Work Text:
Snowflakes were trying to unionize against my bangs.
They stuck there in clumps as I wrestled with the new winter wreath over Philo’s door, on my toes, arm stretched, Jeremiah yelling helpful things like:
"Left. No, your other left."
"I know my other left!", I hissed, nearly falling off the step stool. "I just can’t feel my fingers anymore, that’s all."
"You wanted the outdoor display", he said innocently, counting receipts at the counter. "You said, quote, ‘it’ll be cozy, Jer, trust the vision!’"
"I was emotionally compromised by fairy lights", I muttered.
The wreath finally hooked onto the little nail with a soft thunk. Green branches, golden ribbon, tiny dried oranges Jeremiah had insisted on adding because "aesthetic". Philo’s window glowed warmly behind me, plants silhouetted against the glass. Winter in Linkon had a very specific vibe: like someone had mixed cozy café ambience with light space dystopia.
"Careful coming down, JD", Jer called, not looking up. "If you break your legs, I am not explaining that to the others. Also, your scarf is trailing on the floor again. You’re going to strangle yourself."
I glanced down. The long knit scarf (cream, with tiny embroidered stars) was indeed licking the tiles."That’s what my black belt is for", I said, stepping into Philo again and letting the door fall closed behind me. "I have the balance™." Philo was warm and cozy inside with air that smelled like eucalyptus, wet soil, and Jeremiah’s ridiculous experimental coffee.
"You tripped over your own shoe in front of Rafayel yesterday", he deadpanned.
"That was the floor’s fault."
He snorted. "Sure."
Sometimes I forgot this life was something he’d actually built for me.
The first weeks after I’d woken up in MC’s spare room, head spinning, brain screaming ‘this is not my loading screen’, Jeremiah had been the one who quietly slid a mug of fruit tea across the table and said:
"Okay. So. You don’t exist."
Not like that. More like: system-wise. No ID. No records. No embarrassing school photos. No nothing.
After explaining my situation to him and MC, he’d tapped through forms with casual precision, building a history for me with parents, a totally normal bureaucratic trail that said I’d always been here, including that embarrassing school photo - however he had managed that. And an address that matched the spare room at MC’s apartment. A job at Philo that had started as "temporary" and somehow become "you arranged the entire autumn display so nicely, so I guess I’ll keep you."
So yeah. I owed him and MC. In more ways than one. They became my closest friends - but I was still getting used to the tingling feeling whenever MC and I touched each other accidentally. There was something weird about that, a feeling that got too intense and overwhelming the longer it lasted.
The door chime jingled. I turned, already launching into auto-pilot.
"Welcome to Philo, we’re closing soon so emotional crises must be expressed efficiently-"
"It’s a little early to be scoldin’ me, don’t you think?"
I didn’t even need to see him to know. My stomach did that stupid little drop-then-lift thing.
Caleb stood in the doorway, snow in his hair, hands tucked into the pockets of his coat. Civvies, not uniform. Off-duty. Behind him, the streetlight haloed him in orange and gold, like some movie director had gone 'okay, now dramatic entrance shot.'
The universe, honestly.
His eyes flicked over the wreath, then to me, then to Jeremiah. "Heya, Wonderland. Jer", he said, like it was the most normal thing in the world.
I still wasn’t sure when that nickname had started. Probably the day I accidentally called the N109 Zone 'that weird wonderland with crime DLC' in front of him and the others. Caleb had laughed so hard he’d nearly choked on his coffee.
"Look at that", Jeremiah said, finally glancing up. "Colonel Caleb himself!"
"Hey", I managed. My voice came out a little higher than usual. "You’re … early. I thought Fleet people only touched grass like, three times a year."
"Wow", he said, smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "That one of those legendary JD compliments I’ve heard so much about?"
"Don’t worry", Jeremiah said, tying off his bouquet. "She bullies the people she likes. It’s her love language."
"Jer", I hissed.
Caleb’s gaze flicked between us, amused. "Good to know I’m in the VIP tier, then."
My cheeks went warm. Great. Perfect. Fantastic. For someone demisexual who needed approximately 85 cutscenes’ worth of emotional bonding before catching feelings, this timeline had been … unkind.
