to feel as though I'm hiding that fact from the groom. I owe him nothing of the sort.

Because there he is, as close as he was that night and the memory is like a bullet through my skull. Fuck. My anger is rotten. Falling through my hollow stomach and suddenly I cannot remember why I left in the first place. He's radiant, a puppet dressed to perfection and it hurts that he can't meet my eyes. Is this what we've become?

Yes.

Ellie and Cedric are over there. I know. He can hardly force words from in between his swollen lips and it hurts to see him like this. An animal caged, with shackles locked around his wrists. This isn't who Justice is.

"Hey." Soft touch beneath his chin, bringing his eyes to mine because we both know he owes me at least that much. "Are you okay?"

It's a rhetorical question.

PLATINUM CLARKE

Last Edit: Jul 17, 2018 19:24:33 GMT -5 by [nyte]

the m o o n controls the t i d e, it could cause you to d r o w n

arx!!
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 17, 2018 20:17:44 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 17, 2018 20:17:44 GMT -5

JUSTICE
FRAY

I move to step around her, but she stops me dead in my tracks with her fingertips on my chin and—"Hey."—she has to know how I hang on her every word. And I'm angry. I'm so angry and so hurt and my head is going to explode if I don't get a drink, but one little touch and she's taken it all away. Erased even the memory of anger is and all I want is for her to forgive me because I never wanted this.

"Are you okay?"

My knee wants to buckle looking at her. I can feel it shaking. It takes all my strength not to simply fall into her and let her hold me. I force as much of a smile onto my face as I can manage through the pounding in my skull, swallowing back all the emotion making my throat swell. And I can't look away.

She isn't helping, but I don't care.

"No."

It's not what I meant to say. I meant to ask if I looked that bad. Meant to add a chuckle to the end of it and play off every visible symptom of alcohol withdrawal like nothing was wrong. Even though she'd see through that. She always does.

I swear I can feel her hand on my chest, tugging at my hair. She's in my head and I just need her out. If I could only get her out then maybe this wedding wouldn't be so hard. She should leave. I should just tell her to-- just--

Go away.

"Help me," I choke out.

I want so badly to lean into her touch. But I hear the distant click of camera shutter and pull away instead. My eyes find the lens across the room. I wink and flash a smile. Just like I'm supposed to, just like everyone wants, just the happy new groom in his fancy clothes, talking to a bunch of fancy people, drinking their fancy wines, and wearing my family's fancy jewelry and--

I take her hand in mine and shake.

And thanking people for their congratulations.

A grin wavers on my lips as I look at her. I swear I'm going to fall if she let's go. I'm looking into her eyes and I laugh softly because I just feel so helpless.

I've watched people slowly bleed out, I've been dragged around like a beaten, useless, little puppy, and I've even lost an entire fucking leg—but I have never felt more helpless than I do right now. Standing in front of the woman I love, watching her be happy with someone else, as I struggle to stay standing at a wedding that was never my idea, surrounded by a thousand eyes that I never wanted trained on me.

I just wanted to fucking live.

"I like your hair," I smile softly, my voice a whisper.

"You look beautiful."

[ v i c t o r y ]

"I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights."

[nyte]
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 18, 2018 14:38:06 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 18, 2018 14:38:06 GMT -5

I know we've made a graveyard of this all

He falls to pieces beneath my touch and I've done this at least six thousand times before. Because his smiles are made of nails, working the camera with a twinkle in the corner of eye and a frown ways heavy upon my lips. She doesn't know how to do this. I try not to feel the spite stirring in the pit of my stomach- watching Elara stumble into everything I have ever wanted and

it's not their fault. It's not mine either. How fate would have us all entwined, burning slowly at our core and it would take a blind man not to see the collision course we're on again. "Justice." The words catch in my throat, his name taste bittersweet and flashing lights are the stars caught within his eyes. I love you. I regret saying it. Again and again. Whispered in his ear, against his skin. I love you. I'm sorry that I do.

He pulls away from me, my hand is so much smaller than his. Yearning to fit so snugly in between his fingers but I'm scared to cut myself upon his sharp edges and so I play the part expected of me. Of us. I wonder if they know my name- if I've been around him often enough for cameras to catch wind of the storm raging in between us. The spotlight burns, the smoke wrapping around my throat and it is lucky we suffocate together.

