Chapter Text
𝔸ℂ𝕋 𝕀
"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚘𝚛𝚕𝚍 𝙸 𝙳𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖 𝙾𝚏"
➼"𝑰 𝒅𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚"
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You sighed as you sat back in your seat, the blue light of your computer glowing on your skin. Unending words imprinted on the screen, you stared at them, rereading it for the upteenth time until finally deciding to click on the 'print' button. Spinning around in your office chair, you faced a different side of your tiny cubicle, looking straight at the black printer, a singular orange light flashing on its top. The light, though small, set a light orange glow on the surrounding area, the white wall behind discoloured with a light orange.
You rubbed your dry eyes with balled fists, listing to the recognisable sound of the printer printing out your document. Only moving your hands down after the sound of the printer stopped, with gentle fingers, you took the paper and stood up, walking to a small pile of papers on your desk, you placed it atop of everything. Placing it inside a folder, you inserted a paper clip to bind it all together before standing up.
"The last for today." You mumbled to yourself, smiling as you exited your depressing cubicle and made your way to the boss' office. The halls were dark. You sighed, of course, you were always working late. Rolling your eyes, you stopped in front of the door, gently knocking on the dark wood. You heard a voice come from inside. "Enter!"
Slowly creeping the door open, you walked inside the door, greeting your boss with a bow. You placed the folder on his desk. "These are the documents and reports about the latest product, sir." You boredly yet politely said, sliding the folder across the desk. Your boss hummed, his balding head tilting ever so slightly
"Ahhh, thank you, l/n, or whatever your name was. Make sure to work on the other documents. You are dismissed, " He hummed, tiltiing his head while smiling condescendingly. Nodding your own head, you reminded him that you would. Turning on your heel, you bid your goodbye when he spoke again. "Oh yeah... I heard you caused a commotion again. "
He spoke, his stare boring into the back of your head as your walking abruptly stopped, and you quirked a brow. What commotion? You wondered, and before you could turn around and defend yourself, your boss cut you off.
"I'm cutting your salary in half, no talking back. Or else I'll fire you"
He threatened you with empty words he was bound to take back. He wouldn't fire his hardest worker now, would he? Used to the words and treatment, you nodded your head in understanding.
"What was that? I didn't hear you, " your boss grinned, bringing a hand up to his ear, urging you to speak.
"Yes... sir." You sucked in a breath and walked out of the room. Calmly going back to your cubicle, you gathered your phone and wallet into your bag and 'calmly' walked your way out of the building.
Upon taking a few steps away from the skyscraper, you groaned, kicking at the pavement with your heels, its soles battered from the many times you've kicked and stomped using them. "That fucking Bitch," you mumbled, brows furrowing and teeth gritting. "This is the third time this month, and it hasn't even been two weeks." You sighed, leaning against a random brick wall. Looking up at the sky, you breathed heavily, tears pricking the corners of your eyes. Thinking back to your boss was not a healthy thing to do. You wanted to slap him, choke him, wax the rest of his hair off of his shiny balding head.
Biting your lip, you raised your hand up and turned around, swinging your arm back, and then swinging it down, but before you could hit the brick wall and scrape your knuckles, your phone rang. Sighing and rubbing your eyes, you reached down and plucked your phone out of your purse. Reading the caller id, you read your best friend's name. 'B/f/n' flashed on the screen, a red and green button on the bottom. Clicking the green one, you leaned on the wall you were about to hit and looked up at the sky.
"Hello?"
You called into the phone, waiting for your best friend's voice to reach your ears.
"Oh, Y/n! Hi!" Their voice rung through the small device, you could practically see their smile just from the tone of their voice. Their cheeks straining and flexing as they smiled, accentuating their features.
"What is it?" You asked into the microphone of the phone, holding the thin black device to your ear. The sky looked dark, just a reminder of how late you left work. The clouds were out, dragging across the dark blue like a painting, stars barely seen from the light pollution that emitted from your city. You drummed your fingers against the black device's back while waiting for their answer. While you waited, you heard the faint sound of cheering and music from the other end.
"Where are you? Your shift ended 2 hours ago!" They asked. They were probably pouting at this moment. You felt like you could see it, even through the phone, slightly amused by your friend's antics. You shrugged despite not being seen.
"I was put on overtime again, I'll meet you there at the club, don't worry." You reassured your friend. It was their birthday, no way were you missing their birthday and free drinks, so you immediately spun on your heel, your phone still next to your ear. As you walked, you listened to your friend's voice through the phone, the words loud against your ear. "Nice. See you later!" They bid you a goodbye, and you said your own. The call was cut off as they hung up.
Taking a deep breath, your hand holding your phone dropping to your side, you continued to walk in the durection of the club. It was nearby, only a few blocks away, while you walked, you looked around, the night was young as pedestrians walked the street, groups of teenagers goofing around, to young and elder couples going on dates, families laughed, and you walked alone. Neon lights flashed in the air, emitting from a certain building.
