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。゚゚・。・゚゚。
゚。 Beck x Ly
゚・。・゚
“Why don’t you go fck yourself, since you do that with everyone else right? Yeah, I’ve heard the rumors. …Even as a fake boyfriend, Lysander is more of a man than you’ll ever be.” Click.
Shaun stood frozen, the phone still pressed to his ear, as the line went dead. He felt like he’d been punched in the gut, and his breath caught in his throat. He took a deep, shaky breath, trying to process the hurtful words that Beck had just hurled at him.
For a moment, he stood there in stunned silence, the only sound his own ragged breathing. Mariya popped around the corner—obviously eavesdropping, and looked up at him concern etched on her face. Shaun slowly nodded, trying to shake off the numbness that was settling over him, as he stepped away from his mother’s door and Mariya went in.
”Wow,” Shaun muttered, feeling like he’d been blindsided by a sledgehammer. He let out a sigh and rubbed his temples, trying to ward off the growing headache. His phone pinged with—a bowl of ice? He didn’t wait as he saw the little three dots danced while Lysander typed.
He looked away from the phone, his eyes scanning the room as if searching for an escape from the emotions that were churning inside him. How could Beck say those things? How could she be so cruel and hurtful? So… true? He realized that maybe, just maybe, she was right. All the mixed signals, the confusing messages—maybe he had been playing games with her, too.
[center] After a few moments of hesitation, he opened a new message—on Instagram, of all places, tapping Beatrice’s name. He needed her input—someone who could provide insight without the emotional baggage of the situation. Hopefully. Ugh, he didn’t want to drag another person into this mess but he had no one else to turn to. Worse came to worse she’d say no…
Hey Beatrice, I know this is a bit out of the blue, but I could really use your advice about something. It’s about Beck, and things have gotten… complicated between us. Either way let me know please. I just want to understand things better, both for myself and for her.
As soon as he hit send a new message from his favorite, officially confirmed fake boyfriend, Lysander. He’d honestly just thought Josie was insulting them by saying Lysander was a fake boyfriend but apparently she had been right all along… maybe he should take pointers from Josie? They used to be friends…. Anyways, Shaun swiped to open the message, but the moment he glanced at the first few lines, a heaviness settled over him. It was everything he expected from Lysander—a defensive rant masked as protection. He didn’t even need to read the entire message to know it wasn’t worth his time.[/center]
All the confusion, hurt, and anger towards Beck swirled into a singular pulse of irritation directed at Lysander. He felt his pulse quicken with each word he read, even if he hadn’t gotten through the entirety of it. In one swift motion, Shaun made a decision. Without a second thought, he pressed the block button, severing any line of communication with Beck’s “boyfriend”
Shaun was honestly ready to power off his phone when—ding. His phone echoed, and he thought it must be Beatrice. Shaun’s eyes rolled slightly as he glanced at the screen again, this time noticing the name “Ashley” flash at the top. A pang of annoyance shot through him, but he couldn’t deny the fact that he had just mentally prepared himself to shut off his phone in an attempt to process his own thoughts without distraction.
He rubbed his temples, trying to ward off a headache. “Not again,” he muttered to himself. Ashley, the woman who had been a part of an online beef with Beck, had somehow gotten wind of the situation and decided to reach out to him. Shaun hadn’t even met Ashley in person, yet their past digital interactions had somehow woven themselves into the complex relationship… or lack of? He wasn’t entirely sure.
Maybe he was being childish now, but in that moment, he felt a surge of rebellious energy. If Beck wanted to dismiss him so easily, let her see what she was missing. There was a temptation to retaliate—to show her that he could move on, too, or at least find some semblance of happiness outside their chaotic relationship. Before he could talk himself out of it, Shaun opened the message, his fingers dancing hesitantly over the screen as he prepared to compose a message back to Ashley. He couldn’t deny the small thrill that accompanied the thought of defiance.
Ashley
Ashley, I do appreciate the kind words
I can’t lie, I don’t think I’d be good company tonight but I’d love you take you out another evening if that works with you?
He hit send before his brain could register the hesitation that fluttered in his stomach. There it was—a small act of rebellion against the hurt he felt, and almost a way of saying to Beck, ‘Flirting with Ashley? I’ll show you flirting with Ashley.’
A rush of adrenaline coursed through him, quickly followed by a wave of guilt. Was he being fair to Ashley? Did she really deserve to be a pawn in this emotional game? He knew he should have just respected the chaos and kept a safe distance, but the allure of Ashley as a means to distract him from the pain was too appealing to resist.
Rubbing the back of his neck, he tried to shake off the guilt. Did it even matter now? Beck had thrown him aside, and maybe this was just a way to reclaim some agency in the situation.
──── @Kbail • @LunaticLeviTheSecond ────