Help me. Six thousand times. "Come on then." I ignore his compliment. My heart does not pound at the way his words linger upon my skin and I certainly do not feel heat rising up my neck and settling in the tips of my ears. Instead, I walk. Brisk with arms crossed and back turned, away from sweaty palms shoved down out throat- searching for scandals. A bathroom door locked tight with water splashed upon his cheeks, towels tenderly freeing his brow of sweat and mine are heavy with doubt.

"You better not puke." I chide, undoing the top buttons upon his suit to press cold cloths upon his neck. "This dress was more expensive than my rent." And I smile at everything I've left unsaid-

I don't need to tell him I've forgiven him. He should already know.

PLATINUM CLARKE

the m o o n controls the t i d e, it could cause you to d r o w n

arx!!
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 18, 2018 19:35:51 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 18, 2018 19:35:51 GMT -5

JUSTICE
FRAY

I was so sure the last time I saw her that we'd never speak again. That I'd never have her this close to me again, that I'd never get to talk to her again, that I'd never get to see her smile again. I love her. I love her. I love her, shit. This is so awful. What I'm doing right now, how I'm looking at her? I shouldn't, I know it. But I just don't care.

"Come on then."

I yank at my tie as it threatens to strangle me and when I rake my fingers through my hair all I feel is sweat drying against my shaking palms. My stomach flips and twists and even after she locks the door I'm sure there has to be a camera pointed at us. Just another headline, just another tabloid. As if that's all she is to me—just a stupid Capitolite magazine article.

I almost say it. I almost tell her as she lets the cold water run and I almost tell her as she presses her palms against my cheeks.

I love you.

At my wedding. Getting married to someone that isn't her. In a bathroom, behind locked doors, as I sweat profusely and try not to pass out.

"You better not puke. This dress was more expensive than my rent."

I laugh as she undoes my tie, fingers trailing down the first few buttons of my shirt. The cold water pressed to my chest not stopping my heart from racing or my the sweat from dripping down my neck.

She's smiling. And I'm smiling back.

"I'll buy you a new one," I smile softly.

And I don't mean to just stand there and stare at her, but all I can think about is how happy she makes me, how beautiful her smile is. How much I'd really love to kiss her right now, take her hand in mine and trace the lines in her palms. Her collarbones, the curve of her neck, her jawline, her cheekbones, her lips--

"I'm sorry," I say, nearly choking on the words. They're meant for so much more than this moment. They feel heavy in the air, but I can't think of anything else to add to them.

So I kiss her.

[ v i c t o r y ]

"I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights."

[nyte]
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 18, 2018 21:04:40 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 18, 2018 21:04:40 GMT -5

I know we've made a graveyard of this all

We're supposed to forget. To lock that night beneath our rib cage and ignore the pain that comes with every baited breath. It hard to look at him, to rest my hands upon his skin without noticing just how much his pulse has quickened. It's always been like this, desperately wanting in between awkward silence and if I'm not careful I'll lose myself within how good he makes me feel. And we can't do this. Not here, not ever again.

We can't do this to them.

We are a beautiful disaster and I should have known we'd find ourselves crashing again. And again. I'll buy you a new one. He laughs and for a second I think I believe that things will be easier. That we have fallen into our roles away from one another and that it will be no more complicated than before. When we were friends. When I didn't let myself love him and he sure as hell didn't believe he loved me.

Love is simpler when unrequited. Now it hurts, something awful. Like glass digging into my wrists and I've stopped bothering to stem its bleeding. He'll rip open the stitches, time and time again. Because Justice is selfish and I am weak and as much as I hate the truth that spilled from in between my lips not even two weeks ago-

I want him. Bad. The air is stagnant between us and I keep my eyes upon his skin- slicking back his hair and there's not much more I can do to break the fever left in his demon's wake. "I'm sorry." Pain laced within every syllable and I've half a mind to tell him to shut up. To keep empty words from ringing in between my ears because I don't want to think about why I deserve them. About what he did. About us.

"Don't worry about-"

He's like a flash-fire. Lips suddenly upon my own, the small of my back pressed into the counter's edge and it's so cold against his warmth. His hand's upon my cheek and I've no time to hesitate before mine finds its way into his hair. Fist clenched and I'm pulling hard, closing the distance between us because I cannot stand to be apart for a second longer. "Fuck." Breathless whisper against his lips and there's something of a laugh and a sob hidden behind my words.