Not that it was immediate. I hadn’t popped into this world and gone 'oh my god, he’s hot.' The first weeks had been pure survival mode. Panic attacks. "Where’s my phone?" at least twenty times a day. That one time I almost called Sylus "the mafia boss route" to his face - he had looked very confused when MC burst into a fit of giggles, since she somehow knew what I was about to say.
But then time happened. Cups of late-night tea at MC’s place. Caleb talking about flight routes and turbulence like it was the weather. The easy way he leaned against the counter at Philo, arguing with Jeremiah about coffee ratios. How gentle his hands were when he wrapped a bandage around my palm after I’d gone to war with a particularly spiky rose.
Feelings hadn’t struck like lightning. They’d accumulated like snow on a rooftop. Soft. Quiet. Suddenly heavy.
Jeremiah coughed pointedly. "Before we bully the customer into therapy, what can Philo do for the Farspace Fleet’s finest today?" Heh, not that Caleb would ever go to therapy.
"Picking somethin’ up for Pipsqueak", Caleb said, leaning an elbow on the counter with practiced casualness. "She’s stuck at the Association late. Wanted me to pick up the bouquet she ordered for Grandma’s memorial thing tomorrow."
"White lilies with the silver ribbon", Jeremiah said, already moving to the back. "And don’t touch the succulents. They’ve suffered enough."
"I touched them once", Caleb protested.
"The aloe almost burned out of embarrassment by the way you touched the poor thing", I commented amused.
He turned to me, eyes crinkling. "You’re really committed to this bully-the-Colonel bit, huh."
"Yup", Jeremiah’s voice floated from the back. "She threatened to kick Xavier off a ladder once because he wouldn’t let her carry the heavy box."
"In my defense", I said. "I can carry heavy things. And also I know he can do that teleport thingy, he wasn’t in danger."
Caleb made a thoughtful sound. "Remind me not to get on your bad side. Again."
"Again?", I echoed.
"That one time I drank the last lemon soda in MC’s fridge", he said solemnly. "You looked at me like you were calculating where to bury the body."
"… I was", I admitted blushing.
His laugh was warm, low, annoyingly nice to listen to. I hated that I noticed.
Jeremiah came back with the bouquet: winter whites, touches of pale blue, little silver berries that caught the light.
"For Grandma Josephine’s memorial", he said quietly, putting it on the counter. The teasing dropped out of his voice for a moment.
"Thanks", Caleb said, and the way his expression softened around the edges made my chest ache.
Back in my original world, I’d seen his grief in text. A few lines, maybe some CG tears, a dramatic soundtrack. Here, it sat right behind his eyes. Deep. Heavy. And real.
I looked away before I could start spiraling.
"Hey", Jeremiah said suddenly, too casually. "JD still needs to pick up those lantern lights from the winter market. I was going to close early and go with her, buuut …" He tapped the holographic register, which flashed angry red. "Inventory hell. Thought maybe the colonel could make himself useful."
Caleb arched a brow. "Are you … delegatin’ me?"
"Think of it as community service", Jer said. "Also, if she slips on ice and dies, I have to deal with one very upset MC and the five of you. I like living. Please escort my cute little apprentice, thanks." His smile turned unreasonably bright.
I squinted at him. "This feels like emotional manipulation."
"It is", he said fondly. "Now go. Before the good stalls close."
"Wow", I muttered, closing the coat buttons back up. "I get used like an NPC escort quest. And I can walk five minutes without dying, thanks."
Caleb straightened. "I’m okay bein’ demoted to escort JD", he said. "Do I get exp for this?"
"You get mulled cider", Jeremiah said grinning mysteriously. "If JD doesn’t drink it on the way back."
"I did that one time", I protested. "And you drank half of Rafayel’s peppermint latte yesterday at MC’s, so who’s the real criminal here?"
"Out", Jer said, pointing at the door, but he was smiling. He flicked his gaze over me once more: scarf crooked, cheeks already pink from the cold from when I was wrestling with the wreath. For a second his teasing softened into something else, something almost…
"Hang on", Jeremiah muttered.
He stepped closer and tugged my coat sleeve straight, fingers brushing the fraying edge of the cuff I kept forgetting to mend. His touch was quick, careful, like he was fixing a delicate stem.
"There." He let go and cleared his throat a little too loudly. "Don’t let the snow eat you, okay? Philo needs its chaos gremlin back in one piece."
"I am not a chaos gremlin", I protested, even as warmth fuzzed under my skin. "I’m a highly sophisticated agent of ambience."
