pervorto | on hold

six

the warm water trickles down my face, washing down the tears that i'm not able to hold in any further as i desperately try to hold myself above the surface that's quickly suffocating me.

"reina! please open the door!"

lauren's voice echoes trough the empty space, making the ache deep inside me increase even more. i know i'm an utterly terrible person for doing this to him but i've already made my mind and there's nothing that could change it.

not even hearing him plead from outside the bathroom for the last ten minutes.

"please, whatever this is we'll figure it out together. just --" his voice cracks a little, making my hand shoot up insantly in order to muffle the sob clawing up my throat, "-- just open the damn door and talk to me."

we aren't going to figure out anything. there's nothing you could do to help me, lauren.

shutting my eyes tightly, i inhale a deep breath to give myself a little courage. i need to be valiant if i want to make this work. if i really want to save him.

that's the only thing i have to keep in mind; it may be already too late for me but it's still not too late for him.

"go away, lauren," i push through my teeth as i put both of my hands on the tile wall in front of me for some support, "i don't want to talk to you right now."

a few beats of silence follow before he speaks up again, much more silent this time, "i'm not going to leave before you tell me what the hell is going on. you can't just expect me to leave you in this state. i can hear you sobbing all the way from here, reina. you're not fooling me."

i stop the water and climb out of the shower, sliding into my clothes without wasting my time on towel-drying my body before unlocking the door and letting it fly open abruptly. he may be stout but i'm the fucking queen of persistence.

the crumpled expression on lauren's face is the first thing my eyes set on and my body freezes temporarily. christ, what am i doing to him?

his almost black eyes bore into mine as he swallows hard, taking a hesitant step closer to me. i feel the tears approach again when he reaches his strong arm out to pull me into a hug but i bite my tongue, not letting them do any more harm.

instead, i push against his muscular abdomen, trying to make the distance between our bodies as big as possible.

"don't," i narrow my eyes at him, giving him a slight warning.

hurt flashes through his face once again, causing my legs to feel like they're about to give out on me. "what do you mean 'don't'? what the hell is going on with you, reina? why are you acting this way?"

"what way, lauren?" i raise my voice at him. i know how much is this hurting him but if i want him to stay away from this whole mess, this is the only way how to make sure of it. i have to do at least something right. "i have the right to act however the fuck i want! if you don't like it -- there's the door. please, suit yourself. i'm sick of having this argument with you anyway."

i push past him, ignoring the stream of water dripping from my soaked hair as i head toward my bedroom.

"you are sick of this argument with me?" his footsteps echo through the living room, letting me know he's following me closely behind. "i am the one who should be sick of this, reina! i pushed aside my football training just to be with you today after almost two fucking weeks. i didn't tell you shit because i chose to be with you, despite the fact that my coach is going to curse the hell out of me for slacking few weeks before the semifinals and yet you fled as soon as i dared to close my eyes. is that all i am for you? just a quick booty call before you disappear god knows where?"

"no, it's not like that."

"then what is it like? i don't even know if i can trust you now since you've used the same excuse twice a day and marissa just texted you, asking 'why aren't you replying to any of her messages since lunch today'."

anger sourges through me and i spin around to face him. "you went through my damn phone? what the fuck, lauren? since when do you have trust issues when it comes to our relationship?"

the hypocrisy of my words isn't lost on me as i watch the muscle in his jaw twitch a little, and he focuses his gaze on the wall beside my head, "i didn't go through your phone but you have to admit you're not giving me much choices here. you keep lying to me all the damn time and i don't like how much you've changed during the past two months."

his words are ripping me apart; even more so when i know they're all nothing but a complete true. i know he's right, i know i'm nothing but a goddamn liar and i know that's exactly what he deserves to be spared from, but the knowledge doesn't help to decrease the ache in my chest in the slightest.

you can do this, reina. come on.

straightening my posture, i drag a sharp breath in before shrugging as casually as i manage. "i just don't want to be with you anymore."

if i thought my previous words have hurt him, i'd been completely wrong. there's nothing in this goddamn world that could be compared to the expression that has settled across his usually shining face.

"maybe you should have thought of that before you decided to make love to me, then." he mutters silently. "oh wait, that wasn't the case tonight. it probably never was."

•
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ahh, writing this chapter mentally crushed me, in all honesty. though, it needed to be done already-- lauren definitely didn't deserve all the lies. but let's not forget this entire thing is happening because of kaden . . . and travis.

thank you for reaching almost 3K reads, for 1K+ followers and for getting this story to 74 in short story today! i feel like i'm not doing anything besides thanking you but i wouldn't be anywhere without your constant support.♡

Q: your thoughts on reina's and lauren's fight / break up?