Hours could have passed before I pull away, gasping for air with my face turned away and everything about this feels wrong. Feels good. My fingertips linger upon his chest, but I've not the strength to look at them. "Justice. This is your wedding." I manage, pulling his thorns from my skin and watching as I fall to pieces within his grasp. Maybe he wants to see me break. "What are you doing?"

Because it's easier than admitting I don't want him to stop.

PLATINUM CLARKE

Last Edit: Jul 18, 2018 22:43:32 GMT -5 by [nyte]

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arx!!
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 18, 2018 23:40:56 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 18, 2018 23:40:56 GMT -5

JUSTICE
FRAY

I'm all heavy breathing and desperate hands as our bodies fit together like puzzle pieces. Her hips pressed to mine, her hands pulling at my hair, and her lipstick tastes like vanilla on my tongue. Everything disappears and it's only her. My hand on her cheek as the other grips at her hip and I don't dare let her go. She breathes against my lips—"Fuck."—and I'm grinning like a madman as my fingers dance over the hem of her dress.

I don't want to stop. I never do with her. And when she finally pulls away, I groan. And I hadn't noticed she was suffocating me until just now as I gasp for air with my lips against her skin.

"Poppy--"

"Justice. This is your wedding."

As if I hadn't noticed. As if it made a difference in this situation. As if I can think about anything other than her when we're standing this close. As if she doesn't know what she does to me, how much she drives me mad. Why are we stopping, fuck--

"What are you doing?"

And I know she's right. Jaw clenching shut and she's right. She's always fucking right, isn't she? What am I doing? What are we doing? But it's so hard to think when I've got my lips pressed to her neck and my hand gripping at her waist as the other laces itself into her hair.

I don't know what to do anymore. So I pull her lips to mine and wait until I find the answers upon her skin.

"What are you doing?" I ask, the most coy smile playing on my lips. I chuckle, my forehead pressed to hers as I run my thumb over her cheek.

"Because it feels like you're kissing me back," I grin. I'm too happy to have her back to be serious. I'm too fucking happy to even pretend that I think this is wrong.

"I'm just happy," I breathe heavy, the weight of it all simply rolling off my shoulders. Just like it is always does when she's around.

I wrap my arms around her and lift her off the ground, my face pressed to her neck as her arms wrap around mine.

"You make me happy," I whisper. "And I was so scared I lost you."

[ v i c t o r y ]

"I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights."

[nyte]
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 19, 2018 1:00:09 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 19, 2018 1:00:09 GMT -5

I know we've made a graveyard of this all

I've come to terms with the fact that we are an inevitability. Forbidden kisses sunken in my skin and I've forced my teeth into my cheek to keep from losing myself completely. Ragged breaths and soft whimpers stain the silence and everything hurts so good. Betrayal is bright pink and I can hardly stand to look at the way I've ruined him. Tie forgotten upon the tile floor with buttons popped out of place. For a man so adept at crafting his own image- he's being fucking reckless. Hands travelling the length of my body and I cannot help but dig my fingers into his shoulders so hard I fear I might tear the fabric. With every kiss we fall farther and father into this spider's web, wrists tangled together and I've no idea how we'll escape.

There's cameras trained upon his temples.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

"What are you doing?" He sounds so much like himself that I haven't the strength to be protest. Even as the weight of his words hit me square in the stomach, sinking into my furrowed brows and it's amazing he doesn't feel the pain that I do. "Because it feels like you're kissing me back." And so I do, with fire upon my skin - white anger tearing into the way I stain his jaw with crimson lips. There's no turning back, softly we destroy each other and his satin touch is salt in my open wounds.

Happy. I know we could be. We are us again and the world has righted every wrong in the moment my feet leave the ground and suddenly Justice is everything I've got left. Hands clasped behind his neck with a stupid smile stuck to my cheeks. I let myself be happy because the pain slick against his skin is forgotten in this moment. Sure of himself, of us, and the realization that we will only ever be trapped behind closed doors is so much harsher when I see his smile. Still I pretend. For him. Always for him.

"Since when have you ever lost me?" I pretend to be annoyed, hooking a leg behind his thigh so he hasn't the option to set me down. There is wind beneath my wings and I'm not ready to shatter upon the cement. "But if we're doing this, we can't be stupid."

The words are like blood dripping from my lips, they taste just as bitter. "We've both got the world to lose." Foolish. I'm foolish. Head restws upon his shoulder so that I may hear his heart laughing. He makes me selfish. Desperate for satisfaction, the feeling of us is sweeter than champagne and he bubbles against my skin.

