𝐏𝐄𝐎𝐏𝐋𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆
𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐊𝐞𝐳𝐢𝐚𝐡

all credits for this idea go to aurya (s1eept00much_)! i read her old ruel imagines book and absolutely loved her imagine 'mine', so i decided to write a similiar one with my spin to it. thank you so much aurya for allowing me to use it <3

tw: drinking, alcohol, weed

𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐆𝐎 to a party today was the last thing on my mind. The smell of alcohol and weed all around me makes me sick to the stomach. Of course, it wasn't me who decided to a party, I was forced to go because my friend, Theo, thinks I'm inside a little too much than I should be and need to loosen up.

"Honestly I don't mind being inside my house. My way of loosening up is to listen to soft music and read a book," I tell Theo, who is driving the car and I am sitting in the seat next to his. "It's so much better than having the disgusting smell of weed stuffing up my nose."

"And you wonder why you only have one friend," Theo rolls his eyes at me. I sigh, leaning my head against the window, looking at the houses and the trees rush by.

We reach the house pretty soon, and get out of the car. Just as me and Theo enter inside, the smell of alcohol and weed instantly stuff my nose, making me wanting to gag. The loud music thumps against my eardrums and the neon lights flashing around the house poke me in my eyes as if they are sticks.

"Want a drink?" Theo yells in my ear. I instantly shake my head, wanting to not be anywhere near alcohol tonight. Theo goes to the kitchen to get a drink for himself, while I decide to crash on the couch. I sit there, watching people around me play games, drink alcohol, smoke weed, dance to the banging music, or make out.

Some time passes for which I did nothing but stare around. Theo went to get a drink for himself, but he didn't return. Already feeling a headache creep around my forehead and an urge inside me to just sleep under my warm blankets, I get up from the couch and walk to the kitchen to find Theo and make him drop me to my house.

As I enter the kitchen, I look around to spot the familiar bob of auburn hair, but all my effort goes in vain. I sigh, as I begin to turn around to look for him in a different part of the house. But, just as I turn around, I feel cold soda seep through my white cardigan.

Well fuck.

An instant gasp leaves my mouth, as I look down at my cardigan to notice a huge dark, damp spot right where the soda fell. I begin to look up to make the person apologise for ruining one of my favorite cardigans, but my mouth falls shut and my eyes widen when my eyes collide with a pair of simliar amber eyes.

Ezra.

My night might have just gotten worse. Thank you so much, Theo.

When Ezra's eyes collide with mine, it feels as if time has stopped. The music blurs out and a tiny voice in the back of my head keeps on screaming: "Turn around and run!"

But of course, my legs have something else planned for me. They don't move a single centimetre, and I know I'm stuck in this position.

All because of the power his eye contact contains.

"Esme, uh... hey," Ezra says, scratching the back of his neck the way he always does when the situation gets awkward.

I swallow the huge lump in my throat and feel a bead of sweat make it's way down my face. When did it get so hot in here?

"Hi... Ezra," I reply, my voice no less shaking than his.

"How's everything been? Your last year of college, how has it been going?"

"It's all good, I guess," A nervous laugh escapes my lips. "How's everything at your end? Is everyone okay? How is Aspen?" I end up asking him a flood of questions. It's quite shocking how am I even able to mutter a single letter in this situation.

"It's alright, and Aspen, she's been recovering really well. She might as well just beat cancer," Ezra says, a soft smile taking over his lips when he talks about his little sister.

"That's nice to know," I reply. "Uh... I guess I better go and find Theo, I really want to go back home,"

Ezra chuckles. "Parties aren't still your thing?"

I shake my head. "Nope, and I don't think they'll ever be," I say, letting out an airy laugh.

Ezra nods at me, and I nod back at him, before walking out the kitchen to find Theo. I can feel my cardigan sticking to my skin, but that is the least of my worries, because all I want is to go back home.

As I search around the house, I fail at finding Theo. He isn't in the kitchen, in the living room, on the dance floor, or out in the garden. He might be upstairs in an empty room with some girl, but I am absolutely not ready to look at such a sight.

