:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

( FOUR YEARS AGO )

"no one was looking for me-- y/n?" as soon as she left the building, therissa looked around the front yard, where you seemed nowhere to be found, even after you promised you'd stay at the watch-tower. were you playing a prank on her? therissa thought to herself, shaking her head from side to side in disappointment. walking towards the watch-tower, the brunette didn't think much of it, finding it useless to get upset, but just as she was about to continue with her duty, something in the corner of her eye caught her attention.

the front gate was open. and it definitely wasn't before she had left. this caused therissa to quickly grab her weapon and start looking around the yard, calling out y/n's name once in a while, which caught almost everyone else's attention. after therissa explained the worrying situation, they all begun to look for y/n or any clues on what might have happened. soon all the commotion woke up and alerted the rest of the school, violet aswell.

"what's going on?" furrowing her brows, violet questioned, walking out of the building, confused. "the front gate was open and no one can't find y/n." violet didn't even bother to look who just answered her question, as those words made the breath isnide her throat hitch. where were you? did something happen to you? questions immediately filled her head, in pure confusion and worry. glancing around, violet's eyes met another familiar pair - minerva. even with the lack of light, violet couldn't miss how minnie's face twitched with fear.

many days passed without a single clue and all your friends were still desperately searching for you, yet nothing. days turned into weeks and most of the people at the school stopped believing you're ever coming back, because this wasn't the first time someone has simply got up and left. but your friends choose to not believe it, as they didn't think you'd leave them out of nowhere. weeks turned into months and there were more important responsibilities to care about, rather than your sudden disappearance. and when the months turned into years, everyone simply accepted the fact you're not returning back, so they attempted to move on.

( PRESENT )

sitting on a wooden stool, right in front of the piano, you watched as louis next to you stretched his hands, before placing them down on certain piano keys. you could feel the breath inside your throat getting stuck, as soon as he begun playing a slow, yet lovely melody. you'd never expect a person could miss the sound of piano so much. it brought you a nostalgic feeling. watching louis' fingers play, you allowed yourself to relax. since the previous day, everything seemed too rushed for you and you barely had any free time to process everything. only twenty-four hours ago, you were all alone and outside the walls of the school, barely surviving.

letting out a shaky breath, your body tensed up, as you tried to pay no attention to your painful injury. "i never thought i'd be back here." you blurted out almost silently. "i have no clue how to feel right now." your voice was barely above a whisper at this point, which caused louis to press the last and final piano key, before silence took over the room for the next few seconds. "we all missed you, but that doesn't mean we..." the brunette stopped for a short while, thinking to himself, before glancing to his side at you. "...that doesn't mean we weren't hurt by your decision." louis' words hit harder than expected.

"well it was a painful decision to make." you wanted nothing more than say it out loud, but you rather bit your tongue and kept quiet. "but hey, at least you got a cool-ass scar." nudging your side with his elbow, louis smirked, causing you to let out a short laugh, ignoring the pain in your lower abdomen. "the healing process wasn't very cool." you remarked. you were glad louis was trying to make the situation easier for all of you, yet you couldn't help yourself and keep bringing up questions about your sudden appearance at the school.

"you don't mind me staying here, do you?" biting the inside of your cheek once more, you quietly questioned. "so you're staying?" the brunettes face suddenly lit up at your words. "i'm not sure, louis. maybe i should just go." sighing, you explained, not being able to meet his eyes that were staring at you with a sad gaze. "i'm glad you're back." at louis' words, you smiled a bit and nodded in response. silence took over the room once again and you started to anxiously play with your fingers. no matter how much louis tried to reassure you, the guilt and mixed up feelings about being back in the school were still there, growing bigger. "it's about violet, isn't it?" breaking the silence, louis quiried.

"how- what do you mean?" his sudden question startled you, but you decided to go ahead and try to play it off, as your heart begun to beat faster against your ribcage. "i've known you for a long time, y/n." louis plainly said, giving you an obvious glare. "we all can sense the awkward tension between the two of you, so take this as a small, friendly advice... talk to her." slightly nudging your shoulder, the brunette gave you a soft smile, quietly waiting for you to return it. and you did. soon enough, the sound of louis playing the piano echoed inside the big room, as his words kept replaying inside your head. you truly wanted to talk to her about everything, but you knew no matter what, your friendship with violet would never be the same, as it used to be all those years ago.

for what felt like the hundredth time that day, you grew overwhelmed - but to you luck, it wasn't due to sadness, grief or anxiety, rather happiness. with a grin, you threw your arms around louis and pulled him closer, interrupting his play, yet you couldn't bother to care at the moment. "are you okay?" your face might have been hidden away from the brunette, yet you were able to hear his smile through his words.

"yeah..." in response, you mumbled. "i'm just really happy to see you, that's all."

a long sigh escaped your lips, earning the brunette's attention once again, as he slowly watched you pull away and stand up, before asking : "leaving already?" you hid your hands inside the pockets of your jacket, answering. "i'll just go take a look around and see, if there's anything i can help with." you innocently shrugged your shoulders, backing up towards the big, wooden door. "actually, everything's been taken care of. surprising, i know." louis playfully rolled his eyes at his own words. "you should rest. after all, you're still healing."

now it was your turn to roll your eyes at louis' smirk. "i'll wake you up, if we need help." the brunette assured you. "promise?" you raised an eyebrow, slowly opening the door. "promise." at his words, you felt some sort of relief. "okay, i'll see you later, bye!" you quickly waved your hand in the air, slipping through the gap of the slightly opened door, but not before catching a glimpse of louis waving back to you.

another quick nap couldn't possibly hurt, because even though you woke up not too long ago, you couldn't help, but still feel tired. maybe it was your body, attempting to catch up on all the sleep it missed when living outside the school's walls with no shelter...

©anm3mi