SHIRT, charles leclerc

NINE, pretty when you cry

please comment and vote. i'd love to see your reactions to this chapter specifically :)

A sharp blow landed on Charles's cheekbone, causing a gasp to escape Juliette's lips, her eyes locking with those once-familiar brown orbs. Yet, there was a stark difference this time; they held a much darker intensity. It was evident that Gabriel Ackley was on the brink of unleashing his fury upon Charles Leclerc.

"Gabriel!" Juliette's voice rang out, her attempts to intervene met with resistance as he shoved her aside. "Don't you dare touch me!" He yelled at her when she tried to halt the fight.

Charles, now sporting a purple cheek and a bleeding lip, glared fiercely at Gabriel, his words dripping with disdain. "I knew it. I fucking knew that you two had something going on," Gabriel seethed, his anger palpable as Juliette fought back tears.

"Babe-"

"Don't you dare call me that!" Gabriel snapped, his grip tightening on Juliette's wrist, eliciting a whimper from her in pain.

This behavior was unfamiliar, unsettling Juliette further as she stuttered, "Y-you're hurting me!"

In a swift motion, Charles pushed Gabriel away, his voice laced with outrage. "What the hell is wrong with you? You don't fucking treat your girlfriend like that!"

Glancing down at her bruised wrist, tears cascaded down Juliette's cheeks, witnessing the confrontation between Gabriel and Charles escalating to a boiling point.

"If you want her, take the fucking slut. I've gotten what I need from her anyway," Gabriel spat out callously, his words hanging bitterly in the air.

A sob left Juliette's lips. "W-what?" Her voice cracked.

Gabriel's lips curled up into a smirk dismissively, his jaw stiff like a tightly wound spring, exuding arrogance that barely masked his true intentions.

Juliette felt her insides twist as if plummeting down an endless abyss. The realization hit her like a ton of bricks - he was playing her like a puppet. He was using her. But for what?

A tremor ran through her as she sobbed, her lower lip quivering in fear and anger. Charles unleashed a streak of blows upon Gabriel's face, grunting as his knuckles turned violet.

"Charles!" Her voice pierced through the chaos, her fingers desperate as they latched onto his arm, halting his next attack on Gabriel.

Surveying the scene before her, Juliette's heart ached with conflict. Gabriel lay sprawled on the ground, his once confident facade now broken, blood trickling from his battered features. With a gentle tug, she pulled Charles, his chest heaving with adrenaline, away from the fallen figure.

"Ch-Charles, let's just leave," she spoke softly, her voice as delicate as a whisper. Tears streaked down her cheeks, glistening under the unforgiving fluorescent lights, casting a surreal glow on the tumultuous scene.

ஓ๑♡๑ஓ

In the dimly lit expanse of Charles's hotel room, a heavy silence enveloped them as the door clicked shut behind them, casting a sense of finality upon their entrance.

Charles's lips stained with dried blood, his cheek bruised and darkening with the passing of time.

Upon her swift return from the bathroom, Juliette emerged clutching a medical kit provided by the hotel, her emotions on a high as she attempted to stop herself from crying.

The swift escalation of the fight had left them both reeling, the weight of unspoken words hanging heavily in the air as she guided him to the edge of the bed, and opening up the medical kit.