My shoulders slump down as I begin to walk back to the kitchen. Ezra is still standing there, leaning against a counter with a red cup in his hand. His hair is grown out a lot more, almost hiding his ears, and he has also grown taller. I recognise the white shirt he is wearing; it's the one I gifted him on his birthday a year ago. I can't believe he still kept it, after all that happened among the two of us.

As I walk back to the kitchen, Ezra hears me. He looks up from his glass, and when he sees I'm alone and not with Theo, he walks to me.

"Can't find Theo?" He asks, his eyes scanning the surroundings.

I shake my head. "Nope," I sigh.

"I can drop you if you want," He says nonchalantly.

My eyes slightly widen. "No, it's alright. I'll go by myself-"

"It can be very dangerous Esme. It's almost 11 pm. Come on, let me drop you," He persuades.

"Alright," I say. He keeps his cup on a counter and I follow him out of the house. We walk a short distance to reach his car; which is the same he's had since two years now. He opens the passenger door for me and I sit inside, mumbling a 'thank you'. Ezra walks around the car and sits in the driver's seat.

Pretty soon, we are out on the road. I begin to tell him directions to my home, but he still remembers them well, so he tells me to not tell him those. The entire car ride passes in silence. Soft music plays from the radio, and I lean my head back and close my eyes, letting the music flow in my ears.

I feel the car come to a stop, and I open my eyes to see us right in front of my home.

"Thank you so much Ezra," I say, with a soft smile on my face. He nods at me as an acknowledgement. I begin to open the door of the car, but Ezra stops me.

"Esme wait," He says. I bring my hand back to my side from the handle.

My eyebrows crease together as I look at him. "What happened?"

He lets out a sigh, and straightens his position in his seat, turning his body so he is facing me.

"Why did what we had come to an end?" He whispers, looking right in my eyes.

↶ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊˎ-

𝐈 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐌𝐘 hands to my face, wiping the tears which made their way down my cheeks. But somehow, the stream of my tears doesn't stop, and it keeps on flowing.

"Esme we can't, no we can't..." Ezra stutters, his eyes puffy and his face tear stained, just like mine.

"We aren't meant to be together you know," I shake my head. "We just aren't."

"No Esme, you are my everything. You make me happy when I'm at the worst in my life," Ezra takes my hands in his, slowly intertwining our fingers. "Please don't leave me," He whispers, "please don't."

I bring my hands back from his touch, making him look up at me with red, wide eyes. I continuously shake my head. "We have fallen out of love Ezra," I whisper. "We aren't made for each other,"

"But-"

"Bye Ezra," I mumble, turning my back to him and leaving his house. Just as I close the door of his house behind me, I hear the sound of glass shattering from inside. I run to my car and sit inside, leaning my head against the steering wheel and clutching onto it till my knuckles turn white, as my sobs become violent cries, my body shaking.

My cries slowly calm down, as I wipe my tears from my face one last time, and begin to drive.

One of the most exquisite chapters of my life just came to end.

↶ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊˎ-

𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊 𝐈𝐍 reality from the flashback isn't something I want. Being in reality means having to answer Ezra's question. I can easily ignore him and walk out of the car, but why do my limbs always have different things planned for me?

"I never fell out of love, you know," He says, his eyes deeply sinking in mine.

I never did either.

I click my tongue against my teeth. "Ezra-"

"Esme please listen to me, just this once." He pleads. I nod at him. "How do you even expect me to fall out of love? You gave me everything, you were the cause of my happiness. When I was the lowest in my life, you swooped in at the right time, and saved me from doing something really tragic. I love you so much Esme, I always have,"

I feel small tears blur my eyes. This can't happen. We aren't made for each other. We just aren't.

"I'm sorry Ezra," I whisper. I turn around in my position and finally, my limbs work the way I want them to. I step out of the car and close the door behind me, walking to my house without even turning my head around.

He doesn't stop me. It's time he knows I am not the one for him.

I love you so much Ezra, but us being together isn't a possibility.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

well- the original imagine ended quite happily but here i am ruining all your thoughts of having esme and ezra together </3

i hope you liked my twist on it aurya!! again, thank you so very much for letting me use this idea <3 i love youu

please vote and comment if you enjoyed it! and don't forget to treat yourself like an absolute royal mwah

WITH LOVE THROUGH HEALTH AND SICKNESS
KEZIAH