"And now we both look like we've been standing in a storm."

But that's because we are. "How do you plan on keeping the cameras from catching my lipstick upon your collar?" It's okay, because for once it feels like we're in this together.

PLATINUM CLARKE

Last Edit: Jul 19, 2018 12:41:09 GMT -5 by [nyte]

the m o o n controls the t i d e, it could cause you to d r o w n

arx!!
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 19, 2018 19:31:39 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 19, 2018 19:31:39 GMT -5

JUSTICE
FRAY

She clings to me and I accidentally bite the inside of my cheek. I've got my fingers tangled in her hair still, my mind thinking of nothing other than her and keeping myself standing up straight.

"Since when have you ever lost me?" Her voice is laced with playful annoyance, but her words from the last time we spoke are ringing painfully in my ears—Have a drink on me.—alongside the incessant bang! bang! bang! against my temple as my body begs for just a single drop of alcohol.

"But if we're doing this, we can't be stupid," she says, though I'm not really listening. I'm too busy focusing on her thighs wrapped around my waist and how her skin is as soft as silk. I just hum in agreement—"We've both got the world to lose."—nodding against her neck to convince her I'm paying attention.

"And now we both look like we've been standing in a storm."

My heart is still racing when laughter takes control. Her head rests against my shoulder, my cheek pressed to the top of her head as I glance at my tie on the floor and my reflection in the bathroom mirror. And she's right. We look like we've been having too much fun—even for a wedding.

"How do you plan on keeping the cameras from catching my lipstick upon your collar?"

I smile, glancing at the lipstick stain on my shirt. I rub at it, but it only smears deeper into the fabric. "Well, what'd you go and put that there for?" I tease, turning to glance at her with a stupid grin.

I click my tongue, bending to pick my tie up off of the floor. "Guess you'll just have to help me take the shirt off," I shrug. As if most of the buttons aren't undone already.

Pretty lucky no one has tried using this bathroom yet. I run my fingers through my hair, trying to get the feeling of her nails on my scalp from running through my mind. No way I'm leaving first—not until I get the chance to calm down.

I can tell she's worried. About... everything. But behind this locked door I've got her all to myself and it's like we're in our own little world. No cameras, no expectations, no role to play. No nightmares, no sleepless nights, no awful memories. Just me. Just her.

Shit, why do we have to go back?

"I hope you know how to tie a tie."

My eyes catch on the small bruise on her neck and I rub at the back of my neck, debating whether to tell her or not as I gnaw at the inside of my cheek.

She's going to kill me.

[ v i c t o r y ]

Last Edit: Jul 19, 2018 19:47:49 GMT -5 by arx!!

"I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights."

[nyte]
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 19, 2018 21:18:21 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 19, 2018 21:18:21 GMT -5

I know we've made a graveyard of this all

Splat. I've hit cement and I don't think Justice knows my blood is caked upon his palms. Reality is crashing in waves around me with my feet upon fucking bathroom floor and I have never felt as small as I do now. A pretty toy to set upon a pretty shelf and I'm scared his smile will melt the plastic he has so carefully crafted me from. We're good at ignoring for the sake of the smiles he pressed into my neck, the euphoria clinging to the heat crawling down my spine and I tilt my head back against the mirror and laugh as he smears lipstick into expensive fabric.

Justice doesn't want to think about them. My husband, our child. The fact that I still love Ellie and that he is bound to Elara. He's lost within the pages of our fairy tale- completely at ease with his ignorance and I wish that I could be him. That I could manage more than a halfhearted smile as desperately try not to lose myself to the anxieties rolling about my skull. He must know that I am a slave to my own mind, prone to trapping myself within a cage and either he doesn't notice or doesn't care how much I'm hurting.

Perhaps I've become too adept at hiding my decay. Because I want so badly to stay within his arms that I choose to forget I am the only loser if we are discovered. He's a spoiled child with pearls clung to his tongue and the world has a way of molding itself around people like he. Everyone forgives and everyone forgets. I've no reason to expect such sympathy from the universe. I'm nothing that has never bothered pretending to be something.

So fuck it. I'll throw fuel on the fire. Burn myself down before everyone else has the chance. Find satisfaction in my self destruction because forbidden fruit taste so damn sweet.

