Bunkd Lou Ravi Sunflowers in September

Sweatshirt

Ravi sighed with a heavy heart as he held the cardboard box in his arms. No one had ever told him that ending a relationship would hurt this much. He made a turn around his bedroom as his eyes searched for the one remaining item left to pack. And then he spotted it draped over the back of his desk chair.

"Right," he murmured as he walked over. It was right where he always left it near his work-from-home space.

He placed the box on the desk and then lifted the sweatshirt. The turquoise color had faded along with the logo of the summer camp that his now ex-girlfriend went to as a kid. He frowned at the sweatshirt.

"I have had much more comfortable sweaters," he lied.

He rubbed his thumb across a stain on the sleeve. He remembered when she made that yellow stain that was shaped like a half-moon. She had been cheering for her favorite football team at a Super Bowl party Luke had at his townhouse. They hadn't known each other then. In her excitement, she dropped the mustard-covered corn dog she had been eating. He had promised to get out the stain and she was so grateful that she spent the rest of the evening talking to him.

"Emma always said mustard would ruin any garment," he said to himself.

He sat down at the desk as he continued to stare at the sweatshirt in his hands. He remembered the tear at the hem of it. They had been dating for a year and were on their first vacation together. They rented bicycles to ride along the beach at night. For some reason, she had lost her balance and fell, resulting in a tear when the hem of the sweatshirt got caught in the bike.

"Cycling on sand may not have been the best idea," he said with a light laugh.

He felt a pain in his chest. He glanced around the empty room before quickly putting on the sweatshirt. Ravi closed his eyes and let the warmth of the material wrap around him and remind him of all the good times he had enjoyed with his ex-girlfriend. He remembered the way she shared his umbrella on their walks to the office. He remembered the way she snuggled up to him on the couch when they watched nature documentaries. He remembered the way she always left her sweatshirt at his house and never minded when he wore it to keep warm.

"Uh... that's not gonna help you move on."

Ravi opened his eyes and struggled out of the sweatshirt. He tossed it into the cardboard box as he stood up from the desk.

"Oh, um! Hello, Lou," he stammered. Embarrassment was etched across his face. He flattened his hair and smoothed the wrinkles out of his shirt. "I didn't hear you come in."

Lou pointed her thumb over her shoulder as she stepped further into the room. "Your roommate let me in," she explained. Her eyes settled on the cardboard box. "Are you done packing up Anaya's junk?"

"It is not junk, Lou," he gasped. He picked up the box and held it close to him. "These are the relics of a treasured relationship."

Lou walked up to him and plucked the sweatshirt out of the box. She held it up and scrunched her nose. "This ratty ol' sweater is a treasured relic? No, Ravi." She tossed it back into the box. "I've got much comfier ol' Camp Kikiwaka sweatshirts. Let's dump this off at her place, and then I'll give you a sweatshirt from my apartment."

"It's not about the sweatshirt, Lou. And shouldn't you be more sensitive to my heartache? You're supposed to be my best friend," Ravi said as he plopped the box down on his desk.

"I am your best friend. But Anaya? Worst one year, three months, and five days of your life if you ask me," Lou said as she crossed her arms and sat down on the desk chair. "I always figured you could do better."

"Really? You've never said anything." He drummed his fingers on the box as he looked down at the sweatshirt. "And I'm not so sure."

"You've never asked."

He chuckled half-heartedly as he shifted his gaze to her. "That hasn't stopped you from sharing your opinion before."

She smirked, "True. But even simple country gals can be complicated sometimes."

Ravi smiled, the first genuine smile of the day, and stared at his friend for a moment. He and Anaya had only been over for three days, but the only time his heart seemed to give him a break from the pain was when Lou was around. He watched her tuck some hair behind her ear as the sunshine from his window made the green in her eyes brighter.

"You're staring," she said quietly as she messed with the ends of her hair.

He blinked and shook his head. "Yeah, um, sorry." He exhaled and put his hands on his hips. "If you are done being insensitive, I could really use your support. I'm supposed to meet Anaya at that coffee shop on seventh street to return her things to her. If you're there, I'm not as likely to cry and embarrass myself."

"So, once we dump off this stuff, we're done with her for good?" Lou asked with a strange excitement in her tone.

Ravi furrowed his brow a bit but nodded. "Yeah..."

Lou hopped up from the chair and grabbed the box. She flashed him one of those bright smiles that always made his heart beat a little faster. "I'll drive," she said brightly.

Ravi chuckled and it nearly surprised him because he hadn't heard the sound of his real laugh in over three days. He gazed at Lou as he stood frozen in place. He wondered if it was possible for someone who he had always considered a friend to be the one to heal his bruised heart.

Lou tilted her head slightly. She smiled and said softly, "Ravi, you're staring again."

End note: This oneshot was based off the prompt sweatshirt from the September OTP Prompt Challenge posted by lavendarotpprompts.tumblr. Thank you for sharing prompts, person from the internet.