Caleb huffed a laugh behind me. "You heard the florist, Wonderland."
Jeremiah shot him a look over my shoulder, one I knew started a whole non-verbal conversation I wasn't getting.
"You’re responsible for her", he said lightly. "If she comes back frozen, I’m charging the Farspace Fleet for a new apprentice. And for emotional damages."
"Of course, non-frozen and all warm", Caleb replied, but his answer was serious under the joke.
I rolled my eyes and headed for the door. "You guys talk like I’m a runaway houseplant."
Jer’s gaze followed me all the way to the threshold when Caleb followed me out. I caught the tail end of it when I glanced back – a soft and fond smile was gracing his lips. I reciprocated and waved before leaving.
"Yeah", he said under his breath, mostly to himself. "My favourite one."
The bell jingled again as we stepped into the cold.
"You got good at this fast", Caleb says. "Jeremiah keeps braggin’ about his 'precious apprentice' to anyone who stands still long enough."
Heat crawls up my neck. "I’m just repotting things and not killing them. He’s the actual genius." I had loved having plants at home in my old world and was a proud monstera mom.
"Jack of all trades, master of not dying", he corrects. "That’s what you called it, right?"
I blink. "You remember that?"
"You said it while you were fixing Xavier’s tablet, scolding him and the CPU at the same time." The corner of his mouth lifts. "Kinda hard to forget."
Demisexual brain: This is why we’re in trouble.
Because it’s not his face, it’s the way he remembers throwaway comments, the way he watches all of us like he’s keeping mental flight data.
"You came all the way from Skyhaven for a bouquet?", I ask dumbly, mostly to distract myself and change the topic. "Seems excessive. Even for you."
"Got a few days off", he explains. "Needed to check on some folks in Linkon."
"Must be nice", I say wistfully before I can stop myself. "Having someone cross all that airway on a regular basis because you are loved that much. I’m glad MC has you." Because I know how much she has suffered, doesn’t need to be said. He already knew.
He studies me for a beat too long. It’s not the sharp, assessing look he gives criminals or shady Ever executives. It’s slower than that. More… aware. "You say that like you’re not one of the reasons I come down here", he says.
My brain blue-screens. "What?"
He shrugs one shoulder. "MC’s important", he goes on, as if we’re discussing weather patterns. "Always will be. But I like knowing you’re all in one place. Easier to check everyone’s still breathing."
Possessive, yeah. But not just in the romance sense. In the 'these are my people, don’t you dare touch them' sense.
"You’re ridiculously overprotective," I say quietly.
"Yeah." He doesn’t even deny it. "Occupational hazard." … Sure.
As we got closer to central I noticed again that Linkon winter looked like someone had slapped a snow filter on a sci-fi city. Neon holo signs reflected in puddles, breath plumed in the air, and the sky was heavy with clouds that glowed faintly from all the floating snowflake lights.
The market was just a few streets away: rows of stalls, strings of fairy lights overhead, steam curling up from food stands and full of bustling people in the evening.
For a while, Caleb and I just walked. His boots crunched in the thin snow. My scarf kept trying to escape my neck.
"So", he said eventually, glancing sideways. "How’s multiverse assimilation goin’?"
I snorted. "Smooth like a car crash."
"Specific."
"Sometimes … I forget. That this is all… real", I admitted quietly. "Sometimes my brain does the thing. You know. 'You’re gonna wake up. This is a very long, very weird dream. Congratulations, please press X to continue. Press Y to exit.'"
He lifted his left hand, palm out and watched thoughtfully snowflakes land on it. "I thought you were trolling when you told me you’d 'read my story'"
Heat crawled up my neck. "Yeah, about that …"
He hummed. "Took me a while to realize you weren’t just bein’ poetic."
"What, you think I normally talk like that?" I huffed. "'Oh yes, I have read your story, good sir, your foreshadowing was exquisite.'"
"Honestly?", he said. "With you, I wasn’t sure."
I made a face. "Rude."
His lips quirked. "You and Pipsqueak really are similar sometimes."
My heart gave a tiny jolt and then slumped. "That’s not … you know I’m not her, right?"
MC. The center of the universe. The sun his whole orbit bent around. As much his sun as he was hers. I’d seen the way his eyes softened when she walked into a room. Seen the way he’d stand just slightly in front of her in crowded places, like his body had decided he was an automatic shield.