"I'll fix this. As always." I slide off the counter slowly, smile sticking to swollen lips. Further and further, I sink into my own mistake. Encompassed by what I am becoming. Melting with my hands upon his chest as I push him into an adjacent wall, stifling a laugh as I take him in. "You're right, this shirt won't do."

Two can play at his own game. I've prided myself upon matching swell of his chest and so my lips follow my fingers undoing what remains of his wedding attire. "You're just lucky I brought an extra." We both don't want to think about why. About him. About them. "Stay there." And I take my time, gathering my belongings from off the floor.

In this moment, Justice Fray belongs to no one else but me.

"Take off your shirt."

PLATINUM CLARKE

Last Edit: Jul 20, 2018 16:02:38 GMT -5 by [nyte]

the m o o n controls the t i d e, it could cause you to d r o w n

arx!!
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melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 21, 2018 0:31:23 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 21, 2018 0:31:23 GMT -5

JUSTICE
FRAY

The look in her eyes as she slides off the elegant marble countertop is enough to send me backpedaling even before she's reached out to touch. Hands on my chest, tracing my collarbones, fingertips pressed to my neck—"I'll fix this. As always."—and the way she looks at me through her lashes makes me forget everything. If someone asked me what my wife's name was I'd have to take a guess. Or choke back the name Platinum Clarke.

She fiddles with the lipstick stain on my collar, laughter dancing across her features. She's got me dazed. Pulling me in with soft touches and devilishly sweet smiles and—"You're right, this shirt won't do."—and a voice as thick and sweet as honey whispering in my ear. Shit, she's better at this game than I am. And I invented it.

There is a kiss for every button undone, back pressed to cool tile as fire races down my front, and all I can hear is blood pounding in my ears. I'm fucking useless around her. She makes me fucking useless.

"Stay there."

I laugh breathlessly. "As if I could do anything else." She moves slowly, deliberately. I roll my eyes, but watch, completely mesmerized all the same. Tongue pressed to cheek and I definitely should not have agreed to stand still.

"Take off your shirt."

The corners of my mouth slowly rise into a grin as I pull my shirt tails free from my belt. My well-trained hands undo diamond cufflinks without even looking as my gaze rests upon her instead. I let them drop to the floor, my mind already three moves ahead thinking about her bending to pick them up later.

I hand her my shirt as I pull it off, stepping closer when she grabs it.

"Got any lipstick I can borrow so I can ruin your dress?" I say with a raised brow.

"I'll still buy you that new one I promised," I say, pulling myself closer to her still.

"You can wear it on our next date," I smile softly.

I press my palm to her cheek, run my thumb over her lips. And my heart catches me off guard as it leaps into my throat. It keeps me from breathing, choking me and it's because I'm trapped in her eyes. She doesn't even have to try—just one look and she's already beaten me.

"Beautiful," I whisper.

[ v i c t o r y ]

"I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights."

[nyte]
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oof

melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 21, 2018 2:26:50 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 21, 2018 2:26:50 GMT -5

I know we've made a graveyard of this all

I don't think I believed him. That night, drowning in alcohol and desperation. With lips pressed to his and pain in my heart. Because I'm in love with you. The words burned. He could have said anything else and I would have hung from his words like rope around my neck and yet-

I didn't believe him. Of everything I have ever felt with Justice Fray I would be lying if I said loved was one of them. Fire upon fire, we have always allowed ourselves to burn. Eating through rationality with frenzied kisses and I have never been foolish enough to believe that he is too good of a man to lie. Weaving webs with practiced fingers and trapping pretty little pests within his strings is as easy as three words.

I love you.

But there is something in his eyes. Made of platinum and silver and the way that he's looking at me has turned me to gold. Fingers ghosting over quivering lips and I'm so close to him that I've forgotten where my skin ends and his begins. Beautiful. Cherishing the words dancing across tile walls and the realization leaves a lump in my throat and terror beneath my tongue. He meant it. I cannot help but lean into his touch, hoping the tears that I can feel building behind my eyes do not soon rest upon his fingertips.

Our next date. My ears are ringing and I hide my face within the safety of his touch. He needn't see me break like this, consumed by something other than pain. For once. The words feels softer than silk and I am fighting not to unravel with nails dug into his bare skin and if I gripped him any harder I'm sure I'd leave a bruise.

"Get dressed." I mumble into his palm, blinking back the tears so persistently tearing away at careful composure. With Justice taken care of I've nothing left to do but face myself, running hands through hair torn out of tight braids, touching up the makeup ruined by our greed. Running my fingers over the small bruise placed tenderly at the base of my-

no way.

