The Ruined Bride of Velvet Nights by Brick Moving Ant

Chapter 8

When I opened my eyes again, I was in a hospital room.

Mom helped raise my bed, her face lined with worry: “How are you feeling, honey? Still hurting?”

“Sweetheart, I know senior year is crazy important, but you can’t keep pushing yourself this hard.”

“You spent your entire summer break at that competition instead of relaxing. I know grades matter, but all I care about is you being healthy and happy.”

My throat tightened with emotion, her concern washing over me like a warm blanket, and I

mumbled: “I know.”

I hadn’t told Mom about the Stanford automatic admission from winning the competition.

Before all this, I’d planned my entire future around attending UC Davis with Zephyr, or at least somewhere close by.

Zephyr and I had been in this weird almost–relationship for so long that both our families had

noticed and seemed thrilled about it.

Everyone just assumed we were endgame–that we’d naturally end up together.

how I’d seen it

other through twelve years of school,

seemed like fate was pushing us together.

brushing of hands, the late–night study

as part

wanted absolutely nothing

parents or deal with the fallout with Zephyr. I’d just let things

hand, smiling warmly: “Someone came to see you earlier, brought

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Bride of Velvet Nights

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Chapter 2

by your bed for quite a while. Just stepped out but they’ll be back any minute. You should thank them when they

heart skipped a beat, a flutter of something I hated myself

people knew cherries were my favorite–besides my

my emotions a chaotic

humiliation, the bathroom, the cruel words–a tiny, pathetic part of

he’d realized what

things could somehow go back to before I knew

hadn’t wasted years of my life loving someone who saw me as

warm male voice called