ℰ𝓃𝒸𝒽𝒶𝓃𝓉ℯ𝒹

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 32 - 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝐵𝑎𝑐𝑘...𝐵𝑒 𝐻𝑒𝑟𝑒

Your Pov:

"Olivia? There's nothing goin' on between us!" You laughed, shaking your head repeatedly. "Are you sure? Because this photo of the two of you seems to say otherwise" A picture of you and Olivia drinking in the bar, your arm wrapped around her waist, her hair covering nearly your whole face. Drinks were placed in your hands, a smile plastered on your face.

"This is a misunderstanding," You said, trying to fix the damage this interviewer was causing. "We were just having drinks on a Friday night, working on a few songs together. That's it! Nothing more, nothing less"

You and Olivia's company wanted to form a collaboration so you really didn't have a choice. She invited you to talk about work over a few drinks and you couldn't say no. You two weren't that close but you have met quite a few times already.

Olivia got herself too drunk, resulting in her clinginess. To your annoyance, there were a few fans that saw the two of you and took some pictures. You only allowed her to clung onto you just until her cab arrived. There really was nothing more to it. 

You expected him to just drop the topic but he was a very persistent man. "You can't lie to your fans. We already know!" The crowd cheered, agreeing with his words. "Know what?!"

"That you're dating Olivia Rodrigo!" You put a palm to your face, praying to god he would stop spitting shit on your name. "For the last time," You paused, taking a breath. "Me and Olivia are not dating. We're just friends and co-workers. That's all there is to that" You could feel your blood boiling but still kept your composure. This asshole. 

Finally, he nodded and moved on to the next question. You exhaled nervously, you clasped your hands together nervously. This is bad...really bad.

***

Lizzie's Pov:

I scrolled through my twitter, waiting for the set to start. I came across a post; a picture of my girlfriend and....Olivia? I opened the comments, reading all the ship names and compliments they were getting. I searched Olivia's instagram account, clicking her most recent post.

There it was, a picture of her and my lover  together, too close for comfort, hands on each other while they were all smiles. The post was captioned with three roses, with a red heart by the end.

I felt jealousy bubble up in me, gripping the phone tighter whilst exhaling a heavy breath. I couldn't help but stare at the two of them. They look good together. My jealousy soon turned into insecurity. 

She looked so pretty, so slim, so fresh, so young...What was I compared to her? I felt my anxiety kicking in me, feeling my breathing escalate. 

"Hey, you okay?" I looked up at the photographer, smiling. "Yup, 'we ready to shoot?" I asked, putting my phone down on the table next to where I sat. He nodded, walking away.

***

Your Pov:

"Lizza?" You called out, looking around your shared house. You knew she was here. Well, at least she should be. Her schedule ended a few hours ago.

"Upstairs!" Came a reply. You dropped your bag, took off your shoes, and shrugged your coat off. You marched up the stairs, excitement followed your steps. You kicked the ajar door, stopping to see her smiling back at you.

"I missed you," She whined, pouting adorably at you. "I missed you too" You crawled your way up to her in the bed, wrapping your arms around her when you reached her. She sighed softly against you, arms loosely wrapped around your waist.

"How was work?" You questioned, turning so your back was against her front. "Hmm, not too bad. The usual photoshoots and interviews and such" You hummed, letting your eyes close.

"Actually, I-" There was a pause within her words, making you look up at her in question. Her eyes refused to meet yours, instead staring at the mirror that reflected your position. "I saw a post earlier," You pulled back, startled by her hesitance.

The two of you had always been open and sharing with each other. Especially when it came to personal problems or mental health issues; you were always there for one another. You placed a hand to her shoulder, urging her to continue.

"I- It's not a very big deal..I just-" She struggled with her words, making your heart break even more.

"Elizabeth," You cut her off. "It's okay. You can tell me..."

"I saw a post about you and Olivia together. The one when you were at the bar'' She wanted to avoid your silence as much as possible so she added, "I know, you asked permission to go out and I shouldn't be feeling like this because I allowed you to go and it's not like you're not allowed to have other female friends. I'm probably just-" You wrapped your arms around her, pulling her into a warm embrace.

"I understand..." She let go completely, sagging in your arms. You rubbed her back, calming her and reassuring her. "I know what you saw. I saw it too. You don't have to worry about anything, okay? We're just friends, nothing's going on between us. I promise."

You knew Lizzie. You knew how she gets paranoid about the little things. You knew how easily she got bothered by the media. You wanted to believe her when she said that she understood but you knew, you knew she was hiding feelings from you.

But you decided to let the steam blow off on its own and let the matter just drop. There are times where she asked you for help; to communicate. You just felt like she wanted to deal with this on her own. She wanted to fix the way she felt. Sometimes, she really just needs to be left alone. 

Either way, you would always be a call away if she ever needed someone to talk to.

***

After a few days, Lizzie seemed to be just fine. The issue somehow became bigger and turned into a scandal. You and Olivia met up last wednesday to talk about work and your current status. It was a really big risk, going out in the open with her, especially since you had a scandal going on. But you both had nothing to hide. 

It was just a simple coffee to catch up and clear things up with each other. But to your dismay, some paparazzis caught up to the two of you and started taking pictures. The worst thing about it was that you both weren't aware that you were being photographed. And that was last Wednesday.

Today is tuesday. The scandal has yet to die down but you have tried and did everything you could to shut all the rumours down. You have been so busy with work but you always made sure to check up on Lizzie.

It was exhausting dealing with the media. It was like a fight you would never win. Along with that, you had to make sure that Lizzie was okay. You had to make sure to give her the constant assurance that she needed. You knew how easily scared she got. Though, there are times when you couldn't answer her calls since you were being interviewed or doing live shows, you always made sure to call her afterwards. Communication has always been a big factor in your relationship. You failed to notice that that was slowly starting to change.

Everything Has Changed.