"Justice. Fucking. Fray." I should be angrier. Hands shaking as I whirl around to face him with arms crossed tightly over my chest. "Are you-" A fucking Idiot? There was no point in asking, the answer was stark against my pale skin. By now cheeks freshly stained pale pink have turned bright red and panic seeps into white knuckles. "What am I supposed to do about this?!"

I smile at my own indignance.

In spite of myself.

PLATINUM CLARKE

Last Edit: Jul 21, 2018 14:53:41 GMT -5 by [nyte]

the m o o n controls the t i d e, it could cause you to d r o w n

arx!!
Retired Staff

2,484 POSTS

Pronouns: she/her
last seen Nov 19, 2024 12:38:56 GMT -5

literally so gay, doing so many crimes

melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 21, 2018 16:03:51 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 21, 2018 16:03:51 GMT -5

JUSTICE
FRAY

She whispers into my palm and I swear my heart has never felt so full. Warm like alcohol and just as thirst quenching, I can hardly stand the idea of unlocking the door. She takes the shirt from me and replaces it with the new one, but I'm still stuck on her. The way she runs her fingers through her hair, mind focused and hands on a mission to put everything back as it was.

Always fixing everything. As if me loving her was a mistake that needed fixing. I don't know. Maybe it does. Maybe I should've lied to her that night. Maybe I should've kept lying to myself, played the part of alcoholic lady's man with a crown like I've always been meant to.

I work my shirt over my shoulders, glancing at her in the mirror as my fingers struggle with the buttons. I'm reminded of a different time, seeing her in big sweaters and hair undone. She has never let me do anything for her. Not even then when her ankles were swollen and her sleep was restless. Even then she was still just saving me.

I should just let her go, should just do as I'm supposed, and leave her be. Maybe then she'd be less inclined to save me. Maybe then she wouldn't have to clean up all the messes I make. If I could just walk away and live my life without her in it then--

"Justice. Fucking. Fray."

Thoughts snap back to the present as her fingers dance over the bruise on her neck. She's whipped around with arms folded over her chest and a fire in her eyes and--

I'm pulled right back in.

"Are you-"

I'm smitten and smug and I can tell she's mad, but not enough to wipe the satisfied smirk from my face. I'm chained to her. I hope she knows that.

"Devilishly handsome? Yes, I've been told that."

Her cheeks are burning and I can't help the bit of laughter that spills from my smile.

"What am I supposed to do about this?!"

I swipe my cufflinks off the floor, meeting her at the mirrors.

"I'll be sure to put it lower next time," I say, looking her over, smile stuck on my face as hers brightens.

"Or not," I ponder. "I do like making you blush."

If I die today, I'll be dying happy.

[ v i c t o r y ]

"I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights."

[nyte]
Head RP Tutor

4,678 POSTS

Pronouns: he/him
last seen Nov 15, 2024 13:09:48 GMT -5

oof

melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 21, 2018 17:27:39 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 21, 2018 17:27:39 GMT -5

I know we've made a graveyard of this all

I'll be sure to put it lower next time. Hands splayed across my skin as though it is his to stain. It is obvious in the way that his smile broadens that he thinks just that. The clouds are suddenly cotton within my mouth and I hate the way that his words make me feel. Or not, I do like making you blush. He's gotten his wish. I can feel heat crawling up my neck and it's all I can to hide my face within my palms. Soft whine escaping lips pressed to my fingertips with fists striking his chest in halfhearted exasperation. Words should hang within the air between us but I cannot help but sink my teeth into their skin.

I'm not yours, Justice.

I've not the strength to wake up. To break open this dream of absolutely everything I have ever found within the silver lining of nightmares. The bruise soon hides beneath painted skin and I've added a jacket's collar just in case. "I said we can't be stupid, you arrogant asshole." Something tells me he wasn't listening. So used to wanting, accustom to waiting. Finally we have have found a home within the other's forbidden embrace and decided to forget the rest of the world would look upon us with disgust. He's beautiful, absolutely so, but it's never mattered to me. He's always been so much more than that.

The clock is screaming in my ears, tumbling down my temples like sweat and it'll all be over sooner rather than later. "I love you." One last kiss, pressed into his lips and laced with longing that aches somewhere in the hollows of my heart. "Please, be careful today? Please just-" There's so much to say in so little time. Everything is about to hurt so much worse and my hands upon the lock are bullets in a chamber. So I haven't set them anywhere but upon his cheeks. "try?"

