Ember and Ashes | Wavier| Slowburn

Woe to be Crushed

As the heavy rain pelted against the windowpane and thunder echoed across the midnight sky, Wednesday savored the symphony of the nature's wrath. Normally, she would be seated in front of her typewriter, effortlessly typing away at her latest chapter as the words flowed like the raindrops from above.

But tonight was different. Inspiration eluded her, and she couldn't write a single sentence that met could exceed her expectations. Frustrated, Wednesday lay stiff as a corpse on her bed, hands folded neatly across her chest, lost in deep thought.

Her roommate had been glued to her phone for hours, texting to her boyfriend and giggling every now and then. Solid evidence that modern technology was rotting the brains of adolescents. If Wednesday had to endure one more "Ohmygod look at this cute text he sent me, isn't he just the cutest," Wednesday would cut off her own ears like Vincent Van Gogh.

Wednesday had an ideas. She needed to put an end to this madness, she reasoned. Might as well get some information out of it.

"Enid. I am in need of your insistence. Specifically, your insight on the topic of gossip."

The blonde werewolf sat up immediately, abandoning the her phone.

"Give me the names. I'm on it."

Enid cracked her knuckles, ready for action. Wednesday rolled her eyes at her roommate's theatrics, but continued.

"I need some information on Heather, who is, I believe, also a student of Nevermore."

She replied, her tone firm and businesslike. Eind's brow furrowed in concentration as she began to recall everything she knew.

"Heather Montgomery, nymph. Cordelia Hall, same year as us. Captain of the cheerleaders squad. Popular and quickly gaining influence, might even dethrone Bianca as the new Queen Bee,"
The werewolf recited in one single breath.

"Your extensive knowledge of gossip may prove to be not entirely useless, Enid." Wednesday complimented begrudgingly, causing her roommate to beam with pride.

"I am also curious about her relationship with Xavier, as of late they seem disturbingly close. Although she comes across as bland and uninteresting, her motives remain unclear and therefore suspicious."

Enid's eyes narrowed.

"Hm. Interesting. And pray tell, why would you want to know about that?"

There was a sly undertone to her question that Wednesday failed to detect.

"Witnessing them together repulses me. It makes my gag reflexes kick in, and the urge to knife that girl."

Enid froze in disbelief as she struggled to comprehend what she had just heard. Wednesday, on the other hand, remained composed, observing her friend's reaction with an air of detachment.

"Enid, close your mouth before you catch flies." She remarked dryly.

The werewolf shook her head, as if trying to shake off the shock. Her features twisted into an expression of a person who had discovered a great truth.

"Wait, can it be? You're jealous! You have a crush on Xavier Thorpe?"

Enid blurted out, her voice rising an octave with excitement.

"Oh my God. Oh my God! I knew it! Yoko owes me twenty bucks!"

She squealed in delight, bouncing on the mattress and kicking her feet. Wednesday heaved a deep sigh, coming to the realization that her roommate was far more stupid than she had initially presumed.

"That accusation is preposterous. I may have committed multiple atrocities in my life, but harboring a childish infatuation on a boy is certainly not among them."

Enid remained unperturbed.

"Sorry roomie, but in my experience, if that's not a genuine crush you're having on Xavier, I don't know what is."

Wednesday's jaw clenched in annoyance.

"I assure you, I do not-"

"However, you'll have to make a move on your man, pronto. Heather's really into him, and I think there's definitely something going on between them. If you don't act fast, you might lose him."

Interjected Enid with a sudden solemnity in her tone.

"Do you really consider that's a possibility?"

"He's quite the catch, and there are plenty of girls who have their eyes on him! I can even give you a list if you want-"

"There will be no such need for that."

Wednesday cut her off, her face was a mask, void of any expression.

"I'll be heading to the library."

With that, she left.

•••
When Wednesday returned to the dormitory half an hour later, she found it uninhabited. She was met with the sound of annoying pop songs blaring from Enid's iPod. Despite the noise, Wednesday couldn't pinpoint the exact source of the music, as the device was probably buried under a heap of stuffed animals. There was pink sticky stuck onto her typewriter that read, "Gone on a date with Ajax!!!" followed by a heart.

Perhaps it was the crudely drawn heart with its anatomical inaccuracies, or maybe it was Taylor Swift's voice, muffled under a pile of stuffed animals. It could have been the lack of caffeine, or perhaps a combination of all these factors, but for Wednesday, it was simply too much to bear.

A guttural sob erupted from deep within her throat. It was the sound was akin to that of a wounded animal, and she loathed herself for it. She sank down onto the floor next to her bed and curled up into a tight ball, unable to stop the tears that were streaming down her face.

Xavier Thorpe always managed to make her shed tears. The worst part was that she knew that he never intended nor desired to hurt her in the first place.

"If you could see that I'm the one
Who understands you
Been here all along
So, why can't you see?
You belong with me
You belong with me"