What was I next to that? A glitch in the universe. A stray fragment the cosmos sneezed out.
Caleb stopped walking.
The market noise washed around us - laughter, bells, someone yelling about half-price dumplings. He turned to face me fully, purple eyes reflecting the hanging lights.
"I know you’re not her", he said, softly but firm. "From the moment you turned up at Pipsqueak’s place and knocked over the shoe rack, I knew."
I winced. "And you called Destiny café a 'main menu' for like two weeks", he added, amusement creeping back in. "Hard to forget that."
Heat rushed to my face. "We agreed never to talk about that again."
"But", he continued, and the word landed heavier. "I also knew you weren’t just … background noise."
My throat went tight. "I kind of am, though. This story isn’t about me. It’s about MC and you guys. I’m like … the potted plant in the corner that sometimes gets a screen time by accident."
"Wonderland", he said, and there was that tone again - the one that made it feel like gravity had shifted a degree again, it only ever happened with him. "That’s not how this works."
He lifted his hand, gloved fingers tapping lightly against my forehead.
"Maybe where you came from, we were just … characters on a screen", he said. "But you’ve been here for months now. You helped Jer redesign his storefront. You taught Rafayel how to play that ridiculous cardio VR game. Xavier doesn’t fall asleep in front of you anymore because you poke his cheek every time he does. You are also the only one who actually reads his novel recommendations. We all crossed paths and were able to work together thanks to your interference."
"That’s called positive reinforcement", I muttered, plus I couldn't help it. I was the eldest daughter and older sister in an asian household in my old world.
"And you’re the one who can talk Zayne into taking a nap and convince Sylus not to provoke any of us for entertainment", Caleb finished.
I stared at him. "First of all, I have never convinced Sylus of anything. He just thinks my homemade tea is interesting. Second, Zayne naps because he knows I’ll nag him and not properly sleep myself as a protest if he doesn’t."
"Exactly", Caleb said. "You’re not a background NPC. You’re part of our lives. The universe doesn’t drag someone across dimensions just to decorate the scene. Especially not by accident."
I swallowed. The back of my eyes stung a little.
"That’s not- That’s …", I said weakly at a loss for words.
He smiled. It wasn’t the wide, easy grin he wore when joking with Jeremiah. It was smaller, softer. Almost… tentative.
"Then call it a gut feeling", he said. "I’ve learned to trust those." I've learned to not, I didn't add.
A gust of wind kicked up, sending a flurry of snow between us. Automatically, he stepped closer, to protect me from the harsh coldness.
"Also", he added lightly, voice dropping closer to my ear, "if you keep callin’ yourself a potted plant, I’m gonna start watering you on schedule."
A helpless laugh escaped me. "At least give me nice soil. And a cute pot."
"I’ll talk to Jeremiah", he said. "Philo has standards."
We started walking again, the moment settling between us like fresh snow.
"Another thing", he added. "You’re not subtle, Wonderland", he said gently. "You talk in your sleep sometimes."
I wanted to sink into the snow. "Please tell me I didn’t say anything too embarrassing."
"Nothing I’d hold against you", he said. Then, softer: "You cried once. Said you were sorry we kept dying." The world narrowed to the sound of my heartbeat and the soft hiss of a nearby food stall’s grill.
"I was", I whispered. "Am."
Slowly he said: "This 'me' …" His gaze locked with mine while we walked. "I’m here. I’m alive. I get to complain about paperwork with Xavier, work on a solution against the Toring Chip influence with Sylus, made-up with Zaynie again, get to poke fun at Rafayel’s brattiness, drink questionable coffee at Jer’s shop and argue with you about whether rom-coms are peak cinema."
"They are peak cinema", I muttered automatically.
"And if some other universe didn’t have me there to truly care for you". he added, "then I’m… selfishly glad you’re here to experience it."
My throat closed up.
"We’re … not meant for each other", I said, the words scraping on the way out. "Not like you and MC are. I know that. I’m not trying to steal-"
"I know", he said quietly. "You don’t have to."
His fingers brushed mine, a fleeting touch. Not a promise. Not a confession. Just … a point of contact. "You’re allowed to exist here without apologizin’ for it", he said. "Allowed to be important. Not as a replacement. Just as … JD." Even if you are another version of her, went unsaid.
The way he said my name made something in my chest loosen.