Because the real world is bathed in orange light. Bang. My temples shatter the moment I step outside and his eyes are suddenly forbidden. Made of poison and they threaten to eat me whole. Because the moment I meet them I'll melt all over again and I will wake within an empty room. With no one but myself and my mistakes. It'll become something more than pretty little secrets hidden beneath my collar.

So I kiss my husband and wrap his arm around my waist. I run my fingers through his hair and pretend that every word doesn't make me want to scream. But I pretend we're okay.

I pretend that I am too.

I pretend.

PLATINUM CLARKE

Last Edit: Jul 21, 2018 17:30:26 GMT -5 by [nyte]

the m o o n controls the t i d e, it could cause you to d r o w n

arx!!
Retired Staff

2,484 POSTS

Pronouns: she/her
last seen Nov 19, 2024 12:38:56 GMT -5

literally so gay, doing so many crimes

melting magnets } justice x poppy Jul 21, 2018 23:36:26 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 21, 2018 23:36:26 GMT -5

JUSTICE
FRAY

I stand with my back pressed to the door, one hand on the handle while the other presses to the side of her neck. I don't want her to leave. I'm okay with spending the entire day trapped in this world, a world where I only see her and no one else matters. No one is telling me I have to look away. No one is telling me to smile for the cameras—I only smile for her.

"Wait-" I grin, throat swelling as just a twinge of desperation lingers on my lips.

"I love you."

She leans into me and I can hardly keep my composure. It takes every bit of self-control I possess not to pull her right back to where we were twenty minutes ago. And if she lets her lips linger on mine any longer I'm not going to be able to let her leave.

She's pleading—"Just try?"—her eyes telling me she's serious and how could I not agree?

"Okay. Alright," I resign.

The click of the lock sounds like the hammer of a gun. Her hand on the door handle is a revolver's handle pressed to my temple. I don't know how to survive.

She leaves and I wait. Biting my lip, fists clenched against the doorframe as I try to gain any semblance of composure before I follow her back to the reality. I don't want to. I hate this ridiculous game of hide-n-seek we've decided to play. Kisses restricted and hidden behind locked doors, always within reach but never obtainable—try, try, try...

I love you.

Okay. Alright. I can do this.

But it's a lie. The moment her lips meet his, his arm wraps around her waist, when her fingers run through his hair—I said I'd try. And I wanted to. For her. But this? How is she so good at this? How is she so good at pretending?

How could she have meant it when she said she loves me?

I'm all addiction. Addiction to alcohol, addiction to her. I grab a server and rip a champagne bottle from his grasp. Hands shaking and I'm an idiot—for far more reasons than one. Are you-

Am I, am I, am I.

Yes, I'm an idiot. Yes, I'm falling for you. Yes, you've completely tricked me. Me. Justice. Fucking. Fray. The Capitol's fuckboy. Handsome, dramatic, drunk and so fucking obedient with looks that could kill. Why did I think I could be anything else? Why did I let her make me feel like I could be anything else?

Head tipped back, eyes closed, and I'm gasping as the warmth of the champagne sets my veins aflame and my heart into cardiac arrest. Red stains my fresh shirt as my desperate lips fail to catch every drop and-

"Shit."

The back of my hand catches any excess liquid, mind completely lost when small, chubby hands reach up to me desperately. I have no idea what he's saying.

"Cedric-" I roll my eyes. But kids know nothing and I'm forced my knees as he pulls at my pant leg.

He latches onto my wrist before I can even think to move away. Incessant hands and eyes locked on mine as he shows me my diamond cufflinks. And he's saying something, but I know I'll never understand because I am not his father.

You're never going to be his father.

I think he got his mother's eyes.

And his father's freckles.

I didn't know it could hurt so much to smile.

[ v i c t o r y ]

"I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights."

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Post by arx!! on Jul 17, 2018 15:04:34 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 17, 2018 19:00:40 GMT -5

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Post by arx!! on Jul 18, 2018 19:35:51 GMT -5

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Post by arx!! on Jul 21, 2018 0:31:23 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 21, 2018 2:26:50 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 21, 2018 16:03:51 GMT -5

Post by [nyte] on Jul 21, 2018 17:27:39 GMT -5

Post by arx!! on Jul 21, 2018 23:36:26 GMT -5