Turning your head as you saw the faint glow of pink, yellow, and blue, you found yourself standing before the club, music emitted and you could hear people clamouring to get drinks, hearty laughing, and cheering. The building was rather large with large windows all over, you walked up to the door, men in black suits standing by the door, blocking anyone from getting in, or getting out. Flashing your id, they walked aside to let you in, muttering a thank you you took a step inside, finding yourself in front of a dance floor.
Immediately, you squinted, the lights flashing with different bright colours, silhouettes of people dancing and maybe even fucking clashed with the brightness. Stiffening, you reeled back, bringing your hand to shield your burning eyes. You looked elsewhere, seeing seats arranged to parallel the windows. People sat atop seats, some playing card games, others chatting, some people kissing, losing themselves to pleasurable tendencies, while others just sat there.
Your legs moved, walking towards the seats, looking for your best friend. Weaving through tables and chairs, you bumped into various people, often muttering sorries when their judgements gaze lands on your form. The drums and beats blasted in your ear as you continued to walk around, looking for b/f/n.
"Where is b/f/n?" You mumbled, scanning the room once more. You looked at the bar. Various alcoholic drinks stacked on the shelf behind while the bartender wiped some glasses and prepared drinks for polite or unruly customers. Peeling your eyes away, you crossed your arms, huffing. Did they ditch you? That was unlikely. They never did. They always waited for you, so why were they gone now? Did you take too long? Were they annoyed with you? But before your thoughts could spiral down into darkness and overthinking, someone grabbed your shoulders and playfully screamed against your ear.
Panic took over your senses, your heart raced as the scream reached uour eardrums, your body reacting before you could think rationally. You jumped up, turning around quickly, alarmed. Your tired feeling replaced with awareness and shock. "GOOD GOD B/S/N!" You seethed, bringing your arms to hold your own shoulders. A frown etched over your face as your best friend giggled and snorted at your reaction.
"Not my fault you're easy to scare." They laughed, looking over your features, their face softned. "What's with the frown? Come on, let's just go get some drinks. They offered you a hand, taking their hand, and they dragged you towards the bar and took a seat. Following suit, you sat down next to them.
"Happy Birthday, by the way." You quickly said after taking a seat. They glanced at you, quirking a brow, then breaking into a grin. "Thanks!" They looked back front, thinking of what drink to get. And then they waved the bartender over. As the bartender walked towards you, his black hair pushed back and eyes sharp, b/f/n started talking.
"Can I have a martini? My sad friend here will have a tequila." They gestured to you, grinning from ear to ear. "Hey! I'm not sad. You frowned at your best friend's antics. "Then why you frowning?" They got up in your face and chuckled, looking back at the bartender and thanking him.
"What a handsome man," they sighed, resting their face in their hands as they sighed. "B/f/n... no, you have a boyfriend," you groaned. B/f/n looked at you and shook their head "nuh uh, we broke up." they waved a finger in your face. "Already?" You asked. B/f/n nodded their head. "He was bitchy, and cheated on me on the first week" B/f/n huffed, crossing their arms over their chest. You could only respond with 'Damn'. B/f/n clicked their tongue, resting her cheek against their palm.
"So... how was work today? Aside from the overtime, that is," They asked, looking at you, who sat beside them. Looking off to the side while listening to them, your eyes wandered, then locked with blue irises. He wore a smirk, pushing his blonde hair back with one hand while his other arm wrapped around a woman's waist. 'Eugh,' you thought, looking down at the polished counter in front of you. Pulling your pencil skirt over your legs, you hummed. "My salary was cut in half again." Your eyes darkened, brows furrowing as a scowl came to play on your lips. B/f/n gasped, pressing their hand over their forehead. "What the Shit!?" They exclaimed, looking at you in disbelief, snapping their head elsewhere, then back at you. "Why!?" They leaned against the counter, you looked up at them, their eyes concerned, and curious. You could feel a pair of eyes on you, boring into your back, pulling your black blazer over yourself a little tighter.
"Apparently, I caused a commotion again." You talked in a baby voice, almost mocking your boss while rolling your eyes. "I don't even know what he's talking about because I stayed in my cubicle the entire day," you crossed your arms over the counter then rested your head over them, closing your eyes. Sighing, you nuzzled your cheek against the soft fabric of your blazer.
B/f/n opened her mouth to speak, but in the moment, two drinks came in front of the both of you. "The martini for the lovely lady, and the tequila for the blue one." The bartender slid the drinks over, a smile tugged up at the corner of his lips. B/f/n laughed and pointed at the bartender, who had winked at her, then turned to tend to another person. "See? he gets me! You're sad."
"No, I'm not, I'm pissed off!" Scrunching up your nose, you held the tequila in your hand, looking down at the expanse of blue, your reflection staring back up at you. Dark circles under your eyes, dried sweat beaded at the top of your forehead. Clearly, you were tired, you looked at your best friend. They took a sip of her martini, their upper lip wet, glistening in the neon lights, pink flashed over their still form. They hummed contently, resting their eyes by closing them. You brought your glass up to your lips, about to take a sip, but then you flinched as a hand slammed on the counter behind you.