Snow began falling harder, soft flakes catching in his hair, on his lashes. The lights above us reflected in his eyes - purple deepening almost to black at the edges. "And just like MC and I are from the same source … so are MC and you. We will always be connected."
I swallowed. My tongue felt too big in my mouth. "You’re very … convincing, you know that?"
"It’s one of my many flaws", he said lightly. "Along with bein’ devastatingly handsome and chronically overworked."
A laugh burst out of me, the tension cracking. "There it is. The ego."
"Gotta keep my brand consistent", he said.
We passed a stall selling glowing cotton candy, another with knitted hats shaped like various Wanderer mascots. The air smelled like spices, sugar, and something meat-adjacent.
The first weeks here flashed through my mind in quick cuts: MC pressing a plushie into my hands for comfort to add to the other dozen she had already given me. Rafayel dramatically fainting onto Philo’s couch when I told him fashion trends from my world but also asking me for my perspective on any ideas and new paints he’d come up with. Xavier quietly fixing my bookshelf when it collapsed under too many plant pots and also reading all of my novel recommendations, overall being someone I could talk about "the old days" times that equated my own world. Sylus patiently adjusting my stance when I practiced kicks "just in case". I was still kind of intimidated by Sylus’ intense presence - but he did tone down his enigmatic teasing for my sake. Zayne was as gentle as a snowflake and really understanding whenever we crossed paths and would ask me if he could do a check-up on my health whenever we met outside of hospital visits, occasionally surprising me with his dry humour. They were all mother hens in their own right, honestly.
And Caleb. Always somewhere in the periphery at first. A shadow in MC’s doorway when I woke from a nightmare. A presence in the kitchen making midnight noodles. The warm weight of his gaze whenever I slipped and used game terms by accident.
He hadn’t pushed. Just … orbited around me.
Annoyingly effective strategy to make me get used to him.
"Everyone got real nosy when you turned up, y’know", he said, cutting into my thoughts, probably aware I was getting lost in wonderland inside my mind again.
"I noticed", I said. "It was like being the new kid in school, but the people asking for my star sign also have superpowers."
He laughed. "Xavier tried to analyze your speech patterns. Raf wanted to psychoanalyze you. Sylus kind of wasn’t surprised. Zayne asked me if you were a space-time anomaly."
"What did you say?", I asked. That theory was oddly accurate tho. Well, he was the Foreseer.
"I told him you were a friend of Pipsqueak’s who needed a place to stay", he said simply.
Warmth spread through my chest.
We reached the lantern stall: delicate glass globes with tiny Evol-reactive filaments inside, pulsing softly like captured stars. I got distracted, of course, leaning over to peer at the wiring.
"If you lick that, you’re getting electrocuted", Caleb said behind me.
"Why would I lick- you know what, never mind", I said. "I’m not Xavier."
"Fair", he said.
I picked out a set of lanterns and paid. When I turned, Caleb had the mulled cider for Jer already in one hand and was watching the lights, expression distant.
"You okay?", I asked before I could stop myself.
He blinked, focused back on me. "Yeah. Just thinkin’." We started walking back toward Philo, lantern bag swinging in my hand. For a moment, I let what he’d said settle.
"Dangerous habit", I finally replied lightly.
"Mm. I was just rememberin’ … back when I thought you were gonna disappear any second."
My breath caught. "Like … glitch out?"
"Somethin’ like that", he said. "Then you stayed. You argued with Raf about brush types. You helped MC paint her room. You yelled at me for not wearin’ a scarf."
"You never wear a scarf", I said. "Your neck is gonna get cold and fall off."
"That’s not how necks work, Wonderland."
"In my reality it is", I huffed.
He rolled his eyes, but his smile was fond. "Point is … the multiverse didn’t erase you. You’re here. Solid. And lately you’ve been lookin’ at us like we’re about to disappear on you."
Ouch. Accurate.
"I mean", I said, staring very hard at a nearby pretzel stand, "statistically speaking, your odds aren’t great."
He snorted. "You really just hit me with statistics."
"In every version of the story I knew", I continued, ignoring his snort, "you died. Or almost. Or something horrible happened." Even Caleb looked deep in thought at that, I let him ponder about it for a while, before breaking the silence once again.
"Hey, Caleb?", I said quietly.
"Hm?"
"If you ever … don’t come back from a mission", I said, "I’m gonna kick you in the shins in every reality."
