strawberry blond ᡣ𐭩 challengers.

three.

༘˚⋆𐙚｡⋆𖦹.˚

[ 2019 ]

after her encounter with tashi donaldson, phoebe russell knew it was only a matter of time before she ran into art. she didn't waste her time avoiding him, hoping that the sooner she saw him, the quicker this dreadful feeling would leave her. not that she wanted to speak to him, but every time she thought of her former best friend, an apprehensive feeling rose in her chest. even as she sipped on her early morning coffee after leaving a snoring patrick in the suite, she wondered what she would say when he stood before her. she read through a few of her emails, forwarding a few to her publicist while replying to the few that she could handle.

"phoebe russell in the flesh? didn't know little league was your style," that voice haunted phoebe in the gentlest of ways, burning her heart while soothing her ears. her eye twitched at the sound of his voice, silently cursing his timing. she debated on replying before deciding not to, returning to skimming her emails.

"when tashi mentioned that she saw you here, i was excited. it's been what, five years since we last saw each other?" art tried again, only to be ignored once more. this time, phoebe hadn't paused in her actions, now focusing even more on her laptop before her.

phoebe would've believed art had walked away as he hadn't spoken again, but she could feel as he lingered close behind her. she imagined the familiar apologetic look on his face and wondered if he was making it, daring to look over her shoulder.

art donaldson had not changed much. of course he was older now, but he still had the same dejected look on his face in response to phoebe's silent treatment. he wore tighter shirts than when she last recalled, her eyes trailing the bulge of his arms in his slim-fit sleep shirt. his hair was shorter, but still as blond as ever. and his eyes were tired, but as telling as ever as he gazed back at her.

at her continued silence but newfound attention, art spoke again. "tashi also mentioned you were here...with patrick. is that true? are you here with patrick?"

"i'm here for the challenger," phoebe wasn't familiar with the emotion in her tone. she couldn't tell if she was aching for him to leave or scrambling to take in his image. the pit in her chest was starkly hollow, yet rapidly overflowing, leaving her conflicted.

"but, are you here for the challenger with patrick?" he emphasized the end of his sentence, stressing the pressing part of his question. he added a soft chuckle, followed by his signature boyish smirk. "i thought you didn't play favorites."

"i think you and i both know that doesn't apply anymore," phoebe said, her tone just shy of a snap while art took a hesitant step closer. phoebe closed her laptop, emails now long forgotten as she packed her things and stood from her seat. "it's surprising that you have the gall to ask about me or patrick."

art stood silently, taken aback by the harsh undertones in phoebe's tone. he followed phoebe as she walked to the elevator. she stepped in first, quickly tapping her keycard for access to the suite floors and pressing her floor number. she was almost successful at shutting the doors before art could step on, but he bested her as he slid through the closing doors. he planted himself in front of phoebe, looking down at her as she stared at his chest, attempting to look through him as if he were glass.

"phoebe, can we please just talk?" art pleaded. the tone of his voice stirred in the heart, causing an ache she hadn't experienced in years. she couldn't look at him, knowing that it would break the wall-like composure that she was clinging to. the elevator dinged, indicating that they reached the designated floor. phoebe moved around art as she stepped out of the elevator with her suite door in view.