"Hey girl," a somewhat deep voice sounded behind you. Looking back, you saw the guy you made eye contact with a few moments earlier, blinking twice. You set your glass down, b/f/n looked at the man, narrowing their eyes as their nose scrunched up. "Do you need anything?" You asked, tilting your head as he leaned ever so slightly, resting his upper body on the countertop. His white button-up shirt, doing nothing of hiding his form now that you saw him up close. Leaning back, you frowned, not in the mood to be disturbed.
"Ah saw you lookin' at me a few minu'es earlier, he leaned down even more, getting up in your face, what's with people and doing that today? Leaning back a bit more, you replied, "Okay, and?" You raised a brow, looking at the ceiling then back at him. "You inte'ested in me ohr somethin'?" He asked, a shit eating grin on his face as he looked up and down your form, descreetly pulling your skirt over your legs a tid bit more you rolled your eyes.
"Only uneducated bitches would be interested in you"
The words slipped from your mouth, rubbing your eyes. The man gasped and pulled a hand over his chest. "Oh! Ah'm sorrhy! Didn't know tha' you we'e a feisty one!" Grimacing, you crossed your arms over your chest, barely understanding a word he spoke. Opening your mouth to speak, b/f/n beat you to it.
"Leave us, she isn't interested, Ryan." B/f/n rolled their eyes, frowning at 'Ryan'. He looked surprised, frowning, leaning a bit more on the counter to pat you on the back, at the same time, his other hand held himslef on the counter "A'right, a'right, but jus' to let you know, nice choice of drink," he clicked his tongue and finger gunned you, mouthing unintelligible words that didn't process in your head.
"Good riddance." B/f/n huffed while they crossed their arms, leaning back in their seat, a faint fizzing sound was heard. B/f/n perked up at it, the slight sound seeming to have an effect on them. You picked the glass back up, bringing it up to your lips, taking a long sip. B/f/n reached their hand out before you took a sip, placing the glass back down. You felt something i your throat, a bitter taste taking over your tongue, it climbed up the back of your throat, you could smell something in your nose, but just as you swallowed more of the burning alcohol, it stopped. Bringing the glass down with a sigh, you looked at b/f/n's outstretched arm.
"What?" You shook your head, B/f/n breathed a sigh of relief, you quirked your brow, why? You wondered. "Nothing." They said, sipping more of their martini before calling the bartender over and paying. You shot them a sceptical look but brushed it off. While they took your hand, they exclaimed, "Let's get out of here!"
"Why?" You asked, responding to their declaration. While they dragged you out of the club, passing many people dancing, drinking, and making out, you wondered about their lack of response. They said something, but the sound music boomed in your ears, the murmurs and cheers clouded over b/f/n's murmurs. Once you were out, they ushered you into their car and got into the driver's side. Sitting down, you turned to them.
"I'll bring you back home, Ryan will come back and bother you if we stay in there. Let's just... jam to some music, how's that sound?" They tilted their head, turning the car on in a hurry, fumbling with their keys. Starting the engine, they relaxed, and a silence washes over the both of you. "What was that about?" You asked, crossing your arms over your chest. B/f/n stiffened, shifting in their seat.
"I thought he spiked your drink." They sighed, looking down at their lap then back at you. "I didn't see anything in your drink... so it must be fine." They said, looking at you."So what do you say?" They tilted their head, buckling their seatbelt.
"Sure... let's go home." You responded with a smile, warmth bloomed in your heart as the thought that your best friend cared about your well-being registered in your mind. Buckling your own seatbelt, you looked at the radio that sat snuggly in the dashboard of their car. Glancing at them, fiddling with their keys as they started the car with a rumble, you smiled.
"Conan Gray?" You suggested, your fingers itching to turn the radio on at full blast. B/f/n looked at you from the peripheral and then chuckled, "Sure, but we're listening to Taylor Swift next." They declared, stepping on the gas pedal and then driving out of the parking. Now that you were on the road, you fiddled with the radio, pressing buttons until finally, you were able to connect your phone. Opening Spotify, you clicked on a custom album, it contained B/f/n and your favourite songs.
Clicking on the first Conan Gray song you found, you sat back in your seat as you listened to the lyrics.
"Movies, movies, I want a love like the movies"
"Wow, okay, way to talk about your fantasies, Y/n." B/f/n chuckled as they listened in too, driving through the city. "You talk too much." You respond, rolling your eyes then looking out the window. Quietly singing along to the song, soon, B/f/n started singing too. Then it was you two, singing the song, laughing when the other's voice cracks on the high notes. Then came another song.
You laughed and relished in the feeling of this, 'better than the bar.' You thought as you sung along, you don't know when, but as you two sung like maniacs, the world around you blurred, the road outside swirled, straight lamposts bent in unnatural waves, the notes in the music changed, your eyes unfocused, your words slurred. What was happening?
Your heart dipped, beating wildly in your chest. Your nose felt clogged, so you breathed through your mouth, as if something gripped on your arms, you stayed glued to your seat, blearily blinking as the world around you started to feel distant. The recollection of today flashing in your mind.
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