He huffed a laugh. "That’s … impressively violent as a threat. For you."
"I mean it", I said. "I’ll haunt your ghost. Your spirit will feel my angry kicks forever."
"I’ll keep that in mind next time the Deepspace Tunnel tries somethin’", he said, voice soft. "'Return alive or get eternally shin-kicked by JD.'"
"Exactly", I said. "Fear is a powerful motivator."
"Hold still", he murmured suddenly, giving me the cider.
I froze, when his gloved hands wrapped my scarf a little tighter around my neck, tugging the ends so they sat more evenly. The motion was absurdly careful.
"There", he said, fingers brushing my jaw as he let go to take back the mulled cider from my hand. "Can’t have you freezin’ before you bring Jeremiah his drink. He’ll complain about me letting his precious apprentice get sick for weeks." I snorted at that, it did make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Jer had probably felt the most real out of all of them, back when I first crashed into this universe. I had already liked him a lot as a side character even in my old world - that affection only grew ever since he and MC teamed up to helped me find an identity here and get settled.
We reached the quieter street where Philo sat tucked between an old tea shop and a little bookstore. The wreath I’d hung earlier framed the door, fairy lights twinkling.
I stopped just outside, breath puffing white in the air. Caleb took another step before noticing and turning back.
"What’s up?", he asked confused.
I hesitated, then blurted, "Can you … stay there for a sec? Don’t move."
His brows rose. "Uh … sure?"
I took a step back onto the sidewalk, squinting at him, then the shop, then him again, like I was lining up a photo in my mind.
Snow was still falling in gentle waves and Philo’s warm light glowed behind him. "Okay", I said, mostly to myself. "That’s … um. Perfect."
"You plannin’ to sketch me?", he teased. "'Draw me like one of your Linkon boys'?"
"Oh shut it", I said embarrassed, my cheeks burned. "I just- this would make a nice … memory. That’s all."
He studied me for a second, something soft flickering across his face.
"Then let’s make it a good one", he said.
Before I could ask what he meant, he stepped closer. Not too close - just enough that I had to tilt my head up a little more than usual. His free hand reached out, fingers brushing a snowflake from my bangs, then pausing to gently tuck a strand of hair behind my ear.
The world narrowed to the warmth of his skin, the cold air on my cheeks, the way his eyes looked at that distance: sharp and soft at the same time. (When did he take off that glove? Not now, brain. Focus. Focused I am, said my inner Yoda-voice back.)
"There", he murmured. "Now you don’t look like a half-frozen hedgehog."
"I was going for half-frozen hedgehog", I countered, voice a little breathless from my heart racing dangerously. "It’s my brand.”
"Too late", he said, stepping back just slightly, enough for the air to move between us again. "I upgraded you."
"To what?", I asked, because my brain had turned to mush.
He tilted his head, considering. "To someone I’m really glad exists in this universe," he said simply.
My heart did a weird, painful, happy twist.
"Gross", I said faintly. "That was so cheesy."
"You love it", he said.
"Maybe", I muttered.
The door behind him opened a crack. Jeremiah stuck his head out, eyes flicking between us.
"Oh good, you’re not dead", he said. "Did you get my cider?"
Caleb and I both jolted apart like guilty teenagers.
"Yes", I said quickly, lifting the bag in my hand. "Also lanterns. And trauma bonding. And snow."
"I didn’t order trauma bonding", Jer said. He already got that. "I’ll take the cider, though."
He disappeared back inside, mulled cider in tow. I huffed out a laugh I hadn’t realized I was holding. Caleb shook his head, smiling. "C’mon, Wonderland", he said. "Let’s get inside before you turn into a popsicle."
We stepped over the threshold together, bells chiming overhead, warm air wrapping around us. For a second, with the snow melting on my coat and his shoulder brushing mine, the whole scene felt like it had been ripped straight from one of those pretty CG images I used to stare at on my phone.
Only this time, I wasn’t swiping through someone else’s story.
I was in it. Even if my role wasn’t epic, or fated, or main-character-shaped.
It was mine.
And for now, walking into a flower shop with a too-important boy who’d let me kick his shins in my threats and tuck myself into the edges of his universe … that felt like more than enough.
All this time, I was not aware of MC and the others planning something bigger for me, to integrate me into their cozy inner circle of love and affection.
